Monday Munchies

Monday Munchies: Bamboozle Cafe- Tampa, FL

June 20, 2016

As part of my Monday Munchies series, I will feature a different eatery for a review on the third Monday of every month. Hope you enjoy!

Bamboozle Cafe is one of my favorite lunch time spots to give me a chance to escape the clutches of my desk and have a great lunch. I am additcted.

I first visited Bamboozle when I interviewed in Tampa last September. I needed a place to grab lunch and was encouraged to check it out as it’s a local favorite. As soon as I dug into my Tofu topped Noodle Salad, I was hooked and have been a fan since.

My favorite dish is the Noodle Salad. It’s a ginormous salad that is packed with green leaf lettuce, Vermicelli noodles, thinly sliced cucumber, pickled daikon & carrots, fresh mint, bean sprouts, crushed roasted peanuts, roasted shallots and a side of our zesty chili dressing. All of that together is amazing with the different flavors and textures.

The zesty chili dressing is s packed with flavor. It has fish sauce (no vegan!) so it has a nice salty umami flavor profile to it.

I typically get the salad with their lemongrass tofu or their lemongrass beef. I love the lemongrass marinade. I swear I would eat a shoe if it had that on there. Okay, I wouldn’t but you get the point.

The Cafe Salad is just as good as the Noodle Salad, but a bit lighter and with some flexibility. You get to select 3 of their freshly prepared veggies to add to bed of green leaf lettuce, cucumber, carrot match sticks.

Personally, I suggest getting some fruit like mango in there to have some contrast in flavors in there.

If you love super fresh, delicious, large Fresh Rolls, then you have come to the right place. I swear that that they are all so good.

They have several rolls that you can just pick from, like their BBQ Pork that is stuffed with picked daikon and carrots, cucumber, red bell peppers, and fresh cilantro. Or their Lemongrass Beef that is accompanied with red bell peppers, cucumbers, jicama, and roasted shallots that is served with a soy sauce vinaigrette.

Or you can just pick your protein and pick whatever 4 veggies you want to add to your roll. When you have options likes mango, jacama, Thai basil, pineapple, and chives, and cucumbers, the possibilities are endless!!

All of their rolls are served with various dipping sauces like their zesty dressing and peanut sauce. So good.

Don’t feel like a salad? Then get a Banh Mi Sandwich!

Banh Mi’s are a classic Vietamese sandwich that is served on a toasted baguette. That bread is slathered with mayo and topped with green leaf lettuce, cucumbers, pickled daikon & carrots, jalapeno, cilantro. Traditionally it is served with pate, which they offer, but you can get it with tofu, beef, chicken (pictured), or pork.

I am always so amazing with how fill the sandwiches are packed! I think it would be great to shared a Banh Mi with sides of soup or srring rolls with a friend.

There are a few sides that you can get to that are great to accompany your meals, if you have room. Both the Baked Vegan Spring roll and the Baked Chicken Spring roll are great. I love how they are so crisp even though they are baked. They have a great crunch to them.

I swear, no matter what you get you will love stopping in to dine in the dark, mellow restaurant, or at the outdoor seating

Their Pho Soup Boat is one of the most comforting soup I have ever had.

How can you resist a warm, soup that is has a broth that is made from slowly simmering star anise, cloves, and other spices for hours? That is then packed full of the protein of your choice, rice noodles, thinly sliced red onions, and cilantro, with bean sprouts, a lime wedge, slices of jalapenos, and basil on the side. And don’t forget the hoisin & sriracha sauce!

Like the other dishes you can enjoy this with Chicken, Beef, or Tofu. My favorite is the tofu as I love the texture and flavor of it. The tofu version is vegetarian and vegan. There are so many vegetarian and vegan options for people!

Please try to say Pho correctly. I know it’s tricky since you want to say it like Faux but imagine you are about to swear F!$& but don’t say the CK at the end. Got it!?

If you happen to want to add some heat to your dishes, then try out the different sauces they have to offer. I love a lot of heat so I will add so much that sometimes I will actually sweat from it. The heat is addicting.

If you are looking for something great to eat in Downtown Tampa, then check out Bamboozle Cafe. And be sure to let me know so I can meet you there since I will never turn down a chance to eat there. YUM!

Bamboozle Cafe

516 N Tampa St

Tampa, FL 33602

(813) 223-7320

Monday Munchies: Fat Heads BBQ Stand

May 16, 2016

As part of my Monday Munchies series, I will feature a different eatery for a review on the third Monday of every month. Hope you enjoy!

I believe that you can get some really great food at road side stands. The food has to be good to keep people coming back since there really is no service or decor to help keep people coming back. When you drive by a stand and see people laying food out on the roof of their car and chowing down right there, you know it’s good.

Thankfully, there are plenty of road side stands near where we have moved to here in Florida. They dot the side of the road and are stationed in dusty parking lots.

My current fav is just a few miles away from us. Yes!

Besides the food itself, the thing that I love the most about Fat Heads BBQ Stand is that it is so fresh. They make your order when you order it. No, you don’t chill out in a plastic chair next to the smoke for hours waiting for your pulled pork to smoke, but they make everything to order. It’s take out but it’s not exactly quick, but I appreciate that.

Meaning, they cut the ribs, quarter the chicken, scoop the sides all the order. It’s not just hanging out there for you, it’s made for you with your order. So good.

The father and son duo that run it are so nice and talented. Stan Sr. and Stan Jr have been running the stand for over 5 years but have many combined years of experience of making great food.

I have tried it all and let me tell you everything is wonderful. Just wonderful!!

When ordering the pulled pork, you are asked if you want the sandwich wet (sauce mixed in) or dry and what bbq sauce you want, mild or spicy. I personally prefer it wet with mild sauce. The hot BBQ sauce is good but it’s very spicy. Proceed with caution if you don’t like things that spicy.

Just look at that smoke ring!!!

Their beef brisket is also so wonderful. I love the smokey flavor and the tender texture of the thin sliced brisket.

I think that everything is a great value, but their Family Value Dinners are the best option when you want to try a bunch of things, have a bunch of leftovers, or actually share with your family and friends. There are 2 options, the Fat Head sampler for $23, which ended up being 4 servings for us so that was a great value. The larger Dinner Meal for 4 for $40 which is very generous so be ready for some leftovers for lunch or your midnight snack.

The cornbread is not included in the samplers, but order it… it’s good.

As well, ask for buns when you get the sampler for the pulled pork so that you can make sandwiches.

I’ve enjoyed all the sides we have tried from our various visits. The collards and beans are my favorite. I love collards and enjoyed the sweet tang in their collards. My daughter likes the mac and cheese, which I thought was a little dry one time, but great the other times. I am picky about potato salad but I really liked their’s.

Be sure to stop by Fat Heads BBQ Stand when you have a chance. The quick 25 minutes drive south from Tampa is worth it. I swear!

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Fat Heads BBQ Stand

5813 N US Highway 41 (at the intersection of Big Bend Road)

Apollo Beach, FL 33572

Saturday and Sunday 11-7pm

813.731.5256

Catering available, accepts Debit/CC

Monday Munchies: KO Catering and Pies

March 21, 2016

As part of my Monday Munchies series, I will feature a different eatery for a review on the third Monday of every month. Hope you enjoy!

I had taken a winter break from my Monday Munchies series since it was just too dang cold out to go out. Just kidding. Well, sorta. It was cold, but the holidays are crazy and then from there we went into ‘moving mode’ and things got even crazier. But I’m back today and I have a great place to share with you.

Now, people typically think of Shrimp on the Barbie, ginormous steaks, and vegemite when they think of Australian food, but KO Catering and Pies educates Bostonians on what Australian comfort food is all about.

Since opening their first location in South Boston in October of 2010, they have selling out of meat pies left and right. Thankfully, I learned of the hole in the wall storefront soon after they opened so I have been a long time fan. At that point I was a decent 30+ minute drive to there from our house so I was fully committed when I would drive over to stock up on warm and frozen pies and sausage rolls.

They opened a second location along the East Boston waterfront in the summer of 2012 which has a fantastic outdoor seating area that is packed during the summer. You just can’t beat hanging out with friends while drinking great beers, eating Aussie Pies, and playing corn hole.

Their signature dish are their Meat Pies, the unofficial national dish of Australia and it’s part of the national identity of New Zealand.

A meat pie typically is a hand-held take-away dish that consists of a meat filled pie that has a pastry crust on the bottom and a puff pastry crust on top. Most often it is topped off with some ketchup prior to enjoying.

KO serves several pies, including Classic Beef ($6.35), Beef with Cheese ($6.60), Curried Vegetable ($6.00), Irish beef stew ($6.85) and Braised Lamb Shank ($6.95), and a Pie of the Month ($TBD). All of which are fantastic and have such great different qualities about each of them from their flavors to their textures of the different kinds of tender meat and vegetables.

The crew at K.O. often hosts pie throw-downs when they invite local innovative, creative chefs to create pies that are signature of their restaurants to battle it out to get fun bragging rights and get featured at KO.

You can also get a Pie Floater, which is any of their pies that is topped off with a scoop of mashed potatoes, gravy and mushy peas for and additional $6.50. It’s their awesome spin on the traditional pie floater that actually is a pie ‘floating’ in a bowl of pea soup.

It’s very important to note that there is a proper way to Eat a Pie, which they so helpfully (and playfully) diagram out for meat pie newbies!

You can pair their pies with their potato wedges ($6.50). The crisp wedges are seasoned right out of the fryer and are served hot with a Sweet Chili Sauce & Sour Cream. I can’t resist getting these. The only issue now is that my daughter loves them as well so we have to share with her as well… ha!

My husband enjoys their sandwiches most often. He worked near by for about a year at a satellite office for a project and went there quite often for lunch either by himself or with a group.

Like with their pies, they have a variety of sandwiches from burgers to chicken sandwiches to fish sandwiches. Everything is made to order and is really fresh and flavorful starting with fresh breads that cap off marinated meats that are topped off with zesty sauces.

The only sort of crummy situation is that their sandwiches change every now and then and I had to hear bummed my husband was when they changed out the chicken sandwich that he fell in love with.

I highly suggest grabbing a sausage roll ($3.75) when you are ready to cozy up under a blanket and watch a good movie. Or to take to the nearby park to nosh on while you watch your kid run around. Or take it along with you for a beach picnic, just like Australians do.

I love that KO brings everyone together around great quality food. Our 2 year old daughter is a big fan of their meat pies as they are easy to eat with a fork (or her hands!), not too spicy, and at just plain ol’ delicious.

While the meat pies are awesome there, my absolute favorite thing to order their Spicy Shrimp on the Barbie entree($13). It’s a loaded rice and salad plate that is topped off with grilled shrimp. They provide a generous serving of 6 of very spicy Chermoula marinated shrimp that are grilled to perfection. In all, I love the fresh combination of the flavors and textures from the sweet corn and grape tomatoes, salty crumbled feta, crunchy cucumbers, and zesty lime.

It should be noted that things can add up quickly here, but I have found that most times I take things home or I will skip dinner after a filling lunch. But it can definitely sing our wallet when you go out for lunch and drop $30 on 2 pies, potato wedges, and drinks, but without a doubt the quality is top notch. It’s not like you’re just grabbing some fast food burger and fries.

But don’t forget to leave room for dessert!

They have Lamingtons ($3) and Anzac Biscuit Cookies ($2) for dessert giving you the true experience of the land down under.

I highly suggest checking out KO Catering and Pies for your next lunch out, office luncheon, or party. From take-out to catering, you can’t go wrong with fantastic hearty meat pies, fresh salads, and sausage rolls.

I’m quite serious when I suggest KO, I made a point of going as often as I could and even went the last weekend in Boston to get one last pie fix before heading to Florida. Love it!

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KO Catering and Pies at the Shipyard

Boston Harbor Shipyard

256 Marginal St | Building 16

East Boston, MA 02128

617.418.5234

KO Catering and Pies- South Boston

87 A Street

South Boston, MA 02127

617.269.4500

Monday Munchies: Dinner at Joe’s- Fall Feasting at Not Your Average Joe’s

November 16, 2015

As part of my Monday Munchies series, I will feature a different eatery for a review on the third Monday of every month. Hope you enjoy!

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I’ll never forget my first time.

Nope, I’ll never forget my first time ripping that piece of focaccia bread in half, taking it and swirling it into the cheesy olive oil dip, and taking a big bite of that spongy bread that absorbed that earthy, rich oil.

When I was younger, I tagged along with my dad once from CT to MA on a work trip. We needed a dinner spot so we went to Not Your Average Joe’s. That night started my love with NYAJ’s and their infamous bread.

I recently had the fun opportunity to visit the new Waltham, MA, that opened just a few months ago, for great blogger dinner. They invited local bloggers to check out the new location and the new seasonal menu.

They used to have weekly specials but have not refocused their menu to have seasonal specials that compliment their menu staples. This way diners can try more options throughout their visits in the season.

Besides their new menu approach, they are creating a new look a feel to their restaurants that feature different table styles- booths, tables, communal dining tables, and high-tops. Plus, they have elongated their bar. But don’t worry, it’s not s sports bar! They have TV’s so you can check the score, but it’s not about that. They really want the emphasis on the dining experience to be about your food, drink, and company.

Our night started out at the bar where we gathered as a group to meet new friends and to catch up with old blogging buddies, like Erica, who I went to a New Kids on The Block concert with this summer!

I enjoyed their Cucumber Mule ($8.99) that features hanson hand-made organic cucumber vodka, elderflower liqueur, fever tree ginger beer, and muddled limes. It’s served in the classic coppper mug. I loved it so much that I had another at diner!

Unfortunately, it had rained the night of the event so we didn’t get to enjoy their fire pit. But I swear I am going back one day to hang by the fire pit to sip on a cocktail while snuggling under one of their flannel blankets for guests to use.

While I always appreciate the work that goes into creating a great menu, but I love to check out restaurants for their use of design elements, as I am a designer. Shoot, I’m currently working on a project that uses the blue glass pendant that is hanging over their bread prep station, pictured above. So fun!

We then headed into the kitchen to meet some of the kitchen staff and to see them in action preparing the food from french fries to their flatbreads to grilled chicken.

Our family style dinner started with Deviled Eggs, Mango Shrimp Rolls, Buffalo Caribbean Chicken Tenders, and Butternut Squash Flatbread.

I skipped the Deviled Eggs as I am not a fan of them in general and there was plenty of other starters to choose from.

The mango shrimp rolls were a lot of fun. I felt they could have used a bit more mint and cilantro in the roll as they were pretty mellow, besides the mango, on their own. With the sauce, they were great, but I would have preferred a bit more zing from the fresh herbs.

Butternut Squash Flatbread ($9.99) was a perfect seasonal dish that featured rich autumnal flavors from the squash to sage to brussels sprouts.

To me, this would be a great dish to share with a group while you enjoy their Harvest Sangria or a Bourbon Smash, or any of their other drinks from their drinks menu.

Besides having an inventive cocktail menu, they have 20 beers on tap that feature Massachusetts-made”Backyard Brews”, and an extensive selection of award-winning wines that you can order by the glass.

The Spaghetti Squash Bolognese ($15.50) is one of their Seasonal Selections that was naturally vegetarian, but was so hearty that you didn’t even ‘mind’ it. The bolognese was meat free, but had substance from a variety of mushrooms. All of that was topped with sauteed spinach and freshly grated Parmesan. A perfect 10 for vegetarians and meat eaters alike.

Super Crunch Salad ($14.99) is another great vegetable based dish. It is served with chopped grilled chicken, which can simply be omitted for a vegetarian version. Most importantly, enjoy the crunch. It’s a great crunchy salad that features quinoa, apples, pistachios, and more with an orange-sesame dressing.

Cranberry-Teriyaki Roasted Chicken ($16.50/$14.50) with butternut squash and ricotta filled cannelloni was another well received dish of the night. As we had a vegetarian diner with us, we received the vegetarian version that omits the chicken, plus you get another cannelloni. I enjoyed the flavors, but I loved the substance of the dish as well. So filling and comforting.

Besides the bread being infamous at NYAJ’s, their Mustard-Crusted Chicken ($14.99) has been a long time staple. It’s a simple chicken dish, but executed really well. Sometimes you just can’t beat thin breaded chicken cutlets that you can dip into a lemony aioli. One might argue that it’s pretty plain but I think it’s a great comfort dish as it’s served with mashed potatoes and green beans.

Rosemary Skewered Scallops ($24.99) was my favorite dish of the night. Hands down favorite. I almost didn’t want to share and skip the rest of the other dinner entrees we could enjoy. I loved the sear on the scallops and the israeli couscous salad it was served with. I couldn’t get enough of the textures and flavors. It was a perfect combination of everything from the earthy rosemary to the insanely fresh vegetables in the salad.

Admittedly, I didn’t even try the new Vietnamese Salmon ($19.50) as I don’t love salmon and I was so freaking full already with all the bread and delicious entrees, and I was really trying hard to save a bit of room for upcoming dessert.

Dessert was a real treat as we were presented with 3 wonderful options.

‘Joe’ is known for the Peanut Butter Thing ($7.99) which is an ice cream pie dessert. If you love peanut butter and chocolate that I et you will love this dessert. You won’t be able to resist the peanut butter and chocolate chunks that are folded into vanilla ice cream that is then rolled in Oreo Cookie crumbs. Plus, it’s then finished off at your table by your server as they drizzle hot chocolate and caramel sauces over it. Hot Damn.

I had never had this before has I always, always fill up on bread at the start of the meal so we always skip dessert, but I was really impressed with it so I’ll really try to resist the carb loading at the start of the meal to make it to dessert. Maybe. Hopefully…

Goji Berry Apple Crisp ($7.50) that was served with ice cream was a fantastic dessert to feature classic fall flavors and ingredients. I thought it was fantastic and fun with the goji berries.

Wrapping things up was their Gluten-Free Carrot Cake ($7.50). The real kicker was that gluten free, but you honestly would never had guessed that as it was so incredibly moist. I have had plenty of gluten free desserts so I have had plenty of dry desserts, but this was awesome. It was incredibly sweet from the cream cheese frosting, but I feel that is signature of carrot cake in general.

So it should be no surprise that I loved this dinner. Duh.

I went home satisfied from a great dinner and from great company of other bloggers and the great folks from Not Your average Joe’s.

I highly suggest taking a night out to visit your local Not Your Average Joe’s in Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Virginia. Or watch your favorite football team there while you enjoy one of their great deals. It’s always a great time at Joe’s!

Not Your Average Joe’s– Waltham

56 Market Place Drive

Waltham, MA 02451

781.966..5637

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While my meal at Not Your Average Joe’s was part of a local blogger event, all opinions are completely my own.

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WIN at $50 Not Your Average Joe’s Giftcard!
Gotta have their infamous bread and Peanut Butter Thing dessert!

ENTER HERE!!!!

Monday Munchies: Tasty Burger Food Truck

August 17, 2015

I love Tasty Burger!

I love food trucks!

Tasty Burger Food Truck = LOVE! LOVE!! LOVE!!!

Tasty Burger is a Boston area burger joint that has damn good burgers. They have juicy, flavorful, hearty burgers that are paired so perfectly well with fries, onion rings, or their tots. Or skip the burger and grab a chicken sandwich or hot dog. No matter, it will be wonderful. A cold beer washing it all down doesn’t hurt either. It’s just that kind of place with that kind of food.

They have 5 locations in Boston and Cambridge, in neighborhoods like Fenway, Back Bay, and Harvard Square. Each location is great. Their Fenway location, which we frequent most often, was an old gas station that was reworked and redesigned so it went from changing oil to frying in oil.

But what happens if you work downtown and you start craving a burger? Well, have no fear! They have a food truck that you can visit or even rent out for events. Cool!

Thankfully, the truck stops at City Hall plaza on Thursdays. So just a short walk and I am in burger nirvana! Sometimes Price and I have burger lunch dates so we can split tots ($6+) and a drink ($2.75) while we munch on burgers. The City has new summertime seating which makes kicking back for lunch a real treat.

On a recent trip, Price had the Bacon Cheeseburger ($5.85), that he thought was a great combination of a perfectly cooked burger (medium is standard) with salty, crunchy bacon, and fresh lettuce and tomato.

Tasty Burger prides itself on the products they produce and sell as they strive to source their ingredients from the best places. They create 1/3 pounds burger patties from steers that eat a “100-percent vegetarian grass and grain diet.” They visit the pastures where the cows are grass fed, purchase their hot dogs from local butchers, and get their buns from local bakers. They are hands on with sourcing their products and produce and in the end the quality shines through.

They have the best eco-friendly packaging for their burgers. I love peeling back to wrapper to reveal the burger.

I love their Spicy Jalapeno ($5.75). It has just the right amount of kick with burger that is topped off with a spicy cheese sauce and then roasted jalapenos.

Besides their delicious burgers, they also serve vegan & gluten free veggie burgers ($5.75), Fenway Park Sausages ($6), bowls of chili ($3.95+) that you can load up with toppings. And lastly, they have 1/4 pound hot dogs ($3.95) that can get piled high with toppings like bacon, chili, sauerkraut, or their cheese sauces. Such epic food.

I’ll be honest, their lunch can set you back pretty well as their burgers average $5 and then a plain tot is $6 and a soda is ($1.75 or $2.75). And if you get loaded tots it is now $9, but that is exactly why Price and I make this our special lunch date. Great large portions to share and it saves on getting a sitter!!

Grab a friend, grab a chair, and grab some Tasty Burger for a great lunch. Then head back to work with a naughty food coma! ha!

Be sure to try the Official Burger of the Boston Red Sox’s at one of their food truck stops or at one of their 5 brick and mortar locations, which has much more elaborate menus that include chicken sandwiches, the most addicted thinly sliced onion rings, and brain freeze inducing milkshakes.