My wife and I were up in Grand Rapids, MI due to a clinic our daughter was participating in at the Grand Rapids Fencing Academy. Our daughter started at 10am, so we dropped her off and headed quickly to a movie, which started at 10:20am. After the movie, we could not decide on where we wanted to go for lunch, but knew that we needed to find somewhere that had gluten free options, since my wife suffers from celiac disease.
Since it participated in the Rapid Rewards Dining program, we decided upon Brann's Steakhouse and Grille on Leonard Street in Grand Rapids. It was a great choice, since it was close to the fencing club and also had a gluten free menu, which was actually pretty big.
After a few minutes, we decided upon what we wanted to eat. Unfortunately, our waitress took some time to get back to us. When she did finally get to us, we ordered 2 pounds of the bbq ribs with buttered steamed broccoli and the vinegar and oil coleslaw to split. We also added a shrimp skewer to it, so that we would definitely have enough to eat. To drink my wife ordered a water and I ordered a diet Mountain Dew - it's always nice, when a restaurant has a different diet choice than just cola. Our waitress arrived with our drinks and with a couple of yeast rolls, which includes their cinnamon butter, which is awesome.
When the huge mound of ribs, sides and shrimp skewer arrived, we knew that we would have enough to eat. The ribs were falling off the bone and tasted great. The bbq sauce was a perfect blend of tangy and sweet. Plus, there was enough bbq sauce. Sometimes restaurants really skimp on the bbq sauce - not Brann's! The shrimp skewer was decent and the sides were pretty good.
The value that received for what we ordered was great. We were able to get out of Brann's for the two of us for less than $25 and we were stuffed. Add to it that they participate in the Rapid Rewards Dining program, we will definitely be back.
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
Monday, September 29, 2014
Dinner at Penn Station East Coast Subs in Mishawaka, IN
I had a quick dinner at Penn Station East Coast Subs, located on Main Street in Mishawaka, IN, near Day road. I had a hankering for their fries - I would rate them just behind those at Five Guys for a "fast food" joint. At this location, the parking by the main entrance is reserved for the salon next door, but I arrived at about 7:30pm, so the salon was closed, so I parked in one of their spots.
For dinner, I ordered a chicken teriyaki sub with the mushrooms and onion included, plus an order of fries (of course) and a Diet Mountain Dew. One of the other things I like about Penn Station, outside of their fries, is that they have Diet Mountain Dew on tap.
I usually go to the Penn Station location on the corner of Ironwood and US23, but the Mishawaka location is closer to my house.
I ordered an extra order of large fries, because my wife and daughters had a hankering for fries. Luckily, Penn Station has a dedicated fryer for their french fries, which allows my wife and daughters to eat them, since there is no gluten cross contamination. My wife, in particular, suffers from intestinal distress after being "glutened" due to her celiac disease.
For dinner, I ordered a chicken teriyaki sub with the mushrooms and onion included, plus an order of fries (of course) and a Diet Mountain Dew. One of the other things I like about Penn Station, outside of their fries, is that they have Diet Mountain Dew on tap.
I usually go to the Penn Station location on the corner of Ironwood and US23, but the Mishawaka location is closer to my house.
I ordered an extra order of large fries, because my wife and daughters had a hankering for fries. Luckily, Penn Station has a dedicated fryer for their french fries, which allows my wife and daughters to eat them, since there is no gluten cross contamination. My wife, in particular, suffers from intestinal distress after being "glutened" due to her celiac disease.
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Lunch at Carmela's at Macri's Bakery in South Bend, IN
Had lunch with several work associates at Carmela's, which is located at the old Macri's Deli and in the same building as Macri's Bakery. I had been to Carmela's several years ago with my wife, but had not returned, so I was interested to see what I would think of it.
As we entered the building, I could see the wear/cracks in the brick walkway leading to the entrance of the building. As we entered, though, the inside of Carmela's looked very inviting. We were seated at a nice corner table. There were only about 4 other tables occupied, so the restaurant was not noisy at all.
We had two waitresses - one was training the other. They did a good job of serving us and keeping up on our drinks. They were not the greatest servers I have ever had, but they did their job efficiently.
I ordered an Italian Beef sandwich with french fries. I joked that, since we were at an Italian restaurant, that it should just be a Beef sandwich. Though my co-workers go the joke, the waitresses were a bit too preoccupied to laugh. Or - it was a stupid, corny joke. My coworkers all ordered salads.
The orders came pretty quickly. All of the salads looked pretty good and my Beef sandwich looked tasty. I asked for some ketchup, since there was none at the table. It took them about 5 minutes to finally bring it to the table. Luckily, I was enjoying dipping my sandwich in the tasty au jus. When they brought the Hunt's ketchup, I remembered why we always buy Heinz at home. I am not a huge Hunt's ketchup fan.
The price of the sandwich was not overly exorbitant, really not much more than one would spend at Penn Station, though Penn Station's fries are much better. I would probably go to Carmela's again for lunch, if I was in that area of town.
As we entered the building, I could see the wear/cracks in the brick walkway leading to the entrance of the building. As we entered, though, the inside of Carmela's looked very inviting. We were seated at a nice corner table. There were only about 4 other tables occupied, so the restaurant was not noisy at all.
We had two waitresses - one was training the other. They did a good job of serving us and keeping up on our drinks. They were not the greatest servers I have ever had, but they did their job efficiently.
I ordered an Italian Beef sandwich with french fries. I joked that, since we were at an Italian restaurant, that it should just be a Beef sandwich. Though my co-workers go the joke, the waitresses were a bit too preoccupied to laugh. Or - it was a stupid, corny joke. My coworkers all ordered salads.
The orders came pretty quickly. All of the salads looked pretty good and my Beef sandwich looked tasty. I asked for some ketchup, since there was none at the table. It took them about 5 minutes to finally bring it to the table. Luckily, I was enjoying dipping my sandwich in the tasty au jus. When they brought the Hunt's ketchup, I remembered why we always buy Heinz at home. I am not a huge Hunt's ketchup fan.
The price of the sandwich was not overly exorbitant, really not much more than one would spend at Penn Station, though Penn Station's fries are much better. I would probably go to Carmela's again for lunch, if I was in that area of town.
Saturday, September 27, 2014
Lunch at Ho Ping House in Roseland or South Bend, IN
Had lunch at the Ho Ping House in Roseland, North of the University of Notre Dame campus. The location had once been a Denny's and before that a Shoney's. I believe that the owners are somehow related to the owners at the Mandarin House. I like Ho Ping better, since they give you free refills on your drinks.
We were going to ride together, but he ended up having a last minute meeting, which pushed our noon lunch to 12:45pm. I told him that I would just meet him there, since I had an appointment at 2pm at the office for which I needed to return. I arrived at Ho Ping at 12:45pm with my stomach grumbling. My counterpart did not arrive until 12:55pm. Prior to his arrival, I had ordered a diet coke from our waiter, Jin.
When my guest arrived, we ordered very quickly. He ordered the Sesame Chicken with fried rice and some lo mien noodles. I order the General Tso's chicken (like I had done at Cre-Asian earlier in the week) with white rice, a spring roll and won ton soup. The presentation, like always was great. Jin brought my won ton soup out quickly and I inhaled almost as fast. Soon both of our entrees appeared. As I started eating the chicken, I noticed that either their recipe had changed or my taste buds had. The General Tso's was not very sweet, as I had been expecting, but was still good.
Of course, I ate everything on my plate and was very satisfied after doing so. Jin brought the check and the fortune cookie, which I ate straight away. After paying and on the way out, I took a peppermint candy to help freshen my breath after the feast.
I will definitely be going to Ho Ping again in the near future.
We were going to ride together, but he ended up having a last minute meeting, which pushed our noon lunch to 12:45pm. I told him that I would just meet him there, since I had an appointment at 2pm at the office for which I needed to return. I arrived at Ho Ping at 12:45pm with my stomach grumbling. My counterpart did not arrive until 12:55pm. Prior to his arrival, I had ordered a diet coke from our waiter, Jin.
When my guest arrived, we ordered very quickly. He ordered the Sesame Chicken with fried rice and some lo mien noodles. I order the General Tso's chicken (like I had done at Cre-Asian earlier in the week) with white rice, a spring roll and won ton soup. The presentation, like always was great. Jin brought my won ton soup out quickly and I inhaled almost as fast. Soon both of our entrees appeared. As I started eating the chicken, I noticed that either their recipe had changed or my taste buds had. The General Tso's was not very sweet, as I had been expecting, but was still good.
Of course, I ate everything on my plate and was very satisfied after doing so. Jin brought the check and the fortune cookie, which I ate straight away. After paying and on the way out, I took a peppermint candy to help freshen my breath after the feast.
I will definitely be going to Ho Ping again in the near future.
Friday, September 26, 2014
Happy Hour at Brother's Bar and Grill at Eddy Street Commons in South Bend, IN
I went to Brother's Bar and Grill at Eddy Street Commons for happy hour on Thursday, September 18. Brother's is a small, regional chain that originated in Lacrosse, Wisconsin. I have been to Brother's for happy hour before and enjoy the plethora of craft beers that they have on tap.
On this day, I entered the bar and sat myself at a table in the bar area. Though no one greeted me, when I entered, the waitress was quick to come to my table. As I stared at the beers that they have on tap, she brought me a beer list. I immediately spotted a Green Flash West Coast IPA and ordered it. Since I was meeting someone from San Diego, I thought that it would be fitting to order a craft beer from San Diego.
The bar was not too busy, when I arrived at 3:45pm. There were some revelers at the bar and a few tables had some folks at them, but there was no one seated at the tables in the restaurant area. Of course, since it was a nice day outside, there were a few people seated outside. Inside it was a bit sticky and humid, but I quickly got over that, when the waitress brought my beer.
My guest was about 20 minutes late, so I had almost downed my first beer, when he arrived. I am not sure what he ordered, but he ordered me a second Green Flash West Coast IPA. I did not realize how strong they were, but could start to feel it a little, once I was halfway through the beer.
I will definitely be back to Brother's since I like them better than O'Rourke's for that type of bar scene and because they have Green Flash beers on tap.
On this day, I entered the bar and sat myself at a table in the bar area. Though no one greeted me, when I entered, the waitress was quick to come to my table. As I stared at the beers that they have on tap, she brought me a beer list. I immediately spotted a Green Flash West Coast IPA and ordered it. Since I was meeting someone from San Diego, I thought that it would be fitting to order a craft beer from San Diego.
The bar was not too busy, when I arrived at 3:45pm. There were some revelers at the bar and a few tables had some folks at them, but there was no one seated at the tables in the restaurant area. Of course, since it was a nice day outside, there were a few people seated outside. Inside it was a bit sticky and humid, but I quickly got over that, when the waitress brought my beer.
My guest was about 20 minutes late, so I had almost downed my first beer, when he arrived. I am not sure what he ordered, but he ordered me a second Green Flash West Coast IPA. I did not realize how strong they were, but could start to feel it a little, once I was halfway through the beer.
I will definitely be back to Brother's since I like them better than O'Rourke's for that type of bar scene and because they have Green Flash beers on tap.
Thursday, September 25, 2014
Southwest Flight 745 LAS to RNO Trip Report
Since the cost to upgrade to Business Select was minimal (less than
$60), I decided to upgrade to a Business Select ticket for my round
trip flight between Las Vegas and Reno. Since I did not check in
until the day of my trip, I was only given a boarding position of A4.
I did get a coupon for a "free" drink, as well.
After my flight on Delta from Minneapolis arrived in Las Vegas at gate D37, I deplaned and headed over to the C Terminal to Gate C25 to board my Southwest flight to Reno on Monday, September 22, 2014.
After exiting the tram from the D gates, I started following the signs to the A, B and C gates, but noticed one of those ominous signs that notified me that I would need to go through security again if I passed
that point. I stopped immediately and looked around. I noticed a
door that was emblazoned with a Do Not Enter sign beyond which I could
see the tram to the C Gates. I passed through the doors and took the
tram to the C Gates.
The gate agent made her first pre-boarding announcement at 7:34pm and
had us line up at 7:38pm. We boarded the plane at 7:43pm.
As I boarded the plane, a 737-700, I noticed about 10 passengers that
must have been throughs, so I sat myself on the aisle in seat 4D.
Even though I received the email about wifi the day before, this plane
did not have wifi capability, like my flight from Newark to Midway the
previous week.
The flight attendant closed the door at 7:54pm . We pushed back from
the gate at 7:59pm and we took off at 8:07pm.
Since the flight was not full (about 80 passengers), the middle seat
next to me remained empty. In the window seat sat a young woman from
the southern edge of Lake Tahoe. I asked her if she might have an
issue getting there from Reno due tontine wild fires, but she seemed
to think that the fires were on the western side of the lake and would
not hinder the drive.
When the flight attendant came by, I ordered a can of Coke Zero and
with my coupon that I received with my Business Select ticket
purchase, I ordered a Fat Tire Amber Ale. The flight attendant seemed
a bit put off that I ordered two drinks and questioned me to see if I
thought I would have time to drink both. I answered in the
affirmative.
She brought my Fat Tire Amber Ale to me right away, even before she
started to prepare drinks for the other passengers. The Fat Tire came
to me very cold with a bit of ice formed, so it was quite good.
Shortly thereafter she brought my can of Coke Zero with a glass of
ice. For a snack, they handed me two packets of lightly salted
peanuts.
We started making our initial descent at 8:51pm and landed at RNO at
9:07pm and arrived at gate B3 at 9:11pm. I deplaned at 9:13pm.
$60), I decided to upgrade to a Business Select ticket for my round
trip flight between Las Vegas and Reno. Since I did not check in
until the day of my trip, I was only given a boarding position of A4.
I did get a coupon for a "free" drink, as well.
 |
| Southwest Flight 745 LAS to RNO |
After exiting the tram from the D gates, I started following the signs to the A, B and C gates, but noticed one of those ominous signs that notified me that I would need to go through security again if I passed
that point. I stopped immediately and looked around. I noticed a
door that was emblazoned with a Do Not Enter sign beyond which I could
see the tram to the C Gates. I passed through the doors and took the
tram to the C Gates.
The gate agent made her first pre-boarding announcement at 7:34pm and
had us line up at 7:38pm. We boarded the plane at 7:43pm.
As I boarded the plane, a 737-700, I noticed about 10 passengers that
must have been throughs, so I sat myself on the aisle in seat 4D.
Even though I received the email about wifi the day before, this plane
did not have wifi capability, like my flight from Newark to Midway the
previous week.
The flight attendant closed the door at 7:54pm . We pushed back from
the gate at 7:59pm and we took off at 8:07pm.
Since the flight was not full (about 80 passengers), the middle seat
next to me remained empty. In the window seat sat a young woman from
the southern edge of Lake Tahoe. I asked her if she might have an
issue getting there from Reno due tontine wild fires, but she seemed
to think that the fires were on the western side of the lake and would
not hinder the drive.
When the flight attendant came by, I ordered a can of Coke Zero and
with my coupon that I received with my Business Select ticket
purchase, I ordered a Fat Tire Amber Ale. The flight attendant seemed
a bit put off that I ordered two drinks and questioned me to see if I
thought I would have time to drink both. I answered in the
affirmative.
She brought my Fat Tire Amber Ale to me right away, even before she
started to prepare drinks for the other passengers. The Fat Tire came
to me very cold with a bit of ice formed, so it was quite good.
Shortly thereafter she brought my can of Coke Zero with a glass of
ice. For a snack, they handed me two packets of lightly salted
peanuts.
We started making our initial descent at 8:51pm and landed at RNO at
9:07pm and arrived at gate B3 at 9:11pm. I deplaned at 9:13pm.
Lunch at Elia's Mediterranean Cuisine in South Bend, IN
Had lunch with some friends at Elia's in South Bend, which is located near the corner of US23 and Ironwood, not far from Cre-Asian, where I recently had lunch. I have been going to Elia's since they opened at their location on US31 North in Roseland.
As usual, there were quite a few people scattered throughout the restaurant. The four of us sat down and just ordered waters. Our server was quick and efficient and took our orders. Most at our able order the Shish Tawouk, a great chicken dish. I ordered the Midardara Bowl Combo, which is a mixture of lentils and rice topped with tabouli, hoummos and garlic paste. Just after we ordered, our fifth joined the group.
Our orders were prepared pretty quickly, but the presentation is always spot on at Elia's. Everything was in the right place on our plates and looked delicious. We quickly accepted our server's suggestion of some pita. The pita at Elia's is of the thin, but quite delicious variety. My coworkers devoured their Shish Tawouk. I was pleasantly surprised with my dish, since I had never ordered it before. All of the flavors complemented each other very well and the garlic paste was tasty, but not overpowering.
The price was just right for what we ordered. It is awesome to have a good Mediterranean restaurant in our community. I will definitely continue to frequent Elia's on a regular basis.
As usual, there were quite a few people scattered throughout the restaurant. The four of us sat down and just ordered waters. Our server was quick and efficient and took our orders. Most at our able order the Shish Tawouk, a great chicken dish. I ordered the Midardara Bowl Combo, which is a mixture of lentils and rice topped with tabouli, hoummos and garlic paste. Just after we ordered, our fifth joined the group.
Our orders were prepared pretty quickly, but the presentation is always spot on at Elia's. Everything was in the right place on our plates and looked delicious. We quickly accepted our server's suggestion of some pita. The pita at Elia's is of the thin, but quite delicious variety. My coworkers devoured their Shish Tawouk. I was pleasantly surprised with my dish, since I had never ordered it before. All of the flavors complemented each other very well and the garlic paste was tasty, but not overpowering.
The price was just right for what we ordered. It is awesome to have a good Mediterranean restaurant in our community. I will definitely continue to frequent Elia's on a regular basis.
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