Monday, October 10, 2011

Rooster's, Winter Park - Closed

I had dinner at this Global Kitchen in the far corner of a mostly untenanted strip mall on Aloma (halfway to Oviedo). The location should have been foreshadowing. But, they had advertised in some fanciful magazines and seemed to have some intriguing ideas. Oh, the best laid plans... I'll get to that in a minute. I had the "Sultan's Feast" for $16. Apparently the Sultan must have had Dexia handling his finances because what passes as a feast therein is 1 Koobideh (minced lamb and beef) Kabob and 1 Barg (grilled flat steak) Kabob with a char-grilled tomato, dry basmati rice and a hunk of raw onion. The Koobideh had no flavor and was tough. The Barg was actually good. However, it is odd that if I had ordered 2 Barg kabobs I would have paid $14. They charge you an extra $2 to get a cheaper kebob ($12) switched in! It came on a bare, white plate. The kabobs were thin. In any event, the food was just the tip of the iceberg. The place is in an inconvenient location. It is in a ugly location. It is decorated by an imbecile. It must have started out as a saloon/pub. That's the base. Then they added some Middle Eastern flair. Then they added video games! Like 20 of them. The place looks like Chucky Shia's. It's a hot mess. It seats about 40 in the lower level and 20 in the upper level by the bar. There were 2 sots at the bar playing video poker and a few loud families with kids running all over the place in the main room. There was no hostess or hostess station. I was served by the bartender in the upper section. I didn't even complain about the seat assignment because I could see this was already a mistake. A mistake I indended on extricating myself from as cheaply and quikly as possible. He was attentive. They have a hodge podge of meals that Gordon Ramsey would disassemble after the second round of commercials. They have Thai, Greek, Persian, American, Italian, Indian, Seafood, Steak and they claim Jewish (no evidence). They marketed a wood burning pizza oven, but, they said it wasn't in use. Not sure if that means ever. It's shaped like the face of a blond, mustachioed Viking. I kid you not. It sounded kitschy until I saw it in person with all the slovenliness around it. I think they offer music at times. I saw some old guy setting up something from his van. Then again he could have been delivering or picking up some more clutter. Or disposing of a body. I think they said the have a buffet on Sunday. It should be sumptuous because they are sure to have alot of uncooked food left over every week. Hope that they don't freeze it. You may think I'm being a little hard on them and maybe I am, but, I had high expectations. You would have to to justify the trip to this part of town. I think they thought their food would be tantalizing enough to get customers to this rent friendly location. I think they failed and now have to cater to the hillbillies that live around there. At least I hope they tried at the outset. I didn't get here when they opened in the Spring and I just wish I was as lucky this Fall. Pass.

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