Another Blogger Goes to Flip

My office visited Flip today for Marcia's special birthday lunch. Luckily we had no problem scoring a table and I was glad to finally check this place out. Overall I would describe it as a fun place to go, with some creative ideas for burgers, sides and shakes. I was not blown away by the beef burger I tried (the Butcher Cut, pictured below), but it was definitely tasty. The burger was overcooked for my taste, despite our server telling us that everything came medium rare unless you requested otherwise. I really liked the Po Boygur, which I was fortunately able to taste. The size of the burgers is small, but one along with a side is probably just the right amount. With such a large group, we tried all of the milkshakes offered and I, loyal blogger that I am, tasted them all. My favorite was the Nutella, followed by the pistachio. The Krispy Kreme was not as good as I'd hoped and the foie gras was too meaty (surprise) for my taste.

Our office crew at Flip




Flip's bar area.



Assortment of sides. I liked the fries and the smoked Caesar salad (not pictured) best.



Corn and shrimp chowder.



The Po Boygur - delicious with a slice of fried lemon on top.



Lamburger (left) and Butcher Cut with caramelized onion, blue cheese and red wine jam.



Nutella milkshake with toasted marshmallows.



Do you think we had enough to drink?!

Persian Feast

While my dad was here we dined at Rumi's Kitchen, an Iranian restaurant I've been wanting to try for quite some time. We really enjoyed our meal, especially the appetizer dips that we ordered as well as the succulent meats - my favorite was the ground chuck kabob. The entrees are HUGE, especially considering they bring you lots of fresh flat bread and a plate of cheese, butter, mint & walnuts to start. The desserts were also tasty, especially the creme brulee, which had a tea flavor and the traditional Iranian ice cream, which I didn't manage to photograph. This palce is definitely worth a trip OTP - and for me that takes a lot!

Front: Shirazi Salad; Back left: Mast mousir (yogurt garlic dip); Back right: Borani spinach (spinach onion dip).



Delicious, fresh flatbread.



Left: Soltani Kabob (seasoned ground chuck kabob and beef tenderloin kabob) with saffron rice; Right: Rack of lamb with seasoned raisin rice.

Baklava cheesecake and a wonderful creme brulee

Rumi's Kitchen
6152 Roswell Rd NE
Atlanta, GA 30328
(404) 477-2100

All American Splurge

For the football game I decided to go all out with the junk food, making hot dogs and fries! The fries turned out well, even if some were not as crisp as I'd like (they were baked, after all) and I made some spicy garlic ketchup to accompany them. Calvin was in charge of the hot dogs, which he likes with slaw and chili. I prefer onion, mustard and ketchup (yeah I know real hot dog lovers despise ketchup - I grew up on it, what can I say?)

Homemade oven fries with garlic powder, salt & pepper and doctored-up ketchup. The plate says, "The cook is not responsible for cat hair in the food." That would be Quincy's responsibility!



The all American hot dog with chili, onions and slaw.

Italian Winner - Allegro

Update: Sadly, Allegro closed on 2/15/09. We will miss you!

Even though Cal's birthday is in October, we just made it to his birthday dinner! Ever since I went to Allegro with some girl friends during restaurant week last year, I wanted to take him there as he's a big fan of Italian food and we are usually eating Asian if I have anything to say about it! Our weeknight meal was sublime, and our server was gracious and helpful. The only unfortunate thing was the noise - there was a group of some sort meeting at the bar and being rowdy and despite the fact that our table was about as far from them as you could get, the noise reverberated through the whole place. In addition, there was a patron who stood out as being the loudest person I have ever encountered in a restaurant. It was so bad that the other tables (including us) were looking at each other and shaking our heads. This guy was SO LOUD! Anyway, we had a wonderful meal in spite of the difficulty in hearing each other and I would recommend Allegro for a special occasion Italian meal.

We shared the Contadina Salad: bibb lettuce with carmelized onions, white creamer potatoes, tomatoes, asparagus & olives in a balsamic vinaigrette.



Grilled grouper fillet over greens with raisins in a creamy sauce. This was so delicious, we both kept switching plates!



Tagliatelle funghi e asparagi - mushrooms & asparagus in a light cream sauce. Some of the best pasta I've ever eaten.



Calvin with Tiramisu & birthday candle

Allegro
560 Dutch Valley Rd NE
Atlanta, GA 30324
(404) 888-1890

Hidden Japanese Gem

Chirashi - a multitude of raw fish and seafood served over perfect rice.

After hearing about this place from my neighbor, I finally ventured to Hashiguchi, Jr. and I haven't been able to stay away since! This place is hidden behind Lenox Square in a nondescript shopping center. The restaurant space is small, although they have a large private room in back. The sushi I sampled here was fabulous, especially the spicy tuna roll and the salmon nigri. I also had a bowl of tempura udon, which brought me back to my study abroad experience in Japan - filling and comforting on a cold winter's day. At lunch there are very good specials and I was surprised at how empty it was during the day. When I dined there in the evening it was much busier, but service was still quick and attentive. Another good sign is that both times I went, several groups of Japanese speakers were there. I even practiced my language skills a bit with the waitstaff, who all appear to be Japanese as well. At the cash register they sell Japanese snacks like Pocky and some traditional canned and bottled beverages. The green tea ice cream here was fabulous as well, with a very strong green tea flavor.

Tempura, sushi & sashimi bento box, served with soup and salad as well as the small seaweed salad and Japanese pickles pictured here.



Salmon nigri, spicy tuna roll and tempura udon soup.

Hashiguchi, Jr. Japanese Restaurant
3400 Around Lenox Rd NE # C520
Atlanta, GA 30326
(404) 841-9229

Fun in the Sun!

Following the craziness of the holidays and my birthday, we ventured to Key Largo, Florida for a little R&R. Overall it was a great trip - perfect weather, relaxing atmosphere and good food. In addition to the below, we had some wonderful ice cream at Mr. C's Gourmet Italian Ice Cream. The owner is a real character who has been making his own ice cream for years.

We stayed at Rock Reef Resort, which was a charming small hotel on the bay side of Key Largo.



The grounds were beautiful.



Fish Matecumbe style at The Fish House. It was very tasty.



Excellent key lime pie from The Fish House.



View from the hotel. I went swimming in here despite it being a bit chilly. We enjoyed all of the hammocks around the property as well as the jacuzzi.



Breakfast from Harriette's. The biscuit was not as good as we expected, but the omelet and pancakes were passable!





Lazy conch at Chef Lupe's Mandalay Restaurant & Tiki Bar. This was really delicious - key lime butter finished it off.



As an entree, we split this hogfish dish served with shrimp. Delicious!



Another morning we ate at Mrs. Mac's Kitchen. They offer a champagne brunch option every day!



One day we went to a bird rescue center. The funny thing was that birds that didn't need rescuing were trying to get into the rescue area!



For the last few days of our trip we visited Coral Gables, where I couldn't resist sitting in the manger for a photo!

Birthday Part Tres

On my actual birthday, December 23, Calvin surprised me with a sushi dinner at Nakato, followed by a performance of The Sound of Music at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta. In addition to enjoying a wonderful show (and not being able to stop singing the songs!) it was neat to see this impressive facility. Overall this was one of my best birthdays ever. Thanks Calvin!

Amy's 27th!

Sauteed mushrooms and garlic.

Sashimi - white tuna, toro (fatty tuna), salmon and yellowtail.

Scallop sushi and rainbow roll.

Spicy salmon roll and unagi - very fresh and tasty.



Waitstaff played the drums...



and sang happy birthday!



Green tea ice cream and green tea creme brulee - delicious!

When we arrived home from the show, our friend Herb was there spending the night on the way to see his family in Mississippi.

Herb was quickly a friend of Quincy.

Hanukkah/Birthday Part Dos

As the holidays approached we headed to Charlotte, my hometown, for some Hanukkah and birthday celebrations. We also attended a very neat Hindu wedding (see above post). It seemed like we were carried from one party to the next, celebrating with my dad's office, then a family Hanukkah party, then with my friend getting married and then for my birthday. Luckily my big day was not over yet!

Cooking latkes in Charlotte.



Amy with Cousin George.



Sticky rice with mango birthday "cake" from Monsoon Thai Restaurant - this is one of my very favorite desserts!



Calvin opening one of his presents as Grandma Sarah looks on.



The real cake! My mom's yellow cake with chocolate frosting. I'm feeling pretty good as you can see!

Birthday Part Uno

To begin celebrating my birthday I went out with several girl friends to Six Feet Under at their new location on Memorial Drive (only block or two east of their original location). The shrimp and grits were tasty, but my favorite item here is still the fish stew. The new setup is nice, with a huge bar area and more seating. We still waited about 20-30 minutes for a table for 5. For dessert we shared a key lime pie and a brownie sundae of some kind. We also tasted the Guinness Ice Cream, which was by far the most unique flavor I've had in awhile. I really liked it and I am not a big beer fan. I guess I need the cream to balance out the beery taste!

Gifts from friends during our dinner at Six Feet Under.

Shrimp & Grits.

CO&S Holiday Shindig!

Our Holiday Office Party Feast. I made deviled eggs, lemon squares & butterscotch gingerbread cookies. I also helped put everything together!



Gifts under the tree. Since I never had a tree growing up I relish the office party tree!



Here's to a wonderful holiday season!