LAKEHouse Restaurant

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*** (3 stars)

This restaurant, located in the former Cascades space, has been completely remodeled into a trendy and airy space. Unfortunately the food and service could still use some remodeling.

There’s nothing really wrong with the menu, but the more creative the dishes, the less the flavors seem to click. For example, the idea of making a shrimp cocktail using grilled, chilled shrimp sounds inventive, but turns out to produce a fairly off-putting texture.

The house pizza combined citrus, boursin cheese, asparagus and chicken, but somehow managed to be nearly flavorless. It’s the only time I’ve ever put salt and pepper on a pizza.

The LAKEhouse salad bowl combines interesting ingredients such as figs, spicy pecans, arugula and parmesan cheese, but they don’t really work together.

The best thing I had was the “cauliflower steak”. Like many of the dishes on the menu, the name is not descriptive. It’s simply cauliflower and several other vegetables that have been nicely grilled.

An extensive cocktail list tends toward sweeter drinks. The wine list offers quite a few selections, although the most interesting ones are available only by the bottle.

Service was well-intentioned, but not at the level of a fine dining restaurant; perhaps is is more appropriate for breakfast or lunch, when the space serves as the hotel’s coffee shop.

LAKEHouse Restaurant
1 Grand Cypress Blvd
Orlando, FL 32836
(407) 239-1234
http://www.yelp.com/biz/lakehouse-restaurant-orlando

Servando’s

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***** (5 stars)

If you were a fan of Taquitos Jalisco when they had three locations, you will love Servando’s. It’s run by the original owner, and has all the same dishes, prepared just the way you remember. As an added bonus, it’s much cleaner than the remaining Taquitos, and the space is light and airy. Service is friendly, and Servando is there to make sure everything is just right.

Personal favorites include Servando’s Nachos (without any meat or beans is the way I like them), and either tacos or gorditas with their amazing Pastor. The Plato Botanas appetizer is a nice way to sample many things. Margaritas are also quite good.

If you’re looking for REAL Mexican food on the west side of town, this is the place.

Servando’s
14107 W Colonial Dr
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 654-6866
http://www.yelp.com/biz/servandos-winter-garden-2

Urbain 40 American Brasserie and Lounge

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***** (5 stars)

The interior of this restaurant is quite stunning, an amalgam of classic French bistro and modern supper club. There’s really nothing else like it in Orlando.

The menu offers a selection of mostly traditional French bistro food, with a few more modern items such as flatbreads.

We started with French onion soup and a watercress salad. The onion soup was good, but not spectacular, however the salad was excellent, with just the right zing to the vinaigrette, offset by crispy apple slices and some crunchy candied pecans. It was my favorite item of the meal.

We had two “hors d’oeuvres”–which were really appetizers–instead of entrees. In keeping with the theme of misnaming things, the “crepe” was actually a torte comprised of many layers of crepe interleaved with vegetables. It was good, but not a crepe. We also had the mussels. Two preparations were on offer, one pan roasted, the other steamed. We opted for the former, and received a HUGE pan full of mussels. They were perfectly cooked and quite tasty, although the shells were coated in salt, which made eating them without ODing on salt a challenge.

For dessert we tried the trio, and nice sampling. The highlights were the “cheesecake pops” which were also misnamed, as they contained ice cream and were chocolate coated, so essentially ice cream bars on sticks.  These were excellent, and much better than the accompanying truffles and jelly filled macarons.

Service was very attentive–almost to a fault. The staff is clearly still trying to find their way (there was a lot of fiddling with lighting levels) but is very well-intentioned, and will get there.

A reasonable selection of wines is available by glass or bottle, and there is also an emphasis on 40’s cocktails, really the only way that the 40s theming plays into the experience.

Two excellent private dining rooms are available, and the lounge is even a more pleasant space for dinner than the restaurant proper.

I’m hoping that Urban does well, as Orlando could really benefit from such a beautiful restaurant.

Urbain 40 American Brasserie and Lounge
8000 Via Dellagio Way
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 872-2640
http://www.yelp.com/biz/urbain-40-american-brasserie-and-lounge-orlando

Harold€’s Restaurant

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***** (5 stars)

If there is a better omelette on the face of the planet, I have yet to find it. I’ve been going here for thirty years, and even through a change in ownership and expansion into the space next door, the omelettes have remained transcendental.

My favorite is the Special Omelette, which contains bacon, green chilis and sour cream. A mound of hash browns form the base, then come the ingredients, and then a fluffy egg disc the size of a frisbee. Ask for your hash browns well done for the ultimate omelette enjoyment experience.

Harold’s Restaurant
2440 E Thousand Oaks Blvd
Thousand Oaks, CA 91362
(805) 230-3147
http://www.yelp.com/biz/harolds-restaurant-thousand-oaks

Old Place Restaurant

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***** (5 stars)

In the thirty years we’ve been going here this place has stayed true to its quirky roots. Constructed of random bits and pieces, and little bigger than a shoe box, the ambiance is what it’s all about. You still have to sit at the bar unless you’re a large party, and you still have to go outside to visit the restroom.

But the food and wine list have been upgraded significantly. You can still get the clams as an appetizer and the steak as an entree. Those were the only two dishes originally. But now there are more appetizers, and the baked potato has grown from from the size of a golf ball to a softball. There’s also a wonderful chicken entree.

The wine list has also grown, from two jugs to a couple dozen nicely chosen bottles, most available by the glass.

Service is friendly but constrained but the strict three-seating schedule if you have a reservation. Our server had been there as long as we have been going, and it was fun to reminisce about old times.

Old Place Restaurant
29983 Mulholland Hwy
Agoura Hills, CA 91301
(818) 706-9001
http://www.yelp.com/biz/old-place-restaurant-agoura-hills

Boxwood at The London

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*** (3 stars)

Boxwood is a nicely decorated space on the ground floor of The London. The dining room is bright and airy. It actually has a great view of the city, because of the steep hill that it’s on.

They offer an excellent buffet breakfast that is included with the room. We didn’t try it for dinner, but they boxed up a nice Thanksgiving lunch for us to take to relatives.

The lounge area out front isn’t particularly cozy, but the bar in the middle of the restaurant is fairly nice.

Service is friendly.

Boxwood at The London
1020 N San Vicente Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90069
(310) 358-7788
http://www.yelp.com/biz/boxwood-at-the-london-west-hollywood

Starving Artists Bistro

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***** (5 stars)

This is a great little gastropub with an eclectic, extensive menu of mostly American comfort foods.

I really loved the idea of hot dog sliders: three small hotdogs with interesting toppings. The sweet shrimp salad was also an interesting combination of greens, shrimp, candied nuts, cheese and a sweet balsamic dressing.

We loved the vibrant decor, with guitars everywhere! Service was extremely friendly, and the kitchen is lightning fast.

Starving Artists Bistro
9447 N Fort Washington Rd
Ste 101
Fresno, CA 93730
(559) 433-0133
http://www.yelp.com/biz/starving-artists-bistro-fresno

Ahwahnee Dining Room

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**** (4 stars)

We’ve been coming here since 1978, and it’s amazing how it never changes. In fact, I think it hasn’t really changed much since 1927, when the hotel was constructed. The food is no doubt different than it was then, but it’s remarkably similar to the way it was in 1978.

The soups are still rich and creamy, and the portions large. At dinner I enjoyed the short ribs, and the salmon was even better.

There’s a buffet breakfast, but even better choices are available on the menu, including a kitchen sink vegetarian omelet made with three eggs that barely fits on the plate.

Many of the servers have been working here almost as long as I’ve been coming, which is a testament to what a special venue this is. During the day, the tall glass windows offer unsurpassed views of Yosemite valley. And at dinner the enormous windows turn into mirrors, reflecting back the hundreds of candles in the chandeliers.

It’s really a pretty magical place.

Ahwahnee Dining Room
Ahwahnee Hotel
9005 Ahwahnee Dr
Yosemite National Park, CA 95389
(209) 372-1489
http://www.yelp.com/biz/ahwahnee-dining-room-yosemite-national-park

Flights 101 Club Lounge

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**** (4 stars)

This lobby lounge offers a surprisingly intimate atmosphere in the evening, with low lighting levels that make it easy to watch the flight traffic in and out of SFO. In fact, the lobby area is a much better choice for dinner than the adjacent restaurant, which is lit up like a coffee shop. And the lounge offers all the same food, plus bar food.

The chicken quesadilla was really more like a flauta, and it was fine. But the fish tacos were truly delicious: three larger servings of nicely seasoned fish topped with slaw and a piquant sauce.

During the course of our meal we were tag-teamed by six different servers, yet there was perfect continuity, and they were all very friendly and helpful. If traveling through SFO I would definitely eat here again.

Flights 101 Club Lounge
1800 Old Bayshore Hwy
Burlingame, CA 94010
(650) 692-9100
http://www.yelp.com/biz/flights-101-club-lounge-burlingame

P.F. Chang’s

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**** (4 stars)

This P.F. Chang’s is a big improvement over the Chili’s that occupied this space for many years. The menu is a reduced version of the real P.F. Chang’s menu, and is sadly missing our favorite rib appetizer. But the superb tuna tartare starter made up for it. This was the best thing I’ve had at a P.F. Chang’s.

Service was friendly and efficient, so we were in and out in time to easily make our connection.

P.F Chang’s
Concourse A
8700 Spine Rd
Atlanta, GA 30320
(404) 481-2146
http://www.yelp.com/biz/p-f-changs-atlanta-2