Joyful Garden, Chinatown (W50)

I popped into this new (one month) Chinese restaurant in "Chinatown" (on west 50) on my way home from Winter Garden today. I grabbed some things for dinner. I'll tell you about them after I'm done listing SOME of the freaky (in a good way) stuff they offer. Seaweed and raw crab. Pork tongue. Fish belly. Cordyceps flower. Rabbit. Pork liver. Frogs. Geoduck. Yellow Croaker. Goose Fish. Arrow Head Fish. Fish buckle. Rotten Leather. And I didn't include stuff like jelly fish and snails as freaky. You get the idea. I tried to ascertain the regional cuisine they represent, but, I just heard that the owner had a place in NYC's Chinatown. I settled on a safe dish and an experiment. I had the Fuchow (thin noodle wrapping) Dumpling Soup for $5 and the Pork Stomach with Sour Cabbage over Rice for $9. The soup was good. The usual chicken/pork broth and 16 dumplings! A good amount of broth. The stomach was actually quite tasty. It had the texture of an abalone or some other tough mollusk with a porky taste. I'm not sure if pigs have four stomachs like cows, but, this one was non-icky if there are multiples. The sauce was some kind of very light, black bean involved sauce. Chinese food can be ridiculous on the sauce side, so, I was happy with this level of restraint. The cabbage was good. I didn't care for all the green and red pepper. I hate non-spicy pepper. It tastes like herbaceous barf and makes you gassy. The rice portion was huge. Just white rice, A little water logged/soggy. The plaace seat sixteen in four tables on the right and about the same in two tables on the left. There were a few more tables around the bend on the right and two private rooms. The decoration is mostly water tanks. Some with bubbles and some with dinner. It's located in the part of the complex across from the oriental Market (to the right of the entrance). The composition of the patrons was surprisingly mixed for such an ambitious and new place. It was full. I would be food spelunking here once a week if I lived near by. Freaky food that tastes good? Now that is a business plan!

Market To Table, Winter Garden

OK, I wanted to knock these out before I go chasing polar bears. I stopped by this American restaurant today at lunch. I was about to throw a conniption when I saw that it was closed. I had checked Google a few times and it was supposed to be open. This is another reason I'm knocking this out. They are on summer hours. This means no lunch on week days and a brunch on Sunday. Back to the brewing conniption. I must have looked forlorn because the door opened and I explained how far I had journeyed and the owner said he would make me something for my trouble. It turned out to be a cheese burger and although it wasn't what I had geared myself up for (it had a reputation as a finer dining establishment), it turned out to be good. Medium well instead of medium rare, but, otherwise buttery and topped with fresh veg. The home made chips were good and it came with a pickle. It cost $0. Now that is how to turn a frown upside down and why I'll speak well of then in the future. Their dinner menu (what I saw) ran from $24 to $30. A smallish (6) entree selection with complementary components (spelt, grains of paradise) that seemed more interesting than the canvases (filet, chicken, tile fish). The apps were a little on the "popular" side. That should please the non-adventurous. The burrata at $8 seemed like a value. Other sides ran to $12. The charcuterie board had whiskey salami and wild boar salami. They had some (4) desserts. A few wines (5) per color/type and a few beers. They didn't do much to space (the old Al Fresco spot behind the theater). They opened the end of the bar to have a cold prep showcase and partitioned the middle of the room with some cheap metal shelving with iffy nick nacks on them. Maybe it looks better with the lights on. I'm not sure if I can suffer a repeat trip in the near future (50 is filled with retards), but, I'm glad I got some sense of their skill and a full dose of their ethos. The town just completed a multi-level covered garage behind them. This should help a common complaint about going to WG - no parking. The truly opened around six months ago.

Laurel, Winter Park

I grabbed a Cuban sandwich to go on Thursday at this new (one month) Latin restaurant on Park Ave. I was walking through town after my La Merce meal and stumbled upon them. I think Paris Bistro was in this spot (the enclosed area with the koi pond) previously. It was fine. It cost $12. The ham and pork were of good quality. It came with plantain chips. I'd prefer paying two bucks extra and getting the special at La Merce. Their menu is blase. Thirteen items. The most interesting was a pulled fish pie. The rest is your usual Latin stuff. The Cuban was the cheapest thing. I can't think of another Latin place on Park, so, maybe they can make a go of it. They didn't change a thing to the interior. It was empty at 1pm.

La Merce, Winter Park

I had lunch at this new (3 months) Spanish (Andalusian - southern) restaurant on Morse off Park on Thursday. I think it replaces a vegan spot. There have been so many casualties in this location that I can't keep track. If the crowd at lunch is any indication (no one else), these guys are going to share the same fate if they don't pick a lane. If they are going to charge what they do ($30 range with a standard deviation of $10), they have to improve the experience. Now they are a one legged stool. The service and ambiance do not support the price points they demand. They must be counting on the food to carry the whole load. Not that the service or ambiance are bad. They just aren't on par with a Luma or Prato (for example) and the pricing is about the same. Not to mention the food is better (based on this meal) at those locations. I had an acceptable lunch special (pork or chicken with two sides, dessert and a soda for $14. That was a value. However, if I had ordered a $27 chicken dish (for example) with a $4 soda (3/4 ice) then I would have been dissatisfied. Then I would have really been mad at the dry pork and the crusty mashed potatoes and the store bought rolls and the lack of a butter knife (or butter) or spoon for the tapanade and the non-cloth napkin and the plastic plants in the centerpiece. At $14 I can let that stuff go. At their regular menu prices, I could not. The dish I had had some nice asparagus (slightly wilted) and the sauce I chose (five spice) was a nice mix of chicken stock, cumin, honey and assorted hues of peppercorn). The meal also included a mini guava pie with vanilla ice cream. The dessert was delicious. I hope they didn't buy that too. The place is cute. They went minimalistic. The color motif is black and white and light blue. They "wrote" their name on one wall. It seats about forty. Tables and booths. New. They kept the bar area and patio. If it is not clear, I enjoyed my meal. But, I didn't pay $4 for a soda or x for an entree plus y for dessert. I actually stopped myself from ordering a regular entree or adding an app when I saw the $4 soda charge. It irked me. I suggest they keep it quasi-casual and lower the prices by a third. It has too much of a family run vibe (name is short for Mercedes - the grand mother) to compete with the professional "white table cloth" set. I worry that everyone will do the calculus that I did and just settle on the lunch menu. And I don't think they want that or can survive like that. I don't think they have competition (on Park) for their type of cuisine, so, they have a chance. I hope they succeed. Not just because I'm sick of coming back to this pot, but, because they seemed nice and the seem to import conscientiously and have some fun items on the menu. For now, I recommend the lunch special. I'd feel a little guilty advocating the full monty.

Italian House, Curry Ford Rd Area

I stopped here on my way from the airport on Monday night. It's on South Crystal Lake Dr in between 50 and Curry Ford. The menu says they have been there since 1989. The waitress said that the current owners have been there for the last eight. I had a slice for $2.25 and a chicken parm sandwich with fries for $7.25. I was going to try a platter (soup and pasta) for you, but, I just sensed they would be over cooked. The slice was better than I expected, but, that made me wish the cheese blend was a little less heavy on the Parmesan. It made it "saw dusty". Plus they use too much. It over weights the slice. I know that is a bonus for most people. The crust was dry. The sauce was just tomato paste (not much). The chicken in the parm was way too thin. Dry.  It also tasted like sausage. I'd bet they fry everything in the same oil. Not much sauce or cheese. The fries were perfect. Very crisp. They have the usual assortment of items you find in a "hick" Italian restaurant. It will seem very familiar to most people. Pricing was fair. The service was friendly and attentive. They offered a to go soda. Parking is a little scarce. The place looks like an old Pizza Hut. It seats about sixty. It actually got more busy AFTER eight pm. It's the type of place that has a map of Italy place mat and plastic menus. We all probably grew up thinking this was what Italian was. It plays its role in the Universe.

McGinnty's Irish Pub, Edgewood (Closed)

I grabbed a burger to go at this Irish Pub on Orange Ave (near the Chris Craft boat offices) last Thursday at lunch time. It was mediocre. It cost $7 and $1 for cheese. It came with under cooked fries. The burger was small and over cooked. I asked for medium and it was well done. The bun and veg were blah. This place replaced Uncle Henry's. I think. The menu seemed to be ambitious: crocks, fish and chips, pies, pasties, corned beef, stuffed potatoes, stew, bangers, etc. They seemed to have spent some money on the redo. They have alot of dart boards and two pool tables. Hopefully, the food can be better. I didn't really challenge them. Partly because places like these always seem to have mediocre food. They seem to be avid soccer enthusiasts.