Pho Xinh (Vietnamese)

Back to Pho Xinh for lunch today. Love this place!

A1 spring rolls; A6 summer rolls with BBQ pork and A10 beef wrapped in grape leaves - everything tasted especially good today, for some reason.

Ken ordered M3 - crispy egg noodle with beef and vegetables. He enjoyed it thoroughly.

Jay ordered M11 - pad thai with tofu. Delicious! Half went home for dinner tonight.

Jay also ordered the honey dew shake, which she loves. This time it came with the bubbles (gelatin), which were really fun to sip through the straw.

Barnacle Ben's (Seafood) - New Location!

After receiving a gift card to Barnacle Ben's, we visited today for lunch at their new location: 200 Larchmont Boulevard, Mount Laurel, NJ, (856-235-5808). It was smaller than their previous location, but very well decorated.

There were only two servers, but service was still good. Unfortunately, there didn't appear to be anyone else around to bus tables, so many were left unattended.

We ordered the coconut shrimp as an appetizer. The four jumbo shrimp were very good and just enough.

Ken ordered the seafood crepe - shrimp, scallops and lobster in a champagne sauce. He ordered fries and wild rice as his vegetables. He said the crepe was delicious and just the right size.

Jay ordered the seafood newburg - crab, shrimp and scallops in a pink sherry sauce. It was delicious as usual and a nice portion. She took home part of her vegetables - sweet potato fries and cole slaw.

Food was good. We may return for lunch.

No wine, but the raspberry iced tea that Jay had was refreshing. Ken had root beer (his standby).

IndeBlue (Indian)

We're back! IndeBlue has moved across the street in Collingswood to a bigger, better facility (former Blackbird location).

We met our friends Karin and George and had a fantastic lunch!

We love the shrimp kaliwada and got two orders, plus an order of garlic naan.

Three of us ordered from the March special menu:

Jay and Karin and the Lamb Do Pyaza - delicious, tender and flavorful.

George had the crab cakes, but asked for them as an entree portion.

Ken ordered from the regular menu - seafood platter, which he enjoyed immensely.

Wines enjoyed:
2009 Babich Malborough Sauvignon Blanc
2008 Graff Riesling Kabinett
2009 Shaya Verdejo Old Vines
2009 Voluptuoso Malbec Mendoza Argentina

Can't wait to return to try new dishes. Can't go wrong with anything here.

IndeBlue (Indian)

Congratulations to Rakesh and his wife Heather on the birth of their third daughter!

We met our friends, Karin and George, at IndeBlue in Collingswood today for lunch. This has to be the best Indian restaurant in the area. We've been here a few times before, and this was the best visit ever!

Appetizers:
Shrimp Koliwada
Chicken Tikka Spring Rolls

We shared the asparagus soup with basil pesto and mixed herb naan (special). Excellent! Even George, who doesn't like asparagus, found it quite tasty.

The garlic naan was so crispy and savory that we had a second order.

Entrees:
Jay & George - Tariwale Aloo Gosht (lamb stew)

Ken - Jhinga Rasedar (shrimp)

Karin - Lamb

We shared peanut butter ice cream which was so creamy and full of flavor.

Wines enjoyed:
2008 Shaya Verdejo Old Vines

2007 Terrasses de Maynard Saint-Chinian-Roquebrun Red Languedoc Wine (France)

2008 Cline Zinfandel (California)

Our server, William, was very attentive and made the dining experience a pleasure.

Although we ate a lot of food, we were not left overly stuffed, but pleasantly full. There was no need for dinner later in the day...

Pizzicato

While visiting the Apple Store, we made it a point to stop by Pizzicato, one of our top five favorites.

The bread is fresh and delicious and the dip is addictive...

We shared the spicy and sweet fried calamari with Parmesan Portebello mushrooms. Ken declared that this is still the best.

Jay was craving pizza (a good one!) so she had the Margherita pizette. Delicious!

Ken wanted the roast beef wrap, but they were out of roast beef, so his second choice was the chicken caesar wrap. It was so big, he could only eat half. It came with fresh cut fries.

We were extremely satisfied when we left.

Wine enjoyed:
2003 Villa Sorriso Castellaia di Toscana - went well with the entire meal

The location in Moorestown should be open within the next two weeks. We look forward to visiting that location.

Joe Palombo's Mirabella Cafe (Italian)

Sunday, we FINALLY made it to Joe Palombo's Mirabella Cafe,Barclay Farms Shopping Center, 210 East Route 70, Cherry Hill, NJ (856-354-1888).

Our server was Michelangelo, a pleasant, knowledgeable, young man, who didn't mess up our order like the server at the table across from us (how do you not know clams and linguine from mussels and cappelini?)

Good food, but at times it came out too quickly. We forgot to tell him to take his time...

No bread, which was strange for an Italian restaurant.

Appetizers:
Jay was craving the fried smelts, which Joe used to make at Casanova Grill. She wasn't disappointed.

Ken enjoyed the special - Citrus dusted fresh sea scallops (Barnegat Light) with red navel oranges and fennel salad.

Joe's Salad was nice and refreshing. It consisted of Romaine lettuce, cubed homemade mozzarella, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, lemon and olive oil, topped with shaved grana padana.

Entrees:

Jay had the pescatore risotto. Delicious! There was so much food, she took home half for the next night's dinner.

Ken had the veal parmigiana, which he said was almost as good as La Posata's. That's a big compliment. It came with roasted potatoes and grilled vegetables.

A bit noisy, since it's more family-oriented, so Ken may not to return any time soon. If we do go back, he wants to try the chicken saltimbucca. Jay may go back for the Seven Fishes dinner on the 23rd or 24th.

Wines enjoyed:
2005 Pianezzo Dolcetto di Dogliani
2009 Red Bird Chardonnay, Clarksburg, CA (My Wines Direct comes through again!)

• Dress - business casual
• Service - very good
• Decor - multiple rooms; good for large parties
• Portions - large
• Price - reasonable
• Reservations - recommended 

Future restaurants we discussed:

 Blackbird (Collingswood)

 Indie Blue (Collingswood)

 Joe Pesce (Collingswood)

 Nunzio's (Collingswood)

 Tortilla Press (Collingswood)

 Tuscan Grille (near Dream Cuisine)

Tres Elena Wu (Eclectic Asian Cuisine with French Influences)

We finally visited Tres Elena Wu, 3131 Route 38 (at Larchmont Boulevard), Mount Laurel, NJ, tonight. Since Elena Wu is no longer in Voorhees, we wanted to see if the ambience had changed. It was a lovely experience. No more dining with unknown neighbors.




We had a great server. Unfortunately, when he gave his name, Jay was too embarrassed to ask him to repeat it, but he was extremely personable.

Appetizers:
Jay enjoyed the Pan Seared New Bedford Scallop & Sesame Crusted Tuna. The scallops were done to perfection. The tuna was rare, exactly how it should be and accompanied with a mild wasabi sauce and ginger. A nice salad of greens and tomato completed the appetizer.


Ken enjoyed the beef skewers, 4 nice-sized skewers of perfectly seasoned beef. Yummy!

Entrees:
Jay had the Mongolian lamb with brown rice. It was delicious and although she tried to eat it all, she ended up taking some home for tomorrow's lunch.




Ken thoroughly enjoyed the Shrimp Stuffed with Lump Crabmeat. The entree came with asparagus and grilled zucchini, squash and peppers. Very tasty and surprisingly filling.



We will return - Ken may try the Grand Marnier Shrimp next time.

Wines enjoyed:
2008 Las Tizas Malbec
2009 Red Bird Chardonnay

• Dress - smart casual
• Service - excellent
• Decor - classic; large screen TV available for those special sporting events (Phillies!)
• Portions - large
• Price - reasonable
• Reservations - Recommended