The Utah Food Review

Basilas, St. George Ut

2011-10-07T23:12:00.000-07:00

I don't have time to format this the way that I would like, but lets face it your probably surprised that I'm still posting (or posting again) at all.

I lived in Greece for a while so when I heard about this place I was pretty excited. I decided to try it out one night and well, the experience was kind of disappointing. There was a pretty good sized crowd there the night that I went, and yeah the outside has more atmosphere than the inside, the decor is fine, but I wouldn't call it Mediterranean.

It's not a very big restaurant, so you'd think it would be hard to get "lost." But some how I did. I didn't know what I wanted the first time my waitress came by, but I didn't think I'd have to wait 20 more minutes for her to come back. I couldn't decide whether to get the Spanikopita, or the Souvlaki, because I really wanted to try them both. Then I noticed that for almost exactly the price of both I could get a combo plate, but the combo plate came with the chicken and the beef souvlaki. This was definitely what I wanted. I reasoned that even though it was way more than I wanted to spend, it would probably be enough food to take some home, and eat the next day. After waiting for what seemed like an eternity my food came. (about a minute before my food came they brought out some bread and oil for me) The bread was ok, but not great, the oil was good, but I wish I'd received it about 1/2 an hour early... while I was actually waiting for my food.

One of the servers (not mine) was kind enough to make sure I never ran out of water, she seemed nice (and I admit, I'd probably like to get to know her better, so if your reading this... let me know) and for that I was truly grateful. For the most part the food was good, but everything was cut in half. literally. Each of my kabobs, was three small pieces of meat (1 chicken kabob, 1 beef) I expected a full kabob of each. There was plenty of rice, but not $20 worth. The flavor was good. Then I tried the Spanikopita. It was soggy. I'd been seeing these large gorgeous servings of spanikopita come out, and I was pretty excited. but I only got about three bites worth of Spinach pie. I expected at least twice what I got on the Spanikopita, and at least 20 % more on everything else (except the rice, I still had plenty of rice... though I was able to finish it all). I felt like I was getting a buy one @ $10 or Buy two @ $25 deal. If I had known, I'd have ordered them separately.

I totally felt like I got gypped. I was not impressed with Basilas, and I would not go back. The worst part of the whole thing is that I really could have had a good experience. Some restaurants make sales, and some make customers, this one didn't end up making a customer out of me.

I would give this place maybe 3 and a half bronze spoons out of 8, The food was mostly pretty good, but the experience was everything else.

Free Ice Cream Day @ Walmart

2009-05-29T12:07:00.000-07:00

Saturday May 30, 2009

11 a.m. - 4p.m.
one SAMPLE per customer (1.5- 4 oz.)

National Pancake Day (at IHOP)

2009-02-24T11:00:00.000-08:00

IHOP is continuing their tradition of National Pancake Day giving.

Starting in 2006, IHOP decided to celebrate National Pancake Day
(also known as Fat Tuesday) by giving away a free short stack of pancake to anyone who came in.
All they ask is that you try to pay it forward.

Their website states:

On Tuesday, February 24, 2009. From 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., we’ll give you one FREE short stack (three) of our famous buttermilk pancakes.* All we ask is that you consider making a donation to support local children’s hospitals through Children’s Miracle Network, or other local charities.

Since beginning its National Pancake Day celebration in 2006, IHOP has raised nearly two million dollars to support charities in the communities in which it operates. With your help, we hope to raise $1,000,000 for Children’s Miracle Network in 2009!

I think their goal is commendable, and I'd like to encourage you to help them achieve it.

Rickshaw Cafe

2008-05-28T09:35:00.000-07:00

Should you be traveling down to Saint George for some summer fun, there is one place that I think everyone should eat. The Rickshaw Cafe. It doesn't sound fancy, and really it isn't, a tiny restaurant trying to make a start. They serve all kinds of cuisine from all over Asia, including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, etc. All of which aren't bad, they come in small meals served on trays for a reasonable price, but one meal stands above the rest. It is their Malaysian Walnut Shrimp. Each bite has to be savored individually. It's made up of battered shrimp and candied walnuts in a white honey sauce. The flavor is heaven, and I don't use that lightly. As a whole the restaurant doesn't rise above six plastic spoons, but that dish raises it to ten if not higher. I would recommend this dish to anyone (unless you have a nut or shrimp allergy). Even if you don't normally eat shrimp, or Chinese food, try this. I guarantee you'll love it.

Cafe Orleans

2008-04-11T13:19:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm new to this blog so someone let me know if I do something wrong.

I recently went to Cafe Orleans, the restaurant that replaced Boomers Cafe. (Isn't it about time.) The decorations were about the same, though the posters are different and someone threw a bunch of Mardi Gras masks about the place trying to improve it, and failing. But despite the strange vibe from the restaurant I had heard good things about the place.

My husband, Sandin and I always share a plate, portions at most places are insane. We decided to do the same there. We decided on the Crawfish platter. Not a bad choice since it comes with jambalaya, steak fries or sweet potato fries, a green salad, and cornbread or French bread, and hushpuppies.

Like most people here in Utah, I'm an unexperienced Creole eater. Sandin on the other hand served a mission in North Carolina so he at least knew the southern terms, like hushpuppies. The food was interesting. We got the chicken and sausage jambalaya, cornbread, and sweet potato fries, as well as their Creole salad dressing.

The jambalaya is a rice dish with plenty of spice and large chunks of meat in it. It was good, but too spicy. If I went again I might try the crawfish jambalaya instead. The fries were delicious, but we didn't get any sauce to eat them with and they needed something (I'm not precisely sure what, something sweet perhaps). The hushpuppies are a small cornbread based deep fried dumpling. They were really good. They too needed something to dip into, but they were good on their own still. The salad dressing (I'm sorry I don't remember the exact name of it) was really good. It tasted different enough to be worth ordering. The crawfish was good as well, the small pieces of it were deep fried and once again could have used some dipping sauce.

The best part of the meal was the cornbread. It was the best I've had in forever. It was moist and sweet, but not too much. It didn't need butter or honey, but stood on it's own. This is a good thing, since neither butter nor honey were offered.

Altogether, the food was not bad, but the service was. We waited forever before we could order, our food came in a fair amount of time, after which the waitress disappeared and didn't return until it was time for the bill.

On the whole I give the place five plastic spoons entirely on for the food. The standing might have been higher if anyone had been around to get us something to dip our food in. But it's different, and in Cedar City we like anything that's different. There are so few restaurants here that it's definitely worth trying if you're tired of Winger's, Applebee's, or Fast food.

Sharky's Woodfired Mexican Grill

2007-08-20T14:51:00.000-07:00

My parents and I left Cedar City for St. George one Saturday before lunch, and we didn't stop to eat until nearly four in the afternoon, so on my first trip to Sharky's we were famished!

My mother recommended Sharky's because she remembered that the last time she came they served a lot of good food for very little money. That sounded great to the rest of us, so we pulled onto Red Cliffs Drive, just east of the freeway on-ramp and easily spotted Sharky's near Starbuck's.

The place was already busy, but the line moved quickly, and by the time we'd decided what we wanted, we were at the register. We ordered one large plate of nachos for the three of us (total $5.99) even though the fire-roasted pizza was the same price and the picture on the window looked delicious, though more like a very large tostada than a pizza. We agreed to try that on our next visit to St. George.

The nachos came topped with pinto beans, black beans, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, cheddar cheese, guacamole and sour cream. We were very hungry, so even though my mother assured us that we would be full when we finished, we added meat (they have chicken or steak; we chose steak) for another $2. (total now $7.99, plus tax)

We headed for the salsa bar in the corner, and I got excited! They had pico de gallo, green tomato salsa, fire roasted salsa, Sharky's original salsa, a warm salsa, and a very hot salsa. There were wedges of lemon and lime, a mix of onion and cilantro, and lots of little clear plastic cups to fill with your toppings. The cups were much too small. I got one filled with each salsa, and had to refill them twice before I was done. My parents each had a set that they refilled at least once, too.

By the time we got our salsa to the table, our nachos were there, on wax paper covering an aluminum platter about 20" in diameter. The corn tortilla chips were hot (crispy but not overly greasy), and they filled the platter almost completely. The ingredients were all very fresh, the guacamole was smooth with chunks of avacado, the beans were soft and tasty, the steak was diced, tender and juicy. I don't usually like steak, but this was really good!

At first, I thought the toppings were a little sparse for the number of chips they were covering, but halfway through the meal, I realized there was more there than I'd thought, and when the toppings were gone, there was still all that great salsa to go with the rest of the chips!

We cleaned up after ourselves, and I noticed that the dining area was not huge, but it was comfortable enough to be busy without people running into each other.

It's funny, but my mother told me I needed to go see the bathroom before we left, so I went there to wash my hands, which were rather messy from all the finger-food. I was really surprised! They had set stone-like square tiles on the walls, though the floor was just cement painted black. On the wall, where the tiles ended about the level of my elbow, there were rough multi-colored pebbles set in grey grouting in a wave-like pattern. My mother liked it so much that she wants to do something similar at our house!

I give this meal 7 plastic spoons--we fed 3 hungry people on $8, the atmosphere was nice, the place was clean and tastefully decorated, and the food was worth talking about afterwards! It even settled well on the long drive home, thank goodness.

Sharky's serves lots of Mexican dishes, and they all looked as tasty as ours, though some were perhaps more expensive. I hope I get to stop there again and try something else soon!

Location:
158 N. Red Cliffs Dr. Ste. 2
St. George, Utah
(North of the freeway on-ramp going north from St. George)

Phone: 435-656-2991

Viors

2007-02-26T21:22:00.000-08:00

Roland was stuck, so I came to his aid,
It was lunch time, and his Computer was broken,
well not broken, but not working right either,
So I told him I would stop by on my way home.

When I was done, he bought me lunch, and since Vior's Bakery and Deli is really close to our offices, that's what I got. And ohh was it good.

He has them on speed dial... just in case he can't get out,
and speed dial works well. You give them your name, and then tell them your sandwhich,
(He also has a menu for super easy ordering)

I asked him what was good, and he said "everything." I had to be skeptical.
So I asked him about the Chicken Panini.
That's the one he's never had.
That's the one I wanted.
In the Store I think it was called Vior's Chicken Panini, but on his menu is was something else,
like Tenegate Chicken Panini, I would look it up, but they don't have an easily accessible website. When I got there my sandwhich was ready. Of course I had to get an Alligator Jaw to close out my meal.

I took the food back to my office, and oddly, it was still warm.
When I took the first half of my sandwhich out of the container
(I got a full-- two halfs), I thought this bread feels funny,
but as soon as I took my first bite, my hesitation began to disappear.
The sandwhich was amazing! And it was still hot!

Vior's Chicken Panini
The chicken was nice and warm. And it had the perfect texture,
I think it was pulled. It was thinnish, but it still felt like chicken.
It wasn't dry, and I didn't need to stop to cut each bite before I ate it.
(it may have been in chuncks, but it didn't feel like chunks, it just felt, and tasted perfect).

Then I noticed the bread it was really good.
not overly airy, but not overly dense either.
It's a panini, so the bread is not typical bread. This Panini bread is baked
in single serve size "loafs"

The sauce was really good. It's something like big mac sauce, but a little lighter.
I didn't compare the sauces but I think Vior's is better, maybe a hint of BBQ.
Either way the sauce was way good. In fact I would buy the sauce alone,
and I think it would fix many a dull sandwhich.

At this point I really wish I could find their website.
I don't remember everything that was on the sandwhich,
I just remember that it was amazing.

If I had to guess I would say lettuce, and tomato, and Red onions.

Not only was the Sandwhich very tasty, but it was big too.
Like I said, I got a full, and that's what it did too.
After the first half, I already new this was a meal!
The second half was just as good, but I had to wait to make room
for my alligator jaw.

Alligator Jaws
Call it a guilty pleasure,
or maybe it's those found childhood memories,
but part of me really likes alligator jaws.
It's a deep fried triangular donut, then they cut it open,
and fill it with this uber-sweet pink frosting.
They can't possibly be good for you, and sometimes even I think it's "too much"
(not too big just too much, though the size is nice),
But it's a tradition, and I love them.
so I had one of these too.

and when I got to it,
it was good too.

It seems like I ate there once before, but It's been a while,
that time I got a cressant, (and It may not have been Vior's at the time)
but it was too small.

Viors is located on 4th south, just off of Main St.
In Cedar City, They also have a location in St. George,
I think it's by the Factory Stores.

Viors Bakery
50 West 400 South, Cedar City, UT 84720
(435) 586-4572

Highly satisfying
I give this visit to Vior's 8 wooden spoons, (even with dessert and a drink, I stayed under $10)

Gadolfos Deli

2007-02-14T21:36:00.000-08:00

My first experience with Gandolfo's Deli was probably about two years ago.
In fact I'm not even sure that I saw one before that.
That is about the time that the Cedar City location opened for business,
and that is about the time that I started eating there.
This review (at least on my part) will speak specifically about that location.
but as always I welcome all comments, about this and any location.

Update: The Cedar City Location is under new management, some comments may not apply anymore. We may even update the review, we'll see.

As always I feel I must talk about the bread.
It's tradition.
but first let me set the scene.

Gandolfo's Deli is Located pretty squarely in the Heart of Cedar City.
If Cedar City has a downtown, Gandolfos. is the place.
The place is kind of dark, but I guess that gives it a slightly more authentic feel.
And they have little bits here and there, that make you think of a big city, back east. Then there's the deli counter.
yep
they have the salad's and the desserts and such, just like you would
expect in a deli. To be fair I haven't tasted their salads or desserts.
And of course what Deli would be complete without a large tub of dill pickles
(also an item that I have yet to try).

Then there's the menu, at first it's pretty impressive,
maybe even overwhelming. I mean there have to be over fifty different sandwiches,
and each can be adjusted to you own likes, and many can be served hot or cold.
I like the freedom of being able to choose exactly what I want, but it does make it harder to judge the eatery as a whole.
And for me, it make's it pretty tough to pick the sandwhich that I want.

Well it sounds like it's time for me to talk about the bread.
It's really rather unimpressive. There are a few choices on bread,
and some of them are definately better than others, but I have yet to find on that I really liked (ok the wheat bread was decent. but certainly not stellar).

The first time I went I thought, "Try the regular sub-bread,
regular is always safe."

Regular was disappointing, but I didn't realize it was the bread for until I had it a few more times.

The bread was chewy,
maybe even a little doughy, but certainly not the highlight of the sandwich.
And maybe, just maybe, the bread is not made to be warm, but I like warm sandwiches, so I thought I would try it.

After a few failed attempts, with the normal bread I decided to go for the wheat bread. It was way better. The regular bread is a hogie roll, the wheat bread is just a couple of slices of bread. But to be fair, it is big. The wheat bread is pretty thick, and it is large enough to still feel like a pretty healthy sandwich.
Actually I was surprised by how little it wasn't.

And like I said the wheat bread is much better, but it's almost like they over correct. The hogie roll, is perhaps a little doughy, and the wheat bread was just a little dry. Still of the bread's I've had there, the wheat wins hands down.

Perhaps now would be a good time for a disclaimer,
I don't feel that my local Gandolfos has given me the best possible experience.
I think the staff just doesn't care, they work for next to nothing, and they're not about to get fired.

Unfortunately the sandwiches that I have had seem to reflect this attitude.
Thus my review is somewhat tainted.
One thing that has really bothered me about gandolfos is the way they do a hot sandwhich. It's like only half of it gets warm, and that half only gets warm.
I really love a good hot sandwhich, but I have never had a good hot sandwhich there. Sure they have an impressive menu, and some of the ingredients/ combinations look phenomenal, but they never live up to my expectations.

here are a few of the sandwhiches that I think have had:
The Urban Cowboy
The Bronx BBQ
The Bridge Hampton
And Maybe Club Met

The last time I went in I was very aware of my sandwhich,
I ordered the wheat bread, I didn't get it heated, and I still didn't like it.
What I noticed was the MAYO. I don't know why but the mayo really hit me,
maybe I don't like mayonaise, or maybe I don't like their mayonaise, or maybe the person who threw my sandwhich together put on too much, but either way it was not very pleasant to me.

So for me Gandolfo's is out,
yes I might go there again, but it won't be my choice,
and yes I do think I could do it right this time, but I don't imagine it will be anytime soon.

I give Gandolfo's Three Wooden Spoons, just not my sandwhich shop.
(but their web site is quite nice)

Cedar City, UT

126 N. Main St., Ste 102

(435) 586-8116

http://gandolfosdeli.com/storelocator.php

Quizno's or Gandolfos, I can't decide

2007-02-03T15:38:00.000-08:00

But I can tell you this one is an up,
and one is a down
let me know if there is one you would prefer to here me babble about.

Deano's Pizza

2006-10-24T20:20:00.000-07:00

If you're ever passing though Fillmore,
and let's face it the odds are pretty good.
You might just want to stop at Deano's Pizza.

I was quite happy to add Our former state capitol to the elite list of places in the review. But the question was "which of their seven restaurants (estimate) should we eat at?" (Yes I did just end that sentance with a preposition, but I'm too lazy to fix it.)

We started at the south end of town (where by the way, gas seems to be quite a bit cheaper (than the north end of town)). We thought for sure we would go where we always go, Larry's Drive in, but we drove through town anyway. And a few blocks later we found Deano's Pizza.

At length we decided Deano's was our place.

We were even more sold when we noticed that they had a mini-golf course in the back.

The Entrance is on the corner of the building.
There are two doors,
One facing each way.
I unfortunately picked the one that faces south.

As you enter it, um doesn't really look like a place of food.
but if you go upstairs,
and pass the room with the pool table you'll find yourself in a hallway.
and if you look carefully,
at the end of the hallway, you'll likely see a counter
(you know a place where you could order).
Actually there is a room off to the left, which also has such a counter.

The room to the left also has tables.
(where you could eat your pizza)
I would actually order from here if I had it to do again.

The smell is pleasant, but perhaps a bit stronger in the dining area.
The menu as you might guess is mostly Pizza.
The selection is good, but nothing unexpected.

And it's mostly pizza,
yeah they have like a lasagne but we didn't get that.
Since I can pretty much eat anything,
I let my sister pick our Pizza.

She selected a Pepperoni, with mushrooms and olives.
I thought that sounded great.

What I forgot, is that I don't really like mushrooms, but I'll get into that later.

So we ordered our pizza, and our drinks and sat down,
(they have fanta and sprite, and other Coke products)
As we entered the dining area we noticed to very interesting things.
First the walls.
The walls are two toned.
With a fairly bright dark green on top,
and A lovely red on the bottom. You know,
Italian ambiance.

The second thing we noticed was a pizza.
Someone was just getting theirs,
and it looked DIVINE!
Granted, we were hungry,
but it looked good,

Half of it was Hawaiian, and half was something else.
It smelled good too.
Suddenly we were ready to eat.

But this is one of those "we make it when you order it" kind of places,
So we had to wait a little while to actually partake.

While we were waiting we decide our one medium pizza might not be enough.
(And for the record I think we were right.)

So I went to add an order of breadsticks.
(Turns out it's a pizza with no toppings, so I got a medium of that too.)

But how about the pizza.
Ah the pizza,
The first thing you notice, of course is the smell,
but shortly thereafter, we noticed the pizza.
More specifically we noticed the mushrooms.
I guess I was expecting those wimpy things you get in a can,
but that's not what I found at all.

I actually like wimpy mushrooms, I mean, they're not my favorite,
but they're not bad either.

But this pizza didn't have wimpy's, in fact it was the furthest thing from it.
I forgot that Fillmore is the home to one of the states largest mushroom farms.
And very likely the mushrooms came from there.
And they were fresh
(they may have even been picked that same day).

Yes our pizza didn't have small chunks of wimpy mushrooms,
It had rather large (though not overly thick) slices of very fresh
Fillmore Mushrooms.

The crust was good.
The sauce was actually good too.
neither one got in the way of a good experience.

The crust actually had a good taste to it.
It wasn't a strong flavor but it was a good flavor. The texture was also nice.
The sauce was similar, A little sweet, but not too much,
not too salty, nothing weird, just a nice middle of the road sauce,
which if you ask me is usually best.

When the bread sticks came they did in fact look like a pizza.
They had something like Parmesan on them and they came with a little cup of
sauce for dipping.
Oddly though, the sauce was cold (if you want the sauce warm you can order a plain pizza,
but I it costs about 30¢ more). I don't know, they might even warm the sauce for you if you ask,
but it's not the default.
Still the bread sticks were good, and the cold sauce wasn't bad.
We got the medium bread sticks, and I don't know if they give different sizes of sauce with different orders, but we had enough.
it was close... I probably would have liked to have just a little more but still it worked.

All in all it was a very nice experience, and far more than I expected in the middle of nowhere
(which oddly enough seems to be about the middle of everywhere too).

My sister absolutely loved it she said something like "Wow this pizza is amazing!"
And "This is the best pizza I've had in a really long time!"

I too enjoyed it, but I guess not as much.
Yes it was very good, even better than average.
The service was not great, but we had what we needed.
And the food more than compensated for our slight lack of service (mostly the two or three employees just sit in the kitchen, but they will help you if you need it).
All in all I would give it six wooden spoons.

The Miniature Golf course is open roughly from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
They have a miniature replica of the Former State house,
and they have a windmill.

But I can't fully comment on the course, because we didn't play.

Deanos Pizza Tel: (435) 743-6385

96 S Main St Fillmore, UT 84631

6 wooden Spoons out of 8

Bruno's Italian Deli and Pizza (Cedar City)

2006-07-20T19:40:00.000-07:00

You might say I'm biased.
And you might be right.
But then again, I might not be.
I think it's kind of a circle.

I think this will be my best blog yet.
and by best I mean most comprehensive.

I have to say that I like Bruno's
The food is good,
and the staff is pretty cool too.

It's a small operation - kind of a mom and pop pizza shop.
But it's not just pizza.
They serve pizza, and Pastas and Sandwiches.
Most of what they have is pretty simple,
and yet in some way it is richly unique.

I haven't quite figured out their secrets,
but I think I am close.

First the Sandwiches.
*There are about a dozen sandwiches that you can order.
and like I said they're pretty basic,
but they're basically pretty good too.
I've had the Chicken Parmasean,
and the Eggplant Parmasean,
and the Philly cheese steak,
(all warm of course)
(but they also have cold sandwiches)

I've also had the lasagna, the penne with pesto

And the pizza,

The Pizza is Amazing,
or at least some of it is.

I'll start with the Crust.
I think it's superb.
Sal, the owner, says this is because Cedar City has good water,
and good elevation.
Thus it is pracitcally impossible to get great pizza in vegas,
but not so hard when you are at Bruno's

There are many types of pizza that you can get.
And Sal doesn't mind making something special.
In fact, I get the impression that he kind of likes it.

Sometimes his wife will just start selling pizza's that aren't even on the menu.
And sometimes, you find some real treasures.

In my recent experience I've had um two of his specials.
The first one was one of the finest pizzas I have ever had.
I'm not even kidding here.
But it was very special.
Meaning...
you'd probably have to be very well liked,
and show up at just the right time to get it.
but if you did, it would be well worth it.

NEW! This has just been added to the menu (more or less)
They Call it the White Pizza timing will still determine what you can get on it (today they were out of artichoke hearts and the roasted reds)

Lets see,
--crust
--olive oil
--onions
--ricotta cheese
--fresh garlic cloves
--little itty bitty slices of sausage (I think)
--roasted red peppers
--and parmasean

I think that was it.

no "sauce,"
but it was heavenly.

The second pizza I had was
--crust
--olive oil (Sal says the Olive oil really brings out the flavors,
but you probably have to ask for it.) (but I think he'd be impressed if you did)
--sauce
--cooked onions (pre cooked onions -wow that's good)
--mozzarella
--parmasean
--and a little um canadian bacon (??) I think.

This pizza was also good,
but perhaps a little salty.

Actually that's one thing I've noticed.
Some of the food has a little more salt than I would like.
I think it's in the red sauce,
but it's most noticable in dishes like the Meatball Sub.

But anyway back to the pizza.

Did I mention he cooks his onions.
Like in the oven.
and the flavor is really really good.
Not strong, or bitter,
but they aren't a special onion.
Just onions the way that onions should be.
Appearantly that means pre-cooked.

Pizza comes in 14" and 16" sizes.
(And yes I hear that they do toss the dough, but I can't say that I've seen it)
Also the Pizza is served on a riser- an elevated platform in the middle of the table.

If that sounds to you like a lot of food,
you would be correct.
If that sounds like too much,
and you don't want pizza for breakfast,
perhaps a Calzone would be better for you.
or a sandwhich,
or a pasta.

Speaking of pasta.
I like the Pesto.
I'm kind of a pesto person.
So I guess it's not much of a stretch that I liked it.
But it was good.
Once again, I recommend the bread.
I just like bread, and the bread they give with their pasta is good.
Usually I get my pesto on penne.
I don't know why, but I like the noodles that way.
(by the way Bruno's does noodles Al Dente)

Like I said the flavor of the pesto was pretty good to me,
but I wonder what it would taste like with just a spoonful of their white sauce.
I think the flavor would be fantastic,
and the dish would be a little more moist,
which would probably suit me just fine.

The lasagna is also quite good,
but once again, we find our salty red sauce.
it's just too strong for me.
(Perhaps that is why they serve coleslaw too. The coleslaw and bread definately enhance the experience,
and I'm not a big coleslaw person.)

Portion size is good,
maybe a bit more than "healthy."
But likely enough to fill you up.
And they will give you a doggie bag (i.e., styrofoam carton)

As long as we are talking about the salt,
I guess the Meatball sandwich should come next.
The sauce is a little salty, and the meatballs are too!
The flavor is good, but kind of gets lost.
And if your in a hurry, or don't have much money this is one of your better options.
But don't ignore the coleslaw. Ü
Sanwiches are served with coleslaw and chips,
yep you guessed it, usually you get a bag of lays potatoe chips on the side
(sometimes they have Sun Chips, but I don't think there's a solid pattern).

The Chicken Parmasean,
And the Eggplant Parmasean, (both as sandwiches, but you can get them on pasta)
And both are quite good.
(and they tend to buffer the salt a bit)
Oh and there's bread.
yeah yeah I know, sandwiches are served on bread.
And since I like to talk about it so much, I can't believe I almost forgot.
I really like the bread rolls that Bruno's uses.
They are big.
and not too fluffy.
I can't accurately describe it, but it's good.
the flavor is good and the texture is good.
A nice middle of the road (not literally) kind of bread.
Slightly sweet, a little dense, and a nice mild flavor.
Chicken Parm is a breast and a half of chicken,
breaded and boiled.
Red sauce,
Cheese,
and Cheese.

(eggplant parm is... well, use your imagination.)

The service is good,
and the people are nice.
I guess I'd give my experience about 5 wooden spoons.
(but if you happen to get the right pizza, that could easily go up.)

Bruno's is located just off 1-15,
Exit 57, in Cedar City's Providence Center.
(you know, the light house)
Bruno's is currently sharing space with the Cheveron station.
1744 Royal Hunte Dr.
Bruno's is open Monday through Saturday, 11 am - 9 pm.

FREE FOOD!

2006-06-03T10:24:00.000-07:00

Yes it's true. I have resorted to such baseness as offering free food,
But it's not really free.

Ok so here's the deal.
I have a plethora of coupons
that are good at Cedar City, and St. George locations,
of Godfathers Pizza.

Any one who is interested in them is welcome to them.
I have half-off coupons on pizza,
And I have buy one get one free Buffett, pizza, sandwhiches, and anything esle they do.

I will not be able to use them all my self,
so if you would like some coupons,
just let me know.
I think they are good through the end of July

Now for the a very brief review.
Godfathers is under new management,
This is a good thing,
The service used to stink. (no not literally)
I went in a few weeks ago, and my service was excellent,
(Ok I admit, it was like three in the afternoon,
and it was probably the slowest time of the day, but my service was good)

I still really like the flavor of their pizza, and if you get it to go,
the cardboard soaks up a little grease, making it even healthier.
My experience was good,
but very limited,
So I am not yet giving a spoon rating.
But if you want to, feel free.
And if you want a coupon, feel free there too.
Ü

Lamplight (Monticello)

2006-05-10T18:00:00.000-07:00

It might even be worth the drive.
Yes I'm assuming you don't live in Monticello, but if you do, please leave a comment.
It's been a while since I was there, but this was my experience. Monticello is a very small town in South-Eastern Utah. They don't have much, but they do have an LDS temple, and they do have The Lamplight.

When you see the Lamplight, the last thing you expect is good eatin'. The out side isn't all that special, but trust me, go in. We actually drove right past it the first time.

Once you get past the door, the experience changes. There's nice furniture, and great ambiance.
And of course the smell of fresh baked bread (I'm seeing a pattern here). The staff is nice, but the food is fantastic. First of course, is your fresh baked bread, they bring you plenty, but save room for the meal! The bread is good, I mean really good, and it comes in loaf form. The second thing I notice is how often my drink is empty. I am happy to report that my drink was filled often. I ordered the BBQ Beef. It was really good. The plate was huge (did I mention 'save room for the food') The BBQ Beef is served open-face, over two slices of their fabulous bread. The portion size was just my style. And the taste was good too.

So if you happen to be in monticello, or you feel like a road trip is in order, I strongly suggest the Lamplight, in Monticello.

I give the lamplight 7 bronze spoons (out of eight)

Lamplight Restaurant---435-587-2170---655 East Central

La Carreta: French Fries In Peru

2006-04-22T14:58:00.000-07:00

It's a good thing I married someone from Idaho. Someone who can appreciate Heaven's gift to culinary love, that being the onion.
NO.
Really, the potato.
I've been known to try a plate of French fries at just about any joint I walk into--that includes the Italian joints. Usually I don't like my French fries smothered in marinara and mozzarella, thus I've learned to leave the "French fry" up to other cultures. (The Greeks, next door, aren't so bad!)
And I know that this is a restaurant review blog but may I just interject here to say I've been to the birth place of the French fry--Belgium--and I've paid my tributes to their contribution to the world. It was a sacred experience.
Now, did you know that Peru does a mean fry plate? Well, they do at La Carreta the teeny, tiny restaurant at the top of Orem's glorious state street. Plates start with a layer of fries (are they French fries if they are in Peru? Such questions keep me up at night!) The fries are followed by a nice light white rice, topped by, this is the good part, whatever you choose. I love their sauteed vegetables, the spouse likes the chicken, I've seen some go for shell fish. Last of all, this concoction is drizzled on by some sort of sauce which I can only guess is part soy sauce, part garlic, part Amazon River Ancient Peruvian Secret.
Before you get to all that though, there is some chips and salsa to indulge. It's salsa that starts off like a nice boy scout and ends up kickin' like a high school drop-out. Or, in other words, a spicy surprise.
La Carreta will also tempt you with some sweet desserts like the fried cheesecake and the tres leches. Tres good. All of them.
Most importantly though, I've been to La Carreta with my one brother who lived in Peru for a time. It's good to know if things are authentic, you know? Because if it were me, I'd be assuming that they would be dishing up monkey toenails and long slimy slugs rolled in flour, broiled in fish sauce and sauteed to perfection. It's true, I've never been to South America before. But I have heard that they will eat just about anything there! Like chicken's hearts and pig tendons...
The brother was amazed. He just sat there shaking his head and remembering his days along the Amazon sweeping the dirt floor in his one-room hut.
I'm not sure if those were good times for him, but good times await La Carreta costumers--to be sure.

***Don't forget to try the Inca Cola, an import, from the hills of some ruins, somewhere.
***Plates start around $8

Posted by Cjane

The Garden House

2006-04-14T18:28:00.000-07:00

I really didn't eat out that often when I started this, And I actually have less money than I used to, to spend on such things. Still in the last little while I have found myself at many very enjoyable restaurants. This Blog is about one such Restaurant known as the Garden House.

One of my friends took me their for lunch the other day.
I thought it was my first experience with the Garden house, but on further reflection, I realized that I have had at least some of their food on many occasions.

First, the Chef has catered for functions that I have been to or somehow received food from.
Second, The Garden House is very popular, thus locals like to use them quite a bit. In fact I have been to multiple Institute (church) functions where they had soup. What I didn't know at the time was that it came from Garden House, but the soup is famous, at least around here.
Finally, I had an Institute class, from a man who always buys Garden House Soup for everyone on the last day of the class.
(and that was when I realized that the same person was making the soups)

This review will be slightly limit in it's scope, because I haven't really had the whole experience, but I welcome your comments, and amendments. ( oh yes and this will be the first review to officially get a ranking. Ratings will be both cumulative, and individual and they will be in spoons (the first post of this blog will be updated with all rating information))

What I've heard: The Garden House is good, The Soups, and Desserts are why you go, but everything else is good.

What I've had: Mostly soup.

Chicken Noodle (nothing like campbells)
Cheese (with Potatoes or Broccoli, I don't remember)
Vegetable Turkey
Potato and or Cheese
Something Corn (spicy)
Bread
Cream of Asparagus
French Onion
A Turkey Sandwich on Dark Wheat

Like I said, The first time I actually ate there, was with a friend. I imagine he goes there often. The waiters remembered him, and vice-versa. There were very nice, and found us a table in a front room. The Garden House is what it says, a house. Or at least it probably was at one time. Since then it has changed hands a couple times and usually has one of the more upscale restaurants in town on that location. The Garden House is no exception. Because I had heard about the soup, I decided to get the soup and salad combo, but I had plenty of other options.

While waiting for our food they brought us a warm fresh loaf of sourdough bread. I really like a good bread, and this was practically perfect (except that it was sourdough, don't get me wrong, I still really liked it, I'm just not a huge sourdough man). Like I said the bread came out warm, and there's nothing like a good warm loaf of bread. The crust was nice and firm, you can hear it crunch, but it won't break your jaw. The center of the bread is amazing: it's thick and dense and moist, but not doughy. Just thinking about it is a very pleasant experience. Top it off with real butter, and you can't go wrong (which by-the-way, is how it's served).

If you want to try the soup just ask, they will bring you a small but sufficient taste. I tried the Cream of Asparagus, and If you like Asparagus, you would probably love it. It's creamy, and rich, and has a big asparagus flavor. I also tried the French Onion. Since my feelings about Asparagus are similar to my feelings about sourdough, I decided to get that with the Turkey Sandwich on Dark Wheat.

The Sample of the French Onion Soup can't really give you the full experience. In case you don't know, French Onion Soup is often served with a slice of bread with cheese on it, floating in the soup. Still the Sample was enough to let me know that I liked the flavor. The soup was very good, but they make other soups that I like even more! I have heard that there are thirty different soups that they make. Usually two or three are being served, so you always have a choice.

The Sandwich was good, but nothing to write home about. The tomato was out of season, so that might have effected my impression. Still the sandwich was good, and I would probably order it again. The bread was really interesting. It was dark, and beautiful, but the flavor, wasn't overpowering. The ingredients were good, and flavors went well together. The waiter was good about filling our water, though toward the end, the service did go down just enough to notice it. The restaurant experience on the whole was very good.

Now for the Soups

Chicken Noodle
I had this one at an institute function. I wasn't blown away by it, but it's a good hearty soup. It's
cooked with thick homemade noodles, and the flavor is good. I think I ate a few bowls of it, but still this is not my favorite soup from the Garden House.

Cheese ( I don't remember what kind of soup this was)
I do remember that it was served the same night as the chicken noodle, and I like the Cheese better. Like I said, I don't remember if this particular soup had potatoes or broccoli, but I do remember liking it. Actually I liked it a lot. I really love a good creamy soup, and The Garden house makes excellent cream soups.

The Vegetable Turkey Soup reminded me of the Chicken noodle soup, but the flavor was a little richer. It was packed with chunks of vegetables, noodles, and of course, turkey. This soup also seemed to have a lot of herbs in it. It's not overly spicy, but there is definately a lot of good flavor. Many people debated about whether or not it was actually turkey. The meat was dark, like beef, but tender like turkey. The flavor was somewhere inbetween. The meat was good, and as a whole I would definately recommend this soup.

Roasted Corn (something, southwest)
I tried to find the real name on their website, but I couldn't find their website.
This is by far my favorite soup from The Garden House, so far. This one is a little spicy. It is served with shredded blue corn chips, and even though it was at a serve-yourself function, the presentation was quite impressive. As I mentioned this is a southwest soup, like you would imagine from the likes of Bobby Flay. It had a great flavor, with diced chilis, corn, and other complimentary ingredients. I would definately eat any of their soups again, but this one was a clear winner in my book.

As a general rule soups are served on consistent days. I don't know if The Garden House follows this cannon, or not. If so, Friday is usually the day when you would get Clam Chowder.
I had the Roasted Corn on a Tuesday, but with Thirty soups, they may be on a two week rotation (or they might follow a different method altogether).

The Garden House soups lived up to their reputation.
I give the Garden House 7 Bronze spoons, out of 8.

The garden house is open daily for lunch, and dinner.

Garden House

164 S 100 W

Cedar City

(435) 586-6110

Mimi's Cafe: It feels like home

2006-03-25T11:39:00.000-08:00

A few years ago, I stumbled on the most wonderful restaurant.
(most being a superlative, not a ranking (though it could be))
Every week a group of us would drive by a little resaurant, and every time, there would be a huge crowd there. Unfortunately their hours and ours, did not coincide.

One day the leader of our group pulled a few strings, and got us in.
We knew they had a very loyal following, but we didn't know why.

The first thing I noticed was the atmosphere,
It says its a cafe, and rightly so. You enter this little brick buildling,
and suddenly you feel like paris. (not the hotel heirress, the place)
You think, hmm, I just might be sitting in an out door cafe, in those wonderfully delicious, streets of europe.

And then you smell it, the most wonderful smell...
Fresh Baked bread. ohh, it's like heaven.

If I remeber correctly it's complimentary. Every body gets some.
(what a lousy time to be on Atkins)

The menu is rich,
it's different, but not terribly,
and there's a good variety, but they still maintain continuity.

I think a good way to measure a restaurant is by the appetizer platter.
(yes they have appetizers, so we're not talking about fast food prices, but it's not too bad)
It's been a while but I do remember liking the platter,
it seems like it had a spray of fresh fruits,
With pineapple, and strawberries, and such.
It also seems like it had fried mushrooms, and Zuccini

Oh hear it is, straight from their website:
Spinach & artichoke dip, chicken tenders and zucchini parmesan, jammin' together with some great dipping sauces (but I seriously remember fruit)
Either way, it was tasty.

The bread is good, it reminds you of european bread, and the food is good, it reminds you of home.

I can't remember everything that I have ordered, and I haven't been there often but I've never heard a complaint.

I think I had and enjoyed the Corn Chowder,
I tasted the Pot Pie, and it was also tasty
(but don't think of those silly frozen things,
if that's what you expect, you will likely be disappointed).
The Pot Pie is Huge, you may not be able to finish it in one sitting.
And it's very good, If you've ever seen a real southern pot pie, then you might have an idea.

Also on the Menu is The Portabello sandwhich,
A huge sandwich and the main body, is one Giant mushroom.
I think I ordered it for the novelty, and it was tasty, but not my favorite, but then, I'm not a big fan of mushrooms.

The service is great,
but you'll want to plan ahead,
there's generally a long list of people waiting to get in.

All in all I couldn't be more pleased.
The average meal costs $10-15 , but it is so worth it.
If you have access to a Mimi's I highly reccommend it.
DOUG

http://mimiscafe.com/

Sizzler's

2006-03-21T20:41:00.000-08:00

Refi-chan here to tell about Sizzler's! It has become a tradition for me and my mom that when I come home from college or what-not, that we dine at Sizzler's one lunch. We use coupons we get from those stuffed "Value-pac" envelopes that everyone gets in the mail and get the Malibu chicken.

Now with the name "Malibu chicken" for some reason mom and I expect pineapple on it. Sadly there isn't, but it is still pretty good. It is a chicken patty with ham and swiss cheese melted on top. The dish also comes with toast and a side. If you go for dinner, it is priced a little higher, but you also get more with your meal.

The wait for the food to be brought to you is pretty fair, and there is also a salad bar available to purchase with your meal as well.

I'd say if you have a buy one get one free Malibu chicken coupon, and are looking to spend less than $10 on a meal for two people, Sizzlers is a good choice (drinks and gratutity not included in this review, I have always had water and my mom leaves the tip ^^ )

Great Harvest! Great?

2006-03-16T20:24:00.000-08:00

Ok Here goes. This post will probably change,
but I wanted to have something here.

For my birthday my little sister sent me a gift card for Great Harvest.
(the Bread Co.) Great Harvest is a nationwide franchise. But every store is different.
I was short on time, and I decided that this would be a perfect time to try a sandwich from a cool new establishment.

(sandwiches are served from 11-3)

The first thing that I noticed is that Great Harvest is not cheap.
I asked what sandwich they would reccommend, and the girl said she would get the Tuscan Chicken Panini.

it sounded excellent, so I made that my selection.

Oddly the counter-girl didn't ask me if I wanted to add a cookie and a drink for a buck fifty.

If she had asked I probably would have.

They said they would call me when my lunch was ready,
but the few chair that they had were full.

Fortunately this is a store worthy of much exploration.

After what seemed like a hefty wait,
(but only because I was the only one waiting)
I finally got my sandwich.
the girl apologized, but it really wasn't that long.

I took my lunch and headed back to the office.

The Sandwich:
Chicken Tuscan Panini

Served on a wonderful dense bread.
Large slices of chicken breast.
Tomato (a little out of season, but to be expected)
Lettuce
Other stuff, but I forget what,
and The Sauce.

Served with a 1/4 of a dill pickle

Each individual element of the Sandwich was masterfully done.
All very tasty.

But as a whole the sand was a little bland for my tastes.
I guess the sauce, though in good proportions,
didn't have enough flavor for me.

As long as I ate some pickle with the sandwich life was good,
Very good,

but my pickle wasn't quite large enough for the size of the sandwich.

So my Great harvest experience was very good,
but not quite great.

But the parts of it were great.

A sandwich will cost you about seven bucks,
and most people would be well fed with one.
I probably could have eaten a bit more.

part two
The Cobb Sandwich

My Brother also had a gift card for great harvest and today he used it.
I tasted the Cobb sandwich, and it was TASTY.

His wife said it was practically perfect.

It had a slightly stronger flavor, and again a lot of good parts.
(bacon, avocado, really good bread etc).

On the whole, I would definately reccommend Great Harvest.
It's not cheap, but neither is the quality.
DOUG

Welcome to The Utah Food Review

2006-03-16T20:18:00.000-08:00

This is a blog all about food.
If you like food like I like food, then I think you will like this blog

This blog is about food in Utah or nearly so.
In other words food that I could possibly eat.
(if you would like to be on the team just let me know)
I will send you an email and you can post too.

I hope we can all enjoy this blog together.

Thanks
DOUG

The Utah Food Forum

2006-01-17T17:29:00.000-08:00

This is the place where news and information about this blog will go.

RATINGS
The first Item of news is the new rating system.
I am still working on the rating system, but I would love your feedback,
and participation.

The rating system is a scale from 1 - 8, with eight being the best.
The unit of measurement is a spoon. The type of spoon is an indicator of the price.
At present, the system starts with plastic spoons, then goes to wood, then bronze, then Silver, and then, rarely, but I suppose it is possible, the elusive golden spoon.

But I repeat, the type of spoon is not an indicator of the quality, or the experience, that is found in the number of spoons.

Example If two restaurants are on the blog, and on got 8 plastic spoons, while the other received 1 Golden Spoon, I would have to reccomend that you pick the plastic spoon one.
For two reasons: You would probaly enjoy the food/ experience more, and you would save a boat load of money.

Ultimately each restaurant should have a composite rating, but if individuals would like to give ratings for parts of the experience, as well as the composite rating that is fine too.

Also I believe that the more people who rate each restaurant, the more accurate the ratings will be, so please share your feelings too.

Here are the pics for the Wooden Spoons

The rest of the pictures will be up soon, when they are, I will post info on how to access them.
have a great day.
DOUG