fullygoldy (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fullygoldy) wrote2006-03-26 08:10 am
fullygoldy) wrote2006-03-26 08:10 am
Restaurant Reviews
We've had a week (not really) of meals out because DH had jumped up out of the neutropenic phase again, starting last Monday.
On Thursday, DH needed a transfusion of whole blood and platelets (1 unit each) that took a full 5 hours to get done. We left the hospital at 8:00 pm. It's a good thing none of the good shows were playing that night (The Big Dance wa pre-empting everything).
Friday morning I went with DH to his Dr. appointment. Dr. Hei is happy with the way DH is responding to the blood growth meds and he's also happy that we've started the donor search. He wore a mask to come talk to us because he had a cold. Very thoughtful. We met his nurse practitioner too (Karen) and she seemed very capable and nice. In fact, everyon in that office has been terrific.
After dropping DH back at the house for his phone interview, I went to the office and put in 4 hours. I had only planned on 2, but stuff happened, and I had to address it before I could leave. On the way home, I beeped DH and he said he was bored, so I said, "let's go out." Hey, it was payday, and we might not get to go out next week...
After seeing BC lose to Nova (yay for Miss Katie's alma mater), we stopped in at the Great Dane to say 'hey' and have a beer with the crew there. Matt , Justin & Rory were working the first floor bar, the lovely and sweet Jen was hostessing, and Sara was waitressing in the upstairs bar. We each had an IPA (hand pulled) and then DH also had an APA. We were home by 11:00, and hit the bed shortly after Mavis got home at 11:30. Rupert made himself a pizza for dinner, and was it was a little underdone on the bottom and overdone on top he said. So that's another thing he's learning to make that will take some tweaking.
Now that I'm done with the food report, it's time to go make brunch. We (meaning I) have decided to start a new family tradition of Sunday Brunch. We started 3 weeks ago with the Arrogant Bastards' brunch, and have managed to keep it going all month. Today will be waffles with fresh strawberries and sausage. Last week we had baked 'toad in the hole' with a salad that had an orange-dijon vinaigrette. And today I'll be working in the kitchen with my brand new faucet courtesy of Rupert and DH. Rupert helped me pick it out last weekend, and DH coached him through the installation. It took him a bit longer than he expected, but he did a fine job.
To celebrate, on Monday night, all 4 of us went to Casa de Lara on Fish Hatchery. We've loved this place since it opened. It's so close to home that we eat there regularly when we've got the cash, the time, or the need for mexican food cooked by someone else. We make a lot of mexican and southwestern food ourselves because we like it, and my step-mom from Oaxaca taught us well. Anyway, we also love Casa de Lara because of the owner, Amil, and the staff, including the cutest bartender evah (Juan).
I ordered a chicken chimichanga, Mavis had steak fajitas (the first time she's ordered them in a restaurant), DH went with a chicken chile relleno and Rupert ordered....? I don't remember. It was all quite tasty and there were no leftovers to bring home. That's pretty unusual for us, LOL.
I ordered a chicken chimichanga, Mavis had steak fajitas (the first time she's ordered them in a restaurant), DH went with a chicken chile relleno and Rupert ordered....? I don't remember. It was all quite tasty and there were no leftovers to bring home. That's pretty unusual for us, LOL.
On Thursday, DH needed a transfusion of whole blood and platelets (1 unit each) that took a full 5 hours to get done. We left the hospital at 8:00 pm. It's a good thing none of the good shows were playing that night (The Big Dance wa pre-empting everything).
Friday morning I went with DH to his Dr. appointment. Dr. Hei is happy with the way DH is responding to the blood growth meds and he's also happy that we've started the donor search. He wore a mask to come talk to us because he had a cold. Very thoughtful. We met his nurse practitioner too (Karen) and she seemed very capable and nice. In fact, everyon in that office has been terrific.
After the appt. we had just enough time to get lunch before the 1:00 SSDI interview from hell. So after wandering about downtown for a bit, we decided to try "The Old Fashioned." This is located where Harvest used to be, on the square (next to L'Etoile). For lunch, you walk in, get seated, and the host says, "you may order at the counter whenever you are ready." WTF? Really, I was quite skeptical when I looked up at the bar and saw 2 lines of people placing their orders. But we were there and we were hungry and we didn't have time to find someplace else so we looked at the menu. One side is all sandwiches and burgers. They all sounded great, and when we would see other people's orders, they looked yummy and HUGE. The 2 women next to us split a plate and they had plenty to eat. The other side of the menu is salads, soup and sides. Everything has a number to order it by. We settled on salads and a cup of soup each and went up to the 'counter.' We were 3rd in line, but it didn't take long. You order, pay and get your drinks right there. They hand you a little stand with a number to put on your table. We didn't wait long at all for our food to arrive.
My salad was spring mix with Door County cherries (dried and refreshed), walnuts, local blue cheese and a brandy vinaigrette ($8.95). It was dressed perfectly, as in very lightly - I even thought maybe it was too light just looking at it - but I was wrong. DH had the salad with spring mix, romaine, local bacon, and a seared filet of salmon, dressed with creamy tarragon dressing ($9.95). I had a couple of bites of the salmon and it was crunchy on top and tender in the center, and oh-so-yummeh. We both had the shrimp gumbo (soup of the day-$2.25/cup). It was fresh and zesty and full of okra, shrimp and rice. We each ordered a beer as well. The total tab was $30. That's kind of a lot for lunch, but it was so good we really didn't mind. And if we feel like going back, we'll know we can split a sandwich and fries and knock about 10 bucks off the bill. Also, if you're doing lunch on a work day, you probably won't order beer. Also, when you're done, you just get up and leave. No waiting for the waiter to process you, so all in all, we recommend the place.
My salad was spring mix with Door County cherries (dried and refreshed), walnuts, local blue cheese and a brandy vinaigrette ($8.95). It was dressed perfectly, as in very lightly - I even thought maybe it was too light just looking at it - but I was wrong. DH had the salad with spring mix, romaine, local bacon, and a seared filet of salmon, dressed with creamy tarragon dressing ($9.95). I had a couple of bites of the salmon and it was crunchy on top and tender in the center, and oh-so-yummeh. We both had the shrimp gumbo (soup of the day-$2.25/cup). It was fresh and zesty and full of okra, shrimp and rice. We each ordered a beer as well. The total tab was $30. That's kind of a lot for lunch, but it was so good we really didn't mind. And if we feel like going back, we'll know we can split a sandwich and fries and knock about 10 bucks off the bill. Also, if you're doing lunch on a work day, you probably won't order beer. Also, when you're done, you just get up and leave. No waiting for the waiter to process you, so all in all, we recommend the place.
After dropping DH back at the house for his phone interview, I went to the office and put in 4 hours. I had only planned on 2, but stuff happened, and I had to address it before I could leave. On the way home, I beeped DH and he said he was bored, so I said, "let's go out." Hey, it was payday, and we might not get to go out next week...
Anyway, we ended up back at Casa de Lara, sitting in the bar so we could visit with our buddies. Amil always comes up and shakes our hands, asks how we're doing and visits a bit. He's taught Juan well, because he does the same. And we've chatted with them enough over time that it's not all about the weather or the game. In fact, when Juan learned that DH needs the bone marrow transplant he said, "where do I go to sign up?" We mentioned that he probably would not be a match, given his ethnicity, and he said, "it doesn't matter. I might be a match for someone else." I just wanted to kiss his adorable little face right off.
So we had beer (Dos Equis Amber, Negro Modelo) and tequila (Corazon Anejo for DH, Casa Noble Reposado for me), and we each ordered the shrimp "ceviche." I have to tell you, I love this appetizer ($8.95), but it's not actually ceviche. It's more like gazpacho served in a large martini glass with 6 medium shrimp in it. It's very tomatoey, not really spicy, and it has a good, fresh cilantro tang. I suspect they also cook the shrimp traditionally, but I don't care. This stuff is really good, and I've had just this for my dinner on several occasions. I bet it would be a fantasitic 'Mary' or 'Maria' with a shot of vodka or tequila in it.
So we had beer (Dos Equis Amber, Negro Modelo) and tequila (Corazon Anejo for DH, Casa Noble Reposado for me), and we each ordered the shrimp "ceviche." I have to tell you, I love this appetizer ($8.95), but it's not actually ceviche. It's more like gazpacho served in a large martini glass with 6 medium shrimp in it. It's very tomatoey, not really spicy, and it has a good, fresh cilantro tang. I suspect they also cook the shrimp traditionally, but I don't care. This stuff is really good, and I've had just this for my dinner on several occasions. I bet it would be a fantasitic 'Mary' or 'Maria' with a shot of vodka or tequila in it.
After seeing BC lose to Nova (yay for Miss Katie's alma mater), we stopped in at the Great Dane to say 'hey' and have a beer with the crew there. Matt , Justin & Rory were working the first floor bar, the lovely and sweet Jen was hostessing, and Sara was waitressing in the upstairs bar. We each had an IPA (hand pulled) and then DH also had an APA. We were home by 11:00, and hit the bed shortly after Mavis got home at 11:30. Rupert made himself a pizza for dinner, and was it was a little underdone on the bottom and overdone on top he said. So that's another thing he's learning to make that will take some tweaking.
Saturday night's dinner was the best though. We continued our longstanding tradition of celebrating the season (equinox this time) by getting together with our dear friends, busman1994, bzdchris, drstarbuck, and mcbeth for drinks and appetizers. This time we returned to Eno Vino in the Portofino Place shopping center (far west side). OMG!! We loved it the first time, and it was even better this time. The menu is set up with mainly tapas (things to share) on one side and specialty drinks on the other. They also have a very extensive wine list, with lots of wines available by the glass. The atmosphere is dark and cozy, the staff is talented and attentive. I can't begin to tell you everything we ate, but it was all delicious. I had a Spring Fling martini which is flavored with lemon and ginger. The ginger was light, and I believed they used a bit of simple syrup, but it wasn't overly sweet. DH had the Xango, which was fruity and tasted like a Sobe fruit/energy drink. We switched to Prosecco at the end.
The first thing we ordered was a ravioli stuffed with pureed portabellos and foie gras. Two to a plate (they're 3-4" across), topped with microgreens and decorated with a port wine cream sauce ($9). I just about came in my seat. The seared Diver Scallops with Chilean Sea Bass, Tomato Jam and a creamy Basil Sauce ($19) was fantastico! I loved the fingerling potatoes wrapped with prosciutto and accompanied by shoestring potatoes (they were more like fried threads) for $5. It wasn't quite as fancy as anything else, but it was well executed. The clams and mussels steamed in Chardonnay were to die for. There were a couple of other items, but I can't remember all of it. We finished with 3 desserts. A triple chocolate mousse, something decadently strawberry, and a brownie wrapped in phyllo dough that had the most divine vanilla ice cream with it. Our server was very accommodating and put all the food on one bill for us to split, and ran 3 separate tabs for drinks. In the end, we spent $50-60 per person for a three hour gustatory adventure. It was worth every penny and I can't wait to go back!
The first thing we ordered was a ravioli stuffed with pureed portabellos and foie gras. Two to a plate (they're 3-4" across), topped with microgreens and decorated with a port wine cream sauce ($9). I just about came in my seat. The seared Diver Scallops with Chilean Sea Bass, Tomato Jam and a creamy Basil Sauce ($19) was fantastico! I loved the fingerling potatoes wrapped with prosciutto and accompanied by shoestring potatoes (they were more like fried threads) for $5. It wasn't quite as fancy as anything else, but it was well executed. The clams and mussels steamed in Chardonnay were to die for. There were a couple of other items, but I can't remember all of it. We finished with 3 desserts. A triple chocolate mousse, something decadently strawberry, and a brownie wrapped in phyllo dough that had the most divine vanilla ice cream with it. Our server was very accommodating and put all the food on one bill for us to split, and ran 3 separate tabs for drinks. In the end, we spent $50-60 per person for a three hour gustatory adventure. It was worth every penny and I can't wait to go back!
Now that I'm done with the food report, it's time to go make brunch. We (meaning I) have decided to start a new family tradition of Sunday Brunch. We started 3 weeks ago with the Arrogant Bastards' brunch, and have managed to keep it going all month. Today will be waffles with fresh strawberries and sausage. Last week we had baked 'toad in the hole' with a salad that had an orange-dijon vinaigrette. And today I'll be working in the kitchen with my brand new faucet courtesy of Rupert and DH. Rupert helped me pick it out last weekend, and DH coached him through the installation. It took him a bit longer than he expected, but he did a fine job.
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