Good Food North
So, after two days of restaurant hopping, and nice ones at that, I had made plans with my friend Nima to check out Kelly’s Eastside up in Plano East that Friday night. I knew it was in that cool little downtown part of Plano and was excited about seeing the Friday night life.
We get there and I’m not quite sure how to describe it. It has a patio to walk through and the host is outside which I thought was a unique touch. Even though it was busy, we were able to get a table fast. Sweet deal! Come to find out, they also have live music which was good for my work at the paper as well. Expensed dinners are DA BOMB! And the guitar player was kind of a cutie!
Anyway, we sit at our hightable with barstools surrounded by wooded walls and furniture. The vibe felt frat boyish with their girlfriends but then some families were there and teens and some guys nights out. The sports on the television screens of course led to the conclusion of calling it a sports bar but it still didn’t seem to fit. It’s simply a joint. And in Plano which of course makes it squeaky clean.
The menu was simple enough with burgers, sandwiches, chips and salsa and everything typical of a Snuffer’s menu. No prob but I couldn’t find anything truly unique. We ordered chips and salsa to start us off. The chips were fine but the salsa was hot and weird looking. Like salsa reject. I dipped a couple of times and left it alone. Without much imagination, both of us ordered burgers. It seemed like the thing to do.
Our waiter, a frat ’stud’ with curly blond surfer hair and attitude really wasn’t a very warm one. He seemed to like his job but I never felt he liked us. Just a vibe and I wasn’t too keen on him. But he brought out our food promptly.
My Bacon and Blue Cheeseburger was cooked medium well with a side of fries. The burger was good and simply that. The fries were good and the same as well. The blue cheese makes for a good touch as crumbles melt in front of your eyes during the meal. But this was nothing I haven’t had before.
As I told Nima, I wouldn’t opt coming back but I could find something else to eat. Just not a place high on my list to revisit. However, I would have liked to have hung out on the patio. I think with a nice night and the music, the food could be forgiven.
We walked around the revitalized old town a bit only to find every shop closed. But nice to look into with the antiques and magic shops. It’s a very nice quaint area that could be good to live in. I would and I am SO not Plano material.
Nima suggested dessert at Jorg’s Cafe Vienna which, lo and behold, is on my list. The Austrian cafe was open and a decent crowd. It looked appropriately charming and fun. I broke the rules a bit again by just having dessert but I knew I’d get the feel of the place.
We entered and were seated right away. A small crowd was there and it really had an old world feel that you see in all those European movies with bar/restaurants as hang out spots for all sorts of people. Two people at the tiny bar chatting with the bartender, a large table was next to us while a smaller family table sat behind us. We opted to sit inside but I glanced at the biergarten. It was the perfect night but I don’t think I missed anything not sitting out there.
Our waiter was friendly and went over the desserts with us and left for like ten minutes!! He was also tending the bar and then would disappear. A VERY frustrating wait considering we only wanted desserts. He came back and apologized which didn’t alleve my wish for pain and suffering on his end. Nima ordered the Divine Chocolate Lava Cake while I chose the Scheiter Haufen or bread pudding for you non-Austrians, hoping it will match the perfection of Angelo’s.
It didn’t.
The pudding was chunks of bread in a rum sauce with raisins. I think that is usual of bread pudding but I so wish people would take a hint from Angelo’s. I die and go to heaven each time I taste theirs. I tasted Nima’s and was blown away by the freshness and coolness of the chocolate. It was perfect chocolate which is always hard to come across. As much as I love chocolate, it was also super rich. We both couldn’t finish our desserts and took them home.
I would definitely like to return to sample their entrees which looked, I’ll say, interesting. I’m not big on that cuisine (read my Kuby’s report) but I’d love to give it a try. Plus, I was swayed by the over the top yet authentic Austrian kitsch design. It makes the place exactly what it’s supposed to be without being pretensious. And it even continued in the bathroom!
I’ll be back. Eventually.
And that concludes my fabulous restaurant month of April. I can’t imagine it being repeated. But I could only hope!
