For the first time in years, the scale this morning showed me weighing less than 200 lbs (198). I started a new "diet" back in September. I was up somewhere around 215 or 220, and my cholesterol numbers were persistently high (not awful, but too high). After losing some weight, I had my cholesterol checked and it had dropped a lot. Not all the way down, but very close to the "targets".
My new diet is based on a book on Calorie Restriction. They also use the term "optimal nutrition," and that's meaningful. I don't follow the book literally (and to their credit they encourage that), but I picked up some big concepts from it.
The optimal nutrition concept is key. I try to eat things that have a lot of nutrients in them. There's actually a list in the book of a variety of foods and their "nutrient density" - a measure of the nutritional value per calorie. Not surprisingly vegetables are great. One of the easiest things I do now is eat more vegetables. In restaurants I ask for vegetables on the side instead of fries, pasta, rice, and other things that are not great on nutrient density. Most restaurants will accommodate that. I also order a side of vegetables, maybe even two.
There's a few things I make at home now with some frequency that I like and are good on the nutrient density thing. One is a blueberry smoothie. 1 cup nonfat yogurt, 1 cup skim milk (maybe an extra 1/4 cup), and 2 cups of blueberries. Put it in a blender, add some brown sugar or other sweetener - not needed but not horrible either - and drink. Blueberries are loaded with nutrients. Sometimes I use other berries, bananas, or some combination of the bunch. Be careful when you buy blueberries. The first time I bought a tub from the freezer and didn't notice it was in syrup - which dramatically increased the calories without helping nutrition - and didn't really taste better either.
The other recipe I adopted was tuna-hummus salad. Instead of mixing tuna with mayonnaise, I mix it with hummus. I usually include some onion, maybe some spinach leaves, and maybe some peppers too. Honestly, I like this just as much as tuna salad made with mayonnaise, maybe a little better. I eat it open face on a slice of whole wheat bread (I like whole wheat better than white), usually with spinach and/or other salad greens over the top. Plus maybe olive salad and things like that.
I also eat healthier at breakfast. Kashi GoLean Waffles are pretty good. I also make a variety of things with Eggbeaters, usually scrambled with vegetables. I sometimes use veggie substitute things from Morningstar Farms, like their veggie sausages (better than real sausage) and a "Veggie Crumble" thing that they have at Target. You can have waffles, scrambled eggs and sausage - a very filling meal, with a lot fewer calories and a lot more nutrients.
I also just make vegetables sometimes at home. Last night I made asparagus with some onion, garlic, and a bit of soy sauce and sushi vinegar. It was pretty good. A couple months ago I bought frozen asparagus at the store (I wanted to try it - fresh does taste better). I checked the package label. The whole 10 ounce package had 60 calories. That's all. Just 60 calories. You can eat a lot of vegetables and really fill yourself up without getting too many calories.
If my wife makes spaghetti at home, I'll nuke a veggie Italian sausage or a veggie burger (there's a big variety of these nowadays) to go with it. I also buy some "healthy" frozen entrees - the Kashi ones are pretty good. The organic section has some others I like. They're usually 300-400 calories.
Another good thing about this approach is you can pig out once in a while and it's not really a problem. At first I did this about once a week, but now it's less often than that. If we go out to a really nice restaurant, then the diet is out the window - but I'll still get extra veggies. This isn't hard for me. I really do enjoy eating them.
I went to Via Fresca on Western Ave. the other day. They have a good selection of veggie side dishes. Plenty of other good things too, but it's important to have places you can go and eat healthy. Panera Bread usually has good soups and salads, and a half-sandwich once in a while isn't too bad for you. I pay extra for the fruit cup side.
My "sins" are not so bad. Dark chocolate is pretty good on nutrients, so I eat some of that. Camembert is one of the better cheeses so I have that on crackers sometimes.
I think one of the other keys to healthy eating is that when you're going to eat bad, don't soften the blow with "lite" versions. Don't get lite salad dressing. The olive oil and canola oil are good for you anyway. Get smaller portions of the bad stuff, not full portions of the lite version. The lite version isn't nearly as tasty and is ultimately unsatisfying.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Hummer H3
We spent a week in Los Angeles, visiting Disneyland and my brother Steve. The trip was mostly good, with a couple glitches.
Glitch #1 was shortly after our arrival at LAX at the Budget Car Rental place. I had reserved a large SUV, like a Ford Expedition. With four of us and three in my brother's family, it seemed about right. Strangely they didn't have any large SUVs when we arrived. Yes, I do remember the Seinfeld episode: "You know how to take the reservation ... you just don't know how to hold the reservation."
First they offered us a Mustang convertible. I was okay with that, but our luggage didn't fit in the tiny trunk. We really only needed to fit in two medium suitcases, and they didn't fit.
So the agent looks around and says, "How about that white one?" I look over and she's pointing to a Hummer H3. Um, okay.
This was apparently a big deal, as the daily rental on a Hummer H3 is roughly double the cost of a large SUV, and they gave it to us at the same price. That pricing doesn't really make sense since the H3 is less expensive than an Expedition, but that's for another day.
The Hummer H3 was an experience. It looks distinctive. The picture below is pretty much what ours looked like:
It also attracted attention. A couple people even asked me about it.
But overall the experience was not that great. I would never buy a Hummer, knowing what I know now. For one thing, despite the fairly large exterior size, it was not that big inside. It did seem big, but not in a practical way. You can seat five people, though the three in the back can't be too big. We fit three kids (including my nephew) and it was a little tight. There is a decent amount of luggage room in the back cargo area. Our luggage fit easily with plenty more room. My wife just got a Mazda CX-9. It costs about the same but seats seven. My wife sat in the middle row last night with our two kids and there was clearly more room in that row than there was in the H3, plus there's a third row we didn't need to use. With the third row up there's decent cargo room and with it down it's huge.
Ergonomics on the H3 were poor. The best example is the power window switches. They're on the driver's left armrest, but nowhere near the driver's fingertips. They're almost at the elbow. I had to move my arm into an unnatural and uncomfortable position to open and close the windows.
Visibility is horrendous. The windows are small, but the real problem was the "A pillars" - the columns of metal between the windshield and the passenger windows. At one point I almost hit a pedestrian who ran across the street without looking. I didn't see him. Fortunately my wife saw him and warned me. Thanks Honey!
Driving was mostly okay, but not great. The biggest flaw was wind noise at highways speeds. It starts making significant noise at 70 mph, and got really loud when I got up to 80. I decided to drive slower. It also feels wide and that took some getting used to. On the bright side, it was remarkably easy to parallel park. It also seems to ride very high, higher than the other SUVs on the road.
We used one tank of gas on the trip and I didn't notice the mileage, but we didn't go very far.
Glitch #1 was shortly after our arrival at LAX at the Budget Car Rental place. I had reserved a large SUV, like a Ford Expedition. With four of us and three in my brother's family, it seemed about right. Strangely they didn't have any large SUVs when we arrived. Yes, I do remember the Seinfeld episode: "You know how to take the reservation ... you just don't know how to hold the reservation."
First they offered us a Mustang convertible. I was okay with that, but our luggage didn't fit in the tiny trunk. We really only needed to fit in two medium suitcases, and they didn't fit.
So the agent looks around and says, "How about that white one?" I look over and she's pointing to a Hummer H3. Um, okay.
This was apparently a big deal, as the daily rental on a Hummer H3 is roughly double the cost of a large SUV, and they gave it to us at the same price. That pricing doesn't really make sense since the H3 is less expensive than an Expedition, but that's for another day.
The Hummer H3 was an experience. It looks distinctive. The picture below is pretty much what ours looked like:
It also attracted attention. A couple people even asked me about it.
But overall the experience was not that great. I would never buy a Hummer, knowing what I know now. For one thing, despite the fairly large exterior size, it was not that big inside. It did seem big, but not in a practical way. You can seat five people, though the three in the back can't be too big. We fit three kids (including my nephew) and it was a little tight. There is a decent amount of luggage room in the back cargo area. Our luggage fit easily with plenty more room. My wife just got a Mazda CX-9. It costs about the same but seats seven. My wife sat in the middle row last night with our two kids and there was clearly more room in that row than there was in the H3, plus there's a third row we didn't need to use. With the third row up there's decent cargo room and with it down it's huge.
Ergonomics on the H3 were poor. The best example is the power window switches. They're on the driver's left armrest, but nowhere near the driver's fingertips. They're almost at the elbow. I had to move my arm into an unnatural and uncomfortable position to open and close the windows.
Visibility is horrendous. The windows are small, but the real problem was the "A pillars" - the columns of metal between the windshield and the passenger windows. At one point I almost hit a pedestrian who ran across the street without looking. I didn't see him. Fortunately my wife saw him and warned me. Thanks Honey!
Driving was mostly okay, but not great. The biggest flaw was wind noise at highways speeds. It starts making significant noise at 70 mph, and got really loud when I got up to 80. I decided to drive slower. It also feels wide and that took some getting used to. On the bright side, it was remarkably easy to parallel park. It also seems to ride very high, higher than the other SUVs on the road.
We used one tank of gas on the trip and I didn't notice the mileage, but we didn't go very far.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Cabernet Cafe -- What Gives?
I think the Cabernet Cafe may have closed. I called a couple times recently to see about going over for lunch and there was no answer. One time we drove over and it was closed, though there was no sign. I also noticed that the website (cabernetcafe.com) wasn't working and now it appears to be gone. The url is owned by a "John Wemple." I know at least two John Wemples in Guilderland. Next time I see one I'll ask about it.
Of course this is just after I bought a discount gift certificate for the place from restaurants.com, but I should be able to exchange that anyway.
Of course this is just after I bought a discount gift certificate for the place from restaurants.com, but I should be able to exchange that anyway.
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Audi A4 Avant -- 100K miles
Digressing from restaurants, my 2002 Audi A4 Avant (wagon) just went over 100,000 miles a couple days ago. Fitting that it was during a drive to a traffic court, since that's where a lot of its miles have come from in the last 4 1/2 years.
Overall I've been pretty happy with my Audi. First and foremost, it drives very nice. I remember shopping for cars. Drove my '96 Cavalier with 135K miles to the Subaru dealership and then to the Audi dealership. I got back in my Cavalier after the Subaru and felt like my Cavalier drove better. Then I got to the Audi dealer and drove the A4. It wasn't even close. The shifter (it's manual 5-speed) was ultra-smooth and still is after 100K.
Another nice feature, and a reason I like wagons, is that it holds a lot of stuff. Once I had bought a snowblower that I had to return. We were able to fit it in the back of my car, both ways. On the return trip it took up more space because I had partially assembled it. Our family has grown now, and the car is getting small in terms of passenger space. It fits the four of us and all our stuff for trips, but we have no room for a fifth person because the child seats take up a lot of space. So my wife will be getting a larger vehicle soon, and I probably will as well in a couple years.
While I have been fortunate not to experience this, the car is supposedly very safe. It keeps getting great ratings on crash safety from the government and the IIHS. I have experienced the winter handling and it is really outstanding. I've been driving in snow for about 25 years now (41-16=25) and it handles ice and snow better than anything else I've ever driven. Part of that is the winter tires but even before I added those it was still good in the slippery stuff.
Having a 4 cylinder (turbo) and a manual transmission has meant good gas mileage. Somewhere between 25 and 26 mpg over the life of the car.
Reliability hasn't been great, but pretty good I guess. Through 100K, I've had to spend some money on mostly minor things. It's more the hassle of having to get things fixed than the cost, but on the whole not too bad.
Looking at a new car for myself in a couple years, and Audi is definitely on the shopping list.
Overall I've been pretty happy with my Audi. First and foremost, it drives very nice. I remember shopping for cars. Drove my '96 Cavalier with 135K miles to the Subaru dealership and then to the Audi dealership. I got back in my Cavalier after the Subaru and felt like my Cavalier drove better. Then I got to the Audi dealer and drove the A4. It wasn't even close. The shifter (it's manual 5-speed) was ultra-smooth and still is after 100K.
Another nice feature, and a reason I like wagons, is that it holds a lot of stuff. Once I had bought a snowblower that I had to return. We were able to fit it in the back of my car, both ways. On the return trip it took up more space because I had partially assembled it. Our family has grown now, and the car is getting small in terms of passenger space. It fits the four of us and all our stuff for trips, but we have no room for a fifth person because the child seats take up a lot of space. So my wife will be getting a larger vehicle soon, and I probably will as well in a couple years.
While I have been fortunate not to experience this, the car is supposedly very safe. It keeps getting great ratings on crash safety from the government and the IIHS. I have experienced the winter handling and it is really outstanding. I've been driving in snow for about 25 years now (41-16=25) and it handles ice and snow better than anything else I've ever driven. Part of that is the winter tires but even before I added those it was still good in the slippery stuff.
Having a 4 cylinder (turbo) and a manual transmission has meant good gas mileage. Somewhere between 25 and 26 mpg over the life of the car.
Reliability hasn't been great, but pretty good I guess. Through 100K, I've had to spend some money on mostly minor things. It's more the hassle of having to get things fixed than the cost, but on the whole not too bad.
Looking at a new car for myself in a couple years, and Audi is definitely on the shopping list.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
677 Prime in Albany
Angelo's 677 Prime is a relatively new restaurant in downtown Albany. It is part of a great trend in higher quality restaurants in our area. It's also very close to some other outstanding restaurants, including Nicole's Bistro, Yono's & dp (both in the Hampton Inn), and a few other places on and near Pearl Street.
I stopped at Broadway Auto to get an oil change, inspection, etc, and had to go to federal court after lunch. 677 Prime is right on the way, so I stopped there.
I started with a soup. The soup of the day was butternut squash. It was smooth and creamy with a delicate flavor. While it was very good, I have had better. It needed something to give it a little more character. Don't get me wrong though - I ate all of it.
Next I had the Tuna Tartare, which was excellent. The only flaw was that it looked a little like a hockey puck. It was a bunch of chunks of raw tuna, diced or minced and then put together with some other ingredients I can't name -- maybe some scallions. It had a spicy sauce, which worked extremely well with it. Not a fair comparison, but the Cheesecake Factory has a raw tuna dish that isn't bad either. There the tuna comes out in very thin slices, I think with a wasabi mayo. But the last time I had it there the tuna itself was just not as good - almost a little gristly.
Getting back to 677 Prime, the last item was a salad of mixed greens. It came with a couple different kinds of cheeses (thick flakes of parmesan or asiago, and a softer cheese - maybe gorgonzola) and a few other items that I just can't remember - but it all worked well. The dressing was also very nice.
It was not a cheap lunch (just under $40 with tip), but I had three items and probably could have managed any one of them. The tuna tartare was $14 on its own.
677 Prime was impressive, and I can definitely see myself going back. But in a while. I'm still trying to diet and this meal probably didn't help. :-)
I stopped at Broadway Auto to get an oil change, inspection, etc, and had to go to federal court after lunch. 677 Prime is right on the way, so I stopped there.
I started with a soup. The soup of the day was butternut squash. It was smooth and creamy with a delicate flavor. While it was very good, I have had better. It needed something to give it a little more character. Don't get me wrong though - I ate all of it.
Next I had the Tuna Tartare, which was excellent. The only flaw was that it looked a little like a hockey puck. It was a bunch of chunks of raw tuna, diced or minced and then put together with some other ingredients I can't name -- maybe some scallions. It had a spicy sauce, which worked extremely well with it. Not a fair comparison, but the Cheesecake Factory has a raw tuna dish that isn't bad either. There the tuna comes out in very thin slices, I think with a wasabi mayo. But the last time I had it there the tuna itself was just not as good - almost a little gristly.
Getting back to 677 Prime, the last item was a salad of mixed greens. It came with a couple different kinds of cheeses (thick flakes of parmesan or asiago, and a softer cheese - maybe gorgonzola) and a few other items that I just can't remember - but it all worked well. The dressing was also very nice.
It was not a cheap lunch (just under $40 with tip), but I had three items and probably could have managed any one of them. The tuna tartare was $14 on its own.
677 Prime was impressive, and I can definitely see myself going back. But in a while. I'm still trying to diet and this meal probably didn't help. :-)
Friday, November 16, 2007
Firedog Screwed Me (Circuit City)
Okay, it's not that big of a deal, but ...
We're about to go on a long trip. We have young children. In the past we've bought DVD players that go on the back of the headrest. They all suck. They last for about one and half trips, usually going bad right in the middle of a drive. Once we actually bought a new one in a Walmart while we were on the way.
This in-car DVD thing is like heroin for children. If they don't get their fix, it's a very unpleasant drive. How on earth did our parents do it anyway?
So I go to Circuit City about a week ago. This guy sells me a unit that will go in the ceiling of my car. I ask about the ones that replace your headrest, but he tells me this is better.
We take it back to the installation guys (aka Firedog) to make an appointment for the install. I specifically ask if they can install this in my car. No problem.
Today I drive there for the install. On this particular day, they have the Firedog guys who actually know what they're doing. Turns out they can't install it in my car. Something about interfering with the side curtain airbags.
I should note at this point that I'm glad they caught it before they screwed up our airbags.
Anyway, I got a full refund. But I'm still annoyed. Firedog and Circuit City just wasted an hour of my time, maybe a little more. And they made me grumpy. Grr.
We're about to go on a long trip. We have young children. In the past we've bought DVD players that go on the back of the headrest. They all suck. They last for about one and half trips, usually going bad right in the middle of a drive. Once we actually bought a new one in a Walmart while we were on the way.
This in-car DVD thing is like heroin for children. If they don't get their fix, it's a very unpleasant drive. How on earth did our parents do it anyway?
So I go to Circuit City about a week ago. This guy sells me a unit that will go in the ceiling of my car. I ask about the ones that replace your headrest, but he tells me this is better.
We take it back to the installation guys (aka Firedog) to make an appointment for the install. I specifically ask if they can install this in my car. No problem.
Today I drive there for the install. On this particular day, they have the Firedog guys who actually know what they're doing. Turns out they can't install it in my car. Something about interfering with the side curtain airbags.
I should note at this point that I'm glad they caught it before they screwed up our airbags.
Anyway, I got a full refund. But I'm still annoyed. Firedog and Circuit City just wasted an hour of my time, maybe a little more. And they made me grumpy. Grr.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Guilderland Election
I'm running for Guilderland Town Board. The election is in less than a week. I hope loyal readers of this blog will either vote for me or tell their Guilderland friends to do so.
Isn't it important to have someone on the Town Board who cares about quality restaurants?
Okay, maybe that's not an important characteristic, but I'd be good for other reasons. :-)
Read more about it at:
Guilderland NY
and
Warren Redlich for Guilderland Town Board
Isn't it important to have someone on the Town Board who cares about quality restaurants?
Okay, maybe that's not an important characteristic, but I'd be good for other reasons. :-)
Read more about it at:
Guilderland NY
and
Warren Redlich for Guilderland Town Board
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Otesaga in Cooperstown
My wife and I spent a night at the Otesaga in Cooperstown a few days ago. Our anniversary is approaching. We made the mistake of getting married in early November, which suffers from my political activities, so we took off a little early.
The Otesaga was very nice overall. We arrived and checked in. The first room we went to, #311, was not spectacular. I called to see about getting a lake view. It didn't cost much extra and we switched to room 224. The windows aren't all that big, but I still liked the lake view better, plus the room was bigger. The Otesaga is on the southern end of Lake Otsego. This is a gorgeous location, and there was still some fall foliage so it was even better than usual.
The rooms are expensive. But dinner and breakfast are included and that is a substantial value.
Dinner was outstanding. We started with a cheese plate. It had 3 cheeses and "candied grapes" - I think they were coated in sugar. I'd prefer regular grapes, but on the whole the plate was good.
We both had soup and both were excellent. Heather had the tomato basil bisque, and I had french onion soup (I went off my diet for this short trip - and gained about 5 pounds). I had a salad as well - mixed greens with walnuts and a couple kinds of fruit. Very nice.
We both had surf and turf -- filet mignon with lobster tail. The steak had a great flavor, and the lobster tail was delicious. Some veggies with it as well - I think they were roasted.
Desserts were great too - Heather had apple streusel a la mode & I had cheesecake w strawberries (I told you I went off my diet).
Service was very good. There were different servers for cocktails, the main food items, and for dessert. That was unusual but it seemed to work well.
I'd say this meal in Albany would approach $100 per person, which makes the cost of a night at the Otesaga seem more reasonable.
Breakfast (a buffet) came with it too and it was good. I had an eggbeater omelet with lots of veggies. Not sure if this is saying much, but it was probably the best eggbeater omelet I ever had. There was a wide variety of other things to eat and I sampled a few items. All good. Figure this was worth $20 each and the cost of the room is even more reasonable.
Well, we liked the Otesaga so much that we came back for brunch (we ate light for breakfast to prepare). Brunch was not included, and cost about $30 each. A lot of the breakfast choices were there, but there were many other items as well. Notable were the shrimp cocktail (rather large shrimp) and the smoked salmon plate. Both of these were really good. Another significant addition was the dessert table. This is where the diet really fell apart. We sampled another cheesecake, a couple of chocolate cakes, pecan pie (not just a sample), and more. All delicious too.
The Otesaga is well worth a visit for those who can afford it.
A final note - we had lunch the first day at the Tunnicliff Inn near the Hall of Fame. This was not a good experience. Service was horribly slow. It took so long we walked out before the main course arrived. I just wasn't going to wait any longer. No, I didn't stiff them - I left money on the table - but I didn't pay for the food that never came. Probably just a bad day for them, but if you go there and it's crowded, I suggest going somewhere else.
The Otesaga was very nice overall. We arrived and checked in. The first room we went to, #311, was not spectacular. I called to see about getting a lake view. It didn't cost much extra and we switched to room 224. The windows aren't all that big, but I still liked the lake view better, plus the room was bigger. The Otesaga is on the southern end of Lake Otsego. This is a gorgeous location, and there was still some fall foliage so it was even better than usual.
The rooms are expensive. But dinner and breakfast are included and that is a substantial value.
Dinner was outstanding. We started with a cheese plate. It had 3 cheeses and "candied grapes" - I think they were coated in sugar. I'd prefer regular grapes, but on the whole the plate was good.
We both had soup and both were excellent. Heather had the tomato basil bisque, and I had french onion soup (I went off my diet for this short trip - and gained about 5 pounds). I had a salad as well - mixed greens with walnuts and a couple kinds of fruit. Very nice.
We both had surf and turf -- filet mignon with lobster tail. The steak had a great flavor, and the lobster tail was delicious. Some veggies with it as well - I think they were roasted.
Desserts were great too - Heather had apple streusel a la mode & I had cheesecake w strawberries (I told you I went off my diet).
Service was very good. There were different servers for cocktails, the main food items, and for dessert. That was unusual but it seemed to work well.
I'd say this meal in Albany would approach $100 per person, which makes the cost of a night at the Otesaga seem more reasonable.
Breakfast (a buffet) came with it too and it was good. I had an eggbeater omelet with lots of veggies. Not sure if this is saying much, but it was probably the best eggbeater omelet I ever had. There was a wide variety of other things to eat and I sampled a few items. All good. Figure this was worth $20 each and the cost of the room is even more reasonable.
Well, we liked the Otesaga so much that we came back for brunch (we ate light for breakfast to prepare). Brunch was not included, and cost about $30 each. A lot of the breakfast choices were there, but there were many other items as well. Notable were the shrimp cocktail (rather large shrimp) and the smoked salmon plate. Both of these were really good. Another significant addition was the dessert table. This is where the diet really fell apart. We sampled another cheesecake, a couple of chocolate cakes, pecan pie (not just a sample), and more. All delicious too.
The Otesaga is well worth a visit for those who can afford it.
A final note - we had lunch the first day at the Tunnicliff Inn near the Hall of Fame. This was not a good experience. Service was horribly slow. It took so long we walked out before the main course arrived. I just wasn't going to wait any longer. No, I didn't stiff them - I left money on the table - but I didn't pay for the food that never came. Probably just a bad day for them, but if you go there and it's crowded, I suggest going somewhere else.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
PF Chang's in Colonie Center
Update:
We had lunch at PF Chang's in Colonie Center yesterday. This time we had the Peking Dumplings (pork), which was the best part of the meal. I also had hot and sour soup, which was about the same as last time - not very good. For the main course I had Wok Charred Beef. My wife had the Mu-Shu (pork I think), which was pretty good. She certainly liked it. My overall impression of the soup and my beef dish was that they were way too salty.
I went to the PF Chang website and they have nutrition information, but it doesn't include sodium. I'm not first to say PF Chang has too much sodium. On the bright side, the nutrition info on the site suggests ordering your meal with "light sauce", and that would reduce the sodium. They should be clearer about it on the menu itself.
-------------
We went to PF Chang's the other day. Apparently it was Boss Day so my associates took me out for lunch. I wanted to try the new place.
It wasn't bad, but not great either. I will start with the good points. The interior was gorgeous, much nicer than any Chinese restaurant in the area (with the possible exception of Plum Blossom, which is also very pretty inside). It's not just the interior. The tables, dishes, and all the rest were very well done. Servers were friendly and well dressed too.
We had several dishes. The best was the Mongolian Beef (I went off my low-cholesterol diet for this meal). Very good flavor. Beef, cooked just right, with scallions.
We had a few other dishes. I had Hot and Sour soup. It was average for the area. It did look good, as did everything else, but the flavor was just not right. My favorite for Hot and Sour soup in the area is Amazing Wok, which is mostly a take-out/delivery place. They do it just right.
I should note here, and for all the dishes, that Chinese food can be a very personal thing. I prefer "authentic" flavors. Since I've never been to China, I'm not well qualified to judge such things for real. I go by what I hear from Chinese friends, and from experiences in Chinatown and other places with a heavy Chinese population (we had a great Chinese place in Houston when I was at Rice - the main menu was in Chinese). Some people are not into "authentic", and they may like PF Chang's better than I did.
The associates split a Wonton Soup. It had a lot of good ingredients, including shrimp, but again the flavor just wasn't nailed down.
We also had Crispy Honey Chicken. This was reasonably good, but there was an inch-long sharp object in a piece I ate. Fortunately I didn't bite into the sharp side. The manager gave us a coupon for a free appetizer on our next visit. I should sue just for the inappropriate response. :-)
Then we had a noodle dish - Vegetable Chow Fun. Nothing special about it. Not bad, but not a stand-out.
Last, we had a side dish of spinach with garlic. Again nothing special, but it was decent. It was basically what we expected.
This may be a tough market for PF Chang's. Emperor's is just across Wolf Road, and is a much better all-around Chinese restaurant. Ocean Palace is only a couple miles to the east. Our associate has been raving about Shanghai Grill in Loudonville, so we'll have to try that next.
On the bright side, the prices at PF Chang's were reasonable, less than I expected. But if I'm in the neighborhood, I'll either go to the Cheesecake Factory next door for non-Chinese food, or to Emperor's for Chinese food.
We had lunch at PF Chang's in Colonie Center yesterday. This time we had the Peking Dumplings (pork), which was the best part of the meal. I also had hot and sour soup, which was about the same as last time - not very good. For the main course I had Wok Charred Beef. My wife had the Mu-Shu (pork I think), which was pretty good. She certainly liked it. My overall impression of the soup and my beef dish was that they were way too salty.
I went to the PF Chang website and they have nutrition information, but it doesn't include sodium. I'm not first to say PF Chang has too much sodium. On the bright side, the nutrition info on the site suggests ordering your meal with "light sauce", and that would reduce the sodium. They should be clearer about it on the menu itself.
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We went to PF Chang's the other day. Apparently it was Boss Day so my associates took me out for lunch. I wanted to try the new place.
It wasn't bad, but not great either. I will start with the good points. The interior was gorgeous, much nicer than any Chinese restaurant in the area (with the possible exception of Plum Blossom, which is also very pretty inside). It's not just the interior. The tables, dishes, and all the rest were very well done. Servers were friendly and well dressed too.
We had several dishes. The best was the Mongolian Beef (I went off my low-cholesterol diet for this meal). Very good flavor. Beef, cooked just right, with scallions.
We had a few other dishes. I had Hot and Sour soup. It was average for the area. It did look good, as did everything else, but the flavor was just not right. My favorite for Hot and Sour soup in the area is Amazing Wok, which is mostly a take-out/delivery place. They do it just right.
I should note here, and for all the dishes, that Chinese food can be a very personal thing. I prefer "authentic" flavors. Since I've never been to China, I'm not well qualified to judge such things for real. I go by what I hear from Chinese friends, and from experiences in Chinatown and other places with a heavy Chinese population (we had a great Chinese place in Houston when I was at Rice - the main menu was in Chinese). Some people are not into "authentic", and they may like PF Chang's better than I did.
The associates split a Wonton Soup. It had a lot of good ingredients, including shrimp, but again the flavor just wasn't nailed down.
We also had Crispy Honey Chicken. This was reasonably good, but there was an inch-long sharp object in a piece I ate. Fortunately I didn't bite into the sharp side. The manager gave us a coupon for a free appetizer on our next visit. I should sue just for the inappropriate response. :-)
Then we had a noodle dish - Vegetable Chow Fun. Nothing special about it. Not bad, but not a stand-out.
Last, we had a side dish of spinach with garlic. Again nothing special, but it was decent. It was basically what we expected.
This may be a tough market for PF Chang's. Emperor's is just across Wolf Road, and is a much better all-around Chinese restaurant. Ocean Palace is only a couple miles to the east. Our associate has been raving about Shanghai Grill in Loudonville, so we'll have to try that next.
On the bright side, the prices at PF Chang's were reasonable, less than I expected. But if I'm in the neighborhood, I'll either go to the Cheesecake Factory next door for non-Chinese food, or to Emperor's for Chinese food.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Sushi Tei follow up
I discussed Sushi Tei in my last post. I thought I might go back, and ended up going back quickly. My wife and I went yesterday for lunch.
It was not as good as the first time, but still decent. I had sashimi this time to give it more of a test. It's easier to tell the quality of the fish with sashimi. I had several pieces and most were fresh. A couple of pieces were a tiny bit off, but not horribly so.
We had a few other dishes. The tempura udon (deep fried shrimp in a bowl of noodle soup) was not great. I eat the same dish at Miyako regularly, and it is much better there. The flavor of the soup at Sushi Tei was not bad, but not right. Also, at Miyako you get a few vegetables in the soup along with the shrimp. Not here. And the noodles were also not as good as at Miyako. It wasn't horrible, but I would not order this again - partly because other items here are better.
My soup came with a California Roll. This was just fine. The avocado was particularly good. We also got an Alaska Roll. They used smoked salmon instead of fresh salmon. Not what we expected, and the salty taste of the smoked fish didn't really go. If you like it with fresh salmon, be sure to specify that when ordering. I also had inari (rice in a soy bag), which was okay, but it's better at Miyako and Yoshi. The tamago was acceptable but well below the better places.
My wife had a sukiyakidon (beef with vegetables over rice). The sauce was very good. It had less meat than my wife hoped for and a lot of tofu which she doesn't like. That is not a criticism - just not her thing.
Sushi Tei stood out again for one big reason - price. We had a lot of food and the bill, before tip, was under $30. While overall the quality is not up to the best in the area, Sushi Tei is the best bargain sushi place in the Albany area that I have been to. Also, their non-sushi Japanese dishes are better than other low-price places like Ichiban.
It was not as good as the first time, but still decent. I had sashimi this time to give it more of a test. It's easier to tell the quality of the fish with sashimi. I had several pieces and most were fresh. A couple of pieces were a tiny bit off, but not horribly so.
We had a few other dishes. The tempura udon (deep fried shrimp in a bowl of noodle soup) was not great. I eat the same dish at Miyako regularly, and it is much better there. The flavor of the soup at Sushi Tei was not bad, but not right. Also, at Miyako you get a few vegetables in the soup along with the shrimp. Not here. And the noodles were also not as good as at Miyako. It wasn't horrible, but I would not order this again - partly because other items here are better.
My soup came with a California Roll. This was just fine. The avocado was particularly good. We also got an Alaska Roll. They used smoked salmon instead of fresh salmon. Not what we expected, and the salty taste of the smoked fish didn't really go. If you like it with fresh salmon, be sure to specify that when ordering. I also had inari (rice in a soy bag), which was okay, but it's better at Miyako and Yoshi. The tamago was acceptable but well below the better places.
My wife had a sukiyakidon (beef with vegetables over rice). The sauce was very good. It had less meat than my wife hoped for and a lot of tofu which she doesn't like. That is not a criticism - just not her thing.
Sushi Tei stood out again for one big reason - price. We had a lot of food and the bill, before tip, was under $30. While overall the quality is not up to the best in the area, Sushi Tei is the best bargain sushi place in the Albany area that I have been to. Also, their non-sushi Japanese dishes are better than other low-price places like Ichiban.
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