Bayleaf Kitchen

We're always excited to try a new Indian food place, so we recently stopped in to give Bayleaf Kitchen a try. We had a family dinner--samosas (pea and potato), pakora, a paneer masala rice bowl, a special order of chicken over basmati rice, and a goat rice bowl. We accompanied it with chai tea and had rasmalai for dessert.

The pakora and samosas were perfectly fried. Very crisp on the outside and tender inside. The pakora was quite spicy, while the samosa was mild. Served with a very tasty green chutney. You really need to start with these. The cook has excellent technique so I'm sure the Mirchi Bajji (fried green pepper) is good too.

The staff was very accommodating with the chicken dish--they invented something on the spot that wasn't on the menu. Very good seasoned chicken and peppers over rice, they should add it. The paneer masala rice bowl was very good, the cheese was cooked just right and the sauce represented well.

The goat rice bowl deserves special mention. The goat was incredibly tender and fell off the bones in the dish. I like goat but will avoid it at some places if you have to pick up the pieces to chew the meat off. Not necessary here! The seasoning was excellent, but quite mild. A good dish if you don't want too much spice.

The rasmalai was an interesting finish. They serve rasmalai and gulab jamun as desserts. Both start with the same dough, but gulab jamun is fried and soaked in syrup while rasmalai is steamed and soaked in the same sweetened milk and spices as the more familiar Indian rice pudding. Rasmalai is made with rose water, and a little of that goes a long way. I was ok with it but some found it too strong. I enjoyed it as a finish.

The dinner was marred by some choices by the venue, La Plaza de los Food Trucks. They had a Christmas event with costumed performers roaming. Would have been fun except they blasted Christmas carols at a volume that caused the speakers to distort. Nowhere to escape. If they were going for a nightclub vibe with dance music I might have understood, but Christmas carols don't need to be that loud. There were not many people there for a beautiful if cool Saturday night, and that might have had something to do with it.

My Yelp Review

Kroozin Chevron

I stopped in the other day to sample the tacos from the grill in back. I got one shredded beef and one barbacoa taco on flour tortillas. Both were absolutely delicious. The meat was tender and flavorful, and the flour shells looked homemade. The salsas also tasted homemade--the green salsa has a powerful kick, the red less so but still pretty strong. I washed it down with a jamaica agua fresca. Got a 32 oz. cup, undiluted (no ice) for $3. The tacos were $2.50 each. So I got lunch for less than $10, and it was excellent. I would do that again any time. Had some minor communication issues--I asked for rice and beans and the server put it in the tacos, which actually was pretty good.

The store is impressive. Spotless inside, everything neat on the shelves. The restrooms are imposing, high ceilings and faux marble tile, with very modern fixtures. Definitely worth a stop.

My Yelp Review

La Guantanamera

 Back to La Plaza de los Food Trucks! I had been meaning to try this food truck for some time and finally caught them open. I got a dinner platter with shredded beef, beans and rice, some plantains, and a side salad.

• The shredded beef dish is absolutely the best Cuban food I have ever had. The beef was moist and tender, and beautifully seasoned. Just the right amount of fat for good mouth feel. The rice and beans soaked up this flavor and made the dish complete. I would eat this again anytime. The plantains were well cooked and a nice semi-sweet complement to the meal. The salad was lightly dressed and was also a good complement.
  
  The truck is one of the less flashy ones in the Plaza De Los Food Trucks, so you have to know the food and want it. I found their menu a little confusing--it lists all the components of a plate separately, and it's not clear how you would build a combo. Our server that evening did not speak English and our Spanish is not that good, but she got her husband on the phone and everything went well. They are very polite people.
  
  The menu lists desserts but they didn't have any that evening. I would look forward to trying them another time. I definitely want to pay another visit, perhaps to try the pork platter or the paella (not listed on the menu).

• My Yelp Review

Munchies Lab

This place has a cute concept--food as science, and that's the theme of the wall mural where they display the menu. They offer a variety of Mexican snacks, including prepared drinks, Mexican corn, and other desserts. I stopped in the other day to give them a try. I ordered an elote (corn), a hot dog, and a melon agua fresca.

The food is made fresh to order. The hot dog was quite a bargain--a chili cheese dog for $5, and it's a big dinner-size frank. Not a lot of chili but that's fine. Quite tasty. I love Mexican corn, and got mine with doritos as a topper. There were some execution issues with the elote. They have white and yellow corn, and I asked for a mix. The server (a co-owner) took the white corn out of his Instant Pot cooker for me, but it actually wasn't fully done so was pretty chewy. Also the dorito topping had perhaps not been rotated out, because it was stale. I think these are issues that they will fix. The owner prepared a cantaloupe agua fresca for me from scratch, so it tasted very fresh.

This is a take-out only place--there are a few seats but no restroom. The decor is fresh and attractive. You can get a hot dog, a drink and a specialty dessert for a little over $10. I believe they will address the execution issues and they deserve support. I wish them well.

My Yelp Review

Joyful Boba and Fresh Juice

I finally got around to trying this new boba shop in our area. Ordered a Thai tea with lychee jelly and some tempura shrimp.

The first thing to note is that they serve more than drinks, they have very nice snacks on the menu. They have a deep fat fryer so their shrimp tempura, chicken wings etc. are fried rather than baked. The shrimp had an absolutely fantastic texture, I loved them and will go back to try other snacks. Very promising.

They have a wide variety of teas, coffees and juices, and seven different jellies (bobas) for the drinks. I actually don't like the texture of the jellies, I find it off-putting, but I wanted the flavor and the experience. The lychee jelly added a very nice layer to the flavor of the tea.

The people are nice, and there is a beautiful custom mural on the wall. The furniture is pretty basic but goes well with the colors and there's plenty of room if you want to hang out. They have board games, so they are encouraging you to stay. I am taking off just a bit for the bathroom--it was not as clean as I would have hoped, though it was usable. Definitely worth going back.

My Yelp Review

Mexico Tacos and More

This is the latest restaurant to locate in the Chevron Root Mart at Root Road and Northcrest. I stopped in the other day to give them a try for brunch.

They have the usual breakfast tacos available. They have a carnitas plate and I love carnitas so I went for that, with corn tortillas, rice and beans.

The rice and beans were fine, standard issue for Tex-Mex. Would have to say that the carnitas were on the dry side. I tried both red and green salsas--they are good and taste homemade. Both with a pleasant heat but not super spicy. The corn tortillas were store bought.

Root Mart is a nice, community-involved convenience store so if you're in there for something else and want a bite to eat I think they would be fine. There are a lot of good Tex-Mex convenience store and food truck options nearby (my favorite is still Tony's Street Tacos) so it would be hard to justify going out of your way. These folks seem very nice and I wish them well, but they will need to up their game to make it in this location.

My Yelp Review

7 Brew

Yet another coffee chain! There are 7 Brews all over the country, but this is the first one in the Houston metro area. I stopped in to give them a try on my way to the game the other day. I got the Triple 7, which is their Smooth 7 (coffee with Irish cream and chocolate) made with espresso instead of coffee. So 6 + espresso shots depending on what size you get (small, medium, large--understandable sizes!). The Smooth 7 would probably be too sweet for me, but with the bitterness of the espresso it tasted quite good. And of course a serious caffeine hit.

Like Dutch Brothers and Scooter's, there's no seating, it's just a drive through. Like Dutch Brothers, the waitstaff come out and take your order in person rather than talk through a speaker, which I like. Unlike either of those there's no food on offer--if you want to chew on something go elsewhere. They do have smoothies and milkshakes, as well as tea and energy drinks. Do we really need another coffee chain? Hard to say. I give it 5 stars because I have no reason not to. Service was fast and friendly as promised. No ambiance to speak of, as promised (though they might be playing music sometimes?).

My Yelp Review

Jeremiah's Italian Ice

Stopped in to try the new location for this chain near our place. I also looked at their website before coming in, and can tell you that it does not do the menu justice at all. The online menu makes it look like you can get shaved ice, or ice cream, or they'll do a basic layering for you. In person there are all kinds of complex and tasty-looking combinations. The menu names are kind of a mouthful and I don't remember them correctly. What I got was a German Chocolate cake themed creation, with peanut butter ice cream, coconut ice and shavings, and cake crumbles. It looked like the assembly took several steps. I was the only one in the shop at the time so my food came out quickly. It was excellent, so much going on and I savored it.

The decor is fun, lots of bright colors, with very basic furniture and a concrete floor. Interesting classic and alt-rock playlist. The men's room was clean and ready (they have gendered restrooms, not sure why, I bet they are exactly the same). Service was fine. If you want other options like coffee or food your choice would be Sweet Dreams nearby, but this place has more variety in the frozen items. It's a nice change from froyo. We'll be back. 

My Yelp Review

Tony's Street Tacos at Gosling and Spring Stuebner

Tony's Street Tacos has opened a new location at Spring Stuebner and Gosling, just down the way from their former location at Northampton and Root Road.  Chef Tony was at this location when I came by to check it out. I usually order the tacos, but this time he recommended the empanadas and sopes.  I got a chicken empanada and a brisket sope.  

Tony opens the empanada and adds sauce and a creamy white cheese before serving it, so it eats like a fried puffy taco.  The crust is light with a good bite, and the filling is delicious.  The sauce makes the chicken moist and tender.

The sope is a fried dough circle (looks a little like a larger shortcake) topped with a mound of your choice of protein, lettuce, white cheese and their special sauce.  The sope is firm and has a lip, so even though it's piled high you can pick it up to eat it.  The sope is satisfying and crunchy, but the truly special part for me is that slow-cooked brisket.  It comes out tender and with great flavor.  

You get two salsas with your food, green and red. The green chile salsa is mild and flavorful, only a slight kick. The red sauce is seriously hot. I put just a little on my empanada and it was all I could handle. Both have good flavor and are worth using. The salsas are served in a knotted plastic wrap, which makes them a bit harder to work with (you can poke them with your fork).
Tony's Street Tacos now has three locations--one on Louetta, one down in Rosenberg, and the most recent addition here inside the "Buzzin' Market" at the Valero station.  I'm really happy to have a location close at hand again.

My Yelp Review

El Kourmet the Woodlands

This location is now a "brick-and-mortar" restaurant located in the shopping center with Mi Querencina. I stopped in the other day to see what had changed. Some things have changed, some not. The location lists its hours as 9-9 most days. I went in for lunch and it has the same menu as the food truck that was at this location. This time I went for the El Kourmet burger with beef (you can get it with chicken or pork as well) and fries, and a Pappillon con Limon.

The fries are pretty meh and could be passed up. The burger is quite good, a luxurious stack of ingredients--the beef patty, what some US folks would call Canadian bacon, a fried egg, their special cheese sauce and potato sticks. It's plenty of food, a very satisfying meal.

The decor inside is basic, tables with one TV. No decorations to speak of. The bathroom was clean and ready. Certainly reasonable to sit down and eat there.

I would expect they'll do more to differentiate their restaurant as they go forward. I would say it is fine but still doesn't stand out among the collection of Venezuelan restaurants and food trucks we now have in the area.

My Yelp Review

888 Chinese Restaurant

 This place has been open in our neighborhood for a little over a month. We came in for dinner the other night to try it out. Ordered the chicken dumplings in spicy sauce and a cup of wonton soup as appetizers, and the Taiwanese Style Rice Noodles and Beef on Sizzling Platter for mains.

• The difference between the fried and steamed dumplings can be subtle. The fried ones are firm on the bottom. They had a nice texture. The sauce was only a little spicy, mostly a soy sauce flavor with chili oil but it tasted good. The wonton soup had very good flavor, a nice rich broth and tasty wontons. They brought rice crispy noodles with it, which is one of my favorite things on a Chinese menu.
  
  The rice noodle dish was basically like a combination fried rice, but with rice noodles. It included pork, chicken, shrimp and egg. The shrimp portion was generous. I like rice noodles and these were pretty good, properly chewy and sticky since they were not in a sauce.
  
  The beef on sizzling platter was an adventure. It's basically Asian style fajitas, except no tortillas. The platter was super hot and the beef was really sizzling--so much so that the servers were afraid of it and I thought for a second it was going to go in our laps. Hot is great but this actually overcooked the beef a little. The sauce was a sweet sauce with pepper, a basic flavor but quite good. I would get that again.
  
  The servers were very polite and enthusiastic. The decor is basic but comfortable. I would say that the food is cooked and spiced not to offend. If you like standard American-style Chinese food this would be a perfect place for you. No need to fear the spicy dishes unless you are very sensitive. 

• My Yelp Review

Domino's near Gosling and Mossy Oaks

Just tried out our new Domino's location. I've never gotten a sandwich from Domino's before so decided to try that. Got a Philly Cheese Steak sandwich, the bacon and cheddar loaded tots, and an ExtravaganZZa specialty pizza on thin crust. The pizza was good as always. The tots, not so much. They run them through the pizza oven, so when they come out the cheese is thoroughly burned. They weren't awful, I kind of like crispy cheese, but the tots are kind of dried out as well. The sandwich, though, was quite good. For $7.99 I would say it is competitive with hot sandwiches from the other sandwich chains.

No problems with the location, I think the tots would come out the same anywhere. Definitely get something else as an appetizer.

My Yelp Review

Olio E Farina

This is a concept restaurant from the owner of the former Russo's franchise at this location.  The description--a Brazilian Steakhouse but for pizza--was interesting so we went to try it out.  

The food is a fixed menu for a fixed price, and if you like trying lots of things and have a decent appetite I think it's worth the $24.95 plus the usuals.  You get four appetizers and 13 pizza samples (3 dessert) for that price.  

The appetizers are an Italian salad, a meatball, a truffle-stuffed mushroom, and a cup of tomato basil soup, all sample size.  The salad was kind of disappointing--lettuce and some sliced hard cheese (I think hand cut parmesan but not a lot of flavor) and a light dressing.  The lettuce had been cut too soon and was a bit wilted though not inedible.  The meatball and truffle mushroom were good--pleasantly seasoned with good texture. The truffle mushroom was deep fried with a very nice crust and tasty filling.  The soup was served in a small cup with no spoon, obviously you were to drink it.  The texture was pretty thick for drinking but it had very good flavor.  All in all a good start.

After about 10-15 minutes we started getting pizza.  The chef makes one or two of all 10 pizzas and everyone gets a small slice.  All are on a tasty chewy thin crust.  Some standouts for me:

-  My favorite was the meat lover's, much like chain places
-  The Fig & Pig sauce was actually more like honey.  Still pretty good
-  My favorite dessert pizza was the Smores pizza.  All were decent, and I usually skip dessert pizza
-  The Southwest Chicken had roasted raw jalapeno on it and was very spicy

Some early review mentioned service issues on a busy evening but we went on a Saturday night and all was fine, so I think they have that covered.  The decor is the same as the Russo's, a nice looking place.  Bathroom was clean and ready.  Unfortunately we ended up in a booth that was set up too narrow and we were kind of squeezed in.  Looked like that was the only one with that issue.

Your experience will depend on when you arrive and how much you want to eat.  If you come in the middle of a service you might have a gap in your dining experience while the pizza comes around again.

We had a good time and can recommend it.  I'm not sure I would want to do it again unless I had visitors or friends that wanted that experience.  They may have to keep changing the concept to keep it fresh.

My Yelp Review

Handelicious Kitchen

This review covers the takeout service at this new place.  Handelicious Kitchen is a catering and event service that is also experimenting with on-demand food.  The owner is still working on how this will work.  There are several prepared dishes listed in the Grab and Go section of the website, but when I came they were trying something else--a limited set of items that gave a few options for a meal.  There were two chicken items, potatoes, two rices, two pastas and a vegetable.  I had the honey chicken, roasted and sauteed potatoes, turmeric rice, and green beans, and they threw in a few tea cookies.  All items were cold so I made a plate and heated it at home.

The chicken was OK, it's hard to do chicken tenders and make them real appealing but these were not bad. The potatoes were tasty, done a little soft but with good flavor.  The turmeric rice was very good.  The turmeric was for coloring, you don't taste it, but it has raisins and almonds that provided nice contrasting texture.  The sauteed green beans were the best item, done with roasted sesame seeds, they had great depth of flavor. The tea cookies were tiny chocolate chip and they were a bit burned, but I like them that way so they tasted great to me.

Handelicious Kitchen has a beautiful space for dining in, which one does by arrangement.  They have a Friday night open time where you can come dine in and select a meal from a subset of the menu.  Their bathroom was clean and ready when I visited.  It would be appealing to eat there for an event, but I don't think their takeout concept is quite ready for prime time.

My Yelp Review

Dunkin Donuts/Baskin Robbins at Rayford and Kuykendahl

This location is actually a combined Baskin Robbins/Dunkin Donuts, and is having their grand opening so I stopped in to give them a try.  

The Dunkin menu has wrap sandwiches on it so you could think about it for a true lunch.  I wanted one but they were out of wraps--both the chicken and the chorizo kind.  I ended up with a maple sugar bacon croissant and a pumpkin donut, with a chocolate shake to wash it down.

I liked the maple sugar bacon sandwich.  It lives up to its name.  The bacon is quite salty and sweet, so with the egg and croissant the sandwich has a lot of flavor.  

I ended up with the pumpkin donut by default.  The selection of donuts wasn't great, and they didn't look appealing.  The pumpkin donut was not bad, however.  I would get it again.

The shake was disappointing.  It was quite thin.  No whipped cream or cherry.  They put ice in it as well as ice cream, so it drank more like a chocolate macchiato without the coffee. Not great.

The whole experience was just meh.  Do not blame the staff, they are trying hard.  One nice note: They don't automatically add tip options to the price, though they do have a tip jar.  I think they still need more time to get their act together.

My Yelp Review

Super Shawarma

We were excited to try this new food truck at the Plaza de los Food Trucks.  We got a beef and a chicken shawarma, a side of falafel, and a mint lemonade.

The sandwiches are pricey, $16-18.  They are also huge.  They can easily be split to serve 2 or 3 people. They are neatly wrapped in a large pita and finished on the grill for great flavor.  They fall apart a bit as you eat them, you'll need a fork to finish up, but you definitely will not go hungry.  The beef shawarma was pretty tender and had a nice sauce.  The chicken was quite tender and tasty.  

The highlight for me was the falafel.  A side of falafel is 10 pieces, so you get a lot for the price, but you can't get just a few.  The falafel was fried fresh and had a marvelous crust on the outside.  The tzatziki sauce served with it was great and complemented them very well.  You can get a whole sandwich made with falafel, which would be worth trying.

The mint lemonade was a real kick--strong lemon and mint flavors.  It worked really well with the food.  There wasn't a lot of it but there didn't need to be.

There were a lot of nice touches.  We got four sauce cups with the meal--two labeled garlic, one labeled for falafel, and one without a label.  I think that one was babaganoush.  The garlic sauce is powerful, but worked well on the sandwiches.  The babaganoush was good also.  They labeled our sandwiches, something not everyone does--they had the protein and also directions on how to open the wrap.  The people were friendly and service was great.  This truck sports three flags--Syrian, Venezuelan, and American--so we believe it's a Venezuelan take on Mediterranean food.  Definitely worth a try.

The Plaza de los Food Trucks is continuing to improve, with lots of seating and most of it covered now.  A very comfortable place to eat, or to wait for takeout.

My Yelp Review

Taco Inn & Churreria Porfirio

I stopped in on a busy Sunday after church to try this new restaurant out.  I have to say it left me a bit confused.  I had the chilaquiles with steak and a jamaica agua fresca to wash it down.  Took some churros home with me.

The jamaica was good, it's my favorite agua fresca.  Not super strong but complemented the main course well. I was a little thrown by the chilaquiles.  This is a traditional Mexican dish for using leftover tortillas.  You can put a lot of different things over the tortillas but they are usually fried and softened up.  The dish I got was served over corn tortilla chips instead, and they were not soft, so it ate more like nachos.  The toppings were Mexican white cheese, beef and a brown sauce.  Not appetizing in color but the flavor was ok.  The churros were the highlight of the meal.  Made fresh, they were nice and hot, crispy and sweet.  So the Churreria Porfirio portion of the place has promise.

What does this restaurant want to be?  I have no idea.  The look on coming in is like a fast food place--fairly spare decor, plastic chairs and basic tables, menu up on a display.  The staff wants to seat you but the front of the house people don't seem to really have a plan for it, though they were quite nice the rest of the way.  The pricing is definitely for a full-service restaurant--appetizers in the $10 range, entrees $13 and up.  Seems like they want to be more upscale but that's not supported by the ambiance.  When I visited the restroom it was clean (again very spare) but the lock on the men's room door did not work so major embarrassment potential there.  The place has a following and it wasn't terrible but for me it would be fairly far down the list of places I would pick.

My Yelp Review

Karma Kolache

This place has been in the works for a long time so we were excited to try it out.  I stopped in early on a Sunday and got a sausage kolache, a bacon egg and cheese croissant, a chocolate sprinkle donut, a brisket kolache and a cream cheese danish.  The brisket kolache is their best seller and was definitely different, nice tender brisket and barbecue sauce in the kolache bun.  Good but not sure I would order it for breakfast.  All the others were good examples of their kind, and they have a lot of other choices.  They are open at 5am daily, which is great for getting an early start on a fishing or road trip.  

We've had the coffee on other trips there.  They have a lot of coffee options but the standard coffee is probably not quite good enough to make you choose it over Dunkin or make another stop at Starbucks.  With a little more work it will be a one stop shop.  The people are very nice and friendly.  Like other donut places it is strictly carry-out, they have one little table where you can wait for your order but that's it.  We like it, we'll be back.

My Yelp Review

Graze Craze

This charcuterie board chain just opened a location near us so I wanted to try them out.  Confession here--I'm not big on charcuterie boards.  Thin sliced cured meats left out on the table dry out and acquire a weird metallic taste, which is probably why Subway has now joined its competitors in slicing meats on demand. But I digress.  I tend to graze lightly from charcuterie boards when they are offered, they're just not my thing.  But this place is branching out to offer single-serving meals, so I decided to broaden my tastes.  They offer meal and snack size charcuterie selections ready to go, but when I came by I saw that this location is also trying out sandwiches, possibly trying to move into the made to order meal space.  I got the Carnivore Special and chased it with an Olipop Dr. Goodwin soda.

It was probably early to try the sandwich.  The name makes one think of a big sandwich with several different meats.  What I got was an ordinary-sized prosciutto and provolone sandwich with some homemade dressing and cucumbers on toasted wheat.  Not a lot of meat compared to, say, Jersey Mike's or other fast food sandwich shops, and it didn't bite through real well (kept wanting to slide out of the sandwich).  The flavor was great, you could tell the sauce was homemade.  The business is not set up to make anything in front of you, the assembly is done in the back.  Not sure it was a $12 sandwich.  I had not seen Olipop in the stores so wanted to try it.  They make high-fiber low calorie sodas.  The Dr. Goodwin is sort of like Dr. Pepper but not too similar.  Still, I liked it and liked not feeling guilty drinking it.

They have stiff competition for ready-to-eat meals.  Starbucks two doors down does a version of premade finger food lunch kits that are actually pretty good.  

The folks that own this location are good people, working hard to make an impression in the neighborhood. The presentations on their boards are beautiful, and they have been well received.  If this is your thing then it's worthwhile to upgrade from grocery store charcuterie.

My Yelp Review

Velvet Taco

Our family has been here a few times and we've always enjoyed it.  The tacos are really innovative and the flavors are great.  The beef tacos are very tender and the chicken and fish really eat well.  The menu descriptions are very clever and detailed.  Can't think of any that I have not liked.

The ambiance is interesting.  The place is clean physically and in decor.  But they don't try for much climate control.  The exterior is what it is (way hot right now), and the interior was about 87 degrees when we were there.  I believe this is on purpose, kind of part of the atmosphere, but you aren't going to get out of the heat here.  Another challenge that we have faced every time is that with a large party it's hard to tell which taco is yours.  You get the tacos on a serving tray that holds up to six tacos, and you have to guess from the ingredients which one you ordered.

It's nice that you can order tacos singly, meaning that if you have a smaller appetite you do not need to pay for more food than you can eat.  A single taco and water will come out under $5.

Service was fine, it's counter service and they do a good job of it.  We'll be back for more.

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VFingers Spring

This is a new truck operated by the VFingers company, located in the Plaza de los Food Trucks behind the Gosling Express.  We stopped in the other day to check it out--ordered a 2-piece fried chicken combo, a couple of pastelitos (pizza, and potato and cheese), and a couple of frozen drinks--lemonade and frappelon (half iced tea, half lemonade).

The combo comes with both french fries and arepitas--little rounds of arepa bread deep fried.  The highlight of the meal was those arepitas.  They were crisp on the outside, fluffy and tender on the inside, with a nice salty flavor and great mouth feel.  The fries were ok, but I would take the arepitas over even good fries every time. It's worth checking out the truck just for these, and they sell them by the bag if you want.  Yum!

When I picked up the order I had three pieces of chicken, and was told it was because they were small.  That's not a good sign with deep-fried food, and that certainly held true here.  I got a wing, a thigh and a drumstick. The breading was very tasty and crunchy, but the wing and thigh were dry and tough, basically inedible.  The drumstick was larger and meatier, still overdone but it held up and made it a meal.  I'd be cautious about either the fried chicken pieces or the tenders.

The pizza pastelito was fine, done nice and crisp so the shell had a very good texture.  The filling was a good pizza representation.  The potato and cheese one was OK, nothing wrong with it but I'd probably try something else next time.  The frozen drinks were good representations, icy cold on a hot day and I love the half and half mix.

There's a whole lot on the menu we didn't try, including their signature item, the "fingers" (tequenos).  They have lots of sweets, including shakes, nutella bites and churros, but we just weren't feeling dessert.  The service was fine, and did not take too long.  So while I can't give it a great review now I would absolutely come back to give it another try.

The menu on the website is not up to date, but there's a good picture on Google Maps.

My Yelp Review

Gran Colombian

This restaurant is in the location where Saizon Latino and other Cuban places have given it a try.  I stopped in to check out the new tenant and see what Colombian cuisine has to offer.  I got the Salteado Mixto from the Specialties menu, and chased it with one of their Natural Juices--blackberry for me.

Salteado Mixto is a saute of round steak, popcorn shrimp and chicken.  The proteins are cooked in a hearty, savory, mildly tomato-based sauce with lots of onions and peppers.  It is served with a sticky white rice that has some flavor on its own but is of course best in the dish--I just shoveled it all in there, it could be served that way.  The proteins were definitely fully done but ate just fine in that sauce.  It's a very generous portion, plenty for a lunch the next day and it tasted even better.  The dish comes with a mashed fried plantain cake on the side.  I'm generally not excited by fried plantain and no change this time.  But the entree was very good overall.

The natural juices are a kind of fruit smoothie.  They offered water or milk as a base and I chose water, but I think I'd do milk next time.  A nice refreshing complement to the meal.  They have lots of other tempting traditional drinks that I would try in the future.

The menu is extensive.  There are lots of choices in the appetizer section that could be meals on their own or assembled into one for a lot of variety.  They have breakfast all day (open at 8) and it looks great.  Also Monday-Friday lunch specials that are under $10 on the menu.  And a full bar!

I regret not being able to sample the bakery or desserts--just ran out of time.  The desserts are not on the in-restaurant menu but they have items on display on the bar so there are choices.

The restaurant is definitely geared toward Spanish speakers--my server didn't speak English.  I know a few words and with pantomime and some help from the bartender we did just fine.  The bathrooms were clean and ready.  Like other iterations in this location, the restaurant has kept most of the decor from the previous places. They did get rid of the thatch over the bar.  They take advantage of the stage for live music on the weekends. Service is paced for a relaxing dinner, so don't hurry like I ended up doing.

I can't quite round it up to a 5 but I'm happy to recommend it, and my understanding from Colombian acquaintances is that it's the real deal.

My Yelp Review

Taqueria Karina

This is the latest food truck to use the Roger's Tire Shop lot.  I stopped in on one of many blazing hot days recently to see what they had to offer.  I got two Mexican steak tacos, a barbacoa taco, and an Asada de Puerco plate.  Washed that down with a pineapple agua fresca.

The tacos and tortillas are street style, meaning corn tortillas.  They are sturdy ones and don't fall apart on you.  The tacos were very tasty--the barbacoa was tender and salty, and the Mexican steak had great flavor. The asada was in an al pastor sauce and was very good with the provided lime and salsa.  Nice and tender. The plate came with rice and beans, which were both fine but not special in any way.  The plates are a combo meal--you get a Pepsi with them so you don't need to buy a drink if you don't want to.

They have two salsas, green and red (a light red).  They bring the heat!  The green one was spicy for me and an excellent complement to the meats.  The red one was flaming, too hot for me to handle but if you like spicy then this is your choice.

The people and the menu are both friendly--all the protein choices are in English and Spanish so you know what you're getting if you speak one of the two major languages around here.  The menu is quite broad, they have tortas and quesadillas as well as the tacos and plates.  The drawbacks for me: 1) They are a bit slow, business was brisk when I went and it took about 30 minutes to get food, and 2) they only take cash, so you'll need to make a trip to the ATM before coming.  All the food--tacos, the plate, and the drinks--came to $23 so pretty reasonable.

My Yelp Review

Heavenly Cups Shaved Ice

This place is in the same location as the Sweet Inspirations tea shop before it.  I stopped in the other day to check out our new sweet treat option in the neighborhood.  I had a bubble pop waffle and chased it with an espresso.

The ice cream flavors are cute--8 choices so not overwhelming, I got my waffle with chocolate and a loaded vanilla (Heavenly something, I forget the rest unfortunately).  They make the waffle fresh so it soaks up flavor from the ice cream.  It's a big load of dessert, very inventive and festive.  I think I like the crunch of a waffle cone better but it's a good try.

I had heard great things about their cold brew and wanted to try some but their coffee machine was out of order.  So I got an espresso, which was wonderful.  They use very fresh beans and grind on the spot, so it has that little bit of sweetness when served black that really good espresso does.

The people are friendly and welcoming to everyone.  The decor is spare and is fully evangelical Christian but no politics are in evidence.  The bathrooms (identical as far as I can tell, but gendered) are clean and ready. This place has great potential and I wish them well.

My Yelp Review