Jury duty this week hasn’t been all bad. Well the sitting around in the courthouse has been pretty bad, but because of the jury duty I’ve been able to sample some downtown eateries that I otherwise wouldn’t visit. First up is The ‘Wich on Sycamore, previously known as Wicked ‘Wich. I met my wife there on Monday afternoon for lunch. Though it was my first visit, she is a regular lunch time customer since her office is a block away.

Inside the ‘Wich

We arrived a little before 1pm and found no line to order. From what I’m told this is a  rarity, as the line is often out the door at lunch time. If you are a downtown worker, it may be a good idea to wait a little later to take your lunch if you don’t feel like waiting in line. The menu is written along the back wall and consists of a large number of salads and sandwiches that are all prepared fresh. Orders are placed at the counter and your name is called out when your food is ready.

Pecan Chicken Salad Sandwich

After staring at the menu for some time I eventually decided on the pecan chicken salad sandwich – chicken, pecans, celery, green onion, apple, and tarragon yogurt-mayo served on butter toasted honey wheat bread ($7.79). The sandwich comes with a choice of one side dish, I chose the  pecan cranberry slaw. Both the sandwich and the coleslaw were really good. I’m a big fan of chicken salad and I have to say that this was one of my favorites in the city.

Special Ham Sandwich

My wife ordered the special of the day, which was some sort of ham sandwich. I believe it had Muenster cheese on it as well as their horseradish sauce and was served on the multi-grain baguette. I just had a small bite of the sandwich, but again I felt it was really good. On the side she ordered the spiced fruit cup, which adds a nice little kick to the otherwise standard fruit cup.

The only complaint I would have is that the serving size is a tad small, thus the price is a little high for what you are served. However the quality of food is excellent and it is all very well prepared. I would definitely go back.

I was off work this past Friday and so we decided to spend the day down at Williamstown Lake, where my wife’s uncle has a cabin that I’ve mentioned a couple of times before. Throughout the afternoon I hung a gutter on one side of the cabin before we took the pontoon out for a ride and swim. We will actually be spending a lot more time down at the lake, since a group of us all chipped in and bought a neighboring four bedroom house that we will be fixing up and then using to stay the night.

Outside Edwardo’s

Anyway, the real point of this post is to write about Edwardo’s Pizza & Subs in Williamstown, KY. We visited with my in-laws and my youngest brother-in-law, who have all eaten at Edwardo’s before. We arrived after 8pm and found a couple of the last remaining spots in the small parking lot. We immediately saw a large back patio that was still packed full of people, as well as a DJ playing some music from the far side.

Edwardo’s Back Patio

After a few minutes wait a couple of tables opened up, and a couple of servers quickly cleared them off for us. We split a pitcher of Amber Bock while deciding on pizza. Our server pointed out that if we bought one large pizza at regular price, the second would only be $9, a deal that we couldn’t refuse. We eventually settled on the Hawaiian Delight Pizza (Ham, pineapple, green peppers, red onions, topped with diced tomatoes and our special blend of real cheeses) and the White Pizza with Grilled Chicken (White, creamy, gourmet alfredo sauce, grilled chicken, red onions, and bacon, topped with mozzarella and cheddar cheeses). Regular price for both is $16.99 for the large 15 inch.

White Pizza with Grilled Chicken

I sampled the  White Pizza with Grilled Chicken first, which we actually had spiced up with buffalo chicken. I’m glad we ordered it with the buffalo sauce, otherwise I’m afraid the pizza would have been a little bland. The sauce didn’t have much flavor to it, but the I didn’t have any complaints about the rest of the ingredients. We ordered this one on the thin crust, which our server said she liked the best, but I’m going to have to disagree and say the thick was better.

Hawaiian Delight Pizza

The  Hawaiian Delight Pizza we ordered on thick crust. I really liked this pizza. The sauce was full of flavor and all the toppings were plentiful. The thick crust was still chewy on the inside and was cooked perfectly. I liked having additional toppings on the pizza, when compared to other more standard Hawaiian pizzas. I would easily order the Hawaiian Delight again, and I will not hesitate to visit Edwardo’s in the future.

Toward the end of last year, I won a gift certificate for J. Gumbo’s from the Food Hussy. Since it could only be redeemed at the Fairfield location, it took me nearly half a year to finally give it a try. Coincidentally my brother had purchased the same certificate from eversave, so we decided to all give it a try together.

Unlike other J. Gumbo’s locations, this one is not counter service and upon entering the front door I was told that I could sit wherever I liked. I attempted to grab a seat in a nearby booth, but my one and a half year old son decided he would rather be outside. He was immediately drawn to the set of cornhole boards outside, so we played around with those waiting for my brother and his girlfriend to arrive.

After their arrival we all sat down at an outside table and looked over the lengthy menu of  Cajun  styled bowls which are served over a bed of rice. My brother ordered the crawfish cheese dip appetizer ($5.50) while we continued to look through the menus. With thirteen different bowls available, we wanted to be sure to get a good variety. The appetizer arrived quickly, and though I didn’t sample any I was told that there was not a lot of crawfish in it, it was mostly a cheese based dip.

Red Beans & Rice

Since my certificate was good for $13 I decided to order two different bowls, hoping that my son would eat some of the food and that I would have enough to take home for lunch the next day. I decided to order the red beans & rice for him to try – slow cooked red beans with yellow onion, smoked sausage and  Cajun  spices ($6.99). Despite being a little dry, the dish was actually quite good. The sausage was thick sliced and the flavor was not too spicy. The serving was large enough that even after a few bites from the bowl, there was still enough for a full lunch for me and a couple of small lunches for my son.

Chicken Red Hot

For my dinner I went with the chicken red hot – tender chicken slow cooked with garlic, red onion and celery in a tangy Cajun Buffalo style sauce and topped with bleu cheese crumbles ($7.29). This was given a 3 out of 4 rating on their  spiciness  scale and it was definitely hot! There is only one bowl with a higher rating, the voodoo chicken, and I wonder if that would be much too hot for most people. The chicken red hot was filled with plenty of chicken (though not all of it was white meat) and the flavor was good. There was definitely a lot more buffalo seasoning than  Cajun, so keep that in mind if you are looking for more authentic flavors.

I also had small bites of my brother and his girlfriend’s two dishes. The bourbon street chicken – tender chicken slow cooked in a  lightly  sweet butter-hoisin sauce ($7.29) – was by far the least spicy of the bunch, and had a pleasant sweet flavor to it. It could have used a little more sauce, as the rice below the chicken was pretty dry. The drunken chicken – tender chicken with garlic, olive oil, stewed tomatoes and Cajun spices slow-cooked with beer ($7.29) – was on the spicy side of things. This dish seemed a little more authentic tasting than the chicken red hot, so I think I would go with the drunken chicken on a future visit.

Overall the food was good and the prices are affordable. I would likely return if it weren’t so far from home. Perhaps I’ll try one of the franchise’s other locations, either downtown or Clifton.

For the first time in a while I brewed a batch of beer this past Friday. Since my in-laws were going to be out-of-town the rest of the weekend, we had them over to our house for an early father’s day celebration. My father-in-law, Chuck, has dabbled a bit with homebrewing and  wanted to brew an Irish Red Ale recipe kit that he had lying around, so that’s what we did.

I considered getting a propane burner so we could brew outside, but the one I saw in the store was a little too much for me to purchase on a whim. This would have allowed for more participation from the family, but I still had my youngest brother-in-law inside and helping nearly the entire time. It never hurts to start them young, right? Nick will turn twelve later this year.

Brewmaster Nick

The entire brewing process went very smoothly. I don’t think I made one mistake the whole way, which could be a first for me. With that said it is always reassuring to wake up the next morning to find the airlock bubbling away, meaning that the beer is fermenting! I plan to try a secondary fermentation for the first time and hopefully have it bottled and ready for Chuck’s 60th birthday in about a months time.

After a long day of working on Saturday morning and afternoon, I just wanted to get outside of the house for a beer and some food. I looked to see if there were any summer festivals happening and discovered the  MainStrasse Village “Original” Goettafest  in Covington. Goetta is a Cincinnati area breakfast sausage composed mostly of pork and steel-cut oats. According to the festival’s website, “It’s not just for breakfast! Sample Goetta Hanky Pankies, Goetta Pizza, Goetta Balls, Goetta Gumbalya, Goetta Chedda Cheese, Goetta Chili, Goetta Fried Rice and Goetta Burgers.”

After parking the car ($5 in a nearby lot) we walked over to the festival and quickly discovered that it was quite a bit smaller than we expected. There was a large stage at one end of the square followed by a couple of beer booths and less than a dozen food booths. Most disappointing was the children’s area that was advertised as having games, rides, and other activities. It turned out to be  nothing more than a half-dozen of inflatable jumping houses, costing $10 per child. Friends of ours were planning to come down with their three kids, but quickly bailed when we let them know that the festival was not at all what we expected.

Goetta On Rye With Onions

Before leaving we did get to sample a couple of goetta sandwiches, one smothered in sautéed onions and the other melted with  Swiss  cheese. Both were very good, but a little expensive at $5 each. I guess that is to be expected at a festival. I didn’t see the goetta pizza, chili, or gumbalya during our two laps of the festival grounds. Had it been more family friendly, I’m sure we would have stuck around for a lot longer, but as is I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone with children.

Yesterday was my second father’s day spent as a father. We spent the bulk of the afternoon at my aunt and uncle’s house swimming and hanging around their pool with various members of my extended family. It was a good way to wind down a rather chaotic weekend.

My mom helped Trey make a father’s day card for me toward the end of last week, which you can see below.

Trey’s Card To Me

Thanks Buddy!

Trey also knew exactly what to get me – a new temperature controller for his old deep freeze for milk so that I could turn it into a beer cellar! I’ve been quietly stashing beers in various places around the house, and now I can keep them all in a temperature controlled area until the perfect time has come to enjoy them.

New Temperature Controller

Re-purposed Deep Freeze

Starting My Collection

Two Saturdays ago my wife and I participated in a scavenger hunt on the west side of town. We had a late lunch and the scavenger hunt started at 6pm, so we didn’t have any time for dinner. The game was over at 10 and we eventually started making our way back home to Hyde Park around 11. It was at this time that I realized how hungry I was and then I soon realized that our route would not be taking us past any late night dining spots. That was until I got to Mt. Lookout and spotted Lucy Blue Pizza.

I don’t recall ever having pizza from any of their four locations before, though I’m sure it was possible in my younger days. Lucy Blue is definitely late night pizza, and though a few tables are in the back of the Mt. Lookout location, I don’t think many people use them. There is a carry out window on the sidewalk side of the building, which seems to get the majority of the business. That’s where my wife ran to get a few slices upon our visit while I waited in the car.

Pepperoni Pizza

I’m not going to lie and say that this is the best pizza I’ve ever had, because it really wasn’t. However the slices are large and they only cost $2 each. I definitely could have used more pieces of pepperoni on my slices, and probably a little more sauce too. The crust was good, but I felt that overall the slices might have been a bit overcooked leading to some dry and crunchy spots. The first few bites of each slice were really pretty good though. I doubt I’ll stop by for more often, but their pizza definitely works in any late night pinch.

After a quick trip to the zoo, my family and I decided to get some lunch near Clifton and the University of Cincinnati. We quickly remembered the large number of Indian restaurants in the area and decided to give one of them a try. We settled on Dusmesh, which just might be the highest rated Indian in the city.

Outside Dusmesh

Dusmesh isn’t as close to campus as other Indian places, but would it be worth the extra drive? It does sit across the street from Cincinnati State Technical  and  Community College.  The building itself appears to be an old house that has been modified into a rather large dining area when compared to other Indian restaurants we have visited. Google maps shows a different outside color, so it seems that the outside was painted somewhat recently.

Inside Dusmesh

There are two main dining rooms, and we were sat in the street side room, which was relatively empty compared to the other room. The other room also contained the lunch buffet, the main reason for our visit. We were quickly offered water by our server and he asked if we would like anything else to drink. The restaurant does not serve alcohol, but you can bring your own.

My Buffet Plate

I started with a large serving of chicken tikka masala, chicken & broccoli, and some mixed vegetable pakora (clockwise from bottom). First of all the pakora were delicious, easily the best I’ve had. This was my first experience with an Indian style chicken and broccoli dish and I really enjoyed it. It was a bit sweet at first taste, but comes through with a nice kick of spice at the end. The sweetness was a little much on my second plate, so I don’t know if I would order it as an entrée, but I did enjoy it at first. The chicken tikka masala was also good, but I wish it was a bit spicier. I would definitely consider ordering it as an entrée and spicing it up a notch.

Wife's Buffet Plate

My wife sampled a lot more of the food than I did with her first plate. From what I can remember the real standout of her choices was the mushroom saag (at the top of her plate). We’ve had other saag dishes before, but the mushroom was new to us and it was very tasty. This was easily the favorite of our toddler son. The buffet itself cost just $8.50 each, which I feel is a great price for a lot of excellent quality food. We will be back.

Loveland has a new restaurant, Kirby’s, which opened just a few weeks ago in the old Sleepy Hollow space. Not much has changed, as far as I can remember, on the outside of the building, but the inside is much different from the old space that used to be a Christmas celebration every day of the year.

Inside Kirby's

Truth be told, I never went inside Sleepy Hollow but I heard enough stories to feel like I had. We arrived around six this past Friday evening and though the parking lot was nearly full it was no problem getting a table. Perhaps there are a few too many tables on the inside as it felt a bit cramped and was really loud.

Our service was adequate, though we did have a fairly long wait between drink and food orders. That was the only complaint I would have as far as the service goes and a manager even stopped by at some point to see how we were doing. Also there is a pretty good list of craft beers available, another bonus in my book.

Gourment Grilled Cheese

For dinner I went with the gourmet grilled cheese – a double decker of three different cheeses, tomato slices, and grilled bacon. It is served with homemade Saratoga chips and a pickle spear ($8.95). Overall I was happy with my choice. I wish I would have asked about the bread, as I would much rather have it served on something other than plain  ol’ toasted white. I’ve never had a double decker grilled cheese before, but it worked well. All of the bread was crisp and the cheese was very gooey. The Saratoga chips were also good.

Grouper Finger Basket

My wife may have ordered the best dish we sampled that night, the grouper finger basket – fresh grouper fillet cut into thick strips, breaded and deep fried. Served with fries ($11.95). The serving of fish was large, enough for all at the table to have a piece of their own. I’m not normally much of a fish eater, but this was very good! The also offer a grouper sandwich that comes blackened that is likely very tasty too.

Sandwich / Soup Combo

My mother went the sandwich and soup combo, selecting a half blackened caesar wrap and french onion soup ($9.95). I didn’t get the chance to taste any of her food, but I didn’t hear any complains from her. My dad had the ravioli creole – pasta filled with sausage, peppers, onions and a blend of cheeses tossed in their homemade creole sauce ($14.95). He really seemed happy with his choice and was the first to clean their plate.

Despite some potential issues with the restaurant size and layout, the food at Kirby’s was good. My parents live in Loveland, so I’m sure we will be back to sample more from Kirby’s in the future, though it will be hard to overtake Paxton’s and The Works as our go-to spots out that way.

Last night I took a walk down to Dutch’s  for a tapping event benefiting the  Leukemia and Lymphoma Society with proceeds going to help  fund the fight against blood cancers. For the event, they tapped  all five beers of the Dark Horse Holiday Stout Series, 2012 Stone Imperial Russian Stout, Epic Brewing Big Bad Baptist, and Dogfish Head Black & Blue.

I started my tasting with Epic’s Big Bad Baptist. This is ranked as a world-class beer on BeerAdvocate and it did not disappoint. There was quite a bit of coffee flavors, so beware if you aren’t much of a coffee fan. However I really enjoyed the coffee flavors as well as the subtle tastes from the barrel aging process.

Next I sampled the Tres Blueberry Stout from Dark Horse on suggestion from a friend in attendance. I could smell the blueberry as the beer was being poured from tap. However, on first state the beer wasn’t nearly as sweet as I had expected. It seems that most of the blueberry is in the nose, with just faint fruit flavors in the taste to go along with the dark chocolate and coffee flavors. It’s a unique beer that is worth trying.

Finally I had a glass of the Stone Imperial Russian Stout, another world-class beer from BA. This was not nearly as coffee flavored as the other two, with much more chocolate and burnt malt taste. The alcohol taste is also more prevalent than in the others. I didn’t enjoy it as much as the Big Bad Baptist, but still a very solid beer.

It was a great event with some really wonderful beers available. As I spend a lot of time trying a wide variety of craft beer, I’m hoping to make beer a more prominent feature here on the blog.