Onix

Onix
412 S Main Street
552-4609

Saturday we had tickets to the Magic Tree House at the Orpheum, so naturally we had to eat dinner downtown first. We have been on a total Best Wings kick at home, so I thought it would be fun to take the kids (Satchel, 6, and Jiro, 4) to Onix where they could get a chicken wing fix and some waffles. Yes, chicken and waffles. Believe it or not, they really go well together. (Not that I expected the monkeys to actually eat them together.)

The owner of Onix is the son of the owner of Best Wings. The two places couldn't be more different, but the sauce for the chicken is the same. (Read more about that here.)

The icing on the cake was the $25 certificate I got from Restaurant.com. (It cost me about $2.50 and provided me with $25 off of $35 or more.)

The only problem with my plan was that the play started at 6pm. Onix opened at 5pm. One hour is not a lot of time to eat, especially in a pretty nice restaurant. We were literally standing at the door at 5pm and were the first customers. I told the waitress we needed to be at the Orpheum and asked if she thought we could be in and out in about 45 minutes. She assured me that we could, but that didn't stop me from worrying.

Because we needed to spend at least $35 on food, I ordered each monkey a 7 piece wing basket. (Normally without an actual kids' menu to choose from, I have them share, but I have seen each monkey eat four whole wings at Best Wings. I was pretty sure they could eat 7 Buffalo style wings if they set their minds to it. If not, we'd have leftovers!) Jiro wanted waffles, but Satchel wanted fries instead. I decided to splurge and ordered the $14 coconut crusted tilapia. Warren ordered a burger. (Why, oh why does he always order the burger?)

While we waited for the food, we played "I spy." Both boys had ants in their pants and were really amped up. Jiro definitely needed a nap, but there was no time for it. Hence, the game. It was actually pretty funny playing because the interior is very spartan and almost everything is black, save for the brightly colored paintings on the wall. (Of course Warren insisted on going first and saying, "I spy something in my eye, something black.") Between "I spy," the TV, brief episodes of "Guess what zoo animal I am," and frequent trolley sightings out of the window, we managed to keep the monkeys under control until the food arrived.

Several more tables came in while we were waiting, including another family with small children. I definitely wouldn't describe Onix as a place catering to families, but like I have said before, I think it is perfectly acceptable to take kids anywhere at 5pm. Especially if they serve chicken! On Friday and Saturday nights Onix has a lounge atmosphere and usually some sort of live music, so definitely don't take the kids after 8pm or so.


Our food arrived at about 5:35pm. Everyone was pleased, except for Satchel. The waitress thought that I had meant for the boys to share so she only brought one order of wings. Knowing we were in a rush, she checked with the kitchen and said she could have another order out in five minutes. Satchel happily munched on his fries and Jiro pushed his waffle at me and said, "Cut it up!" He grabbed a wing to eat while he waited, but it was way too hot to eat. Warren seemed happy with the appearance of his burger and dug right in. My tilapia was a hearty portion, perfectly fried, and resting on a bed of yellow rice. Next to it was a healthy looking salad of mixed greens. (I could tell Warren was jealous so I gave him a bite.) The chile lemon sauce was very tangy and very much to my liking. I ate the fish, the rice, and salad almost in one breath. It was delicious! (A sure sign of my food being exceptional is the lack of a photo. I couldn't wait!)

I tried convincing Satchel to eat some of Jiro's wings for the sake of time, but he refused. He also refused to try some of the waffle. I was surprised because he really hadn't eaten very much all day. When his wings came out, they were too hot to eat, so he did eventually agree to share with Jiro. Between the two of them they polished off six wings. Warren polished off the last one of Jiro's as well as the serving of carrots and celery.

Our waitress was really nice about bringing the check early and I had no problem using my Restaurant.com certificate. Our bill before the coupon was $55, so after the coupon and additional tip, we spent $35.

Overall it was a nice experience, and by virtue of Onix being downtown and on the trolley line, I'd recommend it to you and your monkeys. (With the live music/late night weekend caveat.) Onix has a really nicely priced lunch special if you happen to be downtown during the work week. I'd definitely like to go back when we aren't in a rush.

Muddy's Bake Shop

Muddy's Bake Shop
5101 Sanderlin #114
901.683.8844

I have been dying to take the monkeys (satchel, 6, and Jiro, 4) to Muddy's for a long, long time. Earlier attempts have always been on Sunday and Monday when they are closed. I've brought treats home many times, but today was the first day they got to experience firsthand Muddy's "Lovin from the oven."

I love Muddy's. My only complaint is that it is not in Midtown. Thankfully, it is one of the few places that can disguise the fact that it is in a strip mall by creating a totally unique and homey feeling interior. It's kind of like walking into someone's kitchen and kind of like walking into what I imagine an Etsy shop would be like in 3-D. Everything is just so cutesy (in a good way) and stylish. (For example, coffee is served in mismatched retro coffee mugs which are artfully displayed on pegboard with hooks.)

When we walked in, I fully expected the monkeys to rush in and start licking the glass that separates the customers from the treats, but they didn't. They immediately zoned in on the stack of board games. "Can we play Candyland?" Satchel asked.

"Maybe after we pick out our treats," I said as I pointed them towards the goodies.

Then the licking began.

Jiro asked me to go through each cupcake and tell him what each one was. (Unfortunately the cutesy names like Prozac and Frankly Scarlett meant nothing to them.) Satchel decided on a Cookies and Cream cupcake and Jiro selected a Capote (a regular chocolate cupcake with vanilla buttercream icing and white sprinkles). I decided to live a little and ordered a key lime pie cupcake (whose cutesy name I forgot). Next we had to decide on drinks. Our options: Izze, Martinelli's apple juice, soda, organic milk, coffee or hot tea. The monkeys both wanted apple juice and I caved in and got a Diet Coke. (Diet Coke + cupcake = no guilt.) There was an old fashioned straw dispenser by the cash register and the cashier let each monkey pick out their own straw, which they loved.

Once we had everything, we went in search of a table. There are only a few small tables in the store and finding a spot proved to be difficult despite the fact that there were only two other people dining in the store. There were three tables with room for two each along the wall. A couple of teenagers were sitting at the middle table, making it impossible for us to sit on either side of them. There was also a small sofa, coffee table, and two chairs near the front. Once the monkeys eyed it, they made a run for it. I knew from experience that they would make a mess if they were to eat while kneeling next to the table, but our only other option was to sit outside on the patio. (The patio is perfectly lovely and it was a lovely day, but I wanted to soak in the ambiance inside the store.)

I gave each monkey a taste of my cupcake before packing it away in three bites. They each took their time with their cupcakes. Satchel must have licked his icing for ten minutes. Jiro ate his cupcake from the cake up and once he reached a certain point it fell apart on him and he called it quits. When Satchel tired of licking his icing, he declared the "brown part" to be "weird" and said, "That's way too much sugar for me." (He really believes that he doesn't like sugar despite much evidence to the contrary.)

Weirdos.

Even though the eating didn't take very long, and the monkeys seemed underwhelmed by the existence of a cupcakery, they seemed to want to hang around. I was actually amazed by their calmness. They sipped their apple juice, played with the Bakugan Jiro brought in, and requested that I read the copy of "Goodnight Moon" that was on the table. I noticed a nice, big chalkboard on the wall that specifically invited scribbling, but we couldn't access it because of the teens who were strategically located in the center of the main seating area. Regardless I thought it was another nice, kid-friendly touch.

Once the monkeys were done relaxing, I wiped up as many crumbs from the floor as I could and carried our dishes over to the designated tub. There was a note above it that said, "If you would like for us to recycle your cans and bottles, please leave them in the tub." This was a pleasant surprise and the sign's subtlety and politeness reminded me of David Sedaris' experiences in Japan as noted in his book "When You are Engulfed in Flames."

We ended our visit by picking out some lovin' from the oven for Warren. We chose a container of their famous pimento cheese (they have a small lunch offering including sandwiches and soup Tuesday-Friday), Jan's Famous Toffee Bar, a Coconut Macaroon, a Blackberry Almond Oat Bar, and a brownie with peanut butter icing. Everything was packed neatly in a cute little box, almost like a gift.

My birthday is coming up, and I'm fantasizing about picking out 37 cupcakes and sharing them with 36 of my favorite people. (Maybe 35.)

As soon as we got home Warren ate the macaroon and made a mini pimento cheese sandwich. I am not a fan of pimento cheese, but I took a bite and it is definitely not your average pimento cheese. It's actually more like a dip and uses cream cheese and shredded cheese. Try it!

El Torito (Closed)

Ed Note: This restaurant reopened as Taqueria Garibaldi, and then became Los Picosos.

El Torito Taqueria
4159 Summer Avenue
452-4558

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

On Sunday, we continued our quest to eat at every interesting spot along Summer Avenue. This time we chose El Torito (The Little Bull). We've been enchanted with El Torito for awhile for the sheer fact that it is housed in an old school Taco Bell building. And we're always in the mood for Mexican.

We pulled into the parking lot and Satchel (age 6) immediately started telling us how much he hated this restaurant. We informed him that he had never been here before, but he didn't believe us until he walked inside. At the counter he and Jiro (age 4) discovered a giant tub of (free) hubba bubba gum and within seconds we found ourselves in the "coolest restaurant ever."

There were three or four tables of people inside--not bad for 3:30pm on a Sunday. Warren and I hovered at the counter for a few minutes, perusing the menu, until a pretty waitress instructed us to sit down. We grabbed a seat by the window and went back to work on the menu. "What's an alambre?" I asked.

"I don't know," Warren replied. "What's a pambazos?"

It was exciting to have some new items to choose from, but also a bit intimidating since we weren't really sure what a lot of things on the menu were. While Warren continued to decipher the items, I flipped the menu over and gave the monkeys' their choices from the $2.99 kids' menu. "You can have taco, rice, and beans; mini burrito, rice, and beans; egg, rice, and beans; or cheese quesadilla, rice, and beans," I said. (I didn't mention the cheese quesadilla and french fries option. I'm sneaky like that.)

"Eggs," Satchel said.

"Eggs," Jiro said.

The monkeys love eggs.

A waiter/cook came over for our drink orders. We all opted for water, although they had lots of colorful drinks in a nearby cooler. They also had beer and a few drink machines that may have contained margaritas. Most of the other guests in the restaurant had big goblets of what looked like tea, but surely wasn't. I was still trying to figure out the food, so I didn't tackle the case of the mystery drink.

The waiter also gave us two large bowls of salsa, one of which I would describe as an avocado salsa--not quite guacamole, but not quite green salsa--and some nice, warm chips.

"I want cheese dip!" Satchel demanded. Unfortunately, it didn't appear that there was cheese dip on the menu. (Bummer!) I ordered the closest thing which was queso fundido. (It said it had chorizo in it, but I hoped it wouldn't be too spicy and that I could pass it off as beef to the kids.)

The waiter disappeared into the kitchen, then much to my surprise, Warren announced that he knew what he was getting. "I'm getting a lengua (tongue) and a tripa (tripe) taco," he said proudly.

"Are you serious?" I asked.

He was.

While Warren and I were discussing his taco selections, Satchel and Jiro were stockpiling chips in front of them on the table in anticipation of the cheese dip. They were getting a bit antsy with nothing to dip into, so Warren directed their attention to the large screen TV by the door. There was a Spanish speaking clown acting crazy. (Which I suppose was appropriate for a show titled "Que Locura!")

The waiter came back for our food order and I made the quick decision to go with the gringas. All I knew was that they came with spicy pork, pineapple, and cheese. I ordered the kids' meals, with the addition of an extra beef taco (plain) for Satchel, and Warren ordered his tacos (in Spanish, cuz he's cute like that).

In no time at all, our queso fundido came out in one of those gigantic and crazy heavy volcanic bowls. The queso was not the liquidy El Porton variety, but simple melted mozzarella. The monkeys were not happy, but they each agreed to try it. I put a little on the accompanying soft tortilla triangles, and rolled them up, but neither monkey was satisfied. They wanted the usual stuff. Warren and I both liked the fundido, especially with a piece of the grilled jalapeno, but couldn't even make a dent in it.

We liked being able to see in the kitchen, and anxiously watched as our food was prepared. Our entrees arrived in quick succession and I soon learned that gringas is another name for quesadilla. I made it through one piece before declaring myself stuffed. (Everything at the little bull is BIG!) I thought the gringas were yummy, but they needed a kick. There were plenty of hot sauces and salsas on the table to choose from, but I thought of it too late.

Warren politely offered us a bite of his tongue (ha ha) and we all politely took the smallest bites possible. "It's so tender," he said. "Uh-huh," I said pretending to be invisible. Later when he asked if I wanted a bite of the tripe, I said "No, but thank you" quite forcefully...multiple times before he finally backed off with the crazy desire to share his weird meat with me (ha ha).

The monkeys both tore through their eggs and I believe Satchel gave them the "These are better than Mommy's" seal of approval. Jiro declared himself done and immediately treated himself to a piece of gum he had palmed for the duration of the meal. Satchel picked at his beans and ate about half of his taco before catching on to Jiro's routine and declaring himself done as well. (The rice had tomato bits in it which rendered it unappealing. "I only like Japanese rice," Satchel stated matter-of-factly.) To pass the time while Warren finished eating, Jiro grabbed my camera and took pictures. (Hence the reason he is missing from all of the action photos above.)

When all was said and done, we had two giant to go boxes full of leftovers. (Thankfully no tongue or tripe though!) I went to the counter to pay, asked for a to go menu so I could Google the unknown words, and we were off. (Total bill $25 plus tip.)

Alambres are Mexican style shish kebabs. That's what I'm getting next time!