Dinners with Josh – Brobecks BBQ

I have been on a roll trying new places lately!  Thanks to the local Facebook group called KC Eats.  It’s a great group of people and a great way to hear about new places around town.  I had read several great reviews on Brobecks BBQ and we decided to dive in.

On most of these reviews I had read that you have to try the ham salad.  So I ordered the appetizer!  The only other ham salad i’ve had was Debbie’s ham salad which she would make after holidays where smoked ham was a staple.  It was always a great treat and something I haven’t been able to recreate.  This one was really good too.  It was served with homemade chips and packages of crackers.  Josh claims he doesn’t like ham salad but made a dent in it anyways!

For dinner, we both ordered different things.  Josh got the Brobecks Combo platter with fries and macaroni and cheese and I got the Burnt End dinner with cheesy corn and beans.

All the meat on both plates was really good.  It was all served dry, which I prefer and there was sauce on the table.  There was also a table with a few different other sauces you could get and signs encouraging you to bring your own sauce if you didn’t like theirs.  The mac and cheese was a solid choice, the steak fries were nicely cooked and meaty, the beans were decent and the cheesy corn wasn’t bland like some cheesy corn can be.

It was a great meal and we were both stuffed and took home some leftovers.  The BBQ market is a tough one around here but I would go back for the ham salad alone.  They are closed Sunday and Monday so don’t make the drive out there and be disappointed on those days!

Lunches with Dad – Mudhole BBQ

Wednesday was the day of BBQ.  So much BBQ and i’m not mad about it.  Ill chronicle my BBQ dinner with Josh in another post.

This was my week to choose lunch and I already had this one queued up and ready to go!  It’s fairly new location and is called Mudhole BBQ.  They also have another location and a food truck.  It sits in an unassuming strip mall on North Oak.  Once inside its bright and cheery.  You order at the counter, get your drink and find a table and they bring your food out to you.

Dad and I decided that we would share a meal.  We got an order of the Mudhole Rangoons and chose the Burnt Ends Sandwich with fries.  We also got an order of the beans.

Being a big fan of cream cheese, I was super excited to try the rangoons.  They did NOT disappoint!  They were creamy and delicious and had tender meat in them.  A perfect combination, really.  The only thing that was disappointing is that there wasn’t more to be had!

The beans were a surprise!  Instead of the usual baked beans, these were more like a ham and beans type and flavor bean with a bbq twist.  Very interesting!  Dad enjoyed them more than I did, but they were still a good choice in my book.  The burnt ends had good flavor and were nice and tender.  The fries had a great seasoning on them which made them delicious.

It was a little on the pricey side, IMHO (or maybe that’s just dads voice in my head), being ~$27 for one meal, an extra side, an appetizer and two drinks.  (Ok, writing it out like that makes it seem like a lot!) But it was still a good meal and I would give them another shot!  I would encourage you to try them out too, if you’re in the area!

Lunches with Dad – Summit Grill

I could start with a litany of excuses why it has been 5 months since my last post.  But we all know life happens, so there!

We have been doing lunches, though not as frequently as we would like!  My work schedule has changed and dad has been busy with his AMA VP duties.  Admittedly some of our lunches have been some repeats, but thats ok too!

Last week, in an effort to get back in the game, Dad picked Summit Grill for lunch.  They recently opened a new location here in the Northland and we decided to check it out!  We got there shortly after they opened at 11 and the place was already hoppin’!

The menu looked like all kinds of fancy, yummy stuff.  We opted to skip a starter and dive right in!  I got the Pot Roast Nachos (a starter, but I wanted it as my meal) and dad got the Fresh Icelandic Haddock Fish and Chips.

The food came out pretty quickly!  My nachos looked super fancy!  They were also really tasty.  Not quite what I was expecting when I think of nachos, but great nonetheless!  The “chips” they were on were fantastic!  I’m pretty sure they were cut and fried flour tortillas.  I would highly recommend them as an appetizer OR a meal!

Dad got two big pieces of fish, some coleslaw and a generous helping of fries.  I didn’t try the fish but he assures me it was good.  The coleslaw had a different, but good, flavor.  A week later I can’t even remember why, but I remember the fries being really good.  I just got off the phone with dad and he said they were OK.

(Picture should’ve been here, but we both failed at getting one!)

When we were done with our meal, our waitress brought over this tray filled with sweet delights to tempt us.  Two things on the tray caught our attention:  Creme Brulee and a Reeses inspired peanut butter cup dessert thing.  Wanting to share a dessert and not wanting to actually decide, we told the waitress to “just bring us one of those two things!”.  Only slightly thrown off, she obliged and brought us the creme brulee.  Man.  That.  Was.  Good!  Instead of being in a glass dish it was in its own, edible, chocolate bowl!  There was a delicious raspberry sauce on the plate and some fresh berries.  We both could have easily finished our own of those and not regretted a moment!  I must find out how they got the brulee in the chocolate bowl!

All in all it was a good meal.  I would go back again to try some more of the menu and i’m sure dad feels the same! (Spoiler alert, I have a lunch meeting there tomorrow!)

***Edited to add***

As promised, I got to visit Summit Grill again the day after originally posting this.  Once again, it did not disappoint!  I was there for a continuing education meeting thru work.  This time I got the Chicken Fried Chicken (gravy on the side, always).   The breading on the chicken was delicious and the chicken was cooked perfectly!  The gravy was a nice touch and the mashed potatoes were smooth and delicious.  I didn’t care for the veggies served with it, but I like my green beans more well done than the ones I was served.  Some people like them less cooked, I like them more well done!

We also got to choose between the carrot cake and the creme brulee for dessert.  I chose the Creme Brulee again.  I ate the whole thing.  It was too much, but I finished it anyway since i’m not a quitter!  Maybe next time i’ll try a different dessert.  Maybe.

 

Lunches with Dad – Brown and Loe

Life happens, but here we are!

Dad and I went out this week to a new to both of us place!  I have had this place on my list for quite awhile and now am only sorry I waited to so long to try it!

Who:  Dad and I

What:  Lunch

When:  Thursday, 12/20/18

Where:  Brown and Loe

How (was it):  In a word, GREAT!

 

We arrived just slightly after 11 am to a mostly empty restaurant and was seated and greeted by our server quickly.  We wanted to start with an appetizer and had narrowed it down to two choices, the Sea Salt Pretzels or the Pimento Cheese Toast.  I told our server what we had narrowed it down to and told her to order us one of those things and bring it to us.  She accepted the challenge!  In short order our Pretzels came out.

The menu had many yummy looking choices and it was hard to choose what we wanted!  I went with the Smoked Chicken Salad Sandwich.  Instead of fries or chips, I went with the Crispy Brussels Sprouts instead.  It was a good choice.  The sandwich was on a hearty wheat bread and there was a generous portion of chicken salad on there!  The apple butter was a great addition to the sandwich, too!

Dad went with one of daily specials which was a BLT with Pimento cheese and a side of fries.  Dad said the pimento cheese was a great addition to the BLT.  It was a huge sandwich too, and he left half of it for me to take home to enjoy later.

In an effort to completely stuff ourselves, we decided to indulge in some dessert too.  It was a Plum Cobbler served with a goat cheese ice cream and caramel syrup.  It also was delicious.

 

It was a great meal that gets 10’s all around!  I can’t wait to go back and try some more of the menu items!

Dinner with Nikki – Hawaiian Bros Island Grill

Hello!  Welcome!  School has been all consuming this semester on top of life.  Dad and I haven’t been doing lunches as a sad, sad result.

I recently joined a “KC Eats” group on Facebook that highlights restaurants in the area.  I saw a couple posts about Hawaiian Bros Island Grill and decided I NEEDED to check it out.  I grabbed Nikki, who loves to explore new restaurants too, and made the drive there!  It’s in Belton, so not close, but definitely not too far!

The menu is pretty straightforward and small.  Short and simple.  We both opted for the Traditional Classic Plates.  For a small upcharge you could get two meats instead of one so thats the option we both tried.  Every meal comes with rice and macaroni salad and you choose the meat(s).  I went with the Molokai Chicken and the Honolulu Chicken.  Nikki got the Molokai Chicken and Luau Pig.

Honolulu chicken on the left, Molokai on the right

The meals were great.  The rice was cooked perfectly and the chicken was cooked perfectly and flavored well.  I’m still on the fence about the macaroni salad.  It was pretty bland, with pepper being the predominant flavor.  They had a BBQ type sauce and a teriyaki sauce on the table which I used to kick up the macaroni salad and that really perked it up!

It’s a great little place and I can’t wait to go again!  I will have to hit it up on our way to or from Clinton once and awhile.

Highly recommended!

Lunches with Dad – The Quaff and Caddy Shack

Ok guys, hang in there.  I am going backwards thru all the food pictures in my phone to get caught up.  Pardon me if details are a little sketchy.

A Dad pick we tried was The Quaff.  It is downtown on Broadway.  I honestly always thought it was a nightclub/bar establishment all these year I have driven by.  Turns out its a restaurant too!  My sister had mentioned it to my dad as a place to check out and off we went!

We have gotten into the habit of ordering appetizers when we are out just so we can sample more of the menu.  That day was no exception.  We ordered the nachos with beef on them.  They were plentiful and very tasty.  I would order them again as my meal.

Dad and I both had decided we wanted a french dip with fries so we both went for it.  Usually we try to order different things but not today.  French Dips were in our hearts.  We both enjoyed them.  They were hearty sandwiches with good fries.  I had to abandon the bread halfway thru so I could finish the meat, which was tasty.

Dad and I both enjoyed it with no regrets and I will definitely be back again.  In fact, I have tried to take Josh there a couple of times but both times they were closed due to holiday hours.  We will make it there when they are open one of these days!

Mid November we checked out Moretina’s Caddy Shack Pizza.  This was a choice of mine.  I was (and still am, lets be honest) going thru a pizza phase and took this recommendation from a friend.  She is one that when she makes a recommendation, you listen.

We both ordered side salads to start and they were your basic, run of the mill salads.  But lets be honest, theres not much to get excited about with side salads usually.  It’s something you get so you don’t feel like a total glutton when the pizza comes.    We ordered a pizza with (I believe) canadian bacon, pineapple, mushrooms and onions.  In the picture it looks smallish but I don’t remember it being so.  It had a great crust and the toppings were cut to a good size and had the right amounts.  I was told w

e should have tried it St Louis style with provel cheese but will have to do that next time, which I anticipate there being!  We both were happy and full when we left.

Have you tried any of the places we have?  I would love to hear your comments and experiences!

Lunches With Dad, breakfast style

Apologizes its been so long.  Life happens and I have lots of excuses but lets not bore you with those.

Dad and I have still been going out to lunch regularly, but the last few weeks we had to switch it up due to schedules and do breakfast instead.

This week we went to The Big Biscuit which neither of us are strangers to.  We needed a sure thing and it delivered.  I didn’t take pictures but it was a filling and good meal.  Super fast, too!  We had taken schedules to hash out and exchange and we didn’t even have a chance to finish that before the food showed up.  The bacon I had deserves special mention though.  It was perfectly cooked.  Yummmmmmmmm.

 

The Thursday before Christmas, we went to Chubby’s on Broadway.  My BFF joined us as we had big plans for the day (hence the need for breakfast instead of lunch that day).  Turns out there they start you off with cinnamon rolls.  They were perfect!  The icing was great and they were nice and soft!  I could’ve probably eaten just a plate of those with a glass of milk and been happy.

Alas, we did order food too.  I ordered a smorgasboard type plate that had hash browns and eggs (over medium for me) and biscuit with gravy.  Dad got fancy and decided to try, for the first time ever, Eggs Benedict with fruit.  He also got a biscuit and gravy (any breakfast place is judged by its biscuit and gravy!) which came also with hashbrowns.  Carrie got french toast with bacon and eggs.

 

It was a good meal overall.  Solid breakfast options and decent biscuits and gravy.  Dad even enjoyed his foray into the world of eggs benedict.  It is a bit far south to frequent but I would go there again if we were in the neighborhood.

The week before Chubby’s we went to a new neighborhood spot, Sissy’s Breakfast and Lunch.  The place where it is was a long time Northland restaurant, then was Crown Pointe Tavern (which moved to a bigger location, then Taco Luchador which wasn’t there very long at all.

It is a clean open space with nice people working there.  We were brought a plate with some fresh baked house made bread samples to try.  We both ordered pretty standard breakfast fare.  Dad got a plate with bacon and eggs (over easy) and hashbrowns and, of course, a side of biscuit and gravy.  I got a plate with eggs (scrambled with cheese), bacon and pancakes.  And a biscuit and gravy, you know, for research purposes.

The food came and we dug in.  The gravy is…different.  It has a different spice to it that neither of us could put our tastebuds to.  They say its a mix of two different kind of sausages, but the flavor is more than just that.  Dad was not a fan of it at all but I liked it enough.  The rest of the food was decent.  I would go again but dad says it was “so-so” (I think the gravy really threw him off ).

Dinners with Josh – Homeslice Pizza & Pints

Josh and I (mostly Josh these days) enjoy going downtown to get our walking in.  You can park close to the streetcar line and take off.  As long as you can get back to the streetcar, you are never far from your car.  There’s always interesting people watching and plenty of things to see.

On one of these walks Homeslice Pizza & Pints was noted and the other day we decided to finally check it out.  It sits on the corner of Truman Road and Grand, right across the highway from the Sprint Center.  It was a beautiful evening and they had the garage door/windows open so I chose a seat next to the window.  I beat Josh there and ordered us some waters and the Chicken & Hummus appetizer.  He got there shortly and we decided also on “The Wise Guy” pizza for dinner.

The only real problem I had with the whole experience is the pizza came out before our appetizer, which was ordered at least 15 minutes before the pizza!  They apologized and we ate it anyway.  The pizza was good!  I’m not a fan of fennel sausage so we substituted it for pepperoni on the pizza and that was the right choice.  The whole thing was delicious.  It was a decent size for the price too.  I had expected it to be skimpier than it was.

The Chicken & Hummus appetizer was also yummy.  It came with four skewers of chicken, some pita slices and a healthy sized dish of roasted red pepper hummus which was really good.  There weren’t enough pita pieces so I resorted to using the pizza crust.  Yum!  There was some even left over after everything else was gone and I may have ate some with a fork too, it was that good!

Overall it was great and I would definitely go again!  It gets a 4.5/5 from me!

Spring time in the city! A winter round up of restaurants.

Lets try this again.  I started this post a couple of months ago one day before class and its as far as it got then.  Let me sum it up for you…good weather, went back to school (business classes so I can become a Certified Veterinary Practice Manager),  not a lot of time for crafts and such.  There!  You’re caught up! 🙂

Summer has been much of the same.  I am not taking classes this summer as they are all online only and me and strictly online classes aren’t a thing that work!  Work has been busy and good as is life.

Dad and I have went to lunch most weeks over the winter.  I know I have posted a couple of things but left out a lot.  I will try to catch up with the other places we have tried in between.

Zaxby’s

This one was my pick.  I had heard about it from a friend on Facebook and I am always down to try a new chicken place.  It was a new building and was very clean and spiffy looking.  They had a pretty varied menu, but all were chicken options.  They had fried tenders, wings, salads and some sandwiches.  They also had some shakes and other desserty options although we didn’t explore those at all this time.

Dad and I both went with a chicken tenders platter.  It came with your choice on number of tenders, fries, coleslaw, a piece of texas toast and a drink for a fairly reasonable price.

I thought everything was pretty good.  There was a good flavoring to the breading on the chicken but not overpowering.  A decent fast food chicken meal option.

Sorellas Deli

This was a Dad pick!  Sorellas is a little deli right off the square in Liberty.  The first thing that hit me when we walked in was that the place smelled delicious!

They had your usual fare of sandwiches made to order, soups, salad and mouthwatering looking desserts.

I went with a soup and sandwich combo choosing their homemade minestrone soup a mufaletta sandwich.  It also came with a pickle spear and a bag of chips.  Dad got a house salad and half of a sandwich.  When we were ordering, there was a pedestal with these amazing looking “Amaretto Brownies” on them just looking all sultry and amazing under that glass dome.  They were calling my name.  I ordered one.  What was I supposed to do?  Just leave it there?  You’re a monster if your answer was yes.  Dad also got a cupcake, but my brownie was better. 🙂

I will definitely go back to Sorellas!

Salvatore’s Restaurant

This gem was a pick of mine (I think).  It is in Independence on 40 Hwy in its own building.  Its been there a while and I can see why after visiting.

We were greeted and seated and met our waiter.  He was engaging and fun which is always nice.

We ordered an appetizer to start that day and chose the Melanzane Fritti which is basically fried eggplant with marinara and cheese.  It was very good!  Eggplant can be tricky to cook (I think so, anyway) and this was done really well.  They also bring bread and butter to the table for you to enjoy.  You can also order the olive oil and spices service for extra.

I got Chicken Spedini Samantha.  It was cooked perfectly and served with Fettuccine Alfredo and artichoke hearts.  Yummy.

Dad got the Beef Spedini (the special that day) and it came with a side of Fettuccine Alfredo as well.

 

We both enjoyed our meals and I have actually been back a couple of times with Josh for dinner.  It’s good.

Franks Italian Restaurant

Franks sits along Main Street in downtown Parkville, Missouri.  It is a small and unassuming place.  Mom, Dad and I went on a lovely Thursday afternoon.  We started with the fried ravioli with sugo sauce appetizer.  I got the lunch chicken alfredo, dad got the lasagna roll and mom got the Italian Steak Sandwich with fries.  We also had bread pudding for dessert, one shared between the three of us.

All the meals were good and at a decent price.  I need to remember this place when we are looking for lunch options at work!

Picklemans Deli and Doughnut Lounge

We went to the Picklemans location in Westport and had an OK lunch.  If i’m being completly honest, I don’t remember much about it.  It’s a sandwich shop and wasn’t bad.

After we had lunch we needed some sweet reward that day so walked around the corner to Doughnut Lounge and got what else besides a couple of donuts!  Smores for me and something with pretzels on the top for dad.  They were both delicious!

Rheinland

Rheinland serves authentic German food on the square in Independence MO.  This was a dad pick and he has been there several times (and swears I have been there too – but too long ago for me to remember!) and he decided that I needed to try it out to remember this time.  I agreed.  One of our favorite dishes is Sauerbrauten.  Sadly they didn’t serve it at lunch time, which is understandable given the time it takes to prepare.

We started with an appetizer of Käsespätzle (cheese spätzle).  That was a dish of cheesy, oniony goodness!

I ordered the Reuben with hot potato salad and dad went for the beef stroganoff.  Both meals were great and we had to finish up with dessert!  It was a boozy, chocolately, ice creamy thing.  Yum!

Granite City

Granite City was an adventure Mom joined us on too.  It was decent food and I had eaten there a couple of times.  Never a bad meal, just nothing to write home about in my book!

Cascones

Cascones is a Northland Kansas City staple.  Many pre-dance dinners have been had there as well as celebrations of all sorts.  Its much more subdued there at lunchtime but a solid choice.

In interest of full disclosure I don’t remember everything we ordered but I know dad got a parmigiana (maybe veal?) and I got the lasagna.  I do remember by lasagna being AMAZING.  I’m usually pretty picky when it comes to my lasagna, preferring mine (my mom’s recipe) to others but this one was great!  Who wants to go to Cascones for some lasagna with me?!?

I think that wraps it up for now.  Check back soon for some more!  I promise it won’t be months this time!

 

Lunches with Dad – Mudbugs

Hello again!  Today I decided to take us both out of comfort zones.  I figured that it was what our plan with our weekly lunches was really about.  Sometimes I just have to force us out there.  We are guilty of picking more “safe” choices and I decided to go outside the comfort zone with Mudbugs.

We walked in to the restaurant and its is set up in the style of a food truck, Mudbugs original set up.  You order and pay at the front counter and pick up your food at the back pickup window.  One look at the menu and Dad leaned over to me and said “I don’t have a warm fuzzy feeling about this”.  I just laughed at him and told him to try something new and pointed out some “safer” options.

I decided to go all in (well, almost…) and go for the Shrimp Po’boy.  I did opt out of the sauteed craw fish that comes on the sandwich…I just wasn’t feeling THAT adventurous!  Dad opted for the Classic Roast Beef Po’boy (also without the craw fish).  I got fries to go with mine and dad opted for the fried okra.

Our meal came out pretty fast and the person that took our order actually brought us our food to the table.

Much to both of our surprises, it was pretty good.  The shrimp on my sandwich were perfectly breaded and fried and they were generous with the amount of shrimp.  The toppings on my sandwich were well paired, although i’m not sure what the polenta added to my sandwich, but it wasn’t bad.

Dads sandwich was very good too.  The roast beef was nicely seasoned and was generous in the portions of it.  We combined the fries and okra and shared.  Both items were good.  The okra wasn’t slimy and was well breaded.

We heard that they would give samples of their other items such as the red beans and rice and gumbo.  When we were checked on we asked for a red beans and rice sample and they obliged.  It was good!  I don’t even like red beans!  Dad really enjoyed it and wished he had ordered some.

Later in the meal the Chef had a break in the action and made his rounds.  He was warm and friendly and got us some gumbo samples to try too.  It was good!  I don’t know that I would eat a whole bowl but it was nice to try it.

Over all we had a good meal and didn’t have to resort to emergency back up fast food (which I told dad we would if we had to).  We were both full and don’t regret a thing!  Wait…dad regrets not ordering the red beans and rice, but that just means he needs to go back!  I will definitely go again!  Maybe next time I will let them put the crawfish on the side to try it out.