Bosco's

It's been more than four years since I reviewed Bosco's! It was a group effort and probably a bit wordy for my casual readers, so here's a new look at an old favorite.

Bosco's Squared
2120 Madison Avenue
432-2222

The past few Sundays, we've found ourselves driving around in search of food. A couple of weeks ago, we decided to go to Bosco's. We used to live right behind Bosco's and it was my regular drinking spot. I go for lunch and late night drinks from time to time and Warren and I have been known to pop in before a movie, but we hadn't taken the monkeys (Satchel, 8, and Jiro, 6) in over four years!



We arrived pretty early--around 6:00pm--and found the restaurant fairly quiet. (There was also snow in the forecast.) We were seated along the west wall in a large booth. There was one other family dining in the same area and I was glad to see it.

When we sat down, we had an immediate issue--the candle on the table. "Can I blow it out?" was the first thing Satchel asked. We went ahead an let him so that the fire would not continue to be a source of conversation/annoyance for the rest of the meal. (Sadly, I can't blame the lack of candlelight for the quality of these pictures. Half way through our meal, they adjusted the lighting to be even lower than it already was. Good for ambiance, bad for pictures.)



The hostess gave the monkeys fancy crayons to color their kids' menus/placemats. I love that they are still young enough to tackle kids' pages with gusto. Our first order of business was getting drinks. Warren ordered a Poor Richard's Ale and the rest of us got water. (Had it not been a Sunday after two nights of imbibing, I probably would have had a beer too.) The kids' waters came in styrofoam cups. (Doesn't it seem like an institution like Bosco's should be PGF certified?)



In terms of food, the kids' menu seemed about the same as I remembered. It cracks me up that you can get fruit with a side of fries. The macaroni and cheese is Kraft, and overall I think the menu is pretty amenable to little kids.



Jiro quickly decided on the cheese pizza, but Satchel wanted soup. The soup of the day was clam chowder and he was fine with that. Warren and I went back and forth. If I wasn't on a healthy choices kick, I would have totally gotten the Buffalo chicken pizza. Instead, I opted for the ahi tuna tacos. I offered to share them with Warren for a bit of his steak sandwich and he agreed.

The first thing to come out was Warren's side salad. It was fine. Nothing exciting. Looking closely at the picture, I'd guess it came from a bag. The carrots definitely did.



Then the tuna tacos arrived. They are an appetizer. The description reads "Chopped Sushi Tuna, Shredded Lettuce, Pico De Gallo, and Smoky Sour Cream in Crisp Wontons." I've had them several times and like the way the pico and the sour cream combine. I am also a fan of the crunchy shell. However, the tuna was cooked way more than I would have liked.



Our main dishes arrived soon after. Jiro's pizza looked very small. He can pack away an entire slice of the Trolley Stop Market's giant pizza, so ordering from the kids' menu may have been a stretch for him. He complained that the cheese was sliding around, but once it cooled off a bit, he easily ate it up. (I definitely expected him to be hungry about an hour later and he was.)



Satchel's clam chowder, on the other hand, was gigantic. I definitely should have gotten him a small. He loves nothing more than dipping bread into soup, so he was golden. (As much as he claimed to like this soup it took a lot of string arming to get him to polish off the leftovers a few days later.)



Warren's Angus steak sandwich looked yummy, and it was, but I definitely did not feel the power of my healthy choices with the buttered and grilled bread smothered in mayo. Oh well. I ate some fries and got over myself.



We all cleaned our plates, except Satchel. Warren was still working on his beer (he tried enlisting Jiro's help to polish it off!), so I agreed to get a slice of Key Lime pie for everyone to split. I think it must be the first thing Satchel looks for on a menu!



It was good--again, nothing special. Our tab came to $50, $60 with tip. Ouch!

Looking back, I guess I never noticed how blah some of the food is at Bosco's. Next time, I'll suck it up and have a Flaming Stone and the Buffalo chicken pizza. This is not the place for healthy choices! Although, I think the seared tuna salad probably would have been a better--and more filling (but more expensive)--alternative to the tuna tacos. And I'd probably have the monkeys split a regular pizza and avoid the kids' menu.

I am a fan of Bosco's and love that they continue to bring in the crowds. Overton Square definitely needs a solid place to anchor it. The patio is amazing and the service is usually just fine. Definitely worth going to, especially if you are monkey free and thirsty.

Revive Energy Bar

Revive Energy Bar has moved to 669 Highland Street, 435-6879

Revive Energy Bar
1555 Madison Ave.
435-6879

I'm not sure when or why, but I once told the monkeys (Satchel, 8, and Jiro, 6) that there was a cereal bar in town where you could get all the cereal you wanted. I think I said, "It's like YoLo, but with milk instead of yogurt."

Jiro has been pressing to go for weeks, and finally I agreed to take him. (And his brother, natch.)



The cereal bar is actually inside of Revive Energy Bar which is inside Minglewood Hall. Revive also offers coffee, hot breakfast, and oxygen. (That was fun to explain to the kids!)



Once inside, Satchel seemed disappointed. "This is it?" he asked. "I thought it would be more like the Cove." Now, let me do some explaining. No, my kids do not hang out at the Cove, but I do. (Usually just on Tuesday nights.) I can hear Warren now, "Yes, mommy is at the bar again." They did actually get to go inside the Cove right before it opened, about three years ago, during one of the first Broad Avenue Art Walks. And on subsequent art walks, they have certainly peeked in.

Anyways, Jiro was excited enough for us all.



"Pack your bowl deep."

I knew right away that we were in for an experience!

Inside, it was pretty dead except for one couple interested in the oxygen bar. (If I had to guess, I'd say they were from out of town.) It was about 11am on a Saturday, maybe a little later than most people would be eating cereal. We were totally okay with having the place to ourselves.

The couple was being a little chatty at the counter, so we wandered over to check out the cereal.



It was very reminiscent of a DIY yogurt place, but on a much smaller scale. I was a little let down by the size of it, but if you compare it to our pantry at home, it's certainly more impressive. There are 20 cereals, many of which I try not to buy on a regular basis like Corn Pops, Cookie Crisp, Honey Combs, Lucky Charms, Fruity Pebbles, Cap'n Crunch, etc. There were also a few "healthy" options like Raisin Bran, Kashi Go Lean, and Grape Nuts. Toppings included extra sugar, candy, dried fruit, syrup, whip cream, and "fresh" fruit. (The "fresh" fruit was most definitely frozen and not at all appetizing.)



While we were gawking, a manager type came over and told us how it worked. For $4 each, we got a big bowl and a bottle of milk. Extra milk is $2. I told him that in my mind endless cereal included endless milk, but he assured me that the one bottle of milk went a pretty long way. Then he advised Jiro to try Fruity Pebbles and Cap'n Crunch mixed together. "It's the best," he promised. I was glad for the advice, because I feared a YoLo style free for all where they ended up with bowls full of way too much crap.

Jiro followed his advice, but added a few peanut butter chips.



Satchel opted for Fruity Pebbles mixed with Cocoa Puffs. And he couldn't resist whip cream on top. (Thankfully, he asked me to dispense it.)



I went for a mix of the three "adult" cereals--Kashi Go Lean, Grape Nuts, and Raisin Bran. After having seen the "fresh" fruit, I just added a few extra raisins.



Most of the tables were two tops, so I grabbed an extra chair and joined the monkeys, who were happily munching away.



Jiro agreed that the mix of Fruity Pebbles and Cap'n Crunch was delicious and asked if he could have seconds. "Sure!" I said. He happily refilled and polished off his milk. Once Satchel finished his first bowl, he was pretty much done. (He likes sweets, but not like his brother.) One bowl was plenty for me.

"This is good!" Jiro exclaimed while attacking his second bowl. When it was gone he looked at me and said, "Can I have the rest of your milk and get more?" I agreed and he set off once again. He was in heaven.

I'm not sure if the manager knew who we were or not, or if he was just friendly, but he came to check on us and told me that he is working on expanding, and getting better fruit. I told him that the frozen fruit was a bit disappointing. He said they've been looking at the yogurt places to see if they can get a better system in place.

The he added that he was considering offering a $2 deal for kids and playing cartoons. (There are 4 TVs.) I thought that was a great idea and encouraged him, especially seeing how much Jiro was enjoying his breakfast. I can't believe he didn't ask to have his birthday there! He did however ask if we could buy Fruity Pebbles and Cap'n Crunch the next time we went "someplace that sells cereal."



The manager, who's name I really should have found out by now, said adults can clean out a whole dispenser of cereal and he was struggling to find a way to make the idea more profitable. He also plans to add a larger hot menu. He was really friendly and it seems like there may be a bright future for the cereal bar.

While $12 is a bit steep just for cereal, in the grand scheme of things, it was a pretty cheap breakfast for the three of us. Best of all, they are open from 6:30am-Midnight (Or Later) everyday. So those of you with the early rising toddlers have an alternative to donuts now!

Beware of the loose brick! Jiro was convinced there was treasure hidden below.



And don't forget the giant guitar photo op!



We'll be back.

Los Picosos

Los Picosos
4159 Summer Ave.
323-7003



Our first restaurant meal of the new year was at Los Picosos on Summer. Yes, it's in the old school Taco Bell building that was most recently known as Taqueria Garibaldi. I was really digging Taqueria Garibaldi. Before that, it was El Torito. Maybe third time's a charm?



The inside is pretty much the same, although there are a few changes. Most notably they've added a wall by the counter so that you can't see into the kitchen like you used to. Gone are the candy machines too.

We grabbed a seat by the restrooms as far away from the TV as possible. (It was showing a soap opera with kissing. Later they changed it to Tarzan.) A nice waitress brought us menus, and I went ahead and asked for cheese dip to contain the monkeys (Satchel, 8, and Jiro, 6). We also got a round of waters, some chips, and four kinds of salsa.



According to the menu, there is a second Los Picosos on Macon Road. We've been to most of the Macon Road restaurants, but a quick check of my "places to try" list shows that I had "Taqueria de Picosos by Jerry's Sno Cones."

The chips looked much more corn-y than I'm used to seeing in a restaurant. It made me think they came from a bag. (The restaurant's previous incarnations made chips in house.) The quartet of salsas made up for this, though.



The "regular" salsa was nice, but nothing amazing, and the other three were all crazy hot and fairly exciting. I used a little bit of each as I plowed through the chips, and later, my dinner.

Speaking of dinner, between munching on chips and salsa, we ordered. Jiro, who has been frequenting Taco Bell after his Taekwondo classes, requested two tacos. I made sure he knew they wouldn't look quite the same, and he was okay with it. I asked for two steak tacos with no cilantro or onion. He wanted cheese, but for whatever reason I didn't think they had shredded cheese. (They did.) In a compromise he allowed me to pour cheese dip on the tacos.



He also had a side of rice, which I didn't take a picture of. Once he figured out how to hold the taco without it falling apart, he was quite happy. He refused to eat his rice until we made a deal that he could have a orange Juarito once it was gone.

Satchel, who's eyes have become much larger than his stomach, ordered three tacos and a side of rice and beans. He has also gotten so chatty that I don't think he ever stopped talking long enough to do much eating. One and a half of his tacos, and most of his beans, did manage to get in his stomach.



Warren, who I think was in love with the place based solely on the habanero sauce, ordered a burrito. This is a pretty unusual move for him. I'm the one who usually gets burritos. I'm pretty sure they were out of his first two meat choices, but he was very happy with the final product. Several times he offered me bites and told me how good it was.



In an attempt to make a healthy choice, I ordered a shrimp tostada and a chicken taco. (The healthy choosing came after the extensive chip eating.) It's pretty hard to go low calorie in a restaurant, much less a Mexican one, but I tried. I'd like to report that both of my items were delicious, but I was unhappily surprised to see a layer of mayonnaise gluing the shrimp to the tostada.



Once the kids were done eating, they got a bit antsy. Our waitress disappeared for a bit and the paying and leaving part took a little longer than I would have liked. I had trouble keeping Satchel in his seat. He felt compelled to stand up and do Taekwondo moves in the restaurant. We all took a trip to the nearby restrooms, which were fine, but just that. I left the kids by themselves and when they reappeared at the table they looked a bit freaked and were saying something about ghosts. (I'm sure they didn't see any actual ghosts. This is more a statement on the darkness/dankness of the restrooms.)

Our total bill came to $25 which was totally reasonable.

River Oaks

River Oaks
5871 Poplar Avenue
683.9305

River Oaks is another place that I've always wanted to take the monkeys (Satchel, 8, and Jiro, 6) to, but haven't. When I found out that they were open for lunch (starting at 11 a.m. Monday through Friday), I decided to take them over the holiday break. Since Warren and I were off on New Year's Eve and the monkeys had plans without us that night (!!), it seemed like the perfect way to end the year.



I made a reservation, but we didn't need it. There were only about 2-3 other tables full when we got there. (A function of the holiday, I'm sure.) It was nice having it all to ourselves.

Our waiter came over, introduced himself, and took our drink orders. We opted for waters all around, except for Jiro, who doesn't consider it a meal at a restaurant without a Sprite, or some other sugary drink. It's just easier to let him get one that to argue the point. He usually has about three sips.

I had printed out the lunch menu a few days earlier and had been studying it. That, however, didn't keep me from wringing my hands when it came time to order. I let everyone else go first. The famous burger was an easy sell for Jiro, especially when I told him it had bacon inside.

Satchel, who insists on reading the menu himself, wanted to order about $75 worth of food. I talked him down to a baby spinach salad and a French dip. The spinach salad had these words underneath it on the menu: fresh farm eggs, croutons, and bacon. Sold! Warren really pushed him towards the French dip, because he was torn between that and the French Cuban sandwich.

I figured that I'd inherit half of Satchel's salad and/or sandwich and somebody's fries, so I ordered the crab cakes, which are an appetizer, as my entree.

Satchel's salad came out first. Watching him eat it nearly sent me over the edge.



He started off by just picking off the eggs and croutons with his fingers. I informed him that he had to use his fork. (Much easier said than done.) He complained that getting the croutons on the fork was impossible. Eventually he used his fingers to cram his bite on the fork and then he ate from the fork.



The waiter had brought us all bread and was very good about filling up our waters. Too good. He actually filled Jiro's Sprite with water. (Satchel dubbed it "Spriter.") Our waiter was quite busy now that he had two tables to deal with, so I tried to keep Jiro calm while I patiently got his attention. After five or so minutes, as he rushed by, I told him that he had put water in Jiro's Sprite and motioned to the glass. About five more minutes later, he brought over another Sprite for Jiro. Problem solved. (But, more on this later...)

Satchel still had about half of his salad, mostly baby spinach, left when the food arrived. I told Warren to work on it, and he did. Satchel's French dip looked great and came with the peppers on the side as we had asked. I was happy to see that Chef Jose kept his French Fry presentation from Encore.



Warren was pleased by the looks of his Cuban, and happily said, "I didn't know it came with fries." (The menu didn't specify "pomme frites" as it had with a couple of other sandwich options.)



I had a bite and it was yummy. I credit the Gruyere cheese and fancy mustard.

Warren was horrified when I ordered Jiro's burger with cheddar and ketchup on the side. And when it arrived, I could see why. BOR-ING. (Other cheese options are Gruyere & blue. You can also get carmelized onions and bacon for $2 each.)



Jiro's first question was, "Where's the bacon?" Not the $2 added on bacon, but the bacon inside. The menu reads, "Chef Jose's sirloin burger with bacon bits on a crusty roll." When I read bacon bits, I think of crusty bits of bacon. Turns out the bacon is ground up with the beef before the burger is cooked. (I think I would say sirloin and pork burger, but that's just me. Saying bacon is obviously sexier.)

Regardless, Jiro said his burger was delicious, and I can attest to it. He gave me one bite, but gobbled down the rest.



And finally, I present to you, my crab cakes. (And no, I don't recommend calling them crab balls on the menu.)



I stared for a minute. While they looked delicious, I was expecting something else. Again, I defer to the menu, which reads, "crab cakes with seasonal greens, avocado, mango, citrus vinaigrette."

"I think my mango and avocado are missing," I said sadly. Nope. Not missing. They were in the vinaigrette. I'd like to edit the punctuation on that description to read, "crab cakes with seasonal greens dressed in an avocado, mango, & citrus vinaigrette."

Again, regardless, the crab cakes were delicious and I very much enjoyed my salad. Had I any willpower, I would have just enjoyed my lunch as is. But I was surrounded by French fries! And I don't know what they do to those potatoes, but the French fries are rad. I ate waaaay too many.



Satchel, who was clearly getting full, started spelling things out with the fries.

Our waiter came by and I let him know that we were ready for the check. Satchel whimpered, "What about dessert? You said I could get some key lime pie."

"I said you could get it if you ate your lunch," I reminded him, motioning to his nearly untouched sandwich. He picked up the half he started on and promised to have it finished by the time the pie came out.

The waiter then picked up his plate with the other half and his remaining fries and Satchel panicked. "I'll eat those later, I promise!" The waiter laughed and said he was going to pack them up for him. (We don't get to fine dine too often so Satchel is used to packing up his own leftovers!) It was returned in a very nice, compost-friendly, non-styrofoam to go box. I love Project Green Fork certified restaurants!

While we waited for the pie, I took the boys to wash up. The bathroom was gorgeous. There was even a flat screen TV above the sink showing Martha TV. (Not surprisingly, no changing table.)

Back at the table, we had an amazing piece of key lime pie waiting. Satchel dared to take a bite before I got a picture! It was delicious.



When it was all gone, I asked for the check and sent the boys outside. They were getting antsy, and for whatever reason things were slowing down with the service. I had a bit of a shock when I saw our $77 ticket. Those fancy sandwiches and salads sure add up! It was fine. I was expecting to pay a bit more than usual. However, I was annoyed to see that I had been charged for two $2 Sprites. First off, I only ordered the second one because the waiter ruined the first one. Let's assume that the waiter didn't quite get what I was telling him about him pouring water in Jiro's Sprite. The waiter probably didn't understand why Jiro's crazy mom felt he needed two full Sprites at one time. Regardless, couldn't River Oaks offer free refills like every other restaurant in this city? I don't mind paying $12 for a burger, or even $2 extra to put onions or bacon on it (okay maybe the onions). I do mind being nickled and dimed on drinks.

There, I said it.

*Exhale*

I would still recommend River Oaks, but for dinner. Pay the big bucks for the really amazing food, not just burgers and fries. But go early and not on a busy night if you have your monkeys!