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A group of us met at Schnitzel Garten on a Thursday evening. I used my GPS for directions, but still had a difficult time locating the restaurant as it is on a corner of a 'mini mall' and not very visible from the street as you a driving along. I was surprised at how rustic the decor and seating were, given reviews I'd read (and the prices) I'd expected something a bit more upscale- however I've taken this as a lesson NOT to expect things when going to visit a new (to me) eatery. It was early on a pleasant fall evening, so our party chose to sit outside. Seating consists of picnic tables, Plastic tablecloths if you are inside, but none if you are outside. If you are a person of size, or have any issue that makes picnic table seating difficult or uncomfortable be warned.
The few folks who'd arrived ahead of us were settled and had ordered drinks. There were baskets on the table with paper napkins and silverware, a few drink menus and a few 'Ocktoberfest' menus (a scaled down menu for the restaurant that stated it was served until October 6th, yet here is was October 9th). It became apparent after a few minutes that they were either short staffed, or that there was only one primary server. Knowledgeable about the menu and how things were prepared, but, as became more apparent later, either overworked or simply short fused in terms of dealing with other staff, AND without the best method of serving a group.
My husband and me were not drinking that night, so I ordered a soda ($3.50 for a PINT and nary a refill offered all evening), he had water(again no refill offered). Interesting to note though that others at our table who were imbibing in wine or beer, seemed to get plenty of attention in terms of refills, even water. Ah well, a small thing.
We started our Schnitzel Garten dining experience with a Schinken Kase Bretzel, a pretzel roll with cheese and bacon bits. This arrived hot and fresh, with a soft and tasty bretzel (pretzel) base, plenty of melted cheese and absolutely heavenly bacon (not prefab 'bits' but chopped pieces of glorious bacon). My husband had decided to go the pasta route, ordering the Jager Spatzle- a freshly prepared dish of pasta, bacon, onion, mushroom and cheese. I opted for the Jager Schnitzel using pork- which is a pork loin pounded flat, breaded and fried, served with a mushroom sauce- I chose sauerkraut and cucumber salad (gurkensalat) as my sides.
We experienced the aforementioned interaction between the server and a young man helping her out when the entrees for our group began to arrive. The young man (perhaps new to his position) was uncertain if the meat on the schnitzel he was bringing to our party was chicken, pork or veal (it appeared they used color flagged toothpicks to mark them, but he wasn't sure). When he asked the help of the server as she went by she basically snapped at him "Do I look like the cook to you?" and kept going. So the young man had to return inside the restaurant with the food to ask. Having done my time on tile floors working in food service, I know it's not easy, but I was astounded that this type of interaction took place in full view of our party.
Back to the food.. While we were quite impressed with our bretzel appetizer, this same could not be said for our entrees. My husbands Jager Spatzle needed more cheese, and just seemed to be bland. I tried some at the restaurant, and then the next day we heated the leftover portion. Indeed it needed more cheese. I discovered that schnitzel is pretty much a glorified chicken fried steak, and I'm sorry to say that I've experienced better 'chicken fried' meats in other Boise establishments for half the cost of what we spent this evening. The mushroom sauce was good, but there needed to be more of it. I am used to the edges of anything 'chicken fried' being crispy. with my Jager schnitzel however, the cripsy (dare I say overcooked?) seemed to be advanced further to the center of the meat that it should have. The Gurkensalat was the HIGHLIGHT of my entree.. a cucumber salad in a creamy base (Sour cream perhaps? Buttermilk?)- thinly sliced cucumbers and dill. It was quite refreshing. The sauerkraut was a disappointment. It seemed much like the very same foodservice 10 gallon bucket sauerkraut I've seen on the condiment bar at Costco or any stadium. No caraway, no peppers, nothing to make it any different than the jar of sauerkraut in my own fridge at home. Am I being to nitpicky to think that in a German restaurant I might find something that stands out a bit more?
When our main course was complete, even though no one asked us about it, the group began to consider dessert. In a whirl wind stop, the server spoke to about half the group sharing the three choices available that evening. Being at the other end of the table, we missed out and got the 411 from the rest of the group. Cheesecake, and Apple Strudel and | 0negative
| 882 |
Regular readers know that the GF and I are big fans of Iron Chef Jose Garces' restaurants. And one of our favorites is Tinto - his ode to Spanish tapas. It's a beautifully intimate space, especially by the open kitchen in the back.
So for the GF's bday earlier this year, I didn't hesitate to take her back to one of her favorite spots.
White Sangria [$9]
White wine, brandy, peach, lemon
The GF always get the white sangria. Not overtly saccharine with a nice brandy backbone, there's a great balance between the citrus and sweet.
Negroni de Jerez [$12]
Amontadillo sherry, house made rose, vermouth, aperol
I enjoyed the negroni, which was amped up with the addition of sherry and rose. I enjoyed the smoothness of this easily quaffable drink.
Bread Service
As always, dinner at Tinto starts off with a small amuse. Apparently moving on from the Mahon crisps we had the last time around, we enjoyed these mini breads, which were paired with a smoky pepper dip with a bit of kick.
Cheese Mixto [$16]
Boucheron, Idiazabal, La Peral
The cheese plate featured boucheron, which was soft, yet semi-firm in texture with a mild tang that's prototypical of goat's milk cheese. Idiazabal was lightly smoky and is typically made from unpasteurized sheep's milk. La Peral blue was also on offer and was tempered in its funk. It had a nicely soft creaminess, with accents of sweet. Quince paste with espelette pepper, Granny Smith apple slices, and acacia honey was paired with the trio of cheeses, along with some baguette slices.
Foie Gras Torchon [$21]
Chilled foie gras, cherry, pistachio, toast
I couldn't help but order the torchon. While I could have used a warmed butter knife to effectively slice through the foie, I enjoyed the surprisingly light essence of the liver. An elegant cherry gelee served as the counterbalance, along with some lightly macerated and sliced cherries. Pistachio crumble and toast points provided texture for each rich bite.
Figs [$5]
Serrano wrapped figs
Figs were simple, but showcased the quality of the ingredients. The glistening flavors of the serrano ham came on the forefront, though admittedly, the dish ran a bit sweet for my taste as the figs and accompanying sauce could not be denied,
Dungeness Crab Croquettes [$12]
Avocado, sauce donostia, mojama
I wasn't sure whether the mojama was integrated into the nicely textured crab croquettes, but there was a great hit of salinity that may have been emblematic of the cured tuna. This was nicely balanced by the sweetness of the crab. A duo of sauces were provided as well.
Tuna Tartare [$11]
Bluefin tuna, pickled guidilla, chorizo aioli
The tuna tartare came atop a soft, buttery pastry not entirely unlike a croissant. There was plenty of unctuous bluefin, which was lightly dressed. A bit of fried chorizo and pickled guidilla pepper provided additional accents of flavor.
Pork Belly Montadito [$9]
Berkshire pork belly, honey lacquer, shaved apples
Obviously, I always get the pork belly bites. Wonderfully crisp on the outside and gorgeously unctuous within, the hefty slabs of belly seemed lacquered in a bit of honey to provide some balance along with the crisp shaved apples. Easily a favorite of mine.
Prawns [$12]
Shrimp, chorizo, grape tomato, espelette chile
Another must order in my mind are the prawns. The GF's a bit wary of head-on shrimp, but luckily for her, I'm a head-man myself and have no problem saving the rest for her. The bit of crisp chorizo provided smoky heft, while the grape tomato and lemon aioli provided a nice countervailing balance to each bite.
Diver Scallops [$18]
Uni emulsion, parsip
Our first experience at Tinto was where the GF realized she actually did like scallops. And while these were cooked to perfection, the accompanying vanilla-parsnip puree ate a little too sweet and was a little out there for us. The vanilla seemed to perfume each bite so that the innate sweetness of the bivalve was lost at times. Any of the uni emulsion remained undetected.
Brussels Sprouts [$12]
Crispy guanciale, black truffle, pine nut escabeche, Meyer lemon, Idiazabal
On the other hand, the brussels were on point and plentiful. The Idiazabal cheese made a reappearance and coated the savory brussels, which had nice bite. The bits of guanciale added a salty hit, with the Meyer lemon providing that acidic twang to wake up the palate. The black truffle essence kept the base savory though, with the hits of strong mustard really making the dish on the finish.
Overall, there were some misses for us in this recent Tinto experience, but you can't deny the kitchen's creativity. While the mainstay dishes like the pork belly montaditos and the prawns will keep Tinto a favorite of ou | 2positive
| 793 |
I'm giving this place 3.5 stars, but rounding to the nearest whole number. In an alleyway, you'll find this place with an ornate door. Knock or hit the buzzer and someone will come get you. They won't let you in until everyone comes, so make sure your friends are actually punctual or just lie to your constantly late friend about the reservation time. Either or! It would be nice if they had some kind of heat lamp during the colder months for those waiting outside.
Once inside, you'll feel like you've been transported to a Moroccan love den with the sights of the belly dancers and the beautiful tapestry pieces. The dining areas seem to be pretty spread out, which gives some privacy to the experience. The seating is very low and my one friend who was sitting on what looked like a fancy ottoman said it was uncomfortable. A waiter will greet you, give you the rundown of how the meal will go, ask about dietary restrictions, and give you a towel. You're gonna need them! Then, you're hands are doused with rosewater, which felt very refreshing. Pita bread is then handed out, I suggest taking 3. You don't want to fill up on the bread for courses when you don't need them.
The Courses:
1. 3 Salad Platter - cooked eggplant, pepper and cucumber salad, and carrots. So I'm mildly allergic to eggplant and decided to live on the dangerous side and try it. OMGGZZZZ. It is DELICIOUS! I wish I had a vat of it that I could swim in! I don't even like cucumbers, but I enjoyed them thoroughly. Same goes for the carrots. This was my favorite part of the whole meal!
2. B'stella - It's a chicken pie with eggs, almonds, nuts, onions wrapped in phyllo dough and topped with cinnamon and confection sugar. I liked how it was both a savory and a sweet dish. It was extremely hot on arrival and very tasty. I didn't really get too much of the chicken flavor, but thought it was very eggy. Still had great flavor and really got your tastebuds moving.
3. Chicken - It's a whole one! Was the second favorite for me. You can get it either mild or spicy. My party of 6, including fellow Yelper Christina R., got it mild because one person does not like spicy, so we got spicy sauce on the side. Kind of annoyed with the spicy naysayer because I wish that whole chicken was covered in it! It was cooked to perfection, with the bones easily falling off and the meat was super tender. For some of you, this is the point where fullness may start to kick in and you're almost halfway through the meal.
4. Lamb - It was either a shoulder or a shank. It was cooked very well, however, I found the honey lamb with almonds incredibly bland and wished my group went with the beef kebabs. Other people at my table really liked it and I was not one of them, and I love lamb. I highly recommend you go with the beef. It even looked more appetizing.
5. Couscous - Finally, utensils! Spoons were brought out. It had potatoes, chickpeas, chicken, and raisins. All sorts of deliciousness. It became more and more difficult to eat since you're pretty stuffed at this point.
6. Fruit and Hot Tea - Grab it from the top! It's scalding hot! Very nice and definitely relieves the stomach after a serious jaw workout from all that chewing. It's a huge platter of apples, bananas, grapes, and strawberries. Some people put the fruit in their purses since there was no room for their stomachs.
7. Baklava - Very sweet. Very delicious. Diabetics, this is not the dessert for you! Stick with the fruit! But it's a great way to the end the meal.
The setting is dimly lit, so it's a somewhat tough to see 100% what exactly you're eating. I felt like only when there was a camera flash, I completely knew what I was getting myself into. During the first couple courses, my party felt a bit rushed to get rid of one course to move to another. This is a place where this is not a quick and fast meal. You'll easily need at least 2 hours to savor the flavors. The other servers that came in were nice and we were informed that this place, as of 2015 has been in business for 37 years. This place is definitely a converted home turned into a restaurant. Went to the bathroom and saw a shower curtain that had boarded up wood behind it. Beautiful.
This is also a CASH ONLY and BYO establishment. I believe if you are a party of 6 or more, 18% gratuity is already added, so expect to spend around $33 per person. Some people would disagree with me on this, but I don't think this would be a good date spot. Why?! Because you're most likely going to want to eat like a barbarian! Then again, if you're really comfortable, then knock yourself out. Unfortunately, there were belly dancers here on the night I came, which was a Friday, but my room did not get to see any, which is why I get to deduct a star. I did see one entertain a party as I walked in. Bring your friends, your wine, and your eating pants because you're in for a large meal full of entertainment and people watching. | 2positive
| 923 |
While Nashville's Oktoberfest has never been my favorite festival in town, it has always been worth attending...until this year. I completely agree with my fellow Yelpers - 2018 was a total MESS!
Since we had tickets to see Nashville SC play their last game of their inaugural season at First Tennessee Park, we opted to go to Oktoberfest a few hours before the match started. I was surprised to see the festival had moved a bit - part of which landed directly in front of the ballpark entrance. (And of course, there's a lot of new stuff in Germantown now which throws off this old Nashville gal's spidey senses.)
Parking has always sucked for Oktoberfest, so no change there. Ride shares are your best bet for this event unless a bicycle or a scooter can get you to and from reasonably. We found free street parking, but it was a bit of a hike away.
Easily visible signage has never been a strong point for Oktoberfest; it took me a minute to remember that you have to buy tokens in order to obtain an adult beverage from one of the beer tents. These beer tents are the only vendors that distribute alcohol at the festival, with the exception now of the few restaurants that fall along the border of the event. I'll address those restaurants in a sec.
Despite wanting a beer and feeling a little hungry, I decided to get the "lay of the land" before purchasing anything.
I was disappointed in the lack of local artisans, and shocked at the length of the lines at the beer tents. At first I thought maybe it was just one or two of the tents, but as surveillance continued, we realized it was ALL of the beer tents with these ridiculously long lines. The token lines weren't bad, but after seeing those beer lines and taking a minute to see how fast they didn't move, we decided purchasing tokens was a waste of time...and eventually, money.
The festival seemed a LOT smaller than in years past, and it was severely lacking in just about everything except seating. Trash was piled up anywhere there was a flat surface that was not the ground itself. This may have been more forgivable if it had been close to closing time and the trash cans were brimming, but that wasn't the case. Security was also a disaster. People were walking past the barricades of the festival and into the city streets with steins and cups full of beer. No, not the end of the world, but jeez...for such an established event of 39 years?!? At that point, I was irritated yet thankful I had not paid admission to be there.
So these restaurants I previously mentioned...
Like others in the area, Neighbors Germantown opened their venue for a mini-event of sorts. We finally figured out they were operating similar to the Oktoberfest setup, but in a far smaller area with much shorter lines -- admission to their yard was free; drink/food tickets were $8.00 each.
One ticket was good for one beverage from any of the beer stations (I think there were four total all offering something different) or from the cocktail truck. I also noticed they were selling a very limited menu of food, which was also one ticket for a plate.
Realizing this was a much better option, we quickly purchased one ticket each. After maneuvering my way through the crowd, I stumbled across one of the beer tents with NO LINE! Whaaaa?!? I saw Sam Adams Octoberfest as one of three draft beers and exclaimed, "I'll take it!".
So, an hour into this entire adventure, I finally had a beer thanks to Neighbors.
Now food.
Hmm.
Since Neighbors didn't have much in the way of food, and because none of it suited me in the least, I decided it would be best to venture elsewhere --- which would now be not so painful with a brew in hand.
The snag? Neighbors did not want patrons leaving their yard with alcohol in hand per the smallish signs exclaiming "No alcohol beyond this point!". I stood there perplexed as to what to do. With 1.5 hours left before the match started, standing there and slowly drinking a beer without food was not OK by me. I also couldn't understand why Neighbors would even care since the streets surrounding the restaurant were all closed for the event. (Yeah - I know, I know. Legal stuff.)
Once we made it back into the actual Oktoberfest event, I noticed the line for The Pharmacy was pretty short.
"Burger it is!"
I gleefully jumped in line, and in less than 15 minutes I had a very expensive cheeseburger with all the fixins.
Thinking back, what happened to the festival days of browsing all of the local artisan booths with my dog trotting alongside me, beer in hand, torn between food vendors because they all smell so good? Or the festival days of watching my friend's young daughter have one heckuva time in a sea of "jumpy castles" (inflatables) before she sat quietly and patiently for a beautiful face painting that was a masterpiece in itself?
When did this festival become just shy of a drunken shoving match of loud, in-your-face people? | 0negative
| 883 |
My wife Lynn had to attend a conference in New Orleans . . . the National College of DUI Attorneys (I ask you, what better city?) . . . so it offered a perfect opportunity to return to one of our favorite restaurants, owned by one of our favorite chefs, Susan Spicer's Bayona.
We arrived at the Louis Armstrong International Airport a little after 2:00 in the afternoon and, once we safely retrieved our bags, I called Bayona from the cab to confirm our dinner reservations for that evening. After checking into our hotel (the truly wonderful International House, Lynn and I walked the three blocks to the Acme Oyster House for a couple of dozen on the half shell and some Abita Amber beer on tap, a smooth, flavorful Mnchen-style amber brew that is just hoppy enough to perfectly accompany a variety of New Orleans' staple foods.
A walk around the quarter, a change of clothes, and we walked the eight blocks to Bayona. Arriving a little early, we sat in their waiting area and enjoyed a glass of
2001 Domaine de Piaugier Ctes-du-Rhne Villages "Sablet" (Rhne, France): A blend of approximately 80 percent Grenache and 20 percent Syrah, this is a medium-bodied, supple wine that is very forward and aromatic in the nose, generous without being flabby or fat on the palate and quite flavorful on the palate and moderately-long finish. A comfortable wine to "slip into" the evening that awaited us.
We began with an Amuse bouche of crawfish in a curried sauce, baked in phylo dough and served with a tomato coulee. Crispy, deliciously flavorful and gone all-too-quickly, Lynn and I both knew we had nothing to worry about when it came to this meal!
I moved on to a supremely seductive Cream of Garlic Soup, amazingly rich and flavorful, but just when it expect it to be full-bodied and almost heavy, the wine seduces you with its lightness and delicate subtlety. (If it sounds as though I'm laying it on a bit thick, all I can say is this soup is a real winner!) Meanwhile Lynn selected the Seared Scallops with Brandade Croquette, Arugula & Black Olive Vinaigrette. The scallops were cooked to perfection, among the best I've ever tasted. (Lynn let me have one bite, but only one bite.)
With the time change and everything, we decided to share the salad course, and ordered the Crispy Smoked Quail Salad with a Bourbon Molasses Vinaigrette. If a salad can ever be called "rich," this is it! The perfectly smoked quail was succulent and flavorful, rich and tasty as only quail can be, while the vinaigrette was rich and flavorful, perfectly balancing the natural sweetness of the molasses with the acidity from the vinegar. Awesome!
For our entres, Lynn opted for one of Susan Spicer's signature dishes, Veal Sweetbreads in a Sherry-Mustard Butter, while I selected one of the evenings specials, the Buttermilk Fried Rabbit Leg & Tenderloin in a Creole Mustard and Tasso Sauce with Stoneground Grits. Bayona is justifiably known for their sweetbreads, and this certainly did not disappoint. The sweetbreads were lightly crispy on the outside, moist and tender inside, with the light piquancy from the sherry and mustard balancing the natural richness of the butter and the sweetbreads themselves. Major Yums! As for "thumper," I cannot recall ever having rabbit this good -- and I love rabbit! Succulent, tender, lightly spicy (enough to bring out the flavor without hiding it under "heat") We were in heaven!
And the wine we selected from their excellent list turned out to be a perfect match . . . .
2001 Savigny-les-Beaune, Domaine Jean-Marc et Hugues Pavelot (Burgundy, France): I have to start out by saying we began with this wine with our appetizers, the garlic soup and seared scallops, and finished it some two hours later with the last of our entres. Over this time, the wine opened and changed beautifully. It began with a translucent cherry-red color, clear and brilliant to the eye; the bouquet was light and filled with delicate rose petals and cherry blossoms, with cherry fruit; on the palate, the wine was medium-light in body, satiny in texture, with lots of fruit in the mouth and with a long, lightly tart finish. Just wonderful! As it opened (not decanted), the wine took on weight, shed some of its baby "freshness" and became more "serious," with more depth, earth and spice in both the wine's aroma and flavorful palate, perfectly suited to the flavor profiles of the veal and rabbit. A great wine, with a perfectly excellent meal . . . .
* * * * *
As far as things like "good for kids" is concerned, doesn't that depend on the kids? Our kids (11 and 12) would love it, but they also love places like Chez Panisse and Lalime's in Berkeley; my brother-in-law's kids, on the other hand . . . I shudder at the thought!
As far as attire is concerned, the website says "business casual," and that's about right. But every time I've been here, there is a great mix of people -- all ages, and all locations (i.e.: locals and tourists alike). | 2positive
| 865 |
I don't usually take the time to review unless I truly love the place but this time I had to. I do understand that we are in the middle of a pandemic and things have been changing left and right so I gave them some room for error however it has come to the point that I can no longer do that. I reviewed them before and said the cake was amazing which is still true so I hate to have to revise my review however, I must change my review based on my experiences with the company, their reliability and customer service.
After I picked up my wedding tasting box and my fiancé and I tried the array of options we fell in love, I was ready to book. I sent an email to schedule an appointment to discuss the process and any details about booking for my wedding. In the email I received back which I was originally speaking to the owner but all of a sudden I received a reply back from the owners new assistant . This was not a problem as I assumed because the cake is so good that business was picking up and help was needed. The assistant and I set up a date and time for us to meet with the owner along with how much the deposit was. I invited my mother and best friend to come with me. On this day it was raining pretty bad outside and I don't live close at all but we made it on time. Upon arrival we were informed that the owner was not there and would not be back also that our appointment was no where in their schedule! I was very annoyed with this but the person I spoke to tried her best to answer any questions and get any information from me to pass along to the owner, she also let my mom and friend try the cake since they had not tasted it yet. Still I was disappointed as I was prepared to book right then and there.
This was the first red flag. The lady we spoke to said she would pass along all of the information to the owner and the owner would call me back on Friday. She was apologetic but I was still understandably annoyed but polite. I don't understand how an assistant scheduled an appointment and doesn't let the owner know. My family brought up that this is a sign that they may not be reliable and could I trust them to do what they need to on my wedding day.
But... I loved the cake and was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt because mistakes happen. Friday came and went I was not contacted like promised. Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday no contact. Finally on Wednesday I sent an email. The owner responded back immediately and apologized and set up a time for her to call me so we could discuss details. I was again a bit disappointed in their business practices but I again let it go. The owner did call me that weekend and we discussed what I wanted and wedding details. I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted so she said I could send her some pictures and she would send me some sketches with ideas and pricing. At this point I was again excited about this as I was told by another company that they would send sketches but never did and I was happy to have a picture of what she could do and my options. A couple days later I sent some pictures of what I like. I sent a lot so it may have been overwhelming so I expected it to take some time before she sent sketches to me. However, I never even received an email stating she received the pictures and I had to email to confirm in which I was told again by the assistant that they received them and the owner was looking them over trying to find a theme as I did send a lot of pictures. This was no problem I could wait and was still excited also still preparing to book with this company. A month passed no sketches, it has now been two months since I sent the pictures and I still have not heard back. I sent another email to see if they had any information for me and I still have not received a response. I am extremely disappointed as I have been speaking with this company since April and still have not booked and it is August. This company makes great cake and I assume those they have worked with have been happy but I am very disappointed and I can not vouch for their customer service or reliability. Again for taste they would get 5 stars but after my experience I can not confidently keep the rating the same. | 0negative
| 826 |
I began the slow walk across Philadelphia en route to the final dinner of my gastronomic tour-according to Phillymag I'd be visiting the city's best restaurant a mere two hours later. Having never really been a fan of Middle Eastern food in the past I have to admit that my visit to Washington DC had done a lot to place Zahav on my list of "must eat" places for the trip-both Zaytinya and more so Komi had impressed my palate and dining sensibilities. Calling and e-mailing the restaurant a month in advance I will say that Jilian was one of the most helpful concierge in the city.
Entering the space it was surprisingly large-the bar to the right, kitchen to the left, high ceilings and well spaced tables. Decorated darkly and sparsely in sandstone and splotches of stained glass with acceptable kitchen noise and what I can only assume to be "Middle Eastern" music playing overhead the restaurant definitely conveyed a cohesive theme and the bar was packed.
Seated I would next be greeted by my server and the Maitre D' who introduced himself and said "So, you're the guy who wants to try the lamb shoulder solo? No one has ever ordered it alone before, y'know?" Chuckling I did indeed confirm that I was the guy who'd asked Jilian if this was allowable-the rave reviews just seemed too good to ignore.
At this point I feel the need to divert my review for a moment in explanation. When I originally contacted Jilian I explained to her that I wanted to try the lamb, but if that prevented me from getting multiple rounds of mezze then I'd prefer go the small plates route, especially in the setting of the new seasonal tasting menu. I specifically told her the sweetbreads, crispy haloumi, and "The Hungarian" were dished I'd be interested in trying. Additionally, when I spoke to the Maitre D' I again expressed my desire to taste "as many different things as I could" to which I received the response "I think you'll be tasting about 90% of what we do this evening."
Arriving next on the table and sharing space with the pickles and spices would be the oft raved Hummus-tehina with sesame paste, garlic, lemon, olive oil, cumin, parsley and house made laffa bread. Teaming with spice, most notably cumin, and smooth as silk save for the occasional chunky chick pea the hummus was fantastic. Crispy and mildly charred the laffa was a solid example, but not in the same ballpark as the light-as-air version at Komi.
The next dish, costing $24 on the standard menu, yet included in the $42 Mesibah would be the sampling of Salatim. A rotating selection of eight salads my selections seemed similar to those mentioned by previous friends and gourmands with a few unique items; smoked eggplant, stewed okra, beets with tahini, pickled wax beans, shredded carrots and jalapeño, Israeli salad, spiced fennel, and tabouleh. While no option was bad, the shredded carrots were quite unique and the stewed okra and smoked eggplant were both fantastic.
Skipping over the Mezze (see blog for details) the Maitre d' himself would present The Whole- roasted lamb shoulder with pomegranate and chickpeas. I will have to admit I was surprised when the shoulder arrived-not just because I hadn't gotten any of the other mezze I desired, but because I figured they'd scale the course down for one person- they did not. Perched atop a bed of Egyptian rice and sweet, savory, and crunchy chickpeas the shoulder was enormous, flawlessly executed, and decadent. Crisp skin - salty and savory - yielded a thick layer of fat and unctuous supple flesh that literally melted in the mouth. Eating slowly and pairing the protein with the saffron perfumed rice and chunky chick peas there was not a doubt in my mind that the lamb trumped Amada's pig in terms of skilled preparation and flavor. Setting aside fat and bone and focusing on protein over carbs I actually managed the whole shoulder with ease-seemingly to the amusement and shock of the diners around me and the maitre d'. So shocking, apparently, was my accomplishment that the Maitre D' brought Chef Solomonov over to my table to introduce us and after a long chat about the Philadelphia dining scene, his former employer Marc Vetri, and the film "The Great Outdoors" he said "You know, you're the first person to ever eat that solo-with the blond hair and an appetite like that you're like a Viking!"
Viking tendencies aside I declined to have the fat, bone, and small amount of rice packed up to go - I instead sat and enjoyed a cup of dark and nutty coffee while I awaited my dessert, the house special Halvah mousse with blueberry puree and chickpea praline. Similar in texture to the sublime budino at Osteria the day before the "parfait" was served in a glass with layers of texturally complex custardy mousse intermingling with New Jersey blueberry puree and topped with a chickpea praline that bordered between corn-nut and pop rocks in texture; a fantastic dessert with plenty of character and balance. | 1neutral
| 858 |
Prepare to be discriminated against if you're Asian-- yea, you read that correctly.
Me and my wife were in town for NYE visiting from California along with two other couples and stopped by here because of all the rave reviews.
The place was packed. Everything seemed normal at first. We placed our order with the server, Cary (his name was on the receipt-- he's the dude with a beanie and a pathetic Billy Goat goatee/beard).
Like many servers, Cary didn't write anything down, and memorized our order.
This is an impressive technique which many servers have mastered. Unfortunately it requires a certain level of mental capacity in order to pull it off, and our friend Cary certainly demonstrated that he did not possess this mental capacity.
We put in 3 orders of fried chicken; 2 orders-dark meat, and 1-order white, along with some Jambalaya and a salad to share.
About 20 minutes went by, and we noticed the table beside us (a group of 4 Caucasians in their mid 20's) get their fried chicken before us. Now this wouldn't be a big deal except for the fact that they were seated 10 minutes after us.
We're really not the type to pull the race card, or jump to conclusions, so we didn't say anything and gave Cary the benefit of the doubt. Another 10 minutes go by, and then the Caucasian couple beside us (who came in a few minutes after the group mentioned above) receive their fried chicken too.
At this point, we're confused more than anything. Did Cary forget to put in our order?
Seeing that it would take a while to get our food, we decided to put in an additional order of fried chicken because we didn't think we ordered enough food. My Buddy waves Cary down and politely asks him about our existing order and requests an additional dark meat order of chicken. Cary responds that he'll check on our order.
Finally Cary returns another 10 minutes later with our chicken. He brings us two plates of white meat chicken and one dark meat. We noticed it right away and brought it to his attention that we had ordered 2 darks, and one white.
This Hot Shot insists that we put in 3 orders of white and 1 dark meat. This was ridiculous since everyone at our table preferred dark meat, and the white meat order was for me.
Instead of admitting his mistake, Cary makes up the most ridiculous policy I've ever heard. He said: "At this time, we can't take anymore dark or white meat orders. You just get what you get."
WTF is that??
I haven't been here before, but again, I proceed to give this incompetent idiot the benefit of the doubt, and accept the wrong order.
We begin fuming when minutes later we overhear him and another waitress take other people's orders of DARK MEAT chicken without issue or mention of any so-called 'chicken-policy.'
Whatever. We were over it.
Finally we asked him for extra plates since we were sharing. This @sshole replies with: "let me see if we have any clean plates in the back."
This Dimwit returns a minute later and tells us: "Sorry, we're all out of clean plates."
Are you F-ing kidding me? I've NEVER heard any server say that before in my life. Keep in mind this is at 10pm....not minutes before closing!!
We were totally OVER this place. We weren't going to come back anyways, so it was pointless to make a big deal out of it. We decided we weren't going to leave a tip.
When the bill comes, of course they charged us mandatory gratuity-- how convenient.
We took the high road and simply pay the bill and leave. I decided the only justice I could do was warn future Asian patrons of this blatant discrimination on Yelp.
Oh, and the chicken? It was terrible. KFC is much better. It was so salty that we ended up drinking several bottles of water each to dilute all the salt throughout the evening.
Odd, that we would hate the chicken so much considering everyone else on Yelp raves about it. But then again, we did receive our order much later than the Caucasians. Perhaps the fine folks at Coops Place needed some extra time to prepare our 'special' batch.
Fortunately this experience did not ruin our trip to New Orleans.
We went on to Cochon, Cochon Butcher, Luke Restaurant, Jacques-Imos Cafe, and Drago's during our trip and had excellent food, and experienced true Southern Hospitality everywhere else we went.
Come to Coop's Place at your own risk, but don't say you weren't warned-- just be sure to bring your Caucasian friend with you. | 0negative
| 789 |
I swore I'd never go back.
Some Guys Pizza Pasta Grill was the scene of one of my absolute worst customer service experiences, an experience so profoundly negative that I swore I'd never return. It has, in fact, been years since that experience and despite the fact that I live in the neighborhood I had never returned before this evening.
My decision to return to Some Guys was inspired by a couple of things - 1) I have multiple friends who've sworn to me that my experience had to be an exception as they know the owner personally and it would have been unacceptable and 2) Said owner's recent actions during the RFRA controversy here in Indianapolis made me more inclined to support his business.
The "incident," as I call it, involved my arriving for dinner with a friend and being rudely refused, for several minutes, the opportunity to sit in one of their booths because, in their words, my wheelchair would be blocking their aisle and that would make it a fire hazard. Beyond the fact that they were incorrect, they were also stereotyping that I didn't plan to actually get out of my wheelchair. It wasn't so much that it happened, but it was the overwhelmingly negative tone with which everything was communicated. I still vividly remember that night and commonly use it as an example of how not to treat someone with a disability.
So, you can probably imagine my surprise when I was escorted to my table after 15 minutes of a planned 25-minute wait to find that they were, in fact, seating me at one of their booths. In fact, they even apparently planned for me to stay in my chair (but I didn't).
Isn't life weird?
So, almost instantly, Some Guys went from a "never again" kind of place to a place where I was thinking "Maybe this will work out."
The truth is I had my doubts heading in. Some Guys is located in an older strip center at 62nd & Allisonville Road. While the other side of the strip center has better accessible parking (in front of Big Lots), the building is divided in two with a step separating the two. Some Guys has a couple of non-ADA accessible spots, including one right at its curb that offers the only step-free option onto its sidewalk. If you use that spot, you may very well block the access. It's a weird, poorly designed area.
The restaurant has two sets of doors going in - one of which I had such a hard time opening that I actually left thinking maybe it wasn't the entrance. Once you go in, you're in a waiting area that is separated by wall from the modestly sized dining area. The decor is warm and inviting, though the dining room's acoustics are such that it does get fairly noisy.
The menu consists of the expected pizzas, pastas, appetizers, salads, and desserts. The pizzas include traditional and wood-fired. I opted for pizza, which is skewing slightly away from my current dietary regimen but I was in the mood for a splurge. I went traditional, a small 8" pizza with sausage. I ordered a side of garlic bread and my usual unsweetened iced tea - The entire meal came in at just over $11.
So, while I'd have previously given Some Guys a 1-star rating based upon a truly horrible experience I'm balancing that experience with tonight. The accessibility issues automatically do knock off one star. Parking, getting into the building, and the actual dining area are all not truly wheelchair friendly. It can be done, but it's challenging.
The pizza was good and it's refreshing to have a quality pizza option for someone dining alone. I have a feeling the wood-fired pizzas are better, but this was good. The toppings tended to slide off the pizza, but overall I enjoyed it. The garlic bread was fairly disappointing - very crusty and rather light on the garlic. I'd consider it all slightly above average and 3-stars feels right. The truth is that WB Pizza is less than a block away and serves up better pizza. That said, Some Guys offers up a better dining atmosphere.
My server, whose name I never caught, was also in that 3-star range. She was attentive and I got my refill, but she seemed hurried even after the dining room had started to empty out as I was dining later than usual. She did everything I needed, but she didn't really make me want to go back.
While 3-stars may not feel like a great rating for a pizza joint regarded as one of Indy's better ones, it's a sure sign for me that my prior negative experience may truly have been a horrid fluke. While this isn't likely to be a destination spot for me, it was a nice change of pace and I actually ran into 3 people I knew while there! Some Guys also has a Carmel location and is currently celebrating its 25th year in Indy. | 1neutral
| 844 |
So based on previous reviews, there is a lot I really wanted to like about this place. Of course, as it is with almost every Chinese buffet out there, they slip in some areas.
First reaction is that I do like the overall look inside and I do appreciate the huge selection they offer. It's well lit, and very spacious. There's a lot to try here, at least twice the amount of many similar places. I was unable to sample all of their wares. But I will give you a rundown of what the wife and I did sample.
I went straight for the sushi selection for the first round. The positives here are that they offer easily 3 or 4 times the amount of sushi that most of these places offer. So the variety lover in me was happy. But... to the chagrin of my wife, nothing is labeled. You basically have to take a leap of faith here. If you are picky about sushi (like my wife) you will be scared away. If you have some adventure (like me), you will go for it.
Quality of the sushi... taste wise I was fine. I've had better,I've also had worse. One thing I noticed... the tempura battered sushi they offer was cold when I got it. This made the texture chewy rather than crunchy. One of the dangers of having so much sushi available is that some of it might lay out. Although they do have a chef there to maintain quality and freshness for the raw sushi, the cooked varieties might have this issue. But, I devoured my first plate in record time, so I must have been happy on some level.
My wife reported a few issues with her first plate. The chicken and broccoli, she reported, was a bit gelatinous. She did not enjoy it. Again, with so many dishes available, the chances of some items sitting out longer increases. It obviously affected the dish. Also, at the hibachi station which has a raw bar, she stated that she was going to go for some raw chicken to get the cook to make for her, until she had noticed some raw shrimp had fallen into the chicken pan.
Now, I'm not sure if someone with shrimp or seafood allergies would come here in the first place. But, there is a quality control issue here. The raw shrimp pan was located directly behind the raw chicken pan. This means the chances of raw shrimp falling into the chicken increases dramatically as people spoon it toward their plate and some falls off. Again, if you are picky about such things, this will turn you off.
I nibbled on some of the more Americanized fare. There was a dish of roasted chicken on the bone near the hibachi that was quite good. I would recommend that to anyone. The pre-made steak from the hibachi however came out overdone and rubbery. Though I did notice a lot of dishes at the hibachi that I wanted to try, such as the sausage, but didn't yet. I also tried a piece of sweet and sour chicken from the wife's plate and that also suffered from the out too long syndrome as again, it was more chewy than crunchy. The "tacos" they offered were more like quesadillas, and were merely passable. A quick sampling of a mozzarella stick wasn't too bad. My wife did like the fried dumplings.
Among items that I wanted to try but didn't were the roast pork which looked juicy, and the prime rib which looked tender. But I didn't want to overdo it. That will be the updated review.
Now, where they won us over was on dessert. Some more expensive buffets in the area skimp on dessert. I can't tell you how upsetting it was at one buffet that charged $15 locally for dinner only to find that they give you a hospital styrofoam cup of ice cream. So, to get 8 different flavors of hand dipped Richman's ice cream here is definitely a plus. I thoroughly enjoyed my dish of Moose Tracks, thank you. Also, the chocolate fountain is a nice touch, and the wife loved the ability to chocolate dip her macaroons. Kudos for having a larger selection of overall desserts than most.
You will not be disappointed in the price. If you drink water with dinner (which we did), you can get out of there for two for under $20 before tip. But, if you do not order drinks, they will not honor coupons as the coupons are contingent on drink purchases with the buffet. So take the coupons to mean that you get free drinks as it basically negates that charge. We are generally water drinkers at dinner so no coupon for us. But the price is still right.
Interesting thing about the price which I asked the folks about at the counter.... crab legs are separate from the buffet and charged $5.99 per pound to be brought out to your table. So, this is a plus if you don't care about crab legs. At other places if they have crab legs, they charge everyone the same higher price whether they have crab legs or not. Here, you can avoid that and it will keep overall prices down. Now, if you are a fan of crab legs, you will decide whether or not that surcharge is worth it to you.
They did just enough good to make me give them another shot. I may have to talk my wife into it though. | 1neutral
| 929 |
0 stars-We arrived around 8:20 &were told their closing time but we could get plates & sit there as long as we would like. So that was fine. We had a group- a basketball team and parents and we were told we couldn't sit together but near each other. Ok that was fine although when we asked other teams that we saw they were seated together. The girl Sierra took us to a corner spot far away from our team that we could not even see them & I mentioned they said we could be seated near each other at least and she gave an attitude and said " We sit YOU wherever WE decide, you can't sit where ever YOU want! Our manager, Mike said you cannot sit together." and just left us standing there and walked off! Now she was a total Witch about it( I am being polite) and my kid and another person not with us asked what was her problem? I asked our group and they confirmed they did not know why they were being treated rudely either and one guy who was staying at the hotel and suggested we go to their buffet said he didn't understand bc usually they are good.
Juliana came by and I mentioned the front girl said we could sit near each other if not together and she took us to a spot where at least we could see each other which is good bc the first table that waitress looked overwhelmed and snatched our receipt and went into the kitchen. So I told her we did not have the receipt but the waitress took it from the first table and we did not even sit down as we were escorted to a booth. They even sat some of our team in two seat tables which was kind of weird but they did not complain or anything and just ate their food.
So all this took time and finally we were able to eat and they told us to get the food first in one sitting all that we wanted as they were going to get ready for closing. Even though they closed at 9 pm food was already being put away so we went to the long line for dessert with all the boys in line and other patrons-at least 12 in line but only one lemon meringue pie slice and one broken crushed cherry pie slice and the ice cream machine was broken! They told the line there are no more desserts but there were two cases behind them filled to the brim. Line has grown to 20 now. I went over to the front and asked to speak to the manager Mike bc if they knew they were out of food or had already put the food away then they should have told us to go somewhere else and we would have! Why charge us 80 . plus dollars and I had already given 20% tip and there was hardly any waitress serving us. We already had to flag anyone down just to get drinks and utensils. Our waitress was eating her dinner too. We only wanted those things and nothing else- we were ok with her eating her dinner- she looked tired and was nice.
We had a fairly large group( most came earlier- we were a bit later bc of trouble finding parking) so at least 400. plus worth of business for them there. Yet they could not accommodate us and made it as if we were an inconvenience and no attention at all which if they told us yes they are closing in half an hour or so maybe find elsewhere to go would have been better than taking our money and ignoring us or treating us as if we were an inconvenience.
Kudos though to Julianna who was at the front and could teach Sierra how to act with customers. She explained things to us and tried her best like she got out some of the cakes from the obviously full case to give the boys. I spoke with the manager and he asked me, " Were you the one that came in and your husband is a black man?" I was like "What!? No...and what has that got to do with anything anyway? We just wanted some dessert for the kids and that they should let us know the food was gone before charging us full price buffets if the food is not going to be available so we could go someplace else!"He apologized after I responded incredulously to his rude question and he said it must be someone else- I think he realized his faux pax( he happened to have a French accent)!
But then it dawned on me, our group did have African Americans and when we asked other teams there, they were seated together so why not our group?! So I don't know if that was just coincidental and I usually do not have to deal with such issues or attitudes( but if I did, I would definitely boycott them and get that word out to not give this company any of my business or money!) but I think it is time Harrah's go through retraining customer service-Julianna was patient &knew how to act &worked hard- she should instruct the staff and be promoted for a job well done! Also the line at the dessert line was saying thank you&clapping that I directed them to the desserts as the girl passed them out & they agreed that there should have been at least some desserts even just one cake to give the customers. It irks me when I receive POOR disappointing service after paying so much!
ETA: I have been sick w/food poisoning for past two days- lesson learned-don't eat late buffets-food sitting out all day! | 0negative
| 978 |
OK, so here goes. I have been to Morgan's 3 times now and reserved my review until I could get a good grasp on just what this place had in store. After all, this is Reno Nevada and this guy strolls in here saying he has the freshest goods as if we're sitting next to the ocean in Maine. So... first go 'round, I have to do the lobster roll. It was really good, like really good. I also had the Lobster Bisque. This is where things went awry. I don't pretend to be an expert in the culinary arts, I did spend my youth as a sioux chef at most of the fine dining establishments around Minden/Genoa so I just know enough to be a jerk if I need to. hahaha anyway... I totally tasted the fact that they reduced their own stock from fresh lobster shells... I mean why wouldn't you being a lobster shack right?? However, someone reduced that stock down way too far and too quickly and it scorched the entire batch. OK, cool, it's all good. I made a mental note to try again later to give my full eval. I love lobster bisque and it's kind of my go to at a seafood restaurant to see how they do it. fast forward a few weeks and I treat the studio to lunch from Morgans. I have several things AND the Lobster Bisque again, same story, burnt stock. With everything on the menu being so very good I was convinced that something was seriously wrong here. Someone is making the stock wrong and it's just how they think it should be. Well, wouldn't you know it, I have this amazing opportunity to sit face to face with Shawn Whitney, owner of Morgan's Lobster Shack and he asks me if I've been to the place. This actually happened. I tell him yes I've been twice... and get this... he asks me "Well, what did you think?" There are those moments in life that sort of pop in and say hello and you're left with this conundrum. How do you handle such a situation? What do you do? What is the right way to be humbly honest? I say back, "do you want me to be honest?" Well, Shawn is then left with his own conundrum... does he answer me honestly and say "um no" or does he really want to hear what I have to say? Any good business owner wants good constructive feedback. He says "of course I want to hear it" So I tell him about the Bisque and my theory on what I think happened. He then says he's going to look into it and fix it if there's an issue. fast forward again, My Family and I go for Sunday brunch. Once again, I order a bunch of things I haven't tried and then.... I gotta give the Bisque a 3rd chance. BOOM! It was one of the best Bisques I've ever had. You can tell when a stock is made fresh with real shells, well this is it people. Now I'm not patting myself on the back for my amazingly refined pallet.. hahaha it is however nice to know that a good honest and humble critique can be well received and help someone better things in business. Thank you Shawn for being an awesome human. I will definitely be back over and over. My Kid loves the place also, he's a fan of the patio... mostly for Parkour but he does enjoy the fries. If I can also just address the naysayers on price also. If you are a native Nevadan or have been here for more than a year you will know that we are smack dab in the middle of dirt and that the nearest salted body of water is not that near... not counting Pyramid.. but that's another discussion. For someone to claim that they have the freshest seafood in the area, you better be able to deliver on that promise. In order to have FRESH... I mean real Fresh, not trucked in over frozen ice beds like most everyone, you have to pay for that kind of material. Flying seafood in from the east coast gets costly and to have that kind of fresh in Reno will cost ya. I'm close to a guarantee that there isn't another in town with product this fresh.. if you think there is then we need a side by side, pepsi challenge test. If you find another place with fresher seafood, I will seriously buy you lunch... at Morgan's. | 2positive
| 768 |
In order to be properly appreciated, it is my humble recommendation that bread pudding soufflé be accompanied by Dixieland Jazz of the live variety. I was fortunate enough to experience said combination of music and food Sunday, March 8, while enjoying the Traditional Jazz Brunch at The Commander's Palace in New Orleans. The Commander's Palace is arguably New Orleans' single most famous restaurant. Each Sunday afternoon diners flock to the CP Jazz Brunch, slightly more affordable than a full dinner, to revel in hedonistic bliss. CP hires several small, local jazz ensembles to float from table to table, from palatial dining hall to palatial dining hall, taking requests, playing to kill. I was privy to a Dixieland performance by the Paul Simon Jazz Trio, composed of steel-guitar, coronet, standing bass, and southern-gentlemanly charm.
New Orleans is known for its food and its music. After considering the typical options for Spring Break '09 - Cancun, Tijuana, Daytona etc...- I remembered that food and music are two of my favorite things in the entire world. Cancun? What was I thinking!? I booked airfare and a hotel in December, leaving three whole months to stew in anticipation. During said months I researched music and food in New Orleans and made many bookmarks on my computer.
My Aunt Monica, lovingly dubbed "Mud" in my infancy, was the first person to suggest CP, and volunteered to sponsor a brunch there. (She belongs in the Aunt-Hall-of-Fame). According to Aunt Mud CP is the place to visit while you are in New Orleans. Commander's Palace is the jewel in the crown of the Brennan Family's New Orleans restaurant dynasty. The progenitor of the Brenan Family, Owen Brennan, opened his first restaurant on Royal St. in 1946, and now his children, his siblings, and their children own and run more than ten successful restaurants nationwide.
When I entered the CP lobby I was slightly disappointed. There was no charming jazz band to serenade me as I had hoped. There was no music playing at all. As I was ushered past a line of servers, each of which was nearly too eager to greet me, I was surprised that the CP Jazz Brunch started in complete silence. I consumed the most delicious brunch of my life, struggling to pace myself and savor the experience, all the while feeling that something was amiss. Polite chatter, and the occasional delighted squeal, which erupted from my mouth, were the only sounds to be heard. I finished my main course, crab stuffed quail, and contented myself with a dumb-show Jazz Brunch. At least I would experience the infamous bread pudding soufflé.
One of a swarm of waiters, Jon, emerged from his hive, and placed my exquisite dessert in front of me. Jon punctured the meringue-like, eggy soufflé top with a spoon (infinitely more satisfying than cracking the caramelized top of a crème-bruleé) and blessed it with a generous helping of whiskey cream sauce.
As if orchestrated in advance for maximal effect, the Jo Simon Jazz Trio wafted into the room at the moment my spoon was poised, quivering, next to my mouth. I felt it appropriate to consume the first delicious bite in time with the Trio's first sugary notes. Ahh, Fidgety Feet. In the midst of a relaxed strum Jo Simon smiled a saccharine smile, and glanced deep into my eyes. I was seated directly next to a window, and sunlight glinted off the coffee colored steel of Jo's steel guitar. The coronet player wailed away at the ceiling and bobbed back and forth, not more than four feet away from my table. The bald-headed, long-bearded standing bass player looked totally lost in the music.
Where are you all from?
D.C.!
Mr. Simon nodded to the rhythm of the standing bass, still grinning.
Great Place. Welcome to New Orleans!
I am not ashamed to say that as I shoveled a heaping spoonful of soufflé into my mouth a shiver ran down my back.
The delight of the food was enhanced by the music, and vice versa; the one without the other would have been like Kirk without Spock, or more appalling yet, like Batman without Robin. Music and fine cuisine were joined in a perfect union that left me fat, and utterly happy by my last, precious bite.
When the Jo Simon Jazz Trio had finished Fidgety Feet they glided to one of my neighboring tables. The coronet player did a remarkable impression of Louis Armstrong as they worked through A Kiss to Build a Dream On. Raspy vocals emerging from the throat of an Italian mobster-looking coronetist elicited a chuckle from all tables in the dining room. Tiger Rag, A You're Adorable, and Mack the Knife brought the trio further and further away from my table. Evidently, Jazz Brunch Patrons had a soft spot for Louis Armstrong (A Kiss to Build a Dream On, Mack the Knife) and the Original Dixieland Jazz Band (Fidgety Feet, Tiger Rag). I finished my delicious bread pudding soufflé. As the music drifted into the next room I stood and made my way toward the door, passing tables and tables of smiling faces as I left. | 2positive
| 860 |
Competing for my favorite restaurant in Philadelphia. Everything from the hostess to the last bite of the last dessert was absolutely perfect. Special thanks to Sarah and Brian for making the night perfect.
For those who don't know, Zahav is a modern Israeli restaurant served small plates style and made for sharing. $35 got you all the below (similar menu is $38 year-round)
The first course is actually 9 different dishes. The first is the hummus with house-baked laffa, which is simply an incredible starter. I am not the biggest hummus fan, but I was blown away. My wife is far more discerning, and she loved it as well. Next came a tower of 8 different salads, I cannot remember them all.
After that you get to start making the decisions. Each person gets to pick two items, which are large enough for two people to share, so make sure you go with people willing to share! First of all, this was much larger selection than the online menu stated. We picked the following four: fried cauliflower, crispy balls with ground veal with corn salsa, peaches with a firm cheese, and braised chicken in a dough.
The fried cauliflower was arguably the best meal of the night. Crispy cauliflower that was bordering on sweet, and a yogurt sauce that made each bite cool and incredible. I can't recommend this dish highly enough, and if I went back I might order two of them. You get quite a bit of cauliflower, about 8 pieces each, varying in size.
The crispy balls of ground veal were also very good, but middle of the pack for the meal. The corn salsa was savory, which was a nice change of pace from the sweet cauliflower and salads earlier. There were three balls, which made it difficult to split between two people, only because who wants to split a crispy veal ball?
Next came the peaches with firm cheese. This may have been goat cheese, which made my wife back off of the dish since she has been on a family goat farm and hates all things goat. I thought it was delicious early in the dish, but the flavor was strong I began not enjoying it as much as I ate more. Maybe it just wasn't something I was use to, but I'd still recommend the dish. There was a plate full of cheese, a limited peaches, and easily shared.
Our final part of this meal was braised chicken in a type of pastry. It was sublime and savory and so damn good. Highly recommended especially for the picky eater. This was the least complex, in my opinion, dishes on the menu, but that didn't make it any less delicious. This is just one pastry, so you're aware.
Next each diner gets to select one dish cooked over hot coals. These I thought would be larger than the last course, but in fact the portions were very similar.
My wife ordered the hanger steak with eggplant two ways and another mild yogurt sauce. It was cooked to perfection and topped with a savory eggplant. I couldn't tell the second way the eggplant was prepared, but then again, not always the biggest fan of eggplant. This was still very good, but not something I'd order again, just because I felt like the eggplant kind of took away from the steak. If you are a fan of eggplant, definitely give it a try. There were 4-5 small medallions of steak, and a fair amount of the eggplant on each.
I ordered the ground meatballs of lamb and beef served over roasted peppers and carrots with cumin. The balls were roughly the size of the crispy veal balls, and only 2 came with this dish. As Adam Sandler would say, "That's a good meatball." Awesomely juicy, flavorful, and the peppers/carrots were an absolutely incredible compliment to the dish. Definitely recommended for anyone who enjoys perfection.
This would have already been a five star meal, but to be honest the desserts would have pushed it to six - ten stars. Each diner gets to order one dessert, which was nice because we weren't too excited about one of the options.
We ended up with one chocolate and one fruit dish. The chocolate we had was some of the best I've ever had. The flavor was the richest dark chocolate I've ever had in a shredded filo dough with a yogurt based ice cream on top. The texture was essentially a creamy dark chocolate inside a shredded mini-wheat with a cool yogurt finish. It was like eating a bowl of the greatest cereal ever, which sounds odd, but is by a long distance the greatest dessert I'd ever had.
The second dessert was a roasted peach, apricot sorbet, and two of the most delicious pastries I'd ever had. The pastries were warm, sweet, and perfect. The fruits were all fresh and absolutely incredible.
We commented how great the desserts were, and asked again about the third, just so we could order it when we came back. Instead our waitress brought out the sesame cream, blueberry, and praline parfait. This didn't appeal to me at first, but it was unbelievable. Perfectly balanced, with the sesame serving as a creamy base for the blueberry and pralines. A-MAZ-ING!
Five very enthusiastic stars! | 2positive
| 890 |
By definition, and I'm the one defining it, Punch Burger is an Indianapolis-based "chain" of burger joints focusing on grass-fed beef from Fischer Farms in Jasper, Indiana. Now, then, it should be acknowledged that the "chain" terminology should be taken lightly since there are, in fact, only two Punch Burger restaurants in existence at this point - the original in downtown Indy and the first franchised location in Carmel. While I work downtown and have been trying to find the time to make it over to Punch Burger, I was actually in Carmel looking for another restaurant, got lost in one of Carmel's six bajillion roundabouts and found my way to Old Meridian Street and the neighborhood that houses Punch Burger. So, what the heck. I was getting dizzy from all the roundabouts and figured it was time for lunch.
The mission of Punch Burger reminds me a lot of Elevation Burger minus the ten pounds of grease that seems to come with Elevation's burger - I don't care if it's healthier grease, it's still grease. Punch Burger has several specialty burgers along with a build-your-own option. As a plus, they just added chicken to their menu. Among their burgers, they offer angus beef, ground duck, ground turkey, vegan, and veggie options. If you build-your-own, you also get multiple choices for bread/buns, toppings, cheese, etc. Of course, the more you add the pricier your options can get. Punch Burger seemed like they were in line with the prices in most other gourmet burger joints in Central Indiana.
This location has two entries with one leading directly to their ordering area and one likely being considered a "back" entrance. I used the back entrance that did have some accessible parking spots (Carmel tends to do these right), though it's worth noting that the actual ramp is to the right of these spots. The door is a relatively light glass door, though it does have a bit of a lip that might bump a smaller wheelchair. Seating tends to be either tables or a table/booth combo. Punch Burger has a rather simple and clean interior that I'd describe as contemporary.
I went up to the counter and immediately tried to figure things out.The person working the counter was helpful and could clearly tell I was either new or just didn't quite know how things worked. She handed me a smaller menu and that helped. I ordered a build-your-own and kept it simple with a single 1/3 lb. patty with mayo - I did experiment ever so slightly by ordering it on Texas Toast. I ordered a side of waffle fries and a large drink (22 oz.). They have one of those Coca-Cola Freestyle machines, though I was disappointed that no iced tea options existed and the only iced tea option was a bottled iced tea - I will give the employee credit as she could tell I was disappointed and told me it would be easy to switch to a bottled drink. While this seems like a minor issue, I'll be honest that the lack of fountain or brewed iced tea would easily lead me to choose Bru Burger just a few blocks away. Yeah, I consider it that important as most soft drinks make me ill (and I did drink Diet Coke and it did make me ill).
I was a little thrown off that they offer a tipping option on their credit machine - they do bring your food to you, but I still find that a tad tacky even if it does stop at 9%.
The burger was a delight and served as ordered. I really loved the Texas Toast and the burger was good, considerably less greasy than Elevation and felt satisfying without absolutely stuffing me. The waffle fries are a definite winner - nicely browned with a distinct flavor that felt natural and not novelty. It was a good meal for a decent price. The atmosphere is pleasant and comfortable. I sat there and read my Sunday paper and never felt rushed. The ketchup dispenser, they used Red Gold, is a tad high for someone in a wheelchair but I was able to access it with a good stretch.
Would I go back? The lack of iced tea bothers me most. Other than that, it would be a no-brainer. While it's probably not my favorite burger in town, it's still a good one and I love that Punch is local. I don't live in Carmel, though I'm there often enough that Punch will be an option. Next time, I'll either go for a bottled iced tea or be content with one of their flavored water options from the fountain. My entire meal came in at just over $11 - certainly higher than fast food, but you're also getting healthier food and supporting local.
I should note that they serve up a handful of local craft brews. That's also always a plus. While I'm not much of an alcohol drinker, on occasion I'll grab a brew and it's definitely an option here. They also have milk shakes and, while I can't imagine ordering a salad at a burger joint, they do offer up a side salad. | 2positive
| 868 |
I really wish that Yelp had a better rating system.I dont think that The Counter quite deserves 4 stars, but I like them more than just "A- OK". They deserve something in between.
It has been a while since I have eaten at the Counter. I am very happy to say that they have improved. It was as if they read the reviews on yelp and took them to heart. I love it when that happens. So many places either don't care, or take the attitude that its my place and I will do things how I want.
One of my main issues last time was the prices. Last time, there were a ton of premium ingredients on the menu. It was very easy for your $13 burger to turn into a $20 burger, and you would not even know this until you got your check.
Now there are far less of these premium ingredients on the menu. In case you missed my last review, premium ingredients cost more. For example, you start off with your $13 burger, then add on ingredients that cost anywhere from $1 to $3 more per item.
These premium ingredients that cost more are now on a place on the menu clearly labeled Premium Toppings +1 each. Though for clarity, and transparency, I suggest putting +$1 here. Some will still not know what a +1 means and choose these without knowing that they cost more.
There are other places on the menu that also say +2.5. These are still deceptive and someone that has not been here before can have a rude awakening when they get their bill only to find that they have chosen toppings that cost extra that they did not know about.
In fact, while I was here, I overheard a customer complaining about this very thing. They said that their $13 burger had become a money pit and they did not know it.
On the upside, the burgers here are good. I would give them a ranking of around a 7 on my 1 to 10 scale. The main reason they did not improve as much as I wold have hoped in the burger rankings is;
#1 The price has improved, but for those that have not been here before, you still need to be careful to keep the price of your Build Your Own Burger down.
#2 The meat is not a consistent size. Even though "Nothing But Net" is great in Basketball, in eating a burger, the last thing you want are bites that contain no meat. The meat patties are not a a good size and shape. They are thick in the middle, and thinner on the sides. The patty does not cover the entire bun, so I got several bites of nothing but bun. I looked at my daughters plate and she left uneaten bun on her plate for the same reason. A meat patty should be of a size that fill out the entire bun. I also prefer a meat patty that is a pretty consistent thickness so that I get a good ratio of meat, bun, and ingredients in every single bite.
My guess would be that The Counter makes their patties this way on purpose in order to make them seem more natural. So many places used frozen patties that are all the exact same size and shape. They probably want to set themselves apart from this here, which I think is admirable. But what The Counter needs to do is strike a good balance between having a good consistent sized patty while still staying away from that mechanical Frisbee shaped patty that most other places have.
I did notice several other improvements as well. They have added several per-built burger to their menu. There are shakes, salads, something called Burger in a Bowl, and many other really nice things to their menu.
Speaking of the menu, I did notice the menu itself has not changed. Its still a plain paper menu that is not laminated. Mine had some stains on the pages. Oh yeah, guess I need to comment on the fries. We had the regular fries, which are shoestring like that fast food place Freddie's. The fries are just ok. I did not try any of their specialty fries due to trying to keep our ticket price down.
All of the staff here is very friendly. John is super nice is you happen to run into him. The staff deserve their own rating system, but Yelp just does not allow that detailed of a system. The staff gets 5 stars!!!
I would be very interested to return here some time to try these and also their shakes. | 2positive
| 785 |
May 2008 Update
Recently I dined here for both weekends of Jazz Fest and ate some absolutely splendid food on both occasions. Before they take their usual July vacation (and the quarterly menu change), you must have the escargot with the Chilean Carmenere. It's been a while since I had a such a perfect pairing. Garlicky escargot with prosciutto, garlic confit and smoked mushrooms in creole mustard sauce with a big, flavorful carmenere tthat exhibited firm tannins with a buttery silk finish - the best wine I have had in 2008! Note to self: get the name, then get a case or two. Try the duck duet and the fried soft shell crab with thai green curry.
9/29/07 Update
Two words: Duck Cracklin'
I had dinner there this weekend and had another great meal. I started off with the smoked duck salad, which was pretty damn good. The duck was tasty but the true star of this salad was the duck cracklin' - fried duck fat! The taste was unbelievably good! So smokey and crunchy, it was friggin' awesome! I wanted to get a bag of that to go! My dinner date had the escargot which was served in a puff pastry with a bacon and garlic bordelaise sauce that kicked butt. Who knew escargot could taste so good?
For the entree, my friend had the appetizer sampler with the crawfish and andouille sausage cheecake being my favorite (damn good). For my entree, I tried something new: the entree sampler! It included: Smoked Lamb Chop with Braised Red Cabbage, Pecan Fish with Smoked Corn & Vegetable Capellini Salad, Seared Duck Breast with Southern Greens & Grilled Sea Scallop with Asian Slaw. While you can't go wrong with D n J's duck and lamb chop (the red cabbage was really good), my favorites: the seafood, the pecan crusted redfish and the scallops. The redfish was creamy, saucy, and truly decadent. The scallops had an amazing combo of flavor and seasonings!
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So I have been waiting for Dick and Jenny's to re-open after their July vacation to go back and sample some tasty treats. I usually go there about 2-3 times a month. I have dined at this place since my post-Katrina return more so than any other restaurant in the city and it has truly become one of my favorite places to go and to bring friends. Time for total disclosure - I know the staff here better than most places and not just from familiarity/frequency of dining. The owners sit a couple of rows behind me at Saints games and I have pre and post game tailgated with them, and even been over to the chef's house for sunday BBQ. But first and foremost comes the food...
I am embarrassesd to say that I never got to visit this place pre-K but it was always on my list of places to go. At the time though, I lived in West End/Lakefront area overlooking the marina so going Uptown for dinner was a bit of a drive, but my move to the Garden District made Dick and Jenny's one of those great neighborhood restaurants that are 'down the street'. Now I go there all the time.
The restaurant is Uptown on Tchoupitoulas only one block upriver from Tipitina's - how convenient! Think of an old NOLA house converted to a restaurant, with the covered in (and air conditioned) 'patio' area where additional tables and the waiting area are located. The inside isn't the fanciest - in fact there are a bunch of painted 'plates' on the wall - but in this old city, remember fancy does not always equate to mind blowing meals. As previous Yelpers have pointed out, this place takes no reservations, so come early.
Now the food - I have never had a bad meal there. Ever. The other night I had the fried oysters with slaw, the mussels and sea scallops in chimichurri broth (I know, chimichurri and seafood, but it was delicious). The oysters (which I get a lot there) were perfectly fried and seasoned and the mussels and scallops were surprisingly tasty with the chimichurri broth. I also stole some of friends portabello mushroom and blue cheese 'cheesacake' , which I have to say, blew me away with how good it was! Not being a blue cheese fan, I was a little skeptical, but it was so damn good, I kept going back for a little taste, even after my dinner date had her leftovers boxed up and was taking a cigarette break outside (sorry Michelle!).
The staff here is as friendly as they come. The place is definitely a little folksy, and homey but it only adds to the experience, especially when the food is so good! I normally eat at the bar, since the wait for the bar is usually shorter. The menu changes quarterly, so I will update my review everytime I go back. Zagat's 2007 review gave the place a 27 for food, so that should help convince you that the place is worth visiting. When going say hi to Chef James and Will and Leigh. | 2positive
| 856 |
I hate to leave this place a bad review but today's (07/12/202) experience was just so bad.
I'd like to start with the good which is the food. When I go here the food have constantly been great. My go to is the chicken and waffle egg benedict. Previously, I've had the kitchen sink, creme brûlée french toast, tiramisu french toast and few of their coffee and smoothies; all have been amazing.
The bad, it's today's experience and service. We were a group of 5 and was told 40 minutes wait. After a bit of a wait, we thought that's a long time and was about to go somewhere else but before going we checked with again just to make sure again before leaving and the guy inside told us there is only 1 more group before us but behold, 3/4 groups ended up being seated before us. But this time we already waited so long so we decided to wait it out.
A waiter took us to a table of 4 when there are 5 of us... One of the 4 seats was DIRTY -- he replaced it and grabbed another chair for the dirty chair and placed a 5th on the street side. My friend were originally hesitant to sit there but it was impossible to sit on the curb so we just went along with it.
Moments later a female server took our drink orders and then came back with our water without our smoothies maybe about 10-15 minutes later. She said the smoothies were coming and took the food order. Then smoothie came out not to long after.
Our food order took awhile to come out and as the waitress were giving us our food she told my friend that was sitting on the 5th chair that was on the road side that she can't sit there and it needed to be moved because she was getting yelled at by her boss that my friend was sitting there. We certainly did not grab the chair ourselves and put it there. We didn't want to get killed either, YOUR WAITER PUT IT THERE. Then the waitress proceeded to apologize and told us to just stay as is. When you though that the fiasco was over.
When one of us needed salt and asked one of the waiter/server for some; with a mean attitude he ask, "ok so anything else anyone want?!" One of us wanted butter for the toast but by that time we were just a bit scared to ask for some because he was mean and just ended up not eating the toast.
With outdoor seating we are at the mercy of mother nature and it was hot outside. Instead of them making sure our water were filled, we kept on having to ask and it take at least 15 minutes each time.
When we were done eating the waitress asked if we needed a box and as we were waiting for the box the UMBRELLA that they placed behind the tables FELL OVER US and luckily missed us because 2 of us that were sitting at the chairs where they would have gotten hit stepped away to the bathroom.
The waitress asked us if we were ok because we stood up and were shock and shaken, the waiter just looked at us talked to someone else and fixed a different umbrella instead. The check then was places on our table, waitress walked away, the pole were still next to my chair on the ground and the umbrella were still up against a car/truck. The waiter then walked to retrieve umbrella said sorry, but it didn't feel like he was genuinely sorry, but well it's my job so I have to say it.
Luckily, none of us got hurt so we didn't need to file a lawsuit but it was still not handled properly. No one from management came out to apologize or say anything... actually no one came out after putting the bill on the table.
We were waiting for our last glass of water to arrive and to place an order for to go but ABSOLUTELY NO ONE FOLLOWED UP with us. One us ended up going inside to place a to go order but what she saw was the waiter was sitting down and eating then and proceed to tell her that kitchen is closed so she can't place an order. IF OUR TABLE WERE PROPERLY TAKEN CARE OF THE ORDER WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN LATE.
THE WHOLE SERVICE EXPERIENCE WAS AWFUL. OUR WHOLE SIDE BONDED OVER HOW BAD SERVICE WAS. A TABLE WAITED SO LONG FOR WATER AND DRINKsS, THEY WENT INSIDE TO GET THEIR OWN... ANOTHER TABLE TOLD US, THEY DIDN'T EVEN PAY YET AND THEY WERE ASKED IF THEY NEEDED CHANGE.
AGAIN, WE ALMOST GOT HURT FROM THE ESTABLISHMENT AND NO MANAGEMENT CAME OUT TO SAY ANYTHING. AFTER ALL THAT WE HAD TO WALK OUR CHECK TO THEM?!
Lets just say for now. I won't be eating there again. I probably won't suggest anyone to eat there for a bit until they get their act together.
With the amount of frustration, bad service and the shock of their umbrella falling over our head and didn't see the sight of management apologizing we really didn't want to tip them but there was not a choice because they included it in our total bill. Maybe that's how they can get away with bad service, tips are already guaranteed -- no choice on the customers end.
2 stars are for the food because I never had bad food from them, even with to-go orders and the previous mediocre-good service. It's a shame this time the service was so bad. | 0negative
| 957 |
First date night in Reno for me and my spouse. I heard that Basque is a Thing here in northern NV. Not at all familiar with this cuisine, so lets give it a go! Louis' is conveniently located in Reno's hipsters-in-waiting neighborhood east of Downtown (they will descent in their ironic chic soon enough), with ample parking. Easy shmeasy. The establishment is divided half into a well-populated bar area,the other half with cafeteria-style bench tables, 8 to a table. Our reservation is for 6:45, though it was not necessary as most of the restaurant was yet to be seated. We were not greeted at the door, which is not generally a problem, but it took a bit to figure out how this whole thing works (explanation in a moment).
After finding a staff person, we were promptly seated. Now we had a reservation for two, but its quickly clear that this is not to be an intimate date-night experience, but more like a picnic. No worries there. Adventure, adventure! We get seated at the end of the table closest to the kitchen. The waiter explains that meals are served "in the traditional Basque family style" (though I suppose every cuisine on the planet originated in a "traditional family style," but I get it). The menu explains that we will have traditional Basque soup, mussels on rice, "traditional" salad, Basque style beans (not yet sure what this means), an entree and a dessert. Meals come with a half carafe of house red or white. All reasonably priced. OK so far!
Shortly after we order the filet ($32) and the leg of lamb ($28) the rest of the table is seated. We are joined by a party of four, lovely people who are fourth-time diners at the restaurant. OK. Good sign. The couple across and to the right of me are Basque. MItzi my newly-arrived dining partner is full of life, conversation, and all-around awesomeness. As for the Basques, they were gracious in allowing my ignorance in All Things Basque, and filled me in on the history. More than I could have asked for! While they were going over the menu our soup arrived (more on this later). Our dinner partners' soup arrived shortly thereafter. Nothing odd here. When the mussels and salad course arrived, we quickly discovered that "family-style" means the entire table is family, served from the same dishes! Perfect! Unanticipated, but perfect!
Now to the food. I As I said, I know little about Basque food, though I know the Basque people live in regions bordering France and Spain (like the US and Mexico, the Basque did not cross the border, the border crossed them!).The food has influences from both. Our dinner partners informed us that as a Mediterranean people, traditional Basque food comprises of significant sea food, while those Basques who settled in northern Nevada, northwest California and southern Idaho were sheep herders, all reflected in the menu.
The soup was a red clam chowder, an ample serving light on both substance and lacking a definable broth. It was not the best starter, though it was not bad. Next, the mussels arrived, a bit on the dry side but tasty, atop a bed of uninspiring rice. The tossed vinaigrette salad was unmemorable on its own, and I had a difficult time understanding what was "traditional" about lettuce with halved cherry tomatoes, Now this was to be eaten with a few spoonfuls of "traditional" Basque beans cooked with sausage, to be ladled over the salad (I did a quick Google search for Basque beans. Pinto beans don't seem to be the tradition, though they were cooked perfectly, which rescued the salad). Next came the leg of lamb, which in and of itself was flavorful and perfectly cooked. Then slathered with a dense cafeteria-style gravy that stepped all over the tender flesh. The final course, dessert, was a choice between a hard aged cheese with grapes, or vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup. The cheese was actually the best part of the meal, perfect with the red wine.
My overall impression: the food was bland, bland, bland, and you get a lot of it. While it was not horrible, at $28, it seems a bit much for University of Nevada dining hall food. Not sure if this is how a restaurant wants to be remembered. I did not hate the experience (again, food not horrible), and the dinner guests made for a fun evening. But ultimately, we go to a restaurant for the food, right? I'll skip this one and try another. | 1neutral
| 762 |
I *want* to give this place 5 Stars, I really do. Not long ago I probably would have. Let me start by saying that I've been a regular at Keg for a few years now and in that time it has been one of my favorite local spots for beer and food. There's a lot this place gets right and I wholeheartedly stand by that. However, in recent months I've started noticing more and more changes, particularly to the "kitchen" part of Keg & Kitchen, that I'm just not a big fan of and both these positive and negative factors are worthy of mentioning.
What Works: The ambience is great! Keg has a warm, cozy vibe that I've always enjoyed and even when things get crowded, I've rarely found the atmosphere too loud to hold a conversation. The servers (especially Kelsey - she is an absolute gem and always goes out of her way to take great care of us), bar staff, and front of house have always been nothing but professional, courteous, and attentive. Beer selection is high-quality, locally-focused (with many quality craft domestics and imports available as well), and rotates frequently enough that there's always something new to try. I rarely drink hard liquor, but the handful of cocktails and specialty drinks I've tried at K&K have been well-made. Not the cheapest, but not in any way unusual for a restaurant of this type.
What Needs Improvement: THE FOOD. I hate to say it, since I used to absolutely love the food here, but lately the food could really use a little help. Keg changed chefs this past summer. At first, this seemed like a very positive thing - our existing favorites remained consistently good and we tried a few of his specials, which seemed to indicate some cool ideas and potential positive additions to the menu. We were totally on board and hoped that this would mean continuing to enjoy all of the dishes we already looked forward to coming to Keg for, with new additions to try out. Unfortunately, as time has gone by, I can't honestly say I still feel the same.
While I entirely understand that every chef is going to have their own ideas and vision regarding the food they're preparing and want to have their own mark on things, the menu was pretty thoroughly gutted over the last half-year or so and I don't think that many of those changes were for the better. The original take on the fried chicken platter was much more enjoyable, as was the original mac and cheese, and I miss the original rarebit-style cheddar sauce that came with the pretzel bites. The new one, which is pepperjack-based, never quite had the right flavor, especially paired with the mustard. The adjustments to presentation haven't really been my bag either. I used to adore the hummus plate, but was disappointed the last time I ordered it when it came out to me as two large smears of hummus on a plate with a bowl of small bits of pita sitting right in the middle of it. I always loved the board with a small jar of hummus, a small jar of feta and olives, and a selection of arugula and pita. Much more appetizing look and much better pita to hummus ratio.
Though it's not the first time a favorite item of ours was removed from the menu (RIP original sausage pizza with the long hots), it seems like more and more dishes have been leaving the menu every time we come in. I was a huge fan of the meatloaf with coca-cola glaze and was sad to see that one go. I figured at least the fried chicken would still be around, but it seems that's recently made an exit as well. The short rib sandwich is my only remaining "old standby" and I really hope it never is altered too extremely or discontinued. Keg has never had a massive menu, nor does it need to, but I always appreciated those cornerstone dishes and I'm saddened to see them not be around any longer.
On our last visit we were very happy to have the same great service and beer options, but were disappointed to find an even more pared down menu. Though we'll always enjoy our visits here, they may soon become more to drink than to eat. I would genuinely love to see Keg's menu return to a focus on elevated takes on classic pub and American comfort fare. I really miss it. | 1neutral
| 758 |
I have been to this restaurant twice, once with my husband and then ladies night out with a large party. I love that so many restaurants are opening in Seminole Heights, however, where the other restaurants are succeeding, this restaurant falls short. First, the quality of the dishes does not warrant the high price Second, they are ill prepared: With the large party, we sat down to dinner at 7:30. This is not an unusually late time to eat dinner, however they were already out of at least 2 main course dishes and 2 appetizers. There is nothing more disappointing than looking at a menu for 15 minute and then setting your heart on something, only to be told "I'm sorry, we are out of that"....No, wait, there is something more disappointing: When you tell you 15 minutes after you have ordered. Our group had ordered 4 of the beef stroganoff, but only 2 where left. So, the ladies who ordered them played a very competitive round of rock/paper/scissors (because mud wrestle apparently wasn't allowed, even though there is "Pig" in the title) to see who would get them and to see who would be the re-ordering loser that would receive their meals 15 minutes later than the rest of us. The following is my menu review:
MUSSELS "FRITES": "Mussels Poached in White Wine and a Natural Broth with Fresh Herbs. Topped with House Made Fries." - Yes, that's right folks....Mussels...topped...with...fries. Let me tell you what that means to the space time continuum...whenever a sauce enters into the world and there is nothing to sop it up with, this creates an unbalance to the Universe. I have a hard and fast rule...leave no sauce behind. I'm kinda like a marine that way, so I forked out the required sum of money for bread, so that I could do that sauce justice. And then there is the 2nd issue....who thought it was a good idea to put French fries in a liquid? Um...no.
POTATOES BRAVAS: "Petite Yellow Potatoes Roasted in Sea Salt and Cracked Pepper. Served with a Spicy Pimenton Sauce and a Garlic Herb Aioli" - Not a single women at my table liked these. The Pimiento sauce had a burnt tomato paste flavor. The potatoes where grainy in the middle and chewy on the outside. I don't know about you, but I like my expensive potatoes crispy and carmelized with a soft center....call my crazy.
PANE DEVILED EGGS: "A Traditional Tangy Deviled Egg filling is served in a Not So Traditional Crisp Flash Fried Crusted Egg White Cup" - This idea is sound (anything is better fried, just ask our friend the zucchini), however there is something lost in the execution. The batter doesn't seemed to be seasoned, and therefore, egg white comes out with virtually no flavor. And unfortunately, the frying process seems to leave less space for the delicious deviled part. I'm mean, isn't mixing egg yolks with mayo to whole point? So why would you put less of it back in the egg? I know when I make deviled eggs, I eat a lot of the filling, but I think the whole kitchen staff must be back there stealing the stuff, so that there is very little left for the customer.
SPAETZLE with CARAMELIZED ONIONS AND GRUYERE: "German Style Short Noodles tossed with Onions that are Slow Roasted and Baked with Gruyere Cheese" - Apparently the austerity measures in Europe trickled down to this German dish. At 15 dollars, this was by far the disappointment of the night. This dish is the smallest bowl of spaetzle I've ever encountered. And to "top" it off, the Gruyere was just been melted on top of. So, under the beautiful melted cheese, and sparse spaetzle, there was a soup of oil. It looked like a broth, but it was just unflavorful...straight up oil. It was inedible.
LAMB OSSO BUCO with GRIDDLED POLENTA: "Slow braised Lamb Shank served with an Italian influenced Griddled Ground Corn Meal Cake, Roasted Young Carrots and the Reduced Braising Jus" - Also amazing. The Corn meal cake was the best thing I ate all evening. If I ever go back, this is the one I would get.
BEEF STROGANOFF On the BONE: "Beef Back Ribs Braised Over Night and served over Papparadelle Noodles, Caramelized Carrots and a Sour Cream Laced Sauce" - Sounds delicious...right? Well, it must be, so good luck getting your hands on one of these babies. This was the dish that the aforementioned girls had to mud wrestle over. Unfortunately, the winners sat nowhere near me, so I didn't get a go at it.
PORK RAGOUT: "Fall of the Bone"Braised Pork with Garlic, Sweet Onion and Tomato served over Fresh Paparadelle, Crowned with Fresh Ricotta and Italian Flat Leaf Parsley"- This one was decent. However, when they say "Crowned" with fresh ricotta, they mean: take a huge spoonful of cold ricotta, straight out of the fridge, and wallop it on there just before it goes out.
But let me just tell you, the desserts are amazing. Just go here for those. All 3 are worth the visit. | 0negative
| 855 |
The office had a celebration lunch Wednesday. Most of us arrived around 11:30 a.m. and were seated right away. One of our party arrived extremely early, and they would not seat her without the entire party being in attendance.
Harrison was our server. We asked if the pizzas were large enough to split, and the answer was no. But I don't know if Harrison said no or if everybody around the table said no.
It's a 12-inch pizza. What do you do with that? It's too big for a personal pizza, which is usually 9 inches, but still too small to split.
At any rate, everybody ordered a salad and their own pizza. This was a pricey lunch -- more than $100 for four. Our fifth diner paid her own way.
Salads ordered:
3 got the small California Dreamin' ($5.99) -- Mixed greens, avocado, cucumber, roasted red pepper, red onion, feta and pistachio vinaigrette
1 got the Seasonal Salad of butternut squash, spicy roasted pecans and other stuff I can't remember
I got the small BLT ($5.59) -- Iceberg, bacon, tomato, blue cheese and peppercorn ranch
All salads were winners and really quite large for a small size. Generous toppings and good balance of dressing.
I believe PW read Tom J.'s review (4/16/2012) for two reasons:
Harrison brought two open jars to the table, each with a spoon. He made it crystal clear that one was red pepper and one was SALT!!
Everybody had generous accoutrements on their salads with plenty of salad dressing.
So, thanks, Tom J., for your comments that I'm thinking improved our visit!!
Here's the pizza breakdown:
2 got the Creole Connection ($15.59) -- Tomato sauce, chorizo, shrimp, red onion, roasted jalapenos, Mozzarella and Monterey Jack (One asked for no jalapenos, which didn't happen, so she had to wait for a new pizza while we dug in . . . excuse me while I pig out! This was a disappointment. Harrison was supremely apologetic TO THE NINES!)
1 got the Popeye & Olive Oil ($13.79) -- Roasted garlic olive oil, spinach, roasted red pepper and goat cheese. She liked it a lot. She and I swapped a piece, and I did not like it AT ALL. It was flat (a much more cracker-like crust), dry, the roasted garlic olive oil sauce was virtually nonexistent, the goat cheese was gritty, and overly aromatic and flavorful in lumps. But it was HER pizza, and she liked it!!
1 made her own pizza with the honey wheat crust, marinara sauce (since the tomato is said to have a zing to it) sun-dried tomatoes, button mushrooms and fresh Mozz. She was delivered a pizza.
We all looked at it. It didn't look right. Many, many minutes later someone came to retrieve it to deliver it to the correct patron. Can you do that? What if she'd handled the pizza or licked all the pieces? Or spit on all of it? Her correct pizza came . . . did it come from someone else's table? I don't know the sanitation rules about this, but loss of custody means you don't know what somebody's doing to the goods.
I got The Wolf ($15.99) -- Tomato sauce, sausage, pepperoni, bacon, caramelized onion, green pepper, roasted garlic and Mozzarella. I did get a little tang from the sauce, and it was fine, even though my palette doesn't like HOT. I believe the green peppers were put on after the cooking, 'cause they were raw. And I didn't taste any garlic. The sausage was great. And overall, it was a good-tasting pizza.
But I can't get over this part. I picked up a piece, others were showing me how to fold it (like NY pizza), so I did that, and the center area crust was wet and mushy, and that's why it folded well.
So every time I took a bite of my pizza slice, I put it down and put my hand in my lap to wipe off the grit (cornmeal?) and grease (or some kind of wetness) into my napkin. In all of my life, I have NEVER had to do that from a piece of pizza.
I'm not sure I know what to make of this place. Too many goober moments, beginning when one of our party wouldn't be seated when we were coming within 20 minutes. Holy cow!! How fast does the place fill up? It was never filled the entire time we were there.
Then the jalapeno thing. Then the mis-delivered pizza thing. Then the greasy/wet/whatever it was I experienced with my pizza, along with the grit feeling.
This doesn't add up to too much. Except goober moments. | 0negative
| 778 |
FLIES, FLIES EVERYWHERE -- CALIFORNIA PRICES for HUGE PORTIONS OF MEDIOCRE FOOD.
I have read many positive reviews about this place here. It appears that at least some 5-star reviews here are "plants" placed by family and friends of BBD employees. (See the "Dillon" references in them, and "Dillon H." likes those reviews.).
Today my friend and I stopped by to check it out since I had a coupon for free coffee. Being a Sunday on a holiday weekend, the place was packed. I noticed a LOT of senior citizens. Most likely many are here to check out this place since it's the first BBD in Tucson. We were seated after about a 30-minute wait.
The decor is whimsical black bear and very cute. I do agree with another poster here that the lights are a little too bright. Our service was pretty good.
My friend had iced tea. I ordered coffee and a small OJ for beverages. The OJ was freshly squeezed, which is a nice touch! The coffee was VERY strong, so I had to cut it with some hot H2O. If you like EXTREMELY STRONG coffee, you will love theirs.
We split an order of onion rings. GET THE ONION RINGS, THEY ARE THE BOMB!! Wow, hot, crisp, lots of onion flesh -- delish!
I had the Denver 3-egg omelette (really a FOLD) and asked for extra cheese. Our waitress didn't hear the "extra cheese" part or flat-out ignored it because there was hardly any cheese at all on it. The veggies (onion and bell peppers) were underdone, which is to be expected with a FOLD because they are not down in the egg batter. If I ever return to BBD (highly unlikely) I will get a Denver 2-egg scrambler. In addition, the veggies also were FLAVORLESS so I suspect these were NOT fresh veggies.
I opted for hash browns. What a disappointment! They were varying sizes of potato, from shavings to chunks. Ergo, there was a mix of very crispy and just pieces of potato with no crust at all. I do NOT recommend the "hash browns" (these really are not) at all. If you're looking for that wonderful crispy browned top that we all love about hash brown potatoes, you are NOT going to get it with these.
I also ordered a side of link sausage. Links were very brown on one side and not brown at all elsewhere, indicating that they had not been turned in the pan for even browning. They were not burned, however, so they were acceptable.
My buddy had a tuna sandwich which was okay. He also had potato salad, which I tasted. It was okay but nothing to write home about. It was made with red potatoes with the skins (a plus) and contained celery and black olives. It had both mustard and mayo in it and neither predominated.
I can't comment on their biscuits since my friend ate mine.
Portions are huge, so we each had a box to go.
I ordered a blackberry cobbler -- MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE -- to go. It was good PIE. GET A CLIUE, BBD -- PIE IS NOT COBBLER!!! Surprisingly, it was not sickeningly sweet like you find at so many places. However, it was not made with fresh ingredients (the fruit flavor was a bit lacking) so it wasn't SUPER good. Again, PIE IS **NOT** COBBLER!!
The OVERWHELMING PROBLEM with this place is the OUT-OF-CONTROL FLIES!! Come on, this place has been open for ABOUT A MONTH, and, based upon reviews here, there has been a FLY PROBLEM from DAY ONE. THE ENTIRE MEAL WE SPENT MORE TIME SWATTING THE DAMNED INSECTS THAN EATING OUR FOOD!! Everywhere I looked, I could see a dark streak or two whizzing through the air. They landed on my friend's head, his face, our table, etc. etc. etc. FLIES ARE EVERYWHERE IN THE DINING AND COMMON AREAS OF THIS RESTAURANT. I would HATE TO SEE WHAT THE KITCHEN LOOKS LIKE!!
PIMA COUNTY HEALTH DEPT. NEEDS TO INSPECT THIS PLACE!!!
We commented to the manager, Eugene, on the way out about the flies. His response? "Yeah, we are working on that. It's because this is the monsoon season, you know." UM, NO!! IF IT WERE BECAUSE OF THE MONSOON, EUGENE, THEN EVERY RESTAURANT IN TUCSON WOULD BE OVERRUN WITH FLIES, AND WE ALL KNOW THAT THAT IS NOT THE CASE!!!!
TOTALS: Pre tip, my friend's bill came to $12+. My bill was $33+, which included a free coffee. (Onion rings were on my ticket.)
Both of us agreed that we are likely NOT going back to BBD because there is absolutely no reason to. For the money we spent, we could have eaten steaks at Texas Roadhouse. Unless I just happen to be nearby, I may stop in for some onion rings. However, I will wait several months before doing even that to see if they resolve theIr FLY PROBLEM!!! | 0negative
| 824 |
I have to say I'm surprised at some of the reviews, however everyone is entitled to their opinion. In reading them before my stay, for the most part some of it could have been avoided knowing what you were getting into. When I researched the Inn, I looked at all the pictures and noted which rooms had shared bathrooms or weren't in the main building. Also very important to take in is that the building is older and it's going to come with it's quirks. I own a building the same vintage and it's a challenge on a reasonable budget. Sure they could easily fix and update everything, but then be prepared to pay the rate for it.
My last visit to Indy I stayed downtown, of course it was more expensive and located in the heart of the action, great if you need to be downtown for business. At first upon rolling up to the Inn, I noted that I'd be a bit away from downtown, but no matter, it's about a 20 minute walk if that and if I drove parking is relatively cheap, where they get you is if you have to park overnight at your hotel. This was one of the reasons I selected the Inn, a free parking lot, also free street parking. This alone is about a 30$ a night savings. Another perk of the location, the charming neighborhood. If I were to live in Indy, this area would be on the list, tree lined streets, historic homes, and friendly people. Take a tour of the Harrison home down the street, or a walk around the block to the Thirsty Scholar for your morning coffee or late night glass of wine and converse with the barkeep or some of the locals.
Now for the Inn and my room, I stayed in Stanza 1. Stanza 1 is a beautiful room with a four poster bed, gleaming hardwood floors, and a lot of space. You also had a desk to do a little work if need be, then after a comfy loveseat for two with an ottoman, I enjoyed this the most for reading, so much so that I'd love to liberate them of it and bring it home. Speaking of comfortable, the bed, I slept well. The bathroom, it was clean a couple of areas needed attention, the wall to the right of the sink and the wall to the left of the toilet. (I can't seem to take my property manager hat off) The other change I would make is a wastebasket by the desk, there is only one in the room in the bathroom, I found myself constantly running in there, and also a box of Kleenex in the main room, just a nice touch. I didn't use the jetted tub for two, it's in a combination with a shower. I did note that a grab bar would be handy as the tub is high with a wide ledge. I can see this being a hazard for someone with mobility issues or klutzes like me, a longer mat could help too, the one there is small and in the center of the tub while the tendency is to hold onto the wall at the end of the tub. This places your wet foot on slippery floor tile. Sure, you can move the little rug, 'duh, however not your first thought. These are little things, not worthy of deduction of stars.
During the week breakfast is served to 9a, while they call it continental there is an item served warm, day one was a Belgium waffle, day two a mushroom and cheddar omelette, both were delicious, you'll also find an assortment of fruit, muffins, oatmeal, along with coffee and juice. I stumbled out of bed, threw on some clothes and a short flight of stairs into the lovely dining room, this was so much easier than your big hotel breakfast, well unless you're doing room service. Speaking of food, on the second floor you'll find a butler's pantry with snacks, soda, a insta-hot if you want to make coffee or tea. Across from that a deck with seating and tables to enjoy the treetops.
The Inn at the Villa is charming, yes it is older too. I've stayed at many B&B's I found my stay here among the top. Sure, did I see some deferred maintenance, was there a bit of noise, yes on both counts, taking things in proper context is important. I'd book here again in a heartbeat, I plan on returning to Indy again, I have friends to visit, and museums to finish up. I never thought of the area as a getaway from Chicago, but it is. Now, if only they had a lake ;) | 2positive
| 795 |
Okay, there have been a lot of diverse reviews of this place, mostly by a number of folks who have reviewed very few restaurants. So, I decided to go myself and see what I could find out.
First, they have a great vibe being located "just off" Mass Avenue north of North Street, around the corner from the sister company Outlier's Brewing. There is limited street parking near there and a pay lot for $10 a block south. I was fortunate and found some pay parking on Mass Avenue about a block north of the intersection. So, a short walk saved me quite a bit of change.
The staff greeted me as I walked up and were cool with letting me walk around the place to see the artwork by FAB Crew and Sophie Gamand before dining. They answered questions and had my place ready to go when I was done.
I asked about trying a flight of beer since they carry Outlier's, but that wasn't a set option. However, the waiter offered to let me try samples of any that I was interested in. I tried several and then asked what my waiter would recommend of my options to go with the food I was planning on ordering. Done and done! I went with a German Pilsner called Blau Machen (4.5%, very little bitterness).
I started with an item that was new to me: Conservas. Conservas is a European style of food preparation where a seafood is harvested fresh and canned with a variety of herbs and spices allowing the seafood to marinate. I went with the "Pickled laughing bird shrimp". The process basically cooks the shrimp through the pickling process and as expected, makes the texture just a little more chewy than raw shrimp. What was unexpected was the fantastic flavor! The conservas is served still in the can and after clearing away a bay leaf, I used a cocktail fork to spear the warm shrimp. The aroma from within the can reminded me of a seafood soup, only you don't drink the liquids in this case. As part of the meal course, I got my pick of "preparations" = side dishes to pair with the conservas. I went with the "Romantica" which consisted of thin sliced Spanish Chorizo, aioli, and crouton (four slices of crisp bread cut on the diagonal.) I alternated between bites of the shrimp and the mini sandwiches I made with the Romantica. Absolutely delicious! I could have ordered another with no problem, but I decided to move on to my large plate option: Pork Schnitzel. (see why I got the German pilsner?)
The Schnitzel is a pounded pork cut that becomes tenderized as it becomes thinner. (It looks similar to a pork tenderloin.) Here, the pork is breaded in a pretzel crust and served with grilled asparagus, sugar snap peas, diced potatoes, a sliced boiled egg, and a couple dollops of lemon mayo. Wow! This was great!
Because the schnitzel looked thicker, the chef sent out a steak knife in case my bread knife wasn't sharp enough. I never used it. I was literally using my fork to cut the meat. I couldn't get over how tender it was and I loved the pretzel coating....very German tasting to my palate. The asparagus were mild and had just enough grilling to bring out their flavor. The sugar snap peas (called just peas on the menu) come in the pod and were very sweet. That was unexpected but a great pairing with the rest of the meal. The potatoes were cut into small pieces about diced size, but had an unusual shape to them. They were completely done and took on that great flavor that potatoes get when they have been cooked to completion, not like some half baked giant potato. The lemon mayo made for good dipping and if anything, I could have used a little more on the side for dipping the veggies.
So, for the things I tried and the service I received, I say 5 stars. I am already looking for friends who want to tag along with me the next time so I can try something new.
Review #271
Follow up: My return visit with guests allowed me to sample quite a few items:
The Black Mole Skirt Steak - not one you can order to temp. Served with a full char on the outside which has a great flavor. Pairs well with the veggie relish, tomatoes, and cotija cheese
Chicken Thighs - my friend ordered this and though it looks like a salad, the chicken in a wild rice pan sauce is delicious, creamy, and moist. The stone fruit panzanella covers the chicken when served. (You never see the brick since it doesn't leave the kitchen)
Conservas: Octopus in chili tomato paired with Vera Cruz (green olives, capers, oregano, and fried potatoes). The chili tomato sauce is thicker than in the shrimp conservas. The octopus is served warm to room temperature and has a nice chew without being rubbery.
Pickled eggs and beets - this is a shareable bar food option with probably three full eggs served sliced over thick, large beets. These had less pickled sweetness than commercial pickled beets I have tried
Pork belly rillettes - initially, this was disappointing because the pork belly (pate)
was fairly bland. Paired with pickled peppers and mustard = excellent! | 2positive
| 899 |
Despite the fact that I'm a Pike High School graduate, I don't hang out much more on Indy's Northwestside. It seems like every time I go over that way, I'm amazed at how much it has grown. Today, I had an afternoon long meeting for work in one of the nearby office complexes and decided to do a little geocaching in the area and try out a new restaurant for a new Yelp review.
As I've learned from some of the other reviews, Chef Mike is formerly of the Indianapolis Propylaeum. I'm guessing he left there because it was too frustrating to try to spell propylaeum after a couple brews.
Seriously, Chef Mike's is a pretty straight-forward bar n' grill type place located pretty darn close to Pike High School. It's located at the end of a strangely abandoned strip center that I believe only had a Subway and an E-Cig place in it with several retail spots currently available.
Chef Mike's has a couple accessible spots right on the corner of the restaurant's entrance. I'm not quite sure I'd call them ADA compliant, but since the House of Representatives is trying to gut ADA they probably will be soon.
The front entrance is through double doors that have a magazine rack as a slight obstacle. There's another set of doors that take you into the dining area. Once you enter, you'll be amazed how much Chef Mike's feels like a rather old school, intimate bar. To the left, you have a family friendly dining area. To the right, you have a bar area. Both areas have both table and booths - thus, there are options for wheelchairs in both areas.
They have a wide variety of drink options, though they do also carry soft drinks and iced tea. They have both drink and food specials. They have daily lunch specials that run $8.49 from M-F.
Chef Mike's serves up some fine dining options - charcoal grilled steaks, fish and chops. They also have appetizers, soups, salads, and a variety of burgers. They also have pizza and a handful of dessert options.
I ordered a bacon/cheeseburger with a side of fries. I'm not big on cheese, but I wasn't in the mood to be picky and I didn't see a create-your-own option. The burger with a side is $12.99 - the drink took my meal up to almost $17.
I arrived at just before 4pm - the tail end of their day shift. It took a couple minutes to get attention, but the server came over and I pretty much had the joint to myself for a bit. I sat in front of one of their widescreens and watched Olympic curling.
For the record, Olympic curling is weird.
The burger is definitely a generous size made from a Signature Mike's cut weaving together short rib, sirloin, chuck, and brisket. The cheese is melted over the burger and the bacon. I'm not even sure how to describe the fries, though they are hand-cut and definitely have an originality in terms of seasoning.
The atmosphere was warm and inviting - my server switched not long after I arrived. She was friendly, slightly slow in terms of attentiveness but then would turn around and go above and beyond - such as helping with the door on the way out. It seemed liked the kind of place that has a great energy when it's busier. The servers, and I believe there were a couple working by the time I left, were all older than your usual servers but that just added to the more dignified aura of the place.
I'm sure the food was quite good - several Yelp friends I respect have loved this place, but I have to be honest and say I found it very middle-of-the-road. I definitely would not order it again. I kept thinking maybe if I'd ordered the burger plain, my usual order, but I'm not sure if that would help. I didn't dislike it. I just wasn't as blown away as I expected. The fries? They just didn't work for me. Again, they weren't bad - they just weren't my favorites. I admired the experiment and originality of them, but the combo just didn't work for me. Since the meal was a touch higher than most burger/fry options, I expected this to be a higher-end experience. I would definitely, in all likelihood, go back to the restaurant again - I just wouldn't order this again.
I did get a small iced tea to go and that was appreciated. I also received no pressure to rush out - it was nice to linger after a long day.
Overall, this was a solid 3-star experience for me. I'd likely recommend it on the basis of the quality food and atmosphere and the fact that other friends have really loved it. Sometimes, it's individualized and for whatever reason this just didn't work for me on the level I'd hoped. | 1neutral
| 829 |
Sam's is a wonderful steakhouse despite the lack of modern decor and the slightly less than friendly service. Driving in to their parking lot, you'll notice and will most likely appreciate the fact that it is a beautiful brick building. I'm into brick buildings and the exterior spoke to me. I love it!
We had a 5:30 dinner reservations on the night before V-day. The lady who greeted us didn't seem very enthusiastic but they were excellent with the older crowd who came in around the same time. I get it, we look like we're in our 20s which is great (for us especially when we get to our 40s) but would have preferred not to have been treated like we were random kids who wandered into a steakhouse they can't afford.
The restaurant was all spruced up for Valentine's with big red balloons trimmed with red fuzzy feathers and tables and chairs in white with red (or were they pink?) bows tied around them. It honestly made me think of a wedding reception than a night out at a steakhouse. We were directed to the back dining room with the fireplace. I couldn't get over the wedding reception feel. I haven't been to a lot of weddings... Actually, come to think I haven't been to one at all as an adult (18 and over) but the whole setting was very much like one.
Reading through the menu, it says the restaurant became Sam's in the very early 90s and the decorations look like they were from that era. Gold trims and handles are definitely a thing of the late 80s and early 90s. And as much as I am into the 90s music... When it comes to decorations? Not so much.
Someone brought water immediately to the table while we peruse the menu. I usually would go for a glass of cabernet sauvignon but I wanted to get a martini despite all the warnings about the shaker from previous reviews. My curiosity was nagging at me. The waiter came and asked about drinks but we weren't ready to order so he came back a few minutes later. I ordered a vodka martini, dirty with olives and dining partner only wanted water to which the waiter paused and acted annoyed for making him come back for 1 drink order. When people have to work nights, they can't drink at dinner. Just an FYI. It's not that the person is being cheap or that you should be making such assumptions and turn your attitude around all of a sudden because they only wanted some water.
When he came back with my martini, he had it in a small shaker enough for 1 serving and took it away after pouring. Maybe they did read some of the reviews about their faulty shakers! So that left me with no shaker incident but the martini was prepared well and I had another before our main course came.
We started with some crab cakes served over a bed of flash fried spinach. They were plump and had great flavors. I'll skip the salad. It was just your typical, side salad really. I opted for the prime rib, medium rare and a twice baked potato for my side. The prime rib was prepared as requested (yay, Sam's yay!!!) and according to the menu, I had the 14 oz cut which certainly looked a lot bigger than that. But hey, I'm not complaining! It was thick, juicy, and very flavorful. Wow! I was completely blown away by that prime rib. I tried a bite of the new york strip prepared medium. I like my steak medium rare but the bite I had was alright if you prefer your steak medium. I took maybe 3 bites of my twice baked potato. I liked it but the main highlight was the steak.
For dessert, I ordered the creme brulee. It was fine but I've had better. They do give you a fairly large serving though so it's definitely a shareable dessert should you choose to do so.
Would I come back here again? For the steak... Of course, in a heartbeat or less! I do hope next time though that we get a better reception and a nicer wait service. It was okay but definitely wasn't as friendly as the other steakhouses we've been to. My rating is mostly a reflection of my prime rib and because it was so delicious, I can't bring myself to rate it lower than a 4 despite all the other not so great things. | 2positive
| 761 |
Loud music, chain-restaurant-type interior and no one to greet us in the entry made my husband and me pause at the door to wonder if we should retreat. But it was past lunch time and we were hungry so we soldiered on to wait until the a man emerged from behind the bar to ask if we wanted a table for lunch in the dining room. In fact we preferred a booth there and he had one cleared that was not yet tended. Nice of him. The beginning of the warm up for us. There were more good things to follow but enough on the downside that we are only lukewarm about Lucky Fin. Interested enough to say we'll might give them another try but not enough to say we are eager to go back.
VIBE
Casual. "CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW" music level. At least it was good music. The Rolling Stones "Get Off of My Cloud" and Neal Diamond in the 70's era. A good thing. Wood or wood look tables and chairs run down the middle and along an inside brick faced wall of the bright dining room, booths seating six each are against the window wall. Seating for maybe 60-plus. The red cloth napkins are another good thing.
SERVICE
The server knew the menu, could answer our questions, delivered the food hot to the table, followed up at just the right time and was stellar in making us feel welcome.
LIBATIONS
Along with the food menu you receive a laminated double sided libations list. I noted wines by the glass for as little as six bucks (a White Zin...seriously...people drink that) and up to around $9 for some good options among the choices.
They have a full bar. The Margarita with jalapeno and cilantro ($9) was calling my name to share with my husband. It was served over ice in a mini fish bowl sized glass (I stole, um borrowed, that line from Doug H) and delicious - tart using fresh juice and house made sour mix. It packed a punch. Sharing is a good idea. A little wrinkle was the minced jalapeno is the just right size to stop up the straws. A tip: Smuggle in a couple of Starbuck's Frappucino fat straws so you can drink up that yummy jalapeno. (Not kidding.)
MENU
A broad and eclectic menu on three laminated pages. To scratch the surface; a little Baja (fish tacos), a little Japan (sushi, mostly rolls) a little New England ("lobstah" flatbread) and even some Americana (burgers) and it has the benefit of changing quarterly (said our server) and having some interesting options. Like steamer clams in habenero infused broth. But some of the menu items seemed just confused. For example, the flatbread with lobster, scallops and shrimp is a good start but also has ranch dressing and cheese says the menu. Ranch and cheese on shellfish? Different strokes.
In general I do not eat sushi anyplace where I can't see a sushi chef. But three of the five other occupied tables were ordering sushi rolls. I made note of that for a subsequent visit. They didn't look great as they were delivered to the tables.
There is the added benefit of blackboard specials; on the day of our visit a Central or South American fish ribs (no typo).
FOOD
We tried fried calamari and a half pound (full pound also available) of steamers in habanero garlic broth. The former were good with fresh flavor but all rings and no tentacles, a drawback in our book. The rings were just kissed with coating and perfectly fried and came with lime to squeeze over, all pluses for us. The lime aioli dipper was tame. A tip if you order these; ask for extra limes and their fresh cocktail sauce that has horseradish.
The steamers were the star dish with pieces of habanero served with fresh clams in the perfectly seasoned broth. (Remember the Scoville on habaneros is more than 100,000.) The wrinkle for this dish is the bread served with the dish may as well be cotton batting. They should do better with that. Tips: 1) smuggle in good bread, preferably local baker Gaston's, to soak up the broth, 2) ask for spoons to sip all the broth, 3 ) eat the habaneros.
We ended with key lime pie which was good enough to spend calories to try it once but not good enough to repeat and local Dawson Taylor coffee served piping hot with cup refilled.
VALUE:
Two appetizers, one libation, one dessert, one coffee and we clocked it at just about $36 before tax. Good value.
THIS N THAT:
1) PARKING: In private lot that is too small at peak times.
2) ACCESSIBILITY: Two accessible parking spaces. Non compliant for location but useable curb ramp. No standard height seating in the main bar; a bad thing that is actually illegal in discrimination under the ADA that would be easy for them to correct. Standard height seating in dining room.
3) HAPPY HOUR: Certain hours during the week and all day on Sunday but only in the bar.
4) NEIGHBORS: Red Robin is across the parking lot. | 1neutral
| 864 |
I've been having a tough time with some things lately and didn't especially feel like going anywhere yesterday, but a kind friend dragged me out of the house and treated me to some ice cream here last night.
Wyliepalooza sits in a nice little mini mall in Brownsburg. It is surrounded by lots of other quaint businesses such as a dog bakery, a dry cleaners/formal wear store, and a gourmet popcorn shop. Those places were closed this time of night, but there were quite a few people at a nice looking pizza place a couple doors down and a bar across the parking lot. I would like to return and see about those establishments as well sometime.
There were a few patrons out front, sitting at tables enjoying their frozen treats and a few kids and a couple inside ordering ice cream when we arrived. We didn't wait long and were greeted by a pleasant girl working the counter.
I was interested in the dairy-free options they have. There weren't as many to choose from as I had seen on their list of flavors online, but they did have at least five or six vegan items. The young lady kindly said we could try anything we wanted before choosing a flavor. I tried the Carrot Mango and decided to get a Wylie scoop of that. It was like a sherbet and was very good. My friend didn't care for it, but did enjoy a scoop of regular ice cream in Butter Pecan, I believe it was. I'd like to try the soy raspberry that I saw online. Among the dairy-free choices were Italian Ice and a Peanut Butter ice cream.
They had different bowl sizes such as the kiddie, junior scoop, Wylie scoop and upwards in size. You can also buy whole pints, etc. The Wylie Scoop was a pretty generous portion and just the right amount for me. And at $3.50 a very good price as well. There were also a few different cones to choose from, including a pretzel cone that I have never seen before. I sort of wished I had gotten the waffle cone, but might go for that next time.
I didn't take a real close look at everything they had to offer, but they did seem to have quite a large selection of flavors as well as other drinks and food. Near the dairy-free flavors was a Blueberry Cheesecake ice cream that caught my eye. I would have gladly sampled that if I consumed dairy. The green tea ice cream got my attention, too. If I remember correctly, they also have some gluten-free things that I saw on their website.
The store is brightly lit with lots of little colorful tables in turquoise, etc. It was quite muggy outside and I enjoyed having a cool treat in the air conditioning. There was a neat vintage pin ball machine on display. I don't think you can play it, but it was cool to look at. I also saw giant lollipops for sale and huge Willy Wonka pixie sticks. Gave me a bit of a sense of childhood nostalgia. I bet kids absolutely love this place, but it is fun for us adults, too, and wasn't crowded or crawling with screaming children or anything.
The only negatives I would have is that the restroom layout was a little odd and wasn't spic and span, but I was grateful that they had facilities for customers. There was a sign instructing employees to wash their hands, but there was no hand soap in there that I could see. I luckily had hand sanitizer on me. The ice cream spoons are also really deep and a little sharp on the edges, but I made due and liked the hot pink color that seemed to go well with the rest of the decor.
Upon leaving, the girls behind the counter acknowledged us and we were thanked and told to have a good night in a very friendly manner. I am not often waited on by such friendly people. In fact, I usually assume teenagers will be unattentive and not really care about customer service, but these young ladies surprised me and reminded me not to make assumptions. Top notch service. I was also glad they were open late, til 10 pm, though I am not sure those are their hours every day nor year-round. All in all, a really nice little place that I will be returning to. I am glad I can go to an ice cream parlor again with my dietary choices. | 2positive
| 764 |
Hey, your friendly neighborhood Restaurant Reviewer here. In the words of My Man Steve Harvey from Family Feud, "I have a good one for you today."
My wife is out of town this weekend and I was home with my 15 year old daughter. My daughter was really excited to spend the weekend with her dad. Now, how many dads get the opportunity to hang with their daughter? Am I blessed or what?
She was so excited, that she actually went out and bought a dress just so she could look nice for me. She spent all day trying to find a really nice, fancy, but not too fancy place to go. We landed on Luciano's, and I am very glad we did.
From the outside, there is not much here to see. They really should put some time and effort into dressing up the outside, like my daughter spiffed up for me. It might be that since this place is doing so well (They have a lot of plaques on their wall that say "Best of Boise") they don't see the point.
After all, its the inside and the food that really counts!
When we walked in, I was not impressed at all. The entry door leads right into an old, dark, run down looking bar area. Im not sure how much business this bar area brings in, but I think if I were the owners, I would seriously consider taking the bar down.
I would then tear down up the bar area to expand the dining room. If they still wanted a bar area, I would rebuild it inside the dining area. From the sound of how busy it gets here, they really need them.
We were seated in the dining area, and my view of Luciano improved drastically. It looks upscale, but still informal enough so that many of the customers looked like they were in that commercial.
You know the one. A Girl and Guy are on this date. The guy turns to the girl and tells her that she looks Amazing. The girl looks at the guy and says; "You look amazingly........comfortable."
My daughter had Rosemary Chicken Formaggio, which is basically just a Chicken Alfredo 4 cheese pasta dish with bacon and herbs. I tried the dish and it was quite good. If you are a fan of Rosemary, you will love this.
It had a smokey flavor that I could not quite identify where it was coming from. It was cheesy but not too overboard in spite of the name. For me, it was a bit too salty, but other than this, and the oilinyess, it was excellent.
It was either cooked with lots and lots of butter or had olive oil in it. It left a distinct oil coating in my mouth.
My lasagna was very good. Forget about "The Olive Garden" or any other Italian place you have been too.
The lasagna here is fresh, very hot, has lots of Ricotta (One of my favs) and has beef and Italian sausage. Many "Authentic" lasagnas I have have are overly Tomatoeeeee. (Yeah thats a word).
This lasagna was nicely balanced in flavor. Not too much tomato, not too much spice, not too much meat or cheese. Just right.
It was served in an oblong bowl which I thought was weird at first, but this stone bowl kept my lasagna very hot. Just as food should be, my last bite was just as hot as the first.
A trick that very very few restaurants have been able to master, or even come close too. The lasagna was served with Garlic Bread, that for me, was a bit too salty, but good just the same.
My daughter and I both had Italian Sodas. I had the Blueberry and my daughter tried the cherry. The cherry tasted like....well a cherry and was pretty good. It was really no better or worse than Italian Sodas I have had elsewhere.
The blueberry was less of a success. It was not sweet, and did not really taste of Blueberries. It tasted more like Sparkling Water with an attempt at some flavoring added to it. The Italian Sodas might be nice if you are bringing kids, but for adults, I suggest passing on the lot.
Our Waitress Kat was excellent. My daughter commented that she had not had anyone take care of her leftovers before and put them in a container for her. I know other places do this, but here, it just stood out to here and made an impression.
If you like Italian food, I highly recommend Lucianos. If you have not been here, my advice is to put down whatever food you are eating right now and get here.
Just make sure to NOT arrive around rush hour as Im told the wait can be very long. | 2positive
| 810 |
My intentons on ordering a cheap dish and getting away with an Iron Chef restaurant experience were completely shattered by Cameron B....who coaxed 2 others to shell out the $120 dough for the omakase ($150 w/o drinks after tax+tip). *damn you cameron*
OOmph. I clenched my teeth as I felt somewhat-forcibly complying with the two others in ordering something I was extremely reluctant to eat.
Although the server will make the omakase seem like something that the chef thinks up of on the spot, it really isn't. Most of the items that I got in the omakase are straight from the menu and are in line with the items that were posted on yelp reviews (although there may be small differences in sauces/presentations etc).
Notable food (or things I would like to write about).
1) Toro tartare (3*)- in contrast to those who posted stellar reviews of the toro tartare, I found this dish to be subpar. The color was dark red (as opposed to a slightly less reddish hue that you would find in toro). In addition, I did not find an even distribution of fat throughout the minced toro and at one point questioned whether or not this was really toro, chu-toro (mid-fatty tuna), or just regular tuna. My guess is that at best...this was a very low grade toro. The toro was minced and placed into a cube-like shape with soy sauce at the base. I found it quite difficult to get the toro on my fork without getting significant amounts of the fish completely immersed in the soy sauce (which ultimately made everything salty).
2) Whitefish Carpaccio (4.5*)- the highlight dish of the night. The best way to describe this is that is is a whitefish version of ahi tuna (slightly grilled on the surface and raw inside). The mix of oil & soysauce gliding through the grilled and raw portions of the fish in your mouth will bring delightful confusion as to what exactly it is that one is eating. If I had one qualm, it would be that substandard whitefish was used for this dish. Despite that fact, they were somehow able to prepare this dish to a level that would otherwise be very difficult considering its quality. 2 thumbs up for Morimoto.
3) Kobe Beef (5*) - was this really kobe beef or just wagyu meat? That I'm unsure. But I can say this is one of the best meat preparations that I have tried in the United States. The meat was prepared in a braised beef-rib style. Every time the fork went into the meat, the beef would shred in strips-- which is indicative of very high quality marbled meat with an even fat distribution.
4) Duck and Foie Gras (4*) - the server noticed that I was initially interested in a duck dish and placed a request for duck (without me knowing of it). Because the cost of the substitute duck is cheaper than what I was supposed to receive, I received the roasted foie gras as well. The duck was prepared in an ahi-tuna fashion (I guess it's a recurring theme at the restaurant). The roasted Foie Gras was what I would have received a good french restaurants (and didn't have elements of Asian fusion cuisine). Very solid dishes, but was overshadowed by the whitefish carpaccio and kobe beef.
5) Lobster, sushi, and dessert - 2*. Absolutely nothing special about these dishes. I could do better at most $$$ yelp restaurants at 1/2 the price.
In summary, it breaks my heart to give this restaurant a 4* but alas I must. There were too many dishes on the omakase (lobster, the dried-out sushi, and a potato?cake that compares to what I could find in a prepackaged snacks section in a Japanese grocery store) that I felt were substandard to warrant a 5*.
For those who are thinking of going to Morimoto I strongly urge you to go a la carte and select out the best dishes from the omakase. They are:
1) Kobe Beef
2) Whitefish Carpaccio
3) Foie Gras
4) Duck Duck Duck.
And lastly, I notice a lot of reviews on yelp complaining about the quality of the sushi and traditional Japanese food at Morimoto. You have to remember that Iron Chef Morimoto was never known for authentic Japanese cuisine, but through his skill to artfully blend the elements Eastern and Western cooking. Stick to what he does best and go with the fusion entrees. For authentic Japanese food and sushi go elsewhere :) | 2positive
| 756 |
I wish to direct this to everyone in Delco... please give this place a chance to succeed!
So it is now widely known that this restaurant got the Food Network treatment on Restaurant Impossible. Truth be told, I had no idea they had so many problems. I guess we will learn about them in the episode when it airs.
But I do get it. This place was always a very basic place. There never really was anything special about it. For me, it was a reliable place where I knew i could get a half decent Italian meal for a half decent price. But I also realized all along they were never putting out the quality food like you would get in higher end places. Then again, this is typical of our area of Delco. There are literally 5 or 6 other restaurants within a 4 mile radius putting out the same caliber of Italian food. It's just our lot in these parts. I also understand that people with higher standards for this kind of food never liked a place like this. Let's just say that although i liked it, I understood why others may not have.
So now, I can tell you this much after having dinner here on the Sunday after the makeover with the new menu. Whatever influence Chef Robert Irvine and his sous chef had on this place on the past few days definitely worked. I'll go into detail shortly.
First off, kudos to the designers who did the decor. It does look 10 times better than it used to. For those of you who liked the chef paintings on the wall, sorry but they are gone (I will miss them). Pictures will go up shortly for you to judge.
The all important menu... so tonight, they served the new menu created by Irvine and his crew. The waiter told us that they will be bringing back elements of the old menu and marrying them with the new as they go along. But I was glad I got a chance to sample the new one. We had a large party dining with us, so I was able to sample other items as well as my own order. I'll just go down the list one by one....
Chicken parmigiana... this is what I wanted to see if they would keep or improve upon. My wife ordered it as I wanted to try something new. They definitely improved it. The chicken tastes much fresher now. They don't completely drench it in sauce like they used to. It's presented in a big bowl. Downside is that it was $16 which no longer included salad with the meal (had to be ordered separately). I don't know if the Delco regulars will go for that in the long run. But I know my wife finished it off with no complaints, and what I tasted was excellent. The sauce... it's the same as before.
Chicken ossobuco... this is what I ordered. I thought the chicken was juicy but not much flavor on its own. The rest of the dish saved it, especially the gravy and broccoli rabe.
Caesar salad... on this menu, you have to order the salad separately. And this salad was $8. However, it is rare that the salad is a highlight of the meal for me. This one was. i almost never finish the salad. But this time I finished it and used the bread to sop up the dressing. Big win.
Tuscan wings... I enjoyed the wings with the sun dried tomatoes and olives. My wife thought they were a bit oily. They are a little bit, but the crunch of the wing made up for it.
Calamari... a fellow diner was happy to share this. The calamari rings are huge and flavorful Another win.
Mozzarella and tomato sampler... this was the dish that drew complaints. Not enough cheese and not enough tomato for $6. I thought the flatbread was tasty.
As far as desserts go, both the rice pudding and cheesecake were hits at the table for those who had them. i sampled a bite of the cheesecake and loved it. It has a subtle orange flavor that zings you in the end. Now, what I ordered was a rice pudding cake that wasn't on the menu. The waiter told me that Chef Irvine's sous chef, Lee Lucier, decided to make it for the weekend on a whim because he was bored, and they had some left. Well, how often do you get to sample the work of a renowned chef in Delco like this? I jumped on the opportunity, and it pleased all of us who sampled it.
Service was friendly as always. In the end, the bill was more than we are used to paying here. We shall see how that plays out in the long run for a finer dining experience if it stays this way. I'm curious to see how they marry the old with the new.
Rumor has it that not everyone was pleased with the change. Some people used to the old way won't like this new menu due to the price point. Some I heard didn't like the new decor. From what I gather they seem to be in the minority. The waiter was proactively gathering feedback from the table on the new stuff, so our opinion was heard.
But I'll give this place a huge thumbs up for the improvements at least for now. It's a shot in the arm for a place that needed it. It's good to have a restaurant at least willing to try to break the tired southern Delco mold, and I will watch to see what they do from her | 2positive
| 956 |
Junction Eighteen is located where Skyline Grill used to be (in the old Three Little Bakers golf club). Apparently they have 2 different sites; because if you google their restaurant this pops up http://www.junctioneighteende.com/, but if you go to their facebook, the one I added to their yelp listing comes up. I made a reservation for my mom's birthday online. We had eaten there when it was the Skyline Grill but this would be our first time at Junction Eighteen. My reservation was confirmed through an email from Shawn Naylor.
The outside looked like the Skyline Grill except the sign. When we walked in, I gave the hostess my name and that we had reservations for 5:30pm. I don't think we needed to make a reservation because the place had less than 10 people; almost all of them were at the bar. We were seated to the right in their "dining area". My mom commented to me how cold it was and to confirm that, an older couple who had walked in asked if we were cold. We changed tables to the corner but I still had to wear my coat the entire time.
Inside didn't look much different from the Skyline Grill either. Yes, there were more tables with new chairs, new booths, and they tried to give the place a higher class feel with the black color and place settings. But I don't think the walls were even painted, because where we were in the corner, you could see scrape marks where the white drywall was showing. Our waitress Samantha asked if we had been to here before, I told her we were when it was the Skyline Grill but this was our first time and mentioned it was my mother's birthday. She did acknowledge it by saying happy birthday. She took our drink orders and asked me if I wanted lemon with my water, which I told her no, yet I was served lemon anyhow. Also she mispronounced Pinot Noir.
We were told that the clams weren't available because when they got them, they were no good. That's originally what my mom wanted, but she ordered their New York Strip ($26) instead. We were told it was $8 burger night (which are normally $11-$12) so I ordered their Gorgonzola burger with a side salad for an additional charge (instead of the fries that it comes with). Also, we had received a free appetizer (with the purchase of an entrée) flyer in the mail; with that we ordered their roasted red pepper hummus appetizer.
The hummus appetizer was pretty good; though their menu stated they were toasted pita points, they were rather squishy as if they were just warmed up, not toasted. Also, for it being 'red pepper hummus' it was a little bland. Although, the cucumbers were good. My picture does not look like the picture that they have on their facebook; the one they have has some herbs on the tomatoes. The tomatoes we were served didn't have anything thing on them. I'm glad I was able to try this appetizer and it was free because it was literally the only "healthy" app they had on their menu.
My side salad was a nice size and the house vinaigrette was surprisingly different and good. It was light and sweet but not overpowering; I think I tasted some cinnamon. It would have been nice to see them make the little extra effort by slicing the tomatoes in halves. If you have ever tried cutting a cherry tomato at a table with other people, it can be fun (sarcasm).
Before I finished my salad, my burger and my mom's entrée came out. Her steak was large and it had a small amount of sautéed (in butter) spinach and a potato cut up into slices. My burger was cooked how I asked and it was tasty. I think serving it on a brioche bun wasn't the best idea, because of the burger being so juicy, a bun like that just fell apart. I was left with a wet mess in my hand; literally dripping down my arm.
Samantha did check on us a couple times (btw that older couple left without ordering anything because of how cold it was); when she asked how everything was my mom mentioned the cold and the things she liked about the food. Samantha then told us they had lost power yesterday. She asked if we wanted dessert, but we weren't really that interested so she brought us some take out boxes (nice they use recyclable plastic ones) and the check. When I was ready to pay with a card, I had to hunt her down and actually had to give it to the hostess when she came up to ask if I needed anything; since I was standing at the bar trying to pay.
The total was $49 with the free app coupon. I don't mind paying more for a good all around experience but for our first time here, and also, my mom's birthday, I was disappointed. When you know it's someone's first time into your restaurant, being a Wednesday night or not, that's the potential for a lifelong customer. I wasn't looking for balloons or anything crazy, but if a chain place like Applebee's can offer a free dessert, this restaurant with entrees over $25 can do something to make someone's night special, if they are looking for repeat business. It was a lackluster experience we had and for the price I expected better. | 0negative
| 923 |
I owed this place a revisit after not really enjoying my first time here, and am happy to say that there were lots of positive changes. I think this place can be added onto the surprisingly long list of businesses that opened their doors long before they were done executing their plan for the place, but it has certainly seen a lot of improvement since that time.
The most significant of those changes include adding heat, barstools at the bar, new tables and chairs in their seating area, and a list of 3 winter seasonal beers to go along with the 4 house beers they started off with. These were all fairly basic things that were missing on my first visit, but as noted in the courteous response I got from a business owner after my first review, they were all things that were already in the works and have now come to fruition.
A little out of the way for me, we did finally make it back by here this past First Friday to pair the brewery stop with a tour of some of the art galleries that are open in this complex. They had a pretty decent crowd in here, and it was a livelier place than my first stop here. We were helped by the same girl that was working the first time we came, and she was once again spectacular. Super friendly and outgoing, and we were helped quickly.
Like I said, they had their 4 house beers along with 3 beers that were described as winter seasonals. The standard lineup includes a pilsner, red IPA, porter, and session IPA. The seasonal beers were a belgian dubble, dopplebock and a wit. I have tried everything they make so far and am happy to say everything has been enjoyable. That being said, it's also nothing too special yet. They are all good for the style and are worth drinking, but nothing that deviates at all from the norm or are standouts. I have a feeling, just as the rest of the business has gone through a significant change since they opened, the beer will continue to evolve and get better and more interesting the longer they are open.
Of the breweries that I visit that are closest to this one; Flat12, Sun King, Metazoa, and TwoDeep, I'm pretty sure none of them have their beer priced at $6, at least not their standard lineup, even if that $6 does include tax. I may be wrong about that, but I'd be surprised if I was. That's probably still my big hangup on ever picking this place over another brewery. Not even considering that most of those other ones have pint specials that make the beer even cheaper on certain days, this place is already starting a little high for a pretty standard list of beers. I'm certainly no businessman so I shouldn't be the one deciding those things, but as a customer, I don't yet see why I should pay extra for beer here. They do offer bullet/growler fills ($6/$10 for house, $7/$14 for seasonal), and house growlers are $2 off on Sundays. I didn't see any pint specials advertised for any night of the week.
They had a food truck there and it was actually pulled inside into their back warehouse/brewing area, which was really nice on the freezing cold Friday night. As we were back there and obviously eyeballing their brewing setup, we had one of the employees offer to give us a rundown. I don't think he is one of the original 3 guys who own the business, but he certainly had enough stake in it that he knew everything about them. Their brewery sounds like it mostly consists of things from the now defunct Cutters Brewing. It's a decent sized system, but they certainly have plans to grow. It sounded like, if everything goes according to plan, they will continue adding equipment to increase output, start culturing their own yeast, and even be canning sometime in the next year. It was really nice to get the tour and hear about their journey into this business and plans for the future.
It's certainly a more comfortable place to visit than my first trip here, and their additional seasonal beers were all good and nice to have on the menu. I look forward to making it back to see how the place continues to grow as they are open even longer. I still think that because of the location, beer selection, and prices, it probably won't be a place I pick over any of the other breweries I like to go to in town quite yet, but I certainly wouldn't have any aversion to stopping in here for a beer if I was in the area or had another reason to visit the CCIC. Hopefully their positive changes and growth continues. | 1neutral
| 815 |
Let me begin by saying I'm of German descent, and I really wanted to like this place.
My definition of Dreamland Palace:
Bad German version of Denny's that appeals mostly to customers 65+.
My advice about Dreamland Palace:
If you are under 65 years of age, or don't live in the area, don't bother with this place; it's
not worth more than a 5 minute's drive.
In this day and age, if you are going to do food old school style, by which I mean classic or old fashioned dishes that aren't concerned with presentation, you should make certain your flavors and food shine. And unfortunately that is not the case here.
The Good:
1-The Salad Bar was decent. It had a refreshing assortment of marinated salads, (no lettuce salads) which on the night we visited included 2 variations of sauerkraut slaw, marinated carrot salad, 3-bean salad,and a marinated cucumber salad. The best were the cucumbers and the darker sauerkraut slaw.
2- The dessert display case had a variety of tasty-looking options, however we did not order dessert, so I do not know if they tasted as good as they looked, or if they were homemade.
3-The interesting decor items gave you something to look at while waiting for your food to arrive.
4-The friendly, pleasant, competent waitstaff.
The Bad:
1-Many of the food items are sub-par.
The Applesauce, Sauerkraut and/or Red Cabbage accompaniments came in condiment-sized ramekins... perhaps a couple of tablespoons worth. My question is with meals almost twenty dollars, why so skimpy on the cheap cabbage dishes and jarred applesauce?
Just about every entree came with Potato Pancakes and the most amazing thing about them was how they managed to be soggy despite being very thin and so darkly browned. They were about 1/8'' thin, and only crispy on the very edges where they were paper thin.They were also rather greasy and easily the worst potato pancakes I have ever eaten.
The Sauerbraten which was touted as the house specialty was two small 1/8'' slices of beef drowning in what appeared to be the thickened brine/marinade, as half the plate was covered in the overwhelming marinade/gravy making it impossible to taste the actual meat. The only plus is the meat, what little there was, was tender.
The Jaegerschnitzel, hmm...I don't even know where to begin...There was basically nothing right about this meal, including the fact that it came with the aforementioned skimpy accompaniments. The meat was pounded to the ubiquitous 1/8'' thickness that appears to be their standard here, and then breaded and fried. It was supposed to be veal, but barring a DNA test, there is no way to tell if that was the actual meat used or not because you couldn't taste the meat under all the breading. Unfortunately it also seems as if it was deep fried because the overwhelming flavor was that of stale grease. It covered over half the plate with its edges curling up like a bowl which was filled with Mushroom Gravy. No clue if the gravy itself was homemade or not, however the mushrooms definitely came out of a can/jar; they were pale; limp, chewy and tasteless. I don't understand why fresh mushrooms are not used if you are serving mushroom gravy on so many of the dishes?
The Soup at the soup/salad bar was tepid, tasteless and lacking texture. It was apparently vegetable soup, however if I had been blindfolded, I would have been at a loss to guess what it was other than mushy.
2-Confusing entrance.
You enter the restaurant into a large room that if it were not for the salad bar near the back, you would think you were in a small antique shop. There is no sign to direct you, and no host/hostess to help you either. It took us a minute or so to notice the narrow hallway to the seating area. At the far end of that hallway was the "wait to be seated" sign, where you stand until someone finally happens to notice you.
3-Poor layout/traffic flow.
Yes, I understand that this is an old historic building, but the way they are using the space only adds to the flow issues. While we were visiting the soup/salad bar, about 6 customers arrived and were waiting in the hallway, making it impassible for others to get into the seating area until they were all seated. Meanwhile my not-very-hot-to-begin-with soup grew colder by the minute while we were stuck in "traffic."
4-The owner talks at length (as in 15 minutes) with a few guests who perhaps he knows or are regulars, but totally ignores the rest of the patrons.
5-The long drive for most everyone.
The Ugly:
1-The smell.
Musty, dusty, old smell as you walked in and throughout the place. Guessing the owner and workers have become "nose-blind" to the smell.
2- Being totally ignored by the seemingly chatty owner.
3-The gross vinyl tablecloths that make you wonder how long those poor sticky/tacky things have been in use. | 0negative
| 836 |
We were totally lured by the $20 Tuesday, a little bit back story, I somehow got my days mixed up and spent all day cooking for passover, at 5pm my brother reminded me that it was in fact Tuesday not Wednesday, so I was in no mood to cook yet another dinner.
The BF is not so good with the last minute plans and was a bit thrown by teh lest go out to dinner idea, he wanted to back up his computer soooo we didn't get out the door until 8:15, I was crabby he was hungry and so thats how we walked in the door.
OK so I wasn't expecting too much for $20 .
Asethetically, not my kind of place, looked too typical nothing particularly interesting and the top shelves of the bar could use a cleaning. Maybe I was hoping for some thing more magically witchy.
When we walked in it was rather chaotic, more chaotic than a place with so few tables should be. There were about 3 dirty tables, 6 or 7 seated tables (mostly 2 & 4's) and one large table and 2 empty 4 tops and 1 horrible two top right next to the door.
The host seemed a bit over his head when we came in ( we waited a few minutes before he came over) asked if we had a resv. then went away for a few minutes while we stood there, and then came back and sat us at the horrible cold drafty table. The BF hates when I make what he calls a scene, and what I call asking for a better table. So for love I sat down and said nothing, expecting that any moment all the other tables would be filled with people who with reservations (for 8:30 on a Tuesday? whatevs)
So there we sat, and sat, and sat for a good 15 minutes, no one came by they looked at us, and did that server thing where they refused to catch you eye. ( I hate that).. finally after watching the host bring bread to a few tables and the waitstaff, reset the empty tables (no one came in after us, they should not have sat us at that table, they shouldn't even have that table out unless they are super busy) I flagged down he host and asked if maybe we could place a drink order.
Truthfully, if I was not with the BF, I would have left . OK so finally the host comes and apologizes that no one knew whose table we were so they all ignored us. He brings us bread and a few minutes later our server comes over.
She apologizes again, takes drink order (they have $20 wine bottles on Tuesday as well!!!) tells us everything that they are out of (the steak, the bread pudding...sigh the mahi mahi is now salmon) so after we change our original orders we settle in.
Salad came out ASAP, wedge w/ blue cheese bacon grape tomatoes, nothing wrong with it, (also the bread was pretty good, if slightly burnt)
Then our wine comes, its fine and for $20 great, Dana our server comped it, which was also very nice of her.
2nd course BF: Chicken satay w/ peanut sauce...looked ok but it was miniscule, two bites tops, with a small side of arugula, that should have been dressed if it's on the plate (pet peeve)
Me: Duck pate: It was good, maybe if I am being picky picky they could have put less mustard in the plate, and the toast points could have been nicer, but the pickled onions were great and as mentioned the arugula should have been dressed.
Third course;
We both had Chicken Cordon Bleu...not something I would normally have ordered I wanted the Steak and was not in the mood for fish...But it was good, I couldn't taste the aged provolone as much as I would have liked but the crust was nice and it was tender and oozy. The red bliss mashed potatoes were eh... kind of lumpy for me, call them smashed if they are going to have so many chunks. Came with charred skinny asparagus which was good, but there were different amounts on our plates.
4th Dessert:
we both had the banana mousse, it tasted ok , like sweet mashed up bananas, but as a mousse it failed miserably it wasn't creamy or fluffy, it was kinda grainy like maybe some of the bananas were under ripe.
They gave us a comp "witch shot" which was a layered affair with kaluha or baileys and some other stuff..it was sweet and creamy. Would have been great with an espresso.
All in all our server was super nice, the food was decent and our total bill came to $42.60 which was kind of awesome, we tipped @35%.
They all seemed kind of frazzled by what I suppose was an insane rush btw 6 & 7.
I would go back, since they change up the menu monthly & some things change weekly but would probably sit at the bar or outside. I'm not 100% that I would go there any night other than for the $20 special, based on the reg menu prices dinner for two would w/ drinks would go over $100 and for that there are many BYOBs I would rather go to.
But in the summer I could see myself sitting outside having a martini and sharing a few small plates. And I am curious about the bloody Mary bar at brunch. | 1neutral
| 929 |
Okay, I don't want you to roll your eyes or anything. Seriously. Just don't. But, yeah. I've checked into this location of Chick-fil-A 98 times.
Seriously, 98 times.
So, needless to say, I do eat at this Glendale/Broad Ripple location of Chick-fil-A on a regular basis and I have a perfectly fine time nearly every single time. In fact, I'd have sworn that I actually did review the place not long after its opening. I was so convinced that I'd already reviewed the place, which I kind of think is an obligation after visiting it so often, that I looked up to see if maybe I'd had a review removed for some reason (not that I could see) and I just plain skipped writing it because I was so convinced I'd already done it.
So, hey. I guess I haven't. So, now I am.
As has been duly noted, this location is an awful lot like most corporate locations of Chick-fil-A and is, in fact, a sister store to the East 82nd Street location. Just like all other Chick-fil-A locations, it's closed on Sunday, you'll nearly always get a "My Pleasure" after saying "Thank you!," and the food you get should likely be considered a notch above the usual fast food fare. It's also, as usual, a faith-based chain, a fact that rankles some, and if you listen carefully you'll hear muzak variations of familiar contemporary Christian music on occasion.
While I have always come to this location as it's closer to my home and I tend to frequent this corner anyway, I have to be the first to admit that the entire experience can be incredibly hit-and-miss. There are days I visit this location and am just "wowed" by the experience, culture and customer service. There are days I visit this location and am appalled by the dirty tables, lack of customer service attention and almost embarrassed look I get from employees when I say "Thank you!' and they realize they're supposed to say "My pleasure."
Located in a renovated Fazoli's and between a Crew Carwash and Jiffy Lube, Chick-fil-A meets standards for ADA with parking and has, as I recall, four designated parking spots with appropriate blue striping beside it (Cultural Lesson Note: This blue striping is NOT an available parking spot - it's considered part of accessible parking and allows for those with mobility impairments, like myself, room to access their wheelchairs. While Indy is notoriously lax about tickets for parking in these spots, it's actually considered a violation and you can get fined for parking there. Mostly it's just rude.). They do have appropriate curb cuts. I will admit I've had a couple times I arrived and all the accessible spots were full - this pretty much mandates either skipping the restaurant or parking toward the back of the restaurant that is far less accessible.
The entrance is a double, glass door set-up. It's pretty easy to maneuver, though they tend to have employees nearby who will help if needed - this is more true during the lunch timeframe than evening.
The ordering counter is to the right, the dining area to the left and a kids' play area is at the front of the store. Please note - the kids play area would not be considered disability friendly (though I'm not sure I've ever seen one in a restaurant that is).
As has been noted in early reviews, they had kind of a rough start here. The service was wildly inconsistent and mistakes were frequent. Over time, they've filled out their crew nicely and generally they've gone from "wildly inconsistent" to a more tame "hit-and-miss" with most of the misses being mild-to-moderate and apologetically addressed. As a regular customer, I know, for example, if I'm charged the wrong price and will immediately question it. Because I'm regular, they listen and have always found their mistake. On one occasion, after 15-20 minutes I'd not received my food - they were quite apologetic and offered up a couple free sandwich coupons. Mistakes do happen, especially in 98 visits, but I've been pleased with their responses.
There are certain key staff people who seem to inspire better operations and service. There are certain key staff who keep the restaurant clean, while others seem content to keep their bodies by the counter. I know when I arrive and look around, exactly what type of experience I will have and, for the most part, I've been right.
I like this location. As a recognized regular, I am treated incredibly well. The Chick-fil-A culture demands a "My pleasure" after someone says "Thank you" and demands that employees go above and beyond with customer service. There are days when this location nails it perfectly, but I could practically name employees who are embarrassed to say "My Pleasure" and who allow the dining room to dirty up or simply never offer refills. It's the little things that make Chick-fil-A a special experience in the fast food industry, but when those little things are missing it becomes just another fast food joint. | 1neutral
| 848 |
Quick review- (why end with this, I'll just start with it)
Best calimari I've ever had
Best pretzels I've ever had in a restaurant
Best Tator Tots I've ever had
Best Macaroni and cheese a few of my friends have ever had.
increase Burger size to x3 if you want
Very good seating
Tons of tvs
40+ beer selection.
Food is simple in style (you can tell by the best of list above)
Tongue and cheek sexual humor in the menu
Waitresses are cheery, but can be forgetful.
Well, I've read the reviews here and I'm surprised at the hate. Brickhouse is a great place to watch a game. It's a great place to get food. The food is not amazing, because it's mostly simple, BUT, it is well priced and good quality. The appetizers are easily better in price and taste than a Fridays, the former Benigans, Chile's, and other similarly priced restaurants.
Things I've had
Pretzel Sticks - Awsome! You get 4 and they come with 3 dips
Potato chips with blue cheese crumbles and queso sauce. I say whatever, but my friends love em.
Calamari- the best quality unless you are in a fancy restaurant. But actually the best I've had. Not thickly fried AND large pieces. Has decent flavor and not rubbery at all.
wings. Choose from 3 styles. slightly below average size. But the skin is crispy and Parmesan crusted ones are good.
Entrees
The burgers are good to almost very good. Not a thick kaiser but a long roll that isn't too doughy. The black and blue burger is my favorite entee (blue cheese crumbles). Double the meat for $3 more or triple the meat for $6 more. base price is 9.00 with fries or tater tots (The best tater tots I've ever had) or baked potato.
Pork chops are good.
Meatloaf is good.
I had a fish sandwich a while ago. It was good, but I can't remember what type of fish.
Kobe Burger was good, but I would go to the Cheese cake factory for that.
Apple Crisp and brownie Sunday were both very good. Brownie comes out like it should. Hot and very soft.
The menu is simple mannish. Just like the overall theme. That is the shtick of the place.
Beer Menu - the entire backside of the main menu. 40 types? My favorites, magic hat #9, Blue moon, Guinness, Lager, all on tap. One of my other favorites, Purple Haze, a raspberry wheat beer, is in bottle. Pabst gets served by can in a paper bag.
The atmosphere- Modern sitting area with fire pit outside. Modern Fireplace inside. Tons on flat screens. Midriff baring college girls. I would say most look a few years into college. I'd say 20/21 on up. Sets of recliners in groups of three, food tray connects to cup holder. Couches/loveseats at a few tables. comfortable bench seats elsewhere. Some tables get their own flat screen.
Yes the menu is TONGUE AND CHEEK. if you ask for a beer from tap you will likely be asked "Man size or sissy size?" that's just 16 or 20 oz. They're just trying to make it fun and memorable by poking fun. There is some sexual innuendo in the menu. But no the girls don't talk like that. Only quoting the menu and restaurant phraseology.
The girls looks- I was there for Monday night football and at least 4 were very attractive. Might depend on when you go. I've been there other times and there were one or too and the rest were just a little better than average looking. I have only seen two girls that looked recently out of high school.
On a slow day, a girl might stop by and sit with you. But really that depends on the vibe you are giving off. family's guess not . grumpy female in group no. two guys and a girl at the table and everyone looks happy. yes they likely will, if it's slow.
Service.
The only below average mark i would give. There honestly were a few times I have been there and something was forgotten to be brought out. but not like my food was not put in.
Overall- While there is sexual innuendo in the menu and the girls wear short jean Shorts (and black 1/4 zip tops) the girls being attractive is just a little extra to say icing on the cake if you're a guy who wants to look at girls. Unlike Hooters, it's not the only/obvious reason to go. The food is VERY GOOD FOR THE PRICE. So they don't try to charge you extra because they have a few hot girls working there. The lay-out is attractive, modern and comfortable. and the beer selection is much better than most comparatively priced places as well.
This is a fun place and an ideal for those looking for a sports bar. Women who aren't insecure seem to have fun. They likely realize there's a lot of men there, and don't think much about the waitresses. | 2positive
| 843 |
I will admit that I was more than a little surprised when I found out that Wisconsin-based chain Culver's was opening up shop at 21st and Shadeland Avenue by building a new location on the Northeast corner of this busy but always questionable corner.
They opened up yesterday, 8/30/2021, and that should be considered as there's definitely more than a few bugs needing to be worked out.
For those unaware, Culver's was started in Sauk City, Wisconsin by Craig and Lea Culver along with Craig's parents. They began serving up their beloved "Butterburgers" along with frozen custard.
It took them a while to expand into Indiana, though they've undeniably prospered here and they continue to grow. As a chain, they continue to have a strong family focus and owners are actually required to work in the restaurants. Culver's also limits how many franchises one person can own - primarily because they are actually required to work in their locations.
For several years, my mother was the sales rep for Central Indiana Culver's locations and sold them a good majority of their food. I got to know most of the area owners and general managers fairly well and have always liked Culver's.
I've historically gone to 56th & Post, though this new location is actually closer to my home now. We'll see if I end up making this my regular spot.
This is such a weird location. It can definitely be a rough area. However, Culver's has picked a highly visible spot. It's a rather large restaurant with a two-lane drive-thru that narrows into one lane to pick up the order.
The hotels/motels around this area range from a fairly decent Marriott to a rebuilt/renamed budget hotel that used to house area sex offenders to a Rodeway Inn that always makes me think of that famous movie line "I love the smell of napalm in the morning."
Maybe I'm stereotyping a bit, but this just doesn't feel like a Culver's neighborhood. That said, the drive-thru line was slamming this evening.
Culver's shares a parking lot with Candlewood Suites. It appears they've actually built a small road into this area and Culver's actually has quite a bit of space. Signs tell you how to get to the drive-thru. As I noted, there are two lanes for ordering. Tonight, there was a guy handing out numbers and once you got up to the ordering area you gave them your number. For the most part, they seemed to have orders ready by the time people got to the window.
I'm not sure who designed the drive-thru. It's a bit wonky. While the two-lane concept is a good idea, the inner lane actually requires that you turn slightly left into the line for the pick-up window. This means that you're depending on the kindness of the outer lane to actually follow order and let you in. There are a lot of places I'll depend on kindness - 21st and Shadeland isn't one of them.
That said, I got a bit lucky tonight and it worked pretty well.
I ordered a crispy chicken sandwich value basket with an unsweetened iced tea.
A few things of note:
First, they didn't have large cups. It seems weird to me that you have a grand opening and people can't order a large drink. I had this same issue at another Culver's recently - I'm assuming they're having some sort of supply issue.
Secondly, the drive-thru was fairly slow tonight. I'm assuming people are learning their jobs. Here's hoping that gets worked out.
Third, the food was no more than warm by the time I got it. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't the usual Culver's quality.
Fourth, I'd swear the guy handing out numbers was openly carrying. Maybe he wasn't, but it sure looked like it. I get that the area is rough, but that just struck me as weird (and I'm hoping I was wrong. I have no issues with carrying, but having an employee open carrying in your restaurant uniform is a bit off-putting).
The restaurant itself seems a bit unfinished. The canopy over the drive-thru looked flimsy. The usual Culver's design is fine, but this just seemed unfinished.
Overall, this was definitely a mid-range visit. The employees were friendly, including the guy in the parking lot - actually, he was super friendly. I'll certainly return and will update my review if the bugs get worked out of their system. For now, this location of Culver's is definitely a work in progress. | 1neutral
| 755 |
St Louis is literally starving for this restaurant concept. Too bad the food drought is destined to continue.
This restaurant is a local-sourced, farm-to-table, seasonal menu. So my review can only be applicable to the Fall/Winter, 2014. Walking into Element, I was impressed by the open kitchen and warm barn wood, modern feel. On the way up to the second floor, anticipation builds with the published accolades prominently displayed.
We were greatest with a lack luster welcome. Information regarding the drink/wine menu was, however, crisp and accurate. While getting the servers to talk about the beverages was easy, their ability to highlight the main attraction, food, was less than impressive. Notably, the servers (we overheard servers at other tables as well) consistently applied the dreaded "other diners order..." method to highlight the menu. Let's face it, we all have individual palettes and rarely do the masses get it right in the food department. None the less, we accepted some of the recommendations.
We started with the "popular" butternut squash fritter and mole sauce on the side. I'll be quick, it tasted like a funnel cake at the State Fair. It was fun and campy but not worthy of praise. Additionally, we ordered the suggested chicken wings. St. Louis knows their chicken and the waitress gushed on the uniqueness of their version of the wing. This offering was not offensive but it was not noteworthy either. They get it right with brining and smoking the wings before cooking them. They may have even hit upon some genius with the apricot-based glaze and cream mousse. Where they epically failed is the method they chose to cook (or in this case, slaughter) the dish; the Fry Daddy. They handle the meat with so much care and intent...like real chefs, then instead of grilling the wings, they go the route of KFC.
On to the salad. Here the menu offers two, a mixed greens and a beet salad. Regrettably, we again listened to our server's recommendation and passed on the beet salad (largely because it was my wife's bday and she has never been dazzled by a beet). The mixed green salad was well dressed and evenly coated. Goat cheese, pickled onions and the vinegrette are comfortable but our minds are struggling to identify a trait that displays chef-level skill.
So, who's ready for the main course?...anyone? Fine, the beverages came steadily enough and the room had a great vibe that dissuaded a premature exit.
A wide variety of meat dishes are represented. Unfortunately, the diner gets no sense of the kitchen's talent because the choices are a monosyllabic shotgun of the animal kingdom. Chicken...check. Lamb...check. Duck...check. Skate wing ( usually mmmm)...check. Salmon...check. I would have been somewhat impressed if they focused on a few then offered each "two-ways." So after listening to more of our server's "popular" choices, we decided to split the difference and order the recommended "phenomenal" skate wing and a Duck Trio. Both dishes arrived piping hot (good sign) but dropped off with haste by someone other than our server and without a verbal presentation. I am certain I saw concern (later confirmed) by the expediter in the open kitchen window regarding one of the dishes before it hit the table. The skate wing held such promise. To those who don't often eat skate, the meat is mild and flakey and will absorb flavors of nearly any pairing. To that end, the chef decided to pound the fish (3 or 4 rounds it appears), roll it (resulting in an overcooked outer zone and mushy undercooked inside) and season with salt and pepper. Salt and pepper????!!?? This beautiful fish will accept flavors forever and the choice was equivalent to a cheap meat cut at a summer barbecue in the park over Kingsford charcoal. Miso would have worked. A citrus reduction would have worked. Even truffled butter. Salt and pepper failed. The duck three-way was a bigger disaster. The prosciutto was overbaringly salty (like my attitude at this point). The roasted leg-thigh quarter was cooked to perfection but salty to distraction. The sliver of breast...was a health code violation. Since I witnessed plate after plate of this dish get inspected at the window, make it to the table, get dissected with skepticism and then go uneaten because it was raw, I am certain the kitchen is aware of the problem but too callous to care about the health of the dinner or their reputation.
So here is the real insult. "How did you like your meal?" our server inquired. I told her my critiques politely. She proclaimed she would pass this on to the chefs. Well guess what, it's an open kitchen, stupid. We can see what you do! The message was not conveyed.
Ok, happy birthday to my wife. We are gonna choke down dessert if it kills us. Pound cake with cardamon ice cream, caramel and candied walnuts; actually the only hit. For all of that, we got a massive bill with nothing mitigated...not even the bday slice. | 0negative
| 838 |
EDIT: 6/26/2017
We discovered the following morning that the pandesal we bought was expired FIVE DAYS earlier and had significant MOLD on the lower three rolls. Unfortunately, it was on the top of the rolls where they contacted the other rolls, so it was invisible until we opened the package. I will return to recheck in a few weeks or months to make sure, but as of right now it would be unconscionable for me to give a positive recommendation. Yes, we should have checked the expiration date, but the staff should ALSO be checking the dates (particularly at a BAKERY) both on the shelves regularly, and at the time of sale. Disgusting and unacceptable. Score reduced to 2/5.
Follow up recommendation would be to do a proper inventory and have staff regularly check expiration dates. Bakery goods should be checked and discarded if expired on a DAILY basis.
ORIGINAL REVIEW 6/25/2017:
In our never-ending search for decent Filipino food, or more accurately because Philippine Smoked BBQ was closed, my wife and I found Philippine Bread House and Restaurant via Yelp somewhat by surprise. We thought we had found all the listed Filipino joints. Regardless, Philippine Bread House and Restaurant is tucked in an unassuming, semi-industrial looking storefront along Old Capitol Trail. If it weren't for their sign, they'd be hard to find. Thankfully, they've thoughtfully put out a plywood sign near the road.
The restaurant takes up the right-hand side of their facility, with what looked like a partially disused bakery area to the left. They're clearly baking here, but they'e also storing stuff in there, so it was hard to tell if there used to be a bakery counter. The interior was well-decorated but a but scattered. You had baked goods on the left wall, in wire racks, mixed in with a coffee machine and some fridges. Tucked in the back was a small grocery area. Grocery selection and pricing was meh. Nothing special. Finally, the food was available from a small steam tray counter in the back.
There were several customers eating inside, which boded well. We came to the counter and found an eight steam tray unit waiting. Only about six trays had food, with chicken adobo, some fish, a pork dish, and a few other common filipino foods. The selection and quality available was very limited and it was not readily apparent they could quickly make or obtain more. A group of five ordered after us and actually left because they were out of rice. Let me repeat that...out of rice. Prices were not clearly marked in large numbers anywhere, but a price list and a catering list were available by the register. Prices were reasonable, but not exceptionally good.
The food was decent. My wife and her mother tried fish and pork dishes. They seemed reasonably happy with them. I had chicken adobo. It was excellent, certainly as good as any adobo I've had in the Philippines or homemade. The rice was also pretty decent, kudos to the rice cooker.
Hygiene was so-so. There were some flies, the tables weren't completely clean, and there was a lot of clutter in that bakery area. Presentation of the food was similarly so-so. Styrofoam plates on cafeteria trays.
Since the food was good, and since they do appear to have pretty good baked goods, I'm going to rate a 3/5.
Here's what they could do to move that score up:
1) Consider expanding the selection to 8-12 items, with a soup or two. And don't run out of rice. They're operating like a neighborhood cantina or something in the Philippines. You know, the lady with the woks and bowls every few blocks with food? Problem is, they're in an industrial park type setting in Delaware. Step it up. Don't go crazy and make everything under the sun, or expensive stuff that needs more equipment. Stick with he basics like adobo, but maybe have more ready or cook to order (within the constraints of how long things take to cook). Elevate Filipino food and get new customers coming in.
2) Clean up a bit. Unclutter that baking area or maybe put up a curtain so you can't see inside.
3) Clearly label prices somewhere above the cash register, either on the front of the food trays or on the wall.
4) Ditch the styrofoam plates and plastic cutlery. At the given prices, I'd expect dinnerware.
5) Give up on the grocery section. Focus on the food. If you feel you NEED a Filipino grocery in Delaware, open one. But the more different things you try to do in one store, the harder it is to focus.
So in summary, 3/5, some issues but good food. | 0negative
| 787 |
I've tried so hard to make blue dog my spot. I've dealt with the crowds, unacceptable service and an uneducated staff but I've gotten to the point where I will NOT be returning to Blue Dog Chalfont for anything other than to pick up a 6 pack when I don't feel like driving to Wegmans.
My friends and I go for dinner and for drinks. When we go to eat, despite being small girls, let me tell you we eat. We also, when we're together drink like fishes. Let's get this party started. Our server, she's a bit slow however she has 2 other tables. .maybe she's new. OK, whatever. For my meal, I order a ceaser salad but ask I'd the kitchen is able to give me seared ahi tuna on top ( I only made such an inquiry due to the presence of an appetizer which was seared ahi tuna) After checking with the kitchen she let me know that it could be done. No mention of price (the appetizer was under $13) to add the tuna but I'm assuming that at most, I'd be paying the price of the tuna app, and the price of my salad. APPARENTLY numbers aren't important, and printed menu pricing has no bearing on what my server decided was a fair price (she wasn't a fish monger and it was doubtful that she knew fair market price for the ahi with concern to the fat ratio in the meat--the quality was just average) but she put in a miscellaneous charge for $18!
Ok, so, I call over the waitress (and I'm being quite nice) and ask why the cost of the tuna addition is more than the price of the appetizer *it wasn't a lot of tuna in terms of quantity either, there was no excess of tuna swimming amongst the lettuce on my plate *. The waitress gets snappy and tells me that the tuna when added to the salad is an additional $18 and she can't change it (uhm, I'm pretty certain you entered it and you aren't giving me any justification for the pricing). I ask if this is really correct and what is owed and she said yes. I ask for a manager, and am told that the manager went home for a break (..) no offer to take my information for follow up, no regard for my feelings and no show of empathy or understanding of my frustration and confusion.I'm miffed, I've been polite (though admittedly stern) and I'm disappointed, but I pay what I owe, leave a 15%gratuity
Fast forward a few months. My boyfriend and I are coming home from a movie. Like I said, I live right around the corner, so we decide we'll stop for a few drinks before calling it a night. It's around 10:45pm, and we notice that they have milk and cereal themed shots.FRUITY PEBBLES? (Or maybe it was fruitloops) MAYBE, just maybe I could fall in love with this place. I order one, as does my boyfriend, and I'm displaying child like excitement. Just ordering these things made me super happy. I'm thinking this is a great end to my night.
My boyfriend gets his..and swallows a little shard of glass. It's not huge, however he's left with a second piece of glass in his mouth and notices that the glass he was given was chipped right at the rim.Let's stop (maybe even collaborate and listen). Glass. This is an assassination attempt via glassware. OK, maybe not.But, we call the bearded husky (sorry,best descriptor) bartender over and show him the shards he pulled from his mouth and the chip in the glass and explain that one piece was already down the hatch . We're being lighthearted (I am, sitting there enjoying my alcoholic cereal treat omnomnom) and he offers to remake the drink while setting the glass aside under the bar. We watch him remake the drink thing, a day he does grab a new glass and checks it over. Except this time, a black, curly hair which is a doppelganger for a hair originating in the pubic region of a body is floating atop the rumchata . . ew. The base was premixed in a pitcher. At this point, I set my drink down and push it away and with a solemn look of defeat coupled with disgust, flag down the gentlemanly bar keep for the second time. We show him the little guest in the beverage and state the obvious that my blonde /silver hair does not meet the physical requirements to be what was in the drink and my boyfriends hair is much longer and not as wirey. The bartender mentioned that the batches were premixed and he dumped the pitcher. Despite no management being available, our bartender did not charge us for either of our cereal drinks and poured us a draft on the house. We tipped him on what our bill would have been (if we would have had no incident) as he didn't do abything apparently wrong and provided good service and good attention to the issue at hand when brought to his attention *it's only fair, I'm not screwing someone who relies on tips *
However, it is because of these experiences (and unfortunate health department citations for the improper storage of food in their refrigeration facilities ) that I won't be coming back. | 0negative
| 902 |
Let me sum everything up in one sentence for people that don't like reading my detailed, lengthy reviews: I ordered our pizza at 5 and was still waiting for it IN THE STORE at 6:25...an hour and a half after ordering it and an hour after I arrived to pick it up.
Now for the details...
We don't really order from here. My friend orders it to our work all of the time and it's usually good so we decided to give it a try on our own. It went just as terribly as the very few times we have tried ordering it for home.
I call at 5 on Halloween and order two pizzas, two fries and an order of mozzarella sticks. They quote me 30-35 minutes which I already think is absurd. I told my fiancé "they're so slow." He agreed. We wait and then go to pick it up. I walk in and see so many people waiting that I literally counted them. There were nine separate people waiting for pizza. NINE! I check in...and pay...dumb mistake...she tells me that it will be another 10-15 minutes. I am annoyed but whatever. I go out to the car and wait. I go back in in 15 minutes. It still isn't ready. There are many other patrons that are highly and visibly agitated. No one says or does anything. No one apologizes. No one offers anything. They just let everyone sit there stewing in fury. 5:45 comes and goes...6:00...6:05...I go back out to the car and tel my fiancé that I am losing my patience and that this is ridiculous. I wait outside a little linger and start asking people leaving the place what time they ordered (remember I ordered at FIVE O'CLOCK) one person told me 5:45 and the other person told me 10 of 6. I was out of patience so I went inside and asked if our order was ready yet because other people were leaving and I was still waiting. I said that I could see they were overwhelmed and I was trying to be patient but at this point I ordered an hour and a half ago and had been physically waiting in the store for an hour and I was feeling quite frustrated. She agreed and said she would check. All of a sudden I hear the manager? Owner? ask for a reprint. She comes back to the front and says "reprint 93." Then she tells me he will be out to talk to me. I asked if our pizzas weren't even in the oven yet. She said she wasn't sure but she was going to let him explain.
Here's the worst part. I explained how I had been there for and hour and placed the order an hour and a half prior and his response was that he understood and that I wasn't the only one there in that situation and that they were trying their best. SERIOUSLY? Your best is clearly not good enough. Not even close. We could literally have driven all the way to Italiana's AND BACK...and eaten our pizza already in the amount of time that we were waiting for this pizza and this is all this guy can say?!?! Does he truly believe that it's reasonable to wait AN HOUR AND A HALF for two freakin pizzas just because it's Halloween?!?! If you're that busy then give an appropriate wait time. Don't tell us 35 minutes and then make us wait another hour. There was no offer of a soda, of any other extra things in our order, of a refund...nothing! Give me a break. What terrible management.
So I asked if they could just deliver it when it was ready since I was told it STILL wasn't ready. Here's the awful part. I gave them our address but we were handing candy out at my Mom's. So we were waiting and waiting. It was past 7...still no pizza. Finally my fiancé says, did you give this address? Ughhhh what a fiasco! And to make matters worse, my phone was in airplane mode because it won't stay connected to WiFi so I didn't even know. So my fiancé calls and the manager? Owner? Tells him that they sent a driver and he brought it back and they sent another driver and we still weren't there so they LEFT IT ON OUR STEP!!! Outside!!!! With the bugs!!! And the development full of trick or treaters!!!! SERIOUSLY?!?! That was the best solution you could come up with? I was so done. I wanted to drive it back but I had no energy left and I hadn't eaten since the previous day so we paid 40 bucks for cold, terrible pizza and congealed mozzarella sticks that were sitting on cement with bugs THREE HOURS after ordering it. Ridiculous. I definite effed up on the address but we wouldn't have even been in that position if they knew how to properly run a pizza joint on a busy day and quite frankly, the pizza should have been comped before I even walked out to begin with.
NEVER
AGAIN!!!! | 0negative
| 857 |
Today, my family of four decided to order carry out for the first time in over a month. Understanding that it will take longer than usual due to the circumstances of our world. I ordered our meal online with a promise time of 725pm. We arrived at our location at 720 to a long line to check in, again understandable due to the circumstances. We checked in and the lady told us to go to a parking spot in front of the store. I could here her say the spot 13. Fasting forward to 8pm, we have witnessed several cars come and go. Some with large orders, some with small. I decide to call to make sure everything was okay with our order. I was put on hold by a young lady that was checking for us, 7 minutes later the phone was disconnected without an update. I called back for an additional 7 minutes of ringing and ringing. Finally, the young girl answered again. At this time, I am a little irritated because it is now 50 minutes past our promised time of pick up. She doesn't put me on hold this time to guarantee that the phone is not disconnect. She finds out our food is done and someone is going to bring it out as soon as she figures out what parking spot we are in. (I had to look for them, they didn't know where we were parked) I ask if it will be a manager, she says no. She mentions she can have one bring it out if I would like. I agree. (In my restaurant, this is common courtesy and how we exceed guest expectations) Again, I am not on hold. I can here her ask a manager to take the food out and she is like why? The young lady says "Because they have been waiting FOREVER!" Another ten minutes later, a manager has appeared in person with our food. At this point, it is almost 830pm, an hour after our promised pick up time. I am very irritated. I ask her (I do not know her name, but we will call her Karen) what was going on. She said we are just busy. (this location is always super busy even in normal circumstances) I said yes, but is my food warm? She then puts her hand in the bag to check, yes it's fine. I laugh and say so what is going on was my order lost or what? Did the employees just not know what to do and say fuck it and ignore it? Karen said we are doing something we have not done before and we are just busy. I said no courtesy call, no disclaimer on the ordering system, nothing. She said A CALL? How would that happen? I respond there has got to be a manager that can delegate some responsibilities to other employees or have more workers. Karen then informs me, she is back in the kitchen, but now she is outside speaking to me and she has 60 employees in the back.... If that is the case, why is my food now an hour past due. The store is not half as busy as it is in a normal situation. She just says we are just busy doing something we have not done before. I then respond with 20/30 minutes is busy and 60 deserves more than an apology. She says well what do you want? with an attitude. (Granted at this point in time a few F bombs have came out of my mouth due to the nature of her attitude towards me and that just how I talk to began with.) She said well I was going to offer a couple coupons for the next visit. She gets super overwhelmed and says to me "I don't have to FUCKING deal with this." She turns around and walks away inside. I check my food before I go, it is all there. I get home (I live five minutes away) and start eating with my family... all of our food is ice cold. Cactus blossom, three filet, one sirloin, potatoes, chili, etc. One of our medium rare steaks was so rare it was purple on the inside....... My $90 order and $20 tip now is now being eaten at almost 9pm and is ICE COLD! I should of just ordered the steaks raw (better yet, bought them at Walmart or Kroger) and cooked them on my grill......
This is outrageous. I know that it can be stressful working at a restaurant during a pandemic, but if this is how you treat customers who voice their irritation and simply want a honest explanation of what happened, the store should be closed or at least Karen needs to find a different carrier path. My GM, RDO, and cooperate office would have a fit if this happened at our restaurant.... News flash, if you cannot handle stress and chaos, get out of the restaurant biz. | 0negative
| 836 |
We were barely were able to squeeze a BBQ Wednesday into the month of January. We are getting old enough that we can't afford to miss any and they are opening faster than we can try them out. Since Wild Smoke has just opened, we decided we should get there. It is located in the old Culpepper's location in Creve Coeur. The place has been extensively renovated and is a very nice room, good sized and with large booths that seat six. We did have an issue with how cold the place was after we sat down, but figured out it was because every time the door opened, the wind blew in and around to where we were sitting. This won't be an issue on most days, since it is rarely this cold in St Louis. We should have moved.
Mr D ordered back ribs and I did my usual assortment so I could render a broader review. So here is what I experienced.
Brisket - the meat was done and tender, showing a small pink ring. The flavor was of roast beef, missing smoke. The rub and bark were not in prominence. The key issue for me was, this was fairly dry. At least this particular brisket slab was way too lean. I will try again to see if it is slab-to-slab variability, which I recognize to be an possibility.
Back Ribs - I liked the rub. There was plenty of it and it added enough salt and a pleasant dose of garlic. Almost , the only color on these ribs was from the paprika in the rub. I just could not see that these had been in a real smoker. They were better than Rib City, much better quality of rib to start with, but still may have been done in an electric roaster or oven. I don't think you could do them in a wood or charcoal smoker and have them look like this. They were not smoky ribs, which I prefer nor grilled ribs, which can be very good if rubbed well and tender. Finally they were not quite done. My preference is for them to be done to the point where they come clean off the bone (not fall-of-the-bone). These had to be really chewed off the bone and then it did not come clean. The meat was pink next to the bone and not from smoke.
Pulled Pork - I admit in every review that I am not a Midwestern pulled pork fan and this is an example of why. It was large pulled shreds and was quite dry. In this case the smoke was again missing. People who sauce their barbecue heavily probably like this better than I. I ate all of the three meats (brisket, ribs and pulled pork) without sauce, although they do offer a St Louis six-pack of sauces.
Potato Salad - This is called Warm Red Neck Potato Salad. It is fried potatoes with some dill weed and minced raw red onion. It needed salt and was not really served warm. I'm not sure how it is a salad, but OK, I'll roll with it.
Slaw - I would describe the slaw as a wilted style, very coarsely shredded. I hope the wilt was intentional. Perhaps the dressing is applied warm or hot. It is extremely tart and since I am always complaining about too-sweet coleslaw, I will not complain about this especially since I discovered that when you dump this slaw over the potatoes, it makes a good combination. Each one benefits from the other, the potatoes counter the harshness of the slaw and the slaw adds needed flavor to the potatoes. I did like the combo.
Root Beer Baked Beans - Hmmmmm. I guess these are OK. I really prefer unsweetened beans with barbecue, either plain or well seasoned savory pintos. I think most people will like these better than we did. They are somewhat sweet and fairly tangy. They are apparently a blend of black beans and pintos. I found them a little crunchy, underdone or else the vinegar hardened them, which can happen. They are pretty pasty and dry and I would prefer more sauce on them.
I ordered a ton of food and sampled it all, so brought a big container of it home. Ms T immediately sampled. I did not prompt her and she described it almost word for word as I did above.
In summary, Wild Smoke has promise, but it has to get better. It is not close to what I have had at Sugar Fire or PM for pulled pork or ribs or with PM for brisket. But they just opened and I think they will improve on their meat cooking; underdone ribs, dry brisket and dry pulled pork; all of it under smoked. Seasoning is good on the ribs, but I don't know how they are cooking them. They are probably locked in on their method. They could also work on delivering the food hot. It was all on cold heavy plates that quickly sucked all of the heat out of the food.
The place is remarkably well run for a start-up, a tribute to their management. We beat the rush, but everything went very well. Although you order at the counter in traditional barbecue joint style, they deliver the food and take away your plates. It is decent food, not great and a ways from awesome. I was hoping for better, but barbecue is tough to do on this scale, let's give them a chance. | 1neutral
| 927 |
***UPDATED REVIEW as of 2/28/16. I woke up in desire of Louie's. Having been here several times before, I already know what to expect and what I want. I had added them to the list of my favorite local eatNdrink spots so it's almost a no brainer when I am in the mood for them.
Me and my partner arrived at Louie's for brunch this past Sunday around 11am. They were quite busy already, which I expected because the weather was so nice and the food is really good. We waited for about ten minutes for a table for two, which wasn't bad. I had no complaints. Again, we both knew what we wanted. We were seated in the middle table, in the center of the room. The area is small so the tables are squeezed together to make room for more people (I assume). This was troublesome because there were four people at the table in front of us which meant me and my date had to sit on the same side of the table. No problem where our hearts are concerned. I wonder if this proved to be a problem for our waitstaff. We were seated in front of a tall brick pillar, but since it was so busy, there were people in front and alongside of us. I might be hard to see us from behind the pillar (especially with no one sitting on the other side of our table), but from the front and if you were a waitress walking past us, you could see there were two people there. Unless we were invisible, which may or may not have been a thing. I'm not ruling it out completely.
Water is served in an old wine bottle that they bring to your table. Your glasses are already there. Servers walked past us, waiting on the table in front of us and just walking past to get through for about 20 minutes. I kid you not - we waited 20 minutes and there was NO SIGN of anyone coming to our table to give us water. Again, we knew exactly what we wanted, so we expected this to go smooth.
After a few more minutes of waiting, I approached the two waitresses that were at the bar making water for other patrons. I was really thirsty at the time as well so I had been awaiting the arrival of the water. As soon as I walked up to them, one said 'are you still waiting for a server for your table (paraphrasing)? I replied yes. She said someone would be with us shortly and told the young lady she was standing there with the number of our table. I assumed that young lady would be to us momentarily. I was wrong.
The lady I spoke with walked past our table on her way somewhere else and apologetically assured us we would be waited on soon. She was wrong.
No one came. EVER. I watched the younger waitress walk around and look for other things to do after she had refilled water for other tables, handed out orders and stared up at the ceiling for a second or two. No one came to us at any point. Finally, after spending roughly near a half hour in the building without so much as water, I approached the Hostess desk. This was yet another wait - I waited for her to finish cleaning tables and moving around (again, it was very busy) and seat the two women in front of me. About five or six minutes of waiting, she got to me. My first words to her was "We're gonna go ahead and go but I wanted to let you know about the table" ....I wanted to assure her not to attempt a resolution because after all the time we had spent sitting there waiting, only to be told someone would help us who never came, we were pretty much over waiting for anything else from Louie's. I told her about our experience and pointed out for her who I had spoke with and suggested that they not seat anyone at that table. I don't know what the problem was. I don't even care. The hostess was also very apologetic and that's great. That didn't help my hunger or my desire for a glass of water.
I've been here before and had no problems so I'm trying my hardest not to take it personally that I sat in the building for nearly a half hour and no one would even offered me water.
I would give it a lower star but for the prior experiences I've had here. I may or may not come back. I'm still working on that. I was very disappointed. That's all I have to say. | 0negative
| 800 |
I hate to leave such a bad review but in all honestly I'm leaving this hoping to help out the owner. Being a local business I want to see it succeed but from the second we walked in to the end of the visit I sadly only see this business going downhill.
My boyfriend and I planned on grabbing lunch in the shopping center and when we say this place we thought it looked new so we wanted to give it a try. It looked new because of the cheap temporary looking vinyl sign hanging up. Come to find out later it really isn't that new at all. We go inside and it's pretty quiet, considering we waited way to long to eat we were starving and thought it would be perfect they were not busy cuz we could get our food fast! To our surprise it was the exact opposite. We each ordered a half a sandwich and half salad, I chose the maddie, with a house green salad, my boyfriend chose the wunder veggie, with a half wedge salad. No exaggeration to make 2 half sandwiches and half salads it took the girl working 20 minutes to make. She was the only person working but a cold sandwhich doesn't take that long to make. I can't imagine what would happen if they actually had a line. On top of that the girl was very bland. She was not rude at all but by no means personable. While making my boyfriends wedge sandwhich, she pulled out a head of lettuce (from Wal-Mart, not local like they claim) and she held the open head of lettuce between her inner forearm and shirt while getting a knife. Not very sanitary to have someone's lunch on your shirt. Another thing she did that was not very sanitary was in the middle of making our order she stopped to ring up a person who has apparently ate but didn't pay yet. After ringing him up she grabbed the bread I chose, set it on the still not wiped down cutting board and then says out loud "oh I better wash my hands". Well you already touched my bread....and I worked in a food serving job for 6 years, it's ok sometimes you forget but don't point it out or say it out loud to a customer, just do it. When she came back she picked the bread back up off of the dirty cutting board, set it on the counter and then wiped the cutting board off before setting it back down. Good think my boyfriend and I aren't germ freaks! Also no wonder it took so long to make, everything she pulled out of the prep containers was not prepped. Example being on my salad there were cucumbers, normally shouldn't they already be sliced in the prep container? she pulled out a half of a cucumber from the pre container and sliced it for my salad and put the rest back. Something I also noticed while she made my sandwhich was that she was very stingy with the ingredients. She put one pickle slice and 3 tiny pepperchini slices. I later noticed my meat and cheese was skimmped too. One slice of cheese and once slice of salami.
After sitting down finally to eat, my boyfriend realized that his sandwhich was missing half of the ingredients it was supposed to have. She had forgotten the cheese and sprouts, so his veggie sandwhich was literally bread, a slice of tomatoe, avocato (that took her forever to slice) hummus, and some spinich. I felt so bad for my boyfriend I offered to nicely let her know she forgot two main ingredients but by that point their was a group of 3 new people ordering and let be honest, we would probably be waiting at least 40 minutes til she would finish with them. Point being both of our sandwhiches were basically bread! I don't know about you guys but if I'm gonna go get a sandwhich instead of making it at home, it better have a lot of stuff inside. Something else that was strange was that they had no drinks but a cup of water available and a couple cans of soda. Their soda, and ice team maker were "broken".
My boyfriend and I sat their discussing how they must have opened pre-maturely and were still working out kinks. But I then saw a new paper articles framed on the wall about the place, so I went and read it. I find out it's really not very new at all. The owner had previously opened the togos franchise, and it was pulled from him/didn't work out (is what I got from the article). So he opened his own sandwhich place. The article only deterred me more. If a sandwhich making franchise, where you are told exactly how to succeed, didn't work, why would you think doing it on your own would. The decorations in the place confused me too. Not that that ever really matters especially if the food is awesome. But it was interesting to see 2 wall decals in the place stating the same thing. " Family and friends gather here. Eat. Drink. Be merry." Well first off that phrase is referring to drinking alcohol, but that's not the point... This place didn't even have regular drinks available to start!
Bottom line is we will never go back to this place again. After all of that it was overpriced for what we got. We left almost speachless. And we are not people that complain or would ever be rude. We almost just feel bad at how h | 0negative
| 946 |
I've only been here once during happy hour and was seriously impressed! Lots of restaurants offer happy hours, but what I find really dishonest is when a restaurant puts lower quality offerings (not found on their regular menu) or smaller portion sized plates on their happy hour menu. I am glad Devon's DOES NOT do this and actually offers discounts off of good dishes from their regularly priced menu. This shows a restaurant is proud of their food and isn't just trying to get you in the door with some BS cheap eats.
Anyway, I came here because I was CRAVING oysters! Seriously come here for HH if you love raw oysters. I don't know why everyone seem to rush to the crowded Oyster House, 2 blocks away, but Devon Seafood Grill definitely has a better oyster happy hour! Why?
First of all, if you want to try a variety of different types from all over the US, then this is the place to do it at a buck a shuck. The day I visited, Devon's had 4 types of oysters in and was offering them all for $1 each! I like that Devon's actually gives you a deal off of "exotic" oysters on their regular menu. Each type of oyster tastes very different; some are briny, others are more sweet, so with a variety, you're bound to find one you like. It won't break the bank trying a variety either. This is a MUCH better deal compared to the Oyster House, which has this gimmicky happy hour where they only serve James River oysters or whatever the cheap oyster of the day is. The James River is a "mild" oyster has NO flavor what so ever and isn't even offered on the Oyster House's regular menu. I'm glad Devon's doesn't do the bait and switch.
Don't want oysters? Devon's also offer a good appetizer menu with a GENEROUS regular portion size for $7 (reg price usually around $13). The portion size really surprised me. Usually HH apps are stingy sized like tapas. The waiter told me the HH app menu is pretty much the same as the regular app menu with the exception of three items.
Second of all, happy hour (for food) starts a 4pm, instead of 5pm, so it lasts an hour longer! Happy hour for drinks still start at 5pm.
Third of all, there was plenty of seating and no, you DON'T have to fight for a seat at the bar to enjoy happy hour. You can sit at a table if you want to.
I especially enjoyed the generous helpings of condiments that came with each order of oysters. The vinegar sauce was delicious and so was the cocktail sauce! They tasted uniquely house-made. Love lemon juice on your seafood? They give you HALF a lemon instead of a quarter wedge. Little details like this matter a lot to me. Good quality condiments really help with balancing the flavor of the oysters and the presentation. I especially loved the little cute bottles of tabasco.
At the time of this writing, I was able to check in on Yelp and got my table a free order of calamari appetizer. I had no problems using it. This made me super happy because the calamari was a generous portion and free (usually $7 during HH). Calamari is my to-go dish at every restaurant that offers it--probably got calamari at 20+ different restaurants in my lifetime--and Devon's has the best one I've had in a while. The calamari wasn't just plain boring rubbery squid rings. They put some special blend of spices into the batter (can't pin point exactly what) and also fried up some shredded carrots and jalapenos to add flavor and color to the dish. The batter wasn't too thick either and had a good flakiness to it. What took the dish over the top was the dipping sauces, a tangy aioli and vinegar. I hate it when restaurants just serve boring chipotle tartar sauce or marinara sauce with calamari (or in Asian restaurants, garlic chilli thai sauce). Again, the Devon's put special detail into the sauces. I am thoroughly impressed.
I was curious and ordered the chilled lobster claws. I was not a fan; the claws were tiny and the texture of the claw meat was slightly more grainy. I would not recommend it.
Service was good and the waiter was happy to answer questions and checked on us frequently enough but not so frequently to the point where it would be annoying. I need to come back here for a full fledged dinner, but I definitely had a very happy two hours eating oysters to my heart's content!
Lastly, why 4 stars and not 5? 2 things. Some of the oysters I got were not good quality as in I got a couple "half-formed" oysters with no meat in it (see photo). The shuckers should have thrown them out and not served them. This is one thing the Oyster House seems to do better. They make sure the oyster meat fills the shell. I could also see a potential for bad service here. The hostess at the front door seemed snappy and didn't make eye contact. The other lady that seated my friend and I just took a menu and walked off (meaning for us to follow her) but didn't say a word to us and didn't ask where we would like to be seated. It was awkward. Smiling, eye contact, and proper communication would be appreciated. | 2positive
| 922 |
If I could only give Kildaires 0 stars, it would still be too many. We decided to go here for dinner on a Thursday night because they have a $2 taco special. When we first arrived at 6:30pm, the restaurant was essentially empty with only two other tables of people seated. We were seated in the back of the restaurant in a corner. There were 5 of us in our party with three different seating options and they were all very uncomfortable. Our waitress came over and asked what we wanted to drink. I requested a cocktail menu and she said they don't have one. I decided to only have water but the boys ordered beers since they were a $3 special for the evening. I checked in on Yelp before ordering my meal and got an offer for a free pretzel tower. I showed the waitress and she walked away without taking our order. When she came back again I asked her if we could please have the free pretzel tower and she said that her manager would come over after our meal. We requested it as our appetizer and she said that was fine to do. We all ordered some combination of tacos since they were only $2 each. We waited almost an hour for our food and also didn't get a drink refill. She asked the guys if they wanted beers but never refilled our waters. Tables around us that were seated much longer after we were were receiving their food and we still hadn't been served our food. I had to call the waitress over and asked when our food was coming. She said soon but why was the rest of the restaurant being served and we weren't? I asked if we could at least have the free pretzel tower appetizer and she said it would have to come out with our food. Okay, whatever it's free but we're wicked hungry and all we ordered was tacos and we've been waiting for an hour. Our food finally came out, but my meal wasn't prepared so the other four people I dined with had their meals and I did not. We ordered a side of fries and those came but they were warm and kind of soggy because they'd clearly been sitting out for a while. I had to call the waitress over again and asked when my food was going to come out because at this point, my party had finished eating and was ready to leave. A different waitress came over shortly after and asked what was missing from our order. It was clear that my order wasn't placed, which is strange because I was the first one to order when the waitress initially took our orders over an hour before this. We ordered tacos, people! All that came on the tacos were three pieces of shrimp, lettuce and chipotle sauce. That's all. Shrimp takes less than three minutes to cook. I would've just left and went somewhere else but I was so hungry I just wanted to eat already. I was finally served my food but we still hadn't gotten a beverage refill... On our waters. WATER. At this point, we're all kind of uncomfortable and just want to leave because the food was okay but the experience was poor. The manager came over to accept the Yelp offer for the free pretzels we got for checking in. She didn't check it off on my phone and walked away. A minute later she came back and said we couldn't get the offer because we didn't get an entree, we got tacos which were a special. I told her I didn't realize that and the waitress didn't correct me. She said it didn't matter and it said it on the offer so we still had to pay. I was very frustrated and uncomfortable by this time so we explained all the things that went wrong with our experience and she said it didn't matter since the offer said it had to be with an entree. I told her we'd just pay for it because we are never going to come back ever again and she wasn't phased. The waitress came over with our check and said she convinced the manager to take the pretzels off of our check, which was kind of her but a waitress shouldn't have to convince a manager of this and the manager should've at least apologized for our horrendous service and didn't even blink an eye to it. When the check came, the pretzels weren't included but they added the cost of the pretzels to one of the beers and didn't think we'd notice. Well, we definitely noticed but we were so frustrated and uncomfortable that we just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. We didn't leave a tip, which I've never done before in my life but didn't even feel badly about because the service was so poor, the food wasn't that great and the manager was rude and argumentative. Like my girl T Swift says, we are never ever ever going back to Kildaires! | 0negative
| 860 |
Strangely enough, I saw an episode of A&E's "Intervention" where a sort of sad and lonely guy came here to meet "friends" and no one showed up. So why not come here?
We headed out to South Tucson tonight with the idea of finally trying Micha's, which I had wanted to try for a while. Problem is that Micha's is closed on Mondays. Oh well. Plenty of other places in South Tucson to try: why not Rigo's?
Now, Rigo's is caddy-corner to one of my favorite places in the city, Crossroads Cafe, which is excessively cheap, has fantastic food and has one of the best chimichangas I've experienced (yeah, it was an experience). So I have to compare Rigo's to them, if only for the location.
We came in and were quickly seated in a restaurant that was maybe 35% full. They had an awkward guy playing awkward keyboard music in the corner, who would stop every once in a while and make it even more awkward because no one would clap.
Chips and salsa were brought out immediately, with two varieties: spicy and mild. The mild was full-on red, but the spicy had chunks of tomato, cilantro and onion in it. Spicy it was not, but the cilantro was nice. The mild was more like a fragrant ketchup. In all honesty, the taste was nice, it was just so non-spicy that I had a hard time with both of them.
I ordered the "Muy Very Good," a carne asade chimi slopped in enchilada sauce, and served with lettuce and pico. My companion got a red chile burro with rice and beans.
The food came out excessively fast. I mean, it was that sort of fast that makes you think that they already had it prepared and just slopped some of the sides and sauces on it.
When it came to the red chile burro, it tasted like that too. The tortilla was really dry, the red chile sauce had no spice to it and very little flavor. The beef strangely got a little better as you moved into the center of the burrito, which made me think that it really had been sitting under a heat lamp for a while.
I also have some experience with red chile burros at other places around town. I would say that, the majority of the time, Nico's is better, but I've had some at Viva that weren't as good. Although it completely depends on the Viva location. Now, of course, I'm comparing this "restaurant" burro with that of fast food but, if you justifiably compare to the red chile burros at some other actual restaurants in town that have it (Mosaic, Sanchez, El Charro, etc.), there's just no contest.
My chimi was not awful, but, if I was somewhere that I knew had better food, and got this, I wouldn't get it again. The enchilada sauce slopped on there was definitely homemade (it didn't taste like that stuff you get out of the can) but there was nothing special about it: it didn't have any subtle flavor, no spice, nothing interesting. The chimi itself was that same sort of low-grade or old tortilla that was in my companion's burro, but the fried-ness sort of covered it up a bit more. The carne asada inside tasted more like fajita meat, in that it was grilled on a skillet instead of "asada" as the name implies. Honestly, I've had better carne at Los Betos.
Maybe I've just gotten spoiled on Mexican food while living here, because I don't understand why you would eat here when there are so many better places in town. Like I said, try Crossroads, across the street.
Prices: a little on the high side for Mexican. My dish was $9 and my companion's was $7.50. For what it was (not even considering that it kind of sucked), it wasn't worth it. Across the street, at Crossroads, the chimi I got runs for about $6. Although it doesn't come with that kick-ass shredded iceberg lettuce on the side.
Service: not great. The waiter was nice, but he was a little slow and unattentive. He told us we could pay the check at the table but, after about five minutes of sitting there with the card on the table, we just took it up to the counter. I also asked for more chips at one point, he nodded in understanding, but they never came although, strangely, another bowl of the "spicy" salsa did.
So why 2*? Well, the atmosphere was actually pretty nice, and the food wasn't necessarily bad. I've been home for an hour or so, and haven't gotten sick, which is definitely a good sign. I mean, I think if you're looking for a place to take, say, your 70-year-old grandmother from Michigan who thinks of "Mexican food" as On the Border or some other complete, disgusting garbage, then go for it. Because, then, yeah, it'll be an improvement. But go to other places on the south side, or even more in the city (hell, El Charro even beats this place, hands down) and it's just way, way better. There's just no reason for this. | 0negative
| 865 |
The brand new Villagio Cinema (Cine Bistro really) is so close I could throw a stone which is fantastic! The location is on Dale Mabry just about a half mile south of Fletcher. Many eons ago it was a theater and then became a few different stores and was completely gutted and remodeled into this new beautiful space!
The lobby is beautifully constructed and looks like you are in a small quaint town with high apartment windows -you would swear you are on a movie set or Disney world..... The bar and restaurant tables are open to the public regardless if you are going to see a movie. The restaurant who prepares the recipes for the food made onsite is "Villagio's" of Lutz, fl. Villagios has been around for 20+ years and is an old school extremely delicious (albeit a little too far north of Tampa) cozy place.
Their full menu is not served at the theater but it is a huge menu consisting of typical movie snacks, appetizers, paninis, fresh salads, pretty good pizzas although changing the toppings was not allowed per our waiter so that is a disappointment as everything is supposedly made fresh - so we are curious about that one. My chicken parmesan was fantastic and huge. The price for everything was $10-12 which is a bit high for a salad or a sandwich but right on target for the pizza or entrees.
They have a decent wine section by the glass or bottle and beers by the bucket and a full liquor bar. Here are some important caveots and tips:
1- THey say to get to your seat a half hour before the movie if you want to order food, as everything is brought out to you before the movie starts and before they dim the lights. We were in the theater half hour before and had to ask for a waiter to come in (granted they haven't even been open 2 weeks though). When they are busy you definitely will want to abide by this rule and order early.
2- Order your drinks at the bar before going in to the theater, why wait? The bartender we had was fantastic and let us sample some wins before buying a bottle. It is very smart to buy the bottle/bucket If you are consuming so you don't have to go back out and get refills during the show- the waiters don't come back in during the movie like they do over at the Tampa Pitcher Show down the street.
3- There is a 16% gratuity already included..... and that is fine, however, it does not say that on your receipt, we were not given a detailed receipt- only the signature page, and our friends who paid in cash were not given a receipt nor told about the gratuity. We overheard our waiter telling another couple about it. I don't understand why it is only 16% since the standard is at least 18% when you are going to include it. I do think it is fair for them to put it on there, especially with how many kids/teens go to the movies and might not think about service gratuity.
The theaters have that brand new fresh smell and are beautiful. Ours had only 50 seats and not a bad one in the place. We got to select our seats when we walked in using a touchscreen at the ticket counter which was neat- if you are meeting friends be sure to wait for them or buy all your seats together - all seating is assigned. We used a cldeal.com coupon which was $15 for $30 towards tickets, food and drink. For two of us just to get the tickets we ended up with only $6 left on the coupon, but some friends who were over 55 used theirs and got a $10 left.
The seats are fully articulating and electronically recline. Cup holders and swivel tables are at each seat.... it is ok enough space, but a tight fit if you order more than one thing to eat and have more than one drink (like a bottle or bucket) be careful with floor space and the recliners. There is TONS of leg room and a couple of people could walk in front of a fully reclined seat with no problem.
YOu can take your ticket stub into Dale 1891 tiki and sports bar next door afterwards for a discount (10% at the time of this writing) which is pretty cool. Check out Dale's 3d sports TVs (Ask for the glasses) and live music and trivia shows.
All in all, Villagos was great and I just bought 5 more CLdeals discounts to use for the summer. Fist run movies in 6 theaters... just need to work out the opening kinks and this place will shut down the old Pitcher Show theater in no time. | 2positive
| 816 |
My boyfriend and I decided to try something different from our normal dinner spot (Iron Hill Brewery, right next door) and tried this place out. When we walked in, the woman who "greeted" us asked us if we had a reservation. When we said no, she looked at us like we were stupid and then seated us in the half empty dining room (what was the point of asking if we had a reservation?).
After being seated (and being told that our server would be right with us) we waited 30 minutes for our server to come over and ask if he could get us something to drink. At that point we already knew what we wanted to eat so we put in our order. It was AT LEAST 45 minutes until our server brought us our food, probably closer to an hour.
Now about the food. It was good. Or rather, it wasn't bad. I had the gnocchi with cream sauce and prosciutto. There were about 10 (larger size) gnoccis and some chopped up prosciutto, in bowl of cream sauce. He had the lobster raviolli. There were FOUR 2" raviollis on the plate with some vodka sauce on top. This was a $26 entree. For four tiny little (what tasted like) frozen lobster ravioli. And the gnocchi were $20. We're talking $20 for a kids-meal sized portion of PASTA with some heavy whipping cream and chopped up prosciutto. I knew the prices were high when we decided to go there, but I was expecting twice the amount of food. And twice the quality.
After we finished eating, which took about 10 minutes, we knew it was going to be a challenge trying to get our check so we could get out of there, especially since we hadn't seen our server since he took our order. Twenty minutes later he came by to ask if we wanted dessert and we politely declined and asked for the check. He brought us our check and it came to $46. We put 3 twenty dollar bills in the book and waited for him to come by. And waited. He came by and asked "is it ready?" to which we replied yes (did we have to?).
We waited for him to come back with our change, which never happened. I could see the whole dining room from where I was sitting and he obviously had no intention of returning to our table at all. He had waited several times on other tables and stood around chatting with other servers. After we concluded that he was not going to give us our change, my boyfriend went up to ask him about it. When my boyfriend politely asked "Hey man, could I get my change from our check?", the server replied "Oh... I thought that was for me."
REALLY? A $14 tip on a $46 check?? That's a 30% gratuity!! For doing what? Writing down our order? He wasn't even pleasant.
We were both very angry at that point, especially because this ~ 17 year old server had just tried to STEAL from us. I'm sure he just expected us to give up on waiting for him, forget about our change, and walk out the door. And I'm sure he's done this before and gotten away with it.
But here's the icing on the cake. Pretty much the entire time we were in the restaurant, the owner was seated RIGHT NEXT TO ME. She came in while we were waiting for our server to come to our table initially, greeted the people at the table behind us (whom I'm assuming are good friends), and pulled up a chair and sat down about a foot to the right of me. In fact, the reason that I knew she was the owner of the restaurant is because she was so close that I could hear her conversation like I was sitting at the same table as her. She was talking to her friends about the kitchen staff, etc. All while we were so obviously waiting for any kind of service whatsoever. How could a new restaurant owner be so oblivious to what is going on in her dining room? It was obvious that she hired a few teenagers to work as servers and lets them have the run of the place, completely unaware of what is going on.
When we finally got out of there, we headed over to Iron Hill and got dessert and relaxed. When we walked in, our server (who we hadn't seen in weeks) remembered our names and our drinks. We gave him the rest of the change that we didn't leave as a tip for the kid at Dominic's. | 0negative
| 786 |
A new Mexican option in Delaware County, I am not complaining about that one bit.
It is a chain, though a small one in only 3 other states, all of them in the south. This appears to be one of 8 locations total with a few more happening in other parts of the south. So it has some uniqueness for being a chain I suppose.
You order at a counter, sit down, and someone brings the food out to you. For being a newer place, service was OK on the first week it was open. Food quality is what counts, and here is a rundown of what I sampled.
Carnitas taco... Best thing I ate here tonight. Great flavor, very tender, a win!
Enchiladas... Tried two of them, one carnitas and one brisket, chose the lemon cream sauce. The sauce made the dish for sure. Carnitas again were wonderful. The brisket was a little chewy but ok.
Guacamole... made nice and fresh, with great flavor to it. Another win.
Chili... I sampled a cup of this. I didn't finish it. A little too thin, and the spice to flavor ratio for me was off. A little too much spice for not enough flavor.
My wife thought the menu was too limited. For a casual Mexican restaurant it's probably OK. But this place seems to have an identity crisis. For instance, they offer a much more extensive alcohol selection than food. Now, for a place that offers so much in the way of alcohol, you'd think they'd be open later than 9pm Monday through Thursday. It's odd to me.
Now if you don't drink, you can get a can of soda (they only do cans here), or you can get self serve brewed iced tea. I liked the brewed iced tea option a lot. I think serving cans of soda makes you look cheap, but that's just me.
** SECOND TRIP BACK... I'm tacking this on after my second meal here.
So what else have I sampled?
Memphis taco... it's a weird one. On one hand, it has a lot of good park and slaw going for it, but the smoke flavor overwhelmed it. It's like all of the smoke was in the sauce and none of it in the meat. It just didn't blend.
Fish tacos... I agree with other reviewers that it is too small. I liked the taste, but it needed more to be interesting.
Cheese dip... my wife and I really liked this. It's got a little kick.
Philly steak taco... again, this taco had a lot of promise, but it tasted more like a cheesesteak on a tortilla rather than anything Mexican flavored. It didn't fit to me. Maybe that's what they were shooting for. It's not bad at all. But I would probably choose something else.
And you know what.. I ordered another carnitas taco, and this time it tasted chewy like what I thought was my brisket last time. It actually made me doubt my last review. Is it possible that last time I ate here I mixed up the brisket and the carnitas thinking one was the other? Or were the carnitas just not as well made tonight? The fact that I have these questions is not a great sign.
It's officially a hit or miss place. You can get good food here, for sure. But you can also get let down.
I'm also in agreement that there's someone who works at the counter who just seems grumpy. It may be an unfair assessment, but they haven't quite nailed down the customer service experience top to bottom here. I've seen other people commenting about it here, and I was wondering if it was just me who noticed or if I was being unfair. Maybe it's not me.
On top of this... first night I was here a friend who got there first told me they witnessed a female manager loudly and rudely correcting one of the workers out in the front for not putting enough ice in the margarita. It was a bit uncomfortable to watch according to them.
To the management of Taqueria Del Sol... be careful how you tread. We notice these little things, and they get amplified when you are not perfect in other areas. Basically, when the food isn't always great, we start to notice that the counter person seems unhappy and that the manager seems rude. Make better food, and you might be forgiven.
They have some fixing up to do. | 1neutral
| 753 |
The kiddo has been begging me to take her to Susan Spicer's restaurant for a long long time, ever since she cooked for the chef in culinary school and Ms. Spicer was one of the judges. I have been hesitant to go, looking at the menu it seems a little scant for my tastes and I'm such a picky eater, but I saw they had a burger and capitulated to the kiddo because it was her birthday tonight (July 26th), alas we were both blown away and not in a good way.
Our server, coincidentally named Susan was a nightmare from the time we sat down and abstained from ordering alcohol. She assumed, "Oh, just water then..." left us and proceeded to bring us back water, even though we BOTH wanted to order another drink, we did not get the opportunity to ask until she had come back to our table for the third time and we had to stop her midflight before she could leave again without our drink order. She mentioned she would be back with bread, but someone else brought bread to the table, and we were presented a single slice of ciabatta crostini per person with unsalted butter and plain olive oil for dipping. The bread was incredibly dense and extremely crusty. I had to tear this into tiny pieces to consume and the bread itself was not very tasty - unsalted butter did not improve it, nor plain olive oil - totally uninspired and if that is what you're going to offer for a "bread course" you may as well not even serve it.
We ordered two appetizers, Mondo Perrito's,(came as an order of 2 small lollipop portions for $6 - not very economical),this was pretty good, a take on a corn dog with chorizo, except a little greasy, tasted like a tamale to me. We also ordered the 'traditional' deviled eggs, (came as an order of 3 - 1 whole egg and another half for $5 - again, not very economical). I liked these, the kiddo didn't, she thought they lacked seasoning. I thought they were fine with a couple shakes of the salt shaker, but they were outstanding with the jalapeno aioli they put on the chorizo corn dog.
The scallop dish was why my kiddo wanted to go there, but it was the only thingy they did not have when we arrived so she ended up ordering the Bosc Pear, Prosciutto, Teleme, Goat Cheese, Arugula wood fired pizza and I ordered the burger - WELL done. We also ordered a side of mac and cheese from the kid's menu. Our food was delivered and the kiddo noticed she didn't have many pears on her pizza and that was why she ordered it in the first place, but Susan argued with her and said there is traditionally half a pear added to the pizza and she saw the pizza baker put it on the pizza and perhaps the pears "melted" into the crust. The kiddo had one full pear slice and a partial slice of another on the entire pizza. She was very disappointed and requested to speak with the manager. Susan stood behind the manager with her arms crossed against her chest glowering while we tried to explain to the manager what happened, it made for a very uncomfortable situation since we TRIED to address it with our server first and she totally blew us off. Fortunately this was removed from the bill.
I've read several reviews of other people praising the burger, but I found it to be void of flavor and it was not cooked well and had a raw feel in my mouth - give me a hockey puck and I'll be happy. I HATE undercooked meat. I tried to explain this to our server when I ordered, explained that the cook could cut my burger to make sure it was fully cooked, but she cut me off and did not let me finish my statement - "we are aware of what WELL means", well maybe for everyone else, but not for me, I want my burger REALLY dead - poke it once, and then poke it again just to make sure. My dad puts my burger on the grill a half hour before everyone else's to make sure mine is done. I was disappointed at being cut off by our server, AGAIN. The fries that came with my burger were fantastic, and so was the mac and cheese so everything wasn't a total bust and improved no stars to a meager 1.
A disappointing end to my daughter's otherwise happy 23rd birthday, and while the manager tried to make everything right, she could not overcome the piss poor service we received and combined that with lackluster, uninspired food, we're both in agreement on this one, we will take a permanent pass on Mondo. | 0negative
| 815 |
For starters... this is 2013. Even places down the shore or otherwise "seasonal" places are opened before Memorial Day and beyond Labour Day. Some stay opened so long as there is nice weather and clientele. This place *might* have more clientele is they paid attention to their reviews. I can't gripe enough about this place beause I happen to be one of the unforunate who livees nearby this place and regrettably, there just aren't many options for the Burlington-Bristol area. Which is mind boggling considering we live along a large body of water. Really? No one else can put an open-air waterside deck restaurant/nightclub on the Delaware River in this supposedly "desirable" region in which to live and charge nearly NYC prices to live? It makes no sense. I have tried again and again to like this place because it is literally across the river. On a quiet night I can hear the music from the Bristol side. What a joke. At least they no longer charge a cover. Every time I go, it gets worse and worse. I don't know who these clown DJ's are they hire for $20 but let me tell you, being on the water is not *enough* of a reason to charge $10 for a small cocktail in a plastic cup, it just isn't. They will stick by their idea that they have an ambiance that makes it worth it. Maybe when they still hired a DJ who actually plays what other customers wants to hear it was worth it but now they only get these two guys in there who play what THEY and their friends want to hear. I let it slide last time I was there in May when they tried to charge me $9.75 for a watermelon margarita and they didn't even salt the cup or anything because someone at the bar offered to buy the drink for me when I asked if I had a choice about paying the price. I brought my mother there tonight since it's labour day weekend and naturally, they will be closed until the end of May next year. We had had plans to go to LBI but she was in the hospital this week and wasn't well enough for a long trip so we opted for this place thinking maybe it would be better since it is their last weekend. The place was dead, no one dancing, the same dead-beat DJ as before with half the audience being his friends that I recognized from other times when he was here. Think pole dancers from North Philly or Trenton or Camden, cause that's what they look like. All he played was garbage hip hop and rap that no one else could or would ever want to dance to. Sure they were having fun! My mother asked me to request More Then A Woman by the Tavarres for her and almost two hours later after saying he'd have to see if he had it, she finally went up and asked where it was (we were paying customers, too! I think we deserve to also enjoy ourselves) so he apologized and played it from the middle of the song so we only got about a minutes' worth of it before he went right back into the noise he was playing before. I have heard good club music, good rap, and this is NOT what he plays. It sounds like noise. And if you ever want to see 250 pound hoochie women in skin tight horizontal stripes hike up their cheap Rainbow dresses and grind each other, come here. All the other clientele has basically been chased off. When we first started combing here there were other people. People of all ages, classes, etc, and the DJ's would play a little bit of everything but it's basically now all ghetto young people, some white girls, who sit there all night mouthing the lyrics to Biggie Smalls as if they, too, are sexy but never get up and dance and sit and laugh at everyone else there. I bought the first round of drinks. I paid $17.96 for my watermelon martini, her whiskey and ginergale and a plain gingerale. Funny how the bill increased every time she went up. She went up later and got two doubles of whiskey and I looked at her receipt, they charged her $7.50 twice, $7.50 for EACH shot of whiskey, plus $2.00 for her gingerale. I mentioned that when I bought her first drink they charged me $7.50 for the whiskey AND gingerale and basically they wouldn't budge on why they charged what they did. The bill for basically her ONE drink was more than I paid for all three initially. This was the same bar tender I had a problem with on the visit before who charged $10 for a drink that wasn't even prepared properly. Talk about price gouging since it's their last night. I have said it before and this time I mean it, I am done with this place. Everything is wrong about it and I don't care where it is, it's not worth it. Of course they will argue that the DJ has to cater to the crowd, when most of the people sitting there are people HE brought into the place! I don't like being taken for my money and not being offered anything in return, It's sad but no surprise that this is the best this area has to offer. Sorrry, and they aren't even open until 2am like other normal bars or clubs. What the HELL is up with that? The place needs to be bought out and redone big time. Cash cow, little to offer. | 0negative
| 951 |
Everyone deserves a second chance.
After an incredibly disappointing first experience with the brick-and-mortar location of Byrne's Grilled Pizza, I was fairly resigned to not returning. However, as occasionally happens on Yelp, the owner reached out to me with an apology and after exchanging a couple of e-mails I decided that a return visit was in order.
I chose tonight, a slightly chilly and rainy night in Indy. It was the early evening dinner hour and I was able to snag a pretty decent parking spot. I would again note that the parking lot behind the strip center where Byrne's is located does not have any accessible parking and this can be a challenge during busier times as the strip center does include multiple businesses. I again entered through the rear entrance and was able to confirm the front entrance is definitely not wheelchair friendly (there is a desire to address this at some point, though it's an older strip center and tenants have limited options - I'm grateful that the back entry has pretty solid access).
As I noted in my initial review, the entryway is fairly open, though the aisle is fairly narrow and if the place is packed may require some adjusting of chairs. Even with only a few customers, I did slightly move one chair. There was a sign, and it was a different sign from my first visit, that encouraged people to go to the front host area if you planned to dine in. As I'd noted my initial confusion at my first visit, I thought this sign was considerably more clear.
I was greeted by Ali, who would also be my server. She would eventually be joined by another server and it appeared staffing was more solid than the afternoon I'd originally visited (I learned that afternoon was probably their busiest yet - a good thing, but perhaps it caught them off guard).
I will admit that being in a wheelchair can make it REALLY tough when you give a negative review. After all, how many footless, wheelchair using Yelpers are there? I haven't met any yet. While some people can hide behind a negative review, my openness about who I am and my reviewing of access pretty much gives it all away. Some people do get hostile about negative reviews and I sometimes sing that Eminem line about employees at Burger King spitting on onion rings.
I'm pretty sure nobody here did that.
My gut feeling is that at some point my presence registered with 1-2 employees. I'd been informed that by the owner that my review was shared with staff. While I didn't get the feeling Ali was aware, my sense was at least 1 and probably two employees caught on who I was and, yeah, you could tell they were trying. While that may take away some of the naturalness, I don't think it really did that much.
First off, Ali was awesome - I hate saying this because she openly acknowledged her reputation for being awesome and I said I wanted to call her awful. However, I can't deny it, she was awesome. She was friendly, helpful, attentive and got my iced tea refills - I even kinda sorta tested her by lingering at the end for a little bit and, yep, got offered another refill. She was conversational, but not intrusive.
The guys behind the counter were friendly, including one whom I'm fairly sure probably knew I was "the one." About halfway through my meal, an employee walked in whom I recognized as the one who'd been working during my last visit. I was beyond impressed that as I was leaving, and discreetly, he came up and apologized for that visit. He explained it without making excuses and, well, I'm just a big believer in owning it when something goes wrong (and we all have it happen). He not only owned it, but he handled it discreetly and in a less attention-seeking way. VERY impressed and grateful for it.
A second server arrived and while I didn't deal with her as much, because the restaurant is smaller it's impossible to not encounter folks. She was a delight. They had a customer come in toward the end of my visit who was just very warm and giving - in fact, wanted to buy my dinner, but ended up providing her what was apparently a bigger than usual tip. You could see the look of surprise and gratitude on her face. It just really reinforced her as a cool, genuine human being.
I enjoyed the clientele and, in fact, ran into one of my former seminary professors. That was awesome. I ordered a small pepperoni pizza ($7.50) plus my usual iced tea. They have daily specials, food and drink, and it's pretty easy to eat as both an individual and family. The pizza, which is obviously grilled, is of a thinner crust type, and a small is easily doable for one person. If you've had their food truck pizza, you know what to expect.
I've had mixed results with my return visits after a negative review. I've had some go very positively, while I've had a handful end up in an even lower rating. Ultimately, this is what I hoped for during my first visit - quality food, comfortable dining and friendly folks.
It took twice, but mission accomplished. | 2positive
| 898 |
This delightful all around for delicious food and gracious service, family owned and operated Vietnamese eatery, featuring pho but offering other delicious traditional dishes too opened on November 10. Go once and I think you'll find so much to enjoy that you'll want to go again and again. It is my husband's and my favorite Vietnamese food restaurant in Treasure Valley.
TRUE MOM AND POP: This is the first bricks and mortar eatery owned by the couple who are also in the kitchen cooking traditional Vietnamese dishes. (Although we understand that they have been doing catering prior to this.) We had a chance to meet and talk with the lovely wife / owner / cook (Kelly) at the end of our lunch to tell her how much we enjoyed our meals and the service and the ambiance and ask about a Vietnamese dish we love that is not on the menu. (Banh xeo which is like a rice flour 'pancake' folded over Vietnamese fresh herbs.) We learned she hopes to offer this seasonally, maybe as weekly special, in summer months and she will be doing weekend specials from time to time starting in December. So a tip is follow Pho Nguyen on Facebook for specials over time.
MENU & FOOD: The menu includes several kinds of Pho, Com, Bun and appetizers. Prices run from about $6.50 to $13.
I selected one of my favorites - bun thit nuong (rice noodle dish) and it was delicious for flavors and fresh herbs and grilled pork ($11.50). My husband often orders a com (rice plate) and on this one he enjoyed trying Vietnamese style shredded pork skin (new to him) and egg cake (also new for him). They use broken rice here, not often found on local menus, which cooks up with a great texture. The nuoc cham served with each dish was excellent. It is rare for us to do this, but we each ate every bite of our meals.
This is an omnivore menu in the main but there are a handful of vegetarian options and some may be vegan. Keeping in mind this is a scratch made - fresh food kitchen, good food takes the time it takes. Which is not to say a too long time. But this is not a "fast and dash" food kitchen.
VIBE: The layout of the space is much as it was with the previous occupant (also an eatery) with seating inside that works for everyone at standard height tables and chairs and booths and high chairs at the counter with all distributed in a way as to provide 'elbow' room for diners. There is also table seating outside. And with these new owners the entire place is sparkling clean and bright.
SERVICE: Service was stellar on the day of our visit and our host / server turned out to be the brother (of Kelly) and brother in law of the owners. Top notch for warm greeting ("Welcome! Thanks for coming in today."), knowledge of menu to answer our questions (and make us feel comfortable asking them) and being friendly and attentive to diners. When service is this welcoming one is automatically inclined to enjoy the food.
I'll also offer an observation that matters to me and maybe you too. In his role as server, the host often washed his hands at the sink at the counter. For example, after busing inside or outside tables. That kind of front of house attention for hygiene practices bodes very well for what is going on in the kitchen too.
LIBATIONS: Soft drinks, tea, Vietnamese coffee (cold). I'm not sure they yet have their wine and beer license although it is planned to be served in the future.
LOCATION: In the space recently vacated by 208 Pho & Vegan and right next door to the now vacant space that was once Pizzelchik on one side and with a Jimmy John's on the other, it is a little awkward to see and for the turn off of State Street to get into the lot here. The plus side is that there is a parking lot - woohoo for that.
ACCESSIBILITY: Accessible (aka ADA) parking in lot including van accessible. Level in the door. All on one floor. Some standard height tables have clear floor space for wheelchair users. Tables on patio have fixed seats so not ADA compliant. Hubby reports unisex loo seems accessible but some items - like towels are out of ADA rules for reach range.
HUBBY'S TRADITIONAL FOOD OBSERVATION: One group who came in was greeted by the host with "Welcome Back!". They answered him in Vietnamese and the rest of the host's conversation with this young foursome was in Vietnamese as they ordered and enjoyed their meals. Given my Italian heritage husband takes it as a good sign for food traditions when the owners and hosts at an Italian family owned eatery speak the language he grew up with, in a household where his immigrant grandmother didn't speak English, he takes it as a good sign for other cultures too when diners with the heritage of an ethnic eatery who speak the language choose the food. As here. | 2positive
| 864 |
A gem right next to the Union Station Hotel! We came back through St. Louis on our vacation back east and stayed the the beautiful Double Tree St. Louis Union Station. After checking out the concierge's suggestions for dining and not liking them we (he suggested the Hard Rock Cafe behind the hotel which is just a loud and noisy overpriced burger shack, and Landry's Seafood right next to the Hard Rock which had such low ratings we didn't want to risk it- the walk to the back of the hotel to the restaurants did afford us some really disgusting odors by the way because apparently, the dumpsters are between the two eateries and the steamy heat makes the odor waft all over the place-YUK!), we walked back to the hotel and asked the receptionist where to eat. She recommended Maggie O'Brien's right next to the hotel and just across the street. She said the food was very good and well priced and the service was impeccable. We at pretty early by pub standards, and were seated immediately. Right away our server, Tommy (remember that name) came up to us and got our drink order. His personality was charming, informative and very friendly. He gave us great suggestions, ran down the menu and told us all about the foods and how they were made, which were his favorites, and the most popular. We took took a few of his suggestions and ran with them. My husband went with the Paddy Babe's Original Smoked Irish Corned Beef, my son had the Bangers and Mash, and I had the Maggie's Irish Beef Stew in a bread bowl. I toyed with the corned beef sandwich as my choice, but I am not a fan of smoked meats and decided instead on the stew. Tommy was so convinced that the smoked corned beef was delicious, that he told me he would bring me a sample of it to try so I could order it next time. We also ordered the sampler appetizer for our table and a cup of each of the Irish Potato soup and the Beef and Rice soup.
Now let me say that the appetizer was phenomenal. It all tasted great, the wings, potato skins, ravioli, and onion rings were spot on. The dipping sauces also were great tasting and perfectly pared. The soups were so wonderful, that it had us all thinking we should have ordered large bowls of soup. They were full of flavor and very well prepared. Amazing!
As for the dinners, we have no complaints here either. The Corned Beef Sandwich was fabulous and the sauerkraut was our favorite addition to the meal. I tasted my husbands sandwich and so did my son and our mouths were watering. What a pleasure it was. My son almost didn't let his father and I try his Bangers and Mash because he was rolling his eyes in back of his head in delight at the flavors. He loved the sausage (Irish sausage and so very tasty) and he loved the gravy on the wonderful potatoes. My husband and I both did get a taste and were in love with it also. The sausage was tender and so very different in flavor from those boring sausages you get everywhere else, that we were all wanting more. It was a very hearty portion for our 10 year old child, but he tackled it with gusto. My Beef Stew in a sourdough bowl was incredible. Thick and very flavorful, it did not have a American stew flavor, but a sharp Irish Stew flavor that I could not pin down. I just keep wanting more of it. I asked Tommy what the flavor in the stew was, but the chef would not divulge it. Kudos to him. Keep it a secret and keep it coming.
All in all I wish we had another couple of days to eat here and try it all. I got my sample of the smoked corned beed just as Tommy promised and I was won over. It was not overly smoky in flavor, but you could tell it had been lovingly handled to give it a hint and background of smoky flavor. Amazing again.
Now as for Tommy, (remember I told you to remember his name) he is a gem and a wonderful server. He has been there for over 10 years and knows not only his food and what people will like, but also has such a winning personality, that we enjoyed our visit all the more for it. I suggest you ask for him when you go. I know we will. He was the best part of our visit and meal. He makes the enjoyment of dinner so much more special. We instantly loved him.
We all recommend a visit to this eatery, and don't forget to try their beers and drinks. Those were fabulous too. Thank you Tommy, for making an impression on our vacation and suggesting the very best foods. We will see you again. | 2positive
| 840 |
This place came highly recommended from a friend, and I knew my wife has been dying to try this restaurant. So, for her birthday, I made reservations a month and half in advance. I let them know that we were celebrating my beautiful wife's birthday. And made the cheesy request of having a little treat with candle brought to her at the end of dinner.
Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse is located in the historic French Quarters. But no need to worry about parking. Right next door to the restaurant is a parking garage, which help alleviate the stress of searching for a spot. It was valet, but for $2.75, and a piece of mind. I gladly tipped the attendant a 20.
Upon entering the establishment, you got the feeling that you walked into somewhere special. The staff at the door were very chipper and friendly. They wished my wife, "Happy Birthday", which made her blush. The white cloth tables and the dimmed lighting set a nice ambiance.
We may have waited a minute before we were led to our table by a very nice gentleman who made jokes and small talk. He also wished by wish, "Happy Birthday". Which again, made her happy.
Once at the table, entered our waitress. I don't want to beat up on the lady, but my opinion is derived from years of eating at "white table" restaurants. The waitress had little to no knowledge about the food and how it was prepared. She immediately informed us that there was no crab meat, as well as some other item. Yet failed to tell us about any specials or any special menu items that were being served that day. We actually had to overhear it from another waiter, as he described them in great detail to another customer. This was only after our waitress took our drink order and left.
For appetizers, we went with the Mcilhenny Oysters, and the Bone Marrow Escargot. The Oysters, which were fried and rested on a bed of spinach, and chipotle-tabasco beurre blanc sauce, by itself was amazing. But, they topped the oysters with some sort of jam, which created this glorious melody with your taste buds. That spice from the sauce and that sweet jam, did it's magic. The Bone Marrow Escargot, not so much...
This dish..smh. I've had escargot several times. I absolutely love it. For $17.00, you get four snails, and a fried leek. The escargot are arranged evenly around the leek, sitting in a sauce made fried oyster mushroom and bone marrow butter. Resting on top of the fried leek in a combination of diced garlic, bacon, and shallots. Whatever they have been trying to accomplish with this dish. For the love of mine, and future stomach lining, please, please, stop.
Let's get to why the reason I starved myself for about a day. The entree. I ordered the 14oz prime ribeye, creamed spinach, and au gratin potatoes. I was a little disappointed that there wasn't an option for sautéed mushrooms, blue cheese, garlic butter, or any other steak topping offered in this great world of steak connoisseurs.
The au gratin potatoes was a beast of a side. Served in an iron skillet, the gaufrette potatoes laid beneath a thick sheet of gruyere cheese, which was my favorite part. The potatoes were perfectly cooked and seemed to melt in your mouth. I absolutely enjoyed this dish.
The creamed spinach was, creamed spinach. It's pretty much a standard anywhere. No bells or whistles. It's creamed spinach.
So, let's talk about this 14oz ribeye. I eat my steaks either rare, or blue rare, that's it. The steak was brought on a plate, which wasn't even hot. There was no sizzling, no popping of the butter that rested on the steak. Which appeared not to be melting. I actually had to spread the butter across the steak like peanut butter on bread. I also noticed that there was no evidence searing of the steak. Even though I eat it basically raw, I do enjoy a nice little crust.
As I cut into the steak, I was satisfied that it was cooked to my liking. When I took a bite of the steak, I quickly realized what was missing. The same thing the rap group Public Enemy is missing, Flavor-Flav ! This was the most boring piece of meat I have ever eaten. I was so bored with it, that i requested a to-go box after 3 bites. For the price, I really expected better. Was not worth the $48, at all.
As we were preparing to leave, I observed an waitress bring a little waffle cone, with a scoop of ice cream, topped with a lit candle to the young lady seated near her. Apparently, it was also her birthday. My wife, didn't get that treatment. The waitress brought our food in a bag, and the check.
I know restaurants are entitled to an off day, but at these prices, I have to question that. I may try this place again, before the end of the year. Just to compare and update the review. As for now, this place is extremely over rated, and over priced. | 0negative
| 865 |
I've been going to Whole Foods all year now, it's my main supermarket. Prior to that, my exposure to Whole Foods as a chain was pretty limited-- I had only been to the one in Pittsburgh a few times. I was well-aware of the fact that Whole Foods was high-end, primarily organic, and reflected a healthy or even "green" lifestyle. What I didn't know was that Whole Foods is one of those "Retail 2.0" companies that nurtures their employee culture, and that Whole Foods works with smaller food producers (although this claim on their part has been disputed in the news by critics I think are just looking for reasons to complain about Whole Foods).
This particular Whole Foods is located very close by, and conveniently next-door to my gym.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS:
Walking in, you might think this is just another supermarket, as it visually doesn't stray far from your Genuardi's. Take a closer look, however, and you'll notice (or you won't notice) the majority of brands on the shelves are not ones you would find in the big supermarkets. Rather, you would expect to find some of this stuff in little shops around Center City or something.
THE FOOD:
The food here is the reason this place is so popular, regardless of how expensive it is. Not only does it taste good, but it also makes you feel good-- you're eating healthy and more natural food, you're supporting the little guys (who are fortunate enough to make it onto Whole Foods' shelves). But who cares about the meaning behind the food, what about the food itself? I am very big on their meat and fish offerings, many of which come in an entre-sort of form-- apple and cranberry or spinache, feta and pine nut stuffed Salmon, Macademia-crusted Tilapia filets, Chicken, Burgers and Blueberry breakfast Sausages. I originally was a bit put-off by the fact that I wasn't seeing the stuff I was used to seeing in supermarkets, but I got over that quickly when I realized it's time to change my eating habits for the healthier, and I now love the flavors I've been getting into since. For those who prefer not to cook themselves, there is an entire section for ready-to-eat, although I haven't gone there myself.
THE PRICE:
It is more expensive than the other guys, significantly so...that's up to you and the weight of your wallet. I don't think it's that big a killer, but others might find the higher price and little-known branding to be a bit superficial.
THE SERVICE:
I think it's charming (in a strange way) that the people who work there, who are mostly young, mostly hipsters of some form, clearly concerned with the environment and all those factors surrounding Whole Foods as both an economic and political entity. My understanding is that the company is very democratic with their employees, and we all know that empowered employees are happy employees, so they are generally very pleasant. This was really a breath of fresh air from the service I'd get at places like Acme, moronic cashiers who could give two shits about the impact of their being a part of that company. It might be strange, but this has an impact on my perception of a supermarket, and it makes the higher cost worth it.
ABOUT BEING A RESPONSIBLE CORPORATE CITIZEN:
Since I can't seem to separate this aspect of Whole Foods from the rest of my review, I will leave a couple final notes: this country and this world cannot sustain the kind of mindless consumption our culture and society has imposed on our natural resources. The bigtime corporations are now all trying to cash in on this "green" trend, as it's virtually all you see now in marketing...it disgusts me, because I know that what they are actually doing to help the environment is very different than what they say. I think that Whole Foods is not one of these companies, at least to an extent much greater than so many others...they try to steer their customers toward greener lifestyle practices, like transporting groceries in your own reusable bags, and then rewarding those who practice this with discounts. This is why I was so impressed with what I saw and why I have continued to go back since...what was once a choice to shop at Whole Foods based on necessity and practicality is now a choice to shop based on my ideas of more responsible consumerism.
THE VERDICT:
Preachy anecdotes aside, Whole Foods is a worthwhile supermarket. If you can afford the slightly higher prices, and don't mind saying goodbye to Tyson Chicken, Tastykakes, Pringles and all the other bullshit, you'll be pleased with what you get in return. | 2positive
| 789 |
Finally! A new place in town to get real homemade, quality Mexican food. Where you say? Run by Mariel Montero Sena, you've probably seen her around when she was at Expressionz Café running Taco and Fondita days. Unless you've been living under a large rock. Which is totally possible. I went once for tacos and they were dynamite so I was hoping for more of the same quality when we went to check out HUMA after some beach v-balling.
HUMA Mexican Comfort is located close to Argyll Plaza on the north east corner of 99 Street and 63 Avenue. It's a bit difficult to spot while driving (the sign is pretty small) but it's in the same parking lot as Tienda Latina and Kyoto Sushi Japanese Restaurant. It's worth the search, trust me on this one. We came around 7pm on a Wednesday evening - there were only a few tables occupied. It can fit approximately 30 to 35 people. They'll be busy once the word gets out on the streets.
What's really intriguing about HUMA is that each day is a different menu. Wednesday is their seafood menu. The dessert menu had five options but they were out of the flan. Will have to try it out next time.
We talked briefly with Mariel and this is what's on deck for each day:
- Tuesday - Favourites
- Wednesday - Seafood
- Thursday - Fondita day
- Friday - Street food and snacks
- Saturday - Taco day
- Sunday - Breakfast and "hang over" remedies
- Tamarind ($3.50) - I've had horchata before so it was between tamarind or the jamaica for me. The waitress was awesome and brought out these cute little cups to sample all three before we picked. I went with the tamarind which wasn't too sweet (very subtle) but instead was light and refreshing.
- Jamaica ($3.50) - the jamaica according to our waitress is from a leaf. Looking it up afterwards, it looks like it's hibiscus which gets its deep, beet red colour from the calyces (sepals), a type of flower so she was close enough. This one was more sweeter but still quite refreshing.
- Ceviche ($9.00) - diced mild white fish cooked in fresh lime juice mixed with fresh tomato, onion and cilantro. Served with nacho chips and crackers. This is probably the first ceviche that I've had in Edmonton that was good. It tasted fresh with a nice acidity to it. The only complaint we had was that there wasn't enough chips! Those were gone pronto. There was also three types of sauces brought to our table - salsa verde, salsa roja and pickled jalapenos/carrots/onion. They also brought out a hot sauce separately, which I believe was for the ceviche. Nice to add to the ceviche and tacos.
- Pescado empanizado ($16.00) - mild white fish fried in a seasoned crumb mixture and served with sides of Mexican rice, fried beans and a fresh salad. The fish (it's basa) was perfectly cooked. Lightly fried with a nicely coated crumb mixture, this was one of the best fishes I've eaten in a long time. It was flaky, tender, crunchy - pretty fantastic. If it's on the menu, it's a must order.
- Fish tacos ($16.00) - breaded mild white fish broken onto 4 tortillas and topped with chipotle mayo, shredded lettuce and sliced avocado. The fish tacos were lightly fried the same way as the pescado. Four was perfect as we each were able to try one. Good stuff but will have to try out their Taco day to see which taco is my fav.
- Camarones a la diable ($18.00) - shrimp cooked in a spicy chipotle sauce and served with sides of Mexican rice, fried beans and a fresh salad. It also came with a side of tortillas (covered to keep them warm) to make your own mini tacos if you wanted. The shrimp was perfectly cooked although I didn't find them spicy.
- Beef enchiladas ($13.00) - shredded beef rolled in 3 corn tortillas and covered in salsa roja (red salsa) and served with a small fresh salad. This seriously remind me of lasagna. The tortillas had that soft, lasagna pasta texture to it.
- Cremitas ($4.00) - a Mexican vanilla custard dessert, this was boooomb. Super light, airy, if you liked custard desserts, you will be in l-o-v-e. I couldn't stop scooping up spoonfuls of it.
- Tres leches cake ($5.00) - the tres leches cake was soft, spongy goodness. If you've never had it before, it's made from three types of milk: evaporated milk, condensed milk and heavy cream.
- 2x Platanos fritos con lechera ($4.00) - fried plantain with condensed milk drizzle. Uh yeah, we ordered two of these bad boys. Plantain anything is delicious and these satisfied everyone's dessert cravings.
I am stoked that there's finally another good Mexican restaurant in town. Possibly even my new favourite! I can't wait to go back and try a bunch more dishes. Seriously, that fish was off the charts. As Arnold says, I'll be baaaaaack. You know it's a good sign when everyone at the table is "mmmm-ing" after every bite. | 2positive
| 864 |
This was a quintessential evening of unparalleled noshing and service. The only tiny knock was when we arrived at 5pm on the dot to start our evening, the host asked us if we had a reso. He seemed a bit irritated that we didn't and pointed that we could sit at the bar or in front of the chefs. A smile and "welcome" would be nice, we didn't know or even thought they would take a reservation for two. Anyhow, let's move on shall we? We hopped up to the bar, no surprise there for us, and met our tour guide for the evening Adam. Note to owners, he is a gem to your restaurant, an excellent mixologist and server. His demeanor, even under pressure, made the evening memorable, enjoyable and wanting to go have a beer with him when he wasn't working. Adam, thank you so very much for creating a dining experience we will talk about for years.
I asked Adam if he would steer me through the evening's menu, he checked allergies and away we went.
Starters: Ricotta (12) and Albacore Tuna Crudo (14). Ricotta: arbequina olive oil, fig condimento, sicilian oregano, sea salt, grilled french country bread. Would order every single time if we lived in Philly and had the pleasure to dine here often. Subtle, velvety and crunchy comes to mind. One of the best appy's I have ever had. Albacore: beautiful presentation, like a work of art actually. It was a simple dish, not much volume to it. Glad we tried, but would probably pass on it in the future.
Cocktails: Basil Lemonade (11) and Sanguinello (11). Basil: titos vodka, housemade lemonade, torn basil leaves. Refreshing, tartish and crisp. Sanguinello: vodka, blood orange puree, chambord, lime. Upscale screwdriver on point.
Pre-Din Din: Roasted Beet Salad (11). Goat cheese, orange, tuscan kale, pistachio pesto. I love beets, they complete me and remind me of my childhood and Scandinavian roots. This was/is comfort food for me and Barbuzzo delivered in spades.
Dinner: Fideua (25) and Heritage Breed Pork Loin (21). Paella: catalan noodle paella, mussels, shrimp, chistorras chorizo, braised pork, sofrito, roasted shrimp noodle, garlic aioli. I'm in a paella mode at the casa. I enjoy making it, it's communal and it has taken me awhile to nail it. This was a personal size, which is perfect since Suzie is shell fish intolerant. For these chefs, a different take was in order. Omitting the Bomba rice for noodle's. It works. There was an abundance of Shrimp and just the right amount of mussel bites. Rich, hearty broth rounded out the dish and the noodles was a tasty twist to the rice. Pork: heirloom bloody butcher polenta, fiero radicchio, royer mountain, garlic scaper salsa verde. What works so well here is having the pork served at the right temp. Which they did without much fuss. Polenta sounds narly, but it certainly isn't. Not grainy, but smooth and worked well as a bed for the pork to lie on and the salsa verde added additional notes of garlic to the dish.
Desert: Lemon Olive Oil Gelato (8). Perfect palate cleanser after such a flavor flave bomb of food.
Wines: Pinot Grigio, Alois Lageder Alto Adige, 2017 IT (B:62), Glasses of Gruner Veltliner, Von Kise, 2018 AU (G:12), Glasses of Cabernet Sauvignon Saveurs du Temps, 2106 FR (G:12). Adam was also apparently a sommelier. He was able to steer us to the right wines for our dinner. Personally, a $100 bottle of wine to a $20 bottle is lost on me. The spouse drinks red, I drink white. He took this under advisement and served up tastes and before I knew it, I was ordering a Pinot I would never order and Suzie delighted in her Cab.
We like to hang out, eat a bit, visit and have a few cocktails and stay awhile. We did just that. At no point did Adam make us feel like we needed to leave. He was our host for the evening. The wait staff which came to pick up their drinks were equally accommodating and friendly. The restaurant is intimate, romantic and extremely busy. The place was full by 5.45pm and apparently they take reso's for two. Skip that. Pull up a stool and visit with Adam or sit with the Chef's bar. They have traditional pizza's, pasta's and salads. Our only wish is they had a location here in Austin, Tx. This visit goes to our top 5 dining experiences we have had. PS, I'm making Paella today, thanks Chef Marcie for the push to do so, Suzie has been craving it since she couldn't have a bite of mine. | 2positive
| 779 |
Atmosphere is very smoky and you'll walk out smelling like a grill. So smoky that my sister in laws contacts were drying out. We had a 7pm reservation for a party of 10 to celebrate my mother in laws birthday. Checked in and had to wait about 7-10 minutes for them to set the table up. Upon sitting we were greeted by the waiter immediately for drink orders while we waited for the rest of our party. Drinks came out fast and he gave us a few to look over the menu. The kiddos ordered a cheeseburger with fries and Mac and cheese--when their food was delivered the entire entree wasn't delivered at once and despite me asking for ketchup and mustard when ordering their food that didn't make it out either. I had to ask 2 more times all the while my daughter sat there waiting to eat her cheeseburger and waited for her Mac and cheese since that didn't come out with her entree either. For kids you should really ensure the entire order comes out at the same time and ensure they have their ketchup!
Majority of our table ordered the sirloin which comes out on the heated lava rock for you to cook at the table. Per the waiter the rocks are heated in about six ovens that they have that run 24-7 and take about 8 hours to get fully hot. The steaks and seafood come out sizzling on the rock and the waiter goes over how long to cook the food and the best methods. Some people at our table ended up just slicing up their steak into strips and cooking it all then scooping over to the area on the side away from the rock. Then using the rock to heat the food. French fries came out and were cold probably because it was freezing in the restaurant! So we used the lava rocks to warm those too! I ordered the French onion soup since that was a rave on all Yelp reviews that I read and my sister in law got the lobster bisque. I have to be honest and say that the soups are nothing to rave about. My French onion soup had so much cheese on top that I scraped it over to the side and the soup really wasn't all that hot either which was also disappointing. That was the one thing I was looking forward to given all the reviews I read saying that was the must try! The lobster bisque is served with a lobster claw sticking out of the soup which visually looks great. But we immediately found out that it's still in the shell! Say what!? Since it's partly in the soup it's really messy for you to take it out and have to crack the shell and dig out the lobster yourself. This should be served out of the shell. The bisque however was also nothing to rave about as it tasted like just heavy cream and a whole lot of cheese. At least her soup was piping hot!! I ordered the crab cake dinner which for $23.99 comes with 3 crab cakes and 1 side which I chose the wild rice. The presentation of the entree was pretty however the rice comes on a separate plate; in the picture it was me that added the rice to the plate. The crab cakes and rice were really good and I'd definitely recommend however would like the crab cakes served separately from the alioli sauce. They are served laying on top of the sauce so the entire crab cake and drenched in the sauce on its underside. I'm not one that likes a lot of sauce as I want to savor the flavor of the crab. I'm not a steak person however sampled my husbands sirloin and it was actually really good too! So tender and juicy. The Mac and cheese was just ok but nothing to rave about.
They could definitely use less plates as everything seems to come out in its own dish. Which I get for the steaks and items that cook on the rock however for other items just put them all on the same plate! Takes up so much table space.
Restrooms were in need of a good cleaning as well. Would I return...probably not on my list of a place I just have to go back to as nothing was that memorable but am glad I did finally try it. | 1neutral
| 751 |
The fact that there are 2-star reviews for this place makes me think the average human being needs to get his or her head examined. There shouldn't even be 3 or 4 star reviews. Learn how to eat steak.
Bern's is essentially a life experience. You're born, you graduate college, you get a decent job, find a spouse, buy a house, have children (if you're into that sort of thing) and finally, you dine at Bern's. And what kind of person wouldn't rate having children as a 5-star experience (Casey Anthony I guess would be an exception).
Bern's affords you with a top of the line steak house experience on par with or exceeding that of the top steakhouses in the country, at a price somewhere just north of your experience at Outback. Seriously. And they have 150,000 bottle wine cellar on premises and 250,000 bottles offsite in a warehouse. That is nothing short of insanity. Step one - select your wine. There's probably several that were bottled the year of your birth. And they are charging you in 1980 dollars because the owner is goodhearted socialist. Yup - there's some 1980 varietals between $20 and $30.
Step 2 - consult their spreadsheet of cuts including specific weights and dimensions of your selected cut as well the kitchen's standard operating procedure for manufacturing the steak to the precise temperature (there's four different temperature selections for rare. Yes. FOUR.) and get your meal on order. There's really no need to select an appetizer, for you will be the recipient of french onion soup and salad before you receive your steak and you will also be endowed with a fully loaded baked potato, garlic sauteed green beans, shredded carrots, and a healthy pile of crispy onion rings along with your steak. Then marvel in the fact that a decent cut proportion for one runs between a minimum of $32 for your 6 oz filet, median range of about $45, and up to a maximum of about $72 should your fat ass want a 25oz porterhouse all to yourself.
Side note - here's a side-by-side comparison of Bern's 8 oz filet versus Outback's Victoria Filet:
Bern's:
French Onion Soup = Included
Salad = Included
8 oz filet = $37.90
Baked Potato = Included
Crispy Onion Rings = Included
Carrots = Included
Garlic String Beans = Included
Total = $37.90
Outback Tampa:
French Onion Soup = $5.29
Salad = Included
8 oz filet = $22.49
Baked Potato = Included (just one side)
Crispy Onion Rings = 2.99
Vegetable Side = $2.99
Total = $33.76
There's mother effers on here complaining about the price??? You too need to get your head examined. You are complaining about paying $4 more than Outback. Seriously, Yelpers piss me off sometimes.
Step 3 - Eat.
The steak is unparallelled. It literally needs nothing but to be placed into your mouth and chewed. The filet side of the porter house can be sliced with the edge of your fork. The NY strip side, which I usually don't enjoy as much, tastes fantastic, the crisp on the edge is wondrous, the tenderness is divine, the flavor is what you would expect from a worldclass steak house. The Delmonico Rib Eye is marbled just right, and the meat to fat ratio explodes in your mouth like you don't know what the eff just happened in there. The baked potato is so good that you question if it was twice baked. The garlic green beans have such great herbaceous flavor that you play 20 questions with your brain's knowledge of Penzey's Spices.
Step 4 - Take a tour of the kitchen and wine cellar. Marvel in the fact that for $4 more than Outback, the onsite butchers have yielded just 1 pound of meat for every 3.5 pounds perfect just so you can get that perfect cut. Marvel at the fact that they are roasting their own coffee beans. Marvel at the immensely huge, environmentally controlled wine cellar. Marvel at the fact that they grow their own sprouts. Marvelous.
Did I mention this is just $4 more than Outback?
Step 5 - Climb the steps to the Harvey Weinstein room (also known as the Harry Waugh room for the semitically challenged) for dessert. Sit in your own personal space and select the volume and type of music you want to listen to. Drink a cup of some amazing coffee because those beans were roasted beneath your feet. Indulge in one of the finest desserts from a selection so various and impressive that your head will spin. Consider taking out a mortgage to find out what a bottle of port from the 1870's looks like.
This is not a night out at a restaurant. It's a life experience. And did I mention, it costs just $4 more than eating at Outback? | 2positive
| 807 |
Batch is a real hit and miss. 80% of their cupcakes are great, 20% are terrible. I have only had about 6 cupcakes all together. I first had one from Too Soul Tea, a gluten free red velvet. According to the comments, this one is pretty infamous for being so dry. Like, made-from-sand dry. Very disappointing because red velvet is one of my favorites, and I could hardly taste anything but the cream cheese frosting and, if dry has a flavor, dry. I figured maybe it was just because they sat out or something.
When I saw the storefront on Virginia, myself and my mother stopped by twice. The first time, an middle-aged woman who was very kind and cheery greeted us with a number of flavors. The interior seemed like it was made for kids. Eh. Considering most of the tables were bar-high with plastic barstools, it seemed like a really bad choice if you're attracting kids. There are two low tables though, but they aren't dressed up /like/ kid tables, the tall tables are the ones with chalkboard paint and such.
I got a Dark Knight and a Lemon something-or-other. I don't know the names. Both were nice and moist and the frosting was super sweet. I don't know what all the whining and moaning about too-sweet frosting comes from. There's maybe 4 ingredients in any given frosting, and the majority of it is powdered sugar. If you don't like sugar, cupcake frosting is probably not the place to find sparse sugar. Derp. But hey, maybe you're at Batch because you've never made your own frosting and were expecting the crappy fake whipped stuff you get on Scolaries cupcakes. *Shrug*.
ANYWAYS, they were pretty good, which convinced me to go back, and I was super disappointed. Not only were there half of the daily flavors left at 2 p.m. but the cupcakes I got were dry as the Salt Flats. I decided to give the Red Velvet a try again. Is it a trend that gluten free cupcakes are dry? I'm afraid to try their other flavors after getting a dry flavor twice. I had to buy an extra milk to choke it down, it literally got wedged behind my tonsil and I couldn't wash it down for several hours and then my throat felt scratched up. I make gluten free baked goods for my mother, if you need a recipe to replace flours, I'll give you one, but figure out your liquids ratio for godsake. I'm convinced the only reason people buy red velvet is because it's a popular flavor and they never have had one from Batch, and I bet they probably never will again. In retrospect I should have complained because I ate it there, I should have demanded my money back for getting sand instead of baked goods, it was really that bad, but I don't have the balls to bitch on the spot, I wish I were that brave to make a scene.
Not to mention the blond girl, daughter or relative maybe, was a terrible host. Awful. I work with 2 other teenagers and I would have them fired if they acted in such a manner. I don't demand all service employees to be 100% cheery, I don't care as long as the service is good, in an economy where 10 people are applying for each open position and there's plenty of people who would kiss ass every day for minimum wage. But I couldn't call this girl anything other than taciturn and dour, like she'd never been taught manners or how to smile or greet. She doesn't deserve to work there, she isn't skilled in customer service, so she shouldn't be working it. I can only imagine the reason she's still there is because she's related to management or the owners, and that's sad if they can't train her to treat customers better. First, she couldn't bother not looking at her phone long enough to greet me either time I came in. She didn't acknowledge me or my mother or my husband while we were looking at the goods. When we asked about the flavors, she had to look at papers to figure out what they were, either giving credence to the ridiculous names or to her lack of knowledge of her goods. Then, when she put the cupcakes in the boxes, she smashed two together. If you treat your goods so carelessly, something deep in me immediately assumed they aren't worth $2 each. Then, she didn't even tell me the price, I was just looking at her face, and she seemed to be looking at the wall and jiggling her foot. I finally said, "Um?", she looked at me with my card in my hand and took it out of my hand, ran it, gave me a slip to sign, and didn't even say "thank you", no "sign here", no "take care, have a good day, enjoy", nothing. She's was as non-sociable as anyone could be. Put this girl on dishes or on garbage duty and take her phone away when she's on the clock, she's clearly not fit for jobs where customer service and people skills are paramount to a store front that deals directly with patrons.
-1 star for the shitty customer service
-1 for the lack of interior design cohesion
-1 star for the faulty gluten free recipe
+1 for getting it right with lemon and many flavors
+ 1 for locally sourced ingredients like lavender and working with local businesses | 0negative
| 924 |
I've been really into Korean food lately! One of my current go-to places is Hanjan, located on 99 Street in the Southside. It's more modern and hip compared to other Korean restaurants in the city but still offers traditional Korean food. The interior is really cute with string lights hanging from the ceiling and an indoor patio vibe. My friend says it's very similar to cafes you'd find in Korea. Avenue Magazine recently gave them 2nd place for Best Late Night in Edmonton, for good reason. Edmonton lacks in the late night food scene with mainly Chinese food and Mcdonald's as options. Thankfully, Hanjan is open till 3 am on weekends (with karaoke as well)!
I've been here a few times for dinner and late night eats but this was my first time trying out their lunch menu. They've been offering lunch for awhile but just rolled out their new lunch combos, which I had been invited to come taste. There are 2 lunch combos, combo 1 for $30 and combo 2 for $40. I tried out combo 2, which includes: rice, kimchi jigae, galbi or dak galbi, gamja croquette, japchae, salad, banh chan, and pa jeon. Combo 1 has all the same items except for kimchi jigae and pa jeon. If you have no idea what any of those words mean, don't worry, I'll be translating them for you in this post! The lunch combos are perfect for sharing between 2 to 3 people, and also gives you a chance to try out multiple items.
For the main dish in the lunch combo, you can either choose from galbi (grilled BBQ short ribs) or dak galbi. We went with dak galbi, which is a traditional Korean spicy stir-fry of chicken and rice cakes. I'm usually not a fan of spicy dishes but I enjoyed this one! I didn't find it way too spicy, and it tasted great with rice.
It also includes:
- Gamja croquette, deep fried pancakes, were filled with potato then covered in mayo and a soy-like sauce. They weren't too crispy but the filling reminded me of mashed potatoes that had been fried. I like anything that's carbs or potatoes (most of the time) so this was a winner in my books.
- Pa Jeon is a traditional Korean pancake consisting of seafood and green onions. It's lightly fried then served with soy sauce. Compared to other places, I found that they didn't use much pancake batter so it wasn't as crispy as I would've liked. There was also more green onions than seafood.
- Banchan are the typical small side dishes that you get at any Korean restaurant. They're usually free and unlimited. At Hanjan, the banchan you get are kimchi, mashed potatoes, bean sprouts, and pickled radish. I only tried the mashed potatoes which were served cold but had a hint of sweetness to it.
- Japchae are glassy noodles served with vegetables. This was my first time trying it at a Korean restaurant because the only other place I've had it is at Koryo. These noodles clumped together a bit but they tasted very light in comparison to the rest of the items. It paired well with the rest of the lunch combo.
- The salad is served with a light soy vinaigrette dressing. It was a nice addition to the otherwise heavy meal and I really liked the dressing that it came with!
- A stew, kimchi jigae, also accompanied the lunch combo I tried. I only had a spoonful of it because it was way too spicy for my taste but if you want some heat, you'd like it.
This dish isn't part of the lunch combo but it's one of my favorite things to order here! Mandu are deep fried pork dumplings served with a creamy mayo sauce. They are delicious and will leave you wanting more, trust me.
Their strawberry waffle was one of the freshest waffles I've ever tasted! It was topped with fresh strawberries, whipped cream, vanilla ice cream then drizzled with chocolate sauce and powdered sugar. I've tried most of the other desserts here but I think that the strawberry waffle is my new personal favourite.
It's safe to say that Hanjan has become one of my favorite restaurants. The food is delicious, the vibes are cool, and the hours are great (minus Monday cause they're closed). I love how during the day it's a cafe but on weekend nights it has a different atmosphere - more livelier I'd say. Definitely stop by if you're in the area but even if you're not, it's worth the trip for some yummy Korean eats! | 2positive
| 776 |
Unfortunately I wish that I could say my one star review was for stopping in for dinner or something, but its actually for my wedding reception. I don't like to badmouth businesses but I want to warn any bride thinking about having a wedding here. We chose this place because we were on a pretty tight budget, it cost us around 4000 dollars (600 of which the staff added as their tip) During the planning of our wedding I was concerned because the assistant was very hyper and short with me on the phone, I thought maybe it was because she was busy. I would always have my husband call for me because I often felt belittled when on the phone with her. 2 days before our wedding I went to the facility to drop off the centerpieces that I had made. I was greeted with dirty looks and attitude because to be quite honest, I feel the matre' d did not like them, which is fine, but because we were paying them, it didnt matter what she thought. We were then told that we needed to pay our remaining balance of 3000 dollars that day or we would lose our venue. My husband was in touch with them frequently and they never reminded us it needed to be paid before the actual day of the event. They said it was in the contract. They had been dealing with my husband regarding all the payment details and contract issues, they waited till I was there alone to "remind" us we are about to lose our venue. I had to call my husband out of a presentation meeting and max all of our credit cards out to save our venue. He was expecting to get paid the next day and pay off the venue then. I literally had to walk outside to cry, because my wedding was falling apart. I was then told they wanted me to do my seating chart completely over because they did not like the way it was set up....2 days before my wedding. I let everything go, bit the bullet, did the seating chart over and emailed them a "better list". The day of the event we were 1 hour late (our fault completely), so we altered the schedule and took parts out of the event to make up the time. When I walked in I was horrified. The sign in table looked awful...there were signs we had made that the staff stacked on top of eachother in a pile so no one could read them. I had given them written directions and full page color prints of how the table was supposed to be set up, it in no way shape or form matched the photos. My husband and I speant HOURS on our seating chart, My guests came back to me telling them that a very rude staff member told them they were not following my chart and quite honestly wouldnt let them look at it. We paid for a buffet and my guests were coming back to me telling me that they were turned away when they came back for seconds. One guest told me she heard the matre d cursing at staff when she politely asked for a refill of coffee because she did not want to make anymore, my guest politely said if it was too much trouble, nevermind....do you have any idea how awful it felt to have guests coming to me telling me they were treated rudely. It seems every one I talk to has a story. NOW...the cake. We had a videographer who caught on video how rude the staff was with me...she did not like the way we cut the cake and in front of everyone looks at me and says, what did you do!!!!!! EMbarassing. We did a cake smash and one of my guests came back to me to tell me she heard staff complaining about that because they had to clean up. (which we didnt even get anything on the floor) It was just horrific. My aunt made home made soap, which hardly anyone got because the matr d brought a huge blue tupperware in front of the whole dancefloor and started packing up our wedding an hour before it ended, in front of everyone. We felt like the staff acted like they were doing us a favor by having our wedding there. They were more concerned about their night wedding, scheduled later that evening. It sucks, because everytime I think of our reception I get very depressed because I truley did not feel like a "princess bride" at my reception, I felt low class because of how my guests and I were treated. I have to live with this memory for the rest of my life. To be honest the staff was downright mean to us. I try to avoid discussing the reception with people, because I keep getting the same story, how beautiful I was followed by, "the reception seemed rushed and the staff was really rude to us when......" The only good thing I can say about the reception was the owner was nice...it seems when he isnt around, thats when everything falls apart and staff shows their true colors. And the food was good. | 0negative
| 884 |
I love wine, and I wanted SO MUCH to love this place! They don't take reservations, so after an hour & a half wait (That's how badly we wanted to try this place!), we finally got seated. It started off great. So many wine flights! I ordered a total of 4 wine flights: 1 white, 2 reds, and then a dessert wine flight. My dessert flight came out & didn't seem quite right. The 3rd wine in the flight was supposed to be a late harvest Malbec. The 3rd wine was white. Not just white, but a super light, clear, see-through white wine. I asked the server if he was sure that was the late harvest Malbec because I didn't think Malbec could be white. He assured me that it definitely was the late harvest Malbec. He left and came back later with our risotto (an issue I'll come back to in a bit). I tasted the white dessert wine, and it tasted a lot like a Muscat (a sweet white wine which was also a choice for the dessert wine flight and was also less expensive than the late harvest Malbec which I had ordered). I questioned it again, saying that I didn't understand how a Malbec could be so white, and he proceeded to bulls***t his way through an explanation of how the wine wasn't left with the skin of the grape as long, so it ended up white instead of red. (That would still at least make a rose' wine; you can't get a see-through, almost clear white wine from a Malbec grape.) So I went to the bar & asked to see the bottles, and sure enough the late harvest Malbec was a deep dark red. The guy at the bar gave me a pour of it after I explained what had happened, but when I expressed my concern about the previous flights I had ordered, he shrugged it off as a simple mistake because it's a new restaurant.
Do not order the expensive wine flights at this place unless you actually go to the bar and watch them pour! I have no idea now what I was drinking in any of the wine flights I ordered because obviously I can't trust them to serve what was ordered. I know enough to know that Malbec can't be white, but if they poured me a cheaper wine in place of the Malbec, how do I know they weren't doing that with all of the other wines as well? I would so much rather have a server say they don't know and go check on it rather than flat out lie to me. That's what makes me feel cheated, and not like this was a simple mistake. If it's a mistake, you apologize and fix it; you don't just repeatedly lie and try to get away with it.
As for the risotto, we were told that there would be a wait for the risotto. Fine, no problem; I know that it takes a while to make a risotto. About a half hour after we ordered it, the server came with another item we had ordered and told us that our risotto was ready and would be right out. We finished the dish that he brought and sat there for about another 10 minutes afterward and wondered where the risotto was. Then he came with a dessert menu. We told him that we were still waiting for risotto. He didn't know what had happened to it and asked if we wanted to order it again. We did. So we waited another 20 minutes for risotto again.
The risotto was worth the wait. Actually, all of the food we had was amazing, which is the only thing saving this place from a 1-star review. The chef here is great, but the rest of it needs a lot of improvement.
After all of that, I was assuming we would at least get the messed up wine flight or the risotto that we had to wait forever for comped, but no. And I usually hate people who write negative reviews because they wanted something free, but that's not what this is about. I came here tonight wanting to fall in love with this place, but instead, I feel cheated. From what I experienced tonight, it seems like this place is taking advantage of people who they think don't know anything about wine by replacing the nice wines selected in the flights with cheaper wines, assuming no one will notice. As a wine-lover, that makes me really mad & sad to think that people are being duped about the wines that they're actually drinking. I spent over $100 there tonight, and other than the late harvest Malbec that I watched being poured for me at the bar, I have no idea what I actually drank tonight.
UPDATE 1/22/17: After speaking with the owner, I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt that my wine mix-up wasn't intentional. There is a chance that I received the correct wines listed in the wrong order. I'm still not completely sure what I drank, but I think there's a decent chance that this problem was due to an honest mistake by the bartender and VERY poor service by my server who, rather than taking my question seriously & finding the answer, spewed a bunch of wine misinformation in an attempt to either cover up the mistake or simply out of ignorance because he thought he knew what he was talking about. I don't think there is any effort by the owner or management to cheat the customers. I plan to give them another shot & hopefully write a review about a much better experience next time. | 0negative
| 961 |
Ok, strap in folks, this one's going to be tough for me.
I went here once before in May 2013, and I don't remember much about what I had, but I do remember the wait being very long. This time around (Sunday, 06/15), the service was much faster, and our waitress, Elena was one of the most considerate, patient, and easy-going people I have ever encountered in the hospitality industry. No, I'm serious. The place was packed and hot and people were milling about everywhere, but she kept her head and made sure we were as comfortable as possible during our meal. So bravo to her...and because of her, Bellefonte Cafe gets another visit from me in the future. That being said...
Bellefonte Cafe, I do this out of love.
NEGATIVES:
1) Wandering patrons. Ok, yes, I get it. The restaurant is a house with nooks and crannies everywhere, and the overall atmosphere is very much of a "put your feet up and relax with good friends and food" feel, but it's still annoying when a group of people enter the place and search for a table, then find a table with a couple of half-empty glasses and discarded napkins and think it's about to be cleared, only to be told that a group of "regulars" is using that table and although they haven't been sitting there for over 20 minutes, they still have it. Um, wrong. When you sit down to eat in a dining establishment, you don't randomly get up for extended periods of time and roam aimlessly onto the porch or towards the bar and spend most of your "meal" chatting with the staff/other patrons and leave your refuse behind. Consideration? Is that a French word or something?
2) Asshole patrons. Now I shouldn't blame Bellefonte for this, but the clientele can really affect a person's experience in a restaurant. Case in point: when we were ushered into one of the rooms, we were initially split across two tables which were of uneven heights. My sister and I took the low table, while my boyfriend and brother-in-law took the high one. While we were making our way to said tables, Elena (God bless her) had to squeeze her way past a middle-aged woman who was standing directly in her path and talking a mile a minute to another table of people. The woman glanced up, frowned at my brother-in-law, and moved about an inch. I'm not kidding. He had to thrust his way past her. I was right behind him, and I noticed she started moving back to her original position, so I said, "Excuse me," and quickly nudged my way past her too...and I got a full-on stink-eye from her. Look lady, I don't know what your problem is, but if three people need to bump and squirm beyond you to get where they need to go, you might be considered an obstacle. Oh! I almost forgot, this woman was part of the group of people who abandoned their table for over 20 minutes. Remember this for later.
2a) Asshole patrons, Part II: Once were seated rather awkwardly in our too high/too low chairs, we started mulling over our menu options. About five minutes in, we heard a resounding BANG from the table next to us. We all jumped and I felt my chair shake. We turned around to see a rosy-cheeked, balding man grinning like an idiot and adjusting himself in his chair. Apparently, he lifted the glass table-top when he stood up and it dropped back down as soon as he sat down again. At no point did he apologize. He just sat there, squinting and smiling. He and his group left shortly after and Elena immediately cleared their table and moved us over so we could sit more easily. I heart you, Elena!
3) Live music by people who should not use amps in a cramped space. Do you really need huge amps in a room that's roughly 50 square feet? The sound was borderline deafening at times, and I felt bad having to scream my order to Elena, who also had to shout the specials to us.
4) People who should not sing along with live musicians, or any musicians, or should just not sing at all, ever. Remember that woman who glowered at us? The one who wasn't even sitting at her own damn table? Welp, she decided to sing along to "Hallelujah" and she dragged out poor Elena to sing along with her. Fortunately, Elena had a good singing voice and did not attempt to drown out the musicians. The rude woman's voice, however, was tinny and piercing, and the notes she screeched were well beyond the limits of human tolerance. After the song ended, she sat down, beaming proudly, while I carefully removed my fingers from my ears. I sincerely hope I never encounter this woman in a public setting again.
POSITIVES:
1) The food. The nachos were excellent, and the refried beans were a perfect blend of savory and sweet. My smoked salmon bagel with capers and cream cheese was also very good, and the bagel was toasted just right. Everyone else enjoyed what they ordered, although my sister thought the bacon in her sandwich was a little thick.
2) The service. Again, Elena was on point and very sweet. She saved the day for me.
Bellefonte, I'm giving you another chance. Don't fuck it up. | 1neutral
| 908 |
Went to POS today to get my free birthday sandwich (tomorrow July 21, today was July 20), and I was asked if my card was registered. I was confused as I already had spent over $100 on this card, and never was told, asked, etc. that I should or needed to register my card, also, just to note, I tip every single time! I can say that I have been to this store at least a dozen times and at least 9 times on this card. So today, I found out how quick it was, just a quick scan of my card, and no it's not registered.
Then I mentioned my birthday was tomorrow, what if I register today, the cashier said I don't know if it will work if you register it now. I was confused, I said there's a free sandwich on it now, for spending $100, why wouldn't there be? I was then told that basically, I could be scamming them for a free SMALL sandwich! I was very insulted, and taken aback, then she tried to defend herself and say, well everyone would say their birthday was tomorrow so they could get a free sandwich. Again, we are talking about a SMALL sandwich.
So I said I would register my card, and then still wanted a sandwich, so as usual, I order the medium double meat #1 with smokey cheddar. The nice guy who's always been an Ace making my sandwich says you can get a large sandwich with your freebie ($100 spent) so I agree as long as I can get double meat, which I can if I pay for the meat upgrade.
I get back to the office, (first time I didn't tip after Ms. Insulting like after spending $100, I am going to make up tomorrow is my birthday) and thank Source I didn't because it was single meat. Either that or somehow it was exactly 1/2 the meat I got before. So either thy have sliced the meat 1/2 thinner than before or I got 1/2 the meat of my sandwiches before because it was not a meaty sandwich by any means, after ordering 11 of these, I would consider myself an EXPERT!
I thought it was an error with all the confusion of my free sandwich etc., and I am known here as it's right next to my work. I call up, and inquire, I am assured that meat was correct. It wasn't an easy conversation by any means. I then mentioned how pcs of ham should be on here, because I have it written down on a card in my wallet, and I know a medium #1 double meat is 8 pcs of ham, which is a hefty portion of the sandwich, along w/ double pepperoni, salami, and capicola.
I was then told double meat would be 10 pcs of Ham, and if I wanted I could bring it back and they would count it. Again, very insulting way to deal with an issue. I said I would count it myself. I was thinking that seems odd anyways, when on a medium it's 8 pcs, seems kind of strange to go from a 8" sandwich to a 12" sandwich and they only add 1 extra piece of Ham for a regular sandwich and 2 pcs for a double meat. Anyways, I did go back because, again I know my sandwich, and this was not it! It was just one of those times where you just want to get it done right as it always has been and I am still giving the benefit of the doubt. Of course, when I walk back over (not what I want to be doing on my lunch hour) it's crammed packed w/ HS kids, Cops, and a bunch of other people, so many the door is blocked. I thought about it, whatever, I paid for double meat got the sub for free, we can make it up on the next one.
After much consideration, I really don't give a crap, it's my birthday and I decided I am to0 old to deal with crap and drama (small birthday sandwich scam, we can count the meat for you), so unless someone comes to my work and apologizes, and makes it up to me, I am done w/ POS. I wrote Corporate about 2 terrible experiences I had at two stores by house, ordering double meat and getting very small portions, I never got an email, phone call or letters, after this stupid experience, I really don't see the point in supporting a business that plays games and drama! | 0negative
| 773 |
The GF and I work approximately 10 blocks from each other. So you would think we would or could get together for a work-day lunch more often than not. In any case, we were able to set aside an hour on a Friday to meet in the middle - The Capital Grille, located on the corner of Broad and Chestnut.
The Capital Grille advertises itself as a "national steakhouse chain." Most restaurants and fine diners shun any establishment associated with the word "chain." I, on the other hand, happen to know better. I'm not saying these establishments are the epitome of haute cuisine. Rather, the good chains (Ruth's Chris comes to mind) offer customer loyalty, consistent service, and preparation.
Upon entering the restaurant, which had a definitive old school "man-club" in a modern era, we were greeted and welcomed. I had made the reservations for an early lunch on OpenTable, and noted that we were looking to get in and out within an hour (a multitude of afternoon meetings loomed ahead). Without breaking a sweat, they mentioned that they would inform our server of this request and accommodate us swiftly and sweetly. Clearly, they have hosted many a business lunch.
The Capital Grille offers a special Plates menu which includes a soup or salad, entree, and a side - all for $18. Not bad at all considering the quality of the food, service, and atmosphere. The GF thought that was a bit much, so went with a salad, which was substantial in its own right.
Our server informed me that they were offering a lobster bisque, studded with chunks of lobster - for a supplement of $3. Natch - I had to go for that.
Bread service
We had the option of having bread service (gratis), which we went for. The flat bread was a nice touch and change of pace. Crispy, though not really seasoned, they still offered a nice textural bite to start the meal. The rolls were fresh out of the oven and went perfectly with my lobster bisque. The accompanying butter was refrigerated and cold however - a pet peeve of mine, to be sure.
Plates Menu ($18)
~ Lobster Bisque ($3 supplement)
This was a solid rendition of this oft-loved soup. Creamy and rich - this had deep flavors enhanced by what was clearly a base of seafood stock. Two chunks of lobster were the highlights in this creamy soup.
~ Lobster Roll
Fresh lobster in a creamy salad tucked into a soft roll, and hand-cut fries
This rendition had lots of lobster, dressed and tossed with mayo and celery, all atop a small bib of lettuce. Perhaps a bit more dressing that I normally like, but it was not heavy at all - the lobster was still at the heart of the dish. Also - the description did mention it would be a creamy salad. However, I do prefer my lobster rolls primarily buttery and unadorned - atop a buttery roll. I must be channeling a bit of Paula Deen.
The Capital Grille used a roll that was sweet in taste and actually quite hard texturally - it seemed a bit too 'toasted' for my liking. Some light butter was brushed on the sides, but it was hard to miss the sweetness of the roll - something I did not enjoy. Overall, it was a good dish with exceptional value - minus the roll.
~ Truffle Parmesan Fries
Freshly grated cheese and white truffle oil
You can't go wrong with truffle fries and there was nothing wrong with these. Crisp on the outside, creamy on the inside - they were pretty hefty. Shaved parmesan was scattered on top along with some parsley. A bit to salty for my liking, but who cares? Truffle oil emanated from the dish! And too all of you purists - get off your high horse. Unless you plan on giving me whole truffles that I can shave onto the dish, I will take these 'truffle-infused' oils when I please - processed or not.
The Capital Grille "Cobb" Salad with Sliced Tenderloin ($18)
The GF was happy with her choice. Bacon, blue cheese, hard-boiled egg, tomatoes, and greens - with a strip of tenderloin (medium temperature) to the side. It came dressed with a mustard vinaigrette, which was light. If I were a salad-eating man, I would definitely go with this.
Overall, the GF and I were happy with our lunch at The Capital Grille. The overall value for what we received in terms of food, service, and atmosphere was great. I wasn't ecstatic about the lobster roll, but that was made up for with the quantity of actual lobster and great service that accommodated us within our time frame. We'll be back! | 2positive
| 793 |
St Louis needs more restaurants like Five Bistro.
Five is a white tablecloth contemporary American fine dining establishment that serves only locally grown produce and locally raised meats. Mercifully, fish is an exception to the local rule.
When dinner is the night, I like to take my time, which means a drink at the bar before sitting down. We arrived 20 minutes ahead of our reservation for a drink. Joe (Chef/owner Anthony Devoti's father) greeted us at the door with a beaming smile and offered to seat us immediately, but we headed to the bar. This is a small restaurant. The bar area is directly across from the entrance and there are several tables between the door and the bar. There is a larger dinning room to the right of the bar but the space is all restaurant - there is no separate bar room. The bar tender was a real pro who asked a couple of questions and quickly recommended a wine that Mary loved and drank the rest of the night. Pleasantly, the wine recommendation was not the most expensive wine in the house.
Five is not the only restaurant in town to focus on local food, but no other is so fully committed to local food or does it so well.
I'm always suspicious of restaurants with enormous menus - they can't possibly do all those dishes well. The menu at Five (allegedly changes daily) is manageable and designed for four courses. There were 5 appetizers, a soup with two salad options, 5 entrees (beef, chicken, pork, fish and a vegetarian risotto) with desserts or cheeses for the final course. You are free to order ala carte or do a four-course prix fixe for $45 ($60 with wine pairings).
Mary and I did the prix fixe. My first course was the fish tasting menu which was excellent and made me feel better about my entree.
My second course was an amazing trout chowder. Too often chowders are as thick as pudding. This chowder was buttery and hearty but with a broth base that felt a little light and perfectly seasoned,...has God intended chowder to be served.
I have some firm beliefs about what to order in nice restaurants - don't order things you make at home or can be found on any menu. Eat like a grown-up - try new things and go for the house specialties. I never order a steak unless I'm at a premium steakhouse (where I will get a prefect steak perfectly prepared) and I never order chicken. I went for a braised pork steak that was nothing like your dad's pork steak. It was a thick square of trimmed pork served on top whipped Yukon gold potatoes covered is a red wine reduction that will change your life. This was a pork version of braised short ribs. The sauce was deep, rich and complex and I ate every drop. Mary broke my rule and ordered the roasted chicken (to be fair, it's the roasted poulet). She was rightly apologetic about the choice but insisted that she had it before and that it was really something special and she was right. The chicken looked and smelled great with brown crispy skin with roasted potatoes and turnups covered in a savory light brown sauce obviously made from the pan drippings. She offered me a piece and I have to say it was the most amazing roasted chicken I've ever had. It was so good I'm thinking about slipping back later in the week just to order the chicken and eat it at the bar.
I'm an easy customer to wait on. I don't expect slavish devotion and I tip well. I have two pet peeves when it comes to service. One is a hovering team of servers who over do it with constant interruptions (when you have a mouth full to make sure you are ok with the half glass of wine in front of you) and constant fussing with the table, all of which interferes with good dinner conversation. The other is the server who is only a bittersweet memory after the menu and specials are explained with all follow-up service delegated to underlings. Service at Five struck just the right tone. Our server - Ian - was always handy but never hovering. He never interrupted but was always there when more drinks were needed, etc. Ian explained the menu well, was comfortable making suggestions (I hate servers to timid to offer a suggestion), and paced the dinner perfectly. The service was pitch perfect.
Five is exactly the kind of restaurant I love: Small but classy where the focus is on serving really good tasting, high quality food made from fresh ingredients. No grand décor or elaborately sculpted dishes that look and taste like a movie prop. This is bistro dining at it's finest. And do everyone a favor and leave the kids at home. | 2positive
| 822 |
I had very high hopes for Galatoire's based on previous reviews & its Zagat rating. We arrived dressed up - me in the same outfit I wore to the French Laundry and my husband in a jacket (unlike the couple that walked in before us) - and were quickly shown to a table at the very back of the restaurant, next to the bar and kitchen walkway. It was away from a screeching child, so I couldn't complain too much but obviously not an ideal seat in the dining room.
Prior to going, we had read that instead of trying to figure out the menu you should defer to the experienced waiter's recommendation based on him asking you what you like. This is where things went downhill.
We figured out very quickly what appetizer we wanted so that wasn't a problem but the waiter wanted us to order our full meal having only had the menu for a minute or two. We asked what he recommended for a main meal and he started pushing the app (that we were already going to order) and some potato souffles. We didn't want to be full before the meal even arrived so we passed on the potatoes and he seemed offended somehow. We ordered sazeracs and he spent a lot of time explaining to us what they were even though we told him we'd already had them. [Note: they put ice in theirs.] When we asked for a main course recommendation he seemed flustered at having to talk through the menu, stuttering and fumbling his way through the conversation. The only dish he kept pushing was the trout almondine, which sounded good, but he didn't tell us about anything else. The waiter two tables over was giving very detailed and crisp descriptions to his table. I wish we could have heard him better. Based on his descriptions we said we weren't ready to order yet and needed some more time with the menu. He said okay and walked away. And then our appetizer came while our menus were still on the table. And they stayed on the table for a long time while we waited for him to come back. We were done with the appetizer before he even took our main entree order - trout almondine and a crab dish with hollandaise, bechemel, and green onions. The waiter said he liked that one and it was a good choice. I hoped so because that was all I had to go on. We also ordered asparagus so that we could get some vegetables in. He kind of sneered at that, but whatever.
Our food comes and the trout almondine is beautiful. The crab dish is a pot of lump crab met literally swimming in a rich thick gravy like sauce. It tasted good but WHO EATS THAT MUCH SAUCE? The asparagus was cold and had probably been steamed and then put in an ice bath several minutes before.
At the end of our meal, he finally comes back and asks us if we want dessert. We don't because of how rich and filling the food was. He actually huffed as he walked away. He brought us our check, literally putting just a piece of paper on our table and walking away. I'm at a five star establishment and you can't even bother to put that damn piece of paper in one of those leather portfolios? I know you have them BECAUSE WE'RE SITTING RIGHT NEXT TO THE REGISTER.
At that point I wanted nothing more than to get out of there. It was clear that our waiter wanted us gone and was making no effort to hide it. We were spending over $100 on a meal and he couldn't be bothered to even pretend to do his job? Because of him I spent my last 20 minutes in Galatoire's wishing I had kept our reservation at Muriel's instead. (We had Sunday brunch there and everything about that meal surpassed Galatoire's in every way.)
Like I said at the beginning of this review, I've eaten at the French Laundry and several high-end restaurants in San Francisco and Oakland which is to say that we're not new to fine dining. We love food and can usually have a great meal in any location, in any circumstance, but I have NEVER had service this poor in a restaurant with such a stellar reputation. In fact, I had better service at Cafe du Monde than I did at Galatoire's. I just wish I could remember the name of the waiter so that you could avoid him at all costs. Because of him I will never recommend this restaurant to anyone | 0negative
| 783 |
If I could give a 0 star rating to a location this would be the first time I would ever give a 0. I will never go back to the stable again, ever. It's really sad because in the time of my visit the location went from a 4 star location, to probably one of worst experiences I've ever had and if you read some other their other reviews, you'll see I'm not necessarily a unique case.
Warning: This is going to be a long review. So dig in or go on to another review.
We went with a group of 13 people for a birthday party. When we arrived the place was not yet crowded, but was getting there. Our server wasn't what I would call quick, but with a group of 13 that's understandable. Their menu had tons of options, but 1 item spoke to me. The plate of food. It's exactly what it sounds like. You don't actually know what you're getting they just bring you out a plate of food chosen by the chef. I was immediately sold.
This is where everything starts to go downhill. Our food comes out and I get served what looks like a delicious plate of chicken parm and mashed potatoes. Other people start receiving their food around the same time, and everyone starts to dig in. Except one person is still missing their food, the birthday girl. She had ordered a simple tuna sandwich. Now if it were a couple minute lag that would be no big deal, but most people were done with their food before she received her sandwich.
One of the other members of our party received a piece of grilled chicken that looked like it just been charred and left to sit out for about an hour. She promptly sent it back and the server obliged without much of a problem and said she would take it off the bill.
Now I'm almost done with my entire plate of chicken, as I continue to shovel mashed potatoes into my face when I pull out of my mouth A GIANT PIECE OF WHAT LOOKS LIKE PARCHMENT PAPER. I've never found anything like this in my food. A hair I can understand, hey it happens, humans work in a kitchen I get it. But a piece of paper that big (big enough to cover the top third of my forefinger) just shows negligence in the kitchen.
So I show what I've found to the waitress and she takes the plate away immediately. Then about 2 minutes later comes by our table, taps my shoulder, and says "we'll take care of that," as she continue to move on.
Now I don't own a restaurant, I've never managed a restaurant, BUT wouldn't you think the first thing you'd want to do is send manager over to the table to apologize?
So everyone else continues to enjoy their food and then the bill comes. Let's start with the smaller problem. First there was a 20% gratuity already added to the bill. Sure large group get automatic gratuity, but 20%, seriously? Next the big problem, MY MEAL WAS STILL ON THE BILL. At this point, I'm furious. Absolutely irate, so I calmly get up with the bill and walk up to the hostess stand and ask to speak to a manager. The gentleman at the hostess said, "hi, I'm the assistant manager how can I help."
I asked him if he heard about the situation and he stated, "I heard about it, but it was my impression that the general manager was handling it." I then showed him the bill and stated to him that my meal was still on there. He said "ok, we can take that off, is that all you needed?"
I could not believe how he was just willing to brush the situation aside. I said a couple things about how I wasn't interested in the bill so much as I was interested in how little they cared about my experience at their establishment. I don't care about the money, I don't even care about the food which was pretty good. What I cared about is how are you going to make me want to come back after that?
Again my opinions on how to operate a restaurant are only from minimal serving experience, but here's 3 things that this restaurant did that will make me never come back.
1. If you have a large group come in I understand it's difficult to have provide to all of their needs, but if something like that happens. Send a manger by and address the entire table. Apologize for what had happened, explained that it's a not the way that you intend to do business, and offer the table something to make up for. Hell even just a dessert offer would have made me feel better.
2. If something should no longer be on the bill, it's probably a good idea to take it off, and if someone finds something in their food, it's probably a good idea not to have them pay for anything. Honestly I don't know how this restaurant manages their margin, but if it were my restaurant the entire table would have eaten for free.
3. If you are managing a restaurant don't deflect the blame. If it was general managers responsibility, then you should go get him and have him explain, and if you're willing to take the brunt of a complaint no apology for poor service should be followed with a "BUT." | 0negative
| 928 |
I was told to eat here by a friend, so I was here for lunch at Mulate's here in downtown New Orleans, which is close enough to the larger than life Convention Center nearby.
I arrived here on a brisk Wednesday afternoon around 1pm after visiting the World War II museum nearby. I didn't know that this was the original Cajun restaurant in New Orleans till I got there. The restaurant itself was large enough and there wasn't much people dining in at the time. Quite possibly have beat the lunch rush for the day. With that said, I got a table pretty close to the entrance, even when the backside of the restaurant was completely empty. The menu was pretty extensive and the first thing I noticed was the prices. Although I shouldn't be complaining and I'm on vacation, it was pretty pricey, comparable to other similar restaurants I've been to around the country. My total tab with alcohol and gratuity came out to be around $50. At this experience at Mulate's, I experienced my first taste of étouffée in a cup. It was amazing and so good. Even the server said that they make the best in the city. That's hard to believe, but at the same time, it would be great to return to sample other places to see if that's the case. The alcohol I tried was the Tin Roof Voodoo, I think. It was a pale ale that was pretty good and a compliment to the meal. For the main entree, I opted for the roast beef Poboy, which was served with French fries. It was the first time that I had to deal with a leaking poboy and the sauce. It was a messy but delicious meal that immediately hit the spot on this trip to New Orleans. Consider coming here on your next trip to the French Quarter.
The overall experience here at Mulate's: the original Cajun restaurant in New Orleans was nice and casual. Since it wasn't busy at all while I was here, I didn't feel rushed and I enjoyed myself. It was neat to chat with the server, whom after looked at my driver's license to check my age for alcohol, small talked about Hawaii and her trip there some years ago. It was nice. The restaurant itself was clean and aesthetically pleasing, decorated with Cajun inspired items and it felt natural to be here - even when I'm from Hawaii. Lol Mulate's is located at 201 Julia Street in downtown New Orleans. They accept major credit cards and cash, which is nice or ya travelers who are on the go all the time. They have limited parking, since you're likely parking on the side streets or if you can find a parking garage, that's cool too. If you are like me that day, public transportation via city bus and street car are viable options too. There's always uber and lyft available to get you here to experience the original Cajun restaurant in New Orleans. For the most part though, the enjoyable part of the experience was obviously the eating. The ambiance of the restaurant helped a lot, knowing that I was there on vacation, which helped appreciate my time here more.
I probably spent about an hour here. I thoroughly enjoyed the étouffée and the roast beef poboy was definitely good. Not too salty but just right. The fries was good as usual and the alcoholic beverage was the icing on the top for my stomach and taste buds to enjoy. While Mulate's New Orleans is the original Cajun restaurant in New Orleans, the prices sure is a turn off, but as a tourist, it's what the city of New Orleans is known for. Gotta try it at least once. The service was good and friendly, as mentioned before. It was interesting to get small talk about Hawaii when random people talk about your hometown like it is a fantasy. Guess that's how my life is. Lol And so, I would recommend coming here, since they do market themselves as the original Cajun restaurant in New Orleans. Try the étouffée or the jambalaya. It's quite the adventure for your taste buds. When in New Orleans, you should come to Mulate's for a Cajun fun time. I know I did, but my wallet didn't seem to think so. That's probably my own gripe. It's spendy - just for lunch. I'm afraid of what's dinner.
4.0 stars for the overall experience. 5.0 stars for the food, of course. 4.0 stars for the service but 2.0 stars for the prices.
Support local!
B | 2positive
| 771 |
I received a gift certificate from the Women's Expo for the Best Chefs Reno if I agreed to write a review. As a Yelper I said no problem. I was told that I would receive a special form to fill out at the restaurant. So, we decided to go out for lunch on my Birthday (March 30th) around noon.
The Restaurant had one other table seated and one table was seated after us. We were greeted warmly by our soon to be waiter at the door. I told him I got this gift certificate from the women's expo for the best chefs Reno competition and would need the special review form. I also mentioned that it was my Birthday. He said "Oh. Well, we are glad you are visiting us." He seated us next to a window so I could "Enjoy a pretty view on your Birthday."
The atmosphere is very nice. (If you can ignore all the fruit flies) Lots of low lighting, Cloth napkins, heavy glass water goblets, Nice heavy duty sliverware, paintings on the walls. Well mostly on the walls.
On one side of the table where we were seated was a booth-like seat. Where I sat (on the other side) were regular pull out chairs. There was also two large paintings propped up on the walls on either side of the bench. Later on it caused trouble with my son getting out of the booth.
As the waiter was pouring our waters, he asked us what we would like to drink. I asked if they had hot tea. He said yes. I asked what flavors, he said "I will bring the box over and you can choose." He then immediately left ignoring my husband and son.
20 minutes later, the waiter returned (Without the box of teas or having come back to take my son and husband's drink orders) and took our food order. My son (Who is in a hospitality program) asked "have you taken our drink orders yet?" He said "Oh, no." in a very casual way. My son ordered "To drink, I will have a diet soda, and the pear salad." My husband ordered the scilian (sandwich) and choose to drink the proffered water that was half gone already. I said "I still want my hot tea to drink, and I would like the chicken ravoli." He came back with my hot water, the tea basket and my son's diet soda. 15 minutes later, he stopped by and filled my cup with more hot water but ignored my husband's empty water glass.
another 15 minutes passed with no attention from our waiter.
Finally our food arrived looking very pretty in presentation!! I was so excited to try this amazing pasta on my plate. My son's salad looked divine and my husband's sandwich with the "in-house" made sausage wasn't too shaby looking either.
Then, we took a bite. As is our custom; when trying a new restaurant we all take small bites of each other's food. My son's "Gorgonzola cheese" on his salad was more a danish blue. It hardly tasted like blue cheese at all. No strong flavor that Gorgonzola has. My husband's Sausage in his sandwich literally tasted like sloppy joe meat! It was over processed and very sugary. Not what you expect from Italian sausage. My chicken ravioli tasted like the stuff that comes out of the can from walmart. It was chicken paste and very bland. The pesto creme sauce was very oily and had no nutty flavor at all. The bread served on the side was also bland. No butter, no garlic, no seasonings at all. Just a slice of hard bread that was toasted dry.
I took pity on my husband and gave him my water to drink, since the water NEVER refilled his water or my son's diet soda for that matter.
He also never check back on us to see if our orders were properly cooked to our satisfaction, etc.
Once we were done, he gave us the check. I reminded him about the restaurant review and the gift card. Which he said "Oh yeah. I'll take that" and took the card, envelop,etc. and came back with the bill again.
I never received any special paperwork for this competition.
All in all, I sum this restaurant up to PRETTY. The atmosphere is nice, the food Looks pretty and the staff, (At least this waiter who was the ONLY one we saw) was friendly, although lacking any sort of memory or ability to think.
All of us did not like the taste of the food. Too bland and lacking any sort of flavor or texture. The meat is way too over-processed and has the consistency of toothpaste with less flavor. I, personally will not be going back. I was sad that I have gotten more flavor from my food at fast food and diners. Heck! A lunchmeat sandwich I make at home has more flavor!! I would not recommend this restaurant. Reno has MUCH better food for $15 a plate. | 0negative
| 843 |
Try number 2 - the first try I didn't even get a chance to order food, so I went in with an open mind
"Fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me."
Upon entering around 6:30ish the entire restaurant was empty. Makes one wonder. Again, inspecting this menu very little says, "IRISH!" For the most part it's French which I can only assume is because that's what the chef really knows. The Brits have changed the way we look at their food and at one time it was considered the worst food in the world. We ordered the chicken truffle mushroom cilantro tart to share. I ordered the fish n chips. Classic dish from the Isle region, right? Figured if it's an Irish establishment, then this is definitely one dish they should make very, very well. There was a bit of apprehension in this decision because there is a review here on Yelp stating how unsavory the dish was. Benefit of the doubt here. He ordered the short ribs with, and take note, a fried egg.
Tart: Delicate square shaped puff pastry with a scoop of the good stuff on top smack dab in the middle. Is that truly a tart? I was thinking it would be served in a ramekin or at least made in one... ooops, my bad. Guess this is the Irish version of a tart. No chicken flavor whatsoever. The "mixture" did have a hint of truffle but was mostly button mushroom tasting suspended in a creamy mousse. Not one note of cilantro. Why is cilantro here?
Short ribs: The meat was perfectly cooked. So well, it didn't require a knife. Well seasoned, but it was the sauce in which it is delicately "floating" in that brought this dish to it's highest note. Sadly, the fried egg was over cooked. Meaning there wasn't a runny yoke. This is the whole purpose for placing a fried egg on dishes. Isn't it? It's the added flavor of the yoke which brings a 4 star dish to a 5 star dish. That sauce was begging for that yoke to be runny. The richness a runny yoke would have... it was still good.
Fish n chips: This is the saddest excuse of this dish I have ever had. I had family live in London for 4 years. I went every year they were there. Fish n chips were a must have on every trip. Thing is, no matter where you get them whether it's old school dive bar or 5 star establishment it's one dish you can count on it being spot on. It's all about the cod. When I think of "fish" in this dish immediately it's a thick, flaky, and tender coated piece of cod in a crispy, crunchy batter. What I was served didn't look like cod or taste like cod. It may have been but it was frozen cod. I asked the waiter if it was cod. He reassured me it was. Then told me it's impossible to serve fresh cod here. Seriously? Sushi chefs would disagree gravely to this statement. I ate about 3/4 of one of the four fish pieces. I dissected one of them so my date could see what I was talking about because he refused to even taste the fish. Oh ya, the chips... far from crispy, but undercooked, greasy... logs. Meh The waiter noticed I wasn't eating my dish. He would walk toward the table, hesitate and turn to another direction. Finally he approached the table. He noted that I wasn't eating my dish. Offered me something else which was exactly what he should have done but no apology or ownership. I graciously did not accept his offer. My date offered to share his which I gladly did. Wasn't charged.
Gotta skip the dessert because I'm running out of charter usage.
I come to this question: what else on this menu is frozen? For the past several years restaurant food has been progressing to freshly prepared food... not frozen! And Irish House is part of the Local Challenge but none of those selections said "Irish." In no way is this review meant to be mean or spiteful. I'm just being honest. I have no doubt that the items on the menu which lend themselves towards French flavors and preparations are probably good. Calling a restaurant "Irish House" one expects Irish food or at least food that has it's roots in Ireland or that region of the world with an updated flare. This concept is wildly popular right now. Serving Guinness, Black & Tan's and whiskey does not make an establishment Irish. The only way I would come back here is if the menu was completely overhauled and updated to better representing the name Irish House.
Side bar: I am half Irish and was born in Boston. My father's family came from Country Kerry, Ireland. Also, I was queen of Saint Patrick's in Biloxi for the Hibernia Marching Society *parade wave* I take great pride in my family's Irish heritage. | 0negative
| 843 |
Well, you can knock me with a feather!! Call me impressed and please pick up my jaw from the floor!!
I found out about this TRUE GEM by pure mistake, while browsing at the current Groupon, they mentioned Gelato.
Being a HUGE fan of this delicacy, I quickly scanned the brief description of the place and what they had to offer. It really sounded too good to be true, but since I was going to be in that side of town, I decided to give them a try.
First, the place is bright, well lighted, and clean. The first thing that pulls your attention if you (like me) have a secret kid inside, is the rotating cooler, that looks a bit sci-fi and definitely cool!
All the delicious flavors are there just waiting for you to gaze at all their beauty! Each flavor properly labeled and with a little sample of the main ingredient at the top. For Strawberry, some fresh strawberries, for coffee, some coffee beans, for vanilla, a real vanilla bean, and so on...
The girl at the counter was friendly and VERY PATIENT! (Big Plus in my book!) She explained every flavor and allowed me to sample to my heart's content!!! She never once gave me the stink eye for wanting to try almost all flavors, and even gave me a few suggestions.
Now, keep in mind that I am usually very open minded when it comes to "exotic" food and flavors, so when she mentioned Pineapple Basil, I was a bit intrigued...
Oh! The flavor!! It is so hard to describe! But all I can say is this: It tasted FRESH! Like something I can eat every day for the rest of my life!!
Who would ever though I would say that about BASIL??? In a Dessert? GO FIGURE!!
Now, don't take me wrong, I like basil, in pesto, pizza, with pasta, and in other fine foods, but as a dessert? It is hard to describe the flavor, all I can say is that is fresh, sweet, & exotic!! We have a winner in here!!
This was not the only mind blowing flavor at Allegro, pretty much everything there is delicious! I purchased a combination Coffe/Chocolate for my hubby who is an aficionado of both flavors.
His verdict: The BEST frozen desert he has EVER tasted!
Now, that coming from him it really is HUGE!
But back to flavors:
Saffron was in one word CREAMY! You can taste the fresh cream and the saffron flavor is so mild is decadent!
Cinnamon was the perfect blend of spice and sweet!
Chocolate mint was exquisite and OH! Sinful!
Coffee was almost as if I was tasting a very fine coffee at a very expensive coffee shop! The flavor is hard to describe but you know you hit gold on this one!
But at the very end, I found something that not even in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever find:
ROSE!! Yep, you heard me right, ROSE!!
I HAD TO TRY THAT ONE!!
The flavor was everything I expected an then some!!
Ever since I was little, I have always had a fascination with both, rose and violet flavor concoctions, and to find this was beyond anything I can describe!!
Creamy, light, not overly sweet (Actually none of the flavors were overly sweet), and with a delicious rose flavor that just got my eyes rolling in delight!
I was forced by my desires to buy pints of Pineapple-Basil & Saffron, Chocolate-Mint and Coffee, and of course: Rose.
My favorite, amazingly is still the Pineapple-Basil, with the Rose as a very close 2nd, but to be honest, they were all delicious!!
Now let me tell you a little about the containers, because it really is worth mentioning this:
No good old cardboard or plastic cups.
We are in the middle of the desert right? How long before your delicious treats turns to mush? Not long on average, and chances are that by the time you reach the 180 degree inside of your vehicle in the middle of the summer everything is already liquid.
But after purchasing my pints of delicious decadence, I was pleasantly surprised to find a miniature styrofoam cooler!! (Yes, A COOLER!!) How awesome is that?? The rectangular cooler with it's well fitted styrofoam lid protects your delicious sin while keeping it safe! TOTAL AWESOMENESS!!
I just found my new favorite spot for the summer!! This year I will welcome summer with open arms! BRING IT ON!
As I am typing this at almost 9:30 at night, I am quite tempted to make a quick escape and go back to get another pint of the delicious Pineapple-Basil (They are open until 10:30 PM!), my family loved it so much, that is by now all gone!! *SNIFF!*
So, as I finish this tale of gems discovered in the middle of the desert, I decide that, I will indeed make the trip across the land to reach nirvana once again! Allegro: Here I come! | 2positive
| 838 |
Hendrick's is still about 3 out of 5 stars for me. I've been back quite a few times now, mostly because the place is so darned conveniently close to my home, and I really do get sick of chain restaurants when I don't feel like driving all the way into the city just for a decent meal.
I almost always order shrimp and grits. The consistency really needs work though, because sometimes it's too watery, sometimes it's not cheesy enough, and sometimes they DOUSE the thing with the BBQ sauce stuff and it's too spicy/sour for me to consume. The drinks sometimes suffer from the same problem of not being made the same way each time. Sometimes I have to ask them to add extra ingredients to round it out.
Service has been good in the sense that the servers aren't insulting me anymore when I ask questions, but they still seem really incompetent sometimes. We had this one guy who was SO awkward. It must have been his first time waiting tables ever, because oh man...it was painful. His heart was in the right place though, and I definitely appreciate his kindness, but man, he really needed more training. Generally, though, I prefer the male servers here to females ones. They are more awkward but less rude. I'd prefer awkwardness over rudeness any day. And then every so often, I'll get a server who has their crap together and who is super polite and friendly. They need more of those!
Also I wish they'd update the drink menu. I was going to order a beer flight but they no longer have the O'Fallon Wheach Beer as it was seasonal for the summer, I think, and instead it's now some other type of beer (IPA) which doesn't really seem to "go" with their beer flight. I prefer lighter beers, so maybe someone who doesn't care as much wouldn't mind, but I still think they should just update the menu. Also, I wish they had it clearly marked on the drink menu when they are doing the bartender's choice specialty cocktail. Apparently it's only Sundays and Mondays, according to the a manager (he was pretty cool, btw.)
Sean H. decided to branch out and get a burger instead of the usual chicken sandwich. It was a big mistake though. The cheese or something about it was really off. Both of us hated the burger, which is shocking as we rarely agree on food-related matters. The waitress and manager were both super cool and let him exchange it for a chicken sandwich even though he ate all the fries first. (This is standard Sean H. behavior though, as he always eats fries first, and then the main course.)
Lastly, you get a free appetizer or drink with your check in on Yelp. Every time I come here and check in, I get the same deal. As in, it's not a one-use-only type of thing. This seems to baffle everyone who works here. Did they make a mistake when loading it in yelp or something? Was it suppose to be a one time only deal? Each time I hit "mark as used" in front of the server's face so they see I am actually using it and not just trying to cheat them or something. And then I return the next time, check in, and BAM there it is again. I am cool with having a discount every time I come here, it definitely gives me incentive to come back. But asking them to use the discount generates so much confusion sometimes, that I almost feel bad for trying to use it. It doesn't specify on the coupon which item you get for free, and the server asked me which item I wanted for free. The appetizer cost way more than the drink so naturally I'd want that to be free but it seemed unlikely so when I asked, she told me she asked the manager and he said it had to be the cheaper item. She ended up giving me the $12 app for free anyway which was really nice of her. But still, really awkward. I think they should tell all of the servers about the yelp coupon because it becomes really weird when they run off with my phone in their hand. Granted I gave them permission, but why should they need to do that at all? Bring the manager to the table, if you have to.
BTW random aside, if you come here during December, I think you get a free pig-shaped cookie cutter and a recipe for bacon maple cookies. I got one, and I saw a waitress making up more of them to hand out. A really great and cute little thing they do! :)
I still enjoy coming here, but they obviously have some kinks to work out here with service and food quality. I am not sure I'd come here as often if it weren't for both the coupon and the fact that it's 5 mins from my home. The prices are really high for the food, but I think the drink prices are more fair. I still wish sometimes that they could just kidnap (or clone) Matt from Sanctuaria and drag him out to St. Charles to work at the bar here, heehee! ;) | 1neutral
| 890 |
I'm glad to welcome the long awaited Sugar Factory to Tampa's Hard Rock Casino Resort. Sugar Factory offers a retro glitzy diner atmosphere with big retro Hollywood dressing room style circular bulbs, fancy chandeliers, granite white bar & table countertops, retro comfy red velvet half booth seating, and a black and white retro small tile floor. There's a Sugar Factory in Orlando, Miami, New York, Vegas, and all the big cities. It's about time Tampa got one too!
Sugar factory has huge overpriced $36 smoking goblet drinks, over the top $18-$31 huge milkshakes with chocolate on the glass, $17 martinis, $15 cocktails, 8 types of burgers, a donut burger, a waffle burger, 5 types of sandwiches, 5 types of pastas, 4 types of steak, a big brunch menu, $99 King Kong sundae that serves 12, $151 chocolate silver fondue, $396 red velvet fondue with champagne that serves 4, $1000 chocolate gold fondue that serves 6.
Since Sugar Factory is so small, theres a 36 minute wait to get in even though there weren't even a lot of people there. I can only imagine the wait to get in on Saturday and Sunday will be much longer. There were maybe only 7 tables in the place and the biggest table was reserved for people that never came and was not in use at all, making a cramped tiny diner feel even smaller with the biggest table out of commission. I imagined a much larger venue that would be 4-5 times the size of this tiny sad diner. To start, we got the sampler platter which included 5 onion rings, 3 chicken fingers, 5 buffalo wings, and 3 Mac and cheese pops. It was not bad but for $26 I'd expect twice as much food. 7/10
The pan roasted salmon salad included avocado, mango, cucumber, roasted bell peppers, red onions, pine nuts and a lemon vinaigrette and was healthy, and filling but a little bland. I added some salt and pepper and that helped but it could have used a better salad dressing as some bacon goat cheese and nuts. At $26, it was one of the most expensive salads I've ever had. 6/10
The rainbow burger slider appetizer was pretty colorful and nice for a photo with 5 colored buns and the rubber duckie but I can't say it was worth $23 or the most tasty. The burgers were very basic with just cheese tomato lettuce and the patties were dry and burnt. Luckily a lot of ketchup fixes that. You're better off getting a big regular burger with more quality toppings for less if you wanna wind up with less carbs although you won't get the famous signature colored buns. 6/10
The watermelon patch meloncito goblet with lemon and citrus soda and sour gummy beads by Pit Bull was pretty good although not my favorite. 7/10
The peace love & harmonie hypnotiq margarita was probably my favorite drink of the night and the least expensive although it didn't smoke. 9/10
Aside from much higher than average drink and food prices and a cramped atmosphere, the music they were playing at Sugar Factory was all so old, played out, or just plain bad that I barely could enjoy spending time there. Management, please play newer upbeat hit music and not stuff that no one has ever heard or has been played out for years. Most bars have a dimly lit atmosphere but not the Sugar Factory. This place was way too bright, like daylight, which kinda gave you the feel of being in a supermarket, not chill at all. The diner felt very very small and cramped with only 7 tables and spot lights everywhere. It's funny that there are neon compliment signs on the Walls saying "beautiful", "gorgeous", and "wild thing" to people over-indulging in humongous triple serving sized drinks, milk shakes, desserts, and burgers. Perhaps it's psychological so people don't feel bad for over-indulging here with this over the top stuff. Our server was pretty nice and helpful although they were very busy. The kitchen was a little slow to bring out food but that is understandable as they just opened and were super busy. I prefer the vibe, decor, lighting, music, and more space offered by Toothsome Chocolate Emporium in Orlando over this place but for those that want to have over-the-top decadence closer to home, this may be the spot you seek! I hope Sugar Factory will introduce some happy hour specials, better music, dim lighting, live music, and a more chill vibe in the future! | 1neutral
| 759 |
I had a pretty awful experience for dinner at Royal House. I want to include all the details, so I apologize for the length of this review. It started off right. Our server, Danny, was personable and had great recommendations for the table. We had entered the place ready to enjoy ourselves, and he was delivering a great experience. Everyone in my party was there for the seafood, and I had called ahead to ensure they would be able to make one of their dishes vegetarian. I am always a little wary of places being understanding about dietary restrictions. My restriction is not a casual preference, but a deep religious belief, and respect of additional questions I have is very important. The host who answered when I called volunteered that one of the dishes I was looking at was fried in the same oil as meat, so Royal House seemed to be one of the establishments that respected restrictions. My experience when I received my food, however, was very different.
The appetizers we had were all decent. When the entrees came out, the food runner put mine down and mentioned oysters. I asked if there were oysters in the dish, since I had ordered without. He said he didn't know, he just ran the food, and that was the name of the dish. Fair enough. I asked if our server or someone else would be available to confirm. He then got defensive and said he was just someone who brought the food, and how was he supposed to know what was in my dish? If the server had put a note in, I would be fine. I know from experience that notes are often missed in busy kitchens. It is much better for me to confirm then have a surprise reaction to my dish. After a few minutes back and forth asking to speak with someone who would know, he told me that the dish actually didn't have oysters. The oysters would be on top. At this point, I needed to be certain there hadn't been a mixup. This is where things really went downhill with disrespectful service.
Danny had been busy and I couldn't find him, so I asked the hostess if she could confirm with the kitchen. The manager on duty that night came to address me, and immediately approached the conversation as if I were being unreasonable. She told me that she apologized that the food runner called my dish by its name, which included oysters, but the oysters would be on top of my dish so there were no oysters in the dish. I said I understood, but I really wanted her to check with the kitchen and confirm the dish, as made, was 100% vegetarian. Kitchens add animal fats, Worcestershire sauce, oyster sauce, and other ingredients all the time. She told me she didn't need to check with the kitchen because she had worked in the kitchen, and the oysters would have been on top. This was reiterated to my four times. Each time, the manager refused to check with the kitchen. I believe the manager's name was Taia, but she was reluctant to give me her name. She told me she loved her guests, and she didn't know why I was treating her badly. I didn't feel I was treating her badly, but I really couldn't understand why she just couldn't confirm with the kitchen to make me comfortable. I started to get upset. She wouldn't look at me or address me with respect. She kept looking at one of the members of my party, who was also black, as if asking him to reason with me. I suddenly felt like I was being treated differently because of my Indian descent. When Danny returned to the table, he found me tearful.
I didn't eat my meal. The manager later came over to give us the check and aggressively showed the members of the party the note about not having oysters in the dish. She did take that off of the bill, along with an order of oysters that had not arrived before our entrees. There was no other apology, because she felt she was fully correct in not double checking that my meal was safe for me to eat.
At the end of the meal, she came back to our table, and asked if there was anything else she could do. I told her I would have been fine had she just checked with the kitchen, and tried to explain how serious my vegetarianism was. At this point she interrupted me and again told me I had been treating her very badly on Mother's Day. She actually suddenly decided to tell me she had checked with the kitchen, and told me she had checked with the kitchen four times. I had misunderstood her. This is another moment where I felt I was being treated differently by Taia due to my race. Perhaps she assumed English wasn't my first language. I had been stubborn about needing this confirmation earlier to feel safe, and she had explicitly told me that she would not do it. I know I did not misunderstand her. She then accused me of not saying thank you like other members in our party. I certainly had nothing I felt thankful about when it came to her service. Our waiter Danny had received plenty of thanks. I was extremely upset about the way I was treated here. The food was fine, but this sort of disrespect was unacceptable. | 0negative
| 925 |
The Virus is causing a lot of anxiety & people are acting out more and more-including my self. I will own it. Loneliness My concern is that while I was in line to distancing w/ face protection...maybe not the best kind...my mask had gotten wet-so I used a scarf. It was all I had and many do the same.My PTSD is flagging as more & more people are coming to Santa Barbara from cities where beaches and parks...places of Social Community..are on lock down as a result of HIGH Numbers of Reported Cases. I live in Santa Barbara. My family moved here in 1948. I have been on Social Distance and Self Q for 60 days. So when I saw 5 bare faces...huddled at the bar...I felt deep concern & disregard. There is a very clear sign at the entrance-"Please wear a face mask & practice distance. People that do not clearly care need reminding. I tried to talk to the Manager and he was immediately defensive & rather aggressive. He kept insulting me. He was not shy in his feeling toward me. He repeated insulting words over & over. I tried to tell him my work is in the community & related to the Public Health & Safety. Again doubt & insults I work as an Indy Contractor in Media,Marketing and Fundraising. I am not a Dr or Gov't official. I have no power. I tried to apologize-I realize he is under pressure &my guess is having a hard time. My PTSD got triggered ( Mine is Fight-so I shut down.I try to help. The Senior Gen Pop & At Risk pop are my focus. I saw many people with no shoes and no masks-it is a Valid Concern. My intention was simply to remind him. But he took offense. I was raised in the restaurant business. I get the Daily Fears local businesses are experiencing. A friend officially closed his restaurant Thursday. I want businesses and beaches to stay open. I have suggested carding people at the gate...at least while we wait for Testing, Results & Tracing. I was tested- I will know Sunday. My son is working to keep a restaurant open.He is taking a beating. Acting Out & a Lack Concern for the Community is hard felt. My feeling is that is "If you cannot follow the rules...you will be reminded". Cities with High Numbers Of Reported Cases are Ticketing. Parks Rec was on the beach over the weekend & as a Concerned Citizen- I would like to see their presence daily. I honestly do not want forced Closures or Marshall Law.If we could each just follow decent common sense. Remind each other as needed. People are Emotional & Anxious. Me too. We would do better to help each other rather than Bully or Lash Out. I know I am not acting normally. I am under pressure, keeping a 1099 business going. I am not young & -I suffer from complicated challenges. There is no bail out for me. My focus is for firstly my son...his health & well being. We I got tested & I asked the nurse.."what happens if it is positive. Her reply was startling..."nothing" she replied. "If you test positive-Contact your Dr. If A Symptomatic...get treated for symptoms.That is all we know right now. I love the Boathouse-they are doing more right than many places. Friday was in fact a weird day. Anxious form the test & a gothically foggy day.People drinking from glass containers on the beach.No leashes etc.Triggering my flags. I feel helpless-not hopeless. I find hope at the beach & I want to keep that hope alive. I am dealing with Grief from deep loss.Loss of Family all at once. I talk to people-more & more I hear about the experience of Grief. Of not ever having this much time off-how to pay for life with nothing coming in.I think we are all experiencing different levels of fear & anxiety.The fear that comes from feeling helpless & lonely. My Son is all I have left. I am doing things like writing my Will.Making an After Life Plan.After losing so much family, a nasty breakup & the loss of a family home - I am grieving. It has been a challenge. My eyesight is now changing. Now categorized as blind. This news has hit me pretty hard. Though I know I am fortunate in so . Almost rediculously lucky. I feel I do not deserve it. I know & daily see people suffering terribly & in visible pain. Mother's Day hits me hard. I am a solo parent & during my pregnancy I was a victim of Aggressive & Threatening Oppression from my sons father. My 1st Mothers day was simply forgotten.My son is being so kind. He sadly knows how I have hurt. People can say they love you & still be extremely dangerous. I am working through it. Kindness will heal. Good food at the Boathouse. Beach walks. Being IN community.All I ask for is kindness & compassion for us all.It is all I ask for. Loneliness is a Virus too. So let's Be Kind & Carry On. | 1neutral
| 860 |
A couple of months ago, I was driving down Hwy 141 and noticed the new Smokee Mo's barn being erected. I was aware of their existence in Arnold but had never summoned the energy to drive there to give it a try. So, I began checking periodically to see when they were opening and finally saw that it was happening. Ms T and I went for lunch the day after opening.
The building is nice inside, being new and open to the high barn roof. When you walk in, there is no sign telling you to turn left to go to the counter ordering line, but we figured it out. It is similar to Sugar Fire in that regard. I found the menu posted high on the wall a little annoying and hard to read but maybe that's just my eyesight. There was glare coming in from the side windows on the board and when you are up close, you have to stand back and really crane your neck to read it. They need laminated menus when you come in that would be easier to read. I had noticed on their website that they are proud of their vegan barbecue. Not that proud apparently, the only vegan menu was a solitary paper one masking taped to the wall at the front.
We ordered. Ms T went with Smoked Turkey Breast and a side of slaw. As always in a new place, I sampled a range of meats to get a feel for the offerings. Mine comprised Pulled Pork, Brisket and Ribs along with slaw and collards. Oops, no, they had no collards, so I settled for broccoli casserole.
Let's start with the good, to lend this a positive note. Ms T received very good smoked turkey breast in a generous portion. I watched them slice it from what looked like an actual boneless turkey breast half and it looked juicy. It was just as it looked, with quite mild smoke, just enough salt and was very enjoyable. If this is a reliable representation of their turkey, we can recommend it. We cannot, unfortunately, recommend anything else.
The brisket was done, tender. This puts it ahead of most brisket in St Louis, a city where it is typically not cooked to doneness. The positives end there. It was really tasteless, just roast beef and a little dry at that. Ms T agreed on this, virtually no smoke and not much bark or rub apparent. I still maintain the only good brisket available in St Louis is Salt + Smoke, now that Big Baby Q has closed.
The pulled pork was just roast pork that had been shredded. It had no salt, no seasoning, no smoke and was also dry. It did not even taste like pork. The ribs were about the same, although they benefited from a light coating of some kind. They appeared overcooked and the appearance was born out upon tasting. They were not dried out, however. They also had almost no smoke flavor but would be my second choice after the turkey.
The slaw was a weak effort, very uninspired, with a clear sweet sauce that needed vinegar. The broccoli casserole was good and could be added to the turkey breast as a recommendation.
While I went to refill my iced tea, Ms T struck up a conversation with the couple at the next table. She had noticed they had eaten almost none of their food (like me). She asked what they thought of the barbecue and he responded with "Meh" and a waggle of his hand. As we discussed things, we were in complete agreement. The barbecue lacked flavor, smoke and rubs or seasonings. It is just mediocre. I compliment them for not covering it all automatically with sauce, as some places do. I only put sauce on barbecue when it is needing help. In this case, all of the meats went home with us (24 oz of leftover). It all ended up being chopped fine, mixed together and sauced. This will make edible sandwiches.
Needless to say, we were disappointed not to have a great barbecue place in West County. We might return for turkey, but PM makes decent turkey and it is closer. Besides, PM's ribs and pulled pork are a little better. Sugar Fire also makes decent turkey and tolerable ribs and pulled pork. For better ribs, stick with the Pappy's-Bogarts-Dalie's connection or Salt + Smoke. For Pulled Pork and Brisket, I recommend only Salt + Smoke and no other. Smoke Imo's (yes) is no better than their pizza. (Was that provel on the bread I did not eat?) | 0negative
| 775 |
I had the pleasure of spending time with my family for my Aunt's ninetieth birthday this past week. It was held at Fisher's Tudor House on Street Road in Bensalem, which was always the epitome of fine dining in the great northeast, where many years ago I spent my youth.
For those of you unfamiliar with Fisher's, there used to be several of them. The original was on Castor avenue north of Cottman Avenue and was always quite the place to be. I can remember admiring the huge ancient ship models encased in glass when I was little and my family would make the drive. When I was older, I would have Friday lunch there during work, enjoying the fresh snapper soup and delicious blue cheese dressing.
But the Tudor House took up the mantle with style. A HUGE facility built (at the time) in the middle of nowhere, it was not only THE seafood restaurant in the area, it had banquet halls for thousands of people, a night club, and everything the fine diner could wish.
Returning to the present, I had arrived early for the party in an effort to beat rush hour traffic. As we talked I realized it had been a good seven years at least since I had last set foot into this facility, so I was looking forward to a trip down memory lane.
Well, as they say, what a long strange trip it's been. We checked in at the front desk of a strangely quiet reception area. The waiting area had a wonderful display of cookies and stuffed animals, but almost appeared to be a gift shop, something out of place among the huge mantles and wallboards decorating the entryways. We passed the wine bins outside one of the main dining rooms and walked into the bar.
My guest, who smokes like a chimney, was amazed they were ignoring the smoking ban until I reminded him we were in Bensalem. Yours truly, who can smell a pilot light out two houses over, was aghast at the smell of old smoke. No need to bring cigarettes kiddies, just lick a wall. It was like the airport 'smoking rooms' of old. Not even a good wood/leather/smoke mix. Just dirty old smoke.
The bartended approached us as we sat at the bar (we were the lone patrons as far as the eye could see short of someone who was apparently a dishwasher from the kitchen watching the news), and I ordered a lager while we looked over the bar menu and privately discussed his 80's retro haircut.
Little did I realize this was a foreshadowing of the night to come, but let's continue.
BMK ordered his typical Malibu and coke and I ordered a half dozen oysters. They were Effingham Bay's, and served in minimum orders of three at $1.50 a piece.
I had switched over to Dirty Skyy Martini's when the oysters arrived. My nose warned me to be careful even as they approached. One sniff and I knew these were off. I tried sniffing each individually but there was no point. BMK remarked that he could smell them and "if I can smell them, they're really bad." I agreed and sent them back. They were politely removed from my tab and we continued on, raw bar now on permanent 'avoid' status.
You can see the menu at their website, but it had truly gone from fine seafood dining to JRZY diner seafood. (And not good JRZY diner seafood, which can be quite nice.) Let me note their advertised 'seafood menu' has only five (yes FIVE) offerings, no lobster (petite lobster tails don't count), and two fresh fish.
We decided something odd was going on so we quickly drank our drinks, left payment, and walked back out to the entranceway. How shocked was I to see the staff following us out, lights being turned off and doors locked AT NINE O'CLOCK AT NIGHT!!!. South Jersey isn't this bad on a Sunday night! This was KraZinEss!!!
I mourn for Fisher's. The Grande Dame is dead, and in her place is a gum chewing, belly shirt wearing Jersey girl. Yes, I love Jersey Girls as much as anyone for their candor and love of life, (they're the reason cars have backseats dammit!) but to see such a fine institution reduced to effective culinary rubble just hurts.
Goodbye Fishers! I'm holding off on a final recommendation until my Aunt's 100th birthday in hopes that by then you'll either have returned to grace or shut down. Maybe you'll be a Friday's by then, or perhaps a huge Quizno's, who knows; and sadly, who cares? You've become the once divorced mom, hair dyed too red, drinking and smoking too much, while hitting on anything that looks like it might buy you your next drink. You're best ignored and left to survive in our memories as what you once were. I'll see you in ten years. Perhaps I'll wear my high school varsity jacket to blend in. | 0negative
| 836 |
Ok, I'll admit it. I'm a pizza snob. There. Happy now?
I was born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y. - you can't swing a dead cat in Brooklyn without hitting a place that will give you a great slice, although I can't even begin to fathom why you'd be swinging a dead cat...
I just looked it up online - swinging a dead cat is illegal...
and it severely limits your dating options...
don't do it whilst in Brooklyn...
or anywhere else...
ever.
On to the review, which is based on 2 slices of prosciutto and basil pizza and 1 basil lemonade...
The first thing I should mention was my server.
I sat at the bar...
yes, alone...
no, I don't have any friends...
yes, I'm very lonely...
feel better about yourself now?
At any rate, my server was really great. Despite being quite busy, he was quick and efficient, and a genuinely pleasant guy - as opposed to the "I'd really like to kill everyone and then myself but I'm going to plaster a fake smile on my face because if I lose this job, I really will kill everyone and then myself" type of server that you sometimes get and immediately want to hold a telethon for.
Yes, I just ended a sentence with a preposition - it's a review of a pizza place, not freakin' Shakespeare, so just back off, E.B. White...
The lemonade came out first and was light and refreshing with a strong basil flavor up front that fades into a light, not too sweet lemonade finish. Really tasty...
Were you expecting more? I mean, it was really good lemonade, but... it's lemonade - what'd you expect me to do, throw a parade?
Ok - the pizza.
The first thing that I said when it was put in front of me was "Holy crap, that's a lot of prosciutto!"
Yes, I said that.
Out loud.
The other people at the bar looked at me with vague amusement... or possibly apprehension...
At any rate, they do indeed put a ton of prosciutto on their slices (I carry a scale with me at all times - body issues - I don't want to talk about it) and it's high quality prosciutto. Just the right amount of saltiness, just the right amount of fat, and melt in your mouth tender. Really excellent.
BUT
It was cold. Not the slice - that was hot, but the prosciutto was cold. Now, I'm not used to pizza in Nashville, so maybe not putting the prosciutto on the slice till after it comes out of the oven is a regional "thing"? Whatever. It wasn't a big deal. All I had to do was let the pizza sit for a minute and the hot slices warmed the prosciutto, so certainly not the end of the world, but the first bite was a little jarring.
The crust was... I'm going to go ahead and say it, a little brittle for my tastes. You can tell they use quality dough by the flavor, but a slice should not crack when you try to fold it in half - it should have a little give to it - could just be it was just slightly overcooked, but other than that, the crust was tasty.
The sauce was really good, delicate with a nice fresh tomato flavor and no hint of the sugary sweetness that many sub par pizzas have.
BUT
I could have used a little more of it. Again, maybe it's a "thing" to not use much sauce on the prosciutto slice, but I think a smidge more sauce would have balanced out the overall flavor - methinks it might have also solved the brittle crust issue.
There is no mozzarella on this slice, which is as it should be, but it does contain a healthy dusting of grated parmesan, which compliments the prosciutto and sweet, flowery basil very nicely.
So, to sum up...
Service A
Quality of Ingredients A
Quantity of Ingredients (prosciutto) A+
Quantity of Ingredients (sauce) C+
Preparation B- (the first bite of cold prosciutto was a little shocking and the crust was too brittle)
Price...
Ok, you can look at this one of two ways. My bill for 2 slices and a lemonade was $13 and change. I left $17 and called it good so on the one hand, you can say...
"17 bucks for 2 slices of pizza and a lemonade? That's highway robbery!"
OR
You can say "I just ate the amount of quality prosciutto I would get in an appetizer at a good italian restaurant that would have cost at least 12 bucks, plus the pizza. Plus the lemonade, plus a tip. 17 bucks is fair."
It's all a matter of perspective...
And besides, one slice really would have been enough food. I'm NOT saying I have any feelings of guilt about eating two slices when one would have sufficed...
Excuse me for a moment.
(sound of footsteps going down the hall followed by the bathroom door closing)
(muffled) "Fat! Stupid fatty! Fat jerk! I hate you, stupid fatty loser!"
(sound of bathroom door opening and footsteps returning)
I'm back! What was I talking about? The price! Right! I'll rate the price as a B
Bottom line, will I go back?
Yes, and I'll order one slice and request extra sauce.
Overall Rating B | 2positive
| 896 |
First of all, I definitely agree with the complaints about the parking situation at this particular location - the lot is just NOWHERE NEAR adequate for the volume of business that's there. Why Olive Garden doesn't relocate to a larger area nearby, or just plain open more locations, I'll never understand. No matter which location we choose in Reno/Sparks (or even Carson, for that matter), they are always so busy there's a ridiculous wait. And we LOVE Olive Garden's menu, but honestly hate the waits so much that we hardly go there anymore. It's a shame.
My family also fell victim to an unscrupulous server at this particular location (either she was unscrupulous or just plain stupid, sorry to say). Unfortunately I didn't get her name as I didn't realize what had happened until after we'd left. I took my family out for lunch here; we ordered several meals with drinks, desserts & appetizers (all the bells & whistles). The service was good to great - I'd have given it a 5-star rating if I didn't know what was going to happen next.
When the bill came, it was pricey (as is to be expected at the OG), and my father (unbeknownst to me, trying to surprise me) slipped a $100 bill into the bill-folio after I had put in my debit card. I think he thought the server just would deduct the $100 from the bill and only charge the remaining balance to my card -- but since I didn't know he had done that, I got my credit card slip back and signed for the full amount of the bill PLUS a generous gratuity -- and that $100 bill just disappeared into thin air!
As I said, we both didn't find fully realize what had happend until several weeks later when I was talking with my Dad and we happened to discuss how Olive Garden was great but could really get expensive when taking out the whole fam-damily.
Naturally, he wondered aloud why I didn't act surprised when the bill had come or said the usual and customary, "hey, thanks, Dad, you should've have!" when I saw the total -- and we then realized that was because there never was an extra $100 credited to us; the server had apparently simply pocketed it! Now, I suppose it is POSSIBLE that she thought she had done SUCH an amazing job that we were tipping her $100 cash, but to accept (and not question) the additional gratuity I had added onto my debit card payment without any hesitation was what really bothered me. Did she REALLY think that we intended to tip her both $100 cash AND add an additional 30% gratuity on our debit card?? And yes, I did mean to type 30% -- during our meal, she was an excellent and friendly server and I fully meant to tip her twice as much as the customary 15%. But 30% plus an additional $100 cash? Sorry, our family is generous, but not THAT generous.
As an aside, this actually once happened to me when *I* was a server (different restaurant, different time, of course) -- or at least a very similar situation. I saw that not only had my customers paid for their meal and then some, but an extra $50 bill was also added into the folio when I was finalizing the bill at the cash register. $50 was quite a large tip relative to how much the total had been -- and I immediately thought, oh no, did they mean to put a $20 in there and mistakenly give me a $50?? I imagined how *I'd* have felt if that had been me (I have made the mistake before of handing over the wrong bill and not getting the correct change) and I even chased after them as they left the restaurant to ask if they were sure they had given me the correct amount. Thankfully, to my pleasant surprise the person who had paid assured me that he had indeed meant to tip me $50, and thanked me for providing excellent service (then he and his wife proceeded to climb into a gorgeous brand-new Tesla, so I felt reassured they had the means for the generosity, lol). But needless to say, I felt good for having done what I felt was the right thing and checking with them -- as the Olive Garden server should have done. It's too bad not everyone is as considerate.
You decide, fellow Yelpers... was our Olive Garden server just plain unscrupulous, or just plain stupid?? I'd love to hear your opinions. | 0negative
| 771 |
I had no intention of reviewing what I had intended to be a quick stop for a bite to eat on my way to run a few errands on the Northeast side of Indy. I'm a Steak n' Shake fan, drive-thru or dine-in, but even I'll acknowledge you tend to get a lot of consistency between locations and a review kind of seems pointless.
I'd decided to dine in for a relaxing meal and some reading. As a standard of every location, curb cuts are generally fine (except for older locations) and there's always designated parking. While I'd argue that the Steak n' Shake interior design isn't particularly wheelchair friendly, for the most part they make it work.
Today's visit was a perfect example of how a bad design can ultimately go wrong. I arrived in this location and only waited a couple minutes before a host arrived, spied my wheelchair, looked around, and seemed a little bewildered. Admittedly, they had a healthy crowd for what was a mid-afternoon lunch. If you know the usual design, you enter with a cash register/lunch counter on one side, a section with booths, and a section with a weaving together of booths and tables. In this location, the all booth section is divided separately from the booth/table section. The problem with this design is that anytime there's anything in the aisles, entrance into the table section is blocked for anyone in a wheelchair - that means in/out. (In other words, technically this is a fire code violation). The only way I could get to the only section I could sit in out of the three was to go around another aisle (that also had people in it, but was workable) and then wheel back to the section. I ended up being seated alone at a six-top, a particularly awkward choice when a party of six came in about five minutes later. The host brought me to the table, no menus, then hesitated before it dawned on him that maybe moving the chair was a good idea. Admittedly, I can do this myself but it's pretty basic customer service.
A good 20 minutes later, a server was serving another table and happened to look over at me reading my magazine still waiting for service. She asked if I'd been helped - I had not. She came over a couple minutes later and, to her credit, at least apologized profusely. I placed my order for a bacon/cheeseburger with fries off their $3.99 menu along with my usual iced tea (only $1 at Steak n' Shake). She returned a few moments later with the tea and informed me that she'd comped the drink because of my long wait. If everything had gone well from this point on, Steak n' Shake would not be looking at a 1-star review.
Unfortunately, it didn't.
The food arrived a few minutes later. It was decent enough. This is fast food, after all. However, I had no ketchup on the table and couldn't find a neighboring table with it. My server arrived back at my table just as I was nearly done, though she basically said "here you go," dropped off the check and was off again. I will at least say the drink was really comped.
I suppose I ultimately paid for the comped drink, because I never got offered a refill despite lingering for a few minutes to finish reading. If you've read my reviews for any length of time, you know I take my iced tea refills seriously.
Things seemed to be starting to smooth out when either a manager or a shift manager showed up on the floor to help out, though I was more baffled that she seemed oblivious to the chaos that had unfolded.
If I really accepted that there'd been an attempt at decent customer service, I'd probably add a star for the food. Heck, even Ruby Tuesday got two stars from me.
Ultimately, I simply can't be generous when every aspect of a meal was disappointing and a restaurant's poor planning and interior design poses a risk to its customers. Such is the case with this particular location. If anyone had even apologized for the inconvenient seating, I'd have likely felt better knowing that at least they seemed to care - after all, unless you've really dealt with a wheelchair regularly you just don't think of the fact that you might be blocking someone in by how you seat your customers. The initial wait was forgivable had customer service improved post-apology, but it didn't.
In fact, I'd have probably been forgiving had my comped drink included a refill or two along with some semblance of customer service. It didn't.
In the end, this was customer service failure in a myriad of ways - the long wait, the inadequately equipped table, the absent server, the lack of refills, and the accessibility concerns. With so many other options in the area, this location of Steak n' Shake joins my list of places that have lost my business forever. | 0negative
| 843 |
Just got home from a week-long conference in NOLA. Our organization was booked at the New Orleans Marriott. Right off the bat - love the location. Perfectly convenient. Quiet enough to get work done, but close enough to all the action on Bourbon Street, French Quarter, etc...everything within walking distance. The second half of my week was at the Convention Center, and this Marriott was close enough to walk there (10-15 minute walk on average) and easily accessible by trolley, shuttle or taxi.
Sleeping rooms were under par for a Marriott and are definitely in need of renovation/updates. I'm told that this is one of the few hotels in the French Quarter that did not undergo a huge renovation for when NOLA hosted the Superbowl. Despite the older/outdated feel to the rooms, mine (double bed) provided enough comfort for a week-long stay. I liked the ample desk space and got a lot of work done in my room at night. Wi-fi's available at a daily fee in room (14.95) and complimentary in the hotel lobby (and as part of our meeting room package). The room bathroom could have used some updating as well, it was a bit small but again, fine for a business trip. I don't know if it was because the hotel was sold out while I was there, but sometimes the water ran too hot or too cold in the early morning or late evening...and my toilet made loud clanging noises every time I flushed it! I had a nice view of the river and was entertained by the ships rolling through.
At times, I could hear people coughing, sneezing or talking, whether it came from adjoining rooms or in the corridor, I'm not certain, but sound really carried on my floor. I was also across from the ice/vending machines, so I could hear people using the vending machines and getting ice at all hours of the day/night. One more thing I noticed...there was open space between the floor and my hotel room door. I've never really noticed this in other hotels (will probably take note from now on), but it did call my attention here because the space under my door was noticeable and would cast shadows of people walking past my room in the front entrance of my room. Regardless, I'm sure they'll plan to renovate the rooms soon.
I was hoping to get out more during my trip to experience the wonderful NOLA food, but more often than not, I was ordering room service. The menu was pretty good. Better than the usual room service food and they did offer local menu items. I enjoyed the gumbo. Everything's priced high (service & delivery fees are tacked on), but comparable to what you'd pay in other hotels for room service.
The lobby area is wonderful and updated. Tasty, cold, fresh fruit water is available off the lobby bar. Love the assigned elevator system (punch in your floor on the keypad and you get assigned an elevator). Even in the busiest times, I didn't have to wait too long for a lift...and I was on the 23rd floor.
Also loved the on-site FedEx Office and Starbuck's.
I give this hotel 4 stars because my experience with staff was wonderful. From housekeeping to room service to front desk to gift shop...all around, great service. I really felt catered to here.
And special mention to the Meetings & Catering Staff at the New Orleans Marriott. I spent my entire weekend in meetings at the Marriott and the staff here was nothing short of amazing. I had one meeting that needed a last minute speakerphone (literally, 5 minutes before start of my meeting). A/V and Meeting staff were there w/in two minutes, speakerphone hooked up and cords taped down, with a minute to spare. I barely heard catering staff as they set for bfasts/breaks/lunches. And they constantly checked on us to make sure things were going smoothly.
All in all, glad we chose this location as our HQ hotel. Also, one special note - if you're looking to stay in NOLA for meetings and want to be close to the Convention Center, there is another Marriott, the 'New Orleans Marriott Convention Center', that is located directly across from Halls A/B of the Ernest N Morial Convention Center. Don't get the two Marriotts confused!
This Marriott is the one in the French Quarter on Canal, and will be a 10-15 minute walk to the Conv Center. We had some meeting attendees who made that mistake and were surprised by the distance. | 2positive
| 761 |
Granted we went on Christmas Day, but a restaurant in business this long should know how many patrons they can actually serve and not allow over-booking, especially on a holiday. Waited 1 hour to be seated (for our 6pm reservation -- early, because some in our group had to travel early the next morning); half an hour more 'til drinks arrived; another half hour 'til our ordered-immediately appetizers arrived (waitress said one was "stolen" by another server for her table); another 40 minutes for dinner entrees. But, the saving grace was that we had a pleasant, attentive-enough server who might have been more alert if they had fed her at all during her very long shift. (It was 7pm and she had no food all day! I'm surprised she didn't faint.) Very, very traditional, old-school seafood restaurant (that is, your great-grandparents would recognize and be comfortable with the menu). Slight attempts to add interest with Asian inspired sauces, macadamia encrusted Mahi-mahi with a thin peanut sauce was good. They have a separate printed gluten free menu (view on-line) -- but not a single dish is modified to a GF version, just extrapolate those few dishes that are prepared without wheat to begin with. (No confidence the waitress would have protected allergic diners once alerted to issues -- not trained in how serious this is, although she was a nursing student who plunked the basket of bread in front of our celiac!) Essentially NO accommodation or skill put into vegetarian offerings. (Have hummus appetizer or salad bar, or pasta with cheese because they have no idea there are many other sources of protein that are far healthier and tastier.) The menu is traditional steak and seafood fare, just as it's been offered since the 70s. Shrimp Cocktail (which were, on this day, very large, not overcooked to hardness but properly cooked and still moist with a very zingy cocktail sauce -- which pleased some in our party and put off those in their 80s). East-meets-West appetizer offered seared "sushi-grade" tuna plantain chips in the middle, and a tuna tartare (actually kind of a ceviche with finely diced cubes of raw fish with onion) and a wasabi cream sauce which was all excellent and a bit large for one person's appetizer -- sharing is recommended (esp given the price). Prices overall were very high. Those who ordered the 8oz filet were happy with temperature and texture. (I thought the side of "sautéed mushrooms, recommended by our chef" were grotesquely overpriced at $8 for barely warmed button mushrooms with little flavor.) Glanced at the Salad bar but not worth the space for this straight out of 1970s offering, without a creative or enticing ingredient in sight. (If we'd known it was another 40 minutes to any food, we'd have gotten at least one to share and nibble.) Creme brulee was tasty, Molten lava cake (order 30 minutes in advance so, when entrees arrive) was scarfed up and enjoyed -- especially by the hungry vegetarian who was not impressed with the balled mounds of hummus or the tri-colored pasta which he felt tasted like a cold summer pasta salad warmed up (vinaigrette sauce and all). He did not eat more than a few bites of either, yet server did not offer to remove from check. (She did offer, at the end of our meal while clearing, to replace it. Umm, no. That would keep already weary people waiting another hour for that to arrive.) Kitchen production was way too slow to even contemplate a correction.
The meal might have seemed much better if we were seated and served in far less time. From arrival, 4+ hours to dine -- their pacing, not ours -- was torturous.
Management should have regularly greeted everyone in their waiting area (which had only two seats and 20 people waiting, unless you succumbed and went to the bar. At the end of our hour's wait, management approached a couple who had just arrived and who expressed alarm at the prospect of the 45 minute wait the hostess mentioned (she'd told us 15 minutes, so good luck to them). He offered them free appetizers out of the gate while we stood, propped up and crippled against the wall marveling at the random treatment. If that was how they were to quell bad feelings, it should have been even-handedly offered as soon as people were seated -- with the hostess authorized to apologize for the wait, offer the free apps or drinks, and wish a happy holiday on behalf of management.
The place was packed, but it was not noisy at all. Conversation was easy. (There was also no music -- holiday or otherwise. No table decorations. A few Poinsettia plants were the extent of Christmas -- oh, and one or two servers had Santa hats on, which was cute. The view of the bridge, the Delaware, and the lights of Camden were nice, glistening on the water. We had a LOT of time to look at it while waiting for food service! We thanked every server for working today, and tipped well but, oh gosh, this place needs a shake-up from menus to house management. | 0negative
| 865 |
Yikes. I love Corazon in the Public Market and my friends and I couldn't wait to check this place out! These guys are still clearly working out some service kinks, but apart from that there were a couple of other disappointments that meant we probably would only come back here for the beers at Fatty's (which is awesome!) and cocktails in the future.
My friends and I visited on a Tuesday night around 7 pm and the Cocina wasn't particularly crowded. We initially grabbed a spot by the window at a 4-seater, but a waiter appeared as if out of thin air to walk us BACK to the front door of the restaurant and to inform us that he'd seat us soon (no signs indicating we should wait to be seated were visible). He then proceeded to get into a conversation with another diner for a good five minutes. When he was done, he escorted us to the SAME 4-seater that we had originally chosen, and plopped down one menu for the three of us.
Something to note: although everything on the menu looked super good, very little is similar to the Corazon menu, and it is VERY meat-heavy, as well as significantly pricier than the Public Market offerings. There are only two vegetarian options on the whole menu, which was disappointing to my vegetarian friend.
It took a very long time for our original waiter to come back to take our order after being seated (to be precise: the time it takes 3 people to slowly drink 2 large carafes of water), and when he did I noticed that he didn't write anything we said down, and was not a great listener - we would have to repeat things a couple of times as he talked over us and assumed things that were not the case.
We wondered aloud if we could order beers from Captain Fatty's as nothing was noted on the menu, and at this point he finally brought us the separate drink menu which he had forgotten to provide to us initially. He assured us that we could order our drinks with him instead of us walking the few hundred yards to Fatty's ourselves, which turned out to be a mistake that foretold how the rest of this dining experience would play out.
A good 20 minutes later, the friend who ordered a cocktail received her drink from another waitress, along with the bad news that the vegetarian dish that my other friend had ordered was long sold-out and that she would need to re-order. We asked about our beers and the waitress acknowledged (with some understandable frustration) that our server had never inputted them. At this point, we decided to forego the beer orders and my vegetarian friend her food order.
About 10 minutes later, our food FINALLY arrived (if you're keeping track, this is over an hour after we sat down), and our original waiter mysteriously appeared with our beers, although he mixed them up and gave us each-other's orders (we really just should have ordered at Fatty's...). His half-hearted apology was simply to provide the excuse that it took so long to inform us that the vegetarian item was sold out because he thought my friend had ordered something else entirely, despite her repeating it twice for him. Not one word was said about why our beers took so long to arrive, and he never seemed to even realize that we had already cancelled our beer orders.
The nail in the coffin for me was that my $7.50 taco had a very scant amount of fish, a TINY dollop of what could have been avocado foam, and a teensy amount of decorative verdure, and that was it. It sat forlornly on my plate, a sad juxtaposition to the jam-packed and flavorful offerings at the original Corazon. The friend who also got food felt similarly underwhelmed (although she loved her margarita!).
No offer was made for a comp on the drinks or the food, and when the bill came it was plopped unceremoniously down at the table with no acknowledgement about the lackluster service or wait time. I ran into a food-industry friend on my way out and he laughed at his similarly-disappointing experience with me.
I really hope the Cocina is able to tighten up their service, but it will be long time until I'm back - for Funk Zone munchies Santo Mezcal and Mony's are reliable favorites for my Mexican food cravings without the fuss. | 0negative
| 753 |
I've been eating fatayers, an Arab meat pie, from Sunbake Pita Bakery since I was a teenager. I most definitely took it for granted, not knowing where exactly it came from since my mom always picked up a bag whenever our freezer ran out. As a recent graduate, working without a solid break in the pharmacy gets tough, and heating these little pies up and eating it within two to three bites is always a win for me, and it quickly became one of my favorite quick meals. Last week my mom wasn't feeling well, so I was absolutely delighted to go pick some up in her stead.
Located on 134 Ave and 107 St, it was only a five-minute drive from my house. Ridiculously close to most north Edmontonians. You know how cops are outside of Tim Hortons, grabbing a coffee or donut to go? Well, taxi drivers are here grabbing donairs and pies to go!
The inside has a simple order counter, with larger pita packages on the side, and smaller to-go orders in the front. There's even a side counter of various nuts, available in bulk. I've never been to the Middle East, but I would imagine markets would be lined with these beautifully roasted nuts!
After ordering a bag of mixed fatayers (sold by the dozen) and a bag of sfeha meat fatayers (our usual), each bag for $10, I asked the owner if they were related to the Pita Bake on 153 Ave and 127 St, to which he replied, "No, completely different. Completely different. We are incomparable." Oh, well then. But they have similar fatayers? Which I had never tried. I was actually going to do a comparison post but the next few minutes with the owner changed my mind. And here's why:
He quickly took me to the side of the shop to show me their operation! I didn't ask to be shown, nor did he know I was a blogger, which to me shows that this was his pride and joy. Not comparable, indeed! The other place does not make their pitas like Sunbake Pita does!
They run 22 hours a week in the back, making fresh pitas to be distributed all over Edmonton and even as far away as B.C and Manitoba. Think of all the donair places you eat at. Any Middle Eastern wrap. Shwarma! Most likely the pita came from Sunbake Pita! Stacks of flour lined the right side and ready to be mixed in the mixer at the end of the room (shown in photos. Dough gets put into the a motion-sensor divider, which he turned on to show me. The sliced dough gets rolled and pulled up through two stages of proofing for a total of 20 minutes. Eventually the dough passes through a long oven, almost half the length of the room. 10 seconds through this bad boy and the pitas are ready! Check out the flame in my photo! Up and around the room, the pitas cool, and end up in the packaging station where they are packed six to a bag. The whole operation is able to run 6000 pita pieces per hour at maximum capacity, assuming that a steady stream of dough is being placed into the divider. Bonkers! I didn't realize they had this whole scale operation going on the side. Mom was fairly impressed when I came home with more than just a couple bag of fatayers!
By the time I got home, I was too excited to save my pastries for that work day's meal. Had to have it for lunch! The mixed bag had four of each: herb, spinach fatayer, and cheese pie; plus I had my dozen sfeha meat fatayer to boot.
The herb fatayer is on a thicker piece of pita, and uses a lot of oregano. Definitely a different flavor profile from the others, yet simple. Not as savory either. The spinach fatayer has a nice heaping filling of steamed spinach, with a slightly sour seasoning to it. My new favorite: the cheese pie. Little puff pitas with a three cheese filling of mozzarella, cheddar, and feta. Yum! And of course, my family favorite: the sfeha meat fatayer, ground beef mixed in with spices, onions, and crushed fresh tomatoes. It might not look much, but trust me, delicious! Even my coworkers have started eating them and they showed absolutely no interest in my lunch before! Probably have to start bringing in extra for them... keep your hands off the fatayers!
Definitely get your money's worth here, and I still have yet to try their flat meat pies (think pizza style) and wraps! Absolutely love the fact that the fatayers can easily be frozen and reheated within seconds. Their pita breads are sold almost everywhere, including Real Canadian Wholesale Club, Planet Organic, H&W Produce, and all locations of the Italian Centre Shops. They have been my margherita pizza base for many years now - laziest, yet best way to make a pizza if you don't want to make your own dough but want a thin crust. Thanks so much to the owner for showing me around, absolutely the highlight of my week. He's such a kind gentleman and proud of his business of over ten years. Check them out when you get a chance! | 2positive
| 887 |
The term embarrassment of riches is often thrown around in discussions of how much Chinese food you can get for $5. Rarely is it more appropriate than when it's used to describe the combination plates at Lisa's Chop Suey.
The combination plates--officially known as combination platters--at Lisa's Chop Suey have a nice heft to them, like they accidentally gave you too much food, but if you walk at a brisk-enough pace you can be in your car and down the street before they realize it.
But you know good and well a Chinese restaurant wouldn't accidentally give you too much food. They count each and every thing they give you, down to the individual packets of red pepper dust (probably intended to get you to buy a can of weird-flavored Vess soda), and they charge you $0.10 per extra packet of soy sauce... which I'm sure costs them like $0.10 per case.
I shudder to think what the punishment is if one of their employees gives you too many shrimp in your shrimp fried rice.
One sign I saw behind the counter said that they weren't responsible for incorrect change given once you've left the counter, which must be an issue in this area (no shots). Another sign said they only take cash. There were at least three such signs, if not five of them, but I didn't bother to take note of each one of them, because I wasn't planning on writing a review.
I was just there getting lunch. I work nearby, and I'd been meaning to give this place a shot the next time I had a few dollars in my pocket. A few weeks ago, I wrote an important, controversial review of a Little Caesars in the same strip mall. This place is four doors down from it, and in between are four different Asian beauty supply stores. Go to North County and count them yourself, if you think I'm lying.
To their credit, there isn't a piece of cardboard on the wall with a list of names of people who are no longer allowed to write personal checks. Is that because they only take cash? Checks could be viewed as cash, for accounting purposes. But I digress.
I'd already been informed by my boss Jimmy, society's foremost expert on Chinese food, to avoid straying from the beaten path on this place's menu, meaning don't bother with much other than fried rice, a St. Paul and maybe a few other menu items. I figured I might just go with a half order of rice and a soda, but then I saw that they had combination plates. I'm a big fan of any takeout food that comes in a container that doubles as a plate.
Some places only offer A, B and C combination plates, with A and B being chicken wings and maybe hot-braised chicken, and C being egg foo young. Lisa's has at least as many plates as letters of the alphabet, but I wasn't even about to read them all. I spotted the egg foo young, which was of course plate C, and as Diamond D would say, I went for mine.
Also, I suppose I should mention. The plates all cost $5.80, but the egg foo young plate is $5.50. At the top of the menu it says they're all $5.80, but next to egg foo young it says $5.50. It doesn't make sense, because egg foo young is one of the best things you can possibly order from a Chinese restaurant (do they not know that the price of eggs went up?), but I wasn't about to argue.
They didn't skimp on the eggs either. Hence, at least in part, the weight of the bag. You get two pretty decent-size patties, a heap of pork fried rice that spills over into the egg foo young and three crab rangoon. You get a choice between an egg roll and crab rangoon. I was shocked--shocked!--to see they give you two rather than three. Though like I said, there's literally no way this was a mistake.
The pork fried rice seems like it may have been scooped from one of those crock pot containers they sometimes use at a Chinese buffet, without giving it a go-round in a wok, but I like the fact that the pork is cut lengthwise rather than cubed (it seems more like real food that way). But the egg foo young was obviously prepared fresh. The crab rangoon are the kind where the filling doesn't seem to be anything other than cream cheese. #authenticity
It was more food than I required at that time of day, but I ate it all anyway (I would have felt bad tossing it out, regardless of its actual value in terms of food cost), and I can't tell you I won't be back. | 2positive
| 809 |
It would be safe to say that pizza is my favorite food. I mean this in the way that if I was in jail for something awful and had to ask for a last meal, it would be pizza. Seriously. And if I got to be choosy about where the pizza would be from (I doubt they give you those liberties in jail, but I digress) it would be from Famoso. It is that good.
I have never been to Naples, but I almost think that if I didn't go, I would be able to die happy knowing I experienced the closest possible thing to it's authentic pizza. The crust is just to die for - it's thin but chewy and moist and so wonderfully different than the american style pizza we consume regularly. It doesn't hurt that they use an imported low-gluten flour, so you can eat a whole pizza and not feel like completely garbage afterwards. The ingredients are fresh and authentic - I also love their seasonal pizzas. The summer San Andreas is one of my favorites, amongst many others.
The service is very good, all though they do it differently. You seat yourself at a table and go up to the counter to order. Then a server brings you your drinks and meal as they are available. They used to ask you to pay as you ordered, but I've noticed that they don't allow that option anymore (probably to keep the upsell option open - can't blame them, the gelato is worth a try).
The menu is different. I've brought friends here that were completely underwhelmed with the experience because they expected the typical pepperoni pizza slathered in rubbery mozzarella. Famoso doesn't do it that way - they offer a lot of 'authentic' italian pizzas. My boyfriend is a big fan of the proscuitto and arugula. I lean towards the quattro fromaggi with mushrooms. They DO offer some of the more 'americanized' toppings, such as ham and pineapple (all though I do believe it's a type of italian ham). Being a pizza lover, I don't really find an issue with the lack of 'normal' pizzas. But some people do.
I also don't mind the extra price you pay for the experience. The pizzas are cooked in less than 30 seconds and made right in front of you by a line of very talented chefs. They average around $14 a pizza. You can share a pizza (they are pretty big) or you can have your own. So the cost can be pricey if you are used to the menu of other pizza chains, such as Pizza Hut or Pizza 73. I do wholeheartedly think this is more of a "quality verses quantity" place.
The menu also offers wings, salads (so good - and you can order them on top of a pizza crust, which is a nice twist), desserts like gelato and tiramisu, appetizers, alcoholic beverages and coffee/espresso.
They have an option for kids - ordering a smaller size pizza (I believe it's a 5 inch, I may be wrong) and you get a free scoop of gelato. They've also been offering a "pizza and movie" option for the past year - only valid during the weekdays, I believe. You buy a pizza and add on an extra $6 and get a pass to go to a Cineplex movie.
The reason I didn't 5-star this review was because it is a small, louder-atmosphere restaurant and it can be difficult to find seats during the dinner rush. The majority of their seating is on high stools at high tables, and I find sitting up high to be a little bit uncomfortable at times. They do offer booths, all though I think the downtown restaurant only has 5 of them, and only one of them seats more than 4 people (so having a large group here can be a bit of an issue). The patio is quite nice, however it is just off the west end of Jasper, so you may see or hear from a colorful character on the sidewalk. Parking can be a little bit of an issue - Famoso shares it's parking lot with On the Rocks and a small grocery store. There are some meters across the street as well and you can always try and find parking a few blocks north in the residential area.
I love pizza, and I love Famoso. It's different, it's fun, it's delicious. One thing that they aren't lacking is passion for their craft and that alone is worth giving it a shot. | 2positive
| 764 |
I came on a Sunday afternoon with my wife's family for my mother-in-law's birthday. We walked in place was PACKED with families out to lunch, guests from a couple of what looked to be 1st communion parties, and a few golfers enjoying drinks and food at and around the bar after finishing up at the course next door. The crowd wasn't overwhelming, but there were very few open tables for walk-ins. Lucky for our large group, we made reservations weeks ago... Or so we thought. My wife and I were the first of our group to get to the restaurant, so we gave the maître de our name, and my mother-in-law's name, expected to be able to be seated while we were waiting for the rest of the party. Unfortunately, our names were not on the list for today. We thought that there was no way that could be right, we have a big party and this had been planned for weeks, there has to be one of the names of our group there, somewhere. So the owner came over, asked what was going on and how he could help, and he and the maitre d started looking through the reservation book for our names penciled in on other days while my wife got on the phone with the person from our group who made the reservation... Only to find out that no reservation had ever been made. We were in a jam -- there were people driving in from all over, we had no reservation, and the restaurant was at full capacity. It looked like we were going to have to find somewhere else to eat. The owner however, wasn't going to let that happen. There is an indoor/outdoor bar area right off the deck, overlooking the water, that I believe is normally only open during particularly nice weather. This room, which isn't a normal dining area, was empty and not in use on this day. The owner grabbed some of his staff, and turned the heat on in the room and quickly set up some tables for us in front of the summer bar. By the time the rest of our party started to arrive, my wife and I were sitting in our own private room, at an impromptu extended table arraignment. This isn't where the incredible service ended. We had an excellent waitress who was there whenever any of us needed anything, but was never intrusive. The owner checked in on us a couple of times to make sure everything was okay, and must have found what kind of wine my mother-in-law was drinking (Pinot Grigio), and then picked out an excellent bottle of Pinot and sent it out to us with our lunch --Free of charge!! The food was incredible. We've been to the Riverwinds before for dinner, but not for lunch... I must admit that I've been missing out. There is a "Happy Hour" special that runs through the weekend, where all the food on their bar menu is only 6 dollars. Happy Hour, at least on Sundays, starts at lunch time and runs through 4 pm. And the food on the bar menu is good, full-sized entrees. Some of the items we ordered from the $6 menu were crab penne in vodka sauce, chicken and avocado sandwiches, mussels in sauce, cheese steak egg rolls, and shrimp marinara. Since everything on the bar menu was so cheap, we all assumed the portions would be small. Some of us ordered two or three items off of this menu. Honestly, just one order of most of the items on this menu is a full meal. I'm a big guy and can eat a decent amount. So I ordered a chicken and avocado sandwich and a crab and penne dish for myself off of this menu, and agreed to help my brother in law eat an order of cheesesteak egg rolls. That was waaaay too much food. After eating two dinner rolls, I only could manage 1/4 of the cheesesteak egg rolls and my crab and penne ala vodka dish... I ended up bringing home my entire chicken sandwich and the side of fries that it came with. My ended up accidentally bring home a whole extra meal too. I can't recommend this place enough... The restaurant went way out of their way to accommodate us when they would have been within their rights to turn us away at the door, the service was incredible, the food was awesome, and I ending up spending about half as much as I expected to and got double to food!! You can't go wrong going to the Riverwinds Restaurant for breakfast, lunch, or dinner... but definitely check out the early weekend happy hour. | 2positive
| 792 |
Admittedly I was not sure what to expect at Fuddruckers. Part of me was looking forward to the ostrich burgers, freshly baked brownies, and crispy onion rings of days gone by (my last visit to a Fuddruckers was a few years ago in Lancaster, PA. The restaurant used to be good, then the horse ran away from the buggy or whatever else happens up there when things go bad and the restaurant went downhill and closed). Another part of me worried that I would encounter harried parents bearing endless Christmas gifts and hordes of screaming children heading across the parking lot from Toys-R-Us. Strangely enough (cue Twilight Zone music about here) not one of the aforementioned things happened.
Looking back on things, maybe it wasn't wise to visit on the third day the restaurant was open. Especially given the fact that the place looked finished from the outside about six months ago but it just opened earlier in the week. Anyway, I was first greeted by a parting lot with no spaces. Next came country music coming from the speakers on the patio area outside (they have a few large garage doors that open in warmer weather). How could it get any worse? I opened the door and was greeted by a line of about fifty people stretching to the door (good thing I got there at 5 PM)! Anyway, there was a pleasant managerial type woman who was explaining that there was about a 30 minute wait for to order food and then another 30 minute wait to get your food. The good thing was that any parent with half a brain and screaming kids would see this train wreck and head the other direction (in fact I could count all of the kids in the restaurant on my two hands...so most people got the message and left). So thus no screaming kids. And we made it through the line in 25 minutes. Menus were distributed and we perused the offerings. There was a lot to choose from but the PETA message must have made it's way to Fuddruckers Corporate so there were no more ostrich burgers on the menu. The poor turkeys, elks, and kobe-beef-bearing cows did not fare so well and they were available for consumption. Oddly enough the old french fries on the menu were replaced by potato wedges. The onion rings were still there (well new unimproved ones) and sweet potato fries are now offered. Samples of brownies were distributed...what happened? And where is the in-house bakery anyway?
When we got to one of the two friendly cashiers (there is a third dedicated take-out line and register...just head to your left and avoid the line) we ordered a half pound build your own burger with one of the five cheeses, an elk burger (sorry elk-huggers), sweet potato fries, onion rings, and a rice krispy treat that was half it's former size from dessert offerings. You could order your burgers any way you wanted them but not rare. We settled for medium rare. Our bill came to about 30 bucks (wink, wink). If you are the sentimental type hankering for the aroma of in-house made cookies that Fuddrucker's used to have, say hello to Otis Spunkmeyer. Or whoever made these cookies. Cuz they weren't made here.
We got our sodas and I eyed the condiment bar. It was neatly arranged but featured those industrial quality tomatoes that were pale and never saw daylight, We made it to the large seating area ringed with a bunch of TV's facing the center of the eating area. Tables were in the center and booths were on two sides. All of the booths on one side had those unfortunate souls waiting in line leering down at you...a nice touch from the "Dead Zone" in the Charcoal Pit on Concord Pike. At least the country music had been replaced by Top-40 stuff. And because of the "clog" ordering there were plenty of tables to choose from. And still no crying kids.
After only 20 minutes the pager we got did its thing and I went up to get our meals. They were served on big metal plates. I sat down and tried a sweet potato fry. It was lukewarm at best. With all of the food they were dishing out I was really kind of amazed and disappointed. I figured I would not take the stuff back and "take one for the team" and mention it to one of the helpful staff that were supposed to be floating around the room (see previous reviews) but that never happened because nobody made it to my table to ask me how my meal was (but I had the exit door held for me and was told to have a nice night). Strangely enough my dining partner's onion rings were just as cold. At least the burgers were warm. Anyway, my dining partner's burger was cooked medium well. But it did have a mighty tasty bun! It was not the worst burger but it would have likely been a lot better if it was cooked properly. That being said, my elk burger was total kick-ass. It was juicy, cooked perfectly and was the highlight of our meal. It was probably one of the better burgers I have eaten in my life.
But would I brave another 55 minute wait to eat it again with lukewarm sweet potato fries? Probably not. | 1neutral
| 906 |
I had higher hopes per all the rave reviews for this place, our experience, unfortunately wasn't of the majority.
We were seated in the rear near the kitchen, so sadly there wasn't as much ambiance back there as the front of the restaurant, it did overlook a little Al Fresco dining area, which would be great, however the prices are pretty steep for being in South Philly with inconsistent food.
Our server was friendly and very attentive, made wonderful recommendations. However, the bus boy was VERY clumsy and definitely took away from the dining experience, he accidently put his finger in our olive oil, when he brought it to the table. When he was delivering and clearing the plates, there was a lot of loud clanging of the dishes together, which really interrupted our conversation and startled me a couple of times. Afterwards, he didn't wipe down our table top for the final course, which left splotches of 'said oil' all over the table.
Moving onto the food; The oil and bread for the table was not as memorable as we have had in other places. We felt it was unflavorful (We had to ask for pepper to spice it up a bit) and the bread was a little stale. The bus boy placed it down in front of us without as so much as a word, and left. (Per the restaurant's comment- it's clearly steeped in history, but again, we got nothing out of him)(FYI- I got a quick lesson about 25 year old balsamic vinegar at Del Posto, I still remember and appreciate it.) plus his finger in the oil made it that less appetizing.
The $29 meat and antipasti platter was over priced and the selection all had the same fatty texture- I was surprised there wasn't a more diverse variety- after a brief schooling in fatty meats, fat is flavor/cured in-house, etc (per referenced below) I still prefer my fat rendered in a pan, not gelatinous in my mouth. The selection of meats were just not to 'our' cup of tea and we start of many dinners with this same platter. (Osteria, Mercato and even Tria does a charcuterie platter for a fraction of the price and they are really delicious!) I did however enjoy the antipasti which was a selection of pickled eggplant, artichoke, tomatoes and onions.
The Chilled Octopus Salad- I did know it was a cold salad, but cold octopi and potatoes are an unfamiliar combination to me, but it had did nice flavor.
The pasta dishes truly saved our bumpy start!
DH had the appetizer portion of the Maccheroni alla chitarra con ragu d'agnello- which was delicious pasta with lamb should ragu in a tomato sauce and for the main course, he had Maccheroni alla mugnaia- which was a garlic and olive oil pasta. We really liked the variety of chili peppers are presented table side and you can use the scissors to spice up your plate, we WERE told it was the traditional Italian way to spice your meal in Italy- this is the first time I've seen this. DH got a little carried away with the peppers as they put out some intense heat! After eating all that pasta, I thought he would be overstuffed, but he said it was surprisingly light and just the right amount.
I had the Trota which is the ruby red trout with celery root and cauliflower purée- the fish was nicely cooked and the presentation was what I expected from the reviews- simply beautiful. It was a smidge over salted, but not bad. I do wish the skin was a little crispier as it was appeasing to the eye, but a little smooshy in texture, but I did enjoy it.
We don't stray far from center city, but the prices were not what we expected. Don't get me wrong, I'm ALL for paying for a great dining experience,( $14 glass of Basil Hayden- DH will still order it, because that's what he likes, but yikes!) quite honestly though, for nearly $200 ( sans dessert!) I feel we should have had a more enjoyable time.
I don't need the justification of a cost analysis on restaurant overhead. I get it, (excuse MY ignorance, but don't all restaurants have the similar costs regardless of location? Non? Do some places get discounts?) but some more interaction would have made the bill more palatable to absorb, is all.
I'm so confused as to how my fellow yelpers' experiences vastly differed from our evening there, it must have definitely been an off night or the post holiday lull. Just our luck:(
Did anyone else got the full run down of the owner's comments- table side? We clearly did not, again a little more communication on the staff's part would have really made our experience dramatically different and much memorable. They are obviously passionate about their food, but we wouldn't have known either way. PLEASE... TELL me about the food. Too much information is better than no information at all!
Like Francis stated- facts matter, BUT we were barely given any that night.
Unless restaurants expect their patrons to be culinary experts when dining out.... | 1neutral
| 865 |
Dining at the Prime Rib restaurant, which is located inside the Warwick Hotel in the affluent Rittenhouse Square area is not as wonderful as it used to be. It was once a place where you would feel like you were walking into the middle of the past century and beyond to find Don Draper and his mad men croonies, ah times change and everything else along with it, but this time it was a sin.
We were early for our reservations and were going to have a seat at the bar, but decided to check in with the host and he offered to seat us right away, seeing we were famished, we took him up on his generous offer, Food! Our server immediately greeted us and offered us drinks, hubby had a coke and I had an excellent dry martini, served in a rather large cocktail glass, well chilled and made to perfection.
On the Prime Rib page of reviews on Yelp, it says to mention Yelp and you and anyone else at your table will receive a complimentary appetizer and so I did, which he was not at all enthusiastic about and it clearly showed. Then I pulled a rabbit out of my hat or rather a printed certificate from an Open Table offer that they and the Prime Rib had made publicly, to pay $25.00 up front to receive $50.00 off your bill when all was said and done.
This really did not thrill him and he was very obvious about his distaste in our lack of class ( in his mind ) to take the Prime Rib up on their own offers. Not only this but several times our server and a group of other staff members were nearby our table, talking about us and looking right at us, like how could we?! Even over at the service area for the bar, they turned and stared at us, laughing and talking. I'm serious folks, it was down right rude, made me feel like a clown and was the beginning of the most absurd service I have ever experienced.
We sat at least 20-30 minutes waiting for menus, while hubby stewed watching others being serviced and finally received our Yelp appetizer which was one large ( Diver, I'm assuming ) scallop each, wrapped in practically raw bacon on a small bed of baby spinach leaves. The scallop was cooked perfectly, I gave hubby my bacon, but he and I both agreed it was too raw to eat and then we were handed menus, which was a good forty minutes after we had been seated.
We shared the most bland bowl of lobster bisque that was served in a cool tureen style crock, absolutely no hint of sherry and I used to love their bisque, our waiter brought us a hot pepper sherry sauce in a bottle, but we passed, as it was very hot and the sherry did not even attempt to shine through.
The large oyster Rockefeller were outstanding, the escargot were tender and swimming in a garlic sauce with baby mushroom caps and a thick slice of grilled bread to dip into the sauce. The jumbo lump crab cake was large and pure but very un-adventurous other than that and was served with a lousy cocktail sauce. I had to giggle silently as the table next to us commented on their choice of sauce to serve with a lump crab cake. I myself had asked for the mustard sauce that was previously mentioned in their crab claw appetizer and it worked to help.
When our meals came our server finally grabbed my hubby's longtime empty coke glass and refilled it and asked if I would like anything else. I asked what chardonnay they had by the glass, he offered several, not mentioning the names but the regions and I chose a Sonoma, when he brought it he had the label totally covered and poured me a sip, I asked to see the label and I was thrilled to see that it was Sonoma Cutre, one of my favorites and then he was about to walk away when I said excuse me, can you please pour my glass of wine? Oops.
Hubby was served a huge roast of Prime rib and he was kind enough to cut the bones off first to save for my onion soup for Christmas, his meat was cooked to perfection, tender, flavorful and juicy, however my filet was a big let down and we had already spent so much time there and just wanted to leave. I had ordered it medium rare and when I cut into the first third of it, the first cut was medium well, no pink or red whatsoever, but the center of the steak was barely pink.
I was not going to say anything, but for a dry, flavorless piece of meat at $38.00 and the thinnest, un-flavorful bearnaise sauce I have ever been served, I thought this is so wrong, class or not speak up. I did and he argued with me! He said well the outer edges will be well done, I had cut one third into my steak, come on buddy this is not the first place I have had a steak is what I wanted to say, but instead I showed him the center and said it is barely a hint of pink and even the top and bottom of that was well done!
To be continued in another update, this is how upsetting this dining experience was. | 0negative
| 925 |
#SomethingsHeatingUp. That's what Rostizado's social media's been taunting us with. This whole "something's heating up" at Mercer Building has gone long enough and now you can actually go gorge yourself on Tres Carnales' latest venture, a modern Latin-American rotisserie, focusing on local produce! Don't worry though, there's still #TacoForThePeople over a few blocks.
Firstly, I apologize for the lack of photos of the space. I just can't focus when there's an open kitchen and a full rotisserie of local Four Whistle Farm pork butts and chickens rotating in front of me! Seating is divided out into unique dining areas, some with long tables, a living room couch area, a sectioned off area for VIPs surrounded by a glass wall and where we were seated - the bar-style table in front of the kitchen. Just the way I like it. Who wouldn't want to be in front of all the action? Decor is an amazing mix of mid-century with old school televisions, books, and memorabilia; grand wall murals; outstanding woodwork. Cozy and welcoming!
We started off with a couple of "Entradas" or appetizer dishes, all running at $16 but large enough to share with a group. Dani had given us the heads up that they only had two ceviche dishes left from last night's friends and family soft opening... so we pounced on that. If you don't like lime juice, then the cured Chilean sea bass might not be your cup of tea. You can tone down the lime juice with a bite of the orange slices and avocados and once in awhile you'll get a hit of the habanero chiles. For me, it was ah-maaaaazing. Really enjoyed all the different notes and textures! There's a reason why there was only two dishes left.
Cousin numero uno eyed the smoked salmon sopes, which conveniently came in threes! I'm not even the biggest fan of sopes, mostly because every time I've tried them, it's been a mushy corn flour mash with a slightly under-fried texture. Not these ones! Crisp exterior, light and airy inside full of flavor. The tequila cured smoked salmon and avocado cream spread were killer! I could probably order a few plates of these and just call it a night.
But what do you do when you want to try everything? You order platters. Rostizado has a platter for two with a combination of their rosti-pollo (chicken) and rosti-puerco (pork), served up with some rost-papa (potatoes) and tortillas for wrapping.
Platter for two is a slight exaggeration as none of us thought that we could finish it if there were only two of us. Then again we're three small Asian girls who already ordered appetizers. And wanted dessert. But we went all out anyways and went for it. Leftovers are your friend!
The Rosti-Pollo is a dry rubbed chicken, roasted for an hour - an hour and a half, until crispy on the outside. Huge flavor on the skin, so much so that I wished rubs would penetrate more into the meat! So delicious though and in addition to the pasilla-tomatillo salsa, it can do some serious damage to you.
Alongside our platter, cousin numero dos also ordered the rosti-puerco cemitas, or sandwich. It's the same pork on the platter, slow roasted and sliced to order. The pork was my favorite, packing a whole whack of flavor, seasonings, and spices. There's even a fresh chimichurri, a green Argentinean sauce, to top it all off.
No, I lie. What topped it all off was the pulled cheese! It wasn't oozing or anything but it was an awesome addition to the cemita! Drippings and a fresh sesame baked bun made the sandwich a home run in my books and also the best value for your wallet at $16. Like the platter, it was also served up with some roasted potatoes with roasted cloves of garlic (sooooo good!).
Nothing could stop us (or me) from ordering the churros con dulce de leche. I can honestly say that these are the best churros I've had. Ever. Crispy on the outside, perfectly cooked and slightly chewy on the inside. Dipped into the dulce de leche, it was AMAZEBALLS. Dani believes it's because of the Mexican cinnamon that they use. Maybe it's the fact that I can see my order of churros being made in the back corner to order. Or maybe they're just magical and we'll leave it at that. SO GOOD.
So so so happy that Rostizado is open now. A great addition to Edmonton's dining scene, wonderful staff and service for opening night (it was packed!). You need to try it out. For those on a budget, highly recommend their cemitas (sandwiches) as their rotisserie can run a little high. But for a family-style meal, you have to get the rotisserie! Will definitely be back for the pork and to try out the rest of the appetizer menu (the Albondigas, a meatball dish, looked amazing!). Save room for the churros, thank me later. They don't take reservations, so you better head on down for dinner before people figure out they're open. Lunch service will be starting Wednesday, August 12 in addition to dinner service. You can even order take out and expect the meal in a few minutes. Something's heating up all right. | 2positive
| 881 |
227 S 18th St Philadelphia, PA 19103 | 215-545-2262 | http://www.parc-restaurant.com/
M-TH: 730am to 11pm F: 730am to 12am Sat: 10am to 12am Sun: 10am to 10pm
Parc is meant to recall the traditional brasseries of Parisian France. A brasserie is a type of French restaurant with a relaxed setting, which serves single dishes and other meals. The word brasserie is also French for "brewery" and, by extension, "the brewing business". A brasserie can be expected to have professional service, printed menus, and, traditionally, white linen--unlike a bistro which may have none of these. Typically, a brasserie is open every day of the week and serves the same menu all day. Parc is one of the few restaurants I know in the Philadelphia area to serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is always busy, first due to the outstanding quality of the food and secondly the extensive hours kept by this establishment. Friday and Saturday nights they are open until midnight!
Parc is part of the Starr Restaurant group which features restaurants in PA, NJ, NY, FL and Washington DC. Starr Restaurants owns such Philadelphia landmarks such as Il Pittore, El Ray, The Continental, Morimoto, Dandelion, Granite Hill, and Talula's Garden. Each of these places is wildly successful so one has very high expectations walking into Parc. Advance reservations are recommended especially for dinner.
We started the meal with traditional house made baguettes with butter. Very tasty indeed. No complaints here.
SHRIMP COCKTAIL . . . 17.00. The shrimp were tasty, served on ice which is the traditional presentation for a shrimp cocktail. Nothing too fancy here. The cocktail sauce was very good and I'm glad it was served with two lemons instead of one.
Trout Salad with Baguettes. Very good, a nice way to wet the palate for the entrees to come.
GAZPACHO $9.00 Cucumber, olive oil crostini. Light and refreshing chilled gazpacho. Perfectly balanced, and very good. Cucumber added freshness and the crostini was a crunchy treat. For all the history buffs, Gazpacho is a soup made of raw vegetables and served cold, usually with a tomato base, originating in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia. Gazpacho is widely eaten in Spain and neighboring Portugal particularly during the hot summers, as it is refreshing and cool.
NORWEGIAN SALMON $27.00 cider poached, braised red cabbage, mustard vinaigrette. The salmon was breaded and cooked to a perfect medium, pinkish-orange on the inside while perfectly browned on the edges. The mustard vinaigrette was sweet and added some spice to the meat. Cabbage accompanied the salmon adequately. If I was cooking however, I would have chosen some sweet potatoes or fingerling potatoes in place of the cabbage.
PAN SEARED SCALLOPS $29.00 Sauce vierge, heirloom tomatoes, marinated zucchini. Sauce vierge is a French sauce made from olive oil, lemon juice, chopped tomato and chopped basil. Frequently, crushed coriander seed is added, and variations may include the addition of other herbs such as chervil, chives, parsley. Personally, I don't like tomatoes mixed with scallops, but again, that is just personal preference. A very good dish overall.
Cafe Vietnamese $4.50 is a traditional Vietnamese coffee recipe. It is made with coarsely ground Vietnamese-grown dark roast coffee individually brewed with a small metal French drip filter (cà phê phin) into a cup containing about a quarter to a half as much sweetened condensed milk. Parc's edition includes the sweetened condensed milk (bottom layer) the coffee (middle layer) and steamed milk (top layer).
Gateau: a rich cake, typically one containing layers of cream or fruit. Chocolate with oranges to accompany it and layers including a raspberry coulis in the center. Delicious.
LA FRAISE $10.00 Strawberry cake, vanilla mousseline, strawberry compote, pistachio ice cream. Fantastic. Silkier than whipped cream, lighter than custard, vanilla mousseline is pretty much all things to all desserts. Amazing.
DRINK OF THE EVENING
LE BIJOU Tanqueray Gin, Green Chartreuse, Fresh Lime Juice, Mint $13.00.
Not a bad way to start the evening. Was made a little strong for my taste though. Green Chartreuse is the only liqueur in the world with a completely natural green colour It is powerful and unique. Only two Chartreuse monks know the identity of the 130 plants, how to blend them and how to distill them into this world famous liqueur. They are also the only ones who know which plants they have to macerate to produce the natural green and yellow colours. And they alone supervise the slow ageing in oak casks. Chartreuse has a very strong characteristic taste. It is very sweet, but becomes both spicy and pungent. | 2positive
| 761 |
I came here a week or two after its opening and really enjoyed it.
The chef comes from Arigato, so I was expecting a stylized interpretation of Mexican cuisine, with good plating. Expectations were met on that level, and then exceeded by tapas style dishes that reminded me of higher end Peruvian tapas.
My dining companion and I agreed that the prices were reasonable if not slightly underpriced for seasonal, locally sourced fresh ingredients and housemade everything, including the tortillas and chips. We ordered 5 dishes, 1 dessert, 2 margaritas, and the bill was just shy of $100 after tax, before tip, and we brought home leftovers.
Loved the ceviche, which is prepared at a special raw bar that folks can walk up to and watch. We got the sampler ($18), which came with a basket of corn and plantain chips.
* Coctel de Atun Tropical - yellowfin tuna, mango-grapefruit salsa, citrus broth.
* Ceviche Verde - local halibut, olives, avocado, red onion, pickled cabbage, tomatillo-serrano sauce, plantain chips.
* Ceviche Peruano - sea bass, aji amarillo pepper, red onion, red jalapeno, cucumber, crispy choclo, sweet potato, lime-ginger sauce.
Also from the raw bar, a half dozen oysters, which came with tomatillo-habanero salsita, jalapeno minoneta and lime wedges, $14. Our server struggled a little remembering the names and origins of our oysters, but we were really grilling her on them. I wish the oysters came with little spoons, the forks it came with made it hard to get some of the juices of the accompanying sauces.
Moving onto "artisan antojitos," we got these items:
* Empanadas de Jaiba y Camaron - two crispy corn turnovers, sauteed Mexican white shrimp, fresh crab, Mexican cheeses, tomatillo-avocado sauce, mango-habanero glaze. $12
* Sopesitos de Costilla - four crispy corn mini-boats, Negra Modela guajillo-braised short rib, black beans, avocado, fresh cheese, tomato broth. $11. We were sitting in an area of 2-tops and the tables on boths sides of us ordered this as well, and everyone seemed to be enjoying them.
* Cazuela de Chorizo con Rajas - homemade Mexican chorizo, roasted poblano rajas, Sonoma jack, Manchego cheese, queso cotija, tomato broth, $10. This was the most "comforting" of all our dishes, really hot and bubbly, and came with fresh tortillas. I took some of this home and it reheated to make an awesome rajas-style taco.
For dessert, we shared the opera cake, $8. Layers of chocolate almond cake, soaked in tequilla. It's a dainty portion, but very rich and we were happy to share this between the two of us.
There's an impressive selection of tequila, and a range of cocktails. The signature margarita is just $8, while the more mixology ones range from $10-$13.
I really liked that the small plates came with morsels that easily divided for two people, like two empanadas, and four sopes per order. Really great for sharing.
If you want something faster and more casual, there's a separate taco and tamale counter. You can't order from this menu in the main dining rooms, counter service only. I'm most curious about the tamales on this menu, but haven't yet tried any.
The atmosphere was also very enjoyable, perfect for one of those dress-up nights on the town where, for a moment, we can pretend we're dining in a bigger, more cosmopolitan city, then walk outside into our quintessential Santa Barbara tile and terracotta arcade.
Now, some constructive criticism.
* The ceviche assortment, while beautifully presented, was a structural disaster waiting to happen. It's served in long-necked glasses which are top-heavy. These are then placed in a bowl of chipped ice, supposedly to hold the glasses sturdy, but the bowl itself is rounded, it's not sturdy at all. We leaned our glasses against each other to keep them from toppling over, re-arranging them every couple minutes because once the glass tips over, there's no saving the fish that's fallen into a bowl of melting ice. Best to simply put the ceviche in small glass bowls nested in the larger iced bowl, then they won't tip over and the ice may actually keep the fish chilled.
* A 2-top is not big enough for two people ordering a meal of small plates. Once two dishes were on our table, it was full and plates started overlapping, stacking and felt like a messy kitchen counter. For a place that has a strong focus on small plates in a sleek, elegant surrounding, this is constantly going to be an issue. My solution is simple enough, I'm going to ask for a bigger table next time.
Overall, very enjoyable! Love the interpretation of central and south American food, going beyond the standard street-food style fare this town primarily offers.
Photos of everything we ordered uploaded. | 2positive
| 792 |
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