Harvest Restaurant

Where: Harvest Restaurant, 3003 N Thanksgiving Way, Lehi

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Warm Apple Cider, Curried Butternut Squash Soup, Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Butternut Squash Ravioli

What It Cost: $51.00

What We Thought:

Most of the time at expensive restaurants, I leave the place thinking, "Oh sheesh. How many hours am I going to have to work to make up for that? Why did I spend so much on a meal that was not much better than something much cheaper??" 

Fortunately, Harvest Restaurant was not the same.

I don't remember what was going on (probably I finished a big test or something), but I wanted to celebrate! With plans of heading to the new outlet malls in Lehi, we decided to splurge on this exciting-looking restaurant at Thanksgiving Point. Entering the restaurant from a cold winter night, I immediately loved the warm and cozy ambience. The decor was a little cheesy but still very nice, and we were lucky enough to be seated next to the crackling fireplace. 

We started out with some warm spiced apple cider, which was perfectly warm and delicious on a cold night. We especially loved the cute little teapot it came in, though it was a little hard to pour from...

Prior to our meal, we received this cute little loaf of bread. It was served fresh and hot, and was absolutely adorable of course. It was quite a lot of bread for just two people, but we thoroughly enjoyed it - light airy honey wheat bread with some sweet butter on the side.

I was a little bit on a butternut squash kick for the night - I couldn't help it, it just sounded so good! I was a little disappointed because the soup didn't actually arrive until the rest of my food had come. It would have been nice if it had arrived earlier as a starter like I thought it was going to. Nonetheless, it had a delightful flavor - the sweet squash balanced out by the savory curry flavor. I liked the toasted pepitas on top, which added a little textural variety to the smooth and creamy soup. It was pretty filling; on a night when you're not as hungry, it could definitely be a meal in itself!

Owen ordered the buttermilk fried chicken (with my encouragement), and it was exceptionally gratifying. The chicken was a nice thick cut, which made me a little nervous, but it was cooked all the way through while still remaining succulent and juicy. We liked the flavor of the buttermilk coating, and the buttered green beans were fresh and crisp. The mashed potatoes were a little too gluey for me, but they still had a nice flavor and went well with the chicken.

The butternut squash ravioli was the highlight of the meal for me. I should have taken another picture, but the ravioli pastas were individual little works of art - they were made from this bright red and orange stripe patterned pasta that was really amazing.  Once I could get over their prettiness, I bit into an incredibly savory and scrumptious ravioli pasta that was coated in a creamy sage sauce. Grated pecorino gave a nice tangy flavor that helped cut the creaminess, and the toasted pecans were a unique and innovative touch that really enhanced this dish. I liked the little chunks of butternut squash that were mixed in, and I wished that I wasn't so full from the soup so that I could keep eating it!

What You Should Do: I would definitely recommend Harvest as an excellent choice for a quality night out. I only wished the service was a little better (getting my soup out late/she was not very attentive), but altogether, we really enjoyed our meal here. The food was all absolutely delicious, and we definitely want to go back again!

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Also, Merry Christmas!!

Texas Roadhouse

Where: Texas Roadhouse, 1265 S State Street, Orem (right west of University Mall, follow the smell of meat...)


Who Went: Chelsey & Owen, for Owen's birthday


Number of Visits: 1


What We Ordered: Raspberry Smoothie, Hot Wings, Medium Rare Sirloin Steak, "Fall Off the Bone" Ribs


What It Cost: $35.00* (with tip)


What We Thought: 

I don't know what the deal is with Texas Roadhouse, but the lines there are insane -- longer than the wait for Toy Story Mania at Disney California Adventure, I swear. They are always SUPER busy, and like Outback Steakhouse, usually full of some pretty manly (hairy) men, which is always interesting.

When we finally got a seat (I hear you can make reservations now, which you must make if you want to go here at a normal hour!), we started chowing down on some peanuts they had there since we were so starving. We got some of their "famous" Texas Roadhouse rolls and honey butter -- Owen thought the honey butter was weird, and I thought the rolls were only so-so. I really think that their secret is to make you wait for at least an hour so that by the time you get any food, you think it is the most wonderful thing in the whole world because you've been starving (similar technique seen at Cheesecake Factory).

Since it was his birthday, we decided to get Owen a frozen raspberry lemonade. It was pretty good and very large, which was good since it was so pricey. Then we got hot wings since we looove hot wings, and they were your typical, not too spicy buffalo wings. Good amount of wing sauce, decent dipping sauce, not too dry -- but nothing that blows your mind. I got the "Fall off the Bone" babyback ribs with mashed potatoes. First off -- the potatoes were so loaded with sour cream and butter and FAT FAT FAT that you really couldn't tell that there was any potato in there, so order vegetables or something on the side! The ribs lived up to their name I guess -- they did fall off the bone, but since they were so overcooked (slow roasted for forever apparently), they were SUPER dry. The barbecue sauce they tried to coat it with did little to hide the dryness of the ribs, and I was pretty disappointed.

Owen ordered his steak medium rare. When we got it, and he cut into the steak, it was completely cooked and brown all the way through. This my friends is not medium rare. We told our server this problem, and she brought the cook out there to talk to us. The chef told us about how most people in Provo don't know how to order steak correctly, and they always complain about it being too raw, even though they ordered the meat that way. He was super nice though and cooked up another steak for Owen, and we got it on the house! Bottom line is...Texas Roadhouse = not such great food, but really good customer service.

It was also fun because I told the server that it was Owen's birthday, and she made him get up on this little horse mount and shout "Yee-Haw!" while others sang and danced around him. This was mostly for my enjoyment, and I very much enjoyed it. Plus we got a free birthday ice cream. Never a bad thing.

What You Should Do: Go if you have to. But I would recommend taking a little drive and going up to the Texas Roadhouse in Lehi -- I have heard from many that this more well-established site has much better food than our Orem version. And, learn how to order a steak and be sure to inform your server that you actually know what you're talking about, and you really do want that steak medium rare.

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