Monsoon Grill - YUM!

I finally checked out the new Monsoon Indian Grill.

I went there on a Sunday night for dinner and there were quite a few people eating. The atmosphere is dim, quaint and relaxing. The service was good and our waitress was helpful with the menu. If you've never been to an Indian restaurant, you will need help with the menu, trust me.

For lunch they offer a buffet but I went for dinner so it's only a la carte, but that was OK with me because I already knew what I wanted to order.

I ordered the Chicken Tikki Masala with some naan bread. You can choose if you want regular, mild or spicy for any dish -- I chose regular because I just wasn't sure what their spice was like because I had never ordered anything before. My friend ordered the Tikki Masala skewers in spicy and he was sweating profusely and I think he looked uncomfortable. I, on the other hand, had no problem eating most of my dish.

Here's my rice and Chicken Tikki Masala.

My entree came with white rice, which I like to mix with the Tikki Masala sauce and pile it on my naan bread and eat it that way, kind of like a burrito. The chicken wasn't dry, which sometimes it can be since most cooks think: "Well, it's going in a sauce anyway..." NOT true. Even though a meat is smothered in sauce it is still easy to tell if that meat is over cooked and dry. This chicken was not.

I have to say, I enjoyed the dishes - like the plates and silverware. The bowls were interesting, with a tall handle-like piece that seems to me would cause the dishwasher a headache. The plates were rectangles with decorative lips in the plate that make it look crooked. The silverware was sturdy and heavy, unlike some places where I have been able to bend my fork or knife in the process of using it.

These are simosas: baked pastry filled with peas, potatoes and lentils. 

The naan bread was amazing. The cooks make it by throwing the dough on the side of an Indian-style oven -- tandoori -- and letting it bake until it falls off. What makes naan bread special is that it's usually made with yogurt instead of milk or water. At Monsoon the bread was fluffy on the inside and a little crunchy from the grill on the outside. I ordered a second helping because it was so good.

I look forward to returning for the lunch buffet. From what I hear they have different items on the buffet daily. If you have never eaten Indian food I would recommend checking out the buffet -- that way you can try a bunch of different dishes and figure out what you like, and what you don't like. From my experience, you will like more than you don't like!

Normally I post a map to show where the restaurant is located. Unfortunately, Monsoon Grill is so new they don't have a place on Google maps, yet. But just FYI, it's located right behind Chipotle Mexican Grill on Wanamaker Road in Topeka.

Quinton's Serves A Surprisingly Tasty Burger

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 I've been to Quinton's many times but I have only ordered food a couple times -- I think three.

I checked it out the other night with some friends and has an alright experience.

I always like to get an appetizer and that night I was pretty hungry so I wanted soup and an app. The waitress apparently didn't understand the concept of appetizers because I had to explain it to her, while she was looking at my friends with confusion. After I told her I wanted a bread bowl of potato soup she immediately walked away and my husband had to call her back so he could order his wings. I think she may be used to people coming in for drinks and not people eating a meal.

Bread bowl potato soup.

The soup was creamy and cheesy, but I remembered my complaint from the first time I ordered it -- there isn't enough. I realize they have portion sizes I just wish they would take out more of the bread and put more soup in because I don't eat much of the bread. Plus, the soup is yummy so of course I wanted more -- they should take that as a compliment.

I ordered a burger, but not their plain, regular, boring burger. I got their Bistro Burger. I must say I was impressed. I wasn't expecting to get what I got, but in a good way. The burger has a green apple slaw, pickled red onion, smoke Gouda cheese, baby greens and Quinton's special honey mustard sauce. They even asked me how I would like my burger cooked - medium. The flavors blended well and so did the textures. The soft burger and bun with the crunchy slaw and greens went well together, and the melty Gouda cheese and pickled red onion held it all together. The green apple slaw contrasted with the honey mustard and Gouda to complete a flavor balance that I loved. I ate the entire thing. My only complaint was that there was a little too much sauce and my bun was soggy, making it difficult to eat.

The French fries were incredibly disappointing. My husband loved them but I thought they were overdone, hard and too crispy for me to enjoy. I think they were just overcooked, as opposed to just being bad fries. I bet they would be good if they were cooked the way I like them to be.

Prices at Quinton's are typical and they run drink specials. Usually, if you go at night it's more of a party scene, especially on the weekends. The atmosphere is that of a bar and mostly young college students or business partners grabbing a beer hang out there.

For their menu CLICK HERE.

Although it's not the first place to come to my mind when someone asks me where I want to eat, I do plan to return in the future.

Tasting Lawrence - Dempseys Burger Pub

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 The other day I tried a new, (to me), burger place in Lawrence. I was pretty impressed and would have to say I enjoyed it more than The Burger Stand.

Their menu wasn't a typical burger menu because they like to add fried eggs and other ingredients like shallot marmalade and foie gras mousse. I can't think of any other place that offers those ingredients, and I like it.

When I went, I ordered the Egg Burger, which comes with a fried over-easy egg, Gruyere cheese and bacon all on top of a burger cooked to order. I loved it. The egg was runny and flowed over the burger and melting with the Gruyere cheese, which is like Swiss cheese but better - and the crispiness of the bacon was perfectly contrast with the softness of the egg. The bottom bun was only a little soggy, which made it a little difficult to eat as I got halfway through the burger, but because it was soggy with the runny yolk from the egg, I didn't mind that much. It was pretty messy, though.

The fries were crispy and seemed to be house-cut, but who knows, they could've been frozen. I don't really care, they were good. What I liked was that they serve different dipping sauces with each burger, for the fries. Served with the Egg Burger was the Old Bay and Tomato Coulis Aioli which was a little sweet with a hint of spice. An aioli that I enjoyed, but it wasn't served with my burger, was the Sriracha aioli -- just spicy enough but you could still taste the Sriracha without it being overpowering. I liked dipping my fries in that one.

The atmosphere is that of a sports bar. I went on a Friday night so there were a lot of college students hanging out, having a beer or two. It was loud from people talking and the music was turned up a bit, so don't plan to go if you're on a first date. The service was good, although I tried to pay the bill and she ignored me so that my brother-in-law could pay, but that's not a huge problem.

Prices were about what you would expect, $7 to $9 for a burger with the fries coming separate for as little as 99 cents. Wings, sliders and fish and chips are also offered, so if you don't want a burger, they have you covered.

Check out their MENU to see what other sauces and items they offer at Dempseys.

Royal Buffet - A lot like Mr. Stirfry

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I went to Royal Buffet and must say, it's a lot like Mr. Stirfry.

Even though there are many similarities, like the sauteed green beans, dessert and fruit bar there are many differences I noticed, as well.

I went to Mr. Stirfry on an almost regular basis because my husband, Ryan, loved it so I remember a lot about it and was able to compare the new Royal Buffet with the old, Mr. Stirfry.

One difference I noticed what that instead of serving the white rice in a steamer, separate from the actual steam tables where most of the food is heated, they put it on the buffet with the rest of the items. This is a bad decision, I think. When the rice sits in the steam table it becomes chewy and inedible -- unlike when it's in its own personal rice steamer. I wasn't happy with this change, although very minor, it affected my dining experience in a negative way.

The crab Rangoons are much better because they have more flavor. They definitely look different and the way they taste are much better than many other Asian buffets around town. They reminded me of the money bags at Tuptim Thai, little fried pockets of seasoned cream cheese. I couldn't tell if there was anything added but the filling seemed to me to be sweet, unlike others that are crabby. Maybe they aren't technically "crab Rangoons" but that's what I call them.

Another positive change was the vegetable lo mein. Back when it was Mr. Stirfry, it was like they used spaghetti noodles and not many vegetables. At Royal Buffet, they use the flatter noodles that are usually associated with lo mein, and used plenty of vegetables. The noodles were cooked al dente, whereas in the past they seemed to be mushy and old. They were saucier and I could put them on my white rice and let the rice soak up the extra sauce.

The beef and broccoli was much better than before. Before, at Mr. Stirfry, it was chicken and broccoli and very peppery. My only complaint was that the broccoli wasn't cooked enough for me but I realize they cook them that way on purpose, assuming they will be sitting in a steamer for some time, which ends up cooking the food more. I must have gotten a fresh batch because my broccoli was still pretty crunchy.

I didn't try the hibachi but it seemed to be just like it was before.

Their ice cream machine was out of order and instead they served little containers of ice cream. It was good, nothing special.

Overall, I felt like the food was more appealing, fresher and tastier at Royal Buffet than it was when it was Mr. Stirfry. The owners are different than the owners of Mr. Stirfry and Royal Buffets can be found in Wichita and other states in the Midwest.

Paisano's Is Still An All-Time Favorite

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Walking in to Paisano’s I felt like I should be on a romantic date. The lights were low and the music was Italian opera. Even though it felt romantic there were still groups of people and friends having a good time.

I went on a Wednesday and they run a special for half price appetizers so my friends and I ordered a few different dishes. The one that stood out to me the most was the fried eggplant. What surprised me was the cheese and herbs they put inside the lightly breaded and not greasy eggplant. The crispsness of the breading and the softness of the cheese paired well with the tender eggplant and didn’t disappoint.

A longtime favorite is their calamari, served with a pesto aioli. It’s nothing like the calamari you can get elsewhere in Topeka. It’s fat, it’s tender and juicy and I get it every time I go.

With every meal comes bread sticks and salad. I always love this part. The bread sticks were fluffy and hot and fresh and we got as many was we wanted — same with the salad. The salad comes with pepperoncini, red onions, tomatoes, black olives and their Italian vinaigrette. The waitstaff always had Parmiagiano Reggiano to grate fresh on top of every course and you better believe I always say yes when they offer.

I ordered the veal Parmesan, which comes with spaghetti and marinara. The waitress said I didn’t have to get the spaghetti and marinara that came with it — I could substitute a different type of pasta and sauce if that’s what I would rather have — but I did go for the spaghetti and marinara with my veal. They also offer chicken and eggplant Parmesan but I had my fill of eggplant and I prefer veal over chicken. The veal Parmesan was phenomenal. The meat was tender, the breading was crispy and fried just right. If only I wasn’t so full from the appetizers, salad and bread sticks I could have eaten the entire thing but I took home leftovers that night.

I have been to Paisano’s many times and have never had a bad experience. If you are looking for a nice place for lunch with a friend or a romantic dinner, this place will never disappoint. They also have half-price lunch every weekday between 11 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. with a drink purchase. This is very popular so show up early and be ready to stand in line outside of the restaurant. 

Marco's Pizza offers pizza and a movie

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A new pizza place opened up in town, but it’s not your typical pizzeria. Marco’s Pizza is right next to Family Video and is also owned by the same company. What I thought was cool about this place is the two businesses work hand-in-hand — providing deals for pizza and a movie, as well as offering to return your movie that’s due after they drop your pizza off.

When I walked in, I noticed the window in between Family Video and Marco’s. You can order from Family Video, if you want, while you are looking for a movie. There are a couple tables if you want to dine in, but that area isn’t too big because, I assume, most people will be taking their pizza home with the movie they rent. What’s cool is if you get a large pizza they give you a free 5-night movie rental. Now, these movies aren’t the new releases, just the ones that have the sticker that shows a 5-night and a 1-night rental on it. Some movies are on the New Release wall, but not all of them.

Marco’s Pizza offers a pretty normal selection of pizza, salads and fresh baked subs. They make their dough fresh, from scratch every day and never use frozen cheese like many pizza places do. I was surprised they make the dough from scratch — not many places do.

I ordered the Chicken Fresco pizza which comes with 4 types of cheese, grilled chicken, bacon, onions and slices of tomatoes. Something I don’t remember offered at other places are their free crust toppers — butter garlic, parmesan and roma. The person taking my order said the best way is to get all three, so that’s what I did. The pizza was tasty — I enjoyed the large chunks of chicken and the fact that the onions were cut smaller, this way they were fully cooked and not crunchy – I am not a fan of raw onion especially on my pizza. The crust was good but nothing too special and the addition of the crust toppers made it exceptional. This pizza was not greasy, so I appreciated that.

I also ordered some Cheezy Bread, which I assumed would just be normal cheese sticks. I could taste the variety of cheeses and the added seasoning. They use the parmesan and roma crust toppers on the Cheezy Bread and the addition made them better than normal cheese sticks NOT like the ones you get from Pizza Hut.

If you don’t want pizza or breadsticks Marco’s also offeres sub sandwiches and salads. I look forward to checking those out next time I rent a movie.

I think what will keep me coming back is the fact that in the future they plan to deliver your pizza with a movie if you want to rent one. I can forsee myself doing that a lot, especially on cold nights this winter.

For their full menu, check out their website by clicking here.

If you have a favorite restaurant you would like me to review, follow me on Facebook, Tricia Peterson WIBW News, and send me a message.

Boss Hawg's

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If you are looking for barbecue in Topeka, Boss Hawg's would be a good place to start.  In Kansas barbecue is very popular and everyone has their preference. I have yet to find mine, but Boss Hawg's was, like I said, a good place to start.

The restaurant is also a bar, known as Pig Skins, so you can choose to sit in the bar or restaurant, like a lot of places. The booths are round and they also have bar stools and tables to sit at, with huge TVs on the walls. I chose to sit in the bar so I could watch TV.

I ordered the wings as an appetizer because they are smoked, and it's hard to find smoked wings in Topeka - maybe I'm not looking in the right places. The smoky flavor was immediately apparent and I think much better than other wings that aren't smoked.

They serve them in three flavors, barbecue, naked or buffalo-style and with a choice of sauces ranch, bleu cheese or prairie fire dipping sauce. I chose to go half and half, with buffalo and barbecue with ranch dressing. The ranch was ranch, and the wings were special because they were smoked. 

I decided to order something that would allow me to taste various items because I wanted to do a thorough review of their barbecue items - and they have a lot. I ordered the Hawg Heaven, which has a lot of meat. A quarter rack of ribs, a quarter smoked chicken, smoked sausage and a quarter pound of any of our shredded smoked meats and a choice of pulled pork, beef brisket, smoked ham or smoked turkey served with baby back ribs or with spareribs. I got the baby back ribs, pulled pork and beef brisket for my choices.

The smoked sausage was my favorite. It had cheese in it, too and the smoke was there but not overpowering. The chicken was also tasty - with a crackly-smoked skin and juicy, smoky meat inside. I had to remind myself I had other meat to try so I wouldn't get full on the chicken alone.

The ribs were tender and fell right off the bone. They serve them without sauce but they have sauce on the table, which is good because I like my ribs with sauce - although these didn't necessarily need it. 

The pulled pork was a little too tender for me - I felt like it kind of melted in my mouth. I want chocolate to melt in my mouth, not pork. I would have liked to see more chunks of meat and for it not to have been so shredded. 

I absolutely loved the French fries. I know they are just frozen and bought-in, but they were lovely. They look like house-cut steak fries but they are a little thinner. They were crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside and not soggy at all - I despise soggy fries. 

The brisket was my second favorite after the chicken. It was chunked up and with the addition of their spicy barbecue sauce it was tender, flavorful and just a little spicy. 

I loved the coleslaw and it's the best slaw I have had in this town. It was creamy and fresh, the slaw was crunchy, not soggy, so you could tell they make it in house. It was a nice addition to the plate of meat that I ordered. 

Overall, I enjoyed my experience. If you aren't much for barbecue they also have a menu that features sandwiches, tacos, fajitas and other food like that. I want to return and try their chimichanga - I love those.

 I look forward to returning and trying other items on their menu. They have lunch specials as well as family-sized meals that will feed five to six people, these are called "beast feasts".

Pricing is a little high, I must say. None of their sandwiches are under $9.50 and their appetizers are all over $8 except for their fried pickles, which are priced at $6.99.  Their lunch specials have some items priced around $7, but not many of them. 

The service was okay. The waitress started off strong, bringing us our drinks quickly and our appetizer and food. Then our friends met us a little later and they didn't get as good of service. I didn't have a bad experience, but my friend had to wait on his beer and he wasn't happy with that.

The website for Boss Hawg's is currently under construction but if you Google search the restaurant, you can find a link to their menu.