This little smoothie bar is inside The Woodlands Sportsplex, and is part of a new franchise based out of Australia. They serve smoothies and bowls, and it looks to be (mostly) vegan though I can't confirm it. We stopped in the other day for a healthy snack. I had a chocolate avocado smoothie, which has chocolate and avocado (of course), and peanut butter, soy milk, and a few other things. The smoothie was great--had a wonderful mouth feel with all the fat from the avocado. Good fat! The bowls are basically smoothies with additional items layered on top--I had a protein bowl (can't remember the name) that had peanut butter, strawberry, acai, bananas, blueberries, and some peanut butter drizzle. Both would serve as a meal replacement. Service was friendly but no pressure since the place was very quiet.
Monday, August 31, 2020
Monday, August 24, 2020
Pucketts Sno Co LLC
We visited this new local, family owned snow cone stand for an afternoon treat the other day. They have all the classic flavors and many suggested combinations. They also have toppings including some unusual ones like chamoy and tajin, both of which are savory seasonings/sauces that are used on fruit in Mexico and other warm places. I asked for a cone that would do well with tajin, and got a mango-orange-strawberry combo. My kid got a cone with strawberry, lime and Nerds.
The cones have plenty of syrup, and are reasonably priced. My cone was generously seasoned with tajin, perhaps just a bit much, but when I mixed it all in it was very good. The other cone was very tasty as well. The cones come with a plastic saucer fitted to the cup that keeps spills to a minimum. I've had some bad experiences with overfilled cups falling off, and this would help that a lot. Overall we can recommend it.
Friday, August 21, 2020
Pancho's Taqueria
I stopped in the
other day for lunch around noon. There were full trays of
delicious-looking food available. The two plates available that day
were carnitas and ribs--I went for the carnitas. You get a generous
helping of carnitas with all the trimmings for $8.99. They offered pico
de gallo, lettuce and salsa (red and green) with it and put it directly
on the carnitas. Not a lot of salsa, I would ask for it on the side
next time. Also got some roasted jalapenos.
The rice and beans
were OK, standard for Tex-Mex. The carnitas were cooked perfectly--nice
and tender, wonderful to eat. Not strongly seasoned but the pork
flavor came through well. Delicious! It came with flour tortillas,
which were mostly fine, one was a bit stiff. The jalapenos were very
tasty and nicely roasted--but really super hot for me, I couldn't finish
one. If you like adding some spice this will work.
The drink machine was working well and they have the soft ice. The interior was clean and inviting. I can recommend it.
Aji Robata and Ramen
We
tried this place for takeout the other night and had a very good
experience. We ordered a variety of items for a family meal--a pork
belly skewer, some brussels sprouts, a crispy nori, Tonkatsu ramen,
chicken skewer ramen, and salmon don.
I ordered through DoorDash
and picked it up myself. Everything was ready just as I arrived, and
the server went over everything so I was sure we got what we wanted.
The
pork belly skewer was a good start, nice and rich with a good char on
it. The crispy nori is a very interesting experience--it's rolled
seaweed fried crisp, with a nice crunch and a flavor that develops in
your mouth. It comes with a spicy mayonnaise sauce that complements it
well. Just the sort of thing to get if you're adventurous and have not
had it before.
The tonkatsu ramen was excellent--the broth had
great depth of flavor and really complemented everything. The pork was
great, a mild but very tasty slice that was quite tender and ate really
well. All kinds of goodies in the ramen bowl, including more nori,
menma (that reminded me of bamboo shoots), chasu, scallions, black
garlic, corn, and wheat noodles. The noodles tasted very good with the
broth but were quite filling. Can recommend this one.
The
chicken skewer ramen comes with most of the same items but a chicken
skewer instead of pork, of course. The chicken was ok, cooked well with
decent spice and helped a lot by the broth.
The salmon don was
excellent. The salmon was cooked perfectly, and the special sauce lives
up to the description. It is a sweet and tangy glaze that really
complements the fish. That comes with rice, corn, and a tasty seaweed
salad.
Overall it was a fine meal and I would look forward to
dining there in person. As mentioned by others, it's really similar to
Akashi, just one strip mall up.
Monday, August 10, 2020
McAlister's Deli
According to their website, McAlister's Deli has been around since 1989 and has 400 locations, but this is the first time I have encountered one. This location has braved the
Covid-19 pandemic and opened recently. I stopped the other day to give
it a try. They are seating people, and the interior is large enough for
folks to spread out, but I chose takeout. I ordered a Choose 2 and got
a McAlister's club and a Black Angus roast beef spud. Finished with
one of their chocolate chip cookies.
The club sandwich was a good
one--two spears of three-tiered toasted sandwich, with bacon, ham,
turkey, cheddar cheese, lettuce and tomato, with honey mustard dressing.
A little tricky to handle but it was satisfying.
The potato
just wasn't very appealing. The roast beef didn't have much flavor. Its
juice had soaked into the potato, which you would think would flavor
the potato but not really. The cheese didn't help enough. I would
order something else next time.
The cookie was fine, pretty
standard for places like this that offer one. Some parts had gotten
rather squashed and dense. It was kind of a juicy cookie that pulls
apart rather than a drier one that breaks.
They advertise special tea and lemonade, so I had a mix. Very tasty and went well with the meal.
Not sure why I'd pick this over Potbelly, Which Wich or Subway. It's fine but does not stand out for me in any particular way.