Herman's Meat and Smokehouse New Location

Herman's Meat and Smokehouse has been in the Topeka area for many years and today they opened a brand-new location. I've driven by the spot for the past few months, watching the building as it was built and slowly put together. I've been anticipating its opening since last fall when it was just an empty lot with grass and wild flowers.

The building is all newly built, with a patio and outdoor seating. The inside has room for dining room with booths and tables for people to eat at. The other half of the building is set up like a deli and meat counter with an island of shelves with condiments and odds and ends, charcoal, bags of chips and much more. There's even an entire shelf that has yet to be stocked, so I'm curious to see what will go in there.

This new location opened June 6, 2016 and I decided to go on

opening day. Usually, I wait until a restaurant has been open for a few weeks before trying, but like I said, I've been waiting for quite awhile and didn't want to wait any more. I did go in the afternoon around 3:30 so I wouldn't have to deal with a lunch or dinner crowd and it was a good idea. I waited a few minutes in line before ordering, then another few minutes for my order to be filled. I'd say I didn't wait any more than 10 minutes.

I wanted to try the ribs, so I made sure to order three of those with one other meat of my choice, (pork, of course) and two sides. I chose the cheesy potatoes because I saw where someone had commented on the Topeka Restaurants Facebook page that they were on point. For my other side I chose mac and cheese, because how can you go wrong with that? The meal cost around $15, which is a little expensive for one meal, but it's barbecue and ribs at that, so I didn't mind paying the money. You can always go cheaper if you don't order ribs, and Herman's also offers family size meals where you order meat by the pound, so you can feed more people for less.

My favorites were the pulled pork and the cheesy potatoes. The pork wasn't greasy like a lot of pulled
pork can be and there weren't any huge chunks of fat or gristle I had to remove. I was able to just eat my meat and swallow it, so I was appreciative of that. The sauce is tangy and sweet, but had no real spice to it. I looked around for spicy sauce, but didn't see any, although I could have just missed it. The cheesy potatoes are different than others I've had around town. These are chunks of potatoes with bacon and cheese melted on top. The potatoes are soft and smothered in cheese with chunks of bacon throughout. The side dish is a little greasy from the cheese, but who cares? I think it's wonderful.

The ribs were smokey and tender. They weren't "falling off the bone" but I don't think ribs should be to be good, as long as they are tender, and these were. The smoke was just right and I didn't have to use any sauce. Sometimes when ribs aren't good I slather them in sauce, these needed none. The ribs also had a lot of meat on the bones so I ended up with a little over one left over for later.

The only thing I wasn't a huge fan of was the mac and cheese. It tasted fine and there was nothing wrong with it, I just probably won't order it again. The sauce wasn't creamy enough for me seems to pool around the noodles instead of stick to them. I felt like I had to spear my noodles then scoop up some sauce to get them together. That being said, it wasn't bad, just not my favorite.

The menu features your typical smokehouse items, brisket, turkey, chicken, pulled pork and ribs. They also have deli sandwiches to-order and an actual deli and meat counter. Now that the location is
closer to my house and more centralized in Topeka, I'm sure I'll be getting my raw meat there more often. I also plan to come back for the smoked meats and cheesy potatoes. I think it was worth the wait.

The Wheel Barrel -- NOTO's Newest Addition

After all the great things I've been hearing since it's opening last weekend, I had to check out The Wheel Barrel. I heard they ran out of food on Saturday night and had to close early they had such an awesome turnout. Tonight they were packed as well. I hope it keeps it up. I've always loved NOTO and I'm excited to see a new restaurant open there.

The place is small and probably seats around 50 people, but there is a huge patio area outside, too, that I'm sure will fill up easily in the warmer months.

After seating ourselves our waitress came and took our order. The beer list is impressive and takes a second to take in. Some were from Kansas City, and most were a variety of craft beers.

Most items on the menu are grilled sandwiches, soups and pretzels. The charcuterie plate was what

caught my eye, but alas, they were out of that item at the time of my visit. The waitress said that's been happening a lot because they've been so busy. So we got the pretzel and cheese dip instead, which was pretty good, and they make their own cheese sauce, so it's not that fake, orange nacho cheese that usually comes with pretzels. There is also some salsa or green chili in the cheese so there's a slight kick, but nothing overwhelming, just enough to know it's there.

For my dinner I ordered the Monte Cristo with a cup of their house-made tomato bisque. As a teenager, the first Monte Cristo sandwich I ever had was battered and deep-fat-fried and I've been trying to find one like it ever since. This sandwich wasn't deep-fat-fried, it was grilled, but it was still crispy on the outside like I wanted it to be, and probably with less fat than if it were fried.  The sandwich was sprinkled with powdered sugar and served with grape jelly. Inside is turkey and gruyere cheese, which is one of my favorite cheeses because it's not Swiss cheese. I like

Swiss cheese, but Gruyere tends to be a little creamier and softer than the sharpness of Swiss. I would order this sandwich again, but first I plan to try a few others that sounded interesting.

For my side, I ordered the tomato bisque. I always love me some tomato soup, and the waitress informed me it was made in-house, so that was even more intriguing. This soup is on the menu daily, and in addition they have a soup-of-the-day. Today it was French onion soup, so I went for the tomato. I enjoyed the soup, but I do think it needed quite a bit of salt. After I added what I thought was enough seasoning, it was bangin. It was creamy, tomato-y and not that Campbell's soup crap.

I enjoyed my first visit to The Wheel Barrel and plan to return. I can't wait for it to warm up so patios open up around town. The waitstaff was friendly, the atmosphere was welcoming and the food was good. I think you should check it out, too.  Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Sunday Brunch

For Sunday Brunch, The Wheel Barrel features Bloody Marys and mimosas for $4 and a limited menu. I went with six other people and were able to get a nice table on the patio. It was a beautiful day for patio dining, too, so we got lucky.

I ordered a Bloody Mary because I can't seem to find one in this town that isn't full of horseradish and Worcestershire. This one had neither, at least that I could tell. If it did, they used just enough so I didn't taste it. All I needed to add was a little salt and it was good to go. The rim is dusted with some sort of spicy celery salt, which I wasn't a huge fan of, and it came with a lime, green bean and a whole pickle spear. I think that was my favorite part, the pickle. I'm usually not a fan of a bunch of food in my Bloody Mary, but this wasn't bad. It's when you get an olive, a pickle, a lime, a piece of sausage (yes, I've gotten sausage once) and all that other crap. I just want some spiced up tomato juice with some vodka in it, (oh and that pickle apparently).

For brunch I ordered the Breakfast BLT. A fried egg, cheddar cheese, bacon and baby greens all on brioche was a nice twist on a regular BLT. The added egg was nice and the cheddar added a nice creaminess to the sandwich. The brioche was toasted and crunchy and I loved the thick cut bacon. This sandwich I would order again.

As before, the waitstaff was accommodating and friendly. Our waitress was quick and helpful when it

came to questions on the menu.

For those of you who have children, the patio on a nice day is the perfect place to take your kids to eat. There is a playground of sorts with toys and sidewalk chalk for your little ones to take advantage of while you're waiting on your food or chatting with friends after dinner.

I think this is going to be one of my new favorite spots in NOTO.

Horizon's Hamburger Palace

Horizon's Hamburgers is back, and has been for about a week (written February 26, 2016). The lady who works the cash register says they've been busier than anticipated. In March, they will begin serving a breakfast menu, but thew owner keeps pushing the date back because they've been so busy with lunch. Hopefully, it will be here sooner than later, especially if it's gonna be as good as their burgers.

When you walk in you gotta order at the counter, then wait for your name to be called. I didn't have to wait long to order, as there was no line. Their menu is pretty basic, but basic is fine with me, as long as it's good. Burgers, chicken sandwiches, pork tenders, BLTs and other sandwiches are available, as well as some dinners such as chicken fried steak, chicken strips, catfish and more. I see they also have homemade soup and chili.

I didn't try any of that, I just went for a burger. I've never had a Horizon's hamburger so I thought I'd start simple. There are two sizes, the Horizon, which is 1/6 pound and the Sunrise, which is 1/3 pound. Each can be ordered as a single, a double or a triple. I just went for the single Sunrise with everything but mustard and onion. I also ordered some fries and my hubby ordered some onion rings so I could try those, too.

My burger and fries took about 15 minutes, but definitely worth the wait. It was lunchtime and the

burgers seem to be fresh, not frozen so I could understand the wait and I'm okay with that. If you're in a hurry, maybe grab your food to go or come back when you have some more time, or when it's not so busy. The burger was juicy, flavorful and filling. The bun is grilled, which I thought was a nice touch, and I'm pretty sure the burger isn't a frozen puck because it looked hand-formed because it wasn't uniform in shape or size, especially compared to my hubby's burgers, (he got a double).

The fries the onion rings weren't anything special, just frozen and fried. That was fine to me, but I also felt they could have changed their fryer oil, which they probably did after their busy lunch. I came in around 1:30 p.m., so their lunch rush was just beginning to slow down, but not really. Like I said, the woman at the counter told me the restaurant has been much busier than expected.

I look forward to trying their breakfast menu and a few of their dinners. It seems like the menu is
heavy with fried items, though, so I may have to wait between visits.

If you're looking for something other than a fast food cheeseburger, you need to try Horizon's Hamburger Palace. Local, fresh and tasty, that's all I need. The prices weren't bad either.

Shana Cake

A new bakery opened in Topeka last month but it's not your typical bakery. Shana Cake features allergy-free baked goods. That means that all of the products contain absolutely no gluten, wheat, soy, dairy, corn, nuts, tree nuts, GMOs, artificial flavorings or colors or preservatives. Some of the items can be made without egg, too.

I stopped in to try some of their cupcakes because I've only heard good things and of course I wanted to see for myself. I've tried the vanilla vanilla cupcake at a bridal fair a few weeks ago and was impressed that it was free of all those allergens that usually make baked goods moist, fluffy and sweet, and it was still moist, fluffy and sweet. Because Shana Cake sells mini cupcakes, I didn't feel guilty getting six different flavors, a mini loaf cake and a loaf of white sandwich bread, (OK maybe just a little).

The mini loaf cake tasted like orange and cranberry or something fruity. The cupcakes are moist and sweet, and I would never have been able to tell they were allergen free if nobody told me. The frosting is sweet, too, with a nice texture that doesn't sit on your tongue forever like some shortening-based frostings. The apple cinnamon one was my favorite. And again, no dairy. That's the most impressive thing to me.

The cupcake that surprised me the most was the Lemonade Stand cupcake. I don't like lemon, usually

White sandwich bread

but this cupcake had just enough lemon flavor that it wasn't overpowering and I could stand it. Sometimes, lemon flavored foods can be too tart for me, but this was sweet with a slight lemon tang. I actually didn't hate it. But, it's still lemon so I probably won't order it again. For you lemon fans, though, you should definitely give it a try, whether you have an allergy or not.

I tried the white sandwich bread, too. I sliced me a piece off and slathered it with butter -- I don't have an allergy, so I figured, why not? -- and bit into my gluten and wheat free bread. I was impressed. I didn't notice anything about my bread except for that it was tasty and reminded me of when my mom made bread machine bread. I think it could use some salt, or maybe some salted butter, but for a ham sandwich it would be perfect. I plan to slice it up and try it with a sandwich tomorrow or the next day.

Hoagie buns and dinner rolls are also for sale at Shana Cake but I didn't try those. I started small but I guarantee I will be back for more. I'd recommend trying these products even if you don't have an allergy because they're good. If you work with someone who has an allergy, or your children's classmates have an allergy, these are perfect to take to work or school so everyone can enjoy them. And, they're pretty tasty, too.

Mr. Nice Guy's Hot Box

This article was originally published in seveneightfive magazine in August 2015.

I’ve found the perfect hangover food: a Philly from Mr. Nice Guy’s Hot Box in Oakland. After a night

out, this sandwich is what my stomach needs to recover quickly for the next day ahead.

A small, hole-in-the-wall at 2601 NE Sardou Avenue, Mr. Nice Guy’s Hot Box is just that, a little hot box. There are two large booths and one smaller one along one wall, and the ordering counter and kitchen on the other wall. That’s about it and I love it. Another local favorite.

I’ve only tried the Philly Guy once before and I got one measly bite. This time, I got the entire thing to myself, and that’s the only way to do it, I don’t like sharing. It comes with a bag of chips, but chips are chips, am I right? The sandwich is on a hoagie-style bun and overflowing with beef, peppers, onions, mushrooms and white cheese sauce. Just looking at it as the waitress brought it over I began salivating and I heard my tummy rumble. It was love at first sight, (ok second sight, but I still loved it the first time!) 

The cheesesteak is served with a fork, but I like getting my hands dirty so I threw aside the fork and ate it the way a sandwich is supposed to be enjoyed -- with my hands. The cheese melted down my fingers, but that didn’t stop me and added to the experience. I think by the end it was even running down my face. There are plenty of napkins for later, so I just dug in. The cheese melts throughout the sandwich and coats the meat and the veggies, but there’s enough that some stays on top, too. It’s ooey, gooey and messy but that’s part of the fun.

I must note that I normally order items like this without peppers or onions. The first time I tried a bite, the friend’s sandwich had both of those ingredients on it, and I found I didn’t mind them. I feel like, a true Philly Cheesesteak has to have peppers and onions on it, so I went ahead and ordered it the way it’s meant to be. The peppers were cooked just to the point where they are still tender but not crunchy, so that really helped. The flavor of the sauteed green peppers, onions and mushrooms complimented the sandwich and I was appreciative that I left them on.

After a night of drinking and eating greasy food, the Philly Guy is there to comfort you. It’s not greasy but it has lots of meat and cheese, all stuffed into a soft bun. And if a Philly isn’t something that suits your fancy, breakfast is served until 11 a.m. and they have all kinds of pulled pork and barbecue items on the menu. I have to say, though, I’ll probably stay faithful to the Philly Guy every time.

Kyoto

(this still shows the location as Kim's Vietnamese, but trust me, it's Kyoto now)

I've been trolling the Topeka Restaurant Group on Facebook for a couple months now and the consensus is most definitely that Kyoto is amazing. So, I decided to go check it out and see for myself.

Ryan and I ordered sushi and hot food from the hibachi. For sushi we got a rainbow roll, my favorite, and he got some other sashimi that I'm not too fond of. The rainbow roll is basically a California roll topped with raw salmon and a white fish (the menu said "white fish" so I'm not sure the exact type it was) and this particular sushi chef decided to top his with roasted garlic. I liked the garlic, but Ryan did not -- he scraped it off of his portion. I didn't mind it because there was a small amount on each piece of sushi and I felt it complimented without overpowering the raw fish.

After our meal, our waitress asked us if we like sushi and if she could recommend a few rolls to try next time, (there will be a next time and soon). She pulled out her phone and showed us three or four rolls that are her favorite, including the Hawaiian roll. That's the one I'm looking forward to ordering next time.

I ordered the hibachi ribeye that comes with a soup, salad, rice, noodles and vegetables.

The salad had a sweet ginger dressing -- that I could have drank by the cupful -- with crunchy noodles, carrots on iceberg lettuce. The soup was just a broth with green onions and thinly sliced mushrooms floating around in it. I liked it but the weather was too hot for me to want to eat much of it. I ate my entire salad because that dressing!

The hot food all came on one plate. The noodles were thin and sweet, I could eat just those for dinner they were so tasty (with a cup of that ginger dressing, of course). The fried rice was steamed and then fried and chewy but in a good way. The vegetables were cooked just right, al dente and not soggy. There was a lot of zucchini and carrots, my favorite.  My meat was cooked a perfect medium rare just as I asked and I really just have no complaints about anything at all.

The portions were huge and even though the menu is pricey, you get your money's worth. I have lunch for tomorrow.

When we were on our way out, the waitress asked us if we had ever tried their Ramune drink, a Japanese soft drink. She said it's made with real sugar. We were intrigued so we said of course we'll try it. The one we tried was strawberry flavored. When she opened the drink, I was confused about what exactly she was doing, but with further research on the good old world wide web, I found out all about it. Sometimes, this soda is also referred to as marble pop, and that's because the bottle is sealed with a glass marble. It's opened by forcing the marble out and into the the drink, where it clangs around while you drink.  Hey, but who cares about a marble, the soda was good and I would buy one next time I'm there.

I will return and try other items on the menu. The people working were friendly and seemed like a family. The atmosphere was inviting and there was a cute little kid walking around smiling at people. He even said goodbye to us and followed us to the door waving. How cute. I can't wait to return.

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.