Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Ariba

Ariba is a company not far from Jonathan's work. However, they have a pretty nice cafeteria, so workers from several surrounding companies often go there for lunch. When Jonathan's parents were visiting, we all ate there, and I've also been one other time with Jonathan and Jim. Jonathan and Jim go there a few times a month, and generally have great experiences, though the Chicago-style pizza wasn't loved.

My own thoughts are sort of scattered. On one hand, I thought that the panini I had was delicious... the flavors of the Italian meats blended well. The accompanying salad on the side was fairly average, but nice to be included. That's what I had on my first visit. However, on my second, I just wasn't drawn to anything in particular. In fact, after walking around to all of the stations, I decided that I'd rather just wait an hour and eat at home. So that really doesn't bode well for the place, but at the same time I tend to be rather picky, so if I don't feel that anything offered is worth the price given, and I'm not super-hungry, I move on. Of course, that's not to say I won't go again... after all, that first panini was wonderful!

I did find a menu of sorts online, if you're interested.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Sushi Blvd.


We hadn't seen Cody in a while, and met up with him at Sushi Blvd., which is less than ten minutes from our house. It recently was renamed, and most people probably know it as TGI's Sushi.

There was free edamame (not sure if that's normal or if it was because Cody is a regular), though I don't like it. The miso was very salty, and neither Jonathan nor myself were big fans, though Cody likes it. I loved the salad dressing, but I was the only one whose meal included salad, so no comparison there. I had the sashimi dinner, and while the tuna was good, I found the salmon to be gummy. Jonathan had a salmon deluxe roll and a rainbow roll, enjoying both and even taking some home. We were stuffed when we left, and though Jonathan was immediately thinking about our next visit, I was a little less enthusiastic. 
my sashimi plate
 
Jonathan's rainbow roll
 
Jonathan's salmon

Monday, May 23, 2011

Sunny Buffet


Jonathan and I had lunch one day at a Chinese buffet near his work, called Sunny Buffet.

I thought it was a little pricey for lunch, especially when they're slow at filling up your water. They were pretty prompt about clearing old dishes, though. My biggest gripe would be that their setup was very difficult to maneuver. I never did find the white rice, and I had to be told twice where the dumplings were before I found them. Most of the foods on the buffet tables were labeled, but they tended to only have the names on one side rather than both, which was a bit annoying.

There was a wide variety of foods, and we both especially enjoyed the pepper chicken. Jonathan liked the chicken-on-a-stick, but I preferred the pork dim sum. The soup was pretty average, and I didn't have any of the dessert, so I can't comment on that. There was a sushi area, but the rolls weren't labeled, so I didn't bother. There was also a Mongolian grill area, but the line drove me away (not that it was long, but it was moving quite slowly).

Overall, I probably wouldn't return, but see why Jonathan and his colleagues go there every now and then!