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!!

Tortilla Bar

Where: Tortilla Bar, 1454 S State Street, Orem

Who Went: Owen & Chelsey

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Chorizos, Pork Belly Tacos, & Tres Leches

What It Cost: $24.26

What We Thought:

Okay, I know, I know, two taco places in a row... I can't help it! I love tacos, they are quick and delicious and inexpensive.

We were driving home from shopping at those new dangerous outlet malls in Lehi the other night around 10, and decided that we were not quite ready to call it a night...and we wanted TACOS. Rather than stopping somewhere gross like Del Taco or Beto's (sorry to those who are fans...) we decided to stop at the long-anticipated Tortilla Bar - seriously, we've been following this restaurant since like April or something waiting for it to open! It was such a spur of the moment decision so I didn't have my camera - I apologize for the crummy phone pictures, but I just had to share this one right away!

The atmosphere was fairly dark (once again, not amazing photos, I know) and industrial, with very limited seating. It's kind of fun because the hot kitchen is right out there in the open with a bar right where you can watch the chefs work their magic. I originally tried to order the gordita from their menu, but the server said that they weren't serving that tonight, instead I could get something the guys in the back call "chorizos" that has squid. It sounded interesting, so I decided to go for it! I'm pretty sure that chorizo is really a spicy Mexican pork sausage, which seemingly had very little to do with this meal, but what the heck. I've only ever had squid in a fried form as calamari, and here in an unadorned, very fresh manner, it was new and delicious! The squid was served on top of little slices of crispy baguette with a creamy and savory sauce. The only thing that was a slight turn off where the large bits of rock salt that were sprinkled on top - they were a little overpowering, but fortunately there were only a few. On their Facebook and Twitter pages, this restaurant keeps talking about being a food rebel, and this plate definitely lived up to that reputation - it was unlike anything I've ever had before, and was very enjoyable.

The pork belly tacos were a little more similar to food we've had before - a rich juicy pork topped with pickled, sharp onions, refreshing cucumbers and crunchy chicharrónes. The tortillas were clearly freshly made, tender with a real delightful corn taste. I think I may need to have a tortilla show-down between Tortilla Bar and Taquería 27...they were both so good! The tacos were a little difficult to eat without everything falling out - a typical problem of tacos I suppose, but I felt like if the cucumbers were cut up a little bit (maybe even in half), it would have been much easier to enjoy. Nonetheless, it was a perfect little late-night snack and definitely satisfied our craving for something unique and tasty.

We weren't ready to quite be done with Tortilla Bar yet, so we went for the tres leches dessert. Not that you can really tell from the photo above, but it was a little square of soaked sponge cake with a banana topping, shaved coconut, and red pepper flakes! If you like milk at all and have never had tres leches, you are very much missing out on this sweet and satisfying dessert. It was a little disappointed with the small portion, but I guess since tres leches is very rich, you don't really need much to make an impact. I enjoyed the banana pairing, and the spicy red pepper flakes really gave it a fun kick, with a nice crunchy texture addition of the coconut. I thought it was absolutely delicious, and only regretted that I couldn't eat like four more of them!

What You Should Do: Definitely go and support this new and very unique restaurant! After all the hype, I would definitely say that Tortilla Bar is a wonderful new addition to the Utah County restaurant community, and I am very much looking forward to visiting there again and seeing what else they have to offer. One thing to be aware of though is their rather strange hours, which are posted on the door as this:

Breakfast 5 am - 11 am
Lunch 11 am - 4 pm
Late 8 pm - 5 am
Saturday Brunch 9 am - 12 pm (not sure on that last one, somehow my note got partially deleted...)

I am not sure if they really aren't open for dinner, and if they are really open all night long (I do not envy the person who has to work that shift!) but it's a great place to get a unique culinary delight at pretty much any time of day! I definitely want to try their Saturday brunch, and don't worry, I'll get better pictures next time!

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Screen Door

Where: Screen Door, 2337 East Burnside Street, Portland, Oregon

Who Went: Chelsey, Devynne, Lyvia, Charles, Quinn, Mom

Number of Visits: 1

What It Cost: A lot....$100+ (gratuity included)

What We Ordered: Blackberry Lemonade, Fried Chicken, BBQ'd Beef Brisket, Pecan-Encrusted Trout, Carolina Pulled Pork Sandwich, Two Screen Door Plates - one with Mac & Cheese, Thin-Sliced Fried Pork Chops, and Red Beans & Rice, the other with Smoked Chicken and Andouille Jambalaya, Fried Catfish, and French Fries, Creole Pecan Pie, Ban-offee Pie, Mississippi Mud Pie, Hummingbird Cake, Upside Down Rhubarb Cake, and Strawberry Shortcake

What We Thought:

Of course I typically write reviews for restaurants around Utah County, but I thought I'd throw in an extra review this week for a fun out-of-town visit I've taken recently. For my birthday at home in the Pacific Northwest, I requested one of the most talked-about Portland restaurant, the Screen Door. This was before my experience with chicken and waffles at Station 22, and the Screen Door receives a lot of press for their famed chicken and waffles, as well as their famed line out the door! They are only open for Saturday and Sunday brunch and dinner everyday at 5:30, so we got there around 5 to start waiting in line! There were already people there of course, but at least we were let in with the first round of diners, even with our large party. I was impressed with how quickly they got our food to us, even though the restaurant was absolutely packed and incredibly busy. Unfortunately, when we looked at the menu, I discovered that the chicken and waffles are only served during the weekend brunch! NOOOOOOOO! I decided I would settle for the regular fried chicken and just overly compensate with tons of desserts. (I also thought it was hilarious that in addition to their traditional Southern-style plenty-of-fried food menu they had a separate menu with organic and vegan options...so Portland).

I started with the blackberry lemonade, which was heavenly sweet and flavorful. We were lucky enough to get to sit outside with the perfect Portland weather and missed out on the hustle and bustle of the indoor restaurant, which I was kind of grateful for. It was nuts in there!

I staked the first claim on the fried chicken, and being the annoying restaurant blogger that I am, I i̶n̶s̶i̶s̶t̶e̶d̶ encouraged everyone else to try something different. I absolutely loved my fried chicken - divine crispy buttermilk exterior with moist, juicy chicken inside. It is definitely at least 10 degrees better than that at Station 22....sorry. It was served with mashed potatoes which were decent and some collard greens - turns out I'm not a huge collard greens fan. But nothing on the side mattered, the real star of this plate was the huge pieces of fried chicken, and they really shone. There was so much chicken on this plate that I even gave in and shared some with everyone at the table, despite the fact that I'd really rather have eaten it all myself!

The Screen Door Plates are a fun choice for those of us who can't ever make up their mind about what to order - you get to choose three separate "sides," most of which could really be a complete dish on their own! On this plate, I was actually a little disappointed with the red beans and rice - it's one of my favorite Southern dishes, and this one was just under the expectations I had for flavor. The macaroni and cheese was good of course - cheesy, oozy, intense, and with a tasty crunchy top crust. And the fried pork was a little dry but had a nice salty crispy profile and it was all an overall enjoyable plate.

The pecan-encrusted trout was probably our least favorite plate - the fish had a little bit of a dirty taste and the pecans did not add much of a flavor-punch. The potatoes and asparagus were fine but a little boring, and there wasn't enough sauce to add enough pizzazz to the trout.

The beef brisket on the other hand, was absolutely delicious. Huge slabs of tender meat, doused in a sweet and spicy sauce was complimented with twirls of crunchy fried onions. Yum! Devynne ordered this plate and it was hard to pry a single bite from her, but I greatly enjoyed the little taste she spared :) The potato salad was a nice refreshing touch to the savory meat, and there were some forgettable greens that upped the healthiness factor at least.

Our second Screen Door Plate was ordered by someone who's not actually part of my immediate family, so I tried not to be too awkward about wanting to try everything, but he was surprisingly compliant. He greatly enjoyed the fried catfish and I was impressed with the jambalaya - since I'm not a huge shrimp fan, I thought the slightly different combination of meats was a delightful change.

This pulled pork sandwich was probably my second favorite dish that we ordered - I've never had my coleslaw actually piled on top of the sandwich, and it has changed my life! Now I always slap some slaw on top of my pulled meat sandwiches. It is so good!!! The pork was tangy and delicious, and some of the best peppery coleslaw I've ever had on a toasted tasty bun. If I ever could convince myself not to order some of that amazing fried chicken, this would be an excellent second choice.

Now on to desserts! We went a little crazy and ordered every.single.dessert on the menu! They just all sounded so good that we couldn't exclude any of them...well, we were going to say no to the strawberry shortcake, but we just couldn't leave it out. They brought out this Ban-offee Pie to me with a little birthday candle, oh-so-festive. I've never had Ban-offee Pie before - apparently it is a traditional British dessert, and it is a dessert that I am definitely going to add into my rotation! A crispy shortbread crust, tender bananas mixed with delicious toffee, all topped with a caramel-infused whipped cream. AMAZING! I may need to move back to Portland just so I can eat this EVERY SINGLE DAY!

This was the Mississippi Mud Pie, and honestly, it was gone between Charles and my brother before I could even get a bite! I was lucky to even get a picture...I'll take that as a good thing :)

The pecan pie was cute, but a little too much crust and not enough filling for me...though still delicious.

We probably should have just said no to the strawberry shortcake. You know, I've never really had a strawberry shortcake that I've been super impressed by. With this one, the biscuit was too dry and crumbly, and there were not enough strawberries or sweetness. Definitely our least favorite of the desserts.

This cake definitely made up for it though! A mix between a carrot cake and pineapple cake, this Southern classic with cream cheese frosting was absolutely delectable. I hate raisins and love pineapple, so this baby was right up my alley. In fact, I don't think I'll ever be able to have carrot cake without pineapple again! It was just too darn good this way.

Finally (I know, you thought it would never end) was the upside down rhubarb cake. Not too much to say here - the toasted almonds were a nice touch and the cake had a good flavor and texture, but I really could have gone for more fruit in the cake itself. The rhubarb flavor was more of an accent than the leading role in this cake for us.

What You Should Do: Well, if you ever find yourself in the Portland Oregon area, I'd definitely recommend going there! But if you don't mind doing me a small favor, try to go for brunch and then report back to me if the chicken and waffles are worth all the hype (and the line out the door and around the block)! There were a couple of misses in our meal, but probably just because I forced everyone to try something different - if I was a little nicer and less selfish (hey, it was my birthday at least), then probably everyone would have ordered the fried chicken and we all would have gone home as happy as me!

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Hokulia Shave Ice

Where: Hokulia Shave Ice, 1445 N Canyon Road, Provo (across the street from Helaman Halls)

Who Went: Chelsey & Kierea

Number of Visits: 1

What It Cost: $7.50

What We Ordered: 2 Small (Short Board) Shave Ice - Pineapple and Blackberry with Snocap, and Cotton Candy

What We Thought:

Why have I been wasting all my time this summer with frozen yogurt - I've totally missed out on the delicious awesomeness which is shave ice! I've always had kind of a negative attitude towards shave ice since growing up my mother never let me buy it because she said it was just expensive water with sugar poured on top. Though this may be partially true, I cannot think of anything more refreshing than one of these delectable desserts on a hot, hot Utah day. In the past, shave ice I've had was either too chunky or you run out of flavor in the first half and just end up eating plain ice by the end. No good. Hokulia makes shave ice the way it should be - finely shaved and melt-in-your mouth ice with rich, sweet, unique flavors.

They have over 60 flavors, including rare finds like red velvet, cinnamon, apricot, haupia (creamy coconut), horchata, wedding cake, lychee, and pink champagne! I got my blackberry-pineapple short board with the snocap, which is a drizzle of sweetened condensed milk that really brings this treat up to the next level. Oh, and did I mention that we both ordered the smallest size? Yeah, and they are freaking HUGE! At least three times the typical "small size" of shave ice you'd get anywhere else! You can also get the shave ice with some vanilla ice cream inside, which sounded like it would be amazing with something like coconut or root beer! Kierea loved her cotton candy flavor, and we were both shocked to see a small pool of syrup at the bottom of our cones when we finished - every bite was jam-packed with amazing flavor. Besides being the best shave ice I've ever had, the actual shack site had tables with a nice touch -- little holes cut into the table where you can place your cone without the risk of it tipping over. I don't know why, but this just made me really happy :)

What You Should Do: Definitely make it over to this little shack of heaven before the summer ends! They are only open seasonally (sadly), so you'll have to go soon! They without a doubt have the best shave ice I've ever had - a classic taste of the shave ice you love, times like a million. Go Go GO!

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