Just like Pirates of the Caribbean III, a pirate can always find a good port in China. After a long 2 weeks of mundane trivialities, I decided it was time for a dinner date with the Captain’s Wench! (Good thing I’m the captain or this review might’ave turned out a wee bit different! Arrrrrgh!) So, after setting the dogs in front of their bowls of food, the kids in front of their happy meals (I’ve always wondered what makes a meal happy, but that’s another story) and making sure the iron was turned off, the wench and I set sail for ports unknown.

I’d heard about a good Chinese restaurant called China First and we decided to try it out. The outside of the building was a bit less than most would find acceptable, but then again, what’s a pirate to do? Start being picky if the white wash is a little faded and there’s moss on the roof? Besides, my motto is, “If the outsides dilapidated, the food’s gotta be great!”

Ok, so sometimes my motto fails me but this time it didn’t. We were met at the door by the owner of the restaurant and shown to our seats quickly. The decorations inside were a bit above the norm for most Chinese restaurants I’ve been in.

The waiter came right over and served us Green Tea and gave us our menus and welcomed us to the restaurant. After a bit of negotiations between the wench and I we ordered.

Appetizer: Fried Won Ton with Sake Soup: Egg Flower Soup Main Course for the Captain: BBQ Pork with Sweet Peas and Water Chestnuts Main Course for the Captains Wench: Shrimp Chow Mein with crunchy noodles.

Too bad I’ve only got a pirates vocabulary or I’d wax poetic about the delicately fried won tons that tasted as if a slice of heaven had been placed on my plate for my enjoyment alone and the perfection of the kick in the sake served at precisely the right temperature.

If the effort of stringing more then 3 words into a sentence that didn’t include “Arrrrgh” somewhere in it wasn, I’d describe in minute details the sensation of the delicately seasoned Egg Flower soup with it’s vegetables cooked to just the right texture and you slowly savored each and every spoonful.

If I wasn’t too busy worrying about keelhauling some scurvy dog, I’d be able to tell you that if I was on death row and it was time for my final meal, I’m want it to be the main course I had tonight. I’d tell you that the BBS Pork was as tender and soft as a newly built Build-A-Bear Teddy Bear. I’d be able to describe the sensation of the spices and the flavors as each item in the main course combined together in a magnificent crescendo of taste sensations. How the water chestnuts were still crunchy while the sweet peas were soft and chewable and the onions still crunchy and sweet.

But I can’t. I’m but a simple pirate and words like those are beyond my station so alls I can say is this:

To heck with the rest of the scurvy dogs on the crew, this one’s reserved for the Captain himself!

Oh! I almost forgot to mention the Plum Wine we had with dinner was perfectly sweet and delectable! But I won’t mention it because everyone knows a pirate only drinks Rum and Grog!

Amidst the hustle and bustle of the Alderwood Mall food court lays a sandwich shop, Quizno’s #834. Although the place was neat and clean and well run the food was a complete disappointment. After watching the person making the sandwiches measure the portions to the last microgram and put meat back for the sandwich, I wasn’t too thrilled but I thought that cost controls made sense.

However, when we got to the table, the three of us (My wife, my daughter and myself) bit into our sandwichs and we all came to the same conclusion. Bland and tasteless. We’d have gotten more flavor if we’d been eating hay.

Overall, my worst food experience at a Quizno’s, ever.

Taco Bell is normally my favorite stop of the Big Three Fast Food restaurants but this Taco Bell has put me off from going to Taco Bell for a long time.

This is not the first time that I have eaten there, and each time as been consistently the same; Lousy. The service is poor, the food is mediocre and the dining room is barely clean and the rest room is cramped and atrocious. I’ve slopped food in cleaner pig troughs then the bathroom at this restaurant.

This is by far the worst fast food restaurant I’ve ever eaten at.

My follow-up review for this restaurant. Read my previous review for this restaurant here

After reading so much concerning the hot subs here, I decided I had to try one for myself. I ordered the #56, the “Big Kahuna Cheese Steak” and let me tell you what! It WAS a Big Kahuna Cheese Steak!!!

I stood there at the counter, talking to one of the girls while the other one made my Sub. I had ordered the Sub with out jalapeños as I preferred to have it the way a Philly Cheese Steak was originally made.

As she placed the meat on the grill I was shocked as I had expected generic Steak’ums based on the reviews I had read before. The meat that was used was no where near to Steak’um mediocrity but actual marbled steak. Sweet!!!

Onions and Peppers, Steak and Fresh sliced provolone combined on the grill to create a tantalizing aroma that had my mouth watering while I waited. The girl on the grill chopped and diced the meat and cheese better than a Chef at Benihana’s! She piled the fixings onto a sliced roll of fresh baked bread, wrapped it in tinfoil, grabbed a bag and popped it open on the counter, slid the sandwich int o the bag and gave it to me with a bright smile.

I’m telling you what, I love the service at this place. I think next time I’ll try one of their Sub’s in a Tub.

My wife and I met a friend and his wife here for dinner. The entire experience was beyond belief. The atmosphere was prefect, the service was impeccable and the food was to die for. The look and feel of the restaurant is very comfortable and well done, the serving staff was always there and unobtrusive.

Being a quiet Sunday evening I assumed that we’ve have no problems being seated and served at this quaint family restaurant. I do so enjoy the decor of this restaurant, specially the twin trains that continuously circle a track suspended from the ceiling, although one was apparently down for maintenance.

We were greeted the moment we entered and seated within 2 minutes. Then things went downhill from there. We waited almost a full 15 minutes before our server showed up, and after the ordering we were forgotten. We waited a bit longer for the food and how no check back after it was delivered at all. All in all a miserable performance by a normally quality restaurant.

I used to be a Subway Fanatic… That was till I visited Jersey’s Mike one day.

We walked in the the girls behind the counter were very vocal and happy, welcoming us to the store and all. We placed our orders and then the girls went to work. Imagine my surprise to see them slicing the meat right there before it went into the sandwich. Fresh sliced deli meat and cheese. A sandwich lovers paradise.

The meat was fresh (Noticed that they roast the roast beef there themselves), the cheese was fresh and the fixings were fresh as well. The grill work I saw going on was handled by one lady and she was cooking 6 sandwiches at once and had that grill a going!

The place is well lit, very clean and everything was working, including the soda dispenser.