The Publican Brief

Had impromptu plans for dinner on Friday with our buddy Rob aka Roberto (even though he's not aware that I call him Roberto...or really that I refer to him as that to anyone...). He had heard good things about The Publican so we decided to check it out. Now in case you're wondering that wasn't the first location we were going to go to as someone who shall not be named but rhymes with Sharon wasn't digging the menu choices. We had opted for another place that was nearby but as luck would have it the wait was going to be over an hour. That being said and since I had paid for parking nearby I was like let's try The Publican.

The Publican's description per their website actually pretty much sums up the experience: "Eclectic menu inspired by simple farmhouse far in a space evocative of a European beer hall. " The decor/layout of the joint was interesting. Most of the seating is communal seating- it's a family style venture where you sit with complete strangers/other parties. They booths they had were designed like pigpens where they had little doors that swung open. Definitely gave that farm vibe off on top of the painting of a giant fat pig on the wall. 

The restrooms were crazy in my opinion as I've never encountered that before. Basically there are 5 individual stalls(?) with a communal sink in the middle/outside of them. You go do your business and wash your hands outside of the restroom. Probably not even describing it right but found this pic on line:

The Publican Restrooms

But enough about the actual place and let's get to the glorious food. Now fair warning this is probably not one of those healthy places for your wallet let alone your calorie counts. That being said it was definitely worth the price of admission.  Started off with some appetizers.

Frites with Lorene's eggs

In case you were wondering like I was cause I'm uncivilized- Frites is French for fries. To be honest I think snobby me like the word frites better. I had no idea what Lorene's eggs meant either as that was an option for $2 more and I went #YOLO on it. Legit out loud said YOLO to make the decision official. Not sure if that's named after someone associated with the place but as you can tell they're sunny side up eggs. I would go back here just for this. The fries were cooked in beef fat and seasoned well.  The eggs gave it a whole other dimension. Honestly probably the best thing I've eaten in 2017 so far- if not it's top five for sure. Definitely started off the dinner well.

Rob ordered the avocado salad was pretty excellent as well. Was a whole new experience in itself as it had avocado, snap peas, farro verde, mustard, and almonds. That too was a hit with everyone. Karen's description was "yummy with a citrus burst." Best I could come up with is yummy for your tummy.

Avocado Salad.

The first dish to come out and I dare say the star of the whole meal was the pork shank. Man was that perfectly cooked and presented well. Like honestly felt bad eating it just from how beautiful it looked. Came with goat cheese, fava beans, shiitake mushrooms, onions, and parsley to name a few. I don't know how much you love food, but have you ever eaten something and like just keep nodding or repeating "yes" while you eat it. That's the experience that was had with the pork shank (not code for something). I would also just come back to The Publican strictly for this. I'm not sure if its a permanent staple to the menu though as it wasn't listen on the site and they do mention they rotate items.

Pork Shank

Karen went with the Farm Chicken which was a half chicken served with frites and summer sausage. As simple as it sounds, it was well cooked as well. Not really sure when's the last time I've had chicken that tasted that fresh and wasn't dry but that hit the spot. Also didn't hurt that it came with more of those delicious fries.

Farm Chicken

I opted to go fancy and picked the Suckling Pig. It was bits of pork on top of polenta with asparagus, some mustard, and a wine. Once again not a permanent menu item so don't have all the specifics. I will say that I don't know what my expectations were for this. It was a complete surprise but I actually enjoyed it as it had a hint of mustard but sweetness but it all worked out and hit the criteria for a fancy dish.

Suckling Pig

Decided since the calorie counts were destroyed that we might as well hit up their dessert options. I mean there wasn't any bad food selections so it seems logical that their baking would be just as good.

Rob selected the mud pie which was an oat brownie, dark chocolate pudding, and peanut butter topped with dark cherries. I thought it was pretty good and I'm not a big fan of dark chocolate. If you are a fan dark chocolate, this I have to imagine would be a big hit for you.

Mud Pie

Lily went with mint ice cream. Now being the caveman I am, I was expecting it to just be you stereotypical store bought mint ice cream. Nope. This tasted like they freshly made the ice cream using a whole mint plant. It was pretty crazy to me at least. She liked it but I don't think I could have eaten a whole serving of it by itself.

Mint Ice Cream

 Karen selected the pineapple upside down cake. It was topped with butterscotch, pecans, and pineapple sorbet. Man did that hit the spot. Once again like the mint ice cream, I thought the pineapple sorbet would have like a hint of pineapple- nope. It was fully of flavor as well. You can add this to the list of reasons to go back to The Publican.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

The Publican was excellent food on the pricey side but at the same time well worth it. Definitely will have to eat here again. Shout outs to whoever suggested this place to Rob. Shout outs to him for the invite. Shouts to shouts.

#FoodieAdventure,

Reef

Day 3 and 4 dining at Disney

Fairly certain I failed at documenting the food on day 3 of the trip by only having a couple pictures. I have my excuses. That being said I decided to a smorgasbord and write about the remaining places that were visited.

Saturday was a ladies brunch event in Magic Kingdom which I wasn't invited to for obvious reasons... mostly cause I don't have polite manners. I skipped breakfast with that knowledge to hit up some rides. Ended up meeting up with my father-in-law and brother-in-law. Is that what you call your sister-in-law's husband? I don't know the rules or chart organization of such things. Either way feeling fairly manly figured we should hit up Gaston's Tavern. Literally the only reason I picked that place was cause it was just us guys.  Stupidest logic ever but hey I'm not paid to think. 

Menu at Gaston's is pretty damn weird if you ask me. Your option for entree only consisted of Ham and Cheese stuffed pretezl. Appetizer wise you could get hummus, apple slices w/ caramel, and veggies and dip. I really don't know how any of that goes together. As you would guess the food was passable while hungry.

Ham and Cheese Stuffed Pretzel w/ Chips

 The low light of Gaston's Tavern was their specialty drink that the bro-in-law(?) picked. Now I had eyeballed it as it said souvenir cup but it didn't have a description listed under it so I passed. Per the website: Frozen apple juice w/ a hint of toasted marshmallow and topped with passion fruit-mango foam. What the hell is that? I actually tried it as the bro-in-law(?) did not want to drink it. That was some weird ass drink but if I paid $5.49 for it I'd still drink it cause that's how I roll.

LeFou's Brew

For dinner had a date night with Karen and went all fancy with a dinner show: Disney's Spirit of Aloha. This is where I failed in the food pic department. This was due to a live show happening with low lighting and flash photography discouraged. I mean I know I don't want to be known as the guy who took a damn picture that caused the fire dancer guy to light himself on fire. That's frowned upon even though it would be a funny story...for me at least. So only got two pics- the menu and the appetizer as that was served prior to the dimming of the lights.

Spirit of Aloha Menu

Appetizer Plate: Fresh Pineapple, Soba Noodle, Salad

 This was a pricey show but well worth it as 1) Had a hot date, 2) food was super delicious, and 3) show was entertaining from start to finish. If you got some money to spend or need to impress your significant other who likes to have fun this would be the place to go. The winners were all the appetizers, the pulled pork, the ribs, and the dessert. The dessert is a fat kid's dream: pineapple-coconut guava cake w/ chocolate crunch. Also fat kid dream- it was all you can eat so wanted more of anything you could get it. I missed fat kid me...(insert single tear here).

Day 4- Easter Sunday- was spent at Animal Kingdom. True to it's name we saw a lot of animals and had a fun time on the rides and what not. I got us reservations before we even left for the trip at Tusker House which is located in Animal Kingdom. This place was on my list and I was excited to hit up African cuisine. This place did not disappoint as it was a buffet setting with a plethora of options. Bonus which I wasn't aware of/paid attention too- it was also character dining. So they had Mickey, Goofy, Daisy, and Donald walk around to each table to do autographs and pics. Very cool in my opinion. There's a whole lot of food options there so just click on the link and you can see all the options.

Plethora of options.

Plethora of options #2

Karen's specialty drink: Coconut Elixir

 Definitely well worth the cost and blown calories. I would go back to Disney just to eat here again. I'm not an expert on African cuisine but I think it nailed my expectations. So after a long day at the park- I know we walked a lot as Karen has a fitbit so I think at the very least I burned off a spoonful of food.

Decided to head back to the resort for dinner as we were tired by them. We hit up another restaurant there Capt. Cook's. Kind of like a diner where you have a bunch of options/no overall theme. This place was good so can't complain at all.

Pulled Pork Nachos

Aloha Pork Sandwich

 Apparently the theme was pork as I picked the pulled pork nachos and Karen got the Aloha Pork sandwich. Lily went with a hot dog so I didn't even bother taking a picture of it. This food definitely hit the spot after a long day. Just a quick delicious meal. I think I would get both options if I ever went back there. Heck probably if I lived in Florida and had a season pass I would hit up this place for sure.

The last venture of the trip was at the airport: Zaza's Cuban Cafe. Got through security and off the tram to see Zaza's right there. Having a weakness for Cuban food and not having breakfast, it was an automatic decision to go for a Cubano. This sandwich was classic and worthy of being considered an authentic Cuban sandwich. If you're ever traveling out of Orlando, definitely recommend to get a Cubano for the trip.

Zaza's Cubano

I think Orlando/Disney will happen again in the near future for sure. I think I was trying to convince my siblings to get an annual trip/family reunion going. Like most folks I don't think they listen to what what I was saying. LOL. It was a valiant effort that will be repeated til it happens. That being said thanks to my mother-in-law for planning and executing this trip to Disney World.

#FunTimes,
Reef

Disney Day 2

Finally able to continue on with the food from the Disney trip after a busy week here. Had comic convention C2E2 going on the weekend following the trip so was busy getting stuff ready and actually attending. Shout outs to everyone who stopped by the table and showed love/interest/etc. Really shouldn't add "etc." as everyone was cool and supportive/positive. #ShoutOutToShouOuts.  That being said onward to the 2nd day of Disney-mania dining experience.

Spent the day at Magic Kingdom from the early morning some folks were tired by lunch time and decided we should eat nearby.  To appease them we went to Skipper Canteen in Adventureland as there wasn't much of a wait. Funny enough Disney's description of the type of food is America, Asian, Latin, and African. I mean that's a lot of options considering the menu wasn't that big. Either way it was pricey but guess that's part of being at Disney.

I opted to go with the curried vegetable crew stew and added chicken to it. Name is pretty self explanatory but was pretty excellent/hit the spot as it came with coconut rice as well as naan. Considering the weather in Florida you would think "hey dummy why did you get a hot stew?" but really I'm glad I went with it as it was delicious. If I had to venture I'd say this would fit under Asian or African cuisine depending on your views. I mean technically an American version of Asian or African cuisine so maybe they're description is spot on after all.

Curried Vegetable Crew Stew with Chicken

 Karen with with Skip's Beefy Baked Pasta- which is not code for anything. Per the description it says it's Egyptian-inspired. Not sure I've ever known or met anyone from Egypt named Skip in addition to pasta and Bechamel sauce are mostly Italian flavors. Maybe the spiced braised beef makes it Egyptian? If we have an expert on Egyptian cuisine I'd like to know. Either way Karen really liked it minus the side of green beans- which she hates for some reason so those will never win. Having tried it I can say it was pretty tasty for sure. I might have been and as you can tell still stuck on how it's considered Egyptian inspired.

Skip's Beefy Baked Pasta

 I didn't get a picture of Lily's food as it was just plain old mac & cheese aka nothing to write about. I did however get a pic of her dessert. the Volcano! Looked pretty cool. I would say it was good from her reaction and scarfing it down. Not sure it made her shout "UH OA!" but she was happy with it.

Lily's Dessert: Volcano!

The in-laws bid farewell and we continued on with our amusement park shenanigans. After a long day  at Magic Kingdom and Epcot we decided to hit up a joint that was on my list as well at our resort: Trader Sam's Grog Grotto. Its basically a small Tiki bar with just appetizers and a couple of areas to sit in. The items on the menus are what got me as well as the atmosphere. As you'll notice by the pictures of the food- it was a low lit joint but we didn't mind after being in the sun all day. 

Started off with a good drink- the Polynesian Punch: Sam's Gorilla Grog and Hibiscus Grenadine combination. I didn't get the souvenir glass as they had run out of them. Outside of that the drink was refreshing and good. For you alcoholics out there you could get a spiked version of it. 

Polynesian Punch

 Being a taco fan and one of the reason I wanted to come here, I went with the Kaula Pork Tacos. These were good and probably one of the cheapest food items in all of Disney World at $10. I wish i could have gotten better pictures but didn't want to blind the other patrons in the place with flash photography. I would go back to the resort just for these tacos.

Kalua Pork Tacos

 Lily got the pan fried dumplings- I think mostly cause everything else didn't really fit with stuff she liked to eat. I mean we all shared what we had but she really liked these which also could have been due to the fact that she got to use chopsticks.

Pan Fried Dumplings

 Karen got the Chicken Lettuce Cups. I would say I would return to the resort just to eat these as well. Who knew a small bar in a resort with just appetizer can out cook an expensive restaurant at Epcot? Well I probably did cause I actually researched it. #BEEPBEEP. I think the Hoisin-ginger sauce is what made this superb. Definitely a cool atmosphere to eat at as the staff were really interactive in a fun way, light shows, and cool decor.

Chicken Lettuce Cups

For dessert our resort we stopped by Pineapple Lanai. Karen had mentioned that her sister loved these Pineapple Dole Whip soft serve non-dairy ice cream from when they visited Hawaii back in the day. Come to find out our Polynesian Resort had a place that served them. Its pretty much just pineapple and coconut milk blended/whipped up.

Pineapple Dole Whip

I can see the craze around this as it hit the spot on a hot day as it was tasty and refreshing. Fairly certain we got a these a bunch of times after this.  Definitely going to have to try and make it at home and try to relive the magic...no pun intended.

#VacationFoodie,

Reef

Happiest Place on Earth...Day 1

Went on a family vacation with the in-laws this past weekend to the happiest place on Earth- Disney World. Wait, how does Disneyland compare to World? Are they considered equals?  Shouldn't it then be called One of the Two Happiest Places on Earth? Either way they make you pay a good amount of money to dine there. That being said I had high expectations on the food I would be ingesting.

First stop on the food express was at the Disney's Polynesian Village Resort: Kona Cafe. As you can guess from the location the food selection was Polynesian/Asian inspired. Fairly certain this was my mother-in-law's selection which I would think based on proximity.

For an appetizer decided I wanted to try the grilled beef satay. This seems like it was waiting a while as it was pretty cold when I got it. Still it was pretty tasty. The biggest fan of it was my niece Georgia who I would say is a fairly picky eater. So at least someone really liked it. I think if it was served hot it would at the best be okay.

Grilled Beef Satay

I opted to go Hawaiian and chose Loco-Moco which is a staple of Hawaiian cuisine per my knowledge as well as their description: Traditional Hawaiian Brunch staple which features a tower of Rice, a grilled Hamburger Patty, House-made Chorizo Gravy, Two Eggs-Any Style, and topped with a Tomato Salsa

Hawaiian Staple: Yes.
Tower of Rice: Nope.
Everything Else: Yes  

Loco-Moco

I will say that there seemed to be some sort of hold up with the service. When I got my food it was luke warm at best. Considering I eat a lot of my leftover food at that temperature, I wasn't terribly bothered by it. I do think it would have helped it out immensely to have been hot though. I legit saw another table get what I thought was the Loco-Moco and thought "Man I'm not going to be able to eat all that. When I got my plate as you see above- I apparently got an appetizer portion. LOL. Overall I would say it was good minus the temperature.

Karen ended up getting Pan Fried Chicken with coconut and mango sauces. She really enjoyed her food. It was actually warm and tasted great. I know my father-in-law (who ordered the same item) was surprised that the pasta salad was served cold. I might have uttered it's not Italian. Still he really liked it as well. Definitely put it on a "if I ever go there again I'd ordered it" list.

Pan Fried Chicken with side of sticky rice and pasta salad

Lily opted to go with shrimp skewers. Much like her old man, she actually likes seafood and since we were out and about it was not a problem ordering with Karen around. I believe it was pretty good as she put it away with no problem. I know the fruit was good as Georgia was big into sharing that as well.

Shrimp Skewer and side of fruit

I'd say it was an okay start with a 3 out of 4 rating for our family at least. Don't think my sister-in-law and husband were a fans of what they ordered. They were on the other side of the table so wasn't able to get pics or inquire as to what was had.

Dinner was also chosen by my mother-in-law as we hit up Epcot for the day and she made reservations at La Hacienda de San Angel. I for one can't turn down Mexican food so I had no objections to the food selection. The actual food and prices is a different story. 

Started off with an appetizer of Pork Empanadas: Corn dough empanadas stuffed with pork and black beans topped with mole sauce

Pork Empanadas

This was actually pretty and tasty. I don't think I've ever seen a fancy looking empanada in my life until that moment but I suppose for $11.25 it should have been. Really did enjoy it- as did Karen and Lily who shared with me. Put it on the "if I ever go there again I'd ordered it" list for sure. So it was a good start to the meal.

My dinner selection was not so fortunate. I ended up picking Pollo Pastor: Achiote marinated half chicken served w/ roasted vegetables, beans, and pineapple relish.

Pollo Pastor

It looked beautiful on the plate. Taste wise though it was like getting a dressed up version of rotisserie chicken from Walmart. There was no flavor outside of the skin. Not really much of a pineapple relish. I think I was mostly disappointed as it needed more to help its blandness. Still 1 out of 2 isn't a good track record for the meal. I almost didn't bother taking the leftovers back but $25.50 said "your dumb ass better take this with you."

Karen once again had a good selection- she was 2 for 2 on the day with her meals. She got the Carnitas Yucatecas: Pork confit (carnitas Yucatan style) with pico de gallo, cabbage, citrus juice and avocado salsa

Carnitas Yucatecas

Of course she wasn't a fan of the pico de gallo, pork rinds, or cabbage. Still I think that was the star of the dinner. The carnitas and avocado salsa were excellent as she shared them with me. I will say their tortillas- where were hand made there were pretty good too.  This was a definite must have if you my some chance ended up eating at this joint. Be warned though, its pricey as all hell. I didn't take a picture of Lily's food as it was just chicken tenders but all together my bill was around $90 (with tip). Definitely don't seem myself ever going there again by choice. 

Day 1 at Disney food wise for me was pretty sub par. I think Kona Cafe suffered from bad service as oppose to the food itself. Definitely would give it another shot maybe at an off time where it was not as packed/busy. La Hacienda was just overpriced "fancy" food that I can't see myself going back to again- outside of someone wanting to there and offering to pay for me. 

#FoodSnob,

Reef

Shenanigans...

I definitely need to catch up on my blogging of spots we've visited and new food tried in the last couple of weeks. Been busy with artwork so not a complete laziness excuse. A bit ago was having a discussion Karen about what type of food we hadn't had in a while and Irish food was the top draw. We were in the Plainfield area perusing a thrift shop around lunch time. So looked up nearby restaurants and came across Katie O'Connor.

I think it's a fairly safe assumption that this joint was an Irish pub just from the name. THAT'S RACIST! Well no because it was an Irish Pub. Fairly certain you can't have any other type of restaurant with that name. Katie O'Connor the Vietnamese restaurant didn't stay open too long. I was a little alarmed as it was noon and there weren't that many cars in the parking lot. Usually not a good sign but on the positive means you won't have to deal with too many people or have a long wait. Also being a pub I'm fairly certain most folks are there to drink. RACIST!

Started off with an appetizer that caught my attention as well as a precautionary move in cause some folks didn't like their meal selections.

Quigley's Quesadillas

I don't consider myself an expert or even remotely experienced in Irish cuisine but I don't think quesadillas are Irish. Maybe just be standard pub cuisine? Pretty standard composition of chicken and Monterey Jack cheese but was really delicious. If you're a restaurant and can't make a simple quesadilla you have problems. They passed the appetizer round with flying colors.

 Being a family establishment they had a kid's menu. Lily went with the grilled cheese and fries. She highly enjoyed it. It was hard to tell if they hand made their fries or not which is a good sign either way as they were good.

Grilled Cheese and Fries

I went with their Irish Fare category and got Bangers and Mash. Honestly never had bangers before...hope that's not code for anything. Not really sure if they originated in Ireland as Wikipedia says it's common in the British Isles. An Irish Pub wouldn't lie to me would they? I didn't really have an expectations other than I hoped it was good. I think my overall this was a one and done menu choice.

Bangers and Mash

Karen went with another Irish tradition: Boxty. I think the best way I could describe it would be an Irish version of a burrito where they used potato pancake instead of tortilla. Having tried it and eating it as a leftover the next day- Karen didn't like it. I think the potato pancake wasn't what we were use to and was very dry. Didn't really add any flavor to it at all. My guess would be to try a Boxty at a more reputable establishment...or try to make it at home for fun. We shall see.

Reuben Boxty

Definitely thinking Katie O'Connor's is more for folks who like to get drunk and/or just have appetizers. Can't say I'm disappointed as it was an impromptu choice and will definitely find a better Irish joint in the near future.

#NotTheLuckOfTheIrish,

Reef

Let Us Eat!

So this week ended up hitting up Chicago to see Kevin Smith and Jay Mewes podcast: Jay and Silent Bob Get Old. My friend Rob had posted that he was interested in the event. That in turned led to him to say we should go, which being a fan of their podcasts I was down for going. The event was at the Vic Theater in Chicago which I haven't been to since high school. The area had a bunch of places on the radar but we ended up going with Big & little's.

I've always heard about Big & little's but for one reason or another I would end up going elsewhere.  I know they've been featured on a variety of Food Network shows. I think you would categorize them as American diner/fast food. Upon visiting them though they were no where near fast. But that's alright as I feel the wait was worth it.

 Rob got the Porkbelly Po'boy which consisted of: fried pork belly, lettuce, pickles, Louisiana Hot Sauce, special sauce (chili Aioli), and maple syrup. I think I pretty much stared at the fried pork belly pieces the whole time it was on the table because it looked wonderfully cooked, That sandwich looked amazing and from his reaction tasted fantastic.

Porkbelly Po'boy

I forgot to take pictures of the fries but they were great as well. There was a plethora of options for fries- standard, Cajun, Truffle, Phil's (which is 2 fried eggs on truffle), Foie gras, Chili cheese, and Kimchi. Rob picked the Cajun style which was great. The seasoning was the focal point as it had some sugar in it. Thought that was pretty clever as it countered the salty/spice very nicely- what food nerd thing to examine. Guess I never thought about adding sugar to a Cajun spice mix but will have to try it out next time.  Definitely will have to go back and try another variety.

As far as myself I went with tacos which was actually a hard choice to make as the menus had so many interesting options. The wait in line didn't help much as I think I changed my mind about ten times. I think ultimately I figured you can't go wrong with unique types of tacos. As you'll see the three I picked didn't resemble each other other than served in a tortilla.

First off was the Samurai taco (per the website):fried whitefish, pickled jalapeños, lettuce, special sauce (chili Aioli), Samurai Sauce (soy based sweet sauce), lime juice, and sesame seeds. Typically don't get to eat seafood with a certain someone who shall not be shamed. So whenever I can I try to get my seafood in- not code for anything. Not really sure what my expectations were on this one but it was pretty good.

Samurai Taco

Up next was the Lamb Gyro taco: Flour tortilla, lamb gyro meat, onions, tomato, Tzatziki sauce, and cracked pepper. Pretty sure this hit the expectations right on as a mini gyro. I enjoyed it but don't really think it was anything special. 

Lamb Gyro Taco

My favorite taco of the night and possible adult entertainment name was the Mango Chutney Pork Taco. That consisted of seared shredded pork, pickled red onions, cilantro, and mango chutney. I thought it was a great balance of sweet and savory. Definitely hit the spot and would be a repeat in choices the next time I hit up Big and Little's.

Mango Chutney Pork Taco

I highly enjoyed the food there. I think going at an off time would probably have cut down on the service time and space. That being said ended up having a pretty fun conversation with a stranger. Not sure if she gave her name to us or not but she engaged in numerous topics from politics, adult performer names, dryer sheets, and Dave Chappelle's Netflix. Even though it was packed/busy was a fun atmosphere. Definitely will return here.

In case you were wondering, Jay and Silent Bob Get Old was hilarious. Food related moment was a volunteer picked for the "Let Us F*ck!" segment was a server at the Saved By The Max. In case you're not aware of that, much like Kevin Smith wasn't, it is The Max from Saved By The Bell. He got excited about it and wanted to go as did I. Will have to check out the dates/times and try and set a group adventure to it..

#FoodieAdventures,
Reef