christopher "chief" n.'s Profile

Recently I noted a few of my Yelp peoples have been reviewing this place like crazy and I had never been. This week I had my "staycation" and the wife and I decided to check it out.

First thing I noticed is that (on a Thursday) this place was packed. Next thing I noticed is that there were a good deal of Asian-Americans eating here. Both good signs.

The inside is simple enough with typical Chinese decorations, lanterns etc. The larger round tables have lazy susan's which I have come to know is traditional Chinese style from watching that Andrew Zimmern guy who eats anything and also sometimes travels to China.

Most of the reviews I've read stated that this is one of the only places in the area that offer real Dim Sum and I was excited and then slightly irritated that it was only my wife and I as I really wanted to try just about everything on this section of the menu. In the end we ordered pork fried dumplings and scallion pancakes. The dumplings were pretty good, but after watching some other orders come out I wish we had gotten some of the steamed ones instead. The pancakes were tremendous for $3 - nice and crispy outside and warm gooey center.

The entree menu is equally as daunting. There were so many dishes on here I either hadn't heard of and wanted to try, or were classic "take-out" sounding dishes done correctly.

For entrees we got the General Tso's prawns and Wuzi-style spare-ribs. Both of these came with our choice of brown or white rice. The spare-ribs while tender were not super-flavorful. I think the issue here was they stacked them "lincoln log" style on the plate, which while having aesthetic appeal, caused all of the great sauce to fall to the plate. The prawns were amazing. Crispy outside with a wonderful sauce.

The wait staff here is not what I'd call "attentive" and throughout our meal I saw several tables motioning to the waiters to come over - though it seemed like that's just how it works here. Again - this may be some kind of Chinese custom? I'm just a stupid American so I don't know. Though I have no huge complaints about the service - our food came out relatively promptly and we received the check fast also.

All-in-all I really enjoyed our meal here and will definitely be going back soon to try out some new things.

A few of the reviews on here mention that when you're trying to find this place it sneaks up on you - this is very, very true. Once you cross the traffic light heading east, it's the very very first parking lot on the right.

I really can't believe I am doing this, after all the hype on Yelp, but this place - like so many other "thai" places in this area, failed to deliver.

The appetizers we got weren't terrible - in fact they gave me some hope. The spring-rolls or what-have-you were perfectly crisp and the calamari was not chewy, and nicely deep fried.

Ordered prik-paw-something-or-other and the chicken tasted like it had been thrown in boiling water, and then taken out and SMOTHERED with some kind of bland stir-fry-in-a-bag sauce. Veggies weren't awful, but seriously this tasted like unsuccessful chinese food I cook at home.

The service was actually really good. Our waiter(s) were frequent, friendly, and the bartender even came over to fix my wife's drink (which wasn't bad - my wife is just a lightweight). You don't see that happen very often. Five stars to them! Zeros to the food.

Since my original review, my wife and I have been back a few times, most notably last weekend when went to dinner on a Saturday evening. The food was amazing, and our server was highly attentive and friendly. Upping my review to 5 stars.

Recently we've been looking for a new place to grab a quick sandwich. Sometimes we'll go to Hungry Spot - and we love Steve, but we just needed a change. Enter Sangwych.

So far I've been there twice and tried two different "hot" sangwyches. The first time we stopped in, I grabbed a "Stutto," a long grilled hogie roll filled with sausage and peppers. The portion was large and the sausage was decent. The pepper/onion mixture was perfectly sweet and slightly caramelized. It was one of their cheapest "sangwyches" and it was larger than my coworkers pulled-pork which cost more.

The second time we went, we all stayed in to eat. The "dining room" doubles as a ordering line, so it's somewhat noisy/awkward. There are only about 4-5 small tables against the main wall, and two on the adjacent.

This time I got the "Uncle Johnny" which is a long hogie roll with grilled pork tenderloin and hot/sweet peppers. I was worried that the pork might get dried out on the grill as tenderloin is notorious for. Luckily the pork was great,  however there was an abundance of heat from the hot cherry peppers. I like some spice, but it was a bit overkill. Still - worthwhile sandwich.

So why the three stars? Well it seems that some of my coworkers got "cold" sangwyches and they were somewhat smaller portions for a greater price. I'm not really sure how they price their sandwiches but it seems a bit... strange.

In all, I've had two pleasant experiences at Sangwych and will definitely be going back for more.

Last night I had to clear up some :cough: legal issues involving traffic infractions at the Clifton Park Town Court. It happens to be about 200 feet from Shane's. For some reason I had never been there, so I decided to get some take-out after I plead my guilt in court.

The inside of Shane's kind of made me die a bit inside. The walls were littered with kitschy signs etc. There was a kiosk with catering information setup smack in the middle of the dining room. It felt all, so, "chainy." I guess it's appropriate since Shane's is a chain operation, but I like to think of BBQ as an art-form.

I ordered a 1/2 slab baby back plate with fries and baked beans. There were a decent amount of people, but my food came out in about 10 minutes.

I was starving, so on the way home I snuck my hand into the take-out box and grabbed some fries. They were nice and hot, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. I know they're just fries - but they were really good.

I ignored the fine I had just paid, and the advice the Judge had dispensed and tore ass down route 146 hoping to get my BBQ on.

I opened up my container and organized my sides - to the side and focused on the main event - the ribs. I am a bit of a BBQ snob; I've been south of the mason-dixon line, where there's *real* BBQ.

First thing I liked is that they didn't cut the ribs apart. I have been to places where they actually cut them apart for you which is incredibly lame. I tore the first rib off and noted that the flesh was tender - not falling off the bone, but close. The taste was predominately the sauce - which was a decently sweet/spicy mix. I immediately noted a clear lack of any type of smoke-ring, or smoke flavor. I've done ribs in the oven and these ribs were not entirely dissimilar. That being said, I definitely enjoyed the ribs.

The beans were good enough - sweet with a hint of bacony goodness. Overall, while the question of if this was really BBQ lingered in my mind, I will definitely be back to try out some of the other offerings. Hopefully it won't be the result of a traffic infraction.

I have to agree with Nick - this place is great.

I am big fan of bourbon, and they have my favorite here (Buffalo Trace) which is very hard to find in this area of the country.

The staff is extremely friendly and helpful - always willing to help you find or recommend something. Great prices and selection.

When I heard there was going to be a Cajun restaurant in Schenectady, I was really excited as my wife and I are big fans. Unfortunately, we ended up being quite disappointed with the offerings.

My wife and I went here for dinner a while back, it wasn't very busy for a Saturday night, but we liked the decor / what they had done with the building. We ordered the alligator bites appetizer which came promptly, and was pretty good. Then again, I'd never had alligator before, so I didn't have a reference point.

Our entrees took an unusually long time to come out. When they did my jambalaya was luke warm. First thing I noticed is that it was some of the blandest "Cajun" food I'd ever eaten. Also, the rice was overcooked. My wife had the etoufee, and I tried it and while it wasn't horrible - it wasn't very good either.

The service was acceptable, but our waitress looked as though someone had killed her dog - not very social at all.

We each had a drink, and I had coffee, and our bill was over $70. Not exactly a value-meal.

Recently a friend who lives in the area told us about Wine n' Diner and we were intrigued. We decided to invite a group out to try it. I called ahead to see if I needed reservations since I had never been. The staffer who answered the phone told me they don't, but she'd try to keep a few tables open for us.

When we got there, it wasn't very crowded and the wait staff was very helpful in putting together a few tables so we'd all fit.

Demetrius, the owner was wandering around and came over to tell us about his restaurant. This is not something that happens frequently, and he was quite gracious telling us about the food and the artwork featured on the walls.

Our server was nice, and she got us drinks quickly. The unfortunate part is that they still didn't have a liquor license. We ordered some appetizers: Fried Okra and Black Bean Guacamole. Both the apps were wonderful, though I wish the Guac had come with chips in addition to the pita wedges.

The menu here consists mostly of "gourmet" diner food. Burgers and sandwiches are aplenty, though there are certainly some great items like Fried Chicken and Waffles with maple gravy (which is what I ordered). They also have various entrees, which are a bit pricier.

When we were there they had a DJ spinning records, which was a really great feature. I'm not sure if he'll be able to afford to do that every weekend, but I enjoyed the good variety of music being played.

The food did take a while to come out, but we were a 8-top and we were all enjoying the conversation etc. And when it did come out the wait was worth it. My waffle was crisp as was the chicken. The maple gravy was a nicely balanced sweet and savory that was something I'd never experienced before. My only complaint is that the meal was waaay too heavy, even for me. Other's had burgers and the curried chicken salad. Everyone was pretty pleased with their meals.

For desert we tried the deep fried twinkie, which is a must if you go - it's really something everyone should have at least once.

Overall we were impressed by the diverse choices and relatively low cost of the meal as well as the friendliness of the staff and owner. We are definitely going back!

I am a big meat fan, so I decided to see what all the hype about this supposed "meat" house was.

First impresssions: upon entering and heading to the meat counter (they have two main counters, one for cold-cuts and the other for meat), I was kindly welcomed and asked if it was my first time there. I said yes and was given a sample pack of their sirloin beef tips.

Their case isn't as large as I expected, but if you glance to your left, you'll notice they have huge walk-ins. I asked about getting a pork butt and the butcher told me they have their larger cuts in the back.

I took my time and browsed their selections and pricing. It was nice that I was not pushed to hurry up and I was asked by several employees if I needed any help. I ended up getting a rather large T-bone steak, the pork butt, a flank steak and several varieties of their sausages.

The good: I grilled up the 1.7lb T-bone for my sickly wife on the weekend and it was absolutely devine. I hate the cliche, but it was indeed "like butter" Worth the $17. The marinated beef tips were also tasty - though I didn't really get a chance to see how much they cost as this was a free sample.

The bad: The sausage. I got two garlic/cheese, two brats and a chorizo and the total for that part of my bill was way beyond anything I've ever paid for some ground up scraps and spices. So you'd expect them to be devine right? Chorizo was the strangest I've ever had, tasted like they mixed italian seasoning with some hot sauce and called it a day. The Brats were flavorless even after simmering in beer for 20 minutes and then grilling. The garlic/cheese weren't awful, but two small links were like $3 and well - they weren't that good.

This place clearly goes waaay out of it's way for you - I started to pick up my bag and leave, and this guy grabbed it out of my hand and TOLD me he was going to bring it to my car for me. He laughed through his teeth when I told him I was going to Chipotle for additional meatage and could take it from there.

Stick with the non-ground/processed/marinated meats here and I think you will be pleased with your experience unless they run away with your bag.

Friday night, pregnant wife in tow, both craving a good burger. We live in Niskayuna, but had nothing to do. We figured a trip to Juicy Burger was a great idea.

Juicy Burger is located in a strip mall, next to a pizzeria and adjacent to a Hannaford. The inside, while nicely colorful, was relatively small. We got there at 6:30pm and it was mostly full with families. Not a ton of places to sit.

The menu is fairly simple. They have burgers, salads and soups (I told my wife she should try the lobster bisque and she scoffed at me). Most of the burgers range between $6.50 - $7.50. Fries are an additional $3 but you have your choice of regular, sweet potato, or onion rings. You can also mix and match which I thought was great.

I ordered a cheeseburger, the wife had a bacon-cheeseburger. Both of us got fries and a drink and the order came to $25. I'm willing to pay top dollar for a great burger, so at this point I was really hoping it'd be worth it.

After about 15-20 minutes our burgers came out. The first thing I noticed is that unlike Five Guys, they were very stingy with their portions of fries. The menu claimed 1/2 lb. but I'm guessing I only got a hand full. I noticed that they didn't put lettuce and tomato on my burger like I had requested, so I had to bring it up to the counter.

I don't really understand why places like this and Red Robin don't seem to season their meat. I took a big bite into my burger and all I got was texture, no taste. While the burger was juicy, the texture was off for me. I prefer ground chuck or round in my burger because it produces a great texture and good fat content. My burger was cooked perfectly med rare, like I wanted, but my wife's was also med rare and she had ordered it med well (she's pregnant, give her a break).

As I took another bite I started to really dislike their buns. While large, they were quite airy, and soon turned into a flattened hockey-puck like consistency.

Overall it wasn't bad - but I'd much rather spend $25 at Red Robin or Five Guys which are much closer.