Archive for "Reviews"
District Taqueria
Posted on November 8, 2015 by Ching under Food and Drink, Reviews.
I found out about this restaurant from my then hygienist at Wichita Family Dental, Rebecca. She’s moved on but we keep in touch on Facebook. One day last year, while she was cleaning my teeth, she told me that her brother was about to open a taqueria on Douglas. We didn’t really have a restaurant specializing in tacos so I thought it would make an excellent addition to the collection of restaurants in downtown Wichita.
If I remember correctly, opening was delayed a bit. Then I forgot all about the restaurant. And then it finally opened. But, as these things go, they’re always so busy during the first few months. Inevitably they’re understaffed and I end up with bad service and then the negative experience colors my impression of the place. I didn’t want that to happen so Brian and I decided to wait. And then we forgot all about it except for the occasional reminder each time someone we know mentions that they went.
I’d been wanting to check the restaurant out since before it even opened but the opportunity never came up until Nykole suggested that we eat there after our team building activity at the Kansas Food Bank. OMG. I’ve been seriously missing out. The tacos are unlike any other tacos I’ve ever had. The tacos at the Hill come close but you have so much more selection at District Taqueria. If you’re craving tacos, District Taqueria is the place to go.
Here are some pictures of the various tacos we got to try.
As you can see, all of the first timers tried a variety of tacos. They’re $3 each when you mix and match. I wish that I could have tried them all but there’s no way I could eat more than three in one sitting. I suppose this is how they keep you coming back.
Nykole had been there before so she knew exactly what she wanted.
You can also order a bucket of chips to eat with their salsa. You can also get a jar of their queso which is quite different than any other queso I’ve had. Their queso is thicker in consistency and has a bit of a kick. The guacamole was very good but it wasn’t really that different than the guacamole at other restaurants I’ve tried. I do like that everything is served in cute jars, including dessert.
We had the tres leches. It was just as tasty as it looked.
I liked it so much that I decided to take Brian there a week later for my birthday lunch. We both took vacation days off work that Friday. I wanted him to experience District Taqueria because besides the great food, the ambiance is really cool. They even have a shuffleboard table.
This was his plate.
Here’s mine.
We were both too full for dessert. We will have to go back though, because I really want Brian to try that tres leeches. I know he will love it.
If you’re wondering if you can have beans or rice with your tacos, you can’t. As far as food choices go, there’s really not much else which I think is smart because then the focus is on the wide variety of tacos offered.
Anyway, I highly recommend District Taqueria. Brian and I thoroughly enjoyed our lunch and are ready to go back to sample more tacos.
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Krispy’s Fried Chicken & Seafood
Posted on November 4, 2015 by Ching under Reviews.
Brian and I finally got to try Krispy’s Chicken & Seafood. We were told that it’s the best kept secret in Wichita. The best chicken ever.
I must admit, I was impressed with the offerings: deep fried calamari, deep fried stuffed blue shell crab, chicken and waffles. Where else can you get that? The prices are really cheap too. You can’t beat the value.
Here are a couple of pictures of the inside. It’s pretty unassuming. Like a hole in the wall.
The interior is pretty consistent with the exterior of the place. You wouldn’t really think much of it. In fact, if it hadn’t come highly recommended, I don’t think Brian and I would even think to go inside. Locals rave about it though so we had to try it. We had to see for ourselves what all the fuss was about.
The verdict? It was just okay for me. Maybe I was supposed to order chicken and waffles? Perhaps that would have made a difference. I ordered chicken because that’s what they serve but it was pretty mediocre. The mashed potatoes were just okay too. I really wanted the fried mac and cheese but they were out.
I didn’t plan on order mashed potatoes. Maybe the disappointment of not having the fried mac and cheese clouded my judgement. Who knows? I really was unimpressed.
I do want to give this place another chance, though. I’m thinking of order seafood next time. The deep fried stuffed blue shell crab sounds promising. Though the price makes me worry a bit because they always say that you get what you pay for and that price seems really low to me.
It may be a while before we return. Brian, who was far more unimpressed than I was, isn’t too excited about going back. That, and this joint is clear on the South side of town which isn’t really the best area and there’s not really anything out there that we need so it’s kind of out of the way.
Maybe next year we’ll have forgotten how lackluster our first experience was and we’ll be ready to go back again. LOL.
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Churn & Burn
Posted on August 18, 2015 by Ching under Food and Drink, Reviews.
Churn & Burn is probably the best ice cream shop that you’ve never heard of or tried before. That could be for several reasons: their location, which is not really in the best part of town, and it’s not a chain. If you’ve never been though, it’s definitely worth checking out for several reasons: they have a really cool coffee and ice cream concept, they make their own ice cream (which is actually pretty good), they do cool stuff with liquid nitrogen that’s really fun to watch, and they have vintage arcade game tables.
My friend Jeri kept posting about it on Facebook so we finally just had to check it out. Plus, we really had no reason not to. Churn & Burn is technically on our side of town.
They have lots of delicious flavors. Their ice cream kind of reminds me of the ice cream that Marble Slab (in Bradley Fair) serves.
This is that thing they do with liquid nitrogen.
Brian getting ready to play some games.
Incidentally, Jay and Becca actually know the owner. They saw our Facebook post while we were there and decided to pop in since they were in the neighborhood. They used the opportunity to say hello to the owner and visit with me and Brian also. It was great catching up with Jay and Becca. We hadn’t seen these two jet setters in a while.
Anyway, don’t mind the tacky plastic sign. They were on the other end and just recently moved to this end of the strip. Don’t judge a book by its cover, remember? We just learned this. Also, don’t judge a book by its location. This part of town may not be great but this place definitely is, so come check it out.
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13th Anniversary Dinner at Luciano’s
Posted on August 10, 2015 by Ching under Food and Drink, Relationship, Reviews.
Here are some pictures from our low key anniversary dinner at Luciano’s, a restaurant that we’ve heard so much about but have never been to until now.
This is Brian’s interpretation of Kilroy.
Our delicious starter, which consisted of two different types of mozzarella cheese, prosciutto (from Parma, Italy), kalamata olives, olive oil, and salt.
I liked the cozy ambiance of the restaurant. It’s quiet enough for a nice, intimate conversation also. Brian and I agreed that it’s a great place for a date.
Brian had the baked lasagna.
I had the pasta carbonara.
And, we each got dessert. Tiramisu for me.
Creme brûlée for Brian.
Brian and I really enjoyed our dinner at Luciano’s. Even though they did card us and I didn’t have my purse with me. At least our server used good judgement and realized that if I’m married to an old man like Brian then I must be equally old. LOL.
I’m really glad they let me drink otherwise I would have missed out on the delicious sangria. It was so good that I had two glasses of it. Even Brian liked it. The only downside is that you could only order it by the glass. A carafe to share with Brian would have been nice.
Anyway, great dinner overall. I highly recommend Luciano’s. Brian and I will definitely be back, with or without a special occasion to celebrate.
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The Hill Bar and Grill — New Favorite
Posted on August 1, 2015 by Ching under Food and Drink, Reviews.
We tried the Hill for the first time recently and now it’s our new favorite place to eat. Brian and I are addicted to the chicharrones.
As you can see, we can’t get enough of it.
Brian says their onion rings are really good too. We love that they provide a variety of dipping sauces. They’re all very good but we think that the one we like the most is called chipotle aioli. It goes great with the chicharon.
Some folks at work tried the Hill and said it was really good. My friend/coworker Tammie likes it because they have lots of options for vegetarians. They have several gluten free items on the menu as well.
Here are some pictures of food from the Hill.
My favorite thing to get is the carnitas tacos. Admittedly, I haven’t really tried much of anything else. Brian and I have been to the Hill twice now. The first time was when we had lunch with Jan, Connie, and Isaac. The second time was last Thursday when we wanted to grab a quick bite before going to Chamber Music at the Barn.
I tried to order something different on our last trip there but, after much deliberation, I still ordered the carnitas tacos. Sometimes you just have to stick with what you know.
Brian had the pulled pork sandwich the first time and chicken tacos the second time. The chicken tacos looked good but I don’t think that they were nearly as good as my carnitas tacos. Just sayin’.
We didn’t have time for the donuts on our first trip because it was during my lunch hour and I had to get back to work. The menu says to allow 10 minutes for the donuts so I recommend ordering it only if you have some time to spare.
Since we missed out the first time, we made sure to get it on our second trip. The donuts are really donut holes covered in cinnamon and sugar. They kind of remind me of the sopapillas we get at Felipe’s Jr for dessert, except they’re a lot smaller than the regular sopapillas and bigger than the bite-sized ones. They came with three different dipping sauces: raspberry, chocolate, and caramel.
I thought they were good but not as good as sopapillas. If I could have the mini sopapillas from Felipe’s with these dipping sauces that would be the perfect combination. Still, I really liked the Hill. The location is great for meeting up with our West side friends who don’t want to drive all the way out to the East side and there’s bound to be something on the menu that everyone will enjoy.
Brian and I both liked the Hill so much that we’re already looking forward to our next trip. I just hope that I can talk myself out of ordering the same thing again next time.
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