Rustlers Rooste, Phoenix, AZ

     Rustlers Rooste, is a very interesting dining experience.  Located in Phoenix, AZ, it's about 15 minutes south of PHX Sky harbor Airport and over looks the city of Phoenix.

      This is a country & western themed restaurant and it plays that theme to the max including having "Horny the Bull" a live steer who lives in front of the building.  After you enter and speak with the host, you'll walk on a pathway over an indoor waterfall over to the stairs and slide area.  The slide is quite steep, our (almost) 4 year old went down it once... and he was good that.  However, some of the older kids and younger adults (speaking of mindset not age) went down it several times.  Also, in keeping with the theme, the restaurant has a sawdust coating on the floor to help absorb spills.  This may turn some people off, but we weren't bothered by it.

 

     Despite being fairly busy, we were seated right away.  Also, there must have been some confusion and miscommunication between the hosts and the wait staff as we had 3 different servers come to the table to take our drink orders, but that all got worked out with no issues. 

 

     The menu has a good selection of items and as we were on vacation decided to splurge a little bit and ordered the "Cowboy Stuff" platter which has pretty much a bit of everything.  Everything on the platter was pretty good but I did have to add some salt to the steak kabobs. 

 

     All in all, this was a really nice time and I would recommend anyone who likes a western theme steakhouse to check it out.  However if "over-the-top" themes aren't your thing, you may want to try somewhere else.

 

Scores:

Food: B+ Good portions, cooked well, but needed some added flavor.

Service: B+ Started a little slow, but ended quite nicely.

Portion Size: A+ we were definitely full after we left.

 



Friendly's Royal Palm Beach, Fl

I'm starting to think that Friendly's, might just be one of the best kept secrets for going out on a Friday night.  We've been several times, and each time there is no wait, good service, pretty good food and best of all not that pricey!

As parents of 2 little ones, when we have a chance to go out as just a couple, we try to take it.  Most of the time, we don't have time to wait 45 minutes to an hour for an open table at a restaurant.  Being able to sit down right away, with out a reservation is awesome.

For starters, we split an appetizer combo, which we got with chicken quesadilla's, mozzarella sticks and loaded waffle fries.  This seriously could have been a meal all on its own, there was a pretty good portion of food on this plate. I had the roasted turkey dinner, which comes with stuffing, corn, mashed potato's & gravy and garlic bread.  Although it was a little salty, it was still quite tasty and they really don't skimp on the portion size.

The wifey had the fish and chips, which she described in exquisite detail as "yummy".  She also ordered from the "4 for More" section.  This allows you to add your drink and a 3 scoop-2 topping sundae for only $4 more.  Considering a drink is like $2+ and the sundae is about $3, it's not a bad deal.

The food overall isn't what you might call "gourmet", but it is tasty and filling and we like it.

The service was good, though it did start getting a little slower near the end of our meal.  Also, though I didn't have a first hand experience, the wifey said the bathrooms were really pretty and clean.  Though I think that might be a girl thing :D

All in all we would definitely go back, but it should be noted that this is a "Dry" establishment (no alcoholic drinks)

Scores
Food: A
Portion Size: A+
Service: B+

John G's Manalapan, FL

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to visit John G's new location.  The restaurant is now located in the shopping center on the Southwest corner of Ocean Ave and A1A.  It's right across the street from the Ritz-Carlton hotel and the Lantana Beach .  One thing you'll note right away though, is that John G's no longer has that signature view over the ocean, it's now surrounded on all sides by Trees and other buildings.

We arrived around 9am and the "traditional" line had already started forming.  I should add that for this trip, we had a fairly large party, 5 adults and our 2 little ones.  Due to this, we had to wait till one of the larger tables was available and we didn't get seated till around 10am.inside of the restaurant.  The new facility is very nice, it's a lot more open than the old restaurant, and significantly brighter too.  They must have moved some of the old furnishings and wall decor because they still had the wood paneling along the kitchen, The prep area also was still decorated with those old fashion "flip chart style" menu's that announced the specials of the day, which I don't believe had been changed in 30 years.

Although they were extremely busy, the server came back after a few minutes and with our drinks and took our food orders.

The menu though not too large, does still have a good selection of items. 

The food overall was good, and we enjoyed our meal.  I'm not going to go into what everybody ordered because, quite frankly I don't remember :).  However I ordered the # 5 which is 2 Eggs to order(scrambled), Hash browns or Grits (Grits), toast and fruit cup or juice. I also chose the side of ham at additional cost.

Despite how good everything was, this outing was missing something.  I don't know exactly what it is, the food was like it always has been, and the restaurant was clean and the staff friendly.  I don't know if it is the change of location that was throwing me off, but not being able to look out on the water might have had something to do with it.  Hopefully I'll be able to get used to the change.  That being said, one of the good things about the new location is free parking.  So not having to worry about getting a parking ticket while waiting in line is definitely a plus.
Also for those who don't know John G's is only open from 7:00am to 3:00pm and they still do not accept credit cards.  Though they do have an ATM on site.

Scores:
Food:  B+
Portion Size: A
Service: A

Duffy's, West Palm Beach, Fl

Wow, it sure has been a while since we've done a review.  Seems like it might be time for another.

Tonight the wife and I went out on a very much needed date night.  We thought we might hit up Longhorn, as we didn't think it would be that busy at 6:30 (ish) on a Thursday night.  This turned out to not to be the case.  The wait for 2 was 35-45 minutes and unfortunately we just didn't want to wait that long.  Luckily though there was a Duffy's right across the parking lot, so we figured we might as well check and see what the wait time would be.  Lo and behold, no wait, sounds like we had a winner!

The first thing we noticed as we walked in was a little "DJ" style booth with a lady sitting in it.  As we were walking by, she announced to the crowd "Welcome to Thursday night Trivia"!  We got to our seats and the hostess reminded us that it was 2-4-1 drinks till closing.  So far, Duffy's was on the right track with us. :)

The menu, though not very large size-wise, has a pretty good selection of items.  You've got some pretty standard appetizers, along with your normal Burgers & wings type of offerings.  We started with the appetizer sampler, which comes with Boneless (or bone-in) wings and your choice of sauce, Tex-Mex egg rolls and Friend mozzarella.  The sampler had fairly small portions of each item (to be expected though) but everything was very flavorful.  The fried cheese had what tasted like a homemade batter, the wings were very meaty and about half a size bigger than "bite size", and the surprise for me were the egg rolls.  These had a really good flavor with little bits of chicken, cheese and corn all mixed in.  Next time we might just get an order of these by themselves.

For the main course, the wifey ordered the Rodeo Burger which comes with cheese, BBQ sauce and a literal tower of onion rings.  She said the flavor was ok, and it was a big burger, but it's not something she would order again.  I had the Churrasco Steak, which is an 8oz skirt steak w/ Chimichurri and comes with Black beans, rice and plantains.  Portion size was great, they gave a whole mess of the beans and rice, and the steak was a pretty good size also.  As for the flavor, all I can say is.... WOW!  This is probably one of the most flavor meals I've had in a very long time.  The steak was cooked to perfection and the rice and bean combo was outstanding.  I was tempted to order another one, just so I could take it with me and have it for lunch at work.  I really can't say enough about it, if you like the Latin style of steak, then you'll probably love this.

The service was pretty average, not really outstanding, but nothing to complain about either.  One thing to note though, is that it was most definitely NOT a quiet place, what with the TVs playing and the Trivia game going on, along with the regular restaurant & Bar crowd, the sound level was pretty loud. 

All-in-all, this was a good night out and surprisingly pleasant.  We would definitely go back, and next time we might even bring some friends.  Here is a link to the Menu.  They also have a gluten free selection for those that may need it.

Service: C
Food: A
Portion Size: A

Overall: A-

Tokyo Peking II, Lake Worth, Fl (re-visited)

Since we had such a good experience last time we were here, we decided to try this restaurant again.

We arrived around 11:30 (ish), the restaurant wasn't crowded and we were sat right away. The serving staff was very friendly and attentive. We never had to get someones attention if we wanted any refills on our drinks or take away the empty plates. Which, at a buffet is all you can really ask for.

The food was good and tasted very fresh, but the selection seemed a bit more limited than last time. However the Hibachi grill was excellent. I believe that the primary draw for this restaurant is both the hibachi grill and the sushi bar. I think that the regular buffet aren't bad, but not as good as the grill and the bar.

All in all, we really like this restaurant. It's clean, the staff is friendly and the food is good. What more can you ask for?

50's Prime Time Cafe - Disney's Hollywood Studios Orlando, Florida.

User Submitted Review

50's Prime Time Cafe - Disney's Hollywood Studios

We were enjoying an impromptu trip to Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly Disney-MGM Studios) when we decided a meal was in order. We were debating between the Sci-Fi Dine-in Theater and the 50's Prime Time Cafe, when we decided we wanted a little of Mom's home style cooking. So the Cafe it was. We did not make dinner reservations which are highly recommended for this restaurant. The hostess did let us know they served food at the bar, if we were willing to sit there. We really wanted the whole dining experience that is offered but instead opted to take seats at the bar for quicker service. The stools were comfy and our bartender/server was super nice and kept use entertained the whole time we were there. All the wait staff that came to pick up drink orders and even the bar back were joking with us and made it a pleasant dinner. The options are few but classic. Both my companion and I opted for the "Mom's Sampler" Which consisted of pot roast, meatloaf, fried chicken, mashed potatoes w/ gravy , green beans, and collard greens. All generous portions and all fantastic. We also split the blue crab salad appetizer which was fresh and crispy and had just the right amount of vinaigrette on it. We were able to savor the atmosphere of a 50's style home. There were plenty of salad options on the menu and full sized versions of each of the items on our sample plate offered with plenty of sides.

Overall it was a pleasant experience and I would recommend it to anyone who likes to dive into the fantasy aspect of Disney. The booths all have various versions of 1950's style kitchens, the servers refer to guests as kids, and don't be surprised if they tell you to get your elbows off the table and to finish your dinner if you expect to get dessert!

Thanks for the Great review!

Friendly's, Royal Palm, Fl

After our break, we're back!

I know this is a "Dinner" review site, but we like to review all sorts of meals :)

The other morning, we went out to breakfast at Friendly's. Now most people probably think of Friendly's as an Ice Cream/Dessert place, but they'd be wrong. They actually have a full breakfast, lunch and dinner menu to go along with the desserts Options.

We arrived around 9:30`ish in the morning, and were able to be seated right away. The server came over and was very personable and he got our drink orders right away. Throughout out the whole meal, out server was great. He was quick with requests and very friendly and professional. It was the kind of service that brings people back.

For the meal, I chose the Lumberjack, It comes with 3 eggs' any style, bacon or sausage and either 3 pancakes, 3 slices of French toast or Muffin ($6.99) I ordered it scrambled, w/ bacon and french toast, and I added a slice of ham to go with it. The food itself wasn't bad, the bacon was just the way I like it, cooked and chewy but not crispy/burnt like some people like it. The French toast was surprisingly good, I'm not normally a fan, but these I'd order again. The eggs were OK, but I don't know if they used a full 3 eggs, it didn't really look like they did, but they cooked properly and had great flavor. The ham slice, which actually ended up being 3 smaller slices, was cooked nicely and went well with everything.

The wife ordered the French Toast breakfast, which comes (again) with bacon or sausage, and she had it with bacon. Also she added a side of country potatoes. Everything I said about my french toast and bacon can just be repeated for hers :). She, said it tasted really good, but recently she's only able to eat a few bites at each meal due to the pregnancy.

For our little guy, we ordered the kids meal "two egg's" breakfast, which also comes with bacon or sausage and toast. As I'm sure you can guess, he had the bacon. Let me tell you, little dude tore into that bacon, it was almost like he couldn't get enough. He also ate most of his eggs and a slice of toast and several of the wifey's potatoes. We were really proud of how well he did with his eating.

Overall, this was a nice family breakfast out and for all 3 of us with drinks, meals and sides was under $25 without tip. For the amount of food and the service we received, we consider this a good deal.

Grades:
Food: B+
Portion Size: B+
Service: A+

Flanigans, Lake Worth, FL

After the Adventure at Red Lobster we decided on Flanigan's for dinner, and we were NOT disappointed.

We arrived at the restaurant just about 7:30, it wasn't crowded, and we were sat by the hostess right away. Because of the problem at Red Lobster we decided to "time" our servers and see just how fast or slow they really were. With in a few moments of being sat at our table, we were greeted by a server who said she'd be right with us. Less than a minute or so later, she had taken out drink orders and gave us some time to look over the menu. Long story short, the service was MUCH faster than the other restaurant we tried this evening.

Food wise, we shared some Joe's Rockin Rib Rolls as an appetizer. The wifey had the Dolphin Francaise w/ dirty rice and I had the Lemon Chicken Pasta. The fish was light and flaky and the dirty rice was filling and had a savory after taste. The lemon chicken pasta (as usual) was great. I love the lemon garlic dipping sauce it's got a really rich and unique flavor, that compliment the chicken and pasta nicely. The portion sizes were large enough for both of us to need to-go boxes.

For people who've never been to Flanigan's before, should know this this a laid back kind of establishment. There are all sorts of decorations on the wall consisting of picture of people fishing,having fun on the water/boats and other nautical themes. One of my favorite things about Flanigan's is that they have trivia cards (usually Trivial Pursuit) at every table. It's a nice way to spend some time while waiting for the food, or if you need an "ice-breaker" for any sort of date type situations.

Overall we had a great time out, which was a nice change from how the evening started

Grades:
Food: B+
Service: B+
Portion Size: B+

TooJay's Wellington, FL

The other night, we went out to the Wellington Mall to let our little guy play in the play area. Our original plan was to just hit up the Food Court and then call it a night. Instead we decided to go over to TooJay's which turned out to be a nice choice. We arrived around 7:30pm, and their was hardly anyone there and we were able to be seated right away. We were seated near the window, which looked out into the mall. For us, this was a nice feature as it helped keep our little one entertained, but for people who might prefer a bit more privacy, might not be a great choice.

Our server was really friendly and welcoming. She was also very patient with us while we got the little guy settled in. Sometimes servers seem to get irritated with customers who have children. Having been a server, I can understand their feelings, but a good server can, and will, hide any annoyance they might feel. Overall we were very satisfied with our waitress. So much so, that we'd make a point to request sitting in her area again if/when we go back.

Moving on to describing the food. For those who don't know TooJay's has a lot of menu choices. It's actually almost overwhelming on the number of choices they offer. I ended up getting the "Grilled London Broil" that came with Mashed Potatoes and Mushroom Gravy, and I selected the vegetable of the day which was Broccoli. I ordered the meat cooked "medium" and it came out perfectly. The potatoes and gravy were also really good, although I did have to pick the mushrooms off, but that's just because I don't like the texture of mushrooms. Vegetable wise, the broccoli was quite tasty, but the portion size wasn't all that large.

The wife settled on the "Classic Chicken Pot Pie" which doesn't come with anything else, but is filled with chicken and other fresh veggies. She said that she really liked the flaky pastry part of the pie, and the chicken and sauce and other veggies were also very good.

All in all, this meal out was another nice surprise for us. The food was good and the service was really good. Add in that there wasn't a lot of people out and it made for a pleasant and quiet night out.


Grades
Food: A
Service: A
Portion Size: A

The Rum Shack, Lake Worth, FL

This is our first submitted review, hope you enjoy.

I Had the opportunity to spend the evening with my parents and several of their friends at the Rum Shack on Lake Ave in Lake Worth . It was my parents 47Th anniversary. Although the Rum Shack is not a higher end place one would expect to go to for an Anniversary dinner, mom and Dad wanted a casual and relaxed place for the evening.

I really liked the decor and atmosphere. It was very casual and laid back and for a place with a bar and T.V.'s it wasn't too loud.

Our server was fairly attentive and checked on us 2-3 times to see if everything was alright. The food was great, but what she did not ask was if we needed refills. Although, when she asked if everything was ok, we should have used that opportunity to ask for more beverages.

My mom and I had the Black Angus NY strip with Scampi butter, they came with fresh steamed vegetables (broccoli) and your choice of side I took the sweet potato fries which were delish and mom took the baked sweet potato which she enjoyed. We both got our steaks medium and they were grilled to perfection and the garlic in the scampi butter really made the flavor pop. The steamed veggies were just that steamed with no seasoning. I finished my steak and potatoes Mom left about half her steak because she was full.

Dad and his friend ordered the fried coconut shrimp with potato wedges. He really enjoyed it and was not able to finish all of his dinner due to the generous portion size. His friend barely finished his dinner too. They both loved their dinners.

Moms friend ordered the salad with shrimp and she was full about half way through and she said the salad was very good and the shrimp were good size and cooked just right.

I would say that overall, the portion sizes and prices are reasonable. If we would have had ordered appetizers I never would have finished my dinner. There was no room for dessert! A nice bonus of being on Lake avenue is that it was a fairly cool evening and with benches and wide sidewalks it was a nice night for a stroll. Quite a few restaurants have sidewalk seating including the rum Shack and about half the shops were still open after 5pm, which led to a pleasant atmosphere.

Overall I would rate it B with service B and food A and prices B+

Bonefish Grill, Wellington, Fl.

Tonight was a spur of the moment decision to go out to eat. We decided on Bonefish as the wife was in the mood for seafood, this turned out to be a great decision on our part. The restaurant wasn't very crowded when we got there, and we were able to be seated right away. Our waiter was quite good, he was able to balance the right combination of leaving us to enjoy the meal, but around enough to make sure our drinks were filled and get anything else we may have needed. This was probably some of the BEST service we have received when dining out in a long time. I really cannot praise him enough.

The food was also very good, from the appetizers to the main course everything was very tasty. We started off by getting the Maryland Crab Cakes and the Bacon Wrapped Atlantic Sea Scallops. The crab cakes have quite a bit of a kick to them, but it doesn't over power the taste of the crab and other ingredients. The Scallops are fairly large, and they're topped with a "chutney". I'm not sure what was in the chutney but whatever it was, it worked great with the taste and texture of the bacon and scallops. The only thing I can find to complain about is the portion size, with the crab cakes they only serve 2 cakes as the appetizer and with the scallops you only get 4+ the mango salsa salad.

Our main course consisted of my meal which was the Grilled Atlantic Salmon with Potatoes Au Gratin, and the wife's meal of the Sir Will's fish and chips. With the grilled fish you get a choice of 4 signature sauces that include a Mango Salsa, Chimichurri, Pan Asian and Lemon Butter. Our server recommended that I get the mango salsa or pan asian with the salmon. I chose the Mango salsa and it was excellent. The fish and chips came tempura-style and a tartar sauce made in house. Again the food was very, very good. We both would order these meals again with no hesitation.

The only complaint that we could really bring up would be on portion sizes in relation to the prices. However, despite being bit smaller than you might expect, the meal did end up being quite filling.



Grades:
Food: A+
Portion Size: B-
Service A+

All in all, this was an outstanding "adventure" I encourage everyone to try this place out and experience it for yourself. I hope you will be as satisfied as we were.


As a side note, this restaurant also has quite a few Gluten free options on their menu for those who need it.