Joel "Velvethead" A.'s Profile

When did Piccino move?! I just had dinner in their new location around the corner from their old one, and I love it -- a larger, open, modern space. They still have a yummy menu with various small plates and different pizzas. Their wine menu seems to have expanded a bit.

Highly recommended! Jeff provides firm and consistent pressure and is able to address all my problem areas. I appreciate his ability to listen and react. During sessions, he checks in periodically to make sure if the pressure is right. He is professional, personable, and on top of it all, his rates are so affordable.

I first became aware of Mr. Pollo from watching Chris Cosentino wax poetic about this place on The Food Network's "The Best Thing I Ever Ate" Bang For The Buck episode. $15 for a four-course chef's tasting menu? Sign me up!

We dropped by for lunch on Saturday afternoon. It's a very small place -- maybe 10 seats, including two stools right next to the tiny kitchen where you can chat with Mr. Pollo himself, chef Manny Torres Jiminez. I've heard that this place can be incredibly busy, but we lucked out and found a table for two waiting for us.

Don't let the no-frills atmosphere fool you -- Chef Jiminez served us incredible, delicious food using fresh and local ingredients. The menu changes daily. Our four-course tasting menu included:

- Arepa, a bread made out of corn somewhat similar to a tortilla or papusa. It was filled with house-made goat chorizo, cheese and heirloom tomato.
- Trout cooked simply with rapini, matchsticks of turnip, a bit of eggplant, and fresh sauce of onion and parsley.
- Tri-tip served on a bed of pinto beans and topped with a roasted zucchini sauce
- A final (and favorite) course of scrumptious pork served with garlic rice and a little bit of sorrel and purple mizuna.

With such fresh ingredients, the flavors were amazing -- starting with subtle sweetness of the corn in the arepa to the mind-blowing succulent meatiness of the pork and garlic in our final dish. All for $15. Amazing!

Because Chef Jiminez is working the magic by himself in the kitchen, this isn't an experience that can be rushed. Take some time to chill out, have a conversation with the chef, and have a fabulous leisurely meal at Mr. Pollo.

(One note... I didn't check, but I don't think there's alcohol on the menu, but I heard you can BYOB.)

Made my way to Bob's around noon during the week for the famous Apple Fritter. Since they are made fresh in the wee hours of the morning, I received mine cold. Still delicious -- glazed fried dough with yummy apple filling in the cracks and crevices -- but I couldn't help wonder what they would be like war. I ate half of the fritter and brought the other half home to heat up in the microwave. Mmm, I liked it better when it was warmed up for twenty seconds. I have to keep this place in mind when I'm stumbling out of The Red Devil Lounge at closing in the hopes of getting a fresh warm fritter.

Cash only. The woman at the counter was kind and motherly and directed me to my bank so that I could save on ATM fees.

Chicharrones!! These aren't your run-of-the-mill pork skins from the gas station convenience store. Uh-uh... These little light clouds of crisp pork essence melt in your mouth and leave you wanting more. Lots more.

Had to try the gingersnaps... and I say thumbs up! A thin cookie that upon tasting starts with a wonderful caramelized sugar and finishes with a light gingerbread spice. It's hard to have just one.

Best breakfast potatoes ever! I love potatoes that have some crunch to them. More often than not, I get country style potatoes that are more on the soft side without any crispy bits -- not really to my liking. The potatoes at Plow were served deep fried and crunchy and then sauteed with onions and a little rosemary. Yum!

The potatoes were a side to their fried egg sandwich -- two eggs over easy, served on a soft Acme roll with melted Grafton cheddar, a light touch of aioli and some frisee. I'd recommend tackling the sandwich with a knife and fork and let that yummy egg yolk break on the plate and co-mingle with those potatoes. Deee-licious!

I like the location. It's a fairly small room (about 10 tables) and a counter right at the grill. Large uncovered windows face towards 18th Street and let in a lot of light. From my corner table, I could lazily stare out onto the street as I enjoyed my food and coffee. A very pleasant experience.

All the times I've been here have been on a weekend for dim sum and had to wait close to an hour for a table. In the end, it's worth it. Yummy dim sum! My eyes are always bigger than my stomach. My greedy little fingers point at multiple things as carts go by, and I wind up eating too much. I've enjoyed everything I've had here.

Boy, this place can be busy! We went for lunch during the week and out our names on the board outside. We didn't have to wait too long, but wound up at the counter along one wall. Since my companion was pregnant at the time and was having trouble getting comfortable, we had to finagle our way to a table. The waitresses must get all sorts of crazy requests for switching tables, but our waitress was very kind and let us switch to an open table.

Being married to a cajun guy, I've had many po' boys and fried seafood over the years. I enjoyed Brenda's shrimp po' boy a lot -- battered deep fried shrimp on a nice baguette dressed with lettuce and mayo. The shrimp were seasoned well and not overcooked.

My friend had ordered the apple beignets. Now, when I think of beignets, I think about sitting at Cafe du Monde with a plateful of delicious little fried fluffy pockets of dough drowned in a sea of powdered sugar. I do not think of them filled with stuff. This beignet was not as light and fluffy as I was expecting, and although the apple filling is nice, I just wasn't digging what was essentially a pretty good fruit-filled donut.

However, that aside, I would love to come back and try the other yummy options on the menu.

I must admit that I am writing this review not of a recent experience, but of past burgers that have been greatly enjoyed. Reading the other reviews, it seems that this is NOT Taylor's by name anymore (it's Gott's Roadside) but the same menu is there. I liked the name Taylor's Automatic, but if the same juicy burgers are still there and I can get them with a side of some yummy sweet potato fries, well...

OK fine, call it what you want. Just give me that delicious burger!