Azuma on the Lake

Oh Groupon, you never cease to amaze me. Our certificate for Azuma on the Lake was about to expire, so we stopped in on a quiet Tuesday night. The place was almost completely empty and very nicely decorated. There is a small rock garden, lots of wood and plain white ceramic table-settings. We kind of wanted to sit outside (the patio is located on the lake, and the weather was perfect), but the hostess didn't give us the option, and (oddly) put us way in the back of the restaurant, by ourselves.

We eschewed typical starters and went for the carpaccio. It was ... different. The beef was very thinly sliced, but definitely heartier than that in your typical Italian carpaccio. I liked the soy and ginger dressing on top; it was spicy, crunchy and bright. We finished it easily and moved on to yellowtail sashimi and hot sake. The fish and booze were typically wonderful.

Next we tried some rolls. The list is extensive, with some very interesting choices. We decided to have the Smoked Dragon (eel and cucumber, topped with smoked salmon, citrus salsa and a nori foam) and Queen of the Sea (spicy salmon and avocado, toppped with red snapper, ponzu sauce and wasabi). The Smoked Dragon was definitely the standout. Don't get me wrong, QotS was good too -- something about the texture and flavor reminded me of a really amazing seafood salad, and heat from the wasabi was nice. But Smoking Dragon's citrus salsa took that roll to a different, pleasantly sweet level. My only complaint was the foam. It was too dense, more like an aioli than a foam, and it was tasteless. I didn't know what nori was going in, and after eating this foam, I still was clueless.

We took a chance and got a dessert -- Bailey's Irish Pudding. Usually desserts at Asian restaurants aren't very good, and this was not an exception. It was very dense and didn't have any Bailey's flavor. The ice-cream it was served with was nice, but there wasn't enough of it. Then again, the whole concept didn't make sense. Bread pudding isn't an Asian dish, and Bailey's certainly is not. So yeah -- it was probably our fault for trying it.

Service was amazing. Our waitress was available without being pushy, and we certainly didn't want for anything. The prices were a little on the high side, we thought -- but then again, we did eat a lot of very fresh seafood, and we did have a Groupon. So that helped. Azuma has three locations -- two in the city, and one out in Sugarland. I completely recommend that you find the one closest to you and try it. Just skip dessert. Or replace it with some sake.

Kenny and Ziggy's

I. Love. Jewish. Deli.

I'm from NY. I can't help it; Jewish Deli is like crack to me. And let's face it -- sometimes it's hard to find a good Jewish deli in Texas. Oy vey, I was happy to find Kenny and Ziggy's!

Is it authentic? Yes. Is it delicious? Yes. Is it a little overpriced? Well, yes.

I had "Jewish penicillin" (matzo ball soup) and fried pierogies. The pierogies were standout. They were served with sour cream, apple sauce and (for some bizarre reason) s HUGE mound of onion strings.


Um, where's my food?


Oh, there it is!!

These little babies were savory, crunchy, salty and paired perfectly with both the sour cream and apple sauce. This is comfort food at it's best. Still not sure what the onion strings were about, but I'll get over it. The complimentary pickles were a much better side-dish.

Portions at Kenny and Ziggy's are ridiculous. The sandwiches (with cute names, like "Fiddler on the Roof of Your Mouth") seem pricey until you realize that you can eat off of it for about a week. Even the matzo ball soup is designed for more than one person -- they bring you enough spoons for everyone on the table. Go hungry, leave happy. It's a mitzvah!

PS: told you I'd be back ...

Taking a Break

Hey blog fans,

I'm going to be taking a break from blogging for a while. We recently purchased a home in Katy, about 40 minutes from Houston. Between the drive and the expense of starting a new life together, I don't see us eating out in Houston too much in the near future. But keep checking in periodically -- you never know when I might be inspired to write again!


Thanks for all your love and support. Bless.

Cafe Piquet

Chalk another one up to Groupon. I passed Cafe Piquet many times on my way to work, and I'm glad we bought a Groupon and got the chance to try it. This is not the nicest area of town, but the outside patio provides shelter from the street and a very pleasant atmosphere. And the waitstaff could NOT be more pleasant. This is a family run place, and you can tell that the people working there take pride in sharing their heritage with others.

I had never had Cuban food before. We started with a large pitcher of (slightly overpriced) Sangria and grilled calamari. This dish isn't on the menu, but it should be. It was salty and satisfying -- like eating the ocean, but in a delightful way.



The Cuban Shrimp Creole came highly recommended. The spices and tomato sauce were right on -- this reminded me of a delicious Cajun alligator dish that I make, but with (perfectly cooked, large) shrimp. And although I don't really liked plaintains, I did enjoy the green plaintain fritters on the side. Mostly because they were tasteless, and perfect for sopping up the delicious sauce.



We didn't try dessert, but the options looked good. I don't know how anyone gets to it though -- portions are generous and the food is almost impossible to stop eating.

Cafe Piquet offers a fun, authentic alternative to typical tex-mex fare. Try it -- you'll probably like it.