The Palette Restaurant

Tucked inside Trampo-Lazer-Rockball Park is the Palette Restaurant. When I heard about this place I was skeptical, it just seemed unlikely that the food would be anything more than nachos and hotdogs. I was way off base.

Pizza dip with pretzel sticks

When I walked in, I was surprised at how nicely the tables were set, each with a bright colored flower in a green vase and modern looking black dining tables and chairs. The walls are a turquoise color and contrast nicely with the black tables and chairs and flowery rugs on the floor. Linen napkins were used, so I figured it would be a little nicer menu than places that have paper napkins. 

Fried PB&J and French fries

For an appetizer, my friend and I ordered the pizza dip, which is served with fried pretzel sticks. The pizza dip has cream cheese, pepperoni, pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, onion and green pepper. The cheese was stringy, the pretzel sticks soft-but-crispy and the onion and green pepper didn't bother me because there weren't many. I loved the pretzel sticks because they were crispy on the outside but fluffy inside and I could wrap the mozzarella around the stick and eat it easily that way. It was basically a deconstructed pizza, so it was greasy, but I expected it to be because it's pizza. It has to have some grease.

For my entree, I wanted something a little different so I went for the Fried PB&J with French fries.
I'm pretty happy I went for it because it was the best new something I've had in a long time. Texas toast prepared like French toast, dredged in Frosted Flake Crumbles and deep fried all with peanut butter and jelly inside.  The crunchy, sweet Frosted Flake Crumbles was my favorite part along with the jelly and peanut butter. The sandwich was drizzled with honey and tasted like dessert. That's my kind of entree! The French fries are the thin cut fries and a nice and crispy.

Top: Parmeson, Middle: Sticky
Honey Garlic, Bottom: BBQ

Wednesdays are the nights to get 50 cent wings. There are various flavors and I tried three. I already had enough to eat with an entree and appetizer, but I figured I could at least try a few for as cheap as they were.  I ordered sticky honey garlic, parmesan and bbq. The parmesan was my favorite because it was more of a dry wing that was seasoned and topped with parmesan cheese. The bbq was bbq, and not bad, but I wasn't a fan of the sauce they used. My least favorite was the honey garlic. Something about the sweet honey and the bitter garlic didn't mix well and left a weird aftertaste in my mouth. When I told the waitress which ones I liked and disliked she said nobody ever likes the sticky honey garlic, so maybe stay away from those all together. I would order the parmesan wings again and plan to return on a Wednesday to tear some up.

The best part about the wings? They let you order just one wing if that's what you want. As you can see, I ordered three, one of each flavor I thought looked interesting. That was cool.

Overall, I was impressed with this place, hiding away inside an arcade/lazer tag/and so much more place. I just wasn't expecting the lovely meal I had, not to mention the great service, too.  I will be back soon.

McAlister's Deli

McAlister's Deli opened last week on Wanamaker in Topeka. This is the fourth restaurant to open there in about three weeks. The deli opened Friday, (it had a soft opening Thursday), and every day since I've heard the line's been out the door at lunch time. I went at 3 p.m. so it was busy but it wasn't packed and the line definitely wasn't out the door.

Pasta salad

It's a nice, newly-built restaurant with booths and tables. You walk up to the counter and order, then a server brings you your food. The menu was like most delis but with a variety of baked potatoes added. I only had the appetite for a sandwich, so soon I plan to return and try one of their many baked potatoes because they all looked good. Each sandwich comes with a choice of side, pasta salad, potato salad, bagged chips, fresh fruit, coleslaw etc. 

I decided to get the McAlister's Club -- 13 layers high, with honey mustard, Black Forest ham, smoked turkey, bacon, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato all on wheat toast. It comes with a pickle and a side, I got fresh fruit. I was able to try the pasta salad, too but I wasn't too impressed. The noodles were curly and not done enough for me, tossed in a pesto with small pieces of bell peppers and black olives. It was alright, but not as good as it could have been.

The sandwich was pretty good, and it was big enough to fill me up. I wasn't able to eat the entire thing, it's a good thing my

The McAlister's Club

husband was with me, he ate the rest. The honey mustard was tangy and sweet and was a nice change on a club sandwich. My only problem is that the cooks could have spread the meat out on the bread more so the middle wasn't thick with meat and the edges with none. I had to take mine apart and spread out the meat evenly. As you can see in the picture, there seems to be a lot of meat, but it's really just bunched up in the middle.

The fresh fruit was fresh fruit: Pineapple, grapes, honeydew, and cantaloupe. It was good but it was also just fruit. I didn't think the portion looked like much, but with the pickle I was happy.

I want to return and try a potato and see what all the rave is about. I've heard from a couple people that the spuds are tasty. I must say though, I wouldn't wait in a line that went out the door, but I do plan to return. Stay tuned for pictures and my review.