Free Pei Wei

Pei Wei Spring Rolls

Pei Wei Asian Diner is a chain restaurant that started in Arizona, a “sister” chain to the popular, more upscale P.F Chang’s. Pei Wei was introduced to field all the take-out Chinese orders that P.F Chang’s was getting, but was not set up to handle. Although the Pei Wei stores are sit-down restaurants, they do a lot of take-out, often as much at 50% of their business.

I got an invite to a free feed at Pei Wei. The store I went to was in Hancock Center, a somewhat run-down shopping center that pre-dates “Malls”; my Mom used to take me to the Sears there in, what, 1971? Hancock Center has experienced a revitalization in recent years, mostly due to the awesome popularity of Freebird’s Burritos. It is getting to be a quite respectable destination again, after a few years of being a little Urban Blighty.

Minced Chicken and Shiitake Mushroom Lettuce Wraps

I was surprised when I entered at how crowded the place was! If nothing else, Pei Wei has found it’s niche: the dining room was packed, and on a weeknight! Behind the counter 6 or 7 kitchen workers/chefs were making food as fast a humanly possible, and the kitchen they were working in was spotless. Fresh ingredients were obvious throughout the kitchen. For a chain, this was a good sign, and I noticed it.

We were treated to several appetizers and their new entrée, “a new take on Ramen”. “Ramen” just means “noodles” in Japanese, it isn’t the noodles’ fault that Americans think “Top Ramen” (3 packages for a dollar) when we hear the word Ramen.

*NEW* Japanese Chile Beef Ramen

The appetizers were fine, and some of them are exactly the same recipes used at P.F. Chang’s. I sampled a chicken spring roll (I think it was supposed to be Thai), Lettuce Wraps, and Edamame. The heat and spiciness of the appetizers was more toned-down than I am used to; I found the sauces and flavoring to be a trifle bland compared to local, single-location places here in town. But all the appetizers were more than edible, and the Lettuce Wraps were really nice. Pei Wei uses a lot, A LOT, of fresh vegetables in their food, and fresh herbs such as cilantro and mint, which really sets them apart from the average chain Chinese take-out place. If I were traveling in a strange town and I saw a Pei Wei, I would feel totally OK about eating there.

The Main Dish, the re-imagined bowl of ramen, was a disappointment, I am sorry to say. The ONE THING that they do not make fresh at Pei Wei is their sauces: consequently, they all taste jarred. It really is a shame, when they are doing 90% of everything right (cutting their own meats, prepping all their own vegetables, doing nearly everything by hand at every location), that they made the corporate call to use pre-made sauces from their factory in Arizona. It doesn’t jar too badly when you are talking about sweet-and-pungent sauce or even Peanut Dipping Sauce, but in the Ramen dish the canned flavor was dreadful and overpowering. It made the whole dish taste like it came out of a can. Even the fresh jalapenos and cilantro and bean sprouts couldn’t save it.

I got this AWESOME $10 gift card, and I will be using it and trying another dish. Pei Wei represents a move in the right direction, as far as I am concerned, for fast, chain food, and I am sure there are many things on the menu that I will enjoy.

Pei Wei Corporate: if you are reading this, FOR GOD’S SAKE, use the trained chefs you have at every store to MAKE FRESH SAUCES!!!

Gumbo’s on Colorado Street

Crab Cake with Chipotle Aioli

Well, as we head into the Autumn…what am I saying? It was 104˚ today and it is merely the beginning of August! Autumn is MONTHS away in Central Texas!

(Ahem) As the rest of the country looks toward Autumn, the Food Blogger Events are starting up again. I have to admit, in the middle of the summer, my interest in eating waned; I was glad there were no events. But this week it sounded like fun again, and good thing, because the invitations are piling up. Tonight was GUMBO’S Food Blogger Happy Hour, and they did it up in style.

It is a wretched aspect of human nature, but the better you are treated, the higher your standards get. Nowadays, in order to feel fully feted, I expect a free drink IN ADDITION to the free food. Although all I had at GUMBO’S was 1/2 a glass of white wine, I really appreciated that half-glass.

But even in addition to this, GUMBO’S raised the bar even higher: they provided FREE valet parking. Any restaurant that does not have sufficient parking who does not offer this, I am afraid, is going to compare unfavorably to GUMBO’S in the future. (In my wee brain, that is.)

Redfish Francine

We were treated to five different menu items:

Blackened Beef Tenderloin topped with Crab Bernaise

The Crab Cake: served with chipotle aioli and jicama slaw. These were all gone when I got there (except the one in the photo that was reserved for photographic purposes) so I didn’t get to taste it. It was the favorite of several bloggers I spoke to, and the jicama slaw and chipotle aioli were praised.

Oysters Rockefeller: This was my personal Fave; an oyster shell filled with a dollop of creamed spinach with just a hint of Pernod, topped with 2 fried oysters and Parmeson cheese. Really well done, all the flavors in great balance. The fried oysters were a clever twist, and the soft spinach provided the missing mouthfeel. LOVELY!

Redfish Francine: Blackened redfish served over crawfish tails in creamy tarragon sauce. The redfish was perfectly cooked, however, I found the sauce a little too bland and the crayfish tails a little to0 small and hard.

Oyster Rockefeller: AWESOME!!

Tenderloin George: Blackened Beef Tenderloin topped with crabmeat in Bernaise, in a red wine reduction. This tenderloin was so tender I actually DID cut it with a spoon, and it was just delicious. The red wine reduction was insufficiently acidic; it could have been reduced a good bit more for a more robust flavor. I would, however, happily eat a platter of these tenderloins!

South Louisiana Bread Pudding: Lovely presentation and I particularly liked the ice cream/bread pudding combination. The pudding was a little dense, I think due to the sort of bread used (it may have been whole wheat).

All in all, the refined atmosphere, white tablecloths, warm woodwork and freezing air conditioning, coupled with the not unduly spicy cajun-influenced menu, makes GUMBO’S the kind of place that is perfect to take your folks or any other group when you want to go somewhere “nice”, but you don’t want the food to be unduly spicy or unfamiliar. The staff is excellent as well.

Baking the Bread Puddings in Tiny Muffin Cups was Clever!