Nori Sushi Bistro

name of restaurant :: Nori Sushi Bistro
address :: 700 Town & Country Blvd., Suite 2400

Houston, TX 77040

hours :: Mon - Fri: 11am - 10pm

Sat - Sun: 12pm - 10pm

meals served :: Lunch & Dinner
prices :: $$
dress code :: Casual
reservations :: First come, first serve
website :: www.norisushibistro.com
review :: The main reason we picked eating at this location was the centrality of it. My family lives up north and I on the west side of town, so it was a good medium. I was able to make reservations, seeing as it was Mother's Day weekend, I didn't want to chance of waiting a long time.

When we arrived, our table was already set because of the reservation. We were promptly greeted by our waiter for our beverage order. That was about the last time we were seen promptly. The wait between our beverages, placing the order and receiving our appetizer was a bit delayed. We were also waiting a good while before getting our drinks refilled with water. I did flag down a waitress but she did not come back to fill our drinks after she said she'd be back with more water. The wait between our appetizer to entrees was a little over 45 minutes. I even turned around to one of the sushi chef's, who looked like the manager, to ask to send a waiter to our table. Needless to say, the restaurant was sorely understaffed in regards to waitstaff and hostess. Our waiter did apologize for the delay, since they were taking care of the to-go orders. Note: there were three waiters/waitresses and when I turned to get someone's attention, all three were taking care of the to-go orders, while the restaurant was filling up with people and diners were waiting on their food.

When the food did finally arrived, we were underwhelmed. With the prices of the sushi rolls, we were expecting bigger portions. Sadly to say, we received small portions with a big price tag. The sushi rolls did taste fresh, but the service and portion left me feeling hungry for something else.

Maybe we caught them at a bad time, but as far as first impressions go, I do not think I will be coming back. Which is unfortunate, because I feel that they could do so much to help with the problem that was presented.
rating :: 1 fork
reviewed by :: goose

MooYah Burgers

name of restaurant :: MooYah Burgers

address :: 23701 Cinco Ranch Blvd., Suite 140, Katy, TX 77494
hours :: Hours: 11am-10pm, 7 days a week
meals served :: Lunch and Dinner
prices :: $
dress code :: Casual
reservations :: first come, first serve
website :: www.mooyah.com
review :: I've been to MooYah Burgers twice. The first time I went, I thought the burgers were small and lacked flavor with their fries being greasy. However, that was a while ago, when they were first opened, so we decided to give them another chance.

The ordering process is fairly simple, there's a form that you fill out with your choice of burger patties and other entrees as well as your toppings. For today's meal, I ordered the junior burger (one patty) on a whole wheat bun, which had sesame seeds on both sides. As for the toppings, I chose ketchup, mustard, special MooYah sauce, lettuce, tomato, pickles, grilled onions, avocado (extra cost) and swiss cheese (extra cost). We also ordered regular sized fries and regular drink. I highly recommend the mango tea, it was quite tasty, not too sweet with the right amount of mango.

As far as burgers go, MooYah Burgers patties are fairly thin. I felt that my burger was all topping and no meat. If you were to go for the MooYah Burger, which has two patties, I'm sure that would have been equivalent to a regular burger at a different burger joint. With that being said, it was an alright burger that was reasonably priced. What I liked about MooYah Burgers was all the options I had for my burger, I just wish the patty was more meaty.
rating :: 2 forks
reviewed by :: goose

Sweet and Sour Brisket

name of recipe :: Sweet and Sour Brisket
website :: Food Network Ellie Krieger
review :: This recipe was rated easy, with prep time being 20 min and cook time 2.5-3 hours. The only problem was, I didn’t have the ingredients and it was getting late. I set out my grocery run at around five in the evening. The only item on the ingredients list I was not able to purchase was the allspice berry, which I substituted for crushed allspice. To be honest, I haven’t used my kitchen to cook in a good while, which makes me a little sad because I’ve always enjoyed cooking, but I’m glad to be back in. I paired the brisket with some salad and corn and it was a great meal.

This is a one-pot meal, which was great and clean up was a breeze. I'd recommend it for a first time dutch oven user.

rating :: 4 forks
reviewed by :: goose

Yelapa Playa Mexicana

name of restaurant :: Yelapa Playa Mexicana

address :: 2303 Richmond Ave.

hours :: M-Sa 11AM - 11PM

meals served :: L & D
prices :: $10 lunch, $20-30 dinner

dress code :: casual

reservations :: walk-ins welcomed

website :: www.yelapatime.com

review :: It's a good omen when, as you walk up to the door of a seafood restaurant, you catch a faint salty whiff of the sea. My increasingly frequent rambling quests to find new lunch spots near my work had led me here - Yelapa Playa Mexicana - and a gentle ocean-y tang practically emanated from the kitchen here.

Relatively new, Yelapa was nearly devoid of diners when I stepped inside - but the waiters were welcoming and the place had a laid-back feel to it. The main room was cabana'd out but not kitschy - cozy, with some modern touches. A bar and a secluded patio stood on one side while on the other side darker, more intimate dining spaces snaked off further back amongst racks of wine.

Billed as "fresh, local seafood with a Latin American twist" (i.e. expensive), my interest was only piqued after I learned about a $10 lunch menu. Ten bucks nets you 2 choices from the "nooner" menu - choices range from ambitious takes on familiar Tex-Mex to more mundane "home-style" dishes - the latter being a spicy red pozole (soup with pork and hominy) with a side of homemade tortillas here, a bowl of cheesy shrimp n' grits with chorizo there.

Among the gutsier choices you'll find "the real guacamole" - more like a salad with avocado, pineapple, dill, lime, tortilla chips embedded throughout and an arc of sweet cinnamon sauce to the side... it sounds (and should have been) ridiculous, but it was just really, really tasty.

The ceviches are another good example of their fetish for mixing disparate flavors. On top of a solid foundation of impeccably fresh-tasting mix of shrimp, scallops, and fish, one had artichoke hearts, tarragon, olives, and mustard -which made for a delicious, tart salad-y affair. Another was a bit more traditional, the margarita-marinated seafood naked on a bed of tortilla chips except for a few strategic bits of jalapeno and mint, alongside a shot glass of "leche de tigre" - tiger's milk, rimmed with salt. If that sounds scary, believe me it is. Apparently it's the leftover juices from the ceviche-making process, in all it's salty, sour, fishy glory. Altogether, the dish was like the essence of ceviche taken to the nth degree. If you're looking for something different, you've found your place.

Despite my fears to the contrary, the two dishes that come with the nooner menu are more than enough to fill you up nicely. Combine that with perhaps a Rio Red grapefruit agua fresca with basil or maybe a dessert - how about the absurd _cinco_ leches cake? - and you've got a recipe for not getting any more work done the rest of the day.

rating :: 5 forks
reviewed by :: John Malone

Lucky’s Pub

name of restaurant :: Lucky's Pub

address :: 801 St Emanuel
Houston, TX 77003
hours ::
meals served :: L, D and Happy Hour
prices :: $$
dress code :: Casual
reservations :: First come, first serve
website :: www.luckyspub.com
review :: We had the pleasure of eating at Lucky's Pub, thanks to the Great Urban Race starting and finishing there. Let me preface by saying, we did not eat anything all day. Our first meal was at Lucky's at around 4 in the afternoon. So, this review could be swayed by the fact that we would probably eat just about anything at the time.

I ordered the Lucky Burger and added Pepper Jack cheese, with a side of fries and for my hubby, he ordered the swiss and mushroom sliders with fries. I scarfed it down so fast, I think I may have forgotten to chew. The meat was pretty good, it did not taste frozen or fried. It had the right amount of juiciness to meatiness. I think the fries were the frozen variety, but they added a little bit of seasoning to it, that I didn't mind too much. As for the sliders, I only had one bite of them, but the hubby seemed to enjoy all three of them. I didn't care for the tomatoes on the bottom of the bun, but like I said, he didn't seem to mind.

For the price of the food, I think I would've gone somewhere else to enjoy a burger and fries. But, being in the moment with good friends and a great event, I didn't mind it too much.
rating :: 3 forks
reviewed by :: goose

Tradicao Brazilian Steakhouse

name of restaurant :: Tradicao Brazilian Steakhouse
address :: 6800 SW Fwy Houston, TX 77074
hours :: Mon-Thu. 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Mon-Thu. 5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Fri. 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Fri. 5:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Sat. 4:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Sun. 2:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
meals served :: L & D, Brunch on Sundays
prices :: $$$
dress code :: casual
reservations :: first come, first serve but reservations are taken
website :: www.tradicaobraziliansteak.com/
review :: This is the first time I've ever had a Churascaria experience. And what I've heard is true, if your card is flipped to green, they will just swarm you with meat after meat after meat.

You first start off with the salad bar. It wasn't a typical salad bar, with different salads of your choosing. There was potato salad, hearts of palm, artichoke, cucumber salad, a selection of cheeses and many more that I can't quite remember. After making my selections and heading back to the table, the card was flipped to green. I can't exactly remember all the meats I had, but I remembered there was a lot. They had varying cuts of meat, such has Filet Mignon, lamb shanks, baby beef, the house specialty, as well as sauteed shrimp. Overall, most of the meat was good, some were a bit salty and some over cooked, I like my meat well done. By the end of the meal, I was pretty stuffed. But I did save room for dessert, a cup of creme brulee. Even though I've had better elsewhere, the creaminess of the dessert and the sweetness of the sugary crust helped even out my taste buds from all the meat.

I do recommend the lemonade, free refills too. It is a blend of a whole lime, some water, sugar and condensed milk, which gives it a frothy top.

If you're looking to load yourself with meat, but don't want to spend a fortune, check out Tradicao. The waitstaff was always courteous and ready to please your needs.
rating :: 4 forks
reviewed by :: goose

Sugarland Shake

name of restaurant :: Sugar Land Shake
address :: 16019 City Walk - Sugar Land Town Square
hours :: Mon-Fri 7am open, Sat.- Sun. 8am open

meals served :: B, L & D
prices :: lunch $10-13 , dinner $10-13
dress code :: casual
reservations :: walk-ins welcomed
website :: www.sugarlandshake.com
review :: The sole owner of Barnaby's has converted the old Johnny Rocket's located in the Sugar Land Town Square into a delightful little diner. While there I ordered the California Chicken Sandwich (grilled chicken, avocado, cheese and wheat bun) with an order of fries. One thing I liked off the bat was the Sonic ice they use to fill their drinks! The ambiance is fun, equipped with pop music in a diner atmosphere. All ages where present as well as a spinning display of shakes, cakes and pies. My sandwich was more than a mouthful especially the fries. The fries portions can be split by two, maybe three people. Other menu items included cold sandwiches, shakes, as well as Buffalo, turkey and boca burgers for the health conscious. Sweet potato fries, grilled cheese and vanilla wedding cake look like something I'd go back for. They have patio service right along the sidewalk for people watchers and they serve breakfast too!The waitstaff was super nice and we received our food in a reasonable amount of time considering this place just opened recently.
rating :: 5 forks
reviewed by :: foxyladyjc