Suzu Noodle House 9 ($)

The best ramen. This little restaurant is very small. It accommodates only six tables inside and another two tables outside in the hall. But because it is so good there is always a wait. This little family operation makes home make noodles, fresh ingredients and traditional fish cakes and tofus.

I have only had better in Hong Kong.

My ramen bowl here was fat rice noodles, sea weed, fishcake, tofu, green onion, carrots, cabbage, tempura shrimp and a hard boiled egg.

I give Suzu a 9 for taste only because I have had better in Asia.

Suzu receives a 9 for atmosphere because they really need to expand to include a few more tables.

the price for any meal for two is $.

L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon in the MGM at Vegas (10) 2X$$$$$$

Archived review 12/22/07

We chose this restaurant because it was rated #1 of all restaurants in Vegas for this year and boasts the “chef of the century”. I am always interested in tasting the best, and in Vegas there sure is a lot of it. This restaurant in particular stands out from all the others, The Mix, Fleur de Lys and all the others by its more casual atmospheres. Reminisant of sitting in mother’s kitchen, small parties of fewer than four sit at the counter while the cooks pass you dish after dish over the black marble top. The kitchen it open and all its mysteries laid bare. Its amazing how clean, organized and mesmerizing sitting at that counter can be.

On this occasion we elected the discovery menu, ten courses featuring the chiefs personal favorites. We started out with a pallet opener, L'AMUSE-BOUCHE. It was amazing you could actually taste the parmesan in the froth top!
Next we hadLA TOMATE: en gaspacho aux croûtons dorés Chilled gazpacho with croutons. It all sounded like it would be very exotic but really it tasted like breakfast. It tasted like a soft boiled egg with a little soy sauce; you basically have what has been the breakfast staple of china for hundreds of years. It did have a new twist on it though with little chopped mushrooms and croutons. It was some how it was green too.

Some thing new! I have never had LA LANGOUSTINE before. The French name didn’t really mean anything to me, so I asked what it was. The chief described it as a shell fish between a crawdad and a shrimp. And it in fact tastes very like raw chilled crab meat, very fresh, very sweet, cool and a little on the slimy side but delicious. I especially liked the sea salt and poppy seed dressing.

One dish we didn’t really like was the Halibut. It was a covered in a caper and vegetable salsa with a lemon thyme sauce, I normally love capers but this combination did not really agree with me. What’s more, I’m not really a fan of this particular fish, because of its gamey texture, indifferent flavor and white color. I didn’t eat more than three bites. My husband had even less. So we tried to skip this course. The chief found this particularly offensive and prepared us another fish dish. This one was much better, and more to my liking because it was a grouper and had a different kind of relish on top.

The Atmosphere gets a 10. I give it a super A++ for romantic atmosphere. Couples who are even a little low on conversation will find the night quietly relaxing and the counter seating becomes very conversationally stimulating.

For taste alone I will give L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon a 10. I can’t really be upset about the Halibut. And I think the chef thought me either very critical or ignorant. I’m not really sure which of the two I would prefer but I appreciate that he took the time to re-impress me.

According to their website, on average people spend about $$$$$$ per person, I believe the two of us managed 3x$$$$$ after the ten courses, and a glass of the champagne at the beginning.

Over all I really loved this place, its simplicity, beauty, sophisticated but not extravagant style. L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon reflects taste and class in everything from the décor, the champagne menu, the espresso and dessert at the end. It rates a 10 out of 10. But in the future I will just request something other than Halibut.

Some advice! Always make a reservation, no matter what it says about it being casual seating and not needing to make one, call anyway.

MGM Grand Hotel & Casino
3799 Las Vegas Blvd. S.
Las Vega, NV 89109
702-891-7925

Ink, eats and drinks (8) $$

Ink is an edgy, modern and contemporary tavern style restaurant. Their ceilings and walls are decorated in classic tattoo motifs and the booth seating keeps it very comfortable and private. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner until 3 am generally and have a full bar. Their regular menu consists of four basic categories, small plates, salads, sandwiches, and large plates. I have only eaten from their small plates menu but I am pretty sure that their other selections are just as good.

On this occasion I had invited a large group of friends to dinner at eight for my husband’s birthday. I called in advance to make reservations for about twenty guests. I figured that I should make a reservation despite it being a Monday, and as it turned out, it was a very good move because Monday night at eight o’clock every table was full. We walked in with just four of us, intending to meet everyone as then came but we actually had to wait for another ten minutes until a table cleared. We then had a booth all to ourselves but were forced to wait another 30 minutes until the other side of the restaurant was empty so that we could move our large party over there. Luckily most of the party was unable to be there until later but I was still very peeved that I had to be kept waiting. I had courteously made a reservation for nothing, but at least I wasn’t the one who looked bad.

For atmosphere they receive a 9 out of 10, its creative, fun, edgy, and would appeal to all people of all ages. The music is upbeat and they have too flat screens to display Family Guy, Kings game high lights or Monday night football.

Prise wise Ink is an ok value. two people would be able to get out of there for under $40 assuming they didn't drink all that much, but for big parties its not that good a deal because they don't serve pitchers of anything. We got out of there for $173 for about 17 people and a few of them didn't eat.

The food gets a 10. I have never had better macaroni and cheese so late at night nor early in the morning. It really is the best, with the home made cheese, penne pasta, and bread crumb and parmesan crust on the top. They also serve decent sliders with caramelized onions, pretty good fries and the meatloaf sandwich looked really good. Also very popular is the shrimp quesadilla.

The service in this instance was a little lacking, just because they were not ready for us despite being warned ahead of time. But they were very quick to apologize and work with us after wards. The waitress came round the table often enough that glasses were rarely left empty and the bar man was very quick despite having so many orders to fill at once.
I am forced to give them a 5 out of 10 in the service category

Over all I would rate Ink a 8. Around 3 0’clock in the morning their food is really really good, but around lunch time its not as good as you thought it was the night before. It has a fun tavern like atmosphere without being dark and low feeling and it would be ok to have lunch there with friends and underage family. It does have that neighborly feel too it, I think a lot of locals are definite regulars but a little later at night and the place nearly empties out.

I would recommend it to anyone and everyone for somewhere to eat. Beats Lyonn’s and Denny’s any day.

Dragonfly (9) $$$

If you are looking for a relaxed downtown evening of good food, classy drinks and engaging conversation, look no further than 18^th and Capitol. Dragonfly specializes in sushi and Asian fusion both modern and innovative.

Yesterday I met some friends there for New Years Eve dinner. We meet here fairly often because most of us like sushi, but if you don’t there is something for everyone, like their dragonfly burger.

On this occasion I ordered a duck bun appetizer, and the Terminator roll.

The appetizer was served traditionally Chinese, with the exception of the cut of duck. This duck was little chopped pieces from off the bone, parts of the duck that are hard to get too and ugly to serve as an entrée, probably the back and neck. It wasn’t fresh duck but it wasn’t tough and old either.

I was both pleasantly surprised and disappointed about the roll. The terminator roll is shrimp tempura, spicy tuna, topped with salmon, ahi, yellow tail and torched scallops. The scallops were particularly good; perfectly seared but left mostly raw, they were fresh, moist, and they left a very clean taste. However the roll did rely heavily on the sauce. I like my fish as pure and fresh tasting as possible, I believe too much mayonnaise sauces or cream cheese hide the taste of the fish.

For atmosphere Dragonfly receives a 10. It has a large open air feeling inside, a large patio for summer, a trendy location and happy hour Monday thru Friday. They also have wine tasting on the second Saturday of the month during the art walk.

Dragonfly usually rates about $ for two people ordering an appetizer and an entrée each, plus a drink. On this occasion we spent about $$$$$$ but that’s just because it was New Years Eve.

I give Dragonfly a 9 for taste even though I didn’t like a lot of sauce on my sushi. The fish was still fresh, and all the elements of the roll were proportioned well. But next time I will have to remember to order my sauce on the side.

It is often hard to find parking in downtown and the midtown areas, but Dragonfly has valet parking. The Valet is shared between all four restaurants on that corner so you can valet from either side of the street.

Over all I have to give Dragonfly a 9 out of 10. It’s a fun trendy place to eat dinner or get lunch. Dragonfly even serves breakfast.

1809 Capital Ave. Sacramento, CA 95814

Murata's Cafe Hana (8) $

Café Hana is located in Kintetsu Restaurant Mall. Amid the other traditional Japanese restaurants, but is more of a delicatessen than a restaurant. I stopped on this occasion just to have desert after a couple hours of shopping. The case line was filled with beautiful tempting treats like, mango mousse, chocolate éclairs, Swedish princess cake, black forest cake, and fruit tarts.

My husband and I decided to share a chocolate raspberry mousse. (I am not usually a fan of mouse of any flavor but I tolerate chocolate the most). I am happy to announce that I was pleasantly surprised. The mousse was very rich, but not too sweet. It had a smooth light texture, but did not taste frothy. The garnish raspberry was fresh, and the chocolate leaf was made of a sweetened dark chocolate. Half way through we found the raspberry mouse filling. This mousse, like the chocolate, was light and not too sweet. It was almost fresh tasting.

The only down side was that I was unprepared to like it so much and I ended up eating more of it than I had anticipated. I had to send Kris back to buy a glass of milk to go with it.

Café Hana receives a 6 (out of 10) on the atmosphere rating. It has quite a few tables all surrounding a large rock indoor fountain and part of the café is actually a florist giving it that garden café feeling.

Price wise; it was very average for the kind of drinks, chocolates and pastries you would buy at any other delicatessen or coffee house. I give it a $ because the dessert was big enough and rich enough to share and we could also have bought a drink each for under $20.

For taste and quality I give the chocolate raspberry mouse a 7, because it was pleasant, light, sweet and fresh, but I would not make a special trip just to have dessert there.

Over all I give Café Hana a 8. Though the food was very good, the cafe has a cute atmosphere and the price was very competitive it is a very small café, with a very limited menu. Its not a place to stop for a meal.

Other places of note in the Kintetsu Restaurant Mall:

Nippon-ya. Its not really a delicatessen or a café but they do sell mochi and other imported candies. Each product is carefully displayed and is explained in English for the inexperienced mochi shopper. My favorite is the pineapple chews wrapped in edible rice paper wrappers.

Isobune, San Francisco (5)$$

Isobune claimes to be the “original” sushi boat restaurant and was the first to use the floating boats to deliver sushi in the United States. Located in the San Francisco Japan center, Isobune boasts a unique atmosphere to stop and rest from a day of shopping and sight seeing.

Today when I went I was unlucky enough to become hungry during the peak lunch hour. If possible avoid arriving before 2:00 on a weekend or you will have to wait a long time to be seated like I did. There is good news, even if you have to wait to be seated, once you find that special spot at the counter, instant gratification! All you have to do is reach out and pick a good looking boat. Don’t worry if you miss on the first try it will come around again.

For fun and atmosphere Isobune receives a 7, (10 being the highest).

Isobune is not really a cheap restaurant but you can get out of there very reasonably if you eat light, so I give it $$.
The price of the dish is distinguished by the color, (blue costs about $2.50 and gold costs about $5.25) just stack them up to the side and your waitress will total them up at the end.

For quality and taste I have to rate Isobune at a 4 on this occasion. I was not impressed with the selection of sushi it mostly being uni, salmon and mackerel. The fish was relatively fresh and the eel was warm from the kitchens but my baby octopus was old and tough tasting. I believe those little red cephalopods are pickled somewhere over seas and then imported. Though you can’t argue with how easy it is to rip open a plastic bag and serve cold, I did not enjoy the experience.

I can say that the avocado used in all the hand rolls was very fresh and of a much better quality then what many sushi restaurants use. Their produce supplier definitely deserves kudos.

The toro leaves a lot to be expected but two pieces are served on a gold dish, so they are at least a very good “deal”.

Over all I give it a 5, a fun place to grab a bite to eat. Sushi lovers (eel, salmon, tuna lovers) can go crazy on their favorite rolls and compile a mountain of dishes before breaking the bank and if you go, do not miss their frozen peach sorbet served inside a actual frozen peach.

1737 Post Street, Japan Center, San Francisco (415)563-1030

1451 Burlingame Ave. Burlingame, CA 94010 (650)344-8433

Other attraction of the Kintetsu Restaurant Mall of include:

The Kinokuniya book store,
The KSG Kinokuniya stationary and gift store,
The four Asakichi stores: incense, iron works, kimono and art stores
Not to mention numerous novelty figurine stores.

Archived post from 06, Utah

I honestly don't find the food in Utah to be that great. But here are my expert opinions and recommendations. SL:
for fresh fish or sea food of any kind go to "Market Street Grill", there are two in the SL area, everything is fresh caught and flown over expect to pay about $17 average per plate, you can also buy fish to take home and cook yourself is you go to the one up my the U,
THE PIE pizzeria has the best pizza, sometimes i drive and hour to SL just for the pizza. I recommend the Chicken and Ranch with whole sliced tomatoes, chucks of chicken overlapping themselves with bacon on top, don't miss the cheese pull apart either. The atmosphere is also appealing in an underground bar sort of way, it is located in the basement of university pharmacy.
Of the Brazilian Barbacues, Samba Grill is the best, try to make it for the lunch special since you get the same amount of food for a better price. They have an all you can eat meat bar and salad bar, basically the waiters come around to your table with huge scewers of meat and cut you slices. So, yummy. Come very hungry. If you cant make it to Samba, try Rodizio or Tucanos anyway, they are still amazing!
For sushi try Mikunies. It is the best sushi I have ever had. If they have it try the fatty tuna, it tastes like sweet butter. but its costly about $6 a piece. It is located right across the street from the Delta Center. Try to research the times they are open, I know they are not always open for lunch and they do close between their lunch and dinner hours as well.
Melting Pot is the only fondue place I know of anywhere. Its probably about $40 per person, so if you are cost conscious try just the cheese and chocolate. Appetizers are cheese fondue with bread and fruit and veggies, entrees consist of broth or oils with veggies, meat and sauces. and dessert is a liquor chocolate with fruit cookies and cakes. Its very good, but expect to take about three+ hours to eat dinner if you go for the whole three courses. Otherwise expect to take about two hours. This kind of dinner is very much an experience as well as eating and its alot of fun.
Passages is a restaurant located near temple square, they have sone very large entree salads, but their best dish is the bread. Soft croissant rolls that come with a raspberry preserve butter. I tastes like room temperature ice cream on top of a sweet role. I think I ate six when I went, and then was unable to eat my salad.
Park City
My favorite restaurant in Utah is easy street in Park City. Its a Americana French fusion cuisine, I like the calamari salad the best, but their other food is also really good, they also have a wonderful cream brule in three different flavors with fresh fruit. This restaurant also has the best restrooms I have ever seen.
Another well known place is River Horse, I honestly thought the portions were a little misleading, though still good.
Provo
everyone in Provo thinks that Chiefs Table has to be the best place in town because its expensive. I honestly was not impressed, it may be the nicest place in town but was not the best by any means. I had lamb and found it to be dry and flavorless. The roles were nothing to scream about and tasted Albertson's bakery to me. They did have a wheat-less fudge brownie and mouse dessert that was pretty good, but I have had better, and it was not balanced in a way that did not make it too rich.
Good Wood is one of my favorite restaurants, but don't go on a weekend for dinner, last time I went I waited for an hour and forty five minutes before I got to sit at a table, and they do not take reservations. I like the German sausage the best, but there pulled pork and their ribs are excellent too. And you have to try their onion rings! so good.
Asuka is a Japanese restaurant that I think is largely overlooked. they do the tepinyaki, like in the show friends where you sit around the grill. its really very good, and entertaining. They also have some very unique rolls.
But if you want very unigue sushi try Happy Sumo, it is a chain, but it is very different anyway. Try the sunset roll with the lemon on top, there is also one with kiwis and my husbands favorite has cucumber instead of seaweed. If you sit at the bar instead of the tables, you will get a complimentary squid salad, Its very good. I usually order miso soup before I get my rolls to clean my palette but I also recommend the dragon scales. And try the Mochi for dessert, the mochi is not made there but is actually a store brand, but it is impossible to get in Utah, so you wont really know the difference. The mochi is traditionally a bean paste filled rice cake eaten at new years, but these ones are filled with ice cream instead, I like greed tea and mango the best.
Another great place to eat is the Noodle company, Its cheap, you get alot of food and its really good. My husband who has celiac disease is able to substitute any wheat noodles for rice noodles so its also very convenient for anyone with a wheat allergy. My favorites are the curry, I add shrimp, the Pau Thi with shrimp and the Pesto add chicken. You can order in a few different sizes and the offer a salad and grill too.
Zupas, is more of a cafeteria type environment, but they make a killer Panini and they have a very large selection of soups and and extensive salad bar. I like to go there for lunch to pick up a picknick. I like the turkey club panini. Its low key but they make some very good food.
Smoke House is my favorite place in the whole word for Chicken wings, they fry them so you get them crunchy, and they smother them in sauce, I like sweet. You also get the entire wing instead of just a single joint so if you order 5 its like getting 10 any where else. They also make good pizza and great kettle chips. the ribs are often dry but the pulled pork is pretty moist though it can be over cooked too.
Bombay House is the only Indian place I know if in Utah, though there has to be more of them, It was not the best Indian food I have ever had but It was still very flavorful and good, I did think that the waiters were very rude though.
Other common places to eat here in Provo include, California Pizza Kitchen, which I recommend for Lunch, soups, salads, and My favorite are the Thai chicken pizza and the goat cheese. they also have a killer peach lemonade.
PF Changs is worse here than it is in other states where their ingredients are fresher, but then I have never liked PF Chang's, I have always found it to be over priced, too small in portions the rice over cooked or under cooked and and unauthentic in ingredients.
Shoots a new Chinese restaurant in Provo, is not much better, It is over priced and the ingredients again are poor quality. I come from a very rich Chinese heritage and if I can cook something better out of my college dorm kitchen then I have a very low opinion of that Chinese restaurants. China lilly which used to be in the place the Shoots is not located, was alot better, however that owner moved back to china and sold her place, hopefully she will come back.
Tucanos in Provo is located in the River woods Shopping Mall, it is under new management so they changed the dessert menu so I am a little unhappy about that, but they still serve the wonderfully warm grilled pineapple, the steak and tri-tip on skewers. If you are hungry for meat, go here. But try to go early if you go on the weekends, it is often a 45 minute wait.
For sea food in Provo, there is Mcgrath's, which I have allwas found to be over done, fried to oblivion, and tasteless in general. But their selection is the best in town, I suggest going out of town to SL to Market Street Grill if you want real fish, its worth the hour drive and the $10 in gas to get out there.
There is also Joe's Crab Shack, with I have nothing goood to say about, and there is Red Lobster
Red Lobster has the best scones anywhere in my opinion, all cheesy and garlicy, their lobster is always small over cooked and flavorless, their shrimp is usually over cooked and their pastas are always over buttered. Their crab is never fresh tasting and their desserts are always dry but their Talapula if pretty good and try the macadamia crusted fish. If it is not fried that there is a chance that they cant over cook it.
LnL is a Hawaiian chain, but it is much different here on the main land than in Hawaii. I would check it out. Their Korean Barbecue is just like my grandma used to make. One of my husbands favorite dishes there is Spam and eggs over rice. It may be an acquired taste but check it out, start with the barbecue beef and chicken and your love it. I usually substitute my macaroni salad for an extra scoop of rice.
For all you can eat buffet kinds of places there is Chuckarama and Golden Coral, I would not recommend them unless you really like funeral potatoes.
Burger places around here other than fast food, consist of Fudruckers, (its ok), TrainingTable, and Red Robin. Fudruckers has an interesting eating challenge is your interested and their set up is kind of interesting as well. You order and then there is a bar with all the fixings. Training Table is not worth mentioning other than that you order from a telephone at your table. I do however like Red Robin
Red Robin, has all you can eat steak fries which you can buy separately if all you want is fries and you get a meal for $1.13. Strawberry Extacy is not alcoholic though it sounds like it, and is really more like a strawberry lemon aid with whole strawberries in it. May favorite of the burgers is the Bonzi with the teriaki sauce and the grilled pineapple. But there are a number of other unique burgers there too.
But the best Burger join is Burger Supreme! They make a pastrami burger that is so good, and I love their hero sandwich. Their fries are not that great but check out those burgers. And I would consider this place fast food.
One place worth checking out at least once if Pita Pit. Yeah its kind of like a pita subway. I like double meat with dark forest ham and hero, with the tanza something or other yogurt and cucumber spread with just about everything inside it. Its kind of a healthy place to eat, so if you feel like a salad try it. I consider it a lunch place though.

There are alot of other places I have not named, basically because it is not worth my time to comment on them, I may be a huge conisour of food and i consider myself near expert but you do not have to go by my opinion. I do have a very broad rang of likes and dislikes, for instance you may have noticed I did not comment of any Mexican places, well thats because I hate Mexican food. I find it to be cheap. I like food that is relatively cheap but tastes high quality, to me Mexican food is never quality, its just more or less authentic. I may have snobby taste buds which is unusuall for Utah, but thats because Im not from here. Enjoy