China Panda, Athens Ohio

This place was such a disappointment that I am not even going to bother with describing to food, service nor the decor or staff. The hubs was very excited to take me here, having gone with friends and knowing my endless love of Chinese cuisine. I was anxious to go and finally, tonight, we got the chance. I was wanting to try something new and different, but the first plate we received was the downfall of this ''restaurant''.

Now, I have been toned down when it comes to my disappoint and disgust with the places I review. I have been told I have high standards, can be impossible to please and in a way am ''snobbish'' toward some things. I have been working on having an opened mind but not even the most nonjudgemental person could look past not one, but two insects in a dish.

That is right. After consuming just one beef roll filled with green onion, I made the sickening discovery that there were two, what looked like young cockroaches in the sauce. I was repulsed and immediately stopped eating. The hubs, wanting to give this place a second chance, convinced me to stay and at least finish the dinner. Reluctantly I waited to my entree.

I ordered crispy duck. This sealed any doubts I may have had about not coming back here again. They deep fried the duck and served it hacked into bits with the bones still intact. There was no sauce nor appeared to be any seasoning on it and it was served with plain rice. I was greatly offended at the lack of care this place had.

Now I have been to places that made me wait 45 minutes for microwaved food that had hair in it, places that refused to serve me because I was not a local and even a place that got everything I ordered wrong. But this, this topped them all. The dish was taken off the bill but nothing will take away the disappointment and disgust of this meal. I will not be giving this place a second chance and am strongly advising any and all persons who planned to or do frequent this establishment to cease their patronage.

As for a rating, I give it -5 stars. Seeing as how 5 star is the highest rating I give on my blogs, a negative 5 is the worst rating you can get. I don't appreciate being served bugs and leaving a restaurant queasy. My stomach hasn't settled in the past 3.5 hours since I ate there.

Location Change

Good Evening followers. My blog will be taking a location change in the next few weeks. I will be moving and will be closer to Columbus. I am looking forward to reviewing a lot of places around the area. There are a lot more opportunities for places up here. I am hoping to build up my blog and make my posts more frequent.

If you have any place you want me to review just leave a comment below. I will put it on my list and put it on the schedule for me to review. I look forward to finding out where you want me to go next. Keep trying new things!

Mini Chef

Tammy's Country Kitchen, Nelsonville Ohio

Ok boys and girls, hold on to your hats because its that time again. Today we went to Tammy's Country Kitchen in Nelsonville. Now I must say I had a lot of reservations about this place. First off, its in Nelsonville. I know many of you have no idea what that means but this place is about like the back woods of BFE. I have been here before, but that was a few years ago. I didn't want to go and was determined to hate everything about it. My mission was accomplished but, as a food critic, I had to try it again with an open mind. There are a few things I will never like about this place, but its not as bad as I painted in my head before.

To start, the outside storage creeps me out. Not just an outside, what I believe is a freezer, but dry storage items as well. This is just what I see driving past all the time. The decor is well....needing an update. It is sufficiently theme accurate, but I don't think a good spruce would hurt anything.

Our server, Tina, seemed very distracted. When we ordered and she would repeat it back to us incorrectly and when we tried to correct her, she would just repeat what she said before. She wasn't really paying attention all that much to the customers and we never got a refill on our drinks. I don't think taking personal calls at work and walking around the whole place while talking is professional either.

We ordered at 1:27 and got our food 1:45. (Yes, I timed it.) This isn't completely horrible timing but my food was not hot. This put a little damper in my spirits when I dug right in, but it didn't throw everything completely off.

I ordered the special: Homemade noodles with mashed potatoes, greens beans and a roll. Let me tell you, this was delicious. Even though it lacked sufficient seasoning for my taste, it was the best diner food I have eaten thus far. Even the mashed potatoes were homemade (or the best instant I have ever had). They were creamy with a slight chunkiness to them that I enjoy. The green beans weren't extremely impressive, the bacon was very dry, but with a touch of salt and pepper, they weren't bad. The roll was painfully obviously store bought, which was disappointing. But this meal is a whole lot better, and cheaper, than any fast food.

The hubs ordered the big o'l bacon cheese burger with onions rings, chicken tenders and a sweet tea. The burger was a pretty hefty size and the bacon was acceptionally crispy. Even though it had my least favorite lettuce (iceburg) it is a lot better than any fast food ever. I didn't ask if the onion rings were homemade as well but they were delicious. The chicken tenders was nothing really to write home about, the typical GFS bought chicken, sorry to say.

After coming to the place for a second chance, I like it. Its homey and yes, the service is a bit slower than what I or others may be used to, but its not a fast paced place. You can relax, visit, and enjoy food. There is one quote I remember from this place that I wish I could say about my employment.

"She's (Tammy) the most awesome boss I've ever had in my entire life." Its really great that an employee can say this about their employer because most of us can't. You know if the workers are happy, that trickles down to everything else in the business too. I have to give Tammy props for being "awesome".

I give them 4 stars because there is room for improvement.

The List

The list of places I will review, in no particular order. Leave comments below for me to add to The List.

Tammy's Country Kitchen
Los Mariachis
Dp Dough
Whits
O' Bettys
Union Street Diner
Broney's
Purple Chopstix
Abrio's Brick Oven
Insomniac Cookies
Dragon's Cup
Casa Nueva
China Panda
Della Zone
Olde Dutch Restaurant
M & M Family Diner
La Cascada
LJ's Coffee Shop and Restaurant
Jack's Steak House

Recipes

I had a request to put up recipes and menus when I don't have time to review places. So I will be periodically putting up gluten-free, lactose-free, sugar-free recipes as well as personal favorites. To get notifications of when this post is updated, subscribe. You can also use the comment section below to post some of your favorite recipes. Happy Eating :)



Basil Cream Sauce
Yield: About 1 pint (16 oz)

1 tbs butter
1 tbs flour (or as needed)
2 tsp garlic, minced
1 tbs dried basil
1 pint (16 oz) milk
1/4 cup mozzarella or parmesan cheese
salt
black pepper

1. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter on medium-high heat.
2. Add the garlic and let cook for about 2-3 minutes.
3. Add the flour, stirring constantly to form a paste.
4. Add milk, whisking to make sure no clumps form. Reduce heat to medium.
5. Add basil and whisk until sauce becomes nape.
6. Add cheese and stir until incorporated thoroughly.
7. Add salt and pepper to taste.





Vegetable Soup with  Beef

2 qts beef broth
1 cup tomato juice
6 oz cubed beef
1 half yellow onion, chopped
3 large carrots, chopped
4 potatoes, skinned and chopped
1/2 can peas
1 cup fresh green beans
1/2 can corn
2 tsp garlic, minced
1 tbs basil
2 tsp garlic pepper
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp thyme
1 small dash of red pepper flakes, adjust as desired
cornstarch slurry

1. Brown meat in saute pan.
2. Combine all ingredients in a large sauce pan and cook on medium high until all vegetables are tender.
3. Add the slurry until the desired thickness is reached.

Village Bakery & Cafe, Athen Ohio

First off, this place does not have espresso. Now I have never heard of a cafe that doesn't not serve espresso, until now. They have fair trade coffee and organic food, with a menu true to their theme. I would say this place is not bad. It is kind of like a cafe meets a market meets a gift shop. With stickers, mugs, t-shirts, and other various items to purchase, they let you buy just about anything that's not nailed down. They have two different seating areas. One is more diner-esk with padded booths and a bar by the wall. The other is in their little market area, more secluded in the back. Pasta, meat, Paw Paw popsicles, cheese and, yes, wine, entice the passers by to take a gander and browse. The atmosphere is like a vintage diner meets a hippie commune, in a good way.

Now, lets get to the good part....what I ordered. Because they have no blended drinks nor cold coffee, I got a regular cup-o-joe. They have self-serve coffee with optional 2% milk or half and half. (Those of us with a lactose intolerance are SOL it will seem.) They also provide honey and organic sugar for sweeteners and cinnamon and something I assume is cinnamon sugar seeing as how nothing but the milk was labeled. I decided to get something to eat, to complete the experience, and purchased a lemon yogurt cookie.All of this came to $4.35, eat in tax included. The coffee was 2.50 so 1.50 for a cookie the size of my fist (and I have small hands) is not a good start.

The coffee is bold and nutty with definite traces of bitter dark chocolate (which I find altogether pleasant). The cookie is.....well lemony. The yogurt gives it a crisp, freshness about it, but it still is a little dry. The combination isn't bad at all, though the prices are a bit steep for a cup of coffee and a cookie. I would want to revisit this place. It is quiet and seclusive enough for my anti-social personality. I highly recommend stopping by, if just to glance, at their market items. They strongly promote local products, like Snowville Creamery. (Their chocolate milk is AMAZING.)

Even though I kinda like this place, there are some down points. No espresso at a coffee shop should be a sin. They might want to rethink having their pastries in a refrigerated case with no containers or wrapping. Finally, and this is not something they can control, their parking options are the worst! I am a horrible person when it comes to backing up and their parking lot makes me cringe. So, for the whole experience, I give it  3.75 stars.  I really like espresso.

Recommendations

I have decided to post about my favorite products. I will only be using this post, editing it whenever I find something I like. So you have to SUBSCRIBE in order to get news of any changes. Click on the "followers" button on the right.

Silver Bridge
Anyone who knows me knows I love coffee. I have tried this coffee at the Farmer's Market in Athens and I am in love with the Jamacian Me Crazy blend. It is flavored and an amazing mild brew. The company that sells it is "Silver Bridge Coffee Company". It is owned and operated by Lorraine Walker in Gallipolis, Ohio. It is fair trade certified, with is the new craze now adays. They have really great coffee for about the same price that you would pay for a bag of Starbuck's coffee. To order online go to: silverbridgecoffee.com

Rhapsody
Live around Athens County and looking for a quiet, romantic place to take someone to dinner? Rhapsody is the perfect setting. With a romantic ambiance, delicious menu and acceptional bar,  you can wine and dine your honey. But be prepared to pay a pretty penny. This is not a cheap place but aren't they worth it?

Cantrell Honey
Love honey and want some non-store brand, over processed, almost synthetic honey-food? Cantrell Honey, based out of Athens Ohio, is the perfect honey. They saved a species of bees from Florida that was on the brink of extinction. The honey is sweet with a hint of floral. They have their products in the Athens Kroger and at the Farmer's Market in the parking lot of the Athen's Mall every Saturday from 10am-1pm. Red heads get free honey sticks.

The Donkey
Love organic, fair trade coffee? The Donkey is the perfect place, with a sedate atmosphere that allows for studying, conversation, or just reading a book. A two story seating area is the best combination for the favorite coffee shop amungst Ohio University students. The coffee is delicious, no matter what you get, and the staff is friendly.