Having returned from our quick trip abroad this weekend, I have been feeling fairly ravenous all day. I was also feeling like eating something familiar, something familial -- since we had a fair share of non-familiar options while in Peru. So the idea of going to the new Mayberry struck each of those chords. So off we went for a quick lunch today.
The Mayberry menu is chock-a-block full of Americana dishes - tuna melt, BLT, sloppy joe, or pot roast anyone? I actually had a hard time deciding, and I wound up choosing the Sloppy Josh, though I was equally interested in the BLT - but BLTs can sometimes be skimpy on the B, and I was feeling desparately hungry, so Sloppy Josh it was. I also ordered a side of the Tater Tot Casserole, just because it sounded fun, and I hoped it would be reminiscent of a hash brown casserole made at family holidays. My husband ordered the Truffled Caesar Salad with chicken, largely because he's decided he loves truffles in about any form he can get them, and he wanted to see what role they played in the salad. We paid for our food -- only $21 for two meals, a side, and two drinks (well priced, Mayberry!), and settled into a side table. They don't have a lot of dining space. I counted 6 total tables, though they do seem to encourage some communal eating, and people seemed relatively receptive to it. I give them credit for putting in as much table space as they did, given the entire space including the kitchen is not that large. To my mind, this only added to the general comfy-ness of the place. The staff were equally warm and friendly - and I will be back to try those biscuits I heard about when I asked if they had a breakfast menu yet.
When we were served our plates, I nearly gasped. The size of my Sloppy Josh was enormous - and it was served with a small side salad with the house dressing (on the side - nice touch). I quickly tried the dressing, which reminded me a little of Bob Evans's Colonial House Dressing. This is a compliment - as I love that Bob Evans dressing. And while Mayberry's was not quite as cloyingly sweet as what I'm comparing it to, it was a really nicely sweet counterbalance to the tangy zip of the cole slaw that was piled on top of the mountain of shredded beef on the open-faced sandwich. One side of the bun was heavily slathered with spicy mustard, which I enjoyed (word to the wise - if you don't really go for spicy mustard, you may want to request it on the side or done lightly, as it was quite zesty and applied with a heavy hand). This sandwich was enormous. And I plowed in with reckless abandon. It's probably not really meant to be eaten as a pick-it-up-and-eat-it-sandwich, but I did, and I was impressed it held together given its ginormity and its component parts each being messy in their own ways.
The shredded beef, roasted with tomato, rosemary, and onion was nothing short of delicious. I was impressed by the beef itself - it was tasty in its own right, and it was roasted well. Mayberry gets added points for not including any of the fatty gross bits of meat that sometimes make their way into roast meat sandwiches. This was all lean, all tender roast meat - and I even wondered if they economized and served the same meat in their Sloppy Josh as they do for their Slow Roasted Pot Roast entree. Truth be told, if I'm going full-on nostalgia here, this Sloppy Josh reminded me quite a lot of the barbeque you used to be able to buy at McHales Meats (shout out to any other former Latonians reading!). Since that was a similar pulled beef meat, slathered in McHales sweet and tangy barbeque sauce was a real favorite of my mom's, it played a large role in the lunches of my childhood. Mayberry's Sloppy Josh absolutely took me right back to that memory, though I am sad to admit Mayberry's Sloppy Josh probably would beat McHales every day of the week and twice on Sundays if I compared them side by side today.
The Tater Tot Casserole was good, but unfortunately my serving was not terribly hot, so the center of it was still chilly - so it tasted mainly like cold potatoes clumped together with some sour cream (a taste all too familiar to me because of a failed recipe of my own last week....alas). It did have some cheese baked on top, and I think if it had been hotter, or if there had been more cheese throughout (no one said Tater Tot Casserole had to be healthy - work with me here), I'd have probably enjoyed it more. As it was, I didn't eat much of it, but that may also have been due to the fact I'd glutted myself eating nearly the entire Sloppy Josh.
My husband was a big fan of the Caesar Salad, and he raved several times about how good the small bread with baked parmesan on top was. I tried a quick bite and was a fan of the dressing - and the fact Mayberry tops the salad with several anchovies. The salad size was again very generous, and the chicken that came with the salad was well-seasoned and lean.
Obviously with a name like Mayberry, chef Josh Campbell and his partner Corey Weitmarschen, are hoping to effect the classic nostalgia and warm feelings that the name evokes. Serving food like they do, they succeed admirably.
Welcome to the neighborhood, Mayberry! I look forward to many more lunches and breakfasts soon (and please consider staying open for dinner - your pot roast sounds like it would be perfect on a cold November night).
Mayberry
915 Vine Street
Cincinnati, OH 45202
513.381.5999
Happy eating.
FS
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Friday, November 6, 2009
Home Cooking, Here and Abroad
This week has been a lot of home-cooked meals, as we've been less inclined to venture out as it's gotten chillier each night. Also, we're heading out of town this weekend, and I've travelled so much for work over the years that I tend to eat at home exclusively before a trip - I know I'll be so bored and overfed by eating every meal out for the duration of my business trip, that I savor the pre-trip opportunity to cook and eat at home.Yesterday involved a trip to Findlay, where we fleshed out a menu that was centered around a London broil I was making. We picked up some lovely haricots verts from the new Daisy Mae's Market, which I roasted quickly with a drizzle of oil, salt, and about 3 cloves of garlic. I then chilled them for the afternoon. They were so pretty and delicate on the plate - I wish I'd snapped a shot of them. And, most importantly, they were tasty as they could be. So simple and so delicious.
We also picked up a nice French baguette from Angelina's. And the star of last night's show was the mushrooms from Madisons. I picked a huge mix of shitaake, cremini, and button, as you can see below:
We convinced ourselves that our lean London broil and roasted beans meant it was, generally speaking, a healthy meal - so we sauteed these beautiful mushrooms in a generous portion of butter. And to gild the lily, my husband added two small pats of black truffle butter we picked up recently at Fresh Market. Nice and faint, but the truffle was still there. The mushrooms proved a fantastic complement to the beef.Earlier in the week, we'd had some lovely, thick pork chops from Catalpa Acres Farm (Burlington, KY), that I cooked with leeks and mushrooms (again from Madisons). Throwing caution to the wind, I added rosemary and cream to the mushrooms, as well as some chicken broth, and it bubble up into a lovely thick sauce over the pork.
And the side is a little potatoes au gratin I make when I'm looking for comfort food. It's not really au gratin, but it does have some butter and cheese (preferrably gruyere) among the layers of potatoes and shallots along with a hearty sprinkling of rosemary on each layer. It was the perfect accompaniment for the creamy mushroom and pork.
I also had one of those cooking experiences this week where the meal just went entirely wrong. I tried to make Ina Garten's mustard roasted snapper. The sauce was lovely, but the snapper curled up and became almost too thick to cook in any reasonable way, and the ends overcooked while the center was raw. It ultimately was unsalvageable -- live, learn, and always score your fish.
But the cooking must take a brief hiatus for now. My husband and I are off for Peru in the morning, as I have a work trip taking me there, and the location was too appealing for my husband not to join along. We're very much hoping to check out Gaston Acurio's restaurant Gaston y Astrid, which is near our hotel and is supposed to be a wonder of local cooking in Lima. He's also a real rising star on the international food scene, and I'm very curious about his food and his wife's desserts. Anyone been?
In the meantime -
Happy eating.
FS
Monday, October 26, 2009
The Palace, Cincinnatian Hotel, Downtown
See entry below for comments on where there are no pictures to go with the discussion of The Palace.
My husband and I debated a bit over how to celebrate our anniversary. It was a foregone conclusion we'd seek out a nice dinner, but the question of where that would be loomed large. We'd had our wedding at Jean-Robert at Pigall's just last October. In choosing that venue, we had hoped we'd be able to celebrate anniversaries for years to come at Pigall's. Alas, that cannot be, so we considered the alternatives. Certainly Local 127 was among them, but I simply could not bring myself to go, given it was so changed from the Pigall's of our wedding. Maybe soon. We considered some other options, but during a stroll one evening, we reviewed the posted menu for The Palace, and we decided we'd go there. The menu sounded seasonal and spicy, and the Cincinnatian's location - a few mere steps from our home - meant we could imbibe some celebratory cocktails without worrying about getting home.
We arrived promptly for our 7:30 reservation, noting the Rolls Royce parked in front of the hotel. I joked that perhaps Carl Lindner would help us celebrate our anniversary. Little did I know, but I did see that he was enjoying dinner just a few tables down from ours once we were settled in.
But settling in was a wee bit of an issue. As I said, we arrived promptly, but we had to stand at the maitre d' stand for at least a good 5 minutes before anyone even attempted to approach us. In this time, another young couple came in as walk-ins, and also waited for some attention. Finally, we were approached and seated. This seemed awkward and, I'd hoped, not a sign of how the evening would go. Fortunately for us, we were presented with a card upon being seated, and this was given to us "in honor of our celebration." It was a $50 gift certificate to use for a future visit to the restaurant. Nicely played, Palace.
We were promptly provided water, and our server, Jen, came quickly to welcome us, get us settled, and to take some drink orders. Her service was quite thorough, well-timed, and conscientious without being instrusive throughout the evening. She seemed to be handling a high volume of diners that evening, and she was doing so with grace and ease.
My husband and I were both interested in the prix fixe, 3-course, $44 dinner menu, which presents a huge variety of choices in 2 savory menus (Jose Salazar's appetizers and entrees) and 1 sweet menu (Summer Genetti's desserts). We labored over our choices - there were so many, and many of which sounded so good! We were briskly served the amuse bouche, which was an in-house smoked salmon served around a dollop mustard creme fraiche and topped with a potato gaufre. Between the salt in the salmon and the salt on the gaufre, the bite was too salty, and the potato took on the strongest flavor of the bite. Odd considering how strong smoked salmon usually is, so this was an interesting if maybe slightly over salted start to the meal.
I finally chose the Autumn Squash Soup, which was nicely spiced with cardamom and apples, and served with a ricotta gnudi. I thought this was a fantastic soup on a cool October evening and just started the meal off well - dense and flavorful, but not heavy or too filling. My husband opted for the Yellowfin Tuna Carpaccio. It was a large plate full of carpaccio, dressed with lovely little rounds of pear and a yuzu gelee (and with the smallest, yet perfect, little cube of wasabi on the side). While I had no issues with my course, my husband felt the grapefruit in his was a little too overpowering on his plate. It did not stop him from enjoying the whole course, mind you, but he did make that comment after the empty plate was taken away.
For my entree, I choose the Nova Scota Sea Scallops, which was a sort of deconstructed chowder, and the 4 scallops were served atop carrots, celery, onions, potatoes, clams, and a creamy clam chowder-like soup/sauce. The scallops were well seared, but the clams were a bit tough and chewy. The star accompaniment of the scallops were the bacon lardons throughout the dish. I thought the bacon provided great balance to the sweetness of the scallops, and the bacon helped provide some needed salt to the vegetables, which seemed to have none. Overall, I thought my entree was well done.
My husband chose the Beef Short Ribs that had been braised in red wine. Interestingly, the short ribs had been pulled off the bone and the meat compressed into what looked like a filet. This was served atop a pool of polenta with "melted" leeks on top of the beef. My husband said during dinner he liked his meal, though later he said he'd wished he'd opted for another dish. I tried several bites of his beef; I had an overwhelming sensation that I was eating stew with each bite. The beef was tender and well-seasoned, but it did not strike me as having any discernable hint of the wine in which it had been braised. The polenta was creamy and provided a nice counter-flavor to the "melted" leeks.
Having enjoyed Summer Genetti's "Flight of Cupcakes" in the ajoining Cricket Lounge previously, we were both looking forward to dessert. I selected the Almond Financier, which was an almond cake with a creme brulee center, topped with spiced figs and other fruits, served alongside a scoop of spiced mandarin ice cream. This dish worked - on every level, it worked. It was spicy, creamy, nutty, sweet. If the Squash Soup was the perfect beginning to this very seasonally-appropriate menu, this Almond Financier was the equally perfect ending. While I did not try my husband's Spiced Chocolate Flourless Cake, I did nip a bite of the accompanying honey goat cheese ice cream. Wow - that was intensely delcious. It reminded me strongly of a quark gelato I ate far too much of in Paia, Maui. So good - and so many dessert possibilities with a goat cheese ice cream (Dojo - flavor suggestion!).
All in all, we both enjoyed our meals, but we both left feeling a little disappointed by our entrees, which of course, clouded the overall enjoyment of the meal. I think we both also felt a little cramped in The Palace. It's a nice place, and as I mentioned, our server Jen was at the top of her game. But we felt like were in our grandparents' favorite restaurant...it felt very much old-school, old-money (I mean, when Carl Lindner actually does walk past at dinner, you do have a very "Am I in the right place?" moment, to be sure). And I even once remarked that I felt like we were bumbling amateurs somehow in comparision - which we are not by any stretch. I think we're both fairly well versed in fine dining and can comport ourselves accordingly. But I couldn't help shake that vibe - like we were just some young rubes out for a "fancy" dinner. What I think disappointed me about that is that The Palace has two young chefs at the helm in Salazar and Genetti, and they're doing some interesting things with the food. I just might suggest that the restaurant consider its old-guard approach in light of an ever-increasing legion of young(er) people interested in fine dining.
The Palace Restaurant
Cincinnatian Hotel
601 Vine Street
Cincinnati, OH 45202
513.381.3000
Happy eating.
FS
My husband and I debated a bit over how to celebrate our anniversary. It was a foregone conclusion we'd seek out a nice dinner, but the question of where that would be loomed large. We'd had our wedding at Jean-Robert at Pigall's just last October. In choosing that venue, we had hoped we'd be able to celebrate anniversaries for years to come at Pigall's. Alas, that cannot be, so we considered the alternatives. Certainly Local 127 was among them, but I simply could not bring myself to go, given it was so changed from the Pigall's of our wedding. Maybe soon. We considered some other options, but during a stroll one evening, we reviewed the posted menu for The Palace, and we decided we'd go there. The menu sounded seasonal and spicy, and the Cincinnatian's location - a few mere steps from our home - meant we could imbibe some celebratory cocktails without worrying about getting home.
We arrived promptly for our 7:30 reservation, noting the Rolls Royce parked in front of the hotel. I joked that perhaps Carl Lindner would help us celebrate our anniversary. Little did I know, but I did see that he was enjoying dinner just a few tables down from ours once we were settled in.
But settling in was a wee bit of an issue. As I said, we arrived promptly, but we had to stand at the maitre d' stand for at least a good 5 minutes before anyone even attempted to approach us. In this time, another young couple came in as walk-ins, and also waited for some attention. Finally, we were approached and seated. This seemed awkward and, I'd hoped, not a sign of how the evening would go. Fortunately for us, we were presented with a card upon being seated, and this was given to us "in honor of our celebration." It was a $50 gift certificate to use for a future visit to the restaurant. Nicely played, Palace.
We were promptly provided water, and our server, Jen, came quickly to welcome us, get us settled, and to take some drink orders. Her service was quite thorough, well-timed, and conscientious without being instrusive throughout the evening. She seemed to be handling a high volume of diners that evening, and she was doing so with grace and ease.
My husband and I were both interested in the prix fixe, 3-course, $44 dinner menu, which presents a huge variety of choices in 2 savory menus (Jose Salazar's appetizers and entrees) and 1 sweet menu (Summer Genetti's desserts). We labored over our choices - there were so many, and many of which sounded so good! We were briskly served the amuse bouche, which was an in-house smoked salmon served around a dollop mustard creme fraiche and topped with a potato gaufre. Between the salt in the salmon and the salt on the gaufre, the bite was too salty, and the potato took on the strongest flavor of the bite. Odd considering how strong smoked salmon usually is, so this was an interesting if maybe slightly over salted start to the meal.
I finally chose the Autumn Squash Soup, which was nicely spiced with cardamom and apples, and served with a ricotta gnudi. I thought this was a fantastic soup on a cool October evening and just started the meal off well - dense and flavorful, but not heavy or too filling. My husband opted for the Yellowfin Tuna Carpaccio. It was a large plate full of carpaccio, dressed with lovely little rounds of pear and a yuzu gelee (and with the smallest, yet perfect, little cube of wasabi on the side). While I had no issues with my course, my husband felt the grapefruit in his was a little too overpowering on his plate. It did not stop him from enjoying the whole course, mind you, but he did make that comment after the empty plate was taken away.
For my entree, I choose the Nova Scota Sea Scallops, which was a sort of deconstructed chowder, and the 4 scallops were served atop carrots, celery, onions, potatoes, clams, and a creamy clam chowder-like soup/sauce. The scallops were well seared, but the clams were a bit tough and chewy. The star accompaniment of the scallops were the bacon lardons throughout the dish. I thought the bacon provided great balance to the sweetness of the scallops, and the bacon helped provide some needed salt to the vegetables, which seemed to have none. Overall, I thought my entree was well done.
My husband chose the Beef Short Ribs that had been braised in red wine. Interestingly, the short ribs had been pulled off the bone and the meat compressed into what looked like a filet. This was served atop a pool of polenta with "melted" leeks on top of the beef. My husband said during dinner he liked his meal, though later he said he'd wished he'd opted for another dish. I tried several bites of his beef; I had an overwhelming sensation that I was eating stew with each bite. The beef was tender and well-seasoned, but it did not strike me as having any discernable hint of the wine in which it had been braised. The polenta was creamy and provided a nice counter-flavor to the "melted" leeks.
Having enjoyed Summer Genetti's "Flight of Cupcakes" in the ajoining Cricket Lounge previously, we were both looking forward to dessert. I selected the Almond Financier, which was an almond cake with a creme brulee center, topped with spiced figs and other fruits, served alongside a scoop of spiced mandarin ice cream. This dish worked - on every level, it worked. It was spicy, creamy, nutty, sweet. If the Squash Soup was the perfect beginning to this very seasonally-appropriate menu, this Almond Financier was the equally perfect ending. While I did not try my husband's Spiced Chocolate Flourless Cake, I did nip a bite of the accompanying honey goat cheese ice cream. Wow - that was intensely delcious. It reminded me strongly of a quark gelato I ate far too much of in Paia, Maui. So good - and so many dessert possibilities with a goat cheese ice cream (Dojo - flavor suggestion!).
All in all, we both enjoyed our meals, but we both left feeling a little disappointed by our entrees, which of course, clouded the overall enjoyment of the meal. I think we both also felt a little cramped in The Palace. It's a nice place, and as I mentioned, our server Jen was at the top of her game. But we felt like were in our grandparents' favorite restaurant...it felt very much old-school, old-money (I mean, when Carl Lindner actually does walk past at dinner, you do have a very "Am I in the right place?" moment, to be sure). And I even once remarked that I felt like we were bumbling amateurs somehow in comparision - which we are not by any stretch. I think we're both fairly well versed in fine dining and can comport ourselves accordingly. But I couldn't help shake that vibe - like we were just some young rubes out for a "fancy" dinner. What I think disappointed me about that is that The Palace has two young chefs at the helm in Salazar and Genetti, and they're doing some interesting things with the food. I just might suggest that the restaurant consider its old-guard approach in light of an ever-increasing legion of young(er) people interested in fine dining.
The Palace Restaurant
Cincinnatian Hotel
601 Vine Street
Cincinnati, OH 45202
513.381.3000
Happy eating.
FS
Photoless Entries
I was about to start the next restaurant discussion I wanted to write up when I realized it was going to be yet another post without photos. I thought I should take a moment to address the seeming dearth of photos in my posts.
I generally don't like taking pictures in restaurants because: 1) the lighting is usually such that a flash is the only way the picture will come out in any way usable, and I am not going to be that person causing a flash to interrupt other people's dining experience; and 2) I was a teacher for several years. This may seem like a total non sequitur to any non-teachers out there. But for anyone who has taught for any amount of time, you know what I'm saying. Teachers are (were?) subjected to a lot of in-class observations, especially new teachers. Invariably, students behave entirely differently when someone is in the room observing; good students suddenly become shy and aloof; bad students often seem like poised little beacons of learning. So having had that experience, I'm quite opinionated on the matter of someone knowingly being observed/evaluated and how that changes behavior. Most people in the restaurant industry are keenly aware of the ever-growing presence of online food blogs and reviews. And someone snapping lots of pictures of every course of a meal may very well be someone writing a food blog or review. And they may very well adjust their behavior, their service, and their overall treatment of photo-taker accordingly. Since I want to get (and ultimately write about) a typical experience that any John Q. Public diner might have, I choose not to take pictures in restaurants. This makes my blog very texty, and I'm acutely aware that that may be a turnoff in its own way. But my preference is far more for the word than the image (after all, a good description can enable the reader to conjure up their own image, yes?), so typically the entries in this blog that serve as restaurant discussions will largely be photoless.
I don't judge, and I'm not saying this to criticize any other food blogger's practice. I read an enormous amount of local and non-local food blogs, and I quite enjoy seeing others' pictures of their food adventures. But you won't see too many of mine. It's a decision that I've made, and I may well revisit it in time, but for now, text it will be.
In the meantime....
Happy eating.
FS
I generally don't like taking pictures in restaurants because: 1) the lighting is usually such that a flash is the only way the picture will come out in any way usable, and I am not going to be that person causing a flash to interrupt other people's dining experience; and 2) I was a teacher for several years. This may seem like a total non sequitur to any non-teachers out there. But for anyone who has taught for any amount of time, you know what I'm saying. Teachers are (were?) subjected to a lot of in-class observations, especially new teachers. Invariably, students behave entirely differently when someone is in the room observing; good students suddenly become shy and aloof; bad students often seem like poised little beacons of learning. So having had that experience, I'm quite opinionated on the matter of someone knowingly being observed/evaluated and how that changes behavior. Most people in the restaurant industry are keenly aware of the ever-growing presence of online food blogs and reviews. And someone snapping lots of pictures of every course of a meal may very well be someone writing a food blog or review. And they may very well adjust their behavior, their service, and their overall treatment of photo-taker accordingly. Since I want to get (and ultimately write about) a typical experience that any John Q. Public diner might have, I choose not to take pictures in restaurants. This makes my blog very texty, and I'm acutely aware that that may be a turnoff in its own way. But my preference is far more for the word than the image (after all, a good description can enable the reader to conjure up their own image, yes?), so typically the entries in this blog that serve as restaurant discussions will largely be photoless.
I don't judge, and I'm not saying this to criticize any other food blogger's practice. I read an enormous amount of local and non-local food blogs, and I quite enjoy seeing others' pictures of their food adventures. But you won't see too many of mine. It's a decision that I've made, and I may well revisit it in time, but for now, text it will be.
In the meantime....
Happy eating.
FS
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Dojo Gelato, Redux
This being my third post about Dojo may make readers wonder if I'm on the payroll or something. (Hmmm.....making delicious creamy gelato or working in a software company?...maybe I should check to see if they're hiring!) Obviously I am not, but I am so charmed by this little business, its fabulous customer service, and its incredible products, that I really can't stop spreading the love.
Today I was having a particularly rotten day at work and wanted to walk away from it for a little while. Fortunately for me, I'm able to duck into Findlay Market easily from work/home, so I did that, thinking I'd pick up a couple things for dinner. And - shazam! - I remembered Dojo had just launched its line of hot chocolates recently. I picked up my produce at Madison's and headed straight down to Dojo (stopping only once for pumpkin cookies at Taste of Belgium, but that's for another post).
Michael was manning the shop and after placing my order for a regular cioccolata caldo, he asked me if I'd like fresh homemade marshmallow on top. Is the Pope Catholic? Is the sky blue, the grass green? Homemade marshmallow -- hells yes, load it up, Michael!
He put a small cup in front of me and poured the creamy concoction. I was too short to see much until the marshmallow popped to the top. I tried to act cool(ish), paid, said my goodbyes to Michael, and headed home.
I thought for a moment my knees may buckle. It was love at first drink. This was the best hot chocolate I've had. And I'm a fan of hot chocolate. I'm not a fly-by-night Swiss Miss drinker. I like the good stuff. I've drunk my way through France on hot chocolate, friends. But this had that beat. By a lot. And while I thought initially Michael had given me one marshmallow, he must have read my mind and loaded several into that little cup, because there was a thick, sugary (but not too sweet) cloud of melted marshmallow supporting a non-melted marshmallow. The chocolate was milky and rich, and since the drink is made with whole milk, those were intensified.
I thought of going back to get another for my husband (yeah, right). But I thought we'd go back over the weekend or maybe tomorrow - good hot chocolate is nothing for which anyone should wait. But I let him have a drink when I got home. He tried it and said, "Oh, this is creamy." But he said it as if he were in a daze. Maybe he was. He liked it as much as I did. I came back to find the above on my counter. I think he may have tried to lick the cup clean.
Happy eating (and hot chocolate drinking)!
FS
Akash India, Downtown
I am a long-time patron of Akash. It's quite close to home, and I appreciate that, without fail, they have a weekly coupon in City Beat for dinner or take-out. The service is generally very friendly without being too crowding, and for dinner, it's generally quite easy to stroll in, get a table, and get fast service. And, most importantly, the food is tasty and reliable.
Something was off at Akash last night.
Not only was it quite crowded, the few tables that were not occupied were dirty with someone's prior service that had not yet been cleared. The normally very friendly hostess and server seemed a wee bit harried, and she was faring for herself in the dining room, despite a few other staff milling about behind the bar and back-and-forth into the kitchen.
My husband was in the mood for Akash's Chicken Tikka, which he thinks is the best around (I'd agree), and I ordered Baingan Bartha, or eggplant curry. We also ordered our standard garlic naan, and snacked on some pappadam while we waited. We agreed that Akash has probably the best chutneys we've had in Cincinnati, and I dove deeply into the onion chutney while he preferred the mint chutney.
Our food was prepared quickly, and we dove in. Immediately something struck me as very odd with my Bartha -- namely that it had the most amount of ginger I've ever ingested in any dish in my life. And while I enjoy the flavor of ginger, this was way too much. I ate a bit more until I bit into a rather large piece of ginger, which had the unwanted effect of intensifying the already over-gingered flavor in my mouth. I began parsing out the pieces of ginger from the dish. The smallest were the size of matchsticks, whereas the larger pieces were more the size of a small garlic clove. The dish had an otherwise nice flavor with some strong cardamom and chili, but the ginger just completely overpowered every aspect of the dish. If I hadn't known I'd ordered something that was eggplant, I'd never have known that's what this dish was built around.
I tried to enjoy the garlic naan, but that too seemed off. It was overcooked and the center was far more wafer-like than bread-like, and the edges were burned. This was probably the first time in an enormous quantity of Indian-food-eating that my husband and I did not finish an order of naan.
The Chicken Tikka was, as it always is at Akash, a delicious dish. Because I finally decided my Gingerpalooza was not worth finishing, I stole several pieces of the Tikka and enjoyed its sweetness and slight spice.
My husband and I debated if we thought the quality had declined; it had been a few weeks since we'd come in, or maybe it was an off-night during which an unusual flood of customers left the kitchen a bit out of sorts. We also surmised we've just found another Indian restaurant we like much better, but it requires a car drive, and sometimes it's nice to just take a quick walk for dinner. I'm sure we'll still go to Akash, but it will likely be when we're both in the mood for Tikka, and I'll be sure to steer clear of the Bartha.
Happy eating.
FS
Something was off at Akash last night.
Not only was it quite crowded, the few tables that were not occupied were dirty with someone's prior service that had not yet been cleared. The normally very friendly hostess and server seemed a wee bit harried, and she was faring for herself in the dining room, despite a few other staff milling about behind the bar and back-and-forth into the kitchen.
My husband was in the mood for Akash's Chicken Tikka, which he thinks is the best around (I'd agree), and I ordered Baingan Bartha, or eggplant curry. We also ordered our standard garlic naan, and snacked on some pappadam while we waited. We agreed that Akash has probably the best chutneys we've had in Cincinnati, and I dove deeply into the onion chutney while he preferred the mint chutney.
Our food was prepared quickly, and we dove in. Immediately something struck me as very odd with my Bartha -- namely that it had the most amount of ginger I've ever ingested in any dish in my life. And while I enjoy the flavor of ginger, this was way too much. I ate a bit more until I bit into a rather large piece of ginger, which had the unwanted effect of intensifying the already over-gingered flavor in my mouth. I began parsing out the pieces of ginger from the dish. The smallest were the size of matchsticks, whereas the larger pieces were more the size of a small garlic clove. The dish had an otherwise nice flavor with some strong cardamom and chili, but the ginger just completely overpowered every aspect of the dish. If I hadn't known I'd ordered something that was eggplant, I'd never have known that's what this dish was built around.
I tried to enjoy the garlic naan, but that too seemed off. It was overcooked and the center was far more wafer-like than bread-like, and the edges were burned. This was probably the first time in an enormous quantity of Indian-food-eating that my husband and I did not finish an order of naan.
The Chicken Tikka was, as it always is at Akash, a delicious dish. Because I finally decided my Gingerpalooza was not worth finishing, I stole several pieces of the Tikka and enjoyed its sweetness and slight spice.
My husband and I debated if we thought the quality had declined; it had been a few weeks since we'd come in, or maybe it was an off-night during which an unusual flood of customers left the kitchen a bit out of sorts. We also surmised we've just found another Indian restaurant we like much better, but it requires a car drive, and sometimes it's nice to just take a quick walk for dinner. I'm sure we'll still go to Akash, but it will likely be when we're both in the mood for Tikka, and I'll be sure to steer clear of the Bartha.
Happy eating.
FS
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Jean-Robert and Downtown Dining
To wake up to the news posted by Polly Campbell about Jean-Robert's new restaurant downtown opening on December 1 meant today was going to be a good day. I do not care what else happens today, I am a happy foodie today. And I will be a frequent diner since the price point for the new restaurant sounds like it will be very reasonable, I live around the corner, and because I love all things related to Jean-Robert and will likely be wholly un-objective when it comes to reviewing his new bistro. In fact, as a point of full disclosure, we had our wedding at Jean-Robert at Pigall's (as you can see in the picture above), so my thoughts about Jean-Robert are all tied up in some very special moments in my life. Our first anniversary is just a few short days away, so I was feeling sentimental about that when I read about Jean-Robert this morning...and accordingly I've now subjected you, dear readers, to one of my wedding pictures.
In any case, even if it weren't Jean-Robert, I'd be thrilled to hear about another moderately priced dinner option downtown. We've been here for about a year and a half, and it feels like there are a lot of options at either end of the dining spectrum. There's no end of fast food, and then there seems to be a few good options if I'm looking to spend $80-100 for dinner. Not much in between. We frequent Akash for a reasonably priced but tasty dinner often, and that is about it. My husband is not a fan of Shanghai Mama (and I'm fairly ambivalent myself), and I'm actually drawing quite a blank in terms of other $30-40 dinner options downtown besides these two. I am quite sure I'm overlooking some obvious places, so I'm hoping this post will generate suggestions as to other mid-level dining options that aren't bars (Nicholson's is fantastic for drinks - I think the food is so-so; Rockbottom is good for drinks and apps - my entrees there have been mediocre; I don't like the "scene" at Cadillac Ranch and so probably would not go there on a bet). We took Wine Me, Dine Me's recommendation for happy hour hamburgers at Cricket Lounge (at the Cincinnatian), and we were definitely pleased with that option too...but there has to be more than two viable options for dinner, right?
We live downtown and really want to support downtown businesses as much as possible, but we don't always have the option or the inclination to drop a lot on dinner, and so we end up leaving downtown pretty often for dinner -- which seems crazy. What would other people suggest as some tasty, reasonable dinner options downtown? I would have died from joy if Jean-Robert had moved into the space formerly occupied by Sully's, since that is directly across from my place...anyone know what's supposed to go in there?
Happy eating.
FS
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