Thursday, December 27, 2012

Dean & Deluca... not impressed




The Hubby 

Kansas City, MO
Upon rave recommendations from good friends in Kansas City, we opted to try Dean & Deluca for dinner on our way through Kansas City. It's a store that has a deli, bakery, and barista inside. Unique concept - well lit, well stocked, and had a feel of a New York style deli to us. After perusing the aisles of creative food items, we both ordered sandwiches from the less than friendly sandwich maker. He wasn't rude at all, just no smiles or friendly greeting, only 'what can I get you'. Strange for such a well setup place. No real hospitality.

The Hubby ordered the tuna and I chose the turkey and brie on sourdough. His tuna was chock full of onions, so much so that he took it back and ordered something different - roast beef. In his words - it's better than the tuna, not bad.

Mine was okay - it had an apricot mustard that overpowered everything else in the sandwich. After taking the sandwich apart and eating only the inside, it was... okay.

I picked out a snickerdoodle cookie and hot tea for afterwards and they were both good. Everything was over priced and had a stuffy feel to the whole thing. Will we go back, even if someone else was paying? Probably not. Next!

Friday, December 21, 2012

The Venetian for dinner and a movie

It's a movie theater, so no pictures. Not sure the 15 other people in the theater would have been too appreciative. ;)

The Hubby and I waiting until mid-week to see The Hobbit because we wanted to make sure we got a good seat in the theater. He had bought Groupons for the new dinner theater in Carrollton called the Venetian. It's an old grocery store that has been remodeled and in my opinion with too much gold paint (I mean like 50 gallons too much). Service was very 'wa-wa' although the Hubby enjoyed his burger thoroughly.

For chairs, viewing this 2+ hour movie, we sat in high back leather desk chairs. Yes, I said desk chairs. Like we didn't just sit in desk chairs all day. Not able to lean back or get reasonably comfortable, I would have rather dined at home and watched the movie elsewhere.

Hospitality was great at the front desk, but that's where it stopped. Bartender was less than thrilled to even be awake it seemed and our server was more mono-toned and straight faced than an IRS agent. They need some serious hospitality training in that place. At least the cook knew how to do his job. Blah...

Monday, December 17, 2012

Cattlemen's in Oklahoma City



Oh my yumminess... (is yumminess a word?)

The Hubby has been raving about Cattlemen's restaurant in the historic Stockyard City by Oklahoma City since we met, and on the way home from an Iowa trip, I finally got to sink my teeth into the most tender, delicious steak ever. From the picture you can see the juices on the steak plate, yes, it was that moist.

Note: This is one person's meal... thank goodness we shared

Setting: I'm not sure if anything has changed except for some basic updates since the restaurant opened 1910. However, it is very well kept and looks clean even behind the open counter setup.

People: There must be something in the air for the niceness that comes out of every worker. Besides being friendly at the table, they were friendly to each other, and other restaurant patrons. Classic thing that actually happened - a police officer walked in, said hi to the server by name as he sat up at the open kitchen bar, and   other server called from the other side - Hi Sam! Felt like we were in the cowboy version of Cheers.

I look forward to going back and enjoying the rest of the cute town!

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Snooze in Denver






Breakfast at 1:30 pm? Yes! A forty minute wait in line at that time? Yes... but so worth it.

Snooze in Dallas came recommended by the locals and we were warned that no matter what time we went there would be a wait. Service was good, but not outstanding. She was sweet and attentive, but not anything past normal.

The food however was past normal. The hubby ordered the ham benedict and he said it was at the top of his list (after Disney of course). I ordered the french toast and am not much for real maple syrup which it was served with. Good consistency though. Our friends ordered the stuffed french toast and the breakfast shepherd's pie and said both were outstanding. Overall, it was quite a wait, but so worth it in the end.

Piece of advice - plan on waiting and not getting in and out quickly. Also, plan on being well-fed and leaving satisfied.







Saturday, October 27, 2012

Racines - a place the locals love

So, I'm a slacker I know. No pictures this time - too much great conversation with the friends we were dining with. Visiting the mile high city for a trade show Monday and we flew in early to have a little R & R. We always like to go off recommendations or Yelp reviews in new cities or better yet - ask the locals. They know all the good spots. Racine's was highly recommended as a place the locals love. Going through the Yelp reviews for it, apparently breakfast is amazing, but at 5:30 pm, it was dinner time and we were hungry for good eats.

We were greeted when we walked in the door and seated immediately. The dining room was beautiful with cathedral ceilings done in wood with unique lamps hanging down. Medium lighting let it seem casual, but still very nice. The expansive menu had us chatting food decisions for a while, but settled on the eggrolls for an appetizer - great choice! I had the Ahi tuna which came on a bed of brown rice with veggies and loved it. A large piece of tuna seared to perfection I did my best, but could not eat all of it. The hubby had a buffalo burger that was extremely tasty. One of our friends ordered the cod and the other a salad with nuts and bananas. The salad was very rich she said and he said the cod had a lemon sauce that tasted delicious. For dessert I had an apple cinnamon hot tea and everyone else had coffee. The hubby ordered a pumpkin cheesecake which I nibbled on. it had good flavor - not too overpowering and with a pumpkin pie consistency. The friends ordered the apple torte dish and their comments said it was good, but would have rather there been more crunchy to the crust to go with the tall portion of soft apples inside.

Service was great - our server, Laura, who seemed to have a helper who took care of keeping our drinks filled and dishes cleared. While I didn't feel like we were the only ones in the restaurant, she gave recommendations and did not rush us through the meal. I think it was a manager who came and opened the blinds a little once the sun went down, but she did not smile nor say anything to any tables she walked past. Maybe she should take some customer service skills from our server.

2 more days here in Denver - I'll work better on getting some pictures!

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Wolfgang Puck is an experience

Sunday afternoon I surprised my husband with tickets to go see Cirque du Soleil's 'Kooza' that is on tour and stopped in Dallas.

After a great show, I surprised him further by dining at Wolfgang Puck's new restaurant atop the Reunion Tower, Five Sixty. I thought we were going for an early dinner because the website's hours were not very clear (they since have rectified that). On Sunday's they only feature their brunch menu, so at 4:30 pm, we had brunch.

Slightly upset because I planned this experience for the hubby's birthday a month ago and it wasn't perfect... or so I thought...

Brunch turned out to be spectacular!!! They had two options to chose from: 5 tastes or 8 tastes. Each taste involved 1-3 pieces of whatever menu item you desire. We decided on the 8 tastes and split them.

Oh. My. Goodness. Best food couples with amazing service and immeasurable view. If you have never been to the top of the Reunion Tower, they have remodeled it for this new restaurant however; one thing remains the same - the entire restaurant moves (ever so slightly) around in a circle. It was strange and a little difficult to get used to with my equilibrium already not so hot, but the view made it worth it. All of downtown Dallas and as far as I could see 360 degrees.



Michael was our server and I must say, it's servers like him that I would like to duplicate and place in every restaurant in town. Polite, efficient, and preemptive on most of our wants and needs. 5 star service at this place, no doubt about it. Assistant General Manager, Chad Hubbard was a gracious host and let us know about the sushi chef Tuesday-Saturday when we showed interested. From his attitude, I can see why his staff is so above bar. Kudos to the chefs for a great meal and to the staff for the phenomenal service. We look forward to going back soon!

Thursday, October 11, 2012

A Solid Breakfast

Both mornings out at Port Aransas, we decided on the local suggested Avery's Kitchen. Nothing amazing, but a solid breakfast for sure. Friendly staff, clean place, and all for a good price. If you are at the port, there is not other place I would recommend for breakfast.

Oysters Rockefeller served with a smile

 The holiday weekend was spent in beautiful Port Aransas with my sweet husband. While it was cold back home, we enjoyed weather in the 70's and sunk our toes in the sands off the Gulf of Mexico.


Personal funny story on the way through ranch lands, I saw a trailer pulling some cows at the stoplight. When the truck started going you could see the cow on the end brace himself against the motion and I started laughing at the sight. I'll let you in on the fun...
Picture this - cows grazing across the plains and then bring loaded into a waiting trailer to be transported elsewhere. From the cow's point of view now... it's just another pen, no big deal. Then the truck starts moving... the cow braces himself against the side of the rails and lets out an expletive suddenly. He has never been moved involuntarily and his sudden movement played out in my mind still makes me giggle...

Bwahahaha! :)

Okay moving on... we got to dine at the ever popular and hidden away Roosevelt's in the Tarpon Inn. Jeff was very personable and made our dinner such a memorable time. We ordered Oysters Rockefeller, wedge salads, and an amazing bread dish. To go with 
our divine meal, we had a Shiraz and Moscato respectively, and finished it off with a slice of gourmet cheesecake created by the chef and white chocolate bread pudding. A great comment made by our server, Jeff, "We don't have cooks, we have chefs who create the menu and the meals. We will make changes if you desire, but know they have tried many ways and are trained to create nothing but the best."

Salt Lick - funny name, great BBQ


Months ago I signed up to volunteer at the Tough Mudder in Austin, TX for two reasons - half off my registration fee when I run in Tough Mudder, Tampa in December and I think I'm obsessed with the mud runs. Upon finding out about my trip down to Austin, friends in the Dallas area suggested my husband and I to try a restaurant called Salt Lick.


Strange name right...
Okay - so they didn't suggest it. It was more like "You HAVE to go there!" So, after getting very sunburned at Tough Mudder handing out t-shirts and encouraging the Mudders, we drove the hour to the other side of Austin to the flagship location in Driftwood, TX.

Warning!! It's BYOB and cash only - come prepared! If you don't BYOB, never fear - they have a wine and beer cellar that does take credit cards. :) After picking up some Shiner Bock from the cellar, we waited a few minutes to get seated.


We got seated at a large picnic style table, which was perfect and our server was Marisol.

I might have to argue she was sweeter than the berry cobbler...

Platters were a great size for us to share (since we like to share entrees anyway so we ordered the Truman sampler to share. Ribs, brisket, turkey, and sausage along with sides of potato salad, cole slaw, baked beans, pickles/onions mixture, and the softest bread slices ever. Lots of food!                                  Salt Lick has a unique family recipe for their BBQ sauce which is basted on four times while the meat is slow cooking over the oak logs in the large pit built back in the 1960's. The recipe does not contain any tomatoes so the sauce doesn't burn on the meat while cooking like most other sauces. It does contain sugar which caramelizes over the meat and makes it easy to sink your teeth into.

Best BBQ I have ever had from all over the country!
Marisol was sweet enough to indulge me for a picture in front of the original fire pit still used.

Overall, I will join the crowd saying...

If you are anywhere close to the Austin, TX area, you MUST go to the Driftwood location of Salt Lick and have some amazing BBQ!

Sunday, September 30, 2012

A Creative Cookery

Groupon offered a deal on breakfast for Le Peep in Frisco, so my husband and I decided to give it another go. We first went a few months ago and while the food wasn't spectacular, the service was. We arrived around 10am on a Saturday morning and had a 25 minute wait.

Doesn't that mean the food and/or service is supposed to be amazing right?...

Coffee was average, french toast was bland until I put cinnamon apples on top, the hubby's pancakes were crumbly and when I tasted them, they were salty. He said McDonald's makes better pancakes. Overall, the food was not worth the wait.

Service was rushed, like she was flustered. Checked on us once - when I again asked for my apple topping - and then to give us a check. She apologized and was nice when we explained everything wasn't great, but kept directing the blame onto the product, never a cooks fault (really...). When we went up to pay the cashier asked how everything was and after hesitation my husband said it was fine. I followed with the comment of below average and that's my final answer.


We agreed their array of fancy toppings makes up for less than stellar food products which then I would agree with their sign that stated they were A Creative Cookery.

Monday, September 24, 2012

Old-fashioned coffee shop feel

My new favorite place to work and study...

On Mondays I get to meet my mentor for lunch in our historic downtown McKinney, TX. It's a quaint location locally known as 'The Square'. Antique shops (of course) and little restaurants tucked in between with lots of patios to enjoy. Since I work in the opposite direction, I have chosen to use Monday mornings as study time and then go to work after lunch. Someone recommended me to this new little coffee shop on the square called 'Snug on the Square'...

I might as well put my name on one of the chairs...

Currently on visit two and I'm hooked. The coffee (just brewed) is wonderful. My favorite is the Cookiedoodle. Strange name, but oh so good. I have to remind myself that it's not healthy to drink too many cups because it's just that good. This morning I enjoyed a fresh made breakfast sandwich. Really fresh - saw them crack the eggs and cut of the ham, mixed them together in the skillet, added cheese and placed the delectable bit in the middle of a soft yeast roll. Nearly melted in my mouth...

Oh yeah - service. Breath. Of. Fresh. Air. I'm sure I will be gracing the doorstep of Starbucks quite a bit less after being subjected to this kind of hospitality. I honestly felt like I was the only customer (when really there were many of us coming and going). The owner Sandra exudes kindness and Theresa even remembered me from last Monday morning - WOW! There is also a young man, TJ, who is friendly and welcoming.

They are only open for breakfast and lunch so I highly suggest you give them a try - and look for me on Monday mornings because I will be there unless I'm not in town!

Monday, September 10, 2012

Food for thought

As a graduate student at UNT, I am taking a class on how to do research for my thesis. I know it's a large undertaking (thesis), but I really don't want to have to take comps when I am all done taking my classes. No thank you. My thesis will have something to do with ongoing training in the workplace from the bottom level up and how effective the training is as the person progresses through their career. I'm still in the stage of research where I don't really have a title, just a big idea. :) In going through articles and journals I am coming across many interesting reads involving different levels of training in different areas. Since this research project will take me a couple years to write and involves lots of research I am reaching out to the readers to let me know of anything that is going on in their neck of the woods having to do with training in the workplace. I will keep posting and letting anyone know of neat articles I read and different places people can find public training - without having to go into a college to takes classes.

I read an article this morning from back in the late 90's about Denny's having to go through intensive diversity training due to 3 major diversity claims against in them in one year. I am currently looking for an update to see if the company is sticking to their guns and doing the training and how effective it has been throughout the past decade. Remembering back through all my training I don't believe I ever got any diversity training on the job. So I researched it - it's what I do now. :) I found a company that offers all kinds of training and even found one online for a reasonable fee. Here's the link if you want to share it with others. http://www.trainup.com/TrainingDetails/204917/Diversity-on-the-Job-The-Importance-of-Diversity-and-the-Changing-Workplace

I look forward to receiving any articles you might find to further my research for my thesis! Thanks!

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Unique new grill

In Frisco, off Preston & Lebanon, there used to be a Blockbuster. I guess that location was not one of their more profitable ones and in the bankruptcy, it was closed. My best girlfriend and I have lunch together each week and take turns picking the locations. It was her week and she found out about this new restaurant that went into where the old Blockbuster used to go (great idea). It has an outside patio on the north side of the building so it's never too sunny. The menu layout reminds me of Pei Wei - menu boards with slideshow type pictures and all. Food was unique - served as a salad, a wrap, or a bowl with rice. I ordered the Salad Trifecta with steak and a chipotle avocado ranch dressing. The 2 sides that accompanied the meal were served in the same dish as the salad, just in the corners. Not sure I like that idea. I had the fresh fruit and chopped cucumber salad. They were both okay. The steak was cooked medium  and was very tender with good flavor. I need to remember to take pictures!

You order from the counter and take a number and the food is then delivered to you. The girl behind the counter was sweet, but not knowledgeable about the menu. I would have definitely had her take more menu training before putting her behind a register. The manager type person on the next register was constantly having to answer menu questions and explain things to her. A bit more training for the register workers in the future. There is a dining room attendant always roaming and ready to take away any dirty dishes which did not sit for long at our table. They were kind and asked nicely if we were done. I do enjoy that so if we want to stay and visit for a bit we are not surrounded by dirty dishes. Good job on that hospitality training. The drink station is in the dining room as self serve, and although I have been in some 'fast-casual' restaurants such as this one who refill your drink for you as a courtesy, this one did not. Being newly opened I won't fault them for not going above and beyond. The had garage doors that could be opened up to the patio when the weather is right, which is a very neat concept and reminds me a Twisted Root Burger. I will try this place again sometime soon and see what kind of improvements. they have made. The wraps looked very interesting.

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Twistin' and Shoutin' at last

The hubby and I went to a festival this Labor Day weekend up in Oklahoma at the Choctaw Nation. Not sure what we were getting into, we had a nice surprise! We were able to see some cultural things about the Choctaw - stickball, dances, buffalo, and the way their heritage village looked. They also had more modern entertainment - a midway with rides, fair food, and concerts. There was Sara Evans, Josh Turner, Ricky Skaggs, Martina McBride, The Kingsmen (amazing quartet), Brit Nicole, and the Newsboys. It was a HOT and fun weekend. Although thousand of people were camping in tents and RVs on the grounds, we stayed about 45 minutes away in a comfortable Holiday Inn Express.

We are platinum members with Holiday Inn because we love their brand so much and can find them anywhere. 95% of the time, the hospitality is great. This weekend however, we found one of them 5% in McAlester, OK. The front desk clerk acted as if we were bothering her at check in (God forbid I give you my money). Being there 2 nights, the housekeeper is supposed to come and empty the trash, bring fresh towels, etc right? Not at this one I guess. The first morning, the lady in the breakfast area was polite. Second morning - complete opposite.

Since we were checking out anyway, the hubby found us a cute diner just inside town called Angel's Diner. It was painted pink with a teal '57 Chevy parked in the lawn. Inside was decorated like an 50s diner. LOVED IT!! Should have taken pictures... When we walked in, all the servers happily said 'welcome to Angel's - sit wherever you want' as we were choosing a table. Ordered breakfast - pancakes the size of the plate and fluffy - yum. Eggs done perfectly and bacon full of flavor. Took a little longer than most places, but you can't rush perfection and it was worth it. Coffee was so good I had 3 cups! Looking forward to have the opportunity to go back through McAlester just to eat at Angel's Diner!

Friday, August 31, 2012

Back in the saddle again

Whew! After an crazy (but fun) summer, we are back to trying out new restaurants in our area and all around. We have 4 different trips planned this fall and plan to make the most of out having different places to eat! So keep checking back to see reviews from Austin, Denver, Tampa, Orlando, Fort Worth, and others.

This past weekend, we tried a new place here in Plano, TX called Little Gus' cafe off Coit and Legacy I believe. I'll save you the trip out there unless I just went on a bad day. However, after reading more reviews from them on Yelp, I think I was spot on. Sat outside, but chairs were uncomfortable and wobbly (is that a word?) so we moved inside. It's tight in there and noisy when it's only half full. We were there on a Sunday morning around 10am. Not too busy - peaked occupancy at around 75% full. Ordered coffee which was decent and breakfast. Delivered very quickly and happily I went straight for my eggs, expecting this little cafe surely knew how to cook over medium eggs...not so much. Too hot of a griddle makes for a done outside and everything (yolk and whites) runny on the inside. Gross, looked like someone spit a loogie on my plate. By the time I finally hailed the server, I was halfway through my grits and my toast was cold waiting to be eaten with good eggs. She was sympathetic and took them back to the kitchen. Very quickly I had new eggs... not happy. Outside was hard and inside was gross still. Oh well. I ate my toast and grits and now I realize why I had no energy - no protein. Coffee was so-so, and had to keep asking to have a refill from other servers since ours didn't check on us, but once when I flagged her down about the eggs and then once more to drop off the check. My husband had a waffle and bacon. More like an Eggo and a pile of squishy bacon. He said the waffle was not hot and tasted like it was reheated in a microwave. The bacon looked like it had been cooked all in one big pile and was curled up and not fully cooked.

As for service overall, it wasn't horrible, but no more than 2 stars. None of the servers looked happy to be there except when they visited tables and put on their show smile. That's always an indication to me that there is a disconnect and maybe they need to find another line of work, or the boss needs to help his team out more. I did notice a male worker standing at the counter smiling and talking to a flirtatious woman for quite a long time. He had a kitchen apron on, but didn't look like it was dirty or that he was actually working - like a manager type. Maybe it was Gus (Little Gus' Cafe)!?!? If so, or whoever he was, what a horrible example he was setting for his staff.

Needless to say, we will not be spending any more dollars there. It's the weekend again, so let's see what else we can find...

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Bad service leaves a bad aftertaste

Although the food may look fantastic and even taste terrific, it's amazing what a horrible aftertaste can be left in my mouth from bad service. Bread Winners in Plano is a great place to go if you want a flavorful Eggs Benedict as pictured above. However, don't expect a good atmosphere or even decent service. The location in Dallas is great for the whole package. Yesterday morning, it took a few minutes for a server to greet us and then to bring our drinks and take our order. The food was served promptly so the kitchen had things in order. If I needed anything, I had to flag the server down and they gave attitude like I was bothering them. We were finished eating for 10-15 minutes before they cam back by to ask us if we wanted anything else. Another 6-7 minute wait for the check and then waited again for themto come back and process payment. Looking around, there were no smiles on servers and no one working seemed like they were having a good time. The whole atmosphere had a negative feel to it. For what we paid for breakfast, and especially since this is not the first, second, or third time it has happened, I will for sure not be back to this particular place. I'd rather drive down into Dallas and fight for parking and have a good meal and service then go back in this location. I wonder how some of these people get into these hospitality jobs when there is not a service bone in their body. It always amazes me how a server can give crappy service and then get irritated at the guest when the tip is low. Why should I pay for something that didn't happen? The food was good, so I'll pay the bill. The service was horrible, so I'll leave a little something but nothing like I would leave if the server did the job they were hired to do. Eating at home most of this week where I know the service is top notch!

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Pizza and Baseball

My husband coaches an baseball team of 11 year old boys and they are playing a tournament this weekend. We joined the e-club for Boston's just this past week and had a coupon for a free Indy pizza. Since the boys were playing in Craig Ranch, we decided to go over to Boston's for dinner with some of the team. There were about 20 of us and we took us some tables and booths - parents together and them the boys sat at one booth and the girls at another. Our server was Shilah - sweet from the very start. Apparently we were her first big party of that size and her manager was teaching her how to take the order for a big top. Shilah took great care of us for dinner and did a great job overall. Our free Indy pizza was smaller than we thought, but excellent! We ordered spinach dip to go along with it and it was perfect for my husband and I. The bread served with the dip was amazing - not too crunchy, not too soft, just right. Only thing we had to ask for was napkins since we didn't get any silverware settings. Overall, great visit and fun with the team. Go Mustangs!!

Friday, April 13, 2012

It's All Greek to Me

Today for lunch, I joined my friend for lunch in Plano at Ziziki's Greek restaurant. We were greeted nicely as we walked in the door and chose to sit in the beautiful dining room instead of the massive patio since it was windy. The server helped us decide on the menu with some good descriptions and suggestions. Our drinks never went dry and we were checked on consistently by two different servers. We both ordered the Chicken Greek salad and when they came, I was impressed. Large salad served with 2 skewers of chicken pieces cooked to perfection. The dressing on this salad was divine. I never tasted anything so delicious on a salad. I could taste the pieces of cucumbers and even had to ask for more because it was so amazing! Our plates were cleared promptly and our check was processed quickly. A great meal although slightly pricey. Chicken salad, a drink and tip was $20. I'm glad I got what I paid for though.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Mmmm...pancakes

Pancakes are a top favorite of mine. Nothing fancy on top just syrup and butter or rolled up with my favorite jelly inside. Living in Florida for 20 years, I never could find that certain place that consistently had great pancakes unless it was my kitchen of course. When I moved to Texas 2 years ago to get married, my husband proudly took me to the Original Pancake House. Wow. Great coffee and great pancakes? Heaven. Just this past weekend he took me out for breakfast at the one in Plano off 121. Our server's name was Sam. Although he didn't know us by name (yet), he did recognize us a repeat diners. That was very pleasant for me. My husband ordered the Dutch Baby (a German pancake that takes a bit to bake) and I had pancakes and bacon. While we waited for our food, Sam made great conversation with us and our coffee cups were never empty. When the food arrived it was amazing as usual. That restaurant is always a treat to go to for the food and the service. Managers were consistently walking around and checking on guests. Servers weren't gathered in one spot in the drink alley or kitchen, they were always out in the dining room with their guests also. Our coffee cups were filled by 3 different people just taking a full pot of coffee into the dining room and refilling all the cups, not just the ones at their own tables. There seemed to be a lot of teamwork and camaraderie between the servers, bussers, and managers. From a food or service perspective, that particular restaurant gets five stars. Great Job!