Got root?

Michael Jordan was a phenomenal basketball player and some would argue he was the best ever. His restaurant at the Mohegan Sun Casino certainly ranks right up there too.

On Friday evening, my wife and I had tickets for the Billy Joel concert at the Mohegan Sun Arena. We also had a gift certificate to the Michael Jordan Steakhouse restaurant there, so we decided to make a day of it and head to the casino early.

I’m not much of a gambler, but the atmosphere at the Mohegan Sun is definitely electric (it was my first time there), and the decor is extremely well done. I prefer the whole atmosphere to Foxwoods, which seems a bit sterile compared to Mohegan Sun.

We spent the early afternoon browsing through the shops, and having a drink at the bar in front of the waterfall. Since Michael Jordan’s opens at 4 p.m., and since we did not have reservations, we headed up there for when they opened.

We gave our names, and headed to the bar. The atmosphere was friendly, and make no mistake, the drink prices were on the high side. Lagavulin, my preferred single malt these days, was $18. Glenlivet was $10.

As with any upscale restaurant, the liquor prices are high — that’s where the money is made after all, but we enjoyed our drinks at the bar until they seated us.

The menu choices were varied, and the choice of steaks was decent. I opted for the Kansas City Strip ($46) and Kim opted for the Delmonico ($35). The sides were a la cart, and she chose a spinach salad, and I chose Mashed Yukon Gold Potatoes with Lobster and Creme Freche. Having our drinks from the bar, we stuck with ice water and not a bottle of wine.

(BTW, the water down there is great. Not sure if it is “city water” or not, but for regular, non-bottled water, it was very nice).

Our meals were incredibly delicious. They did a wonderful job with the steaks. If I’m paying that much for steak, it needs to be superb, and it was. In fact, words don’t adequately describe how nice the experience was. It was a phenomenal meal.

If I were passing out gold forks, Michael Jordan’s would get five from me, and I would definitely eat there again.

Technorati Tags: food, restuarant, review

I had an opportunity to eat at the bar at the Corner Pug this evening. It’s on New Britain Ave in the Elmwood section of West Hartford.

The place used to be called the Corner Pub, but it changed hands a while back and the new owners are into Pug dogs, so they renamed it the Corner Pug.

First, they have a wonderful selection of beers on tap, which is what you would expect from a Irish pub type bar. Second, they have a kick ass selection of top shelf Scotch, Irish Whiskey and other fine distilled spirits.

But their menu is what really sets them apart.

I’ve eaten there before, and have NEVER had a bad meal. The food is pub food, but kicked up a notch. This evening I had prime rib, with garlic mashed potatoes and creamed spinach. Creamed spinach you say? Yes, creamed spinach and it was GREAT. The meat was done perfectly. Washed it all down with a Samuel Adams Summer Ale, and were I not driving, I would have had a nice Lagavulin to top it all off.

In the past I’ve had their macaroni and cheese (made with gruyere and other cheeses), with the pasta standing on end in a large ramican. It’s awesome.

I’ve had their Shepherd’s pie, again, awesome.

Their meatloaf and their pot roast are equally as good.

I strongly recommend going to the Corner Pug. Eat the bar and if Tammy is bartending, tell her Frank says “hi.”
Technorati Tags: restaurant, bar, food, review

After the show today we were hungry, and the girls wanted to go play at their cousin’s house, so Kim and I visited the new Wild Rover, and Irish Pub in Wethersfield.

Our experience was good. We both had their fish and chips, although on the menu it’s called “Dublin Beer Battered Cod”. The portion size was large, and it was perfectly done.

I had a Backdraft beer, most excellent — a dark, smokey beer that went well with the fish.

The atmosphere is great, with Irish music playing. I think they also have live entertainment.

The only drawback is the view out the dining room windows, to the side was I was facing, is the back of the adjacent paint store. I remarked to Kim that the paint store should paint a big Emerald Isle mural on the side of the wall.

Oh yeah, their bread was phenomenal too….

We’ll go back to try more items on the menu, and different beers.