Thursday, May 13, 2010

Food Reviews

I've mentioned to Joe a number of times I think it would be fun to be a food critic/reviewer. Back in March we heard a food critic on NPR and I mentioned again about it. He suggested I use our blog to begin to review restaurants. So, on our recent trip to Biloxi, MS I decided to start.

Blow Fly Inn
The Blow Fly Inn is a local, mom and pop restaurant off the beaten path in Gulfport, MS. The restaurant is located on the water giving a beautiful view as you eat. (See picture below.) They serve a lot of your standard seafood/southern favorites including fried pickles, fried green tomatoes, shrimp, grouper, etc. We started our meal with an appetizer of asparagus baked in parmesan cheese, although to call it baked is a bit of a misnomer. It was sprinkled with parmesan cheese, but it wasn't crunchy or melted as if baked. The asparagus itself looked to be steamed and was cooked perfectly. At $3.99 it seemed a bit much to pay, but it was tasty. We then both had salads. They left much to be desired. The raspberry vinaigrette was really sweet, tasking more like syrup than dressing. The homemade 1000 Island was good. The salad itself was iceberg lettuce, croutons, a tomato and cucumber slice. Our entrees were the highlight of the meal. I had the crab cakes, which were made with real lump crab, not much filler and a spicy remolade. Joe had the Crawfish Etouffee with rice. For the view/atmosphere and entrees I would give the Blow Fly Inn an overall rating of a B+.
Burger, Burger
Burger, Burger is known for well, like it's name, burgers. We however, were only able to eat there for breakfast. The menu consisted of your traditional diner type breakfast fare pancakes, eggs, omelets, etc. I got the 2 pancakes, 2 eggs, grits, toast, 2 sausage breakfast. The pancakes were only ok. They were a bit crispy and tastes a little like the oil they were cooked in. I really like pancakes and I was a bit disappointed with them. The eggs I ordered over medium, but were over easy instead. Joe liked the grits and said they tasted like the long cooking kind. The sausage was probably my favorite part of the meal. They were a bit spicy and came out piping hot. Joe ordered the short stack banana walnut pancakes, which he throughly enjoyed. He also had the coffee, which was good. The service was really good. I liked the atmosphere. There were pictures up of local events and people. There was a group of regulars there enjoying their breakfast while we were eating. Unfortunately, I wouldn't really suggest Burger, Burger for breakfast. You honestly could get better food at IHOP. But I would be willing to go back to try their lunch menu.
Kim Long
Kim Long is a Vietnames restaurant that is very authentic (or at least seems to be, I've never been to Vietnam). The menu had crazy things on it like Coconut drink, intestines. The food is good, cheap and a lot. We started off our meal with the spring rolls. They were delicious with shrimp and beef in them accompanied by a peanut dipping sauce. Joe had the BinBun for his entree. This consisted of rice noodles with cilantro, beef, cabbage and a vinegar sauce you pour over the noodles. I had the BinMan. To me it was exactly like Pho. I couldn't really see what the difference was. There were noodles, BBQ beef, cabbage, cilantro, bean sprouts, jalapenos all in a chicken broth. So, if you're in Biloxi and craving some Asian food look up Kim Long.

Los Rancheros
Los Rancheros was amazing. It was by far the best mexican food I've had since living in the South. As some of you know, I LOVE mexican food and have pretty high standards. When we walked in we were met by all Mexicans working there, speaking Spanish. I was a good sign. The restaurant is family owned and operated. But let me get to the food. They started off by bringing us chips and salsa. They made the chips and salsa fresh. We devoured them. (Funny side note: we both got water and it came in small pitchers, not glasses, but pitchers.) For our meal we ordered the fajitas for two. It came with beef, chicken, shrimp, peppers, onion, tomato all covered in cheese. There was enough of it for 3 or 4 people easily. We each got 3 tortillas, guacamole, beans, rice, lettuce, pico. The beef was tender and the chicken was marinaded and seasoned great, not at all dry. The meat was even good the next day reheated in the microwave. It was a good price too, only $24. This is a place not to miss.

1 comment:

Mia said...

We want a review of Biker Burger on Beal Parkway in Fort Walton. It's caught the Agners' eyes.