The Rose - Salt Lake City, UT

The Rose

235 S. 400W
Salt Lake City, UT 84010
http://www.theroseestb.com/
Monday-Friday 7am-6pm
Saturday & Sunday 8am-6pm
Food served until 4:00PM

Parking is confusing, posted signs state 2-hour parking and by permit only; however you are apparently allowed to park while in the Rose Cafe or the other adjacent stores.   Access is above sidewalk level via stairs, I did not see any type of handicap access.  The interior is basic cafeteria style tables and chairs, mostly two per table, a couple of 4 seat tables and one 8 seat table.   The music is loud but you can still carry on a conversation, you order at the counter and they will bring your order to your table.  The Rose seems to be a coffee, meeting, computer café. They have stacks of board games in the front of the store for you to use.

The menu is limited.  We chose to go around 10AM for a light brunch. We found hey already had sold out the Frittatas.  As an alternative, we all selected the Smashed Avocado Tartine at $7.50, which consists of avocado, olive oil, black pepper served on five seed toasted bread with a lightly dressed winter green salad.

We waited around 15 minutes for our order and then he only brought us two of the three orders. We could see our other plate sitting on the service counter.  My son had to go up and ask the cashier for our order. He did receive a rather embarrassed apology.

The bread was awesome, lightly toasted and about ¾-inch thick and thickly crusted with seeds and all crowned with a generous layer of lightly smashed and seasoned avocado.  Well worth the wait.

They have the usual type of coffee house selections as well as sweet pastries and muffins.  Brunch is served until 4pm and lunch starts at 11am until 4pm.

Would I go back? Probably not; but that is not because of the food. I am just a bit uncomfortable with the atmosphere, a tad bit too young for my liking.  I was positively impressed with the food and  I will certainly try to replicate their bread and Avocado Tartine for a luscious meal at home..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Black Bear Diner - Pocatello, Idaho

 Black Bear Diner

190 Bullock Street
Chubbuck, ID 83202

208-904-0702    http://blackbeardiner.com/

The first diner that would become Black Bear dates back about twenty years to California near scenic Mt Shasta. Bruce Dean (aka Sugar Bear) and Bob Manley (aka Papa Bear) began their enterprise with the intent of making good food at reasonable prices. They have apparently done quite well towards that aim. They now have about a dozen units in 6 Western states and are in the process of adding additional units in another two states.

This newly opened family style diner has a lot to offer from is spacious booths and scenic mountain décor to its friendly and very attentive staff.  Entering the restaurant you notice the chain saw-carved black bears. They are the name sake of the diner and represent the forested mountains at the foot of Mt. Shasta where the diner chain was born. The bear carvings are done by Ray Schultz and the bears at each location are posed differently to reflect the uniqueness of the local surroundings. What is your take on the Chubbuck bears?

The menu covers are replicas of a newspaper from 1969, the decade of the founding of Black Bear Diner, featuring the major headline from way back then. The big news of the day was that “The Eagle Has Landed.” Also featured are news item from Chubbuck, “The Chubbuck Days Parade.”  It also gives you something else to read, notably 1969 trivia.  Open it up and you have the menu; it is divided into the three major meal periods, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Each one offers the guest regular size portions but also a lighter selection as well.

For breakfast there are classic egg combos, pancakes, omelets and a breakfast burrito. On a diet? There are four other selections using egg whites.  Fresh squeezed orange juice is offered all day, 16oz for $4.49 and 10oz for $3.49.  Lunch offers burgers with fries served on a platter or you can opt for the more classic approach and have your burger and fries served up in a basket.   You are offered Chicken strips, fish tacos, nine different sandwich combos from Turkey clubs to a hot Turkey sandwich and even a Cubano, a fire roasted pulled pork, ham, Swiss cheese sandwich served up on a soft Tribeca roll.

There are a nice selection of salads featuring a Bacon Cheeseburger salad, an Asian Chicken Cabbage salad and four others to choose from.  Dinner offers “home style” dinners featuring homemade meatloaf, slow cooked pot roast or Dijon crusted salmon along with several steaks and ribs combos.  You can get a Dinner Deal of Chicken and Waffles, a hot Turkey plate or herb crusted Trout. You can add soup or salad for $3.99 and a nice selection of “Extras” including but not limited to onion rings, baked potato and Italian Green Beans or a seasoned vegetable.

Black Bear features Java City coffee, assorted juices, Pepsi products and the usual selection of milk, teas etc.  For dessert they offer you a nice selection of cobblers, cakes and pies along with ice cream shakes and treats.

I had the Old Fashioned Burger for $7.99 (A 1/4 lb. Burger and French fries, served in a basket – just like the good ol’ days!) and my friend had the California Burger with Avocado and Jack cheese for $10.49 (All 1/3 lb. Specialty Bear Burgers are built with a golden brioche bun, shredded lettuce, tomato, diced red onion, dill pickle chips, mayonnaise & Thousand Island dressing.) Each order came with a generous serving of golden French fries. (Bob’s Big Bear Burger and all specialty burgers are served with your choice of side: French fries, house-made potato salad, fresh coleslaw, green salad OR cup of soup. Substitute a Gardenburger upon request.) The burgers were good size with a nice char on the meat, the toppings were fresh and they did not skimp on portion size. You get unlimited drink refills for coffee, teas, soda products but not the fresh squeezed Orange Juice.

Condiments on the table include a selection of the signature hot sauces. Crazy Cuz is a Sriracha Chili Sauce, Baby Burin (perhaps a shortened reference to bruin) is their original Pepper sauce, Mama Burn is a Chipotle Chili Sauce, and Papa Burn is a Habañero Sauce. If you fancy any of the sauces there are available for sale as well as other souvenir merchandise.

During peak lunch or dinner times the noise level can become quite high but not to the point that you need to yell across the table. Please note they will sing and clap to you if it’s your Birthday so if that’s your forte by all means let them know.  Also of note is they do not rush you as other eateries do, we lingered long after our meal was done and at no time did the servers act as if they wanted us to leave, on the other hand they kept refilling our glasses.  I was favorably impressed with the offerings from Black Bear Diner and will be visiting again in the future; it is a nice place to eat and a good addition to our area.

OEC Japanese Exprress

O.E.C. Japanese Express

2438 66^th Street North

St. Petersburg, FL 33710

727-345-4088  http://www.oecexpress.com/

OEC Japanese Express is a moderate size establishment located in a shopping plaza located on a very busy corner; difficult to get to. The returning customers attest to it being worth the effort. OEC Japanese Express is exactly what you would expect from a Japanese eatery.  Polished chrome and glass cover the day’s fresh fish ready to be sliced and served in your favorite roll or sashimi.  Immaculate countertops afford the guest to sit in front of the cabinet and watch their order being made or you can sit at a booth or tables.  A few additional tables are available out-of-doors, under the shade of ancient oaks should one desire al fresco dining.

The staff is friendly and attentive and keeps a watchful eye just in case you want something, they don’t overdo it though, so you can dine without interruption.  The menu is quite extensive and offers a wide variety of rolls, sashimi, soup, yakimesi (fried rice or noodles), tempura, appetizers and much more.  Daily lunch specials are available for $6.99 and include a bowl of miso soup or house salad.   They also offer hibachi meals for both lunch and dinner or you could try a bento box; all excellent choices.

I decided to try the Sushi Lunch Special. You get to choose two maikzushi rolls from a selection of over 30 different rolls. A soup or salad is included. I chose the avocado roll and the California roll and miso soup.  My brother opted to get the vegetable tempura also $6.99, this usually comes with white rice but he chose to have fried rice in its place.  My soup was delicious. It included several nice size pieces of tofu, along with a generous helping of seaweed and thinly sliced scallions in a very flavorful broth.  My rolls were expertly rolled and the ingredients fresh and tasty.  The avocado roll was nori side out and the California roll was rice side out with the nori wrapped around the crab and avocado; it was topped with masago, capelin roe.  Wasabi and pickled ginger accompanied the plate and the size was adequate to satisfy my hunger.

The Tempura vegetable platter was delicately battered and nicely golden brown and served with two dipping sauces; one sweet and sour and the other similar to a creamy salad dressing. Both were very flavorful. There was a nice assortment of broccoli, sweet potato and squash in the dish.  The fried rice was alright, nothing special, but ordered out of curiosity to what it was like. 

The offer the usual soft drinks, hot or cold tea and serve beer, wine and sake, they do offer for those of us who are really watching their waistline a “healthy food” choice menu featuring steamed Chicken, Shrimp and vegetables dishes. You can dine in or take out and they do deliver if you live within their delivery area, delivery is free but there is a $15.00 minimum order requirement.  Open Sunday-Thursday 10:30am-9:30pm and Friday and Saturday 10:30am-10:30pm, give them a try I am sure you will be pleased.