Marie Catrib's
1001 Lake Drive. SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49506
A friend of mine invited me to breakfast a few months ago, and he had me meet him at Marie Catrib's.
You know what I hate? When somebody thinks they can make perfect better. Let's take something that was perfect, like, say, the Oreo. The perfect cookie. And then some dumbass dipshit doesn't understand the word "perfect" and tries to improve on it. See, by definition, this can't be done. But still, here comes "Double-Stuffed Oreos."
They totally suck because the upend the whole cookie to filling ratio. And then, let's coat double-stuffed Oreos in chocolate. These people seem to want to stretch the totally-crappy-suck-awful envelope. They keep going crazy until they have yellow Oreos stuffed with watermelon creme filling. And everything they've ever done after the simple, pure, first Oreo, totally blows. Why do people do this? Is it a mental disorder? Don't get me started on the "improvements" in peanut butter, The Wizard of Oz, Catsup, or a myriad of other things. It makes me crazy.
And so do restaurants that think they can do a simple perfect thing like, say....breakfast...better?
Now Marie Catrib's had an impressive deli counter, and I was given exquisite samples from that, so there are lots of good things about this place. But the breakfast menu was so full of spinach, tofu, water chestnuts crap, that it was hard - no, impossible to order a couple of eggs, hash browns, and bacon. Look, breakfast is supposed to be a simple thing. Like the Oreo. But there are always people who think they have a better idea.
My favorite breakfast is eggs, home-made toast, hash browns, sausage, and coffee. Can you get this at Marie Katribe's? Of course not. You can get the overly-hip tofu sausage, and maybe eggs, but of course toast has too many carbs. And it does, but that should be my decision to make.
They have a following. And they will be there a long time. Because there are people who love this, and the hipness, and being in Eastown, and being at an eatery other than Yesterdog in Eastown, and yadda, yadda, yadda. It wasn't horrible. Much of it was very good. But that's because I was with one of the coolest guys ever. But seriously, the food in the restaurant belies the stuff in the deli.
Visit this place. Get everything at the deli, and then get out. And if you're looking for breakfast, go to Denny's. But there have been other very positive reviews about their lunch menu. So who knows? But I still have to distance myself from the tragically hip.
The Good: A wonderful deli counter, and a fabulous staff that seemed to really care.
The Bad: Hard to order a simple breakfast.
The Ugly: Tragically hip.
Grade: D+
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Friday, April 4, 2014
Olivera's
Olivera's Ristorante and Pub.
390 S. Dexter
Ionia, Michigan 48811
Olivera's began in a smaller building a few years back and got excellent response. In time it became apparent that the parking was inadequate and the place was too small. So this week, Olivera's moved down the street to a much bigger site that had been vacated by a Mexican Restaurant. We made an impulsive decision to run down there this evening. And it turns out it was a good decision.
It didn't seem promising at first. Although it is a more than ample parking lot, it was nearly full. When we found out they'd only been in their new digs two days, and it was Friday night, and it was 6:30 pm, the 15 minute wait was fair.
The service was prompt and efficient. My wife and I both chose entrees that offered soup or salad, and we both chose soup. My wife chose the Tomato Basil and I opted for the Turkey Noodle.
Wow, these were good soups! My wife noted that she could tell by the texture that the tomatoes had been pureed and put together just right. My turkey and noodle was a combination of penne noodles, turkey, carrots, and other great stuff. I tried to make it last. It had a hint of a spicy bite to it that was wonderful. This wasn't dull at all. I could have made a whole meal out of this stuff.
My wife chose a Chicken Parmesan (and she accuses me of not thinking outside of the box). But hey, when it arrived, she raved about it the entire time. She was blessed with a very generous sized portion of chicken breast that was prepared so that it retained it's moisture and tenderness. Well done, Olivera's!
I ordered the Spaghetti Rustica. It was a spaghetti in a garlic cream sauce combined with sauteed spinach, fresh tomatoes, and Italian sausage. And oh, buddy! Was this ever good. It, as well as the wife's entree, comes with a breadstick that is delicious without being covered in melted cheese.
The portions are generous and we both ended up bringing some of ours home. The prices were modest, that is, entirely fair.
Johnny Carino's on the East Beltline had previously been my wife's favorite restaurant. But they closed last year. We have our suspicions on where the chef's went. My wife Penny declared tonight that she thinks that Olivera's is her new favorite restaurant.
The Good: Great food at modest prices.
The Bad: The wait, but they said it would be 30 minutes and it was actually only about 15. And I suspect they were so busy was because of curiosity about the new digs. And it was Friday night at about 6 pm after all.
The Ugly: I got nothin'.
By the way, the hours are : Mon - Saturday 11 am - 12 midnight.
Sunday 12 noon - 12 midnight.
Grade: A
390 S. Dexter
Ionia, Michigan 48811
Olivera's began in a smaller building a few years back and got excellent response. In time it became apparent that the parking was inadequate and the place was too small. So this week, Olivera's moved down the street to a much bigger site that had been vacated by a Mexican Restaurant. We made an impulsive decision to run down there this evening. And it turns out it was a good decision.
It didn't seem promising at first. Although it is a more than ample parking lot, it was nearly full. When we found out they'd only been in their new digs two days, and it was Friday night, and it was 6:30 pm, the 15 minute wait was fair.
The service was prompt and efficient. My wife and I both chose entrees that offered soup or salad, and we both chose soup. My wife chose the Tomato Basil and I opted for the Turkey Noodle.
Wow, these were good soups! My wife noted that she could tell by the texture that the tomatoes had been pureed and put together just right. My turkey and noodle was a combination of penne noodles, turkey, carrots, and other great stuff. I tried to make it last. It had a hint of a spicy bite to it that was wonderful. This wasn't dull at all. I could have made a whole meal out of this stuff.
My wife chose a Chicken Parmesan (and she accuses me of not thinking outside of the box). But hey, when it arrived, she raved about it the entire time. She was blessed with a very generous sized portion of chicken breast that was prepared so that it retained it's moisture and tenderness. Well done, Olivera's!
I ordered the Spaghetti Rustica. It was a spaghetti in a garlic cream sauce combined with sauteed spinach, fresh tomatoes, and Italian sausage. And oh, buddy! Was this ever good. It, as well as the wife's entree, comes with a breadstick that is delicious without being covered in melted cheese.
The portions are generous and we both ended up bringing some of ours home. The prices were modest, that is, entirely fair.
Johnny Carino's on the East Beltline had previously been my wife's favorite restaurant. But they closed last year. We have our suspicions on where the chef's went. My wife Penny declared tonight that she thinks that Olivera's is her new favorite restaurant.
The Good: Great food at modest prices.
The Bad: The wait, but they said it would be 30 minutes and it was actually only about 15. And I suspect they were so busy was because of curiosity about the new digs. And it was Friday night at about 6 pm after all.
The Ugly: I got nothin'.
By the way, the hours are : Mon - Saturday 11 am - 12 midnight.
Sunday 12 noon - 12 midnight.
Grade: A
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