Brownifer Bites: restaurant review
Showing posts with label restaurant review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label restaurant review. Show all posts

Thursday, October 19, 2017

Simply Ramen - Albany, OR (Review)

Never heard of this restaurant?  We hadn't either! Simply Ramen seems to have opened their doors quietly and sneaked onto the restaurant scene in our town!

Of course the minute we heard about it, we had to try it!

Just South of the Queen & Geary intersection at 1800 Geary Street SE, there it is!  It's quaint and unassuming, but don't let its size fool you:  this little noodle restaurant packs a punch!

They are open Tuesday through Sunday from 11:00 to 3:00 for lunch, then again from 4:30 to 8:30 for dinner.

We arrived during the dinner rush and were surprised that it was so busy.  It's been open less than a month and we had only just heard of it.  We couldn't find a website or a Facebook page, just a few Yelp! reviews.

We were seated promptly, brought our menus and drinks.  While the menu is a single laminated card, the plethora of choices you'll find there will amaze you.  Don't assume you'll be making a decision about what to order quickly.  Yes, Ramen seems to be their specialty, but other Asian favorites are available as well.  Things you probably consider to be favorites, such as Chow Mein, Potstickers, Pad Thai, Fried Rice, Chicken Teriyaki.  But mix in some things Albanyites don't see in our town often, like Seaweed Salad, Korean Short Ribs, KimChi Fried Rice, Singaporean Noodles....Miso Soup!  There hasn't been a decent Miso Soup in Albany for .... has there ever?

Miso Soup
Which brings me to the food we ordered.  Yes, we started with Miso Soup!  Miso Soup is something I've always loved and outside of Portland and Eugene....I haven't experienced a great one.  Until now. Ladies and Gentleman!  Albany has finally brought us Miso Soup! Luscious seaweed pieces, abundant tofu, savory broth....Alright, I'll shut up about it but if I can go on and on about my appetizer choice ... imagine the Entrees....

Brownie ordered the House Signature Pad Thai with chicken.  The color was beautiful and for the rest of the meal I wished I could enjoy peanuts with pasta.  The noodles were light and silky and the peanuts were crushed, which gives this dish a nice
Pad Thai w/Chicken
balance in texture.

I chose to try the Singaporean Noodles with beef.  These are stir-fried, curry-flavored rice noodles with just enough heat to tickle your senses. They did get a bit sticky as they sat and cooled, but I hardly cared as flavor is always my priority and that was on point.

Singaporean Noodles w/Beef
We had to try the Ramen as well since the restaurant's name suggests this is their specialty.  And that assumption would be correct!  I tried the Signature Ramen with Chashu Pork (as in:  Pork Belly.  as in:  BACON!)  The noodles were perfect ramen, the pork was flavorful, my egg was
delicious and the broth....oh dear sweet baby whoever-your-chosen-savior-is!  There could not have been more umami flooding my mouth; rich, succulent, buttery... my taste buds were dancing like fools.  If you can't decide on what to order, this would be my suggestion.
Signature Ramen w/Chashu Pork

Brownie's ramen choice was the Blend Chili Spicy Ramen with Chashu Pork and Shrimp Tempura.  Do I have to choose which one I liked better? Because in a spicy mood, this is utter perfection.  Not spicy enough to burn your mouth or make you sweat, but the perfect amount to keep you excited while the underlying richness of the broth soothes your palate.  I would have left the pork out and just got the shrimp with this, it was a perfect pairing.  But ... choose your proteins as you wish!
Blend Chili Spicy Ramen w/Shrimp
Tempura & Chashu Pork

The service in the restaurant is efficient, the staff is very friendly and helpful with the menu, clearing your table...as we watched other patrons leave, the staff was right behind them, cleaning the tables and ready to seat the next customer.

The portions here are large, so be ready to take home leftovers!  But in our opinion, there is no such portion as 'too much.'  Come hungry!  They boxed up our leftover food for us and even let us take home our extra broth and soup; we were thankful, because that stuff is liquid gold!

The space has obviously been remodeled and is clean and fresh, including the bathrooms.  What!?  We have to check those for you too!  The kitchen is open, so you can see them cooking the food and there is nothing to hide. The atmosphere is that of a bustling noodle joint designed to efficiently serve delectable food to as many people in a day as possible.  I appreciate the focus on the food and the casual atmosphere.  I leaned over to my neighbor's tables more than once to ogle their food and ask what it was they were trying.

Overall, we think this restaurant is a breath of fresh air for Albany!  It's been so long since we got any new flavor in this town and we're so happy it's authentic and good quality Asian-inspired!  We need to branch out and bring more food culture!  We love the path this is leading us down, bring us more!

Okay, now the rating.  The part we dislike the most.  We think this restaurant is exactly what it's trying to be and nothing more or less.  Clean, efficient, customer-oriented, excellent food, terrible parking....it has everything a good restaurant should have!  We give Simply Ramen 5 stars on the Brownifer Scale.  You saw that right.  Five.  Nothing wins us over like umami.


If you haven't tried our new favorite Albany dinner stop, then you will soon because everyone will be raving about this little place in no time.  Go enjoy some noodles done right and be sure to tell us how much you loved it.  Because you will!

Welcome to Albany, Simply Ramen!







Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Stick a Pork In It - Lebanon, OR (Review)

Someone Brownie works with recommended we try Stick a Pork In It.  They're a food truck in Lebanon, usually parked in the Mega Foods parking lot on Main Street.

We have eaten here on a couple of occasions and the food was consistently delicious!  Brownie is a pulled pork aficionado and  he will be the first to tell you that this is some good pork!  "I thought it had a good smoke flavor, wasn't dry, and was evenly pulled."

I am a huge fan of Brownie's pulled pork, I just don't think it gets any better.  But this truck definitely has their pork down to an art! Now, if you've driven by and rolled your eyes thinking, 'another BBQ truck?' - that's not what this is!  This is about pork and they play with it well!
Cuban Sandwic

There aren't a lot of places locally to order a Cuban Sandwich, so if you stop by here, be sure to try theirs!  It's done the traditional way with sliced pork loin, ham, swiss cheese, mustard and pickles and it's really good!  I love that they have this twist on their menu!

We've tried just about everything on the truck by now and we have our favorites! Thing #5 refuses to eat BBQ because it 'tastes like smoke'.  But the rest of us who've eaten it definitely have an opinion!
Pork Tacos w/Cilantro Lime Slaw
Porkadilla with BBQ Sauce
Traditional BBQ Sandwich




Brownie and I both agree that if you have to order just one thing, you really must try the pork tacos with their signature cilantro lime slaw!  It's a flavor punch with just the right amount of spice that compliments the pork perfectly and we can't get enough!

Thing #3 highly recommends the Porkadilla with BBQ sauce - he said it was 'Heaven.'  Thing #4 cleared his throat and asked about their Dad's BBQ.  Thing #3 quickly added, 'Well, except for your barbecue, Dad!'  Have I mentioned how smart our Things are!?  :-)

The traditional BBQ sandwich is also there if you're really craving BBQ but in our humble opinion - it's not the best thing on the menu - we recommend branching out!

We have also tried the strawberry lemonade blended and unblended, Brownie prefers it blended so the muddled strawberries don't block his straw, I prefer it unblended; I'll happily deal with muddled strawberries on my own. 

We will be returning often I'm sure; we still have not been able to try the Cuban Potato Ball.  In true food truck fashion, they run out before we get there.  So they must be good!

We rate our restaurants on our Brownifer scale and I feel like it must be mentioned that one of the areas where they scored a 5 was customer service!  They have proven that they love their business and their customers are their #1 priority!  Trust us, they will feed you well, keep you happy and coming back for more!

On our Brownifer Scale, Stick a Pork In It came out with a 4-Star rating!  It's well worth trying out and making one of your go-to BBQ stops!  We don't even want to hear how far the drive to Lebanon is.  It's worth it.  Just go!




Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Little Wuesten German Foods - Albany, OR (Review)

We've visited Little Wuesten a couple times now and I am just in love.The atmosphere of this little space is so homey and fun!  The radio plays 40s music, the owner is cheerful and sweet and I can tell she just loves her restaurant!  She comes out from behind the counter to visit with customers, will give you recommendations and is just the most adorable lady I've ever seen!

The first time we visited, we wanted to try the pastries and coffee.  We had heard that they focus on locally sourced, non-GMO ingredients; right up our alley!  The coffee they serve is from Longbottom Coffee & Tea right here in Oregon and it's so rich and flavorful. I ordered the lavender honey latte and Brownie had the mexican mocha (had a little kick to it - very nice!).

All of their pastries are beautiful and fresh, we just want to go back again and again so we can try them all! Brownie had a Salted Walnut Caramel Sticky Bun, I had a Marionberry Almond Roll - both were warmed up for us and were the perfect compliment to our coffee while we ate; I was tapping my toes and swaying to the music on the radio.



On our second visit, we wanted to try some of their warmer breakfast options, but we arrived just as lunch was beginning, so we sampled those options instead!

We did get one Spinat Küchlein, a savory spinach and feta tart that we enjoyed very much.  This made our experience technically
brunch instead of lunch ;-)

Brownie ordered the German Sausage Plate; your choice of German sausage (frankfurter, wiener, bockwurst or chicken) with mustard, roll, and sauerkraut.  It had good flavor, the mustard was sweet with little zing to it and the sauerkraut might have been his favorite part of it all.



I ordered the Beef on Kümmelweck; thinly sliced roasted beef on a house-made, toasted caraway rye roll with a horseradish/sour cream sauce.  The beef was tender and juicy and the flavors worked well together.  I don't think it would have been the same without that caraway rye!  And I just love horseradish so...there's that.  It also came with the most delicious cheesy spaetzle.  I had to take a picture of the real cheese this pasta was swimming in!  It was beyond delectable!  We just kept saying how much our kids would love it.



This little place has only been open for a few months and it's taking off!  The first visit, it was quiet and sweet, but our second visit was bustling and busy and a line at the counter came and went!  And that fabulous music coming from the radio ... did I mention that I love this!?

Still some glitches to work out service-wise when it's overwhelmingly busy but nothing out of the ordinary or that wasn't corrected immediately.  This is a unique little gem in downtown and I hope it becomes a permanent part of Albany!

We gave Little Wuesten 4 stars on our Brownifer Scale - this will be a regular haunt for Brownifer and once you try it, it will be one of yours as well!

Friday, May 12, 2017

Burger Queen - Albany, OR (Review)

This restaurant has been sitting empty for so long that when a new establishment opened - it was quite a buzz. Enter Burger Queen!

We are always happy to try new restaurants in our little town, it's exciting to watch the food culture explode here! So we decided to explore this new burger joint and see what they are offering we Albany-ites.

To say the menu is very simple is an overstatement. If I had to choose one word to describe the menu it would be: minimal. I don't even need to say more than: hamburger, cheeseburger, bacon cheeseburger, fries. Because those are literally your only options. You can order extra patties, extra bacon, etc. But those are your main choices. In a basket with a drink or a lone burger.  We pondered whether or not this was what they were striving for but we couldn't actually tell what this restaurant is trying to be.  Maybe they're just at a jumping off point?  Hard to know.


Brownie ordered the Bacon Cheeseburger and I had just a plain cheeseburger. We got the basket for the full experience and just filled our cups with water. Not soda fans.

Our food was served in tin baskets with a generous side of fries; there were very few condiments available.  We grabbed handfuls of mustard and ketchup packets and started in on our burgers.

The veggies were fresh, but they seemed to take up more room in my  bun than the actual burger did.  Size-wise the buns were comparable to our recent visit to Cheesy Stuffed Burgers but there was considerably less meat in the patty with much less flavor.  Brownie was disheartened with the thin bacon ring on his burger, I was less than thrilled with what looked to be a Kraft Single slice on our burgers instead of real cheese.

When we had finished our burgers with a shrug and a 'Meh..' we started emptying condiment packets into our basket to devour our fries.  The fries looked as if they were real cut potatoes, as Burger
Queen boasts.  They felt cold, however and were a bit soggy and chewy as if they'd been sitting out for quite a while.

When we finished our meal, I can honestly say we were sustained and no longer really hungry.  Satisfied?  Physically, yes.  Impressed? No. Better than McDonald's?  Yes.  I can't publish the word that Brownie uses to describe what we ate this evening, but suffice to say it's not a positive one.



The best I  can hope for is that this restaurant will expand its menu and branch out a bit more, but it doesn't seem likely.  They would be wise to ditch the burgers and buy a bank of blenders, selling smoothies to the local high school kids.  They were honestly hoping for a Jamba Juice anyway.

If you're stuck on the street corner in West Albany and can't get past Elm street, this will fill you up.  Otherwise, keep driving.

We gave Burger Queen 2 1/2 stars on our Brownifer scale; it was clean and the staff was polite.  But it wasn't hard to figure out why it was so slow on a weekday evening.  It pains us to give a bad review, we really want to like the places we visit.  Unfortunately, this just didn't do it for us.


Tuesday, May 9, 2017

Cheesy Stuffed Burgers - Albany, OR (Review)

We've been hearing so much about these burgers - we had to try them!

We don't do fast food unless it's the occasional run through the Burgerville Drive-thru.  We try really hard to stick to healthy, local foods.  So when we saw that Cheesy Stuffed uses grass-fed beef, we hopped in the car and drove into town.

Food trucks have their own niche in the restaurant market and most of us can agree that some of the best munchies come off of food trucks! This was a bit different as we were served in our vehicle; I liked the convenience of just waiting in my warm car!  The staff was very polite and I easily paid with my debit card on their tablet - they made it all very simple and convenient.


We ordered two burgers, an order of fries and I was curious about the lumpia, as we've made these and I used to eat lumpia as a kid in Hawai'i at my Filipino Grandma's house.  So the picture to the left was our neat little bag of goodies that we took home with us :-)

When we got home, we unwrapped our burgers and set out our sides to start trying everything.


The burgers were, in fact, stuffed with cheese.  I wouldn't say impressively so.  As we ate, we compared the burgers to what one would receive at a fast food restaurant and pondered what we thought a grass-fed burger from a food truck would be like. Brownie was a little disappointed with the portion size.  He was definitely expecting a larger burger.  If we went back, he would order two.

We also discussed price.  For $6 - $8 we couldn't really justify buying two burgers at a time.  I reminded him that grass-fed beef is much more expensive than your average ground beef.

In general, we liked the burgers, but I do have to say that just like other fast food burger drive-thrus, ultimately our opinion was that we could make a better burger at home.  Definitely have.

The fries were good, but the lumpia was either a bit overdone or cooked in oil that could have used changing.  I liked the sauce they served with the lumpia though.  We did wait until 15 minutes before closing to pop in, so not sure it's fair to judge at that time of night.  We will try them again earlier in the day sometime and try more of the menu.

Overall, we wouldn't say these burgers are bad by any means, but maybe they just didn't live up to the hype for us.  If you're not incredibly hungry, this is definitely a healthier choice than any of the chains here in town and I hope they become more popular for this reason.  The more people ditching Burger King for small, local and grass-fed - the happier I am!

As for presentation - how do you judge a food truck on how pretty their food is after being wrapped in foil and stuffed in a bag?  It is what it is out of necessity.  We definitely won't bash any food truck for that.

On the Brownifer scale - we give Cheesy Stuffed Burgers 3 1/2 stars.  (out of 5)  Stay tuned, however, this blog can and will be updated upon a second, third, fourth visit :-)  Maybe we'll bring the kids and let them weigh in on the experience!

Any chance to support local food, we support!  Take our comments for what they're worth and try it yourself!







Friday, February 24, 2017

Sybaris Bistro - Albany, Oregon (Review)

Sybaris Bistro - Albany, Oregon

A Brownifer Review


An impulsive decision to have dinner out on our kid-free night of this week brought us to Sybaris Bistro.  We have been wanting to try this restaurant for some time now, always checking the ever-changing menu and wondering if we
could afford to truly experience what it had to offer on a budget.  Tonight we decided to throw caution to the wind and go for it!  Sybaris opened in October of 2001, why we've waited this long to visit is truly beyond us.

I'm pleased to say that we thoroughly enjoyed our evening and we can't wait to share it with you!

The first thing I noticed when we approached the building was how quiet it seemed.  Brownie wondered if they were even open, but when we opened the doors, the bustling of the dining room burst upon us. While we waited to be seated, we found a series of books on a table by the door with old photos of Albany over the past century and beyond, which we promptly snatched up and began exploring.  Not only was this space the infamous Anderson Sporting Goods where we bought our letterman jackets in high school, but exploring these books and the history of Albany taught us that it was also originally the site of a mechanic's garage!  Love our town.

We were lucky enough to be seated by the wood-burning fireplace, which was beautiful and set the mood for a special evening out.  We were even permitted to bring the photo books with us :-)

Sybaris has a unique menu that changes with the seasons.  The owners pride themselves on sourcing their ingredients from Oregon; what comes to the table is what happens to be locally available at the time.  This clearly showcases the bistro's identity in the straight-forward one-page menu.  Which is one thing that always made me nervous about this restaurant: I am not a fan of winter vegetables.  Silly?  Maybe.


Once we had ordered, we enjoyed our homemade bread (made in-house daily) and butter while we waited for drinks.  I scanned the walls and noticed that they showcase local artists and at this time, they have a variety of paintings by a local woman covering quite a bit of space.  It was beautiful.

Scottish cold smoked salmon,
traditional garnishes, rye crackers
We chatted and enjoyed the atmosphere while waiting for our appetizers, then enjoyed our salmon and a salad we'd ordered to share.  Our waitress, who just happened to be one of the owners, let us taste some red wines she recommended to pair with our menu choices and we each chose a glass.

Antipasti salad- mixed greens, marinated mushrooms,
salami, cheese, garbanzo beans and a hard-boiled egg


I will take this time to mention the service, as this is the point where I began to notice that I was impressed. Brownie will tell you I'm a service snob when it comes to dining.  Now, I can eat with my hands, man-handle a sloppy burrito from a food truck and gladly carry my own plastic utensils to a picnic table to enjoy a wide range of delicious food BUT...when I dine out and I'm expecting to shell out some Benjamins for an amazing meal, I do have my own expectations.  I like the experience to be thoughtlessly blissful.  By this I mean, I want to talk and sip my wine and enjoy the food and flavors and conversation and I don't want to have to think of a thing regarding my meal other than getting it into my mouth.  That being said, Sybaris is one of the good ones!  While we were finishing our salad, we were brought the silverware we would each need for our main courses.  And I fell in love. For the rest of the meal, I didn't have to ask for a thing.  My water was always full, she forgot nothing and I got to sit back and just enjoy everything from start to finish.

Veal chop parmigiana, bucatini, red sauce
& plenty of cheese
When the main courses did arrive, they smelled delicious. Brownie ordered the veal chop parmigiana, which turned out to be a monstrous bone-in chop that would make Fred Flintstone drool. Truly a man's delight.  He did let me taste it, however, and it was scrumptious. The sauce had one spice that Brownie couldn't quite pinpoint, I suspect he will be rifling through our spice cabinet tomorrow.  While we were discussing the plating of the food, I asked Brownie if his dish was visually pleasing.  His answer:  Is Italian food ever really plated with that in mind?  No, it really isn't.

Lentil cassoulet with duck confit, lightly cured pork,
garlic sausage, winter vegetables
I ordered the Cassoulet and with three kinds of meat and winter vegetables, it's pretty difficult to incorporate much color and variety.  But my dinner was full of flavor and and seasoned very well.  Upscale comfort food that incidentally paired amazingly well with the cabernet I had chosen.

Creme Brulee ice cream w/caramel


Dessert?  Why yes, please!  Brownie had the creme brulee ice cream and I had the chocolate souffle - both a perfect ending to our meal.  We shared a cup of coffee with dessert, which was piping hot and perfectly brewed.  We sipped away and looked through the books at the table next to the crackling fire, marveling at how Albany had changed over the years.  Our waitress made sure to let us know about a walking/driving tour available by map through the Albany Visitor's Association and even pulled it up on her phone to show us.  I truly felt like I'd had a local experience during my time in this dining room!
Valrhona dark chocolate soufflé,
red berry love potion

Sybaris offers Albany a Portland-esque dining experience without having to travel out of town.  With locally-sourced ingredients, fresh baked daily bread, the owners serving and befriending their guests and small Albany touches everywhere you look, this restaurant is a foodie's paradise.  I dare any Portlandia cast member to ask anything about any of the food on the menu.  I would bet money they knew the name of the duck that was served in my bowl.

If you're looking for a romantic evening out, a comfortable spot to dine and visit, or you've been curious about Sybaris but trepidatious about making a reservation ... it's time to book your visit now.  The atmosphere is relaxed and friendly, the staff is beyond amazing, and the food will surprise you in the most delectable ways.  Yes, the menu is pricier than many others in town but we went all out and when our check came, we were surprised that we hadn't spent more.  The portions are very generous and you will likely come away with leftovers when you leave.


With our scoring system, we gave this visit 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.  We can't wait to visit again in the spring during the height of seasonal fruits and vegetables to see what Chef Matt Bennett has in store! Brownie is also dying to try the seafood tower, which requires three days notice - so we'll have to make a reservation for that one sometime!  We love that Albany is becoming a foodie haven with so many options popping up everywhere.  All we can say is, more please!