Today we have the two second round matchups in the first General Bracket, as we have a showdown between the king of Anchorage Asian dining in Dish and the Mexican delight Taco King, and a matchup between the Hawaiian favorites Hula Hands and the tops in Indian food Bombay Deluxe. Lots of matchups, lots of delicious, but there can only be two to leave this showdown to make the Elite Eight of Anchorage restaraunts. Who will they be?!
Matchup #1
Dish: Much to the chagrin of my coworker Dale, Dish took the first round win against Thai Orchid. To me though, it was a fairly easy matchup to decide because Dish just doesn't really do anything too wrong. They have a diverse and quality menu, their service is friendly, nice atmosphere, good location (close to my work), and are not too horribly priced. Plus, they're great with big parties.
One of their big problems though is they really don't blow me away that often. Save their extremely fresh tasting fish (unagi!), nothing stands out for them. Plus, there is the immediate issue with sushi for me: I simply don't want to eat it all of the time. It's more of a whimsical choice for me, which isn't their fault but a natural issue with their establishment.
Taco King: Ohhhhh Taco King. You're so reliable. Taco King is methodical in its crazy consistency, always being good, always being fairly inexpensive, and seemingly always hitting the spot. Plus they deliver, have three locations, and are fairly close to me. Throw in the fact that they have a go-to dish for me (Queen Tostada for the win!) and this is a pretty spotless little guy. While it's not a place where you're like "oh man, this is the best food I've ever had", there is something to be said about being always good. Taco King - you are always good.
The Showdown: For the simple reason that Mexican food is more consistently on my mind than sushi, Taco King wins. It's more consistent, it's way more inexpensive, it's crazy fast (I once ordered and ate in 9 minutes at Taco King), and they deliver! Taco King just does more right. I know many will disagree, but too bad. This is my competition after all!
Matchup #2
Hula Hands: Hula Hands has quickly jumped up the ranks of my go-to restaurants for a lot of reasons. Inexpensive and delicious food, go-to meals, surprisingly great beer list, close proximity to my place, extremely quick turnaround, plus I just love Hawaiian food. They also have almost absurdly friendly service...the place is just a gem. I can't really find any negatives in their formula, and for that reason they are a sneaky awesome contender of this tournament.
And for those that haven't eaten there...shame on you! This place is awesome. Get on that!
Bombay Deluxe: While I really enjoy Bombay Deluxe and their tasty meals and the crazy good Naan, they have huge negatives like the scary service that is the norm at their establishment. I'm not even going to pretend this is close.
The Showdown: Complete and utter domination. This is like Cornell versus Wisconsin. Hula Hands is a near perfect lunch/dinner spot for me, while Bombay Deluxe has more holes than the Indiana Pacers roster. Which makes me sad because I'm a Pacers fan.
Sigh...
Showing posts with label Dish Restaurant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dish Restaurant. Show all posts
General Bracket #1 (Round 2): (1) Dish vs. (5) Taco King PLUS (6) Hula Hands vs. (7) Bombay Deluxe
Monday, March 22, 2010
General Bracket #1: (1) Dish Vs. (8) Thai Orchid
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Now this is where things start getting interesting...throwdowns between restaurants with completely different styles and niches. Gone are the rather straightforward apples to apples comparisons. This isn't even apples to oranges, this is sushi versus curry, as Anchorage's preeminent sushi spot Dish and their most delectable Thai restaurant Thai Orchid square off in what is sure to be a very close competition.
Dish: This restaurant is new to the scene, but their ascent to the peak has been quick for a number of reasons. Pete's Sushi Spot had most of their staff defect to Sushi & Sushi and then burned down, Sushi & Sushi picked a terrible location that practically forces you to go to Moose's Tooth, and I <3 Sushi went through a dreadful remodel and menu redesign that neutered their quality. Oh yeah, and Dish is hellaciously good.
Dish excels at a few things, but when you go to a sushi joint one of the biggest differentiators is the freshness of the fish that they use. While some restaurants taste like they actually dug their product out of Dish's trash after it went bad (*ahem* SAMURAI!), Dish manages to bring some of the most phenomenal flavors out of their unagi and ama ebi simply due to the fact you know it was freshly cut. Their unagi in itself is an experience, as it is the best I've ever tasted. You also have a wide selection of rolls to choose from, a great bar, and an eclectic mix of other foods like various forms of (meat) teriyaki and (meat) fried rice. It isn't just a Japanese experience, it's a full Asian foods experience.
But there are downsides: it's rather expensive and kind of streaky (but that is mostly the type of food you're dealing with - sushi is so oriented off of mood it is unbelievable). Plus, there is the personal downside in that I always see people I know there, and that isn't something I'm looking to do. No basketball references here, as Dish is like a D2 school somehow getting into the tourney due to unforeseen circumstances amongst a lot of the main contenders, and then making it rain like they are Reggie Miller against the Knicks.
Thai Orchid: To me, the competition for "Best Thai Restaurant" in Anchorage is no competition at all. Thai Orchid obliterates everyone simply because they make tastier food. Try their curry, try their pad thai, try their fresh rolls...it's all phenomenal. This is one of the few restaurants on the list that is exceptional only for their food, but it's a contender no less. Everything I've had there is better than its counterpart at any other local Thai joint, and for that reason Thai Orchid is one of my go-to lunch spots. Plus, holy crap they give you a lot of food.
However, there are some major negatives here. It is the single tiniest restaurant on the planet and corroborates my theory that all Thai restaurants must reside in a strip mall of some sort. If it's winter time, every new patron freezes out the people that are eating. The service is abysmal and at times can be mistaken for indifferent or even mean spirited. Thank god the food is good.
The Showdown: As much as I want to give Thai Orchid some love, they have huge negatives on the table. While they definitely have very good food, it doesn't stop the fact that Dish brings a lot more than just good food to the table. When that is factored in, this is no contest at all.
Dish excels at a few things, but when you go to a sushi joint one of the biggest differentiators is the freshness of the fish that they use. While some restaurants taste like they actually dug their product out of Dish's trash after it went bad (*ahem* SAMURAI!), Dish manages to bring some of the most phenomenal flavors out of their unagi and ama ebi simply due to the fact you know it was freshly cut. Their unagi in itself is an experience, as it is the best I've ever tasted. You also have a wide selection of rolls to choose from, a great bar, and an eclectic mix of other foods like various forms of (meat) teriyaki and (meat) fried rice. It isn't just a Japanese experience, it's a full Asian foods experience.
But there are downsides: it's rather expensive and kind of streaky (but that is mostly the type of food you're dealing with - sushi is so oriented off of mood it is unbelievable). Plus, there is the personal downside in that I always see people I know there, and that isn't something I'm looking to do. No basketball references here, as Dish is like a D2 school somehow getting into the tourney due to unforeseen circumstances amongst a lot of the main contenders, and then making it rain like they are Reggie Miller against the Knicks.
Thai Orchid: To me, the competition for "Best Thai Restaurant" in Anchorage is no competition at all. Thai Orchid obliterates everyone simply because they make tastier food. Try their curry, try their pad thai, try their fresh rolls...it's all phenomenal. This is one of the few restaurants on the list that is exceptional only for their food, but it's a contender no less. Everything I've had there is better than its counterpart at any other local Thai joint, and for that reason Thai Orchid is one of my go-to lunch spots. Plus, holy crap they give you a lot of food.
However, there are some major negatives here. It is the single tiniest restaurant on the planet and corroborates my theory that all Thai restaurants must reside in a strip mall of some sort. If it's winter time, every new patron freezes out the people that are eating. The service is abysmal and at times can be mistaken for indifferent or even mean spirited. Thank god the food is good.
The Showdown: As much as I want to give Thai Orchid some love, they have huge negatives on the table. While they definitely have very good food, it doesn't stop the fact that Dish brings a lot more than just good food to the table. When that is factored in, this is no contest at all.
