eww, gross.

so, i wasn't even going to post about my meal at claddagh in newport on the levee last night. a couple of girlfriends and i had been hoofing it around newport all day begging donations for the newport gangster's monster's ball, and decided to pop in for a bite to eat. it wasn't a big deal, nothing special. the food there is generally reliable, the seating packs you close to strangers and friends alike, and the notre dame game is on the telly.

but then something absolutely appalling happened.

we were signing our credit card slips when suddenly randy slams down one of the lingering plates on the center of the table and says, "don't look". well, we all know the easiest way to get people to look is to say "don't look". randy then reveals we have been joined by a six-legged friend, lifts the plate, and discovers he is gone. no matter. the little guy quickly resurfaced and was battered with a barrage of slaps by pleather check-holders, accompanied by cries of, "eww, get it" and maybe a girlish shriek or two. (i would like to point out through this whole exchange, no one even looked at our table. maybe they thought we were just really into the notre dame game)

that little bastard would not die. i think he still was twitching (it may have been a post-mortem twitch, who's to say) when i snapped his photo:

johnny rockets

ok, so, i've never really cared for johnny rockets. kind of lackluster and overpriced. but i was meeting some friends at newport for a movie, so we decided to give it a try.

they immediately pissed me off because i tried to order a kid's coke and the server said no. now, i know i am over the age of 10, but i seriously don't drink more than about 4 sips of coke. i am willing to pay a dollar something for those few sips, but not $2.59. and my girlfriends all drink diet, which i think is totally foul, so i can't snake a couple gulps from them. hence, i order a kid's coke. most places oblige. our server helpfully offered to put more ice in the $2.59 coke. i told her i'd have water.

she redeemed herself, though, cause she brought me a kid's coke anyway. plus, she bought us paper hats and her ketchup happy face was superb.

i ordered the route 66, a patty with swiss cheese, grilled mushrooms, and grilled onions. it was actually pretty good. the beef was a bit dry, but the overall effect of the sandwich was satisfying. i can almost imagine being in a convertible cadillac cruising along with the wind in my hair. not really, but the burger rates a 4/6. plus, the classic chrome plated atmosphere is kind of fun.

pizza worthy of the gods

after reading veggie option's mouth-watering review of newport pizza co, i had to give it a go. (since i started this post before i went on vacation, wine me, dine me and the food hussy have also reviewed it) several of my high school girlfriends have migrated to kentucky, so newport and covington tend to be regular dinner destinations. i don't want to commit to driving all the way down to florence (not to mention my distrust of urban sprawl), and the girls now like to stick to their own side of the river.

the place is pretty tiny and there was one lone server running around doing everything. she did call me "ma'am", but she was very sweet, so i let it slide. a sheryl crow concert was on the flatscreen, which was fine, but there was a malignant droning underneath that once noticed was impossible to ignore. when i asked the server what it was, she said it was "something in the kitchen". hmm.

but the important part of the evening - the food. jessie and i split the zeus. it was so simple (tomatoes, feta and asiago, basil, garlic) and so good. i loved the crust; just the right thickness and crispness. i am also a sucker for any mythological reference. this goes back to my first dog.

zeus, our newfoundland of 15 years. appropriately named in terms of grandeur, although being neutered, not much of a womanizer like his nameseake.

the zeus, extremely tasty pizza pie. appropriate level of grandeur. no comment on the womanizing.

stephanie had the bbq chicken. looked really good, and she seemed to enjoy it.

i think newport pizza co could become a regular stop on the south side of the river.

a night out in newport

awhile back, veggie option offered to satiate my curisosity and take me to the crazy fox for some absinthe. last week we were finally able to meet up.

we had dinner at the pepper pod, a classic greasy spoon on monmouth in newport.

unfortunately, the table juke boxes no longer work. we figured, based on the selections, they stopped working sometime in the 80s.

salisbury steak slathered with gravy, mac and cheese, fries - all for $5.50! it was pretty much what one would expect. note the shine on the gravy.on to the crazy fox. it was a pretty low key crowd, but it was a wedensday. veggie said on weekends it can get pretty packed, especially if there's a band.

the crazy fox has a sense of humor about itself

we had a blanche and a verte absinthe, i cannot remember the names. i believe, from what i've read, that it was prepared in the classic french absinthe ritual. basically, a flat, perforated absinthe spoon is laid across the rim of the glass, and a cube of sugar is placed on the perforated area of the spoon. the sugar is used to balance the bitter taste of the wormwood. ice cold water is dripped into the absinthe from a small pitcher. this very slow and gradual addition of the water forms the heart of the absinthe ritual, and is done with or without the sugar.

it is desirable for absinthe to gradually demonstrate increasing turbidity or turn partially translucent as ice water is gradually added to it, known as the louche effect. the louche effect is primarily produced by the herbs anise and fennel, and the precipitation of the herbal essential oils. (reference here)

the louche effect in all its glory

my first glass of absinthe

i have to say, the absinthe smelled much better than it tasted. it smelled subtly of anise, but the actual flavor was much more pronounced. it also became significantly more potent as it warmed to room temperature while veggie and i gabbed about everything from fresh popcorn to traveling abroad. i liked the licorice flavor; it was like jagermeister with the frat boy removed (beth's paraphrasing of my description). definitely more refined and complex than jager, it is still not really something i ever see myself drinking a lot of. i barely had a third of the glass and was beginning to feel warm and tingly. oscar wilde is quoted as saying of absinthe, "after the first glass, you see things as you wish they were. after the second, you see things as they are not. finally, you see things as they really are, which is the most horrible thing in the world.” regrettably, i don't even think i could drink enough to see things as i wish they were.

i did have a fab time hanging out with veggie option, even if absinthe didn't make my list of favorite liquors. maybe next time i'll try it in a cocktail, like the chrysanthemum.

gangsters and chili

in the 1930s and on into the 50s, newport was a haven for gambling and gangsters. dixie chili has seen it all. founded in 1929 by greek immigrant nicholas sarakatsannis, it is the second oldest cincinnati-style chili parlor in the area behind empress.

today brian and i ventured to newport for the historical walking tour and also stopped for some of the historic chili. dixie chili has the typical chili parlor decor and menu, with a few creative twists, like a juke box and "the alligator". i was kind of intrigued by the alligator, a hot dog with a pickle, cheese and mayo (i would get it without mayo, of course), but decided to stick with chili cheese sandwiches, sans onions.

the chili at dixie is thicker, heartier, with more complex flavoring than skyline. it was pretty darn good, although i thought it could have used a little salt. i think next time i would get it with onions. onions would really add to the overall sandwich taste. brian also enjoyed it, but did not like it more than skyline. i thought it tasted fresher than skyline, and therefore was more appealing.we got a little german flag to mark us as waiting for waffle fries. i'm not sure if there's an association, like german flags symbolize waffle fries and the greek flag maybe a 3-way. but i doubt it's that complex of a system.

the tour was full of interesting tidbits of newport's history. among other tales of mayhem and murder, we learned the brass ass (brian's most favorite strip club experience ever. it still makes his skin crawl.) used to be called the stardust, mimicking the casino in vegas. note the star still shining on the facade.

before there was vegas, there was newport, ky

WARNING: shameless plug!

explore newport's murky past on a historic walking tour. see the casinos, murder sites, and major locations that gave newport a national reputation while hearing true stories of the town's colorful history.

all proceeds from this event will go to support international service trips to central america. this year, the group from lloyd memorial high school in northern kentucky will be traveling to jamaica to work in a school. money raised from this event helps the group purchase supplies and digital equipment for the school.

go here for more information and tickets.

addendum 5/10/09: i've just learned that anyone who attends this walking tour will receive a coupon from the syndicate for a free steak dinner when two or more dine.

keystone bar and grill

this place is just cool. if i had an older brother, i'd want him to be just like keystone bar and grill - listening to classic rock, a photo of johnny cash on the wall, rooms decorated with original artwork. i'd like my super cool older brother to make mac and cheese with things like potato chips and spinach in it and name his creations after bands like nirvana and green day.however, i would like the mac and cheese to taste good. i can't say quite as much for the keystone grill. i got the plain old lovin' spoonful, and i wasn't feeling the love. it was ok, but really kind of bland. i had to ask the server to bring salt and pepper to the table, and even that didn't help much. what a disappointment.

my sandwich, however, was quite scrumptious. i'm a sucker for a turkey reuben and this one was well put together as well as visually stimulating, with marble rye and red cabbage slaw. the sandwich that intrigued me the most but i doubted my ability to actually consume was
the duveneck, "an open face sandwich with potato salad, pastrami, corned beef, sauerkraut and whole grain mustard stacked on marble rye". that's a lot of crap on a sandwich.

other random notes: mac and cheese is half price mondays, quesadillas half price on tuesdays. we sat by the fireplace and i hit my head twice on the mantle. i was unimpressed by the barbecue sauce. our server kept bringing me water, which increased her tip exponentially. somehow all my pictures were out of focus. i did not buy a painting, although i could have because the canvases were all for sale.

cafe istanbul

the long awaited post.......we went to cafe instanbul (at newport on the levee) after the beer tour (yes that a few weeks ago). the first pic was the appetizer we ordered was a feta cheese pastry. as you can see we were starved and only able to snap a pic seconds before the last one disappeared.

even though there were four of us we only ordered two entrees. brian and i had the gyros and fries. pitas were nice and filled and the sauce was fantastic. i had expected the traditional cucumber sauce and this was a red sauce. brian actually had two. the look on the waiter's face was priceless.

eric and krissy had the sultan's pleasure. lamb and eggplant with the red sauce and green peppers. both of them really enjoyed it. this is krissy's signature dish. orders it everytime she comes (ok to be fair i don't know about EVERY time, but let's go with often). everytime. i love it.

we were there on a sunday night so it wasn't really crowded at all. service was good. the patio would be nice on a spring day. food was reasonably priced. i couldn't find the menu online. when i googled it i found a chain that seemed similar but didn't have the newport location listed, but everything else was the same.

bottom line. we'll go back.

i'm just not that into restaurants at movie theaters

i would like to start by saying urban sprawl is not my favorite thing and i try to avoid visiting places (west chester) that seem to be intent on swallowing land with parking lots and o'charley's (i have no idea how to make that plural. not even going to try). this includes florence, ky. but since my girlfriends live there, i must go. that's how i ended up at the florence showcase, which offers the glamorous lux level. on the lux level, food and cocktails are brought to you before and during the movie. i pictured something like the cinema grill, but it is actually seats with trays that pull out or something. i'm not entirely sure how it works, because while we had planned to get lux level seats (which are $10 more than regular tickets), they were sold out.
instead we watched our movie (he's just not that into you) and ate afterwards at chatters, the restaurant inside the theater.
chatters is very similar to an airport bar, mediocre over-priced food included. i had the applewood blt on sourdough. the bread was good. overall it was acceptable, but the fries had a kind of funny taste. the cocktails were expensive for what they were. a couple of my girlfriends ordered martinis at $9.50 a pop. my absolut kurrant and tonic was $6, which is a bit more reasonable.
the whole experience was a little strange, especially since there is not a bathroom in the restaurant and you have to walk past the ticket taker to find one. i don't think i'm a fan. i am curious about the lux level, but i don't know how i feel about paying $20 for a movie ticket and then buying food on top of it, even if the food is a bit more filling than nachos and snow caps.
and p.s., "he's just not that into you" was better than i thought it was going to be, based on the critics' reviews. kind of cute and bubbly. everyone gets what they deserve in the end, good and bad.

chalk

a couple weeks ago i celebrated my second annual 29th birthday. we had a pretty fantastic evening at chalk food + wine. we were in the wine room and had a condensed menu (of my choosing). organizing was a breeze, and my husband did a wonderful job with the help of leslie, their coordinator. i had the prosciutto and melon, the polenta with jalapeno, the barramundi (fish, for those of you who don't know. i didn't until a few days before ordering it), and the peanut butter pie. really i included the prosciutto and melon on the menu just out of curiousity. i'm always intrigued by meat and sweet. i've put chocolate-fountain chocolate on roast beef at wedding receptions before, much to the chagrin of those unlucky enough to be seated at my table. that inspiration came from the movie chocolat. anyway, the combination was quite good. that and the peanut butter pie were my favorite parts of the meal. there was also a lot of sharing going on, and i also thought the fries were delicious, although salty.

the starters
i like the visual appeal. it makes me happy to eat pretty food.

the main event

first is the barramundi. i, of course, was a bad blogger and lost the menu description, so this will be a visual tour and not much more.

the pig with jalapeno cornbread.the lamb. note mushrooms in background.the trout.

i did take some flack from certain friends for not having a beef or chicken dish, but whatever.

finally, the desserts. i thought the peanut butter dessert was fantastic, but one of my friends complained she thought it tasted burnt. it was covered in super sinful dark chocolate, so i think that is where she got the taste of char. doesn't it look like fun?

strawberry pannacotta. the silver swirly sugar tickled me pink.
my only complaint: they put the fact i was turning 30 right up there on the menu for everyone to see.

chez nora

i know i am getting old because i seriously considered bringing an umbrella to a bachelorette party on saturday night. these days, 'be prepared' is not just a girl scout motto - i can take on the world armed with my umbrella and a cardigan sweater. pretty soon you will see me sporting a plastic kerchief with colorful daisies, tied under my chin in the same style as my great grandmother.
for the bachelorette dinner, we went to chez nora. i enjoyed a glass of rancho zabaco zinfandel while perusing the menu. beth must have been affected by the full moon, because she drank white zinfandel. we shared a starter. i have to compliment the dip sampler appetizer. what a great idea. four kinds of dip and two kinds of dippers? fantastic.
for the main course, i had the turkey and brie sandwich. it was really delicious. the turkey was thick and browned before being topped with brie. no slimy lunchmeat here! as alyssa put it, i was trying to be virtuous by ordering vegetables instead of fries. this was a bad decision. i suffered from potato envy. also envy of the mini-muffin that came with alyssa's salad. ellen had her staple, the chicken sandwich, while beth indulged in the philly steak.

there were quite a few tasty looking entrees on the table, but i thought it would be mildly obnoxious to ask 20 people, most of whom just met me, if i could photograph their food.

i found a new friend with a sweet-tooth who was easily convinced to split the turtle cheesecake. caramel is one of my favorite things. and yes, i am from the westside, so i pronounce it 'car-mel'. at least i don't spell wash with an 'r' like some members of my family.

the evening continued with much debauchery and drinking for our bachelorette. many shots were consumed, and she was appropriately verschnickered. i was home, in bed, by midnight. even without the umbrella, i'm getting old.