Category Archives: Forking Restaurant Reviews

Honest unbiased reviews based on actual experiences

A Little Taste of Osteria Fiorella at The Red Rock Casino Las Vegas NV

Osteria Fiorella is an Italian Restaurant by James Beard Award Winning chef Marc Vetri. This restaurant is located in the Red Rock Casino and Resort that is in the Summerlin area in Las Vegas Nevada.

It’s artsy and modern inside. There are several small bars and wine bars inside.

They also have an exhibition kitchen in the middle of the restaurant.

They start you off with a bread basket of freshly made sourdough bread and focaccia with Californian olive oil enhanced with balsamic vinegar.

The breads are very good and are unlike any focaccia or sour dough bread that I ever had before. The focaccia is very light and moist in texture with delicious flakes of salt on the crust. The sour dough bread is like what white bread would taste like if white bread was really good.

We started with the seasonal crudo. It was hamachi with citrus.

It was very good. The fish seemed very fresh and came with citrus that taste better than what us mere mortals can buy from our local supermarkets.

We also shared a pasta dish because you really are suppose to try pasta here.

We shared the ricotta tortellini with preserved tomatoes and Calabrian chili.

These were different too…..The pasta was extra thin and very light. The cheese inside sure doesn’t taste like it was from a tub….It taste milky and fresh made to me.

For my main I tried the branzino.

It’s different…….The fish has a different kind of fired taste. I forgot what kind of oven they used for this fish but it is different. The fish came adorned with baby greens, peperonata, oil, lemon and sweet peppers, It’s a good size portion and is almost big enough to share.

My husband tried the bone-in veal.

It’s also a little different. It’s a pounded breaded veal covered in San Marzano Tomato sauce that is topped with fresh basil and melting high quality bufala cheese.

I managed to save room for dessert and tried what my waiter said was the popular favorite dessert here.

This is called the Orange Bonet.

It’s cream custard topped with poached pear with house made vanilla gelato on the side enhanced with orange sauce, citrus zest, and crushed pistachios.

That was a little taste Osteria Fiorella.

11011 W Charleston Blvd Las Vegas (Red Rock Casino and Resort)

702-797-7777

www.RedRockResort.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Federal American Grill – Phoenix AZ – All Day Great Big Menu!

The Federal American Grill is a Texas Based small group of American Restaurants that recently opened in Phoenix Arizona (across the street from Whole Foods on Mayo Blvd). They offer a great big all day menu of all kinds of things.For people that love whiskey they offer 500 labels. They offer a variety of appetizers (all day) like fried oysters, kung pao calamari, crab cakes, and BBQ bone marrow. They offer American entrees like braised short ribs, catch of the day, chicken fried steak, WAGYU meatloaf and pork chops (all day). They also offer small salads, entree salads, burgers, sandwiches, protein bowls, soup, seafood, steaks, entrees and more – ALL DAY! I was told that brunch will soon be added in addition to the all day menu.

The kitchen is visible from the dining room.

They offer a variety of seating.

They have booths, traditional tables, high top tables, bar seating, and a private room.

Whatever you order they start you off with complimentary biscuits with butter and sweet and spicy Fresno pepper jam.

We tried the truffle macaroni and cheese. (menu reads- Resistance is futile.)

It very cheesy. It taste like it was made with lots of real cheese and is laced with truffle essence. A sprinkling of crunchy crumbs were added. The pasta was also prepared perfect and isn’t mushy.

Janice’s Meatloaf is made with RC Ranch Craft WAGYU beef. It comes with mashed potatoes and bordelaise sauce.

Our server recommended the lemon basil salmon protein bowl.

The salmon was grill to request (medium) and was surrounded by deluxe seasonal vegetables (today is was brussels sprouts, multi color cauliflower heirloom tomatoes, zucchini and more) with rice and was laced lightly with lemon basil dressing.

Federal American Grill recently opened in Phoenix AZ and offers a great BIG all day menu.

7000 E Mayo Blvd PHX AZ

602-857-5555

www.TheFederalGrill.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Then Burger – Glendale AZ – FANTABULOUS ELEVATED BURGERS! – Worth A Fork!*****WITH UPDATE – NOT THE SAME

Then Burger is located across from the entrance to Westgate in Glendale Arizona. The restaurant is brought to you by a local resident Mr. Preston who also owns Twist Hot Chicken in Peoria. This is a casual but very nice burger restaurant.

inside

Besides elevated ground in house burgers they offer service, great cocktails, beer, wine and more. Mostly everything is made in-house. Everything is fresh. They only use the freezer for the ice cream for milk shakes. They offer appetizers, a few salads, and around a dozen different modern burger choices. Most of the burgers are beef patties (short rib, SIRLOIN, chuck) that are ground in house. They are recommended to be served medium pictured below.

Some of the other very detailed burgers are short rib (like quesabirra that you dunk), beef like with marrow and mushrooms, salmon, chicken thigh, and beet patty. They are served on Noble Bread Buns and come with hand cut fries that can be upgraded to poutine fries or animal fries (dressing and cheese).

We started out with smooth strong cocktails called wild horse.

Lip Service Rye Whiskey, St George Absinthe, Maraschino Bitters

We also tried the roasted bone marrow appetizer.

This was really great! – It’s so much better than the last bone marrow I tried someplace downtown. It was adorned with wild mushroom ragu and came with Noble Bread Slices.

Then came ——-The Burger.

I picked the Kenji Burger – red Leicester cheese ( my request on the side), teriyaki, caramelized onions, arugula, yuzu aioli on a just right, not too bread-ee Noble Bun………OMG This is just FANTABULOUS! The Flavors are incredible. The Burger is incredible. ********this burger is FORKING INCREDIBLE*******Besides everything that is tasting amazing I’m pointing out the caramelized onions…..not sure if it’s just the onions or a combination of the onions and sauces but the taste is so incredible that it might be impossible for me to try a different beef burger here…..It really was that FORKING GREAT!

Around five minutes latter the cut in house fries arrive.

regular fries
upgraded – poutine fries with cheese curds and gravy

I was surprised that we weren’t offered ketchup for the fries. Instead we got small dishes of sauces. One was house sauce ( a creamy mustardy sauce ((my favorite)), ranch sauce, a creamy lemon-ee sauce, and garlic aioli.

My husband thinks that the burger called drugstore was FANTABULOUS. (It’s the most traditional burger on the menu)

He got his Medium Rare. American Cheese, HOUSE Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, Onion, Bread and Butter Pickles, and House Sauce. He just kept saying that this is a really good burger…..THIS IS A REALLY GOOD BURGER……..Can we go here tomorrow?

They do offer a few desserts but the food is so darn FANTABULOUS that I doubt most people will ever have room for dessert.

Then Burger (across from entrance to Westgate) Your Welcome.

Worth a Fork! THEN WE RETURNED.

The burgers are no longer a blend of short rib, sirloin, and chuck. Now they are all chuck.

The burgers taste different and cook up different now.

My husband tried the Drugstore burger again (American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, bread and butter pickles, house sauce) and asked for Medium-Rare. It no longer comes with bacon.

Unfortunately it’s well done and dry.

My marrow & mushroom burger (menu reads munster but they gave me truffle pecorino ((on side at my request)), shiitake mushrooms, marrow crisp, marrow bone.

This burger patty is FORKING DRY AS A HOCKY PUCK!

For a $36.00 burger that IS CERTAINLY NOT ACCEPTABLE. It was very hard for me but I had to send it back and my husband also sent his burger back. In acceptable time we had the re-fires.

Second drugstore burger came out well done and dry.

Second marrow and mushroom burger came out dry.

Then Burger

9220 W Glendale Ave Glendale AZ

623-328-9388

www.ThenBurger.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

The Little Pickle Phoenix AZ – PHENOMENAL PASTRAMI & BRISKET – Worth a Fork!

The Little Pickle is a Jewish Type Deli Located in Phoenix Arizona across from the Biltmore Fashion Mall in the Esplanade (they validate parking). It’s a small casual place with only a few tables and a small counter by the window.

Currently they are open for breakfast and weekday lunch till 2pm (subject to change). We made it there just before they closed.

You order at the counter.

They call your name when your order is ready.

Here’s an everything a bagel with scallion cream cheese.

I thought that this was a West Coast Style Bagel but someone from The Little Pickle contacted me and told me that their bagels are from New York. The bagel I tried is a different style than east coast bagels that I was used to when I lived there. I was used to the ones with a shiny crust that were chewy inside. Anyone remember Abe’s or Miller’s Deli? Also Scotts Generations serves the chewy style bagels that were and also are from New York. The style of these New York bagels are different.They are good…just different.

Sandwiches come wrapped up like this.

Your sandwich comes with a wrapped Little Pickle to the side.

Our first sandwich that we tried was the corned beef.

Corned Beef

The corned beef is a little different than what I’m used to. It’s good but milder with the spices.

We also tried the turkey.

The turkey is nice, tender and moist. It’s good but……………….

Brisket Sandwich

I think that the brisket might be the *****BEST FORKING BRISKET***** that I have ever tried anywhere. The Flavors and texture is BOMB! It has this incredible burnt sweet onion taste and the beef just melts in your mouth……..They melt cheese on the bread so that is great for some people but other people might want to order the brisket without cheese.

The Pastrami is also *******FORKING GREAT**************!

It’s so flavorful and unusually juicy just melts in your mouth. It’s fatty but not too fatty. It just might be the best pastrami sandwich out there!

You’d be nuts not to try the pastrami or the brisket. Your Welcome!

Worth a Fork!

Little Pickle

2501 E Camelback Rd PHX AZ

602-466-7098

www.LittlePickleAZ.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

The Black Sheep Kitchen Wine Cocktails Las Vegas NV – Worth a Fork!

The Black Sheep Restaurant is located in Las Vegas around fifteen minutes away from the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada. This is a casual, modern, Vietnamese/American restaurant that is ran and owned by seasoned former Top Chef contestant chef Jamie Tran. She also was awarded by Eater as Chef of the year in 2017.

Inside is casual.

You will probably see chef Tran running around the place.

The majority of the menu is interesting and different. Our waiter said that the starters are very small and to try several. We tried the salmon skin tacos.

They are crispy salmon skin stuffed with salmon belly, salmon tartare, tobiko, smoked shishito peppers, micro cilantro, and jalapeño aioli. They are very tasty, not too spicy, and full of flavors.

My husband has a little more room to enjoy more and really enjoyed the bao slider special.

These mini bao sliders were stuffed with house made pork sausage, pork belly, quail egg, crispy shallots, greens, and jalapeño aioli. It also came with shrimp crackers. My husband kept saying that these were VERY GOOD…..over and over.

We also shared the hamachi crudo.

I thought that this was FORKING Amazing. This was an explosion of all kinds of flavors and textures. Sweet, heat, citrus, clean fish, pickle, crunch, This was made with rayu sauce (Japanese citrus sauce), dragon fruit, pickled pearl onions, bubu arare (Asian crackers), and a few other goodies.

For dinner I tried the boneless fried whole trout.

I never had fish like this before…….All the bones were removed before they fried it. You just cut though and enjoy. This came with rainbow Swiss Chard, Chinese Broccoli, sesame seed crumble, in a garlic chili oil sauce with steamed rice. Very Good!

My husband tried the braised pork jowl….(it’s the cheek….tender like beef or halibut cheek)

It came with turmeric flat noodles, Chinese Broccoli and was in a spicy garlic chili oil. This was very good too! Another Hit!

Somehow we managed to squeeze in a dessert to try. We went with the citrus meringue with ube (purple yam) crust.

The crust might be thick for some but the flavors are a nice sweet ending to a FORKING Amazing meal.

Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

The Black Sheep

8680 W Warm Springs Road Las Vegas NV

702-954-3998

www.BlackSheepVegas.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Lola’s Louisiana Creole Restaurant Las Vegas NV – Worth a Fork!

Lola’s is a Louisiana Creole Restaurant located in the Summerlin part of Las Vegas Nevada. They offer an all day menu and Sunday Brunch. On the all day menu a few of the offerings are things like Louisiana style crab cakes, cajun hot wings, crawfish puppies, salads, po boys, burgers, and platters like crawfish étouffée, shrimp and grits, and shrimp creole. On the brunch menu Are things like chicken and waffles, andouille sausage benedict, and an egg and bacon grits bowl.

This restaurant was featured on Diners Drive Inns and Dive on Food Network TV.

It’s casual inside. You can sit in the bar area, at the bar, on the patio, or in the main dining area.

main dining area

I went with the signature orange bowl salad with added bronzed salmon. (bronzed is like 1/2 blackened…less seasoning and cooked lighter)

I have to say that this was an unusually good salad…..But it does run very spicy…It’s almost too spicy for me. It’s romaine lettuce, mandarine oranges, cranberry-raisins, scallions, celery, almonds, and this SPICY sweet and spicy vinaigrette. The salmon seems extra fresh and is really prepared to perfection. They didn’t even ask how I wanted it done they just prepared it perfect……medium-ish- medium/rare.

My husband was thrilled with the loaded jambalaya.

He just kept saying that it was really good. (chicken, sausage, rice, bronzed shrimp, kielbasa sausage.

Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

Lola’s

1220 N Town Center Dr Las Vegas NV

702-871-5652

www.LolasLasVegas.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

The Stove NV – Henderson NV – Brunch Style Restaurant

The Stove is an all day brunch and comfort food sort of restaurant that also offers bottomless drink specials. This restaurant is located in Henderson Nevada a short drive away from “The Strip.” They offer things like burgers, burritos, chicken and waffles, omelettes, other egg dishes, and a few vegan dishes. This restaurant is located on the second floor so you need to walk up and down steps that may be hard to do when partaking in bottomless drink specials. They do have an elevator but there for handicapped only.

It’s energetic and festive inside. The servers seem quick, friendly, and efficient.

I tried the Nashville Spicy Chicken Stack.

It’s a good chicken sandwich but a far cry from a Nashville Style Chicken Sandwich.

It’s not even spicy…..(The FORKING Truth)

Anyways…….It’s made with slaw, house pickles, and really good toasted brioche bun, house fries that are really good and you have an option to add on an egg. I asked for hot sauce so I could add some needed heat to this sandwich. Like I said it was a good chicken sandwich. It just wasn’t anything even close to a Nashville Style.

My husband ordered the juicy Lucy.

It’s flat patties stuffed with some cheese sauce that is topped with a chori-queso bacon wrapped onion ring and sits on house pickles, roasted tomatoes, thousand island dressing (left off on request), toasted brioche bun, and house fries.

I heard that the bacon wrapped onion ring was pretty good. Because it’s not a big burger there wasn’t much room to fill with much cheese. Some people might want more cheese.

This was a little taste of The Stove.

11261 S Eastern Avenue Henderson NV

702-540-5995

www.TheStoveNV.com

Everything is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Ono in Hawaiian usually means Good or Delicious

Ono Hawaiian BBQ is a Californian chain of casual Hawaiian restaurants with around three locations in Phoenix Arizona. The popular entree at Hawaiian BBQ restaurants is called the Hawaiian Plate Lunch. Maybe you are not familiar with the Hawaiian plate lunch? The Hawaiian plate lunch is usually a large Styrofoam container filled with two scoops of steamed rice, a scoop of creamy macaroni salad, some steamed vegetables and a generous serving of a protein or two. I finally tried the newer Ono Hawaiian BBQ Glendale Arizona location.

It’s casual. You order and pay at the counter.

inside
inside

Seat yourself.

Our name was called and we picked it up.

Here’s the white fish and BBQ chicken.

whitefish and BBQ chicken

Two scoops of steamed white rice, macaroni salad that is on the dry side today. The fish is very greasy…and taste like grease. The chicken really is nicely caramelized and is tender……It’s also a very generous portion but it taste like soy sauce. Under the fish and chicken is mostly what they call steamed cabbage and some broccoli. I tried to eat the cabbage but it is very oily and too tough to cut with a plastic knife. The broccoli drips with oil but is next to raw. I can’t eat the vegetables or much of this.

Here’s the BBQ Combo (short rib, BBQ chicken, BBQ beef)

BBQ Combo

All the beef is tender but oddly leathery…….And it all taste like soy sauce. Vegetables, macaroni salad, and rice are same as above.

Ono in Hawaiian usually means good or delicious…….Tonight Ono at the Glendale AZ location means Oh No!

Ono Hawaiian BBQ

5830 W Bell Rd Glendale AZ

602-698-1625

www.OnoHawaiianBBQ.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Local Bistro Scottsdale AZ – Some Big Hits…..

Local Bistro Restaurant is located in North Scottsdale Arizona. They call themselves a rustic Italian Restaurant. They offer dinner and Sunday bottomless Brunch. Their offerings do differ some from other Italian Restaurants. Some of their small plate offerings are tuna tartare, wood fired corn, mussels dijonese. They also offer soup and salads like French Onion soup, and a steak salad. They make wood fired pizzas, house made pastas. Some of the entrees offered are sautéed chicken with artichokes, a fifty day aged prime filet of beef, and Chilean Sea Bass with Spanish Chorizo in a white wine lobster broth. They also offer a children’s menu and desserts.

They have a large semi covered patio with lots of heaters for when it’s chilly.

They have a large bar area with big screen TVs.

Or you can sit in a main dining area.

main dining area

We started with the crispy eggplant and burrata.

crispy eggplant and burrata

It’s like eggplant parmesan but different. Instead of tomato sauce there is a coating of spicy hot Calabrian Chile Marmalade. The cheese is also creamy burrata with mint leaves, olive oil, and maybe nutmeg. Today the Calabrian Chile Marmalade is running very hot or maybe they were just overly generous with it….

The pan seared Faroe Island Salmon was very good.

Pan seared Faroe Island Salmon

It had a nice caramelized sear and was cooked to my request. The carrots and zucchini had the same exact texture. I thought that was impressive. The whipped pesto potatoes are a very generous portion and taste basil forward. Around the edge of the potatoes was a lemon-caper beurre blanc sauce for dipping.

My husband tried the Tagliatelle alla Bolognese.

tagliatelle alla bolognese

It’s house made pasta, twenty-four hour braised beef, pork, veal, San Marzano tomato ragu, and parmesan. My husband said that he really couldn’t taste the twenty-four hour braised beef. Maybe this batch tasted more like pork and veal…..?

We decided to share a vanilla gelato Toschi Cherry Meringata for dessert because you seldom come across Meringatas at restaurants.

vanilla gelato Toschi Cherry Meringata

It’s basically an Italian Meringue ice-cream type cake. A bit generous with the whipped cream but a nice sweet ending.

We found that brunch was more of a mixed bag with live entertainment.

It’s bottomless sort of……Each person can pick two starters and pick as many starters as they want. Then you pick an entree. Then you can add more starters if you can fit them in. They also have a bottomless drink special but you have to stick with one kind of beverage.

They do make the starters in portions for sharing.

I started out with the heirloom tomato and melon gazpacho shooter.

This was really great! Very clean, refreshing and enjoyable. One of my favorites here.

My husband had the sausage lollipops.

They came with honey and Calabrian chili honey. My husband’s favorite thing was the Calabrian chili honey here…He kept saying that it was very good and kept it until the end.

We shared the mini (MINI?) drunk bread.

We noticed that this was a very popular the evening we were here. It seemed that every table had one but us. It’s like cheesy and white wine dunked……We both don’t really like the white wine dunk…But many may disagree here.

One of our other mutual favorites was the patatas bravas. Spanish Romesco, and garlic aioli.

These were just really great potatoes. They just melt in your mouth. They seem like they might have been twice or tripled fried by the incredible creamy texture that they have. But they were extra light with the sauces. Could have used a little more.

Sorry to report that the entrees weren’t as good……. 🙁

The best parts of the Caesar salad was the Padano snow, the parmesan crisp, and the 6 minute egg. Lets just forget about the rest……..

My husband tried the chicken, the egg, the waffle entree.

The breaded chicken was all dried out, and covered in very thick sausage gravy with melted cheddar cheese, and a medium egg. There also was a waffle in there.

Local Bistro – Rustic Italian Cuisine – Like the majority of restaurants out there some great hits and a few misses……..Contemporary in style.

20581 N Hayden Rd Scottsdale AZ

480-302-6051

www.LocalBistroAZ.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Salad World Peoria AZ – Healthy Fast Food Alternative

Salad World recently opened in Peoria Arizona not too far from P83. They are a casual not fancy “Chipotle Style” build-your-own salad type of restaurant.

inside

You start by picking one of the two size bowls for your salad. Then you go down the line and pick what you want. The person behind a clear sneeze guard wall builds the salad for you. You start out by picking the lettuce bend. Then you can add some fruits like grapes or dried cranberries and around four other things. Then you have all kinds of vegetables to pick from. There are vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, onions, mushrooms, and jicama. Protein choices cost extra and are chicken, ham, plant based chicken, steak, and tofu. Other items to add to the salad are cheese, toppings like nuts, croutons, or bacon and salad dressing.

You can build your own salad of around 60 items or pick a suggested salad from a menu that they will make for you.

We each tried a salad. One regular sized and one large. You can’t tell by my picture but the large really is much larger than the medium.

Large is on top and on the bottom is the regular sized

I do have to say that the chicken breast is much better than what you would get from most places for salads. It can pass as sous vide chicken. Everything seems fresh. I got mixed greens and iceberg lettuce, radishes, broccoli, carrots, chick peas, onions, cranberries, sliced almonds, sesame sticks, and some sort of Asian Ginger dressing that seems tasty. Too bad I can’t go back for cucumbers……I think they’d go well here. I was surprised to be offered my choice of roll. (regular or whole wheat).

My husband got the large salad. He also tried the chicken and also added the steak. I didn’t taste the steak but it did look good…….But I can smell it and it is very smokey. He also got bacon, egg, and cheese and several of the vegetables. The large is a real bargain here….It’s so big that people can share.

They do offer a variety of soft beverages here, a children’s menu, and maybe a few other things such as a packaged cookie. I read on their website that they offer soup? Maybe they do but I didn’t notice it today.

I’d say well worth a try for a fast/casual healthy food option in Peoria.

Salad World

8390 W Cactus Rd Peoria AZ

623-248-3030

www.SaladWorldAZ.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth