This past Saturday, our school had our first testing. Everyone did great and I brought in party platters from Jimmy Johns. Sir T-Hawk calls Jimmy Johns the best cold subs around. We are both carnivores but still like their veggie sub. The avacado spread they use is wonderful, and I may have to go back for a another bucket of pickles just for me! I also like the way they will do low-carb subs as a lettuce wrap.
The restaurant itself is fun too. The walls are covered with cute reading material: signs, lists, quotes, etc.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Monday, September 19, 2011
Chili's
Sir T-Hawk and I were sans students on Saturday and opted to break our usual preferences and hit a major chain restaurant. We are both bummed/annoyed because 3 of our favorite local places close between 3 and 5 and with class ending at 3:30, that puts us looking for food at 4. Phooey.
Primary reason for choosing Chili's - Hatch Green Chili. I'd been there a few weeks ago and had one of their "limited time only" specials with the Hatch Green Chili and wanted Sir T to try it. There are only 3 entrees with it, and since I tried one last time, Sir T and I ended up with the same thing - the Hatch Chili Cheeseburger. Blew my calorie count, even though I'd saved up for it. We went for the "2 for $20" deal and got the half order of Texas Cheese Fries (fries with LOTS of melted cheese and crumbled bacon). Sir T mentioned that the half order is plenty for two people, and I agree. Last time, I remembered dipping the cheese fries in the green chili, but my mouth was full when I asked for it and the waiter brought a cup of the regular chili ... which was still wonderful for dipping fries into. Sir T said I can order with my mouth full anytime. I also requested an extra cup of the green chili with my burger, so did Sir T.
The burgers had a pico de gallo type chopped veggie mix on the bottom, with pepper jack cheese and the green chili on the top. Wonderful. We both thought the burgers were amazing ... if a bit messy. We waited for the burgers to cool a bit, let the cheese solidify to try and keep the tops from sliding. It worked, but it was still a 3-napkin burger. I'm not a connoisseur of french fries, but these were good - crispy and lightly seasoned, they didn't lose crispness or flavor as they cooled. The fries were good dipped in the green chili, and any combination of chili, ranch and green chili. I even dipped my burger in the green chili when I got it small enough.
Love the Hatch green chili, I wish Chili's sold it in jars. Great flavor and an excellent way to spice up any meal without adding heat. I had it with chicken last time, and a burger this time. I wouldn't put it with highly flavored meat as the tastes might challenge each other ... but with chicken and a quesadilla, or on a cheeseburger the flavor stands out well.
Primary reason for choosing Chili's - Hatch Green Chili. I'd been there a few weeks ago and had one of their "limited time only" specials with the Hatch Green Chili and wanted Sir T to try it. There are only 3 entrees with it, and since I tried one last time, Sir T and I ended up with the same thing - the Hatch Chili Cheeseburger. Blew my calorie count, even though I'd saved up for it. We went for the "2 for $20" deal and got the half order of Texas Cheese Fries (fries with LOTS of melted cheese and crumbled bacon). Sir T mentioned that the half order is plenty for two people, and I agree. Last time, I remembered dipping the cheese fries in the green chili, but my mouth was full when I asked for it and the waiter brought a cup of the regular chili ... which was still wonderful for dipping fries into. Sir T said I can order with my mouth full anytime. I also requested an extra cup of the green chili with my burger, so did Sir T.
The burgers had a pico de gallo type chopped veggie mix on the bottom, with pepper jack cheese and the green chili on the top. Wonderful. We both thought the burgers were amazing ... if a bit messy. We waited for the burgers to cool a bit, let the cheese solidify to try and keep the tops from sliding. It worked, but it was still a 3-napkin burger. I'm not a connoisseur of french fries, but these were good - crispy and lightly seasoned, they didn't lose crispness or flavor as they cooled. The fries were good dipped in the green chili, and any combination of chili, ranch and green chili. I even dipped my burger in the green chili when I got it small enough.
Love the Hatch green chili, I wish Chili's sold it in jars. Great flavor and an excellent way to spice up any meal without adding heat. I had it with chicken last time, and a burger this time. I wouldn't put it with highly flavored meat as the tastes might challenge each other ... but with chicken and a quesadilla, or on a cheeseburger the flavor stands out well.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Elizabeth's Pizza
Sir T-Hawk and I have a craving today for Thai, but our favorite place doesn't open for dinner until 5, and our class is over and ready for food by 4. So we and two students went for nearby Elizabeth's Pizza (Quaker Village). We've been there before, and not been disappointed so it as a good backup choice. After all, nothing is worse than being denied a craving, then having your second choice disappoint.
I couldn't decide between two dishes: Pollo Vesuvio (not sure of the name, it was on the specials list - chicken breast with artichoke hearts, roasted peppers and mushrooms in a garlic butter sauce over linguine) and Brosette Campagnole (pasta purses filled with cheese and herbs, mixed with ham, mushrooms, tomatoes in a pesto cream sauce). The waitress touted the Brosette as her favorite and I wanted to see what "pasta purses" were, so that became my choice with a salad with the house dressing. Sir T decided on the other one, with a bowl of Pasta Fagioli soup.
The soup was a little disappointing. All the ingredients were cook perfectly, but Sir T felt the broth lacked seasoning and was a little bland. However, the garlic croutons were a great complement to the soup. My salad was an average salad, the dicing of the vegetables made it a little above average for a place that doesn't get a lot of salad eaters, but the house dressing was nicely unusual. The waitress said it was basically vinegar with pureed vegetables, and it did have a thick, V8 kind of texture with a lighter color, with a nice spicy flavor. I was pleased to see red onions on the salad instead of the regular white.
Our students got pizzas - one cheese and pineapple, one heavy garlic, light ("almost no") cheese. Both of them liked the pizzas. Kudos for the effort the waitress's effort to get the amount of cheese just right and the bread-lover of the group loved the crust and the garlic.
Sir T loved his chicken. I may have to try it sometime, at the risk of simply repeating his rave review. Both the chicken and the pasta were cooked perfectly, the combination of artichoke hearts and roasted peppers was a great combination of flavors and the garlic butter sauce was amazing. The butter was cut with EVOO and I kept glancing at Sir T's plate to see if it congealed, and it never did. Even when boxing up the leftovers, the sauce was liquid, not lumpy at all. It still looked delicious at the end of the meal.
For the sake of my calorie counting, I should probably have avoided the cream sauce, but I couldn't resist. And I usually save up on Saturday's anyway. I'm glad I did. The texture of the pasta purses is very different, like a round mini ravioli with ruffles give both a filled pasta and a noodle flair. Part of the joy of this dish was the combination of the pasta texture with the diced ham and the veggies ... both tender, but in different textures. I think sausage or beef would have overpowered the pasta. I added lots of Parmesan, but then I always do, nothing detrimental to the food. The sauce was very tasty; perhaps more Alfredo than pesto cream, but I like a strong pesto. An excellent dish in both taste and texture.
Last time we were here, Sir T and I split a stromboli and I just want to drop a quick note on how delicious it was. Elizabeth's definitely gets "swords up" on both the "pizza place" and the "Italian entrees".
I couldn't decide between two dishes: Pollo Vesuvio (not sure of the name, it was on the specials list - chicken breast with artichoke hearts, roasted peppers and mushrooms in a garlic butter sauce over linguine) and Brosette Campagnole (pasta purses filled with cheese and herbs, mixed with ham, mushrooms, tomatoes in a pesto cream sauce). The waitress touted the Brosette as her favorite and I wanted to see what "pasta purses" were, so that became my choice with a salad with the house dressing. Sir T decided on the other one, with a bowl of Pasta Fagioli soup.
The soup was a little disappointing. All the ingredients were cook perfectly, but Sir T felt the broth lacked seasoning and was a little bland. However, the garlic croutons were a great complement to the soup. My salad was an average salad, the dicing of the vegetables made it a little above average for a place that doesn't get a lot of salad eaters, but the house dressing was nicely unusual. The waitress said it was basically vinegar with pureed vegetables, and it did have a thick, V8 kind of texture with a lighter color, with a nice spicy flavor. I was pleased to see red onions on the salad instead of the regular white.
Our students got pizzas - one cheese and pineapple, one heavy garlic, light ("almost no") cheese. Both of them liked the pizzas. Kudos for the effort the waitress's effort to get the amount of cheese just right and the bread-lover of the group loved the crust and the garlic.
Sir T loved his chicken. I may have to try it sometime, at the risk of simply repeating his rave review. Both the chicken and the pasta were cooked perfectly, the combination of artichoke hearts and roasted peppers was a great combination of flavors and the garlic butter sauce was amazing. The butter was cut with EVOO and I kept glancing at Sir T's plate to see if it congealed, and it never did. Even when boxing up the leftovers, the sauce was liquid, not lumpy at all. It still looked delicious at the end of the meal.
For the sake of my calorie counting, I should probably have avoided the cream sauce, but I couldn't resist. And I usually save up on Saturday's anyway. I'm glad I did. The texture of the pasta purses is very different, like a round mini ravioli with ruffles give both a filled pasta and a noodle flair. Part of the joy of this dish was the combination of the pasta texture with the diced ham and the veggies ... both tender, but in different textures. I think sausage or beef would have overpowered the pasta. I added lots of Parmesan, but then I always do, nothing detrimental to the food. The sauce was very tasty; perhaps more Alfredo than pesto cream, but I like a strong pesto. An excellent dish in both taste and texture.
Last time we were here, Sir T and I split a stromboli and I just want to drop a quick note on how delicious it was. Elizabeth's definitely gets "swords up" on both the "pizza place" and the "Italian entrees".
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Taqueria El Azteca - Take 2
By request, we came back again for a second week in a row. :-)
Sir T-Hawk got steak fajitas and raved about them - well seasoned meat, but not overpowering. Several others made similar statements about their own meals. Someone got the "Authentic Mexican Tacos" (topped with radish and avocado slice) and agreed that the meat was seasoned perfectly to not overpower the other flavors, all tastes blended well with nothing overpower the whole dish. LOTS of food, Sir T filled 4 tortillas and still had nearly a full meal of the meat, peppers and onions to take home.
The cactus salad earned raves. The request for Taqueria was partly made due to someone wanting to try the cactus salad and she was not disappointed. We all agreed that the cactus salad is one of the unique qualities to Taqueria, both just for the fact of cactus salad, and for its unique taste. I threw in my own cents from previous meals and added that it is also very tasty mixed with the Spanish rice.
I got another combo - taco and burrito. I was craving crunchy. The taco did not disappoint, but I will reiterate the drippiness. However, I was also craving cheese, and ordered a bowl of the white cheese dip, which I adore. (Dip a chip into the cheese, then add salsa - love it!) Since I have been lowering my calories, my appetite has decreased and I ate so much of the cheese, chips and salsa, I only ate half the chicken burrito. Not that it was bad, just a bit plain - only chicken, tortilla and sauce. Someone else got an enchilada and it looked like the only difference was the sauce. No cheese or sour cream or lettuce or tomato. The chicken was tasty, but the overall burrito rather boring. I only had a few bites of the Spanish rice and black beans, but I will second the comment about the beans - not a strong bite like you get with Cuban black beans, but a mild and pleasant taste. I may have to save my calories for the Corripollo next time.
Service this time was excellent, everyone go their correct order and drinks were re-filled before they were even empty.
Sir T-Hawk got steak fajitas and raved about them - well seasoned meat, but not overpowering. Several others made similar statements about their own meals. Someone got the "Authentic Mexican Tacos" (topped with radish and avocado slice) and agreed that the meat was seasoned perfectly to not overpower the other flavors, all tastes blended well with nothing overpower the whole dish. LOTS of food, Sir T filled 4 tortillas and still had nearly a full meal of the meat, peppers and onions to take home.
The cactus salad earned raves. The request for Taqueria was partly made due to someone wanting to try the cactus salad and she was not disappointed. We all agreed that the cactus salad is one of the unique qualities to Taqueria, both just for the fact of cactus salad, and for its unique taste. I threw in my own cents from previous meals and added that it is also very tasty mixed with the Spanish rice.
I got another combo - taco and burrito. I was craving crunchy. The taco did not disappoint, but I will reiterate the drippiness. However, I was also craving cheese, and ordered a bowl of the white cheese dip, which I adore. (Dip a chip into the cheese, then add salsa - love it!) Since I have been lowering my calories, my appetite has decreased and I ate so much of the cheese, chips and salsa, I only ate half the chicken burrito. Not that it was bad, just a bit plain - only chicken, tortilla and sauce. Someone else got an enchilada and it looked like the only difference was the sauce. No cheese or sour cream or lettuce or tomato. The chicken was tasty, but the overall burrito rather boring. I only had a few bites of the Spanish rice and black beans, but I will second the comment about the beans - not a strong bite like you get with Cuban black beans, but a mild and pleasant taste. I may have to save my calories for the Corripollo next time.
Service this time was excellent, everyone go their correct order and drinks were re-filled before they were even empty.
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