Spaghetti Western

After a movie, we were hungry and dying for a quick bite.  All of a sudden, this place came to mind.

Everything is plain and simple, but the food is decent and the service is good.  Though, honestly, haven't been back for literally years.

While you wait, they give you this basket of garlic bread, of course, they're all too happy to keep your basket filled.  I had one for taste and had to stop myself.  Need to make room for what I'm really here for.

A good ol' bowl of spaghetti and meat sauce.  And yes, I doused the parmesan on there like there's no tomorrow.  It's basically the 3rd main character that they didn't asked for but I love to have.  I liked their sauce, it's not too watery and has enough meat.  You don't feel like they ripped you off on that.  It's like how I would make it, if I were to do it at home.  Tons of meat, enough tomato on the sauce that is not too soupy, and the consistency is good enough for my spaghetti.  Yummo.

They, of course, serve more than just spaghetti.  They have decent salad, other pasta dishes, and steak?  Yes, steak.  There's pizza, calzones, chicken, fish and tiramisu!  Like I said, the place is itchy, but the food is decent, but I really do come here for the service.  Their servers are always on top of things even when they're swamped.  You never felt rush, and they want to make sure you get what you want, and shouldn't all dining experience be that way?!

Spaghetti Western

1608 S. Shepherd Dr

Houston, TX 

713-861-1313

http://spagwesthouston.com/

Taverna

Came here for a work dinner.

They are super accommodating for large party, and that's appreciated.

To start, got the cheese and meat plate.  It has salami, prosciutto, and mortadella, with parmesan, mozzarella, and pickled veggies and flatbread.

Brushetta, good for 4 toasts and tons of tomatoes for more...

Before meal, I got a Ceasar Salad.  It came with fried anchovy.  It's ok, not awesome, but definitely fresh.

The first time I came here, the lobster was so fresh that you can smell it before it get to your table.  This time, they let the lobster bolognese sat for a bit and you can tell the sauce started to congeal and the pasta started to harden.  So sad.  Doesn't even matter that it is made with gluten free pasta.

The time before, I got the ahi tuna, and that's very fresh, but not filling.  I was hoping there's more veggies to go with it.  But still better than the lobster bolognese.

For dessert, we ordered a few to share.  I got tiramisu, truly awesome, not too much coffee, but not too sweet.

Got the Budino, mini chocolate donut holes with powdered sugar on top, you need to dip with the vanilla sauce, which is warm and just make your night.  Again, these are better shared.

Both times our service was so-so.  Not sure if the servers are green, or they just didn't have a good game plan.  We see the busser come by to check in on us more than the servers.  And sometimes the orders were crossed or dishes thought was served, wasn't.  They were not so on top of their game as we thought they were.  The chef was super nice, came out to check in on us, but then went back to cook as soon as he was done.  I think I'll stick with coming here for lunch since it's easy to park and seems like service is more attentive and food is fresher.

Taverna

4444 Westheimer Rd

Suite A-120

Houston, TX 77027

713-871-0902

http://tavernabylombardi.com/

Sushi Wabi

Yet another Mom's night out...

Dinner was at Sushi Wabi, and we were there early enough to catch Happy Hour.  Wohoo!

Got the agedashi tofu, fried tofu in shoyu soy sauce with bonito flakes, some onion flakes, and grated daikon.  YUM!

Vegetable tempura... let's be honest, I really just want the sweet potato, that's the bomb!

Wango Mango Roll, it has obviously mango, salmon and avocado inside, tobiko (caviar) and mango sauce on top.  It is pretty filling on its own.

But, my eyes are bigger than my stomach, so I got another one too.  Geisha Roll, which has kani (crab), avocado, spicy salmon and eel sauce.

I like this mom and pop shop.  They made sure we were taken care of even it was semi large group.  They also stop by before the 7pm cut off for Happy Hour to make sure we get anything we needed.  Good food, good service, can't ask for more.  Happy Hour: Monday - Friday 3-7pm, Weekends 3-6pm.

Sushi Wabi

3953 Richmond Ave

Houston, TX 77027

713-623-8818

http://www.sushiwabihouston.com/index.html

Le Colonial

Went to Le Colonial for dinner with a friend... 

This time I got smart and park at the garage instead of paying $9 for valet after 6pm.  

I got a Mocktail of Spring (Mua Xuan) which has blueberries, lemon juice, Sprite, mint.  And my friend got a Saketini.  Very refreshing at these hot during the day, cool during the night's dinners.

This is Ca Tim Nuong, which is Japanese eggplant with basil lime fish sauce.  It was actually quite delicious.  I do recommend that.

This is the monkfish with various herbs.  It's not bad but not off the chart either.  I wish the chunks of monkfish were bigger instead of the small size.  As you know, it just leads to disasters everywhere.

We also got the Ca Song, which is Ahi Tuna, tomato, seaweed, cucumber on top of Taro Chip.  I don't mind the Taro chips, but again it's not anything superb that I have to come back for.  I like that it's a great tapas but not enough to fill you up.

This is the Goi Du Du, which is a green papaya salad, with carrot, lime dressing.  Again, nothing to write home about.

For dessert, the Pineapple Flambee caught our eyes, so we decided to try it.  So, it's pretty, but taste doesn't quite match.  It is essentially a slice of pineapple, which is nice and sweet.  Also watery.  Instead of really flambé per the name, it really is brûlée-d.  They added a layer of sugar on top and torched.  What you can't see very well, is that the pineapple is surrounded by cream and ice cream in the center.  

Well, here in lies the problem.  Your pineapple is already naturally sweet, and you add a layer of sugar, so I felt like I ate a mouthful of sugar, and mind you I've got a sweet tooth.  Then, the water started to seep out to the cream on the side, and it became this weird mix of mess.  Now the coconut passionfruit ice cream in the center is good.  As a matter of fact, both of us were fighting over it.  But, really it's a waste of $9.

Like a few of the restaurants in the complex, you're really there to people watch more than their food.  And sadly, with awesome decor they have here, this is exactly the case.  The bar is upstairs, and it is where the seen or be seen crowd congregate, which sadly drives the standard of the food down.  I highly expect that food in this complex should have the food to match the price point and view.  For crying out loud, my view was Harry Winston's awning.  Our server's belt is from Ferragamo, so the food needs to match the picture.  I've had better faux Vietnamese food in hole in the walls in fraction of the price.  But now I know.

Le Colonial

4444 Westheimer Rd

Houston, TX 77027

713-629-4444

http://www.lecolonialhouston.com

Amorino

Had dinner over by River Oaks District, and have been seeing these beautiful gelato cones on Instagram.

It's at Amorino next to iPic in the shopping center.  Small store front, needs to keep your eyes peeled.

They have various gelato and sorbeto, too many to choose from.  They also have unique flavors that you don't see everywhere to.  Of course, taste testing is our favorite part.

I got the 'small' cone, for $5.50, it's just right for one person.  The next size up, has another layer of petals and they have you a mini cone on top.  The large size has yet another layer of petals and a macaron in the middle.  You really need to share that one.

Final product!  Ta da!  The manager said you can have as many flavor as you want, from what I can tell the max is 6 flavors, one per petal and center.  That said, I find that for this size, 3 is just right.  Maybe 4/5 for the next size up.  But it sure is pretty

Amorino

4444 Westheimer Rd

Unit C150

Houston, TX 77027

http://www.amorino.com/us/shop/houston.205.html

Pronto

Ran in for a quick lunch at Pronto.

My favorite go to dish: Rigatoni Pomodoro.  I just love the fullness of their pomodoro sauce and while I do douse it with a lot of cheese, it is just a thing of beauty.  They do have gluten free version, just keep in mind that it takes a tad longer.  Unlike their non-gluten counter part that they've got them pretty much made and ready to go, they don't get too many gluten free request to keep them on hand.  So, take a little bit, but worth the wait.  (Don't ask me why they gave me bread with my gluten free pasta).

Even though I live right down the street from one, I don't usually go there.  Not that I don't like them, just that they're always packed.  So, the best time to go is between meal times on the weekends.  Once you're in, you're getting good food fast, can't wait for the weather to get warmer so I can enjoy their soup.  YUM!

Pronto Cucino

3191 W. Buffalo Speedway

Houston, TX 77025

713-592-8646

http://pronto-2-go.com

MF Sushi

Finally made it to the anticipated MF Sushi.  Been meaning to go try them since they moved, just haven't got the time.

Last time I was there, was at the location.  The reincarnation is 100 times nicer than the previous dig.

Beautiful sushi bar, where the chefs 'refrigeration' is embedded at the counter.

Got me an iced green tea to start.

This is the Madai appetizer, it was super fresh.  They had used some oil to 'enhanced' the flavor, but to me, it was hindering since the fish is already doing a good job.  No need to mask it if it's not necessary.

This is the Ankimo, which is monk fish liver.  

Side view, so you can see the pretty creation.  To me, it's very much like pate, which is not saying a lot.  I was impressed with the presentation of it.

This is the Kaki Fry, which was recommended by our server.  And boy, was she right.  It was delicious, the little chunks were oysters and they were so yummy.  Not to mention juicy.  I highly recommend getting that.  It was so impressive that the people sitting at the bar were asking what it was.

Salmon tatami, as per Yelpers' recommendation.

Side view, it's not bad, but too spicy for my taste.

Got the waygu beef roll.  I'm one of those people that if you put the word waygu on it, I'm going to have to find out if it's any decent.  Even at the risk of having a dud.  So, this is no dud, it does taste good, but I was hoping for more taste out of it.  Not sure if that makes sense, like I know it can taste even fuller, but it was just not there.

Grilled Japanese Egglpant.  Yes, they bring you the grill too.  Sadly, this was the best dish of the night.  The sauce and the eggplant went to well it was licking worthy.  Good thing I didn't, because it's a real fire under there.

Ordered the sushi sampler, figured what the heck.  They put way too much truffle oil on the salmon when they don't need to.  After eating it, I felt like I need to get a paper towel to soak up the oil, it was that much.  The rest of the sushi wasn't any fresher than the ones you get a the mom and pop shop.  That was very disappointing.

Got the chopped scallop, asked for mild but it was pretty darn spicy.  Didn't even have the heart to finish it.

Madai sushi, which was ok.

It's sad that with the skilled chefs they boasts that they have, the quality of fish was just so-so.  I could get that quality at any given spot, no need to come here for it.  I also asked for uni (sea urchin), it was reserved for omakase only, not sure if that's the normal practice or you do have to call in advance to get some, but supposedly the ones they have are pretty fresh.  Too bad, won't know.

They also don't have any dessert, per se.  They have mochis, but let's face it, it's none other than the ones you get from the grocery store and cut them in half and sell them to me.  That was disappointing.  Overall, the trip wasn't as great as after I ate at Uchi or Kuu.  As much hype as they have, I was hoping for more, like my first trip at MF back at the old location. But, guess you can't win them all.

Don't just walk in and expect a table, call in advance and make a reservation.  That said, their tables are packed together pretty tight.  We were able to hear the entire conversation at the table next to us, which were having a very awkward first date that the guy didn't realize towards the end that he wasn't going to have any action.  It was interesting entertainment, but very intimate.

MF Sushi

1401 Binz St

Houston, TX 77004

713-637-4587

http://mfsushiusa.com

Sabai Thai Cafe

I was craving Mango Rice, so to a Thai place we went!

Didn't realized, but I actually haven't been back to Sabai for 2years.  I actually was very surprised because I was thinking it was not too long ago.  Wow, where did the time go?

We got the Crispy Rolls, very much similar to the Vietnamese Rolls but skinnier.

We got Garlic stir fry vegetable.

Beef Pad Thai, very unusual that the peanuts and sprouts are on the side in case you don't want any.  But tasted pretty good.

Ahh, the whole reason why we were there.  The Mango Rice.  The sticky rice is sweet because it's cooked with coconut milk and they do serve with it too.  This round I swear is sweeter than I remembered them to be last time.  The mango was fresh, given that it's tail end of the season.  Overall, it's sweeter than I wanted, and I can take pretty sweet.  So, that tells you that this is pretty darn sweet.

Sabai Thai

2705 Town Center Blvd

Sugar Land, TX 77479

281-325-1007

http://www.sabaithaicafe.com/

Cloud 10

Went to grab some ice cream after dinner...

What you can see here is Cafe Su Da, but at the bottom is Toasted Rice.  I like toasted rice because there's this weird feeling that you know it is toasted rice, but its' sweet.  Not too sweet, but it has that sweetness to it.  Not to mention, when you mix something strong like Cafe Su Da (basically coffee but fancier with condensed milk flavor) with Toasted Rice, it is somehow enhanced.  I'm not adjectives to describe it, but you just have to try the mix of the two. Something unexpectedly delicious comes out. 

Cloud 10

5216 Morningside

Houston, TX 77005

713-434-6129

http://www.cloud10creamery.com/

Tau Bay

Haven't been to Tau Bay forever... not that I don't want to, just don't go to the shopping center as often as I used to.

This one is by 59 and Beechnut, also not a usual spot for me, but if you want something yummy, gotta go.  Plus, I never knew there's a dance club right next door, must get awesome business at night.

We started out with the little egg rolls.  You wrap them with the lettuce leaves and then you dip in the fish sauce to moisten it up, and it's super delicious. 

Then I got the grilled pork with vermicelli.  Since I got the egg roll, I mix them into my dish too.  Awesomeness.  Very simple yet delicious.

This space is huge, so if you want to bring a big party here, they can definitely accommodate.  As a matter of fact, while we were there, it was 'busy' but all the people only took up half of the restaurant.  So, feel free to meet friends here.  Plus, the owner and staff are super friendly with kids, I highly recommend them.

Tau Bay

8150 Southwest Freeway #T

Houston, TX 77074

713-771-8485