Carrabba's

Mike and I had dinner last night at Carrabba's Italian Grill (I-25 and Woodman area). We occasionally eat there for a quick dinner - and last night was probably the best we've seen there. We started out at bar, where we didn't even have time to order drinks before our buzzer buzzed, and were lead to a very spacious booth. Our server, Chance, was most efficient - and got a kick out of us having a dog named Chance! We ordered a very nice Argentinean Malbec - along with their current appetizer special: "oven-baked blend of spinach with fontina and Gruyère cheeses,served with grilled bruschette bread for dipping" (along with the addition of crab meat). It was really, really good - a bit spicy, which really added a lot to the flavor - it was much better than the usual spinach dips. And lots of crab meat- which is great for the shark in me! I do hope they keep it on the menu. Then, Mike had the soup special (Sicilian chicken) and I had salad. Mike said the soup was very tasty - and my salad was comprised of very fresh greens and not overly dressed. I had the Pollo Rosa Maria (chicken stuffed with fontina and prosciutto, topped with mushrooms and a basil lemon butter sauce with cavatappi amatriciana) for my dinner - it was wonderful! Mike had the Linguine Pescatore (shrimp, sea scallops and mussels tossed with linguine in a spicy marinara sauce), which he said was really good - and a generous portion, too! So, with wine, salad/soup, and a couple of excellent dishes, served with skill by Chance (the waiter, not the dog) - we'd put Carrabba's on the DO AGAIN list!

King Sooper's Chicken

Okay - this really isn't a "restaurant" review - but I just picked up some chicken tenders at King Soopers deli and they are GREAT!  Mike and I get them now and then - they're all white meat with an excellent spiced-just-right coating. Add a little honey mustard - yum!

FYI - last bowling season, I bought the meat for the End of Season Pot Luck dinner. I got the fried chicken from King Soopers and everybody raved about it.  Much better than KFC!

Colorado Mountain Brewery

As I've been so lax on posting - I've decided I need to make sure I post after every MEO (Meal Eaten Out).

After our own version of "Storage Wars," Vera, Keri, Al and I stopped by the Colorado Mountain Brewery (11202 Rampart Hills View at I-25 and Interquest Parkway, by Hollywood Theaters) for a beer and bite. We've never actually eaten in the restaurant - we always head to the patio or bar. This time - the bar - it was nice and cool after being out in the sun too long. Anyway, Al and I had beers - my Blonde Ale was good - but I'm no beer expert. Keri ordered seasoned fries with cheese and sour cream, but no onions and I ordered venison egg rolls. Keri's fries, unfortunately, came with onions, so she could only pick a few that were onion-less. (She declined to send them back.) Vera, however, said they were very good - cheesy and nicely seasoned. My venison egg rolls were just a bit overdone, but not enough to spoil them. The sauces they came with are BBQ and sweet chili - and both complimented the egg rolls - but the drizzled sauce on the plate (a reduction) was actually much better with the egg rolls!

Overall - "Do again." And - maybe we'll try the restaurant one day.

Springs Orleans

Last Sunday, we went to the Springs Orleans restaurant in downtown Colorado Springs (123 East Pikes Peak) after seeing "Midnight in Paris" (which was delightful, by the way). First impressions when we walked in - great ambiance. The hostess, however, was a bit "surly" and when she seated us, she indicated a table adjacent to the kitchen. We asked to be seated at the next closer-to-the-door table and she indicated that was okay. Then, she set the menus and wine list down without another word - no "Enjoy your meal" or "Here's the menu" or "Your server will be here in a moment." While we groused a bit about that greeting, we perused the martini menu, wine list and food menus. Our server (Eric, I believe) was both friendly and personable - and we ordered a couple of Sazerac martinis (which we found we don't care for. No, the drinks were good, just not our cup of tea, if you will.). Eric returned at the proper interval and we ordered: Gorgonzola fettuccine with Buffalo shrimp for me and a bowl of the spicy gumbo for Mike. While we sipped out Sazeracs, we noticed the open brick walls, interesting artwork and table spacing (which was generous). The bar area looked spacious - and inviting!  (I'm sure we'll hit happy hour there soon.)  One thing we enjoyed was that the acoustics kept the noise level down, so it was pleasant to carry on a conversation. Our food came quickly, and it was excellent! My pasta was cooked just right and the presentation was beautiful. Mike said his gumbo was great - spiced just right - not too hot to enjoy, but hot enough to enjoy! We were very satisfied with our dinners. As a splurge, we ordered desserts - vanilla bean cheesecake with Tuaca carmel sauce and white chocolate, blueberry and pecan bread pudding with blueberry coulis . The cheesecake was simply unremarkable - good, but nothing that would set it apart. The carmel sauce was sparingly drizzled on the plate and I didn't detect any additional vanilla flavor. Mike said the same about the bread pudding - not enough "extras" to make it stand out. It tasted more like plain bread pudding. While we were commenting on this, a gentleman from the next table asked if we'd like to try the strawberry shortcake. We said yes, of course, and as I asked him what his connection to the restaurant was, he said he was the owner! (I imagine some of our comments were overheard by him.) Anyway - owner Perry Sanders - who was very enthusiastic about his shortcakes - brought us two strawberry shortcakes - which were good. Again, nothing really remarkable enough to make them stand out - although the shortbread was perfect. As we left, the "surly" hostess did in fact smile and wish us a "Good Evening." I don't know if the owner overheard our conversation about her earlier and said something. Anyway - overall - we put this on the "Do Again" list - especially for dinner - but would avoid the desserts until they pump up the flavors. And - I really can't wait to stop there for beignets and café au lait.