Wednesday Dinner 8/18/10

Good Morning!!!! Today is a great day, I am a little tired but nonetheless I am here! Special "Shout Out" to summer for finally arriving. Yesterdays "Wednesday Dinner" was very quick and I kept to myself. Yesterday the sun was shining and I was feeling like eating something light and something I hadn't had in a while. I had been craving Hawaiian BBQ, I know I know, Los Angeles is really the last place to get authentic Hawaiian BBQ but hey it is what it is. So I decided to stop by "Q Hawaiian BBQ" which doesn't have a website and there is nothing really on the yelp link. "Q Hawaiian BBQ" is located in the heart of my neighborhood in Inglewood on Crenshaw in one of the new Inglewood Plaza strip mall buildings. "Q Hawaiian BBQ" is very clean and neat on the inside however the customer service SUCKS! I don't know what is going on in Inglewood but I've noticed that the customer service is horrible at a lot of these food establishments, which I think is a crock of shit! Seeing that in Inglewood we pay the highest tax 10.25% which is just utterly ridiculous. Anyway let the "Wednesday Dinner" story begin. I ate a little early because I had plans later on in the evening, I arrived at "Q Hawaiian BBQ" about 4pm and there were a few people in there, there was this group of 2 guys in there and they kept looking at me (WEIRD) because I don't like when people stare at me. Anyway I was looking at the menu and I decided I was going to switch it up and I ordered and this is by pure memory because I can't find my receipt:


#4 Hawaiian BBQ Mix- BBQ Chicken, Katsu Chicken, BBQ Spare Ribs (White Rice, Cabbage & Macaroni Salad)

The total for this came up to $8.70 which wasn't bad at all, I ordered my food for "here" and clearly that meant nothing! Because my food was still served to me in styrofoam but whatever. The food: the bbq chicken is pieces of dark meat matted and cooked like chicken breast. It’s grilled with a hint of bbq flavor but not overly saturated and served in whole pieces, the katsu chicken is their version of fried chicken. The katsu chicken is a mix of white and dark meat and it’s served sliced. The bbq spare ribs (which are my favorite) are your traditional koren bbq spare rib but just sold in a Hawaiian restaurant. The cabbage (which I love) is your regular cabbage, no fancy seasoning or anything, however I have to make it known that I like my cabbage soft! The macaroni salad taste like something I'm not used to but something I have gotten used to, the best way to describe it is it’s not overly done with mayonnaise and seasoning but suttle and good. It took me about 15 minutes to eat my food and people watch. As I was enjoying my food this young man decided to sit right across from me and eat his food and as I was looking down I saw the crack of his ass. Ummm it was to pack this food up and be OUT! and that's exactly what I did! I was full and I had to get to my mom's house because Shelby was having movie night with her friends, Shelby leaves for college next week (sad face). The movie night was hilarious and Shelby has a great group of friends, their loud but a great group. All in all dinner was great and if you are ever in the Inglewood area stop by "Q Hawaiian BBQ" and give them a try. If you would like to get on the "Wednesday Dinner" shopping list drop me a line wednesdaydinnerwithash@yahoo.com and follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/wednesdaydinner . In closing I'd like to leave you with this “Promise little and do much" Until next week xoxox Ashley

Wednesday Dinner 8/11/10

Good Morning, honestly my loves this morning I DO NOT feel like blogging. I am beyond tired, I over slept this morning, made it to work an hour and 15 minutes late. I woke up with enough time to shower, brush my teeth, and wash my face and dress. I didn't do my hair and I'm wearing flip flop, I know I know shame on me. But hell I made it to work! Yesterday’s dinner was extremely special to me!! I had dinner with my Grandma (Grandma on my mom’s side); my Grandma was taking me to dinner for my birthday. Yes my birthday was officially 2 weeks ago as of today, but better late than never. My Grandma had given me 3 choices of places she wanted to take me and one of those choices was Marie Callendars (www.mariecallendersgrill.com/) which is now called Callendar's Grill located at the Howard Hughes Bridge. Let me give you this disclaimer first “Callendar's Grill” is totally different from Marie Callendars as far as the menu and the set up of the restaurant, however if you Google “Callendar's Grill” the Marie Callendar website comes up (I hope they can fix this). So it was just my Grandma and I for dinner, I love spending time with my Grandma. She's always so young spirited and vibrant and I love that about her. "Callendar's Grill" is very clean, neat and modern in the inside it reminds me of a restaurant you would see in a movie. It’s very spacious and a perfect place to hold a dinner party. Their menu is very simple and they offer a selection of "Tonight’s Specials" on a separate menu, it didn't take my Grandma and I long to decide what we wanted. First we placed our drink orders and here they are:


Ashley- Glass of Riesling
Grandma- Cosmo Martini

Riesling wasn't my first choice for wine originally I wanted a glass of Kendall Jackson, but they were all out (a little strange but ok). So now it was time to order (sadly I am doing this review all by memory because the website doesn't reflect what we ate). But here it goes:

Ashley- Blackened Tilapia with a creole sauce served with jasmine rice
Grandma- Quiche & Waldorf salad Sampler

It took about 15 minutes for our food to come out and during that time my Grandma and I just talked. We sat in a booth which had a window view and that was great because we got to people watch. I was a little taken back that there was no bread bout out to us while we were waiting????? So the food comes out and both entrees looked delicious. My food was piping HOT! This was my first time ordering Tilapia, I've been getting tired of fried foods and wanted something light with a lot of flavor and that’s what I got. The Tilapia was grilled and blackened; it was very fresh and tender. The creole sauce was a little too spicy for me (since I've been having run ins with heart burn lately), you can't go wrong with jasmine rice. I would have liked this dish a little better with some kind of grilled vegetables, and a different type of sauce. My Grandma's food was the BOMB, if you are not familiar with Quiche (it’s a baked egg pie that’s filled with whatever you want to put in it). This quiche had bacon, spinach and gouda cheese, served with a waldorf salad. Of course I took a taste and it was DELISH! It was very fresh and refreshing, in my opinion the perfect summer dish! I should have gotten what Grandma got! But mine was good for what it was. Over dinner my Grandma and I continued to talk and I love talking to her. She has been such a great Grandma to me and to all of my cousins. I remember when I was little spending so much time with her, playing dress up and just letting her love me. I have so many wonderful memories with her, although she doesn't use the internet I just want to say THANK YOU GRANDMA & I LOVE YOU!!!!! After both of us were only able to finish half of our food it was time to pack it up and go, however my Grandma wasn't going to leave with out letting our waiter now that it was my birthday and that I am a blogger. Thankfully no one came over to sing happy birthday, I did receive a slice of free pie. I ordered:

Double Cream Blueberry

This pie was DELISH and it was just the right size slice, I single handedly finished that slice of pie and I only offered my Grandma a slice when I was 2 bites away from being finished. All in all dinner was GREAT, the total came up to $46.30 which isn't bad. I recommend you stop by and visit "Callendar's Grill", so after dinner with my Grandma I went to meet my homie Justin to catch this movie screening. Justin came up on some passes to see the screening of "The Lottery" the new movie with Bow Wow. OMG Justin is theeee worst (hahaha) we were like 30 minutes late for the movie due to parking issues but SHOUT OUT to the lady that gave us a pass and let us in. The screening was at the Man Chinese Theater in Hollywood (www.manntheatres.com/). I am not sure what the fascination is with Hollywood, but it’s always too crowded down there. When we finally got in the movie, it was crowded; we sat about 4 rows from the bottom. I won't spoil the movie for you guys but its cute, everyone go see it when it comes out and support the black dollar! Thanks Justin for thinking of me I had a good time! If you would like to get on the "Wednesday Dinner" letter head drop me a line wednesdaydinnerwithash@yahoo.com and follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/wednesdaydinner. In closing I would like to leave you with this "Do something life changing and that’s when life changes" until next week, blessings - Ashley

Wednesday Dinner 8/4/2010

Hello and Good Morning. My deepest apologies for not blogging last week, however there were a lot of things going on in my life last week. But with the grace of God I am back and feeling better than ever. This weeks "Wednesday Dinner" was very special to me because I was able to spend it with my favorite "youngins" as I like to call them (Shelby, Taelor, Genova and Maya). All of them will be going off to college within the next two weeks so I need to try and spend as much time with them as possible. So I invited them to meet me at the "Grand Lux" (http://www.grandluxcafe.com/) yesterday for a late lunch/early dinner and they all agreed. When I arrived of course they weren't there yet, but they didn't keep me waiting long. Looking at them I can't help but smile because I have watched them all grow and blossom into young ladies. Especially Shelby and Taelor, sheesh it makes me feel so OLD! But they all looked so cute and it’s clear that they are really growing up! "Grand Lux" has Happy Hour and you don't have to be 21 to sit in the bar area and enjoy Happy Hour. So we were seated at the bar and it was time to get "Wednesday Dinner" crackin! During the week "Grand Lux" has drink specials during Happy Hour, yesterday's special was a Raspberry Cosmo and OMG that was theeeee best Cosmo I've ever had! And it was only $5.00 (SCORE)! I decided that I would order for Shelby and I because we like a lot of the same food and Taelor, Genova and Maya would be on their own. So here is what was ordered:


Ashley & Shelby- Skillet Meatballs, Mini Buffalo Bites, Mini Lux Salad, Crispy Calamari, BBQ Pork Sliders, & Fried Pickles


Taelor- BLT with no Tomato


Genova- Skillet Meatballs, Mini Buffalo Bites


Maya- Mahi Mahi & Shrimp Scampi

Let me just start by saying that Shelby and I did not get all that food at once it was spread out over the course of time we were there. Our waiter was good, shame that the tip was already included but oh well. So let me start goin in on the food: Skillet Meatballs- DELISH! These are chicken meatballs (which I've never had) the meatballs were so moist, seasoned very well and topped with a very good marana sauce and cheese served with mini slices of garlic cheese bread. For $5.95 you get 3 meatballs and about 4 pieces of garlic cheese bread and in my opinion it’s worth every bite. Mini Buffalo Bites: its buffalo flavored chicken and cheese rolled into a mini ball and fried DELISH also! Served with blue cheese the only thing missing is carrots and celery that would have made this complete. However you get about 8 mini buffalo bites for $4.95 you can't beat that! Mini Lux Salad- was your average side salad, an arugula spring mix with tomatoes and a huge crouton served with balsamic vinaigrette dressing this salad was very refreshing and enough for 2 for $3.95. Crispy Calamari- calamari is one of Shelby and I's favorite things, this calamari is fried in a tempura like batter and was very GOOD! also enough for 2 and served with traditional marana sauce it was worth $4.95. BBQ Pork Sliders- I am not a huge pork fan but for some reason these stood out to me, these pork sliders were DELISH! Served on mini buns its bbq pork, coleslaw and a pickle, it’s just the right size I think a big sandwich like this would have been too much. I give the bbq pork sliders 2 thumbs up and for $4.95 you get 3 not too bad. Fried Pickles- now I have had fried pickles before and I wasn't impressed but these were the best I've had so far. These were dill pickles fried to perfect (not to crunchy and not to soft) and were served with an amazing remoulade sauce. Hi five to the "Grand Lux" for this one!! For $3.95 you get about 10 pickles and its well worth it, these pickles were so YUMMY! By the time we were finished Shelby and I were on FULL! Taelor is such a picky eater she had the BLT and didn't get the T (tomato) she doesn't like them. Genova was satisfied with her Buffalo Bites and Meatballs. Maya was late (as she always is! Haha) and she ordered the Mahi Mahi & Shrimp Scampi which I tasted and it was amazing, I am going to have to try that when I go back to the "Grand Lux". Over late lunch/early dinner we laughed and talked. I love hanging out with my "youngins" because they keep me young (hahaha). Shout out to the "Grand Lux" for playing some good oldies while we were eating. I have to say that I am so proud of Shelby, Taelor, Genova and Maya. They are all working and getting ready for college. Shelby is going to Channel Island, Taelor is going to Howard, Genova is going to San Francisco State and Maya is going to El Camino. I am so glad to have them in my life and I LOVE YOU GIRLS, good luck and much success in your futures xoxox. The reason why I mentioned the pricing of the food because "Grand Lux" has mini tapas specially priced and also Monday-Friday Happy Hour were drinks are specially priced and selected appetizers are $5.00. "Grand Lux" has one of the best Happy Hour I've seen so far, starting at 4pm and ending at 6:30pm what more could you ask for and as I looked at my reciept I am pleased to inform you that "Grand Lux" now takes reservations. The bill came and the total damage was $112.74 (WHEW) with 18% gratuity included shame! It was time to leave the "youngins" were going to the mall and then who knows where else. I got in the wind and had some business to handle. If you live in L.A. there is no reason why you haven't been to "Grand Lux" if you haven't kill yourself NOW! (haha), but get familiar with it. If you would like to get on the "Wednesday Dinner" bandwagon drop me a line wednesdaydinnerwithash@yahoo.com and follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/wednesdaydinner. In closing I want to leave you with this "Success builds character, failure reveals it". Until next week lots of love -Ashley

Wednesday Dinner 7/21/10

Good Morning Dolls!!!! Its Thursday, the weekend has officially begun so let's gooooooo! I am so excited my birthday is in exactly one week. I will be 28 on the 29th and I feel so blessed and I am truly in love with my life, thanks to everyone who has been a part of my journey this far!!! This weeks "Wednesday Dinner" was at one of my favorite sushi places. I experienced the taste of sushi 10 years ago when I was a senior in high school, although I can't remember the name of the place I do remember that I tried the world famous "California Roll" and fell in love with it. Since then I've loved sushi and have eaten it a few places but my all time favorite place for sushi is "Kabuki" (http://www.kabukirestaurants.com/), I always go to the "Kabuki" in Los Angeles located at the Howard Hughes Bridge and I have always had great service and have never been disappointed with my food and yesterday was no different, well let me hold that thought! I was happy to know that "Kabuki" now has Happy Hour (Mon-Fri. from 3pm-6pm), in my opinion that is huge for this restaurant. It appears that a lot of restaurants are following this Happy Hour trend and it seems to be working. I also appreciate the fact that you can enjoy the benefits of Happy Hour with out dining at the bar. The Happy Hour at "Kabuki" is pretty dope with menu selections starting as low as $2.95 and nothing over $5.95 and with alcoholic beverages starting as low as $1.95 and nothing over $6.75 which is pretty damn good. Yesterday I ate alone and I am really starting to dig this solo dining thing, its pretty fun. I went to "Kabuki" right when I got off work because I didn't want to mess around and miss Happy Hour, I arrived around 4:30pm and it was clear that there were plenty of folks there enjoying the benefits of Happy Hour. I didn't have to wait I was seated as soon as I got in the door, it was funny because I sat in the exact same place I sat when I was there with my sisters 2 weekends ago (coincidence? maybe). When I sat down I viewed the menu and I was ready to order. "Kabuki" gives you the option to fill out your sushi order slip however I couldn't because I didn't have a pen. It took about 8 minutes for someone to come over and get my drink and food order and I was shocked because I've always received prompt service at "Kabuki" but in their defense they were pretty crowded. So it was time to order and here is what I ate:


BBQ Beef Rib Appetizer
Spicy Tuna Roll
Philadelphia Roll
Tempura California Roll
Water with Lemon

Ok, I know that's a lot of food but if you know me you know that I didn't finish all my food, my eyes have always been bigger than my stomach and I really just like to taste a variety of food. While I was waiting for my food my server brought out some Edamame (I think their Japanese peas). However they are so good and if you’re not careful you can eat the whole dish before your food comes (I almost did). First my BBQ Beef Ribs came out, nice and hot over an arugula spring mix. These ribs are one of my favorite things to order, they were very tender and not over saturated with bbq sauce, the right amount of everything they are really DELISH-IS! Next my sushi came and that’s when it was really time to get excited! On one dish the spicy tuna and philadelphia roll and on the other dish was the tempura california roll. OMG that was a lot of food at a table for one person but hey I wasn't trippin. The spicy tuna was on point, very fresh and spicy, the philadelphia roll was amazing also the salmon was fresh and the tempura california roll was also amazing I was so pleased and stuffed. Over dinner I noticed I have a serious problem! I have a tendency to stare at people; I guess I can officially call myself a people watcher (ha-ha). But there was a lot of interesting sights in "Kabuki" yesterday. My total for my food came up to $20.63 and here is the break down (BBQ Beef Appetizer $7.95, Spicy Tuna Roll $2.95, Philadelphia Roll $2.95, Tempura California Roll $4.95, and $1.83 for tax). Now had I not gone to Happy Hour my total would have been $26.23 (tax included) so I saved about $5.60 which is pretty good. I was totally stuffed when I left "Kabuki" I definitely had a food baby in my belly. My food was DELISH-IS and well worth it!!! If you are not familiar with "Kabuki" get familiar it’s such a cute little place for dates, group gatherings, etc. and its one of my favorite sushi places. If you would like to get on the "Wednesday Dinner" drill team drop me a line wednesdaydinnerwithash@yahoo.com and follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/wednesdaydinner. In closing I would like to leave you with this “I don't mind living in a man's world as long as I can be a woman in it" until next week love always Ashley

Wednesday Dinner 7/14/10

Good Morning!!! I hope you all are well and doing wonderful positive things in this life. I have to be honest; this week has gotten the best of me. I found out that one of my friends lost her grandfather and dad in a matter of days, so my prayers are with her and her family during this time. Other than that I've been going through something’s personally, but as of today everything is on the up and up, so let the "Wednesday Dinner" story begin. Yesterday I was on another solo mission, I am not sure if you know this about me or not; but my mother is part Jamaican. My grandmother was born and raised in Jamaica, she came to the US when she was 19 and has lived here since. Neither my mom nor my grandmother has a Jamaican accent and we weren't really raised on Jamaican food however we do eat a few Jamaican items. So yesterday I traveled to "The Jerk Shack" (http://www.jamaicanbbqjerk.com/). "The Jerk Shack" is located at the Bridge at Howard Hughes; if you live in L.A. you know where it’s at. I went straight from work, and to my surprise I was the only person in that joint. I noticed that their menu is pretty simple and straight to the point; however they threw me for a loop with some of the other menu selections (pasta, egg cream cheese sandwhich, and tacos). When I walked in I noticed the restaurant was very clean and empty, I mean not a soul was in that place. The menu was simple and so I decided to order two meals. I know I know my inner fat child was released and so here is what I ordered:


#1 Kingston Special- Jerk Chicken, Rice & Beans, Plantain, & Cabbage
#5 Lunch Curry Bowl- Yellow Curry Chicken & Coconut Rice

It took about 10 minutes for my food to be prepared, I thought I told the cashier that I wanted my food for "here" but apparently she heard "to go" and bagged me up. I was a little shocked that "The Jerk Shack" does not have a restroom for their guest, because I had to piss like nobodies business (excuse my french) but I had to go bad. Once my food came out I was ready to eat, I started with the Kingston Special; the jerk chicken was a leg and thigh quarter, it was saucy, tender and very SPICY!!!!!!!!!! The rice and beans was alright, I was expecting more from the rice and beans. The cabbage was DELISH (I love cabbage), this cabbage was very SPICY also, and then there was the plantains (OMG DELISH!!!!), I have fallen in love with plantains. This Kingston special was ok, it had a little too much spice for me, I think the menu should reflect that this dish is spicy. I've had jerk chicken before but I remember it being more like bbq. The meal would have been great minus the spiciness and the rice & beans. Next was the curry chicken bowl with coconut rice, this was an interesting taste. I expected the curry to be a little more yellow and thicker and the rice had actual coconut shaving in it (???). The curry chicken had peas, carrots and potatoes in it, this wasn't spicy although it was missing something, I can't put my finger on it but some kind of seasoning was missing. The total for both meals was $15.35, I don't think I'll be going back to the "The Jerk Shack" anytime soon; my dinner was quick because I had to use the ladies room. I am sure there are better Jamaican restaurants in Cali so someone please let me know. Of course I didn’t finish all that food I ordered, but I just couldn’t decide on what to get. If you would like to get on the "Wednesday Dinner" red bean team drop me a line wednesdaydinnerwithash@yahoo.com and follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/wednesdaydinner. In closing I would like to leave you with this “The only thing that intimidates good is great" until next week live, laugh and love- Ashley

Wednesday Dinner 7/7/10

Good Morning my loves and happy Thursday!!!!!!!! And so we have all made it to the end of another week! Thank you so very much for tuning into another one of my blogs!! If you have been following me from the beginning then you know that today marks my 1 year anniversary of blogging! I want to take this time to sincerely thank everyone who has been a part of "Wednesday Dinner with Ash" from the restaurants, to my quest, to everyone who reads my blog ,I want to say "Thank you, thank you, you’re far to kind". Now with that being said, let the "Wednesday Dinner" story begin, yesterday I was on a solo mission I was feeling a little excited and tired at the same time. Excited because I can't believe I've been at this blogging thing for a year and tired because I got some not so good news yesterday but the day turned so big ups to the universe for looking out for me! So I decided I wanted to go some place new that maybe just opened or hadn't been open that long because there was a sense of relatedness there with a new food place and my blog. I remember my 1st blog entry (http://wednesdaydinnerwithash.blogspot.com/2009/07/wednesday-dinner-7809.html) I remember having so much to say and being so hyped that I was pushing myself to be this "self proclaimed food critic" and now 51 blogs later I am still eating and blogging. I had been to "Kalbi Burger" (http://kalbiburger.com/) a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it, I actually blogged about it on my 2 other blogs (http://weareallovercali.blogspot.com/) and (http://www.allashleymarie.blogspot.com/). I decided I would go back again. Located in Korea Town off of Wilshire, "Kalbi Burger" is a cute little burger place with a Korean twist on an American classic. With its cute and posh decor inside you can't help but to be attracted to the oar inside. With menu options from burgers to hot dogs, there is something for everyone. On "Kalbi Burger's" website they advertise that they are known for their "Lulu Burger" so here is what I had:


Lulu Burger Combo

The Lulu Burger was topped with swiss cheese, bacon, pineapple, lettuce, tomato and Lulu sauce, in my opinion a very Korean-esc spin on a hamburger. It came with french fries and a drink, on the website "Kalbi Burger" also has a 10% off coupon if you sign up for email notifications you get the coupon. So of course I did and I presented my coupon, my total was $8.95-.89=$8.06+tax for a total of $8.84 which wasn't bad. Yesterday "Kalbi Burger" wasn't as crowded as it was the first time I had been there. It took about 7 minutes for my food to come out and it was freshly prepared. "Kalbi Burger" prepares all their burgers medium well unless instructed otherwise. The Lulu burger was pretty big, I didn't realize how hungry I was until I looked up and I was on my last bite. This was a good combination of flavor from the patty to the bacon, to the swiss cheese oozing out of the sides to the pineapple giving it that fresh taste. Although the Lulu sauce was hidden somewhere in the burger, I had to ask for a side of it to get the flavor. It taste like a brown sugar soy sauce mix, extremely thin and in my opinion should be a lot thicker in order to stick to the burger and really get what the Lulu sauce is all about. The french fries where average not seasoning just your regular order of fries, for what I paid I got more than enough food because when I was done eating I was stuffed. I highly recommend "Kalbi Burger" it’s a cute date spot or just a place to go and grab a quick bite to eat and the service is good too! Over dinner I took a moment to reflect on all my blogs and my life as a blogger (hahahaha) and I really enjoy what I am doing and I will continue. Once again thank you for reading my blog and Happy Anniversary baby we did it!!!! (hahaha). If you would like to join the "Wednesday Dinner" celebration drop me a line wednesdaydinnerwithash@yahoo.com and follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/wednesdaydinner. In closing I would like to leave you with this "Stop yappin and make it happen" until next week xoxoxoxoxox- Ashley

Wednesday Dinner 6/30/10

Good Morning, I wish this summer gloom would be gone already!!! SHEESH!! Well it’s the 1st of the month and the second month of the summer (WOOHOO). I hope you all are going to be doing something fun this 4th of July weekend! Just remember to be safe and don't drink and drive. Now let the "Wednesday Dinner" story begin. Last night I had dinner with my dear friend Erica Flowers and her daughter, Erica and I haven't been since last year I believe (http://wednesdaydinnerwithash.blogspot.com/2009/10/wednesday-dinner-101409.html) at Truxton's. Anyway Erica and I have been friends since I we were 3 and 4 years old, we go way back. It's so funny seeing Erica with her daughter because her daughter looks just like Erica did when she was little. I want to take a minute to shout out Erica because she is doing her THANG! She is a LV at USC Hospital and she recently purchased a condo (GO GIRL)!! I am so proud of you and glad to call you my friend! So last night Erica, her daughter and I met up at "The Gardens of Taxaco" (http://www.gardensoftaxco.com/) "The Gardens of Taxaco" is located in West Hollywood off of Harper Ave. Harper is a side street so if you’re driving to fast you will miss it. I had been to "The Gardens of Taxaco" years ago with my family we were celebrating a birthday. I decided to pick "The Gardens of Taxaco" because on their website they have a coupon where you can get a 5 course meal for $14.95 (http://gardensoftaxco.com/popDiscount.html). So here's the thing with "The Gardens of Taxaco" they don't have any menus online or in the restaurant. So let me set the seen for you. Like I said its located on Harper a side small street, its decorated inside like a classic authentic Mexican restaurant, with about 10-15 male waiters, very clean but the lighting is extremely dim inside a little romantic kind of. Our waiter came over and only explained the dinner selections to us, which were about 5 chicken items, 5 beef items, 2 meat combination items and 3 seafood selections. It was interesting trying to pick our dinner selection because the waiter was so animated and it was hard to make out everything he was saying but Erica and I decided to go with a beef and shrimp combination. Now keep in mind that we were getting 5 courses, now the other 4 courses were not mentioned they were just brought out to us. While we were waiting for our food the usual chips and salsa was brought out along with some veggie medley that consisted of cauliflower, carrots, and celery it was pretty strange looking. The chips and salsa were delish!!! The chips were fresh and salsa wasn't too spicy or bland it was right in the middle. So now it was time to start eating and here is what was brought to us:

1st course- Cheese Quesadilla topped with guacamole
2nd course- Meatball Soup
3rd course- Chicken Enchilada topped with cheese sauce and a black olive
4th course- Dinner -Beef and Shrimp combination
5th course- Dessert - Banana Pudding

The 1st course the cheese quesadilla was so yummy, it was sooooo cheesy and the guacamole was good too! It was just a slice of a quesadilla but it was just the right size.

The 2nd course was the meatball soup, this was my 1st time eating meatball soup and surprisingly I liked it; I don't think its something I could eat all the time. It was piping out served in a beef broth with a lot of veggies like carrots, celery and onions. There was only one meatball in the soup but that was just enough. It was served in a standard size soup cup and it was seasoned very well. I enjoyed it!

The 3rd course was a chicken enchilada topped with cheese sauce and a black olive this was my favorite! The enchilada was small enough for one person and it was a corn tortilla stuffed with chicken and topped with this amazing cheese sauce and a black olive. I totally wish I could've gotten another one of those enchiladas. All the flavors worked together and it melted in my mouth. 2 thumbs up!

The 4th course was DINNER! I am not sure what the name of this dish is but it was beef smothered in a tomato sauce with onions and bell peppers and the shrimp was sautéed in a cilantro cream sauce it was served with rice and beans and flour tortillas. This was a pretty good combination; the beef was good it was pretty tender and well seasoned. The tomato sauce was a great way to serve the beef and cilantro cream sauce was great for the shrimp. I wasn't able to finish all my dinner so I have left over’s for lunch today.

The 5th course was dessert; dessert is my favorite meal of the day! (Hahaha). This dessert was somewhere in between a pudding and a flan. I believe it was a vanilla based cream with bananas at the bottom and topped with a cherry. At first bite this dessert is extremely sweet but its also refreshing it was served in a small dish and I was actually please. Erica thought it was too sweet and her daughter gave this priceless reaction to hers (it was too sweet for her taste also).

Over dinner Erica and I caught up on girl talk, our dating lives! This is always funny because we are so much alike with our dating stories! Erica and her daughter shared the dinner, Erica kept the beef and her daughter got the shirmp. Erica’s daughter is so cute and so well behaved, I would go out to dinner with them anytime. “The Gardens of Taxaco” wasn’t crowded when we first got there but by the time we left it was pretty packed. All in all dinner was GREAT and like I said we got all of that for $14.95 per person which is an extreme deal. The total for dinner without the coupon would have been $53.02 but with the coupon it was $35.02 which saved us about $18.00!!!!!!!!!! I highly recommend "The Gardens of Taxaco" especially if you like Mexican food, it’s a cute place for dates and group outings. They do serve alcohol, wine based margaritas and sangria. If you would like to get on the "Wednesday Dinner" squad drop me a line at wednesdaydinnerwithash@yahoo.com and follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/wednesdaydinner. In closing I would like to leave you with this "Neither success or failure is permanent". Until next week -Ashley