Tokyo Bowl

Fast, inexpensive Japanese noodle and rice bowls and all you can eat sushi

What we had:

I had a honey garlic chicken noodle bowl. quick-fried chicken in panko with broccoli, carrots, and honey-garlic sauce over noodles. Tasty and under $5. No complaints really.

My DH had the teriyaki chicken over rice bowl. His has non-fried chicken and vegetables with a light teriyaki sauce.

Décor:

So-so.

Service:

Quick, friendly.

Overall impressions:

It's hard to go wrong with a noodle bowl. The food quality was nice. I'm fairly certain the noodles were pretty fresh, the service was fast, and the meal was very inexpensive. I'd like to try the sushi next time.

What Google says; no company website

Rating:

3 out of 5 salamanders

Fratelli Lyon

Italian antipasti/sandwich/dinner spot in the design district.

What we had:

Carciofi alla mediterranea--marinated artichokes, leeks & fennel served antipasti-style
Combination of 3 salumi:
Coppa--USA cured pork shoulder
Bresaola--Uruguay air-dried beef
Toscano--USA Coarse ground dry-cured sausage

The artichokes were fair, but the real star of the meal was the meat. It was a toss-up between the beef and the sausage for our favorite. Both were superb. All three were, really.

The meal also came with chewy, perfect fresh bread slices.

I also had a fresh blood orange soda, and it was great. I'm not fan of sugar at all, and this was a really good soda. I'm not sure what it was sweetened with, but whatever i was, it wasn't obnoxious.

We also had espresso, which was tasty and served with delicate almond cookie lumps.

Décor:

Nice. Modern, clean, orange & white.

Service:

so-so. Our drinks took almost until the meal was finished to come.

Overall impressions:

A satisfying light lunch spot. I'm curious to see how dinner is.

What Google says; company website

Rating:

4 out of 5 salamanders

Tapas & Tintos

Spanish tapas restaurant on Esplanade Way.

What we had:

Dedos del diablo--lightly breaded & fried jumbo shrimp stuffed with serrano ham, goat cheese, served with an with avocado/tomato salad and grilled asparagus spears. This was my favorite, though I didn't really taste the ham at all. My DH felt the goat cheese was a little overwhelming, but since I could happily swim in the stuff, I did not. DH liked it better with the avocado spread on top.

Bacalao-stuffed piquillo pepper with red pepper sauce and some form of creamy cheese. It was okay. I enjoyed the silkiness of the salt cod mixed with the creamy cheese. My DH didn't like it at all--he said it was too fishy.

Grilled pork loin with grilled red and green bell pepper garnish. My DH's favorite. I thought it was a touch dry, but tasty overall.

Décor:

We ate outside in the alley, but the atmosphere was still pretty decent.

Service:

S0-so. They were on Spanish time.

Overall impressions:

It was okay. I'd possibly go back, but I'm in no hurry to do so.

What Google says; company website

Rating:

3 out of 5 salamanders

Big Slick's Deli

Lunch spot on West Dixie in Aventura popular (at least on the day we went) with cops.

What we had:

We both had the Open Ender sandwich-Turkey, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard, pressed hot Cuban-style. The sandwich was decent. Not terribly over-the-top special, but if I were out for lunch from work, I'd be pleased.

Décor:

Nothing terribly special; pretty much what you'd expect from a lunch spot.

Service:

Order at the counter-style

Overall impressions:

Not bad.

What Google says; company website.

Rating:

3 out of 5 salamanders

Enso Restaurant

I'm not 100% sure how to classify this place. It's a restaurant with a manifesto. The manifesto is a bit muddled, but it goes something like the scientific pursuit of making food taste better. The menu consists of Sushi, yakitori-style meat and vegetable skewers, an interesting absinthe and cheese plate, studies in dessert mediums, and a ginormous wine menu.

What we had:

We split an order of 5 skewers--mushroom, shrimp, lamb, pork and tuna. The skewers were served with sticky rice and tortillas. All in all a satisfying lunch. We <3 sticky rice. The meats were cooked well (the yakitori tableside warmer things are to finish them off), and seasoned properly.

Décor:

We ate outside, and the chairs were very comfortable with nice modern wood block backs. Enso also has dining couches.

Service:

S0-so. The guy was busy but he was trying.

Overall impressions:

Call me a sucker for a manifesto, but I'm intrigued by the absinthe & cheese dish and studies in dessert.

I can't find this place on Google, and that surprises me. Maybe they're just new.

Rating:

3.5 out of 5 salamanders

Blue Martini

Martini bar & grill at the Galleria Mall.

What we had:

I had the lobster tacos--grilled Maine lobster with an avocado-mango slaw and mango habanero sauce in a flour tortilla. The lobster was cooked perfectly; the mango brought out the natural sweetness of the lobster and complemented the silkiness of the avocado perfectly. The portion size was just right--2 tacos, and I appreciated that the chef didn't then drown the dish in chips. I think there were 3 as a garnish. The fresh salsa and sour cream sauce were quite good as well. I also had a Key lime pie martini--Van Gogh Blue Vodka, KeKe Beach Key Lime Liqueur and cream, served with a Graham Cracker rim. Martini's are a tricky thing for me. I don't particularly like the taste of alcohol, and to me, this tasted stronger than what I would normally enjoy. The Key lime also wasn't as in-your-face as I like. But, I must say, the martinis--really a martini & 1/2, since they give you the shaker sidecar--will kick your ass. My DH and I had to walk it off and attempt to not drunk-shop.

My DH had the Prime beef tenderloin sandwich on rosemary olive oil Focaccia with fresh horseradish sauce, sprinkle of parmesan and smear of red pepper sauce. This was a great dish as well. The beef was cooked perfectly and the sauces were spot-on. I don't remember what martini he had--I think it was the classic shaken with Grey Goose--but I do remember that he really liked it.

Décor:

We ate outside.

Service:

Not bad.

Overall impressions:

We would definitely go back, even though drunk shopping is very, very dangerous. We lucked up, too--we hit happy hour, and everything was half off, so our bill was really reasonable--$9/sandwich, $7/martini.

Company website; what Google says

Rating:

4 out of 5 salamanders