Mediterranean Grill

Mediterranean Grill
10 School Street
Freeport, Maine
(Visit their website and check out the full menu!)

This is the best restaurant in Freeport. Go to L. L. Bean or wherever you want in this shopping paradise but be sure not to scarf down too much of the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream because you’re going to miss out on a real treat. Whenever I’m in the area, I just have to drop by the Mediterranean Grill. The owners are really friendly and I think they also own the famous “China Rose” restaurants in both Freeport and Brunswick. This expansion into Mediterranean cuisine allows them to demonstrate a whole new range of tastes for the hungry shopper.

Definitely start your meal off with the Sigara Borek. This is a terrific dish with meat, cheese, and parsley wrapped in fillo dough and fried to perfection. It is served with a Caesar dressing-like sauce that compliments the dish. Flakey and crunchy, the Sigara Borek is so good you’ll want it to be your main dish. But there are better treats in store.

My all-time favorite is the Shepard Sautéed. Tender, bite-sized chunks of lamb stir fried with mixed vegetables including zucchini and potatoes served over some buttered rice just make the meal complete. Though the portion is pretty large and you’ll probably have leftovers, you end up wishing you could eat more and more of this delicious meal. I highly recommend it.

The specials vary but these guys know how to do lamb just right so you probably can’t go wrong with any of their dishes if you just want to spin the wheel and see what special treats the chefs have come up with that day.

End the meal with a wonderful custard and some Turkish tea. The custard is a favorite of mine but it’s always a race to see if there is any left by the time I’m done with the main course. Reserve a slice early on and you might just be lucky enough to have this wonderful, tender, and not too sweet custard as your dessert (topped with chocolate sauce!). The tea comes in cute little glass cups and finishes off the meal perfectly. I can’t praise this restaurant enough. Well worth the price and, with a cozy and stylish atmosphere, this place is just a great place to dine.

(Images by AG)

John Harvard's

John Harvard’s
33 Dunster Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
(Try this or other locations!)

This is one of my favorite spots in Harvard Square. Though I did not try one, I am told that their beers, which they brew themselves, are very good. JH’s is a special spot since it is also where I first had a “fuzzy navel,” which, apparently some places like Typhoon can screw up rather badly.

The drinks may be fine but JH’s also has some excellent food. The mushroom Swiss burger was one of my regular dishes. The fries are a great treat though they are not entirely healthy for you. The dish I most often get, however, is probably the sesame shrimp salad. This dish comes with greens, tomatoes, a fine Hoisin vinaigrette and fried wontons. The grilled shrimp comes on a skewer and is mighty tasty though you are constantly thinking that the dish is a bit overpriced. Come to think of it, is there a salad anywhere that isn’t overpriced?

The grilled meatloaf is also very good. With a hint of sweetness and a dash of the red wine sauce, this is a fine meal but you better be hungry. The garlic mashed potatoes are not particularly special and they can weigh you down afterwards.

Sorry, no pictures from JH’s as it is a bit dark inside. It is a pub so expect it to be loud, particularly after work.

Metropolitan Bakery and Cafe

Metropolitan Bakery & Cafe
4013 Walnut St.
Phildalphia, PA
(Check out their website!)

this chain of Pennsylvania bakeries is a fine establishment if you want a good pastry, cup of coffee, or a sandwich. I'm not sure if each of the branches has a different menu but the one I tried in University City was pretty good. The menus are not extensive but they offer a pretty good selection. They do breakfast bagels and toast and salads but I was in the mood for lunch. I ordered the roast beef panini and this came with grilled onions, smoked Gouda, and Dijon mustard. A fresh mixed green salad came on the side with balsamic vinaigrette. All items tasted very good.

My dining companion had the roasted red peppers panini and this was served the marinated artichokes, goat cheese, and black olive tepenade. Generally I don't care for goat cheese but the mix of flavors really blended well. She also had the lemon vinaigrette on her salad and that had a zesty taste to it as well.

One complaint though. The panini were too crispy for my taste. Though my dining comrade tells me that the panini was well done as it wasn't greasy, I have to disagree. The crispy bread did a number on the inside of my mouth and I'm still feeling the scratches.

Brasserie Montiel & Coffee House

Brasserie Montiel & Coffee House
2001 Commonwealth Dr.

Charlottesville, VA

Brasserie Montiel: well lit and well decorated.

This coffee house and restaurant is a superb place for breakfast, brunch, and lunch. The place is rather new but there is no learning curve necessary for the chefs here. Well decorated with bright colors and filled with light, Brasserie Montiel is just a really nice spot for a leisurely or fast meal. Here, my companion and I tried the crepes and we were not disappointed. The Nutella and banana crepes are terrific. The crepe itself is soft and well made. Some places just don’t care about the batter but these guys know how to make a good crepe that is soft, not burnt, not greasy, and tasteful. The crepe can certainly hold its own without any toppings like Nutella. My dining companion had the orange crepes and they were just as good. Another plus is that these guys use actual fruit. None of that slimy, overly sweet preservative! These are fresh fruits that really mix well with the crepe.

Tasty crepes: orange on the left and bananas with Nutella on the right.

The coffee here is also very good and I’ve enjoyed more than a few tasty cups. But what about the other breakfast items? The three-egg omelet is great too. You have your choice of cheeses: Cheddar, Mozzarella, or Boursin. Add to that chopped tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, spinach, peppers, bacon, or ham. The omelet comes with toast and hash browns. Now, are they too heavy and greasy like at most breakfast joints and diners? Not at all. These omelets are gourmet. They taste good and they’re not greasy. I don’t know how they do it but these guys have made a terrific meal that isn’t too heavy and leaves you feeling very good. Here, I’ve had an omelet with Mozzarella, spinach, onions, and ham. OK, the ham may be a bit salty but that’s a minor criticism of this really great place.

(Images by AG and MB)

Penang (Philadelphia)

117 N. 10th Street
Philadelphia, PA
(Visit their website!)

This chain restaurant is pretty tasty. Some of the menu items may be missing depending on where you go. The quality across stores, however, seems to be consistent. I have been to the Boston and the Philadelphia branches and have been impressed by both. I think I have had a slightly better experience with the service and tastiness of the meals in Boston though.

In Philadelphia my dining companion and I treated ourselves and ordered the Hainanese chicken with rice. The rice is nicely seasoned with oil (or butter?) and the sauce that accompanies the chicken is a very mild soy sauce of some sort. The texture is terrific but I wish there had been a choice of dark or white meat on the chicken. The problem with white meat, again, is that it is often cooked too dry. The secret is in the sour, spicy orange sauce that you dip the chicken in or mix with the rice. Overall, the dish is a good one.

Delicious!

The chicken with rice should have been the entire meal but we also had the mango fish. We were both expecting to get the whole fish on a platter but they served us with deep fried chunks instead. Now, they gave us a choice of catfish, red snapper, or striped bass but what does that matter if they were going to deep fry it beyond recognition anyway? The mango itself wasn’t ripe enough and it was a bit hard to get through. The whole dish was covered in this really sweet and somewhat tangy sauce, which, I’m sorry to say, did not aid the flavor. The basket (fried wanton?) it came in was nice but it didn’t really offer any taste of its own.

My dining companion and I also had the Chinese broccoli stir-fried with garlic. The dish was OK but it lacked punch and wasn’t as filled with garlic as we would have preferred. My companion, who had been here before, introduced me to the coconut rice (rice cooked in coconut milk?) and that was a nice, sweet treat.

Maybe I’ll give their noodles a chance next time.

(Images by AG)

Dahlak

Dahlak Restaurant & Bar
4708 Baltimore Ave.
Philadelphia, PA
(Visit their website!)

This restaurant is situated amidst a bunch of other African restaurants in this cute Philadelphia neighborhood on Baltimore Avenue. The inside was a bit dark at night so I couldn't take any pictures. Most of the seating areas are traditional - short, backless chairs and basket-like tables.

I was with a bunch of friends and one commented that it was odd that an Ethiopian/Eritrean restaurant would have Italian food. Of course, we came to the historical reason for this at about the same time and it was a pretty funny bit of dark humor. Do most Ethiopian restaurants have spaghetti?

We ordered a bunch of dishes. The fish of the day was quite good. I'm not sure what fish it was but it was cooked with garlic, onions, and spices. Someone else ordered the chicken tibs, which were OK but not spectacular. the lamb chops (bite sized) were OK too much they might have been better if we didn't have to watch for the bones. The injera was OK too although not spectacular. The food, overall, was decent enough but I had a bit of a problem with the price. So, there were four of us and we ordered four dishes. All the food came on one tray and the presentation was typical of Ethiopian restaurants. But there seemed to be too little of it. At the end, after having consumed much of the injera on the bottom, we were still somewhat hungry. Was this Ethiopian food or tapas?

I think I would go to Dahlak again but there are also other restaurants in the area to try.

It's Only Natural

It's Only Natural Restaurant
and
It's Only Natural Market
386 Main Street
Middletown, CT

http://www.ionrestaurant.com/
http://www.itsonlynaturalrestaurant.com/

It's Only Natural is a restaurant and market in downtown Middletown offering scrumptious vegetarian and vegan food. The restaurant is deservedly known for its sweet-potato fries, which are thick, homemade, and utterly delicious.



The entrees tend to go for $10-14, and at that price they're a bargain. All of the sandwiches and burgers are served with a side of the amazingly delicious sweet potato fries. The Bella Burger, a vegan portabella mushroom burger served with red peppers, onion, soy mayo, and lettuce on wheat or focaccia bread, is particularly good, although you may have to resort to a knife and fork to finish it off.




The classic Veggie Burger is also exceedingly well done. I don't know how they make their soy mayo, but it beats the hell out of any regular mayo I've ever had! Any of the burgers can be served with ION's vegan cashew Parmesan cheese. I highly recommend it.



The beverage menu is impressively diverse, offering such items as China Cola, Carrot Juice, Fruit or Rice Smoothies, and Italian Sodas.

Other items of note on the menu include the Sweet Potato Enchiladas, vegan Pirogi, the Macrobiotic Plate, and vegan Chili.

The dining area is attractive and the service is attentive. Happy hour is from 4-6 on weekdays, when you can order $2 pints of beer and $2 sweet potato fries (I always avail myself of the latter).

A To-Go Menu is available, and they offer catering for special events.

Down the hall from the restaurant is the ION market, where you can purchase all sorts of vegetarian and vegan groceries. They offer not only an impressive variety of food, but also all sorts of natural toiletry and health products. Their website even features a health reference library.

Overall, the ION restaurant and market is an exemplary purveyor of vegetarian and vegan foods. Whether you're a vegetarian looking for a great place to eat and shop for groceries, or a carnivore in the mood for a delicious meal that's also healthy, ION is a terrific place to go.