jennifer "Jenja" j.'s Profile

Thought we would pop in before a movie at Ward Parkway.  It was about 6:45 on a Friday night and the place was filling up.  It was mostly full of couples with toddlers...I guess those people eat early, maybe that's why I never seen that kind of crowd before.  There was a 5 year old behind me complaining that she did not like the cheese pizza (from the kids menu).  I turned around to see the pizza was dotted with feta cheese and a couple olives, definitely not the Pizza Hut special.  I think a small chicken gyro would be better for kids.

As far as adult food, I ordered the chicken gyro platter.  This comes with a Greek salad, which is big and beautiful and fresh- but I would have loved a real fork, not plastic.  As beautiful as the salad was, it lacked dressing and flavor.  The platter comes with fries and there was a lot of them, cooked perfectly.  The pita bread was warm and deliciously spongy.  The chicken was in perfect strips (see pic) and the flavor was decent.

The revolve different flavors of lemonade and on this day they had a lemon, apple & mango flavor.  It was incredible!  I could have had three glasses.  The owner popped out of the back with a new creation chocolate/lemonade.  The thought of this combination made me a little ill.  I wouldn't try it- because it was just wrong.  However, my partner did give it a try and the sour look on his face was to be expected.  I hope that will never make the menu.

The place is super clean and cute inside.  It is in a strip mall and you order at the counter, which is loaded with all the Yummy products.  

The lunch crowd will go crazy.

I was leaving Spin with my mom and we noticed this store.  She loves checking out furniture so we ducked in and before we knew it we were transported to suburban decor 101.  This place is big, with plenty of merchandise.  Unfortunately, it suffers from the same condition as 90% of the other furniture stores in Kansas City- it is bland and without real style.  

It is great if you are looking to outfit your beige house on the coldasack.  Most things are made in China and made to last about six months.  I was thinking that maybe I could at least find a mirror, but even the mirrors were over-styled and with fake old world finishes.

As we left, my mom said, "It is OK, for people that have that kind of style."  "What style," I say?

A long tree line pathway, leads to an open courtyard.

Police on horses, a historic church as a backdrop, meticulous landscaping and impromptu live performances.  What is not to love?

Charming and beautiful.  I love how it is laid out in a circle.  There are plenty of benches to chill, which makes great people watching.

Fantastic!  I love SF Nordstrom because-

1. Concierge (I have left heavy laptop bags here so I can shop easily)
2. Nordstrom Cafe (not the dumbed down KC version- you get actual table service)
3. Huge and well organized.
4. There is a spa.
5. There is a "Salon" shoe section, which means Choo, Prada, Louboutin......

This Nordstrom is attached to a huge Westfield Mall, but there really is no reason to leave Nordstrom.  Why go anywhere else?  You will just be disappointed if you leave.

Like other reviewers, I too was looking forward to an amazing meal by an acclaimed chef.  Unfortunately, my 3 fellow diners and I were very disappointed.

Highlights- Festive atmosphere, good service and outstanding margarita's- I had the jalapeno margarita.  
Chips were great and salsa was good.
Chilaquiles were amazing- it's like they came from a different restaurant.

Disappointments- Bad layout at the front of the restaurant.  Outside door opens directly on to diners.  
Crisp Pork Belly and Skirt Steak tacos were extremely dry and lacked flavor.
Salsa was in small portions and you constantly needed to ask for refills.  Salsa became important, as we needed it to flavor the tacos.

The Aaron Sanchez was in the dining room that night, but he really needed to be back in the kitchen.

We did not have a dessert, because we could not wait to leave.

Might recommend this place for a happy hour in the summer- margarita's with guac and chips- hold the entree's.

Bought a Groupon for a mani, so I stopped by for a mani pedi.  Pedi was so bad that I ran out the door before using my Groupon for the mani.  I couldn't tell if my nail attendant understood anything I was saying, since she just nodded and stared at me or at the other employee's.  

She broke all the rules, sawing back and forth with the file (always file toward the center of the nail), clipping toenails with a cuticle clipper (nail clipper), barely used the foot file (this is why I go), about 20 brush strokes on each nail (there should be 3) no lotion on my legs (what?) and finally- putting nail polish in the towel warmer (breaks down formula and causes bubbles in the polish).

It is possible I got the worst attendant...which is usually the person that is not busy when you walk in.  I noticed the lady next to me started later and was still going after I was finished.  She might have had a good experience.

I swear, when I get my plan together- I am opening a nail salon.  This town has the worst nail places with horrible staff.  If someone actually opened a clean, modern and efficient nail salon here, they could make a fortune.

This place is just as good as the other locations.  Just like the other locations, it gets nutso around 6 pm, when people start making their own parking spaces and running inside like there is one burrito left.  Off hours are a better time to visit.  

I try to make my visit time efficient by ordering online for a pickup.  Unfortunately, not many people must be ordering online, since I am hardly ever acknowledged when I walk straight up to the register.  Last time I came in for a pick up, I had to get in the order line to get help.  I watched my food get cold  waiting for my turn.  It was annoying and counter productive.

Wow, wow, wow!  What an explosion of flavor and texture.  I only wish I had not been in an airport terminal.  If I was at home I could have really made love to this sandwich, letting juice drip down my chin and licking up every crumb.

I ordered the Pepito (beer braised short ribs, pickled jalapenos, chihuahua cheese, black beans, cilantro crema, arugula).  OK, just to put this in perspective, I am the girl who orders plain hamburgers and refuses to eat beans.  This freaking sandwich is a party in your mouth and it starts with perfectly doughy and crispy bread.  You crunch through the bread until you meet the tender and perfectly spiced beef.  The beef has melted into the cheese and the jalapenos set off the savory with a light bright crunch.  I washed all this loveliness down with a zesty Aguas Frescas Raspberry Prickly Pear beverage.

Oh Rick, you are an evil man....not only is this flavor-gasm restaurant not in my back yard, you have to fly through O Hare to get it.  No worries, if I fly Midway, I will just stop at Rick's other new spot- XOCO.

There is a small eat in area, but you might as well just find a dark terminal...this stuff gets messy.  This is not Mc Donalds. you have to wait a few minutes for your sandwich to be created.  Also, don't be that guy on the plane with the smelly food.  If you can't eat it before boarding the plane, just hit it up next time.  This food smells like it tastes- powerful stuff!

I have been looking forward to trying this place for months.  Information was difficult to find.  They did not get a website up until after opening and when I visited, they still didn't have a sign.  I heard they were dumping millions into the interior, but it seems there was little attention to smaller details.

I wish that had spent less money trying to look exactly like Tao (NY/Vegas) and put their money into fashioning their own style and nailing down a flawless menu.  You can look like Tao, but if the food you are serving is not a stand out, then what is the point?  Tao serves a wonderful menu, emulate the food.

We started with lettuce wraps and the meat was flavored well.  No one clued us in on the sauces, though we eventually figured out what they were....it is dark in there.  Unfortunately we had a huge pile of lettuce leaves left long after we ran out of meat.  We decided to split the "Wok" Thai Basil Soy Glaze stir fry with shrimp.  We were not asked to indicate our level of spicy when we ordered.  It was just slightly spicy when it arrived, although it was listed as one of the spiciest dishes.  The flavors were similar to stir fry dishes sold at non-Asian themed restaurants.  Basically, like ordering a stir fry at Houlihans or Ingredient.  

I need to say that service was good.  She was attentive without hovering over us.  Water was always filled.

I think if you really don't eat Thai, Chinese, or Asian in general- then this place might seem like an exotic excursion.  The decor is less then stunning across the street at Hot Basil, but I will be served amazing complex, bright and beautiful food.  That is what creates loyalty.  The novelty of a huge buddha statue and eating in darkness, does not.

Bummer.

Cute place, decent selection, quality product and very helpful service.  

I thought the flowers I bought were pretty pricy compared to other places I have been.  I went across the street to Hen House to purchase some cheaper bouquets to supplement what I bought at Village Flower Company.

I think this place might be better for a bouquet delivery rather than a place to pick up flowers for self-arranging.