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Posting From the Monsoons of South India! Calling all Tumblrs!

It gives us great pleasure to take The Supper Club to the ultimate level of awesomeness in terms of food blogs, with a post from across the world in the Monsoon stricken jungles of South India! Anthony Bourdain's got nothing on us..

Let me paint you a picture. Start with a blank white canvas in your mind. Imagine a dirt road, distorted with hundreds of potholes. Imagine small cars flying by each other, without regard to driving lanes or pedestrians. Imagine a sidewalk of wet mud impossible to maneuver through, but imagine small children in school uniforms trying to do so. Imagine a jungle encompassing both sides of this busy street, with stray cows and bulls roaming nearby. Imagine the hardest rainfall you've ever witnessed, and now multiply that magnitude by 100. Welcome to South India...

It's finally time to leave the hospital. It's 5:00pm. It's pouring rain. We are in our black rainboots, and our umbrellas are open. We are ready to engage mother nature. We step out. We pass scurrying medical students in short sleeve white coats trying to get to class dry. Beneath the white coats we can make out bits and pieces of the beautiful, colorful Sari dress worn by the female students. People stare at us. We are used to it now. Outside the hospital's gates a 3-wheeled rickshaw(indian taxi) is ready to take us home. We hurry inside, and close the drapes to shield us from the rain and the puddled roads. The ride home is bouncy, like a roller coaster. We like it. We appreciate it. It is different.

Within 10 minutes we are at home's gates. We thank the driver, and he drives off with a big smile on his face - he can tell his friends he drove a white man home. Ajji and doddamma are outside waiting to greet us. "Namaste" we say, touching our chest with our hands with the utmost respect. We take off our muddy rainboots, open our umbrellas and leave them to dry, and walk into the house. A cocktail of smells are brewing in the kitchen. Snack time! Horlicks is made, and chakuli is spread about the table. Horlicks is a popular hot drink made by mixing a sweet powder with hot milk. It is delicious! Another popular hot drink used at snack time is Bourn Vita, which resembles our hot chocolate drink. Chakuli is a coiled and curled hard dough snack, that can be made with all sorts of tasty foods like spinach and jackfruit. Buns is another popular snack. It is a hot bread made from small Indian bananas, many of which are picked fresh from farms.

We eat and drink our delicious snacks, and Ajji and doddamma watch us intently, offering more when they see our plates becoming clean. We talk about the hospital work, in both English and Kannada, as we fill our stomachs for the third time that day.

Breakfast is our first feast of the day. We wake up to fresh-made dosas, which are Indian pancakes, made with a batter that is prepared with fresh foods picked from the thota (farm). The dosas are accompanied with a red chutney blended from fresh coconut and red peppers as well as a drop of the purest honey you could ever imagine. We eat with our right hands only, breaking off pieces of the dosa and using it to scoop up the chutney and honey. Marvelous start to any day. Sometimes we have an idli instead of dosas, which are essentially rice patties that are broken off piece by piece and dipped into a sauce. They can be made with Jackfruit, in which case it is really sweet. An Oonday, which is a rice ball, is another popular breakfast. For drinks, cold water is hard to come by, and Indian coffee really serves as the morning drink. It is incredibly sweet compared to the American version.(dosa and coriander chutney) (jackfruit idli, green chutney, and an oonday)

Lunch is our next feast of the day. The meal consists of rice on top of which different foods can be served such as saru, gussi, sambar, pallya, mellara. These are brews of freshly picked vegetables and spices that are poured over the rice and mixed well. Many of these foods are incredibly healthy, containing a variety of vitamins and minerals. In fact, ayurvedic medicine was founded after generations of families began to realize the medicinal properties of many of their homegrown vegetables and fruits. Lunch is usually finished with anna, masaru, and oopinkhy. It is a mix of rice, cow's milk, and a pickled and spicy mango that cools the palate down after a hot meal. It is fantastic! On lucky occassions, we may finish with paisa, which is a sweet soup concoction made of noodles, wheat or jackfruit, and usually served with nuts and raisins. Fantastic! (vegetable sambar)  (breadfruit sambar, bajji, musaru, and rice)  (sweet piasa!)

We finish our snacks, and decide to take a cold shower to escape the heat. The shower consists of a bucket of water and scooper. There is no showerhead. We dump the water on our heads, wash our bodies with soap, and then dump the water onto our heads to wash the soap off. Simple as that. No pressurized water. No massage.

We dry off, and put on our Kumbais, which are fabrics worn by males to cover the lower body. Shorts aren't worn. Pants aren't worn. We sit under the fan, watch a movie, do some work, label pictures, entertain visitors, listen to the rain, and relax. Basic food ingrediants are needed by Ajji and Doddama, so we take a rickshaw into town with them to the supermarket.

It is 8:30pm. We are back at the house, and it is time for dinner. Chapatis, which are wheat flatbreads, are served with the foods that were made for lunch. Food is never wasted, and whatever isn't finished during lunch is eaten for dinner because limited refrigerator space makes storage difficult. A piece of the chapati is broken off and used to scoop the food. Cold water is taken out of the fridge. Nice! We finish off the meal with some cool mango. Fun fact is that mango is the national fruit of India, and there are over 15 varieties of the fruit. We've had about 6 or 7 since we've been here, and plan on getting our hands on more. At last, we take some chocolate that Vidyamava bought for us out of the fridge, break off a piece, chew, and swallow. The day's feasts are done.

We sit down under the fan, let our food digest, and then go off to bed. The fan is turned on, our beds are checked for bugs, the mosquito repellent GoodKnight is plugged in, and the lights are turned off.

Grades:

Food A+

Ambiance A+

Service A+

KU and Sam sign out with emotion,

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Dinosaur Meat

hello hello hello. the countdown is officially ON! we are now looking at 2 -- count em, 2 -- weeks until we become M2's. that's craazzzzyyyy (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hh5ZdQrz4Qk&feature=related). (btw, is it just me, or is cee-lo a freaky looking man-child? kind of austin powers meets mike tyson? anyone?) 

with only a few more SC outings remaining, the team knew it'd be remiss if it went a whole year without dining at one of rochester's most famous restaurants, namely dinosaur bbq. as a huge endorser of sticky lips, the SC wanted to see how its rival compared. in reality, though, dinosaur bbq is the more well-known commodity. well before its appearance on man vs food, this joint firmly established upstate ny as a legitimate bbq hub, as weird as that may sound (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2nyutMepaw). its menu includes all the trappings of a southern establishment, offering choices like pork shoulder, beef brisket, st. louis cut ribs, and pit-smoked chicken, among others. check back to see our review and pictures of the night!

payce (in the middle east),

dlee

for your betterment: 24 years ago today (may 12), the author of this entry was born. oh snap! 

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Little India

Hey everyone. I think I've found Little India in Rochester, NY. Over the past 5 years, I've hit several Indian restaurants in the area, including Tandoor, Thali of India, and the new Taj. None of these mastered the complexities of Indian Cuisine as well as Haveli.

Not only was the quality of food incredible, but the quantity was astonishing. The menu was like a book. The list of foods to choose from was absolutely mind-boggling. It literally took me 20 minutes to decide what to get, but the executive decision on our group order was made by our one and only Krishna Upadhyaya.

After careful debate, we chose the following dishes to spread about the table and feast on:  Chicken Makhani, Chicken Tikka Masala, Channa Batura, Shahi Paneer, Tandoori Chicken, Naan, and Manga Lassi's. Feast your eyes people.

Let's start with this cool mango drink. People, I have never drank something so creamy, so sweet, and so filling as the Manga Lassi's. It's like an icecream shake, but way better, and it's served BEFORE the meal. It was critical during the entrees, because it was stellar at balancing the strong spices of the food. Highly recommend this to start off your Indian dining. Only downside is it is quite heavy, so the bigger the appetite the better.

The chickens were fantastic! Fork-cuttable and spicy, the chicken dishes made a lasting impression on my mind and palate. The Chicken Mahkani had a great balance of sweet and spicy. The Tandoori Chicken was served steaming, with a lemon and sliced onions to garnish - absolutely fantastic. The Chicken Tikki Masala, which traditionally is really spicy, didn't have quite the kick - but that's partly our fault because we asked for it medium spicy. Otherwise, Krishna approved. The Channa Batura was a great complement to the chicken dishes. The chick peas weren't overcooked, and the green chutney that was added to it went very well with the Batura.

The Naan was typical. Nothing exceptional to report, but it definitely made the feast better.

One more thing. The service at Haveli is incredible! You feel like you're a king. The service was lightening fast, they made sure our water glasses were always full, and they had this calm and soothing demeanor that made us feel at home. Keep in mind that the restaurant wasn't too crowded, and they were able to focus a lot of their efforts on us. Nevertheless, they were exceptional at making our dining experience the best it can be.

Krishna and I will be traveling to South India over the summer, where we will get the most traditional, authentic Indian food a hungry man can ask for. If you enjoyed this blog, and are Indian food lovers, stay tuned for some updates from India!

Final Grades:

Food: A

Ambiance: A

Service: A+

Sam-I-Am signs out with emotion,

Post-test

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Have you been to Haveli?

The bright yellow orb in the sky has finally decided to make its appearance in Rochester, NY. We medical students are grateful. I can't tell you how good it feels to walk out of the hospital from an 8-5 day and have to squint your eyes or put on sunglasses because the sun is too bright. AWESOMENESS!

So, the 1st year of medical school is starting to wrap up. I AM TIRED! During the end of anything in one's life, it's only natural to look back and think how one got there. People, I'd rather not. Lets leave 1st year in the books, and lets look ahead to the summer.

We will be doing just that, as we head to our next supper club destination, Haveli, one of Rochester's famous Indian Cuisines. Indian food is one of my favorite things to eat, and I ALWAYS leave an Indian restaurant full. It doesn't help that Haveli's menu is incredibly diversified, with 11 different kinds of chicken, 10 different kinds of lamb, 8 different kinds of bread, and much more. I'll try my best to get an assortment, but I can't make any promises. The only promise I can make, is that I will leave at least 5 pounds heavier.

Sam-I-Am signs out with his emotion,

Pre-test

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I wouldn't take a Nap at Napa

5/3/11

Food borne worms, like trichinosis, can be a nasty illness, but if a patient said in their history that they went to Napa just before feeling sick, parasites would be extremely low on my differential. Their wood fire pizza is a sure fire method for good food and good times. And even though their pizza's are some of the most unique I've seen, thank god they don't serve Helminth-style pizza. Now that I've made you emesis X2, lets get down to business.

Napa Wood Fired Pizza was simply a wonderful time. I learned the meaning of don't judge a book by its cover that night because from just the exterior i thought I had walked into a barn instead of a classy restaurant.

We were greeted by a welcoming maitre'd who was accommodating with just the 4 of us even though we had made a reservation for 8. The place was mostly black and red with beautiful paintings on the wall. The wooden architecture gave a very rustic atmosphere to the place. I was also surprised to see an idol of Ganesha, a Hindu god, randomly seated in one of the windows. Kudos for your multiculturalism.

We were originally met with 5 measly looking bread sticks. They were about a 1/2 inch thick, but surprisingly chewy. Mashed potatoes and olive oil were used as dips and though I've never had those as dips before my palate was pleasantly surprised. They tasted good but I think the delicious and voluminous Olive Garden breadsticks have ruined all other breadsticks for me.

We ordered 4 pizza's: The Greko, Mediterranean, Santa Fe, and Buffalo.

Each pizza came with 8 slices, so we were each able to try two slices of each pizza. All the pizza's were neither undercooked nor burnt, and the wood fire cooking blanketed the crust with a nice, smoky flavor. The Buffalo had a great sauce with a wonderful kick that was complimented by banana peppers and was my favorite of the night. An interesting tidbit. Research shows that hot spice can be antimicrobial. I would love a prescription of 50 buffalo pizza's (taken twice a day orally, of course) to India with me this summer for prophylactic antimicrobial use.

The Santa Fe had a very unique taste due to the guacamole overlaybut it didn't give me the kick I was expecting from a Southwest style dish. The Mediterranean was a white pizza, giving us that little bit of difference in flavor I was craving. The Kalamata olives were nicely balanced with the sun-dried tomatoes over a homogeneously prepared Napa cheese blend.  The Greko was accented with spicy chicken and basil pesto bringing an authentic Italian feel to an originally Italian food. The dough was just perfectly chewy and moist, contrasting with the crunchiness of the crust. It was also just perfectly filling, just below the right threshold of the stretch receptors in our stomachs. What a fun way to begin a fun night.

Following dinner we had our usual ice cream cool off at Abbott's (highly recommend the Chocolate Almond Kiddy Cone) and went back to the hospital for the 4th year medical students class play. It was also 2nd look, where prospective medical students visit the school to get a more in-depth view of what they will be going through over the next four years and meet the current students. The night was topped off with music from the 1st year band, Soul Defibrillator. If I was a prospie, Napa would definitely be a reason for me to come study in Rochester.

Final Grades:

Food: A

Ambiance: A

Service: A

Thank you come again,

Krishna

Laughter is the best medicine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXgdSOxaCGI

[supperclub1-blog]

If pizza were a virus, I'd order a slice of meningitis.

4/27/11

This week we switched from the previously esoteric yet exciting Immunology to the more familiar subject of Virology. Our food choices reflect a similar notion if you replace Immunology with Vietnamese and Virology with Pizza in the previous sentence.

Our patient this week is Napa Wood Fired Pizza. NWFP is a 1 year old with a past medical history of chronic fever  (mainly due to the wood fire always burning in him), a history of hypercholesterolemia ( mainly due to his high cheese pizza diet), and split personality disorder (mainly due to serving red and white pizza).

If pizza really were a virus, then our patient has been sick for the last year ever since it was born on South Clinton in the South Wedge. It is currently infected with the appetizing gourmet pizza virus, which I am particularly looking forward to treat. There are many virulently delicious serotypes including the Superdome, Melezane, and Spinachoke. Not to mention that the normal flora of Wrapini's and Small plate appetizers are also a protective measure of immunity.

As his doctor, I am suggesting that we treat with an anti-pizza medication, Emptystomachcyclovir and follow up in a few days.

Too see the complete patient chart: http://www.napawoodfired.com/

Check back later this week for the full report on our patient!

Thank you come again,

Krishna

Laughter is the best medicine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMHaiMzgCNA

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dac hoa and the antigenic shift

sup players. first off, the SC team apologizes for the delay. as you may have guessed, we staved off another test, bringing the countdown now to two...as in two more exams until http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRa002nTSwk. seriously though, it's been a long year and all of us are ready for the frivolities of summer. while maximillian, harris and i will be staying in the ROC, sam and krishna will be on the other side of the world (india to be exact), assessing the delivery of rural healthcare. how sick is that?

to get us in the diversity state-of-mind, we decided to venture to dac hoa, a small vietnamese joint that the locals rave about.

before i give an account of our night, i wanted to share this factoid with our readers: it's been well-publicized how rigorous medical school can be. this seems to be reflected in our group's attendance...and being the math major that i am (was), i thought, "hey, i bet there's a way to nerdify this." and so i did. to boot: 

   who said being a doctor wasn't tough?

and now, the food:

for starters, we shared chicken spring rolls that were sinfully good. translucent banh trang (rice paper) wrappers enclosed mounds of freshly prepared chicken and vegetables. dipped in hoisin sauce, these rolls could've prevented 'Nam had the two sides broken bread over these babies.

for our main dishes, krishna, harris, and sam went all indigenous and got the pho, pho, and chicken vermicilli, respectively. i, on the other hand, went all panda express and got the chicken fried rice. i don't care what you say about americanized chinese/vietnamense/thai food (and make no mistake, this was just that.) this rice was damn good and it was enough for two. or three. mixed with fried egg, vegetables, and marinated chicken, it took me back to dinners at home.

so was the case with the pho. the first thing that struck me was the aroma; the wonderful fragrance from the house-made broth seemed to jump right out of the bowl. preposterous. inside, harris and krishna were greeted with flat rice noodles mixed with deeply roasted meat and freshly-prepared basil.

the vermicilli was certainly interesting. the chicken had a nice, gingery kick to it, and its soft texture contrasted well against the chewiness of the rice noodle.  

the ambiance was splendid (more on that below). the only knock on the place is its dilapidated exterior (from the internet picture, i thought it was a small hole-in-the-wall). in fact, it's a clean, well-maintained sit-down with room for 30-40 people. 

final grades:

food: A-

ambiance: A-

service: A-

payce (in the middle east),

dlee

for your betterment: ok, so now you're dying to know. what in the name of dac hua is the antigenic shift? as dr. frelinger would tell you, the term refers to the re-assortment of different flu viral strains to produce a kind of novel, super flu virus that's able to evade our immune responses and, at its worst, cause a pandemic. bad news bears fo shizzle. it turns out that one of the most common re-assortments occurs between duck and human strains. 

kind of like this: 

(from L to R: Sam, Danny, Porky Pig, Daffy Duck, Harris, and Krishna. thanks to our wonderful hosts for allowing us to take this picture!)

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Northsiiide

Bongiorno.

Today (Friday, Friday, gettin' down on Friday) brings us another installment of the supper club. Next up on the queue: the Northside Inn.

Recommended by our consigliere for quality Italian food, the Inn should offer filling, tasty vittles in a warm atmosphere. The place has been alternately described as "WOW, this was out of this world", "Go hungry, leave stuffed", "I had made reservations to celebrate my daughters 1st Eucharist, but it was all ruined!", and "Jason (the guy there with the ponytail and the chaps?) is the most passionate and knowledgeable individual when it comes to body modification." True story.

It's been a while since I've had calamari, chicken parm, and all those good-for-ya' dishes. I guess we'll find out tomorrow morning if that's the best diet before a 5k race. Post-meal update + post-race damage report forthcoming....

Happy birthday, sister! max

Today's Japanese proverb: 鹿を追う者は山を見ず。 [shika o ou mono ha yama o mizu] He who chases deer will fail to see the mountain. (Can't see the forest for the trees.)

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My new favorite bird and restaurant

     The Owl has officially become my new favorite bird, and “The Owl House” has officially become my new favorite Rochester restaurant. Let me tell you why. 

We got to the restaurant, and our table was waiting, literally right in front of us. We had to make the reservation a week in advance, so if you decide after reading this blog that you want to try it out, make the reservations early!

I didn’t realize exactly how small the place was going to be. I took my tour, mainly for you guys, and counted about 15 tables, maybe less. Not much décor. Not much activity. For someone looking for luxury, perhaps “Owl House” isn’t for you. But, the place was quiet and simple. It was welcoming, almost like the house of a close friend or family member. I felt at home. I felt at ease. I highly recommend this as a place to release a long week’s work of stress, and there’s a bar in the front to welcome those who have a little bit more to release than others.

     The 7 of us decided to treat ourselves. It was a long week. Better yet, it has been a long year. Bones have been broken, gossip has spread like wildfire, relationships have suffered, PBL groups have had their wars, community service hours have taken their toll, and the exams have had their fun. Nevertheless, we were breathing, we were smiling, and we were laughing.                           

So, beers were ordered, toasts were made, and the following appetizers were spread out about the table to prime our palates: “Owl’s Baked Nachos”, “Grilled Flat Bread”, “Cigarillos”, and “Vegan Mozzarella Sticks”. Finger food galore!

The nachos had an incredible blend of flavor and color, and a perfect balance of crunch and cream. We asked for some extra nachos because we just couldn’t leave the plate dirty with sauces. The dish had tofu in it! Can you believe it? And it was still good. The grilled flat bread changes daily, but we got lucky with a beautifully presented assortment of dressed greens laid out on grilled bread and topped with sharp cheeses and earthly spices. The Cigarillos were house-made chicken tortillas filled with a creamy blend that made Chipotle look like garbage dump food. Last but not least, the vegan mozzarella sticks. I couldn’t believe anything with “vegan” could taste so delicious.                                                                                                                                                  

Primed our palates were, and the entrees came out at the perfect time. Steaks, fish, house-made lentil burgers, and warm brie and apple sandwiches made their way to the table, with aromas that lingered behind and cajoled wandering eyes. Our stomachs had just emptied, and they were growling, with wide open sphincters and a new batch of acid ready for round 2. 

Harris, Jarrod, and I had the steak special. The steak was grilled to perfection, boasting a medium-rare finish with spices that just melted in your mouth. It was served under a bed of blanched greens and with a side of the creamiest sweet mashed potatoes any food-lover could dream of. I ate in silence for a few minutes, directing all my energies to the millions of taste neurons firing so I could appreciate every last bite. Ramzi had the fish, and as a former cook who worked in restaurants all over the world, Ramzi said the fish was fantastic. As a non-red meat eater, Krishna chose the lentil burger, and any regrets he had about his diet choice were completely dispelled. He said it was delicious. Danny Lee and Max had the most unique dish of the bunch; a warm brie, apple, and baby arugula sandwich on grilled sourdough. Danny Lee and Max licked their plates clean.          

In line with our plan to treat ourselves, we decided to stretch our stomachs a bit more with some desserts. People, there is always room for dessert. So we had 2 of everything: Fruit and Cream, French Toast Cake, and the Chocolate Mousse. After such jaw-dropping entrees, we really though the desserts would be similar in their punch, but there was nothing special about them. The restaurant needed a pastry chef. Don’t make the same mistake we did. Enjoy the appetizers, chow down the entrees, but then call it quits, and have your desserts elsewhere, perhaps at Phillips European or Rocco’s across the street.

After paying a hefty sum (good luck reading it), it was 8:45pm, and we 7 full medical students walked out of “The Owl House” and into a cool breeze. Just when we thought the night couldn’t get any better, we ran into a professional photographer who offered to take our picture to document our night of glory. “Boner!” said the guy as he took the picture. We laughed, and asked for another snapshot. “Flaccid!” said the guy as he took it again. Damn he was funny. In the end, we circled together, huddled for warmth, and reminisced about the night before parting ways.

Final Grades:

Food: A+

Ambiance: A-

Service: A

Sam-i-am signs out with his emotion

[supperclub1-blog]

Owl House: Far from a Zoo

When I think of the name "Owl House", there are several words that come to mind, but the problem is that none of them have to do with food! Let's see .....nocturnal, mice-eaters, crazy-eyed birds, owl poop, the zoo, Steve Irwin (which is weird because he worked with crocodiles, so I'm not sure how my mind made that connection), and Hedwig from Harry Potter (killer movie by the way!). Now, for those of you who associate any of those words with food....well as a biopsychosocially-trained medical student genuinely interested in your overall health, I highly encourage you to seek the skills of a psychiatrist.

Be that as it may, to my surprise (and disgust quite frankly), the gossip in town has rated "Owl House" one of the best, busiest, and brightest hotspots for good food!    It doesn't make sense! Maybe all of Rochester should be medicated.

So, as another busy medical school week comes to a close, our tired minds and bodies give way to an insatiable hunger, and we are officially on our next quest for good Rochesterian food! After considerable thought, "Owl House" has been chosen as our next target. As my classmates plan to stimulate the crap out of their parasympathetic nervous system, this next trip for me is much more than about satiating my hunger.......it's also about finding a way to share my experiences with you.

I'm going to have a KILLER time eating incredibly awesome food in the company of incredibly awesome people, and I recommend you stay tuned for my conclusions about "Owl House". Hopefully they will be good.

Sam-i-am signs out with his emotions

[supperclub1-blog]

No, We Weren't "Hiding Away" From You

4/6/2011

For those of you who stayed up all night Friday waiting for our post...April Fools!

Just kidding. We had an exam on Monday. Our apologies.

Unfortunately though, I have bad news. Since we did not make antibodies early enough, The Owl House was full of antigens. And by antibodies I mean reservations and by antigens I mean people. Can you tell that we started Immunology this week?

As a back up, we had made a reservation at Hogan's Hideaway on Park Ave. 

From the moment we walked in, I felt welcomed. The restaurant was seemingly split into 3 different sections. There was a bar with an outside patio for the young and adventurous. Then there was a middle section with booths that seemed to cater to the older and more sophisticated population. And finally there was what I like to call, The Pit, which is where the families and poor graduate students sit. 

There were two things that I liked right off the bat. The first thing was that even though we were late, the restaurant gave us a friendly call regarding our reservation so our table wasn't given away. And second there was live music with a guitar and bass player. If wrestler Hulk Hogan ate dinner here, he would be proud to share the same name as the restaurant.

We started the night off with an order of Cheesy Bread.

It was your standard Garlic Cheesy Bread. It was a creamy blend of mozzarella, Parmesan and garlic over French bread. It tasted good but nothing special about it.

Main Courses: Myself: Eggplant Sandwich

Sam and Danny: Hogan's Burger

Max: Hogan's Frittata

On physical exam, the Eggplant Sandwich and Burger's were good and very filling. They produced normoactive bowel sounds and no tenderness upon consumption. For my sandwich, the cheese was perfectly melted over the eggplant but there was too little sauce and so the whole thing was a bit dry.The fries (regular and sweet potato) had a little bit of crunch but were still soft and perfectly seasoned. They were so good my heart skipped an S1 sound. One good thing about the food was that there were options for all ages including a kids menu, cheap dishes for cheap students, and bigger, more expensive entrees.

The two disappointing things were the Hogan's Frittata and the service time. You would think that a dish named after the restaurant would be great, but not only did it not come with fries, but the portion size was enough for an infant at best. The service time, given the dishes we ordered, seemed a little long as well. It was a bit loud but that isn't anyone's fault. Other than that, it was an enjoyable experience and we would recommend it.

Final Grades:

Food: B-

Ambiance: A-

Service: B+

Thank you come again,

Krishna

Laughter is the best medicine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMzBczrPJkY

[supperclub1-blog]

This place is a Hoot

3/30/11

Even though we have been learning all week about the different bacteria that can cause food poisoning, I am looking forward, as always, to our Friday usual Supper Club dinner. Since our Supper Club dinners only whet our appetite for the weekend, come Monday we are busy contemplating where to go that Friday. After each hour of lecture starting at 8am, we are given a precious 10 minute break where we are able to discuss which restaurant we want next on The List. Once we come up with some ideas, we do what some bacteria do best: let it incubate in our heads for a while. This particular week, the original flavor we were hungering for was Thai food. It had been a while since we last enjoyed Thai food at the King and I. But as is the case in microbiology, we were infected with thoughts of a place called The Owl House.

On physical exam, The Owl House is well appearing, well nourishing, delicious looking and cheap. The website starts with an animation that almost seemed like it was out of a horror film, except for the background music. It then follows up with the "house" theme with an interface full of click-able picture frames, phones and hats. I am excited to see some of their more unique choices such as Matty's Mustache  - Warm Brie, Apple, Pear, Red Onion, Baby Arugula, and Housemade Dijon on Grilled Sourdough, and Saigon - House Smoked Tofu, Pickled Cucumber & Carrot, Baby Arugula, Cilantro-Lime Marmalade, and Roasted Garlic Vegenaise on Baguette. I am also impressed that they cater to a wide palette of choices with many vegetarian, vegan and gluten free options. 

http://www.owlhouserochester.com/

Tune in on Friday to see how The Owl House pans out.

Thank you come again,

Krishna

Laughter is the best medicine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4aPGtx7e6k

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anchor bar

date: 3/25/11

after a spring break that hinted at the first signs of spring, this week was a stern reminder that rochester winters are long if not stubborn. walking out of the brisk cold, we entered anchor bar to a waft of tangy barbeque that immediately warmed our hearts.

i've long said that the stretch from march to june is my favorite time of year: march madness gives way to the nba playoffs, my birthday, and the first ushering of summer. and on this particular sweet sixteen weekend, there wasn't not a better way to take in the games than with some good company and wings.

for starters, we decided to prep our bellies with some buffalo egg rolls:

we hunched over the plate. the arrangement looked enticing. some warm blue cheese with a touch of buffalo sauce ready for dip. we picked up, we dipped, and we took our bites. the warm, creamy, and spicy buffalo chicken filling mixed well with the crunchy exterior. a great warm up.

for the four of us, we ordered a bucket of 25 spicy barbeque and 25 "medium"-spiced wings. like the princes we are, our wings were served on a silver pedestal as they lay glistening, immaculate before being shred to pieces.

the meat was juicy, flavorful, and soft, almost as if they were slow-cooked. the amount on each bone was substantial. but as were making our way through them, we quickly noticed that they lacked that certain kick we've come to expect from good buffalo wings. nevertheless, we emptied our plates. 

final grades

food: B

ambiance: B+

service: A

payce,

dlee

for your betterment: 37 years ago on this day, a group of peasant women in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, India used their bodies to surround trees in order to prevent loggers from felling them, giving rise to the Chipko movement.