The Effect of Restaurant Reviews

Everyone's a critic.  That used to be the saying used to dismiss average joes that had problems with the food at a restaurant or some other entertainment venue.  In today's world I think you can say unequivocally that its literal meaning has all but obliterated its intended one.  With the existence of free blogs and sites like urbanspoon and Yelp everyone is literally a critic.  I think this is a good thing.  Maybe you see that as a biased opinion from a food blogger/independent reviewer, but for those of us who like good food and service at a reasonable price we should embrace this culture.  Restaurants have to realize that a bad rating on Yelp or from a local blogger could have an impact on their business.  Gone are the days when you could recognize the critic from the local paper or magazine and give them great service.Instead the focus should now be on treating every customer that way.  I'm aware that doesn't realistically happen, but even if it has improved service or food in even a few restaurants it was worth it to have happier customers and better restaurants that stay in business longer.

 Unfortunately, despite the new technology the same question remains.  Do I spend my hard earned money on a place that has gotten lukewarm reviews on the basis that I should test the waters for myself, or is it okay to try a place that is more reliable instead?  I myself still struggle with that answer, and sometimes I'm afraid it might endanger my sense of adventure as a food writer.  But that is something I'll talk a little bit more about in an upcoming review. 

Horseradish: The Condiment of the Gods

A couple of nights ago my wonderful girlfriend, Chef Megan, prepared a delicious dinner for us of seasoned roast beef done slowly cooked in a red wine jus.  The result was pure deliciousness when coupled with her homemade mashed potatoes.  However, it was the little something extra that I picked up at the grocery store that really put it over the top for me.  Horseradish sauce.  I made sure I paid a little more and bought one that specifically said it contained fresh horseradish.  It was totally worth it.  No other condiment I can think of pairs as well as does horseradish with roast beef.  It has that perfect amount of heat that clears the sinuses yet stops short of setting your mouth and tongue on fire.  If you don't like it I have to say I feel a bit sorry for you.  You're missing out on one of the truly great culinary experiences.  Go out and get some any way you can weather it be Arby's Horsey sauce or fresh grated in the St Elmo's shrimp cocktail.  I wish I had some right now.  What are some of your favorite food-condiment pairings?

Picture courtesy alescifoods.com

Breakfast: LePeep

You've probably been hearing since you were a kid that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  Most of us, myself included, usually rush out the door in the morning with little or no breakfast and are yet to burst into flames so who knows if that is actually true or not.  However, what I can tell you is that when I do have time for it breakfast is maybe my favorite meal of the day.  That delicious mixture of carbs and protein.  It can be sweet, savory or both at once.  Breakfast is a meal I love to eat at a restaurant if I can find a place that does it well.  Unfortunately for LePeep, after today their name has been crossed off that list.

For those of you unaware LePeep is a medium to medium-small sized chain of sitdown restaurants specializing in breakfast and lunch items with the main focus on breakfast.  I've always heard a lot of hype for it in the Indy area.  Even with several locations the flow of customers ranges from steady to really busy.  I had eaten there in pre-blog days and I had an omelet that was completely unmemorable.  I decided it worthy of another shot.  I wish I hadn't.

When I sat down I noticed that the service was snappy and that water was already placed at my table which I always view as a plus.  I also enjoyed that when I ordered coffee a pot was placed at my table a la IHOP so I could dispense my own refills.  The coffee was quite good, but it could have been served a little bit hotter.  When it came to my meal I decided to go the savory route and order the Eggs Benedict which I had been craving for quite some time.  I maintain that few things are better than a runny egg.  You can see from the picture that it was indeed a traditional Eggs Benedict served with LePeep's trademarked "Peasant Potatoes".  Unfortunately the dish was racked with seasoning and execution flaws.

The first thing I have to note is that maybe LePeep calls their homefries "Peasant Potatoes" because you'd almost have to be a starving peasant in a feudal society to want to eat them.  They look like nicely seasoned homefries, but in reality they were nothing but bland, forgettable, straight out-of-the-bag garbage.  I put a lot of ketchup on them and still couldn't make them worth eating.  You could find better hashbrowns or homefries almost anywhere.  Also, lacking in flavor was the hollandaise sauce on top of my poached eggs.  There was absolutely no tang or zip here.  It added absolutely nothing to the dish other than aesthetics.  The english muffin and ham were okay, but being the two easiest components to put on the plate I expect them to be. Being that they are in the title of the dish the eggs were supposed to be the star here.  They were not.  When I cut into a poached egg the runny yolk should flow out over my dish, but with the first egg the yolk sort of just stayed there.  I would call it more like a custard than runny.   The second egg was adequately runny, but that just speaks to a lack of consistency in the kitchen which may or may not be an even worse problem.  Also, I could not for the life of me figure out what was up with that terrible garnish on my place of tomatoes and lettuce.  Granted tomatoes in their non-sauce form kind of gross me out, but even if I liked them I don't see it making sense on a breakfast plate with such a rich dish. 

Taste: 4/10  It might even deserve less than a 4, but dang it I just love eggs that much.

Value: 2/10  The food was poorly executed and bland and it cost 8 bucks not including the coffee and tip.  Denny's food would both be cheaper and better.  If you want a real breakfast place though check out Best Bet Breakfast and Lunch or Uptown Cafe both in Noblesville.

My Girlfriend's Awesome Ham and Cheese Slyders

I readily admit that I am by no means a good home cook.  Although I have gotten better in recent years I still have trouble making anything beyond that which is very easily prepared.  Luckily I have a wonderful girlfriend, Megan, who is a certified chef and frequently prepares a variety of tasty items for us to enjoy at dinner time.  One of my favorite specialties of hers is her delicious hot ham and cheese slyders.  They have all of my favorite trappings when it comes to food:  easy to make, meaty and cheesy, hot, portable and enjoyable any time of the day.  I apologize for not having any pictures, but I thought I'd do you one better and explain how to make them yourself.

Ingredients and equipment:
1 large skillet, non-stick
1lb or more shaved deli ham
1 bottle of your preferred variety of mustard (I like honey mustard.)
1 bottle Worcestershire sauce
1 dz soft rolls (I prefer Aunt Millie's white, but any non "brown 'n serve" variety will do)
1 package poppy seeds
Swiss cheese, 1 slice for each sandwich
Aluminum foil roughly cut into 6"x6" squares

Put the skillet on medium low heat and add in the deli ham and Worcestershire to taste.  Move the mixture around to ensure even heating of the meat without it getting too crispy.  Next, add the mustard.  You can add the mustard to taste as well, but in my opinion its the most important aspect to the flavor of the sandwiches so be generous.  As you continue mixing sprinkle in some of the poppy seeds.  Once the mixture is heated, split each roll and put the ham right out of the pan and on to the roll.  Put a slice of Swiss on and immediately wrap up in aluminum foil.  The foil retains the heat in the sandwich which helps melt the cheese and also allows the juices to soak into the roll.  Now that the sandwiches are wrapped up you can take them to work for lunch, you could make a lot to take to a party, eat them right now or put them in the fridge for a midnight snack. 

Once you make some of these and have a bite you're going to be hooked.  Even if we make a dozen or more they are never around our house for very long.  With Spring hopefully on its way soon these would make great picnic or potluck food.  Forget that boring casserole and bring everyone a little bit of awesomeness...and beer...always bring beer.

Thumbs Up For Texas Roadhouse

Since moving down to the Indianapolis metro area I've tried to adopt a general rule of not going to chain restaurants because usually the food and experience isn't as good or as interesting as so many of the cool independent places around.  Also, I tend to think writing and reading about chain restaurants is even less interesting than eating there.  I mean if you're reading this blog you probably know what going to Chili's is all about.  However, there are always some exceptions to every rule and I think chief amongst them in this case is Texas Roadhouse.

Texas Roadhouse might be a HUGE chain, but it's still a chain none the less.  Are there things to complain about in this regard?  Sure.  If you go on a Saturday night be prepared to wait.  These places are popular and waits of 40-45 minutes are not uncommon.  Waiting doesn't bother me personally if I know I'm going to get a good meal at a good price and I would probably just waste more time thinking of and traveling to another restaurant anyway.  The places are also loud in terms of volume and decor.  When you get past all of that what it really comes down to is the food.  I had their country fried sirloin, mashed potatoes and baked beans.  The country fried steak was juicy and I could tell from the shape and the breading that it was definitely not something that just came in a bag and was dropped in the fryer.  You could tell there was care put into making it.  That isn't something you can say about a lot of chain restaurants.  Likewise the mashed potatoes were delicious and the baked beans had a unique spicy and sweet taste.  What's the real kicker in all of this?  My girlfriend got a ribeye and our bill still only came to 30 bucks.  You can't beat that.  Texas Roadhouse may not be the most inventive or high brow place in the world, but they know what they do and they do it right.  That's all I ask and will continue to go back. 

(Sorry for the lack of pictures.  I hadn't anticipated writing about the meal until after we were finished, and I just wanted to do a quickie review.)

Photo courtesy douglasathas.net

Romance Novel or Food Network Show

The great website for all things trivia based, Mentalfloss, has a great lunchtime quiz posted today.  The quiz is called Romance Novel or Food Network Show.  I watch quite a bit of FN so I thought it was pretty easy, but I still missed one.  Here is the link.  Go ahead and give it a shot and post in the comments how you did.

(Jerry Seinfeld voice) What's the deal with siracha??

Siracha, if you're not familiar, is an Asian hot sauce that you can buy at your local supermarket and carries a pretty high level of heat in my opinion.  I like spicy foods and it can be a good condiment especially for the bland offerings of Noodles and Co (a topic for another day).  However, what I don't get is that it seems to be developing a trend all of its own.  Lately I have seen recipes and features on promient food websites talking about both Siracha burgers and Siracha spaghetti and meatballs.  Granted I haven't tasted those dishes, but I doubt just adding Siracha really makes either dish a new creation.  It just makes them hotter.  We'll have to keep an eye on this one to see if it develops into cupcake like proportions.