Finesse

I had the pleasure of dining at Finesse for my first time the other night. Based on that experience, it will not be my last!

First, the setting. Finesse is in a space that (to my knowledge) was originally an Italian restaurant, Silvestro's. That place had barely been reviewed by the Orlando Sentinel food critic (favorably, too) when it closed suddenly. Then it was a Greek restaurant. That did not last very long. Now it has been remodelled to some extent and is Finesse. It is gorgeous.

They have done a great job of remodelling this space. It feels very modern, chic, up-to-date, luxurious, and trendy, yet sophisticated and elegant. Kudos who whoever was in charge of that remodel. I believe they left a lot of the previous element there, but enhanced them all with touches of modernity--a job well done.

I was unsure of how busy they'd be, so I made a reservation. They were not that busy at 7:30 PM, though were fairly busy by the time we left. The first thing that struck me, outside of the wonderful decor, was the service. We were promptly greeted and shown to our table by the hostess, and our waitress, Diane, promptly appeared. Through the course of the meal, I found that Diane sure knew her stuff--she was very familiar with the menu and its ingredients. Well-trained staff is great.

We started off with some appetizers. I was disappointed that Fried Green Tomatoes, though listed on the online menu, were not on the menu. But I can udnerstand, they can be hard to get a hold of. Diane did check on their availability. They are reason for me to call ahead and come back one day. We did order the Lump Crabcakes and they were about the best I'd ever had! They were extremely flavorful with chunks of tender crab and a roasted pepper and panko filling  that (barely) held them together. They were cooked perfectly and served on a light layer of chipotle aioli with a bit of seasoned greens on the side (I could have gone for a bit more of the chipotle aioli though). They were excellent. Now, they were very fagile and fell apart easily, but that's a testament to the great ingredients with no overabundance of fillers and binders. They were awesome. And, the chipotle aiole was excellent, as were the dressed greens. We left nothing on that plate!

We also had the Sugar Cane Chicken, two sugar cane skewers that were each threaded with cilantro-lime-marinaded chicken breast meat that was chargrilled with a tamarind and cane sugar glaze, and finished with a bit of sesame seed. They were awesome as well. The chargrilling gave them a nice grilled flavor, and the glaze and marinade served to compliment, not hide, the great flavor of the chicken. This was a great appetizer, very successful.

We could not help but notice the soups on the menu, and we each ordered a soup. I ordered the Black Bean Soup. It was outstanding. Black bean and chorizo with a tomato based, chili-spiced soup, topped with a bit of avocado crema--it was among the best soups I've had. It had a nice, deep, rich, chili flavor, but not overpowering. The chorizo added to the spicyness, the chunks of tomato serverd to cut it down a bit, and the black beans were cooked well but not mushy. This was a great soup, and I'd certainly order it again.   

My friend Tommy had the Lobster Crab Soup and pronounced it excellent. I'd agree, I had a taste too. It was indeed excellent. Maine lobster, Maryland crabmeat, and a brandied cream stock made the base for this excellent soup. I've had some pretty good crab soups in my life, and this was definitely among the best. A job well done.

I must also comment on Diane's service--it was excellent. She took great care to time our appetizers, soup, and entrees, to make sure nothing overlapped. She did a great job in that and all respects.

It was in our entrees that we found what I'd consider the only real mis-step of the meal, and that was in the overuse of salt. Yep, salt. Both of us thought our entrees could have used less of it. I ordered the Chimi Skirt Steak, medium-rare. I believe it came out closer to medium, a small point. This was a skirt steak grilled, served with "melted" cabernet onions and shoe fries (shoestring potato fries). My first bite of the steak seemed like pure salt. I think chef must have been interrupted when salting this or something. Now, the other end of the steak was not oversalted, but one end was way oversalted.  The caramelized onions were OK, and the fries were good but nothing too out of the ordinary. This was served with a chimi sauce that was pretty good, too. Overall, if you overlook the oversalting and cooking a bit beyond medium-rare, it was a good dish. i have some leftover that I brought home, I will have it again soon.

My friend Tommy had the Pork Tenderloin. He also commented that it was too salty--it may have been over-brined a bit. I found it salty, but not overly salty, but he found it overly salty. Outside of that, it was cooked well and very tender. It was served with glazed sweet carrots that were excellent, and bacon scalloped potatoes, also very good.  Outside of the "extra" salt, it was a very good meal. 

We talked about the food there afterward and are both in agreement--we'd love to go there again, and will. There are a number of other items we'd like to try, and the desserts looked pretty darned good as well. We may just go there sometime for only appetizers and desserts, there was certainly enough food and we each brought some of our main course home for another time.

Finesse is a new restaurant in Lake Mary. I believe it's locally owned and operated, and a welcome additon to the restaurant scene in Lake Mary. I enjoyed my visit there, I hope you will give it a try and let me know what you think of it!

Chilangos

We had an enjoyable meal at Chilangos the other night. You know it's a small place when the sign warns: occupancy by more than 19 people is dangerous! Yes, I counted, there are exactly 16 seats in this place, and we were fortunate to get the last two. Overall, the food here was good, and large portions, but not great. Still, good enough Mexican food, for sure.

We started with an appetizer, the Seven Layer Salad. It seemed a bit bland until my friend Tommy suggested putting some jalapenos on it. And, when i looked at the menu description, it mentioned jalapenos. Somehow they got left out. Yikes! So it was just good, but could have been better.

For his entree, Tommy had the chimichanga. It was quite good. The "crust" or shell was very good, nice and flaky. The filling was lots and tasty. It was a large chimi and we had plenty to take home, especially after filling up on chips and salsa.

For my entree I ordered the enchiladas. They were corn tortillas filled with pork and topped with a green sauce. They were pretty good but could have used a bit of heat (as in chili) and also a bit of salt, they were just a tad bland. I also ordered a hard-shell taco on the side. It was pretty good as well. The rice was also very good though the beans were just a bit on the soupy side.

Overall, it was a fair meal here, and quite a value given the amount of food. We both had some doggie bags for another time. It was not the best Mexican food I've ever had, but was adequate. They also seemed to do a pretty good take-out business and were quite busy the whole time we were there. Yumm!

I Luv Pho

I didn't know it until I first tried it, but I really do love Pho, and my recent visit to I Luv Pho in the Dallas area alerted me to that fact.

I'd never had Pho before. I was in Dallas on business and one of the locals suggested it. One of my colleagues is familiar with Vietnamese food and said it would be a great idea. It was.  I ordered my Pho with Chicken Breast. A huge bowl arrived a short time later, as well as a side plate of "stuff." I learned to add some of the bean sprouts to the bowl of pho along with some basil, mint, and cilantro. The herbs added a very pleasant aroma to what was already--to me--a very flavorful broth. The broth was filled with rice noodles as well and topped with an abundance of green onions. It was very, very good. If this is what pho is all about, I'm in. And the huge bowl was $6.25 (large size), quite a value.

I should mention that we started the meal with some spring rolls--rice paper wrapped around some veggies and shrimp. There was a peanut sauce for dipping which was made even better by the addition of some sriracha.

Overall, we had a very nice experience here. The waiter was fast and attentive, the food quick to come out, and I beleive everyone enjoyed their meal, a first experience of pho for many of us.

Terra Mia -- again!

My friend and I decided to stop by Terra Mia the other night, hoping to not have a long wait and to have some good pizza. Score! On both accounts. Normally there is a decent wait here--it's a small but very busy place with outstanding food, and well worth waiting for. We entered and our name was taken, but second on the list. Then we were asked if wanted to sit at the counter--sure! We were lucky to get two seats right at the counter with a great view of the kitchen. Now in truth, there was not a huge amount of room on the counter, but we managed, just fine. Our server, Victoria, was extremely competent, friendly, and quick! Within minutes we had our drink order and were ready to order. Changes to the menu? No problem! 

I started with a small side salad which was delicious! A bed of mixed greens was simply and lightly dressed, topped with a bit of red onion and a slice of tomato. Simple but elegant, with good flavor and very fresh ingredients. Yumm.


In the meantime, between salad and our pizzas, we were given some wonderful bread with a plate of olive oil that had Parmesan cheese in it with a healthy drizzle of balsamic vinegar--it was very good, too--so much that we had a second basket of bread. 

For his pizza, my friend Tommy asked if he could have a simple pepperoni Pizza--something that was not on the menu. No problem! Victoria didn't even bat an eyelash. The pizza came out fresh and hot. As promised, it was a simple pepperoni pizza. Well, simple in composition, complex in flavor. The crust was absolutely wonderful, the proportion of toppings perfect. The pepperoni was thick sliced and delicious. In all respects, this was a great pizza. He manage to eat 5 of the eight slices, but pizza is always a great thing to take home.

For my pizza, I ordered the Genovese. This has chunks of tender chicken with dollops of pizza sauce and pesto, topped with cheese. Again, the crust was outstanding--definitely home made and fired well in a nice hot brick oven. The pizza was wonderful, but I only managed to eat 5 of the 8 slices. All the better, because I had some to take home for the next day.


Throughout our meal, we had a great view of the kitchen and drink station. I was amazed at the mostly silent coordination that was going on between all. Not a lot had to be said, but severs were helping each other along with the host, and everyone just seemed to know what to do with a minimum of words. The place was very busy both inside and out the whole time we were there. I've eaten here a few times and every time I have had good food and good service. I love it here and will be back again and again!

Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery

We stopped in here for dinner on a recent Friday evening and were pleasantly surprise to find good food and good service in this new, sports-bar type place. I must admit, when I first heard of this place I thought "Hooters with an angle" and didn't hold out much hope for the food. But I was wrong. The meal and service we had here was excellent and I'd come back again. 

It was a busy Friday night, but we were seated immediately and within minutes our waitress appeared to take our drink menu. Our server, Leiann, was very good. She knew the menu and was able to field all our questions. We started out with a few drinks and also the Irish Nachos. OMG! The potato chips that were the foundation of this dish were utterly fantastic--nice thicker slices of potato, still thin enough to be called chip but with some substance. The chips were covered with a cheese goo (ordinary), some ground beef, and tomatoes. But the real star of the dish was the chips, they were truly outstanding. I'm sure they'd even be good just by themselves. I'd order this again in a heartbeat.

I started my meal with a salad. It was actually a very good salad, served with a balsamic vinaigrette on the side. Besides a nice bed of romaine, it had some sliced red onions, a bit of diced tomato, croutons, and some diced cucumbers. The cucumbers appeared to have been seeded--a very nice touch. It was a good side salad.

For my main course I chose the Ian's Shrimp Basket and asked for that with onion rings instead of the normal fries--no problem! There were about 8 decent sized shrimp that were breaded and deep fried. The shrimp were cooked perfectly. The breading was just a slight bit bready and did not hold onto the shrimp all that well--maybe they were a bit wet when breaded. But it was all very tasty nonetheless. I love shrimp and hate when they are not cooked right, but these were cooked right. Another hit in my book.

My Friend Tommy had the Gaelic Chicken--tender chicken breasts were sauteed with mushrooms and onions, served with a whiskey cream sauces, and set on a mound of garlic mashed potatoes.  The chicken was very tender and the cream sauce very good. I'd say the potatoes were just ordinary, though, but overall it was a very good dish. 


Throughout our meal, our server was very friendly, competent and attentive without being intrusive. That was very nice. This was my first visit here but I'm sure it will not be my last, based on this experience. Definitely good eats!

Sun Valley Buffet

I'm not a big Chinese buffet fan, but this place really satisfied me, and filled me up. And the food was pretty darned good for a buffet, too! 

Normally, when I think of a Chinese buffet, I think of things I would buy at Sam's club, then heat a whole bunch of and place on a steam table to let them get to a mediocre temperature and dry consistency. So when my friend Tommy and I decided to try out this new place the other day, I was pleasantly surprised--it was much better than that picture I had in my mind.

First off, Sun Valley also has a small sushi bar and a small Mongolian BBQ, but I did not try them--next time. Secondly the selection--it was huge. I was impressed by the fact that the steam pans were not overly full, and each time I went back, there were some new things and some old things missing. This means that they are cooking in small batches and keeping things fresh, and that was my experience.

Among all the things I sampled--and I sampled plenty--several things stood out.

First and foremost, the fried, breaded shirmp. They were excellent. They kept coming out in small batches and so were always fresh, and the cocktail sauce they had certainly had a nice, hefty, horseradish kick. Very nice.

Second, the potstickers. I was already about full when I spied these. They were exceptional. The meat filling was very nice, very flavorful. I got them just after they came out, and they were hot and flavorful. Quiet the treat, actually.

There were  a few "not quite hits" for me as well. Some of the chicken dishes were just a bit dry. The Bourbon Chicken, Orange Chicken, and General Tsos Chicken--all were just a bit dry. And the General Tsos lacked a nice kick.

For the "American" Dishes, the BBQ pork was actually quite good. The Mac and Cheese was quite bland though.

There were quite a number of other dishes that were hits, though, and overall, i really enjoyed the food I had.

There was a nice salad bar a well with a lot of nice fresh fruit. I sure liked that.

Our service was very attentive. Used plates were picked up very promptly.

Overall, this was a good experience. At $12.99 for dinner and weekends, it's maybe a bit pricey, but then again, you get what you pay for. I will come back for the $6.99 weekday lunch one of these days, for sure.

Oh, and they have some very nice desserts as well. As I said, the selection here is very good and very extensive. I'd try it again, for sure!  

Cattle Ranch

Based on good reviews on Urbanspoon,com, I went to Cattle Ranch recently. I was not disappointed. The food was generally very good, the service great, and I left with a full tummy and some more for another day! 

We arrived on a Friday night and were promptly seated, being give our choice of an area to sit in. It did not take long for our server to take our drink orders, and we quickly ordered a few appetizers as well.

For our first appetizer we chose the Fried Shrimp. It was a good choice. About 8 good-sized shrimp had been breaded with a nice, crispy coating and them nearly perfectly deep fried. They were very good--fresh, hot, and cooked just right. They were served with a nice but standard shrimp cocktail sauce. I really liked these.

We also ordered the Buckskins. Now these were truly outstanding. They were more like huge slices of potato that had been baked, then covered with bacon and cheese, then baked and broiled a bit further, then topped with some parsley and served with sour cream on the side. These were very, very.... did i mention "very"... good! We cleaned these up as well

For one of my side I had a salad. It was good and filling, all that a salad should be. I had the house dressing and it was very good as well. Nothing exceptional here, but still a very nice salad.

To go with our entrees, I ordered some Onion Rings. These were very, very good. They had a nice and crisp breading on the, and were very crispy, very hot, when served. I think we both agreed that these were among the best onion rings we'd had in a long, long time.

For my entree I ordered the Ribeye, medium-rare, with a side of sauteed mushrooms. My Ribeye was OK, but jsut OK. It was cooked just a bit shy of medium rare, for the most part, but parts were just past medium rare. Also, it was just a bit gristly. So, while it had great flavor, a bit of it was chewy, and a bit very good. I would say it was not quite butchered right, since it was not consistently medium-rare. Still, it had a very nice flavor and overall, I did enjoy it.

The sauteed mushrooms were very good, and a large portion. I liked them a lot.

For his main dish, my friend Tommy ordered the Prime Rib. It was very good, a nice medium, with a nice flavor and quite tender. To go-with he had a baked potatoe. Again, is prime rib was very good, and the rest of the meal excellent as well.

We enjoyed our meal here. It was very good, and we had good service. One think I would say about the decor--it reminded me of 1970. I'd say this place has not been remodeled in about 40 years. The interior is somewhat dated. Still, they know how to cook shrimp and how to grill a mean steak, so we enjoyed our meal here. I'd come back--what better compliment could I give?

  

Alive After Five

I'll be at Alive After Five this Thursday, March 10th, in beautiful downtown Sanford. So if you're in the area and up for a fun evening street party, join me, 5-8 PM. I'll be hanging out at Art Affair Gallery, but still enjoying all the great food and drinks up and down the street. Always a great time!

Fourth Friday Art Walk

It's that time of the month again, and it happens this Friday, February 25th. I'm speaking, of course, of the Fourth Friday Art Walk in historic Downtown Sanford. Sponsored by the Welcome Center, local artists are invited to display their works centered around a theme. This month the theme is Landscapes Near and Far -The beauty of the Earth and its many colors and textures. The welcome center will have the art displayed, and visitors can vote for their own favorites with a cash prize for the winner. There are also refreshments served.


But the Art Walk is more than just that, it's a walk. That is, All the local Galleries are also open with art and artists and refreshments and a lot of fun. It's always a great time and you can always fine me hanging out at Art Affair Gallery--but I will make the tour as well. Join me, it's a great time, this Friday, 6 PM to 8:30 PM

Nico Globos

I ate here for the second time recently and had a nice meal. We stopped in for Sunday brunch and were immediately and pleasantly greeted by the owner/manager/hostess. Only a small table was available but she promised to move us as soon as a larger table opened, and she did.

I started out with the French Onion soup and it was very good with a deep and rich flavor, not only of onion, but also of mushrooms and beef broth. It was topped by a round of toast and cheese. It was excellent and had a great flavor. 

I had the Beef and Cheddar sandwich, served on Ciabatta. The bread as delicious and nice and soft. The beef and cheddar were good, though the sandwich was a bit dry. It could have benefit from a bit of jus or maybe just some mayo. Still it was tasty and I liked it. Yes, it was as good as it looks.

My friend Tommy had an omelet with ham and mushrooms and onions. Though it was tasty on the inside, the outside was definitely just a bit overcooked--chef must have taken his eye off of it for a second. Also, though the home fries were very good and tasty, the portion was exceedinly skimpy, barely a dozen potatoes on the plate. 


Overall, our meal was good and we enjoyed the meal and the atmosphere. We'll have to try dinner again sometime here. 

Art's Southern Style Smokehouse BBQ

We went to Art's Southern Style Smokehouse BBQ recently and had a very nice meal. Art's is located in Uptown Altamonte. It has a nice roadhouse look and feel to it. You walk in and place your order at the counter, then sit down and they bring it out to you. We took a good look at the menu and ordered, then found a table. 

The meal is served on plastic plates and with plastic tableware--I was a bit weary at first, but the plastic was sturdy enough to handle the task. Ample paper towels on a roll are located at each table.

We had a bit of a wait for our food, but it eventually arrived, just as we were about to check on it. I ordered the combo--two meats with two sides. For my meats I had BBQ pulled pork, and baby back ribs.  For my sides i had teh BBQ beans and the Mac & Cheese.I added in a couple of corn muffins, too. I asked for an received some extra BBQ sauce, as often i find pulled pork to be quite dry, but this was not the case. The Pulled pork was tender and juicy and nicely dressed with a sweet/sour/spicy sauce--it was very good. The BB ribs were also quite good, and i had no trouble cutting them with the plastic knife. They were not quite fall off the rib, but very close and had a nice flavor, a hit. They were served on a few slices of white bread which served to soak up any extra sauce.  The mac & cheese was pretty ordinary, but the baked beans were very good. They had a flavor i could not identify, but did like. The corn muffins were ordinary. Overall, it was a very good meal, I liked it a lot.

My friend Tommy ordered the Beef Brisket Platter with sides of cole slaw and french fries. First the fries were excellent, hot and fresh and crispy. The coleslaw was very good as well. The brisket was good but not the best i'd ever had. Still it was a good meal overall.

The atmosphere is very nice here, nicely decorated, with soft southern style jazz music in the background. The servers were polite and friendly and kept the empty tables clean. I liked the atmosphere and the picnic-like quality of the tables and serving ware. I would come back here again, without a doubt.

Metro Burger

Overcooked, overpriced, and overlooked, that's how I'd sum up my first visit to the newly opened Metro Burger in Lake Mary/Heathrow's Colonial Town Center recently. I was hoping for more and better, but was a bit disappointed.

My friend and I arrived there on a Friday night. Here's the deal, you take a pencil and fill out a form. You can create your own burger or choose one of their "house" burgers. They all sounded very appetizing, but ultimately we both decided to build our own.

We made our selections, then went to the counter where the guy there entered what we'd selected into the computer. Why didn't they just have a machine to read our selections, much like voting? Oh well, we they got a beeper and our drinks and selected a seat outside to wait. And wait. And wait. Granted, we got there at the end of the diner rush, but even so the place was less than half full.

We waited a full 20 minutes for our order, but then when the beeper went off, we were met by someone who was looking for us to bring it to us. Duh, we were outside.

I ordered a1/3 pound burger with white cheddar cheese on an egg roll, and lettuce, tomatoes, grilled mushrooms, and straw fried onions for toppings, and a horseradish mayo ( they were out of my first choice, stone-ground mustard... come on, how to you run out of stone-ground mustard, that stuff has a shelf live of... millenia??). Now, when the took my order they never asked how I'd like it cooked. Well, I got it well well well done. So well done it was dry. I was not a big fan of this. A burger should be tender and juicy, not making you want to drink something to help wash it down. On top of that, there was no lettuce on my sandwich, but there were roasted red peppers. I don't mind roased red peppers, but it was not what I checked off on my order sheet. Strike one for the order taker. And, there were no fries. I know i ordered fries. Not a one. Now, i did the math and we were not charged for it. But don't you think that (a) the order taker would be able to adequately transcribe a written order or (be) the order taker would read your order back to you (as well as (c) ask how you want your burger cooked)?  Well, apparently not. So, outside of the dry and lifeless burger (at a place with the word "burger" in its name) it was OK.

I also ordered teh Fried Dill Pickles with Chipotle Ranch. You know, they were pretty good, and certainly served very hot. There were five 1/4-sliced pickle slices that had been nicely breaded and deep fried. They certainly were served hot, too. They were pretty good. But the so-called chipotle ranch dipping sauce left a lot to be desired. It seemed to me that the chipotle never showed up to the party! Chipotle is a rather strong flavor and it should have been there--it was not. so the sauce was a disapointment The horseradish mayo that I had with my burger was better--at least by a bit.

My friend Tommy liked his burger way more than I liked mine. His at least arrived the way he ordered it. It too was a bit dry and he did comment on that, but overall he liked is. He had onions rings with his meal and they were OK. They were breaded and deep fried. They were real onions and were good, but also pretty ordinary.

Since this is an order and pick up at the window kind of place, it's hard to comment on the service. We did have someone stop by once or twice and check on us and ask if I needed another beer. They did ask how it all was to which i replied "it's OK." They moved on. I am not big on complaining, I want to experience a place as it normally is. Unfortunately, I was not overly impressed with Metro Burger. Now, the place is rather new and perhaps they need a bit of time to fine-tune things. So perhaps in a few months I'll give them another shot. I can always change my urbanspoon.com vote, you know.  

The Original Christo's

Not bad and has potential, that's how I'd sum up my recent (first) visit to the new The Original Christo's. This location used to be a place called Angelo's, but that closed in the fall. It underwent a bit of renovation and reopened around December as Christo's. We were at the recent Fourth Friday Art Walk in downtown Sanford and Christo's provided the appetizers and snacks. The bruschetta they had there was absolutely excellent, and that alone is what convinced me to visit Christo's sooner rather than later. Overall, I'm glad I did.

When we arrived on a recent Saturday evening, it was pretty busy inside. We were quickly greeted and fortunate to snag one of the last inside tables.

Let me get the one disappointment I had off of my chest first, because all the rest is good: the so-called firecracker sauce. The firecracker sauce was served with (1) our appetizer, (2) my main course, and (3) one of the extra sides i ordered. My complaint: it was way too sweet. Advertised as firecracker sauce, it was hard for me to get past the sugary sweetness of it. Overall, it was not bad, it had a bit of heat and a bit of tang. But the sweetness ruined it for me, it reminded me too much of french dressing that was kicked up a notch. So, if it had been less sweet with a bit more heat and a bit more acid, it would have been pretty good. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't terrible, just too too too sweet.

Now on to the good, as there was  a lot.

We took a quick look at the menu and decided to start off with an appetizer--Firecracker Fried Cheese. This is a four-cheese blend that is hand-breaded and deep fried. It was served with the (sigh!) firecracker sauce. 

Overall, these were very good. The cheese was nicely melted and very flavorful. Hey, I'm from Wisconsin and I know good cheese when i taste it. The breading was nice and crunchy and the filling good and gooey. The firecracker sauce was a nice accompaniment to these (less the sweetness). I'd order these again, for sure.

I started my meal with a Salad. It was a pretty ordinary salad, but good. The lettuce was topped with some tomato and cucumber and a bit of red onion, as well as croutons. I had the citrus viniagrette dressing and it was very good. Thankfully, it was served on the side, too.

For his main dish, my friend Tommy had one of the specials. It was chicken and spinach in an alfredo sauce over what I think was penne. Tommy said it was OK, but just OK. He was not wildly crazy about it, but did take home an ample portion for another day.

For my main course, i ordered the No Skimp Firecracker Shrimp. There were eight jumbo butterflied shrimp, breaded in kettle corn and served with the aforementioned firecracker dipping sauce and two sides. The shrimp were very good, not overcooked, but nice and tender. And the portion was very adequate. They were on a bed of romain. One of my sides was the salad, and the other was coleslaw. It was decent coleslaw and nice and fresh. This was a pretty darned good dish. 

But there was another side item on the menu that I was curious about, and so I ordered it: the Fried Macaroni -n- Cheese. This was pretty good, little triangles of macaroni and cheese that had been breaded and deep fried. It was a bit rich after along with all the other food we had to eat, but still pretty good outside of the dipping sauce--yes, again the overly sweet firecracker dipping sauce (I think they need to work on that recipe a bit, and if they did, they'd have a real winner!).

I have to mention the bread basket, too. And the marinara that accompanied it. There were two garlic knots that were nice and tender with a great flavor. And two pieces of fresh-baked pepperoni bread. This was very good, especially with the excellent marinara. A real hit.

We had a very nice meal here with good food and pleasant and efficient service. They seemed to be quite busy, and that's a great thing. Sanford is really the home to a number of excellent places to eat. Having to choose between them all is really a good thing for us the consumers. I'd eat here again, and plan on it. I want to try their pizzas, they looked very good. Overall, definitely good eats!