Ichiban

Saturday night I was starving. Well not literally, but figuratively yes. I went to Ichiban and got so excited when I parked and saw their banner. 1/2 Price Sushi!

It took a minute to seat me to set a table but I got one of the cute banquettes. On your way there you see these neat sunken tables that they have.


I ordered: Spider roll (top left), tempura asparagus (bottom left), spicy tuna (top right) and Baltimore rolls (bottom right).

The spider roll was really fresh and possibly the best one I've had in a LONG time. I liked that they didn't take the opportunity to make the end pieces about 8 inches tall. A lot of places will put the crispy crab bits that are on the end so tall that you can barely eat that piece. These were manageable,

Tempura asparagus was great too, not greasy, crisp. 

Spicy tuna was a favorite. Their spicy sauce has a bit more kick than others I've had.

Baltimore was my favorite! Egg, cream cheese, Alaskan king crab, and Old Bay seasoning topped with scallions. The Old Bay made it really taste so unique! So delicious and inventive.



I decided on Green Tea Mousse for dessert. It was green tea cake with a green tea mousse on top. This was amazing. Some people don't like it because they say it's bland. I loved it. I am not much for sweets and I found it to be so delicate with the green tea flavor and just pretty. You don't see many green desserts.



Ichiban isn't all sushi. They have contemporary Japanese fare. Their bar menu is also quite extensive as well. I had the best service from Lauren. She and I talked for a while about cooking and vegan food.

I will definitely be going back to Ichiban. Even if they stop their 1/2 price sushi I think I may have found my sushi restaurant.


Update - 12/2010

Jeff, Christine, Ann and I went here on a Saturday night around the beginning of December and I was chomping at the bit to get back here.

This time I got the Baltimore (top left), asparagus (top right) and Honeybee (bottom). Honeybee is now one of my favorite rolls ever. If I said to you that the roll was topped with a honey mayo you would look at me like I was crazy - but it worked. 



Ann got this fish volcano thing.



Jeff got some Ikura (no thank you) and some sea urchin (double no thanks) and a spider roll.




They have tons of sushi options for people like me who love maki rolls. They also have a plethora of choices for those still not wanting to venture into the sushi world. I want to go back again and have some Baltimore action!

Wok & Roll

Wok & Roll is in my office building and therefore very convenient. Albeit a little pricey for a Chinese restaurant it is set up for people on the go. You go in and have a look at the menu, order and wait for your food to be finished while you get a drink or find a seat.

Wok & Roll has changed hands so many times it's hard to pin down the exact times that it's "good" or "bad". I went recently and had Mongolian beef. It was pretty good. Lots of beefy goodness which I like, lots of onion as well.

Some things that I've seen that I find a little perplexing.

I ordered Orange Chicken once - I saw them use a gallon of orange soda to make the sauce. Gross.

There was a span of a couple months where all I ordered was Vegetables Deluxe because it seemed "safe". I can tell you I never received it the same way twice. I find this odd. Simple substitution of vegetables is one thing. Completely different sauces are another.

They have a big vat of fried rice that is cooked who knows when and if you order fried rice, they basically reheat it. It tastes old and stale.

I would love to give it another chance, but I've already been fooled before.

Pho Saigon

It's November. It's cold. I needed soup. A 15 mile trek from work to Pho Saigon I go!

I ordered these tasty spring rolls with shrimp. I somehow thought that when they weren't fried and were in this translucent wrapper that they were called summer rolls. But I guess I am mistaken. Summer or spring I ate them in a flash. The peanut sauce that you get is way more complex than just watery peanut butter. First, it's dark brown and tastes like it's been lovingly cooking for hours.
The spring rolls are packed full of shrimp, noodles, basil and a little beef. Great flavor.



Here's a specialty of theirs. Coffee with condensed milk. The little pot on top is kind of like a french press. The condensed milk lurks at the bottom of the cup and you have to endeavor to make the 2 of them mix. When you do you are treated to a coffee that is sweet, but not sickeningly so, with a hint of a chocolatey flavor.



Here's the large Pho Tai Chin Nac. Pho soup with beef and well done brisket. I should have taken a photo to show just how LARGE it is. The first thing that comes to mind is that it could fit a litter of kittens inside it. That's right. That was the first thing. I guess it was also large enough to fit: an entire bag of chips, a risen bread loaf, a defrosting chicken, 4 batches of brownie batter, a really large person's head. Point is - it's huge! I had never had pho in the past and I am a fan! I loved the sliced brisket. It was clearly cooked to order because when mine arrived there was a tiny fold of brisket popping out of the broth that was pink when the rest was submerged and cooked. You instantly get the onion flavor with the broth, which I like. I also love the giant noodles in my soup. They seem to be 10 feet long!

I kept coming across this item when I ate it that I was confused by. I kept calling it a "squid arm" but I knew that wasn't what it was. It was a bit chewy so it had to be some sort of animal. I asked my server. It was tripe. Was this my first time eating tripe? No. I am also a fan of Campbell's Scotch Broth and Pepper Pot soups. Both are products of Canada, both contain tripe. Sneaky Canadians and Vietnamese (and almost every other country than the US) using tripe for cheap and easy protein and flavor. What does tripe taste like? Nothing. It's a chewy bit of protein that you boil to get it's delicious salty flavor out of and then it's done. Do I like it? Not necessarily. I ate around it because of the texture. They have Pho without tripe in it if you have an extreme aversion.  I ate what I thought was half, but got nowhere close to finishing it. I got a nice little Styrofoam bucket to take it home in.

Never heard of Scotch Broth and Pepper Pot either? Someone has. 



Here's the bowl of accoutrement that you get with the pho. There's bean sprout, lime, jalapeno, basil leaves. I relied heavily on the bean sprout and basil with lime.



Here's a small Pho Bo Vien. Pho with sliced steak and meatballs. This was still pretty big. This could probably hold only 1 kitten. This is a non-tripe choice. The little meatballs in it are just great! Pat was sick so I made her go steam her head in a bowl of pho. I think she's glad she went.



I ask you - where in northern Kentucky can you get Vietnamese food? Exactly. Go thrown them some of your money. Try a new food, you might like it! There's something for everyone!



Here's a great little piece of prose on the confounding nature of the Pho.

Pho

Submitted by Emily Garber

It recently came to my attention that the Vietnamese noodle-and-broth dish spelled "pho" is not pronounced "foe," as I had always assumed, but "fuh." This was a heartbreaking revelation, because it shattered my dreams of opening hit restaurants called Pho Fo' Sho' (free Cristal with every bowl!) and Faux Pho (Pho Sho's vegan spin-off).

However, my discovery did give me the courage to order pho for the first time, from a food cart near my office. I walked up to the booth proudly, with confidence. "I'll have the...number four," I said, totally chickening out. But soon my prize arrived, steaming hot and tucked securely into a plastic bag.

I spirited the pho back to my desk and unpacked it. An abundance of vegetables greeted my eyes, and a delicious aroma wafted to my nose. I took a spoonful of broth and immediately burned all my taste buds off for the next three days. But it was delicious. I kept spooning. Best of all was the accompanying plastic bag containing a variety of kick-it-up-a-notch bounty: hot sauce, plum sauce, a lime segment, a bristling stalk of Thai basil, and enough bean sprouts to keep an Asian family full of phytochemicals for a month.

I dumped everything in and began eating in earnest. Bite after bite of chewy tofu, plump mushroom, and crisp celery vanished into my mouth. Bliss.

Suddenly, halfway through, I looked down. No vegetables were in sight. Instead, I was faced with an enormous mass of flavorless, soggy noodles. I began to regret squandering my plastic bag of treasures so soon. And why didn't I mix any of the mushrooms or celery down to the bottom? My salad days, as it were, were over. Anyway, I ate it.

All I can say is: pho that.

(taken from McSweeneys.net)

Honeypie

This was the best meal I'd had in ages. It has kind of a hipster feel on the inside but everyone was really friendly.

I had a duck crostini that had duck confit on it. So delicious. It was rich and tender.

We also ordered Pork Fries. Fries topped with pork, topped with cheese sauce (more like a gravy) and then bacon. These were AMAZING!

Pat had the skirt steak with new red potatoes with a pepper red wine reduction. This was incredibly tender you could cut it with a fork.

I had the fish and chips of the day which was a local caught walleye. So delicious! I want to go back so bad!

Trocadero

After Farm Aid we needed to eat. 12 hours with ball park food does not a meal make. I wanted to take everyone to Honeypie but it was closed. We found Trocadero because it was late night and vegan friendly.

We ordered the Killer Guac which was a pretty good portion - good flavors.

We had steak frites -Grilled to order 10oz. Angus rib eye rubbed in black sea salt served with our famous “skinny” frites and topped with ancho lime steak butter. I thought this was really delicious. It would have went a long way in presentation if they had cut the steak on the bias like steak frites usually come. The fries in this were super delicious and crisp. I really liked the ancho chili lime butter.

Anita had the Skillet Lipsmac n’ Cheese - Creamy Jack and Chihuahua cheeses, cavatappi pasta,spiked with pico de gallo, jalapeños, and Mexican oregano, topped with herbed breadcrumbs and queso fresco. Baked in cast iron. She REALLY liked her mac. He secretly married this mac.

The vegan had Vegetable Linguine with Lemon Thyme Sauce
Tossed with asparagus, zucchini, yellow squash,roasted tomatoes, fresh basil, and
a lemon thyme sauce. There is no mention of cheese or cream in the description so we were a bit miffed when it arrived with both after we explicitly told them he was vegan. They did promptly remake it as a vegan dish. That aside, good pasta.

It was a really neat restaurant with decent service. I recommend it highly if you're in the area.

Wow Dog

Hot Dogs! This place was great! Decorated in Green Bay memorabilia - which I expected. They had traditional Chicago dogs as well as local favorites.

We had an Italian beef, a Chicago style hot dog, nachos, and a Milwaukee style dog. What on earth is that you ask? It's a hot dog with onion, brown mustard and sauerkraut. It's a German town, what do you expect? Everything we had was super delicious and I took this opportunity to have a Sprecher Root Beer. Delicious! The owner and his staff were really friendly and inviting.

Hugo

We needed a nice dinner. Ann and I made a reservation for Hugo right near Halloween. The main reason that I went is because I had heard that the chef Sean Daly was recently selected to cook for the James Beard Foundation. That to me was something worth checking out. I asked my server about this and he had NO idea what I was talking about.
I don't mean to be a douche, but I think that's something you should know as a server. You don't have to scream it at people as they walk in the door, but it wouldn't hurt to bring it up when you're doing your spiel. I asked him a total of 4 times before he finally asked the chef about it and then gave me a little history lesson on something I already knew. The first 2 times I asked him I genuinely wanted him to find out. The second 2 times I asked I just kinda wanted to jerk him around because he obviously didn't give a rat's ass.

I had the scallops with bacon, truffle, arugula, cauliflower. These were so delicious. The sauce and the bacon with the scallop was amazing. They were really fresh. 



They had a seasonal appetizer that Ann ordered. It was foie gras on a biscuit with blueberries and sour lemon ice cream. It was pretty good. If you've had foie gras you know it's common to pair it with a sweet item of equal richness. It's not so much that it was the lemon or the creaminess it was the fact that it was a cold pairing that made it not work for her 100%. But bear in mind - Ann would eat foie gras under any occasion.



Here's the hugo salad with New Potato, Local Greens, Goat Cheese, Bacon, Caramelized Onions, Smoked Pommery Vinaigrette. The fried new potato really added to the texture. I could have used more goat cheese but that's just me. The dressing was really great.



I would eat this fish again in a heartbeat. The melted leeks and mushroom confit were so rich and delicious it wouldn't matter what type of fish they chose that day. On this particular occasion it was a sea bass. MMMM!



Ann had the spare ribs which were seasonal and on their way out for the season. They were delicious. I had a tiny bite of them and they were pretty great.



Ann and a peanut butter mousse with a homemade marshmallow. She thought it was pretty good. I am in no way jazzed about peanut butter so it was an immediate pass for me.



Here's the chocolate bread pudding. This is now the best bread pudding that I've had in the whole city. It was so good. Texturally it was not too mushy and not too crisp. So good!




I would go back to Hugo often. I really liked the atmosphere and the food.

KT's Barbecue

This is right around the corner from my house. I had the half chicken and Pat had the ribs. The sauce is separate from the entree so it's not baked on. It was pretty tasty. It's nothing to write home about but it's convenient and tasty although a tad pricey for a joint that doesn't look to have a lot of overhead.

Sung Korean Bistro

I have been wanting to go here for a while. I finally had my opportunity.

We had the Jhin Mandu - very tasty! I love dumplings and these were just great.




Here's the 8 side dishes. I really loved the fresh kimchi.



I had the Jab Chae - Stir-fried sweet potato noodles with cabbage, onion, green onion, squash, mushroom and bell pepper. I had tofu in mine. It was delicious. Those tiny glassy noodles are SUPER hard to eat with chopsticks.




Ann had the Dolsot Bibimbab
Spinach or watercress, rice, bean sprout, carrot, radish and lettuce topped with an egg sunny side up with beef. Served in heated hot stone bowl with Go-chu-jang (Korean spicy chili bean paste sauce) on the side.
 

Asian Paradise

Asian Paradise is almost paradise. If you're in the Loveland region its pretty good. We went because of a groupon I bought. The decor was really beautiful. There is a giant tree in the middle of the dining room.

We ordered red oil dumplings. These were very delicious and flavorful. They were quite slippery to pick up with chopsticks.



The top roll is a spider roll which immediately fell apart - very disappointing as this is my favorite roll.
The middle is the Spicy Girl roll - crunchy spicy tuna and spicy yellowtail, covered in crunchy spicy salmon. Very tasty. This was the most flavorful of the 3.
The bottom roll is the hulk roll - eel tempura, scallion with crab stick, avocado cream cheese broiled.



At the end of our meal the host came and talked to us for a few minutes about our experience and was very hospitable.

Bistro Ginza Japanese

Groupon.com has made me adventure outside my bubble lately to try new things. This is sometimes good, sometimes not good. I had such high hopes for Bistro Ginza. But alas, it was pretty regrettable.

Firstly they have some WEIRD savings membership that you have to join to get a key fob (that's right, for a RESTAURANT) to get a 5% break on sushi. During November you can get 50% off wine and sushi (but only if you're already a member). Whatever. I would like to eat now please, instead of figuring out your membership rules. It's freaking rice and fish people! So when I say I didn't like the restaurant I want to be clear - I didn't get sick or anything like that. Just service + quality of product was not good.

Anyways - when you get past that weirdness the decor is very nice and inviting. We ordered the edamame - hard to screw that one up.

We had 4 rolls and 2 a la carte pieces.

Yahoo roll - (Tuna, Shrimp, Avocado, Cucumber, Scallion, Masago, Sp Mayo)
This was about the only good roll that we had. It was about 5 pieces. A little too small if you ask me for a roll that was $10.95

Asparagus roll - again, hard to screw up

Raccoon Roll - Shrimp, Cream Cheese, Scallion, Cucumber, Masago) what's missing here?? Oh I know, its any indication that the roll was flash fried.

Spicy Salmon - bland. And seriously! How can something with SPICY in the title be bland?

White Tuna - a la carte - Ann liked this but it was just fish and rice. Again, not mind blowing good.

Ikura - Ann loved it but she loves Ikura anywhere. She'd eat it out of a dirty shoe I bet. I'm going to buy her a little vat of it so she can be ostracized at work for eating fish roe at lunch.

When we went to pay the check our server gave me some guff about not being able to do the "member price" and the groupon. WHATEVER! She "did me a favor" and gave it to me anyways. Anything to get out of there. . .

Vosges Haut-Chocolat

This is some of the best chocolate that money can buy. Seriously. Where else can you get a chocolate bar with bacon? I say that to people and they look at me like I am crazy. I say to those people that you'd have to try it. Do I want to eat one every day? NO. But I do crave them occasionally.

You can get much more than chocolate covered bacon at Vosges. There are fancy baking mixes, truffles (vegan truffles!). I bought the vegan truffles for my friends of that persuasion and they were blown away. Firstly, they had never had truffles before but also they do not often get to eat confections because of their diet. They were well worth the price. Although I'm sad I didn't eat one. . .

If someone asks me what my favorite candy bar is I say Barcelona bar. Deep milk chocolate, gray sea salt and smoked almonds. Being that I live farther from Chicago than I like - I don't get to have one that often. When I do, I try to savor it. Right now I have one in my fridge that I bough in October. I'm just waiting for the right time to eat it.

I am not someone who is a big sweet tooth. Ask anyone. I budget all my calories for salt and or bread. But for Vosges, I make all kinds of exceptions.

Tan Thai

It's been a long time since I went out with my friend Jessica. On this occasion I was meeting her new girlfriend. BTW - they've been together a year. That's how long it's been. On her suggestion (and pocketbook, thanks Jess!) we went to Tan Thai which is equidistant to our 2 homes. Jess has a few dietary restrictions so we usually end up at a Thai or Indian restaurant.

I got the hot and sour soup (Tom Yum). It was pretty tasty. Toward the end it was a bit heavy on the vinegar - but not bad overall.



We also had crab rangoon. Not to cream cheesy - not to crabby. They have a neat little strawberry sauce for dipping that even someone who dislikes strawberries can love.



We had the spring rolls with a honey dipping sauce. Pretty tasty, very crisp and nice flavor from the cabbage inside.




And one of my favorites - pot stickers. Crispy with a pork stuffing. I like a little spicier of a sauce for dipping personally but good nonetheless.



I ordered Basil Chicken. This is a dish that every self respecting Thai restaurant should have on their menu. I found the sauce to be not as basil-y as I'd like. I do applaud them for using real fresh basil. But the flavor of the sauce relied a little too heavily on sesame oil instead of basil.



This is Jessica's Yakisoba - extra egg. Apparently this is her favorite dish. Thin noodles, veggies in a brown sauce. Jess likes the smoky flavor in the sauce which can be attributed to the sesame oil. I too love sesame oil.



Here's Laura's Crazy Noodles. The noodles are indeed crazy! They are huge! I thought they were something else at first.. Looks good. The noodles look like they're made fresh in house.



Ann had the Pad Kee Mao (a favorite of my vegan friends). She had the tofu in it and loves the noodles as well (same noodles as in the crazy noodle dish).



I was most surprised at how small the place is. I was also shocked that they didn't serve sushi. Not that every Thai restaurant has to serve sushi. It's just that most of them do. There is no room for a bar in there either so I believe you can bring wine.

Poco a Poco

Poco A Poco is in Hyde Park square. This is a place I don't get to go for a few reasons. I find it hard to find parking at any time. Many times that I've been there the drivers seem to be rude. That being said, for me to go out on my day off to find a place in Hyde Park square. Well, its gotta be good.

I was basically just aimlessly driving around trying to find somewhere for lunch and was miraculously able to find a parking spot near Poco a Poco.

The host was able to seat me immediately - I guess I missed the lunch rush. 1pm is a bit late for a lunch I guess.

I had their iced tea which is flavored with something very subtle and somehow I forgot to ask what.


Chips and salsa were offered to me and I took them! The chips were good, the salsa was a bit disappointing. The first part of it was really bland. When I got to the bottom of the bowl it got spicier. I can hardly think this was intentional. Maybe just a mixture of 2 batches perhaps? Anyways - you're not missing anything with the salsa.



I had the fish tacos. These were really tasty. I like to make fish tacos myself and my fish is a shredded mixture of fish and marinade. This was a chunk of seasoned fish. There was a little "slaw" and a nice spiced lime aioli with corn. The only thing I would prefer would be corn tortilla. Sometimes a flour tortilla doesn't taste like anything except flour. WHITE flour. The aioli and corn made these a little soggy so maybe corn wouldn't hold up so well. The flavor was really delicious though.

I wish they had their ceviche on the menu for lunch I was really wanting to try that. I guess I'll have to brave Hyde Park Square at night to get my ceviche on.

Aroma

You know I had high hopes for this place. First off it's in Kenwood mall - prime location. Second there was a bit of hype at it's opening. This however has died down and what's left is a nice, weird vibe and bad sushi.

The vibe tries to be hip, stainless steel accents, sushi bar in the middle of the room. But there are flat screen TV's everywhere. Is it a sports bar or a sushi restaurant? Who knows.

I ordered 2 rolls that were pretty unremarkable. When I say "bad sushi" let me qualify. No, it did not make me ill, no it did not smell. It was just poorly executed and  barely worth the price (half price).

They make 1 roll that is over 2 inches wide. My server claimed it was very popular. I can't see how since I could barely fit it inside my mouth. When I was successful I had the accompanying sauce all over my face.

If you want better sushi - go to Beluga or even Soho.