Awful Waffle

Read restaurant update (5/22/2012) here

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Where: Awful Waffle, 815 N 700 E, Provo (just kitty corner from JDawgs)

Who Went: Owen & Chelsey, then Chelsey, Monica, & Devynne

Number of Visits: 2

What We Ordered: Trip 1: 2 Belgian waffles, one with kiwis, blueberries, whipped cream & syrup, the other with strawberries, Oreos, Nutella, and whipped cream. Trip 2: 1 crepe with "European Specaloos," bananas, & cream cheese frosting, and one waffle with strawberries, caramel, and whipped cream

What It Cost: $10.75 & $10.62

What We Thought: 


I feel like Belgian waffles and crepes are the new "hot thing," maybe "the new cupcake" or frozen yogurt if you will. Every time I blink a new crepe shop pops up, and of course we feel like we should try it. Who doesn't love breakfast for dinner (or lunch) (or midday snack...)?

The waffles were different than what I was expecting. They were pretty dense, and quite chewy. The toppings were fresh and delicious, but not cheap. If I was going to go again, I would bring my own syrup (since it is not worth the add-on 50 cent price, and they are very skimpy with the syrup), and I would bring my own milk since they charge $1.50 for a tiny cup, when a whole gallon of milk practically costs $1.50.

With this waffle, I made the mistake of thinking that the melted Nutella would sub in for the syrup. Not so. It was very dry and difficult to eat since I only had 4 oz. of milk to wash it down. At least it was filling since it was so dense!

The crepes were alright - I wasn't too impressed by the fancy Specaloos spread that they get imported from Europe. It is a spread with the consistency of peanut butter that is made from Biscoff cookies, and they even sell it at places like Macey's and Winco now! The overall combination that I ordered was way too sweet, even for me, but it was my own fault for choosing such a saccharine combination of flavors. I wish they had flavor suggestions or something so that crepe rookies like myself won't make the same mistake.

What You Should Do: Go if you have to. And if you're hungry and have brought your own form of liquid to wash everything down. And if you bring your own real plate. They serve the waffles on styrofoam plates and I have really weird feelings about cutting into styrofoam for some reason. But what you should really do is learn how to make your own crepes - they aren't too hard, and future dates/spouses will be impressed by your skill (I like to add a little vanilla and cinnamon to them - as do the owners of the Awful Waffle). Oh, and go to Winco and buy your own Biscoff spread - it's all the rage these days.

Pizzeria 712

Since it's not really in the budget to go back to all of these places and try the food again, many of these posts are going to be written in retrospect. You may be thinking, "How on earth can you remember how every restaurant was?" But as I was compiling my list of places we've been, I was able to remember all but one of the dishes we ate at each of the 75 restaurants I wrote down. Let's just say that food makes a serious impression on me. So although some of these reviews may be from a while ago (maybe even back to our dating years...), they will all be an honest and accurate report of our dining experiences.


Where: Pizzeria 712, 320 S. State St. #185  Orem, UT 84058 (When coming from BYU, go down State Street, go past the Scera theater, and it will be on your left back in thing that looks like an apartment complex. Kind of difficult to find, but definitely worth it! They have a big white sign out there now too that is a little helpful)


Who Went: Chelsey & Owen


Number of Visits: 1


What We Ordered: Owen: Roasted Red Potato Galette with Lemon Parsley & Creme Fraiche. Then we shared a pizza with the following toppings: house-made sausage, fennel, caramelized onions, garlic, fresh mozzarella, and their house tomato sauce


What It Cost: $24


What We Thought: 

As you will soon be able to tell as the blog progresses, Owen and I are kind of pizza fanatics. We went through this phase where we decided to try out every pizza place in the Provo/Orem area...and we did. When we were in this phase, Pizzeria 712 was the newest, hippest pizza place around. It's kind of back in the corner, hard to find, and very full of trendy individuals. They follow the Alice Waters philosophy of food -- cooking simply with the best and freshest ingredients to show the potential of the food itself. This mentality was clearly displayed in our meal that evening. 

We weren't super hungry, so we decided that instead of getting two pizzas we would just get one + an appetizer. Good choice. The pizzas are big enough for one person to probably eat 3/4 and take a quarter home, if you are quite ravenous. We started out with the Red Potato Galette, which was Owen's choice. Unfortunately, we realized once we received our dish that all we did was basically order a over-glorified baked potato. The flavor was nice, but come on, it's pretty hard to mess up on a baked potato. I'll make this one at home for an eighth of the price instead. 

Then we received some pita bread and hummus. Yay -- more bread to go with our order of bread (pizza). We recommend this if you are going on an all-carb diet á la Mean Girls...Anyway, it was a nice little touch, especially since I'm a huge hummus fan, so we enjoyed it. 

Then we received our pizza. Though it looks a little messy, I have to admit that Pizzeria 712 lived up to their goals -- it all tasted very fresh. The tomato sauce actually still tasted like tomatoes (usually not the case with many pizzas...), the housemade sausage was quite savory, and I loved the fresh mozzarella. Good quality cheese is one of the ways to this woman's heart. The wood oven crust was just right -- infused with a smoky flavor and not too dense. It was a little burnt for my taste (as noted by that big black spot) and I have to admit I was a bit disappointed in the lack of fennel taste. For those who are unfamiliar with fennel, it is a highly aromatic herb that tastes like mild black licorice (similar to anise). And I love it. So naturally I wanted more of it, but for those who don't know what fennel is, it probably was just the right amount. 

What You Should Do: GO! It has a fun, stylish atmosphere, and the dishes are all reasonably priced considering the freshness and flavor of the ingredients they use. Plus you sound cool talking about how you "dined at Pizzeria 712 last night." Totally worth it. 

Mama Chus

This Thursday, Owen was going to have to work late, so I decided to call up my friend Sidney and see if she wanted to go out to dinner. I browsed the internet for places I haven't been to yet in the Provo/Orem area (the number of places is quickly dwindling), and made a short list. As I was doing this, I came to the sharp realization that...I've eaten at a lot of places near BYU.

Trying out new restaurants is one of our favorite things to do as a married couple, and there are a TON of restaurants in the Utah Valley area. The only thing that is hard about trying new places is that sometimes it's hard to know what you're getting yourself into. A meal at a restaurant is a very personal thing. There are so many factors that go into a pleasurable dining experience: the ambience of the restaurant, the attention of the staff, the freshness, quality and flavor of the food, how you feel while eating, how you feel after you eat the meal.

We love getting recommendations from friends -- "You have to try this new place!" "You should definitely order the sweet potato fries!" "Stay away from anything with garlic on it!" But sometimes, it's just hard to know who to trust. Some places always get great reviews from friends because they are the "hip" place to eat (i.e. Sammy's Cafe) and there are some places that apparently everyone loves for absolutely no good reason (Diego's). I hate it when I get my hopes up really high for a great dinner out, and then the food tastes like it's out of a can of Chef Boyardee.

And I've decided that not only have I been to a lot of restaurants near BYU, but I actually have pretty good taste. Growing up, my dad was a chef, working at pretty well-known places like Salty's on Alki, Ray's Boathouse, and Beaches Restaurant & Bar, and I was used to good food. Every time we went out to a restaurant as a family, my mom (she was the harshest critic!) would tear apart the menu and find everything wrong with it. And my dad, well, he always said that he pretty much liked anything he didn't have to cook himself! Between the two, I think I developed a fairly well-rounded and accurate taste for what's good and what's not.

As I was thinking about this, I thought to myself, "You know what? I could be that friend who dishes out recommendations to others-- but the kind you could trust to tell you if a restaurant is really worth it or not." I've been to many places, like to take photos of food, and am very opinionated...so why not?

Here goes my first post about a dining experience I've had in the BYU area. I hope it is helpful and that you enjoy!

Where: Mama Chus, 1555 E 800 N Orem, UT 84097 (right at the mouth of the canyon, near the golf course, by that Subway and Texaco you always drive by)

Who Went: Chelsey (myself) and Sidney (dear chemistry/molecular biology study buddy)

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Chelsey: Carnitas Michocanas (not sure if the spelling is right on that, but they don't have a menu posted online) & tamarindo Jarritos; Sidney: pork enchilada & horchata


What It Cost: My total bill was $11.32 (Sidney's was a little less, somewhere around $9)


What We Thought:

I always hate to say that something tasted like "authentic Mexican food" because I've never been to Mexico, and I'm not Mexican myself, so what do I know? But I have been around a lot of Mexicans in a restaurant environment (where my dad worked), and I gotta say, this tasted like pretty authentic Mexican to me. When we got there, we were seated immediately (it was a Thursday night, around 6) and brought some chips & salsa. You can always tell if it's going to be good Mexican food based on the chips & salsa. The salsa was quite flavorful, and HOT HOT HOT! But I love spicy food, so I was all for that.

I ordered my dish, along with some Jarritos, because I'm a firm believe that all Mexican food tastes best with Jarritos (though I've heard Squirt is a popular favorite as well). It arrived in a reasonable amount of time and it was served with three flour tortillas on the side (not pictured). I was very glad that it came with rice and beans, because any Mexican served without rice and beans is just pathetic. Overall, I thought that the food was very flavorful and cooked almost just right (maybe a teensy bit dry). I was expecting it to come with a sort of sauce, and was a little disappointed when it didn't, but the guacamole, cream, and jalapeños that accompanied it provided just the right balance (and spice). It was also served over a corn tortilla, which was a little confusing since they gave me three flour tortillas on the side, but it was still good!

I feel a little bad because I think I pressured Sidney into getting the pork enchiladas instead of cheese, but it's just because I'm a huge fan of Mexican shredded pork. She said she would have preferred cheese, but if the pork was anything like the pork in my dish, then it would definitely be my top choice in meats. The sauce was mild and still tasty, and they were made in corn tortillas, just as they should be. Overall, good flavor but not outstanding or anything remarkable. The horchata was just right though -- great creaminess, nice consistency, and perfect overall flavor. If you've never tried horchata before, you must! It's a great accompaniment to spicy dishes. But make sure you get some good horchata or else you may be scarred for life...I recommend this place, or that at The Red Iguana. 

What Should You Do: GO! Go if you're in the mood for some down-and-dirty, not-too-expensive Mexican food. It was quick and tasty, but make sure you divide your meal up and take at least half home -- the portion sizes were huge! 

**Just as a disclaimer, this post was only super long because I felt like I needed to introduce why I was starting this blog -- most of the other posts will be more short and to the point!