Boulder Pit Stop

For years we have driven by Boulder Pit Stop on our way out of town or even just down the street to the Coffee Cup.  We have been saying for years we should stop and try it.  So Sunday we went out and tried it.  

Pit Stop Burger with Cheese

This burger was juicy and had a lot of flavor, the secret sauce and grilled onions added to the flavor of the burger which was cooked perfectly.  

French Fries

French Fries are extra, but what's a burger without french fries.  They were cooked perfectly, not greasy and seasoned perfectly.

Double Pit Stop Burger with Cheese

The burger was huge after putting on these toppings.  But still the burger was the star of every bite!

Kid's Meal Cheeseburger with Fries

Cristyana added grilled onions and the secret sauce to the burger!  Yes, she ate grilled onions!!!  The only thing left on her plate when she was done was maybe a quarter of the burger everything else was in her tummy and she was asking when we could come back again.

Chicken Tenders Dinner

Mikayla usually loves burgers, but today she was in the mood for chicken tenders.  This is the normal adult meal.  She did not finish all of it, but she said it was yummy and filling.

The one thing both kids enjoyed even more than the food was when they asked for a side of ranch dressing, they were given a huge bottle to keep at their table.  They were in heaven!

Boulder Pit Stop is a must stop in Boulder City.  It's a small restaurant so you might have to wait for a table during the busy hours, but it is well worth the wait!!!

2016 Lay's Chip Competition

Every year Lay's has contest to create a new flavor of chips.   This year we purchased all four and sat around the table and tried all of them.  These are the four chips for this year.

Wavy Greek Tzatziki - You could smell the tzatziki sauce, which was kind of a turn off for the kids.  The minute you put this chip in your mouth there was a sour diary taste.  This taste went away as you finished the chip, but left a not so great flavor in your mouth after.

Chinese Szechuan Chicken - When we opened the bag, you could smell the Szechuan chicken dish from the Chinese restaurant.  After tasting it, it wasn't too bad, the flavor was not as bold as it should be, but the flavor was there. It was a little spicy but not overpowering.

Brazilian Picanha - The smell of a Brazilian steak house filled the area when we opened this bag.  The flavors how ever were not as bold as a Brazilian steak house.  You could taste the seasoning that are used on steaks in restaurants, which gave us a mixed reaction.

Kettle Cooked Indian Tikka Masala - The smell of these chips reminded us of this Indian dish.  The smells of curry was strong.  It wasn't as spicy as you would have expected for indian food, or even by taking a sniff in this bag.

Overall we most of us were not impressed with this years offerings.  Some flavors are not meant to be made into chips and these are four that should not have been.

However, one of us had a favorite and after thinking about it, if we had to choose we might have agreed with her.  Can you guess which one was picked??

Cristyana chose the Chinese Szechuan Chicken which surprised us because she is the pickiest eater in the house. She finished off this bag of chips and keeps asking for more.

If you have done this challenge let us know what your favorite is!!

Makai Pacific Island Grill

Makai Pacific Island Grill is the next stop on our restaurant tour.

The restaurant was very open and had tables to sit, but it looked like most of their business is done by take out. They have 3 sizes of plates and multiple side dish items. Over all their menu is basis and simple.

This is the Ono (small) plate. It offers one meat dish, 1 side and a base.

This dish here was the teri steak and macaroni salad with white rice.  The steak was cooked perfectly and tender. The flavor or the teri sauce was good. 

This is also the Ono (small) plate. This one has chicken katsu as the meat option. The chicken was made fresh and the seasonings in the breadong made it a yummy meal. 

This is the Ono'er (medium) size plate. This comes with eat servings, 2 sides and a base for $6.99. I choose the teri chicken (house speciality) and ahi poke. For my sides I had macaroni salad and Kim Chee slaw. The chicken was good and cooked perfectly. The ahi poke tasted fresh and and seasoned just right.

The macaroni salad was the best I have had since my grandma's back home in Hawaii. The Kim Chee slaw was interesting it wasn't too spicy but had just the right amount of spice. 

This is the Ono'est (large) plate. This plate offered 3 meat servings, 2 sides and a base for $8.49. Chris got the spicy ahi poke which was really good. Pulehu steak and teri chicken. The steak was seasoned perfectly and was tender. He also choose the Kim Chee slaw and macaroni salad.

Overall, this was a great experience and the food was amazing! The prices at this stop will lot break the bank. This will be a stop on our food tour again!

Makai is located at Fort Apache and Tropicana. They are closed on Sunday so if you are in the area Monday-Thursday stop in and have a great inexpensive meal.

ENJOY!!

The Habit Burger Grill, Las Vegas, NV

The Habit Burger Grill just opened at the corner of our street.  Saturday we ventured in to try this new place.  The restaurant was clean and smelled of grilled burgers and fries.  Everyone we encountered was friendly and helpful.  

GRILLED CHEESE

Kid's meals are a must when taking the kids anywhere, more for Cristyana then Mikayla.  Cristyana said they could have given her more fries, but overall it was really good!  She even ate the burger gummy that comes as a treat.

CAESAR SALAD w/grilled albacore tuna

Chopped romaine tossed with our Caesar dressing, croutons and fresh Parmesan

This salad was really good, the salad was crispy and the caesar dressing was just right.  The tuna was amazing, if I hadn't ordered the tuna, I wouldn't have known it was fish. Overall the salad was great!  I will be having that again and again and again!

GRILLED CHICKEN CAESAR

Chopped romaine tossed with our Caesar dressing, croutons, freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and topped with a grilled chicken breast

This is the same salad that I had except for it's with chicken instead of fish.  The chicken look most and seasoned right.  The salad portions are big and filling!

DOUBLE CHARBURGER

Mayonnaise, pickle, fresh tomato, lettuce and caramelized onions on a toasted bun

CHARBURGER

Mayonnaise, pickle, fresh tomato, lettuce and caramelized onions on a toasted bun

These burgers were juicy and seasoned properly.  On the double charburger we got lettuce, tomato and grilled onions.  All the flavors worked well together and left you wanting more.

Overall we will be making this a regular stop when we are out and about.  They have locations in California, Arizona, Utah, New Jersey, Florida, Idaho, Maryland, Virginia, Washington and Las Vegas!  If you come across this place, its a must stop!!

WuHu Noodles at the Sliverton

WuHu Noodles

WuHu Noodle have been open only a few months.  Chris and I decided to give it a try.

I tried the Japanese Ramen, which I could choose either Shoyu, Miso or Tonkotsu.  Included in the bowl was Japanese BBQ Pork, half a soft boiled egg, bamboo shoots, red ginger and mushrooms in a rich broth.  I am always looking for good Ramen on a cold night and this was very good!  

Chris loves fried rice, so when he gets the opportunity to try a different fried rice he will.  He ordered Kimchi Fried Rice, which was made with housemade kimchi and pork belly.  There was just enough spicy to it, and really yummy!

We will be going back to WuHu noodles again!  The prices are competitive and its a relaxing atmosphere.  You can sit in and eat, but you order and pay at the counter and then someone brings your food to the table.

Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano in Disney's Hollywood Studios

It's been a very busy few months, and I now have time to finish up our Disney trip with our final restaurant.  Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano in Disney's Hollywood Studios was a first visit for the whole family.

We decided to visit this restaurant for lunch.

We started with Crispy Calamari, which was topped with grilled peppers and onions, served with dipping sauces.  This was really yummy and perfectly cooked.  

 

Cristyana the pizza princess ordered a pepperoni pizza for her lunch, oh and let's not forget the ranch dressing!  It was her own personal pan pizza.  

Mikayla ordered the Oven-Baked Chicken alla Parmigiana, which was breaded chicken breast with marinara sauce topped with melted mozzarella over spaghetti.  The pasta was cooked perfectly and the chicken was moist and well seasoned.

Chris ordered the Chicken Campanelle, which had wood-grilled chicken over campanelle pasta tossed in a four-cheese sauce with broccoflower, sun-dired tomatoes, with fresh spinach and sweet onions.  The campanelle pasta was well cooked and the chicken was moist and well seasoned.

I ordered the Saltimbocca with pork tenderloin topped with prosciutto, sage, fontina cheese, tuscan mashed potatoes, broccolini and lemon caper sauce.  I have only ever had the chicken saltimbocca, so the pork was a welcome change.  The pork was cooked perfectly and every bite was seasoned well and enjoyable.

Of course no meal is complete without dessert!  We ordered the traditional cannoli, which was made with a creamy cannoli filling with a hint of citrus and dusted with cocoa powder.  Of course it was super yummy!

We ordered the dessert sampler, which had miniature versions of Mama's favorite desserts, Amarettini cheese cake, tiramisu, and cannoli cake.  Each dessert was just enough to try them and they were all wonderful, it was a good thing I didn't have to choose which to have!  We got the best of both worlds!

After trying Mama Melrose, I think we will be making our way back to this restaurant in the future!  This was the last restaurant we visited in DisneyWorld!  Back to Las Vegas!  Look for our posts from Las Vegas, NV!!

Teppan Edo - EPCOT World Showcase

Our tour through Walt Disney World continues with a stop in EPCOT Center's World Showcase.  We stopped in the Japanese pavilion for lunch at Teppan Edo. 

The restaurant has a fun atmosphere as these talented chefs cook you meal right in front of you. 

Tuna Tataki was the first appetizer we tried. This is a seared tuna loin topped with green onion and tempura crunch.

This dish was cooked in the grill in front of us and was amazing!!! Everything tastes very fresh.

Volcano Roll was our second appetizer. This is made with grill California roll topped with shrimp, scallops, and volcano sauce. When this was being made on the grill the smell of the volcano sauce made your mouth water.  Everything together was fabulous!

I had the steak and shrimp. The shrimp was cooked perfectly and the steak was tender!

Mikayla had the Fliet Mignon! It was cooked perfectly and well seasoned.

Cristyana had the grilled chicken.  The chicken wasn't dry, and had great seasoning. Of course Cristyana didn't eat so we all picked at her meal.

The whole dining room wished Cristyana a happy birthday.

We had a great time here and will continue to go back whenever we are in town!

Bubba Gump's - Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas

"Bubba Gump Shrimp is what they got."  - Forrest Gump

How many of us have watched the movie Forrest Gump over and over again?  Okay, maybe just me, but watching the movie over and over again can win you trivia at the restaurant.  On Maui they gave away prizes if you could answer their questions about the movie!  

Bubba Gump Shrimp Company Restaurant and Market has many locations around the United States.  Lahaina, Maui, Hi was the 2nd location of this huge franchise.  It was a favorite restaurant of our when we lived in Hawaii, so we were excited when they opened here on the strip.  We have been there a few times in the 3 years it's been here.

The other night we visited Bubba Gumps.  The staff was friendly and the restaurant was clean!  For a Saturday night on the strip we walked right into the restaurant and was seated right away.  

  I had the Shrimper’s Heaven.  Which has 4 different styles of shrimp, it had Coconut Shrimp, Grilled Shrimp, Crisp Golden Shrimp and Tempura Shrimp with Fries. And of course great dippin’ sauces like Tangy Asian, Cajun Marmalade and Zesty Cocktail.  This was really yummy!  Every shrimp was cooked perfectly, and being that almost everything was fried it was greasy,  and it was perfectly seasoned.

Chris had Forrest’s Seafood Feast.  Southern Fried Shrimp, Hush Pups, Fish & Fries. Dippin sauces -homemade tartar, cocktail and Remoulade.   Again for being fried it wasn't greasy and was seasoned and cook perfectly.

Mikayla had Chicken Strips and Fries.  Her kids meal came with fries, chicken, dippin sauce, jello and an orange slice.  Their kids meals run about $6 and they are served in a boat.  If you remember the movie the boat is the same as the one Forrest uses to catch the shrimp.

Cristyana had Pepperoni Pizza, which came with fries, jello and orange slice.  It was also served in Forrest Boat as you can see at the bottom of the picture.

Overall everyone had a great meal, great service and fun time.  At the end of the meal we received the check.  We had a gift card for $50, the server said he would take the gift card and our Landry's Loyalty card and then bring us back the remainder of the bill.  About 10 minutes later the manager came over and said that beside the $50 gift card we had $25 on our loyalty card which covered our entire bill.  What a surprise!!!  If visit any Landry Restaurants sign up for their loyalty card, they give you $25 on your birthday!  WOW!!! 

Oh and visiting their website shows they now offer a Gluten Free menu!!  So now they have something for everyone!