Once again this year we trekked out to New England for Christmas. We only ate out a few times thanks to superb cooking by Sarah’s mom (delicious beef brisket and latkes) and my sister (awesome beef tenderloin). On the way out we stopped at Blue Colony Diner in Newtown, CT. It was our first time there and we weren’t quite sure what it would be like. We had just seen a billboard on the highway and thought we’d give it a try. Turns out Blue Colony Diner is a well known landmark. It’s very large for a diner and the menu is huge. So are the portions. Sarah had some seriously meaty lasagna which became three meals. I had a really good pastrami Reuben.  A gentleman sitting near us had the baked haddock. It was the largest helping of food for one person I’ve ever seen. Great place to stop if you’re passing through the area on I-84. Three and a Half Spoons

Whenever we get out to Massachusetts we try to grab a meal at The Chatta Box in Bridgewater, MA. The Chatta Box is simply the best Asian fusion restaurant we’ve ever encountered. The food is sublime. I ordered our longtime favorite, Mango Stir Fry with Chicken. It’s the near dish in the picture below. It’s served in a mango shell (the purple you see in the picture). It’s sweet and spicy and fresh and delicious. Sarah ordered Tropical Explosion, which was tofu with pineapple and peppers and mango and onions. Similar to mine but just different enough. Both were excellent. Five Spoons

Lastly, Sarah’s parents took us out to Butterfly Restaurant in West Hartford, CT. (Thanks, Judy and Steve.) We usually make it to Butterfly on our trips. We each order a dish and then mix and match. This time we had pork fried rice (which was a welcome treat as good fried rice is hard to find out here in IL), crispy orange beef, sesame chicken, and broccoli and garlic. All were very tasty. We really miss having a good Chinese restaurant nearby. We thoroughly enjoyed the meal. Four Spoons

Today we were up in the mall area shopping, so we decided to swing down Neil St and try the newish Holy Land restaurant at 705 N. Neil St in Champaign. It’s the same place where Jack’s Grill used to be. It’s still Mediterranean food. We never got around to eating at Jack’s, but Holy Land has the kabobs and rice dishes you’d expect from such a place. The atmosphere is similar to what you’d find on Green St, with a few booths and tables and a take-out counter. They have a large LCD TV playing Arab MTV, which was interesting, to say the least.

The folks at Holy Land are quite friendly and the service is excellent. As we sat down, they brought us a small but tasty eggplant appetizer with toasted pita chips. The menu has several fruity drinks available and they have coffee or Pepsi products. We both opted to stay with the water. For entrees Sarah ordered Chicken Shish Tawook, which was a chicken kabab with semi-spicy chicken and a large helping of rice. I got the Mixed Grill, which was one each of the chicken, beef, and lamb kebabs with rice. It also came with a large plate of hummus and baba ganoush with a basket of warm pitas. I’m usually not big on hummus or baba ganoush, but this dish had both with olive oil, paprika, and a mint chutney. It was excellent. The kebabs were all perfectly prepared and a tad on the spicy side, although not mouth burning. The rice had almonds and spices and was also top notch. We brought home enough for another meal. Very generous servings.

For dessert we split a large bowl of the best rice pudding I have ever had. It was a perfect way to finish off the meal. Can’t wait to go back. I hope they stay around longer than Jack’s did. Holy Land is shaping up to be the best Mediterranean restaurant in the Champaign-Urbana area. 

Saigon to Bangkok is the former Saigon Restaurant in Savoy Plaza in Savoy, IL. Saigon Restaurant suffered from poor service and hit-or-miss quality. No surprise it didn’t last long. The new Saigon to Bangkok is unchanged in appearance, but judging from the service and food, it’s off to a much better start.

We gave it a shot for dinner tonight, lured in by their new Thai offerings. We had no problem getting a table, but it began to fill up while we were there. We were going to start with Crab Rangoon, but the hostess suggested the Vietnamese Pancake (Banh Xeo). It looked like an omelet over bean sprouts, but the taste was more doughy than egg. It also had the odd combination of shrimp and pork. It came wth a tasty dipping sauce and was quite good.

For entrees Sarah ordered Papaya with Chicken and I had the Orange Stir Fry, also with chicken. Sarah thought hers was quite good but not as spicy as she thought it would be. My orange stir fry was more like ORANGE!!! stir fry. It must have had at least a half orange worth of juice in it and there were six or eight large chunks of orange. There were not as many onions and peppers as I would have liked. It was ok, but the overriding impression was one of eating chicken in a bowl of orange juice. Maybe that was the intention, and if so, the dish succeeded. But it’s not something I’d order again.

As of now they do not have a license for beer or wine, but they have supposedly applied for one and hope to offer beer in the future. It was even on the menu.

We’ll return to Saigon to Bangkok soon to try some of their other dishes. It will be nice to have a good Thai/Vietnamese place on the south side of town.

This evening we opted for Chinese and stopped in to Empire Chinese Restaurant on Green St. in the Campustown area of Champaign, IL. Empire is like many places on Green where you order from a counter and eat with plastic utensils. The menu is virtually identical to most other Chinese places in the C-U area. The prices are very low, though. We were amazed at how much food $20 would buy. As you can see below, we went big knowing we’d have  plenty left over to take home. We started the steamed dumpling appetizers. Sarah ordered Kung Pao Chicken and I had Mongolian Beef and Beef Fried Rice.

The dumplings were excellent. They’d make a great lunch by themselves. Sarah thought her Kung Pao was very good. I tried some and thought it had a nice spicy bite to it. My Mongolian Beef was good, but heavy on the brown sauce and onions. It could have done with more scallions and a bit less sauce and onions. Still, better than most beef type dishes at similar restaurants. The fried rice was typical of this area and a bit bland, although the generous amount of beef in it was lean and tender. We’ll definitely return to Empire for different meals. They had some other meals that looked tasty.

Today was a gorgeous day weatherwise and Sarah had heard about a place in Indy called Shapiro’s that had “real” bagels, so we decided to take a road trip to Indy. We ended up having lunch there. Shapiro’s is at 808 S Meridian St, very near the new Lucas Oil stadium where the *ahem* Colts play.

Shapiro’s is basically a deli and cafeteria all in one. You can get take-out or just grab some bagels or cold cuts or breads. Or you can order a whole meal and sit down and eat.

We did both, but started with a meal. Sarah saw Stuffed Cabbage on the menu and ordered that, along with some spinach and a potato cake (really a knish). Her meal also came with two large slices of rye and a large pickle. I ordered a Reuben, which also came with a large pickle. No alcohol at Shapiro’s, unfortunately, so I didn’t get to have a beer with my Reuben. We settled for Diet Coke.

Sarah’s Stuffed Cabbage was excellent. I’d never had stuffed cabbage and didn’t think I’d like it, but I was wrong. Her cabbage was very good, as was the potato cake. My Reuben was superb. It was lean and thinly sliced. What you see above is a big stack of corned beef slices, then some sauerkraut, then more corned beef, then cheese, then the 1000 Island dressing. Despite the size, it was easy to eat. The corned beef was so lean and thin that it was easy to bite through the whole sandwich. And while I rarely comment on small side items, the pickles at Shapiro’s are outstanding.

Before we left we grabbed a half-dozen onion bagels and a loaf of their excellent rye bread. I only wish we had brought icepacks for the cooler so I could have brought home a pound or so of their awesome corned beef or tasty-looking turkey.We’ll make Shapiro’s a regular stop on our future Indy road trips.

For ten days roaming around Germany and Austria we ate very well. Too well, in fact. Oof. No one has ever suggested that traditional German food is light fare. Quite the opposite. Bratwurst, beef dishes, Wiener Schnitzel, Leberkäse (sort of a meatloaf with a hotdog-ish taste), Kartoffelknödel (potato dumplings the size of baseballs), potato salad, and various types of kraut are all serious dishes. I enjoyed them all. Some more than once. It’s hard to find a bad meal in Germany. We also had Indian twice, once in Nürnberg at Tadsch Mahal, which was excellent, and once in Salzburg at a small (very small) place near our hotel called Indiya. The food there was good, but not up to the standards of the Tadsch Mahal.

In Nürnberg we had several noteworthy meals. One was at the famous Helig Geist Spital (Holy Ghost (or Spirit) Hospital). Very nice inside and out with an interesting mix of traditional and more modern cuisine. Some pics below.

The others were at the Kon Tiki, which is right on the river and has remained relatively unchanged for 30 years, and our first dinner in Nürnberg at the Bratwurst-Röslein, which was right around the corner from our hotel. The latter had Gemütlichkeit in spades.

We found breakfast at the B&B type places to be excellent. Usually breads and croissants with cold cuts and cheese and various spreads. Coffee, juice, and cereals were also included. A couple of places that catered to Americans also had eggs and bacon and sausages. The first hotel we stayed at, the Holiday Inn in Schwabing (part of Munich) had only two options for breakfast. You either ordered room service (pricey) or you paid a king’s ransom (EUR 23.50 per person or ~$36) for the buffet. I could never see spending $70+ on breakfast. I just can’t eat that much so early in the morning. So while we were at that hotel, we walked a block down the street to a very nice little Bäckerei for fresh croissants and lattes. I love the schoko croissants.

One thing that disappointed me about the trip was the rampant expansion of American fast food places. McDonald’s, Burger King, Pizza Hut, and Starbucks are everywhere. And even worse, they’re advertised on billboards everywhere. The picture below is the small park in the center of Detwang, a tiny hamlet below Rothenburg ob der Tauber that dates back to the 10th century. Everything about this little place screams history and tradition except this ridiculous billboard.

Overall I’d give our dining experience in Germany and Austria 4 Spoons and rate the costs in the Family category. Certainly you can find pricier food and there is no shortage of 5 Spoon places, but we were quite happy with the choices we made.

Tonight Sarah suggested we try the new place in Charleston, Two Flowers, on the corner of Rt. 16 and Douglas Ave. (First set of lights coming into town.) Two Flowers is a small place within the Worthington Inn. The atmosphere is cozy with a really nice view of the trees across Rt. 16 from the restaurant. It’s going to be a beautiful view in a few weeks when the leaves turn.

We’d had lunch at Two Flowers a week or so ago and it was good, although the service was spotty. No such problems tonight. Chalk it up to opening week. Tonight was the first normal night of serving dinner after the grand opening last night. Luckily for us there were two major functions on campus, so there was no wait at the restaurant.

We opened with the Spinach Dip appetizer. It was very good, although it could have had more bread. We asked for more and the staff was happy to oblige. Let me say again, the service tonight was excellent. For entrees Sarah ordered the Scorpio Grilled Chicken over bowtie pasta with feta and tomato in a Bechamel sauce. I was envious. It was really good. I had the Ribeye, which was also quite good. What made my meal were the smoked potatoes. I can’t explain why, but they were to-die-for. Basically roasted potatoes with a dipping sauce that is pure heaven.  I had two glasses of a great Malbec (very generous pours) which really brought everything together. To top it all off, we split a dark chocolate mousse for dessert. Delicious.

Charleston finally has a gourmet restaurant. Spread the word.

We’re in Chicago for the American Library Association (ALA) conference. Tonight we went to dinner with four of Sarah’s colleagues and settled on Roy’s  at 720 North State Street in Chicago, IL. Roy’s is billed as Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine. That’s a fancy way of saying “delicious.” We had no problem getting a reservation for six and were seated immediately. Sarah and I arrived a couple of minutes early, so I ordered a Hawiian Martini, which is their signature drink. It’s “pineapples infused in SKYY Vodka, Stoli Vanil Vodka, and Malibu Coconut Rum.” It was dangerously drinkable. Very refreshing. Sarah had a Mai Tai, which was also very good.

The rest of the gang arrived so we ordered dinner. Sarah had the Butterfish, which was a tasty whitefish in a cream sauce. I went with the Prix Fixe menu, which at $35 was a steal. I had the Crispy Shrimp Lumpia for an appetizer and shared them with Sarah. There were four shrimp eggrolls in a spicy/sour mango sauce. Quite good. For an entree I went with the Pulehu Sirloin with truffled fries, accompanied by a nice merlot. The sirloin was nicely prepared, although smallish. The truffled fries were like crispy angel hair. I figured out the best way to eat them was to mash them down to a manageable size. They were very good, though. For dessert most folks went with the chocolate souffle, but I opted for the Keris Creamsicle, which was an orange Yazu cake (heaven on earth). I wanted something coffee-like, so I ordered a coffee martini and was surprised it was served cold. I guess I should have known. It was awesome, but I was still in the mood for hot coffee, so I ordered that before dessert was done. 

The entire meal was superb as was the service. We were there for at least two hours and happily enjoyed every minute. It’s not a place we can afford to go often, but for the occasional splurge, I can’t think of any place I’d rather be.

We’ve been here in NYC since Thursday and have pretty much stuck to our usual restaurants, like Thai Basil, DJ Reynolds, and Mitali. All three were excellent as always. But tonight we set out to try something different and ended up at Zerza Mediterrano on 6th St between 1st and 2nd Ave (a few doors down from Mitali, as a matter of fact). The menu looked interesting and it looked like a nice place, so in we went. We had no problem getting a table. In fact, for a while we were the only patrons. There were several tables taken when we left.

Zerza serves Mediterranean and Moroccan cuisine. Most dishes come with couscous. We started out with a Baby Greens and Fennel salad. We had wanted the Baby Arugula and Roasted Pear salad, but they were out. The Greens and Fennel salad was tasty, but not exactly inspiring. For entrees Sarah ordered the Vegetable tagine, which is a veggie stew, and I went with the Mrouzia Beef Short Ribs. It was a large portion of beef ribs without the bones in a delicious prune sauce (think sweet prunes). Both meals came with sides of couscous. I also ordered a Casa beer from Casablanca, Morocco. It was light and went well with the beef. Sarah’s tagine was good and not too filling. And as I mentioned, my beef was really tasty. I would gladly order it again. For dessert Sarah had fig ice cream and I had baklava with a shot of Bailey’s on ice. Perfect ending to a great meal. 

As graduation at the U of I is this weekend, we decided to avoid the crowds in Champaign and head over to Terre Haute, IN to try Gerhardt’s Bierstube Restaurant on Lafayette Ave. We had tried to eat there once several years ago, but we were there on a Monday and Gerhardt’s is closed on Mondays. Today we finally made it back. We got there about 5:30PM and had our choice of tables. We chose a booth in one of the side rooms. Gerhardt’s atmosphere is obviously modeled after a typical German gastehaus, but you won’t forget for a second that you’re still in Terre Haute.

Gerhardt’s has a wide selection of both German and American cuisine. As we went there specifically for the German food, we stuck to classic German dishes. We started off with Kartoffelpuffer (potato pancake) appetizers, which were decent and not too filling. I had a Warsteiner dunkel (dark beer) and Sarah went with Diet Coke. She ordered Sauerbraten with Rot Kraut (red cabbage) and Spätzle while I opted for the Schweineschnitzel with Kartoffel Salat (potato salad) and Rot Kraut. Sarah’s sauerbraten was pretty tasty, although the beef itself was on the dry side. Her spätzle was a little bland (although they do offer it with gravy) and the rot kraut we both had was ok, but not nearly as good as the rotkohl at La Gourmandise. My schweineschnitzel was huge. It covered the entire dinner plate. It was very good, though. The potato salad was ok, but a bit heavy on the vinegar.

If you’re in Terre Haute, then Gerhardt’s would be a good choice for German cuisine. But if you’re in central Illinois, there are better choices; one being the aforementioned La Gourmandise in Urbana.