Ahh Sushi!

    Sign outside of Ahh Sushi!

 

I have not always been a very big fan of sushi, in fact only recently I decided that I wanted to like it.  With a lot of foods I have had to force myself to eat it until I enjoy it, I actually take a lot of pride in a lot of the foods I have been able to start enjoying by will and determination.

A few of my friends are very big into sushi and they told me that the place to go in Salt Lake County in Ahh Sushi!  First thing to note, it is also a bar and due to Utah Liquor Laws Ahh Sushi! is a private club and you will either need to get a membership to eat there or like me go with a friend that is already a member and piggy back on their membership.  Ahh Sushi! is in the basement of a building, so descend the stairs and enter into a restaurant with the look and feel of a pub on one side and a sushi bar on the other.

 

We were seated at the Sushi Bar

 

 

We were seated at the sushi bar and our waitress gave us our menu’s, I will use the term waitress loosely because after being seated you will only see her ever 15 to 20 minutes for a drink refill, even when they are not busy.  We were seated directly in front of our sushi chef, James, and he handed us some slips of paper to write down our sushi orders.  Weekdays from 11am-2pm sushi rolls are half off, so we all ordered a few specialty rolls and waited for our orders to come up.  The wait wasn’t bad, especially considering we actually had 6 people in our group and only one chef.

I ordered the Playboy roll (tempura shrimp, tuna, avocado, cucumber with tobiko, spicy mayo & sweet eel sauce) and the Funky Charlie roll (tempura roll with tuna and spicy wasabi sauce), normally this would cost $23 but because it was half off rolls the price was very reasonable.
The Playboy roll was amazing, best sushi I have ever had.  The taste of fish was fresh but not overpowering, you could really taste all of the different flavors as if they were all separate and not rolled together.  It was a big roll and I probably could have stopped eating then, but I love tempura and that is the whole reason I ordered the next roll.  The Funky Charlie roll was pretty good, it was a little spicy for my taste, probably because I am not yet a huge fan of wasabi.  The roll itself was good and at the price I couldn’t imagine a better roll to order.

 

My meal, almost finished!

 

 

The only problem I really have with this restaurant is the waitress service, have fun trying to order anything but sushi if you are sitting at the bar, they do not usually ask what you want to eat.  Not all of the waitresses are this bad but it is really the luck of the draw, 50% of the time you will experience bad service. If you want to order something other than sushi I might suggest sitting at a table, maybe they are more attentive over there.  The drinks can be on the small side, especially the water, so ask for a few if you need a lot to drink.  I always order a soda with my water just so I don’t have to wait around, and even then I usually have to wait 5 or 10 minutes after finishing the water and soda before another refill comes my way.

Ahh Sushi!
No Website

I Visited Ahh Sushi! at:
22 East 100 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84111

Lon’s Cookin’ Shack

 Lon’s Cookin’ Shack

My friend and I decided to leave for dinner a little later than normal and we knew our options for Restaurants were dwindling by the minute.  We drove up State Street in Orem with thoughts of BBQ dancing in our heads.  We passed by a few places that had been closed down and almost didn’t stop as we passed by Lon’s Cookin’ Shack, due to the fact that we didn’t see any cars parked outside.  Even with the lack of visual cues that Lon’s was open we decided to stop and check.

We walked into the “Shack” and I mist admit we were a bit surprised at how clean it was inside.  It was getting late so the Dinner rush had come and gone, this left us with a clean and empty eating area but there were some drawbacks as well.  Ordering our food this close to closing time proved difficult.  Many of the options available on the menu were “out” so we did have to settle a little bit on our food choices.

BBQ Pork and Chicken, Potato Salad, and Beans.

 

I ordered the BBQ Pork and Chicken meal and for my sides I settled on Potato Salad and Beans.  Originally I had asked for the Mashed Potatoes but to the establishments credit, he warned me that it was the last of the batch and he could serve them to me but suggested I order a different side.  I liked the honesty, he cared about what he served his customers.

Sitting down to eat my meal, I was directed to a tub of sauces that i had to choose from.  I selected a basic BBQ sauce and began eating.  The food was good, surprising so, considering how close to closing time we ordered our food.  The BBQ Pork was tender and had a nice salty BBQ flavor to it, not too strong but enough to remind you why pork is always best served BBQ style.  The chicken was moist but needed some extra BBQ sauce to give it that extra kick it needed.  The sides were average, I didn’t enjoy the Potato salad but it was more of a style problem than an issue with the quality of the salad.  I enjoy a basic Potato Salad with Mayo and very little mustard, this salad was the opposite of what my taste buds have grown to love.

Everything said and done, I liked the restaurant.  It was a nice atmosphere and the food was good.  It is not the best BBQ I have had in the state but I did enjoy it and I would recommend it to somebody looking for BBQ in Orem.  I am considering another trip to Lon’s Cookin’ Shack (during the dinner rush) to see what I was missing the first time, I would have already but I have new places to try.

 

Lon’s Cookin’ Shack
http://www.lonscookinshack.com/

I Visited Lon’s Cookin’ Shack at:

608 North State Street
Orem, UT

The Point Restaurant

 

Imaged from http://www.thepoint.hci.utah.edu/index.html

I was with one of my friends picking up a guitar that I was having restored and we were looking for a place to eat.  He said he knew of a place but I was going to have to trust him, I said I did and he directed me to our destination.  I pose this question to you; would you hesitate visiting a restaurant with the following description:

“Benefit from meals that are fresh, healthy, delicious, affordable, and served in a beautiful environment. Nestled against the foothills of the Wasatch Mountains, these dining locations offer breathtaking views of the Salt Lake Valley.”

Now, what would you say if I told you that this restaurant was The Point located on the 6th floor of Huntsman Cancer Institute and Huntsman Cancer Hospital?  This restaurant is used for many great things including feeding cancer patients and there families healthy affordable meals.  It is also used for special events such as business meetings, wedding receptions, birthday parties, etc., they even cater!

 

One of the views from The Point Restaurant

The first thing I noticed as we entered the restaurant is that the views really are spectacular.  The menu is on a big black board at the entrance to the cafeteria.  There are a lot of options to choose from, both hot or cold meals. The restaurant is served cafeteria style, you grab a tray and walk up to one of the cooks and tell them what you want.  I ordered a Bacon Cheeseburger and I was surprised to see that they actually grilled the meat right in front of you, they gave me an option for the type of cheese I wanted and I waited while they cooked my meal.  Once the meal was done I walked to the cashier and paid for my meal, it was very cheap for the meal I got, not as cheap as fast food but than again this isn’t a fast food style restaurant.
I sat myself at a table overlooking the valley and started to dig in. The burger was pretty good and I was shocked at how fresh the produce tasted, crisp red onions and lettuce.  I was about halfway through my burger when I remembered to take a picture of my meal, so that is proof that I am getting better at this whole blogging thing

 

Bacon Cheeseburger with Fries

 

Would I recommend this restaurant?  Sure, it was good food at a great price and a lot better for you than a Fast Food joint, plus the view was amazing.  So if you are ever downtown and are looking for a place to grab a quick easy meal for a good price, remember The Point.

 

 
The Point
http://www.thepoint.hci.utah.edu/index.html

I Visited The Point Restaurant:

located on the 6th floor of Huntsman Cancer Institute and Huntsman Cancer Hospital

Iggy’s Sports Grill

Image from iggyssportsgrill.com

I decided to visit Iggy’s Sports Grill for dinner with a friend, I have been a couple of times before but it has been a while.  For those that haven’t been, Iggy’s is a typical “Sports Bar” but is obviously aimed at being family friendly.  You can order from a wide variety of different foods and you can watch sports on the multiple flat screens scattered around the restaurant, or just watch the massive screen that they have hanging from the ceiling.  They also serve alcohol but I do not drink so I can’t tell you much about that.

Jumbo Screen over the bar at Iggy's

 

 We were promptly greeted at the front of the restaurant and were seated at a table.  It wasn’t incredibly busy so they sat the two of us at a large booth, a nice touch considering many other restaurants would sit you at a small table even when it was not busy.  Our waitress came over and got our drink orders and told us she would give us a few minutes to look over the menu.  We took some time to look over the menu and then got to talking, also the MLB Home Run Contest was on the big screen so we got caught up in that. Our waitress came back over and asked if we were ready and we told her we weren’t and we were sorry but we hadn’t really been paying much attention to our menus.  She was very friendly and polite and told us it was no problem but asked if we wanted to put in any orders for an appetizer.  I like that we didn’t feel rushed even though we were coming up on the dinner rush if we weren’t careful.

 

 

Steak & Shrimp Dinner

 

For an appetizer I ordered the Pot Stickers, I have had them before on a previous trip to Iggy’s and loved them so much that time that it was partially the reason I chose this restaurant this night.  For my main course I ordered the Steak & Shrimp Dinner, a “baseball steak” wrapped in bacon and coconut shrimp.  
My appetizer arrived and I must say that I was disappointed, the pot stickers were average and the only hope I still have for them is that they were only bad this time and the next time I go they will be great again.  The 6 pot stickers are served on a plate, they are almost on the crunchy side and are drizzled with a lite peanut sauce, this is strictly an American style restaurant so we are using a fork, no chop sticks available.
My meal arrived not too long after finishing my appetizer, again I apologize for the picture, this is my second post and I am at least getting a little better, I hadn’t completely finished my meal this time before taking a picture.  The steak was mediocre, nothing special to report.  I might blame the cut of meat considering I am not sure what part of the cow the “baseball steak” comes from.  The coconut shrimp was amazing, best I have had in Utah.  The only problem with the shrimp is that there was not enough of it, next time I am going to just order the coconut shrimp dinner and skip the steak.  The shrimp was deep fried in a coconut batter and was not as greasy as one would normally expect a deep fried dish, the coconut flavor was not too strong and did not overpower the shrimp taste.  The sides were not very good in my opinion, the vegetables were over-steamed for my liking and the mashed potatoes did not seem as fresh as I would expect from any place that isn’t fast food.
Overall my meal was alright, the service was wonderful and the experience was nice.  Would I recommend Iggy’s?  If you are a sports fan or a big fan of coconut shrimp you should check it out, but if you are looking for a great meal you could find better food elsewhere.  Will I return?  I might, but it will likely be out of convenience and not craving.

Iggy’s Sports Grill
www.iggyssportsgrill.com

I visited the Iggy’s Sports Grill at:

Jordan Landing
7268 S Plaza Center Dr.
West Jordan, UT 84101

Pei Wei Asian Diner

 

Pew Wei Signage

This week I made a trip to Pei Wei Asian Diner, it was my first time eating here and I was told it is similar to PF Chang’s but on a smaller scale.  I am a big fan of Asian food in general so I was excited to try it.  We pulled up and I took this picture, parking wasn’t bad and and the location was average.

 

Pei Wei Dining Area

 

We entered into the restaurant and I noticed that it was busy but there were still places to sit.  This restaurant has plenty of seating but doesn’t make you feel uncomfortable by stacked the table on top of each other.

When you first step into the building it puts you into line to order your food, with large menus to the right of the line and a stack of small take out menus to the left.  You don’t see a lot of pictures of the food you will be ordering but the menu is pretty descriptive.  At the front of the line you are asked how many are in your party and then they give you a number, a small disk with your number is then placed on a table so that you can seat yourself after placing your order.  You place your order and pay at the same time which I enjoyed because it meant no waiting for a check once we had finished eating.  The order taker/cashier was nice and greeted me with a smile (a small but effective way to increase the customers experience).

 

My Meal

 

I ordered the Honey Seared Chicken and let me apologize now, I am new to this blog and I was mostly finished with my meal by the time I remembered to snap a picture.  The meal was good but I did notice one thing, at about halfway through my meal I was not enjoying it as much as when I started it.  The honey syrup was too strong and there was too much of it.  I had to put my fork down and take a break before I could go back to eating.

All in all the meal was good, the price wasn’t terrible and the service was great.  I give this restaurant my recommendation, if you are looking for PF Chang’s on a budget.

 

 

 

Pei Wei Asian Diner
http://www.peiwei.com/

I visited the Pei Wei at:

Sugarhouse
1028 East 2100 South 
Salt Lake City, UT 84106

Welcome to The Chin Wag!

Welcome to my blog, this will be a great place to read about many things but one of my current passions is food.  Going to restaurants and cooking at home will most definitely be blogged about here, but you will also find a lot of posts that revolve around what I see going on in the world.  I hope you enjoy.