Mar 25

Szechuan Spicy House

6914 65th St
Sacramento, CA 95823

Rating: ★½☆☆☆ 

Service good. Food not good.

 

Since 88 Tofu closed down, we always wondered what will occupy that space. Eventually, we found Szechuan Spicy House opened in its place. Upon entering the restaurant, you quickly notice how red the restaurant is. There were not a lot of people at the restaurant at the time, and the servers were just standing around. We were quickly seated and offered drinks while we looked over the menu. The menu is unlike most Chinese restaurants that we visited due to the Szechuan menu. Since we were not too familiar with the dishes, we tried to order what seemed to taste good.

Today, we ordered the Shanghai Style Drunken Chicken, Dumplings with Chili Oil, Clay Pot Beef with Spicy Sauce, and Sauteed Vermicelli and Spicy Minced Pork. The Drunken Chicken tasted like cold queen’s chicken mixed with rice wine. The dish was not appetizing since there was a heavy rice wine flavor over cold chicken. The dumplings with chili oil tasted OK, but had a strong chive flavor that overpowered the dumplings. Also, the bowl had a ton of chili oil inside. The clay pot beef tasted tender and came with a good amount of beef with just enough heat. The sauteed vermicelli and spicy minced pork was more like noodles in chili oil soup with tiny bits of pork mixed in. The dish was insanely hard to eat with tons of chili oil in it. I could take the heat, but each bite tasted so unhealthy.

Overall, Szechuan Spicy House serves up supposedly authentic food that is pretty hard to eat. With so much chili oil in some dishes, the meal was barely edible except for the beef. Unfortunately, I could not recommend coming here unless you are a big fan of Szechuan cooking. Service decayed as the meal went on leaving cups of water without refills while drinking in tablespoons of chili oil. Prices have already started changing from their pre-printed menu, which is a cause for concern for their long-term viability. In case you have not decided yet, do not come here.

Mar 22

Fry’s Promo Codes

We know that Fry’s usually has great deals on their AD’s every week, but now there are also even better deals in their “Promo Code” emails. Fry’s has been working on changing their advertising scheme transitioning from the old fashioned newspaper publishing to online. Since Fry’s wanted to push more people to find even better deals, you can now sign up to receive emails for “Promo Codes” that sometimes include items that area already on AD, but offered at an even lower price when a promo code is used.

In order to sign up, click the following link, enter your email and zip code, and submit.

http://images.frys.com/art/email/images/signuppages/fryspromocom.html

You will want to enter the two Fry’s email addresses: [email protected] and [email protected] to your safe sender’s lists so that the emails are not blocked or directed to the junk mail.

As of Today, 3/22/15, Fry’s sends out daily emails with your personal promo code for that particular email. Each email you receive each day is good for the items posted on that day’s email. For now, Fry’s has been sending out emails showing specials that last only one day, and specials that last for 4 days. Make sure you check the date of the email so that you know when the 4 day items end. When you click on the link in the email to view the items, you will browse what looks like an AD that shows the promo code discounts. Most of the items are only good in store, but some are also good online.

If you are planning a trip to Fry’s, you should review the email received for that day to see if there are any good 1 day sale items as well as the remaining 4 day sale items. You should also review the emails sent over the past 3 days as each email with their own promo code has an AD good for 4 days.

Be aware that although the items may seem to be a great deal in comparison to Fry’s regular prices, you will want to comparison shop with online retailers like Amazon.com to see if the price is really a deal. Sometimes you will find that Fry’s promo code price is the regular price of the item on Amazon.com.

You definitely want to sign up for the promo code emails prior to Black Friday since Fry’s has used the promo codes last year for most of the highly sought after sale items.

Mar 18

Outback Steakhouse

7221 Laguna Blvd
Elk Grove, CA 95758

Rating: ★★★☆☆ 

Since we ate at TGI Fridays the other week, we decided to try out Outback Steakhouse right next door. We were greeted upon arrival and were quickly seated at a booth. The server was friendly and provided great service. The restaurant was fairly busy, but there were plenty of tables available.

Today, we decided to order the Aussie Cheese Fries, Bloomin’ Onion, one 13 Oz Ribeye with Mashed Potato and one with Baked Potato, and a Side Cesar Salad. The Aussie cheese fries were delicious and came with an ample amount of cheese and bacon. Unfortunately, the Bloomin’ onion was quite disappointing. The onion chunks were too big and many pieces came off without breading. Also, for the pieces with breading, the breading tended to slide off. The Cesar salad was simple and basic, but tasted fresh. The Ribeyes arrived as ordered cooked to medium. You can really taste the meat, but not much else. I felt like the meat could have been seasoned more. The mashed potatoes was creamy and fresh. The baked potato came loaded and ready to eat and was of a decent size.

Overall, the meal came out good, but the meal as a whole was quite overpriced. The best parts of the meal would be the fries and the steaks. Outback offers a variety of menu items including many different cuts of beef. If the prices were lower, then Outback might be a more desirable dinner choice. However, the Aussie fries are worth coming to Outback, especially during happy hour for $5.

Mar 11

Koreana Plaza International Food Court

10971 Olson Dr
Rancho Cordova, CA 95670

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Located inside the Koreana Plaza International Marketplace in Rancho Cordova, the International Food Court sits inside the 2nd entrance just outside the cash registers of the supermarket. A variety of food options are available ranging from Russian, to Chinese, to Vietnamese, and to Korean. Today, we decided to order from the Korean section since that was the most fitting for the plaza.

Today, we ordered the Bibimbab with beef, Korean BBQ Bento Box with pork, Korean BBQ Bento Box with beef, and jajanmyun. When ordering, you place your order, pay, and they provide you with a buzzer to bring back to your table of choice. The food was ready in waves so we were buzzed multiple times as the food was ready. The bibimbab with beef tasted very good and included many types of vegetables. We had to ask for multiple sauce containers in order to properly season the dish. Both Korean bento boxes tasted really good with fresh meat and some side dishes. The provided japchae tasted fresh and went well with the meal. The jajanmyun also tasted very good and was not that oily. There was not too much onions and there was an adequate amount of meat.

Overall, the Korean food options were delicious and were very tasty considering it was fast food. Prices were very affordable and the soda was cheap. The service staff were friendly when ordering. If you want a quick but fulfilling bite, then the Koreana food court will be a great choice for you, especially after doing all that shopping inside the supermarket.

Mar 04

Wrap N’ Roll Sushi Burrito

5650 Whitelock Pkwy Ste 110
Elk Grove, CA 95757

Rating: ★★★½☆ 

In an effort to try something different, we ended up ordering take out from Wrap N Roll Sushi Burrito. Although they have two locations with one in Sacramento, we decided to order from the Elk Grove location since it was more remote. The menu features many different types of sushi burritos as well as teriyaki plates.

Today, we decided to order the panko chicken burrito and the tempura shrimp burrito. In both rolls, there was a good balance of meat and everything else in the roll. Both rolls tasted fresh and were wrapped well. However, with such a large roll, there was way too much seaweed in each bite. The sauces used in each roll tasted great and added a new dimension to the rolls. The panko chicken retained its crispiness of the outside of the chicken while maintaining fairly juicy meat inside. The tempura was fried well with not too much batter. Eating such a large roll was quite a bit different than eating small sushi rolls. As you approach the end of the roll, you will most likely end up with too much meat or veggies in the end.

Overall, the sushi burrito creations tasted pretty good and is an innovative way to serve up sushi. If you like sushi and like burritos, than Wrap N Roll is a no brainer. The rolls are a bit pricy, but when you take into account the sheer size of the roll, it makes sense. The Elk Grove location is quite a bit out of the way, but the neighborhood is nice and quiet. If you want to try something different, then give Wrap N Roll a try.

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