Archive for the ‘Restaurant and Bar Reviews’ Category

New items at Noodles, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut

Sunday, September 9th, 2012

2012-06-14 12.26.32Earlier this summer, Noodles and Company invited me to try the new salads on its menu. The American version is a spinach and fresh fruit salad, the Asian version is a Chinese chop salad and the Mediterranean version is a Med salad, which is what I ordered. It’s made up of romaine, mixed greens, tomato, cucumbers, red onion, olives, cavatappi pasta, spicy yogurt dressing and feta, and I followed the restaurant’s suggestion and added marinated steak to it.

At first glance, I thought I was given just a few pieces of steak, but I was delightfully surprised to find a lot more hiding beneath the greens. Overall the Med salad is a wonderful combination of flavors, though I was indifferent to the pasta. Frankly, it’s nice to see Noodles and Company expand its menu for non-carb lovers like me.

***

2012-08-15 12.23.11I didn’t have high expectations at first, but I actually really like the new Spicy Chicken McBites at McDonald’s. It’s not like popcorn chicken that’s 95 percent breading; rather, it’s a sizable portion of chicken breast with a little kick (spicy but not too spicy).

It’s an easy snack in the car if you don’t care to eat a sandwich, and you can choose from snack size, regular (as seen in the photo) or shareable.

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2011-12-10 17.20.08It’s not that new, but I wanted to write about the Pizza Hut Dinner Box. Since I ordered it originally, Pizza Hut has added another size. So the original version is now called the Big Dinner Box and comes with two medium, one-topping pizzas, breadsticks and your choice of wings or pasta.

The plain Dinner Box consists of one, one-topping pizza, breadsticks and cinnamon sticks. At $19.99 and $10, respectively, I think they’re great deals for the amount of food you get. And now Aaron Rodgers is endorsing it, so what does that say?

Namio’s Sports Pub

Sunday, September 2nd, 2012

Isn’t the first rule of opening any business “location, location, location”? Despite being so close to Highway PD and Seminole Highway, Namio’s Sports Pub is set back behind other buildings and consequently is hidden from the road.

That may explain why in my three visits the place was dead. Once, for lunch, I thought the place was closed. Another, at 10:30 on a Saturday night, it felt odd to be drinking in such a large space with hardly anyone else around.

Despite the lack of patrons, Namio’s actually has pretty good food. You can’t go wrong with the steak burger ($7.99), for example. The flavor was wonderful and further enhanced by the cheddar I added, and the kaiser bun was soft yet strong enough to support the juicy patty. The accompanying sweet potato fries had the perfect ratio of crunchy exterior to soft interior.

I also was impressed by the fried fish (available beginning at 5 p.m. Friday), especially the crisp and light breading that was used. It did need just a hint of salt, though. I chose the hash browns with fried onions as the side and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Regarding the “sports pub” in Namio’s name, I hate that bars use the term so liberally. There are a few flat panel TVs scattered throughout the space, but I wouldn’t go here to watch a game unless I was too lazy to go downtown (or even BW3s just down the street).

Namio’s is open for lunch, dinner and carryout every day, with daily happy hour and nightly drink specials.

Namio's Sports Pub on Urbanspoon

T Sushi

Saturday, August 25th, 2012

By my count, you can order sushi in at least six restaurants downtown–Osaka House, Red Sushi Grill, Restaurant Muramoto, Soga, Takara, Wasabi and T Sushi, which opened in March. With so much competition, these restaurants really need to stand out from each other.

T Sushi attempts to distinguish itself by selling the bar/lounge atmosphere. In fact, the first time I walked in, I was reminded of my old favorite watering hole, Crave, except it’s brighter inside. More on that in a bit.

I sat for lunch the day after T Sushi revamped its menu. I started with the miso soup. The broth seemed slightly saltier than other miso soups, but I did appreciate the large chunks of tofu vs. the little bits you usually get.

Sushi is divided into special rolls and regular rolls, so I of course chose from the former list. The delicious Volcano roll ($12) is made from tempura spicy tuna and generously topped with red tobiko. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a roll this beautiful. The spicy mayo was a nice touch.

I had high hopes for the Surf & Turf ($16), especially after the super-friendly waiter recommended it, but I was disappointed. The tempura asparagus overwhelmed the mild flavor of the Maryland blue crab, and the seared beef tenderloin was too chewy.

On a Saturday night, my friend and I were two of just eight people in the entire place (extra surprising since the special was $5 martinis). The lounge in the back seems like it would be a fun place to enjoy drinks with friends, but it’s too brightly lit (the white couches don’t help, either), and there aren’t enough tables on which to set your drink.

Like Crave, T Sushi does have a robust martini list. I have yet to encounter a bad lychee martini, and the Lily’s lychee martini here is no exception, although it didn’t come with a full lychee in it. A warning that the Pineapple Upside-Down Cake martini is like drinking pure sugar.

I’ll definitely come back to T Sushi to eat, but I’ll probably hang out at other bars at night.

    Madison Symphony Orchestra Urban Air

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