Continuing with the vacation and continuing with the fun, we headed to the outlets on Wednesday. Keeping with the tradition of "girl's night", I went with my mom, Judy, and Lindsey. We planned to head out early and wanted to get lunch somewhere near the outlets or in between the two. Lindsey had suggested GW Carsons Burger Bar. The name of the restaurant is quite a mouthful but well worth it. All of you who really know me, knows that anything with "GW" involved is a winner in my book. I also would like to note that the owner of China Pavilion's son, owns Nine East and the burger place. They are basically in the same building. GW on the west and Nine East to the east. And now that I just wrote that like that, it's sort of like a play on east meets west. GW made me think of Cattleman's Ranch the entire time. For those of you that don't know what I'm referring to, that's the name of the restaurant on the TV show "Fresh off the Boat." Great show!
So on our way home from Clinton, we stopped in Branford. When you walk in the restaurant the bar is sort of off to the right and to the left is the hostess station. Right before you walk to the station, there's like this glass pit that has sand and the skull of a bull in it. I mention this because it caught everyone off guard and you don't want to look foolish out in public. I suppose you can walk across it but we were all afraid so we walked around. It was later in the afternoon so it wasn't really crowded. We sat in the first part of the dining room but it looked as if it went back fairly far. They also have a deck with some tables out there. The booth was odd. It was not just a rectangular table with two benches, it was like some carved shape. It was a little awkward entering the booth but once we were in, it was comfortable. The menu was quite extensive but we were in a burger place. How could you go there, order a jerk chicken sandwich, and then complain about it in a blog? We all ordered burgers.
We started with a lovely little app. Fried pickles and peppers. Delicious!! People go crazy for fried pickles. I like them too, but the best part was the pepper! It came with a dipping sauce. A ranch of some nature. That disappeared in a matter of moments. They have all different specialty burgers but we all ended up customizing the classic GW Burger. I ordered a burger with American cheese, bacon, mushrooms, lettuce, tomato, and it came with some ailoli or something. I loved the burger. The burger came with fries and each person got their own individual little fryer basket. Such a wonderful little touch. Every bit of food I ate at that lunch was delicious! The bun was another beautiful, buttery brioche type of thing. I ordered the burger medium- cooked beautifully. The fries were one of the best fries I've ever had. They were thin, just the right amount of crisp, and salted. It wasn't regular salt. I'm not sure if it was sea salt but it looked almost like a flake rather than a grain. Maybe it wasn't even salt? Either way, fabulous! By the time I was done with my meal, I thought my stomach was going to blow. It was an excellent lunch!!
To sum up, I highly, highly, highly recommend. It's a clean place that had fairly good service. The food was great and I can't wait to go back again. It's a good place to go with friends, a family, a date night, a game night at the bar, or whatever. And now that I know the burgers are good, I feel free to explore the other corners of the menu. When I go back I will definitely try something different and will be sure to let you all know. It may be a few weeks before I can write another post but until my next bite...,,
Check out the website:
http://www.gwcarsons.com/menu/
Saturday, April 18, 2015
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Azu - Mystic, CT
Finally it is April vacation! I have never been so happy to be on vacation in my career thus far. I may even name my first daughter April. Sunday kicked off a week with no work. Unfortunately, this one week will probably set me back and prevent me from posting any new restaurants in the near future, but oh well. On Sunday, DJ and I met Josh, Mirissa, and the kids in Mystic. I love Mystic. It's a great little spot to spend the day. We met in the village and shopped around for a little bit. There are some places within the village that I would like to try. (The new coffee shop, the grilled cheese place..) We were going to eat at Ten Clams but apparently they are out of business. We were told by the workers in the pasta place that they are going to reopen under a new name with the same owners. That's all well and good but for lunch on Sunday, that did us no good. We then decided that we should drive further in to town and just go to another place. It was approximately 1;30 pm when we left the village.
Our first stop was S&P Oyster. There were no parking spots and then a busboy told us we could park near the side of the ramp. This was clearly not a space but we figured we had permission so Josh proceeded to park. Moments after, a man came running out and told us we had to move the car. Josh told him that the worker told us to park there, so the man said what did he look like, we said he was wearing a black shirt. His response to us was "Well managers don't wear black shirts." So we said okay we'll move and then he said we could park there but run the risk that the car may get hit. We said oh no we'll just move. Then the man went further and said to leave it there and if we blocked other cars he could find us in the restaurant and ask us to move the car. No thanks. We began to back out and another spot opened up. I need to stay on this topic for one moment. What was up with this guy!? First of all, don't answer with a snotty remark about what type of clothing the managers wear. We were in a minivan for the love of God! We weren't there to cause trouble! Just say move and we'll move. And then after you're a total asshole, don't begin to retract your comments. I just can't take the rudeness! It's like Stephanie Tanner's worst nightmare! After we parked, we went in to give our name. They said the wait was 45 minutes so we put our name in, left our car in the space, and began to walk further in to downtown Mystic.
We went into another restaurant that had an hour wait so we passed on that, checked out another place that was suitable, and eventually made it to Azu. This was the last stop before Mystic Pizza. And while I do love that movie, I was thankful we didn't have to eat there. When I first saw the name and picture of a monkey on the sign, I was a little worried. I was afraid that it would be strange food from some jungle country but that was not the case at all. I don't know what the name means, why they chose it, or the history of this restaurant, but the food is your typical American menu. DJ had a chicken sandwich, Josh had a burger, Mirissa had a chicken cheddar and bacon pannini, the kids had chicken tenders with fries, and I had the oyster po'boy. The restaurant was a little cramped and on the warm side, but the food was very good. We were seated right away, our order was taken right away, and our drink were brought over right away, but our food was not. The waitress apologized twice for the kitchen being backed up but that of course did not fill our tummies. It was difficult for the baby to be patient and the parents that were trying to amuse him in a not kid-friendly restaurant but then when the food finally arrived, everybody was happy. Everyone enjoyed what they ordered, though they did forget Josh's bacon on his burger. I was worried about my oyster po'boy at first. There were maybe 5 oysters battered and fried in a buttery bun (brioche maybe) with tartar sauce and french fries. I thought oh shit this is not going to fill me up but it pleasantly surprised me. The bun was delicious! It wasn't a pretzel bun but because it was buttery and had sea salt on it, it sure tasted like a soft pretzel. The oysters were fresh and tasty. The fries were delicious. Everyone else liked their food. No one said they didn't like anything but also no one went on raving about how good the food was. The wait was somewhat of a drawback but as Chef Gordon Ramsay says- people will wait for food as long as it's good. It met our needs and hit the spot. Our plates were empty and our stomachs were full. I don't know if I'd ever seek this restaurant out again, but if I'm ever in Mystic and am looking for a place to eat I'll surely try it again. The man who seated us in this restaurant was quite pleasant and helpful, unlike the man at S&P Oyster.
To sum up, Azu can provide you with a good meal but it's not anything life-altering. And even though we didn't get a chance to eat at S&P, I will never go there. That man was a jerk. I will never support that restaurant until I am confident that that man has passed on.
After lunch we walked to get ice cream. We walked to the draw bridge ice cream place but the line was quite a ways out the door, so we ended up going to the sweet shoppe across the street. I'm not quite sure what it was called but I have a feeling that it was something like Mystic Sweet Shoppe. They sold candy and ice cream. The sign said Italian ice but they were all out that day. I didn't have any ice cream but DJ, Mirissa, and the kiddies did. They had cookies and cream and chocolate. They all were quiet during their eating so I'm assuming that the ice cream was good. DJ commented that he liked that the ice cream had actual chunks of oreos and not just chocolate wafers. Everyone was pleased. When everyone was done we walked back to S&P to get the van and we called it a day.
Excellent day in Mystic had by all! I should also mention that I purchased some roasted pecans (pee-cans) and venison jerky, Love, love, love! I always need those nuts and I just wanted to try the venison. If anyone knows of a restaurant that serves venison, please let me know because I've always wanted to try it. I don't know where my tastes or interests come from at all. Anyway, Azu is pretty good, the sweet shoppe is good, and avoid S&P.
Stay tuned for a review of GW Carson Burgers in Branford.. Until my next bite...
Our first stop was S&P Oyster. There were no parking spots and then a busboy told us we could park near the side of the ramp. This was clearly not a space but we figured we had permission so Josh proceeded to park. Moments after, a man came running out and told us we had to move the car. Josh told him that the worker told us to park there, so the man said what did he look like, we said he was wearing a black shirt. His response to us was "Well managers don't wear black shirts." So we said okay we'll move and then he said we could park there but run the risk that the car may get hit. We said oh no we'll just move. Then the man went further and said to leave it there and if we blocked other cars he could find us in the restaurant and ask us to move the car. No thanks. We began to back out and another spot opened up. I need to stay on this topic for one moment. What was up with this guy!? First of all, don't answer with a snotty remark about what type of clothing the managers wear. We were in a minivan for the love of God! We weren't there to cause trouble! Just say move and we'll move. And then after you're a total asshole, don't begin to retract your comments. I just can't take the rudeness! It's like Stephanie Tanner's worst nightmare! After we parked, we went in to give our name. They said the wait was 45 minutes so we put our name in, left our car in the space, and began to walk further in to downtown Mystic.
We went into another restaurant that had an hour wait so we passed on that, checked out another place that was suitable, and eventually made it to Azu. This was the last stop before Mystic Pizza. And while I do love that movie, I was thankful we didn't have to eat there. When I first saw the name and picture of a monkey on the sign, I was a little worried. I was afraid that it would be strange food from some jungle country but that was not the case at all. I don't know what the name means, why they chose it, or the history of this restaurant, but the food is your typical American menu. DJ had a chicken sandwich, Josh had a burger, Mirissa had a chicken cheddar and bacon pannini, the kids had chicken tenders with fries, and I had the oyster po'boy. The restaurant was a little cramped and on the warm side, but the food was very good. We were seated right away, our order was taken right away, and our drink were brought over right away, but our food was not. The waitress apologized twice for the kitchen being backed up but that of course did not fill our tummies. It was difficult for the baby to be patient and the parents that were trying to amuse him in a not kid-friendly restaurant but then when the food finally arrived, everybody was happy. Everyone enjoyed what they ordered, though they did forget Josh's bacon on his burger. I was worried about my oyster po'boy at first. There were maybe 5 oysters battered and fried in a buttery bun (brioche maybe) with tartar sauce and french fries. I thought oh shit this is not going to fill me up but it pleasantly surprised me. The bun was delicious! It wasn't a pretzel bun but because it was buttery and had sea salt on it, it sure tasted like a soft pretzel. The oysters were fresh and tasty. The fries were delicious. Everyone else liked their food. No one said they didn't like anything but also no one went on raving about how good the food was. The wait was somewhat of a drawback but as Chef Gordon Ramsay says- people will wait for food as long as it's good. It met our needs and hit the spot. Our plates were empty and our stomachs were full. I don't know if I'd ever seek this restaurant out again, but if I'm ever in Mystic and am looking for a place to eat I'll surely try it again. The man who seated us in this restaurant was quite pleasant and helpful, unlike the man at S&P Oyster.
To sum up, Azu can provide you with a good meal but it's not anything life-altering. And even though we didn't get a chance to eat at S&P, I will never go there. That man was a jerk. I will never support that restaurant until I am confident that that man has passed on.
After lunch we walked to get ice cream. We walked to the draw bridge ice cream place but the line was quite a ways out the door, so we ended up going to the sweet shoppe across the street. I'm not quite sure what it was called but I have a feeling that it was something like Mystic Sweet Shoppe. They sold candy and ice cream. The sign said Italian ice but they were all out that day. I didn't have any ice cream but DJ, Mirissa, and the kiddies did. They had cookies and cream and chocolate. They all were quiet during their eating so I'm assuming that the ice cream was good. DJ commented that he liked that the ice cream had actual chunks of oreos and not just chocolate wafers. Everyone was pleased. When everyone was done we walked back to S&P to get the van and we called it a day.
Excellent day in Mystic had by all! I should also mention that I purchased some roasted pecans (pee-cans) and venison jerky, Love, love, love! I always need those nuts and I just wanted to try the venison. If anyone knows of a restaurant that serves venison, please let me know because I've always wanted to try it. I don't know where my tastes or interests come from at all. Anyway, Azu is pretty good, the sweet shoppe is good, and avoid S&P.
Stay tuned for a review of GW Carson Burgers in Branford.. Until my next bite...
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