Scowl, Nu?

Ugh.

Review of: Biaggi’s Ristorante

By: Avery Glasser

Rating: 1

Read review on Judy’s Book.

It’s been a half hour since the meal ended, and I can already tell that it’s going to be a long night.

Let’s ignore some specific things about the place – such as me asking for my gimlet with only fresh lime (none of that phosphorescent bottled Rose’s Lime “Juice”), which was fine, but the two ordered for my colleagues coming with that telltale green sheen of Rose’s. Let’s forget about them bringing our main courses while we were still eating our salads and appetizers. Let’s also forget about the smudged still-damp wine glasses they brought for our overpriced bottle of white wine.

Even if you forget all of this, the food was still pretty darned bad. I mean, the pasta I had (with shrimp and ham in a cream sauce) is already starting a cramp – and I love rich foods. It’s barely more edible than the Macaroni Grille. That’s not an endorsement by any stretch.

Excuse me while I search the honor bar for some Alka Seltzer…

Excellent food and spirits

Review of: Prestige Spirits & Catering

By: Avery Glasser

Rating: 4

Read review on Judy’s Book.

Living in San Francisco, sometimes you take for granted the quality of lunches available at a fair price. Here, it can sometimes be a struggle to find something better than Quiznos or Subway without paying an arm and a leg.

On my last trip to Omaha, I was introduced to the folks at Prestige Spirits and Catering – a small strip mall storefront that combines a spirits shop, catering operation and small restaurant.

Today, I had a very nice cajun shrimp appetizer – spicy well cooked shrimp on a slice of garlic toast. This was followed by a classic patty melt with bacon and pesto which goes down in my book as one of the top 10 burgers I’ve had in recent memory – well worth the $10 they charged.

If you’re in Omaha, it’s highly recommended.

Great steak with all the trimmings…

Review of: Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse

By: Avery Glasser

Rating: 4

Read review on Judy’s Book.

I’m back in Omaha for a quick business trip and was taken to Fleming’s, a small steak chain on the same scale as Morton’s.

Since it’s a steakhouse, there is one thing to talk about: the beef – and here it was very well done. I had a 22 ounce bone-in ribeye cooked just the way I like it – on the rare side of medium rare. The perfectly prepared beef was joined by two potato sides and two vegetable sides. For the potatoes, we went with a parmesan mashed and a “Fleming’s Potatoes” – an au gratin with jalapenos and cheddar. The veggies were sauteed spinach (not bad, but I have had much, much better) and some steamed mixed vegetables that looked a little limp and overcooked, so I declined to partake in them.

The highlight of the meal: the steak, hands down. The big miss: the “cappuccino” which was a barely passable cafe au lait (though I was warned that there were some problems with the cappuccino maker after receiving the coffee).

It’s a good steak – one of the better ribeye steaks that I’ve had in a long, long while.

Gut, aber nicht Sehr Gut

Review of: Suppenkueche

By: Avery Glasser

Rating: 3

Read review on Judy’s Book.

Having lived in Munich for two years, there’s something comforting about Bavarian cuisine. When it’s done exceptionally well, it’s a play of tender roasted meats, rich sauces and handmade dumplings that can’t be beat. When it’s done any less than perfect, it’s a heavy, gloppy mess that sits like a bowling ball in your gut for the better part of the week.

There lies the dichotomy of Suppenkueche – over the past 13 years, I’ve had amazing Bavarian dinners there that could stand up to Munich’s best, and I’ve had meals that left me searching the medicine cabinet for an Alka Seltzer.

The good news is that yesterday’s meal was back on the good side – Jaegerschnitzel, a pounded pork cutlet pan fried with a mushroom sauce, with spaetzle that were light, fluffy and perfectly buttery. I accompanied this with a selection of beer ranging from a northern Koenig Pils to a Muenchner Maibock from Hofbraeuhaus.

Can I give the restaurant four stars? I’d love to as the menu is traditional, and every German I bring in agrees that it smells like home. However, high prices for beer and inconsistency in the food quality keeps me from giving that elusive fourth star.

Barely better than average steak

Review of: Hereford House

By: Avery Glasser

Rating: 2

Read review on Judy’s Book.

I’m a steak fan… and you would think that in a city where beef has been so important to its development, every steak you find in the city would be exceptional, but this small local chain just served up OK beef… nothing that I couldn’t find in any major city.

The caesar salad was fair, and the anchovies that I requested were pretty grim… leathery and without any anchovy flavor. The steak was a perfect medium rare, but wasn’t nearly as good as steaks had in Chicago or Boston.

It’s ok – not worth the price or worth returning to in my book.

Decent Irish Bar

Review of: O’dowd’s Little Dublin

By: Avery Glasser

Rating: 3

Read review on Judy’s Book.

I wonder if the largest Irish exports are just Irish bars, or at least the pseudo-memorabilia that seems to line the walls of every Irish bar. I say pseudo-memorabilia in this case because O’Dowd’s is owned by a bar/restaurant chain and is probably less than 20 years old – and the historical relics laid out everywhere were purchased from a wholesaler, not from the owner’s travels through the emerald isles.

With that said, the Murphy’s was good, but served incorrectly in a British pint glass, not an Irish stout glass – and the Jameson’s, well, it was Jameson’s.

I could see myself sitting in the corner of this bar, drinking whisky and stout while listening to the seisun (this time a bodhran player and a guitarist) play old Irish songs. It’s nothing special, but sometimes that’s what makes places like this so inviting.