Sunday, April 19, 2015
I have to upload some pictures
So I have to get some pictures of one my adventures from my camera to here. It's shaping up to be a much longer post than normal, so it will probably be a ways out - not that I have been wonderfully postifying already....
Post XIV - Nikkou Sushi
Another review of an older visit...this one to a fantastic little sushi place in Camillus. It is attached to an ice cream stand (sort of. They share a building, but are not connected inside.) which is unusual, but adds to the interestingness and since they are near the BEST miniature golf course a great local destination for a fun night out.
This is a smallish restaurant, but very clean and brightly lit. The waitstaff was attentive and friendly, without being overbearing. The menu was decently sized - sushi, sashimi, bento boxes...and a variety of Asian beers. One of these days, I am going to have to go when I'm not working so I can actually imbibe. My meal started with a bowl of miso soup. It was mild with small pieces of tofu. I am normally not a fan, but this was a nice, sweet soup and just about right for a starter.
Back to the menu for a moment...it includes "make-your-own" katsu (fried) and tempura (battered and fried) as well as kids options. That makes it a nice way to ease people in to eating/enjoying sushi without throwing them in the deep end right away.
I had a basic stand-by - tuna roll with salmon and tuna sashimi, The rice was well-seasoned and the fish was mild with almost no fishy taste. The portions were a good size for the price and the roll and pieces came out very quickly.
While the food is all made fresh and to order, this means that there is no conveyor belt. While that is one of the joys of going for sushi (being able to grab what looks good as it passes by), not having it also allows for a quieter dining experience. Honestly, it's kind of a toss up as to which is the way to go...let's just say that for all you can eat/choosing what you want when it looks good go to a place with a conveyor belt. When you want to have a nice sit down dinner and know what you want? Come here (or a similar place) for a relaxing dinner.
This is a smallish restaurant, but very clean and brightly lit. The waitstaff was attentive and friendly, without being overbearing. The menu was decently sized - sushi, sashimi, bento boxes...and a variety of Asian beers. One of these days, I am going to have to go when I'm not working so I can actually imbibe. My meal started with a bowl of miso soup. It was mild with small pieces of tofu. I am normally not a fan, but this was a nice, sweet soup and just about right for a starter.
Back to the menu for a moment...it includes "make-your-own" katsu (fried) and tempura (battered and fried) as well as kids options. That makes it a nice way to ease people in to eating/enjoying sushi without throwing them in the deep end right away.
I had a basic stand-by - tuna roll with salmon and tuna sashimi, The rice was well-seasoned and the fish was mild with almost no fishy taste. The portions were a good size for the price and the roll and pieces came out very quickly.
While the food is all made fresh and to order, this means that there is no conveyor belt. While that is one of the joys of going for sushi (being able to grab what looks good as it passes by), not having it also allows for a quieter dining experience. Honestly, it's kind of a toss up as to which is the way to go...let's just say that for all you can eat/choosing what you want when it looks good go to a place with a conveyor belt. When you want to have a nice sit down dinner and know what you want? Come here (or a similar place) for a relaxing dinner.
Post XIII - Longway's Diner
Before I start, I want to tell a quick story. A few years ago (never mind how many!) I stopped here with some friends. We got some of the best food I've ever had at a diner. Fantastic chicken fried steak, hash browns, and then homemade doughnuts....like FRESH. Like "you mind waiting? They're still frying them." Just really delicious and a great cap to a great meal. The waitress was friendly and cheery (despite it being something like two in the morning). Also, there was an Irish Lumberjack and possibly God.
We were driving there and in the opposite lane, there was a DWI checkpoint. So we started joking that maybe we died and those were the officers investigating. We further supposed that the restaurant was the waiting room for Heaven....just then the door opened a dude who was 6 feet tall and rail thin. Also, he was wearing all black - including his cowboy hat.
It was a touch trippy. Just a skosh.
Anyhow - back to the review.
I actually had two visits, and this deals with the first.
It was Lent, so a meatless Friday....no worries though, odds were good there would be fish fry. EVERY diner has fish fry during Lent on Friday. They had a seafood platter which sounded good - shrimp, scallops, fish - all in all a good choice and they had cocktail sauce. The shrimp and scallops were pretty good, slightly over what I like, but DOH standards are rough to deal with,and that might be part of it. The breading was nice and crunchy,but lacking a little "oomph". It was almost like a plain breading with no flavoring. Not unforgivable, but hard to recommend. The fish was....being generous, not good. It was a very thin piece of fish, and kind of chewy. Definitely not a future eat.
It came with applesauce, which was a double whammy.
It's a shame because this used to be a great place to eat....I did give it another shot (which will be dealt with a little later), but you'll have to wait on that.
We were driving there and in the opposite lane, there was a DWI checkpoint. So we started joking that maybe we died and those were the officers investigating. We further supposed that the restaurant was the waiting room for Heaven....just then the door opened a dude who was 6 feet tall and rail thin. Also, he was wearing all black - including his cowboy hat.
It was a touch trippy. Just a skosh.
Anyhow - back to the review.
I actually had two visits, and this deals with the first.
It was Lent, so a meatless Friday....no worries though, odds were good there would be fish fry. EVERY diner has fish fry during Lent on Friday. They had a seafood platter which sounded good - shrimp, scallops, fish - all in all a good choice and they had cocktail sauce. The shrimp and scallops were pretty good, slightly over what I like, but DOH standards are rough to deal with,and that might be part of it. The breading was nice and crunchy,but lacking a little "oomph". It was almost like a plain breading with no flavoring. Not unforgivable, but hard to recommend. The fish was....being generous, not good. It was a very thin piece of fish, and kind of chewy. Definitely not a future eat.
It came with applesauce, which was a double whammy.
- It came from a can
- It did not come with a spoon.
It's a shame because this used to be a great place to eat....I did give it another shot (which will be dealt with a little later), but you'll have to wait on that.
Friday, April 10, 2015
Post XII - Eva's European Sweets
It's been a while, and for that I apologize, but we are back in the swing of things!
This week's(?) entry deals with Eva's European Sweets. This is a smallish restaurant located in Solvay, NY specializing in Eastern European dinners and desserts.
My notes, at this point are a year old and reading them over seems....well, odd at best, I'm not sure, for example, what the "soup" I ordered was, but I think it was chicken? Maybe?
Anyhow.
I sat in a corner (always a good choice - no one can sneak up on you!) on a day when there was medium crowd. The restaurant was not packed, but I was far from the only one there. All in all, it was a decent noise level - if a place is too tomb-like it is unpleasant, but if it is too loud, the ol' appetite decreases.
As a starter, I had soup - home made chicken - it had a nice lemony underflavor, and the pieces were almost large enough to need a fork and knife (I managed with just a fork, but only because I eat my food like a barbarian). At this point I have a note. An odd note, and because I am almost as dumb as I look, without any kind of explanation - "waitress was discussing cannibalism". I think it was something to do with Walking Dead, but am nowhere near sure on that.
My lunch was galumkis. For those not in the know, a galumki is a blend of rice and hamburger lightly seasoned and wrapped in a cabbage leaf. The whole magilla is then stewed in a tomato sauce and it. Is. Amazing!
It is also crazy filling. Like - crazy filling. You can order three or five as a meal here. I would say that three would fill all but your hungriest of diners - especially with any kind of appetizer or dessert. Five is great for two people or for a group who all wants to try some of everything....but for one person it would just be too much.
As a last couple of notes, they have an extensive beer list - almost all European, but because of work and driving, completely untouched. One of these days though....additionally there are many, many homemade desserts...everything from cheesecakes to cookies to baklava, and they are all out of this world!
This week's(?) entry deals with Eva's European Sweets. This is a smallish restaurant located in Solvay, NY specializing in Eastern European dinners and desserts.
My notes, at this point are a year old and reading them over seems....well, odd at best, I'm not sure, for example, what the "soup" I ordered was, but I think it was chicken? Maybe?
Anyhow.
I sat in a corner (always a good choice - no one can sneak up on you!) on a day when there was medium crowd. The restaurant was not packed, but I was far from the only one there. All in all, it was a decent noise level - if a place is too tomb-like it is unpleasant, but if it is too loud, the ol' appetite decreases.
As a starter, I had soup - home made chicken - it had a nice lemony underflavor, and the pieces were almost large enough to need a fork and knife (I managed with just a fork, but only because I eat my food like a barbarian). At this point I have a note. An odd note, and because I am almost as dumb as I look, without any kind of explanation - "waitress was discussing cannibalism". I think it was something to do with Walking Dead, but am nowhere near sure on that.
My lunch was galumkis. For those not in the know, a galumki is a blend of rice and hamburger lightly seasoned and wrapped in a cabbage leaf. The whole magilla is then stewed in a tomato sauce and it. Is. Amazing!
It is also crazy filling. Like - crazy filling. You can order three or five as a meal here. I would say that three would fill all but your hungriest of diners - especially with any kind of appetizer or dessert. Five is great for two people or for a group who all wants to try some of everything....but for one person it would just be too much.
As a last couple of notes, they have an extensive beer list - almost all European, but because of work and driving, completely untouched. One of these days though....additionally there are many, many homemade desserts...everything from cheesecakes to cookies to baklava, and they are all out of this world!
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