Local Restaurant Review: Station 22

There is just something about having a good local place to eat at, on your own turf, that gives you a sense of pride.  I love having a good place to eat right near home. Half the reason I like local restaurants is the feeling of community and comradely I get when I eat there. The other half being I just like dang good food.

Station 22, the newest sandwich cafe at 22 West Provo Center Street, has stolen my heart because of both of these things.

There is a happy community vibe in their restaurant, and the food is unique and delicious. After going there a few times, I started following their tweets and status updates on facebook, because I love seeing their daily specials, example:

Asian inspired Wich'- Schezwan Pepper Crusted Ahi Tuna~ Ginger, Cucumber Slaw ~ Wasabi Garlic Mayo and all between a warm Ciabatta Roll.

Other days, stuff like this: 

Today we are featuring our delicious Bratwurst; traditional German Bratwurst Sausage, Butter, Bacon, Beer Kraut, Whole Grain Mustard on a Sourdough Hoagie roll. Put your lederhosen on and come down to Station 22, to get in the spirit of Oktober!

Soups Today: Quinoa & Roasted Pepper Soup - Sharp Cheddar Chili.

Falafel special today! Made Egyptian-style with fried potatoes, eggplant, baba ganoush, lettuce, tomato, & our special sauce. Spicy or not!

Today is the Meatloaf Sandwich special! Meatloaf filled with cheddar cheese, wrapped in bacon & served with lettuce & tomatoes on ciabatta.

Battle of the Specials! New favorite, the ultimate Meatloaf Sandwich will be opposed by the Meatball Sandwich in a meaty battle of flavor!

Don't they sound amazing? They look amazing too, check out their facebook album. My brother and I ran over the day they had the Ahi Tuna sandwich, and the following day we both woke up wanting another one. So good. Even if I don't have time to go in and get food, I am just happy to read the updates on my phone and know that somewhere, someone is eating well.

Most meals, after you add a side of beer-battered fries and fry sauce (which you should, because they are easily the best fries in the county), end up costing you around ten bucks. Typical, higher-end lunch price, I think it's worth every penny.

I also love that they have a salad bar, which is fresh and tasty, and has delicious dressing options. Reasonably priced at $3.99 for a large plate.

Other reviews of Station 22:
Utah Diners Guide

Yelp
Happy Cow


I love Station 22. But I guess I am pretty biased, I am a foody who loves sandwiches... I believe every sandwich should be a meal, and every meal a sandwich. And Station 22 makes good sandwiches. I am also just proud to say they belong in our Provo neighborhood. Read what they stand for in the "About" section on their website, and you'll feel proud too (I also like reading the little bit of Provo history they have written up on their napkin dispensers). I think whoever is in charge over there has done a good job at creating a cafe that feels like it belongs to the community, and that enriches the vibe of the city. The sign says “established 2011”, but the way it has nestled itself into Provo Center Street gives me the feeling like it should have been there all along.


Go visit yourself, and tell me what you think!

Swanky Restaurants at Cheap Prices

So I know this is supposed to be a blog about eating for cheap, but there are two ridiculously good deals right now available online for a couple great high class restaurants.

The first one is to the Tree Room at Sundance.  I've never been there, but I've been to Zoom in Park City (its sister restaurant, also owned by Robert Redford) and it was amazing.  The deal is $80 worth of food for $40.  Still a little expensive, but not too bad for a very special occasion.  Word to the wise...$80 there can go pretty quick.

Tree Room Deal

Here's a link to reviews about the Tree Room:  Tree Room Reviews

I'm a little more excited about the second deal though.  It's at 501 on Main in Park City.  They have a good looking menu, and I think I'm going to buy this one.  For $29 you get a shared appetizer, two entrees (up to $21 each, which would include everything on their regular menu), and a shared dessert.  Again, $29 plus a tip on the full value is gonna be a little expensive, but it's a great deal for a special occasion meal during the Holidays.

Here's the deal and some Reviews:

501 on Main Deal

501 Reviews

If anyone buys these let me know how they like the restaurants!

One of VERY FEW reasons to get up early on Saturday!

Since the demise of the Saturday Morning Cartoon I haven't had much reason to get up early on Saturday mornings.  Maybe for a trip to the lake or a longer bike ride that would be intolerable in the heat...maybe.

There is one other "best part of waking up" that I get excited for though, and it's not Folgers.

BOUNTIFUL BASKETS!

Bountiful Baskets is a co-op (that's right, nobody is benefitting except everyone that participates) that, for now, is mostly in the western United States.  Through a series of regional growers, volunteers, etc., BB has created a network that enables you to get fresh quality produce for a good price.  I've found it to be a step above your average grocery store produce.

How much?  The above spread is a typical example of what you would get in a weekly basket, and it cost $15.  The price is the same every week, although the produce may vary.  BB's website states that each basket typically contains around $50 of grocery store priced produce, and I don't think that's a stretch at all.  I was at Albertson's and Gala apples like the ones above were $1.99/lb.  I estimate that the apples alone above would cost $6.  Throw in grocery store prices of $3 cantaloupe, $3 grapes, and $3 combined for celery and lettuce, and you've got a slew of free apricots, beans, bananas, tomatoes, and broccoli.

While I still feel farmers markets are the best way to get great produce, Bountiful Baskets has more locations and is a great price for great produce.  Give it a try if you don't have fresh fruit and vegetable markets in your city.

I love me some St. George! Check out the St. George Daily Deal.

I love Groupon, Living Social, City Deals, and all of the other discount sites out there.  I've had many a fine meal on a peasant's salary thanks to their offers.  However, the lack of services these sites provide to beautiful St. George is unacceptable.

Check out stgeorgeutah.com!  It's essentially a groupon with a daily deal just for St. George.  Yesterday I bought an $8 gift certificate to the Bombay Cafe on 7th East for $4.  Can't wait to see if St. George is finally home to some decent Indian Food.

Enjoy! And remember, eating like a king doesn't have to be pricey!

Mayonnaise Doesn't Suck! I promise!

Best Foods mayonnaise sucks.  So does Kraft.  I'd even go so far as to say that Hellman's is mediocre, and I hope that Jimmy John's will forgive me for that statement.  But Mayonnaise done right ROCKS!  If you don't believe me, go to Bruges Waffles and Frites in SLC and then get back to me.  You'll love it.

Europeans know what's up, and any good French chef will tell you that knowing how to make a good Mayonnaise is the basis for literally thousands of recipes.  When I was in Romania recently I made Salata de Beouf with my favorite Romanian Grandma.  It's essentially potato salad but with a crazy tangy mayonnaise for the base.  And yes, yours truly made the Mayo.

Two weeks later when I got home I tried to make it for a 4th of July BBQ.  Epic Fail.  So in honoring the ever important Mayonnaise, here is a video with old Gordon Ramsay himself (I think he was on crack when he filmed this) teaching us how to make Mayonnaise our friend!

Give it a try, and mix in some chipotle, or roasted garlic and red peppers, or whatever your heart desires.
Total cost for this recipe: LESS THAN $2.00.  Peasants Unite!

All you can eat* amazing Mexican for $6.99! Me Gusta El Amate!!!

A few weeks ago my girlfriend and I went on a great adventure...DINNER WITH MY FAMILY!  While it may sound more like a nice night out than a Lewis and Clark-esque foray into the world of high adventure, you have to understand that with 8 very opinionated persons arguing over where to dine (think of your favorite Always Sunny in Philadelphia argument and magnify it by a few additional people), coming to a concensus on the hosting restaurant was beyond difficult.  After the common suggestions - Applebee's, OG (that's Olive Garden, not Original Gangster), etc. - we settled on Paula's cazuela, an old family favorite that really shouldn't be.  It's bad.  Gringo Mex at it's worst.  That's right, I won't even give it the title of Tex-mex.

I could go on, but i won't.  Sadly, I remember somebody mentioning on that outing, and everyone shooting down the idea, of going to what I now consider the newly crowned "Best Mexican Food in Southen Utah."  EL AMATE,  Located at 974 w. Sunset, next to Papa Murphy's Pizza.  If only we had listened...

Since I'm working this summer for the 7th largest law firm in Utah that has revenues in the multi-multi millions of dollars per year for somewhere in the range of ZERO DOLLARS PER HOUR, I jumped at my Mom's text yesterday offering to take me to lunch.  We headed over to El Amate, her having been there once over a year ago, and I never having visited.  Best decision either of us have made in at least the last eleven days.

The restaurant is small, with only about 10 or 12 tables.  After being seated, my eyes were immediately drawn to the white board listing the day's specials, each at $6.99 and served with frijoles y arroz.  Chile Rojo, Chile Verde, or crispy Fish Tacos...option #1 for me, and fish tacos for mi madre.

Let's start with the fish tacos.  Crispy and flaky is a wonderful combination that I don't know that I've tried before yesterday.  Rather than the typical corn tortilla, El Amate served up their fish tacos in Freshly Fried crisp taco shells, and then topped them with cabbage and crema.  That's right, Mexican crema, not American sour cream.  Yes, there is a difference.  While I'm not usually a fan of Tilapia, it worked here.  Well done.  On to the Chile Rojo.

I'd never had Chile Rojo before, most likely due to the fact that nobody else in St. George makes it!  It was amazing.  Think Chile Verde, but with a richer red sauce and beef lending it's flavor to the already amazing sauce.  It was perfect in every way, and just what I was hoping for.  The spice level was spot on as well, which means, as you'll know if you've ever eaten with me, that my forehead and face were just starting to glisten with sweat. (unlike runners and perpetual gym rats, "It's a good sweat" for me means that the spice was perfect, not that my spin class almost killed me.)  To top it off, THEY MAKE ALL THE TORTILLAS IN HOUSE!!! My dish was served with 4 piping hot corn tortillas that were somewher in the range of twice as thick as anything you can buy anywere else.  So good were the tortillas, that my Mom bought a dozen to take home for $3.50.

The beans and rice with both dishes were above average, which I think is about as much as you can expect from beans and rice.  Is it really every going to be the most memorable thing on your plate?  I've always believed that you can identify a good Mexican restaurant by its frijoles, and that holds true here: above average beans definitely equaled an above average restaurant as a whole.

If you don't want to take my word for it, here are the yelp and urbanspoon reviews for El Amate (yes, one of them on each is mine.  It was just so dang good I couldn't resist.)

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/312/1449239/restaurant/Utah/El-Amate-St-George"><img alt="El Amate on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/link/1449239/biglink.gif" style="border:none;width:200px;height:146px" /></a>
El Amate Yelp

Yesterday, July 27, 2011, Paula's permanently lost a customer.  And I won't miss you (except maybe the fried ice cream).

*Disclaimer:  It's not really all you can eat, but I really think that my plate ended up being just about all that anyone could eat.  You shouldn't eat at buffets anyways, or you'll end up like me.