Local, Near and Far: Our journey of exploring the world.

Category: Food (Page 4 of 9)

Pacific Table Review – Fort Worth

After moving back from Chicago to the DFW area and with a newborn doing newborn things , Rachel and I were looking to have a nice date night. This was our first date night since the baby was born, so we wanted to do something special. Rachel did some research and we decided on Pacific Table.

Tucked away in the back of University Park Village, not far from Blue Mesa, is the wonderfully unique Pacific Table.  It is a restaurant that as you guessed, celebrates the Pacific Northwest. With a main focus on seafood, including sushi, Pacific Table also offers a variety of sandwiches, salads, and a few chicken and beef dishes.

Upon stepping into the restaurant, the modern interior and feel celebrates the Pacific Northwest. The option for  covered patio seating  is available which can be used in the winter and summer months as well as a communal table that is offered in case you want to get cozy with some strangers.

After arriving and being seated, we were greeted with wonderful service throughout the night. The waiter was knowledgeable and shared his recommendations. Because the sushi does not have a description of all that is in it, we had to ask several questions but the waiter was fantastic in knowing the answers and helping us decide. There were several people walking through the restaurant to make sure glasses didn’t get empty. Overall, the prompt and courteous service was a positive and helped make this an enjoyable experience.

Pacific Table sushi

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J.W. Chen’s Chinese Cuisine

As Rachel has mentioned in previous posts about trip planning, we (mainly she does) typically search sites like Yelp, UrbanSpoon, and TripAdvisor for different restaurants that are popular “must go to” places. As we drove to South Bend in the snow storm, for some reason, we had not picked a place to eat upon our arrival mainly because we were not sure what time we would get there and what we would want to eat. So as Rachel drove trying to keep us alive on the snow covered roads, I was focusing on food. I know, different priorities! As I looked at Yelp for restaurants, I was expecting to see an Irish food restaurant or a bar/pub that caters to the university students near the top of the list. I was surprised to see that one of the most popular and highest rated restaurants was a place called J.W. Chen’s.

Not wanting to spend too much money and needing a fairly quick lunch so that we could get on with our activities, we decided to give this Asian bistro a try. I will spare you the suspense, it is without a doubt one of the best hidden gems we’ve ever found.. Upon arriving, the owner greets you and talks with you about what type of food you like and typically order. She gives you several recommendations or tells you that she will make you something special. I was not expecting this at all because VERY FEW restaurants have such generous hospitality. We looked over the menu and found a couple of options that sounded good, and the next thing we know, a plate is put before us. I am wondering what is this, this must be someone else’s food. Next thing I know, here comes the owner telling us to try it and if we don’t like it, we can order something else. In the conversation we had, I told her that I like sweet and spicy. Either Rachel or myself mentioned something about chicken. So the dish that was set before us was this wonderfully sweet and spicy crispy chicken that was phenomenal! So I loved it but still wanted to try something else to see what they had to offer.

Rachel ordered the chicken & broccoli and I went for a traditional sesame chicken. The portions were fantastic and honestly the prices were pretty good as well for Asian restaurants. We went for lunch and ordered the lunch specials which includes soup, egg roll, and fried or steamed rice.The egg rolls were nice and crispy with a good amount of filling and a nice dipping sauce that heightened the flavors of the vegetables. Rachel’s meal was flavorful and she was happy to find that the broccoli wasn’t overcooked (this is a big point for her when we go to restaurants where the vegetables are overcooked)! My sesame chicken was very good. It had a nice crispiness and the amount of batter wasn’t overwhelming. The sauce had a nice sweet flavor to it, but also a slight hint of spice that amplified the dish overall. The rice was wonderful. A funny thing though, even though I really enjoyed the sesame chicken, the crispy chicken that was specially made for us was by far our favorite part of the meal.

Everything tasted so good and while there are several Americanized dishes, there are a number of legit authentic Asian dishes that are worth trying. They do offer options that fill different dietary restrictions as well which is always a plus; just inform the owner or check their menu. .

Overall, the food was well done and very good and worth visiting. But, the service is what makes J.W. Chen’s a one-of-a-kind restaurant. The person taking your order is willing to talk and help . Your drink glass never gets empty. The prices are really reasonable and the portions are a good size as well. If you are in the area, this is a must try!

Glazed and Infused: A Chicago Treat

One of my favorite things in all of this world is the donut (or doughnut). It is one of the greatest creations to me;  I am a sucker for donuts; I love them. I feel I cannot get enough of them…until of course I indulge and then an hour later my stomach is about to explode and I am functioning at 20% normal productivity. The donut  can be overlooked as a nice treat. I mean think about it, practically on every street corner in a big city or even a few miles apart in smaller cities, there is a donut shop. Confession time: almost every donut shop looks great to a donut-holic like myself. The donut has a general stereotype as they are fairly easy to produce and you can practically buy them anywhere.

I fully admit there are many donuts out there produced by people that are giving donuts a bad name. They are not very good and after you eat them you are thinking “Why did I just waste 600 calories on a sub-par donut?” But let me tell you something, when I have a donut that is good, it is just a thing of beauty.

Why all this talk about donuts? Because Chicago, known for amazing baked goods and donuts, has an awesome donut shop that is making handcrafted specialty donuts that will blow your socks off. The place is known as Glazed and Infused. Everyone now is channeling their inner Matthew McConaughey and his “Alright, alright, alright,” from the cult classic Dazed and Confused.

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Sudie’s Catfish House

A couple of weeks ago, David and I went to Pasadena and Deer Park, TX.  We traveled there to be able to honor a beloved teacher in a retirement celebration.  I have never been able to share that area of Texas with David, so it was a special time for me in many ways.  We drove by my old schools and the house I grew up in, and forgotten memories flooded my mind and heart.  I am sure I did not stop talking for hours…But David is used to this by now…

5 Piece Fried Catfish Dinner

5 Piece Fried Catfish Dinner

One of the places I knew I had to take David was Sudie’s Catfish House.  I tell you there is no better place to eat catfish in the world, or at least that I know of, than Sudie’s.  I remember as a little girl, my family saw the structure built and wondered what it was going to be.  We all had theories, but alas, the sign was installed, a catfish house!

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Gourmands Neighborhood Pub

Mother’s Day weekend, we took our little family on a road trip to San Antonio; yesterday you read Matt’s post about his tried and true favorite when we visit, Alamo Cafe. As we made our trek back north to DFW, we decided to try a completely new restaurant. Austin is known for its weird vibe, congested traffic, and many original restaurants; our drive through Austin  happened to coincide with lunch and we wanted to avoid some traffic headaches, so perfect! Let’s eat in Austin!

In a post about creating itineraries, I previously mentioned that I love to use Yelp to find new restaurants. Being in the mood for a sandwich (at the time), and still about a half hour away, I plugged in a couple keywords and conducted a search. Gourmands Neighborhood Pub came up second on the list. Whoa! 4.5 stars on Yelp with 307 reviews?! No way! After looking at the menu and preemptively deciding what to order, both Matt and I started to get excited about trying something new. Ultimately, we chose Gourmands over the number one option because of its location, just tucked in the east side of Austin on Webberville, and the menu, which even reading online made our taste buds water.

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