Grub Crawl - Audubon Park and Mills: The Salty and Matcha House *LA Travel Notes

I tried these two snack places on Wednesday before lunch. I was going to add the mochi place at the East End Market, but, they aren't open M-W. I separated these from where I went after based on location. They will be in the next review. I just had to get these off the list somehow.

The Salty - A new donut place at the intersection of Corrine and whatever that street is with the 7-11. It's a huge white space. It was (or they made it look like) a garage. A little pergola type structure outside. I grabbed a traditional frosted donut for $3. It was good. Huge. They have funky donuts. Strawberry shortcake, fruity pebbles, etc. They were a little costlier. Nice packaging. Order from a counter place.

Matcha House Tea and Creamery- They opened in June. They sell hot matcha, cold teas with boba and best of all (and should be mandatory) ice cream. I had black sesame in a large, dark black, sugar cone. It was probably water based ice cream. But, I liked it. Never had black sesame ice cream before. Don't recall seeing it. It cost $5. The place is across from a school (Lake Highland Prep pre-highschool?) on Mills. Next to Standard and that Korean fried chicken place. It has a modern look. Order from a counter type place.

*I saw a new pizza place on Mills - Pops. They look open, but, only sell pizza after 4pm. Pre-designed pies and few other things. I think they said they opened in June.

**Travel Notes - Louisiana (really just one day in New Orleans): I walked from my hotel on St Charles in the Garden District (Prytania Park $105 on a Saturday with free parking) to Nola Brewing Co. It was cool. The beer was good. They also have a pizzeria and a guy was boiling crawfish outside. Band too. I had a flight of spirits at Lula Distillery (next to hotel). They were good. I begged a reservation at Hot Tin at the Ponchartain Hotel on St Charles and Josephine. It was Saturday and I was lucky. They turned away alot of others after me. I had three appetizers. They are serving the same menu as the main restaurant in the hotel - Jack Rose. I noticed (while waiting) that even the skinny girls in New Orleans are fat. The apps were: oyster and artichoke fritto misto, crispy pork cheeks in roasted garlic grits with pan gravy and crawfish and cornflakes with corn nuts, cherry tomatoes and lime vinaigrette. All were great. They also had some interesting things like: crawfish cracked potatoes, brussel sprouts in harissa and honey and french hermit oysters. Those were all apps. The mains were boring. It's a great spot on the roof. I think I read about them in a magazine. I stopped at Apolline off Magazine and Bordeaux for breakfast on Sunday. I had a benedict-y type of dish called Eggs Apolline (poached eggs with crawfish and andouille and some kind of pink hollandaise over a biscuit). They were good. Cute place. Thank god I got there early. A line started at 12. I also saw (while driving around) that there is a zoo and a golf course down that way (south of Tulane). 

***BTW - How have the Magic not fired their coach and why haven't they traded for Austin Rivers or another superfluous Knick PG all season? Not that it would make a difference, but, they could try and fool us.

Kombu, Winter Park *AL/MS Travel Notes

I stumbled upon this Japanese restaurant on Aloma (east of 436) this Tuesday night. I was attempting to knock Takashi Ramen off my list. It is evidently closed on Tuesday. This place replaces some kind of Hawaiian sandwich place if I'm remembering right. They did an ok job on the remodel. Now it is more modern. Light gray and black hues. Small. Seats around thirty. I had an assortment of sushi items to suss out the quality. I had yt sashimi (3 pieces) and the following nigiri (2 piece) : tuna, salmon, yt, conch and an avocado roll. The avocado roll had fresh avocado. It cost $4.50. Rice (in general) was a bit crunchy. Undercooked versus old. I think. Tuna ($6) looked red. One piece was tasty. One had funk. Weird. The salmon ($5) looked good. Was a little pasty. The conch (5) was so so. Not so crunchy. The yt ($5.50) was good. Cut too thin as sashimi. They cut the fish long and thin. A little cheap on the portion size. Plating was nice. For a tiny place, they seem to have a big ambitions (menu). They also sell ramen, buns,takoyaki  karaage, donburi, katsu, teriyaki, many rolls and mochi. The lunch specials start at $10 and lunch boxes at $12. Some weird things they offer are: white meat (izumidai), salmon tempura, kombu special dressing, coconut shrimp tempura rolls, kabayaki sauce, umami sauce. They have 27 classic rolls and 30 special rolls. I hope they can handle all the options. They opened last month. I was the only one dining in around 8 pm (one to go ramen customer). They closed after I left. Seemed like a three person crew. One sushi maker, one waitress, one person in the kitchen. They are on the cusp. I think they want to be high end. If they improve a little bit, they may be something to talk about. Could go the other direction. Big menus scare me. Hard to pull off. Hard to buy (fresh)  for. Odd that for such a common Japanese word (kelp), I don't recall seeing a restaurant called it before.

* FYI. Most wasabi is colored horseradish.

**Travel Notes - Alabama/Mississippi: In Mobile I tried for a place called Southern Standard (a diversity James Beard Award Semi Finalist, I think). Only (maybe) open on Friday and Saturday for dinner presently. It was closed. I grabbed a chocolate pecan bar and a praline at Three Georges Candy Store. On the way back I stayed at cute hotel called Malaga Inn ($74). I stayed in Ocean Springs MS at a dump called Gulf Hills ($83). Pictures lie. I had pretty good barbecue in town at Murky Waters. They had two higher end places called Vestige ($65 prix fixe with triple tail fish (an actual fish I never have heard of and just googled and got a result for), beef cheeks, etc) and Charred ($30 meals of scallop and pork belly, duck, oysters, etc). I had an interesting breakfast chard biscuit with some kind of fluff (spread) on top at Greenhouse on Porter. I read about it in some magazine. I had lunch in Bay of St Louis at Blind Tiger (another magazine). West on 90. 3 lbs of crawfish (season started at end of Feb) for $18. Real good. Place is named after some kind of prohibition joints. I grabbed a sausage on a stick and boudin and pimento cheese inside a fried wrap/pastry at some tiny bbq place down the street called Jo's. There were a few nice looking restaurants (200 North Beach, Trapani's, Don B's, Hinge, Thorny Oyster) and a new hotel (Pearl $130-230) just after the bridge into town. First time there. I was impressed. Nice beaches just down the street too. Thought it was a dirty refinery area. Nope. On the way back I stopped at The Shed at exit 57 in MS again. I tried for crawfish on the way through. It wasn't the season yet by one day. Was on the way back. $6 a pound. Not as fresh or large as last Spring. Place was packed. Governor had lifted mask mandate the day before. I was going to try some 3D places in Daphne or Fairhope Alabama (east side of bridge to Mobile). They were: Marci, Gumbo Shack, Panini Pete and Sunset Point at Fly Creek Marina. They were off the main road plus it was too early for lunch. Next time. I ended up at some place they show on billboards on I-10. Lambert's Cafe. They throw rolls. It was bad. Had bad chicken salad, potato salad and instant mashed potatoes. They have place in Missouri, I guess. It was packed. So was the way to the beaches I intended to drive through. I reversed course. Next time. Becoming a bigger fan of this area. Hopefully not too many typos. Can't be bothered to proof. Louisiana and Texas up next.

Grub Crawl - Deland: Bake Chop and Neighbors *FL Travel Notes

 I tried these places in that alley (Artisan Alley) off the main road thru town around two weeks ago on a Thursday (at lunch). The first is in the spot that was previously Dally (sp?) in the Alley. The second is a food truck across from it. I think I have two places in Deland left to review for you.

Bake Chop Artisan Kitchen- I had the chicken bleu sandwich with fries for $15. It was good. A plump piece of chicken. I can't really remember more. I think the ham and gruyere were on top. The fries were crisp. They try for the seasonal/local vibe. It still has the exposed brick interior. Seats inside and out. Not an overwhelming menu. service was good. It was full. You may be lucky and find free parking down the street across from Hyderhead Brewery. In business for four years.

Neighbors Artisan Taqueria - I grabbed a Hipster taco (soft) to go. Just to give them pub. They said they just tweaked the menu. The taco was a mushroom one. Shitake, cremini, and button. Actually quite good. And not in the British way where that means it isn't. They had around ten types. This one cost $4. I would ask for them to hold the cum sauce. Or just get a tiny bit. It overpowered the mushrooms. And added a ton of calories. 

*I noticed one new place - The Table. Sit down with shop above. On the Main St. 

**Travel Notes - FL: I also just completed a five state trip. I'll give you Florida today. I'll spread out the rest going forward. I have three more posts to do after this one. I tried these places in Tallahassee: Bumpa's Local #349, Canopy Road Cafe, Andrew's, Midtown Caboose and Governor's Inn. Bumpa's was an audible after I got lost. It was ok. I had a cobb salad with chicken. I had breakfast at Canopy Road (several locations). I had an ok Mutt's Club. It was bacon, sausage, ham and eggs in toast. I stayed at Governor's Inn on the way back after I found out it was right by the Capitol and only $85 pre tax (remember I get Expedia gold price). Plus the guys at Canopy told me it was a gem. It was cute and right across from Andrew's (the reason I was staying downtown). Andrew's was ok. I was warned by the same people that it was so so. I had grouper etouffe (crawfish, crab and sausage) in jalapeno havarti grits with spinach. The fish was a little pasty. Like they floured it. It then was put under soggy things. The grits were really good. It was a politico place. They were in session. I saw the Gov coming out of a private club next door. I had lunch on the way out at Caboose. There was a sign across the street that said the Marquis de Lafayette was granted that land after the Revolution. Who knew? I bet he never set foot on it. I had a Triple Play. It was ham, turkey and roast beef with provolone and a black pepper mayo. It came with tots. Tots were well fried. A little cheap on the meats. They said they are known for their burgers. I read about these (and Lofty Pursuits) in the magazine AAA sends me. I predict that with all the out of staters moving in that people who live here already will start moving north. Tallahassee, Pensacola and Jacksonville will become major cities with major airports. The proximity to the beach makes it logical. If you see the way they are modernizing I-10, you would be surprised. It used to be so desolate for much of the way west. I also checked some hotel prices and they were already sky high. Same in Alabama. Everyone is on spring break. I also stopped at a little historical spot in Gainesville (Hallie's Homestead at Kanapaha Plantation). They said it was open. It wasn't. Only on weekends. It seems like it is a tribute to slaves. Not sure if it was their housing or the plantation they worked. It's like five miles west on FL-24/Archer Rd. That's the second exit going north. The one with most of the hotels. I was going to try and try Joe Patti's Seafood Market and Alex McPhail's Iron in Pensacola. Got lost. Passed right by. Patti's was on the water front near the minor league baseball stadium. Iron was on the main street (Palafox). Next time. You can take 110 from 10 right downtown. It may be my imagination, but, it seemed like they really cleaned that place up. I saw three art museums for example. will have to stay overnight next time. I also got lost trying a short cut on the way back and drove thru Fort McCoy. Funny because I had meant to see what it was like after taking with some lady on the plane. All the roads up north are filled with bikers. Forgot it was bike week.

Grub Crawl - West Colonial: Da Sun Ramen, Seoul Soon Tofu and Pho 54 *MT Travel Notes

I tried these place on West Colonial (50) yesterday at lunch. The first is in the Westside Crossings Mall (Chinatown). The next two are in the Lotte Market (see Taglish review). I've been meaning to try the other food stalls at Lotte. Then Covid hit and I wasn't keen on things related to Asia and then other things caught my interest. But, now I'm going to knock those off and the two ramen places in Chinatown sooner rather than later. I did half this go round. One more trip should do it. However, I saw they were building a place called East Garden in Chinatown near 888 and I think I espied a new one near the road called Shanghai Lane. It may just be a new facade? But, I think it's new. This may cause me to make a third trip. I saw that the market at the Crossing had closed.

Da Sun Ramen.- We all no my thoughts on the subject. The fact that two new ones opened here last year (almost next door to each other) and that one replaced a previous ramen purveyor I had already suffered through, didn't help put these in the urgent pile. But, here we are. Ramen isn't all they are about. They offer more than that. A sizable izakaya (no drinks) menu. Things like okonomiyake (although they said they were out), karage, udon, etc. I had curry ramen (I thought you'd like that instead of the other dishes) because it is so boring and I had to do something to shake things up. I couldn't really recall having this many times if ever. It made it less dull. They dice the pork into little cubes. Egg is extra. Noodles were a bit over cooked. Not a terrible lunch. It cost $10. The employees seemed Chinese. The pork tasted and looked like how a Chinese cook would approach it. I actually preferred it to the big slab the Japanese give you. The place looks bad. The walls and light fixtures are alright. The tables and chairs are a horrendous mish mosh. They took down pictures and left the hangers on the wall. Dozens of them! There is a bad mural on one wall. They have cheap photos of the dishes along the walls. One tv was just buffering.  The napkins are like restroom paper towels. It's just sloppy. There seemed to be one cook and one order taker. The order taker delivered my food then went straight into the john for a dump. Too long for number one. That added to the ambiance. It seats about forty. Two Americans were there when I entered. One left his bowl uneaten. They opened a year ago. Do I need to spell it out?

Seoul Soon Tofu - Soon means soft. They do six tofu pots. There is another Korean stall here and they try and differentiate. I won't go into the differences. Both have hot pots and stews and other things. They have a lunch box on weekends. I tried sweet and sour pork ($14) because I didn't want another stew or soup after ramen. Plus I had never seen it before on a Korean menu. They said it was similar to the Chinese version with some twists. They were: the sauce was brown with cucumbers, cabbage and some thin circles of tofu or mushroom in it and thin strips of breaded pork. They gave me a liter of the sauce. I used a tenth. Whatever came along with the vegetables I scooped out of it. I can't imagine using the whole thing. More sour than sweet. The pork was too long. It needed to be cut in half. It was ok. A little tough. It came with white rice an two bon chon (bad kim chi and slices of some yellow colored sweet pickled root vegetable that was probably radish). It was over priced. I ate this for dinner.

Pho 54 - I waited forever for a pork banh mi for $5. I thought I was going to report that it was the worst in the city. I ate it this morning and the time in the fridge hardened up the pathetic roll (from Publix or WD) and it wasn't that bad. Still may be the worst. But, not in a landslide. It was half sized though. Tiny roll. I don't love grilled pork banh mi. I don't order the non-traditional ones much. This was one of those. They only have this or chicken. It was ok. One piece of gristle. Butter. Veg. They also sell 6 pho, 6 rice dishes and 6 noodle dishes. Three people in the booth. An order taker that seemed more interested in eating her own lunch, a boy cleaning tables and an older lady cooking. 

*I saw a place off 434 on near I-4 that said Fig's Steakhouse. Not sure how long that has been there. I think Todd English has places called Fig. Nor sure if they are related.

**Travel Notes - Bozeman, MT: Got stuck in bad weather. Negative 20 at night. Snow. Clouds. Went for Big Sky Ski Resort or Bridger Bowl. The weather wasn't good enough or they were out of tickets all week. Bridger is only $60. Big Sky was up to $200 with tax. Too outrageous for me. Pretty though. Flight (one stop) was $215. Ok hotels (I forget that I get a 20% or so discount when I use Expedia or Booking because I've reached certain thresholds - adjust you pricing as needed) could be found in the $70's. Rental car cost $250 for the week. I also get discounts here. So, here goes a list of what turned into a week of eating out. I'll go in order. Burger Bob's - bacon, egg cheese burger. They had an article from USA Today or something that said Top 50 Best Burger in America. Not even close. Lapa Grill and Soup Shack. An ok bison taco and pork chili verde. In a beer bar. Jam. This was Yelp's number one reviewed (I'll put the numbers in as I go on). A breakfast/lunch place. Not number one. I had a weird dish of beet and root. It was a hash with yellow and red beets in it and two overcooked poached eggs. The beets don't work in a hash. They also tossed on a side salad of lemon dressed arugula that didn't work. I also had butternut squash soup that was ruined by the inclusion of ground pork sausage. Didn't marry. I had a good pizza from Red Tractor Pizza. I had good sushi (and local beer) at Dave's Sushi. Well, the yt and surf clam were good. Salmon and tuna were a little pasty. I had good fried chicken at Roost (on 3D). Mashed potatoes were really good. Had some some good whiskey, rum, tequila and vodka at Bozeman Spirits Distillery. I had good beer at Union Hall Brewery. I had an ok burger at Back Country Burger Bar. Ok thai at Rice. Average lamb gyro at Revelry (#2). And better pear, parsnip and brie soup. Although, they didn't know which herbs and spices worked well. They put some chives in the soup. They clashed. That type of soup needed spice not herbs. Similar problem with the gyro. I had good orecchiette with spicy pork ragu at Blackbird (#4). The menu was sparse though. Alot of pizza (supposedly because of Covid). And they seemed a bit impressed with themselves. I had a good Grizzly Killer breakfast of "the biggest (it wasn't) chicken fried steak you've ever seen" with three eggs and hb at Main Street Overeasy (#7). Dave's and Roost were in the "most reviewed" top ten. I also had some pretty good walleye tacos in Big Sky at Cafe 191. They also had a market that was ok called Heeb's. I saw some interesting dried mushroom packages from a company called Terra Dolce. I'm not a fancy market shopper, so, maybe they aren't so unknown. If you weren't aware, Bozeman is right above Yellowstone. Good in all seasons. University town. Ended the state mask mandate that week. Some localities still wetting their pants. Including Bozeman. Female mayor. So, you know... Some were wearing them outside. Some not. 

Grub Crawl - Orlando: Aardvark (Closed), Kathi Rolls (Closed) and Taino's Bakery

I tried these place today at lunch. None of them is truly in an area that can be identified with a pithy nick name, so, I'm going to group them together. They are kind of near each other. The first is on Ferncreek off Michigan. The second is on Curry Ford near the Hourglass District. The third is just off 436 on Lake Underhill. I was just driving around today and kind of had some of these on my mental list.

Aardvark - This was a general store that became a bottle shop that became a restaurant/bar. They said they changed the chef a year ago. I went for a burger and ended up with a riff on a cheese steak (Okeechobee Dip.) I probably should have stuck to the plan. The cs was brisket and leeks and mushrooms. The four strips of medium thick sliced brisket were tough. Too tough to rip with your teeth. It needed knife and fork effort. It tasted like they boiled it after smoking. That or they boiled it first and then smoked it. Or they did some cheating with liquid smoke. The leeks were cut like scallions. They charred them too. Smoke on smoke wasn't double the fun. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I received one quarter of a small mushroom. The bun looked and tasted like a Publix special. Plus it was too voluminous for the already high sandwich. If you didn't need a knife for the meat, you would need it to cut it down to size. Try a new bun or scoop out the middle. Or press it.  It came with limp fries and a jus. Not au jus. A jus. Because we all know au jus means - with juice. Both were salted and peppered too much. Other than that, it was a delight. It cost $15. The menu had about a dozen choices. Two were interesting. A grouper Manhattan. Bitters (orange I think) and a cherry something or other. And grilled asparagus (an app). They had bar snacks and chicken and some other meats. A sirloin was like $24. That was the high end. The beer selection was mostly local. Kind of average. Maybe the fridges have more choice. The wine menu was a bit more unusual. Especially the reds. Seemed like a 3X mark up. They also sold kegs. The place is square. Window up front. Bar in rear. Three booths. The rest tables. A patio. Maybe seventy seats in total. Two others were there at 11:30. It opens at 10. 

Kathi Rolls - In the spot that was another Indian place for a minute. I believe it was called Forever Naan. There were articles from The Weekly and (probably) The Sentinel on the wall. The OW was dated April. So, it has been open at least that long. I assume they both jizzed on the place. My tikka kathi roll has only been picked at so far. That is because it lost the contest. What I did sample was undercooked and from bad parts of the chicken. Maybe a nuke job tomorrow will firm up the meat. The sauce also seemed more deep red than your standard tikka masala. The paratha bread was ok. It cost $9. Probably worth half that. This appears to be a street food of meat kebab out of Kolkata. I wonder if that was looking at when I tried the Moroccan stall at Apna Bazaar? The stall next to it that ignored me. They also sell different versions of this (ie lamb) and in bowls. A few other Indian snacks. It's a small place. Mostly hallway. Framed amateur phots of India. Four tables up front. Two are hightops. The two floor tables were occupied. A bunch of people were picking up or getting it to go. 

Taino's Bakery - I saw this when I went to Meatball Stoppe months ago. I thought it was just sweet treats (which aren't usually very good from Latin countries) plus it was always too late whenever I was driving near here. So, it didn't get did. Glad I forced myself today. It's a huge (and apparently popular) Puerto Rican bakery and eatery. They have a big breakfast and lunch and dinner menu. Cheap too. Some full breakfasts were only $4. I had the Taino Especial for $7. The most expensive one. It was ham, pork, chicken, steak and swiss cheese on a roll with lettuce, tomato, onion and potato sticks. Pressed. French dressing. With a side. I chose tostones. They were good. The steak was so tender. The Aardvark brisket could be the box spring. This would be the mattress. The chicken and pork were pulled. A little hard to make out. But, good. The ham was ham. Cut in small squares.Good bun. Buttered. Huge portion. Like three Kathi rolls or one Kathy Najimi. They also sell: a dozen other sandwiches, snacks, mofongos, jibaritos (green plantain "bread"), salads, cremas, burgers, baked goods and something called a mallorca that seems to be a sweet roll sandwich bread. I think a $14 mofongo is the high end. Most things are a fraction of that. The place takes up three store spaces. They have three counters to order at. Seats inside. White color scheme. They have three other locations. Two in Kissimmee and one on Goldenrod. The original was opened in 2006. Not sure if this is it. probably not. They said this location has been there for over ten years. They said they are open until 6pm. The sign on the door reads 5pm. They open at 6am. Probably a discovery like the Americas and Columbus. Well, I'm claiming it in my name for all Oppressors. Try not to embarrass me when you check it out. Easily the best of the day. And at less than half the price than one of the competitors and around 50% off the other. Needless to say that it (the sandwich) no longer exists in it original form. The internet says taino means a person from the Caribbean. Could just be some persons (non-binary of course) name. Hot staff. Very binary. Turned my zero into a one.

*I forgot one food item I saw in SC. Fried peanuts. In the shell. At a market. In a bag like chips. They fried the whole thing. Didn't try them though. Forgot to go back and pick them up before I skipped town.

**Saw that Wa Sushi was at 436 at Red Bug Lake Rd. Buffalo Wild Wings area. Plus new Mexican opening on 436 just passed the train tracks. Has been various buffet places, etc.

Bovine Steakhouse, Winter Park *SC/GA Travel Notes

I tried this place in the old Park Place Gardens locale on Park Ave last Thursday (8 days ago) for dinner. They are only open for lunch on the weekends. If it weren't for this, I might have tried them earlier. I stopped by in the Spring and wasn't really impressed by the menu or the prices either. They are from the 310 group. This is supposed to be a Chicago style steak house. Another concept that isn't my bag. I came for a fly by at the bar of steak tartare. Covid (or public sentiment) made the place wide open. So, I "upgraded" myself to a mini booth at the bar. The back is big and really nice. I didn't realize it was there until I sat down. I probably wasn't in the mood for the formality even if I had seen it before hand. The menu (small) had a thing or two of value. I adjusted my plan and started with a salmon tartare at $14. It was ok. Not a ton of flavor. Nice plating. Some kind of black rough rock bowl. Three toast points. A cucumber base layer. Mustardy vinaigrette dressing. Micro greens. Some  "American" caviar. I saw a show once on caviar from Florida. I wonder if they source it from there? The toast points overwhelmed the salmon. The caviar wasn't very good and isn't needed. The steak tartare was better. A rough chop. Not straight out of the refrigerator temp beef. Micro greens, capers, raw egg on top (nice color yolk). Beefy flavor. It came four roasted blue cheese toasts that were good (so much cheese) on their own, but, overwhelmed the beef. I like my acts to be solo acts when they can be. I don't think they need to hide their ingredients. Then again, I don't think pizza needs ranch dressing. The portion here was also more generous than the salmon. 2X. Same plating. The rest of the menu is mostly grilled meats. I think the ribeye was $68. It has been a while, but, I remember a ribeye at Linda's La Cantina was only like $24. The cheapest beef cut was over $40, I think. A teeny 4oz filet. Chicken was the cheapest thing. $32?. I forget. Two roasted vegetable entrees were the low water mark. A semi-reasonable entree was prime rib. I think it was only $24. I've never liked it. It was always too slippery for me. And it was always something of a joke to my family. The thing at the country club buffet that the families who thought dining at a country club was a special night out thought was the height of opulence. The place was dark in hue. Brick. Polished wood. Some gilding. A rectangular narrow bar area in front. A large square room in back. A glass wine closet. The selection seemed ok. There were six people at the bar. I think two or three tables of two in the back. Service was fine. Dressed up. They spaced the delivery. They made a point of it though. I wasn't aware that spacing an app and an entree has now become something you have to request. I believe they have been open for a full year. It isn't bad. They probably need to bring back (if they ever had one) a burger lunch service and drop the price on every beef option by $20. It was exactly the wrong kind of place to open at the wrong time. The expense account diner may never return. They need to think more Houston's (or Ruth's Chris) than Charlie Trotter's. Even if the meats are the best they can be from coast to coast, it still something anyone can do at home. And people in WP have their favs already. I don't even think they had aged beef. H Steakhouse at Dr Phillips has a visual aging room and other gimmicks. And I think they are cheaper. 

*Travel Notes - SC/GA: Some notes on a trip to SC and GA. I started at Hilton Head. Good burger at Wayback Burger. Bad breakfast at Hilton Head Diner. In Charleston, I started with dinner at High Cotton (because of Samantha Brown). Ok she crab soup. Tile fish with sweet potatoes and squash "special" that wasn't. Tile fish must be in season. It looks cute. I though it was code name for monk fish for some reason. They said it was also a name for wreck fish. It isn't. That is a grouper like fish. I had lunch at the number one reviewed place (high on "rated" too) on Yelp. Poogan's Porch. It was good. Fried chicken (they said it was their thing) with great mac and cheese and collard greens. I had a caramel apple from Savannah's Candy Kitchen. Alex Guarneschelli said it was the "best thing she ever ate" on that tv show. I had dinner at Fig (Samantha Brown again). It was good. Sashimi of King Mackerel atop of rice middlins (a half rice thing you need to research) and sorghum popcorn (saw that on Bourdain or Zimmern in Ethiopia). Salmon roe and radish also. Least fishy mackerel I've experienced. Also, beef tartare in swordfish (not tuna) tonnato on toast. Cooked veal is usually paired with this sauce. And tile fish collar "chowder" fish cake with lardons. I bypassed the number one place (Husk) because I didn't like the menu the prepared for that day. Another restaurant had a sign recommending these places if they were too busy. Nice of them. I didn't research. Leyla, Blossom, Magnolia, Grill 225, Jim 'n' Nicks BBQ, Basil, Slightly North of Broad, Oak Steakhouse and 82 Queen (supposed birthplace of she crab soup). I had a mushy bbq pork sandwich at Duke's BBQ. I stayed at a place called Indigo Inn that was convenient. I spent a night at the Sanctuary on Kiawah Island. It can be $550+ for a bad room. It was $270 with tax this time of year. Nice place. PGA is at their Ocean Course this spring. If you want a look on CBS. I grabbed lunch the next day just outside that area at Kin Folk. It is on Johns Island. I had pulled chicken sandwich with Alabama white sauce. It's mostly a hot chicken place. I went to St Simons Island mostly for the barbeque at Southern Soul Barbeque on a friend's recommendation). It was worth it. I had a huge platter of good brisket with potato salad (very good) and mac and cheese (a little mushy). I grabbed a grilled cheese and cheeseburger at a one off fast food opportunity called Frosty's. There are two fancy hotels on SSI. Cloisters on Sea Island ($314+) and Lodge at Sea Island ($294). I stayed at a Hampton Inn that was $98 with tax and they gave me a $16 food credit. Sea Island is really part of SSI. I was more impressed with SSI this time around. Only one fancy place per trip though. There is also a spot on HHI called Inn and Lodge at Harbour Island. It was $140. 10% resort fee though. Georgia let you dine with no masks. Charleston had a mask mandate throughout the city that wasn't being enforced. No restaurant capacity limits though. None of the areas were very busy.

Grub Crawl - International Drive: Kingdom Sushi and Turkuaz

I tried these two spots in a strip mall on Kirkman and I Drive two Friday's ago at night. They aren't open for lunch. I tried to sort out Hidden Sushi (which didn't look so hot and is just a Brazilian style sushi spot), but, it had a waiting list going.

Kingdom Sushi House - They said they have been open for two years. I didn't notice until a few months ago. I kind of expected them to be not so great. I was right. They do Brazilian style sushi. That means (if this is representative) lots of salmon, a little ahi and lots of junk. The menu pricing is bizarre. A hand roll was like eight dollars. Ceviche (tilapia - eww) was only around $5. Some other ordinary things were in the teens. My plate was only $20 and amounted to 34 pieces. And I think what little nigiri they did were like $6 for an order of two. Other platters had similar items and cost more. My platter (King 30) was all salmon. The salmon was pasty. I guess they gave me 4 extra pieces. It began with a fried roll cut into eight pieces. Then came a platter with: four pieces from a salmon and cream cheese roll, ten slices of sashimi, an eight piece salmon on the outside roll topped with piped whipped cream cheese and finally four pieces of nigiri (I didn't eat them all because I pealed off the salmon and it was gross underneath). The nigiri was the worst. At least two of the pieces must have been a day old. The rice was a brick. The rice on the "fresh" ones was still bad. They don't know how to make sushi grade rice. Or how to keep it. The rolls had way too much cream cheese per unit and the combined force would make a lactose tolerant stomach queasy. The pasty sashimi didn't help. The regular cream cheese and salmon roll also suffered from bad rice (hard and crusty). I informed them of my sentiments (at the end of the meal) and they swore the rice was made that day. I strongly disagree. I think they make these items in bulk and then plate them like a party catering business. And it's FIFO. If some don't get sold, they get refrigerated and sold the next day. Or the next. If anything is fresh, it is because they ran through the pre-prep supply. The platter came out way too fast for it to have been made to order. Like two minutes from ordering. The best thing was the garlic flavored edamame that they served as an amuse bouche for free. Service was fast. It had a mainly Latin looking crowd. 50-60 seats. About half full. Not much on ambience. A mural on the wall was the big expenditure. Low ceilings. I'd skip it. You can go to an all you can eat place and spend less and get more choice and probably fresher items. Now I'm scared to go to Hidden Sushi.

Turquaz Turkish Cuisine - They are in the corner location aside Kingdom. I've been to a multitude of places that have died there. They said they have been here for three years. That is even more surprising. I must have a mental defense mechanism that shelters me from this strip mall. I just ordered falafel to go to knock them off the list. The place is beyond pathetic. It's dark. Most of the space is outside on a patio next to a pool hall. There were two tables of two dining. The falafel was weird. They looked like marsh mellows. They must roll a tube and then snip them off. They were dry and had no flavor. Probably old. It came with some tomato slices, onions and pickled cabbage salad. And a small container of hummus. It cost $8. Inside there is a mural and some Arabic themed light fixtures and a DJ area. It has the same old menu and prices. You can live without it. It means Turkoise. 

Voodoo Doughnut, Universal Citywalk *UT Travel Notes

I finally tried this import from Antifaland (Portland) last Friday at night. I'm not paying to park. They stop charging at 6pm. I have been to the real store. I didn't sense a drop in quality. The store looks sharp too. It is by the NBC Grill. This was a Nascar restaurant the last time I was here (probably two or three years ago). Towards the globe and park entrance. It had a small (5 people) line. They were "distancing" I sailed through. I just had a Little Pink because this was just a courtesy call. It was good. Strawberry icing with sprinkles. It was a yeast raised doughnut. It cost less than $2. They also sell cake (dense) doughnuts, fritters, bars and novelty items. In Portland I had a voodoo doll and a bacon maple bar. They have one on a popsicle stick. Come see for yourself. 

*Observations on Citywalk. They take your temperature. They x ray your bag. Metal detector. The usual local riff raff seemed to be absent. I think the following changes have occurred since my last update. The NBA restaurant is now Toothsome Chocolate Emporium. It is the only one that seems to have efforted a theme. It also has a candy store on the side. Basic menu. Doesn't take advantage of the Willy Wonka/Harry Potter like theme. Emeril's is now something Fire or Fire something. Behind it is Antojitos (little cravings or snacks). It seems like that whole area in the back (mostly bars) is now gone. I didn't go right up to it, but, it seemed gone. On your way in on the left (by Bubba Gump) was Cowfish and Pizza something or something Pizza. 

**Travel Notes - Utah: Most ski resorts seemed open. Some are requiring online ticket purchases. You can trim cost by doing a half day (12pm-) or Canyon Sports or AJ Motion are supposed to sell discount tix for non-Park City resorts. Alta was supposed to drop from $125 to $105, Brighton from $99 to $89, Snowbird from $145 to $110 and Solitude from $125 to $103. I bypassed both areas to try the spots near Ogden (30 minutes north). I only did Snow Basin. It was a nice place. $99 for a half day. Prices varied based on the day. There were two smaller resorts. Powder Mountain and Nordic Valley. NV was really cheap. Accommodations in Ogden were mostly under $100 a night. Nice town. Home to Weber State.

In SLC I ate at Curry Up Now (Indian Fast Food). I had a lamb keema bowl. I had ahi poke at Fresh Fin Poke. I had a beef and pork combo bowl at Cup Bop (Korean franchise). I had an interesting porridge at an Australian chain called Campos Coffee. It had caramel and hazelnuts on polenta and oat porridge. I had what they claimed was the best taco in Utah at Maize. It was an al pastor taco. Jury's out. I had a wienerschnitzel sandwich at Siegfried's Deli. I had yellow curry chicken with pepitas and green apple at Ginger Street. I had a Johnny Utah burger and salted caramel porter at Proper Burger (also has a brewery). It was really good. Slaw, pickled zucchini, turkey pastrami and cheese. Pickled zucchini is less watery than cucumber. It should be a thing. They were on 3D. As will the rest of the SLC list. I had mediocre brisket and ribs (dry, little smoke) at Pat's Barbecue. I had fried eggs and Norwegian Waffles (sour cream and ligonberries) at Finn's. I had a better than I expected meatball sub at Moochie's. I ended with a maple pecan kolache and an egg and sausage "ball" at Hruska's Kolaches. I stayed two nights at the Peery. Not so great. Two nights at the Plaza. Very cheap ($60). Was more during the summer. In Ogden I ate at Ogden River Brewery. Some good green chili fries. Huge serving. I ate ice cream (banana nut) at Farr's. That seems to be the state ice cream maker. I had a cheese and bacon potato at a place that only sells those (Brixton's). They must have doused the middle with some fake butter or something. I had to toss it. It was ridiculously fattening with just the toppings. I had some questionable Mexican at Beto's (a chain out West). I think that is is it. They opened the new terminal at the airport. Now it is a pain in the ass like most places. You have to walk forever to get out or to gate. The scanners are in a separate room and the lines took forever. Love that technology. The idiots that designed this make you walk all the way down one side and then over when they could have out the "over" portion first. It has been a low snow year. That made driving easier and enough (slopes) were open to please me. I'll probably go back in a month or so. To Bozeman and Big Sky first. Looks like it's a ski winter because of Covid and our afeared and feeble president. Maybe I'll move there?

Grub Crawl - Dr Phillips Area: Gogi and K Town

  I tried these two Korean places last Friday at lunch. They are side by side in the strip mall on Dr Phillips and Sand Lake. The first was world of Beer. The other was Whichwich. They are owned by the same people.

Gogi Korean Grill - It means meat. It is one of those "grill in the middle of the table" spots. They claimed you can do gas or charcoal. I did neither. I ordered a pre-made tofu stew called Sundubu ($15) because I don't think I've tried that before and I like to try new things. I added (for free) steak. They called it their bulgogi steak (since that has gogi in the word I bet I just made a funny in Korean). Usually the steak you get in bulgogi isn't this thin and tender. A nice surprise. The stew was tasty. A base that was probably peppers, tomato, onions, etc. They asked for a heat level. A raw egg was cracked on top. It came with rice that I didn't really eat because it didn't seem like it was necessary. Was I supposed to dump white rice in the stew? Just eat plain white rice with nothing on it? Drizzle the stew over the rice? It's funny. Some Asian and Latin meals just throw a bowl of rice in where it doesn't belong to fill you up. It came with four bon chon. I got five because they brought one wrong item. I chose: kimchi, broccoli, garlic something - sprouts I think, sprouts and fish cake. All were what you'd expect. At lunch, they serve "box' specials from $13 to $16.  6 apps. 3 salads. 1 soup. And a set lunch for two at $16 - $19. Probably per order. I think the dinner menu had a few more options. The space was big. It seats around one hundred in backless booths/squares. Windows look out on Sand Lake Rd. A bar. I kind of remember gray, black and maybe white tones. Some stone. Service (1) was good. Two other tables were seated after me. They said they have only been open for two months. Seems wrong. I never went in on recon missions. Maybe it's true. 

K Town Cafe - They call this a street food place. Probably smart to have a place like this next door. They can dump their aging supply and to go business off on this spot. A small menu of katsus, bowls, snacks. I had chicken katsu. It cost $10. Two "cutlets" of chicken. Rice (didn't eat this either). Kimchi. Broccoli. Last two were the same as Gogi. They made the chicken fresh in front of me. That can't always be expected in these times. Good crust. Chicken wasn't too dry. Light soy and garlic and sweet flavor. Probably a marinade. I ate one half when I got home (because the Sundubu wasn't that filling) and one half on the road the next day. It came with some black sauce that I didn't use or open. Probably a sweet soy. The place has the kitchen in the back of the small store. A few seats in front. Korean photos as decoration. They said they have been open for six months. Three others ordered while I was there.

*I'll do the SLC review in the next post. It will be short. Better to even these things out. Saw that Norman's plans to move in up the road.

Grub Crawl - Casselberry: Aji and Beyti

 I tried these newcomers on 436 last Friday at lunch. I ate at the first and got dinner to go at the second.

Aji - They said they have another location on OBT. That has been open for two and a half years. This branch opened four months ago. It is in a space in a strip mall across from Metro Diner near Howell Branch Rd. It was also a Peruvian place. A good one if I recall. This is a more "modern" take. The place is mostly bright white with plastic components. Some antiquated masks and statues and art keep it from being a room out of Sleeper. That's a Woody Allen film. He's the adoptive father of the metoo heartthrob Ronan Farrow. He used make comedies. Before he was making time with his children. The modern take extends to the menu. It has seventeen ceviches. Needless to say that that requires innovation since we're talking raw fish and a searing agent. I was expecting to try one as part of my meal, but, they copped to using swai. Are you kidding? Vietnamese catfish? I wouldn't eat it if you fried it. At my supermarket, I checked and it retails at $2.50 a pound. I doubt they use swai in Peru. I audibled to fried red snapper (pargo). Ironic that they fry the nice fish and serve raw the shit fish. Lucky for me they lack sense. The pargo was excellent. About a foot long. Fresh. Really well fried. Whole with the slashes in the body. No taste of old oil or mixed (different meats) oil. Tender, moist flesh. Crisp skin. They sell this preparation in alot of Caribbean and Latin countries. It is usually improperly prepared. This is one of the few preparations that was done properly. It came with two sides. I chose tostones and white rice. They tostones were larger and thin. They needed a sprinkling of sea salt. The rice was a bit crunchy. Not raw crunchy. Old crunchy. It had a hint of garlic in it. A bit bland. The meal cost $19. They start you off with a shot of tigre de leche (the liquid from the ceviche) and some corn nuts. The leche wasn't pure citrus or vinegar. Like a gazpacho. Good. They offer up a wide array. Five more "del mar" dishes. Eleven items they call "la previa" which means "the previous" which means I don't get it. I think they are apps. They are things like beef hearts and tequenos and a hodge podge of items. "Algo mas" is mostly tiraditos. "Por la casa" has these things (3) dishes that are scoops of cold mashed yellow colored potatoes topped with stuff. Never saw that before. They have four sushi rolls. All over $16. "Para calentarce" has four soups. "Para compartir" has four sampler platters. "Tacu tacu" has three types of a white bean and rice cake that I haven't seen before. Eight rice dishes in "Arroces". even a risotto and one with quinoa. Three "classicos". Seven "saltados y pastas" like lomo (tenderloin) saltado and fettuccine.They also have twelve pisco cocktails. Desserts (incuding mousse). Beer. Wine. Coffee. Pricing is all over the place and doesn't seem to make sense. The lomo is only $16. A bean cake is $18. Cheapest thing is $12. Highest is $19. Hey, I won! Or lost. Actually they have some ceviches and samplers that are in the $30 and $40s. 52 seats. Mostly tables of four or two. Three booths. Two bar areas that add eight seats a piece. Tv showing soccer. Service was good. Food came out fast. Place was pretty full at 2pm. Mostly all Latin looking customers. Will probably be first "favorite" of the new year. Means chili pepper. Odd choice. Not much of that on the menu. Logo also makes it look more fast food like than it is.

Beyti Mediterranean Grill - In a place around that overpass to Red Bug Lake Rd. Was some Cuban place called Ronaldo's or something. This guy had a place near I-4 and 436 on Douglas called Turkish Bar and Grill. Now he's here. I forget if it is recent or for like a year. I grabbed a "beyti" to go because it seemed like the thing to do and I'm not sure if I've had it before. The owner showed me a video of the traditional prep. They take the saddle of a lamb and make a roulade and grill it. Only nine or so portions per lamb. Is over $50 a serving in Turkey. He does a riff. Chopped lamb off the kabob in a lavas roll with a hot pepper and yogurt sauce on top. Like an enchilada. It was tasty. Moist lamb. Came with a small salad (purple cabbage and some greens and oil and vinegar) and savory rice and some onions. Also two charred jalapenos that I thought were okra or shisitos. Hot as hell. One other pepper as well that I didn't touch. The meal cost $12. They also have the usual suspects like gyros and tabouli and more exceptional things like: pide, ezme, kunefe, etc. He's from the west (Adana). The menu is holistic. They kind of refurbed the interior. The room on the left had some Turkish elements added. The room on the right was a junk room. Two old white ladies were finishing up when I entered at 3pm. Two Middle Eastern men came in after. Seats about fifty. Article from Sentinel on the wall. I assume it was a good review. Not bad. Needs to hit in more cylinders. Had that "dead man walking" vibe to it.

*This ran too long to add my SLC notes. I'll try and add anew post with them soon.

Grub Crawl - East Colonial and Audubon Park: Chicken Fire and Winter Park Biscuit Co

I grabbed items to go after lunch at Osphere a little under two weeks ago. I didn't intend for it to be a competition, but, let's get it on!

Chicken Fire - As I understand it, they were a food truck that was then parked at East End Market and now occupies what I believe was an old Italian (went there but can't find a review) place in between an Asian market and a Chinese restaurant called Lam's across from the strip mall that has Total Wine on 50 and Bumby. I'll start by saying that I guess this is a fad. This hot chicken thing. I thought it WAS a fad about ten years ago (I mean even the fast food restaurants co-opted it years ago). But, I guess what is old is new again or people around here are that far behind because they had people lining up. I'll interject at this point that I just returned from SLC and they also had a hot chicken place (Pretty Bird) that was so pretentious that they wouldn't even take orders. You had to use an app. And it was packed with people picking up. So either the people in SLC are just as out of touch as we are or it is a thing (again). It took me about twenty minutes to get my $10 two piece meal that I think they called "tenders" which were really breasts. It came with crinkle cut fries. The chicken was ok. Alot of breading made them seem larger than they actually were. Meat seemed like it had been thawed out. Crust was crispy. I think they use frosted or corn flakes. I tried the hottest level. It was pretty hot. I've done some ghost pepper challenges like Menchie's 420 in Sarasota and this wasn't that hot. No gastro-intestinal issues afterwards. Served on some white bread with pickles.I used the pickles on a bagel with cream cheese later on and found that that works.  The fries were the best thing. Very crisp. They only have six or so options. They are only open W-SN. 11 or 12 to 6p (I think). They had about three booths. People could eat in there if they wished. Not very fancy. Open a month. It's no Cro-nut. And even that was ridiculous. Not bad, but, not worthy of adulation. So, a perfect fit for the 21st century. I've been to the famous in ones in Tennessee (and beyond) years ago and they weren't worth it. It's just fried chicken with hot sauce on top people! And the sauce often soften the crispiness of the chicken and masks the flavor. I don't get it. Maybe it's a pothead thing. Maybe this is as far as kids are willing to go for a thrill in this baby proofed world?

Winter Park Biscuit Co - They took over the first stall on the left from Florida something and Bird of Paradise just recently. It looked all vegan, but, a review I read mentioned meat options. I grabbed a three piece that I thought was chicken. It was soy. Not bad for soy. Crisp coating. Looked like mozzarella sticks or fish fingers. Biscuit was salty. Fries were bad. Coated. I think they added a carrot and caraway and cabbage slaw that was too sweet. That could have been from Chicken Fire though. My notes melded together. They only had five or so choices. One was a fake burger. I think two salads and a chicken on a bun. My meal cost $13. I saw a Japanese tea/mochi place on the next level. Not sure if that is new. The other stalls seemed to have re-opened. 

So, the winner is - (by default) Chicken Fire. They actually came to play with chicken in a chicken contest. Plus they gave 2x the food at $3 less. And their fries were good.

*I'll give you a SLC report in a few days. I did notice that things appear back to normal (especially around here). The airport was jammed (especially the rental car lines) when I came back. Traffic sucked all over town. I saw that even the strip club (ie Rachel's) parking lots were full (night and at lunch time). I read Canadians are returning for flu shots. My flights (connections) were all full. Airports in Dallas and Charlotte were SRO. 

Osphere, Downtown

 First a little house cleaning. In the last post I realized that I was guilty of lazy journalism. A better journalist would have listed the mayor as Bluddy Dyer-ia and the head nurse as Raul Pino-chet. I promise better self-editing in the future.

I tried this replacement for some short lived Italian joint (and Spice before that ) about a week and a half ago at lunch. I had some ready cash from voting the night before in Georgia. And you thought they paid well to protest. First Greg Pitts gave us the O Face (Office Space). Now these guys have given us the O Sphere. They did zero to the look. Four tables of two ate while I was there. One waitress. One chef. You would think it was a disaster. You'd be wrong. I had a very decent cheeseburger and fries for $14. I was too nervous to order any of the "harder" to prepare meals. Now the burger was well done and I asked for medium rare, but, it was still ok. The meat quality and size was good. It was topped with a thin slice of tomato, shredded lettuce, shredded onion and some kind of mayo based spread. The american cheese they used reminded me of some cheese I love for burgers. Not sure what brand it is. The buttered bun was good too. It came with half a plate of fries. Some were crisp, but, most were not quite there. If I wasn't flying out the next day, I would have bagged them and had snacks for three days. The plating was good. Most things were centered on the bun. The menu was mostly American. Tuna tartare, chicken, steak, crisp pork sandwich, grouper, etc. It's not anything grammy, but, it seems like they still care. If you just want a "normal" meal, you could do alot worse. They opened one year ago. I stayed away because I presumed they would go under. They have survived. They must have some following. Give them a try. Across from Publix.

*I saw that the old Shari space down the road had a sign that said Ootoya coming soon. See review of Altamonte Springs location. Also, there is supposed to be a Filipino place opening down there by the Kadence people. On the NE corner of the lake a Persimmon Hollow replaced a bread place. 

2020 Favorites List and Travel Notes Index

I started this blog in an attempt to provide consumer protection. I never thought I'd have to protect both parties. This year was a reminder of what a society can expect when we choose leaders like we choose teenage pop idols and masked dancers. And they are put in charge of anything thornier than garbage pick up. Let alone pandemic mitigation. 

Nincompoops like (Swim)buddy Dyer-ia and the Revahhrend Huckleberry Lemmings and their crack medical expert Raul Pino. I'm not sure about you, but I like my doctors thin and my chefs fat. Not the other way around. And let's not forget the weak kneed followers in Seminole County. Lee Constantine, Jay Zembower, Bob Dallari, Amy Lockart, Andrea Herr (new) and Brenda Carey (out). And there has been "medical expert" Dr Husty. They made life miserable for all the people on the list and all the ones not. People who pay the salaries of these non-essential, salary protected workers. Who risk much to provide for us. And "the science" proves that only 1.6% of infections were at restaurants. And that doesn't prove that the regulations worked! I swear we need an update of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy or any other satirical prose. Aliens would be so bemused by us right now.

Most of you probably sat by and watched all this happen. Maybe even demanded it. I know who foodies are. How they think. I know this is going in one ear and out another. In know you feel no shame. Are incapable of it. Think you are a priori good. You should be banned from their premises for life. You live life beneath your Mommy's apron strings as close to the warm breath of your deliverance as you can nuzzle up to. You love that extra padding you can rest your head against. You "live" your lives in fear. You are adult sized babies. It's time for you to grow up. You must come out from behind the apron strings. And now on to the awards. I may be a little more generous because of the enviroment 2020 created.

$$$$-

$$$- Delaney's Tavern, Susuru, Dexter's New Standard, Mr Wang's Sports BBQ, General Public House (NSB), Sixty Vines, World of Magic, Makani, Barwachi, Antica Pizza

$$- Pepe, Taglish, Grain & Ember Pizza, Git N Messy BBQ, Medellin Burger, What the Chuck Burger, Current Seafood

$- Shaka Donuts, Bagel Bruno, Taco Shack (NSB), Banh Mi Boy, Taqueria Las Cazuelas

*NSB = New Smyrna Beach

Travel Notes Index

February 5 - NV/AZ/NM

February 15 - SF

March 10 - FL GC

May 19 - FL/GA/AL/KY/MO/IA/SD/NE/KS/AR/OK/TX/MS

May 29 - TN/SC/NC/GA

June 20 - SC/PA/VT/NH/NY

July 18 - NV/UT/NM/WY/CO/AZ

July 22 - LV

August 11 - MN/MI

August 30 - CO/KS

September 23 - WA/MT/ID

October 13 - FL GC

November 6 - FL/GA/SC/NC/VA/MD/WV

December 13 - LV

December 26 - FL Keys and GC

Face Tea, Lake Mary

 I'll slip this one in before the Favorites. I grabbed a milk black tea here on Thursday at lunch. It cost $4. Like every other one. Same with shop. It is in the corner of the strip mall that has Grato and Burger Fi on Lake Mary Blvd and Rinehart Rd. They sell smoothies and teas and boba and the usual. They also have one food item - popcorn chicken. Probably nuked. Didn't seem like they have a kitchen. I noticed the English teahouse (Dicken's) was closed. Not sure when that happened. The Universe filled their void with this cheap Chinese replica. Seems like a metaphore/presage. Open for 6 months.

Mr & Mrs Crab, Sanford

I tried this seafood place in the old Smokey Bones location near the mall today at lunch. They opened two months ago. They had a little video playing that said they had around a dozen locations in Florida (one in MS) and a dozen planned. I think this is the sixth type of this restaurant that opened around CF this year alone. Only one so far has been good (the one in Altamonte Springs on 434). This is number two. At least the crabs were fresh. That is the criteria. Low bar, but, four of them couldn't measure up. I had just been spoiled at Peace River Seafood (see last post's travel tips). This place is nowhere near as good. But, they swore they had just driven to Tampa to get a fresh batch of blue crabs and I think they were telling the truth. The meat was firm. It tasted fresh. Now a pound turned out to be two smallish sidlers and a larger one. That cost $15. $20 got me six or seven large ones at Peace River. They didn't sell be the pound, so, I'm not sure if I got shorted. This is your typical boil in a bag place that makes you pick a seasoning . I just asked for mild Cajun, but, it seemed like they added melted butter. Maybe that is implied? It came with a potato and corn. Didn't try the corn. I also had a half pound of crawfish. They copped to them being frozen. Still ok. Came with a potato. They cost $7. The order came out fast. Too fast? They must have some pre-pared. They also sell shrimp, snow crab, clams, manila clams, green mussels, blue mussels, calamari, scallops, lobster tail, dungeness crab, king crab and sausage. Apps. Fried baskets. The usual pricing. They had lunch specials that weren't so special. You basically get fries or mac and cheese. Sodas were a little inflated at $3. They did give a to go cup. They also honored the 10% coupon I got in the mail. Service was good. They decorated it with nets, license plates and plastic fish. The video said they were offering a unique experience. Hardly. There must be a check list they all follow. Down to "replace a chain barbeque restaturant". The bar had a small selection of name brands. That is actually advisable. I always wonder at why they carry all those bottles. I hope they don't pay up front. Waste of capital. The place was too dark. and this was during the day. You needed a flashlight to read the menu. It was also too loud. They had some web based jukebox that curated a bizarre playlist of hip hop, country, rock, etc. This again is something that all these places have in common. The disjointed nature of the program coupled with the volume is not what I'm looking for during my lunch hour. It also left half the place unhappy half of the time. The place seats around ninety. Five tables up front were in use. They had sports and news on the tv. It wasn't the disaster I have grown accustomed to. If they keep things fresh then they will be worth it. If they don't, then it won't. Simple as that. They seem to still be conscientious two months in.

*I will post The 2020 Favorites in a few days.

Coqui, Sanford *FL Keys and FL Gulf Coast Travel Notes

I grabbed some dinner to go at this Puerto Rican restaurant on 17-92 on Tuesday. They close at 8pm. They open at 8am. Their daily specials are unbelievably affordable at $8. I grabbed two to provide you with more data. Each comes with two sides AND a soda. I tried corned beef with french fries and potato salad and chicken stew (guisado) with rice with pigeon peas (arroz con gandules) and tostones. The corned beef was a new adventure. I didn't love it. It was all minced up. I once tried (to see what the hell it was like) that junk next to the tuna and chicken salad at the market. Devil something? This was like that. They folded in potato rectangles into it. I ended up picking those out and adding them to the too mayo-ed potato salad. The french fries were also disappointing. Those startch covered grease tubes I hate. The trip home in a sealed container eradicated any crispness that may have existed. I will say that they helped me fine tune my chicken skin drying process. I bought a $5 chicken at Winn Dixie the next day and I put some of the fries in bowl and covered them with the chicken skin and nuked them for 2 1/2 minutes. The fries sucked up the chicken grease and created convection for better skin desiccation. Back to the meal. The chicken was ok. A little dry. Rough chopped sections of bone in chicken. About eight pieces. The rice was very good. Huge portion. Had it for two leftover meals. The tostones were the best. They didn't loose crispness. Four I think. Lightly salted. Some of the best I've ever had. They have around ten "specials" every day. Most meats. The usual sides. They also do breakfast. I think all day, They have seven sandwiches. But, they cost as much or more than the specials and don't come with anything. They also have platters and mofongo(s). All more than the specials. I remember soup and desserts and a kid's menu. They didn't change the decor. This place has been a Mexican and Italian spot recently. It's on a cross street one block to or from Lake Mary Blvd depending on your ingress. It's Lake something. Minnie? They have been open for a year. a Puerto Rican woman and her Indian husband. Most things are less tha $15. I think it's a great value.

*Travel Notes - Florida Keys and Gulf Coast: Here are some notes on a trip to the Keys through the Gulf Coast. I tried another route than 95 to see if it would actually be quicker and less traffic-y. I think it might be depending on the time of day. (also may be best way to south Gulf). I usually stop in Homestead or before Miami to cut the cost of one night Keys hotel prices and because you usually arrive after dark anyway. I took 1-4W to 27S through Haines City and Lake Wales to 60W to Bartow to 17S to Punta Gorda. I left at 11am and had little to no traffic throughout. It took me around two hours. Here to Palm Beach is usually two and a half hours. And then the traffic can start. On my way back (this way), the south bound traffic to Miami started here at 1pm. I slept here (PG). The plan. I took 75 to Naples the next day. No traffic. 60 minutes. I stayed here for a night. The plan. I took 41E to 997S to Key Largo. This bypassed the US1 part of east coast route. That took me two hours alone on the way back. I think this may be me new route

**Ok. The food. In Punta Gorda, I didn't Google the addresses of the three places I had written down and chose takeout Thai (Mint) near my Springhill Suites in Punta Gorda because I was hangry. A shame because the highly rated Asian (Perfect Caper) was right by me. I also drove by another (Farlow's on the Water) when I explored Gasparilla Island earlier in the day. Check that out btw. It's way cute. Gasparilla Inn was $270 on Expedia. Should have stayed there. At Mint I tried the crispy quail and Panang Chicken Curry. Quail was sour. Not sure if that is how it is supposed to taste. The next day I backtracked a mile or two on 17 and had blue crabs and clams at Peace River Seafood. The clams were chewy and a bit of a rip off. The crabs were the exact opposite. A treasure. So fresh! Only $20. In Naples I started my stone crab hunt. That's the reason I came back here so soon. Last time I was here they said this (and not the Keys) was stone crab catching central. I grabbed a pound of mediums at Captain & Krewe Seafood near 5th. They cost $24 a pound. Good. I next grabbed beer and corn holes (corn meal donuts with bacon jam and honey butter) and brisket potato at Industry Beer and Barbecue. I stayed at a place called Bayfront Inn 5th Ave (across from Tin City). This was in the same development. It turned out to be great. A huge selection of mostly Floridian beers and good food. The potato has all kinds of cheese and goodness in it and the brisket was good. The holes were also good. Both cost under $8. I was going to get more stone crabs on the way out. A place called Oakes Farms Market. They were selling for $20 a pound. I grabbed a turkey sandwich instead. Beer bloating issues. Naples was dead. I stayed at a Hampton Inn in Key Largo that had manatees right in the canal and ocean around them. I went back to Key Largo Fisheries (tradition) and they were selling them at $22 a pound. I also finally tried the lobster BLT at their Backyard Cafe. It was ok. Dry Caribbean lobster tail per usual. It cost around $24. Over rated. I had basted (covered to steam) eggs, hb and sausage at Bob's Bunz in Islamorada the next day. One barbacoa taco at Sinz in Key West. Oysters (really good Appalachicola's at Conch Republic. OK pizza at Duetto Pizza. I had drinks at Joe's Tap Room, Tattoos and Scars and the Tipsy Rooster. The cops were misrepresenting the State's mask (or lack of one) mandate. I stayed at a place called Alexander Palms Court on South St because they had parking. I had lunch at Firefly the next day. An in place. I had shrimp and grits. Grits were good. Shrimp were small. They are known for a scallop dish they don't serve at lunch. I grabbed roast pork, beans, rice, plantains and tostones for $15 at Fernanady's Food Truck. Huge portions. I drove through Big Pine Key the next day and had stone crabs for $15 (!) at Big Pine Key Market. A side of the road stand. The best tasting crabs to boot. And all kinds of fish, seafood and produce. A find. I had lunch at Bitton Bistro and Cafe in Islamorada. I had a Lyon salami and Gruyere sandwich and salad. The owner is Moroccan. I had dinner at a place whose name always cracked me up. Great Wall Taki Outi. Don't have a conniption (would a woke stroke be a stwoke?), they are Asian run. I just had some Moo Goo Gai Pan. The place looks beyond scary, but, I didn't get sick. I stayed at a place called Pines & Palms Inn. I try and try new places each trip. And ones that are at the biggest discount on that day. I had a bad Italian sub on the way out at Tower of Pizza in Key Largo. I've been down here quite a few times. I'm trying to try ALL the restaurants. Not all of these are worth your time. This time of year was perfect. I think it will be my new "go" time. No crowds. Perfect weather. X-mas vibe. Is nice!

Equilibre, Lake Ivanhoe/Antiques District

 I tried this little place last Wednesday at lunch. It's a sandwich, sweets, smoothie, juice place. Maybe coffee. It's the last spot on the block. Across from Washburn Imports. White, one story building. They opened two years ago. Open 11-6. I grabbed a turkey club to go. It cost $10. I tried it on wheat. I wasn't expecting much, but, it was way cute. Not bad tasting either. Kind of a girl's version. Single slice of turkey, sprouts, cherry tomatoes, crisp bacon, avocado and a spicy remoulade-ish spread. Thick. Hard to eat while driving. Slippery sucker. Didn't the whore in Pretty Woman say that? They also serve roast beef, salmon, tuna and three or more sandwiches. Salads too. Juice and smoothies cost almost as much as the sandwiches. Too rich for my blood. The place is run by Brazilian women. I saw three. The sandwich took a little while to appear. I forgave them when I saw that it wasn't slapped together. The to go bag and box must have cost them a buck. It's a small space. Just room for four people to order. They have a small patio. Not bad. 

*The next post will be in a few days and have notes from a Gulf Coast and Keys jaunt.

Grub Crawl - Sanford: Current Seafood, Dharma Fine Vittles and What the Chuck Burgers (Closed) *LV Travel Notes

I tried these three new stalls at Henry's Depot at lunch on Thursday. 

Current Seafood - I tried an order of grouper bites for $10. They were good. Big chunks. Grilled. Fresh. For some reason, they came with cocktail sauce. I made up my own Sriracha and mayo. They were a liitle bland as prepared and needed a sauce. They also sell two sandwiches. Salmon and mahi, I think. They also had fried platters: scallops, shrimp, clams, etc. They sell 1 1/4 lb lobsters on Monday for $30. They boil them. Lobster rolls are sold on Tuesday at $20.

Dharma Fine Vittles - A vegan spot. They list three locations. Needless to say, I tried to extricate myself in the cheapest way possible. That ended up being with a side of terrible cheesy homies for $5. A little cup of raw potatoes (needed five minutes in microwave to make them soft) in cashew cheese. A total waste of money. They also sell some fake hot dogs, burritos and sandwiches ( blt, chicken, green tomato, jack fruit etc). Everything is twice as expensive as it should be. Because you aren't suffering enough. Thirteen plus is a median. 

What the Chuck Burgers - A burger place by the Tennessee Truffle guy. I had the headline burger (smash something). It was good. Twice as big as my favorite fast food burger (Freddy's). I though it came with mustard. Mine only had mayo, pickles and cheddar cheese. The pickles were too muchy and sweet. The cheese was too salty. Still good. Beef had good flavor. Glossy bun. They sell around seven other concoctions. with things like, pimento cheese, feta, apple and celery salad, etc. You have to order at the bar for some reason.

Travel Notes - Las Vegas: Here are my Las Vegas trip notes - If I don't expound on a place it probably wasn't good. The first batch were places shown on Marcus Samuelsson's show No Passport Required on PBS. I did all but one deli and two were defunct. Fat Choy at Eureka Casino on Sahara Blvd. They have also been on 3D. A Pork Belly BLT. Chubby Cattle. This was a Mongolian Hot Pot place. Also scored high on Yelp. Andrew Zimmern was on here too. Very good quality meats and broths. I had the lamb and beef. It usually has the meats circling on a belt. Not presently. On Jones off of Spring Valley. They had some weird things like throat and duck flippers. Kung Fu. I had their Teochew Duck. Ok. I also had a cheap but bad moo goo gai pan lunch special. On Valley View and Spring Mountain. Chengdu Taste. They (by the articles on the walls) seem to be a popular LA spot (more towards San Gabriel Mts). I had toothpick lamb. More of an Arabic dish. Little bits of lamb on toothpicks. Shang Artisan Noodles. On West Flamingo and Decataur. I didn't feel like waiting. Their governor is also being a prick about capacity. Got some dumplings to go. Beef and pork. Not great. 

The next batch is via Yelp, happenstance or recommendation. Egg Slut at the Cosmopolitan. Only open until like noon or two. I had their namesake - Slut. it is a egg coddled in a glass jar with potato puree. some toasted baguette slices on the side. pretty good. Lee's Sandwiches on Spring Mountain. Another California place. I had a pate and pork roll banh mi. Very good. Cheap. They are open 24 hrs and sell alot of things. Sushi Takashi. Not that great quality for the rep. My squid and some of the fish tasted fishy. I had octopus head karaage. Squid tentacles karaage. Chazuke (broth over rice) salmon. Peter Pan's Hat (inari around rice with spicy tuna and an avocado slice as a feather. I also had mackerel, yt and shrimp nigiri. Bad rice. I had Big Eye Tuna sahimi. Good. They also had Blue fin on special. I didn't have it, but, they had something called chawan mushi. It was steamed egg custard topped with things. At La Pasticceria at Eataly in the Park MGM I had a almond frangipane in puffed pastry crust called Greca. I also tried some of the Bastianich wine. It wasn't great. I had fish taco and an octopus tostada at Baja Mar on Las Vegas Blvd. They were good. Some guy in Colorado told me about them this summer. They have a high rating. Out of San Diego. 

I went back to Taco el Gordo on Las Vegas Blvd. I tried to get the eye and head tacos I told you about before. Either they just look like mushed up beef or they just gave me something else. I also tried an al pastor at the place next door (Taco el Pastor) just to compare. Not as good. I had Michoacan Chicken at Bonito Michoacan on Decataur. Not great. I thought I was going there for some spicy dish. They didn't know what I was talking about when i brought it up. The salsa was pretty spicy. This area is south of Guadaljara. Part is on the sea, They had a huge menu with seafood. Sapporo Revolving Sushi on Spring Mountain. Pretty good sushi for $2.50 a plate (2 pc). I had ocean trout, New Zealand King Salmon, yt, salmon, kamapchi (they called it young yt) and tuna. I had an ok Cobb Salad in white French dressing (that's a new one) at Grand Cafe at Red Rock Casino. Check out that area. Summerlin. 

The last one is Samurai BBQ on Decataur. This is a place where you grill. Yakiniku. I tried thick cut tongue, smoked tongue, hanging tenderloin, pork jowls and a scallop in a shell. All great. Smoked tongue was new and better. Scallops was fun to cook in the shell. Wish I was hungrier when I went. I also had some fresh oysters on the half shell. They had some weird stuff: pickled squid, shark cartilage, intestines, first stomach (called it mountain chain), liver, toro tongue (base of tongue), short rib tartare, short rib sushi (explain that one), sea urchin wrapped with short ribs, tongue sashimi. That's it. Things still pretty cheap. Kind of dead. Gay governor was shutting them down this weekend I think. I also went to a park (Red Rock Canyon NCA) past Summerlin. Nice loop drive. Bishop Gorman High School is located there (Summerlin) if you know your sports. Plus the A's AAA stadium and a hockey arena and malls. Circa opened on Fremont street. looks nice. Many bars and art installations down there. An area made up of shipping containers. Neon and Mob museums. Round trip was $126 on Frontier.

Grub Crawl - Winter Park: Financier (Closed) and George's Deli

 I tried these spots on Park Ave about a week ago at lunch. The first is next to Tabla and Le Macaron near the center point of the avenue.. The next is past the Tiffany museum towards the golf course. 

Financier - They opened a year ago. They said the last tenant was a bbq place. I remember it as a bakery. Funny thing. They started with a place near Wall St or Water St (choose one) that I used to go to when I lived in NYC. There is an Impractical Jokers where Murr has to take cigarettes from people that was filmed nearby. I remember more pastry at that place. I had the poulet roti for $15. It seemed like the best value. Sandwiches cost the same and the other entrees (steak frites and entrecote ribeye) were $5 and $15 more. The chicken was ok. Small. Drum and thigh. The skin was dry and a bit burnt. No sheen. It seemed like it may have been reheated. It came with shoe string french fries (a bit on the dry side) and a wilting field green salad in a light dressing. A little more care seems to be in order. The soda was one of those Euro style bottles. I wonder what the unit price difference is for them? I hope they don't think it is charming. Old thinking if it is the answer. The lunch menu has egg dishes ($15+), burgers ($15), salads ($14+), tartines ($12+), quiche (10+) and small plates. They have a full breakfast menu. I'm unsure if they do dinner. They also have booze and coffee. And cakes. Inside is small and rectangular. Four tables of four and two twos in front and a long banquette in the rear. The right side of the room is a bar countertop. Behind it is a poor man's frosted mirror. They tried to recreate the look with a piece of sheet metal. First time I've seen that. Service (1) was good. They had a hostess. Kind of unnecessary. An extra server would have been more useful. There were four other people dining with (around me) me. Most French places have disappeared over the years. I guess it is good to have any choice. Hopefully, Covid is the issue at present. They need to tighten execution up a tad. Still happy I chose it over the following.

George's Cafe - They may impress. Some of the things I saw on plates were voluminous. And they were full. But, I found the menu way overpriced. And It took too long to order. That's why I left originally. I went back for a snack. I settled on a chocolate chip cookie. It was more like a puffy granola bar. It was very good. Tons of chips. Airy. Like a rice crispy treat. It cost $3.50. The menu offers only eleven specialty sandwiches, seven regular sandwiches, one burger, seven salads and a soup or chili. The special sandwiches start at $15. The regs at $14. They also do breakfast. But, only from Th-Sn. Dishes run from $7 for two eggs and hb to $18 for filet and eggs. They have a dish (Eggs Sardou) that I had at Arnaud's in New Orleans. Weird. If I went back, I would probably go for breakfast. They moved here in April from their place (since 1989) across from Bubbalou's on Lee Rd. I'm pretty sure I reviewed that place. I forgot to go back and see what I thought of them. The place is small inside. Grand ma looking. A countertop and a few tables. They have a patio with more seats. Main issue is price. Asking about twice what they should.

Grub Crawl - Altamonte Springs: Antica Pizzeria and Monte Gelato

 I tried these two neighbors tonight. They are in the srtip mall right off I-4 at 436 (behind Twin Peaks). The first is an Italian restaurant. The second is a gelato shop.

Antica Pizzeria - I thought they were new. They said either five or seven years old. They open at 5pm (even pre-Covid). Just doing take out now. A mom and son operation. Roots in Calabria. I tried the spaghetti and meatballs (polpette) and a Calabrese pizza. $17 and $14 respectively. The spagehetti was ok. Either it started out a little overdone and pasty or it became that way on the trip home. I think they make or buy fresh pasta. The sauce was pretty bland. Some slivers of garlic. Some cheese. The meatballs were good. Golf ball sized. Not dense. The guy at The Weekly made a big deal about them. Maybe a little overblown. They said they make them fresh ever other day. I think the mom (not that old) does the non-pizza cooking. They also do a few more pasta dishes. Three rigatoni. Lasagna. I forget the rest. The pizza was good. The dough was very good. I think they use a zero flour. It had a grayish hue. Whole wheat? Good char. Good chew. A bit pudgy. Ten inches. This style has Calabrese sausage. Thin slivers. Pizza mozzarella and fresh mozzarella dollops. Italian portioning of cheese. Alot of crust. Some bubbling. Bland sauce. Like the one on the spaghetti. Neopolitan style. A contender. I didn't ask how hot they get the brick oven. They had around ten pies. They also have other things. Fresh mozzarella and buratta. The place has a brick circumference. Booths on the walls. Tables in the middle. Window up front. Rustic looking. Seats about fifty. 

Monte Gelato - They opened a month ago. About sixteen flavors. I had a cone for $3.75. A kiddie cup was $5. I tried Amaretto. It tasted like marzipan. I don't remember Ameretto tasting like that. Good though. Small store. Gelato fridge up front.

*Some more from the last post: I forgot that they gave me smoked corn on the cob at that place in Natchez. Good. I also tried a pastry stout at that brewery and they also made a stawberry pancake stout. I also have to warn you about buying Uncle Ben's boil in the bag rice. It sucks. Smaller bag than Success (for example). The rice still wasn't soft after fifteen (supposed to be ten) minutes. I think they are doing away with name. It's a start.