Charlie Vergo's Rendezvous

Charlie Vergo's Rendezvous

52 S 2nd St

Memphis, TN 38103

(901) 523-2746

One of the most famous BBQ restaurants in Memphis is the Rendezvous.  This is my brother's favorite one, so every time he is in town visiting, he wants to go here for dinner.  

We split a pitcher of Memphis's own Ghost River beer.  

They are known for their ribs, so that is what I had.  In Memphis, each BBQ restaurant has it's following.  This one is my brother's favorite.  I like it, but it's not my favorite.  They do have an amazing dry rub on the ribs, though.  I really like the slaw here, though.  

My mom orders the Rendezvous special appetizer, which has pickled, peppers, cheese, sausage, and salami.  It is all delicious.  

They have great service.  The lines are long, but they go quickly (normally).  It is a Memphis staple, so everyone must try it.  The ribs are tender and well seasoned.  

Centaur Bar

Centaur Bar
2233 Park Ave
Detroit, MI 48201
(313) 963-4040

Centaur Bar is a bar in downtown Detroit.  I recently visited during an afternoon.  It is a nice trendy bar.  It was a Thursday afternoon, and there was only one other party there.  The decor is very trendy looking.  The second floor has a super long couch.  We, however, sat at the bar for a cocktail.

The drinks are a little pricier than normal.  I had a whiskey and water, which was $7.50.  Normally, this drink is around 4 to 6 dollars.  

Although, we didn't get any food, their prices are pretty varied.  The most expensive dish I saw was a caviar dish for $50.  Most other plates were around $8 to $10.  The other meals were mini burgers, cheese plates, etc (typical tapas).  

The bar was nice, but the prices seemed a bit high, especially since there wasn't really anyone in the place.  

A. Schwab's

A. Schwab's

163 Beale St

Memphis, TN 38103

(901) 523-9782

The store has a wide variety of total randomness.  However, I'm not reviewing that aspect.  The store has some antiques to look at in a museum area, but I'm not reviewing that.  

I am reviewing the brand new soda fountain!  I didn't even know that it existed until today.  They have coffee, milk shakes, lemonade, limeade, some old fashioned soda, and pastries.  

It looks like a step into the past. They servers even had those old time diner hats.  

I ordered a fresh made lemonade and Garrett had a vanilla milk shake.  

At first, I thought they were taking too long in making it, until I realized they were actually making the lemonade one cup at a time.  You can't get any fresher than that.  She squeezed the lemons right at the bar.  It was a delicious cup of awesomeness.  It had the perfect balance of sweetness and sourness.  

Garrett's milkshake was also good.  They made it fresh, too with ice cream and milk.  

I will definitely go back!  It's a great addition!

Lafayette Market

Lafayette Market
1565 East Lafayette Blvd.
Detroit, MI 48207
313-396-5600

The closest grocery store to where G lives in Detroit is Lafayette Market.  It's a small grocery store, but it has whatever you need to buy, including wine and beer.

They also have plate meals for $7.99.  I thought it was a bit high, but their portions are HUGE.  I ordered fried chicken.  I got to choose my pieces and got two legs, a thigh, and a wing.  For my two sides I chose dressing and mac n' cheese.  I also had a choice of cornbread or a dinner roll, and of course, I chose the cornbread.

The downside was that the food was probably cooked way earlier that day, so the chicken was just ok.  I didn't eat all of it and it wasn't too great the next day.  The cornbread was also a bit dry for my taste.  The mac n' cheese was good, but it was obviously a powdered cheese.  The winner of the meal was the dressing.  It was obviously made in house and had chicken in it.  I wish more places had dressing as a standard side.  For grocery store food, this was a winner.  

The guy working the counter was also really friendly and let us taste whatever we wanted.  He said the dressing was "damn good."  The portions are so huge that my plate was pretty heavy.  The cashier said it was so heavy, I was going to get a new rump, which would be good for twerking if I decided to take that up in the future.  Ha ha.  

O'Sushi

O'Sushi
22431 Michigan Ave
Dearborn, MI 48124
(313) 562-4166

We decided to go find some sushi in Detroit, and we ended up at O'Sushi.  We started with some warm sushi.

Then I had some miso soup, which was typical.  

Following my soup, we shared some edamame, which was also typically tasty.  

For my sushi, I had an squid nigiri and an eel cucumber roll.  Both were tasty, especially the squid.  I love some raw seafood.  

Garrett had two salmon skin rolls and a spicy scallop roll.  All were good.  

Additionally, I had the mussel appetizer, which was warm.  It was perhaps my favorite thing.  

O'Sushi is a typical sushi place.  The food is average good.  Our total bill was just over $40.  Considering we had sake, appetizers and plenty of sushi, it wasn't too bad.  The food is fine, but to be honest it was nothing out of the ordinary.  However, if I'm in the area, I would go back.  It's just not worth a special trip.  

Holiday Inn Express, Breakfast and Bar, England

Holiday Inn Express
London Road
Slough SL3 8QB

When we went to London, we stayed near the airport.  It was less expensive; it was convenient to the airport; and it allowed us to see things that most (if not all) tourists will never see.

The first perk of the hotel was that it offers a nice breakfast.  It was a buffet with a traditional English breakfast of eggs, sausage, and beans.

It also had coffee (instant), tea, cereal, toast, French bread, croissants, and chocolate croissants.  The chocolate croissants were perfect. I also enjoyed the sausage.  I don't like beans very much, but since it is tradition, I tried it.  

Our last evening was spent at the hotel bar.  Due to our flight and everything, we said Happy New Years's here.  The bartender was friendly.  My New Years beer was called "John Smith's."  If you notice on the picture, it says "extra cold."  Apparently, the idea of an extra cold beer is more American, than British.  Sometimes I saw taps that had a choice of regular or extra cold.  

This hotel was an average Holiday Inn.  It was nice to get a full breakfast everyday, especially since it saved us some money.  It also allowed us to see Slough and other things that most tourists wouldn't see.  

Trolley Stop Market

Trolley Stop Market
704 Madison Ave
Memphis, TN 38103

Trolley Stop Market is a great place to eat.  They also have a store with local and organic items.  They are open for lunch and dinner.  In my head, they're more of a casual lunch place, but they are open.

Last time, I went I took my mom for her first time.  She ordered the caesar salad with chicken.  She loves this type of salad and gave it two thumbs up.

I had the grilled three cheese, tomato, and basil sandwich with a side of potato salad.  Both items were great.  I ended up taking the crust of the bread so that I didn't miss any of the cream from the potato salad.  

The decor is colorful and will inspire you to keep a smile on your face.  

I know that they also have desserts, milk shakes, pizza, and local beer.  This is an awesome place, so if you haven't had it, you're missing out.

National Coney Island

National Coney Island
2500 World Gateway Pl McNamara Terminal, Gate A24
Wayne, MI
(734) 955-1733

I was at the Detroit airport with plenty of time to spare.  I got there exactly 2 hours early and made it through check in and security in record time.  It was 6am, and I was starting to get hungry.  I didn't want to spend too much money.  I thought about a sausage biscuit from McDonalds, but of course they don't have the dollar menu in airports, so everything seemed a little high.  Then I found this little diner.  They had a breakfast special for only $5.99, so I decided it was worth it to have a sit down meal.

I chose the breakfast special, which comes with two eggs anyway, choice of bacon, sausage, and ham, hash browns, and toast (white, wheat, or rye).  

I also got a cup of coffee.  It was somewhat better than a typical diner.  

They serve wings by the pound rather than by the wing.  I thought that was odd (maybe that's just me).  

My meal was good.  I got wheat toast, two eggs over easy, hash browns, and sausage links.  Everything was good.  It was typical diner food, and typical diner quality.  It was a good deal, especially since I was in an airport.  

Hungry Tasty, England

Hungry Tasty
Hounslow
United Kingdom

This place is a buffet that serves Indian and Sri Lankan food.  It is in Hounslow, near London.

When we went to London, we stayed off the beaten path, so we were able to try restaurants that no tourist would ever stumble upon.  

Honestly, I do not know what we ate.  The buffet was not labeled.  The food had been sitting out for a while, but as soon as we arrived, the cooks made fresh everything.   

Some of the dishes had a spicy version and a mild version.  Their was a yam dish.  I don't like yams, but I liked everything else.  There were lots of vegetarian options and a few chicken dishes.  They brought hot fresh bread to our table.  The only other things that I could positively identify were a green bean dish and a spinach dish.

I can't say which was Sri Lankan and which was Indian, but everything was good and fresh after they made more.

I would like to find another Sri Lankan restaurant, so that I can really learn about the food.

Panda Express

Panda Express
585 N Germantown Pkwy
Cordova, TN
(901) 751-1370

So.... G always raves about Panda Express, so a group of us all went to the Cordova location.  We just recently got Panda Express in the Memphis area.  Now there are two:  one on Winchester and one on Germantown Parkway.

I chose the two meats and one side option.  I got fried rice with sweet fire chicken breast and Beijing beef.

I enjoyed my meal.  It is also tons of food for cheap.  If I happened to be near one, I would go back.  However, if I'm going to eat fast food Chinese, I'd rather go to the place in Oak Court Mall.  

Serendipity

Serendipity

225 East 60th Street

between 2nd and 3rd Avenues

New York, NY 10022

The first time I heard of this little patisserie was while watching the movie Serendipity.  I watched it back and college and have been wanting to try it ever since.  The movie has John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale in it.  I was obsessed for several years.  

I tried to go my first time when I was in NYC, but the line was atrocious.  However, upon my second trip to New York, I was finally able to visit this gem.

The decor was cute, but also elegant.  

My entree came with a delightful salad of field greens.

G ordered a coffee drink. 

He ordered a meat loaf with mashed potatoes.  His meal was really good (better than mine).  

I ordered the fried chicken and fries.  It was average good.  I didn't actually realize that they had entrees here until I came.  Portions are humongous.  We could have split an meal and left full.  

Finally, the highlight was the dessert.  We split a humongous frozen hot chocolate.  It was delectable, delicious. 

I am so glad that I finally got to come here.  It lived up to all the hype.  They do take reservations, so if you are in the area, try to make them first.  We got there about 30 minutes before opening and were the first in line (barely).

Ruben's Fried Chicken

Ruben's Fried Chicken
1806 Lamar Ave
Memphis, TN 38114
(901) 207-3069


Ruben's is a small newish restaurant on Lamar and McLean, not too far from my house.  If I need some fried catfish or some fried chicken from a local establishment near my home, this is an awesome place.

I have been a few times.  One time I got the catfish with cole slaw and fried squash.  The fish was the highlight of the meal.

The next time I went I got fried chicken with okra and mac n' cheese.  

All of the food that I have ever had here has been great.  I love the convenience of it being close to my house.  The prices vary based on how much you want.  You can get smaller meals or larger ones.  The prices are $10ish.  If you like fried food (and I do), this place is great.  It's a nice place to get a meat and sides.  

The restaurant is fairly unknown by a lot of people.  In fact, I couldn't even find any other reviews of this place.  It's not even on Yelp.  The area of town that it is in is typical Memphis borderline.  It's not a great neighborhood, but it's not far from a nice one.  

I noticed that they also have turkey burgers and regular hamburgers.  These are on my must try list.