It's becoming a habit, I suppose. Last week we did Bunker Hill and Free State Brewery. This week we went a little further south on Mass St. and ate at a new (to us, at least) restaurant, Genovese, and saw Nightwish at the Granada.
The restaurant, Genovese (that's Jen-oh-vay-say, not Jen-oh-veez), is Italian brought to you by the people who brought you Mexican at La Parrilla and East Asian at Zen Zero. It advertises itself as northern Italian cuisine with fresh seasonal ingredients. Well, I can't tell northern from southern, but I could tell local and fresh. The basil on our flatbread appetizer tasted like it had been plucked from a plant just before reaching our table. We did their Tuesday special - 2 people split one appetizer, one soup or salad, one pasta or pizza, and one dessert. More than enough food, and everything was just wonderfully delicious. It's a great option in Lawrence for Italian food - especially if places like Teller's or Paisano's aren't in your budget.
After dinner, the concert. Nightwish is a symphonic metal band. If you're into the genre, you may object to the classification - I've heard fantasy metal, progressive metal, operatic metal - whatever. It's amps, guitars, drums...a female vocalist and symphonic instrumentation. And they put on a hell of a show. Awesome high energy, decent but not over-the-top lighting and smoke effects, and a good mix of their songs. I was screaming like a little fangirl by the last couple songs. Go check out a couple of their songs on YouTube or something.
I was surprised at The Granada also. I'm a little embarrassed to admit it, but that was my first time being there. Being smoke-free makes it really nice. And it had better ladies' bathroom facilities than the Beaumont (honestly, guys, 2 stalls?). The reentry policy was also more forgiving, which ended up being useful. Finally, it had a lot of multi-tiered standing area, which meant even if you're, say, 5'4" and got there a little late, you might still see some of the show.
Showing posts with label restaurant review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label restaurant review. Show all posts
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
You don't get a title today
Woe be unto you, Creepy Blogreading Guy, aka "Secretary of Keeping it Real"... I'm on to you. And your Double Wide IPA-loving life of lies...
Moving right along.
Today was the first day of KC's Bike Week. Naturally I rode to work. Then (and here's where I start questioning my mental stability) rode home, was home just long enough to change clothes and change bikes, rode to the Trek Store, went on a group ride, then rode home. 28 miles total today. And I spent *nearly* the entire time from 5pm-8pm on a bike. But we saw some really pretty areas of northeastern Shawnee and western Merriam, and it was a lot of fun. A lady from City of KCMO came out with freebies to promote bike week. We got little zipper packs made from reclaimed bike tubes and bracelets from reclaimed... climb ropes? I think? Anyway, they're both branded "green guru" which makes me happy. :)
Oh, I've been delinquent in giving you reviews. Today's loser: Home Delight Chinese Buffet. Located at SMP and Quivira, just west of the HyVee, this one is a real must-miss. My first clue should have been that all the staff was more, ah, Hispanic-looking, soccer-watching, and Spanish-speaking than your normal Chinese buffet. And in addition to Egg Foo Young, the buffet sported flautas. And nothing was particularly good. So kids, in your lust for Chinese buffets, I urge you to look elsewhere.
Letsee...haven't really been to any movies lately...oh! We played Mario Kart for the Wii at David's apartment in Omaha when we went up for his graduation. I'm NOT generally a Mario Kart lover - I usually spend more time running into walls, going the wrong direction, and getting generally grumpy than actually doing any "racing." This one, though, was really fun! I used the little steering wheel attachment, which I thought made it rather nice, though the "gamers" of the bunch were generally derisive. Screw them. But yes - a very fun group game, and friendly to non-Mario Kart freaks.
Finally - FINALLY - got and read "The Yiddish Policeman's Union" by Michael Chabon, which was all the rage on public radio shows last summer. I requested it from the library, and apparently so did everyone else. Makes sense that public radio listeners would be public library users. Buncha leeches. So though I requested it in June of 07, I got it at the end of April. It was good - glad I hadn't been EAGERLY awaiting it for that long - but I liked it. It's definitely a mystery novel, which isn't usually my genre of choice (as you may have noticed). But Chabon has a really nice way of weaving a whole bunch of threads together into a tidy package that at the end makes you say, "Oh, well that's nice then." without being a sentimental piece of tripe or another action-adventure novel. If you like mysteries or even just non-genre fiction, check it out.
Good night, and good luck.
Moving right along.
Today was the first day of KC's Bike Week. Naturally I rode to work. Then (and here's where I start questioning my mental stability) rode home, was home just long enough to change clothes and change bikes, rode to the Trek Store, went on a group ride, then rode home. 28 miles total today. And I spent *nearly* the entire time from 5pm-8pm on a bike. But we saw some really pretty areas of northeastern Shawnee and western Merriam, and it was a lot of fun. A lady from City of KCMO came out with freebies to promote bike week. We got little zipper packs made from reclaimed bike tubes and bracelets from reclaimed... climb ropes? I think? Anyway, they're both branded "green guru" which makes me happy. :)
Oh, I've been delinquent in giving you reviews. Today's loser: Home Delight Chinese Buffet. Located at SMP and Quivira, just west of the HyVee, this one is a real must-miss. My first clue should have been that all the staff was more, ah, Hispanic-looking, soccer-watching, and Spanish-speaking than your normal Chinese buffet. And in addition to Egg Foo Young, the buffet sported flautas. And nothing was particularly good. So kids, in your lust for Chinese buffets, I urge you to look elsewhere.
Letsee...haven't really been to any movies lately...oh! We played Mario Kart for the Wii at David's apartment in Omaha when we went up for his graduation. I'm NOT generally a Mario Kart lover - I usually spend more time running into walls, going the wrong direction, and getting generally grumpy than actually doing any "racing." This one, though, was really fun! I used the little steering wheel attachment, which I thought made it rather nice, though the "gamers" of the bunch were generally derisive. Screw them. But yes - a very fun group game, and friendly to non-Mario Kart freaks.
Finally - FINALLY - got and read "The Yiddish Policeman's Union" by Michael Chabon, which was all the rage on public radio shows last summer. I requested it from the library, and apparently so did everyone else. Makes sense that public radio listeners would be public library users. Buncha leeches. So though I requested it in June of 07, I got it at the end of April. It was good - glad I hadn't been EAGERLY awaiting it for that long - but I liked it. It's definitely a mystery novel, which isn't usually my genre of choice (as you may have noticed). But Chabon has a really nice way of weaving a whole bunch of threads together into a tidy package that at the end makes you say, "Oh, well that's nice then." without being a sentimental piece of tripe or another action-adventure novel. If you like mysteries or even just non-genre fiction, check it out.
Good night, and good luck.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Taj Mahal
Decided to eat from the "KCUR MemberCard" list last night, so we headed out to Waldo to indulge in some Indian food from a little place called Taj Mahal.
For atmosphere, I like Korma Sutra better - mostly for the owner there, whose enthusiasm is infectious. And also, Korma Sutra's OP location is closer to us.
But the food was really very, very good. If I found myself in the Waldo area and was hungry, I'd definitely look them up. Both Eric and I were in mild gastrointestinal distress last night, but I'd attribute it more to overeating than any flaw in the food...we took home no leftovers, you see.
So that's that. Good stuff.
For atmosphere, I like Korma Sutra better - mostly for the owner there, whose enthusiasm is infectious. And also, Korma Sutra's OP location is closer to us.
But the food was really very, very good. If I found myself in the Waldo area and was hungry, I'd definitely look them up. Both Eric and I were in mild gastrointestinal distress last night, but I'd attribute it more to overeating than any flaw in the food...we took home no leftovers, you see.
So that's that. Good stuff.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Mi noche muy mexicana
(My Very Mexican Night)
It ended up being quite a Mexican themed night, though we didn't really plan it that way.
Started off by going down to Southwest Boulevard and partaking of my very favorite Mexican restaurant, Taquería Mexico. This is, after all, where we held our rehearsal dinner. As always, fabulous food at a reasonable price. Service was a little slow tonight, but my perception might have been skewed by the fact that we were in a bit of a hurry. If you never have, try the horchata - it's a sweet beverage made from powdered rice flour. Theirs isn't exceptional, but it's very good. Their margaritas aren't bad either. And make sure they bring you the salsa picante in addition to the salsa gringa. It has a strong flavor of roasted red chilis, and is utterly delightful.
We then headed towards downtown to see the State Symphony of Mexico at the Music Hall, part of the Harriman-Jewel concert series. Ah, most excellent stuff. They started the first half of the show with Spanish composers, and the second half played a symphony by Brahms. The highlight of the show by far was Alfonso Moreno, the solo guitarist who played through the second part of the first half. One of his numbers was so captivating, it was as though the entire audience was holding its breath - so silent! Not even normal crowd sounds of coughing and shuffling. They played three encores!
Tall people - if you go to the Music Hall, be sure to get an aisle seat. *I* was cramped for leg room. But it is a beautiful art deco style building with very good acoustics.
So in addition to Mexican food and Mexican music...in order to save a few dollars, we decided to park in the Crossroads on the street (for free) and then walk a few blocks rather than paying for event parking downtown. We ended up parking in front of the Mexican consulate. Go figure.
Oh, in case you hadn't noticed, I'm trying out the "reviewer" format for my blog - I figure I watch enough, listen to enough, and do enough stuff - it's worth a go, even if only a few people read it. So let me know if you like it.
It ended up being quite a Mexican themed night, though we didn't really plan it that way.
Started off by going down to Southwest Boulevard and partaking of my very favorite Mexican restaurant, Taquería Mexico. This is, after all, where we held our rehearsal dinner. As always, fabulous food at a reasonable price. Service was a little slow tonight, but my perception might have been skewed by the fact that we were in a bit of a hurry. If you never have, try the horchata - it's a sweet beverage made from powdered rice flour. Theirs isn't exceptional, but it's very good. Their margaritas aren't bad either. And make sure they bring you the salsa picante in addition to the salsa gringa. It has a strong flavor of roasted red chilis, and is utterly delightful.
We then headed towards downtown to see the State Symphony of Mexico at the Music Hall, part of the Harriman-Jewel concert series. Ah, most excellent stuff. They started the first half of the show with Spanish composers, and the second half played a symphony by Brahms. The highlight of the show by far was Alfonso Moreno, the solo guitarist who played through the second part of the first half. One of his numbers was so captivating, it was as though the entire audience was holding its breath - so silent! Not even normal crowd sounds of coughing and shuffling. They played three encores!
Tall people - if you go to the Music Hall, be sure to get an aisle seat. *I* was cramped for leg room. But it is a beautiful art deco style building with very good acoustics.
So in addition to Mexican food and Mexican music...in order to save a few dollars, we decided to park in the Crossroads on the street (for free) and then walk a few blocks rather than paying for event parking downtown. We ended up parking in front of the Mexican consulate. Go figure.
Oh, in case you hadn't noticed, I'm trying out the "reviewer" format for my blog - I figure I watch enough, listen to enough, and do enough stuff - it's worth a go, even if only a few people read it. So let me know if you like it.
Contemporary Patterns - Friday
On Friday, we got out with Kris and Brian. Went to check out the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, the big white blocky building at JCCC. Admission is free, and they're open late on Friday and Saturday night. We pretty much had the place to ourselves. It's small, but all the pieces were REALLY neat. The signage, too, was very informational and left me with a fair idea of what the artist may have been thinking... instead of leaving me going, "Okay...nice blobs of color." Definitely worth an hour or two of your time! I loved almost every work in there. Oh, and they had a very neat short film that was based on the Winchester Mystery House, a thoroughly messed up house built by a thoroughly messed up superstitious old lady.
We then went back to Shogun Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi, at 95th and Quivira. It's a quiet place in a stripmall, but it's delicious. It was our second time on the sushi side; haven't tried the steakhouse side yet, but it looked popular. Fish appears to be somewhat hit or miss...whaddya want? - it's Kansas. Eric and I have been lucky, but Kristen had pretty soggy fish in her sushi. The miso soup and onion soup are both quite nice. The green tea reminded me a bit of coca tea - wish we could have brought some of that back... but I digress. The decor is a lot of fun, and they have a seating section they call tatami - it isn't quite seating on a mat. They've built a raised platform, then hollowed out knee holes over which they've put a low table and some little floor chairs. From the surface, it looks like you're seated on the floor around a low table, but you still get to sit upright western style. It's a lot of fun.
We then went back to Shogun Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi, at 95th and Quivira. It's a quiet place in a stripmall, but it's delicious. It was our second time on the sushi side; haven't tried the steakhouse side yet, but it looked popular. Fish appears to be somewhat hit or miss...whaddya want? - it's Kansas. Eric and I have been lucky, but Kristen had pretty soggy fish in her sushi. The miso soup and onion soup are both quite nice. The green tea reminded me a bit of coca tea - wish we could have brought some of that back... but I digress. The decor is a lot of fun, and they have a seating section they call tatami - it isn't quite seating on a mat. They've built a raised platform, then hollowed out knee holes over which they've put a low table and some little floor chairs. From the surface, it looks like you're seated on the floor around a low table, but you still get to sit upright western style. It's a lot of fun.
Friday, February 29, 2008
On Unexpected Surprises and Stupid People
Restaurant Review:
We went to check out this El Salvadoran restaurant in Mission the other day. It's called El Pulgarcito, and it's just this little place off Mission Drive, almost right under I-35. It sure doesn't look like much... the booth seats are ripped, and the front door doesn't close quite right. But we were the only gringos in there...and to judge from the stares we got, we were probably about the only gringos who'd been in there in a really long time. Good service, though I did have to switch languages a few times due to some misunderstandings. No big deal. After all, that's why you learn a second language, right? To eat a wider variety of foods at local digs? And yes, the food. Wow! We tried pupusas, which I understand from Karen, a salvadoreña friend of mine, are THE thing to eat. They're like... meat pancakes. Like you might eat a banana pancake? This was a bean pancake. They started the meal with this salad in a jar. Basically shredded cabbage, some tomato, cucumber, and jalapeños, all of which has been pickled in vinegar in this jar. So they just bring the jar and some tongs to the table and you go to. Anyway, it was great. I'd recommend it for sure - if you don't speak Spanish, you might have to resort to a little bit of grunting and pointing for special questions, but they were pretty good about order taking and check bringing in English. :) It was quite an experience... like stepping into this wholly other subculture just a half block off of Standard Suburbia.
Unrelated to any of that... I've been browsing Craigslist a lot lately, mostly looking for furniture. I must say, I am completely appalled by the utter illiteracy of a LOT of people. The most egregious I've seen so far is the person who was selling an "Intertainment Armuar" I imagine that even if their computer had a spell checker, it probably just gave up and committed suicide. I mean, all over the place - just shockingly bad spelling, bad grammar...not even Internet lingo kind of bad grammar, either... misused homophones (their and they're and there being the very worst). I mean seriously, people? Do you not even have a middle school education?
Oh, and the slobs are my favorite. They take these pictures of their furniture, and it's like they didn't even try. The bed they're selling will have sheets tossed all over it, the table they're selling is still covered in mountains of crap to the point you can't even see the table. I know I'm sounding kind of anal here, but I've seen enough HGTV to guess that that ain't good salesmanship there, no sir.
And now for a couple of book reviews: (I think I might start doing more reviews on this page... god knows I consume enough various media to share a little...)
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell - I'd probably refer you to the extensive reviews on Amazon for this one. From that, you'll probably notice that people either LOVE or HATE this book. I had to come down on the negative side, though I wanted so badly to like it. I gave up after nearly 200 pages of torture. People compare the writing style to Dickens or Austen... but while its written to appear contemporary with these (which I found charming, and not obnoxious), it does a huge disservice to Dickens and Austen, who were actually charming, witty, and descriptive with their prose, instead of just...long. And dry. And meandering. And pointless.
The Return of the Black Widowers, by Isaac Asimov - A real winner. If you like Agatha Christie style mysteries that are centered more around logic and cunning than around crime scene procedure, then you should love these. It's a collection of short stories that center around these curmudgeonly old farts who attempt to solve puzzles over dinner, though its always their clever waiter, Henry, who solves everything. The stories are formulaic, but very well written, and you usually have a chance to solve them ahead of Henry if you really try. A pleasant little read. Goes quite fast.
Asimov's Guide to Shakespeare, by Isaac Asimov - If you're not a complete Asimov nut (as I am), you may not realize how amazingly prolific he was, and what a broad range of topics he wrote on. Over 800 published works ranging over everything from history, to natural sciences to sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, children's books, and literature. His guide to Shakespeare is not concerned so much with lit interpretation as providing a historical and cultural background to the plays, both of the writing and the setting of the play. After only having read a couple plays (Asimov's Guide open to one side of me, Shakespeare's complete works open on the other side), I consider this a nearly indispensable guide for reading Shakespeare, and I plan to buy it as soon as I can find it.
Madeleine Albright, The Mighty and the Almighty and Memo to the President-Elect - I've recently read both of these, and I really enjoy her insight, though I don't always agree. The first deals with the role of religion in politics, and in particular in foreign affairs through history, which she certainly has an informed perspective on. Memo is more about the current state of the US and, again, mostly foreign affairs, and is sort of a handbook for an incoming president (you know, the kind Obama will have to read on Day One, says Hillary). I, for one, wish the incoming president, whoever he or she be, would read it. Either of these I'd recommend, depending on your particular interests.
We went to check out this El Salvadoran restaurant in Mission the other day. It's called El Pulgarcito, and it's just this little place off Mission Drive, almost right under I-35. It sure doesn't look like much... the booth seats are ripped, and the front door doesn't close quite right. But we were the only gringos in there...and to judge from the stares we got, we were probably about the only gringos who'd been in there in a really long time. Good service, though I did have to switch languages a few times due to some misunderstandings. No big deal. After all, that's why you learn a second language, right? To eat a wider variety of foods at local digs? And yes, the food. Wow! We tried pupusas, which I understand from Karen, a salvadoreña friend of mine, are THE thing to eat. They're like... meat pancakes. Like you might eat a banana pancake? This was a bean pancake. They started the meal with this salad in a jar. Basically shredded cabbage, some tomato, cucumber, and jalapeños, all of which has been pickled in vinegar in this jar. So they just bring the jar and some tongs to the table and you go to. Anyway, it was great. I'd recommend it for sure - if you don't speak Spanish, you might have to resort to a little bit of grunting and pointing for special questions, but they were pretty good about order taking and check bringing in English. :) It was quite an experience... like stepping into this wholly other subculture just a half block off of Standard Suburbia.
Unrelated to any of that... I've been browsing Craigslist a lot lately, mostly looking for furniture. I must say, I am completely appalled by the utter illiteracy of a LOT of people. The most egregious I've seen so far is the person who was selling an "Intertainment Armuar" I imagine that even if their computer had a spell checker, it probably just gave up and committed suicide. I mean, all over the place - just shockingly bad spelling, bad grammar...not even Internet lingo kind of bad grammar, either... misused homophones (their and they're and there being the very worst). I mean seriously, people? Do you not even have a middle school education?
Oh, and the slobs are my favorite. They take these pictures of their furniture, and it's like they didn't even try. The bed they're selling will have sheets tossed all over it, the table they're selling is still covered in mountains of crap to the point you can't even see the table. I know I'm sounding kind of anal here, but I've seen enough HGTV to guess that that ain't good salesmanship there, no sir.
And now for a couple of book reviews: (I think I might start doing more reviews on this page... god knows I consume enough various media to share a little...)
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell - I'd probably refer you to the extensive reviews on Amazon for this one. From that, you'll probably notice that people either LOVE or HATE this book. I had to come down on the negative side, though I wanted so badly to like it. I gave up after nearly 200 pages of torture. People compare the writing style to Dickens or Austen... but while its written to appear contemporary with these (which I found charming, and not obnoxious), it does a huge disservice to Dickens and Austen, who were actually charming, witty, and descriptive with their prose, instead of just...long. And dry. And meandering. And pointless.
The Return of the Black Widowers, by Isaac Asimov - A real winner. If you like Agatha Christie style mysteries that are centered more around logic and cunning than around crime scene procedure, then you should love these. It's a collection of short stories that center around these curmudgeonly old farts who attempt to solve puzzles over dinner, though its always their clever waiter, Henry, who solves everything. The stories are formulaic, but very well written, and you usually have a chance to solve them ahead of Henry if you really try. A pleasant little read. Goes quite fast.
Asimov's Guide to Shakespeare, by Isaac Asimov - If you're not a complete Asimov nut (as I am), you may not realize how amazingly prolific he was, and what a broad range of topics he wrote on. Over 800 published works ranging over everything from history, to natural sciences to sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, children's books, and literature. His guide to Shakespeare is not concerned so much with lit interpretation as providing a historical and cultural background to the plays, both of the writing and the setting of the play. After only having read a couple plays (Asimov's Guide open to one side of me, Shakespeare's complete works open on the other side), I consider this a nearly indispensable guide for reading Shakespeare, and I plan to buy it as soon as I can find it.
Madeleine Albright, The Mighty and the Almighty and Memo to the President-Elect - I've recently read both of these, and I really enjoy her insight, though I don't always agree. The first deals with the role of religion in politics, and in particular in foreign affairs through history, which she certainly has an informed perspective on. Memo is more about the current state of the US and, again, mostly foreign affairs, and is sort of a handbook for an incoming president (you know, the kind Obama will have to read on Day One, says Hillary). I, for one, wish the incoming president, whoever he or she be, would read it. Either of these I'd recommend, depending on your particular interests.
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