Avalon Bistro & Wine Bar

This place has a great happy hour! I'm on my no-eating-out era, but they had 5$ wine/beer, cheap apps, and 9$ cocktails (which, alas, is what counts for cheap now). Bartender was chill, patrons were mostly not students (except one who was in fact my student, but she was with her parents), and the ambiance is buzzy but not frantic. Weird rotating poster art of celebs. Syntactic logo. All in all, a nice little place. Would (ask about allergens so that I could) eat there if forced! Reminded me a bit of Iron Hill in terms of the bar/table vibes, although perhaps I just miss post-work hangs with my dear pal Janey. 

Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 7/10 (I got a Stella; very good) 

Mangia Mangia Italian Grill

I was scared to go to this place because they definitely have nuts on the menu, but the waitress was nice and helpful and checked with the chef for me, so I got a vegetable pizza and it was solid, lots of fun veg and no gross veg. They don't have alc, but otherwise I have no complaints. The decor is fun and my family seemed to like it decently well.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 7/10

Payne's Bar-B-Q

Aw, this place was nice. We visited during a massive heat wave, so it was a lil sweaty in there, but first of all it was one of the only places where people (workers and customers) were still wearing masks, and second of all they actually answered me about if they use nuts (they don't). So I was predisposed to like them. I got a half slab of ribs, which was like, 8 big ribs, and it also came with 2 slices of bread and cole slaw. The ribs were solid, I got medium BBQ sauce which wasn't hot at all, but which was tasty. Very filling, chill place. 

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10

Gin Mill

Went here with my family, and I think they liked it more than I did! Don't get me wrong, it was a decent place (although a bit sticky), and they have a huge beer list -- but it's totally different from the one on their website! The server was nice, and the food I got (chicken) was fine but not amazing. Seemed OK allergy-wise. No big opinions :)

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

The Brewer's Art

This place is surprisingly big! Lots of different "spaces" inside, which I always like, plus a few outdoor tables too. They didn't answer my FB message, but inside they confirmed the beers are nut-free which was great. I only got a chance to drink one, the Charm City Cherry, and it was really good - nice cherry flavor without being sweet or gross. Too bad I had to rush away to resume my Awkward Dating Life 2022!

Update: they did answer my FB message! Just confirming they're safe. Noice. 

Overall
Cost: 6/10 [7$/beer is apparently good for B'more]
Taste: 7/10

City Winery DC

I went here for a lovely Magnetic Fields concert (with my now-ex boyf, 😥 -- but the concert was good!) and it was overall a very nice venue, good seating and good visibility (although a little cramped, as you might expect). The food, however... I got a Marg pizza, as it seemed safe (and the waitress confirmed it was, which was nice), and it was really terrible -- cold and definitely not fresh and homemade -- but it was still pizza, so like, not that bad as food goes. The wine was also solid - I got chardonnay. Was the meal worth 100+$ for two? No way. But as a concert venue, it's nice, and it's nice that they let you eat there beforehand. I'd definitely go again for a show, and even eat the bad food there first, I would just never come here as a restaurant. 

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 6/10
Music: 10/10
Sad feelz: 8/10

Argilla Brewing Co at Pietro's Pizza

This place has a lot of good qualities: they actually answered my FB message about allergens (so rare!) and they answered that it was all basically nut-free except desserts. Hooray! The food and beer were also great, and the location is pretty close to me, with parking, and also not super crowded with undergrads since it's a driver.

The negatives: they don't take reservations, but were busy and we had to wait a while for a table (even though there were lots of empty tables -- I'm guessing they just didn't have enough workers, which is true basically everywhere these days). We also weren't told we could chill at an empty table while we waited, which seemed like a nice thing to do. So the whole check-in process was awkward. But the server at our table once we got it was perfectly fine.

I ordered a pizzo (personal size) with mushrooms and spinach, and it was a good size (I finished it and wasn't dyin') and tasty enough, although nothing earth shattering. I also got the Cherry Berry Whipped beer, which I really especially liked -- it was a milky opaque pink, not super fizzy, nice sour fruity beer.

Good times! I'm looking forward to going back either with family or boyf later.

Later: Ha, joke's on past-me, 'cause I no longer have a boyf and I hardly have any family! But I did go with my dad, and sadly, he did not like the pizza at all and they didn't have fish. So it was a bust for him. For me, I got the Kennett personal pizzo, which was solid, good cheese (ate it all) and a Pineapple Citrus Whipped beer, which I also especially liked. Their beers are great! Their pizza is good! Someone go here with me! :p

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10

Lucille Restaurant

Minor drama ensued when we tried to pick a dinner place on a Covid-Sunday in Madison (everything nut free was far or closed)! Eventually we landed here, on this hip pizza place. We split Cheese Curds as an app, and let's just say, it's no poutine. Maybe they weren't great ones, but they basically were like cold mozz sticks. The ranch sauce was good, the marinara was marinara. I ate almost all of them anyway because I'm an animal, but it didn't impress me. 

Then we got 'The Standard' steel pan pizza (see photo), because I heard that "Madison Pizza" is apparently a style and I wanted to try the local hotness. The local hotness is weird -- basically a baby chicago pizza, very very thick crust, tasted good but supremely filling and not my platonic ideal of pizza. Quinn thought "no thank you". Ah well, I didn't die!

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

Girves Brown Derby

Ah, the ol' Ohio trip. Of course, we were a big big group, and my parents + I got there late which literally always happens on family dining events, and so I ended up awkwardly sitting away from the actual family I came to see, and next to some strangers who did not share my political views. Love to have the allergy stress + covid stress + memorial sadness among a bunch of people who hate my guts!!! Disregarding all that (lol), the food was fine. I got the Smothered Chicken, which wasn't really that smothered but came with a ton of mashed potatoes and was mighty filling. I also got a side of brocco, and coffee, I think. I didn't die, but the allergy info didn't seem super great/reassuring. I didn't eat any of the bread, as per usual. It looked like a nice place though. 

Overall
Cost: 4/10 (probably not the best use of ~grandparents' estate~)
Taste: 6/10

Mama Julianne's

This was a cute little place near my grandparents' house. They had a nice menu with lots of italian classics, and nothing that looked especially nutty. I got a slice of pizza and it was good and filling (thick crust). There was a little salad too, which was cute. My parents enjoyed the hot subs they got as well.

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10

Wayback Burgers

Formerly Jake's Wayback Burgers, but I guess they dropped the "Jake's" when I wasn't paying attention! This is a super local Delaware chain and yet it apparently has expanded to PA and beyond. My mind is blown. Anyway, they have hot dogs and burgers that are made fresh (and like, fries and shakes and other stuff). The intriguing thing is that their allergy menu doesn't even list nuts or peanuts as an option, which makes me THINK that they don't use those ingredients, which is great, but I can't find that explicitly stated on their website anywhere, which is weird. I asked the one in DE once if they used nuts and they said no, but that was a long time ago. They also have the impossible burger though, so I didn't want to risk getting a burger, so I got a hot dog with ketchup and mustard and grilled onions. They didn't put on a super lot of toppings, and the hot dog itself was a little too "beef" flavored for my taste, but ultimately it was pretty good and only 300some calories apparently. They have a lot of toppings and other options, so if I were to consider contacting them to get more allergy info I might try the other fun stuff like chicken sandwich or chips. I also ate a little bit of fries and they weren't as good as like, a fast food fry, but with the BBQ sauce they were nice.

Classic Burger: I tried to reach out about allergy stuff via FB message, but they never answered. Alas. Anyway, this was a fine burger, 2 patties and all the fixins. I like this, but the meat itself wasn't that great to me. It didn't have that nice burger king/red robin flavor, you know? I was also scared it would get mixed up with a veggie burger, but it seemed pretty meat-y, so I took the risk. Also almost 700 calos, so very filling, but didn't knock me totally out. Might mix up the toppings in the future since Q seems to like this place. 6/10

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 6/10

Q says: "I like it out of 10"

Little Caesars

Pizza pizza! When I was very little, there was a LCs just down the block, and we had it often and I have great associated memories. They had great mushrooms on their pizzas, not raw like most places but cooked and tasty like a chinese food. Also loved their breadsticks. Then I had a many year gap, and had LCs again in grad school but only in the context of their 5$ Hot And Ready Pizzas, which are super cheap but also not great and didn't have mushrooms. So mixed feelings. But I recently had some leftover mushroom pizza from the LCs near my parents' house, and it was decent. The pizza itself was just fine, but the mushrooms were still quite good for a pizza place! And decently plentiful, too.

Lunch Combo: This is a drink and a 4-piece "hot and ready" roni deep dish. Good deal but the 'za isn't my favorite. Very doughy crust, nice buttery sheen on the bottom but the cheese/sauce/roni is a little too "frozen pizza chic" for me. Dad liked it though, and it's a good amount for 2 people. 6/10

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 6/10

Saul Good

After this review, I'm officially done with the Lexington chapter of this blog for the foreseeable future, and I'm so thankful I finished it off before I got the official rejection from my dream job there that I know is coming but didn't officially come yet (will it at all? academia!). Whew, what a weird and sad weight on me. :D:

Anyway, this, like many of the other KY restos, was (surprisingly?) solid! Apparently it is a mini-chain and the other two have cool zebra print on the outside, but this seemed just like a normal resto. It was my last night and my eating companions got one, so I even had a beer - a nice local IPA/sour! (Is this why I didn't get the job?? ha ha! ack!). But I digress. I ordered the Cajun Chicken Pasta and it was huge and delicious, just like it sounds. A fun sidenote: I informed the waiter I have a nut allergy, as you do, and all seemed fine. But midway through eating, a different man (the manager?) came to the table and was like "Is there a nut allergy here?" and I thought I was 100% about to die, but he just read about the FDA approving the peanut pill and wanted to tell me. I think you can guess my thoughts on the peanut pill, but lol at this man who was trying to be nice and friendly but nearly killed me via heart attack!! And the restaurant did have peanuts on the menu in some places, so I was anxious already. But I indeed didn't die. Whew. Amen. Catch you tomorrow for a nice, unemotional skittles review. :)

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 8/10

Joe Bologna's

This is a semi-famous place within Lexington, it seems. The building is an old church/synagogue (it was once both), which is pretty quirky and cool, and you can see the stained glass windows still. The menu is all the typical italian fare (pasta, pizza, sandwiches), and supposedly the breadsticks are awesome but I didn't get one myself. They had a lunch special where you can get a personal pizza, so I did that with mushrooms and green pepper, and it was great and just the right size. Very cool and chill, plus table service so it's relaxing too.

Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 8/10

First Watch

I really loved this place, so I'm giddy to find out it's a chain! (And there's one in Hershey and also on the way to Havvo)! They serve only breakfast/lunch/brunch, which is ripe for nut allergy issues, but they have a great allergy menu online and even better, the waitress was proactive about serving me seedy bread or using the toaster, so she gave me untoasted plain white bread which is actually the perfect solution, and I ate it all up. I got the Tri-Athlete, which was an egg white omelette with mushrooms and it was great and came with the aforementioned toast as well as a nice fruit cup. I also got a coffee. It was really delightful. I don't know if all servers would be as great, but if they were I would be so happy to come back here and try more foodz.

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 8/10

Cole's on Main

These reviews are depressing me! Ack! Anyway, this was a fancy place, and therefore it had many nuts and many fishes. But the great thing was, I was seated on a booth with little pillows of cats and cute things. Classy yet comfy. It was also nice and dark inside, which I always like. So there weren't a lot of nut-free options on the menu, but the server was legit great about allergies to the point where when she brought the breads (2 types), she told me that only one type was definitely safe and the other one was a "may contain" (so I didn't eat that one obvi). I really appreciate when servers go that step above. For food I got beef/steak of some sort, it was very good but a huge cut so I couldn't finish it (mostly due to social norms but it was also legit big). It also came with horseradishy potato(?) balls that were fried and soft inside and really great. But I can't find this entree on the menu and I'm fuzzy on the details. Anyway, this place impressed me beyond how I thought it'd be, for sure. Seems like a great date spot or interview spot. I'm sweaty.

Overall
Cost: 3/10 (def expensive)
Taste: 7/10

doodles

Next up in our Lexi-tour is Doodles, for breakfast. This is a cute place with a cute name, but unfortunately even though they have gluten free stuff it wasn't that re-assuring allergy-wise. It's counter-ordering, so you can't ask too many personal questions about the food. I asked if they used peanut oil and they seemed to think the answer was "no", but that was it. Lol. Anyway, I got an omelette (that came with either a biscuit or grits and I was scared to eat either one so I got the nice big biscuit and then didn't eat it) and the omelette was totally normal and fine and filling. The coffee was self-pump in a mug mug, and it was fine. The seating was cute and casual. Seems trendy but consequently not really my thing!

Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 6/10

Bella Notte

And thus marks the beginning of my Lexington, Kentucky dining adventure! (Most likely the only time I'll ever be there, which is devastating, but overall the food was pretty solid!)

This was a nice Italian restaurant, located in kind of strip mall area but the restaurant itself was classy and big. I got Chicken Saltimboca, which was good as usual, and came with very nice risotto. I enjoyed it a lot and had no allergy issues. I didn't eat the bread, though, since I was not informed if it was safe, and I didn't get any alc or coffee because I was anxious for other reasons, but the food was tasty and filling and the place was pretty. And it snowed! Truly a bella notte.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 7/10

Café Du Monde

I'm of two minds on this place, which is also nut-free due to its limited menu. Basically, I like it. But now when I talk about wanting bennies, I'm not sure if I mean benefits or beignets! CDM has only beignets and chicory-laced coffee, which I am apparently not allergic to. (It was no regular coffee though). The hype for it is kind of baffling to me, but hey, I did eat a total of 9 bennies in 4 days. (They come in orders of 3, which is plenty). They're covered in tons of powdered sugar, nice and warm and cute. Not too pricy, either. I can't complain! But really this is no substitute for a lunch or dinner, it should be for brekkie only.

Overall
Cost: 8/10
Taste: 7/10

Izzo's Illegal Burrito

This was another new-to-me chain in New Orleans that I ate at out of sheer lack of options. But I figured it'd be similar to Chipotle/Moe's/Qdoba, right? And it was nut-free and that's nice. But it was really most similar to the freakin' "Burrito Elito" Cal Tort knock off in the Philly airport that is super awkward, dry, bad, overpriced, missing half the menu items, and the workers are baffled by a customer's presence. I always think it will be different there, by the way, and it never is! I wish CalTort were still around.

ANYWAY, this place was dry and bad and didn't have half the ingredients their website says they do. I wanted, like, guac. But I got chicken in I think soft tacos, with sparse lettuce and maybe chips and queso (the best part was this tiny queso). Not great, but it was food and not nuts. Desperation option.

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10 (Compared to New Orleans, not compared to TexMex fastfood)