Boullabaisse Brain

I went to Portland, OR.

2011-12-04T21:13:00.000-08:00

Greetings! I've been back a month now, and have finally gotten together my report on Portland. Enjoy!

Firstly, my hotel was fine. It isn't in the greatest area, and there are a lot of cheap motels around there. I found The Monticello to be clean and spacious, with little to no extras (no lobby area, just a small office off the rooms. No coffee, breakfast, internet e.t.c.) It is however, clean, spacious, and within 3 blocks of the MAX station, which was beneficial.

My very first Portland thing that I did was hit up Lucky Devil strip club for my friends birthday. As you may know, Portland has A LOT of strip clubs. I had a blast, and saw girls do things I have never ever seen in a strip club before. Nothing nasty, but as my Portland friend says.."There should be a Strip-U for up and coming strippers here." And he ain't kiddin'.

My 2nd day in Portland, I headed downtown to wander, and eventually go to the Chinese Gardens. I stopped in for lunch at the Morning Star Cafe, and ordered a vanilla latte (my first in Portland, and it was gorgeous) and the Felipe sandwich (turkey, cheddar, stone-ground mustard, cilantro, onion and tomato $8.00) which was tasty. It was not at all dry, and the hint of cilantro with the mustard was a lovely assertive pairing. I fueled up for my trek through old Chinatown (which is barren and mostly empty), and for the Chinese Gardens!

The Chinese Gardens were lovely. A small circular area with a combination of outdoor nature, asian architecture, flowers, walkways and indoor spaces with art and setups of old fashioned rooms. They have a tea room which serves food and has a serious selection of teas, and styles of serving it.

Meeting up with a friend of mine later on, we chose 50 Plates. It was on my list as a good happy hour spot, so we went around 10 pm to take advantage. 50 Plates is quite trendy and modern. We sat at the bar, and got our own glass bottle of water, adorned with the 50 Plates logo. Very nice. For the happy hour, I ordered a modified version of the Dark and Stormy (dark rum, ginger beer and lime. $5) and opted for vodka instead. My company opted for the regular Dark and Stormy. Both cocktails were excellent, and served in a solid short glass, with rocks of ice. I was drinking in style. Our bartender was very friendly, humorous and knowledgable. Off the happy hour menu, we ordered Hush Puppies ($2) and the Cheeseboard ($5). The Hush Puppies were soft, savory and very comforting, and the Cheeseboard was refined and share-able. After that, we ordered an Old Guardian Barley Wine (him) and a dirty martini (me.) We left there a whopping $28 lighter. Afterwards, we stopped into the Rogue Distillery and Public House, and then 'round the corner onto the upstairs bar at Touche for some drinking.

The next day, I had crepes on the brain. Chez Machin was on my list, so I headed downtown, and then got a Radio Cab to the SE quadrant. One problem with my list of places is that many of them were in that area, and that ended up being a bit far from my hotel. I found the surrounding area to Chez Machin to be quaint and nice, with a ton of little cafes and such. Inside Chez Machin, I ordered the french onion soup ($4, cup) and the La Percheronne (Black forest ham, brie, avocado, mushrooms & crème fraîche $10.) The french onion soup was excellent, very savory and cheesy! I did not care for the crepe, unfortunately. I found the mushrooms and brie to be overpowering, and the creme fraiche on top added nothing. The crepe itself was a little bland, and not as soft as I thought it could be.

Afterwards, I decided to head back downtown for some happy hour at Clyde Common. I'm the type of person who wants a happy hour that offers something I normally would not be able to afford to drink, and Clyde Common meets that criteria. After a 20 minute search by foot (the only time I got a little turned around in Portland, a miracle for me), I found they were closed, due to what seemed like a wedding party. No one was inside, but there were people outside in wedding attire, having pictures and video taken. I wasn't too crushed, as Clyde's looked very upscale, which isn't my thing anyways.

In need of something close, a drink, and to sit down, I ended up around the corner at Mothers Bistro. I found Mothers to be very organic feeling, earthy and refined. I ordered a Moscow Mule, and then a Vesper (Aviation dry gin, Crater Lake vodka & Lillet Blanc, served up with a twist.) The bartender suggested a drink in between, which I received and did not care for. She happily offered to make something else. Very classy, and friendly.

For my farewell lunch, my friend and I went to Mio Sushi. Mio is a cute little sushi place, which felt very inviting. We ordered a coffee (that comes in your own little french press), the Shumai/Gyoza appetizer ($4.50), a spicy salmon and unagi nigiri (2 for each of us), and a Super Eel roll (Crab, cucumber, avocado inside, eel, sesame seeds, unagi sauce outside -$8.95). I was overall not impressed, and thought the sushi tasted too fishy. The shumai and gyoza were fried, which caught me off guard, and were a little bland without the dipping sauce.

After we ate, we stopped at a place for some coffee that I cannot remember the name of! It's a little coffee place across/down the road from Miho Izakaya on Interstate. I bought some Be Bop biscotti to take home, and my friend and I sipped and reminisced.

I didn't get to do even a fraction of the things i wanted to. Unfortunately, many of the restaurant in my list were in the SE area, which was a bit far from my hotel, requiring cabs, or many MAX and bus transfers. My biggest misses were Le Montage Bistro, Gold Dust Meridian, Pok Pok, The Art Museum, Ground Kontrol (an old school arcade!!), Tasty N Sons (which I was going to go to, but they were closed due to a shooting of Good Eats...), and I never did get to eat any Mac and Cheese! I did get to spend a few hours strolling through the entire Saturday Market, which was a highlight of my trip! I loved the festive and funky environment. I walked past a street performer who was singing my very favorite Sublime song. I bought a few little things, and got to see the food truck scene booming in front of me. I didn't get to eat any food truck fare, but the variety and choices are dizzying! Reindeer sausage! Porketta! Pho!

I did walk past Powells and Voodoo Doughnut. Voodoo Doughnut seems to be just..a bakery. Which would mean more to me if my sweet tooth were a little stronger, I suppose! I would have gone into Powells, but it's HUGE and I really had to pee (almost impossible when wandering downtown. Thank you Noodles and Co, for letting the public use your bathrooms.) I walked by Pause and Saucebox, but never got to go in.

Overall, Portland exceeded even my highest expectations for it. I felt comfortable, happy, and was able to get around with little to no problems, which surprised me because I am very directionally challenged! I liked the weather (remember where I am from), the funkiness, the cleanliness (first dual flush toilet I've ever seen!), and of course the plethora of places to eat and drink! Most of all, I really liked the people. The people were friendly, genuine, and open. And no one was bothered about the fact that I was just visiting. I intend to make this a yearly (at most) vacation spot, and will consider the possibility of moving there someday.

I still miss Portland, even a month later.

50 Plates cheeseboard

Chez MacHin

Chez MacHin crepe

Benson Bubblers, downtown! <3

Chinese Garden Tea Room

Chinese Gardens

Scholars Study

Signs with funny sayings on them everywhere.

My best Portland girl, Elise.

Me on the MAX, with messy hair.

Mio Sushi Shumai/Gyoza appetizer

Mio Super Eel roll, and nigiri.

Morning Star Cafe. <3

My Nebs, at 50 Plates.

Saturdaaaay Market!

I bought the red pair, 3rd row, on the left.

Gummi Bear Soap!

I am a sucker for ceramic glaze-y mugs and pots. :-(

Something cool for you Patrick Bateman fans...

2011-08-07T11:33:00.000-07:00

Patrick Bateman’s New York: What Happened To The World of American Psycho.

http://www.scoutingny.com/?p=4259

Coming soon...restauranteers.com!

2011-07-26T10:05:00.000-07:00

Pretty soon, my blog will be one featured at http://www.restauranteers.com/ !! For now, it is local to the Washington area, but they are expanding, and approached me about showcasing my blog on their site! Be sure to check back for links to my actual page, and updates on the new expanded site!

Crescent Moon Bakery's Football Pizza - Northeast Minneapolis

2011-07-19T22:06:00.000-07:00

There are few things more adored by Americans than ordering a pizza. It's one of those activities that doesn't judge. You could be alone. You could be with your spouse and 8 kids. You can be with friends. You can be experiencing your first slumber party. For me; pizza, movies and pop (YES, pop) fall in that PB & J category. But sometimes, you have to shake it up a bit. Even if it means carryout. And so one night, I got a little crazy and went for a Crescent Moon pizza.

Crescent Moon is a Middle Eastern restaurant located on the Central Ave strip in NE Mpls. Along with official bragging rights that is was one of the first (because now they're everywhere), it also offers.....pizza. Want a gyro? Perhaps a heaping plate of chicken kourma? Crescent Moon has it for you. Oh, you wanted pizza as well? CHA CHING. Normally, mixed-cuisine restaurants scare me (imagine GYRO-PIZZA-FRIES in flashing neon signs) but Crescent Moon ain't like those suckas.

Advertised as Afghani pizza (or the "football pizza), it really is not as foreign as it sounds. They do offer gyro meat, eggplant, or afghani beef as toppings, but that's about it. The rest is pretty standard. We decided on a large Spinach Lovers (spinach, onions, tomato and garlic) with pepperoni (about $16.)

The picture doesn't do it any justice, as this is BY FAR the best pizza I have ever eaten. The crust is like a thick, more sturdy pita. I don't know what kind of cheese they use, but it is abundant and gooey without being overpowering. The sauce is tangy and a little kicky, and the pepperoni is the best I have ever had on a pizza. It is crispy, smokey and spicy. You must love garlic if you are to love this pizza, and it is served with their signature green chutney as a dipping element. It sounds strange, but that sauce is the best part of Crescent Moon. It is bright, spicy, and acidic. You can ask for them to put it directly onto your pizza, which I fully intend on doing next time I order from them.

While not bizarre, I do like to think of this pizza as being a little exotic. The tangy, bright flavors are a step up from the salty/cheesy/saucy that we're used to.The green sauce is a vibrant compliment to anything you order at Crescent Moon.

If you have never had a football pizza, and live in/around the NE area - YOU GO NOW!

http://www.crescentmoonfoods.net/RESTAURANT.html

Brasa - Northeast Minneapolis

2011-07-19T21:24:00.000-07:00

Having been a resident of NE Minneapolis for about twice as long as Brasa has been open, Mr. C and I figured it was about time we paid Brasa a visit.. I mean...the place has already been visited by every critic in the city, along with some Food Network celebs. So keeping true to my late bloomer pattern, off we went on an early weekday evening.

Brasa is a smallish cafe-style restaurant located on East Hennepin. Entering the restaurant, I felt a bit claustrophobic. The seating is a bit cramped, and the overall space is modest. We chose a window spot a little off the beaten path, and were seated immediately.

Brasa's theme is simple. Southern style cuisine, with the focus being on roasted meats - rotisserie chicken, slow roasted pork, e.t.c. They offer sides mostly foreign to the Midwest. Rice and beans, pigeon peas, yuca, cornbread, greens and yams being among them. I would recommend this to any vacationing Southerner, and would be eager to hear the assessment of these Southern staples. Being the sandwich girl I am - I settled on the Slow Roasted Pork sandwich (ginger mayo, cilantro, and pickled vegetables - $9) because I appreciated the Southern bahn mi integration. Mr. C chose the special, which was the beef brisket. Also ordered were chips and guacamole (small - $2.95), and my curiosity couldn't be denied for a spicy masa corn cake with cheese.

As we waited, an older man and woman sat down at the table next to us, about 4 feet away. What slowly unfolded made us a little uncomfortable. When I dine out, I'm not faint hearted. Albeit the Midwest, it is the city after all. But when a grown man 4 feet away from you starts to display increasingly aggressive behavior in regards to his coffee not being hot enough (literally. He wasn't just being some spoiled d-bag. This guy had some sort of mental illness going on, where he obviously found it difficult to control his anger), your dining experience becomes a little uncomfortable. His companion kept trying to soothe and reassure him that everything was going to be ok. When the waitress came to ask if there was a problem, he loudly told her that the coffee was lukewarm and he wanted another pot made right away. He was visibly agitated. He knocked a fork on the floor once. Mr. C and I just sat quietly...

Until our chips came:

With chips that are warm, and guac that is creamy but punchy with salt, garlic and onion, all was well again.

Spicy Masa Corn Cake

While I didn't detect any hint of spice, this corn cake was satisfying. It was a little cheesy, and the corn flavor came through with a good touch of char. It's the size of a small pancake, and can't be beat at only $1.95.

Slow Roasted Pork Sandwich

The sandwich came, and I was admittedly skeptical about the plain jane in front of me. But after the first bite, I was a goner. Not only was the architecture spot on, the flavors and textures were extremely gratifying. In one bite, you get soft chewy bread along with tender clusters of shredded pork. In another, you get a pop of cilantro, along with the same savory pork, and then brightness and sweet pickle of the vegetables. For a place that focuses on comfort meats, this sandwich was refreshing. Not too heavy, but not too light, it hit almost all my sandwich benchmarks. This is the plain jane you take home to mom.

Special - Brisket and Slaw

A brisket savant, I am not. As a former Texan (is this even possible??), Mr. C knows brisket, and unfortunately this disappointed on many levels. Mr. C reported it was gristly and tough. Even the few bites I had seemed bland and dry. Mr. C even said..."When will I learn not to order brisket in Minnesota?"

I would definitely recommend Brasa to anyone who favors meat and southern style comfort foods, and also does not mind a somewhat claustrophobic setting when dining. I personally would not revisit for a dinner, but I can see a lovely obscure lunch in my future.

http://www.brasa.us/menus_eat.aspx

The end...?

2011-06-22T10:00:00.000-07:00

I think I am giving up my blog. It has been like 2 years, and no one seems to read it much. Might post stuff if I find somewhere amazing, otherwise I just dunno if I should keep going.

Gorkha Palace - Northeast Minneapolis

2011-04-23T19:33:00.000-07:00

Located in the spot previously held by Marin's Table moroccan restaurant (RIP!) is Ghorka Palace. Ghorka Palace offers Nepali, Indian and Tibetan cuisine. It is a cozy, but not small, interior space. You could go casual here, or experience a fine date night.

When Mr. C and I arrived, we chose our own spot (!!!) and were greeted right away by what I assume is one of the owners. We were given menus and ordered our wine. They offer the standard choice of vegetarian, non-vegetarian, tandoors, biryani e.t.c., but the menu is nicely focused and not scattered. Ghorka Palace boasts all fresh, local organic ingredients from sustainable farming. They literally get their goats right here in MN. This isn't something you typically encounter with MN middle eastern restaraunts. Very commendable.

We started with some Pappaddum (2 crispy lentil crackers = $1.99) and they were served with the best side sauceI have ever had at any middle eastern restaurant. It is called Golbheda ko Achaar, and is best described as a spicy tomato relish with ginger and garlic. It is bright, simple, and universal. I could dip bread in this stuff and be happy. I loved the pappaddum with their slight sweetness against the dry crispy cracker. We were also given a complimentary small serving of Aaloo Achaar (Nepali version of potato salad- also has onion and sesame paste seasoned with lemon juice and chopped jalapeno) which I found a bit too foreign for my taste buds, but the complimentary gesture was certainly noticed and appreciated.

We finally decided that we had to try the Mo-Mo's (Steamed pot stickers filled with scallions,onions, cabbage, vegetable oil with Himalayan spices - served with tomato chutney), since people generally rave about them. They offer them in chicken, beef, goat, or yak. Yes, Yak. Local Yak. Yak Yak Yak. Ok sorry.

Beef Mo-Mo's

These were seriously awesome. I had my reservations - sticky skin, bland filling, too little filling, e.t.c. It was the opposite. The skin was soft, the filling was abundant, savory and delicately spiced. Dipping them in that awesome sauce added a brightness and kick of heat that added complexity, but without being fussy. I seriously will stop and get these for takeout on a regular basis. They are that awesome.

Chicken Biryani (Aromatic rice infused with richly flavored herbs and spices cooked with tender pieces of chicken, cashews & golden raisins - $12.99)

I love Biryani, and hadn't had one in awhile. They serve it with raita (A refreshing relish made of cucumber, tomatoes mixed in yogurt with black pepper and spices) which is standard because biryani is usually quite spicy. I asked for more of that sauce just because I am kind of in love with it. This was one of the better biryani's I have had, and one of the most spicy. The chicken was lovely. The way it's cut and the way it tastes makes it obvious it is fresh and treated well in the cooking process. Someone honestly cares about what they are doing here. The raisins add a touch of sweet and add texture, and the cashews give a slight nutty crunch to smooth over the heat. Overall one of the best things I have ever eaten.

We stayed on for awhile and chatted quite a bit with our waitress and the owner, who are some of the most well mannered and pleasant people I have encountered. The waitress isn't just a server, she is involved in the cooking process and told us they got their start in the Midtown Global Market. I expressed my fondness for the tomato relish, and she told me how to make it. She also stated that she used to attend "bring your own" types of competitions, where people could try their hand at a sauce or a side item and present it. She invited me to do the same. It was very flattering. (but I admit, I haven't done it, unfortunately...)

I love Ghorka Palace. It is nice to see a place where there is genuine enthusiasm for ingredients, food, and customers alike. I will go back many times since it is a hop away from where I live. Even if it wasn't...I would still go, even if just for some Mo-Mo's!

Pere Antoine - New Orleans

2011-04-23T18:50:00.000-07:00

My 2nd to last day in New Orleans, I was regretting not having much of a fine dining experience in New Orleans. I decided to compromise and take myself out for a not quite fine-but above average meal. I walked around Royal Street and looked for a decent looking place, and chose Pere Antoine.

Pere Antoine is quite large, with beautiful tall windows lining the walls, and archways which give it a nice open-air feel. They offer most of the usual cuisine you will find in New Orleans, such as etoufee and po boys, with an elegant twist. I was greeted by a server who sat me down immediately. I perused the drink menu a bit, but decided on water...which took 10 minutes to come along with my actual waiter. What is it with the service? I experienced slow service in most places I dined at....

I finally decided on the Paneed Chicken ( Boneless breast of chicken dusted with Itlaian and local herbs, served with fettucine alfreso. - $12.95.) After waiting 20 minutes, it finally came.

I lost the picture of it, but I was a little surprised when it came out and it was basically a pounded chicken breast that was breaded, and pan fried. I think this is the traditional way to make it, but i was not aware it would be breaded from the description. The chicken was ok, if unremarkable. There was no complexity to it, no balance. It was just....a finely breaded, pan fried chicken breast.

The fettucine was a complete disaster. It was the single most garlic-ey thing I have EVER eaten. It was on fire with garlic. I couldn't eat more than a quarter of it, and by then I had drunk about 5 glasses of water.

I hate to give so many negative reviews lately, but I've had a string of disappointing experiences. And to me, blogging is about creatively describing things while still being accurate. So there ya have it. I don't think I am too hard to please either....especially not compared to actual critics and reviewers. I am also just a blogger, so my experience with a restaraunt is usually limited to a one time experience. I don't have the luxury for repeat visits and experimentation.

So there ya have it.

http://www.pereantoine.com/index.html

Jax Cafe - Northeast Minneapolis

2011-04-23T17:37:00.000-07:00

Searching for a good steak experience, Mr. C and I finally decided on Jax Cafe. Pretty much solely based on their $78 dinner for two special. It features an order of Jax Crab Rolls, A house salad, 12 ozs slow roasted certified angus beef sirloin, and a whole maine lobster with drawn butter. On the side come sweet potato or shoestring fries, and a grasshopper drink for dessert. We decided to substitute sweet potato fries for mashed potatoes.

I had a hankerin' for a martini, so I went out on a limb and ordered a grey goose one. I heart grey goose, but was al ittle disappointed with this one. It was like, an ounce, maybe 2.

But I sipped away happily, as grey goose never disappoints. Shortly after, we received our salad.

Pretty standard cesaer style salad. It looks overdressed, but it actually was fine. And the croutons....omg. They were coated with sesame seeds, and were nutty and delicious!

Jax Crab Rolls

I was a little confused about what these were, since the menu contains no description. From what I can tell, cheese, crab and...sauce (?) baked inside a crust, sprinkled with sesame seeds. The first few bites were gorgeous - velvety and satisfying. After 2 of them, they became so overpowering and rich that I could not eat more. I am not a wimp either - I can take a lot of cheese and a lot of richness. These were sickeningly rich. I was disappointed.

After that, they bring out the butter, cute and appetizing nestled in it's own melting mechanism!

We waited awhile and chatted over some wine and watched the butter melt. It wasn't too long before the steak and lobster arrived.

I realized it was coming whole, but look at the inside of the body. It was soooo unappetizing, and I am already squeamish so I had to make myself not look at it. The lobster was a mixed bag. The claw meat was meaty and moist in the center, the tip was extremely dry with a strong mineral flavor. The tails were juicy and sweet, but tough and chewy.

Meat

I wasn't expecting this type of presentation. I thoguht I would get a nice hunk of meat. Admittedly, I do not know meat well. Overall, this dish was perfectly standard. The meat was kind of lukewarm, but it was not dry and not overly chewy. The savory level was maybe a 2, and the gravy reminded me a little of pot roast. The potatoes were fine, because potatoes are usually always awesome.

We traded our grasshopper drink in for a Bailey's Chocolate Cake to go because we were so full. We split it later, and it was awesome. It had that sweet creamy Bailey's tatse, and a mellow chocolate cake that was fluffy and perfect.

Overall, I was quite disappointed with this meal. I have made better things at home. Not to be a negative Nancy, but once you have had something authentically good, it is hard to be satisfied with standard things, especially if they cost you $78.

http://www.jaxcafe.com/index.php?ni=1

Cafe Beignet - on Bourbon in New Orleans

2011-03-31T10:35:00.000-07:00

By my 4th day in the big easy, I still hadn't tried the coffee or eaten any beignets. This was worrying to me, so I pulled myself out of the hotel room, and hit Bourbon in search of Cafe Beignet. There are 3 different locations (as there often are with many bars or cafe's in the French Quarter) and I chose the larger location on Bourbon. Cafe Beignet is a large outdoor courtyward, with a full bar and ordering counter in the rear. At the entrance, there are bronzed statues of New Orleans music legends (Fats Domino, Pete Fountain, and Al "Jumbo" Hirt) and to the right, there is small stage where daily/nightly live music is played. It has a very spacious and relaxed feel, with tables and chairs scattered about and always buzzing with activity. Cafe Beignet offers typical cafe fare. Breakfast, sandwiches and a few Cajun dishes. I went to the ordering counter and was greeted by quite possibly the friendliest punk rock girl I have ever seen. I ordered the coffee and chicory, and 3 beignets ($2.69...for 3 of them!) My coffee came up in a few minutes, and they then instruct you to sit so the server can bring your food to you. So, I went and sat in what was the tiniest and most uncomfortable chair I've ever encountered. No big deal...when in Rome! About 10 minutes later, they arrived.

I have always heard these are good, but that's kind of an understatement. Being someone who doesn't have much of a sweet tooth, I greatly appreciated the balance of savory to sweet. They were warm, soft (but not too soft..) and comparable to a funnel cake (or "elephant ears") that you would get at a local fair. Being a novice beignet eater, I exhaled while eating! Even when I learned from my mistake, I still got sugar all over me. These are quite messy, but they are truly a little piece of heaven!! A must have on a day (or night) trip to the French Quarter!

http://www.cafebeignet.com/index.html

Zea Rotisserie and Grill - New Orleans, LA

2011-03-29T14:06:00.000-07:00

I awoke one afternoon in my hotel room in New Orleans with the gut rumble hunger usually associated with a hangover. Not wanting to leave my hotel, but desperately needing time alone and some food, I headed out. Shaded eyewear mandatory.

Not wanting to (or luckily for me, needing to) travel too far, I popped across the street to Zea Rotisserie and Grill. They are somewhat of a southern chain, but not so large they suck (kind of like Buca Di Beppo - one of my favorite Italian places.) The exterior was inviting and very modern, and I was greeted right away when I stepped inside. The area is divided with varied seating if booths and tables, and is spacious and clean. I chose a booth and studied the lunch menu, which I would rate a 4 out of 5 on my lunch menu scale.

It only took about a minute for my server to come, who was extremely friendly and accomodating. He helped me finally decide to order a small zeasar salad (siiiggghh...i know, i know) and the lunch portion of 1/2 rotisserie chicken (1/2 chicken roasted on an open flame - $14.95), and decided on the sweet and spicy chili glaze. It came with a side, so I decided on the red beans and rice so I could at least say I tried some local specialties during my trip!

I didn't get a good picture of the salad, but I literally could not even eat all of it. Not because it was so huge, but because it was SO overdressed and salty. I had a few bites, slurped down like 2 diet cokes, then hit re-set on my mind before my lunch came.

I started off by trying the red beans and rice, which were surprisingly hearty in a thick gravy and a good kick of spice. I know I don't have much to compare this to, but I was definitely won over by this southern classic!

The chicken was extremely moist, juicy, and even greasy. I know that dark meat with skin is usually a little greasy, but I had to ask my waiter for lots of napkins (the cloth napkins just don't cut it in these situations.) Despite it being a little messy, the chicken was flavorful and savory. The seasoning didn't add anything significant, but it didn't take away from the essence of the bird either. Overall, I ate half of my 1/2 bird, all my red beans and rice, and was stuffed.

Zea was very, very good. And since I am staying in the same hotel next time I go, I definitely will return.

http://www.zearestaurants.com/site127.php

Hoshun - New Orleans, LA

2011-03-23T12:36:00.000-07:00

After a long day in the French Quarter, I was super hungry and craving something noodley. Wanting to stay near my hotel, I decided upon Hoshun right across the street from my hotel. The description is, "Asian, Japanese, and Sushi." I skimmed over the menu on display outside, and decided the price was right, so in I went.

The exterior looks modern and posh in comparison to the hundreds of smaller, older restaraunts within a 5 mile radius. The interior is no different, it is large, dim, and well decorated. I waited 10 minutes (even though the restaraunt was half empty...) and was then seated at a table. I started browsing the menu, and was disapointed to see the prices on the menu display were in fact, the lunch prices. This could have easily been an oversight on my part, but I don't recall the display as being a lunch menu only. So I felt a little tricked.

I decided against sushi (yes - shocking I know) and decided on the Crab and Crawfish Rangoon (Sweet snow crab, cream cheese & crawfish in a fried wonton - $6.25) and the Chicken Lo-Mein (Classic stir-fry lo mein with mixed veggies & a choice of chicken, roasted pork, gulf shrimp or crawfish - $9.50 for chicken.) I have only had crawfish one time, and it was years ago at a terrible restaraunt in MN. So I figured I would try it inside an already familiar food to ease myself into it.

After waiting around 30 minutes (seriously...what is with the slow service in NOLA??) I got my appetizer, which was extremely hot. I figured I would be nice to my mouth, and pull off the hard, crunchy edges and eat them piece by piece while I let the filling cool. The sauce was awesome, a step above the usual goopy sweet and sour mutation. It was sweet and spicy. Once the wontons finally cooled (took about 10 minutes), I was able to dig in. I was delighted at how well the ingredients meshed together - the richness of the cream cheese against the distinctly sweet crab and crawfish. Cream cheese wontons (or crab rangoons) may seem simple, but I have had my share of bad ones. These were among the best I have had!

Chicken Lo Mein

I finished my appetizer, and 10-15 minutes later the biggest heaping pile of noodles I have ever seen was placed in front of me. It was also piping hot, with thick steam coming off it. Which is not exactly a complaint, because I know it was made right then. But by this time, I was just kinda of frustrated with all the waiting. I had to wait a good 1-2 minutes before eating each bite I pulled out of the pile. No continous eating for me at Hoshun.

Looks pretty, right? I found the Sriracha squiggles a bit annoying, being right there on the edge. I had to be very careful not to let my hair, sleeves, arm e.t.c. drag through the sauce. And when I finally did get to eat my noodles, they would drag across the sauce so the very end of the noodles got a Sriracha swipe, resulting in one big bite of noodle ends and sriracha sauce. Make of that what you will.

All complaining about Sriracha aside, it was much needed. This had to be the blandest lo-mein I have ever had. I found myself dousing it with soy sauce and putting sriracha on my chopsticks for any flavor. I can't say if my taste buds were burnt out after eating different foods, but this was only my 2nd or 3rd day there. Who knows where the blame is, but the slow service didn't help matters.

Sorry, Hoshun.

St. Charles Tavern - New Orleans, LA

2011-03-23T11:54:00.000-07:00

On my recent trip to New Orleans, I was filled with anticipation for some good food experiences. I wanted to try a few classics, and there are no shortage of them anywhere you dine in New Orleans. So a local friend and I headed off to St. Charles Tavern, just a few blocks from my hotel.
Inside the yellow building, the decor is cheerful and airy with a continuing yellow color scheme. I found the stone tiled floor to be quite lovely, and the specials chalkboard was old fashioned and charming. Definitely no frills, but relaxing nonetheless.

The menu offers a step above standard bar-fare, and is affordable. They boast a pretty awesome breakfast (chocolate chip pancakes, chicken and andouille hash) and I have some serious remorse about not getting to try the breakfast items. Oh well..next time!

Looking at the menu, I almost immediately decided I needed to try a po' boy. They have a wide selection of them, and I had never tried one. I decided on the shrimp po' boy (hand breaded gulf shrimp, comes with fries - $9.75) and my company ordered a burger (which comes with a baked potato..)

Let me just get some complaining out of the way now so I can say how TERRIBLY SLOW the service was. Our waitress was ok, but our food took at least 30 minutes to come....and maybe that's even too kind of me.

Onto the food - I really liked the sandwich. Being that I don't have much (ok...anything) to compare it to is the only thing that prevents me from saying I loved it. Being Minnesotan, very rarely do I get to taste truly good seafood. My friend said he doesn't like po' boys because the bread is too chewy and he ends up squishing the sandwiches. I can see that. But I loved the bread - it was a little chewy, but it was also soft and light so it wasn't like you were chewing a gummy rock. It was fully dressed (mayo, lettuce, tomato) and wasn't disheveled or goopy. The shrimp inside was lovely - too often have I had fried shrimp that tastes like....fried breading. These were nice and pink, plump and toothsome; even amongst all the other components. The fries were crinkle cut, and had a good bit of seasoning (cajun?) that was a nice compliment.

Upon going to Urbanspoon to rate St. Charles Tavern, I felt stuck. I liked the food, but the service was terrible. I asked for my check, and after 20 minutes my friend ended up having to yell for it. The waitress explained they were having trouble with their machine, so she just told me my total and I paid her. This brings attention to my inner debate about food vs. service. Good food is good food, but having a bad experience can darken my outlook on a place. For now - I've decided to leave a blank vote, until I return and eat there again.

Sarna's - Columbia Heights/ 2 parts.

2011-02-27T11:56:00.000-08:00

PART ONE.

While I have the luxury of a late start time with my new job, I have been taking advantage of eating out places, specifically lunch. I've always passed by Sarna's, and decided to stop by one afternoon.

Sarna's is a very spacious and inviting space. Walking in, you are met with stone fireplaces and a little chef statue. Cozy and inviting. In the dining area, there are 2 sides, elevated and separated by a long bar down the middle. The space is airy, with light wood and high ceilings. There are plenty of booths (a little disorienting, with their granny flower-patterned fabric), and some dining and pub tables. I was seated immediately (amongst many blue haired folk) and my waitress chatted me up a minute before fetching me my diet coke. She was a little bit of a busy-body, but ultimately very friendly and not fake or annoying.

Sarna's offers your standard american cuisine. Burgers, sandwiches, meatloaf, pasta and the like. In a rare gesture, I decided to try out the Juicy Lucy (A half pound burger stuffed with bacon and cheddar cheese then served on a toasted bun-$9.) Let me just clarify now that no, I do not have a "favorite" juicy lucy. I find them to be quite overrated, when I can make them successfully at home.

I had all sorts of worries about this, mainly for the cheddar. Cheddar is my least favorite hot-sandwich cheese, because it's oily, doesn't melt well, or retain it's sharp flavor when melted. So I waited the standard 5 minutes and munched on some fries. The fries are nothing outstanding. I prefer a meatier fry, but these are nice and crispy. I doused my burger with K & M, and dove in.

How wrong I was. Oh how wrong. The burger was fabulous. Not too juicy/greasy, and a thick generous portion. Very simple and uncomplicated by a laundry list of spices, or a fussy bun. And when I got to the center, I was pleasantly surprised that the cheese was ooey, gooey and tasted like....cheddar! The bacon (which I feared may be soggy/non-existent) was crunchy and chopped in little bits. This is bacon cheeseburger, ultra defined. I found myself gobbling up almost all of it, savoring the cheesey/bacon/beefy/bready sensations.

My waitress even punched my lunch card twice because she swore she had "seen me before." I left with full intent to come back.

PART TWO

Sarna's has a special every night of the week. Mondays are $4 martini's (!!) and bar bingo night, e.t.c. Recently, Mr. C and I have been trying to suss out some serious steak adventures, and Sarna fit the missing piece to the puzzle. They have T-Bone steaks on special every Sunday! So, during the most recent snowmaggedon (and about the 87th one so far this winter), we slipped and slid our way to Sarna's for some steeeeaaak.

We were seated in Sarna's, de-armored ourselves, and perused some menus. To my sheer delight, not only did they have T-Bone on special (14 oz, potato and salad = $17) they ALSO have half price bottles of wine. This is awesome on it's own, but it's more awesome at Sarna's for 3 reasons. A) there are no restrictions on what type of wine you can get, B) all their bottles are like $25, and C) they have a good selection. On this particular Sunday night, they also were offering a New York Strip special (with mashed tatoes and a veggie = $16.) Ordering steak doneness in MN is a gamble. I like a medium steak, and too often are they well done when I get them. So when I ordered, I put emphasis on the medium, and Mr. C made sure to order his medium well. We tasted a sample of the Makulu Cabernet, and decided on it.(http://www.organicwinetradecompany.com/brands/wines/makulu-cabernet.html)

I know to most, a ceasar salad is just an afterthought. But to me, a salad is probably the most important part. You can tell a lot about a restaurant by the salads, and they are too often done so wrong. The ceaser here was perfect. Nicely tossed, crispy, salty and fresh. Word.

After about 10-15 minutes, the steaks came.

T-Bone
I dug in, and almost passed out from the bliss. Slender at an inch thick, and perfectly seasoned (read: not over-seasoned). I panicked a little when starting at the edges, as they were well done, though not at all dry. But I relaxed when I reached the center, as it was a perfectly cooked pink medium. The steak was juicy, savory, salty, melted in my mouth and had the perfect amount of char flavor.

New York Strip

The strip is a thicker cut of steak, around 2 inches thick. I found this cut to have a little more depth of savory, while the T-Bone is a more straightforward meat. The mashed potatoes were of the red bliss variety, which is my personal favorite. Even the broccoli was perfectly al dente and simple. Lasltly, I can not say enough about the importance of done-ness, and Sarna's hit it spot on. Mr. C's was indeed a slightly more well done steak, but with a kiss of pink to keep it tender. Perfect.

As if we needed to eat more, the waitress convinced us into dessert. We decided on a scoop of ice cream with a molten chocolate cake, drizzled with whipped cream, chocolate and caramel sauce.

I'm not a big dessert person, but this is the best dessert I have had in a restaurant. Ever. The cake was warm, the chocolate was thick and gooey, and the ice cream was cold but creamy. Mr. C and I ooohed and aahhed and basically licked the plate clean.
This was hands down one of the meals AND dining experiences I have ever had. The staff is super friendly, our waitress was really cool and not annoying or bland. They have a shots menu, and one shot is called the Lindsey Lohan. We were curious, so we asked our waitress about it, who went to a manager standing nearby and asked, who then looked at us and called out "It's a red headed slut on coke!"

I am going back to Sarna's many times.

http://www.sarnas-classic-grill.com/

Amici Pizza and Bistro - NE Minneapolis

2011-02-27T11:10:00.000-08:00

Amici Pizza and Bistro is nestled back in the old fashioned (and somewhat barren) chunk of Johnson St. in NE Minneapolis. Mr. C and I took it upon ourselves to make a trip to this little neighborhood eatery.

Upon entering, the place was indeed very bistro-ish. A small space, dim and romantic, we endured a slight wait before being seated at a small table. We perused the drink menu, with slight offerings of wine and beer. The server came and took our order, and made no impression on us at all. For food, we decided on: Baked Goat Cheese (Toasted almond, grape compote, crostini-$7), The Bucatini (Tomato sauce, fresh basil, grana padano-$13), and the Hollywood Pizza (Oven dried tomatoes, spinach, toasted garlic & fresh mozzarella - $11 for a small.)

Our appetizer came within 10 minutes, and almost everything was wrong with it. The bread was way too thin, and way too crunchy. The grape compote was kind of a chutney mess, with a slight thought about sweetness. The goat cheese was lukewarm (baked anyone???) and tasted oddly sweet and soapy. I love goat cheese, but sometimes I experience this at different places. I'm not sure why. The greens were good though, with a hint of lemon and a kiss of bitterness.

Bucatini

I can't be sure if Amici is related to Rinata or Al Vento at all, but I've had this dish at Rinata and it was almost identical (see here). It wasn't quite the salt-o-rama that Rinata offered, but it was tangfest 2011. I like a nice tangy tomato sauce, but this lacked any kind of balance, and I found it to be too acidic. The pasta was cooked well however.

The Hollywood

Yes, this thing comes with shaved and roasted garlic ALL over it. I really like garlic, but this was REALLY garlickey. I have heard reports that in certain areas of Italy, they are very heavy on the garlic. I'm not sure if this is true, but too much of a good thing is possible. The rest of it was mediocore. The crust was an odd mix of soft/saggy at the tip, and then more firm and slightly crispy at the brim. The cheese was applied with a light hand, and the tangy tomato sauce really went well on the pizza. Probably because it was mixed with other elements.

Overall, Amici fell a bit flat for me. I did discover that Hazel's is practically right next door, so I will be heading there next!

http://amiciusa.com/Home_Page.php

Yum! Kitchen and Bakery - St. Louis Park

2011-02-12T15:12:00.000-08:00

After a shopping excursion, Mr. C and I thought it appropriate to do lunch. We were unsure about where to go (as always) and Mr. C said "Oh, I know a place that has lots of things at it, and it's right by where we are" and so off we went. When we arrived at Yum! I was pleased, as I had heard lots of good stuff about the place.

Yum! is more cafteria/bakery/cafe than a restaurant. It isn't terribly small, but it was pretty full when we arrived. Upon entering, there's a coffe counter and a bakery case filled with awesomeness.

They also have the fattest nutty bars in the land, and RED VELVET CAKE CUPCAKES. Ohh my.

There's a seperate counter for ordering food, with the menu displayed prominently on the wall above the kitchen/order area, deli style. Mr. C and I stepped up and made our choices. He: The Reuben [corned beef, swiss cheese, sauerkraut & red pepper aioli on caraway rye - $8.95], Me: The Chicken Club [lettuce, tomato, avocado, bacon & pommeray honey aioli on toasted whole grain -$8.50.] We were issued a number, and found an open table. I proceeded to the coffee counter, feeling some caffeine desire. I ordered a medium vanilla latte.

Aside from being adorable, this latte was the best I have ever had. It had just the right amount of coffee + sweetness. The egg nesting style glass is completley clever, as you never burn your hands carrying your drink, and the foam stayed true to its frothy self until the very end. Lovely.

The food came out in about 10 minutes. First up, The Reuben:

Mr. C and I both were not terribly impressed with this. The meat was a little chewy, under-salted and the red pepper aioli didn't pop at all. The pickles here are true cucumber pickles. 70% cucumber and 30% pickle, which I find a little off-putting, but some people love.

Grilled Chicken Club:

This sandwich had several high and low points alike. The low: the bread was so crusty and if you have small choppers such as mine, it is a full on roof-of-the-mouth assault. I had to pick the big crusty parts off. But the fillings were well balanced. The chicken was ok, if not prominent. The avocado and bacon came through well, with the appropriate soft and creamy/salty and firm ratio happening. Tasted to me like there was just stone ground mustard on the thing, no hint of honey anywhere. The chips are very good. They are crumbly and not too crunchy or sharp, like kettle chips are. Thank god, since my poor mouth couldn't take it anymore. They are a little less salty than most may be used to, but they are savory and some have delightful burnt edges. Mmmm.

We had a good time sitting and chatting and looking at the fun merchandise Yum! offers. They have books, the awesome glasses that they serve coffee in, some jeweled spreaders (for spreads and dips) and cutesy things like that.

Saving the best for last, this is possibly my favorite thing about Yum!

That's right.

Overall, Yum! is charming little cafe, and I will be back to try out the Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese!

http://www.yumkitchen.com/menu.html

Mai Village - St. Paul

2011-02-12T14:43:00.000-08:00

Mai Village is located on University Ave in St. Paul, which is well populated with Asian restaurants. Mr. C and I debated between lunch at Little Szechaun or the neighboring Mai Village, and eventually settled on Mai Village.

The entrance and interior of Mai Village is very appealing. Upon entering, you walk over a little bridge that passes over a gorgeous koi pond. The dining space is spacious and airy. We were seated, and started to look at a well worn menu. Around 10 minutes later, I had to pull the waiter over and ask for beverages. Unacceptable in my book. Anyhow, we went on and ordered the spring rolls for an appetizer. I found the menu to be a little generic, but had some interesting choices (seven courses of beef, cornish game hens.) We waited around 10 minutes, and our spring rolls came. I didn't take a pic, because spring rolls look the same. Unfortunatly, these were among the worst I've had. The wrapping was firm in some places, and there was no depth or balance to the flavors. Moving on, we decided to order the Sauteed Pork with Ginger Sauce (me) and the Beef Over Fried Potatoes (Mr. C.) I asked what vegetables came in my pork dish, and he stated mushrooms and onions were included. I asked if he could please leave them out, and he said that was not possible, so 11 red alarms went off in my head about that.

Pork w/ Ginger Sauce

Overall very dissapointed with this dish. For one, it came out steaming, but it was lukewarm (can we say: microwave?) and it had way too many water chestnuts. I LOVE water chestnits, but I got like 5 of them in every bite. The pork was dry and thin, and the sauce was not spicy or very ginger-ey.

Beef Over Fried Potato

This was a little better. It came out with the same weird steaming-but-lukewarm thing, but overall it was savory and the potatoes were somewhat crispy. One credit I will give them is the chili sauce that is on the table. I don't know what brand it is, but that stuff is HOT. I loved it.

So after we were finished, I had to grab a waiter to ask for a to go box. Then he brought the check, and we waited over 10 minutes before we grabbed him again to take our payment. Sorry Mai Village, but I am never coming back. Next time, i am going to Little Szechaun.

http://www.maivillage.net/

The Uptown Cafeteria and Support Group - Minneapolis

2011-01-27T13:00:00.000-08:00

I have been waiting to try this controversial restaraunt for months, and was pleased when Mr. H and I found ourselves there on a very cold early evening. Upon entering, we were greeted with a kitschy cafeteria theme. From walls lined with blue, green and yellow cafeteria trays, to rotating desserts in a towering glass case, white and blue stools, white linoleum style countertops, and cafeteria style menus this place is definitely big on theme and color coordination. We slid into one of many booths, and reviewed the menu.

The menu is sort of the schizophrenic type. On the table, you get condiments such as sriracha, green tabasco, ketchup and mrs. butterworths syrup. The menu offers fritters, wings, potstickers, grilled cheese and po' boys, linguine, chicken and waffles, and scottish salmon alike. Some have said the mess is as much in the food as on the menu and in the decor, but I find this style of cuisine exhilirating. In addition, they have some seriously awesome drinks, which I can't exactly recall, but one is called the Bo Derek, and they are well priced in comparison to other trendy minded places. Plus, you can get a liter of Bandit wine(http://dredgereport.wordpress.com/2008/06/30/box-wine-increasingly-less-trashy/ ) for $19. That's excellent.

We finally decided on food. I went for the Turkey Burger (Wild Acres all-natural turkey with muenster cheese, avocado and green chilies - $10.99) with a side salad, and Mr. H the Hot Italian Beef with fries, after it was raved about by our server (slow-roasted sirloin, provolone, caramelized onions, house-made giardiniera - $12.99.) We waited a short while, and our server actually brought out Mr. H's sandwich first, stating to us that my sandwich would be up soon...

Hot Italian Beef

I hate to seem mean spirited, but this sandwich was terrible. The beef was bland and tough, and the "giardniera" was basically some hard carrots. The jus was worse. It tasted literally like water....dirty water at that. Mr. H did not eat more than 2 bites, but we did munch a few fries which were crispy and salty and awesome. The waitress came back and was very good about us sending the sandwich back. She apologized but wasn't annoying about it, offering to put in a different order. This time, Mr. H ordered the Buttermilk Fried Chicken (mashed potatoes, cheddar drop biscuits; 1/4 bird $12.99, 1/2 bird $16.99). As we waited, I started on my salad.

The salad was mothing special. It was just greens, and was underdressed. I was pretty underwhelmed. Then my turkey burger came...which I had to wait to eat until Mr. H got his Fried Chicken 10 minutes later.

For whatever odd reason, the turkey burger described on the online menu is not this one. This one just has avocado, pimento cheese, and sweet pickles. The turkey was ground and was very flavorful and true to the bird. The bun was nicely toasted and not overpowering the other awesome aspects of the sandwich: the velvety avocado, the bursts of rich pimento cheese and the best part (to my surprise), the sweet pickles. The pickles MAKE this sandwich, and I am forever a converted sweet pickle fan. The standard pickle spear serving on the side was the best I've ever had. Too often can these pickles me soggy, too salty and too sour. This one was firm, crunchy and the salt level was mild. Overall, I was very pleased with this dish.

Fried Chicken

I defenitely am no fried chicken-connoisseur, but I know good food, and this was off the hook good. The chicken was crunchy and juicy. The breading pulled off the bird in flakes, coating your mouth with a crunchy, yet soft texture. The best part is that the chicken was juicy. Not dry, not greasy, and not tasting too fried, the huge chunk of chicken was so appreciated by us that Mr. H needed to have his pic taken with it...

Everything else was excellent as well. The potatoes were earthy, salty and smooth. the addition of the buttermilk breading was so comforting I could have sucked my thumb. The biscuit was interesting...I do believe they have actual peppercorns in them, and that definitely lends a distinct black pepper taste to them. I personally am a fan of this, but I have heard some aren't so much.

Overall, a very mixed experience at The Uptown Cafeteria and Support Group, but I will definitely be back. Most likely in the warmer months, so I can check out the very popular and highly praised Skybar, which is said to have one of hte best rooftop views in Minneapolis.

http://uptowncafeteria.com/

http://

Wilde Roast Cafe - NE Minneapolis

2011-01-27T12:16:00.000-08:00

Wilde Roast Cafe has long been one of my favorite coffee NE Minneapolis spots. Slightly tucked away off of East Hennepin, this quaint little cafe honors it's namesake suitably. The interior is a fusion of passe and modern overall. With dark wood and a roaring fireplace, you feel the old world charm. Expanding on that theme are 4 soft, awesomely over-sized chairs, and matching sofa. Red in color, complete with antiquated floral design, and further flanked by a huge center ottoman decorated with a gold tray and candlesticks. People will seriously wait and sip coffee until these chairs become available. It is comforting to the max.

In addition to coffee libations, Wilde Roast has a full menu. Mostly famous for their desserts, they also offer sandwiches, salads, appetizers and pizzas. They do serve wine and beer, and hold cheap date night Mon-Thurs, where you can get a bottle of wine and 2 entrees for $28. Not too bad.

I've tried several menu items, and have been mostly pleased with them. The Curry Chicken Salad is savory and nutty with cashews, and you can also get it sandwich style. The meatloaf is comforting, and the Buffalo Chicken is no joke. On this day, I was curious about their burgers. With a few different varieties, I decided on the Chi Chi La Rue burger (corn salsa, avocado and cheddar on ciabatta, and I ordered the lean beef) and instead of chips, I opted for a cup of the french onion soup. I ordered my usual medium latte (served in a huge bowl of a coffeee mug) and sat down with my number, awaiting my food.

I started in on the onion soup first. It had a piece of crusty bread floating in with a blob of melted mozarella cheese. I found myself breaking it up, and just breaking down the cheese with my spoon so I wouldn't eat the whole blob at once. Overall, I found the soup to be really salty. But it was plentiful with tender onions, with nice little bursts of cheese and soggy bread. I ate it all anyways.

The burger was greasy. I'm not sure if they used lean beef. The guy who took my order did so immediately after taking care of a large order. So I'm not sure he got it right. The corn salsa was lacking. I didn't get hints of corn and spice like I though I might. And even though you can see the avocado here, it sort of got lost, as did the cheese. The ciabatta was good, nice and soft. But overall, this burger fell very flat for me.

Regardless of this entry, I would recommend anyone to go here. The food, drinks and ambience have a lot to offer, and this will definitely be a NE staple for some time to come.

http://www.wilderoastcafe.com/index.php

Benihana - Golden Valley

2011-01-05T12:44:00.000-08:00

To see away my big bro-in-law, Stuey W., we had to have a last supper. My sis, Missus. W, suggested we go to Benihana. The missus always has the last word, so off we went on a snowy night, along with myself, The Mom and Jodelle.

For those of you not familiar, Benihana is a teppenyaki style Japanese steakhouse. For those who don't follow the link, basically you sit at a table with your party and a few strangers, and watch the chef cook your food on a flat top. It's popular for the interactive aspect, and is usually a lengthy dining experience

We entered the large restaurant and were seated within a few minutes. Our party of 5 soon became a party of 8 as we looked at the menu. I was confused at the prices, thinking that maybe ordering one entree was meant to share. Turns out it's just expensive. Most in my party ordered a steak/seafood combo, and I ordered the Yakisoba (Japanese sauteed noodles with chicken and mixed vegetables topped with a special sauce and sesame seeds.) The waitress took the mess of orders thrown at her, and was accurate and prompt.

And of course I had to order my favorite beer, Asahi.

Since me and Missus W. have never had proper sushi together, I found it appropriate we share half a Caterpillar Roll. Sushi lovers must unite! It was a standard caterpillar roll - nothing extraordinary, but still yummy.

The meal starts of with Benihana's "onion"soup and salad with ginger dressing. I opted out of the onion soup since I was having so much other stuff. The reason I quoted onion is because the bowls of soup come swimming with mushrooms, so I had no food remorse. The salad came out and was actually quite good - a simple mix of iceberg lettuce, carrots and tomatoes. The lettuce was crisp and fresh and the ginger dressing was exceptional, with good heat and delicious pungency that ginger offers.

Shortly after/during our salads, our chef comes out with his food cart, loaded with the things we ordered. First, he starts by cleaning the flat top, and then starts to cook zuchinni and onion slices. In traditional teppenyaki showmanship, he creates a little volcano out of the onion slices, and it spits water from the heat and moisture of the cook top. Next, he adds mushrooms, and some small shrimps, and cooks them all seperate. When they're done he gives each person a small serving of each, along with Benihana's famous shrimp sauce (basically Japanese mac sauce), and ginger sauce with a chutney like consistency.

Pace is the name of the game here, and some little tricks are performed. The chef will flip little shrimp tails into his hat and shirt pocket while you nibble on baubles of protein and veg. After these little performances, the chef gets down to business and starts preparing rice. A big old pile of rice gets fried with a glob of garlic butter, and some veg on the side gets splashes of safflower oil until the chef unites it all into a charming heart shape. Aaaawww. While I didn't have any of my own, I did try Stuey's, and I found it to be quite bland.

Next up are the entrees. Steak and big shrimps are laid out to cook, and chef will ask how you want your steak done. Stuey W. ordered his medium, and Missus W. wanted hers medium rare. My interpretation of them went a little bit different from how they ordered them. Stuey W.'s was a little too done for me, and Missus W.'s had a good doneness.

Next up were my Yakisoba, a big pile of noodles with chicken, zuchinni and onions all cooked seperately. The noodles are tossed around and splashed with yakisoba sauce, then combined and served to your bowl.

In my (although limited) yakisoba experience, the sauce tends to be sweet, and sweetens the overall dish. I don't care for this. If I am having noodles, I want things like ginger, garlic, soy sauce, fish sauce, or even curry. The sweet aspect doesn't appeal to me, and the verdict: a yakisoba woman, I am not.

As if we weren't already crammed full of food, the meal comes with ice cream. I ordered the green tea, which had a mildly sweet green tea taste indeed. It was good, but I would probably not buy it by the tub.
Cheers and much love to you brother-in-law! See you next time!

http://www.benihana.com/

Kobe Restaurant - Plymouth

2011-01-05T10:50:00.000-08:00

Mr. H decided to surprise me with an after-the-holidays dinner, and I was surprised when he chose Kobe. I've never heard of the place, but was glad he picked it since sushi was on the brain. Kobe is mainly a Japanese restaurant and also offers the teppenyaki steakhouse experience. The timing of our visit came perfectly since I had just visited a more popular teppenyaki establishment the night before (see Benihana).

The restaurant is beautifully decorated, true to the minimal oriental style that many Asian restaurants ascribe to. Not quite upscale, but clean, dim and decorative. Spacious, with the entrance boasting a quaint bar which is open to the front, but closed off from the rest of the circular dining space surrounding it. To the left they offer regular dining tables and booths, and in the rear/ behind the bar are the teppenyaki tables. Since we were here for sushi, we took a seat at a nice booth adorned with a round, oriental-style paper lantern hanging above. So very cute.

We were notably hungry, and were eager to order. We spent quite a bit of time reviewing the menu, and I found myself getting a bit excited over the options and prices. Sometimes, (especially with teppenyaki steakhouse dining, japanese or just sushi) the prices are intimidating to the average wage slave. But these prices were reasonable, and I was pleased to see the sushi was affordable. The menu is smart, not offering too little or too many options and also offering many authentic Japanese plates. Such as; Ika Sansai -basically grilled squid topped with sweet eel sauce, or the Ika Shogayaki- the same except BBQ'd with ginger sauce. Also the Negimaki (beef or chicken rolled around scallions), Unadon (grilled eel donburi rice bowl), Yakisoba (the staple Japanese noodle dish), tako su (octopus salad) and plenty of Bento Boxes on lunch special. They also boast many Kobe beef dishes ; a burger and tartare alike (hence the name.)

We decided on a few appetizers and lots of sushi. First up were the crab puffs (cream cheese with crab wonton - $5.) I know this is pretty basic and not very Japanese, but we had to try them and I'm pleased we did!
These are the single best wontons I've had ANYWHERE. The wonton itself is the best part. Instead of being crumbly/flaky/too crunchy, it is solid and crispy like a good quality chip. You can taste a hint of oil, but they aren't oily. I found myself dipping the 4 points into the the sweet, salty and spicy red sauce, then biting them off individually. The cream cheese inside is rich, but the crab flavor really popped.. A rarity with these things. Luscious, crispy and sweet - a true delight. The only downfall is that there was only like 5 of these and you'll want about 20 of them.

The Sushi.
2 pieces of Flounder ($2.50 per piece-the ones pinkish in color) and one piece of Yellowtail sushi (also $2.50.)

I love me some Yellowtail because it possesses a mild, yet concentrated flavor. I think of it as "medium" sushi, because it is not too light, or too oily and heavy (think mackarel.) Keeping true to that rating system, the Flounder would be categorized as "light" sushi. Very pleasant and mild, with a texture that of firm butter. I loved it, and at Kobe it tasted fresh. The fish pieces are generous and thick! The only thing that had me confused was the wait time. These 3 pieces took around 15 minutes to come out. We also ordered a piece of scallop sushi, and it came out about 10 minutes after these....

Scallop Sushi ($2.50, and I could not get a good pic of it.)
This was Mr. H's favorite, but unfortunately it was my least. The raw scallop texture is indeed soft, but I found it a bit too slippery for my tastes. It also tasted very fishy, with the sweet and light notes in the background. It also overpowered the rice, as the piece on top was very large. Not sure if this just how raw scallops are, but I did not enjoy it.

The Kill Bill Roll (Blue crab, spicy tuna and avocado inside, topped with red and green tobiko - $10)I'm not sure if there is a reason for the color scheme here and I don't care. It was delicious. Very simple and clean flavors of the tuna (although not very spicy), and velvety chunks of avocado. It was with this roll I experienced the most incredible of texture experiences. You get the soft soft of the tuna and avocado against the sticky rice, but the real show stopper is the crab. Right under your molars, you get a little nugget of crumbly tempura crab. Tempura is so delicately crispy, which is why it's often filled with soft things. The textural contrast isn't extreme; rather it's so slight that it takes a quick sense to catch it. And when it's caught; it is EXTREMELY satisfying. Followed with delightful pops of tobiko in your teeth and on your tongue, you're in texture nirvana.

Ika Sansai ($6)
I am not a calamari fan, and I don't understand why people even eat the stuff. In my opinion, the fried aspect overtakes the delicate flavor and distinct texture of squid. I'm not well versed in squid, but found this to be an honorable representation of squid. The texture itself is toothsome and meaty. The taste itself is earthy, combined with sweet notes provided by the sweet eel sauce. I like to think of this as "octopus light". While I am not a fan of mushrooms, this reminded me of them. But I still really enjoyed this. Side note: do NOT attempt to eat the tentacles, as they are muscle-y and chewy and not at all meant to be eaten.

Mr. H wasn't satisfied yet, and decided he wanted some Ika sushi (raw squid - $2.50 a piece.)
I am pretty sure this is pronounced "ee-kah", but after Mr. H tried it he said he thinks it's pronounced "ick-ah" because he hated it. He said it was rubbery, and the little lines you see in the fish seemed to contain kind of stringy hairs. I would recommend this to any adventurous eater!

Since this was an Obento-Ya type experience, I felt compelled to try dessert, and we opted for the Tempura Ice Cream ( $4.)

Along with this, we were served 2 VERY hot plates. I wondered why in the world they would bring out a plate so hot? The reason why is because the ice cream inside is super frozen and very hard to spoon through. I found this out when the thing was almost gone, completely depriving myself of the true tempura ice cream experience. Next time - cut in half, assemble on hot plate, and wait a few minutes. Then: eat and enjoy crunchy creaminess.

Absolutely awesome. Just go here (and not Benihana, please.)

http://www.kobemn.com/

Porta Del Sol - Mound, MN

2010-12-18T16:21:00.001-08:00

In a land rather barren of any significantly good eats lies Porta Del Sol. Cleverly placed in an area devoid of any Mexican restaurants, Porta Del Sol has been serving Mound for a couple years. Porta Del Sol offers in house dining with no frills. They also have a drive thru (which is a little confusing seeing as how they are not fast food) and will deliver for orders over $20. I've been to this restaurant several times, and am glad for a little taste of comfort in this mom and pop shop.

On my recent visit, I decided to try the Smothered Burrito (with chicken, a burrito topped with enchilada sauce and cheese - $8.99) and the jalapeno poppers ($2.49 for 3.) Let me point out that NOTHING is fried at Porta Del Sol, which is music to my ears. Don't get me wrong: I like fried food, but I appreciate the time and care taken due to the lack of fryers. Nothing sits under heat lamps or in dirty grease all day.

The platter comes with chips and pico. While the chips are the white flour variety (personal preference is for corn - no fault of Porta's whatsoever) and never warm like I hope for, they are good. I always ask for the hot pico, which is never really hot at all. But it is fresh and light, and has all the components that create a fine pico de gallo.

Jalapeno Poppers
I was a little curious about these, since they are baked. As a result, some of the crisp is lost. But it isn't soggy or totally soft, as the exterior does offer a slight bready crunch. They are good for what they are, but I do find myself longing for more cream cheese.

Smothered Burrito
Recently, I overheard someone at the neighboring Legion mention that Porta's refried beans taste like canned. While my personal taste is for black beans, I still think that's a harsh and ill-advised statement. The beans are fine, a step above canned, and the black beans are even better. The red rice is good, much better than what I could make at home. The Burrito was delicious. The enchilada sauce is lush, and gives a nice cumin kick. The fillings are pretty standard (beans, lettuce, cheese, meat) but as a whole, the burrito is very successful. My only complaint is that my dish came out kind of lukewarm, which confused me.

In addition to these, other favorites are the gordita (meat, beans, cheese, potatoes and peppers stuffed into a pita pocket like shell. See this), the flautas (literally smothered in melted cheese, basically a meat and cheese roll up inside small corn tortillas), the tamales, the chalupa (basically a double decker style taco. Don't let the taco bell terms confuse you!) and the enchiladas are all really good. I get the chimichurri sauce with everything. I compare it to McDonalds mac sauce, but mexican. It consists of mayo, chipotles, and ketchup, and is not your traditional green chimichurri. It is spicy, sweet and smoky all at once. I can't confess as to the authenticity of Porta Del Sol, and I don't really care. It tastes damn good and a welcome addition to the culinary wasteland I inhabit.

http://www.portadelsolmound.com/

The Depot Tavern - Downtown Minneapolis

2010-12-18T15:22:00.000-08:00

Introducing itself as First Avenue's staple bar and restaurant, The Depot Tavern opened it's doors in June of 2010. Not to be confused with St. Paul's The Depot, this location provides a neutral place to hang out before or after a show. The interior space is inviting, if minimal. Be sure to bring a buck or two, because regardless of the fact that The Depot is a bit less fancy than some downtown bars, it still costs if you are drinking outside of happy hour.

Upon my arrival around 9:30 PM, The Depot was packed. Luckily there was one bar seat open on the very left end of the bar, which I (barely) managed to squish myself into. I hunkered down, knowing I had awhile to hang out since I was waiting for company later. I reviewed the menu, and trying to keep it on the cheap (which I always have to do it seems), I decided on the Bacon Pepperjack Grilled Cheese on whole wheat ($7.50) and a side salad for $2 extra. I gave my order to a less than enthusiastic bartender (seriously, isn't that whole attitude thing so 2006??) and viewed the 2 tv screens which broadcast the current happenings on stage, in both the mainroom and the 7th St. Entry (Soul Asylum in one, Arctic Universe in the other.)

The Salad
I admit I was a little curious as to why I was never asked what kind of dressing I wanted or anything. But I figured out that all side salads must universally be the cesaer. The romaine was crunchy and fresh, but the salad was as overdressed as an evening gown at a beach party. I also think I tasted actual salt...I like salt, but was confused as to why it may have been sprinkled on top? The best part was the croutons. No overkill here, just a few croutons with some rye variations thrown in. They tasted homemade, and were soft and crumbly instead of hard and stale. Overall, an ok salad.

Bacon Pepperjack Grilled Cheese
I opted out of the potato selection and stuck with kettle chips. This was a slightly above average grilled cheese. The bread was hearty but softly grilled, making it a textural delight. The bacon was excellently executed, crumbled, crisp and salty throughout. The spice of the pepper jack came through well, and wasn't overly greasy. I got some significant garlic undertones somewhere as well, but I couldn't decipher if it was sandwich or salad ultimately.

Overall, The Depot was just ok. Nothing revolutionary. It felt a bit impersonal, and provides a neutral place to hang out if you have some extra time between engagements downtown. Seeing how the place thinned out around 1030 PM, and was near empty more towards close, I assume most people agree with my viewpoint. The Depot is likely here to stay. As they say; location, location, location.

http://thedepottavern.com/

Tea House - Dinkytown

2010-12-17T11:52:00.000-08:00

Teahouse is best known for their authentic Chinese/Szechuan cuisine. Adding onto their already popular locations in Plymouth and Downtown Minneapolis, they've established themselves in Dinkytown. Kitty corner to the Days Inn, in the old Bakers Square building, my long burning curiosity found itself there on a chilly Monday afternoon.

The exterior is still very Bakers Square-ish. But the interior is slightly redone with oriental touches. A silky, floral accented material lines the booths, with a few cozy tables placed throughout. There is a small bar area, and a nice touch of color on a large wall with a glow of purple hued lights, and some botanical designs.

I sat in a booth, and started to examine the menu. I was surprised that I only recieved one menu. Isn't there supposed to be something about them having two menu's? One with more American-ized Chinese, and one with authentic Chinese? I was a little suprised at how standard some of the menu items were. On the contrary, they do offer some nice szechuan snacks (szechuan jelly noodles, spicy pork stomach) along with the more standard things we are used to seeing.

I was lunching it and wanted spicy, so I opted for the Chengdu Dan Dan Noodles on lunch special ($6.95) and cream cheese wontons ($4.25). I was feeling a bit unenthusiastic that day, which I'm sure came through in my overall demeanor. My waitress however, was great. Instead of scurrying away, she interjected little bits of casual sunshine here and there, without being overjoyed and annoying. She complimented my food choices, then brought me a pot of hot jasmine tea.

Cream Cheese Wontons

They come 6 to the plate, and with 2 sauces; your standard sweet and sour, and an INCREDIBLY hot mustard sauce. I'm serious - a little dot of this on my wonton made my nose burn and my eyes water significantly. The wontons themselves were nice - the wrapping itself was a bit more thick and chewy than I personally prefer. I like a thinner, more crispy skin. However, I was grateful for the abundance of cream cheese inside. Rich and globby, in the best way possible.

Chengdu Dan Dan Noodles

I was a little put off by the looks of this at first. I'm not sure exaclty what was crumbled on top. And secondly, it sat in a pool of oil and sauce. I gave it all a good stir and started in. The noodles were great. Chewy and thick...not quite an udon, but close. The spice level was very solid. I can take some moderate heat, and this dish delivered that and then some. There were pleasant traces of peanut oil, and I began to appreciate the sauciness of the dish. There wasn't a lot of complexity here, only a simple pleasure. I couldn't finish it all, and when I reheated it later, the spice level was more intense. Overall, a good spicy noodle dish for a cold day.

I'm not going to do a greats/not so greats anymore. I've outgrown it. But I will add the Urban Spoon link from time to time so you can see how things rate overall.

(link)

Kip's Irish Pub - St. Louis Park Minnesota

2010-12-06T13:14:00.000-08:00

Mr H and I went on one of famous weekend restaurant hunts, and wound up at Kip's Irish Pub. Word has it that the pub was disassembled and shipped in separate pieces here to Minnesota. And it is a great looking little pub with standard dark wood, but also showcases some nice celtic design on many walls. It is a spacious bar and dining area, with some cozy nooks to escape to. The fact that it's inside the Marriott SW is a little disorienting, but ok.

Mr H. and I were seated, and immediately were uncomfortable. The chairs are the hodge podge sort you find in a irish pub themed restaurant, and some were quite stiff. We asked to change tables, and our waitress was less than pleasant with us. After we had perused the menu for awhile, Mr. H inquired the waitress opinion on some different things. To which she replied "Hm, they're all pretty good" or something of that equivalent. The menu reads like a schrizophrenic landscape. You can even get tuna tataki! How about an oyster bake with your reuben? My head, it spun.

We eventually decided on the Guinness Steak Shepherds Pie (him- and curiously NOT on the online menu...), and the BLT with fruit (me.)

BLT ($11)Basically this was my least favorite sandwich I've like, ever eaten. It was sloppy, the construction was of, the fillings were sparse and it wasn't flavorful overall. I'm sorry, but that's all I have to say about it.

Guinness Steak Shepherds Pie ($12)

It sure looks pretty, but that's where any and all attraction stops. The potatoes tasted instant, the whole dish was kinda lukewarm, and the savory gravy factor that you expect inside was nil. The garnish was almost obscene and completely unnecessary, and the 2 little pieces of burnt hard bread on the side were SUPPOSED to be irish soda breads? I'm sorry to give a bad review, as I ALWAYS try to find positives, but I won't go back to Kip's again for the food, but maybe I will give the bar a shot!

http://www.kipspub.com/

Raku - Edina, Minnesota

2010-12-06T12:36:00.000-08:00

On my never-ending quest for a new sushi place to try, I am fortunate to be in a state where I will likely never run out of new sushi places to try! When I get a sushi craving, it hits hard. So Mr. H and I put our noses to the ground in search of a new, but CHEAP, sushi place.

We came upon Raku mainly because of the lunch specials. With a tight budget, I'm all about the sushi lunch experience! Mr H., also my chauffeur on many occasions, drove us to this crisp Edina shopping area in which Raku is nestled. Parking's a bitch. At least they have a ramp, albeit not a very convenient one.

Raku reckons itself an upscale Japanese fusion restaurant. The menu does boast of some seemingly maybe-kinda fusion items, and the sushi rolls are cleverly seperated into "raw" and " non-raw" categories. People who fear sushi because of the raw, this is the place for you. The specialty rolls are more diverse than many places I've been to, offering a chicken tempura roll and brown rice substitute. The decor is very modern and sleek. But as with many other restaurants I frequent for lunch lately, it was empty. I kind of wonder how a lot of places are staying afloat anymore? Unless you are in a prime location (and even sometimes THEN), it seems as if I am walking into many empty spaces these days.

So we sat in a nice booth, and I ordered my standard Ki-Ippon. The lunch menu offers a set menu for $16 a person. From it, you may order one soup OR salad, one appetizer, and one entree. We opted for the two rolls (one spicy crunchy salmon, one yellowtail) for $9 lunch special, which comes with miso soup. I also ordered gyoza, my sushi lunch appetizer staple.

Gyoza
Gyoza never varies much in flavor or texture. Regardless, this is one of the better gyoza I've had. It was firm on the outside, and soft and savory on the inside. The dipping sauce gave that sweet/sour/salty thing I love, and the pickled veggies on the side were lovely.

Spicy Crunchy Salmon and Yellowtail rolls

Normally, my sushi staple is unagi or yellowtail. To my surprise however, I enjoyed the spicy salmon roll the most. The yellowtail roll (wrapped inside the nori) was nondescript, and the nori paper on the outside was like thick paper. It wasn't overly chewy, but it wasn't as suple as I've experienced in other places. The Spicy Crunchy Salmon was excellent. Though it wasn't very spicy, it was well balanced texturally. I got that sushi umami that keeps us sushi lovers coming back for more and more. The pickled ginger was a tad too sweet, and the wasabi also seemed a little dull. The miso soup was one of the better I've had. Miso soup is a bona fide mystery to me. The flavors are very complex, and I don't exactly enjoy it. But I'm trying to figure it out. As with many Japanese foods, it is a full blown intellectual experience for me.

Greats
-Gyoza
-Atmosphere is perfect for a romantic night out
-They serve beer in the cutest glasses ever
-Spicy Crunchy Salmon Roll

Not so greats
-Parking
-Yellowtail roll
-that's it.

http://www.rakumn.com/index_flash.html

Stanley's - at Examiner.com

2010-12-02T12:31:00.000-08:00

http://www.examiner.com/bars-in-minneapolis/stanley-snortheast-bar-room-review

The Spring Street Tavern - on my examiner.com

2010-12-02T11:21:00.000-08:00

New review, please check it out!

http://www.examiner.com/bars-in-minneapolis/spring-street-tavern-and-club-underground-review

My Examiner review of the Knight Cap in Northeast Minneapolis

2010-12-01T09:50:00.001-08:00

Check it out! One of my favorite dive bars in all of Northeast!

http://www.examiner.com/bars-in-minneapolis/the-knight-cap-a-classic-northeast-minneapolis-dive-review

The New Psycho Suzi's location!

2010-11-29T14:01:00.001-08:00

Read all about it on my examiner.com page!

http://www.examiner.com/bars-in-minneapolis/the-new-psycho-suzi-s-revamped-and-less-cramped-review

Any feedback or critique is welcome.

I write on Examiner.com now!

2010-11-29T09:50:00.000-08:00

Hey all! So, I am now an Examiner at examiner.com! Basically, it's a site compiled of people who like to blog and write about a wide array of topics. My topic is Minneapolis Bars. I do have a chance to get paid, but that depends on how much of an audience I gain, and how much traffic comes through my pages. I am waiting for my very first article to be reviewed and activated, but in the meantime you can go look at my bio here: www.examiner.com/bars-in-minneapolis/katrina-copeland

Just looking at my bio helps increase the views on my page...and eventually helps me make money at this silly hobby of mine. So please, support a fellow blogger and go check it out! Oh, and be sure to stay tuned here for my very first review, which is on the new Psycho Suzi's space in NE Minneapolis! I won't be reviewing food over there, but I will continue to do that here.

Happy Holidays!

Sticks Restaurant - Minneapolis

2010-11-12T11:50:00.000-08:00

Sticks is connected to the wonderful Acme Comedy Club. They are known for having pretty great dinner/show packages, which I have taken advantage of in the past. I found out last minute that my FAVORITE comedian Emo Phillips was performing, so I was all over it!

Mr. H, myself and Ms. K piled in the car and off we went to the late showing. We each purchased a dinner/show package which works like this: $30 per person for the show, and up to $16 towards any entree on the menu. The best part is that you can simply call and make a reservation, then pay at the door when you arrive. They're never too busy, as I have never been turned down or redirected to a different time slot. You also get reserved seating, which is usually fairly close to the front. Basically, you pay for your own booze, or any difference in a higher priced entree. The entrees are anywhere from $13-$23, and they also have appetizers and dessert. The decor is quite elegant and romantic, with white tablecloths, dim lighting, and candles. The exposed brick and wood, complete with fireplace completes the ambience.

We three arrived, and ordered drinks. The drink menu has a few wines, and an assortment of specialty cocktails, martinis, and scotches. The alcohol isn't the cheapest, at around $8 a pop for a martini or specialty drink. I ordered the Red Apple Martini, which came in a small-ish martini glass and was good, but not great. Sticks menu is simple without being boring. I ordered the Grilled 8 oz. Angus Sirloin ( $16), and my company ordered the Seafood Linguine ($17.50) and the Mushroom Ravioli ($15.) They do serve a warm bread basket, which was perfectly standard.

8 oz Angus SirloinOk, so I don't get the whole meat-laying-on-top-of-a-knife thing. But whatever. This dish was excellent. The steak was cooked to a perfect medium, a seasoned crust was successfully achieved, and the meat was succulent. The potatoes were simple and fantastic, just 2 red potatoes cooked soft and lightly seasoned. The vegetables contained a lot of onions and zucchini, making it not my favorite but not terrible either. I was very pleased with this - it was well balanced, well composed and exquisite.

Mushroom Ravioli (Roasted Portabella, Shiitake and Crimini Mushrooms with Caramelized Onions, Mozzarella and Grana Padano Cheese Wrapped in Egg Ravioli, Served in a Marsala Mushroom Cream Sauce.)

Ok, so I know it looks like this thing has a mound of greasy cheese on it. Looks are deceiving! And admittedly, I was hesitant to try this because I don't care for mushrooms. But I folded and tried a bite, and oh my HEAVENS... it was pillowy, mushroomy, creamy, saucey DELIGHT. The cream sauce is rich and deep, the earth and meatiness of the mushrooms melt in your mouth, and the ravioli itself is pillowy but firm. This dish alone has almoooost turned me to mushrooms, as I will order it the next 3 places I dine that offer it. This dish was rich and satisfying, without being over the top and clingy. Was it the Grana Padano?? Who knows? I loved it.

Seafood Linguine - the picture of this didn't come out.Sorry!!
(Black Tiger Shrimp, Scallops, Little Neck Clams and Mussels, Sautéed with White Wine, Fresh Garlic, Seafood Broth and Plum Tomatoes.)

I was a little surprised when this arrived to the table swimming in red sauce. The description is a little misleading, as the sauce was a little spicy, and very marinara-like. It was a good red sauce, but overall this fell a little flat for me. I was expecting something light, fresh, with toothsome ocean aspects here and there. It wasn't any of those.

We finished in time to get to the show, even though they have a creme brulee cheesecake (my two favorite desserts EVER) that I MUST try when I go back.

Greats:
-The atmosphere- mellow and romantic.
-The service was spot on - not too soon or too long, and our waiter was down to earth and not annoying.
-The sirloin steak
-The awesome, off the hook mushroom ravioli

Not so greats
-Drinks are expensive and not worth the price (small, weak, etc)
-The description of the linguine was a bit off what we actually got..
The starter salad is nothing special.

http://www.acmecomedycompany.com/index2.php

Barrio - Downtown Minneapolis

2010-11-03T14:57:00.001-07:00

Having never been to Barrio, and knowing I would be downtown before the Mark Lanegan/ Isobel Campbell concert, Mr. C and I opted to pop into Barrio.

Having been attracted by their small plates AND their prices, I was even more intrigued upon seeing the outside. Small, but not overly fancy or casual. We walked into a very cramped small space. To their credit, it was a Saturday night. I think we were lucky that we even got a table within 5 minutes. We were seated at the front window and perused the menu. The dinner menu consists of small plates for $7.50, and tacos and enchiladas for about $4 a pop. Wonderful! The larger dinner plates are around $18, however. The drink menu boasts around 100 tequila's, margaritas ($10 average) and several innovative and quite tasty sounding cocktails (EL TORO: Michelada style beer, slightly citrusy spicy salty on ice - $6) including non alcoholic (BABY CITA:
Limeade Martini with Cherry Foamer- $4.50.) I opted for a simple red sangria, which was better than most places I've had it, but not excellent. It was a bit watery, and the fruit element was underwhelming.

THE FOOD. (forgive the lack of pics - I lost a bunch so the pics/quality here are limited.)

Guacamole
I will begin by saying that I'm not sure why this is grouped in with small plates at $7.50. Furthermore confusing are the...radishes. However, this was a great guacamole, if a salty guacamole. It is served in a very heavy stone bowl, and it doesn't look like much but it was plenty enough for the two of us, keeping in mind we ordered a bunch of other stuff too. Side note: it came with this red sauce that I want to bottle and hoard away from others. It's smokey, tangy, a wee bit spicy, and gorgeous.

ADOBO GRILLED CHICKEN QUESADILLA (with roasted corn and poblano
peppers.)

Again more..radishes. Aside from that, the quesidilla was pretty standard. Tasty for sure, but nothing special popped out. The corn did add a lovely element to it.

DIVER SCALLOP CEVICHE (with grapefruit, orange,
cilantro & avocado.)

I have never had ceviche anywhere besides my own house. This was a must try, and it definitely did not disappoint. Chunks of soft, light scallops bathed in light citrus, sprinkled with some avocado. My only complaint would be that the citrus was a tad too light. Fortunately, they put little slices of habanero in there to balance it all out a bit. Overall, it was as good as I imagined a scallop ceviche to be!

SOFT SHELL CRAB TACO (with watermelon-tomatillo pico de gallo and avocado - $4)
This came out last, and was the least favorite option. The crab inside is deep fried, but soft. The taco shell is nice and soft; not hard from cooking, or too stale. But it was unremarkable. I didn't get the watermelon anywhere, and overall it was a little bland.

Afterwards came tequila time. I opted for the Sauza Cien Anos reposado, with a side chaser of white grapefruit cherry soda. Oh...I didn't mention those? Those little pops of light and bubble after the tequila bites you? They offer them as "tequila compadres", and they are $1.50 apiece! ( Blood Orange Soda,Tamarind, Cinnamon Cola, Apple Ginger Soda, Red Bull etc.) Excellent.

The Sauza was not my favorite tequila, and our server was none the more wise about what it was like when I inquired. That was the only problem I encountered with the service during my visit. I've heard people complain about it, but for us it was bang on. The food came out in perfect timed sequence, about 5-10 min between each plate. Especially for how extremely busy they were, I give them credit for being so spot on.

Greats
-Atmosphere. I want to go back when it's less busy for sure.
-Tequila Compadres!
-Scallop Ceviche
-The red sauce
-The service was good-food was timed well.

Not so greats
-It was really busy
-The soft shell crab taco
-Radishes?
- Guac is 7 bux

http://www.barriotequila.com/Barrio_mpls.html

Stanley's Bar Room - NE Mpls

2010-10-23T10:26:00.000-07:00

It was with much anticipation that Mr. C and I approached Stanley's on a invitingly chilly Wednesday evening. Myself (and many others in the Minneapolis area) have been eagerly awaiting the revamp of the old Stasiu's space. So, off we went!

The exterior doesn't look totally different from Stasiu's, with the exception of a patio and some windows in lieu of a haggard wood exterior. The interior is another story. It's completely different. I won't go into it much here, as you can see plenty of pics on Stanley's web site. For me personally, I felt the ghost of The Times past in my bones...dark wood, dim lighting, same type of crowd.

We grabbed a spot by the window and perused food and drink menu's. Stanley's boasts over 30 (!!) beers on tap. This is a list that many beer enthusiasts would be pleased with, with over half of them being local brews. The beer list conveniently describes each beer, and also includes the alcohol content (but not the price..) I had a tough time choosing, so our waiter brought me 2 samples, which I immediately did not like. He suggested I try something different, so I got 2 other samples to try, one of which I did like this time. When the waiter came back, I pointed to the one I liked (which was obviously lighter in color than the other one) and said that's what I wanted. Somehow, the waiter ended up bringing me a Brau Brothers Scotch Ale (which was what I THOUGHT was the one I liked) but it was the wrong one. We all looked in confusion at the sample beer I had in front of me, the one I liked (confused yet?) and wondered which one it was. I apologized to the waiter who basically shoved the Brau Bros beer at me and said "here, just take this" and promptly walked away. Time out.

I know that I probably got confused over which beer I was ordering. And I know I ordered 4 samples, and it was very nice to be accomodated as such. However, as a server, it is YOUR job to remember what people like, especially if you are serving/suggesting different things that the customer is indecisive about. Never should you get impatient with a customer because they got confused about what they tasted/ordered. I know to some, service doesn't matter. But to me, it does.

So I marched over to the bar with my beer, told the bartender I didn't care for it and he refilled it with a beer of my choice, no questions asked. And to Stanley's credit, they have a very unique, yet accessible and affordable wine list. The cheapest wine by the glass is a PINOT!! (Napa Cellars Pinot Noir - $5.50.) Very nice!

Whew. So after all that, we started looking at food. Stanley's menu offers modern american food/comfort food; sandwiches, soups, and entrees (meatloaf, beef brisket, grilled cheese, beet salad.) Mr. C and I decided to share a Stanley's burger (Stuffed with brisket and gouda, served with carmelized onions and skin on fries - $12) and the Crispy Sausage Stuffed Olives ($3.)

Shitty phone pic time! (The Olives)
I know you can't really see it well, but there are 5 olives and they are breaded. I don't think they are deep fried (I don't think you CAN deep fry an olive??) but they are light and crisp. The salty brine of the olive against the meatiness of the sausage is interesting. I wouldn't say one marries to the other especially well, but overall it is quite a tasty treat.

Stanley's Burger
The burger was cooked perfectly, It was a firm medium, which is the opposite of a sloppy medium. Sometimes, mediums just drip. And the buns get soggy, and your arms get messy. This was very flavorful, but the brisket and gouda inside were mostly undetcted. The bun offered nothing special, and the pickles were more cucumber than pickle. The fries, although skin on and tasty, were soft and borderline soggy. We devoured every single thing in about 5 minutes. The size wasn't suitable for sharing, so I recommend this as a one person meal.

Overall, I will go back to Stanley's and keep trying. Even if for nostalgia sake alone. The atmosphere isn't suited quite to my tastes (dives for LIFE.) However, you can't beat a $5.50 pinot noir in a stemless wine glass in a laid back place.

http://www.stanleysbarroom.com/index.php

Ciento- St. Louis Park

2010-09-29T14:05:00.000-07:00

Ciento is a new mexican restaurant where Major's once stood. It boasts itself a tequila bar and mexican kitchen. They serve the usual Mexiamerican food - enchiladas, quesadillas, tacos and some combination plates. On a quite hungry Tuesday evening, Mr. H, his son, and I decided to try this new place out.

I admit - I was judgmental about this place. Could it be that a restaurant replacing Majors is at all good? Look how brazenly and generically it's displayed, easily viewable to 394 passerby! I entered with some trepidation.

The interior is what you would expect - some mexican plates adorning the walls, pillars, warm colors, the bathrooms appropriately marked in Spanish. We grabbed an available booth and hunkered down.

They do indeed boast 100 tequilas anywhere from $4 to $85 (Patron Burdeos..) a pop. We weren't in a tequila shot mood (Tuesday night...5 PM!) but Mr. H ordered the Tajito (Don Julio Blanco, agave nectar, lime juice, mint leaves, club soda - 8.00.) It arrived quickly, along with our chips and salsa, which they offer for $1.99. The drink was awesome. What is basically a tequila mojito gets a little twist with agave nectar (instead of sugar) and lime juice (almost sure they used sweetened- a HUGE difference) and it was just perfect. It was balanced perfectly, with the lime at the center, backed up by mint, bubbly soda, a hint of sweetness and silver tequila. Mr. H thought it should be sweeter/ have more mint, but I prefer them a bit more simple. Probably the best mojito I've ever had, besides my own.

We finally ordered (the menu isn't 5 pages long, thankfully) and I ordered the Camarones (Grilled flour tortillas with grilled achiote shrimp, grilled pineapple, diced onion, cilantro - $9.99) and Mr. H the Chimichanga with Carnita (Crisp fried burrito filled with your choice of meat and rice then topped with salsa verde, queso blanco or ranchera sauce. Served with lettuce,
sour cream, pico de gallo and charro beans - $8.99) and then we dug into our chips and salsa, which were another pleasant surprise. The chips were warm, thin and crispy; not crunchy and a hard assault on your mouth. The salsa was a hint sweet, a hint spice and lots of tomato, and was a nice mix of sauce to chunky. Best chips and salsa I've had. The waitress offered us hot salsa, and said it was really hot. We weren't fazed, and she brought us a green sauce that we dug into with vigor. After about 10 seconds, it hit us. The waitress wasn't kidding. That stuff was seriously spicy. We didn't even touch it after that.

CamaronesI was pleased with the presentation and size of the entree. It didn't make me want to run away, and it looked very appetizing and like good authentic Mexican tacos. In each, there were 3 plump shrimp which were succulent and sweet. There was a good hint of cilantro and lime, and not much onion (which I personally like. I hate being overpowered with onion.) The shells were warm and not too dry, but chewy and soft. The only thing that threw me was the pineapple, It was a little too firm, and it didn't meld together anywhere. It wasnt unpleasant, but it was...misplaced. The rice was a bit sweet, and the charro beans are OFF THE HOOK. They are pinto beans with BACON. They are smokey, salty and awesome. Overall very very pleased with my dish.

Chimi with Carnita

I personally loved this. The pork was very, very savory and tender. The best pork I've had in a long time. The rice to meat ratio was like 4 - 10. I hate getting a ton of rice in my burritos. This had lots of juicy tender meat, and I loved it. Mr. H didn't care for it too much, and though it was too one note. I can see where he is coming from, as it could have used another element- maybe spicy or salty? - to balance it out.

To wrap up the night, we decided to try a shot from the tequla list. At the top of the list is the " Oro" section (the cheaper stuff - $4-$5) and there listed was a Sauza Giro and a Sauza Gold. I like Sauza, and asked the waitress what the difference was? She wasn't sure, but said she would ask the bartender. I prepared for a long wait, but she was back in 5 minutes explaning the Giro has cane sugar and the gold is just a gold tequila. We ordered one of each, and they also came within 5 minutes (our waitress was ON IT.) Served in skinny tall shot glasses, we imbibed these magical potions. Indeed, the Giro is more sweet and nice, and the Gold is more smoke and burn. Awesome end to the meal.

Greats:
-Chips and salsa
-Camarones
-Chimichanga
-Tajito
-Cheap tequila (but good tequila.)
-Our waitress

Not so greats
-That it displays itself out to passerby like a whore on Lake Street.

http://www.ciento100.com/

Sakana Sushi - Wayzata

2010-09-27T13:25:00.000-07:00

I had a mad sushi craving, and decided to go to Sakana despite having a very medicore experience there on my birthday. Meh, it's close and was a nice day, and I was in lunchin' mode!

Sakana is in terribly yuppie downtown Wayzata. The decor is somewhat traditional for a Japanese place. No frills or glitter, just some cozy seating and a sushi bar. They offer traditional American-Japanese fare (gyoza, tempura, noodles, sashimi and sushi, fish e.t.c.) and while the sushi is priced normally, the entrees are quite expensive. Today, they had a lunch special for 2 sushi rolls for $10 ( a choice of the basics: Cali roll, Boston Roll, tuna, spicy salmon etc.) I was pretty hungry, so I ordered the Shumai (steamed shrimp dumplings) and one Spicy Yellowtail roll and one Eel and Cucumber roll.

Shumai
Shumai are usually the same everywhere I go. This one was not much different, except the shrimp didn't get as lost in the softness of the filling These are usually a little mushy, but not in a baby food way, more of a yummy little steamed dumpling-type of way. The sesame ponzu sauce was light, salty and sweet. Perfect.

Spicy Yellowtail Roll
Eel and Cucumber Roll
This has seriously been my best sushi experience to date. The rolls were not at all fishy. They were light, tasted fresh and were constructed excellently, with a swipe of spicy mayo on the plate. I struggled to eat a few of the larger yellowtail pieces, but I've developed a strategy, which is to bite one half and chew it in my mouth while still holding the other piece up to my mouth with the sticks. This way, I can chew and make a bit more room in my mouth to fit the rest of the roll in. It sounds like it might look gross, but it actually is pretty methodicall. Bite, chew chew, then chomp goes the rest of the roll. Any flimsily made roll would fall apart at this maneuver, but not these! The mayo was excellent...I can't place what they flavored it with, but it was smokey and spicy. The yellowtail rolls had just a hint of spice - so I doctored it up with lots of wasabi, which is ok by me!

What makes the ultimate sushi experience for me is the mouth-feel. Sometimes you get kinda fishy, sometimes you get kinda messy or too spicy. But SOMETIMES you get lush, velvet, fresh perfection, and this was it. I find myself attempting methods to get the best out of each roll, because it's just so good you want to do something to savor it and take it higher.

I'm glad Sakana is close. My next plan is to go there and try the mackarel and see how it differs from Wakame (which was much more underwhelming.)

Greats
-Everything

http://www.sakanamn.com/index.html

Chimborazo - NE Minneapolis

2010-09-27T12:50:00.001-07:00

Going to Chimborazo has been a long time coming, and the little corner Ecuadorian restaurant has gotten a lot of stellar reviews. Mr. H and I decided to venture there for lunch on a sunny Sunday afternoon.

The interior is pretty bare bones, but we didn't expect a posh decor. We were there for the menu, which is ambitious and affordable. From ceviche (shrimp cocktail with red onion, tomato, lime, and tostados.) to Lomo saltado o pollo saltado (Stir-fried marinated chicken or beef with peppers, onions, tomato, and fried potatoes. Served with rice and avocado.) Since we were out for lunch items, we didn't get any entrees. They have pretty good lunch specials, so we centered on those and ordered.

I was seriously considering the ceviche (since I've made it but never had it out anywhere..) but Mr. H loves his empanandas, so we decided on 1 beef empanada (savory beef turnover- around $3) and 1 cheese empanada (cheese filled turnover dusted with sugar- same price.)

Beef empanada

Cheese empananda

Excuse my lack of food sophistication in this blog. I am not familiar with this cuisine, so I will describe it the best I can in general terms. The empanadas as a whole weren't remarkable. I am admittedly (possibly dumbly) baffled by the powdered sugar on the cheese one, and I found it to be bland. It's very simple, just a mild cheese inside a fried shell. The beef one was slightly more flavorful, but held the same simplicity. They were not remarkable.

Muchín de yuca (Three cassava croquettes filled with onion and cheese. Served with aji criollo for dipping-forgive me for forgetting the prices on stuff.)

These were lovely and soft. Again, not a huge flavor sensation, and I'm not familiar with yuca or cassava....but OH the aji criollo! Very reminiscent of Indian mint chutney- spicy and cilantro brightness. I could drink the stuff. It was well paired with these lush lovelies.

Llapingachos (Three cheese-filled potato pancakes served with egg and peanut sauce.)

Wipe out your pre-conceived notions of potato pancakes. These were thick little potato patties, served over fried egg and served with a peanut sauce. These were fluffy, but substantial. Very satisfactorily potato, but for some reason I can't remember I didn't care for the peanut sauce.

Sanduche de pollo (Roasted chicken with cheese and aji criollo on a bolillo roll.)

Leave it to me to order a sandwich, huh? This sandwich was above average, for several reasons. A) it was not overly stuffed with sloppy fillings. It very simply was just chopped chicken with some spices and a mild white cheese. B) it wasn't too dry, though there was not sauce on it. It's served with that awesome aji criollo, so it was very much all good. C) Somehow, they perfected toasty char on the inside of the sandwich bread like no other. Seriously, I have never had such an awesome textural contrast between the nice toasty crunch on the inside of the bread, to the soft outside and firm filling. Such a pleasing mouth feel, you want to keep eating for that reason alone. And the salad on the side was quite good. I was very impressed by their vinagrette specifically. It avoided being too tart, but stayed bright with a touch of lime. Perfect.

I definitely need to go back to Chimborazo to get an entrada experience!

Greats:
-Llapingachoes. Yummy potato heaven.
-The lime vinagrette
-AJI CRIOLLO SAUCE.
-Sanduche de pollo (successfully good natured.)
-Lots of great looking stuff for future visits!

Not so greats
-Beef empanada
-Cheese empanada
-Atmosphere lacks ambience.

http://www.chimborazorestaurant.com/

Buca Di Beppo- Minneapolis

2010-09-27T12:16:00.000-07:00

Buca has been doling out $10 off coupons lately like hotcakes, so me and my loyal Mr. C went out to experience this old Italian staple.

As many know, Buca serves family style. Meaning that you get a lot of food. You can order 2 sizes: small or large. Small feeds 2-3 people, and large 4-6. Buca offers a lot of chef boyardee type entrees (ravioli definitely has it's place amongst italian food, but don't tell that to Michale Chiarello) that seem pretty americanized. But that definitely does not stop it from tasting good.

I was somewhat surprised by the somewhat chain-ey look to the menus. Buca in Mineapolis has a great hodge podged/old fashioned feel to it, with old pictures occupying every inch of the walls and even old kitschy stuff in the bathrooms. Upon entering, you will be met with a cardboard Danny Devito. It's a cross between being annoyingly and generically italian and completely comfortable all at once. But I adore that they purposely serve mismatching dishes. Feels like home (a generic one with photos of Sly Stallone and Devito on the wall in the entry.)

Tomato Caprese Salad (10.95 for a small- we were hungry and ate like half of it before taking a pic. Sorry.)
This was overall pretty tasty, but a bit too salty. I especially appreciated the huge basil leaves- beautiful and herbacious. The tomatoes were firm and sweet, the cheese mild and buttery. A good appetizer overall.

For our entree: The Spicy Chicken Rigatoni (Awaken your taste buds with a new favorite - tender chicken breast sautéed with garlic and red pepper, tossed with peas, a spicy rosa sauce and imported Italian rigatoni pasta. $18.95 for the small.) REALLY sorry about the shitty pictures. But, y'know.

I was extremely surprised by not only how well balanced and amazing this was, but by how PERFECTLY the pasta was cooked. I'm not kidding. I've eaten at Rinata, and this pasta was cooked better. Nice and toothsome, with a creamy, smokey and spicy sauce. The chicken was perfect throughout, never chewy, dry or too sparse.

Overall, I need to go to Buca again ASAP. With an appetizer, entree, and 2 glasses of wine, Mr. C and my bill was under $40 (after the coupon.) Success!!

Greats
-Mismatching dishes
-The spicy chicken rigatoni
-The rigatoni was perfect and awesome
-The wine list isn't amazing, but it's not totally generic either, and is affordable.

Not so greats
-Chainey feel to the menus
-Our waitress wasnt memorable at all, but meh
-Parking can really suck in the area
-Salt level in the caprese salad

http://www.bucadibeppo.com/default.aspx

Wakame Sushi and Asian Bistro - St. Louis Park

2010-09-16T17:30:00.000-07:00

My sushi hankering came back today, so I found myself looking for the place with the best lunch special. happy hour and ended up at Wakame. They offer your standard sushi, nigiri, specialty rolls and standard japanese fare (bento boxes, teriyaki's) along with thai stir fry and noodle dishes.

The decor is nothing special, but it is a nice little space. I'm always glad to go somewhere that isn't overwhelmingly trendy, but still somewhat refined. I had the pleasure of sitting right next to (what I assumed to be) a Russian party of seven people. They were enjoying themselves and it was ear-pleasing to listen to them.

Wakame actually has great happy hour choices, with reduced prices on appetizers (i opted for the steamed dumplings = $4.25 for happy hour), specialty rolls (i opted for the Hot Spicy Girl Roll = $8.95) and cheap nigiri (i opted for my beloved Unagi at $2.25 and Mackarel - yes MACKAREL, at 1.50. You get one piece each.)

Steamed Dumplings (my phone will only take good pictures when it's daytime and I am by a direct source of light!)

These were actually quite good. The dipping sauce was the best dumpling sauce I've had to date..it is not overly salty, and not too bland. It also has a little kick of spice to it thanks to a light hand of chiles, and green scallions. Overall, very good.

Hot and Spicy Girl Roll (spicy tuna, spicy yellowtail, and crunchy bits, topped with spicy salmon & crunchy bits, drizzled with spicy mayo sauce) and my Unagi and Mackarel nigiri.

I started with the Mackarel. I've been quite curious about it since hearing many unfavorable things about the flavor. Indeed, it is quite fishy. It did not, however, have the pungency I was anticipating. I probably won't eat it again, but it wasn't terrible. The texture is fine, maybe a bit more firm than yellowtail, but not quite salmon. The unagi was not the best I've had. Unagi can taste either too fishy or too smokey, and this was on the fishy side. I've oinly ever had mild, sweet, fresh tasting unagi at like 2 other places. Maybe it's me??

The roll was quite good. The big pieces you see in the pic are actually cut in half, which I was grateful for. Quite often, specialty roll pieces are too big. I want a good bite, and while these were definitely substantial. they were not difficult to eat. The fish was nice, though I struggled to find any yellowtail. I think I just may be a sushi purist (what??) Anytime there are 2 or more fish mixed together, it gets fuzzy for me. I can't distinctly taste any one thing. It's still delicious, but becomes more complex. The tempura crunch is always appreciated and toasty, especially against the softness of the roll. It was all supple, no firm. It was quite spicy. I am usually pretty surprised that spicy rolls actually ARE spicy. I can tolerate a moderate-high level of spice, and this roll satisfied that well.

Greats
-Cozy, unassuming atmosphere
-Great prices (i got a ton of sushi and appetizer for under $20)
-Dumplings were tasty
-The Hot and Spicy Girl Roll
-Listening to Russian..or Polish maybe?

Not so greats
-Unagi nigiri
-Mackarel
-Not so great on happy hour drinks..but who can blame them, as they are located in a well populated shopping area.
-That's it.

http://wakamebistro.com/default.aspx

Houlihans - Chanhassen

2010-09-16T17:11:00.000-07:00

**NOTE: I edited this because I found a bunch more pics of stuff I've eaten at Houlihans.**

On what must have been like my 4th trip to Houlihan's for small plates, I've finally tried almost everything they have. Here is my final blog and summary of the new menu items.

Houlihans has 4 sliders to choose from (shrimp po' boy, pulled pork, burger and a pot roast slider) for $5 apiece, or you can get 3 for $9.50...a small fifty cent savings. Pictured here are the pot roast slider, the shrimp po' boy and the pulled pork. My vote goes for the pot roast. When is pot roast not good?

The Shrimp Po 'Boy was my 2nd. The shrimp flavor came through nicely, without having that overwhelming "fried" taste.

The Pulled Pork had some fried onions on it, and was just ok. It was overall bland and needed more oomph. The buns were nice and shiny, and our server could not tell us what they were except that "they make them there".....
The spicy chicken and avocado eggrolls ($5) were my least favorite. They were distinctly spiced with cumin, and not much else. Not very spicy or flavorful overall.

The Blueberry Mojito = awesome. It has basil and mint, with blueberry syrup. My red flags cautioned me against sweet, but this is not overpoweringly so at all. Pretty good balance of sweet and herbaliciousness!

Fortunately, Houlihans offers 5 varieties of fries. We opted for the Disco Fries (Canadian 'poutine' (poot-sin) style with melty mozzarella, slow cooked pot roast and gravy. $4) and they were heavenly. I somehow don't have a pic, but they were the perfect portion, perfect amount of cheese and gravy, and small bits of pot roast. I'm kinda glad there weren't more because I would have totally gorged myself on them otherwise.

Other things I've had:Thai Noodle Bowl - (ginger-peanut noodles (chilled), cilantro, basil,
mint, napa cabbage, sweet & sour carrots. $5)

-This was quite plain. It comes cold, and it's ok, but I could make better at home honestly.

Grilled Naked Chinese Dumpling Kabobs - (ginger lemongrass
pork bites with peanut sauce. $5)

-Ok, I know we're all adults and can read, but the title is somewhat misleading. Is it a kabob? A dumpling??? Turns out it's a kabob. 5 skewers of pork with a little asian flavor to them. They come with 3 dipping sauces - a wasabi mayo, a spicy kind of soy sauce, and a sweet and sour dip.

Overall, I would go to Houlihans for social outings, but never specifically for the food, though I do like their sandwiches!

Solera - Minneapolis

2010-08-09T18:19:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to go to Solera for a long time. Sadly, dining downtown is not a common thing for me. But recently I discovered that Solera has rooftop movies twice a week, for free! On this particular night, they were scheduled to play my 2nd favorite movie; Across The Universe! I took some tucked away money and off I went (and Mr. H too!)

I made my reservation via Open Table. Open Table was unknown to me, until this dude blogged about it. Basically you just make reservations through them, and get dining points when you complete a reservation. After so many points, you get gift certificates. I figure it may take me a long time since I only go out a few times a month, but they have a wide selection of restaurants that give you 1000 points (as opposed to the normal 100 or so) and Solera is one of them.

We arrived a little early, and opted to sit at the bar. I've heard that Solera is beautiful, and it's 100% true. It isn't annoyingly trendy (Azia) or too pretentious (I Nonni.) The lighting is dim without being too dark, and the space feels comfortable and stylish. They serve a full menu at the bar, so we started browsing the small plates and Tapas menu.

The Tapas menu features 3 things for $8. We decided to order from that, and a few other small plates. For 3 for $8, we ordered: Olives with Lemon and Garlic (can't find this on the websitemenu though..), Manchego Pimenton, and Shrimp and Tetilla Croquetas. From the small plate menu, we opted for Beef Shortribs and Scallops “a la Plancha” with Serrano Ham and Saffron.

Shrimp and tetilla croquetas

These were heavenly. They didn't taste too "fried", and they were very rich, which is appropriate to make up for the lack of them. I've never had tetilla cheese before, and it seemed to be similar to a rich, slightly less tangy goat cheese. I don't know what the sauces were but they were good, if a bit salty. My only disappointment was that there weren't about 10 more of these things.

Beef shortribs
(No pic - it was really dark!)
These came with couscous and a harissa sauce. I was quite underwhelmed with this dish. It was gristly (so much so that my poor Mr. H didn't even want the last one) and very salty. The couscous was ok, but the spinach on top was buttery and awesome. The harissa was so so; more tangy than spicy or savory. Who'd have thought that the vegetable would be my favorite part?

Scallops “a la Plancha” with Serrano Ham and Saffron.

Unfortunately, I've only had scallops a few times, but they are always SO GOOD. These were no exception. The scallops themselves were like BUTTER. Melt in your mouth, light and sweet. The only downfall was that they were very salty - the sauce as the culprit.

Manchego:
This was a little disappointing. It's literally: 5 pieces of triangle manchego slices and 2 paltry pieces of toasted bread. I understand that these are on a 3 for $8 menu, but come on now. A little something more? It lacked balance, and though I love manchego, there was just no oomph.

Olives
We didn't get a pic of stuff because by this time, I was in a super hurry to get up to my movie, and they apparently forgot about these last 2 orders. The olives were fine. I can't say what kind they were, but they were small, green, pitted, and oily. They come in a tiny little bowl, but I brought them up with me (in the elevator!) and snacked on them like popcorn. The garlic and lemon come through well. Not too strong, although my hands needed a good washing after eating them.

The rooftop really is quite nice. The occasional bounce that you feel is a bit alarming, but I'll leave that to the pro's. They show the movies on a big projecter screen, and it was packed up there. So much so that I didn't have anywhere to sit for the first 30 minutes. As I waited for a seat to open, I sipped the special drink of the night. An electric lemonade, with bacardi dragonberry and some other stuff. It tasted like cotton candy and lemon. I finally found a spot, and stuck to my regular after that. I was in bliss, like a kid watching Sesame Street (do kids watch Sesame Street anymore?)

Greats:
-Varied seating! They have a main room, bar, tapas bar, and dining room, in addition to the rooftop.
-The bathrooms are quite nice. I'm always looking out for unique or swanky bathrooms.
-Watching Across the Universe on the rooftop and seeing like 50 other people be mesmerizied by it.
-The scallops and olives

Not so greats:
-Beef ribs- way too gristly
-The electric lemonade.
-The occasional rooftop bounce
-Manchego dish- I could gussy up my house and slice 5 pieces of cheese for cheaper.

http://www.solera-restaurant.com/

Houlihan's - Chanhassen

2010-08-06T18:19:00.000-07:00

Mrs. D and I decided to do lunch at Houlihan's after seeing Ramona and Beezus (which was AWESOME) on a hot Sunday afternoon. Houlihan's is no stranger to us, but we like the food and so off we went.

We arrived about 2:30 or 3 and sat in a booth near the bar. I haven't been to Houlihan's for awhile, so I was pleased to see they have a new "small plates" menu , along with FOUR varities of fries (disco fries: Canadian ‘poutine’ (poot-sin) style with melty mozzarella, slow cooked pot roast and gravy - $4.) If you know me, you know about me and small plates. I relish variety, and small plates are made for this personality. I was doubly pleased to find they have happy hour ALL DAY every Sunday and monday. 2 for 1 rails, taps and house wines. Also, they have a list of "big small plates", which is basically standard appetizers (Spinach dip, Calamari), and they are on special during all happy hours for $6.75 for anything! I really like this. I could save up and easily spend the better part of Sunday here, and I intend to.

Since this was just a lunch, we didn't do the small plate feast. Instead, we ordered Goat Cheese and Artichoke Poppers (with fresh thyme and lemon zest- $5), the Farmhouse Club Sandwich (me: brown sugar and honey cured ham, mesquite turkey, bacon, basil pesto aioli, buttery gouda, whole-grain bread, with greek orzo as a side- $10.95) and Buffalo Chicken Tenders for Mrs. D.

Goat and Artichoke Poppers

Overall these were pretty tasty, but Mrs. D tried one and she was right..the goat cheese was kind of...perfumey tasting. I attributed this at first to the lemon (the white sauce was some sort of lemon sauce, the dark sauce was more salty) but then tasted it without and decided it was the goat cheese. For some reason, I've been hearing a lot of people who don't like goat cheese lately...I do not know how this is possible. I love it, but this was not the best I've had.

Club sandwich w/ orzo:

I didn't get a pic of anything else, but this sandwich was quite good. It was a little bread-ey for my tastes, but I just pulled it off. It certainly didn't ruin it for me, as the sandwich itself is nicely structured and not sloppy (my biggest sandwich pet peeve.) The orzo was good, but it doesn't wow me. I get it to pretend I'm being healthy.

The buffalo chicken was not as good as I remember it. I'm suuuuper picky about my buffalo wings. They are bad much too often. I like the Spring Street Taverns, but am still searching for the perfect "wing". I will accept donations to send me to the Buffalo Wing Fest in New York at any time!

For 2 rail drinks and all this food, our final bill came to $29 and some change.

Greats:

-Atmosphere. It's nothing special, but it's comfy, big, with varied seating. I just hate it when there isn't good seating. Fat girls lament.
-The happy hour
-The small plates
-Food is consistently good.

Not so greats
-Perfumey goat cheese
-Nothing here has wowed me yet
-Buffalo chicken isn't as good as I remember

http://www.houlihans.com/home.aspx

Taste of Thailand - Fridley

2010-06-26T19:23:00.001-07:00

Me and Mr. Eng were way past due for a dinner outing. So being the opportunist I am, I chose the place right next door to my job that I've wanted to try for awhile. So after getting off of work, I ran 100 feet to my car in the pouring rain, drove the 1/2 block over to the place, ran 100 feet from the car into the restaurant and arrived completely soaking wet!

Mr. Eng arrived awhile later, and I was still soaking wet (can you tell this bothered me.). He sat down and we chatted and perused the menu. I ordered a diet coke and he stuck with water. Chad didn't even order any Dew. He must be getting soft on me. Finally after about a year, we decided on our food:

Curry Puffs
I've been wanting to try these for awhile. Taste of Thailand doesn't have a website, but I described these as Asian Empanadas! The dough on the edge was "braided"in the same manner. The inside was a mushy awesome yellow curry filling. I'm not positive what it was, but I think there were potatoes and some veggies in there. They were served with slices of sweet cucumber, and I have no idea why.

Special Spring RollsThey have 2 different versions of spring rolls. I believe these have more herbs in them. Again, no website, and I have a shitty memory. However, these were one of the best spring rolls I've had. The wrapper was not gummy at all, and the filing wasn't too sparse or overflowing. The peanut sauce had a big kick of lime to it...or was it the spring roll? Chad and I both couldn't decide if the lime kick was from the sauce, or the spring roll itself. My final verdict after trying it both ways is the sauce. The spring roll also had some pronounced cilantro and mint going on. The meat filling was lacking (i think it was just shrimp in there) but it was a tasty spring roll overall.

Chad's Red Curry with Green Beans

The waiter asked us what spice level we wanted, and Chad decided that since his girlfriend was out of town (heheheheee) he would go hot. This arrived, and doesn't it just LOOK fiery? I tasted a bite of it and it was indeed fiery. Not in an immediate way, but as we know, Thai spice builds, and from the look of Chads empty water glass and face-wiping action at the end, it did indeed build.

Massaman CurryI've never had massaman before, so I figured I'd try it. I got my spice level "medium well"and chose chicken as my meat. As I understand from research. the massaman curry is sweetly spiced with cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and the like. I found none of those elements to it. The potatoes were in large chunks, and the meat was kind of skimpy. The curry sauce itself was nice and runny as it should be, but it was overall quite sweet. The peanuts helped add some savory to it, and the spice level was good. But I found it overall lacking in balance that Thai cuisine aims for. There wasn't much savory or salty - just a lot of curry and sweet. It wasn't bad...because is there really ever a BAD curry????

Overall, the dishes were just so-so. They were a little one dimensional (maybe a few more veggies in Chads curry, or more in mine) but I'm sure that's just how the cuisine is meant to be. I would have liked a bit more complexity, personally.

Greats
-Curry Puffs
-Spring Rolls
-Talking Chads ear off for like an hour and a half
-There isn't a 4th.

Not so greats
-The atmosphere is nothing special
-Sweet Curry
-One dimensional stuff
-It was freezing in there (but I was also wet.)

Enjoy! - Apple Valley. The 2nd Round.

2010-06-26T19:10:00.000-07:00

Being that we had a pretty great experience at Enjoy! for their Thanksgiving course meal, Mr. H and I decided to try them again for our 4 year anniversary. So off we went on the long trek to Apple Valley!

Upon entering Enjoy!, it felt the same as before. It's clean, modern, and slightly trendy but no so annoyingly so like some of the places I encounter in the western suburbs (Maynards COUGHCOUGH.) It's beautifully decorated, but still feels welcoming and cozy despite the large space.

We scored a booth (right next to the one we had before) and ordered some drinks. Me, a glass of the Enjoy! cabernet, which is quite good at $6 a glass, and Mr. H ordered some beer (sorry Mr. H, beer isn't memorable!) We were pretty starving and were glad when the bread came. Enjoy! has my favorite starter bread - the white bread is crusty, soft and warm. The wheat bread has raisins in it (i think?) but not in a gross way. They are small and sweet. The butter is soft and and not all cold and hard like some places serve it.

We figured out what we would order after looking at the menu forever. I was really torn between the Lobster Ravioli and the Canneloni (Stuffed with beef, pork, veal, spinach and tomatoes with mozzarella, ricotta, red and white sauces.) Mr. H was between a Seafood pasta (Sea bass, shrimp, scallops and prosciutto with white wine and linguine) and the Prime Rib (Au jus, horseradish cream and mashed potatoes King 26.95 Queen 22.95.) We decided on the Canneloni and Prime Rib, respectively.

Our food came out pretty fast (10-15 min) and we were starving.

Canneloni

As you can see, there was about 10 pounds of cheese on this thing (the white sauce is just sauce though - not cheese.) Let me tell you, I like cheese. I like about twice as much of it on stuff than most people. But this was so much cheese it almost gagged me. I had to pull some of it off and set it aside in order to even get to the pasta, which fell apart through all the fuss. I found the meat filling to be lacking, and it contributed nothing to the dish. The clear and concise bites I DID get were sorta...gristly. The sauces alone were ok, the white sauce was a tad too rich and cheesy, and the red sauce was robust. In my mind, I imagined nice chewy pasta with savory and somewhat spicy meat filling, with some sharp cheese and garlic accents in the sauce. I ate it all anyways because I'm a pig and I was hungry, but I didn't quite "enjoy" it as thoroughly as I wanted to. (har!!)

Prime Rib

I'll admit, I am no prime rib aficianado. I've had it before, and it speaks to me as steaks younger, prettier brother. This dish for me, was lacking. The meat was done to a good wellness, it was moist enough, but the flavor just didn't sing. It just tasted like a plain 'ol piece of meat. It didn't sing and shower me with warmth (yes, food can do those things to me.) The mashed potatoes were garlic overload. I mean, I really like garlic. I like it so much that when I chop it, I don't mind that the smell lingers for a few hours on my fingers, even after washing. But this was like a wallop of creamed..garlic. It can be overdone. The most pleasant thing I found was the au jus..for ONCE it wasn't a saltsophere of hell. It was savory and mild.

I was quite disappointed with Enjoy! I will definitely go back to give some other things a try...but I won't be using them for special occasions or big-money dinners again.

Greats
-The atmosphere/decor
-The patio is awesome - it wraps around the length of one side, has a pond next to it, statues, and a good variety of seating.
-The bread. Mmmmmmm.
-Decent wine prices and selection - something for everyone!

Not greats
-The cheese pile on top of the canneloni
-The kind of bland prime rib
-The fact I didn't pick Lobster Ravioli
-There was a goddamn crying baby right next to us! I know people out there have babies, but dammit get a sitter! /insensitive bitchiness

Va Bene Berarducci's Cafe - Duluth, MN

2010-05-04T18:57:00.000-07:00

Bellisio is our usual go-to romantic spot in Duluth, but I did some research and stumbled on Va Bene. I'm not one for relying on reviews, but I have yet to see one bad review for Va Bene. So we decided to swicth it up, and off we went Mr. H and I!

Va Bene really doesn't look like much from the outside. It's a small little cafe type of place, so I wasn''t sure about the atmosphere. Upon walking in, I felt comfortable right away. The decor is cozy and not fussy. The vibe is laid back and lightly romantic. The kitchen is literally in the open, behind the bar area and to the right. There are about 10 tables in a small dining area that boasts a nice fireplace. Looking beyond, you see a glass enclosed patio area about 30 feet off the ground, overlooking lots and lots of lake. We waited about 5 minutes, and were seated in the next open table in that area on the patio. It was a small, narrow space, but somehow it doesn't seem cramped at all. The only gripe I have is that the wood accents/construction that runs along the windows are RIGHT at eye level...so you can see the water, but the wood blocks your view of the shore along with it, so it's like looking at half a painting.

As we looked over the menu, we ordered a 1/2 price bottle of wine (DiGiovanna Nero d’ Avola.) They have a small but very nice wine list. The cheapest wine by the glass on the red list is a Pinot Noir(Cesari Due Torri =$6.50). That's unheard of! We recieved our bottle of wine in minutes, and it was lovely; light but well balanced and lush.

As we perused the menu, we saw many delicious things and wanted all of them. I was happy to see crostini's, so we ordered the prosciuotto gorgonzola crostinis ($8.50.) The entrees are mostly pasta dishes, and they also have a build your own pasta, where you can choose between the 3 types of pasta (fettucine, jumbo shells or penne, which are the 3 varieties they serve in all), a sauce, and then up to 3 additional items. The ingredients are stored inside a cooler, where you can pick what you want and watch the cooks make it for you right there. It was tempting, but we decided on the Amatriciana with fettucine for me (A zesty pancetta, red onion, and tomato sauce, topped with Pecorino Romano cheese. Just like in Roma! = $14.75) and Mr. H on the Pesto Frutti Di Mare (Sautéed shrimp and scallops served with our creamy house-made sundried tomato pesto sauce. = $14.75.)

The crostini's came in about 10 minutes or less, while we thoroughly enjoyed our wine and were feeling a bit romantic. I bit into the crostini, and was a little sad that I was having trouble eating it properly. For one, I could not just bite "through" the proscuitto. It wasn't tough, but it's more sturdy than ham. So I found myself getting a huge bite of proscuitto + like 3 gorgonzola crumble in one bite. Plus, there was waaaayy too much fig jam. Fig jam is very sweet, and it also got all over my hands and table. I found myself removing half of it with my knife before eating the next one. One the good side, the crostini's themselves were perfect.

Our food came about 10 minutes later (i loved the timing of the service here) and looked and smelled wonderful. I took a bite of my dish, and it was heavenly. The tomato sauce was abundant, slightly spicy, tangy and garlic-ey. And not all at once, but in simple, light layers. The pecorino romano on top added a little kick and salt to the dish, which rounded it out well. I am pleased to say this was not too rich or too salty. This is the kind of dish I had hoped for at Rinata, or even I Nonni, but never got. My only gripe is that the pasta was a bit soft - I could have used a little more bounce off my teeth.

Mr. H's dish seemed a little more suspect, as do many seafood/ pasta dishes. I took a bite of his, and immediately wanted more...LOTS more. The scallops were soft and buttery, the shrimps were meaty and succulent, the penne was firm and chewy, the sauce was creamy, smokey and rustic, without ever being too rich. I would have sang if it weren't for the bitterness of food envy I was feeling.

Somewhere in between there, we were served focaccia bread with oil. And really - when is that NOT good??

When we were done and I was full, I was sad. Sad that I could not continue eating, and sad that we probably had to leave pretty soon. We talked a bit with a (different) waiter who informed us they had been there for 4 years now, but they have been revamping so many people think they're new. We told him how much we loved it, and he sincerely thanked us and seemed proud of our compliments.

I will be searching for a place in Minneapolis that can hold a candle to this one. Any suggestions??

Greats:
-Laid back vibe
-The Ameritriciana
-The Frutti
-The wine

Not so greats
-The lake view
-The crostini
That's it!

http://www.vabenecaffe.com/va-bene-caffe.html

Mexico Lindo - Duluth, MN

2010-05-04T18:44:00.000-07:00

Mr. H and I arrived in Duluth, and were pretty excited to try out the new HellBurgers (the old Hells Kitchen) which is also right across the street from our hotel. After we arrived in Duluth and chilled in the hotel awhile, across the street we went.

We entered and seated ourselves, per the sign. The inside kind of reminded me of kindergarten with it's classic and bright colors and somewhat bright lighting. The illustrations by Ralph Steadman remain, along with much of the decor. I had wings on my mind, but we still perused the menu and drinks...and perused them....annnnd perused them. I think we perused them for about 10 minutes, and I was kind of getting a headache from the grade school atmosphere, so we left. They deliver for free, and next time I will likely hole up in the hotel with a bottle of wine and order delivery since it might be faster that way!

Mr. H and I then went on our famous 1 hour find-the-right-restaurant excursion. Mr. H is supremely indecisive, and since i had wings on my mind, I was too. Little Angie's Cantina? Nope, too bright, loud and generic. Green Mill? Old Chicago? No, hell to the no! We finally decided on the new and much hyped Mexico Lindo. (how we went from wings to mexican is beyond me, but not unusual for us scatter-brained individuals.)

We arrived at Mexico Lindo, which was a little confusing to get to since it is upstairs in the Fitgers building. We arrived and first saw a few people sitting in waiting areas. We were informed that there was a 20 minute wait, but we could wait in the bar. We agreed out of sheer frustration. We were then led through a frenzied, large dining room area to a small bar in the same space. Shortly after, we met our bartender who introduced herself as "not a nice person" and overall seemed unhappy. I ordered a margarita which was filled right to the brim, wiping off much of the salt... And the mix comes from a machine. We waited 30 minutes and watched a scene of disorganization . 3 drinks sat at the server station our entire stay at the bar. There were 2 bartenders in the small bar, one of which who was mostly counting cash. Finally, we were seated, a result of a "call and answer" system, where the servers walk around and call the name of who is on the wait list, menu's in hand.

We were led into yet another huge dining area, much different than the one we were just in; a bit more quiet and low key. Why they didn't put another bar in this area is beyond me. No wonder our bartender was so pissy. It also was lacking in decor. Mexico Lindo has sort of a schizophrenic quality to it. I realize it is only 2 weeks old, but still....

The menu consisted of your typical Chef Boyardee Mexican options. Combinations, enchilada's, burrito's, seafood specialities and the like. They brought out chips, which were hot and crispy, and the salsa was not hot at all, but cilantro rich, garlicky and very tasty. We finally decided: me on the Tres Maria (3 enchiladas) and he on a combo with one chalupa, one tamale and one chile relleno.

Tres Maria
(I don't have a pic for this one yet- but imagine 3 chef boyardee enchiladas with lettuce and junk all over them.)

Mr. H's combo

According to Mr.H, his chalupa was basically a hard taco (we are spoiled by the chalupas at Puerta Del Sol by our house.) However, we both found his tamale to be the best tamale either of us has ever had. It was delicately spiced, almost a cinnamon or nutmeg flavor, and completely savory. The chile relleno was also quite good, but again a tad too cheesey, even for me.

Greats:
-The tamale
-The chips and salsa
-Our waitress wasn't scattered or tardy. She was prompt, friendly and more together than the surroundings,

Not so greats
-That bitchy bartender (i hate bad service)
-The margs (terrible)
-The enchilada's
-The atmosphere

I don't think they have a website.

Mad Capper - Stillwater , MN

2010-05-04T18:32:00.000-07:00

Mr. H and I started our recent vacation in Stillwater. We arrived there Friday afternoon, and decided on the Mad Capper for dinner, as we were famished after some shopping.

The Mad Capper is more of a bar with tables than a formal restaurant. Mostly working class people, and some families (unlike Brine's across the street - meat market!) They also boast a very nice selection of beer - including Kwak, Marsdoues, and otehr variety of tap beers for pretty decent prices. I ordered a vanilla vodka diet, and Mr. H ordered the Tripel Karmeliet which was quite good.

The food is pretty basic, though they do boast a few unusual sandwiches (Cream Cheese and Olive = $8.99, Avocado and Tomato = $8.99) Although they were intriguing, I opted to go with the Spicy Chicken sandwich (7 oz. chicken breast on whole grain bread, covered with Tabasco sauce and Bleu cheese =$7.99) and Mr. H ordered the Cajun Burger (Topped with shaved ham,
mozzarella cheese and Cajun seasoning = $9.99.)

Our food came in about 15 minutes, and I must say I wasn't too impressed. My chicken sandwich came on whole grain bread, which wasn't bad in itself. But the chickem breast was so extremely small that the bread overwhelmed it. I ended up having to pull the extra bread off (because I hate to eat 30% of just bread in my sammiches) and I wolfed all of it down in about 5 minutes. The tabasco sauce was apparent, but something tasted kind of...synthetic. I asked for a side of ranch instead of the blue cheese, so the sandwich was completely bare besides the chicken.

On the other hand, their fries were really good, as was their ranch. Fries were a good size, hot and salty. And the ranch was thick and creamy - not watery and bland like some places (yes I am a typical midwestern ranch-on-everything-please person.) Mr. H's burger was also quite good. I didn't taste anything Cajun, but it was nice and beefy and the bun held together nicely. Mr. H put some BBQ sauce on it, which I think was the best thing we were served. The BBQ sauce is nice and smokey and sweet, so I would suggest anyone thinking about going ere get something with te BBQ sauce on it.

Overall, if I go back, I will try their unique sandwiches, as I think most other things here are pretty standard bar fare - not great, but not bad either.

http://www.madcappersaloonandeatery.com/page.html

Savories - Stillwater, MN

2010-05-04T18:25:00.000-07:00

I'm all about the quaint cafe experience when it comes to the lunch, so we chose Savories for our cafe in Stillwater. From the outside, it looks to be a quaint little cafe. They have a delicious looking sandwich on their lunch menu (dijon chicken, jambon, and gruyere pressé; mustard rubbed chicke, smoked ham, sweet onions and gruyere, wrapped and pressed = $11) so we went in, despite it being 1030 AM on a Sunday.

The decor is very bistro and quaint. Our server explained that lunch didn't begin until around noon, which was a huge bummer. But we opted to just stay and order from the breakfast menu, which consisted of maybe 6 things. She described the specials (french toast with apricot crumble e.t.c.) and also that they had different mimosa's on special. I love anything mimosa, so we ordered one lavendar and one elderflower mimosa at $3 apiece.

Since this place was a little bit expensive, we opted to share. We ordered the Crespelles St. Chapelle (a threesome of tender homemade crepes stuffed with creamy herbed ricotta, ham, mushrooms and caramelized leeks topped with a roasted tomato cream = $11.95) and sipped our mimosas while waiting. The lavendar mimosa was a bit too perfumey for me, and the elderflower a bit more sweet. We waited around 10 minutes for our food to come, and I was regretful when I saw how much it was when shared. I was quite hungry, and even thoguh Mr. H had already had a few doughnuts at the hotel, he ate every last bite of his.

The crepes themselves were lovely - soft and the herb tomato sauce was tangy and creamy. My big disappointment was that there really wasn't enough of it, and I left hungry, with a $30 bill to boot. (which i can't really blame Savories for.)

Overall, I would go back if I wanted a great and somewhat expensive lunch experience. I don't recommend splitting anything, or going here if you are super hungry.

http://www.savoriesbistro.com/index.html

Hoban - Eagan

2010-04-29T04:29:00.000-07:00

In recent months, I've been especially curious about exploring foods/cuisines that are mostly foreign to me (in the sense I have never tried much, or that it is sparse in my area.) After narrowing it down to Hoban in Eagan, Mr. H and I geared up for the drive on a Friday night, and off we went!

I've heard Hoban is one of the more authentic Korean joints in MN. I don't know much of anything about Korean food, but the selections looked appetizing. I was especially intrigued to see they had all different kinds of soju on their menu (Korean booze -basically high octane Japaense sake) and a lot of different Korean alcohol I have never seen or tried, so I was excited about that.

Upon entering Hoban, it was quite busy, and the smell was absolutely delicious. It 's a fairly spacious, open restaurant with larger tables in the middle (most were occupied with larger groups) and booths lining the walls. We waited 5 minutes or so, but were then seated by the very friendly host in a booth. At the table, there was a wine and beer list, but no list of all the exotic Korean booze I saw online. When our waitress came around, I asked about the soju and she said all they had was plain or yogurt, and it was $15 a bottle and not by the glass. I was pretty disappointed by this, and I didn't know anything about the other alcohols, so I just ordered sake and left it at that. (of which they serve almost to the brim in a wine glass.)

There was a lot to choose from on the menu. After a LOT of deliberation (and a lot of help from our waitress, who was VERY friendly and informative), we both decided on a Bi Bim Bap - I chose the Dolsot Bi Bim Bap (Sizzling rice topped with an assortment of vegetables and beef. Comes with an egg and a side of fiery hot sauce) and Mr. H chose the Seafood Bi Bim Bap (Sizzling rice topped with an assortment of vegetables and seafood. Seafood includes chopped calamari, shrimp, scallops, and mussels. Comes with a side of fiery hot sauce.) For our appetizer, we got dumplings, which are a staple of mine most any asian place I dine.

After a 10-15 min wait, our dumplings came out. They were probably one of my least favorite dumplings I've had. They were steamed, and not too flavorful. Dumplings are seemingly simple, but deceptive in this manner. It takes a lot to get a dumpling "right" (much like a spaghetti sauce, or any other "simple"recipe) and these were not terrible, but I've had better.

Our Bi Bim Bap came out about 15-20 minutes later; sizzling, smoking and popping in their hot pots, with many tiny bowls of accompanying sides. I am not familiar with korean food, and had to ask about each thing. The people were very nice and didn't make me feel like some dumb white chick about asking. In the sides there are (and I may miss some): peeled carrots, sliced daikon, pickled daikon (which were also flavored strongly with ginger - my favorite side!) kimchee, sprouts, cucumber, sliced ginger, cabbage and other stuff I'm forgetting. I was not sure how to apply these to our meal, but was assured it was ok to add them into our dishes. They also give you hot sauce and soy sauce for flavoring. Kimchee has a reputation for being quite pungent, and let me assure you right now: it is. I like strong flavors, but the fact that it's fermented makes it that much more pungent.

Dolsot

Seafood Bi Bim Bap

I decided to try my crackling bowl of BI Bim Bap (so fun to say!) plain first, and found it to be quite bland. I started to add some of the sides (especially loved the ginger daikon) and soy and hot sauce. The hot sauce was nowhere near hot, to my disappointment. The meat in my dish was very sparse and it brought nothing to the dish. One thing I did appreciate were all the components were sliced thinly, and easy to eat with chopsticks and take small bites. My big gripe with some asian places is they have BIG HUGE CHUNKS of stuff (brocolli anyone??) and you are forced to just chew one big hunk of that without eating anything else in that bite.

Regardless of the small slices, I found msyelf to be quite full halfway through my meal, so we packed it up and headed out. Hoban boasts a few karoake rooms in the back, so we checked them out on the way out. They are very impressive. Several different private rooms, decked out with dim fancy lights, swanky lounging and mirrors - the whole karoake 9 yards! I'm not sure of the price to rent these rooms, but it looks like LOADS of fun if you can get a group of people together for a night! I'm not sure what the song selections are, but they look to be mostly asian.

Overall, I liked Hoban and will definitely go back to experience more Korean foods - especially the kimbap, which is Korean sushi!

Greats:
-The smell in there is intoxicatingly delicious
-The staff is VERY friendly and accomodating
-The "do it yourself" aspect to the bibimbop
-The karoake rooms!!
-I'm sure if I ask more, I can find out about the Korean booze.

Not so greats
-The dumplings were just so-so
-The dish was bland on it's own, and the hot sauce..not so hot
-The lack of info on the korean booze!!
-It's far away from us

http://www.hobanrestaurant.com/index.html

Lola's Lakehouse - Waconia

2010-04-11T16:44:00.000-07:00

My friends Mr. and Mrs. M suggested we go to Lola's for a Tuesday dinner. Being the skint that I am, I was pretty broke, and Lola's is expensive. No worries they assured me - we can split a pizza! I thought.."Just pizza..at a nice restaurant? Weird "But hey - beggars cant be choosers, so off we went!

I was actually quite comfortable upon entering Lola's. Lots of dark wood, nautical themes and exposed stone. We were seated in what is probably the most comfortable booth I've encountered in a restaurant. No easy task for me. The booths were roomy, not too high and not too low, and when I leaned back I wasn't immediately met with stiff wood. There was some give, and I was quite happy in my nook. The restaurant was nearly empty, which I liked. But It made me wonder what the vibe is when it's busy?

We arrived and perused the menu's. I was happy to see their signature drinks were around $6.
Not too cheap, but certainly not as expensive as other places I've been. They also have a nice affordable wine list. I ordered a glass of Cab, and was delighted to recieve it in a stemless glass (because I am a glassware NAZI.) Mr. H joined us, and he ordered a Sidecar.

Their pizzas come in small or large, and they have specialties or build your own. They have a goat cheese and chicken pizza that looks awesome. But we decided on the build your own, with pepperoni and andouille sausage. Yes - andouille. They have some nice topping choices, for $1 apiece!

I polished off my wine, ordered a French Martini and marveled at the lakeside view. They boast a long patio, running the length of the restuarant that is RIGHT by the water. The walls are basically windows, so even from inside you see the sparkling lake. I am not a huge nature person, but a good view is always appreciated and this was no exception.

Our pizza finally came. It was pretty good. Mr. M says he dreams about the pizza, he loves it so much. I'll agree that it's above average, but I can be a tough pizza-crowd. The toppings weren't overwhelming, which is a pet peeve of mine. The andouille sausage mimicked very thick pepperoni, but had that great andouille flavor you expect. The crust was traditional style, and was not too chewy or crispy - a fine balance between both. The sauce was a tad on the bland/sweet side, but the cheese was abundant and gooey. The thing I liked the most was the structure of the pizza. It wasn't messy, greasy, floppy or loose. It held together perfectly, and was easy to eat and hold. Not an easy feat for pizza and sandwiches of the food world. It's a simple pie that doesn't over or underwhelm your senses. You just ENJOY it.Overall, I liked Lola's a lot better than I thought I would. The view is awesome, the pizza is simple and good, and the interior is cozy. The only gripe I have is the wait. We waited a long time for drinks, which is inexcusable for a restaraunt that isn't busy whatsoever. Regardless, I'm eager to return in the warmer weather and sit on the patio!

Greats:
-Drinks are affordable - especially for the ingredients they use
-Super cozy atmosphere
-Comfy booths
-The bread comes with basil butter
-The pizza is quite good
-The lake view

Not so greats
-The service wasn't that prompt
-I'm scared of what the vibe is in busy summer months
-It's expensive, so I have to save up to go back!

http://www.lolaslakehouse.com/

Crave - St. Louis Park

2010-03-15T22:34:00.000-07:00

After seeing Alice in Wonderland at the Showplace Icon Theater in SLP, I was delighted to see Crave right next door. I have been wanting to go for some time now, and what better to do after a movie than nosh and drink and talk?? So...of we went, Mr. H and I!

Crave is really ultra modern and new, very spacious, but not at all trendy or stupid (like Azia. ugh.) It was very friendly and cozy, for being such a large space. The outside boasts some of the most gorgeous outside seating I've ever seen, and I immediately imagined myself on a nice breezy evening; lounging, sipping drinks and eating sushi and life is A-OK! We got there around 930, just in time for Happy Hour. I ordered a vodka cranberry/apple/ginger ale drink ($5!) and Mr. H, a mojito. Their Happy Hour food is seriously a good deal. You get 3 categories - $3, $4 and $5, with anywhere from five to seven things on each list. I got the Unagi maki ($3) and an and an order of the Lemon Garlic Chicken wings ($5.) Mr. H got the Scallop Poppers (scallops baked in spicy mayo wrapped in salmon, topped with crunchy flakes - $5)

Maki/ ScallopsThe maki was lush and lovely. I prefer my sushi food in smaller bites. Some places I've been to act like it's a competition to see how big they can make them. But I like being able to COMFORTABLY pop one in my mouth. These were tres bien! But the real winner were Mr's H's Scallop poppers. I took one bite and was immediately transported to a different universe. It was like biting through BUTTER, with crunchy flakes and my ever beloved masago adding to texture. The scallops were buttery and light and melt in your mouth wicked awesome good superb. I want these again and again.

WingsI loove me some wings, and these were the best I have ever had. In my life. Either that means I haven't had enough wings, or that these are really really good. And dude, they are FIVE BUCKS. The lemon came through just slightly, letting the chicken sing. The best part: the skin. Crunchy crispy greasy heaven. The wings are meaty, and are exactly what I think of when I think of a good nosh. Even ask Mr. H, who "doesn't like chicken skin." That boy was sucking and biting every last crumb of wing-tip skin (my favorite part) like a starving dog. I think I even heard him growl once or twice.

Overall, I loved the happy hour nosh and drink. I also got a nice glass of sake - all this came out to be 30 bucks. That's pretty awesome for all that food and a few drinks. Since Crave has 87 hundred things on their menu, I will have to make many visits. My mom wants to go to dinner tomorrow, and I WILL get her here, so be on the lookout for that blog. Hi Mom!

http://www.craveamerica.com/index.php

Volnay Bistro Bar - Wayzata. (shut up Chad.)

2010-03-15T21:40:00.000-07:00

Since I've started to explore the French language, I've also become increasingly curious about the food, and culture in general. I've already (semi) conquered Japanese, so next up: French. I mean, who needs all that butter and cheese? The French Paradox says we do. So there.

Sunday was a rare shopping free day, so Mr. H and I opted to go out for la dejeneur in a new little French place in Wayzata. I've heard the space is formerly Chez Foley, and it doesn't seem completely French (they have a ranch chicken wrap), but it was affordable (which will be my biggest obstacle to truly experiencing French foods) had a few frenchy things, and was close by. So....off we went!

Volnay is a quaint little cafe type place. The interior is very classic, but relaxed. I dunno why they call it a bar, because there isn't one. But I cant wait until it really warms up, so I can sit outside on a small strip of sidewalk at what will no doubt be a small round table and be very European and such.

I knew what I wanted before I even got there (hooray internets) but Adam was undecided. As much as I tried sweet talking, eyelash batting, threatening, bullying and downright begging, he decided against the Lobster Club (lobster meat, house made aioli, lettuce, tomato, bacon and avocado on 12 grain - $13) and went with the Mussels Mariniere (Prince Edward island mussels, white wine, shallots, parsley, garlic and bay leaf - $15) and I stuck with my Bochees a la Reine (flaky pastry filled with chicken, chives, mushrooms, potato dumplings and buerre blanc sauce - $9), and la serveuse even told me my pronunciation of it was quite good, though I don't know what it translates to in English. Oh, and of course we needed soup, so we ordered a bowl of french onion soup as well.

French Onion Soup:
This is not your typical greasy, overdone onion soup. No. It was a simple soup, with a nice piece of swiss draped and semi melted over the top. It was savory, had soft spongy crutons afloat, and the onions were soft and melted in my mouth (this from a girl who doesn't like onions. I challenge myself!) It was a very good "lunchy"soup.

Bouchees a la Reine (how in the hell do I set up my international keyboard?!?!)
First off, I warily circled the salad, as a dog would another strange dog. Salads scare me. They can be so terrible. But this was NOT terrible. It was simple, crunchy, not over dressed, and perfect in every way. The Bouchees al a Reine...well, it's basically a Chicken Pot Pie. One that melts your FACE with awesomeness! Calling the crust flaky and buttery is a downright insult. This pastry is the true nectar of the pastry gods. I even ate the mushrooms in it, which were chopped and admittedly added texture only, but still. Baby steps! The filling was creamy without being TOO rich, and the chicken and the potato dumplings danced and sang in my mouth like they were happy to finally be eaten. In short - SO DAMN GOOD. (and like, a billion calories.)

Mussels
I tried them. I don't like them. They remind me of everything I don't like about mushrooms. I know, I know. This will have to be conquered later. Mr. H enjoyed them though. The garlic seemed subtle, but I was surprised how much I tasted in my mouth and smelled on my hands later.

After looking in the pastry case, we HAD to get dessert. Yes, they have creme brulee. But our sights were set on the Mouche Ganache (light chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache mousse - $6.)

It was ok, if unremarkable. Big old dome of rich, firm mousse with an inch of cake underneath. It had an edible star - bonus!

We ordered coffee's after all this, and I don't know if my head was swimming from all the butter and cream and goodness, or if that really was the best coffee I have ever had in my entire life. Rich, strong, flavorful.. - PARFAIT!

I looooved Volany, and will go back and eat as many things as possible!

Greats:
- All.

Not so greats:
- None.

Casablanca - East Bank, U of M, Minneapolis

2010-03-06T13:16:00.000-08:00

After much delay, Mr. H and I finally hit up Casablanca. I was surprised to see this little hidden restaurant is actually quite beautiful. Nestled besides the Profile Room building on the East Bank, Casablanca is a cozy little eatery with lots of modern, sleek touches. Pretty lights, sleek bar and flowers, and comfortable seating (double bonus.) The menu offers African, Middle Eastern and Somali cuisine, along with burgers, pasta's and crepes. This mish-mosh can be a little scary in restaraunts - but off we went!

They don't serve any alcohol at Casablanca, so I had an African tea. It was way sweet and cinnamon-ey, but comforting on the cold night. For our appetizers, we ordered the Sambusa (A favorite Arabic, Turkish, and Somali pastry, similar to a turnover or spring roll made with ground beef, onions, garlic, cilantro, and tomatoes. Two pieces - $3.95) and they were out of the spinach crepe, so we got a chicken crepe instead.

Sambusa

These are pretty similar to the Indian samosa. Meat inside of pastry. This was beef, and was pretty simple. There was a kick of spice, but it could have used a dipping sauce to enhance the flavors.

Chicken Crepe (Chicken and mushrooms with veloute sauce- $5.95)

This thing was weird. The crepe itself was fine. But the cream sauce was like cream of mushroom soup, and the interior appeared to be frozen veg from the bag thrown in with some shredded chicken. Not great.

They have about 87 things on the menu I want to try. I tottered between the Kay-Kay (something I had years ago, and isn't an easily accesible Somali dish) and a chicken entree. As much as I wanted to try the Kay Kay again, I opted for the Chicken Sonoma (Chicken breast stuffed with goat cheese, feta cheese, mushrooms, topped with cream sauce, and served with soft saffron basmati rice - $11.95), regardless of the fact I was told it was "pre-stuffed" when I asked for no mushrooms (yikes?) Mr. H ordered the Goat (Slow cooked goat meat caramelized with onions and cilantro - Served with basmati rice or pasta - $9.95.)

Chicken Sonoma

As you can see, they give you a gigantic mountain of saffron rice. This rice is soooooo good. Nice and saffron-ey, with raisins and not overcooked at all. I want to create this at home so I can take bowls of rice with me to work several times a week, maybe mixed with some protein or an addition of vegetable. I was a bit apprehensive when I approached my chicken, but was pleasantly surprised! The chicken was moist and tender and had great flavor. When I got to the middle, I became confused. I was seeing (and tasting) some sort of filling with sun-dried tomatoes, no real presence of cheese (or mushrooms.) The cream sauce was out of this world good, but there was so little of it. It was rich and buttery and deep. I wanted more! I also wish I had more cheese. I got no flavors of goat or feta cheese at all.

Goat

Mr. H also got the same huge pile of rice, with what looked like little "nibs" of goat meat, on the bone. I've never had goat outside of sauce. These were plain, and cooked well. But the taste was certainly different. The texture was either slightly fatty, or like roast beef, and I struggle to describe the flavor. It was decidely more "gamey" than what I am used to. I am not sure how goat is SUPPOSED to taste, but this really tasted like... an "animal." Not dirty at all, just a bit different from what I am used to. I'm not explaining it well - it's hard to describe.

After we were finished, I asked to see the menu again, due to my confusion over my dish. Upon my questioning, our server (who was great) mentioned the filling was supposed to have sun dried tomatoes in it (before I even mentioned what it was), and that they must have accidentally left it of fthe description. Not complaining though, because the sun dried tomato was delicious with the chicken. But that's a dsitinct flavor, so I do hope they correct the menu listing.

Overall, I really liked Casablanca and will definitely go back. I am intrigued to try their pasta dishes (just to see, yknow?) and the Kay Kay. Bonus is that they have coupons on restaraunt.com - I got a $25 gift certificate for 8 bucks. There are a few conditions (minimum of $35 purchase, and mandatory 18% gratuity) but it still comes out to be a good deal!

Greats
-Nice atmosphere. Very cozy, but modern
-Chicken Sonoma
-Chicken Sonoma sauce OMFG.
-Saffron rice!
-Our server was really well spoken and pleasant

-Restaraunt.com makes it possible to get a crapload of stuff without breaking the bank!

Not so greats
-The chicken crepe
-The goat, but maybe I just don't like goat
-African tea, but that's just because I don't like cinnamon!

http://www.casablancadiamondrestaurant.com/

Any feedback?

2010-02-20T14:48:00.000-08:00

So, I kind of like this blogging thing, but I wonder how many people actually read it? Is there any feedback, things you would like to see more of, or even criticisms? Please comment if so!

-Ruby James

Azia - Minneapolis

2010-02-20T14:30:00.000-08:00

My everlasting sushi quest resumed, when Mr. H decided to take me on a surprise sushi date! It had been a month or more since I had any and frankly...I needed my fix. We narrowed it down to 3 places - Midori's Floating World Cafe, Fuji-Ya, or Azia. Mr. H surprised me with Azia, and off we went to our 9 PM reservations!

Walking past Azia on the street, you first see the sushi bar area. I instinctually wanted to go in. But we instead went to the main dining area, 10 minutes early for our reservations.
Azia is a beautiful space, if quite trendy. Beautiful people, beautiful windows, and large, dark space. Really dark. Admittedly, I have bad night vision. But it was REALLY dark in there. Low lighting is always good. but I guess I prefer extreme darkness in bars. Personal preference. We were seated at a booth, which I also didn't like. The table almost came up to my boobs. I contemplated using it as a shelf in a momentary fit of silliness. I didn't. Anyways, We sat and perused the menu.

The drink menu has a good selection of wines (starting at $9 a glass), beers ($6 and up) sakes ($12 and up), signature cocktails/martini's ($9 and up) and scotches. I ordered a $10 mojito, which was fantastic, but I was chewing half of it (looots of basil and mint.) Mr. H got his usual brandy coke. We were starving, so we ordered some Fresh Herb Rolls (Oceanside spring roll with dynamic herbs, halved shrimp, and shredded chicken) for our appetizer. Reviewing the menu further, we were decidedly confused. It seemed to be mostly entree's and sushi. We thought they had small plates, and that their sushi was a bit less expensive according to their website. Instead, they had appetizers, and entree's ranging from curry to noodles, all $15 and up. In hindsight, I kind of wish we would have sat in the sushi bar, which I'm sure is where all those good things were located.

I'm still a sushi beginner, and wanted to try something different. Our waiter was very helpful and informative. He also suggested the most expensive things on the menu (omakase, specialty roll with lobster.) A tip for servers; I know you want to make money, and many people don't mind getting the expensive things on the menu. But some people would like to hear a variety of options, and not feel like they are buying a car.

Usually, we like to get some nigiri and a specialty roll. I was interested in trying the mackarel or sea urchin nigiri, but the waiter advised they were both texturally challenging. We decided take small steps into the world of sushi things. For my nigiri, I chose the Anago ($6 -it is a saltwater eel, as opposed to Unagi, which is freshwater) and the Big White Tuna (also $6) Mr. H ordered the Sea Bass. For our specialty roll, we ordered the Shockamoto roll (tuna, salmon, whitefish, cucumber, asparagus & radish with masago aioli and masago garnish....I HEART masago by the way.)

Our Herb Rolls came, and were pretty mediocore. I am a tough spring roll crowd. The wrapping was too gummy (i know that spring roll wrapping IS gummy - but when it becomes chewy and tough - it's wrong) and the ratio of lettuce/veggie fillings to meat was around 80/20. The peanut sauce was standard.

Our sushi came out very fast. It was too dark to get any good pics, unfortuantely. These are some of the largest pieces of nigiri I've ever seen. I didn't care for the tuna nigiri, but I can't articulate why yet. I don't think I care for tuna sushi, it usually seems too bland, or even slightly sour. But the Anago was divine! Imagine Unagi supreme. Similar in appearance, except the Anago was kind of "rolled" on top of the rice. A little more salty than Unagi, and double-y lush and sweet and velvet. Eel in general has a distinct, slight "fresh" taste to it, and this was no exception. I loved it. I wish I could report on the sea bass, but since I burned my tongue with too much wasabi, I couldn't taste it! Good one, Vita.

The Shockamoto came out, and was a lovely roll. Mr. H got his first try of masago, and liked it. The roll pieces were much larger than anywhere I've been. Azia definitely gives you your money's worth. This roll was a big bang of FISH. Nice chunks of salmon, and surrounding whitefish and tuna and providing a total fish meltdown in your mouth. Not to say it tasted "fishy" - it actually tasted nice and fresh. But man there was a lot of fish! The cucumber came through well, but I wasn't getting much asparagus flavor. The masago aioli was a bit spicy, and overall it was a good roll, if a bit too fish heavy for me. In the future, 1 or 2 fish in my specialty roll will suffice.

After dinner, we decided to explore Azia more (I was so full I could barely move - funny how little innocent pieces of sushi creep up on you like that!) and went into the party room area. It holds a party room, and has a booth designed as a BOAT. It was dark and red, and had a lovely fountain. There was a lot more ambience, and I especially like the bathrooms (in the same room, but divided between mens and womens by doors.) The Caterpillar Lounge was nice, but I could have been at any trendy bar downtown. The happy hour is nothing big - $7 on signature cocktails, half price bottles of wine, and $3 taps. After $8 kamikaze's, we split.

Looking over my last few reviews, I've learned a few things about myself. A) my palette is either becoming more refined, or less refined. B) I really have a hard time spending more than $12 on an entree unless I am fairly certain it will be kickass. Likewise with cocktails. I like to have a few, and cant drop $50 on like 3 drinks. C) I'm a cheapskate. D) I'm not convinced I'm giving fair reviews, since I can seldom afford to visit places more than once, to try a variety of things. Next time - Midori's.

Greats
-Anago nigiri
-Very informative waiter
-Sushi bar (must go!)
-Mojito was the best one I've had

Not so greats
-Shockamoto fish overload (not Azia's fault. personal preference only.)
-Herb Rolls
-the booth
-The fact we probably went to the wrong place for cheap small plates
-Happy Hour kind of sucks

http://www.aziarestaurant.com/

Rinata - Uptown Minneapolis

2010-02-15T19:31:00.000-08:00

Mr. H decided to surprise me with a dinner on a holiday. This being Valentines Day, and the place being Rinata. Rinata has been tops on my list to visit for months now, so I was glad to check it out.

Our reservations were for 4:30, and we were running a bit late, so we called and asked if we could bump them to 5 PM. We knew we were risking losing our reservation, since this is a busy time. They said they could get us in, but couldn't sit us at the table they wanted to. Fine with us. So off we went to the ghost of Giorgio's past in good old Uptown Minneapolis.

We arrived around 5 PM to an almost completely empty restaurant. Rinata is a nice space, if a bit tight. The bar area is in the middle as you walk in, and is nice and modern with tall tables. There are two opposing rooms with somewhat standard table seating. We checked in, and hostess guided us to a table/ bench combo (a personal dislike of mine) about 3 feet away from one of the 3 couples in the entire place. We immediately asked for different seating. I understand that they have a structure to seating and reservations, but there were at least 2 dozen other places to sit, so I'm not sure why she sat us there. Anyhow, we were seated elsewhere and it was fine. Our waitress was stellar. She made the food sound irresistable, and was very charming and professional - not at all stuffy, arrogant, or too "soft." She gave us 2 wine samples and explained the specials and half price wine deal until 6. Mr. H opted for a vodka and lemoncello martini, and (surprising myself) I ordered a bottle of the 2007 Ali Sangiovese, which clocked in at $15. The drinks came, and were lovely. His martini a hint of sweet and sour, not curling or coating your tongue with either. The wine was rustic, slightly dry, and berry spiced. It was perfect with our meal, which made me extremely happy since I have trouble finding a satisfactory wine lately.

We opted for the appetizer special (the bruschetta with salmon,goat cheese and fresh dill) to start off. Shortly after ordering, we received bread paired with olive tapenade on top of a nice pool of olive oil. The bread was nice and soft, but also substantial and honest in foccacia roots. The crust was a tad salty; a minor offense that the tapenade and olive oil made up for. After about 10 minutes, our appetizer came:

Bruschetta:
The portion size was perfect. the presentation simple. I took a bite and immediately thought two things: gosh this bread is perfectly crispy and then...KABOOM. Garlic punch to the FACE. Hey I love heavy garlic, but my tongue burned if I put it directly on the bread. It wasn't terrible, but I couldn't continue (rare rare rare for me.) Mr. H happily gobbled them up. The other components were fine, but the garlic put my tail between my legs.

We finally decided on our entree's, Mr. H ordered the Ziti (Ziti with tomato white wine braised pork shoulder and swiss chard - $14.75) and I the Bucatini (Bucatinni alla Amatriciana with pancetta chili flake and tomato $13.50), with no hesitation. I have never had bucatini and was eagar to experience it.

Bucatini:

The plates were brought out by who I assume to be the owner. Nice steaming hot plates of appropriately portioned pasta. I was pretty excited just looking at the stuff. It looked wonderful. I let it cool a few minutes, and dug in. First lesson: you really CAN'T slurp bucatini! These udon-resembling noodles were very al dente and toothsome. I wouldn't say they were tough, but they were chewy. I think I prefer my pasta a touch more soft, but maybe my palette isn't refined enough. But I do know that my palette is refined enough to taste a saltosphere. I'm not nay-saying this though, because it seems the perfect thing to eat when you WANT something salty. I'm sure the pancetta aided and abetted in this partial aus-salt (!!) as it was abundant. The tomato sauce was tangy, garlicky and spicy, which rounded out the entire palette of bold flavors and sturdy pasta.

Ziti

I tasted a few bites of Mr. H's ziti, and I experienced the occasional food envy. *sigh*. It was a direct flavor contrast to mine; savory (pork), rich (sauce made from braised pork, garlic, tomatoes) and earthy (swiss chard)

We decided to splurge and order molten chocolate cake for dessert (literally, $7.75.) I've never had molten chocolate cake before, and maybe I expected too much (ooey chocolatey goodness oozing out of a rich cake??) and got the reality (dark chocolate brownie with a soft kinda gooey middle.) The vanilla gelato was surprisingly good - sweet and creamy with little flecks of vanilla.

Rinata wasn't a complete success, but it intrigued me enough to go back. They have a great looking gnocch,. and a super deal for course meals every Sunday (Sunday date night 4 course meal $20 per person!.) When we left, the place was about halfway full, steadily filling up as we ate.

http://www.rinatarestaurant.com/

Greats:
-Wine specials (half price bottles until 6 PM)
-Bread and tapenade
-Stellar waitstaff
-Ziti
-Wine glasses (i know this sounds weird, but I am all about proper drinkware - these glasses made even a schlub like me feel a bit elegant.)

Not so greats
-Tight seating
-Bucatini wasn't a "not great" thing, it was just VERY flavorful (salty, spicy, tangy, garlic)
-Molten cake

Lemongrass Thai - Brooklyn Park, MN

2010-02-11T17:20:00.000-08:00

I finally made it to Lemongrass Thai! Mr. C and I met Tuesday evening in the small eatery. The interior is pretty standard, but they have a lot of beautiful, framed pictures and asian decorations.

Upon arrival, I waited for my company while watching some live performances of Bird on the large flat screen TV on the wall. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thongchai_McIntyre). If you don't know who he is, I suggest you immediately You Tube him. Kooky asian entertainment galore! They don't serve booze, so I ordered some tea. Fitting for our gloomy weather.

Mr. C arrived and we immediately decided on some appetizers. We ordered the Sai- Oua E-sane, which I have heard raves about, (Fresh homemade - style sausage filled with ground pork, chopped lemon grass and other flavorful spices.$5.95 ) and Golden Triangle (4)
(Cream cheese, diced onions, and crab - wrapped in wonton skin and lightly fried.
$3.95.)

Lemongrass Thai has about 32 things on the menu that I need to try, so it took awhile for us to decide. They have some pretty unique stuff, this is definitely not your Chef Boyardee sweet and sour chicken joint. For example, my intial interest was in the Lemongrass Spaghetti (A Thai twist on an Italian dish - ground beef, shrimp, sliced mushrooms, and basil - in a spicy garlicky marinara sauce. $9.95.) However, I've only had a red curry once before, and curry was really calling me. They have a lot of curries here - red, green, yellow and massaman. And many different varieties and combinations of each. I finally decided on the Flamin Chicken (Tender slices of chicken breast - sautéed in coconut milk and red curry paste with bamboo shoots and basil. $9.95) and my friend ordered the Wild Curry (An exotic fusion of Indian and Thai curries, traditional curry with an added kick, coconut milk, bamboo shoots, basil, and butternut squash. $10.95.)

10 minutes later: (i apologize for the terrible pics. If you follow my blog, you know my phone camera SUCKS, especially in dim light or anytime at night. I need to start having my companions take pics instead!)

Sai- Oua E-sane (quite offensive looking-but lightened up by Mr C, hand model extraordinaire!)
Golden Triangle

Let me start with the sausage. This is unlike anything I've ever tasted before. My first bite was extremely salty and spicy. Very bold flavors in this little food. I found that the dipping sauce was the source of the salt (it was VERY salty alone) and advised myself (and you, if you order it) to use it sparingly. When eating these plain, they are better. The lemongrass is very prominent, and the texture of the meat is a little rough - though not dry at all. My companion put it quite nicely by saying - "Let me be a suburban d-bag for a minute and say that it's...interesting."

The wontons were next. These were also different from the wontons I'm used to. No thick sugary red sauce with lots of hard kill-your-mouth wontons, and smidgen of cream cheese. These look and act like wontons, but taste..different (Can't believe I'm saying that.) The skins tasted like they were fried in...beef oil? I struggle to describe this simple, much americanized food. The wontons were very savory tasting. The crab flavor was distinct on the inside, as were the onions. One strabge thing - they used WHITE onions in the filling, which I've rarely seen in asian cooking. The cream cheese was a good amount, and as expected. I liked these, but they were a bit heavy on the onion flavor for me.

Flamin Chicken

Wild Curry

I admit I am not a curry connisouer. These curries were different (there it is AGAIN) from what I'm used to. I leaned down to inhale the aroma before tasting, and let's just say the smell was...not pleasant. It's a standard Thau curry, thin, watery, and simple in appearance. Appearances (and sometimes aroma's!) are deceptive. This curry was AMAZING. It was very sweet, but not in a sugary way. A sliver of coconut milk sunshine cutting through creeping heat and spice. Enough to make your nose run, but not your eyes. Simple, sweet, spicy and light. Yes, light. This is not your heavy Indian curry. I took a few spoonfulls plain, as if eating soup. But a soup it is not. There is such a punch of flavor, it's a crime to eat it alone; imbalanced. Mr. C's curry was also amazing. More savory than mine, but just as spicy and wonderful. Mine was so good, when I ate the leftovers, I ate part of them cold. Sounds weird I know, but it was very NOM NOM.

Overall, Lemongrass Thai gives us something to think about. I appreciate that it challenged me with it's twists on classics, and introduction of unique combinations. I will definitely be making more trips, and will conquer the Lemongrass Spaghetti!

http://lemongrassthaicuisine.net/

Greats
-Flamin Chicken
-Wild Curry
-The tea has loose tea in it - not bagged
-Bird

Not so greats
-The location bites it
- The place was completely empty
- Golden Triangle
- Too bold flavors on the sausage appetizer

Cici's Pizza - Plymouth, MN

2010-02-06T14:26:00.000-08:00

A 2 hour Trader Joe's excursion makes a person hungry. After spending $75 hungry shopping (never a good idea), Mr. H and I needed food. Specifically, pizza. So we decided to try Cici's pizza in Plymouth.

Pizza is kind of like sex. When it's bad, its still good. (hey-o!) So I went to Cici's with an open mind, trying to envision mac and cheese pizza. Cici's is located in a little shopping center/strip mall (why does it seem like these are the only places I eat at anymore?) in standard Plymouth fashion. Cici's is really just a buffet, around $7 per person (with pop and tax.) With around 8-10 different kinds of pizza, 2 kinds of breadsticks, one pasta dish and 3 different desserts: brownies, apple crumble pizza, and cinnamon bread; it ain't a bad deal.

I started down the line and saw nothing special - just some pizza laying on metal sheets. But on I forged, getting breadsticks, 2 sides of red sauce, mac and cheese pizza, pepperoni pizza and what looked to be a sausage deep dish piece. I sat down and first dug into the breadsticks. The biggest downside to (any) buffet dining is that the food isn't as hot as it should be. This was no exception, but the breadsticks were good. Garlicky and dough-ey, pretty satisfying overall. Then, I took a dip into the red sauce - I was amazed. It was de-li-cious. Tangy, sweet, garlicky, and simple. I wanted to drink the stuff it was so good. I wish they would sell this. I would buy it by the jug.

The mac and cheese pizza consisted of a white sauce, and mac and cheese noodles on top. The noodles on top added nothing to the pizza, but the white sauce was rich and savory. The pepperoni pizza was surprisingly good. The pepperoni was smokey and spicy. I'd dare say this is one of the best pepperoni slices I've ever had. The deep dish was not as good - it just tasted kind of strange.

At this point fresh pizza was put out, so I got more. Buffalo chicken, ham and pineapple and jalapeno's. Buffalo chicken pizza is one of my favorites, but this one was weird. The sauce tasted like it had cardboard in it, and the chicken was pretty sparse. The ham and pineapple and jalapeno was great, the ham was smokey, the jalapeno added a good kick, and the pineapple a sweet counterbalance (though I had to take off like 5 pieces of jalapeno before I would eat it.)

My only complaints are the cheese and crust. They aren't BAD, but they aren't great. The crusts are traditional, not thick or thin as expected. But hey -it's Cici's, not some diamond in the rough. The cheese on some pizza was almost non-existent, but on a few slices it was gooey and warm. Really depends on how fresh the pizza is I think. On the plus side, none of the slices were overly greasy, my biggest pizza-pet peeve!

I had no room for dessert, but Mr. H just about fainted from delight upon tasting the cinnamon bread. I tried one bite, and was again surprised. It was awesome. Crusty exterior, ooey-gooey inside, sweet and warm. And I am not a fan of cinnamon. I would have had more if I weren't so full.

Overall, I really liked Cici's. Obviously, it isn't gourmet pizza or anything fancy at all. But it's a lot better than one may think, and better than any average buffet I've been to. And the bonus: it turned out to be a quite nice, unexpected date with Mr. H. We even sat and talked awhile after eating. It was one of life's unexpected pleasures, as one wouldn't exactly expect to have a lovely time in a brightly lit pizza buffet in a strip mall. But I did!

http://www.cicispizza.com/_template.php#Scene_1

Greats:
-Pepperoni Pizza
-The tomato sauce - omg seriously.
-Cinnamon bread
-Saw some of the cutest babies in the universe while I was in there
-It's cheap

Not so greats:
-Buffalo chicken pizza
-Really kid oriented place
-So much so that some lady offered us a baby as she walked by.
-Lukewarm pizza (casualty of the buffet)

Just go try it!

Caspian - Minneapolis, MN

2010-02-04T17:41:00.000-08:00

After attempting to go to Lemongrass Thai at 8:15 on a Saturday night and finding their doors locked (they close at 9 PM), my date Mr. C and I were hard pressed to find another dinner spot. After some deliberation, we decided on the Caspian. The Caspian is located on the U of M East Bank, off of Dinkytown. It has been there for some years, as I recall some curiosity about it in my early 20's. All I knew of the place is that it is Iranian/persian food. So off we went!

Being across from the Days Inn, it's easy to find. We found parking just fine, and entered through the back. The decor inside seems authentic and unique to anything I've seen in middle eastern-type restaurants before. Large paintings adorn the wall with traditional scenes of native people, and beautiful paintings on the wall itself of the native women. One painting displayed a person holding a goat; faces close together and eyes closed in quiet serenity. There was something foreign and calming about this. Inside and just next to the dining area, there is a small grocery. It was halfway full, and seemed to be a majority of natives, so I will admit I felt out of place but was intrigued instead of shy.

Upon reviewing the menu and looking around, it seemed that tea is a beverage of choice. They do not serve alcohol, but you can bring your own wine. Alas, I was not thirsty for tea, but they offer a Darjeeling blend. Darjeeling is my favorite tea, so I will have try this at some point. The menu was a little confusing, as I'm not completely familiar with this type of food. They have some of your standard middle eastern fare (hummous, falafael, stuffed grape leaves) and some things I've never quite heard of (persian stew aka Koresh, served over "crusty rice" as an appetizer, vegetable pies ) Most of their entrees were similar in the fact that they were some sort of meat, mostly in the form of kebob, with rice (regular or dill), and a grilled tomato, which (as a newbie) puzzled me. I was pleased to see they have a LOT of chicken dishes, also beef, lamb and sirloin. All have variations of whole, ground, or blends.

For our appetizer, we decided on the falafael, which comes with tabouli, yogurt and pita. I've never had falafael before, but am familiar with it from afar. For our entree's, Mr. C ordered the caspian supreme, which is a ground beef/lamb mixture kabob and also a sirloin kabob, with regular rice and the grilled tomato. I ordered the chicken special, which is chicken pieces flavored with lemon and saffron, and I opted for the dill rice. We were served a salad first, which was quite lackluster. It had all things I dislike, iceberg wedge-y lettuce, dressing too oily and too acidic, and just kind of dumped together with a tomato and cucumber slice. I don't expect dinner salads to be main course stunners, but I do expect them to make me want to eat more.

Our falafael:

Please keep in mind I've never had falafael before. But these seemed dry. I tried them alone, and I also put them on pita with tabouli and yogurt, which was better. The tabouli was parsley heavy, and not bright or light like I'm used to. The yogurt was good and tangy - like a sour cream almost. All together, the food was good. Individually, they weren't great. I have to go with my own tastes here, as I admittedly don't "know food", and I just wasn't wowed with flavor, spices, or textures.

Mr. C's Caspian Supreme

And my much less offensive looking Chicken Special.

Mr. C's meat was very flavorful - one side being the beef/lamb combination and the other being the sirloni. I found the beef/lamb to be tender, savory and flavorful. The sirloin was chewy, but good. Both were moist, and not over-spiced.

My dish was not as successful. The chicken was predominately lemon flavored. No savory, delicate saffron was detected. The chicken was also dry. Very dry, to the point where you need to drink something with every bite. The dill rice however, was lovely. It was cooked perfectly, and had a generous sprinking of fresh chopped dill over the top. On each side of the mountainous rice pile sat a little pat of butter. Right on. The dill flavor came through, but didn't punch me in the face, and blended very well with the rice and butter. I would go back just for this rice. The grilled tomato still confused me. I realize this is a traditional serving with a Persian .meal, but don't know it's purpose. I ate one bite plain and it was nice; smokey, tangy, and juicy. But then I attempted to eat more.... and it's just what you'd imagine eating a mushy tomato would be like. I don't know any Persian people, so any enlightenment would be nice.

I've been to great middle eastern (Greek, Lebanese) restaraunts, and some terrible ones. I would put Caspian in the middle. While I was glad to see that they didn't over-spice/garlic/salt any of the dishes, I also feel they were lacking something. A tad more depth perhaps? And I wish my chicken would have been more moist and with a hint of saffron blended with a delicate lemon aftertaste? This may not be The Caspians fault however, as my gut initially told me to go with the lamb shank in tomato garlic-herb sauce. Next time I visit, I will!

I don't think The Caspian has a website.

Sweet Basil - Brooklyn Park, MN

2010-01-29T13:40:00.000-08:00

I tried once to go to Sweet Basil with the assistance of a mere map, and ended up instead at Great India. This time, armed with GPS and rebellion for my 30 min lunch, I headed to Sweet Basil since I won't be 'round these parts anymore after today.

Sweet Basil is just a basic little place located in a shopping center, much like Oishi. Shopping center clusters/ strip malls are to Brooklyn Center/Park are what bars and churches are to NE Minneapolis. So in I went, already having blown 15 minutes of my 30 minute lunch away from the drive alone.

They don't have a website, but their menu is a bit more original than your Chef Boyardee asian place. I can't tell if it's predominately Vietnamese or what, but they have a few stir frys, (basil, ginger) and a few curries. Appetizers are standard-satays, cream cheese wontons, and spring rolls. I decided upon the Spring Rolls ($5), and the Vietnamese Noodle Salad ($9).

Spring Rolls

The spring rolls tasted about how they look. Overall, they were quite bland. The peanut sauce was sweet and and not savory at all. The insides consisted literally of lettuce, vermicelli noodles, pork and shrimp. That's it. I'm not sure what's considered traditional, but how about some carrots? Cilantro? More meat? The pork itself defined bland. I literally ate it and thought - so this is what bland tastes like!

Vietnamese Noodle Salad (with chicken)

This had all the normal components of a vietnamese salad. I admit I have only had them at 3 different places, and this one looked similar. On one side, cold veggies (lettuce, shredded carrot, cucumbers, onions) and the other was warm chicken, peanuts, and sauce, over vermicelli noodles. I'm a mixer, so I mixed all the ingredients up. At first. I was really pleased with the cilantro taste I got. But after tasting other elements of the dish, it really just wasn't great. It did have a tiny hint of spice (it was not listed as a spicy dish) and the sauce in the salad was sweet and savory, but didn't have any depth of flavor past that. They serve a "dressing" on the side, and it's typically cold and on the sweet side. This one was really sugary. And I didn't even need it, because the thick sauce in the salad was already pretty abundant.

Greats:

-They have some nice looking curries I'd like to try

-Same thing with the stir fry's

That's all

Not so greats

-Spring Rolls

-Vietnamese Salad

-Location

Honey - NE Mpls

2010-01-28T10:24:00.000-08:00

I was able to get a super special trip to the my old 'hood last weekend, and I've been wanting to hit up Honey pretty bad. For those of you who are curious - Honey is the old Jitters, beneath the new Ginger Hop (and the old Times) in Ne Mpls. The space, like Ginger Hop, is quite similar to the old Jitters but with some new twists. After walking down the flight of stairs, you're met with a wall of candles. They painted the walls bright colors and texturized them as well. There's art hung around, and a crazy metal chandelier thing that hangs really low above a flat cushion-bench, running the length of some opposing booths and tables. Overall, it's a slightly cramped space, but they've done well with the remodel.

When we arrived, the plan was to check it out and have a drink. I was hungry, and heard they have small plates, so I wanted to try at least one. It was pretty packed, and the bar doesn't have any seating. Fortunately, we found a small round table and tucked away in the booth area behind it. They were playing hip hop music (I heard A LOT of Q-Tip) and the crowd overall was your typical trendy crowd. It was too dark to get any pictures, which is a bummer, but I like dark places. As we perused the drink and food menu, and I found a lot of things that interested me. I was somewhat on a budget (when am I not??) so I couldn't get one of their signature cocktails (they are anywhere from $8 and up.) Instead I ordered a vodka pineapple-7-up. The food menu has a small selection of some small plate type things, and a few entree's good until 9 or 10 PM. Some selections are: bruschetta, red beet salad, and a chocolate flight! They also have different individual chocolate truffles as well. I can't remember the exact flavors and I couldn't take a pic, but it sounded DIVINE, and I'll be sure to try it on my next visit to Honey.

Since it was busy, the wait was a little lengthy - but after about 10 minutes, I got my drink. It was fantastic. I don't know why. Maybe it was because I was thirsty. But it tasted wonderful. I opted to order the crostini (with goat cheese, olive pate and tomato jam- around $7), and I couldn't resist getting the fries (with truffle salt, and red pepper aioli - about $5.) We waited approx 15 minutes, and the food (and my next drink) finally came. The crostini plate is an appropriate size for a small plate, There are 6 crostini, and 3 dabs of each spread right on the plate. There was nothing I didn't like about this. It was gorgeous. The olive pate was luscious, sweet and salty. The tomato jam is unlike anything I've tasted, but was also delicious. A tangy tomato taste, with the sweetness of jam and hint of basil. The goat cheese was just that, in all it's glory! My biggest praise however, will go to the crostini. They were toasty, but NOT HARD or crusty at all! My mouth incurred no injuries, and I found myself mixing all the ingredients together quite often.

The fries were of a generous portion, but really just look like McDonalds fries; skinny and limp. Regardless, I ate a mess of them! They were so good, but I'm not quite sure why. I really liked the red pepper aioli. It was kind of mayonaise-y, but the red pepper flavor came through well, as did garlic. The fries were hot, salty, and just really good. I've never had truffles, and I don't know that truffle salt is, but I feel this added a depth of flavor that "Mcdonalds fries" lack.

Overall, I liked it and will defintiely go back, even if for the crostini plate alone!

Great things:
- Crostini plate
-The fries
-The cool wall o' candles

Not so greats
-The atmosphere is kind of trendy
-Lots of loud hip hop (not really my thing)
-No seating at the bar!

Osteria I Nonni - Lilydale, MN

2010-01-01T20:29:00.000-08:00

For New Years Eve, Mr. H and I decided to do a course meal again, since the last one we did on Thanksgiving (at Enjoy!) was a hit. This time, we really saved money and I gave Mr. H 3 suggestions and put it in his hands to surprise me. He chose Osteria I Nonni, as they had a choice of either a 4 course meal ($55 per person) or a 6 course. We chose the 4 course meal, and they had some great choices. I did not take pictures at this meal, so forigive me.

Upon entering Osteria I Nonni, I was a little uncomfortable. It's VERY white tablecloth. I'm not opposed to upscale dining, but this was really upscale. Everyone there was dressed really fancy, and the air of the place is very sophisticated. I felt pretty out of place. Regardless, we went to sit down.

We arrived a little late (at 10 pm) and I was not feeling the greatest. I was hoping to be out of there by 1130, in time to get to a New Years Eve event and ring in the new year. I thought an hour and a half would be plenty of time, even for a four course meal, so we settled in. We were offered ice or bottled water, and then waited about 10 minutes for our server to come.

The menu offers a few options for each course: the first being a salad, the second being a small pasta or meat plate, the third being a main course, and the last being dessert. All are offerings off thier regular menu. For my "asseggini", I chose:-

garden lettuces, honey crisp apple, gorgonzola dolce, pistachio, cider vinaigrette.

I don't remember what Mr. H ordered, but it was like a meatball, with breading on the outside, in a tomato sauce.

We waited probably around 10 minutes, and the food came. I must say, I was really disappointed in my salad. The vinagrette was so tart my mouth puckered, the greens were loose and the nuts were hard to handle and I had to put them on my fork by hand. There were about 3 thin apple slices that just kinda...sat there. The gorgonzola however, was in a chunk, allowing you to cut it with each bite, which was good. The size was perfect (small) but overall, I did not enjoy this.

Mr. H's dish however, was very good. The sauce was very tangy and tomatoey, and the meatballs were savory.

For our "secondi", I opted for the:
house-made gnocchetti “alla vaccinara” oxtail ragu, pecorino romano.

And Mr H:
linguettealla vongole manila clams, garlic, white wine.

We waited around 10-15 minutes for this 2nd course, which in my opinion is too long. I understand food takes time to cook, but in a course meal, timing is essential. When it finally came, I must say I enjoyed this a lot. The gnocchi were light, and not dense. I found myself wishing for a little more toothsome-ness. The sauce was very savory, and with a hint of nutmeg or cinnamon perhaps? The oxtail was like a mild roast beef, and very generous and flavorful. This dish came out piping hot, so I'm sure it was very fresh. Mr. H's dish was very salty, and suprisingly it was also very spicy. The linguine was al dente, but kind of "crisp" on one end of the bite I got, which was a turn off.

For our main course, I ordered:
chicken “saltimbocca” asparagus, lemon-caper butter

Mr. H got:
pan seared maine scallops grilled scallions, wild mushrooms, vermouth

This time around, we waited about 20 minutes, and it was already 11:15. I was getting very nervous and upset about the time it was taking. I realize that course meals take time, but a 4 course meal should not take over an hour to be cooked and executed. For one, the food settles in and you get full. By this time, I was very full. And anxious, I felt like I was forced to sit there and wait all this time. At Enjoy!, we had a 3 course meal that was timed well, and we ended up sitting and chatting for well over an hour after the food was gone. Because we WANTED to. See the difference? During this wait, a table near us was given new food by what I assumed to be an owner/manager. I'm not sure what happened, but something went wrong. Anyhow, our food came at around 11:20. I ate about 4 bites of my chicken and was too full to continue. What I did manage to eat was good. Not great. The "lemon caper" sauce did not taste of lemon - but the chicken was crisp on the outside and the proscioutto came through well. Overall, it was quite salty. I also ordered a Winter Bellini (prosecco with rumsoaked cranberry) which tasted strangely of cinnamon.

Mr. H Scallops came, and were cold in the middle. He had to send them back, and we waited 10 more minutes for them to come back. I will admit, the scallops when cooked correctly were the best thing I ate that night. Butter, creamy, and pure velvet. The sauce was earthy and mellow and overall it was a great dish.

We ordered our desserts and my remaining food to go. I ordered the cheesecake, and Adam ordered the budino cake. We were extremely full, and at this point I as not going to make it to my New Years Eve event. While we waited, the table near us was leaving, and the server informed them that due to the mistake, all their drinks were being comped. When our check came, we were offered nothing for being served cold scallops.

Overall, I was very disappointed. Maybe I'm not "sophisticated" or rich enough, but the food was very mediocore and the wait time was way too long. For me to spend that much money on a meal is quite a task, and I feel like I threw my money in the street. Admittedly, I was in a bad mood for not making it to the NYE countdown. I was eagar to leave, and got to my event at around 12:30 AM.

Greats:
-Pretty interior - kind of rustic but sophisticated
-Scallops were very good

Not so greats:
-The wait time
-Being served cold scallops, having to wait more and then not being offered anything for it
-Atmosphere is a bit too uppity for me

http://www.inonnirestaurant.com/

Obento-Ya Mpls. - Round Two

2010-01-01T19:39:00.000-08:00

I have been feeling quite lonely for my city, and had a mad craving for sushi. Sushi for me is one of those cravings that I can't wait out. I tried, but after 2 days, I crumbled. Mr. H (a sushi virgin) and I found ourselfs at Obento Ya, my favorite Japanese place in Minneapolis thus far.

I was excited to see if Mr. H would like sushi, or understand the concept of small plate dining. He is a meat and potatoes guy. But away we went. Obento Ya was very busy, and we were seated at the bar area (which is just fine - it is a small place and I was happy to see it busy) and we ordered the following things:

Appetizer: Octopus Pancake Ball (Takoyaki)

Sushi/Rolls: Unagi Nigiri, The Ebiten Big Ten (tempura shrimp, yama-gobo, cucumber, lettuce, & eel sauce)

Small plates:
Bacon Asparagus Roll
Octopus Robata (grilled)
Scallop Katsu

Sake flight for $10 (I don't remember what they were and I couldn't find an online listing, unfortunately.)

The sushi items came out first:We were so hungry we ate the Unagi and almost forgot to take a pic. The unagi as usual is gorgeous. Velvety, lush, sweet and savory. The Big Ten roll was very good - the comforting taste of the tempura came through nicely, and there's good yama gobo crunch. Mr. H surprised me by really liking both types immediately. For some, even myself, sushi can be an acquired taste. Now I have a sushi eating partner! Which is awesome, because eating sushi with someone always adds to the experience - which is ultimately the main pleasure of eating sushi and Japanese foods, in my opinion.

Next, several of the other plates came out:

Takoyaki:
These were CRAZY. I have no idea how this is made, and cannot find a recipe online to indicate ingredients. This is hands down the most complex thing I've ever eaten - even Mr. H said that immediately upon eating one. Imagine a sort of bread-ey meatball, but the inside is mooshy, and there are chunks of octopus throughout. These were very savory and a little sweet. I don't know what the sauces on top are. Very texturally complex, with the more firm outside, the soft inside adn the firm octopus. They weren't bad at all, not fishy tasting or too rubbery. I would recommend this to any adventerous eater looking to have their mind blown a little.

Octopus Robata
I have never had octopus before, but know it can be rubbery. This did not seem rubbery, but octopus is quite firm and toothsome. To me, the flavor and texture on this resembled mushrooms, which I do not care for. Mr. H said it tasted like sea to him, but maybe our ideas of what sea tastes like is different. I didn't care for this, but it was a great experience to try it.

Bacon wrapped Asparagus Roll:I can't say this isn't Japanese, because as far as I know they could eat it every day over there. However, bacon is very American to me, and this was awesome and tastes exactly how you would think. Nice fatty, salty bacon and firm asparagus inside. Yum!

Scallop Katsu:

On my previous trip, I had the Scallop Tempura. I think I prefer that to katsu, because there is something so comforting about tempura that I love. Katsu is good too, but it doesn't add anythign to the scallop inside. The katsu sauce reminds me of a Japanese BBQ sauce, and I really like it.

Sake flight:This was more generous than I thought, and the sake's increased from a light sake, to a sweet sake that even had a hint of a "licorice" type flavor. Very nice compliments to our food!

After this feast, we were full, but Mr. H pointed out that he had not eaten anything raw, and was disappointed by this. So, we order the yellowtail nigiri sushi, which I've never had before. I didn't take a picture, but it's a white fish and it was awesome. I've only ever had the unagi nigiri before, and this was very differnt. Eel has a definite flavor to it, and this was just light, lush and delectable. Mr H and I both loved it.

For dessert, we had to order the chocolate banana crepe, which I had last time and loved. This time was no different - and Mr. H and I devoured it quickly.

Greats:
-Yellowtail nigiri
-Big Ten Roll
-Sake flight
-Obento-Ya is consistent, and the servers are always really cool and helpful

Not so greats:
-Octopus is weird
-I ate so much that I got really really full.

Enjoy! - Apple Valley, MN

2009-11-28T10:39:00.000-08:00

After reading Dara's piece on Thanksgiving restaraunts, I got the idea to dine out for Thanksgiving this year. I've become increasingly interested in the dining experience, and me and Mr. H decided to make it our own family holiday! We chose a restaurant called Enjoy! in Apple Valley. After reviewing a suprisingly extensive list of Thanksgiving restaurants on opentable.com, we chose Enjoy! due to their Thanksgiving menu. I've never had the pleasure of doing a "course" meal, and was eager to try this out. The menu normally offers mostly steak, seafood, and chicken; pizza and sandwiches for lunch, and seemingly very high quality. I was intrigued.

Thanksgiving Menu (i have a pic of this, but its in my camera. Go here and look at the Thanksgiving Menu - I think it's still up.)

http://www.enjoy-dining.com/menus.php

It doesn't list it here, but the ham/turkey dinners were $22.95. The additional entree's were more, from $28-$35 - but you still get a 1st and 2nd course with it.

I had read some reviews about this place before I went, and the parts about it being...large were right. It can reportedly seat 400 people. It reminded me of the (old) Santorini, with different rooms, and a gorgeous patio. The patio is seriously awesome. It runs the entire length of the restaraunt, and has several fireplaces throughout. We were seated in a large booth, and it was decorated beautifully. I wish it weren't so dim, I'd have loved to get decent pictures. Especially the chandelier, with all sorts of decorative balls and such hanging from it - it was festive and lovely.

I don't go to "fancy" restaraunts much. While this certainly is not a stuffy white-tabelcloth place, it is very modern and grand. I ordered a Root 1 cabernet sauv. (one of my favorite brands - was pleased to see it on the menu) at 7.50 a glass (one of thier cheaper by the glass wines.) We were both craving a good Thanksgiving meal, but once I saw the salmon stuffed with crab and brie (with champagne and vanilla bean butter sauce, mashed potatoes and asparagus) I caved. It's not often I can afford that sort of thing, so I decided to go for it. Mr. H was feeling traditional and opted for the turkey dinner (with mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, green beans and cranberry sauce.) For the first course, you basically got a choice of salads, or butternut squash soup. Mr. H got the enjoy! salad (pears, gorgonzola, walnuts and citrus vinagrette) and i got a normal salad (mixed greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions) with asian vinagrette. For dessert: pumpkin pie, pecan pie or maple creme brulee. Mr. H got pecan pie, and I maple creme brulee.

Disclaimer: kind of bad pics due to the darkness of the place - use your imagination,

Mr. H 1st course:

My 1st course:

Mr. H's salad was far superior, as you can see. Nuts, strong cheese and acidity are always a great pairing. My salad was lackluster. The vinagrette was too sweet and tart. One thing I am noticing more about vinagrette's is the tartness. I know it's supposed to be acidic, but not to the point where my mouth prunes up. I did appreciate the mixed greens, and the large plate they were served on. Restaraunt pet peeve #37: getting salad in small bowls/plates. I'm a mixer, so half my salad ends up on the table/floor. Give me room to mix my greens!

Mr H. 2nd course:

This was a super delicios Thanksgiving feast. From the turkey: all white and not a bit dry, to the stuffing which was soft and mooshy, salty and savory (i like my stuffing mooshy) and the mashed potatoes which were fluffy, earthy and needed no seasoning - it truly was awesome. If I cooked my own thanksgiving feast, I would want it to taste like this. Low on the frills and high on the flavor, this is what "fancy" food should be. Presentation is nice, but unless you're presenting sushi, fondue or maybe an ice sculpture, good flavor needs no masks.

My 2nd course:

I struggle to describe this food. I haven't come across many salmon that I actually like. They are a stronger tasting fish, and I don't have a very seafood-ready palette to begin with. I took my first bite, and got a rush of such decadence, using cliche adjectives seems moot. The salmon was flaky and meaty, the crab and brie inside added a deep richness that makes you feel as if you're being super naughty. And that sauce - I have never, ever had a sauce like that before. I tasted it quite a few times with just my finger, and asked Mr. H- "what is this again?" It was champagne-vanilla bean butter sauce. Normally I don't care for anything vanilla, but this sauce magnificent. The mellow vanilla countered with salt and butter make the perfect sauce for this piece of fish. The asparagus was cooked perfectly, and the earthiness paired with the vanilla sauce composed a suprising balance of flavors: sweet, salty and savory. The potatoes were also wonderful - not lumpy, not artificial tasting, not bland and not too light. This is seriously one of best, most decadent dishes I've ever experienced dining out. Halfway through, I was already getting stuffed. How do the judges on Iron Chef eat 10 courses??? Here comes dessert!

Mr. H. dessert: (pecan pie)

I only had one bite of this, but it was quite good. It was very sweet and "caramel-y", but I liked it for being my 1st pecan pie ever.

My dessert: (maple creme brulee)

Very few things give me as much happiness as a good creme brulee. Especially the crack-ley top. That toasty, burnt taste against the cool, creamy custard inside is (in my mind) one of the perfect texture and flavor contrasts in existence. This was a good creme brulee. I couldn't taste much maple, and when I was eating the custard, it coated my mouth a bit. I remember asking Mr. H - "Why is it kind of making my mouth oily?" he said "Well that would probably be all the fat from the cream." I think I might like a lighter creme brulee than this. But the topping was perfect - nice and toasty and sweet. YUM.

After 3 courses - I was painfully stuffed. However, I do not regret dining out for Thanksgiving. I tend toward the non-traditional anyways, and this was a perfect and delightful meal. If you have a good amount of cash to drop, I would highly recommend this place over many other "fancy" places Downtown Mpls.

The greats:

Everything. Especially the fact we stayed so long that when we left, the employees were eating their own Thanksgiving meals at the bar.

The not so greats:

It's kind of a hike, being in Apple Valley. But worth it for a small food "getaway."

http://www.enjoy-dining.com/

Tha Anchor Fish and Chips (NE Mpls)

2009-11-21T11:32:00.001-08:00

So I FINALLY got over to the Anchor this week to meet Mr C. and sup it up. I've been trying to wait for the Anchor for fish and chips, but sorta ruined it the night before by going to Hazelwood and having a fish sandwich (which was lovely, but I decided to not blog about since I was having an extremely bad day.) Alas, there was no guilt allowed upon entering the anchor. I stepped in to meet my friend, and it was crowded, dark, and small. I loved it right away. Maybe I owe this fondness to being away from anything city for the last 2.5 weeks. Either way, this place is lovely. Not overdone, not underdone, and bustling. They have an open "kitchen" (cooks and deep fryers!) which I think is a good idea at any restaraunt. Open concepts look nice, and also add to the "bustle" of a restaraunt. People talk more, and feed off the lively energy of the kitchen, without really noticing it. We were seated in under 10 minutes (there was a wait on a Wednesday-understandable due to it's hype, neighborhood, and small size) at a suitable table for two. This was ok, but this type of seating is very close set - a pet peeve of mine. Forgivness abounded, as I was just happy to be in my neighborhood.

The menu is short, so it really didn't take long to order. As you may know, I am firmly against 2 people ordering the same thing. This is why I always ask what the other party will order first. Mr. C. wanted the fish and chips. So be it; then I ordered the pastie (a blend of meat and veggies, deep fried.)

I apologize for no pics. It was too dark in the place. But our food came. and imagine: one basket with thick, steak style chips, and about an 8 inch long hunk of fried fish on top of it (seriously, it was pretty huge.) And basket two, with the aforementioned chips, and a big round hunk of deep fried-ness on top of it.

There is not a lot to say about this meal, except that it was simple and delicious. No complex flavors here, just straight up comfort food. The rumors about the chips; ALL TRUE. They are fantastic. I love fries, and am particular about them. Whiteys and Hazelwood have some of the worst fries (skinny, oversalted, soggy) and I like my fries to be something special. These are thick and mouthy. Some are around 3-4 inches long. LORDY! When I put the vinegar on them (yes they do only have white vinegar - but it's delicious on everything!) they tasted like salt and vinegar chips! Genius. My pastie was also very good. I took a bite of it, and immediately felt my endorphins ooh and ah. The breading is savory and toasty, the filling starchy and toothsome. I found myself wishing I had a hangover at that moment, and mourned for the hangover days that missed the Anchor while I was around. Some people have complained the pastie's are salty. They do have a sprinkling of sea salt on top, whch you get a bite of here and there, but it's definitely not overpowering.

Mr. C.'s fish was awesome. It's ok and fine for fish to be flaky - but sometimes it's flaky like you're eating nothing. This fish was flaky AND meaty. And the breading again was spot on crispy. It's a bit greasy, but it isn't out of hand. It's what you expect when eating fried food.

On the plus side - they sell wine by half and full carafe. We got a half carafe of cab for $8, which gave us both 2 glasses of wine. Not too shabby - but the wine was not that great. Oh well - not really a blunder for a place like this.

This place gets many plus points: 5 of the greats being:

-It's dark, and I like my restaraunts dim and dark.
-The chips are fantastic
-The pastie and fish are tremendous, super comforting and simple.
-The location. They are right smack in the middle of the hub bub of NE Mpls - near the Modern e.t.c.
-Open kitchen

5 not so greats
- The seating is close set
- They have CURRY GRAVY (!!!!) that you can order as a side to dip your chips in, and I didn't order it!!!
-There can be long waits
-Nothing else is wrong with this place.

http://www.theanchorfishandchips.com/The_Anchor_Fish_%26_Chips/Home.html

Sushi (yes, again.)

2009-11-20T08:49:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, after having a pretty crappy 3 days, I decided I needed to treat myself to some sushi. Being chained to my desk, my only option was Oishi (again.) Oishi has 3 lunch specials - I went for lunch special 2 which is 2 rolls - 1 from list A and 1 from list B ,and a miso soup. They have lists A, B and C of sushi, in order of more elaborate ingredients/prep. I chose 1 Unagi roll (eel) and the Crunchy Philly Roll (deep fried Philly rolls, which normally have salmon, cream cheese and cucmbers I think? See previous Oishi blog - I got the normal philly roll.) I know - deep fried sushi! It's Americanized, but I had to try it.

I did the takeout thing, and was a little worried about that. Takeout can be pretty bad, and I wasn't sure what to expect with sushi. I got it back, and was delighted to see they had included chopsticks, soy sauce (the big Kikoman packs, not the little wimpy ones from Chef Boyardee "chinese" down the street), wasabi and pickled ginger. Also: a BIG soup spoon. Not a small plastic wimpy one. Nice.

The Unagi rolls were great. They tasted fresh and light, sweet and salty. I am getting more and more bold with wasabi, and find it a delight with sushi. I was starving, and wolfed down 4 of these in like 5 minutes. Then, I went over to my crunchy roll.

(I'm sorry about the photo - I dont know if my camera just sucks, or if I need to change settings.)

I was a little scared because this sushi has Masago on it (little orange fish roe, which I'm not sure how I feel about yet.) Upon researching it, I found pictures of sushi's COVERED in roe. Luckily, they put such a small amount on (i think it's quite expensive?) I barely noticed it.

This was an absolute delight! Since they are lightly fried, they're a little warm, so the cream cheese is soft. The breading is light and toasty, and the velvet salmon is wicked lush. I found I didn't need soy sauce or wasabi with these, as the flavor stood out enough on it's own. Totally delicious.

I find myself with a great sense of well being when I eat sushi. My mood immediately lightens and I feel a little more whole. I'm not sure why. Isn't comfort food supposed to be heavy - starcy - fattening?? I'm not sure, but this food definitely lifts my spirits in a significant way. I am glad I didn't give up on sushi. I am converted.

http://www.oishimn.com/

Karma?

2009-11-18T07:48:00.000-08:00

So, after having the most awful day of my life yesterday, I left to go to an appointment in Brooklyn Center. 10 minutes away from my destination, this happened.

I don't normally write blogs airing my personal woes. But I am curious as to why life seems to love kicking me in the teeth over and over? I know I know, it could have been worse, e.t.c. But the fact it wasn't doesn't make it un-shitty. Anyone who knows me knows that bad shit happens to me all at once, and quite frequently. If karma exists, then I'm a terrible person.

"So some of you were born into happiness and wealth

While some of us were born to a life of hell

And some of us were lost and some of us were found

But most of us were beaten by life to the ground."

Love.

2009-11-13T11:08:00.001-08:00

And just in case you are blind and can't see it, here it is again.

Chad. Serious girly drinks. They have this at an undisclosed location in Mound.

All: My birthday is December 1st.

THAT IS ALL.

Gold Nugget Tavern (Minnetonka.Glen Lake): Part 2

2009-11-11T10:43:00.001-08:00

Since my move to the 'burbs, me and Mrs. D are commiting to occasional Tuesday dinner outings. Bless her heart! I really like to have "regular" outings with people, but lack the people able/willing to do them. Mrs. D is not too food adventerous, so when she asked where we would, go, I immediately decided on the Gold Nugget.

Last time Mr. H and I went there, I was pretty satisfied. The atmosphere isn't much, it's comparable to Houlihan's/ any other suburbia restaraunt. Which is why it was perfect for Mrs. D and I. I was sure she would love it, and I was right!

I had problems deciding what to order (is this a surprise???) and struggled between a dinner and a Juicy Lucy. I'm not too impressed overall by Lucy's, and figure I'd like to try one at The Nook before anywhere else. So I decided on the half chicken dinner, with mashed 'tatoes and roasted veggies. Mrs. D decided on the Pear and Goat Cheese salad. Please let me also note, in reference to my earlier blog, that they now have FOUR pasta's at Gold Nugget! One of which I'll totally order next time. With no further ado!

Pear and Goat Cheese salad w/ balsamic vinagrette (sorry it looks so cartoonish - my phone sucks)

I didn't have a full bite of this salad, but dude; that thing on top is a breaded patty of goat cheese! I love goat cheese, and having it (anything) breaded ROCKS. To add even more awesome, it wasn't greasy at all. Just crunchy, and then smooth goat cheesey smooth-ness! The vinagrette was also very good. Vinagrettes can often be overpowering and too tart, but this one wasn't too tart at all. Mrs. D said she loved the pears. They looked cooked, but they were cold and coated with something - maybe a bit of sugar? She gave this salad two thumbs up!

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner! (and more craptastic cell pics.)

Just gaze at it's glory for a moment, it's ok. This was perhaps one of the best chicken dinners I've ever had. The chicken itself was flavorful and moist, even in the breast area. The gravy below it was delightful - though I can'tput my finger on what it was made of. It's not your typical savory gravy - it's a little salty and a little sweet. The mashed 'tatoes were a tad lumpy, in a good way. They tasted earthy, but also creamy and light. They weren't over-spiced or box-y tasting, they were just plain old good mashed 'tatoes! The vegetables consisted of cauliflower and carrots. They were nicely roasted with a bit of char on the outside, but still firm and toothsome. I'm always glad to have cooked veggies that are texturally sound.

Halfway through dinner, we thought about dessert. I wanted to try somehting, but didn't see anything good on the dessert menu. I had hoped for a cheesecake, or a creme brulee. So I ate more of my dinner, only to have the waitress come over and explain to us that one of the dessert items was replaced with a pumpkin creme brulee (!!) I ordered it anyways.

I didn't care much for this. The top shell was nice and hard- the most fun part of creme brulee! But the "creme" was too thick. I am used to having brulee's that are more of a custard, and this was more of a puree. The flavor was ok - it just tasted like a mushy pumpkin pie. Not the best brulee I've ever had.

Greats

-Breaded goat cheese patty!

-The chicken dinner was large in and in charge

-Hanging with Mrs. D was great

-Our waitress was cool, and not overbearing (i hate overbearing servers.)

Not so greats

-Pumpkin creme brulee

-The atmosphere is just like every other place around there

-They don't have the same awesome drinks as last time (though Im sure it was a seasonal thing)

-The people behind me had their baby carrier (baby and all) on the floor, directly behind my chair.

CG Ham's Sandwich Shop

2009-11-09T10:47:00.000-08:00

Myself and Mr. H found ourselves at CG Ham's on a busy Sunday afternoon. I have been wanting to try it out for a long time. So off we went, to this deli tucked strangely away in a strip mall by Men's Wearhouse and kids stores! The inside is just a small deli type place; basic and functional. We went inside and perused the menu for a little while, and asked some questions to (overly) friendly deli-woman. Mr. H really liked her, but I found her to be...overly nice. Thanking us over and over for coming, etc. Kind of made me think..."desperation!" There were samples of their ham out, and it's seriously some of the best ham I've ever had. I momentarily contemplated going only here for my ham (my regular "at home" lunchmeat) until I saw it costs $11 a pound.

Anyways, after some deliberation, Mr. H decided on the Prime Time ( Thinly Sliced Prime Rib served warm on a French Hoagie with your choice of Horseradish Sauce and/or Garlic Spread. (Au Jus served on the side) and I got the Unforgettable (Roasted Turkey Breast, Bacon and Avocado served on Sliced Multigrain Bread with Mayo, Sunflower Cream Cheese Spread, Tomato and Spinach.) I decided to upgrade with pop and ranch pasta salad for $2 extra. Not a terrible upgrade, but considering the place has Panera-like prices, 1 sandwich can clock in around $10. Since I'm broke most the time, this is a bummer for me. But I do realize that for normal, not-so-broke people, it's not too steep.

The Unforgettable!

I must say I really liked this sandwich. I didn't love it, but there was a lot of things "right" with it. The textures were my favorite part. The softness of the avocado and tomatoes, combined with the semi-firmness of the meat, the crunch of spinach and the bacon were a perfect textural cotnrast. The bread crusts were firm, but not overbearing. The rest of the bread was soft but not flimsy. I don't quite get what sunflower cream cheese is, but I got a good hint of it here. I was a little worried, because cream cheese is so rich it can overpower things. Not that I'm opposed to cream cheese bombs (i LOVE the stuff), but this had the perfect hint. And along with the mayo (also just a hint) and the avocado, it created great softness and flavors.

The pasta salad

It was pretty bland. Creamy, but bland. I wouldn't get it again.

The Prime Time

I didn't have a full bite if this, but I took a bite of the meat and found it much too salty. And hey- I like salt. Mr. H also said the Au Jus was too salty, so I tasted a bit and WOW...too salty was an understatement. It tasted more like soy sauce to me. Overall, quite disappointing.

I wouldn't go out of my way to go here again unless I'm in the area. Which probably won't happen, since it's right by a Toys R Us.

Obento Ya Japanese Bistro - Minneapolis

2009-10-20T19:34:00.000-07:00

In regards to my last blog, I found myself and Mr. C at Obento Ya on a droll Tuesday evening. Japanese food is my new conquest , since the cuisine has been largely left out of my food experiences. I told myself I didn't like it. Through Obento Ya, I experienced the meaning of food experience, and acquired tastes.

Mr. C and I are fond of small plate eating (see Mot o-i) and were delighted to find quite the small plate variety at Obento Ya. Obento Ya is a little out of the way place in SE Minneapolis, and it's atmosphere is that of a small cafe/sushi bar. Very quaint and pleasant. The waitress was friendly, and good about answering my sushi questions. I told her I was somewhat of a sushi noob, and this would be my first place to eat "good" sushi. She helped me along the menu, and agreed the Unagi Nigiri (Eel on top of rice, wrapped with a small strip of nori) is good for beginners, because the eel is slightly cooked, and the sauce is sweet. She also agreed the spicy salmon or tuna Maki rolls (wrapped with nori - which i haven't had great experiences with) are good, recommending the salmon over the tuna because it has avocado in it. And avocado rules. After much mulling over the variety of things to get, we finally decided.

I opted for:

The Spicy Salmon roll
Chicken Katsu (japanese frying method, usually with breadcrumbs, and they have varieties such as eggplant, scallop, etc)
A Scallop Tempura (tempura is an egg based batter, in which the items are fried.) These were all small plates, so you get one item apiece, besides the sushi of course.

Mr. C opted for:

Petite Katsu (a variety of vegetables, katsu style)
Eel Nigiri (yes! I got to try some of his!)
a Japanese Pumpkin Tempura
Yakitori Trio (grilled skewered chicken-different parts offered, such as thigh etc. He opted for the thigh portion.)
And we split an order of gyoza (pan fried dumplings, usually with pork and veggie mixture, all ground up.)

I introduce, in no particular order!

Spicy Salmon Rolls

These were very, very good. I did not taste the kind of "fishy-ness" I have previously had with every other sushi I've eaten. There is a delicate flavor, but it's natural and fresh. I am pleased to say I did not get a hint of the unpleasantness I normally have from the nori. I did have to pull at it with my teeth (as I struggled with at Oishi), so decided to go for it and eat the whole piece at once. While it does fill my mouth extremely full of food, (making me feel kind of...rude,) it also gave me a lush sushi experience. The salmon and avocado texture was VELVET. The spicy sauce came through light, but definite. I also ate more wasabi than I have before - putting a tiny ball on the end of one chopstick before picking the piece up and dipping it in the soy sauce. It was a perfect compliment to the flavor combination, adding a sharpness to remind your senses to come back home and evaluate what's in your mouth. Lovely.

Unagi Nigiri (sorry for the terrible picture)
These were just awesome. One thing I love about certain sushi's is the sesame seeds. That flavor pops right off. I then immediately tasted the eel - which had a more fishy flavor than the salmon, but it was slight and pleasant.. The texture was soft, and the sweet and salty eel sauce on top is the perfect partner to the sticky rice and eel flavors. I totally loved this!

Gyoza
I have had these before, and I must say I found these to be bland. The sauce was the same as anywhere, just a less salty/more sweet soy sauce. I didn't get the crunch from the edges like I did at Oishi, so I would have to say I prefer that gyoza over these.

Petite Katsu

I don't really know what vegetables these were, but I ate a few bites of the one on the far left. I think it was zucchini? I didn't care for it much. It didn't suck, but it was kind of watery and not much katsu or vegetable flavor coming through. Doesn't the picture kind of make you think: lollipops??

Scallop Tempura

This was gorgeous. The tempura came through nicely, and scallop absolutely melted in my mouth. Scallops are a favorite of mine - with their mild, light, almost buttery flavor. The tempura definitely didn't take away from this, and stayed crispy outside of the soft center. The only complaint I had is the sauce - for a tempura dipping sauce, it was quite mild and did not add to nor take away from this dish.

Chicken Katsu
My first Katsu ever - and it really is just like a great fried chicken item. Nothing too "asian" about it, except the cooking method being different from ours. Imagine the most flavorful, moist piece of white fried chicken you've had, but with lighter and less greasy - and you have this! It was fantastic, but my real praise goes to the sauce! The only way I can describe is: japanese BBQ sauce. I ate the entire dish of sauce with my chicken. It was very nice.

Japanese Pumpkin Tempura

I found this to be complex, and maybe too much for me to evaluate yet. It tasted like tempura potato, but without a lot of potato flavor. It was slightly squash-like, and I really don't like squash. This was just so-so. I much preferred the Moto-i tempura sweet potato, it had much more depth of flavor and was well defined.

Yakitori Trio

I had these at Moto-i, and found them to be...just grilled chicken. Which it is - but these were much more flavorful. The sauce tasted like a mix of soy and sweet sauce, but it actually permeated into the chicken a bit. The char is well defined, and the grill tastes lingers on your palette for a few minutes after eating it. Very well done.

After this feast, the waitress asked if we would like dessert. I wasn't expecting them to have dessert, so I asked about what they had. I usually never get dessert, but upon hearing CHOCOLATE BANANA CREPES, I buckled. I did not regret this decision upon viewing it - HOLY Mama!

Crepes are another "new to me" thing. I had one at the State Fair (chicken and pesto) and loved it. This was my first dalliance with the sweet side, and man was it amazing. Very simple, with sliced banana's, whipped cream and decadent chocolate ice cream inside. The whip cream had to have been homemade or something, it had that sweet, creamy flavor that a good whip cream should deliver. There was plenty of ice cream. So much it came out the sides, to my delight! Seriously would go back there just for this dessert.

Overall, I had one of the best restaraunt and food experiences ever at Obento Ya. As I explore and learn more about (some) Japanese foods, I find them mysterious, sexy, and delicious. I am still iffy (or downright frightened) of some Japanese cuisine (octopus pancake ball??) However, we are in this awesome honeymoon phase where the heights of our passion know no limits.

http://www.obento-ya.com/

Oishi Sushi and Teriyaki - Brooklyn Center

2009-10-16T13:12:00.000-07:00

Ok. Anyone who knows me, knows my sushi predicament. I REALLY want to love sushi. I mean - look at it! It looks so tasty! Unfortunately, the sushi I have tried (high end grocery stores, Kabuki's, Floyd's) I don't like. Too fishy for my tastes, but I think I have an issue with the nori more than the actual fish. I liken sushi to eating a mouthful of sea - good for some, not so good for others! I'm usually up for a food challenge, especially one with so much variety. So my sushi quest continues, and landed me this day at Oishi.

Oishi is a small place inside a strip mall in Brooklyn Center (what whaaaat??) Next to it is a really bad asian takeout place, and a Subway. It is fashioned as japanese cuisine, without all the hardcore fish stuff. The menu includes teriyaki dishes, katsu (japanese fried chicken), noodle dishes (yakisoba, udon), miso soups and bento boxes (totally want to eat bento box style sometime!) It's actually Korean run, but the only sign of this is the offering of kimchee as a side.

So off I went for a sushi adventure. Oishi is really just a small takeout place, so no frills inside. I reviewed the menu heavily before going in, since sushi is somewhat new to me. I have been referred to "rolls" rather than the nigiri sushi (particularly the Caterpillar roll.) I wasn't quite sure how much to get, because I don't know sushi quantity. So i opted for the Gyoza (a dumpling basically-5 pc for $1.75) Philly roll (Cream Cheese, Smoked Salmon, Avocadoes and Cucumbers $4.75) and a Crunchy Roll (Shrimp tempura, Cucumbers, and Avocados covered in Tempura Crunch $7.25.)

Gyoza is familiar territory. So when it came out, I immediately ate it. It was good - not great - not bad. The wrapping itself was actually quite light for something fried. And the edges were delightfully crunchy, giving good contrast to the soft interior. Without the dipping sauce (which i can never recognize, but is a common asian dipping sauce for dumplings) it was a little bland, but otherwise they were happy little nibblers. And 5 of these for 1.75 is a downright steal.

The sushi took about 10 minutes to make, and you can watch the guy at the counter making it. It came out at the perfect time. May I introduce:

Philly Roll
I am always astounded by the beauty of sushi. What I am not amused by is the strategy of eating it. I am a 2-bite-per-sushi-piece person. I ignored that about myself though, and ate the first one in whole. I felt like a pig. It almost over-filled my mouth. I chewed through, and immediately had mixed reactions. The rice was nice and sticky. The avocado was velvety and smooth, the cream cheese wasn't too rich due to the competing salmon flavor, but it served as a great lubricant and buffer for the fish and nori. The smoked taste of the salmon came through very well. Salmon however, is a fishy tasting fish. And while these were decidely fishy, it was delicate. But it's not something I want to eat every day. My biggest complaint is they were awkward to eat. It's not eay to bite through the nori, so I found myself "pulling" at it a lot, and then some of the rice would fall apart. Maybe sushi was meant to be eaten in one bite - but I find it a tad too much for my mouth.

The sushi was served simply, with a little ball of wasabi (funny how much it looks like play-doh!) and a gorgeous mound of pickled ginger. Wasabi is challenging for me, so I mix it a small amount with the soy sauce. I know that in some areas, this is considered to be an insult to the sushi chef. But I also know that in the US, many people do it this way. I find soy sauce alone too salty for sushi. So I also used my Gyoza sauce for dipping, which was more mild and a bit sweet. I love ginger, and this is my first time eating it pickled. It is said to aid in clearing your palette, which makes sense because sushi can be very flavorful and complex. I LOVED the ginger. The heat of the ginger and the slight acidity of the pickling - wonderful. It was not over-pickled or vinegary. Delightful!

After eating about 3 of my Philly Rolls, I moved onto the Crunchy Rolls. These were truly a sight to behold.

With these, I found chopsticks to be a deterrent to the eating. These sushi pieces are more narrow and taller than the Philly pieces. So I just used my hands. The first bite I took was really complex, and I struggle to identify all the flavors. The first thing that hit me was the tempura. It tasted so savory and toasty. I didn't get a fish taste from this, gladly, and the pieces were slightly warm compared to the cold Philly pieces. The shrimp flavor didn't come through significantly, but it is layered in there. I found the soy sauce and wasabi ill-paired with this, but a little Sriracha gave that sweet and savory the spicy I was looking for. I don't know what sauce was on top, but it was sweet and salty. I again struggled with the 2-bites/nori predicament, and found myself holding one piece with two hands like it was a tiny round sandwich. I was suprised by how much of it there was. I was confident I would be able to eat all the sushi served to me. After eating 4 Philly pieces, and 4 Crunchy pieces, I was stuffed!

Overall, I look forward to eating sushi not because I fell in love with it (I didn't) but to understand it more. To explore the variety and depth, and learn what it offers. This is definitely an intellectual food for me, and I look forward to a meeting of the minds again soon! (caterpillar roll!) I feel like Oishi does good sushi, but realize I'm still a sushi novice.

http://www.oishimn.com/

Hazlewood

2009-10-12T18:24:00.001-07:00

Mrs. D (you may know her from the Jake's post) and I decided to go out for "lunch" on a Sunday afternoon. The reason for the quotes is due to the lack of actual lunch at 12 noon on Sundays most anywhere. Having looked at Hazlewood's menu previously, I saw there was a bit if difference between the lunch and dinner menu. Lunch is sandwich galore, so of course I was tempted! However, we arrived and were met with the dreaded "brunch menu." This consists mostly of, well... breakfast, and then a few burgers. It also states on the brunch menu on the website that the full menu is available for take-out. But when we asked for more options, we were told that they are only serving the brunch menu. Um...oookay. Anyways, I decided on the Cheddar Burger with Tilamook cheese and ordered it medium well, mostly because nothing else on the menu looked appealing. Mrs. D had the cranberry walnut salad.

I didn't know if I would be blogging so I took no pics. I don't usually like to take pics of "normal food" anyhow. It's a burger and fries on a plate, mmkay? This burger was a huge disappointment, especially for being 11 dollars. It was fatty and greasy, which is ok if the burger itself isn't bland. Trust me - I can handle some pretty high fat meals, but even this coated my mouth in juice and grease. I found the bun to be overwhelming, and they also put SHREDDED ICEBERG lettuce on it. Ugh. I had to ask the waitress for some mustard and ketchup, seeing as how nothing came on the burger, and there were no condiments on our table. The cheese flavor was non-existent, though I find this to be the case with any melted cheddar scenario. The fries were good, thin cut and really had depth of flavor - like they were fried in beef oil or something.

I did end up eating it all, but that was because I was hungry and it didn't completely suck. I will give Hazlewood another chance (on a NON BRUNCH menu) but was overall underwhelmed by this experience. It seemed to me you pay for decor, which is modern but also very Minnesotan, with fireplaces and exposed wood walls, combined with stylishly contoured light fixtures. What I didn't see was any good quality food. Mrs. D's salad seemed to be small and kind of thrown together, though I didn't taste it. I can see spending my hard earned money elsewhere and having a much more delightful taste bud experience.

http://www.hazellewoodgrill.com/pages/home

Town Hall Brewery

2009-10-06T14:49:00.000-07:00

I have occasionally passed by the Town Hall Brewery, and usually barely notice it. However, upon reading some food blog recently (can't remember which one!) and hearing they have goat cheese nacho's, I decided I should probably get there ASAP.

Last weekend, Mr. H and I found ourselfs a-hungerin' AND a-thirstin, and we immediately decided on Town Hall. This is quite the accomplishment, considering it takes us around an hour (sometimes 2) to decide where to eat. Really, it's ridiculous. I will admit, - I looked at the menu online beforehand (they have a pretty nice website) and found immediately what I wanted. Something that I've not seen elsewhere! We'll get to that later.

Mr. H picked me up around 1030 PM. I was pleased to hear they serve food until midnight. That's a must for late night diners like myself and Mr. H. Off we went, to the West Bank for some eats. No parking lot, but they do have a ramp nearby that costs like 5 bucks. Kind of a bummer, but expected in that area. When we arrived, we walked all around the place to scope it out. There's a bar and dining tables in the first room when entering, really just a basic set up - but very cozy. There's additional seating in the back, one area even has a couch around a table, but we found it too bright for our tastes. So we sat at the front at a regular table.

Of course, the first thing we look at are drink/wine/beer menu's. They have quite a unique selection of brews, being a brewery and all. Things such as "Duchesse Bourgogne"
(6.0% abv. Traditional Flemish red ale from Belgium. Matured in oak casks for up to 12 months. Flavors include passion fruit, chocolate and an acidic finish. Served in 10 ounce glass only.) Or the "Tripel Vision" (8.0% abv. Smooth and rereshing Belgen style Tripel. Light in color and body and loaded with rich fruity untones.)

I decided to stick with my regular cocktail, while Mr. H opted for one of their blueberry brews (not listed on the website, booo!) I've only had one MN brewed blueberry beer, which is quite good. This blueberry beer was 10 times better. It wasn't too sweet. Blueberries are actually quite deep and mellow in flavor, and this beer captured that. It had a lightly toast/malt finish that was just fantastic. I'm not a big beer drinker, so the 10 oz pour in a medium sized, stemmed beer glass is perfect for beer wimps like me. I had some major drink envy going on.

Town Hall does offer 64 oz. growlers (those big old containers you can fill up with their beer and take home) for $13, but unfortunately this beer is not included in the list. HUGE bummer. However, they DO offer a ber flight with all their regular beers (5 of 'em) for $9. Mr H also ordered their scotch ale- "Hope and King Scotch Ale" (6.0% abv. Bronze Medal Winner 2002 and 2004 Great American Beer Festival. Our interpretation of the classic ale that originated in Glasgow, Scotland. A full-body ale, rich in malt complexity. Brewed with both English and American barley and many, many specialty malts allowing hints of roasted chocolate, caramel and raisins with very little hop presence) which IS offered in a growler, and also quite good.

For their food, they have a pretty basic bar menu, but with some twists. For appetizers, they have things such as pretzels, goat cheese nacho's (which I WILL try someday!!!) and sweet potato fries. They have burgers (Greek Burger: An old favorite… grilled ½ lb. burger topped with crumbled Feta cheese and Tzatziki sauce 8.25), sandwiches (Mango Shredded Chicken: Slow roasted and shredded spicy chicken, topped with melted pepper jack cheese, served with a
side of mango salsa 7.95) and some entree's (Roasted Half Chicken: Semi-boneless half chicken slow roasted with garlic and fresh herbs—served with our signature mashed potatoes and today’s vegetable 12.95.)

What really caught my eye was the pasta's. Too often, I see a pasta or two on a menu, like a mere afterthought. This place had some good looking pasta's for a brewery/bar. Such as the Buffalo Chicken Penne with grilled chicken (Town Hall’s special Buffalo cream sauce, roasted red peppers and diced tomatoes. Garnished with crumbled blue cheese 10.95) When I saw it, I wanted to sing. I love love love anything "buffalo", and to see it on a pasta excited and scared me all at once. With no further ado!

Buffalo Chicken Penne Pasta

Where does one begin when they feel such admiration for something? Do they start with the absolute perfection of the al dente penne? How it bounced off his/her teeth, and was sturdy and utterly satisfying? Do they gush about the stunning marriage of creamy and spicy in the sauce? Does he/she ponder how they captured the beauty of buffalo sauce...in a pasta? Would one tell you how they were scared of the muscle that bleu cheese boasts, but were delighted to find it added an excellent sharpness to the entire dish? I would imagine one would say all that. He/she would also add that the chicken was not cubed, not chunked; but pieced. Slightly charred in places, giving you a crispy bit of burnt skin ever so often, driving home the point that the stuff had to have been grilled. I am willing to bet hard earned money that one would testify to this being their new favorite pasta ever. I will also caution any rich food adversaries against this, as it was VERY rich.

Mr. H decided upon the Big Burrito (choice of shredded chicken, steak or roasted pork with cilantro rice, black beans, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato and Town Hall’s green chili burrito sauce 7.95) and he chose the pork variety immediately. It was a night of no hesitations for us!

Lots of pleasing things in this monster. Cilantro rice, which actually had hints of cilantro against all the other stuff in the burrito. Their salsa and guac are also good. The guac tasted very fresh, and salsa was not too spicy, garlicky or smokey (all salsa no-no's in Ruby's food world.) The pork was shredded, and was very savory. Mr. H tried his best, but only got 3/4 through the beast, which made me realize how much this guy actually ate.

Icing on the cake time. Most of you (all one of you who actually reads this!) are thinking..o0o0o0, dessert! Nope. The scotch menu. It's delightful. They have everything from Glemorangie to Oban, and offer pours in either petite (1.5 oz.) or full (3 oz...i think) which I think is wonderful. I kind of loathe places that have strict standards on pours. Like, their shots can only be 1.5 oz etc, and the d-bag bartenders actually measure them and shit. This way, you can have a little or a lot, and still keep it on the cheap. Mr. H got a 10 year old Glenfarclas, single malt in the petite pour for around $7 I believe. Not too shabby! I'm not a scotch person, and I even liked this scotch. The glass they serve it in is awesome - its an elegant little scotch glass, with dents in the sides for your fingertips. I wanted to steal it, but unfortunately could not since we only ordered one.

Overall? LOVED IT. And next time, will get goat cheese nacho's!

http://www.townhallbrewery.com/#home/1549

Ginger Hop: Pt. 2

2009-10-02T11:44:00.000-07:00

Given my previous excitement about Ginger Hop, I had the notion that I HAD to take as many people there, and as SOON as possible! See, when I get excited, I want to share that with everyone else. Not always so endearing though, trust me. So, my victim (Mr. H) and I found ourselfs there on a chilly, sleepy Monday evening.

This time around, I was eager to try an entree. We agreed to get a few appetizers, and share one entree. As always, with no further ado!

Cream Cheese Wontons:

(god bless Mr. H's good quality cell phone camera)

I found these to be quite good. One gripe I have with wontons is that they can be too crunchy, ruffin' up me mouth faster than 2 bowls of Cap N Crunch. These were still crunchy, but still soft enough not to hurt the mouth. And when you get to that bomb of cheese in the center, it's cream cheese bliss, as a cheese wonton should be. The dipping sauce was again, a winner. It was sweet and spicy and just perfect. My only gripes are that they came out quite lukewarm, and that they were a tad greasy. Which brings me to the next appetizer!

The Walleye Satay:

This was a very good satay, though nothing asian about it at all. The taste of the true walleye really popped here, and it was soft and delicate. However, it too was a tad greasy (i know thats what you get with fried food - but I napkin'd it up even more than I usually do) and also kind of lukewarm. This came with a wasabi mayo, and was again a winner, with very delicate hints of wasabi. For $2 apiece, these are awesome little nibblers when with friends, or just a simple companion to an entree.

For the entree, we decided on the Almond Chicken Stir Fry:

Unfortunately, I have more bad than good to say about this. First off, the rice portion was small, especially for 2 people who are going to share. The rice came tented under a small square plate, and was just very...meager looking. I found this dish overall to be bland. They do give you a spice rack (with thai chilies, crushed reds, sriracha sauce etc) so you can spice it up. However, I found the flavor really lacking. Maybe some more garlic? Ginger? Basil? Definitley needed more spice, more savory, more substance period. The chicken was in larger chunks than I like. This dish was also served to us lukewarm, and the rice was downright hard and cold by mid-meal. On the plus side, there were plenty of water chestnuts in the dish.

I am hoping to attribute this to simply being brand new. I was hesistant at first about whether or not to attend such a brand new restaraunt, without knowing why. Now I know why. My enthusiasm hasn't totally dimmed for Ginger Hop, and their appetizers and sauces are winners in my book. I am hoping to visit this place in a few months and find some of these kinks worked out.

Still no website for Ginger Hop.