This past Friday we checked out Pacific Rim on Hwy 150 in Hoover just behind the Galleria. Pacific Rim is a wonderful sushi restaurant that came highly recommended by my co-workers.
We arrived early enough that we could take advantage of some happy hour specials. Jay had a Love Potion cocktail and Gina had a Pacific Rim Martini (or 2!) Both were $5, quite tasty and nice-sized for the price (i.e. big!) We also shared a spicy tuny roll to start which was also $5.
For dinner we shared two other rolls, one was the Crimson Roll and the other was the Kamakaze Roll. Each roll was wrapped in sashimi and so good. Both were recommended highly by our waitress who was definitely a sushi afficionado. She did not steer us wrong.
We'll definitely be back for the sushi and the happy hour!
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Monday, May 14, 2012
Pinches Tacos - May 12th, 2012
This week we used a social coupon (Groupon, Living Social, etc) to have lunch at Pinches Tacos in Homewood. This is a fairly new restaurant in the Hallman Hill development near downtown Homewood. There are a couple of other locations in Southern California.
We each had the grilled chicken tacos and shared an appetizer of chips and salsa. The tacos come with chicken and salsa only on them and are served in a soft corn tortilla. There was a sign that said you could have cheese or sour cream if you insisted. But they were perfect as is... Their theme is authentic Mexican food. I can't say whether it was authentic or not. It was, however, delicious. And relatively inexpensive.
The salsa was incredibly fresh and tasty and their chips were a little different than the usual tortilla chip that you get at a restaurant. They were great and an appetizer portion is more than enough for two people to share.
We'll definitely be dropping by back Pinches on the weekends. Gina may even be back for lunch with her co-workers during the week sometime.
We each had the grilled chicken tacos and shared an appetizer of chips and salsa. The tacos come with chicken and salsa only on them and are served in a soft corn tortilla. There was a sign that said you could have cheese or sour cream if you insisted. But they were perfect as is... Their theme is authentic Mexican food. I can't say whether it was authentic or not. It was, however, delicious. And relatively inexpensive.
The salsa was incredibly fresh and tasty and their chips were a little different than the usual tortilla chip that you get at a restaurant. They were great and an appetizer portion is more than enough for two people to share.
We'll definitely be dropping by back Pinches on the weekends. Gina may even be back for lunch with her co-workers during the week sometime.
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Malone's - May 5th, 2012
This week we found ourselves in Atlanta, visiting with some friends that were there. Being near the airport, we chose Malone's for this week. Malone's is on Virginia Ave., just off the Interstate. A very casual atmposhere, we had no trouble getting a seat (it was May 5th, so we figured the busy places would be the local Mexian places). We asked our server if there was anything they recommended. AJ immediately said the Shrimp and Grits. Gina ordered this, and was not dissapointed. Jay had the grilled "catch of the day" which was catfish, shrimp, and scallops sided with some broccoli. It was very good, and a LOT of food.
The quality of the seafood was very nice. We had a good time with our friends, and the staff were all very friendly. Malone's is a very good choice if you find yourself staying near the Atlanta Airport.
The quality of the seafood was very nice. We had a good time with our friends, and the staff were all very friendly. Malone's is a very good choice if you find yourself staying near the Atlanta Airport.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Don Pepe's - April 28th, 2012
This week's restaurant is Don Pepe's at Greystone. It comes recommended to us by a co-worker of Jay's who shares our love for Mexican and Tex-Mex food. It is located at Lee Branch in the Publix shopping center which is definitely off our beaten path though oddly enough, still in Hoover.
Immediately upon sitting down at our comfy booth, Gina noticed that the menu was identical to that of the Iguana Grill on Lorna Rd that we frequent. Another look around at the ceiling and we noticed that the same decorations (glittery stars) hang from the ceiling. This was a good thing for us since we love Iguana. We didn't ask anyone, but would be willing to bet that they are owned/operated by the same folks.
We shared chicken fajitas for dinner. They were great - and identical to what we get at Iguana. There was a ton of chicken, peppers and onions and we only needed more tortillas. Even after we each ate our fill, there was plenty of chicken & veggies left for at least a couple of fajitas. The impressive part is that we didn't share fajitas for two, but fajitas for one....
We highly recommend Don Pepe's (and their cousin across town Iguana!)
Immediately upon sitting down at our comfy booth, Gina noticed that the menu was identical to that of the Iguana Grill on Lorna Rd that we frequent. Another look around at the ceiling and we noticed that the same decorations (glittery stars) hang from the ceiling. This was a good thing for us since we love Iguana. We didn't ask anyone, but would be willing to bet that they are owned/operated by the same folks.
We shared chicken fajitas for dinner. They were great - and identical to what we get at Iguana. There was a ton of chicken, peppers and onions and we only needed more tortillas. Even after we each ate our fill, there was plenty of chicken & veggies left for at least a couple of fajitas. The impressive part is that we didn't share fajitas for two, but fajitas for one....
We highly recommend Don Pepe's (and their cousin across town Iguana!)
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Shonos - April 20th, 2012
Upon recommendation of my friend Susan R, we decided to go to Shonos for dinner Friday evening. For some reason, Gina thought it was going to be sushi but a quick browse of their website indicated it was teppanyaki grill without the show. That works for us since we prefer to dine privately rather than in a group of strangers.
Jay decided on the Eddie's Special (pictured above from their website) which is beef, chicken, vegetables and your choice of steamed or fried rice along with a salad. Gina had the teriyaki shrimp bowl which is a small bowl of grilled shrimp and your choice of steamd or fried rice (pictured below from their website.) The bowl is not huge but it is filling and the right size to fill you up! For reference, we both had steamed rice.
For those of you in Birmingham, Shonos is located in Riverchase in the Hobby Lobby shopping center right next to Dale's. We noticed that they do a brisk take out business. We are already planning our return!
Jay decided on the Eddie's Special (pictured above from their website) which is beef, chicken, vegetables and your choice of steamed or fried rice along with a salad. Gina had the teriyaki shrimp bowl which is a small bowl of grilled shrimp and your choice of steamd or fried rice (pictured below from their website.) The bowl is not huge but it is filling and the right size to fill you up! For reference, we both had steamed rice.
For those of you in Birmingham, Shonos is located in Riverchase in the Hobby Lobby shopping center right next to Dale's. We noticed that they do a brisk take out business. We are already planning our return!
Monday, April 16, 2012
Southern Legacy BBQ & Brew - April 13th, 2012
This week's new restaurant is Southern Legacy BBQ and Brew in Hoover off Hwy 150/John Hawkins Pkwy, just west of the Galleria and Patton Creek Shopping Center. This restaurant has opened within the past year in the former Up the Creek location. (We had never eaten there either.)
The atmosphere is part sports bar and part restaurant. The bar looked huge and had a good following. Jay had a Naked Pig IPA brewed just northeast of here in Gadsden. Alabama has some great microbrews.
For dinner, Gina had the small pulled pork sandwich (It was plenty big - on a regular sized Sesame Seed sandwich roll/bun) with fries. Jay got the half rack of short ribs. The half rack was HUGE and was more than enough for a meal. To go with the ribs, he selected the spicy mac n cheese and onion rings. All of our food was great! The ribs and pork came with their house BBQ red sauce. On the tables, there were additional bottles of that sauce, along with a vinegar based sauce and a spicy sauce. Ultimately, we liked the spicy sauce the best.
We are regulars at Jim n Nicks and enjoy Brother Zeke's BBQ via their drive thru but can foresee choosing Southern Legacy next time we are in the mood for great BBQ.
The atmosphere is part sports bar and part restaurant. The bar looked huge and had a good following. Jay had a Naked Pig IPA brewed just northeast of here in Gadsden. Alabama has some great microbrews.
For dinner, Gina had the small pulled pork sandwich (It was plenty big - on a regular sized Sesame Seed sandwich roll/bun) with fries. Jay got the half rack of short ribs. The half rack was HUGE and was more than enough for a meal. To go with the ribs, he selected the spicy mac n cheese and onion rings. All of our food was great! The ribs and pork came with their house BBQ red sauce. On the tables, there were additional bottles of that sauce, along with a vinegar based sauce and a spicy sauce. Ultimately, we liked the spicy sauce the best.
We are regulars at Jim n Nicks and enjoy Brother Zeke's BBQ via their drive thru but can foresee choosing Southern Legacy next time we are in the mood for great BBQ.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Surin 280 - April 6th, 2012
This week we decided to try Surin 280. We both love Thai, and they bill the food as Authentic Thai Modern Thai? Surin 280 is located on the west side of 280 just south of 459 in an old O'Charley's building. We have tried to eat here before, but their hours are not the most customer friendly (and least for us). We ordered the Crab Angels and Salmon Skin rolls for appetizers. The Crab Angels are similar to a Crab Rangoon but they were a little heavy on the cream cheese, and a little light on the crab. The Salmon Skin rolls were very good. Gina got the Pad Prik with chicken, and Jay got the Masaman Beef Curry. The Pad Prik was supposed to be spicy, and it was not. The Beef Curry had tough pieces of beef, and the curry sauce had more peanut flavor than curry flavor. The food was just "ok." for us. We ate it, and wouldn't refuse to go back if everyone else wanted to go, but it is doubtful we will ever seek out going back on our own. Makes us wish Nahm Thai (see March 10th blog) was local! There aren't a lot of choices that we have found for Thai food in Birmingham - if you know of a place for us to try - let us know!
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