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2 weeks ago we had a work outing to check out the new grilled cheese restaurant in the new Richardson CityLine. I've been keeping up to date with the opening of this place with a few of my co-workers. We finally planned for a day to go. Hopefully by now the initial rush has died down a little. We had a fairly large group of 9 people.
Tom + Chee
1251 State St.
Richardson, TX 75082
(972) 677-7482
www.tomandchee.com
Price: $
Tom + Chee was originally from Cincinnati and after being picked up on Shark Tank (an ABC show), they expanded rapidly across the nation. They use fresh ingredients, roast their own meats, and makes all the sauces from scratch. They have gluten-free and vegetarian options.
We were all super excited. None of us had been there before. We arrived around 11:45AM on a Tuesday. There was a line, but it wasn't super long and moved fairly fast. The dining area was pretty full but we got lucky and secured a table. I guess most of the people in line were waiting for to-go orders. Worked out for us! Everyone went up to the counter and ordered. They give you a number and bring the food to your table.
Almost everyone got something different so lots of pictures to see! :)
The Tom + Chee (diced tomato, garlic seasoning, mozzarella, cheddar, hardy white) $4.95~ Plus Diced Bacon +$2~ Already sounds great on its own, but bacon makes everything better! She absolutely loved it.
Pesto Turkey (roasted turkey, pesto, mozzarella, hardy white) $5.95~ She subbed ham for the roasted turkey. I tried a bite of this. I think this was my favorite savory sandwich of the day, and I'm usually not a fan of ham. The pesto was awesome. I'd totally get this next time! (But with turkey... hehe.)
Grilled Mac + Chee (mac & cheese, cheddar, hardy white) $5.95~ Plus Potato Chip Crunch +$0.50~
They have a "crunch" section on the menu that has different flavored chips in every sandwich, but you can also make any sandwich a "crunch" by adding chips. I felt the chips were necessary in the Grilled Mac + Chee because it adds texture. The mac n cheese itself was very good but I would recommend adding chips and maybe bacon! :P
Ham + Chee (ham, pickle, american, hardy white) $5.95~ Simple, to the point. Tasty.
BBQ + Bacon Crunchy Grilled Cheese (bbq potato chips, bacon, american, hardy white) $6.45~ This thing was LOADED with bacon. I didn't get to try but my boss loved it.
Italian Crunchy Grilled Cheese (salt & vinegar chips, pepperoni, ham, mozzarella, hardy white) $6.45~ Plus Soup Dipper (a small soup to dip your grilled cheese in) +$1~
He chose the Classic Tomato soup. This was good, I liked the salt & vinegar chips addition. But I felt the pepperoni and ham combo was a tad too salty for my preference. I did not get to experience the sandwich dipped in soup combo, but my co-worker said the soup was good.
Crunchy Garlic Chicken (roasted chicken, grilled onion, diced tomato, sweet hot mustard, garlic seasoning, parmesan garlic chips, pepper jack, wheat berry) $6.45~ This was my other choice, but I ended up not getting it. It's pretty loaded. Looked awesome. I may try this one too next time. hehe.
Smoked Brisket (hardy white, cheddar, bbq sauce, pickles, red onion) $6.95~
This was mine. It was the special for the day. Since it's not always on the menu, I knew I had to try it. The brisket wasn't what I expected... it made me think more of sliced roast beef? But was still moist. A little too much bbq sauce, but then again, I never like much sauce. But overall was really yummy. The bread was nice and crisp but still soft. Mmmmm!! I would order it again and just get a little less sauce. And it wasn't that heavy, surprisingly. I ate half of mine, and then a bite or two of 4 other ones. AND a little bit of dessert. And I wasn't overstuffed!
OF COURSE we had to try their donut grilled cheeses! I think we were there more for the dessert than the other food. haha.
The Fat Elvis Grilled Cheese Donut (fresh banana, peanut butter mascarpone, mozzarella, marshmallow, bacon, donut) $4.95~
This was also the special of the day. It's like The King, but with marshmallow and bacon. We shared this among 4 people. It was so goooood! The peanut butter mascarpone was rich and creamy but wasn't super thick like just pb. The bacon added a smokiness, it was awesome. We all loved it.
S'more Grilled Cheese Donut (chocolate pieces, graham cracker, marshmallow mascarpone, donut) $4.95~ Another co-worker got this. I got to try a teeny bite. This donut was grilled to perfection.. you can see the color on it. It was yummy too, but the Fat Elvis won it for me.
We had a great lunch. Everyone raved about the food. The service was great too. You'd think with a "fast-food" type set up there wouldn't be much service. But they were constantly cleaning off tables, came around a few times to make sure we were enjoying everything. Just very friendly and hospitable. I can't wait to go back again. I have so many more things to try!
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
Last week, some of my co-workers treated me to lunch to celebrate my recent graduation. How sweet of them!
I chose this Peruvian place that's close to the office but I've never heard of before. I just found it online.
I can't say I've had much Peruvian food before. I know La Duni does some Peruvian stuff... but I don't think they are specifically Peruvian. I always want to try it more. I do love Latin food.
Tineo Peruvian Cafe
525 W Arapaho Rd.
Richardson, TX 75080
(214) 256-4535
http://tineoperuviancafe.com/
Price: $$
This is definitely a hole in the wall, although it was a pretty big space. It's at the end of a nondescript shopping center. It was pretty bare when I walked in. No decor to speak of. There were a few people in line to order at the counter. And not only is it a restaurant, it was also like a mini convenience store. They had some Peruvian snacks and drinks for purchase. Oh, and some good looking bakery goods too!
I was the first to arrive so I waited in line to ask the guy if I can pull some tables together. The service is pretty slow. Even though there were only 2 people in front of me, I waited quite a while. I realized that they only had one guy manning the register and front of house, and I think one person in the kitchen.
We thought we had to order at the counter but the guy finally emerged with menus and said we can sit down and order. He was very friendly, although not so good in English. It was a little difficult to ask questions about the menu (which I always end up doing.) :P Yes, yes.. I'm the difficult customer. haha.
We finally all ordered. We waited quite a while to get our food since it seems like there's only 1 person cooking in the back. None of us really minded though, we weren't in a hurry. However, they didn't really turn on the heat in there so we were all freezing to death. Definitely go when it's warmer or bundle up!! Finally the food came out one by one. We told others to start eating so the food doesn't get cold. Every plate looked yummy and huge! I thought the prices were a bit expensive but then you see the portions and it was better.
Tallarin Saltado a la Criolla (flamed beef or chicken with sauteed onions and tomatoes; served with noodles) $10.99~
3 people ordered this. 2 got beef, and 1 got chicken. It was on a large plate and was overflowing. The noodles came out steaming hot too. Looked amazing. I was starving by then. They used spaghetti noodles which my mom uses at home when she makes stir fry noodles because they hold their texture well. It was very good. All of them loved it. And 2 of them cleaned their plates! Impressive.
Seco de Carne (beef, potatoes, and cilantro stew served with beans and rice) $10.99~
2 other co-workers got this. It looked really good too! Definitely a great choice for such a cold day. The beef was nice and tender. The beans were an interesting pairing but worked well. They said the rice was flavored with something and kinda threw them off a little. But overall they loved it.
Tallarines Verdes con Bistec (Peruvian style pesto on spaghetti; served with a thinly sliced steak) $12.99~
Last but not least, I got my dish. I really didn't know what to expect with this when I ordered it. I just know I like pesto... but I had no idea what Peruvian pesto is. haha. It was a pretty green color. TONS of noodles topped with a seared steak on top. The steak was pretty flat but I liked how the edges were seared and a little crispy. The noodles and pesto was good too. The pesto was slightly different than an Italian pesto. There was another spice/flavor that I couldn't really identify. I enjoyed it a lot. I only wish that there was some veggies in it as well. It would've been nice to have some freshness.
My co-workers all loved it and were already saying they were going to come back. I want to say that the food here is more "homey", maybe something people would cook at home for their families instead of restaurant cuisine. However, don't believe everything I say because I am really not an expert in Peruvian food/culture. I CAN say that I've never had Peruvian food like this before.
I took half of my dish to go because I wanted to save room for dessert!
Flan $3.25~ Like a typical Latin flan, it's much heavier/denser. It was good. Not the best I've had, but I would definitely eat it again.
Bread Pudding $3.25~ Some others wanted to try this. It was cold, since it was prepackaged and put into the fridge/display case. They loved it. The raisins were nice and plump. I thought it was ok. I personally like warm bread puddings with a little bit of a crispy edge. And I would've loved a rum sauce or creme anglaise or something.
Chocolate Cake $3.25~ I caved and also got a chocolate cake. From the display case, it looked soooo gooey and moist. However, after I opened it up, I realized they just drizzled some chocolate sauce on the top of the slice so it looks really moist. It was a pretty generic chocolate bundt cake. Compared to the other two it wasn't anything special.
What a great new find! The service is quite slow but the guy was super nice. And the place isn't anything fancy, but we all loved our food. I'm sure most of us will be back there again at some point. I can't believe they only had 2 people running the place! So go on a day you don't have much going on. hehe. And thanks so much to my co-workers for the great lunch! I feel so loved. :)
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
Last (half) day in Vegas. Long enough to get in some lunch before heading to the airport. I HAD to go to Holsteins, my absolute favorite place to eat in Vegas. And I wanted to take my friends too because none of them have been!! Gasp! :P
Holsteins Shakes and Buns
(in The Cosmopolitan)
3708 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, NV 89109
(702) 698-7940
http://www.holsteinslv.com/
Price: $$$
I come here every time in Vegas.. The food is slightly pricey but it's Vegas... when is the food not expensive? haha. And it's soooo good. I've never had anything I didn't like.
We started with some Bam-Boozled Shakes. Alcoholic shakes where you can't taste the alcohol. And the combinations are unique and over the top.
One friend and I shared the Banana Cream Pie (bananas, vanilla custard, nilla wafers, caramel, creme de banane, licor 43, white chocolate covered nutty banana) $13~
They gave us the excess milkshake in the metal cup too which was pretty much a whole 'nother glass! This was the first time I tried this flavor and it was amazing! You get chunks of banana and nilla wafers in every sip. I love the added texture and it was soooo banana-y! I think one of my new favorites here. Although after a while it got a little too sweet, I think next time I'd get it without the caramel sauce.
One friend got the Red Velvet Cake Shake (zing red velvet vodka, red velvet cake, cream cheese mousse, mini whoopie pie) $13~
This was also really good. Never tried this one either. I liked the crumbled cake bits throughout the shake. This also came with the excess, and another friend got it mixed up with her strawberry shake and downed the whole thing before we all realized she drank the red velvet one. She doesn't drink alcohol at all, so that's really proof you can't taste it! haha. :P
Strawberry Shake $9~ Non-alcoholic. I think they use fresh strawberries because it tasted that way. Legit.
We all ordered burgers (Big Buns):
The Classic (lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo, ketchup, pickles) $15~ All the burgers come with regular fries unless you want to pay extra to sub.
"Meat Ball" Burger (beef, pork, veal, pecorino, provolone cheese, basil walnut pesto, arugula, herb foccacia roll) $15~ Sub Onion Rings +$2~
I wanted to try something new. And it was a great choice. Very impressive looking with the biggest meatball ever! I loved the different layers of colors between the meatball, cheese and pesto. Quite Italian! hehe. The meatball was tender and juicy and full of flavor. The pesto was great too. I love basil. And the slight bitterness from the arugula complimented everything well. I also liked the baked cheese on the bun. Now to the onion rings. One of the best onion rings ever. I usually pay the extra to get it. So crispy on the outside... just awesome.
Gold Standard (dry aged beef sirloin burger with smoked bacon, aged goat cheddar cheese, tomato confit, baby arugula, garlic-chive aioli) $18.50~ Sub Sweet Potato Fries +$2~
I've had this before, aside from the goat cheddar, it's really really good. I just don't like goat cheese. My friend really liked it. The sweet potato fries were good too.
Nom Nom Burger (kobe beef, cheddar cheese, potato chips, 1000 Island dressing) $17.50~ Two friends shared this. I tried a bite but wasn't memorable. One friend said it was a little bland... she would've liked more sauce.
I saw a picture of this displayed on our table. At first I showed it to my friend and said "hey, here's your Gold Standard burger", but then we both thought the picture looked kind of odd. After a double take, we realized it was "cold" standard and it was a dessert!! We had to get it. Cold Standard (vanilla ice cream patty with a chocolate wafer glaze, cronut bun, lemon shortbread fries, berry ketchup) $15~
Not only does it look like burger and fries but it comes on a cronut bun? Cronut?! I HAD to get it now! haha. I have to say it looked pretty dang realistic. From the presentation (like the checkered paper wrapping) to the "cheese" and green "lettuce". So cool. I was taking a bunch of pictures when my friend decided to try a bit of the cheese. Then she said it tasted like a mango gelatin or something. Mango? That wasn't listed on the description.. and I'm allergic. :( So I had to send it back. They gave us a new one without the cheese. I felt bad because my other friends never got to try it with the mango.. It was still good though. I really liked the ice cream patty with chocolate glaze. The "lettuce" tasted like green tea white chocolate shavings. However, the bun was totally NOT a cronut. More like a sweet biscuit/roll. It still paired with the patty well but they really shouldn't call it a cronut. And no one really liked the shortbread fries. The flavor and texture was a bit off. But it really did look like fries. The ketchup was strawberry sauce which went really well with the "burger".
It was an expensive lunch. But hey, it's our last day, and we're at my favorite restaurant so I'm going all out! Again, it did not disappoint. The service was a little slow at the end, but they did replace our dessert with no complaint. I very much appreciate that. They should list the mango on the description though... Anywhoo, a success as always. Until next time!!
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
This past Sunday I finally made it to Battuto, owned by Gene and Julie Gates from the Lite FM morning radio show. I've heard them on the radio for many years now and thought it was interesting when I learned that they were opening up a restaurant. I expected it to be in uptown or downtown of course, so I was pretty excited to find out they've chosen North Dallas and it's close to me! :)
Battuto Italian Kitchen
18101 Preston Road, Ste. 204C
Dallas, Texas 75252
(972) 930-0558
http://battutodallas.com/
Price: $$-$$$
They feature rustic Italian cuisine with farm to table ingredients and homemade pastas and pizzas. I've seen the menu before and everything sounded delicious.
We had a reservation on Sunday at 6:30PM. When I arrived, the restaurant was pretty empty. I had no idea the place was so big! The decor was simplistic and unpretentious. We all commented that we liked the look of the restaurant. Although it was freeezing in there! It was already pretty cold when I walked in but our table was under a vent or something. Brrrr! The place filled up more after we ordered. The clientele was pretty eclectic. This can be a date place or place for family dinner.
Three of us arrived on time and were waiting on the rest of the group. We were starving though so we got something to share. It would've been nice if we got some bread for the table or something. But oh well...
Mac and Cheese Pizza (with Nueske's bacon) $9~
It just sounds awesome, doesn't it? It looked and tasted amazing. Served on a wooden board, I liked the presentation. The cheese was hot and melty, lots of bacon on there, and the mac was cooked well. Wasn't too overcooked and soft. The crust had great texture too. I'd totally recommend this. My first time having mac and cheese on a pizza!
While we were waiting for our food, Gene Gates came around and greeted us. We told him we were starving and he personally served the pizza to us. When he walked away, I told my friends, "I think that's Gene Gates from the morning show!" haha. That was pretty cool.
For the actual dinner, I ordered the Cauliflower Soup (with roasted garlic) $6~
One of my friends got the same. The soup was huge! I can probably dunk my face in the bowl, is how big it was. haha. Good value for the money! The soup was yummy. Pureed smooth and velvety. Topped with bits of roasted garlic, you can definitely taste the roasted garlic pureed into the soup as well. The bread on the side was also very good. Nicely charred on the grill but still soft in the middle. Great for dipping into the soup! I had to take half of mine to go... My friend killed hers!! Impressive!
We also both got Gnocchi Modo Mio "My Way" (an homage to the amazing talent of Chef Rino Brigliadori light-as-a-cloud potato pasta with pesto tomato sauce) $14~
I love gnocchi, so it's hard for me to not order it when I see it on the menu. Although there were plenty of other options I wanted to try. The gnocchi were soft and pillowy. The texture was very nice. I also liked the pesto tomato sauce. It had a lot of flavor. I would've liked to have some sort of meat in there and/or something crunchy to give more of a textural contrast... but overall I enjoyed it. Again, the bread went amazingly with the pesto sauce. My favorite gnocchi of all time is still at Michael Chiarello's Bottega in Napa, but this one is also pretty dang good.
One friend ordered the Bison Pasta (Comanche buffalo and pork ragu with handmade pappardelle noodles) $13~
It was one of my options when I looked over the menu. I love pappardelle and you can definitely tell the pasta was made in house. The flavors were very light, not bland, which I liked. The bison wasn't too dry (I think that's because it was mixed with pork). My friend enjoyed it.
Another friend got the Branzino (whole grilled Mediterranean sea bass with vegetables) $24~
It's a whole fish, minus the head. The fish looked very impressive when it was served. The grill marks looked awesome! The fish was super tender, flaky, moist and lemony. It was very good! The sides however did not live up to the main protein. The potatoes were a bit too salty and the fennel and (I think) zucchini? slaw/salad was kind of bland and boring. I think some sort of rice/cous cous/quinoa would've been a better side option? Just a thought. hehe.
Gene had come back to chat with us a bit later. One of my friends told him we were fans of the radio show. :P He was super nice and we talked for awhile. Chatted about good restaurants around town. I also gave him my card for CHOMP! :D
We were all super full but I can't try a new restaurant without dessert! Especially when I've been seeing delicious pictures on yelp. hehe.
I got the Red Wine Chocolate Cake (chocolate ganache and topped with fresh raspberries) $9~
We all shared it. It was beautiful. haha. It was clean and sophisticated and the layers were thin and delicate. But it was super rich, moist and full of chocolatey goodness!! I loved the ganache. I'm assuming it's a creme anglaise on the bottom, that was good too. The fresh raspberries paired really well with the rich chocolate. It was a little pricier than I expected (there's no dessert menu), but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I got to take part of a piece home and it's even good out of the fridge 2 days later! NOM!
It was a delicious meal. I had pretty high expectations after reading all the reviews on Battuto and I wasn't disappointed. The service was good, the owner is very welcoming. This location hasn't been very lucky in the past, but I hope Battuto sticks around for a long time! I'll be back for sure! :)
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
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