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Restaurant review: Delicious food at cheap prices: what's not to like?Sep 29, 2011 (The Day - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- The financial markets of the world seem determined to battle one another in a lunatic race to failure: "We want to collapse first!" "No, WE want to be first, exploding into greasy cinders like a planet made of fat crashing into the sun!" "We already ARE first! Our economy is in tattered ruins! HA!" During these times, there are many problematic scenarios that play out for us Little People. In my case, I'm faced with a truly melancholy conundrum: how do I eat the massive quantities of food I require for appeasement -- whilst operating at significantly reduced buying power? Sigh ... Well, I soldier on, is what I do. In that spirit, here are three recent culinary experiences I've had that might be of interest. The Texas Roundup at Herb's Country Deli, Uncasville Scouring the countryside for Big Video Stories, Peter "Hopps" Huoppi and I recently settled into Herb's Country Deli and Restaurant in Uncasville for lunch. It's a comfy little spot, operated by father and son Plotnik, featuring kindly waitresses who have been taking care of folks there for years, and which could easily have been utilized as a shooting location in "The Last Picture Show." I enjoyed a monstrous Herb's Special Grinder ($10.95), which is a variation on the Italian standard only with turkey instead of pepperoni -- and it's easily enough for two meals. Bargain! The ham and turkey came carved rather than pre-sliced, though both were overpowered by the salami. There was also oil, shredded lettuce and a soft po'boy roll. The star of the day, though, was Huoppi's choice: the Texas Roundup ($8.95). It's an all-beef hotdog crowned with crisp bacon, topped with a slice of melted cheddar, and all nicely nestled in a toasted bun. This was no anemic dog. It extended on both ends beyond the outer reaches of bun, and sported a hefty girth. The whole thing was a playful tug-of-war of fun flavors, like co-eds playing water volleyball at a kegger. The Texas Roundup -- which, by the way, isn't in my experience a particularly Texan culinary concept, but who cares? -- is typically served with fries and a serviceable coleslaw. Hopps, though, switched out onion chips for the FF. Nice strategy: they're wondrous petals of onion in a perfectly thick batter deepfried to glory. Huoppi suggested the whole meal made him want to attend a county fair and eat everything on the Midway -- which is certainly an evocative and persuasive testimony. Falafel Wrap at KanKan Cafe, New London Here's another cool place: KanKan Cafe in New London. It's in a seemingly great location -- and yet many businesses have been unable to make a go of it. From a food concept, it's that tiny spot overlooking the Thames River on Pequot Avenue -- that just happens to be right between Fred's Shanty and On the Waterfront. So, yes, you've gotta bring your A-game to compete. Here's hoping the super friendly couple running KanKan can keep it rolling. It's a very nice little shop with a patio out front and a few tables inside tucked in one corner next to a cooler of several flavors of Gifford's Ice Cream and the kitchen area. The fare consists of subs, wraps, desserts and smoothies, and Mediterranean-leaning offerings such as stuffed grape leaves, baba ghanuaj, gyros, and hummus. The prices are very cheap -- except for high dollar items like lobster rolls, everything's in the $4-$7.95 range. Here's a winner: the falafel wrap ($5.95, platter including chips and coleslaw for $6.95). Some falafel are so dry that tahini sauce is necessary to soften it up, but the KanKan version is lovely and served in a soft pita with tomato, lettuce, onion, pickles and pickled banana peppers. In this case, the tahini becomes a tangy adjunct component. Well played! Black & Bleu Steakhouse Burger at LongHorn Steakhouse, Waterford This is special even in the context of many great burgers in our region. The B&B ($8.99) is a half-pound of never-frozen ground beef, rubbed with a nine-pepper seasoning and grilled to order. The patty is a wondrous construct that looks like a charred softball. It comes on a brioche bun with moonrocks of blue cheese sprinkled on top, and with a thin sheaf of designer lettuce and dill pickle coins to provide percussive texture. Accompanied by your choice of several sides (including a nice mac 'n' cheese with ham), the Longhorn B&B is a sustantially fun adventure. All told, these are just a few options out there that might help you survive the grim economy with a bit of indulgence but without busting the checking account. ___ (c)2011 The Day (New London, Conn.) Visit The Day (New London, Conn.) at www.theday.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |