Taquiera Mercado 3

I decided to see what the deal was with this place. SO eventually I found it. I'm not too skilled with 8th street apparently......I found a convenient yet pricey parking lot across the street.
I must say the decor inside is very nice. Very high ceilings and lots of seating.



Something less customary in Mexican restaurants - no free chips and salsa. They are only $1.50 but come on.



I got 3 different tacos, each had onion and cilantro (Al Pastor - bottom right, Carnitas - bottom left, Barbacoa - top). Of all I thought the pork tacos were just okay, but the barbacoa was the best! It was incredibly flavorful and moist. I wish I had ordered more of them.

I ordered a side of rice to see how theirs was. It was pretty good. It tasted good as an addition in my tacos.

I enjoyed this place but I'm not sure that I'd make a special trip downtown again just for it. I intend on checking out their Fairfield location soon.

Chef Jean-Robert says he will open restaurant Aug. 10

Chef Jean-Robert says he will open restaurant Aug. 10

New Orleans to Go

I finally found the New Orleans food truck! I've been talking back and forth with them on twitter and I finally met up with them Tuesday night at 1am in the 5th and Race parking lot. It looks like I got there at just the right time. They were running out of food.



Here's the truck. It sure is a colorful addition to the Cincinnati food truck collection. If you dine truckside you get to eat while listening to authentic New Orleans music from their speakers.

I got to speak with the owner, his wife works inside the truck with her mother and their family friend. He showed me pictures of his girls and made sure that even though you were in the middle of downtown, that you felt at home. You definitely get the family vibe from them. When I walked up they knew me immediately. The owner saw my fleur de lis tattoo and it was my secret password to the authentic Nawlins hookup! I saw some people eating that definitely got there earlier than me. They had told them that this was the best food they had had all week during their trip to Cincinnati. What does that tell you?



Here's the mac and cheese which I got for free! Yay me! It was creamy and cheesy, what more could you ask for? Simple, delicious macaroni and cheese.

In the paper wrapper is the side of corn bread that I ordered. I am a sucker for cornbread and a bigger sucker for those who can do it right. What does that mean? It's pretty simple. If you make cornbread - throw some kernel corn in it. It makes a HUGE difference.



Look at this giant shrimp filled beast! They piled my Po' Boy full of hot and crisp fried shrimp on a huge bread roll. I ripped apart one of the shrimp and it was incredibly fresh tasting and crisp. It had fresh romaine lettuce and tomato with mayo and they topped it off with their glaze. The glaze is what makes this sandwich divine. It looks at glance to be a simple barbecue sauce or something of the like. When you taste it, it is obviously a sweeter, stickier sauce and after a couple seconds it has a slow burn that is spicy and pleasant. I would put this glaze on plain rice and eat it for days, happily.

I have never been to New Orleans so I certainly cannot compare the foods but I do know good food and this is the jackpot.



I will definitely be back to try their other menu items. Next time I will arrive early to see my new friends before they run out of food.

Mayberry

I may be literally the last blogger to go to Mayberry. I have been hit or miss with the place so far as timing for a couple months now. I work in the evening so usually I can't just get up early. Lately time and a half has been making me get up early.

I finally had such a crap day at work that I left for a long Friday dinner and made my way to Mayberry. I found convenient enough parking on Court St. I walked in and was surprised at how small it was, but then also to how many people it held. There must have been 6 or 7 tables and a really cool long bar table good for singles or small parties. I chose the long bar since I was by myself.

I opted for the cheese plate and the scallops. Specifically:

Sea Scallops with Corn Grits, Pepper Bacon and Brown Butter

I received the cheese plate and it had a strawberry compote (so good), goat cheese, a gorgonzola, a white Irish cheddar and another cheese I can't recall the name of.
The strawberry compote was delicious. How can you take a strawberry and make it go with cheese? It's possible! You get a few round toasts to go with it.

If I might make a humble suggestion: perhaps a homemade cracker or other toast-like option could be provided. It could do wonders for textural variety.

I received the Scallops a while later and they were so delicate you almost thought they would fall apart on your fork. The grits were amazing. Possibly the best grits I've had since Pigall's. I love some little chunks of hominy in my grits!! These were obviously fresh made. If you know anything about grits, they were also clearly made with a lot of time.

The bacon with the scallops was so great. It really added a salty edge to the delicate and light scallop and the savory grits.

I also tried the tater tot casserole. This was really good, but I can't identify which part of it I think is the best. The cheese, the crunchy cheese bits from the pan, the slight spiciness of it or the potatoes that still had a tiny bit of bite in them. No frozen tots here.

After my scallops I had their strawberry poke cake. This was a large slice of a delicious light cake with a cool strawberry sauce on top. I ate the whole thing in a couple minutes flat.

Mayberry was a definite pick-me-up from this horrid week I've had. Believe all the tasty hype you've heard.

Nick & Tony's Double Deckers

In the old Subway shop on Scott St you will find Nick & Tony. You won't actually find Nick or Tony inside the restaurant. They are the owner's children. A nice man named Eddie helped me on the day that I went.

Here you can see the cooler with all the sandwich fixings. The surroundings seem familiar because for some reason, when the old Subway shut down they left most of their equipment. Like their toaster oven, bread ovens etc. Bizarre.

I got to watch Eddie cook bacon on a giant sheet pan in a Subway bread oven. It was the coolest!



This is their vegetable soup. It was pretty tasty. Big hunks of fresh tomato, lima bean, corn, potato etc. It tasted fresh and not too salty. It tasted freshly made.



I got a ham and corned beef double decker with cheese and bacon. TOO tasty! The meat that they use is really tasty and as you can see they pile it WAY high!



The decor is nothing to speak of really but they are some darn tasty sandwiches.

Molly Malone's

Molly Malone's is dangerously close to my workplace. Sometimes I just don't go there because the temptation to have a beer is far too great. They frown on getting drunk at work. Or so I'm told.

I hadn't eaten here in a couple of years. We have been patronizing Keystone Bar & Grill  a lot lately so I wanted to shake it up.

Here you have the Potato and Leek soup. It was good. I liked the bacon (who doesn't) and the leeks. The potatoes were done properly. The only missed note was the sour cream on top. It added a much too acidic flavor to an otherwise good bowl of soup.



Here is their fish and chips, which according to their menu, is legendary. I doubt that highly. But it was good. I got a half order due to the soup. I love fresh lemon on my fish! The fish tasted flaky and not frozen which was better than the last time I had it years ago. The only thing that was off was their cole slaw - it was bland and had too much mayonnaise, thick mayonnaise. Now, I am somewhat of a glutton. I'm not a complete pig though. A side of cole slaw to me means about 1/3 - 1/2 cup of side. This is about 1/8 of a cup of cole slaw. I didn't mind so much because it tasted so badly. If it were good cole slaw it would have been a huge disappointment.

Why is good cole slaw so hard to make?


If someone were able to keep their hands off their food for the 2 seconds it takes my phone to take a photograph this would have been a good picture. But this person is the human equivalent of a hummingbird so the picture is crap. This is the chicken tender plate. Barely worth talking about. My friend liked it, but honestly, if you can't do a chicken finger platter, you should just shut down.

Fireside Pizza

Ever since the big food truck sea change in Cincinnati I have been working like a hungry little pig trying to track them all down. I was super psyched to find the pizza wagon at my local farmer's market. I planned to go there last Tuesday but due to rain they were not there. The owner. a super nice guy named Mike, surprisingly gave me a free pizza today due to my inconvenience.



Here's their tent at the Wyoming Farmer's Market. I couldn't get a really good photo of the oven. Their pizzas are super cheap. You can get a 1 topping pizza for $5 that's a little larger than the size of a paper plate.

I ordered a proscuitto pizza for my free pie. Now the pizza: the cheese was melted in such a way that it mixed with the sauce once you put it in your mouth. The sauce had a hint of sweetness and overall smoothness that I loved. The proscuitto was salty and delicious. Total home run with that choice! The crust is soft and pliable to fold in half and stuff in your mouth but the wood firing makes a delightful crunch on the bottom.



Pat is so excited to try this place. He will have to come with me next Tuesday because I didn't save him a single piece. I ate the whole thing driving down Wyoming Ave. Believe it!

Update: 7/27/10

So I went back for another pizza. This one was proscuitto, garlic and mushroom.


Look at the mushrooms here, they were super fresh and delicious. The garlic on this pizza added a nice touch. Quickly becoming my new favorite pizza.

Dojo Gelato

I used to not venture out much into the local purveyors of goods. I have learned the error of my ways. Now I run around finding weird and delicious stuff every week. Dangerously close to my house on Tuesdays is the Wyoming Farmer's Market. Dojo Gelato has a stand there every week.



A little closer view of the goodness...





I decided on the B-A-N-A-N-A-S on the left and the Dutch Chocolate on the right. Both were delicious and creamy. I wanted to eat a big old tub of that Banana gelato.



The owner was SUPER nice and laid back. It was a hot enough day that I could have gotten away with a giant bowl of this delicious gelato.
If you ever come to the Wyoming Farmer's market this is what you'll be seeing. A big ol' train.



It was so good I may have to make my way to Findlay Market to find them at their permanent spot.

Becky's Fish Tacos

Here is my entry into Senor Roy's Taco Patrol Taco contest.

Fish Tacos!

6 limes
2 red peppers, seeded and sliced
2 green peppers, seeded and sliced
2 yellow peppers, seeded and sliced
6 cloves of garlic, minced
3 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
4-5 pounds Tilapia
16 - 32 oz. Sour cream
Shredded cheese, Chihuahua, Monterey jack or cheddar
16 – 32 oz. Store bought salsa (Jack’s – Medium)
Taco shells/tortilla shells (Stand and Stuff taco shells work well)

1. Combine the zest of 3 limes, the juice of 6 limes, ½ cup of cilantro, 1 cup of olive oil and 1 minced jalapeno pepper and 3 minced cloves of garlic in a food processor and process for about 30 seconds.
2. Place the fish in a bowl and put a layer of kosher salt. Cover the fish with the lime juice mixture and refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Chop the vegetables (all bell peppers and 2 jalapenos) in long strips, combine with 3 minced cloves of garlic, ¼ cup of olive oil and kosher salt and broil on a large pan for about an hour. Stir every 5 minutes to ensure the vegetables do not burn.
4. Place the fish and leftover marinade onto a large pan and broil for about 30 minutes stirring every 5 minutes to ensure the fish does not burn. The fish will flake apart, this is okay. Once the fish is cooked, keep broiling until the desired amount of marinade is evaporated.
5. Serve with salsa, sour cream, cheese and taco shells or tortillas.

Maggiano's

Do you like pasta? Do you like Frank Sinatra? Do you like those 2 things together? Then Maggiano’s is for you! They are overtly promoting that rat pack, retro, classic feel in their restaurants. Hardwood paneling everywhere, waiters have the reallllllly long aprons that reach the floor almost. Makes me wish I had NOT worn flip flops….

Oh well. . We got their fried mozzarella which was great! You can taste that it’s obviously fresh cheese. The marinara is good, also tasted fresh, not too salty.

I had the garlic shrimp linguine – pretty tasty! I love shrimp all swaddled up in garlicky, potato-y goodness.

Pat had the lasagna and enjoyed it very much. Very large portion, sauce, again was fresh tasting and slightly sweet. Good stuff!

So if you can get past Frank and all the boys from the old days… then you’ll be fine.

Madison's

Hey, this restaurant is INSIDE my building! Bad news is that I work nights and they are NEVER open at night. Oh well. I guess I am fortunate enough to be forced to work day shift against my will at times. I eat here on those days.

Madison’s has some of the best broccoli salad I’ve ever had. They have several daily specials. If you are ever there when the special is anything on the pretzel bun – go! It will rock your world. Whoever thought of pretzel bun is a certified genius! Anyhow, they have your typical wraps, sandwiches, fare and such. They also have pretty great desserts to try.

Mythos

I miss my Mythos that was in Newport. Really. I have had dreams about their hummus. Prior to eating at Mythos I swore I hated hummus. I had never had a good one. This one is the best I have ever had. EVER! They serve it with warm pita bread. Mmm!

I love everything about the place. My favorite dish is the dolmathes, which are the rice, lemon mixture inside a grape leaf or the keftedes which are lemony spicy meatballs. I especially enjoy their rice pilaf. It is so light and soft, nothing crazy in it like almonds or goofy spices. Their salad dressing is clearly house made and delicious. Straightforward oil, vinegar, spices. MMM!

Boi Na Braza

Are you ready to eat? No, seriously. This is like world series meat eating. Don’t bring your friend on a diet, don’t bring your vegan friend. It’s just cruel.

Boi Na Braza is a beautiful restaurant inside Carew tower. The interior is dark and sultry thanks to the hardwood paneling giving an old money kind of feel to the place that matches the tower. Their bar is more than capable to service your needs. Try the caipirinha. They’re tasty!!

Once you get past the bar you will get to your seat and introduced into the procedures of the restaurant. It seems pretty weird right? A restaurant that has poufy panted dudes hoisting giant skewers of meat with machetes should have some ground rules. You get a disc of cardboard with red on one side and green on the other. You place it red side up when you are enjoying the salad bar or enjoying your sampling of meats. You place it green side up when you are ready for the gauchos to bring you more skewers of meat. You also get your own set of little tongs. This is so when they start to slice the meat you can grab it with your tongs and place it on your plate. Pretty smart huh? Those crazy Brazilians!

To say that they have a salad bar is like saying that that Lady Gaga likes to dress up a bit. This thing is huge! It is a giant rectangular bar that has smoked salmon, assorted cheeses, giant asparagus (seriously), beans and rice, mashed potatoes, assorted pasta and other salads. Oh yea, it also has mixed green salad.

Once you sit down and have had your fill of the salad bar you will flip your disc over (remember?) and wait for the gauchos!You have your choice of everything from sausages, parmesan crusted pork chops, to filet mignon, top sirloin, beef ribs, lamb, chicken and bottom sirloin. It’s a lot to choose from truly!

The great thing about BNB is that they are constantly running specials! Get on their mailing list – they are always sending out specials near holidays (Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Christmas, Valentine’s Day etc).


We have been for the Valentine’s Day special and you received:


Long stemmed rose for the lady
Coffee and soft drink
2 dinners
Dessert
Champagne toast at the end of the meal.

The special price was less than the cost of 1 visit. They also run specials at the end of the year that if you book around Christmastime you will receive gift certificates to use in the following year. Pretty sweet deal!

Sweet Basil

I really love Sweet Basil. They've been open for a few years now and have built up the little strip mall that they are in into a little ethnic corner of Northern Kentucky. You have them for the authentic Thai route, Guru India for the Indian route and Outback Steakhouse for the "other" route.

It's not a huge place but they have everything arranged nicely with simple decor.



I ordered hot and sour soup with shrimp. The little pot is such a cute presentation. What could be inside?



Turns out what's inside is some really huge shrimp, (watch the tails!) a bunch of cilantro, onion and mushrooms. They did not go overboard and take the title too seriously and make it too hot or sour. I like that. I've had some that just taste like sugar hot vinegar with mushrooms bobbing in it.



I ordered the Vivid roll (top) and Spicy Basil roll (bottom). I liked both rolls however that Spicy Basil roll was potent! Be prepared! That fresh basil will knock you on your ass. The Vivid roll was very pleasant. Even though it was mixed with the spicy sauce the tuna was so fresh it was almost sweet. There was a nutty flavor from the sesame seeds. The roll also tasted light which was surprising.



I also ordered some pad thai to go. I have to eat at work tomorrow, don't I? They have possibly the best pad thai I've had. They give you the range of spicy 1-10. I Love Sweet Basil!



My vegan friends also frequent this place a lot so pop on in and get some awesome sushi!

It's Just Crepes

I am not a downtown dweller. I've been getting better this year, trying to find new restaurants and such. I was looking for something else when I ended up near It's Just Crepes.... I popped in and liked the menu and decided to stay...



Here's the ordering station and apparently the manager in the photo. He was SUPER nice and helpful!



I love the look of the inside. It's all modern and bright.



Here is my florentine crepe that was wrapped and served in a cone. The manager was super helpful in explaining the best way to eat the crepe. It was DELICIOUS!!! Everything tasted so fresh inside it. I watched him make it and it smelled fresh also.



Big chunks of turkey, onion, spinach, mushroom and cheesy goodness. I am a sucker for florentine. I want to try one of the sweet crepes next.

This is the essential downtown lunch food. You can walk to the restaurant and if you're pressed for time you can walk back to your office with your lunch safely in hand.

Quaker Steak and Lube

I first started going to Quaker Steak and Lube in Columbus. I was psyched to find one near my house in Milford and now in Colerain.

We usually get the Magna Fries. I personally don't think they're worth $9. They're just fries. They don't have gold on them.

I love the premium pretzels. They are incredibly soft and salty. I really enjoy the Guiness beer cheese that comes with them.

The real reason to go here is the wings! My husband likes the Honey BBQ. I usually go for the Parmesan Pepper, Premium Garlic, Thai R' Cracker, or Golden Garlic. The golden garlic kind of stay with you for a while though so be prepared.

For me the best of both worlds are the combos where I can get my wings and my pretzels in one handy combo. .

If you're in the mood for a burger go no further than the Lubeburger. Mushroom, bacon, hot sauce, American cheese. So good!

I describe this place as TGI Fridays for NASCAR fans. The wings are great, but be prepared for a few things: plastic chairs, curly straws and a complimentary twizzler dessert. Seriously.

Original Pancake House

I love Original Pancake House!!!!

To start I used to get the bacon pancakes. These are AMAZING! I have to be in the mood for them though. It's thick cut bacon in the pancake batter. All swaddled up deliciously in their buttermilk goodness, waiting to be covered in butter and syrup!

I transitioned to the strawberry pancakes. Also AMAZING! I believe that they make their strawberry syrup in house.

I have also had their apple pancake. I split it with someone and it took about 20 minutes for it to stop pulsating it's lava hot cinnamon syrupy apple topping. Once you can get it to the temperature that doesn't lacerate your mouth, its quite delicious.

Corned Beef Hash is the freshest of any I've ever tasted in a restaurant. Very delicious.

Swedish Pancakes - as authentic as you will find. Lacy, delicate pancakes with butter and ligonberries.

Seafood Crepes - Shrimp, crab meat, whitefish and scallops in a delicious sherry sauce, rolled in one delicate crepe, topped with more seafood tilling and toasted almonds, served with four potato pancakes. These are about as decadent as you can get at breakfast for under $10.

They have every option that you could possibly want and the service is always prompt and accurate. If you're going on the weekend, prepare to wait for a while. The line goes out into the parking lot every weekend. Try to beat the church crowds.