This morning’s Wichita Eagle has not one but TWO restaurant reviews for your reading pleasure.
I wrote the one aboutGarden Grill Cafe, which is vegan chef Miguel Larcher’s new restaurant in the Occidental Building at 300 N. Main. I’m a steak girl, but I loved this place because I’m also a mushroom and tomato girl. I can’t wait to go back and have more of the restaurant’s fabulous vegan pizza. I felt downright healthy when I left.
The other is a review of Chiang Mai,a fabulous Thai restaurant at 3141 S. Hillside, has been around for years. It’s one of those “hole-in-the-wall” finds that make foodies happy. This review was written by Wichita Eagle Dining Panel star Philip Warren.
Do yourself a favor and eat at both of these restaurants soon. Do yourself a bigger favor and go after a few days have passed. Restaurants are usually busy the day their reviews are published.
I love this Connecticut restaurant reviewer,“Daym Drops,” who has developed a following with his fast food YouTube car-fessionals. In this installment, he finds the words I couldn’t to explain how goodFive Guys is. (By the way, the Autotune version of this video is pretty awesome.)
Behold the beautiful honey walnut chicken, the specialty at Fusa
This week, I reviewed Fusa, a restaurant now operating on Greenwich that gained a following when it sold its amazing and honey walnut chicken at Towne East Square from 2003 until April of last year.
I never knew about that dish when the restaurant was in the mall, but if I had, it would have been in serious competition with my beloved Cuban sandwich from Metro Grill.
This week’s question: What’s your favorite local food court fare?
I always get hungry in the mall. Metro Grill is reason enough to wade into Towne East, if you ask me. And who can deny the deliciousness of a cinnamon sugar pretzel from Auntie Anne’s?
Let me know what your food court favorites are in the comments section below. (And since Fusa is now set up as its own mini-food court, honey walnut chicken still counts as an answer.)
Philip Warren, the Wichita Eagle Dining Panel member I blame fully for my new obsession with Paleteria La Reyna, is at it again.
Check out his latest review of Andover’s Timbuktu, one of the many legendary burger places I have yet to visit. He was taken to task a little by website readers for failing to mention the restaurant’s jalapeno relish, which I get the impression is pretty legendary in its own right.
Philip Warren
In retrospect, he said he should have mentioned it but maintains that the burgers are just as good without it.
Also, Phil wins the award for best restaurant review opening paragraph ever. Could anything be more true?
“Sometimes you just need a good cheeseburger and beer to reaffirm that all is still well and good in the world.”
Andrew Gough visited and reviewed Lalo’s Express,a place I’ve wondered about for a long time.
Andrew Gough
It’s at Harry and Seneca and is one of those many, many mysterious south-side places I see when I drive on the south side and think to myself, ‘Why don’t I ever eat on the south side?”
After reading his review and looking at his mouth-watering photos, I’m definitely going to make it a point to cross Kellogg for lunch.
Meeting with the newly formed Wichita Eagle Dining Panel at Caffe Moderne. I have no idea why I look so alarmed.
Later today, I’ll be introducing the new Wichita Eagle Dining Panel, a group of local foodies I’ve gathered who are going to begin providing mini-restaurant reviews about once a week.
I like to review restaurants that opened within the past six months, but the panel won’t have those constraints. Members can review anything they want that’s been around for six months or longer and I haven’t already visited. They can visit classic Wichita eateries, holes in the wall, anything they want.
Which local restaurants do you think the panel should visit? And why? I’m sure they’d like to have some nominees.
I’m always intrigued when I hear people rave about a burger place, and I’d heard a lot about Park City’s Hamburger Hero.
Last year, its owners abruptly closed up shop and relocated to 221 S. Broadway in downtown Wichita — just south of Cafe Bel Ami’s parking lot.
The dinner thing didn’t pan out. Though Hamburger Hero would stay open late on arena nights, they weren’t getting much business.
At the time, owner Josh Sams told me he was looking for a better dinner crowd and he was really hoping to cash in on Intrust Bank Arena crowds.
But they’re doing well at lunch. When I visited, the place was full of guys in hard hats chowing away.
I liked several things about Hamburger Hero, including the family-run feel and the fact that it didn’t reek of grease in there — meaning I didn’t when I left. I can’t tell you how rare that is for a burger joint around here.
I’ve been hearing from all sorts of people-in-the-know that I should check out Cafe Maurice, which is at 9747 E. 21st St N. I even heard that someone with N&J Cafe links had something to do with it.
I was shocked to walk in and find out that someone was Therese Srour, who was my favorite waitress at N&J back in the day. She and her husband, Gus, are the owners of Cafe Maurice, and it is goooood stuff. I can’t wait to go back for more kibbe and falafel.
Read my review, which is coming out in the paper on Friday. And if you’ve been to Cafe Maurice, let me know what you thought. Post your review in the comments section below.
John Brown's at 3700 E. Douglas in Clifton Square.
I finally had a chance to visit John Browns, a place I’ve been hearing through social media serves good food. And it does.
Best of all, it serves it late. The full menu is available until 1:30 a.m. Mondays through Saturdays. I remember that being an issue for people I used to hang out with who worked the night desk at the Wichita Eagle. They’d get off work hungry and in need of a beer but could usually only find a solution for the later problem.
Read my review, which will appear in the Go! section on Friday.
For some reason, I always get sort of nervous reviewing a fancy restaurant. Newport Grill made it easy, though. It’s a very nice place and a great addition to the dining scene in Wichita.
Here’s my review, which I labored over all day yesterday. When I was done, it was so long that my boss Lori had to cut eight inches out of it.
What? I have a lot to say about seafood!
Anyone else been there? If so, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Post in the comment section below.
