I am really trying to make an effort to try different kinds of seafood, even though I have been almost completely adverse to it up until recently. For me, it is more likely that I'm going to try it if someone I'm with orders it and lets me have a bite, so I was super glad that Sheri and I were going out for lunch at Max's Oyster Bar so I could steal a bite from her!
I love dining in West Hartford, you really can't go wrong; that goes for the Max Restaurant Group too, where I've never had a bad meal. Today's lunch was no exception. To start, I was intrigued by the Hot and Salty Point Judith Calamari--Coriander batter, nuoc mam cham dipping sauce--Sheri mentioned that the dipping sauce reminded her of a thai fish sauce, and it did have that vinegary taste to it.
Sheri has been here before and told me exactly what she was getting--the Seafood Sampler, filled with an assortment of shellfish, oysters, clams, mussels, snow crab claws, shrimp and other market crustaceans, perched on a mountain of shaved ice with creative accompaniments. I finally got brave and tried a mussel with a remoulade sauce at her recommendation--with the sauce, it wasn't half bad! The texture was a bit weird for me, but I got over it and the sauce totally made up for it! I also tried one of the colossal white shrimp--I happen to like shrimp but the taste of these was so strong and it was cold that I really didn't care much for it, but it did allow me to try the dipping sauces that were provided on her plate. For my own lunch, I decided to go with the San Francisco Style Crabmelt--Sourdough bread, blue crabmeat, dill aioli, gruyere cheese, old bay french fries--I loved the concept and the overall taste was nice but where this dish fell flat for me was that the sandwich was so heavy that the bread became soggy and the sandwich was very hard to handle. I think I would have preferred this dish with lobster, since it would be lighter. The old bay seasongin on the fries was a nice touch though! I enjoyed that very much.
Overall, another successful outing with Sheri--I am so glad to have a friend who enjoys the good things in life as much as I do!
www.maxrestaurantgroup.com
Thursday, April 21, 2011
3/26/11-Lanie's Cafe, Loudonville (Albany), NY
Whenever we travel, we try to ask locals where to dine out. After looking at the suggestions in the hotel guidebook, we decided to go down to the front desk to ask where they would recommend. We were steered in the direction of Lanie's, a restaurant not too far from where we were staying. Since this was a Saturday night and we didn't have a reservation, we waited about 45 minutes for a table but it definitely was worth it!
When we were seated, we looked around at the plates on other tables--not only did everything look and smell amazing, the portions were huge! We decided to forego the appetizer and just stick to entrees. All of the dinners come with their salad bar, which was fresh and full at all times, along with italian bread and a block of cheddar--not sure why, but hey, we'll go with it! Tom decided to try the Surf and Turf Pasta--Medium-rare 5 oz. filet mignon skewer served atop sauteed shrimp and scallops tossed in a spinach tomato scampi sauce over choice of pasta--the filet was cooked perfectly and the chef was not shy about the seafood! I had the veal saltimbacca--An egg-battered cutlet of veal stuffed with cappicola and fresh mozzarella, baked and served in a sweet, light marsala butter sauce--this dish was huge and so so good! Neither of us could finish our entrees so we took the yummy leftovers home with us! I would definitely return here next time I'm in the area!
www.laniescafe.com
When we were seated, we looked around at the plates on other tables--not only did everything look and smell amazing, the portions were huge! We decided to forego the appetizer and just stick to entrees. All of the dinners come with their salad bar, which was fresh and full at all times, along with italian bread and a block of cheddar--not sure why, but hey, we'll go with it! Tom decided to try the Surf and Turf Pasta--Medium-rare 5 oz. filet mignon skewer served atop sauteed shrimp and scallops tossed in a spinach tomato scampi sauce over choice of pasta--the filet was cooked perfectly and the chef was not shy about the seafood! I had the veal saltimbacca--An egg-battered cutlet of veal stuffed with cappicola and fresh mozzarella, baked and served in a sweet, light marsala butter sauce--this dish was huge and so so good! Neither of us could finish our entrees so we took the yummy leftovers home with us! I would definitely return here next time I'm in the area!
www.laniescafe.com
Monday, March 28, 2011
3/26/11-Bangkok Bistro, Schenectady, NY
Hands down, worst Thai food we've ever had. Both of our noodle dishes were overpriced, underseasoned and overcooked. Decor was weird and the restaurant was really cold. The only plus was the service--our waitress was friendly and efficient. Not much else to say about this one!
www.bangkokbistrony.com
www.bangkokbistrony.com
3/25/11-Moe's Southwest Grill, Southington, CT
I realize this is a chain and although we try to avoid them, at 10pm in Southington, sometimes that is the best you can do. The food is nothing to write home about--it was the service that spawned this review.
We were trying to get food after the community theatre's production of "Rumors" and figured Moe's, which is very new to town, should still be open--turns out they close at 10pm. It was literally 9:59 when we were driving by the storefront to see and as we were about to pull away, a manager came to the door and flagged us in! We were greeted with a very loud "Welcome to Moe's" from the staff! The manager was more than accommodating, telling us to take our time and to feel welcome to sit down and eat since they still had a ton of things to do before they could leave for the evening. Taking her up on the offer, the staff was courteous and friendly--they did not make us feel rushed at all. A burrito, quesadilla and some chips, queso and salsa for Tom and I (the queso isn't that great, it tasted like melted american cheese, however the hot salsa is excellent; my quesadilla was filling and tasty and Tom was happy with his burrito creation--however, we agree that this place is a bit overpriced--what can we say? We're spoiled with authentic inexpensive Mexican). Can't say I'd go out of my way to eat here for the food, but for a last minute alternative to fast food, we'd be happy to return. Our thanks to the staff of the Southington Moe's for their kindness.
www.facebook.com/moessouthington
We were trying to get food after the community theatre's production of "Rumors" and figured Moe's, which is very new to town, should still be open--turns out they close at 10pm. It was literally 9:59 when we were driving by the storefront to see and as we were about to pull away, a manager came to the door and flagged us in! We were greeted with a very loud "Welcome to Moe's" from the staff! The manager was more than accommodating, telling us to take our time and to feel welcome to sit down and eat since they still had a ton of things to do before they could leave for the evening. Taking her up on the offer, the staff was courteous and friendly--they did not make us feel rushed at all. A burrito, quesadilla and some chips, queso and salsa for Tom and I (the queso isn't that great, it tasted like melted american cheese, however the hot salsa is excellent; my quesadilla was filling and tasty and Tom was happy with his burrito creation--however, we agree that this place is a bit overpriced--what can we say? We're spoiled with authentic inexpensive Mexican). Can't say I'd go out of my way to eat here for the food, but for a last minute alternative to fast food, we'd be happy to return. Our thanks to the staff of the Southington Moe's for their kindness.
www.facebook.com/moessouthington
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