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I visited Cache Valley last weekend. The #1 best reason to visit Cache Valley is to see my parents. However, if you have different parents, the #1 best reason to visit Cache Valley is Tiny Spicy Chicken. This is a review of the Mandarin Garden restaurant in Logan, but I can only comment on one dish: Tiny Spicy Chicken. I never order anything else. I read on Urbanspoon that they might have recently changed recipes (!), but it wasn’t true–I enjoyed the same chicken tiny spicy fans have adored for years. The Mandarin Garden’s menu describes tiny spicy chicken as “deep fried chicken sauteed w/our FAMOUS spicy tangy hot sauce.” I never thought of it as deep fried until I read that description just now. Too bad. Blot that part from your memory. Don’t think about your health at a time like this! Unless you live in Logan, you will only be able to indulge a few times a year anyway, so you are safe.
I am a failure as a blogger because I was unable to get a picture of the Tiny Spicy Chicken for you. Suffering from technical difficulties, I was eating with people who are unaccustomed to photographing every dish before they touch it, so I had to give up in order to be polite. But here’s what I want you to imagine: Beautiful, beautiful food. Food that makes you happy just to look at it. How can boring bland pale old chicken be beautiful? How can it be a feast for the eyes as well as the lips and tummy? I don’t know, but the Mandarin Garden has figured it out. The problem is, they aren’t telling. Tiny spicy chicken, with its deep red color, its just right hint of spiciness (I wouldn’t call it hot), its teasing, tantalizing zing, its perfect texture, can only be had in Logan. They aren’t giving out the recipe, so you will have to make the drive.
The best time to eat Tiny Spicy is a weekday lunch–the Mandarin Garden is well-known for its cheap lunch specials. However, Tiny Spicy for dinner will only set you back $8.50, so don’t skip it just because it isn’t lunch time. Do skip the dinner combo though, unless you have to have egg drop soup; the lo mein is not inspiring.
432 N. Main, Logan, UT
(435) 753-5789
Open every day but Sunday
Hours: 11-9:30 p.m (10:30 on Friday and Saturday
Photo of The Chocolate Caramel by Jonathan Canlas, from The Chocolate's blog
When I first visited The Chocolate, I loved it. During recent visits though, a few things have bothered me: dirty carpets, a dirty drinking glass, and good, rather than fantastic, desserts. (But the chocolate cupcakes with caramel frosting are an exception. They are fantastic! I sure wish I could figure out how to copy that frosting!) On the other hand: I still love, love, love the concept. Some reviewers complain that The Chocolate is expensive. Hogwash, I say. It may be expensive if you are buying dozens of cupcakes or a whole cake to go. But that’s not why I like the Chocolate. The Chocolate is a destination. Compare taking a friend, child, or date to The Chocolate vs. a restaurant. The Chocolate is cheap! It is wonderful to have a place to go that feels a little bit elegant for a special treat that costs very little. As I said, The Chocolate is a great idea. I love the building they put it in and I love the beautiful colors. I love the music they play. Some reviewers have said that the service is not good. While I have occasionally experienced slow service or have had to stand in line, I have no complaints. The workers have never been rude, and I go to The Chocolate when I want to relax. I’m not in a hurry, so waiting a few minutes is not a big deal.
I will continue to give The Chocolate second chances because I like the concept so much. I really want them to get it right. The Chocolate: I beg you: if you haven’t already, please wash or replace your carpets! Never allow anything but the most scrupulously clean glass to leave your kitchen. I want to adore you. Please make it easy!
After a couple of bad previous experiences at Mimi’s Cafe (University Parkway, Orem), I had rated Mimi’s on Urbanspoon as “I don’t like it.” But I have a sister who is in love with their bacon macaroni dish and when our brother came to town he asked to try the place out.
I am happy to report that I was pleasantly surprised. We had good service and we were all pleased with our food. The out of towners enjoyed the decor. The prices were reasonable–right around ten dollars. The big hit of the night was the chicken pot pie which had everyone raving. It was a thing of beauty! The Breakfast Ciabatta got a big thumbs up as well, and I enjoyed the turkey dinner (although prepare yourself for some salty stuffing!) The mashed potatoes were fantastic–creamy and so flavorful. My sister had the Cordon Bleu and she said that while it was good, she would go back to her other favorites on the menu in the future.
The entree portions were well-sized–I took half of my turkey dinner home and still felt like I had eaten too much. However, another in our party said that he expected a larger portion of french fries based on previous visits. I think the truth is that Mimi’s is inconsistent. Some of the food is really good, some is not, often you can good service, other times you don’t.
When I have liked Mimi’s in the past, it always started with their bread. They know how to do bread! Remember that if you visit at lunch and would like bread, you must ask for it, they won’t offer. The bread is really, really good so don’t forget to ask. We were disappointed that the amount of bread brought was very stingy for the number of people in our party–barely one piece each. We had to break the favorite bread–carrot raisin–into pieces so that everyone could get a little taste. I hope they are offering more bread at dinner, because the carrot raisin bread is really the highlight of Mimi’s for me, but not if I only get one bite!
All in all, I was pleased to find that Mimi’s was a place I thought I could visit again–especially if I stick to the tried and true on the menu.
I want to recommend the website Urban Spoon. Just like Amazon, TripAdvisor, and Yelp, it features user reviews. Urban Spoon focuses exclusively on restaurants. I like that Urban Spoon is an aggregator–not only does it have user reviews that people type in when they visit the site, but it also gathers critics’ reviews from major newspapers and magazines. For bloggers, they offer ”spoonbacks.” If you put the Urban Spoon image in a review on your blog, they will publish your post on Urban Spoon with a link back to your blog. It gives tiny audience bloggers like me a chance to feel famous (and I can’t help it, I love that!).
Urban Spoon has a section for many of the major cities in the United States. I was pleased to see that they had one for Salt Lake. I was even more pleased to realize that American Fork, Orem, and Provo (as well as several other small Utah cities) are listed as neighborhoods of greater Salt Lake. I was surprised to find how much information they had about restaurants in Orem and Provo.
Urban Spoon also features a very simple thumbs up/thumbs down rating system for restaurants. I admire the simplicity of “like/don’t like,”, but I wish they also offered an “it’s okay” option. Also, of course there is no way to tell whether my vote of “like it” for Golden Corral is because it makes my children so happy or if it is because I am under the impression that it is incredible gourmet fare! But I figure that is what the review section is for. The simple rating system does have some utility. If you sort a city or neighborhood by popularity, the consistently people pleasing restaurants do rise to the top. This is especially valuable if you are looking for a restaurant to take a diverse group of people to.
Other features I appreciate are the wishlist (when you read a great review you can add the restaurant to your wishlist so that you remember to try it in the future), the maps (showing restaurants you’ve reviewed, or restaurants on your wishlist, or Chinese restaurants in a given neighorhood) and the ability to compare reviews and wishlists with friends. Give it a try; see what you think!
Have you already tried Urban Spoon? Do you use another dining review site like Yelp? Why do you like it? I was a fan of TripAdvisor’s reviews, but TripAdvisor has less information about each restaurant, lacks the critics reviews, doesn’t offer a spoonback type feature, and the majority of the reviews are written from the perspective of the tourist rather than the townie. Urban Spoon has won my allegiance.
I visited the Blue Lemon restaurant with high expectations. The good thing about going to a place that has received a lot of hype is that even if you are disappointed, you might still have a pretty good experience. That describes how I felt about the Blue Lemon.
To enjoy Blue Lemon, you need to go knowing what to expect. I hadn’t read the reviews carefully enough.
What Blue Lemon is: Blue Lemon is upscale. The place has a San Francisco vibe, the decor is trendy and pleasing. They serve gourmet-ish food, locally sourced and seasonal food. [Um, how seasonal & locally-sourced can you be around here? Pdad ordered the fruit salad, and I'll just say, I want to see the local farmer who manages cantaloupe in March!]. Healthy food (not fried–except for the sweet potato fries?, not microwaved). Blue Lemon offers beautiful presentation. There will be artful splashes of sauce surrounding something lovely. The food looks good. Rest assured, your Blue Lemon food will taste good.
What Blue Lemon is not: Blue Lemon is not fine dining. It is not the place for a romantic date. (It _is_ child friendly if you are willing to spend $$ for children’s food). Blue Lemon is large and also noisy. You will stand in line and walk down the counter to order–almost a cafeteria type ordering experience–although they do bring the food to your table. The good news about it not being a fine dining experience is that your food will arrive quickly. The bad news is that these are not cafeteria portions. You will get a moderate, Europeanish portion of food. You will not pay cafeteria prices. Fortunately, you would probably not expect to, given the quality and character of the food. If Blue Lemon were a full fine dining experience, the prices would be a bargain.
The service at Blue Lemon is not top notch. Perhaps they are victims of their own popularity. However, it doesn’t matter why; poor service is still not as good as good service. They were completely disorganized. We ordered a fancy drink and had trouble getting anyone to tell us where to find it or when it was coming. (Aside: Do not order a coffee-less fancy coffee drink. BAD IDEA. I don’t know if it is because the coffee makes the drink or if Blue Lemon just isn’t good at drinks in general, but the one we tried was a very poor cousin to the Wendy’s Frosty at 4 times the price.) We wanted to order one of the allegedly fabulous vanilla Nanaimo bars at the Blue Lemon Bistro next door and the counter help (who also help at Blue Lemon) had apparently gone on extended hiatus or forgotten about the Bistro. It was very frustrating. In the end, we had to leave without dessert.
All in all: I am glad that I experienced Blue Lemon. I would probably go again, especially if I happened to be in the area or if someone invited me. I am a fan of tasty and beautiful food. I don’t mind the small portions or the higher than Fresh Mex prices. However, the large and noisy ambience isn’t what I’m looking for. Child-friendly dining can be good, but most children would not be ready to appreciate this food. Good service is a must–I hope for it at fast food places–I expect it at places where the prices are higher. Blue Lemon has room for improvement.
If you go: Blue Lemon 11073 N. Alpine Highway, Highland, UT 84003 (801) 756-7993. Open from 11:00 a.m.-9 p.m. (they close early!) every day but Sunday.
Others’ Reviews:
How can a blog named Chocolate & Garlic skip reviewing an establishment known as The Chocolate? It won’t–here goes: The Chocolate is located in Orem at 212 S. State St. in a historic house from the beginning of the last century. The neat thing about The Chocolate is that it is a bakery, a place where food is made, wedding cakes are ordered, and catering orders are prepared, but it is also a place to eat and a place to spend time with others while eating–definitely not just a bakery.
Eating there made me want to open my own business. It made me sad that I hadn’t thought of The Chocolate first. (Pdad said he thinks I’m better suited to teaching philosophy than to running my own business. I’m not sure he is right, but there is some evidence on his side). I love their choice of building–bakeries are always these antiseptic places with tile, gleaming glass cases, and industrial kitchens. A typical bakery might have a few tables so that you can indulge yourself if you’re not able to wait long enough to transport your guilty pleasure somewhere else, but the emphasis is always on the purchase, not the consumption. The Chocolate is different. The setting is important. This is a place to hang out and have a conversation. This is a place to go on a date. This would be a great place to bring an older child for some special attention and a treat. The required glass cases and cash register are at the front, the bakery is hidden at the back, but much of the rest of the house is open. You’re free to stroll through a few different rooms until you claim the seating nook that speaks comfort to you.
I think it would be tempting at a place like The Chocolate to go too sweet–to be too Victorian or to decorate in pastel pinks and make it too feminine. Don’t fear. If anything, the Chocolate goes a little too far in the other direction–lime green paint in once place, zebra stripe pillows in another–this is not your grandmother’s sitting room. Also, they have music piped through the rooms that suggests youth and energy rather than — I don’t know — afternoon tea with the finger crook’d just so?
As for the guilty pleasures themselves, they don’t go too sweet there either. I am a big fan of their frosting. Not too sweet, but not like eating a stick of butter (yet still plenty buttery), just right. Pdad and I enjoyed three confections there: a slice of Kitty Katrina cake, a mint fudge brownie, and a turtle tart (I think they called it a tart–it was definitely a turtle). We paid $8.45. Their prices seem quite reasonable, food+ setting considered. I can’t imagine buying a full size cake there ($45!), but perhaps that is because I am willing and able to make my own (could you watch my kids for the afternoon, though?). What I easily can imagine though is sampling a slice and sharing it with someone else. The cake slice and brownie were large, and although the turtle was smaller, three desserts was definitely more than two people post-dinner needed (but there were so many things we wanted to try!). The caramel on the turtle was sublime, but I thought the crust was a bit too hard. I wouldn’t order the turtle again. The mint brownie was good–it was a muted mint–similar yet superior to BYU’s famous mint brownies. As I said, the frosting on the Kitty Katrina cake was wonderful. Surprisingly, when we visited (and admittedly the selection was running low at the end of the evening on a Saturday) the majority of the desserts were not chocolate.
All in all: I hope to make many return visits to the Chocolate. I love the concept–desserts only, historic house, find your own table, no one rushes you, stay and talk. The desserts are pretty good too!
If you go: The Chocolate opens at 11 a.m. every day but Sunday. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, they stay open until 10:00 p.m. Wednesday, Friday and Saturday they stay open until 11 p.m. Who ever heard of a bakery open until11 p.m.? It’s The Chocolate! (801) 224-7334. 212 S. State, Orem, UT. See also The Chocolate Website and The Chocolate Blog
Others’ Reviews:
Daily Herald
Joe’s Cafe is located across State Street from the University Mall in Orem. Joe is open until 4 p.m. and he serves breakfast and lunch all day. The menu has waffles, pancakes, eggs, omelets, sandwiches, and hamburgers. There are a few kid’s meals as well. I thought the food was really good. Reviews I’d read before visiting had led me to believe that portions would be huge, but that wasn’t the case on our visit. The serving sizes were just average. We tried the Western Omelet, the ABC (Avocado-Bacon-Cheese) omelet, the pancake combo, the Belgian waffle, and a corndog. Everyone liked their order; my Western omelet was really good. I enjoyed the feeling of eating real homestyle food, freshly prepared. It was caloric yes, but the ingredients were honest ones, the ones I would put in at home, not something concocted to tempt my metabolism in a laboratory. Prices were not cheap, but reasonable.
Although Joe’s is relatively new, I noticed multiple regulars stop by during our visit.
The restaurant is narrow, but by going all the way to the back we did manage to find a table that seated the five of us and found room for our stroller. (There is parking in back of the restaurant). Unfortunately, this isn’t a comfy booth type of place: just little tables and chairs. I like the way Joe’s is decorated with vibrant yellow paint on top, and black (is it called wainscoting or beadboard?) on the bottom. The walls are covered with snapshots. Every photograph includes Joe, the chef and owner, along with a group of first time visitors. The photo-taking is an ongoing process; we had our picture taken today. Joe is extremely outgoing; he checked several times to make sure we were happy. He noticed that our 6 year old had finished his Belgian Waffle kid’s meal while the rest of us were still eating and offered to bring him another half on the house. He counseled us to buy the lad “a big boy meal” the next time we stop by.
All in all: I wouldn’t say that Joe’s was amazing, but I will definitely eat there again. I am eager to try the hamburgers on my next visit.
If you go: 1126 S. State St., Orem, UT 84097, (801) 607-5377, open every day but Sunday until 4 p.m. Breakfast and Lunch served all day.
Others’ Reviews:
