One of the best things about Fort Smith
Rolando’s (223 Garrison Avenue)
Rolando’s Menu can be found on my menus page.
Apr 052006
Apr 032006
Mar 112006
we drove up to bentonville yesterday for a delicious indian lunch, to find out that Star of India has closed.
That’s a damned shame. Now, the closest Indian restaurants are in Tulsa, and Eureka Springs.
There’s rumors of an Indian restaurant coming to Fayetteville, on South School. Cross your fingers.
Mar 022006
Jill and friends were given this hat at Thep Thai (one of the best Thai restaurants in Fayetteville).
I acquired it.
Dec 022005
I just ate lunch at Kosmos Greekafe (on Dickson Street, next to Rice Village, in the old Asahi location).
It was REALLY good. The gyros were great, and only $3.99. The Greek Salad was very tasty.
The lines were HUGE…all the way to the door. I had to get something to go for a co-worker, so I just called it in (521-PITA) from my table and picked it up at the counter when it was ready. By then, I had finished my lunch, and the line was still to the door.
Their menu is available on my menu page.
Sep 062005
Hogwild Pizzaria opened up last Thursday in the old Casa Taco location at Oak Plaza (North and Garland, across from Harps). It’s pretty damned good. I’ve sampled the Hoggfather, White, and Greek pizzas.
They should have beer by the end of the month. 6 or so on tap, more in bottles.
Open 10am-midnight, 7 days a week, and they have wireless internet.
Go there and check it out.
Their Menu (PDF)
Aug 092005
after work, i ran a few places (why is all the photography stores sold out of umbrella reflectors?), and ventured home.
at 6:30pm, I was not hungry, and I fell asleep for a couple of hours.
Upon awaking, it was too damned late to get anything but fast food for dinner. So I decided against dinner.
Around 11, Jill called – the planning commissioners were heading to IHOP (new location on Wedington) for a late dinner ( the PC meeting lasted from 5:30-10:45 or so), so I decided to join them.
I had an omelette and some “Harvest Grain N Nut” Pancakes. Both were good.
This was the first time I have ever eaten at an IHOP.
May 31st was Jill’s Birthday !
Her mother documented it the usual way…
making Jill stand with a sign declaring her age.
(They do the same thing for the dogs and cats).
We went to Rice Village on Dickson Street for dinner… Jill, Me, Judy (her mother), Kathy, Sharon, Kassie, Dan, and Maeve.
I announced that Jill was the birthday girl, and they presented her with a beautiful dish…. fish slices in hot olive oil, with thinly sliced garlic, and fish eggs !
A little later, they presented her with a flaming Hollywood Maki,
and played the Birthday song on the Karaoke machine !
For appetizers, we ordered Beef Gyoza, Pork/Shrimp Gyoza, Edamame, and Miso soup.
We had a hard time deciding what to order, so we ended up getting a Freshwater Eel Maki, the Samaurai Maki, and the Sashimi Boat (which we had last week there). We could barely finish the food, but we did… it was sooooooooo good.
We finally left, to go back to Jill’s house for cheesecake and coffee, but as we were leaving, everyone posed outside the restaurant:
Once again, I can’t say enough good things about Rice Village. Dan was extremely happy about a really good sushi/sashimi restaurant in town, and on Dickson nonetheless !
Major thanks to Lance, Richard, and Yun at Rice Village. They did a great job with the food and the presentation, and unknowingly made some really good impressions on some influential people (members of our party included executives and officers from Fayetteville Downtown Partners, the Cultural Arts District Initiative, and other boards).
I’m thinking about going back there for lunch today!
May 272005
We just tried out Rice Village (where Widespread Bagel and Dickson St. Diner were located at 522 W. Dickson St. – 479.444.0808), and it was most excellent.
They don’t officially open until June 1st, but they’re currently serving up sushi and sashimi.
Eric had the “Hollywood Maki” ($ 14.99), and said it was f’ing amazing.
Jill and I split a “Sashimi Boat” that had Seaweed Salad (EXCELLENT), 10 pcs Sashimi [Fatty Tuna (Toro), Tuna (Maguro), Salmon (Sake), Yellowtail (Hamachi), Red Snapper (Tai), and Shrimp (Ebi), and a Rainbow Roll. ($ 19.99)
The Rice Village Menu has been scanned and uploaded to the zenandjuice menu page.
Go there, and say Hi to Alex (aspats on livejournal).
May 272005
Jill and I have have been dating for exactly one year and one day now…. We went to Bordinos for our one year anniversary last night.
We made reservations, got dressed up, and went to enjoy a great evening at one of the few restaurants that passes as “fancy” in Northwest Arkansas.
This was my first time at Bordinos, so I was excited, and had heard alot of great things about the food, atmosphere, and service. (And the interior was designed by our friend Kathy Thompson, who also had several paintings hanging there.)
We enter, and were seated, given menus, and proceeded to browse the wine and champagne selections.
We ordered two glasses of champagne, and decided to start with:
Kalamata Olives, Roma Tomatoes, Baby Artichoke Hearts, Organic Mixed Greens, with Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette and Crumbled Feta Cheese. $6.50
After a few moments, we FLAGGED DOWN THE WAITER to order:
Smoked Salmon with a Goat Cheese and Peppered Bacon Mousse, Lemon Vinaigrette, Basil Oil, Tapenade, diced Roma Tomatoes and Puff Pastry “Crackers”. $8.50
Time passed, and we noticed that we were missing bread (which all the other tables around us had), so we tried to get the waiter’s attention again. No luck. After a few failed attempts, Jill actually stood up, and had to walk over to the waiter and tap him on the shoulder to get his attention and some bread.
We ordered our Secondi Piatti:
Jill: Two sautéed Chicken Breasts with sautéed Spinach, Tuscan Bread Pudding, Marsala Cream Sauce and drizzled with Truffle Oil. $18.50
Chris: Grilled New Zealand Lamb Chops with sautéed Spinach, grilled Red Bell Peppers and a Tangy Balsamic Bing Cherry Reduction. $29.50
The Insalates and Antipasti arrived, and they were both excellent !
We each ordered a glass of wine. I had a Zinfadel, and Jill had a Pinot Noir. (The wine menu on their website is 6 months out-of-date).
The entrees arrived, and were amazing. The Bing Cherry reduction on the lamb was devine. Jill’s chicken breast was smooth, and moist, and delicious ! She actually refrained from eating one of the chicken breasts, and the waiter said he would box it up for her. Jill had lunch for today !
I ordered the Lamb medium/well, and it was very very good. I probably wouldn’t order the lamb again, because I want to try some of the other dishes.
The waiter clears the plates, and says “Will that be all for you tonight?”.
He didn’t even offer us the desert menu ! We had to ASK FOR DESSERT ! WTF. He was rushing us out of the restaurant !
After we asked for the dessert menu, we ordered…
Tiramisu: Our Homemade Version of the Italian Classic. Ladyfingers Soaked in Espresso Roast Coffee and Layered Between a Mixture of Mascarpone and Whipped Cream. Dusted with Cocoa Powder and Garnished with Raspberry Coulis. $6.50.
Jill ordered a glass of Port, and I ordered the Chocolate Martini (Our Famous combination of Godiva Chocolate Liqueur, Vodka, and a Splash of Cream Garnished with Chocolate Sauce. $6.50 ).
Halfway through dessert, he brought us the check ! RUSH RUSH RUSH !
We pay ($115 plus a reduced tip), leave, and walk down Dickson for a few minutes before heading home.
We get home and Jill realizes that the waiter never gave her the leftover chicken breast. This totally bummed her out because she refrained from eating it, and was looking forward to having it for lunch today !
Bordinos has excellent food, but the service was horrid. I’ve had better service at local fast food restaurants. The waiter was rushing us throughout the evening, forgetting our table (which was in the second dining area), and he was dull ! All the other waiters and waitresses were smiling, talking, and seemed to be having a good time, but we were stuck with a non-smiling, somewhat surly waiter.
Something else I noticed… I was one of the most dressed-up men in the restaurant, and I wasn’t wearing a tie or jacket, just slacks, my pink Kenneth Cole dress shirt, and shiny dress shoes. Why can’t people in this town GET DRESSED UP to go out to a “nice” restaurant?
I would recommend the food from Bordinos, but overall…. I could care less about going back there… the experience was less than satisfactory, and put a “bad taste in my mouth” (except for the flavor of the food).
And the worst thing – it really ruined our anniversary.