Oakville Grocery Opened at Cityscape Downtown (New Owners Coming Soon)

Strawberry Lavender Scone. Delicious.

Check it out especially if you live or work downtown. They have a great selection of fresh food and baked goods as well as a wine bar and fresh prepared food selections. A bit pricey but convenient, and if you are looking for a healthy bite on your lunch break, I find that it is worth it. It can be fun to just peruse the aisles, scan the options, and observe the scene.  A valuable commodity previously lacking in Phoenix's Downtown area. Welcome Oakville!




**UPDATE**
Since this post Oakville is no longer Oakville. It has been taken over by new owners Sam Fox and Ashly Young and will be Cloey's Corner once completed. See article in AZ Central.

Gallo Blanco

Wednesday night dinner at Gallo Blanco is quite the festive occasion. Especially, if you like clanging dishes, a chatty dining room, and flamenco dancing.


Glad we decided on coming here for our midweek date. To be honest I wasn’t expecting the mid-week crowd that we encountered there. Though, restaurants have been adding some Wednesday night flare to attract the mid-week diners, such as Postino Wine Cafe on Central. I am told that is a great night to go, especially for a girls night out, because there is great live music. I plan on riding the cruiser there for my next Wednesday night outing.


We grabbed a table that was right next to the stage set up for the nights entertainment. Waiting in anticipation we ordered our food from the somewhat aloof waiter. I didn’t even realize he was the waiter, dressed in baggy jeans and an oversized T-shirt. He looked up like " Oh, there’s people at that table" and hurried toward us. But once he got wind of his guests (us) he was adequately attentive. I ordered the Huevo's Rancheros one of my favorite breakfast dishes but it must have the egg over medium, which I ordered, and my husband ordered the Fish Torta.

Then, the music started and the dancing began. It was really entertaining. One could tell there was some sort of story line, perhaps some love story where the girl comes up strong and victorious at the end, as she finishes up the show with a strong and emotional dance. No doubt we enjoyed ourselves. The food came out mid-show. The torta came out first, and looked amazing. And it was...absolutely delicious.


Mine came out a moment later, Huevo's Rancheros. It looked okay. The beans strongly resembled Rosarita out of the can, and there wasn't much else going on except for the salsa's the food was drenched in. As far as the flavor, I was not impressed, it was not the best Huevo's dish I have ever eaten. And it did not help that the food was luke-warm and the egg was NOT medium, it was cooked hard. I was so disappointed, because done well, this is an amazing dish. The salsa though that the food was drenched in was really good. It helped spruce up a so-so dish. Overall, I really liked the place, it was a fun night out and my husbands food really was great. I will be back, but will definitely order something else.

Fish Torta

Over Medium?

The Living Room Cafe and Wine Bar (Phoenix Location)

*CLOSED*

(Humble Pie now occupies this location)

(New Phoenix Location)

http://www.livingroomwinebar.com/phoenix/

2333 N 7th street

602.229.1289

Loved it. 

The service was great, the food was great, the ambiance was great! Check out the pictures from our visit.

Garlic Fries

Squash Soup

Mixed olives

Bruschetta. YUM!

Calamari

Viet Kitchen Phoenix Location

Lunch Break Trip to the new Vietnamese Spot

Last Friday I received an email that Viet Kitchen was opening that day. I was really excited. I have loved Vietnamese ever since we became regulars at DaVang.

I left my office and walked over to check it out over my lunch break. I recognized the building. It used to be a Mexican food place that I actually liked. Sad to see it go. The restaurant was packed, but there was no line at the register yet and I ordered the Shrimp Spring Rolls…and waited patiently….for a long, time.

There was no place to sit for to-goers, so I stood there, watching people come in and out. Watching the girl behind the counter become overwhelmed as she looked at tickets, and more to-goers flooded through the door. After about 25 min I scooted my way through the crowd that was waiting for either to-go food or to be seated. I asked the girl how much longer for my rolls, and she looked up at the to-go order that had been placed there over 10 min prior and said, “right there, its ready” and I smiled, paid my $4 for my 2 spring rolls and left. When do you say, “Really?! I have been standing here for 25 min waiting for a spring roll to-go order that has been sitting in the window for 10 min”? The disorganization really seemed to be the girls at the register taking the orders.

How was the food?

I was really hoping the food was going to make me feel better about enduring the whole annoying situation, but I was even more annoyed to see that the rolls were a little puny, that they had yellow lettuce, and were pretty bland. So, if you are in a hurry for lunch, or for some reason are in the mood for really good food, I would not recommend it. Perhaps it was just a bad day. They have only been opened for a week, but apparently their other store is doing great. Please tell me if I am wrong and I will give it another try.