Russo's New York Pizzeria at Grand Parkway Marketplace II

This location is new and near us--I tried the one at Kuykendahl and Rayford a few months ago and was not impressed at all.  This is much better.

I had the cauliflower fritti, the chicken parmesan sandwich, and carrot cake, with a soda.  This set me back $35, which is a lot, but the portions were huge--it's three meals worth of food, so not so bad.

You get a bruschetta starter with dipping oil here, which is good.  But bruschetta is kind of thin and firm, which means it doesn't take up the olive oil at all, so it's an odd pairing.

The cauliflower fritti is what it sounds like--fried cauliflower.  I've had this at Nadia's Mediterranean and liked it better, but this was pretty good.  I wish the pieces were smaller, there's no way to eat them in one bite and cutting it is awkward.

I had the chicken parm sandwich on flatbread.  It was decent, with crisp bread, and really big.  It's a large round cut in four pieces, one of which would have been enough.  I would have liked it to have more flavor but it ate OK.

Again, the carrot cake was enough to share with 3 or 4 people.  I enjoyed it, it was everything carrot cake should be--dense and moist, with tasty cream cheese frosting.

There's a large sign saying "Place Order Here" at the counter, but it's high up so it's easy to miss on the way in.  You go to the counter and order, then sit anywhere and they bring the food to your table, so in that respect it's like most fast food places these days.  But the pricing and menu is not much like fast food, so that's kind of confusing.  Also, the other location had table service. 

To me Russo's sort of an echo of Olive Garden with a smaller menu.  I would go to Gratzie's for more genuine cuisine, but this might be the call if the line at the OG is too long.

Their drink dispenser is a Freestyle, but it's a simplified version--no flavorings for the Coke.  It was working properly when I visited.  The bathroom was also very clean and ready for use.  It was fine, I would go back.

My Yelp Review

Pizza Hut at Kuykendall and Northcrest

This is now our delivery location so we gave it a try the other night.  I have not had Pizza Hut in awhile due to service issues, but it's my favorite recipe.

First I tried to place our order in the app, but we wanted a half and half pizza and the app doesn't support that option.  I ended up calling the place, which worked out fine--they could do half and half, and my order was taken and filled correctly.

The pizzas were good as always.  My issue with them is that they weren't really cut, just scored, by whoever cut them at the shop.  I had to finish cutting them at home, they were not coming apart.  We ordered breadsticks and cinnamon sticks with them, which is where a difference between the app and the store showed up.  The app says they have Cinnabon cinnamon rolls, but the store said they had cinnamon sticks, which are their dough with cinnamon glaze and icing separate.  The breadsticks are OK but I think most others are better.  The cinnamon sticks did not work at all--kind of hard and chewy, not good flavor.  The store also had some options on the menu that we didn't see online.

This store is in the old Pie Five location, and they have put the space to use like Marco's--lots of tables so you can eat there if you wish.  I could tell they had been used because they weren't too clean.  The bathroom was OK though.

I don't know how they would be for delivery but I hope better than our previous delivery location.  The app is primitive compared to others we have tried, and the menu has far fewer choices.  We've been using Domino's and Papa John's for awhile, and I don't think that will change.

My Yelp Review

Willie's Grill and Icehouse at Grand Parkway Marketplace

I have never been to a Willie's, so now that we have one in the neighborhood it was a good opportunity to try it.  I have heard the mixed reviews on the food, so I decided to keep it basic with a bacon cheeseburger and loaded fries.

The service concept is different from anywhere else I have been--you order and get your drink at the counter, then your server brings the food and handles your bill.  I saw some folks getting a bit confused over this as the restaurant became more crowded and they had to find a table with a drink in hand.  Also, the order takers get the bar drinks for you, which slows down the line if the person orders a mixed drink.

My server was very polite and attentive, checking up on me very regularly--maybe two times too many, though I cannot fault her politeness at all.  I got my bacon cheeseburger and fries in reasonable time.  It was a competent one, done but not overdone with good bacon.  The fries were OK, I usually don't get loaded ones but I've had them before.  If you like them they will be fine but not spectacular.

They have desserts in a menu at the table--if you want one your server will need to add it to the bill.  This caused an issue as my server took the order but didn't add it, so I didn't find out it wasn't coming until she brought me my bill.  I got it shortly thereafter.  I got the brownie with ice cream, and again it's about as good as any.

Willie's has the kind of rustic and sparse decor you expect in any ice house, except it has walls.  The bathroom was in reasonable condition considering the place was very busy.

Overall I had a decent experience but am not sure I would seek it out.  I would go with someone who wanted to go there.  I'm taking into account that many friends of mine have eaten here and not been impressed by the food.  The place is busy and popular, so they are going to get a chance to improve,  but overall it isn't off to a great start.

My Yelp Review

For You For Me Tacos

This taco truck has kind of flown under the radar for me.  It's been in its current location for more than a year and I finally got around to trying it out.  Very glad I did.  I got three tacos--egg and sausage, beef fajita, and barbacoa, all on flour tortillas.

The tacos are small--street size, but they are only $2 apiece so they are a great bargain.  The eggs were cooked fresh when I ordered, so they were fluffy and delicious in the breakfast taco.  The fajita taco was tender and cut small but not too small--if there were any gristly bits I didn't notice.  The barbacoa was squishy tender, just like it should be.  They were all just a bit salty but really good flavor, and all three came with an avocado slice that complemented the filling wonderfully.

I tried both the red and green sauces.  The green chile sauce is the milder one, but it still had a pretty good kick.  The red sauce is hot stuff.  If you like hot, you will actually get it here.

My only disappointment was the drink.  The agua fresca of the day was pineapple.  I like pineapple, but this one was a bit watery.  Still good for washing down the tacos but I'd probably get a Mexican coke next time.

This place has been open pretty much any time you would want food, 7am-9pm every day except Sunday (8-3).  Just recently they have not been as consistent about keeping posted hours, let's hope they fix that.

Great place for a quick bite, I actually like it best of the three on that corner.

My Yelp Review