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Street Food Fail: Zoe Ma Ma (Boulder)

Here’s a quick review of a “restaurant” in Boulder that advertises that they serve yummy street food. It was a beautiful Friday night so we walked downtown and I was even wearing shorts and a t-shirt. We always want to try new food despite having some favorite locations. I had a craving for Chinese a few nights earlier after working out, and this arrived on Yelp, but we couldn’t make it because we didn’t have enough time. I’ll say that it was not the Chinese food that I was in the mood for, or will ever be.

They are right about one thing, it is street food. I, however, did not think that it was yummy. It also cost us $30.00 and did not fill us up at all. I ordered every piece of their three/four piece dim sum menu. They all tasted the same, very starchy and lacking keen flavors (even though one was chicken, one pork and one veggie). Alana ordered a veggie noodle bowl and I ordered the daily special, a duck noodle soup. It was the best part of the meal but still just lacked flavor and was insanely overpriced.

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In the end we have no reason to return. It was average street food at restaurant prices. If you’re in Boulder County and want a good bowl of noodles, go to Kho’s Asian Bistro in Longmont. Health tip alert! (because that’s why we’re here right?) When traveling, have street food (find good stuff!) in small quantities to keep that metabolism working and to try different flavors in a new and exciting place.

Kho's Shrimp Ramen

Kho’s Shrimp Ramen

BONUS KITTY PIC

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Sleepy Sajah

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Restaurant Review: Pastavino

Even though we are trying to limit ourselves to one food outing a week, we still treated ourselves to a nice Italian restaurant on Pearl Street. We actually tried to get to three other restaurants before landing here–all closed until dinner for some reason. So it was pretty much by accident that we found this lovely Italian place. And we were very happy that we did.

It was beautiful and sunny out–a nice change to the 10 degree weather we’ve been having. We briefly looked at the outside menu before marking their prices reasonable and dishes appetizing. The place was pretty empty, with a big bar in the front and a brick-oven in the back. It was adorned modernly, and the lighting was pleasant as it was coming mostly from the sun outdoors. We were seated at a semi-small table and waited by Isabelle, a nice 20s something girl who deserved a good tip by the end.

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(ONTO THE FOOD!) I know, I know, just setting up the scene. So I immediately spot Penne Arrabiata, which is my go-to dish if places have it. It’s a penne pasta with nice hot spicy tomato sauce poured on top. But I also have a craving for cheese…so my eyes hover over the Mozzarella Caprese.  Chris decides on another appetizer: antipasto misto (which included a various assortment of cheese, meats, olives, and veggies). So we start by ordering those two appetizers. We throw a loaf of bread in there too to get us started (we are very hungry at this point). Meanwhile, as we are chugging down the water we realize how delicious it is. I know that’s weird to see, but it was so refreshing.

AguaThe bread comes, nice and hot. It’s delicious, crispy on the outside, and warm on the inside–with a hint of rosemary. We douse our small plates with oil and vinegar and mop it all up eagerly with the bread. The other appetizers come sometime later, we’re enjoying our time slowly so we don’t really notice, and she brings out the wrong one for Chris (though we share). Chris breaks the news to her and she starts taking it away but Chris asks, “Are you going to throw that out?” She says yes and he asks if there’s any way to avoid that. She let us keep it without charging us for it and brought us our other appetizer. The wrong appetizer was fritto misto by the way, lots of calamari, scallops and such.

Bread nomski

So we do try to take pictures of all food. But...we ate the caprese too fast--oops

So we do try to take pictures of all food. But…we ate the caprese too fast–oops

Fritto Misto

Fritto Misto

Antipasto MistoIt was all as it looks. We ate the caprese so fast that we didn’t snap a shot of it–each part of it (basil, tomato, and mozzarella) was just so fresh. The fritto misto was also delicious, and I got to eat the calamari because they’re wild caught! The antipasta misto was good as well, though I would rate the others higher. We didn’t really like the olives and eggplant of the antipasta misto.

Rejected

Rejected

Taking our time, feeling thoroughly relaxed and not so starving anymore, we order our main dishes. Chris gets the Pizza Salametto which is a big pizza with salami, mozzarella cheese, and basil. I, of course, order the Penne Arrabiata, even though, by this point, I’m starting to feel full. Sigh. We snack on what’s left on our appetizers until the main dishes come out. I was happy with my pasta, but it wasn’t anything special. Chris’ pizza, however, was delicious. Although, I was “full,” I kept snagging pieces from his. It was a little oily, and had poor structural integrity, but the taste was there and the ingredients fresh. Chris also got a good deal with the lunch special and got a big thing of Minestrone Soup on the side.

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IMG_2873By this point, I am full. Like, feeling a food baby coming on full. I am seated back in my chair, enjoying the tastes while Chris finishes up his soup. Once we slow down, and she notices, she pops over and asks about dessert. I shrug, saying I’m full, and Chris says, might as well look at it. So we do. Aaaaand, we end up getting dessert (of course). Chris spots a fruit tart–Sfogliatina alle Fragole. He had way too much fun trying to say it to the waitress. It comes out and it is a tower of glory. Just look at it.

YUMMDespite our being “full,” we finish every last bite. We reasoned afterwards that we were probably not just full, but sometimes you get bored of the same taste. That’s why, we decided, people tend to get dessert even though they’re “stuffed.” So we get the check, taking our time, and give our waitress a nice tip for being so good with not charging us with the wrong appetizer and being great.

Overall, we really liked this place. The only downfall was that the tables were small and they put so much stuff on the table. However, that’s not a big factor at all. The atmosphere was great, beautiful sunlight with calming music served us with a happy mood to go along with our flavorful filling dishes. We would definitely go again to get an enormous amount of food for a good price.

Small table

Small table

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Boulder’s Tastes of Korea

Ever since moving to Boulder, we’ve been experiencing all sorts of great ethnic and domestic cuisine. Dot’s Diner, which we visited today, is Alana’s go-to breakfast spot; Tibet Kitchen is our favorite lunch special; Kho’s Asian Bistro in Longmont might be our top choice for dining out. However, that top spot was potentially challenged in the past few days as we decided to give two Korean spots in Boulder a try. The bar was set high because of past experiences, but I’m an easy going guy sometimes. So here are the two comparative “restaurant” reviews.

Friday night, after Tangier Moroccan was closed because of a private party (very unreliable spot), we crossed the street to finally give Korea House a try. It was a cold, dark and quiet night and we were starving. When we walked in the door, I was immediately very excited. We hadn’t had Korean food since visiting a Korean spa in Fort Lee, NJ. It was a very cute atmosphere with an overload of Northeast Asian trinkets that obviously didn’t bother me at all. Sometimes I like having more to look at.
More decor
Korea House
Essentially, the music was authentic and varied, the service was friendly and efficient, and the food was delicious and healing. We had a kimchi pancake and vegetable dumplings to start. Alana had a ginger-honey tea and I had a barley tea. Her’s was delicious and mine was warming. For entrees, she got the calamari bbq while I got the beef bbq and a traditional bowl of vegetables, beef, and an egg on top. Alana’s dish wasn’t quite what she expected, but she ate most of it. My bulgogi and bibimbap were delicious! The green tea mochi ice cream was so good that I ate my half, and I don’t like mochi ice cream. It was about $60 in total, but we were full enough and it was well worth it in terms of atmosphere, service, and taste.
Ginger honey tea
Vegetable dumplings
Bulgogi
Calamari BBQ
Bibimbop
Green tea mochi
The next day we ventured to A Cup of Peace for lunch. It was much different so I don’t want to compare the two. They have a sign that says this is not a typical Korean restaurant. Well, it’s not quite a restaurant, but rather a cafe. Their focus is beverages including tea and coffee. The atmosphere was much simpler and the food was generally more expensive, less filling, and not as good. The service was quick but you don’t get served. It was about $30 for bibimbap, bbq beef in a different form, and a plate of mixed sides for Alana. We weren’t very full after it and while Alana loved the pickled sides at Korea House, she didn’t touch them more than once at A Cup of Peace. I’m sure there are many people that would prefer this spot, but it’s not one we’ll likely return to due to our own likes and dislikes.
Beef BBQ
Bibimbop
Plate of sides
Also, I have been very sick and sore lately and after having Korea House, I felt healed. After A Cup of Peace, I had some stomach issues.

 

So, try to find a Korean restaurant around you, grab a meal, and let us know how it is! Maybe we’ll try to stop by there on our journeys. Until then, stay hungry and fit!
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