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Vixen’s Wedding has only been open two weeks, And it is already one of the ten best restaurants in Austin. Yes, one of the ten best – and I have reviewed a lot of restaurants in this city. Am I saying it is as good as Barley Swine or Fonda San Miguel? Yes I am. You readers can have as big a fight as you want over what the other nine restaurants ought to be. But you will leave Vixen’s Wedding having eaten just as well as if you had sprung for the tasting menu at Uchi. * * * Ignore the fact that they call themselves Goan-Portuguese. Those reviewers who know something about Goan-Portuguese will tell you that the food served here is not even remotely similar to the food served on the West Coast of India. Fine. They made up the dishes themselves – with the loosest inspiration of something kinda sorta Goan. This is like Samuel C.s own personal version of Cincinnati Chili which you will never find in Cincinnati – or anywhere else in Texas. Vixen’s Wedding is Austin Cuisine. It is Great Austin Cuisine. * * * 1) At the bottom of the menu are breads – three kinds. Next to that is a cryptic reference to chutneys and sauces with no further explanation. (The chutneys apparently change frequently.) Absolutely positively, order bread, one order per person at the table. Absolutely positively order chutney, one order per person at the table. If everyone wants to swap and share, fine. Don’t worry about filling up on bread. The marvelous dishes that are to follow are on the small side, so you will have room. The bread is insane, and the chutneys are to die for. We had a beautifully greasy paratha and a filling dark roll, accompanied by an addictive chickpea yogurt with secret spices and an even more addictive tomato jalapeno chutney. That tomato jalapeno chutney might be the best salsa in town. We went through those plates of bread and chutney with the same urgency that people go through bolt-of-passion sex. Everything got consumed fast and we couldn’t stop ourselves. 2) The bar serves pina coladas with tequila, basil rather than pineapple, plus coconut cream and pernod. The drink was constantly full of surprises, all of which were good. 3) “Average” plates were smallish, but after all that bread, that was just fine by us. Both dishes were sophisticated and fascinating. My wife got the subtle one. The poha crusted fish tasted like pappadam. Pappadam tastes incredibly good. The fish gave things richness and body. The aftertaste was even more appealing than the first taste in the mouth. I got the wild one. Mussels in a chorizo sauce with new potatoes, octopus, and huge leaves of various fresh herbs. I eat a lot of mussels. This was the most flavorful preparation of mussels I have ever had. Mussels marinara can go take a walk. There were not very many mussels in the dish. (Usually you get vast bucketfuls of mussels.) But each mussel was a show-stopping taste sensation. I then spent the next half hour scooping up every last molecule of chorizo sauce. Whatever bread survived the chutneys was put to good use on the chorizo sauce. There was enough sauce left over to reward further effort with a spoon. I went through those mussels with the same urgency with which we went through the bread. But I made the sauce last and last and last. 4) I thought nothing could be better than the breads. Then I got dessert. They do a spiced rum creme brulee. Oh. My. God. Never mind the fact that the spiced rum creme brulee comes with an insanely good mango sorbet. You could eat both in the same spoonful, but this would be a crime against good eating. Each deserves full appreciation by itself. Never mind the fact that there is also fresh mango and candied beet on the table. These make a nice graphic design and look pretty and taste good. But nothing comes even remotely close to the pure wonders of the spiced rum creme brulee all by itself. This needs no further garnish and no further combos. (But yeah, that mango sorbet was really good.) Spiced rum creme brul

Ciro Food And Drink – Menu with Prices – 321 A Justison St, Wilmington

Never come here during an event. I inadvertently made a reservation during their wine dinner. I wanted to try the six course tasting menu and had no clue there was a wine dinner. Two of the dishes were awful. The duck breast was served in a pool of blood because it was undercooked and did not rest long enough before being served. When I cut into it, more blood poured out onto my plate. The creme brûlée was cold and rubbery; the top (that is supposed to have a nice crunch) was pliable because it had been left out too long. When I complained, I was told that is how creme brûlée is served “American style.” What an insult to American cuisine. I wasn’t brought another dessert or offered anything but the bill. The other dishes were fine but could not make up for these two horrible plates. We got the wine pairing, which was $90. Each course came with a tiny sliver of wine that wasn’t replenished. It wasn’t even one bottle worth of wine, certainly not $90 worth of wine. Total waste of money. The service was atrocious. It took over an hour to get our first two courses (which were small). There was a 45 minute gap between the second and third courses. Not even any bread on the table to tide us over. They forgot one of our courses and tried to bring out dessert as the fifth course. When I asked where our real fifth course was, the waiter couldn’t remember what he’d already brought us and insisted he’d brought us five already. When we described the courses, he realized he forgot one. I shouldn’t have to argue with the staff to get the number of courses I’m paying for. I’d been to this restaurant on a normal night and it was fine enough. I was hoping to have a lovely date night with a fancy menu. Instead, I got a long wait and had to beg for all of my courses. I will not be back.

Eddie V’s Prime Seafood – Menu with Prices – 700 W 47th St Suite 115, Kansas City

Want an honest review??? Then keep reading!! Best dining experience EVER hands down! Restaurant was dimly lit but lighting at the table was bright enough to see your food which I loved. We started off with an old fashioned for me and the mango mule for my lovely wife. Both were well made drinks and I can’t complain about the old fashioned since it was made table side. Kudos for showmanship haha. For appetizers we opted for the lobster tacos and soft shell crab. These two dishes alone could have been the main course for all we cared because they were that good. The bread was also amazing as well but we had to watch ourselves because it would have have consumed our appetites if we allowed it to. Our main course she chose the scallops and for me it was the bacon wrapped filet with king crab. We chose two sides, the baked Brussels sprouts and the loaded lobster mash. We thought the Brussels sprouts could have been cut a bit smaller but taste was delightful. The lobster mash was out of this world haha so do not leave without someone in your group ordering it so you can at least try it. At this point in time we were ready for another round of drinks. She chose the red dragon and hope diamond while I picked the XO Envy. The hope diamond was a bit on the sour side, red dragon was great, and the XO envy is a must try if you’re a fan of cognac. The XO was accomplices by candies walnuts and dark chocolate. I will have to say it was my first time have either with cognac and it forever changed the way I’ll drink cognac haha. You’ll have to try it yourself and be the judge. Last but not least our dessert of choice was the creme brûlée. The restaurant also gave me banana bread pudding and two glasses of sparkly for my bday so that was a surprising treat. Both desserts were once again amazing. The theme of this post if you haven’t already caught on is the simple fact that this restaurant was a hit. You will not be let down in any way, fashion or form. Give it a shot and you won’t regret it. Sorry, not sorry for the long post haha

Hyderabadi Foodie Adda – Indian Cuisine – Menu with Prices – 1280 28th St SE, Grand Rapids

My friend Mason A and I met up for lunch at Hyderabadi Foodie Adda to try their buffet. It’s available every day they’re open until 2:30 or 3 pm depending on the day. We got there right when they opened at 11:30 and everything on the buffet looked great. All of the dishes were labeled, which was really nice. I didn’t know what everything was but you can easily Google things with the names right there. I tried a bit of a bunch of different items, including chili chicken, kadai chicken, dal, veg biryani, masala fries, goat biryani, and mirchi ka salan. The buffet also had several different chutneys, naan, white rice, a couple dessert items, and two specialty drinks (rose milk and something else that was red and sweet). There were a few dishes that were empty and not being used so maybe they offer more dishes later in the day — I was hoping to see some fish, paneer, or lamb dishes. Everything I tried was delicious! The flavors were subtle but with a little heat. I think the heat level might be a little much for people not used to spicy food but it was pleasant for me. Definitely not super hot but if you don’t like spicy food I might inquire about heat levels on the buffet. My favorites were the chili chicken, which was breaded chicken in a chili sauce, and the kadai chicken, which was tender chunks of chicken thighs in a rich sauce. The naan was light and warm and perfect for eating with the dal. It didn’t seem like they were serving any dishes off the menu during the buffet, but I’m not sure on that. There is a cooler with soft drinks and mango lassi, rose milk, and some other drinks. Mason and I both got a mando lassi to go which was sweet and delicious with great mango flavor. There are water pitchers on each table with glasses which is convenient. I was happy that we were able to check out this new family owned business and try some delicious food that I’d never had before! I’ll definitely be back for the buffet again.

Abhiruchi Indian Cuisine South & North – Menu with Prices – 233 NE Chkalov Dr, Vancouver

Are you kidding me right now? Everyone in Vantucky that ate here has obviously bumped their head or had their taste buds burnt off ! If you gave this place a 5 stars, 4 star, 3 star or even 2 star review your reasoning had no reason! Ok, when I think of Indian food, I think of sweet and spicy with buttery sauces and dips for the appetizers. Fresh and flavorful! By the way I didn’t not come for the Buffett this was dinner and I ordered several things! I really wanted to give it a go. I guess I should have taken the hint when my daughter mentioned that motel 6 was next door … Now the last time I checked, chicken Tikka wasn’t served on a bed of raw onions and sliced up from a loaf for Jenny”O” chicken breast in rectangular shapes! But mine was and it was as dry as the Mojave desert! No joke, no flavor nothing but a quarter of a lime slammed in the center ! The paneer pakora was so-strange , truthfully l couldn’t even wrap my mind around it. So when the lamb samosa arrived I was a little taken back and they should have been called lamb small-oosa. These were obviously made for small people, because I could have fit the two in my shirt pocket . By the way, I don’t have a pocket on my shirt and they were deep fried last week for sure ” hard as Kelsies nuts” as my dear departed papa would say! I had to ask for the dipping sauces and when I finally requested mango chutney the guy looked at me like I was crazy, kept bobbing his head repeating it over and over like I was speaking a forgiven tongue … mango chutney, mango chutney , then turned and pranced off… the leg slapped part is he brought me Trader Joe’s mango chutney … Now here is the clincher I was there a maximum of 18 minutes and I was asked if I wanted a box! Mid stride in trying to evaluate and stomach this $29.00 over priced Indian food imposter ! I stand down …

Taj Mahal Cuisine of India – Menu with Prices – 3939 Center Point Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

The best Indian food I have had in the USA. I (born and brought up in India, so I know authentic Indian food when I taste it) just moved to CR from California, and didn’t actually have any hope of finding good Indian food. But color me surprised to find the best Indian food I have had in the US. Only 2 words to describe the taste at this restaurant: Authentic and Delicious. I have been to a lot of Indian restaurants in the USA, but they all tone down not only the spice but also the flavor. But not here at Tajmahal! I was so happy to taste the authentic Indian taste in each and every item. The food isn’t too spicy but still ensures to be very flavorful, which is the sign of a really good Chef. The first bite that I took of the mutter paneer, took my tastebuds back to India. The food is just bursting with flavor and aroma . The goat curry was almost exactly the way my mom makes it in India. The chicken tandoor was very well cooked and the flavor went all the way to the bone. Most Indian restaurants (in the USA) won’t have south Indian cuisine, but I was delighted to find Dosa (sort of a crepe with spiced potato filling ) an authentic South Indian dish. The vegetarian dishes like chana masala and mutter paneer were 10/10. The mango lassi was brilliant, the perfect amount of mango, milk and sugar. Desserts: the mango ice cream was awesome and the gulab jamun were pretty good aswell. I have been there only a couple of times and that too for a buffet. I can only imagine how much more tasty the food would be when you order it off the menu and can ask them to make it according to your taste and choice. Pros: Great Food. Great service. Indian grocery store is right besides the restaurant. Cons: Ambiance of the place isn’t bad but it could be much better. I have also visited “Taste of India”, which has a much better ambiance (good food as well), but is no where near in terms of the REAL taste of India which you get at Tajmahal. I definitely plan to be a regular at this place and would suggest everyone to try the food at this small restaurant with a big heart !

Bonnell’s Fine Texas Cuisine – Menu with Prices – 4259 Bryant Irvin Rd, Fort Worth

I love Jon Bonnell’s food. 7yrs ago we went here for our 1st yr anniversary. I love wild game so I chose this spot. Everything was Amazing!!!! It was perfect!!!! Appetizer Sampler, Entree sampler and Desert Sampler. We purchased all three. Our 3rd anniversary we noticed they got away with the samplers, but our waiter worked with us. Everything was amazing! Food and service. Due to us loving Bonnell’s food we tried his other restaurant Waters. Oyster Rockafella is to die for. So for our 7th anniversary we went back to Bonnell’s Fine Dining. The hostess was amazing, and thank you for that. We ordered the Elk Tacos, very greasy. Then the Wild Game plate plus the Lamb and Elk Tenderloin. This was the first time I have ever left feeling unsatisfied. All of the meats tasted the same, expect the lamb and sausage. I wanted Med-rare and my Fiance wanted medium. So we ask the waitress is it possible to do Medium a little light. After responding no problem, we all agreed. If the all the meat came out medium or med-rare that would be fine. But, they were all Raw, except for the lamb which was a perfect Medium. She didn’t even know the difference in meats. The less expensive meat, the sausage which we normally split a 1/2 link, was now an inch. So after the meal we ordered a dessert, the Tres Leche Creme Brulee. OMG, that is absolutely mouthwatering delicious!Best ever!!! It saddens me to say my last visit was nothing like I had advertised for so many years. Jon Bonnell is the best chef in Ft Worth, but I will not be going back to Bonnell’s fine Dining. Unless I want that Creme Brulee. ?

Crooks Coffee – Menu with Prices – 404c Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa

Crooks Coffee is a gem. I had a few hours of work to do and visiting an unfamiliar area, I Yelped and stumbled upon this coffee shop! As soon as I entered the coffee shop, I knew I would love the place. I ordered the Creme Brulee Hot Chocolate and Green China Gunpowder Tea. They were both very good. I also ordered a bag of beans. The Creme Brulee Hot Chocolate was the best thing I’ve ever tasted. It was SOOO good! I couldn’t believe my taste buds. I stopped myself from downing my drink. The Green China Gunpowder Tea was very different but it was a very good tea. I loved all the selections of coffees and teas and pastries. And they also have beer and wine! There were so many varieties of options that anyone walking into the shop will definitely find something to their likings. There are boardgames and books galore. It’s a place to come and work like I did or catch up with friends or hang out playing games or read a book.

Chez Pascal & The Wurst Kitchen – Menu with Prices – 960 Hope St, Providence

We had a party of four on a Friday night. We started with a bottle of white wine and a cheese plate. All the cheeses were very good and were all finished with a different type of jam and a variety of bread was brought to the table. The next app was roasted littleneck clams with a saffron-fennel potato broth, paprika migas & rouille …..$14 Absolutely amazing, we all wanted used the bread to get every last drop of the broth. The final app was the escargots a la bourguignonne with warm garlic & parsley scented brioche…..$13 ~traditional escargot baked with garlic, parsley and pernod butter. These escorgots were the best I’ve ever had, there were six to an order and I wish we got six each. Again we all used the bread to finish the the broth left at the bottom of the plate. Everyone at the table loved every dish and would definitely order everyone of them again. I got the roasted duck breast with grilled duck & armagnac sausage, winter squash purée, braised red cabbage & candied quince….$29 The duck was sliced into pieces and was finished with a red wine demi glaze. The lamb was cut the same way as the duck was and served with a red demi glaze. I like the lamb just a well as the duck, both of them were great with red wine. The women both ordered the skate filet and it was fantastic. it was a hearty piece of white fish. Dessert for the table: a tasting of three french custards â??â?? $11 butterscotch pudding (my 2nd favorite) lavender crème brulée (I didn’t prefer this one, but everyone else did) cinnamon crème caramel panna cotta (my favorite)

Pie Peddlers Bakery – Menu with Prices – 300 S 6th St #104, Waco

I hit up Pie Peddlers in Waco for a bit of mid-afternoon sugar & caffeine. A slice of quite sweet buttermilk pie & a cup of richly flavored, robust coffee hit the $6 mark. Counter staff were smiling, friendly, and efficient. Crust in the pie was quite thin & baked very crispy. It was not a flake crust that I discerned, but rather a very thin (1/16″ ish), very dense, pretty brittle, not crumbly, dough crust. Eaten by itself, the crust offered up a neutral taste with overtones of sweetness. The buttermilk pie filling carried for me only a sweet flavor, no particularly distinguishing flavor notes besides that. Its texture was distinctly granular, bordering on being crystalline. The filling was also very moist with tiny pockets of sweet liquid (watery sugar syrup) settled along the bottom crust of the slice. So this was a *very* sweet slice of pie. The top of the filling was somewhat of a hybrid between the two finishes I’ve found on buttermilk pie: (1) a thin layer of cake crumb like baked crust or (2) a torched creme brulee caramelized sugar plating. Pie Peddlers’ top was more at the creme brulee topping, but softer, more resilient, nearly sponge cake buoyancy at the point of the slice. That resilience became firmer & firmer toward the outer crust, until it was very much in line with being a creme brulee caramelized topping at the outer edge. So if pie is your game and you’re near Waco, hit up the friendly folks at Pie Peddlers for some really, really good pie.

Mediterrano – Menu with Prices – 336 13th Ave S, Naples

Came in around 6:45PM on a Tuesday night for a party of 5. We made reservations but it wasn’t really necessary. This place was a recommendation from a friend who grew up here. The decor inside suits the beach vibe with shells and turquoise sea foam blue hues. If the weather was cooler, sitting outside with the dangling plants would have been nice too. We did the 3 course for $36 summer fix menu which offers an app, entree and dessert. We shared tzatziki, dolmades and pita bread – the bread was so warm and soft meshing so well with the tzatziki, olive oil, pesto butter and honey balsamic vinegar. I ordered the mahi mahi for entree and baklava for dessert. My teammates ordered meatballs, lamb kebab, and creme brûlée’s. The mahi mahi was on the dry side, slightly overcooked but the veggies that came with it were delicious! I couldn’t finish the fish. The lamb kebabs looked really good – get them cooked medium rare. The baklava was smaller in comparison to the creme brûlée. I thought the baklava was way too sweet. The prices are fairly decent, but I was disappointed in my food choices except for the apps – pita was great. Honestly, I’ll give it another go with maybe the beet salad and the salmon cakes next time. There’s such a big selection, just didn’t hit home for me quite yet.

85C Bakery Café | Arden Fair Mall – Menu with Prices – 1689 Arden Way #1186, Sacramento

Eighty Five Degree Celsius, Sacramento California- Okay, so visiting Sacramento and it’s after 9pm and looking for dessert to fill in the empty spots dinner didn’t cover. Narrowed the choices down to three, but ended up with 85 Bakery Cafe because of the variety of cake by the slice. So yeah, 85 is a chain. That could be bad, or it could be good. I generally prefer small local places that really put out the local flavor and extra effort and love. But having said that, there’s something to be said about a chain IF…IF they make across the board consistent products no matter which store you walk into. (For example, I feel that Starbucks pulls that off quite well, and will often add a unique regional special for the area) So the store appeared to be very clean and bright and was moderately busy at 9pm. So far good signs! The counter staff appeared to be in the process of taking down some of the displays for closing (not a problem) but when asked cheerfully said they were not closing and staying to dine was just perfect! There was a boatload of various desserts in the tall bakery cases. Of course everything looked good. It was offered by the slice or whole cakes and pies. Staff was super cheerful and welcoming and helpful. When asked, we got a basic rundown of fan favorites and personal favorites and notes about what was enjoyed about each. Soo cool!! So I wanted to try a slice of cake…..and ended up wit the following: Black Forrest cake Blueberry cheesecake Strawberry Creme cake Mango Brûlée cake Okay, so maybe the lines between ONE slice and FOUR slices got….um…..blurry? LOL. Here is a brief rundown of my tasting notes for each.. Black Forrest- a classic chocolate cake with signature shaved chocolate curls on top,chocolate cream layers and cherry filling. This slice was moist, bouncy (a good cake trait) and creamy. Now I would like to say it was “chocolaty”…but it was sadly overpowered by the cherry flavor. Big canned sugar syrup cherry bomb flavor. So it was GOOD, but for me it was not great. And for me it missed the mark compared to what I was hoping for in its namesake. Blueberry cheesecake- Rich, smooth creamy bold mouth feel. Good sweet cheesecake flavor and fresh blueberry flavor. Light crust that bound the flavors and textures well. This was well done! Strawberry Creme- This one was big on “artificial” strawberry flavor, and I don’t mean that in a bad way. At least not to me. Picture if that “Frankenberry” cereal favorite was a cake, and this would be it! Big and bold sweet “fakeberry ” flavor, which I actually really really enjoy! Plain whipped cream layered to separate flavor and color. I really enjoyed this. This and milk, a winning team! Mango Brûlée- Okay, so you had me at “MANGO!” And add brûlée? Yeah! This light and bouncy Creme cake was HUGE on mango flavor! Not sure about Brûlée… because there was no evidence of torching. But still, a five star cake for me! Lusciously bold fresh mango flavor and a texture I would describe as “ribbony” when it comes to the interplay of fruit, cream and cake! This one I rate a “BAZINGA!” Now if you’ve never been to one of these before, standby for what might seem like sticker shock. I soothe this by telling myself that a slice can go a long way, so share the dessert..and the bill! Thank you 85C! You’re just what we needed for that “after 9” sugar rush!

Nellai Banana Leaf – Menu with Prices – 4303 Transit Rd, Buffalo

This place will satisfy you if you know what to order. It is run by South Indians so unfortunately the regular north Indian dishes like paneer curries and naan won’t be very impressive (IMHO). Instead, go for the traditional south Indian food that you don’t get very often – appam, uthappam, dosas, vada. Appam hails from the state of Kerala in India and is one of the rare things I have been able to find in the Indian restaurants in the US. So this was a good opportunity for me to try it and I wasn’t disappointed. It is essentially a crepe made from ground up rice. It is made with coconut milk so that gives it a little bit of sweetness which I really enjoy. It’ll come with a kind of dip so you can mix up the slightly sweet and salty appam with the more flavorful chutney. We also got a set of 5 uthappams and a rava dosa both of which were pretty good. Uthappam is like a pancake (quite thick compared to dosa) and has different additions like coconut, tomatoes etc depending on what you order. Rava dosa is thinner and crispier than regular dosa, so go for it if that’s your style. They all came with 5 different types of chutneys and the service staff was kind enough to refill a couple for free when I asked for more. The ambience was pleasant and the service was good ( in and out in an hour) for a weekday dinner. It was nice to eat south Indian food outside for a change and the I would probably go back next time I crave an appam.