No More Rating Descriptions...

Hey guys... I have officially decided to stop with the rating system blog. We are still rating the restaurants at restaurant club, but basically I'm too lazy and too busy to do a write up. I'm sure the only people this effects are Monte and Mia... sorry you guys. I guess this means you'll have to start attending more often :-).

Lone Spur Grill

Good Food, good atmosphere, and good cheap beer. What else is there??? Well I have to say I can't complain as the service was excellent because we had our own little Norm in the group (Mr. Luis). The food was good and the prices were great. We had the fresh guacomole which no one could resist to start out with. We then had Enchiladas, Fajitas, Lone Spur Tex Mex Burrito, Fiesta Sampler, and Wings. The fajitas were good as they came sizzling right to the table. The burrito was huge but so so as it lacked flavor. And the wings... well how can you go wrong with wings!! Everyone else seemed to enjoy there meal also. I would definitely go back. Just remember the food is good but nothing exceptional and very americanized mexican. I think it's exactly what you would expect of this nice local bar.

*** 3.5 Out Of 5 Stars

Peninsula

To be honest, I completely forgot to write a review and now looking at the menu I have no clue what we ordered.I do remember that I really liked the ACHAT for an appetizer. And all the entrees were good but only one out of the six we ordered was really tastey! I usually like spicy and full flavors and they all lacked this. Sorry I can't give you anything more. We were there during happy hour and the bottles of wine were really well priced. Like I said everything was good but nothing was anything special.

Not sure what we rated this so I'm going to personally rate it... sorry!
*** 3 Out Of 5 Stars

The Strip Club

Well what can I say the Strip Club definitely impressed me. Our service was fabulous and he was also very knowledgeable. The ambiance was perfect and it was a really quite night so I have to say that I really enjoyed myself. Besides it being located in a sketchy neighborhood and the walk to and from the restaurant was a a tad scary everything else was very delightful. We started off with a couple appetizers Salumi ai Peperonata, Beans & Toast, and the Devil Eggs. All were quite interesting. The Devil Eggs had a little spice with a curry flavor. The Beans & Toast were just delicious, and how could a person go wrong with salami and cheese! While Marlo enjoyed our bartenders recommended concoction all the rest enjoyed nice glasses of wine. We then ordered our main meals which consisted of Chef's Loaded Burger, Hamburger, Filet Mignon, and the Roasted Pork Shoulder. I tried them all and I was very pleased. The burger was probably the best burger I have had in the past ten years. I had a nice charcoal grill taste but was cooked to perfection. The Filet Mignon was excellent - Durbin didn't try a sauce on it and it was very tender. Though I have to say I'd pass on his carrots because they were swimming in butter and all you could taste was the butter. The Pork Shoulder was amazing... it was served with pomegranate seeds along with squash and spicy onions. There was so much unique flavor within the every bite that I was amazed. Plus I loved the spicy onions!! All and all I would definitely recommend this place. And if you are trying to save money just go for the burger as it there was plenty to eat and it was definitely worth it.

**** 4.5 out of 5 Stars

Gingerhop Review...

Here is a SPECIAL and well deserved ADD ON to Restaurant Club....

Monte, Mia, Chris and I headed to Gingerhop on Friday Night. We started out with Calamari and Chicken and Beef Satay. The Calamari was excellent and the sauce had a little quick which you know I love. The Satay was good but the sesame dipping sauce was their favorite. Then we ordered dinner which consisted of the Green Curry, the shredded chicken along side of the red peppers and spicy curry sauce made this a definite hit. And we even had extra to bring along home. We also ordered the General Tsing's Chicken which was in a Tsing Tao beer spicy sauce - definitely got your taste buds in gear!! We had to pass on the dessert but the Guinness Chocolate Cake did sound interesting with it's cream cheese frosting. We instead topped off with another beer. The ambiance is awesome and how can I not mention that we had Al Franken sitting at the booth right next to us. Monte got to see him pick food out of his teeth and did I mention he's short!!

Anyways, all and all this was great night with phenomenal friends and fabulous food! Service wasn't the best and basically she just did her job and nothing more. But I will definitely go back. If you like SPICE then this place is for you.

**** 4.5 out of 5 Stars (The men even agreed!)

Nick & Eddies

We will give this one a 3.175... yep I did the unthinkable and went off the quarter scale. But I think all of us would definitely go again once they are back up and running. It sounds like one of the owners has sold his half and the liquor license was under his name so things are a little rocky their right now. Kind of looks like it is shut down if you didn't know any better. Though we had a great server and I guess the pudding and the yo-ho were fabulous. Tacos weren't that exciting and pork tenderloin was good but smaller portion. Plus who can complain when we were able to bring our own bottles of wine in. We definitely scored on that!!!

*** 3.175 out of 5 Stars

Picosa

I think Lisa summed up the night perfectly....

A couple of fun observations/happenings from the evening...

* GREAT happy hour drinks & $1 tacos...and until 7 PM!
* some serious salsa dancers - fun to watch and makes me want to learn.
* other people...we'll just call them "interesting" outfitted girls walking about...enough said.
* I think we all agreed that my tamale meal was the best entree - leftover it was good too!
* the ice cream shop that really isn't but still yummy in my tummy. :)
* and how can we ever forget the end of the evening...I still laugh at the fact that Jana sprinted to her car like she was trying out for the Olympics trying to avoid getting a ticket and that the two lucky ticket winners were the two birthday girls, Stef and I. Of which, I still need to pay my $35 fine that was more than my entire tab for the evening! LOL.

After all is said and done, it was FUN to celebrate amongst great friends! Thank you!!

Cheers!
Lisa

We started the rating at 3.5, but we had to lower it when it took forever to get our bills and after Stef and Lisa got their parking tickets!

FINAL - 3.25 out of 5 Stars

The Sample Room

Good food but nothing to rave about. Great beer selection. Great Ambiance.

3.25 out of 5 Stars

Chapati

Chapati - 4.25
Excellent Indian food!!

Review from Barrio

So I'm a little busy right now so I haven't gotten around to this... blah, blah, blah... are any of you even reading this?

So when entering the restaurant I was very pleased with the ambiance and decor but was surprised at how snug the restaurant was. As we sat down we were greeted by our waitress that seemed in a hurry and not to patient. While at Barrio we enjoyed a few cocktails that were very tasty. We had the Macho Camacho which had a very distinctive flavor with the Blood Orange Ancho. The Caesar Chavez which was just a good old Margarita! The Old Cuban that was unique but good. The Cobra Verde that had a nice sutle cherry lime flavor. And then there was the Black Bonita that was fabulous and we could have thrown a few of those back a piece they were so good.

Then we ordered a few small plates and a few tacos/enchiladas which consisted of:
GUACAMOLE - which was served chunky so we weren't really sure if we were suppose to wait for them to mash it or do it ourselves?!?
BARBECUE PORK SOPES - good, tender, and tasty.
BLACK BEAN & CHICKEN TOSTADA - The best small plate we had... very tasty and we'd definitely recommend.
POTATO SOPES - We didn't know what to think of these, they were kind of weird tasting.
QUESO FUNDITO - You can never go wrong with queso but I would recommend adding the chirizo for more flavor.
FRIED MAHI MAHI TACO - This taco was excellent and something different and the citrus pico added the perfect flavor.
GRILLED SKIRT STEAK - This one was also good but a tad greasy with the mushroom and steak combination.
CHICKEN ENCHILADA - Simple but good.
SPICED SHRIMP TACO - Definitely good flavor.
POTATO-CHORIZO TACO - Our favorite taco, it had a the most spice and flavor.

Throughout our dinner the service was so so. She took away our menus when it's obviously a place you continually order throughout your visit. Then she took cocktail's that weren't finished. Basically she was just going through the motions and was just "there". During our visit we go a little shower when a waitress spilled a drink upstairs and it splattered on us below.

All and all we were very pleased with the restaurant. We would definitely recommend the tacos and enchiladas versus the small plates because they had better flavor and were cheaper. The cocktails were spendy but delicious. I will definitely return but maybe try making it during their happy hour to save money on the cocktails.

**** (4 OUT OF 5 STARS)

Test

Review from Boba Cafe

Walking into Boba Cafe I have to say I had a lot of doubts, even though I had read some great reviews I was surprised to notice the empty bar I don't think they even used the bar for water - so I knew they didn't have a liquor license and so it wasn't looking good. Then looking at the huge menu I got really excited and wanted to try something different. We started off with the Appetizer Sampler which included Springrolls, Eggrolls, Wontons, Wings, and Chicken Satay. I think the springrolls were excellent, the eggrolls were really greasy, Wontons are always good and they were a little sweet, the wings didn't have much flavor, and the chicken satay also didn't have any good flavor. But we did finish the whole appetizer... or should I say I did cause I was super hungry! We then ordered our dinner which a few of the items we wanted were not available due to the peanut recall. So we finally settled on the Boba's Sizzling Platter Wraps, Stuffed Curried Crepes, Spicy Siam Combo, Spicy Peanut Chicken which we substituted cashews for the peanuts. The Boba's Sizzling Platter Wraps were nothing special - I thought instead of putting the meat and mushroom in the lettuce and rice paper wrap it was better just to through it over rice and add some spices. The Curried Crepes were... terrible, they were so huge and had no flavor of curry whatsoever. It tasted like an egg pancake with a little coconut milk. I think we all took a bite and then covered it up with our napkin. The Spicy Siam Combo was good and had good flavor and the Spicy Peanut Chicken was also really good. The restaurant was clean and our service wasn't the best but she wasn't terrible either.

I don't think we'd ever return to this restaurant, I realize we have to take into consideration where the restaurant is located and how cheap the food was. But personally I will not return and if you do go please steer away from the Crepes even though it is one of their signature entrees!!

***(3.25 out of 5 stars)

Review from Rinata

When walking into the restaurant, I was quite surprised at how busy it was. It is a very small but cozy restaurant. We didn't have a reservation, but next time I would definitely make a reservation as it filled up fast. We started off with the Artisinal Salami Plate with olives artichokes and fresh mozzarella for an appetizer. I thought it was excellent and a great light appetizer. We then ordered dinner which consisted of Gnocchi with chicken, Ravioli with Porcini, and Fettuccini Puttanesca. The Gnocchi was simple but good, the Ravioli was very tasty but a tad salty, and the Fettuccini was excellent. I thought everything was excellent and in regards to the prices it was super affordable. I would definitely recommend asking the waitress for a more detailed explanation of the entrees cause that was very helpful, otherwise they all sound kind of simple. Our waitress was a little too nice... her voice made me just want to cringe, but she was very knowledgeable so I'll give her that!! We would definitely recommend this restaurant for a good and reasonable priced meal.

****(4 out of 5 stars)

Review from Spasso

When we pulled up to the Strip Mall where the restaurant was located, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. But the moment we walked in the door I was pleasantly surprised - the nice decor, a huge wood burning stove, the friendly staff, and needless to say it's a lot bigger inside then it looks from the outside. When we sat down our waitress was very polite and helpful in suggesting a wine to our tastes. Most of us had wine and the cocktails were served in pint glasses (this is my type of drinking...). What is unique about their wine selection is that if you don't find what your looking for on their menu you can go next door to the Wine Shop and pick out your wine and they'll cork it at the restaurant. Plus the wine prices are very reasonable starting at only $20 a bottle. We then decided to get the Spinach Artichoke Dip for an appetizer and it was fabulous - it tasted very fresh and the Parmesan Flatbread was excellent. We then proceeded to order dinner which we tried the Crab Cakes, Pepperoni Pizza, Margherita Pizza, Bacon White Cheddar Burger, Seafood Volcano, and the Skirt Steak. The pizzas were good but simple - basically what you'd expect. Crab Cakes came with three dipping sauces that were exquisite - each with their own unique flavor, it was definitely a winner. The Bacon Cheddar Burger was huge and I assume it was good since Luis kept it all to himself :-). The Skirt Steak was tender and juicy and the hunter sauce added the perfect touch to this excellent dish. And then there was the Seafood Volcano...shrimp, scallops, and crap in an absolute phenomenal cream sauce. I'll definitely be back for more of this. If you like seafood then there is no doubt this is the dish for you! We all ended up passing on the desert as we all were full and a few of us had to go boxes. The prices were very reasonable and we would definitely return.

****(4.25 OUT OF 5 STARS)

Review from Obento-Ya

This small little restaurant was definitely something different and good. We snuck in a couple beers on happy hour and ordered a couple appetizers. First we ordered both the Agedashi Tofu and the Kushi Katsu Vegetables. The tofu didn't really taste like anything - I would definitely not order that again and the Kushi Katsu Grilled Vegetables were interesting but definitely nothing special either. At this point I was kind of worried the food seemed blan and didn't have any flavor. We then ordered different Bento Box Combos which included the meat of your choice - we had the chicken, pork, beef, and the salmon. The bento box also came with white steamed rice, spring greens, Japanese potato salad, spicy burdock root saute, a Japanese egg omelet, and miso soup. The salad was fabulous, the potato salad was creamy goodness (we were all hoping to have gotten an extra scoop!), the egg omelet was also very tasty, and the miso soup was good but the shallow spoons made consumption a tad difficult. After becoming pros with our chopsticks all and all we were very pleased with this restaurant. We would recommend getting the Classic Bento Box versus the Combo box and save yourself $4 - maybe get yourself the Asparagus and Bacon roll (we also tried this and I thought it was phenomenal (anything with grilled bacon is always good!)

***(3.25 OUT OF 5 STARS)

Review from Cafe Maude...12.9.08

This resataurant has the ambiance that you love, it was fancy but low key. The service was good though it seemed the type of place that is in no rush to get you out the door and perhaps too polite to interrupt your conversation to get your order. Which among a bunch of girls - there was really no down time for him to sneak in, so it seemed as though we were waiting to order. We shared a bottle of wine and Marlo was excited to try the Bronco Nagurski (whiskey, rootbeer, and bitters) - she was definitely impressed and loved the extra kick!! The waiter was excellent when he noticed we weren't impressed with the wine and got us a new bottle which we definitely enjoyed. We then enjoyed an array of food everything from Mac & Cheese to Baked Escargot. The Mac and Cheese was definitely one of our favories. We also had the Corn Chowder, Egg & Spinach, House Cut Fries, and Grilled Asparagus. I have to say we all enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and I have to say the conversation was the best. All in all we would definitely return and thought it would be fun to visit during the live music on the weekends.

***(3.5 OUT OF 5 STARS)

Review from Trygs... 11.23.08

Well we switched it up a little this week and did a brunch... we now realize why we don't usually do brunches on Sundays. A few of us were hungover, a few were talking a little crazy, and a few were too tired to even talk. As we were seated we definitely all were impressed with the atmosphere and were excited to sit at the round table but later got a bigger table because we had too many people and it would have been too snug. We then were put at very secluded table - maybe a little too secluded cause our waitress seem to get lost when checking up on our table. We started off with a couple different cocktails... Bloody Mary, Bellini, Wake Up - I highly suggest the Wake Up which is only $3 versus the tasty $8 Bloody. After looking at the menu - which is a tad small only 8 entrees and then about 6 salads, I don't know about you but the last thing I want to eat for breakfast is a salad. So we all decided on two items - Two Eggs Your Way and the Southwestern Omelet. The Omelet was good but I've had it before and feel it was kind of missing something this time (I actually think they've changed it?!?) Don't get me wrong it wasn't bad just nothing special. The others that had the Eggs their way weren't complaining either. I think both dishes definitely hit the spot for breakfast but neither dish was phenomenal. But when looking at the prices it definitely was far worth the price... everything is very well price and I'd even say cheap!! Couple people ate for under $10 which is unheard of when your in an establishment like Trygs. We then ordered dessert... we had Big Ball Little Ball, Burnt Cream, and Apple Walnut Crepes. All were extremely delicious!! I was very impressed. Chris enjoyed his balls a little more then the rest of us though :-) Steve and I were impressed with the tiny pepper shakers. Beth realized she likes runny creme brule. What can I say... it was definitely a fun brunch. Did we mention the funky bathrooms... they are definitely a must see. We all would recommend this restaurant as it's good and cheap. We were a tad disappointed with the waitress' disappearing act, but other then that she was decent. You should definitely try it out for brunch - they also have jazz playing but we were too far away to hear it.

***(3.25 OUT OF 5 STARS)

Review from Be'Wiched Deli... (10.29.08)

As I showed up first being the only one in the restaurant, the people behind the counter made me feel right at home. They were eager to help and explained their Happy Hour deals, which were awesome - Tap Beers for $2 and Wine for $4. The selection was small but good. Our waitress that dropped off our beers and wine was very nice and she said she'd keep an eye on our beverages but 5 minutes after Happy Hour ended we realized she wasn't coming around. We all realized it was an order at the counter type place but we're hoping she would have kept more of an eye on us like she said. Anyways, as we were enjoying our drinks Chris ordered a small plate which was on the happy hour menu and they asked what we wanted and Chris said basically to surprise us. Surprisingly enough it was amazing and it was avery good spread. We had a little of everything - Mini Pastrami Sandwiches, Mini Tuna Confit Sandwiches, Cous Cous, Asparagus Rolled in Smoked Ham, Brie, Apricots, Salted Almonds, Salami, Panchetta, Roasted Sweet & Hot Peppers, and Pickeled Cucumbers. Need I say anything more it was awesome. Then we had to change our order since everything we wanted we had on our appetizer plate and we wanted to try something different. So we order the Smoked Turkey Sandwich, Steak Sandwich (Special of the Day), White Bean Salad, Spinach Salad, and finally the Squash Soup. Each sandwich came with two little scoops of either Potato Salad, Olive Salad, Pickled Cucumbers, or Cous Cous. Out of the sandwiches we decided the Steak Sandwich was by far our favorite it had a spicy pepper sauce that was unbelievable and the steak was very tender. The Turkey Sandwich had medjool dates and goat cheese on it which also gave it a nice unique flavor that wasn't overpowering. The salads were good and just all around had that healthy taste but the soup definitely was incredible with it's incredible texture and flavor. I'm definitely getting my own the next time I come!! All around we were very pleased and loved the quiet laid back atmosphere. They also kept running tabs for each us which I thought was nice. We'll all definitely return.

****(4.25 OUT OF 5 STARS)

Review from Tea House... (10-14-08)

Besides getting a little lost finding this place (due to mapquest) I was shocked to see it in a strip mall. But right when walking in the door the decor caught my eye. With it's wood chairs and red hints the place was more then what I was expecting. We were seated at this huge circular table with a "spinner" in the middle. This made sharing dishes a must and also very easy. We started off with the Shanghai Mini Juicy Buns, Fried Cheese Wontons, Egg Rolls, Szechuan Vegetarian Dumplings, and Shanghai Pancake which the waiter had recommended. All were excellent - the Shanghai Pancake was definitely a hit and we would recommend. A few people were daring enough to try the Juicy Buns and besides the squirts of juice the people that tried them were shocked because they don't look very pleasing but were very tasty, just be sure to eat them while they are hot! Next,we decided to just get an entree from each section of the menu and then we would all split. So we got the Chicken with Fresh Asparagus, Mongolian Pork, Gui Chow Beef, and the Lo Mein along with some sticky rice. The entrees were all very delicious - I think the best entree was the Gui Chow Beef, again this was something that the waiter recommended. It had great flavor, a little bit of spice and just something a little different which made it stand out from the rest. The Chicken with Fresh Asparagus I thought would be very plain and simple but it also got great reviews from our table and I was impressed. I was even shocked that with 7 of us we still had food to take home. The service was excellent and it was nice to have a waiter that was very knowledgeable and friendly that didn't smother yet knew when he was needed. I like the idea of them changing all the utensils and napkins after the appetizer. We did wait for our check but I think he didn't want to feel as though he was rushing us, as he did take the time to hand each individual check to each individual person. I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone - you can't beat the price and the atmosphere was quiet and homey. We definitely enjoyed it.

****(4.25 OUT OF 5 STARS)

Review from Lachaya... (9-23-08)

As I pulled into the parking lot and realized I was the only guest - I was a tad worried. But after walking in the front doors to this quaint little restaurant with french doors open in the front and the interesting decor made you love it at first sight. Though we did have someone eye it out that it used to be a KFC... shocking really! Thank god they got rid of the drive-thru and put in a beautiful patio. After being seated and asking my waitress a question or two about the cocktails I realized she was very uninformed and not a quality waitress - she had no clue what she was serving and couldn't even try to pretend to pull it off. So, a few of us started off with a glass of wine and a couple of us even tried the Corona on ice with a weird spice and some type of alcohol in it - still not sure what it was???? But it was very good. The wine on the other hand wasn't anything too exciting. Then we ordered our appetizer "Special" which was a bread plate which was covered with feta cheese, tomatoes, onions, peppers, and a heavy flavorful vinaigrette - it was FABULOUS!!! Sorry I don't have a name for it but it was excellent. We also had the Avocado Soup which came with a little scoop of crab in it and was served cold (we assumed hot) - Most of us really enjoyed it - though a few wanted chips to dip into it. I thought it had a very green fresh taste and would definitely order it again. But now for the entrees.... we had the Petite Beef Fillet with a Green Bean and Beet Salad, Cannelloni, Chicken Fettuccine, Four Seasons Pizza which included equal parts of: Mushroom, Artichokes, Prosciutto & Salami, Red Snapper with a Caper Relish and the Grilled Chicken with Caper Relish. The Red Snapper and the Chicken were outstanding and I'd definitely recommend them both hands down. They were both served with the caper relish but both had their own distinctive flavor, they were also served with mashed potatoes and a veggie which again was excellent. The pizza was pretty good, the chicken fettuccine is what I'd call "safe" and the Cannelloni was a tad blah. The steak and salad wasn't anything to rave about either but nothing was terrible. We ended up not getting a dessert due to the selection being very limited. I'd definitely recommend this place for a date night - and hopefully you'll get a waitress that can correctly select the perfect wine to sit out on there patio and relax. The ambiance was great and no one seemed to be in a hurry. I heard the bathrooms were quite nice as well. But when you go - stay away from the pastas as they seemed boring and steer more towards the meat/seafood entrees as they were excellent!! Also, after reading some other reviews we think this might be a good place for breakfast.

****(4 OUT OF 5 STARS)

Review from Red Stag Supper Club... (9-9-08)

By the time you find this place you may be very hungry but don't worry it's definitely worth it. Maybe we were idiots but we kept going down the wrong streets and missing the place. Once you get there the ambience is very relaxed - you could be in shorts or a suit and it wouldn't matter. We started off with a couple cocktails which we were very impressed with the Red Stag after reading that it contained quite a few different liquors including jager. But I definitely recommend it - the Sangria was also very tasty. Then we had the Beef Carpaccio for a starter which was served a little different but it was fabulous and had great flavor and the shoestring potatoes even added a little something. Then we choose the waiters top two favorites which were the Halibut Cheek Cippino and the Pork Chop. The portions were very good size and the flavor reminded me of mom's home cookin but with the ingredients she would never carry in her kitchen. Hopefully that makes sense... basically the flavor wasn't so much unique as just a good hearty flavor. We pretty much scraped our plates clean - and don't let the soggy bread in the Cioppino fool you, it's phenomenal. Then we had to have dessert so we had a Chocolate Cake with a Peanut Butter Moose - this was also a winner. The service was excellent - we never went with our water glass less than half full, our food came out extremely quick and our server was eager in giving suggestions.We'd definitely recommend this place and with such a chilled atmosphere you can't help but to relax and enjoy yourself.

****(4.5 OUT OF 5 STARS)