Rubio's Giveaway!

I hope you all enjoyed the review on Rubio's yesterday...all this snow is seriously making me crave tacos! And if you are also in a taco mood, you are in luck! We are giving away THREE free meals to Rubio's Fresh Mexican Grill. Just enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below! This giveaway will end March 4th at midnight.



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Rubio's Fresh Mexican Grill

Where: Rubio's Fresh Mexican Grill, 530 E University Parkway, Orem

Who Went: Chelsey, Owen, Mom, & Devynne

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Chipotle Orange Shrimp Salad, Grilled Grande Bowl, Baja Grill Burrito, Mango Habanero Pacific Mahi Mahi Taco, and Gourmet Taco with Chicken

What It Cost: $16.59 for two people

What We Thought: 

I kept hearing about Taco Tuesday, but somehow I never seem to manage to make it there on a Tuesday so when we were driving by the other day, I knew we had to go in and give it a try! 

Look how fun and colorful that salad is! The flavor wasn't quite as vibrant as the salad appears, but it was still pretty good. The shrimp was good and marinated nicely, but the salad's dressing was a little weak. We also wished that the salad itself had more lettuce, which is cheap to add and would have made the salad seem more substantial and worth the cost.

What a sad looking burrito! Especially when it follows that colorful salad...It didn't look super fancy, but it was still a fairly decent burrito - I've had so many smothered burritos lately, so it was nice to go back to the classic, pick up with two hands kind of burrito for me! The burrito wasn't too dry and there was a good amount of chicken inside, but it didn't have the freshness or quality of ingredients you can get around here, like at Mountain West Burrito.

Devynne ordered the rice bowl, which was basically like a jumbo burrito opened up without the tortilla. Once again, good, but not amazing. The guacamole tasted fairly fresh, which was nice, and I liked the salsa, but the meat and rice themselves were rather boring.

They are known for their tacos, and if I were ever to return, I think that's what I would order after trying Owen's dish. They have a little salsa bar that you can visit to dress up your tacos to your choosing, and they were pretty cheap and good for Utah fish tacos. The salsa on the mahi mahi taco was spicy and delicious, and the avocado on the grande taco was enjoyable as well. We liked the thick and soft tortillas, and thought they were pretty decent overall.

What You Should Do: Well, I think I definitely have to go there on a Tuesday! They are $1 each for their typical tilapia taco after 2:30 on Tuesdays, and if they are anything like their other fish tacos, I can't wait to try them! Stick with the tacos here at Rubio's - everything else was alright, but not as good or as cheap as the tacos.

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Tiburon

Where: Tiburon, 8256 S 700 E, Sandy

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Ahi Tuna, Beef Tenderloin, and Boysenberry Cheesecake

What It Cost: ~$75 (we had a Groupon, so I can't remember exactly)

What We Thought:

Tiburon is one of the few expensive restaurants I've been to here in Utah where I really felt like the high price was worth the bill and I would definitely want to return here again. If you are really looking to impress someone with exceptionally delicious food, Tiburon would be a great place to make a reservation. The only thing I did not enjoy about this restaurant was the other restaurant attendees - come on people! If you are going to be spending $50+ on a meal, please wear something nicer than jeans and a baseball cap! But that's just a personal issue...

The service at Tiburon was very cordial, and we started out our meal with the standard bread basket. I have to apologize ahead of time - these are probably the worst pictures I've ever taken at a restaurant, but I just had to share Tiburon with you! It was a very dark restaurant inside so the pictures are not good, but the food was very delicious!

We started out with the standard bread basket, and the bread was very fresh and soft. Instead of just serving normal butter, we received a sundried tomato herb butter, which was exceptionally tasty and surprisingly sweet. I really didn't want to fill up on bread before our real food came, but it was very good!

I heard someone commenting at a table next to us that they will come to Tiburon just for their house salad, and I can certainly see why! Their delicious house salad was served on a bed of baby mixed greens with Granny Smith apples, a house dried Roma tomato, fontina cheese, candied pecans and a shallot balsamic dressing. It had just the right balance of sweet, salty, sour, savory - you name it. This was one sexy salad, and I definitely look forward to having it again! The only problem with it was that my Roma tomato seemed like it was really cold on my salad, but Owen's salad didn't have that problem, so there must have just been something weird going on. 

This little cup may not look like much, but it was a delightful little sorbet that was served in between our salad and entree courses. I especially loved the seasonal raspberry sorbet, with its piquant tartness and rich color. A lemon sorbet was the bottom scoop, and it was a nice way to prepare for our main meal.

Owen received a cut of medium rare beef that was drizzled with a balsamic reduction and creamy peppery sauce. Owen loves pepper, so naturally he found this wonderfully delicious. It was served with some roasted vegetables and I had one delectable bite, but honestly, I was way too distracted and involved with my own meal to pay much attention to what was going on over on his pretty plate...

Man, I wish this picture did any justice to how incredibly amazing this dish was! It was fresh ahi tuna, seared to the most tender rare cut of fresh fish you've ever had in this state of Utah. It was encrusted with black sesame seeds which were so fun to eat when contrasted to the soft, melty meat. It was topped with soy and honey marinated shredded carrot, which helped to freshen up the plate, in addition to some roasted vegetables and pineapple fried rice. The pineapple fried rice was so good, I would order it on it's own! It tasted so light and crunchy, the pineapple was so fresh, sweet and tangy, and I was so full but I had to keep eating it because it was so so so good!

Since I'm from the Pacific Northwest, I get really excited about anything that is boysenberry, marionberry, or huckleberry flavored and we knew we had to order this cheesecake. I don't know how to fully describe it fairly, but this was, without a doubt, one of the best traditional cheesecakes I've ever had. A lovely creme anglais was served with a berry compote atop perfectly prepared cheesecake. It's so unfair that dessert is served at the end of the meal. I always feel like I am too full to enjoy it as much as I should!

What You Should Do: Tiburon is a big YES in my book. Pricey places are so dangerous - you don't want to risk spending so much if it's not worth the cost. But luckily, you have me to guide the way, and I would certainly recommend trying out Tiburon for a special occasion! And make sure to wear something nice!

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Chick-fil-A

Where: Chick-fil-A, 28 South State, Salt Lake City (multiple locations, including American Fork) 

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Spicy Chicken Sandwich and Chicken Nuggets

What It Cost: 

What We Thought: $7.38

I've never been to Chick-fil-A, but it seems to be one of those Utah favorites (like Cafe Rio) that everyone seems to love but no one seems to be able to explain. "Their nuggets are just...so good!!!" I've heard tons of people say, so I needed to find out for myself what all this chicken madness was about. 

Owen was in a spicy mood, so he went for the spicy chicken sandwich. We originally tried their food at the food court at City Creek center, so their menu wasn't the most detailed and we didn't have time to ask about all the sandwich specifics. But we definitely weren't expecting to find this inside....

A hunk of fried meat and two sad pickles?? Really? For a sandwich that cost almost $5, I was at least hoping for a little frill of lettuce and tomatoes, maybe some sauce? Nope. This sandwich was as dry as a Utah winter, and was certainly no better (and much less interesting) than a spicy chicken sandwich at Wendy's. We could have paid more and upgraded for a more well-rounded sandwich apparently, but I didn't feel like nearly doubling the price of my sandwich for what I already expected to come.

Chick-fil-A is known for their special sauces, so of course we had to try them all. We got the buffalo sauce, honey mustard, barbecue sauce, and house special sauce. The first three were all about what you'd expect, nothing too special. And I'm pretty sure the house sauce is just honey mustard sauce mixed with mayonnaise or something to make it creamier. It was good, but would I ever go there just for the sauce? No.

Behold, the famed and beloved chicken nuggets. There are probably hundreds of copycat recipes on Pinterest for this, with ingredients ranging from pickle juice to paprika, so I figured they were kind of a big deal. And while they were certainly more tender and flavorful than your typical take-out chicken nuggets, they just didn't do it for me!

What You Should Do: Chick-fil-A seems to have a really popular following out there, so I'm probably going to be hated for this, but I wouldn't recommend going out of your way for this. To me, their food wasn't much better than any other more-accessible fast food joint, and it was much more overpriced for the sad food we received! Maybe I just need to eat there more often to get the Chick-fil-A craze, but I think I'll save my money and time.

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Maria Bonita Mexican Grill

Where: Maria Bonita Mexican Grill, 171 W 800 N, Orem 

Who Went: Owen & Chelsey

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Agua de Piña, Mole Enchiladas, and Carnitas Tacos

What It Cost: $28.50

What We Thought:

There are so many Mexican restaurants here in Utah County, so it's fun to see how each one sets themselves apart! At Maria Bonita, it's all about the atmosphere. A warm, super welcoming atmosphere with cozy chairs and a lovely hostess who greets you with great enthusiasm and vigor! 

We started out our meal with agua de piña (pineapple water), which was surprisingly good. If you are planning on ordering something spicy, I would definitely recommend getting this drink! It was very refreshing, and served in a huge glass that would certainly get you through the meal (though they still offered free refills).

Prior to our food being served, we received this little bowl of broth. It had some rice and onions inside, and was actually a nice way to start off the meal, especially if you visit there on a cold winter night! The best part of drinking this up before our food came was that it helped me to not overeat - a good thing if you are still working on that New Year's goal!

I ordered the chicken mole enchiladas, since I feel like I've yet to find a mole as flavorful or amazing the Red Iguana, but I don't want to have to travel up to Salt Lake every time I'm craving spicy Mexican chocolatey goodness! Though it wasn't as life-changing as the moles up north (or far down south, surely...), it was one of the better mole sauces I've ever had and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I also liked how it was served with a nice plop of guacamole - the avocado really helped balance the intense spice flavors of the sauce and was just what I needed! The only downside was that the chicken was a little dry inside and the rice wasn't my favorite, but it was still pretty good altogether.

Owen's carnitas were pretty delicious. With fresh squeezed lime juice and the creamy avocado sauce they served on the side, the tacos were moist and tasty. There was quite a bit of cilantro on each taco, so if you are one of those people who are genetically predisposed to disliking cilantro (it's a real thing!) then I probably wouldn't recommend ordering these tacos. But I liked the corn tortillas, the meat was very flavorful and juicy, and the roasted jalapeño it was served with was an exciting touch.

What You Should Do: Though there certainly are lots of options for Mexican food out there, I would definitely recommend adding Maria Bonita's to your list. They have a lovely atmosphere, lots of menu options (especially seafood, if you are interested in that), and good food. After receiving our bill, I felt like it was a little overpriced for what we got, but you won't be disappointed if you head here for tasty Mexican food!

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