Tim "prjkthack" G.'s Profile

My favorite place to go in KC for a great meal at a great price. Thanks to the suggestion by Matt E., I decided to give this place a go, as I have been in search of an awesome place for pho. Ever since leaving Hawaii, I haven't been able to find a place that could live up to the many places you can find great pho back home... until now.

Vietnam Cafe is a quaint little hole in the wall that provides delicious pho, great service, and great prices. I was told not to get this place confused with the other place of the same name, as they are totally different, and I will continue to trust in that observation. This is the ONLY place you ever need to go to when you want pho. Heck, if you haven't tried pho before, then you need to come to this place and give it a go. Portions are large, the broth is absolutely delicious, and the service is usually excellent. What more can you ask for?

I think we go here so often that we're becoming regulars. We typically get this one server who always manages to forget something that I ordered, and just recently, she recognized us immediately and realizes that she forgets this one item that I ask for, almost every time. She has not made that mistake since realizing it. We laugh and joke about it, and then she promptly brings it to us. Not only did she admit to her mistake, but she has fixed it and never made the same mistake. That's great service.

I've yet to try the other offerings here, as my primary goal in a Vietnamese restaurant is pho, but when I do, I'll update with other impressions. Till then, go and enjoy the pho. Go now.

A great way to start Easter morning is with a great breakfast, and Succotash delivered that. After hearing a lot about the place, we decided on breakfast here. Figured we'd try something new, and try something potentially good on this beautiful day.

So we get there, and... no parking. At least, they have no real parking lot. Its all streetside parking with a ton of 'No Parking Zone' signs. So a couple loops around the place finally lead to us finding a spot within walking distance. A short setback, but nothing major.

We walk in and the place is pretty packed, which is what I expected for Easter Sunday. Thankfully, we were seated within a couple minutes. Unthankfully, we were seated at a very odd shaped table. It was long and the barely had any width to it. I felt very far away from my other half, and with very little elbow room, felt very squashed by this seemingly harmless table. It looks as though there aren't many tables of this style around the place, so if you see it, avoid it. Don't get me started on the chairs either.

We were quickly brought water, and we browsed the large menu. They had quite a selection, and certainly some unique sounding juice mixtures. The main courses started out with very typical descriptions, but as you get to the end, they throw in some odd (and not delicious sounding) ingredient into the mix. Black beans was not something I typically envisioned in my breakfast.

There was something that did catch my eye though, and that was a Cotton Candy Cappuccino. I knew I had to have that. I ordered it as soon as the server dropped by. A couple minutes after we order, I'm informed that they are out of cotton candy. My dreams dashed and parched, I sadly decide on just a plain ol' cappuccino. Remind me never to get the cappuccino again.

This all sounds really bad so far. Probably not what a three-star review should sound like. The saving grace was the actual meal. I settled on the safe Farmland meal with a side of biscuits and gravy. There was a ton of food to be had once the plate arrived. I'm surprised it fit on the tiny table. Large servings of gravy all over the plate, with 2 large eggs and 2 thick pieces of bacon and a large biscuit split in half. It looked delicious and it was. Actually, everything was great, except for the biscuit. It had the texture of a piece of bread, and tasted nothing like a biscuit, so I was pretty disappointed. Everything else though was great. There was so much food, I didn't even finish it all, and that is rare for me.

Atmosphere wise, it was noisy and busy. The decor had a very hipster/artsy feel to it, but it was nice and simple. Speaking of hipsters, the place was packed with them (not that I have anything against them). I swear that when the next big Apple product comes out, all those people you see waiting in line overnight in front of an Apple Store, will be at Succotash eating food right after they've purchased their $800 phone.

Overall, the main course is really what made their stars. The price was pretty reasonable for two people, service was acceptable, and the food was pretty good. I'd like to go back and give their pancakes and try, and maybe be brave enough to sip one of their weird sounding juices... one day.

A couple of things to note about sushi here in the continental United States.

1. It's expensive.
2. Most places suck.
3. It's expensive.

Now that we got that out of the way, let me just say that KC Sushi is one of the more quality sushi establishments that I've been to in my short time in Missouri and Kansas. Portions are pretty standard and the selection is pretty typical, but it's the quality here that counts the most, and thankfully KC Sushi offers tasty and well-made sushi.

The fish and other ingredients tasted fresh and full of flavor. Presentation was great; everything just looked delicious. I couldn't wait to gobble it all up. We ordered a large variety of sushi, and let me just say that it was all good to great. So you'll be comforted knowing that whatever you order will probably be at least good.

Price wise, it was expensive, and if you read the preface to this review, then you'll be prepared with the knowledge that sushi is expensive. If you can get in on things like happy hour, then that helps a bit, but it's still going to get expensive when you want a satisfying amount of food.

As for the service, I can't say that the service was awesome, but when we went, it wasn't too busy, so our server was fairly attentive. Based on some reviews I've read, your mileage may vary, but if you can put up with it, you'll enjoy some great food. Oh, and you could do take-out as well. Save yourself the trouble of dealing with the flaky service.

After hearing good things about the place, I was pretty disappointed upon my first visit there. The overall experience was ok, but the food just wasn't up to par. I have definitely had better seafood from less expensive places.

With plenty of empty seating in the main dining area, we were seated near the bar, which is a separate section from the main dining area. Not a big deal, but when you want to eat dinner, I'm betting most people would rather have a regular table in a regular dining area than be thrown next to the loud, obnoxious drunks at the bar (and man were they extra obnoxious that night).

The waiter was nice and attentive, but once we ordered, it took him (or it took the chefs) nearly 15 minutes to tell me that what I ordered was no longer available, and I had to choose again and wait even longer. Even without the mix-up, the wait was long, and the place really was not that busy.

Once the food had arrived, I was shocked to see a tiny sliver of seafood on my plate. For the price, I was expecting a bit more, and was still quite hungry afterwards. The food itself was bland and nothing special, but thankfully still edible.

I can't see myself coming back here unless I was forced to, and even then I may just drown out the other obnoxious drunks in the bar with some alcohol. Fight fire with fire, maybe?

While not the best, it is one of the better choices for pho here in KC. It also has the whole convenience factor for me, seeing as it's only a few blocks away from home, but that is beside the point.

The inner decor is simple and nice, and there is plenty of room to stretch your legs and get comfy. Servers were pretty attentive but not too pushy. The food is also slightly better than average but nothing spectacular. When compared to other places at a similar price point, I was expecting slightly larger portions but was pretty disappointed once the plates arrived to the table.

Still, it is a place that I'd come back to again and again, especially when I need a pho fix.

Pretty much your standard Asian buffet, and really nothing special.

The place is huge, with lots of space for plenty of people and numerous large parties. It was also decently decorated and wasn't too difficult to navigate. That being said, the food is what matters here and that is where this place falls flat.

There was a pretty mediocre selection of seafood and a decent selection of sushi, both of which tasted pretty bland overall. It was quite a drive to get out here, and I can't say I'd ever do it again.

Here in the midwest, there is a constant trend of inexpensive Asian buffet places with subpar food, and this is simply one more to add to that list.

I fear that most Americans out here have never really tasted great Asian food, and are instead stuck believing that this mediocre tasting stuff (like the stuff here) is the best that there is to offer when it comes to Asian food. What a sad thought.

Huge portions at reasonable prices and absolutely delicious food. What more could you want? Okii Mama has Asian dishes from all over the world, and even some special dishes of it's own. The Pad Thai is delicious, along with the Bulgogi Kimchi Fried Rice.

Whenever we go to Columbia, we always make it a point to stop by here and pick up some food.

I don't normally review grocery stores. I mean, it's a grocery store, what do you need to know? You go there, pick up your stuff, and walk out. Regardless of how unfortunate the store may be, it's just an essential place that needs to exist, that you'll have to go to eventually either out of necessity or convenience.

That being said, Hy-Vee is hands down the best market I've ever been to. They are well organized, clean, and usually well-stocked grocery stores filled with helpful employees, relatively low prices, and some of the best store-made products of any market I've been to. To me, Hy-Vee is worth reviewing.

When I say store-made, I mean the stuff that Hy-Vee makes and sells itself. Hy-Vee bread (the Baking Stone brand) is some of the best bread I've ever bought from a grocery store (and I never though I would be able to say that). The bakery section creates delicious desserts, cakes, and sweets. Even their own generic branded groceries rival the quality of better known brand new items, all at cheaper prices.

Speaking of prices, they may not always the cheapest, but more often than not, I've found really great prices on mostly everything I buy along with some great sales. Hy-Vee lacks a customer reward program, but at least they don't insult you with a horrendous and lame program like another retailer does (*cough*sunfresh*cough*).

Great prices. Delicious food. Friendly employees. A wide selection of products. Hy-Vee is everything I expect my grocery store to be.

It was nothing particularly spectacular. A wide selection of common sweets with new names, basically. That's not to say that it wasn't delicious, there were certainly some hits, but there were also some misses.

That being said, the sweets were a bit too rich for my tastes. Some of the chocolate-based sweets were just too sweet too the point where it didn't taste good. Maybe this place is better served in smaller doses, which is fine because portions were relatively small (though a bit pricey as well).

I can't say that I'll ever be back. I can find a better balance of sweets elsewhere

Also, the one employee working at the time was of little help. When asked which of their cupcakes were the top-sellers, I was told "all of them". Thanks, that narrowed it down to about 20 different cupcake choices.

I stopped by here while exploring the East Village and it was a delightfully cozy little place. It's tucked away right next to Baby Boomer's, so it was a bit difficult to find, but once I got there, there was a great selection of delicious sounding coffees and sweets. It's also pretty inexpensive so it won't break the bank like another well-known coffee establishment.

Certainly on a return trip back to the area, I will make sure to drop by The Village Bean for some great coffee.