Grasshopper
So, tonight we went out in search of some sort of tapas. We were in the mood for a variety of flavors, rather than any one particular thing. Ended up at Grasshopper, an Asian fusion place. Had:
* Tuna Poki
* Sweet Potato Fries w/ Curry Aioli
* 12-Spice Pork Ribs
* Chard w/Sesame Sauce
* Braised Duck Donburi
* Chocolate & Cardamom Profiteroles
* Cappucinos
The food started out well - the poki was quite good, and the curry aioli was really tasty. The fries were really varied, running the gamut from super-crispy to limp & flaccid. Tasty, but the texture could have really used some work.
The ribs had good flavor, but the spice rub was a bit too heavy on the salt (something that was commented on in a lot of the reviews of the place - a general over-saltiness that Ei-Nyung attributed to it being a sake bar).
The chard was really good, but at first the sesame sauce was again, overpoweringly salty. Once we realized that the sauce needed to be mixed in, and that it was only drizzled on top, the dish balanced out a lot more nicely.
The duck donburi was suprisingly, underseasoned, and lacking in really "ducky" flavor. It was good, but pretty much unremarkable.
The profiteroles had a nice combination of chocolate & cardamom, which was pleasant, but otherwise, they were just profiteroles, and unremarkable in any other sense.
All in all, it was ok. I don't think I'd necessarily go back, but I don't feel like I totally wasted an evening. The curry aioli and the poki were worth the trip.
* Tuna Poki
* Sweet Potato Fries w/ Curry Aioli
* 12-Spice Pork Ribs
* Chard w/Sesame Sauce
* Braised Duck Donburi
* Chocolate & Cardamom Profiteroles
* Cappucinos
The food started out well - the poki was quite good, and the curry aioli was really tasty. The fries were really varied, running the gamut from super-crispy to limp & flaccid. Tasty, but the texture could have really used some work.
The ribs had good flavor, but the spice rub was a bit too heavy on the salt (something that was commented on in a lot of the reviews of the place - a general over-saltiness that Ei-Nyung attributed to it being a sake bar).
The chard was really good, but at first the sesame sauce was again, overpoweringly salty. Once we realized that the sauce needed to be mixed in, and that it was only drizzled on top, the dish balanced out a lot more nicely.
The duck donburi was suprisingly, underseasoned, and lacking in really "ducky" flavor. It was good, but pretty much unremarkable.
The profiteroles had a nice combination of chocolate & cardamom, which was pleasant, but otherwise, they were just profiteroles, and unremarkable in any other sense.
All in all, it was ok. I don't think I'd necessarily go back, but I don't feel like I totally wasted an evening. The curry aioli and the poki were worth the trip.
posted by Seppo at
9:38 PM
7 Comments:
Yeah, the first two dishes were so delicious that I assumed as I enjoyed them that I'd be going back to have them in the future.
But both the ribs and chard were just too salty that it was painful to eat them. I do think that if we were downing sake, maybe it wouldn't seem so salty, but as we were just drinking water, it was pretty bad.
Maybe the key is to order a separate bowl of rice (available for $1) to cut down the saltiness.
The duck was sort of... droopy. The consistency of the rice was weird: both overdone and underdone kernels in the same bite. The rice and duck had thesame texture. Strange. Didn't taste bad, just had no memorable component to it.
But that curry aioli was so damn good I wish I had a tub of it riht now. :D Good thing I don't. ;)
Steph and I did something similar last night. We'd been meaning to try out this place called Vinotecca (http://www.vinotecca.com/), which only serves small "hot plates" and cheeses. We had some flat bread with a few different kinds of cheeses on it, and calamari. It was ok; definately not worth the money. Later, at another resturant down the road, Steph had chocolate profiteroles. Weird.
Yeah, stop copying us! ;)
I was sick of eating at home, since my big cooking binge, and wanted to go out for a little bit.
Instead of Grasshopper, we should have gone to Pearl Oyster Bar & Restaurant. Oh well. Next time.
I just looked over at Vinotecca's menu and some of those dishes sound ridiculously tasty. Bummer that it doesn't sound like it was worth it.
I've been having a hard time figuring out when I can trust a review (or an entire review website) or not. It's such a crapshoot.
that's why I wish more people had foodblogs. Because then, I wouldn't actually need something like Citysearch, because I could virtually "ask my friends."
Citysearch gave Grasshopper an 8.8. Maybe in the past, that would have been an apt review, according to our housemate, who went there years ago. But I wouldn't have given it more than a 5, on the night we went.
Citysearch is awful. I use Yelp, which is really great. You can tell a quality, meaningful review from a useless review, and there is a huge number or recent reviews for a lot of places.
I use a combo of Citysearch, Yelp, Jatbar, eGullet, and Chowhound to figure out what is what. It's still kinda hard.
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