Monthly Archives: June 2016

Restaurant Review: Nixtaco

Posted on by
Reply

Quick tip: Room for improvement!

Seeing the writeup in the Sactown magazine right before lunch today, I grabbed the bf and headed over. It’s a couple of minutes from work and so I was thrilled to have a good street taco spot nearby.

On the corner of Cirby and Rocky Ridge, the space is large and airy, typical strip mall style floor to ceiling windows all around, no real decor to speak of (yet, I’m sure), and a sparse menu. They had a soft opening on June 1, and have recently opened up to the public. We walked up to the counter to order, and the lady (I’m presuming she’s the owner, she was very sweet) pointed out some of the new items on the menu and their extensive beer list. We ordered an assortment of tacos, and I was looking forward to the shrimp one. Sadly, it arrived with bacon all over it (the menu did not mention bacon), and I was later told it was cooked in bacon fat as well. The owner brought over another veggie taco, on the house.

The bf really liked the chicken with mole, and (my) shrimp and bacon with queso taco. He wasn’t impressed with the shredded pork or the other pork (prepared differently) taco. The veggie tacos were okay, loaded with sweet corn and wilted greens. The guacamole was too lime/lemony for our taste, and the four salsas were nondescript.

They are still working out the kinks (as the nice lady behind the counter admitted), and I hope they do well. Unless they add a few more veggie options, and prepare their seafood tacos without other animal products, I don’t think I will be back.

Nixtaco
Mexican
1805 Cirby Way
Roseville, CA 95661

Advertisement

Restaurant Review: Little Goan Indian Cafe

Posted on by
Reply

Quick tip: go for the naan. As a takeout order. Which you call in two hours before you need it. That’s about it.

The service is ridiculously slow. Two servers on a Friday night, especially when they ask you if you have reservations, is a sign of poor planning. We waited 15 minutes for water, and decided to order at the same time since we weren’t sure if we’d get another chance.

Sitting by the door to the back office/restrooms, etc. was definitely an experience. There was a one way mirror on the wall, through which we could see the spooky shadows of two to three kids slowly beating each other up; bodies would slam into the wall, we’d hear the rhythmic thumping of a body part getting hit, feet would slam into the glass, then slowly slide their way down, heads would bob eerily then get choked out of sight…it was like an odd shadow play of a reality show.

That was probably all meant to keep us in our seats, and overlook the extreme delay in food. My poor niece kept asking when her dish was arriving.

The food: samosas were bland. Tandoori paneer in a green pesto was bland. We doused everything in the two ubiquitous chutneys, which oddly, we had to ask for (which then, I see now, does NOT make them ubiquitous). The xacuti dishes were bland and we had to add liberal pinches of salt…see a pattern here?

The only thing I went back for seconds on was the naan. Hence my quick tip. For a slow order.

I will not be returning.

Little Goan Indian Cafe
$$ Indian, Specialty Food
2007 Novato Blvd
Novato, CA 94947

Venue Review: Spin

Posted on by
1

What an amazing place! The last time I played ping pong, I was twelve. Walking into Spin for a private event on Wednesday, I was immediately taken by the welcoming nature of the place: large open spaces, step seating along the walls with throw pillows and gorgeous lighting, all showcasing the stars of the place, the ping pong tables. The table set up was perfect, two to three next to each other, with narrow bench tables that housed baskets of turmeric colored balls (and were just wide enough for a well placed drink), intimate bars dispersed throughout the multilevel floors, and groups of beautiful people all over, enjoying themselves. The thwack of the paddles, the excited chatter, the clink of glasses, all made this a wonderful sensory experience. There were instructors wandering about, giving lessons as needed, then making themselves scarce as we figured things out. Food was set up at different areas with great lighting, and then there was an outdoor patio with a couple of game tables and picnic benches for more mingling.

I definitely plan on going back with the man, and maybe a group of friends. This is definitely a friends kinda place!

SPiN
Social Clubs, Sports Clubs
690 Folsom Street
San Francisco, CA 94107

Bakery Review: Dr. Bob’s Donuts

Posted on by
Reply

The bf’s boss brought a box of these donuts in for the crew yesterday in honor of National Doughnut Day. After hearing rave reviews from the bf on how amazing the donuts were, I asked him to pick some up for me to try today.

They looked amazing. Six, beautiful little rounds of glazed and nut-topped yumminess. And the first couple bites certainly were heavenly. The texture is more cake-like rather than the airy pillows I’m used to tasting in a donut, but that was fine. I’m okay with cake-nuts, as I call them! However, after a few bites, I noticed this almost bitter taste coating the roof of my mouth, similar to the artificial flavor I taste after I try one of the bf’s protein powder smoothies. (He usually has to add a lot of banana and yoghurt to mask that taste, but I can always pick it out). The taste didn’t go away, even after I tried to wash it out with some coffee.

So, on the whole, a good first impression, but since I can taste the powdered proteins they add, these donuts are not my bag, baby.

Dr. Bob’s Donuts
$ Donuts, Vegan, Gluten-Free
336 Lincoln St
Roseville, CA 95678