Phood on Main

 I traveled five hours from Phoenix to Riverside, CA, where we ran into another Fun Frank Friday at a restaurant called "Phood on Main".  What caught my eye was their own description of being a "hip and creative eaterie".  Here they create new dishes as well as improvise on other chef's creations but giving credit where credit is due.   We were joined on our adventure with some of Patti's family members, John and Julie as well as Rachel, who were willing to brave a "phoodies" indulgence.

So Patti started off by ordering from the "little plates" side of the menu.  This would give her several options of tastes to try without having to order several different entrees.  First out was the sweet potato fries.  Described as being served with "mapled" Superstuff, but the kicker was the apricot orange ketchup.  She really loved the ketchup and was disappointed when the fries ran out before the ketchup did and she had nothing left to dip.
Next out was the Bibimbap Arancin.  She chose the option for the carnivore, which is a rice ball deep fried and stuffed with sausage and cheese.  They came atop a mushroom parmesean cream sauce that  helped balance the dryness of the rice ball.

 And last of the three was the Rock Shrimp Katsuya-is.  The menu described it as "Our attempt at stealing and copying a dish we had in LA."  However as I have never been to Katsuya in LA I could not verify how close they came to imitating it.   These breaded tiny bites of rock shrimp were served in a  spicy sambal-garlic creamy toss-sauce.  It was delicious and because Patti loves me lots she shared.  It was a smidge too spicy for her liking which is why she was willing to share more than a single bite.

Rachel, who is a very adventurous eater by nature, chose the chicken parmesean.  This surprised me as I would consider it a more common-place Italian dish.  Nonetheless, this delicious chicken was smothered in marinara and parmesean and served with a side of garlic cheese bread.  I don't feel she shared nearly enough of the crazy addictive bread.

 Next was Julie who ordered the French Onion Steak Tower.  This included 

layers of Hereford Beef steak medallions topped with deep-fried caramelized onion straws and Swiss Cheese.  The bite she shared with me included the medallion that was incredibly tasty and tender.  The onion straws gave a nice crunchy texture to the meal.

John opted for the BBQ Pork Ribs because he wanted to make sure there was enough to share.  These ribs are done in a St. Louis style with a BBQ sauce that is slightly sticky & slightly spicy.  They were "fall off the bone tender" and I was glad he was sharing! The side of house chips seemed like a nice touch but they were a little under seasoned.  Patti however was pleased to be able to dip them in her ketchup.

I went for one of the signature dishes, the "Drunken chicken".  The chicken breasts were smothered in their rum, wine, shallot, leek, green onion, mushroom and parmesan cream sauce.  The chicken was juicy and with the sauce it gave even more of a robust flavor.  I could see why this would be one of their top dishes.  I ate the whole thing as was reluctant to share even with Patti.

So if you find yourself in downtown Riverside California, near the Mission district, stop by Phood on Main.  Because if you haven't tried a drunken chicken, or apricot orange ketchup, try it now.

Cafe Ga Hyang

Do you need another place to satisfy your Korean craving?  Sometimes the hole in the wall can be a great place for truly authentic Korean food.  We found a very unassuming place in a unassuming little strip mall called Cafe Ga Hyang.  It is located on Olive just west of 45th Avenue. When you get close to the address you really have to keep your eyes open because if you blink you will miss it.   We started with a Coke which they bring in a can with a glass of ice on the side.  My first appetizer choice was Gyoza or more commonly known in our house as potstickers.  This was one of my favorite street foods from my life in Korea.  These are deep fried dumplings filled with meat and vegetables and dipped in a soy sauce mixture.  Kudos to Cafe Ga Hyang who have this down to a "t" and every bite flooded me with memories of the streets of Seoul.

For my second appetizer choice I went with duk bokki, also known as Korean spicy rice cakes.  Despite the warning from our server that this was an extremely spicy dish and not for the typical American palate, I ordered it anyway and assured her my palate was anything but typical.  After devouring about a quarter of this inferno of an appetizer, I had to quickly set it aside.  This is truly a "15" on the 1-10 spicy scale.  Although it was delicious, after a few bites you can no longer taste anything but the heat.  I recommend you go when you are congested as it will clear out your sinuses quickly!  Patti was so intrigued by the rice cake noodle-things that she wanted to try it as well despite the warnings.  She attempted to scrape off the sauce and what she could visibly see as peppers but to no avail.  She couldn't even finish a single bite in her mouth.

In this small restaurant you have, accenting in the background, one of our key indicators of authenticity, the TV playing native language broadcasts.  We were pleasantly surprised by the change from soap opera looking shows to more of a newscast program here.
And as in a traditional Korean barbecue, they provide 10 side dishes that accompany your meat entree.  This included a variety of pickled vegetables including kim chee, as well as fresh vegetables like bean sprouts.  These were all very delicious and if you don't mind a little bit of spicy kick, I recommend their traditional kim chee.

Patti ordered the bulgogi, which is a Korean marinated beef that is grilled and served on a bed of sizzling onions.  Unlike the other Korean BBQ's that we have been too, this one did not appear to have the option to grill your own food at your table.  Instead they bring it out to you sizzling hot.  The beef was extremely tender and full of marinated goodness.

Another excellent option would have been dukgolgi, which is a marinated chicken.  I however decided to step out of my usual list of favorites and went with the Korean short ribs.  I'm sure many of you have tried short ribs at Asian restaurants have found them to be typically tasty but still chewy.   These at Cafe Ga Hyang are a must try rib!  The meat nearly fell off the bone and only needed gentle prodding from the chopstick.  I was happy that I was able to satisfy my Korean craving, although I wish I had heeded the waitress' warning.  So when she tells you it is spicy you better believe her and if you haven't tried gyoza, try it now.

Thai Basil

For this Fun Frank Friday, I was craving some Thai food and realized we hadn't been to one in a long time.  So we decided to try Thai Basil in Ahwatukee on Chandler Blvd.  We started with our usual Cokes and an appetizer combination plate.  It consisted of 2 pieces of Satay Chicken, deep fried Sweet Potato, Fried Tofu, Spring Rolls,  and Thai Toast, served with sweet and sour sauce, Thai plum sauce and peanut sauce.  What is Thai toast, you ask?  Well it is flash fried toast filled with garlic and ground chicken and served with spicy cucumber sauce.
On the table were four containers filled with a variety of spices.  Each one ranged from a mild kick to a raging burn.  These spices are used to increase the heat of any dish if you so desired.

Patti went with her all-time favorite, chicken Pad Thai.  It consists of chicken in pan-fried rice noodles with eggs, bean sprouts, green onions, tofu and ground peanuts.   Our server gave us an option of how spicy we would like our entree.  These included mild, medium, hot and Thai hot.  I of course went with medium spice and to my surprise, Patti did as well.  Despite the extra heat, the pad thai was addictively delicious.  She couldn't stop eating it despite the burn.  Next time she said she would go mild and add her own spices if necessary.

I decided to go with the signature dish, Thai Basil.  This consisted of sauteed Thai basil with spicy garlic sauce, bamboo shoots, carrots, broccoli, onions and zucchini.  You then had a choice of meat to add if you wanted.  The choices included chicken, beef, pork, tofu, shrimp, calamari, or fish.  I went with the chicken and medium spice.  The distinct flavor that really comes out is the basil and it went really well with the melody of the other vegetables.  This also comes with a side of white rice which was a nice touch especially if you accidently order it too spicy for your taste.
For dessert we decided to go with the fried bananas with ice cream.  I think this is becoming one of my favorite desserts.  Anything deep fried is good but the gooshiness of the banana is a great complement to the crunch of the fried batter and the temperature warmth complements the cold ice cream.  Thai basil also tops theirs with honey.  This was an interesting choice that really stood out in my mind.

So if you get a hankering for Thai food and you have never tried Thai toast before, you can go to Thai Basil and try it now!

Test Kitchen

 In your adventures of eating out, you should be on the look out for a key element that is critical to an enjoyable meal.  That element is fresh ingredients.  That is what drew us to the Test Kitchen restaurant.  Located at 10411 E. McDowell Mountain Ranch Rd.in Scottsdale.  Truly the complete opposite side of the valley from where we live.  The ingredients used at this place are gathered fresh from a local farm and thus the menu changes each week.  You can check out current week's menu on their Facebook page.

The meal consists of a set price for three courses.  You have a choice of one of three appetizers, one of three entrees and one of two desserts for that set price.  It is a small and cozy place so reservations are a must.  Patti chose for her appetizer the Italian Wedding Soup.  This had excellent flavor and took the chill off on a cool evening.  I chose the Grilled Eggplant and Mozzarella en Carozza with Puttanesca Sauce.  The eggplant and the cheese gave each other a great texture contrast but the true flavor was brought out with the Puttanesca sauce.

 For our entree I ordered the Grilled Veal chop on wilted kale with roasted red potatoes and Bernaise sauce.  This is where the true freshness of the meal shone through.  A fresh tender veal is a rare treat to find.  The bernaise sauce is definitely to die for!
 Patti went with the Pan seared opah on wilted baby bok choi in soy broth with daikon and mitzuna garnish.  For those of you who (like Patti) are not familiar with opah, it is a white fish very similar to a tuna steak.  Despite being in a broth the fish was a tad bit on the dry side, although still tasty.

For our final course Patti was drawn to the Chef Lou's mixed nut brownie with Udder Delights Chocolate Nutella Ice cream.  Being a huge fan of Nutella, she was intrigued in the concept of it being in ice cream form.  She was a bit disappointed when the server informed her that they did not actually have Nutella ice cream but instead it would be vanilla.  Obviously sensing her disappointment, the server informed her that the chef would try and make a nutella-like sauce that would go over the ice cream.  The brownie was more cake like but delicious and needed the ice cream to balance the texture.

I chose the "Four Cheese Cheesecake (not made in a factory)".  At first glance I was a little disappointed in the presentation of the dessert.  It looked plain and typical of a cheesecake, nothing out of the ordinary here.  That was until I took my first bite.  I am a cheese lover at my very soul and this cheesecake was exquisite in it's cheese flavor.  There was a tang of citrus that kept my going back for more and more bites until it was gone.

This restaurant was a hit and miss when it comes to ordering your food, but it truly does make a difference when you can tell the food is fresh.  So if you haven't tried from "Farm to your Fork", then try it now!

Pedro's

 You know a restaurant is amazing when other people are afraid to talk about it because it will make it  harder for them to get a table on Friday nights.  Well the secret is out now!  We found an excellent Mexican restaurant called "Pedro's" near 51st Avenue and Glendale.  This unassuming little hole in the wall left us with a big impression of what great Mexican food should be.  We arrived at 6pm without a reservation and there was already 10 people on the waiting list ahead of us.  It seemed that the more we waited the longer the list grew.  But after 20 minutes we were finally seated. 
One of the great things about Pedro's is yes, they do serve Coke.  As we munched on the endless basket of fresh chips and salsa, we browsed the menu.  We quickly ordered some appetizers while we made up our minds about the menu.  Our first choice was the "Miniature appetizer plate".  It included three tostados, three mini tacos, and three mini burritos with a bowl of refried beans, a dollop of guacamole and a dollop of sour cream on the side.  Since there were three of us for dinner tonight, this was perfect.  Our second appetizer was the beef taquitos  topped with guac, sour cream, tomatoes and cheese while laying on a bed of lettuce.
Our special guest was Lorie, who passed the secret of Pedro's on to a blabbermouth like me.  She gave us great ideas on what to order.  She went with the combination dinner of green chili beef burro and a taco served enchilada style.  These aren't your small frozen grocery store burritos.  This is a massive amount of meat snuggled into a fresh flour tortilla.  I was able to sneak a bite of the burrito but the taco must have been just as good because Lorie didn't offer up a sample of it.  All the combination meals also come with a healthy serving of rice and refried beans.

After Lorie told us that the "Sweet Corn Tamales" was a favorite of hers, Patti found them in a combination plate.  She ordered a combination of two tamales, a sweet corn tamale of course and a red meat tamale. When the tamales arrived at the tables, she was quite surprised on how large they were.  Possibly ordering just a single tamale would have been sufficient but most likely wouldn't have left any for taking home.  The red meat tamale was filled with shredded beef and a spicy kick that complemented its counterpart of the sweet corn tamale.  The sweet corn tamale was another melt in your mouth experience.  The sweet corn was so creamy that you felt it could easily be on the dessert menu.
At Pedro's I had an opportunity to try Fry Bread.  This was a deep fried flaky bread topped with green chili sauce, beef, beans, lettuce, tomato and a mexican blend of cheese.    A lot of entrees come with side dishes to fill up the plate.  But this behemoth of a Fry Bread took up the whole plate.  I took one bite and I couldn't stop going for more and more and more.  Even Patti wasn't satisfied with just one taste, she had to take a second bite.  I got half-way through my plate before I realized I was too full and needed a "to-go" box.
So now that the secret is out, I advise you to come to Pedro's early because it will fill up quickly.  But if you do have to wait it is well worth it.  And for those of you who have not tried the "sweet corn tamales" you should try it now!

Thanksgiving Special

 Thanksgiving is that time of year when friends and family gather together to share a meal and remember all the things for which we are thankful.  This year I was grateful for the time to spend with my mom and dad in Las Vegas.  On Thursday we shared an incredibly delicious meal with my parents as well as my sister Maggie's family.  Thanksgiving, however, is not a "Fun Frank Friday".  With my stomach stretched out with an overabundance of turkey, I was ready to venture off to a new restaurant.  But this time, I knew the owner personally.

Dai Nguyen is the owner of Hue Thai's, Mr. Sandwich, and Anime Ramen restaurants in Las Vegas.  After escaping Vietnam to the Philippines by boat, he was sent to the United States and joined our family as a minor refugee foster child with his brother, Dat.  A few years ago, Dai had the opportunity to purchase his first restaurant and jumped in without knowing anything about the business.  Even though he may have run into a few bumps along the road, he was able to open up two more restaurants.

 Catering to a variety of diners is the key to success.  Having many options on a menu opens up the chance for everyone to find something they will really enjoy.  Even my dad who is on an extreme, no-sodium, diet was able to order an amazingly delicious spring roll.  My mom who can't have any sugar found a tasty meal of pork, egg rice dish.  So despite these dietary concerns, this restaurant was easily able to accommodate them.

Maggie, Robert and I all decided to go with Pho.  Mine was a combo beef noodle soup which included beef ball, tripe, steak, brisket, tendon, flank, plate and lao veggies.  Like most Pho, it is a light beef broth, but what makes this exceptional is the hint of nutmeg I tasted in the the broth.  This is one dish that will fill you up so come hungry and don't be afraid to add the fresh mint leaves.  It gives it a little extra zip along with the green chilis.


Patti went with Dai's suggestion of one of the restaurant's favorite meals, the combination flower roll.  The menu doesn't describe everything that was included so we enjoyed guessing what each flavorful bite was.  Dai did clue us in on some of the ingredients such as the green beans inside the bread rolls, the powdered crushed shrimp in the rice noodle rolls.  But we also guessed the pork sausage in some of the rice noodles, the deep fried shrimp with shredded yams, and the very yummy white pork on top of the bean sprouts.  She was not surprised that this would definitely be a favorite meal for those who come to dine here.

 Most of the time, I think of rice as a side dish, more like a meal filler rather than the meal itself.  My nephew, Will, proved me wrong when he ordered the fried rice.  His dish included shrimp, pork, peas, carrots, green beans, and egg just to name a few.  This is not any ordinary side dish.  By the looks of it, the plate of rice was the size of his head.

The other must try at this restaurant is the Bubble drinks.  These are fruit smoothies with pea size "boba's".  For those who have not tried a "boba", it is a large tapioca pearl.  It is not only very delicious but it is also fun to eat/drink.

There are so many restaurants in the Asian District of Las Vegas that it would be difficult to choose just one.  There are options of Korean BBQ, Thai food, Chinese food, Japanese food and many other Asian cuisines.  In fact there are so many choices that sometimes you need a gimmick to catch people's attention and make you stand out from the rest.  Dai's other restaurant called Anime Ramen has such a gimmick.  This is a Japanese style restaurant with an Anime theme.  The place was decorated with Anime posters and on the big screen tv's they played  Anime cartoons and even the waitresses were dressed as Anime characters.
Right off the bat at a Japanese restaurant, I must try the sushi option.  The Anime presentation of the sushi rivaled the atmosphere for fun!  My first choice was the Anime Lasagna.  Which was actually one of my favorites here.  I was impressed that they wrote "Anime" in eel sauce but dotted the "I" with wasabi.  Another artistic mood in keeping with the Anime theme was the "Hello Kitty" roll.  This is as fun to look at as it was to eat.
I was even impressed that the typical dragon roll had evidence that the chef had taken extra care to make sure it looked like a dragon.

Robert and my sister Maggie are not big seafood eaters so they went with the trademark meal here which of course was ramen.  These are served in very large bowls, filled to the brim with a light beef broth and plenty of noodles.  When ordering, my Mom was concerned that she would be left with too much broth so she asked the waitress about the portions.  The server immediately replied that there were plenty of noodles but that she would be happy to bring her more if she needed throughout the meal.  As it turned out, Mom did not need any more noodles as the broth and noodles were well balanced.
One of the dangerous pitfalls of bringing children to Anime Ramen is that they tend to get too engrossed in the cartoons playing and forget to interact with others at the table.  James was a perfect example of this and Uncle Frank couldn't get his attention to find out how his food was.   James and Will both ordered the teriyaki chicken and seemed to enjoy it.


Patti started off with the seaweed salad followed by the Tuna Poke Salad, which was cleverly animated in the menu with a bubble caption stating "Let's all do the Hokey Pokey".  She shared the seaweed salad with all who were willing to try it and found many who were surprised at how incredibly tasty this appetizer is.

A perfect way to end a delicious meal is the fried banana.  This tasty treat is a deep fried, rolled in coconut banana served with vanilla ice cream, drizzled with chocolate sauce and topped with a cherry.

So when you are out eating with family it is always an adventure; especially if a family member owns restaurants.  There are many many MANY choices of places to eat in Las Vegas.  Sometimes it is best to get off the Strip and try one of Dai's restaurants.  Because if you haven't tried "Hue Thai" then try it now!

The Grove Cafe

With only six "Fun Frank Fridays" left, I've tried to  adhere to a few simple rules.  Rule number one is to never wear the same shirt twice, rule number two is that the restaurant must serve the food to me rather than standing at a take out counter or buffet, and rule number three is that we do it for a Friday night dinner.  This is a prime example of how I am always breaking the rules.  I get tired of trying to find places that are not crowded or has the cookie cutter type breakfast food.  I finally found a place that feels secluded yet cozy with an option of indoor or patio seating.  The Grove Cafe is located on 27th Avenue just north of Baseline at a place called "Venue at the Grove".  They are only open on Saturdays and Sundays from 8am to noon.  At the time we arrived, Patti was too chilled in her light jacket to sit outside, so we choose indoor seating.  We were seated at one of the many open tables and Patti remarked how impressive it was that if four people sat at this one table she would not feel one bit crowded.
To warm us up on this brisk fall morning, we both opted for hot chocolate.  I was happy to sip on my hot chocolate that didn't actually burn my tongue when it came to the table.  Many of the places I have been to, the hot chocolate is either too cold or boiling, it is nice to find someone who gets it right.

I was looking for a meal that was going to fill me up for the day, so I ordered "The Phoenix".  This consisted of pork chili verde, roasted peppers, salsa verde and queso fresco topped with salsa mexicana and cilantro.  In plain English this means an egg omelette filled with shredded pork then topped with salsa and fresh cheese.  Served on the side was the Grove potatoes and a buttermilk biscuit.  I really enjoyed that they did not skimp on any ingredients.  Every bite had a large amount of shredded pork.  The toppings gave just the right amount of tang to where no other flavoring needed to be added to the eggs. 

This also goes for the potatoes as I tend to put extra salt and pepper on my hashbrowns but there was no need for these served here.  The buttermilk biscuit was freshly made and served with a sweet butter topping that is to die for!  Don't let the name "The Phoenix" fool you.  This was not a hot and spicy meal, in fact it was quite mild but if you are looking for more kick there is tabasco provided at the table.  A nice sweet touch touch to finish off  your meal is the garnish of a fresh strawberry.`

Patti was enticed by the specials board outside the door and ordered the Pancake of the Day, which on this day was Banana served with peanut butter sauce.  If she hadn't ordered it, I most certainly was planning to.  This meal comes with three large buttermilk pancakes with fresh bananas cooked in the batter then topped with fresh sliced bananas and peanut butter.  They serve it with maple syrup on the side but she found it unnecessary as the pancakes were moist enough from the bananas inside.  One of the nice touches I enjoyed from one of the few bites she would allow me to have, was the hint of cinnamon in the batter.  It was not too overwhelming to make her give up more bites but rather gave a nice balance to the peanut butter/banana blend.  Although she took half of it home, she still wouldn't let me have any left-overs.

The Grove is not an overpriced restaurant.  We enjoyed a fabulous meal and paid similar to what we would have spent in a chain like IHOP.

So when you on my side of town, this is a great place to have breakfast.  Because if you haven't had peanut butter/banana pancakes, you should try it now!