3rd- baja sol, st. louis park
7th- big 10, hopkins
10th- sea salt, minneapolis
11th- arizonas/leinie lodge, shakopee
15th- taste of thaiyai, apple valley
20th- nick and eddie, minneapolis
25th- five guys burgers and fries, edina
27th- pablo's, shakopee
30th- mainstreet bar and grill, hopkins
31st- buca di beppo, eden prairie
3rd- baja sol, st. louis park (d+)
you know how cinco de mayo makes you want to eat some mexican food? well, don't come here to get it.
in one way, it kind of doesn't matter what i ate here, as it's all assembly vs. cooking. same ingredients in a few different ways. my chicken fajitas ($6.99) had the same pile of chicken as mom's chicken caesar in a tostada bowl ($6.69). hers was tossed on top of lettuce, dressing, and some random parmesan. mine was on a plate with some grilled onions and peppers, a small heap of cheese, sour cream, and the always too cold guacamole, plus three wee flour tortillas (had about twice as much that would fit in there, so three was odd). all of it lacked flavor, and the bowl of the salad was weird-tasting. i bet a chicken taco salad would be the same lettuce as the caesear, with the onions and peppers from the fajitas, etc. infinite combos, all premade.
they still have the free chips and salsa bar, the good salsa (mango) was almost frozen and pretty watered down, the chips still need salt, yet they were hot (due to the machine they're in).
they had a very difficult time with figuring how payment for our order, too, so i am not sure what we ended up paying. we had a two for one, then part of a gift card, then cash, and they kept telling us our gift card had no money off of it, yet when i looked it up when i got home it was $6 less than it had been last time. a very weird experience with some not so good food.
back to the usual... though is it a usual if i've not had it in almost a year and a half? anyway, i think the aging on their grill and other equipment is now closer to the og big 10 on campus, so the turkey half sub ($4.99) and half-order of fries ($2.75) that i split with mrs. brk were quite fine. she got the tiny burgers ($6.15) that she opted to get the fried onions on. they were four to a plate, and the bun was twice as large as the burger. odd. so i guess it's a good value for the money.
the server didn't seem happy to be a server, and that showed, though. they had the patter and routine down, but so very much didn't want to be there. not a lot of interaction, etc. that didn't impact the overall meal too much. (i.e. i got enough water refills, etc.)
10th- sea salt, minneapolis (b-)
mom has no favorite restaurant, and only sometimes gives me a food genre to suggest for a place to pick for mother's day. and she likes going places that are a bit different than your usual hotel brunch or what have you. so from this year's slew of suggestions, sea salt stood out (with backup plans if the line were excessively longer than usual or i couldn't stand the outdoor onslaught of pollengrassmoldallergens).
going to sea salt seemed different this time around. maybe because it wasn't quite outdoor weather today (60 degrees or less), or it's weekend dinner instead of weekday lunch so it's a different scene, with longer waits (20-25 for the ordering, another 25+ for the food) and there was a lot more selections they were out of. but if i had to say it's because i am unable to eat a vast portion of their menu... shellfish. so the soft-shelled crab i had last time i was here, right out. shrimp or oyster po-boys, out (well, sold out of the oyster, so out anyway). clam fries, nope. etc. sigh.
so mom and i ordered the catfish po'boy($9.95) and the tilapia tacos ($4.95 for two), and swapped half for half. they both have no side dishes- most things don't, and we forgot to order cole slaw or something. should've brought chips. anyway. oh, mom also got a free glass of wine, as it was mother's day. i suggested a riesling. we drank most of it while waiting.
the tilapia tacos were the sort of taco that was really good as long as you got some of the salsa, onion, and cilantro in a bite, which didn't happen too often. the hot sauce i put on helped some. the fish was fresh, but i guess the nature of the fish and the concept makes it a bit boring.
the po'boy was quite fine- it was a nice piece of fish and all.... but toasted bread would've helped a bit. and they need to leave the tomatoes off still. it's not tomato season. they are still bad and wrong right now, as much as i love them... they're bad for you now. blackbird's walleye 'po'boy' was more memorable and flavorful.
so what i can get here is ok to good... but not standout. sigh. i have only my allergies to blame. yeah, i know... cope. could be worse. (i keep thinking of the person who's allergic to elastic and has to wear amish underwear.... i'm not that far gone... yet. ) i'd recommend it to others who can eat shellfish.
we did get inside seating at least, even if i did have to hear the footloose soundtrack- good and bad ('almost paradise'... make it go away, please. now.) during the meal.
11th- arizonas/leinie lodge, shakopee (b-)
i broke one of my dad's rules and ate at a completely empty restaurant. a completely empty one that we had to do a bit of a search for staff to make sure it was open... and were kind of surprised it was. we were here in this weirdly unpeopled restaurant thing because someone offered to take me to lunch. we stayed as i really quite wanted a grilled rachel, a sandwich that does not appear on many shakopee menus. i did find it here. and also had a buy one get one for lunch. so there you go.
the sandwich was $7.99 plus $1.99 upgrade for fries instead of tortilla chips (which so don't go with this sort of sandwich.... and odd default choice). it was surprisingly decent for a sysco company food product. especially the marble rye. the deli turkey wasn't bad either. quel surprise. the fries were slightly below average.
my friend liked her sesame chicken salad ("crispy chicken tossed with fresh romaine lettuce, bell peppers, mandarin oranges, broccoli, toasted almonds and homemade sesame vinegarette dressing," $7.49). especially the dressing.
what's odd- iced tea was $1.49, but pop was $1.99. good thing i drank a lot of it. i asked for it, per usual, without ice. it was warmish, which is odd. usually fountain beverages are cold from the get go. and it didn't taste that good either. admittedly, it was diet pepsi (vs. diet coke, which i prefer, and yes, i can tell the difference). maybe that was part of it.
service, for a completely empty place, was not that good. i think that's mostly as the 'real' server wasn't there yet. decor was weird- it had the hotel lobby 'atrium' or something sticking up in the middle of the room, with some quasi-outdoors scene in it (fake bear, fake duck, fake plastic trees in fake plastic earth, etc.). there's a dartboard that pings loudly on a random basis. it's just... odd.
15th- taste of thaiyai, apple valley (b-)
the people who run the place care about what you order, and how it is. they inquired as to if we had the nam chim pak sod ("lettuce, broccoli, carrots, red radish, jicama, and cucumber with peanut curry sauce," $3.25) before, as it was just raw veg with sauce. nope, but we wanted it anyway. alas, what came out was missing two of the more interesting elements on the ingredient list- the radish and jicama. and the iceberg lettuce... we used that later, mostly. kind of odd as a veg to dip. if i had remembered, i would've asked. the sauce was very good, and they offered up more when we used it before we exhaused the veg.
for my main course, i went with something i hadn't had before (last year in march and june- i am leaving out when it was taste of thailand) vegetarian pad thai ($8.20), the dish i usually get to test the level of thai food at a place. they were even so thoughtful as to inquire if i wanted the egg left out (vegan-style). whereas the sauce was good and the veg used was fresh, and the portion was enough for two meals (one of those meals you just keep eating and swear more magically appears on the plate as you appear to be making no dent in the dish), it needed... something.
they had a bowl of peanut bits on the table, so you can add or not as you like, so that was adequate (some places skimp on the nuts).. not spice- they did get it at a proper 'medium.' maybe tofu in it would've been good, versus it being a big pile of noodles with a bit of veg and sauce. and/or lime- they served it with a lemon wedge, not the same thing.
the person i was with went with the laab gai ("diced chicken mixed with lime juice, roasted rice powder, fresh mint leaves, coriander, green onions, and hot chili peppers, (s)erved with soup, fresh vegetables, and sticky rice," $9.20), which makes a surprisingly light, fragrantly herb-y, spring/summer dish. i wrapped a bit of it in the lettuce we had on the crudite plate and urged them to do the same- even better.
they've spiffed up the place since i was last here- the tables have nicer clothes on them, the menu is now laminated and typeset (versus the paper ones), with more art and such about.
20th- nick and eddie, minneapolis (b+)
service and food were improved upon this visit... which only happened because of a gift certificate someone had given me. probably would not have been back without it, even with the ever-rotating bands of 'name' chefs in and out of the kitchen now.
mrs. brk went with the grilled fish of the day ($17 though on the menu as $17.75 i think). when i had the lunch version, it was $12. and salmon. this time it was halibut woth pickled veg with excellent radishes especially, cabbage, shiitake mushrooms in a miso broth. it was tasty and on the lighter side of things, but an excellent mix of crunch and flavor.
since i was put on the spot while ordering (i have requested mrs. brk let me know she's ordering the first time the server hits the table before she does it, but she does not always remember that) i ended up with the first thing that got my attention, the n & e smorgasbord platter, featuring blini with gravlax, pirogis with sour cream, four peel and eat shrimp, potato pancake with whitefish salad, egg salad, pickled fruit (mango) and veg (onion) and meatballs in veal demiglace with cream (think stroganoff) ($10). it sounded good to someone who was feeling a bit indecisive... lots of of things one one plate.
for some reason i didn't see the things i can't/won't eat in the menu description (see: rushed), but the shrimp were fine, and apparently the meatballs were mad good, especially the sauce. the rest of the platter ranged from average (the egg salad served on some sort of cracker bread was nothing to write home about) to a bit above (whitefish salad, not much you can do with that) to quite tasty (liked the gravlax presentation and the pirogis, but most of all the pickled veg). but there were temperature control problems- the pirogis were somewhat cool when the hit the table, as were the rest of the starches- i am not sure the blini or potato pancakes were supposed to be piping hot, somewhat warm would've been nice.
i got fries with that and the n&e sauce, which was a wonderful cayenne aioli ($4)... loved that. could've eaten that straight. the fries retained warmth throughout this time (the napkin they were wrapped in probably had something to do with that) and were actually spot on with the salt. above average, let's call them (sans sauce).
i also got a glass of prosecco ($8, though listed as $9 on the menu, i think). for some reason when i inquired about girly drinks, i didn't get a cocktail menu. i kind of wonder about that. i also kind of wonder why it seemed to take a relatively long time to get the check, given that they regular 'is everything ok' table stops (not enough to get annoying, though) had more or less a water and bread refilling brigade. the server was also very knowledable about the menu and wine list, and took it in stride when another table asked about his going to 'wild wings' to compare a n & e dish with one of w's. the runners also were also quite good.
though speaking of bread... the breadbasket had a few hugeass chunks of white, sweet bread, but the challah-looking bread was stale on one side. seemed odd.... like we got the bread that had sat out, uncovered, for too long.
and now, more starch. for a change, we did get dessert (i wanted to blow the gift certificate in one go). and yes, i got 'something that can't be called a twinkie,' i think it was called though i could have that slightlr wrong, ($5.50) because of the goofy name. but i am not sure why it was called that, it seemed like the wrong paradigm for the dish. it was more like a light verion of pound cake (or a heavy verion of angelfood cake) with barely any cream inside with strawberries and rhubarb 'sauce' (juice from the fruit, plus bits of the fruit) dusted with powdered sugar. it was good, but when you see 'twinkie' in the title of a dish, it's just not what you expect.
either lunch service is not the a-game of the place (understanable, it isn't for most places) and/or they've improved over the past year.
25th- five guys burgers and fries, edina (c)
like raising cane's chicken fingers, if you pretty much do one thing and you name your restaurant after it, you should do it most excellently. alas, here they do it just ok. mrs. brk's burger ($3.39 for the single, plus you get free toppings, though not cheese) was dry on the inside. so that was disappointing.
my sandwich, the 'grilled cheese' which i got with grilled onions and grilled mushrooms (well, undergrilled on each of those) from the toppings list ($2.79) was equally underwhelming, as it tasted more like cheeze. the fries we split would've been quite decent- hot, fresh, and plentiful ($2.49 for the smaller size), except they were woefully undersalted. though i didn't know to get the large or the small, the counterperson said the small... and when asked... what if it's not enough, they did say they'd just give me more. (there were more than enough...).
however, we both did enjoy the peanuts while waiting for our food as we are easily amused.
the place is pretty basic- white walls with a bit of red trim, decorated with articles proclaiming how fresh, hot, cheap, and good the food is, which seems ironic if yours... isn't. peanut shells on the floor a la the ground round (remember them?), though it seems out of place in a 'fast casual' restaurant environment. well, maybe fast food v. fast casual. there's no trays- everyone's order is bagged.
nothing stood out enough to go back to...
i'm sorry, i just don't think the food is that good here. it's mexico by way of minnesota, and now there's so many more authentic-seeming places in town. which is why i haven't been back in... over five years. (they seemed to have redecorated a bit in the meantime- with more posters and music from mexico).
the salsa's still watery yet kind of ok, though they seem to have a nice new (saltier, natch) chip. this was someone else's post-work choosing. the chips, sadly, were the highlight of my meal.
i had the happy hour margarita (the plain kind, small), for $1.85 ($2 with tax). it was blended, and not surprisingly watery near the end. the first sips tasted of lime and tequila, then lime, then... water with a hint of lime. you get what you pay for.
figuring i had eaten enough chips by the time we ordered, i opted for the 'mexican salad' instead of the 'mucho nachos'... it seemed like much the same ingredients for about a buck cheaper- $7.49 vs. $8.99. tortilla bowl (instead of chips), cheese, chives (can't taste them), tomatoes (sad ones), black olives.
i got the shredded chicken in it, which was unremarkable in all respects, mostly because it was unseasoned. what was remarkable was the sheer amount of salad (which made the most difference v. the nachos, which had nada). i expect some lettuce, sure. it is a salad, after all... but there seemed to be twice as much lettuce than anything. and the whole thing needed hot sauce, which didn't occur to me until too late, alas. i did dump a ton of salsa, salt, and pepper on it to little help.
service was just ok. perfunctory, but in a friendly way, or something along those lines.
30th- mainstreet bar and grill, hopkins (b+)
their website is so not firefox friendly. they need to look into that.
anyway, they haven't changed their menu much (if at all) over the past several years. i got the "portabella chicken topped with portobella mushrooms and swiss cheese" once more (it was more expensive than their online menu price of $7.50 by a buck or more, i believe). it was better than last time, as the chicken and such were larger than the bun
since we orderd a basket of onion rings to start ($5.95 listed), i just got the (usually) crap fries with the sandwich and didn't eat them. they'd get a better grade if they nixed the fries entirely, i think. or got better ones. potato chips even.
service was decent, per usual.
31st- buca di beppo, eden prairie (d+)
split a small spaghetti with marinara for $9.99 (buca to go- and don't panic, the garlic mashed are in the freezer- we had a coupon for $10 off $20). when we opened the container at home, there was a lot of spaghetti- 3-4 servings, perhaps. there was enough sauce for 1 portion, like they forgot to put the sauce on the whole amount before someone else shoved the cover on. so before reheating i dumped in a can of tomato sauce, a can of flavored tomotoes, and added some mushrooms and olives. and salt. why not. even after all that, it was disappointing. not horrible, but that's after all the doctoring...
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