Tag Archives: #foodie

My Trip to Lulu Hawaiian BBQ – Las Vegas NV

Lulu Hawaiian BBQ is a casual Hawaiian Restaurant with three locations in Las Vegas. The Decatur Road location is very casual. You order and pay at the counter and seat yourself. They make the food fresh to order so you must wait for it to be prepared. There are many Hawaiian restaurants in Las Vegas. Someone from Hawaii told me, “Didn’t you know that Las Vegas is the 9th Hawaiian Island? ….anyways…..Not all but some of the other Hawaiian BBQ restaurants in the area are more “Chipotle Style” as the food is already prepared like a buffet behind glass.

We tried a variety of things.

Side order of bbq beef.

It’s a generous size and is infused with flavors and is very tender.

Here’s a combo of seafood and bbq chicken.

The chicken is tender, and the shrimp are fried nice. The fried fish is very thin and isn’t the freshest. This all is on a bed of finely shredded cabbage and also comes with a soy-like condiment, tarter sauce, and a side cup of creamy macaroni salad.

We also tried the spicy chicken.

The dark meat chicken is wonderfully tender but some of it is covered in soft chicken skin. Although it has many flavors to it but it runs a bit oily today. It isn’t very spicy but does have some heat to it. It also sits over finely shredded cabbage and comes with a soy-like condiment and a side cup of creamy macaroni salad.

Portions were extra large. Prices were low. We were checked on and the cashier around me a bag on her own to bring home the leftovers.

That was my trip to Lulu Hawaiian BBQ.

6512 N Decatur BLVD Las Vegas NV – 702-784-0318

www.NVLuluHawaiianBBQ.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

My First Trip to The Sundry Food Hall Las Vegas NV

The Sundry Food Hall is located in the $850 Million Dollar Uncommon Mixed Development around eight miles away from the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada. This is a higher end food court where all the ordering is done by QR codes on your cell phone.

You can order food from multiple James Beard nominated chef and other prominent chefs from over a dozen choices.

What to pick????

We tried Kowbird –

We got a very large Nashville Style Chicken Sandwich with creamy slaw.

We also got to try Easy Slider –

We tried a ground in-house burger with American cheese (not much cheese) and sweet onion. We also tried a maitake mushroom with gochujang glaze and kimchi slaw and chicken fried onions.

We were also able to fit in smoked amberjack dip with trout roe and pickled onions from Bar Oystetette.

That’s just a small sampling of what you might find at The Sundry. All was good but people kept trying to clear our plates several times before we were finished….Maybe an opening hiccup?

6840 Helen Toland St Las Vegas NV – 725-231-0399

www.TheSundryLV.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

A Taste at Jerry’s Famous Coffee Shop – Las Vegas NV

Jerry’s Famous Coffee Shop is located in Jerry’s Nugget Casino in Las Vegas Nevada.

Jerry’s Nugget Casino is privately owned by the Stamis Family since 1964. This casino has over 700 slot machines, a bingo parlor, a poker room, a sports book, a dance floor and stage. There is also Jerry’s in-house bakery that offers breads, cakes, pies, and cookies.

There is also Jerry’s Famous Coffee shop that offers a wide variety of mostly American Diner type eats and daily prime rib specials.

It isn’t a fancy place and looks diner-ish inside.

They have one of their early slot machines preserved on the wall.

I’m not usually a hamburger person but I read that Jerry’s Burgers are ground in-house daily from New York strip steaks and top round and are served on in-house made buns so burgers seemed like the way to go today.

I got the classic (lettuce, tomato, onions, pickle) with sweet potato fries. The burgers come in 4oz size and 1/2 lb size. The 1/2 pound is only something like $2 more so it makes sense to get the 1/2 pound burger. (I only ate 1/2 and had a meal for another day.)

The burger was prepared slightly less than medium in my opinion but it is good and is a juicy burger. The bun maybe is bigger than I like but is good, made in-house and doesn’t fall apart. But the sweet potato fries are especially good. I never had them before that stayed crisp and they have a great sweet potato flavor.

My husband tried a Western burger (2 slices bacon, spicy BBQ sauce, pepper jack cheese, and an onion ring with potato salad).

He thought it was a really good burger and liked the potato salad.

I made sure to save some room for dessert…..I was all set to try the signature dessert but they had lemon meringue pie as a special dessert today so I went with that.

The meringue is perfect with that just right taste. The lemon curd is tart with enough sweetness and the crust is thin like it should be.

Decided to come back and try dinner……..

Tried what I heard the waitress said that her favorite dish was ………The flame grilled rainbow trout….They start it off with a soup or salad. I picked the salad with blue cheese dressing.

The dressing is made in-house and is good. I was surprised that this salad also contains a good amount of cheddar cheese.

My husband started out with the soup of the day. It was a corn poblano chowder that he said was good.

In reasonable time the dinners arrive with garlic toasts.

The flame grilled rainbow trout with baked potato.

Chicken fried steak with hash browns.

Both were kind of average. Burgers and prime ribs and dessert are the recommended dishes here so far. (note we did not try the prime rib as of yet but on both of my visits I noticed that not all but most people were ordering the prime rib also other people I spoke to said they only go here for the prime rib special and dessert)

This time we tried the signature dessert. The strawberry ring.

If you enjoy cream puffs and strawberries then you’d like it. It’s kinda big. It’s enough for 3 or 4 people.

That was a little taste of Jerry’s Famous Coffee Shop at Jerry’s Nugget Casino.

1821 North Las Vegas Blvd North Las Vegas NV – 702-399-3000

www.JerrysNugget.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Quick and Easy Sweet Potato Hand Pies Recipe

I got some sweet potatoes so I threw them in the oven with a little water to steam them till they got soft. Then I got the idea to make them into hand pies. I made them up real fast. I did have extra filling left over that you can heat and then eat. I got lots of compliments on my unique crust. If you mix it up by hand real fast like I did it comes out light and flaky like from a master baker.

Ingredients for around 10 servings

2 cups flour

1/2 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon course sea salt

1/3 cup water

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

2 eggs separated (egg whites for inside dough for sealing and yolks for glazing)

1 lb sweet potatoes – cooked, peeled, and mashed

1 egg – lightly beaten

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup sour cream

Directions

In a large bowl mix together the flour, oil, vinegar, salt, water, and baking powder. Make it into a short fat log and wrap with plastic wrap.

Mix together the sweet potato mixture (sweet potatoes, 1 egg, cinnamon, ginger, dark brown sugar, and sour cream. If it’s lumpy use a mixer.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Either divide into 10 equal pieces or pinch off around a golfball 1.5-2oz piece of dough and roll it thin and flat and close to a round shape.

Brush the whole top with egg white.

Add small scoop or teaspoon of sweet potato mixture.

Bring up ends together.

crimp ends with your fingers or just use a fork.

These all go on a baking sheet lined with parchment.

Brush the tops with all of the egg yolks.

These go in the oven till golden……depending on your oven around 30-40 minutes.

Sweet Potato Hand Pies

ENJOY!!!!!

The Forking Truth

My FORKING Thoughts on Brad’s Vampire Killer Air Dried Crunchy Kale

I came across these bags of Brad’s Vampire Killer Air Dried Crunchy Kale at my local Smith’s Grocery on a Woo Hoo Sale so I picked them up. I thought I remembered coming across them at Sprouts Grocery but never bought them until now. Under the name it reads Buck County…..WOW I know where that is! …..Anyways……They sound interesting. Maybe they are garlic-ee because of Vampire Killer in the name? Or maybe they are spicy?

The ingredient look mostly natural so I thought it might be worth a try.

WTFork are Koji Spores? Ummmm I had to look that one up…….It’s a fungus that might cause irritation…….

Well I bring this home anyway……

My husband greets me on my arrival and asked if I picked up any snacks. I pull this out and he tries it. He goes this is weird I don’t want anymore and leaves.

I try it……..It’s in tiny small pieces that are crisp…….It’s not very garlic-ee or spicy……..It doesn’t taste like anything I can compare it to………It’s crisp little bits that are citrusy, nutty, and sort of a raisin kind of taste. It’s not so great to eat plain but I think it would be best to sprinkle on a salad or maybe a vegetable dish or pasta.

Those were my FORKING Thoughts on Brad’s Vampire Killer Air Dried Crunchy Kale. Your FORKING Thoughts may indeed differ.

The Forking Truth

My Trip to Bob Taylor’s Ranch House – Las Vegas NV

Bob Taylor’s Ranch House is a barbecue restaurant located in Las Vegas Nevada. This restaurant has been around since 1955. WOW that’s a long time…..It actually smells like barbecue as you get to the entrance.

On your way in you pass by a big bar and a wood fired grill.

Country tunes are piped into the dining areas.

It was lunch time so I went with a bbq chicken salad.

It was made of warm soggy iceberg lettuce.

It’s also surrounded by tender white meat chicken covered in a sickening sweet bbq sauce and then the soggy warm lettuce is topped with parmesan cheese.

My husband tried a Western BBQ burger (and asked for it medium – rare).

The onion rings are fried crisp and are good….but the burger is cooked till all dried out and grey inside.

Maybe it was better in 1955?

That was my trip to Bob Taylor’s Ranch House in Las Vegas NV

6250 Rio Vista St. Las Vegas NV – 702-645-1300

www.BobTaylorsRanchHouse.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Hussong’s Cantina Margaritas & Mexican Food – Boca Park Las Vegas NV – Worth a Fork!

Hussong’s Cantina Margaritas & Mexican Food Restaurant claims to have invented the margarita at their original location in Mexico in 1941. The Boca Park Las Vegas location is filled with all kinds of artifacts, photos, and all kinds of things all over the walls.

They started us off with a warm basket of chips salsa, and sweet BBQ sauce salsa.

I tried the Baja chop salad (romaine, tomato, red onion, apple, red pepper, poblano, pumpkin seeds, hominy, tortilla strips, and cumin vinaigrette with added chicken).

It might not look special but it was full of lots of delicious flavors.

My husband went for the mix and match 3 item plate. (he got 2 chicken street tacos, a carnitas burrito, beef barbocoa enchilada with rice and beans).

I did taste a chunk of chicken from the street tacos and THAT CHICKEN was REALLY Great!!!! It was infused with flavors and very tender. the chicken in the salad was also tender but plain breast meat) I hear that the other meats are also very good.

Everything including service was very good!

Hussong’s Cantina Margaritas & Mexican Food at Boca Park is-

Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

Hussong’s Cantina Margaritas & Mexican Food

740 S. Rampart BLVD Las Vegas NV – 702-778-2160

www.HussongsBocaPark.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

My Trip to Nittaya’s Secret Kitchen Las Vegas NV

Nittaya’s Secret Kitchen is a Thai Restaurant located in the Summerlin area of Las Vegas Nevada.This is a full service restaurant with a bar and one of the few Thai restaurants with a large outdoor patio. Most of the locals consider this to be the best of Thai Restaurants in Las Vegas.

bar area

main dining area

The menu is slightly different from many Thai Restaurants and much of the menu is full of Thai Tapas (small plates) for sharing.

The one tapas dish that we both were crazy about was the world famous spinach salad.

The spinach leaves are tempura fried and are incredibly crispy and seem free of oil..But that sauce with cashews, heat, lime, and other flavors is incredibly scrumptious!!!!!

We also tried the golden pouches (egg pastry stuffed with potato in curry sauce).

You should try if you never had this dish before……..

For my main I tried the chicken green curry.

They made it a medium hot that was just right for me. This taste similar to green curry dishes from most Thai Restaurants. The chicken was tender and they used the correct amount of basil that infused the dish.

My husband tried the basil chicken.

I usually prefer when they hand chop the chicken like they did here but I think someone new was cooking because some of the flavors are missing today. This just taste like chicken in soy sauce and a little bit of fish sauce….The garlic and heat are missing. Also they used a good amount of basil but for some odd reason you can’t taste it in this dish…….

The MUST GET DISH Here was the World Famous Spinach Salad it was FORKING AMAZING…..and the c=green curry dish is also recommended.

That was my trip to Nittaya’s Secret Kitchen

8427 W Lake Mead BLVD Las Vegas NV – 702-360-8885

www.NittayasSecretKitchen.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Lemon Mostarda Glazed Cabbage with Gorgonzola Recipe

Mostarda is a spicy Northern Italian Condiment. It is usually but not always made with candied fruit and mustard syrup. I read at www.LaCucinaItaliana.com that there are SIX basic kinds of mostarda (cherry, apricot, fig, peach, squash, tomato). According to La Cucina Italiana instead of mustard they use something called mustard essence instead of mustard to make mostarda. I used a combination of mustard and mustard powder to make my inspiration. I previously made a FORKING DELICIOUS acorn squash with mostarda and taleggio cheese….so this is a spin off of that. Serving size is always difficult to judge because I don’t know if you want a small or large serving. For me this made 6 side servings so I’ll say 6 servings.

Ingredients for around 6 servings

1 cabbage – core removed, rough chopped

1 onion – rough chopped

3 carrots – peel if not organic – slice on a slight diagonal around 1/4 inch thick

1/4 cup chives

4 oz gorgonzola – crumbled (or any blue cheese)

1 cup sugar

1 lemon – zest and juice but separate

2 Tablespoons mustard powder

3 Tablespoons whole grain mustard (I used Maille Old Style)

2 short Calabrian dried chili peppers – crumbled

1/2 teaspoon course sea salt

4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

sea salt – to taste

black pepper – to taste

Directions

Set oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl (or maybe a few bowls if you bowl isn’t very large) mix together the sugar, lemon juice (zest is for finishing), mustard powder, mustard, oil, Calabrian chili flakes, and sea salt. Mix well. Mix in the cabbage, onion, and carrots.

This goes on baking sheets with rims in an even layer.

Add a light amount of fresh crushed sea salt and fresh ground black pepper.

This goes in your preheated 400 degree F oven for 30-50 minutes or until lightly charred.

Finish with lemon zest, gorgonzola, and chives.

Lemon Mostarda Glazed Cabbage with Gorgonzola

It came out DELICIOUS!!!!! Even my dog thinks so!

The Forking Truth

My FORKING Thoughts on Calbe My Pote White Truffle Premium Potato Chips

I found Calbe My Pote White Truffle Premium Potato Chips at my local Seafood City (A California-based Filipino Supermarket Chain) They caught my eye and the ingredients don’t look too bad so I thought I’d give this small bag a try.

Oh WoW! They are made with French Grey sea salt. That salt is very expensive….Ummmm don’t really know what the truffle flavor really is…..Usually artificial is called truffle essence…..maybe they are being tricky here? I’ll try them anyway.

I open the bag up and take a whiff.

I don’t get truffle but I do get a really strong but good potato smell that I don’t usually get when I open a bag of chips…….Like a smell I get when I make mashed potatoes.

I try a chip…They look a little different and seem to have a little bit of skin on them. They are also small, extra thin, and seem free of oil.

Now I taste one……….They do have more potato flavor than what you usually get in a potato chip that are laced with a little bit of truffle taste and are extra lightly salted. But they also seem extra dry. They are different.

Those were my FORKING Thoughts on Calbee My Pote White Truffle Premium Potato Chips I do note that your FORKING Thoughts may indeed differ.

The Forking Truth