Riddle Me This: Tango Grill, White Plains

What the heck is up with the windows at Tango Grill in White Plains? Every time I walk by this place, between 2-4 windows are ALWAYS BUSTED OUT, and they're not always the same windows, so obviously they ARE being repaired.

Sometimes it looks like a bullet hole; other times it looks like someone just hammered into the window shattering it in its pane.

Sure, they have a valet...
Sure, they require reservations...

I feel confident in speculating that the food there could very well be delightful.

However! (And this is a BIG however), it doesn't matter how nice the food is, or how lovely the ambiance, or how attentive the service is, if, while you are there paying $29 for a pork chop entree, some crack-addled derelict decides THAT night is the perfect night to do a drive-by or terrorize diners by bashing on the nearest window with a hammer or a rock.

Can someone explain why their windows are consistently busted out, and/or, why after the first 20 windows they've replaced, why they have not had their windows replaced with bullet proof glass?

Note to the web designer for Tango Grill: Please give folks a button to skip out of the flash animation. It's so passee. Even Steve Jobs thinks it's an outdated technology.

White Plains: A Bit of Old News & Some New

It's been a while!

Let's see, what's happening in town:

Closed:
Meme Bakery (been closed a few months, lost track of how long it's been). Wish I could say I missed the place, despite its promise, I wasn't impressed.

Expanded (Now Closed):
Manna Foods
http://www.mannafoodsonline.com
171 Mamaroneck Avenue
White Plains, NY 10601-5302
(914) 946-2233

As of May 13th, the store re-opened after expanding into the adjacent space, thus doubling the size and breadth of the store. I can't wait to head in there for my vitamins and browse the new shelves!

A note for some folks who don't traverse to the depths of the back of the store: there is prepared food available (soups, and other items for lunches, all vegetarian if my memory serves me correct). I need to head there ASAP!

Been Open a While:
Melt
http://www.meltsandwich.com
277 Mamaroneck Avenue
White Plains, NY 10605
(914) 358-1364

How or why is it, I JUST RECENTLY realized this shop opened? Apparently it's been open since 2009!

It's about a block further than I normally walk during lunches, but I figured I'd give it a try. So the first sunny day after I realized this shop exists, I popped in.

Considering I'm only four months out from weight loss surgery, and being wooed by the smokey smell in the shop, I opted for one of their half salads, the Wedge, which had some bacon on it. I had them add some chicken to it so my nutritional need for more protein were met. With a large ice tea, lunch came to about $9. A little pricey for a half salad, but worth it.

Mmmmmm.... smokey meat! I'm coming to get you. Next time! Next time!

Everything was fresh and tasty. Not a wilted leaf in the bowl. The iced tea was good and didn't taste like instant dreck, always a plus.

I'm ogle-ing their menu right this moment, and day dreaming of what else I might have at my next visit.

One request (if the owners are reading): Nutritional info please! I'd love to know calories and protein counts of the menu items. It helps a lot to negotiate what I (and no doubt other folks, too) can have for lunch!

They even have a blog http://meltsandwich.blogspot.com/ ! And thanks to them, I didn't know about the existence of the 914 Magazine:)

Good luck to the folks at Melt! Hope you're around for a while! Good food, plus a good excuse to get a little extra walk in my day!

Note: My links are not hyperlinking. Hope to fix this once at home tonight. But I'm so ready to hit publish post, RIGHT. THIS. MINUTE!

*PUBLISH!*

Ganked From White Plains Patch: Bengal Tiger Update

The White Plains Common Council opted to purchase the former site of the Bengal Tiger restaurant, and not Ridgeway Country Club Monday.
By Dina Sciortino

The White Plains Common Council approved the issuance of $1.4 million in bonds Monday, to purchase .23 acres, at 134-142 East Post Rd., to potentially use it as a temporary parking facility. They also opted not to bond $15 million to purchase and renovate Ridgeway Country Club.

The property is located at former site of the Bengal Tiger restaurant. A July fire destroyed the store and six others leaving a massive ugly hole on East Post Rd. and Court St.

"What we don't need is a hole in the ground there for five years," said Council President Thomas Roach. "This will help the local merchants, while at the same time we are receiving revenue for the parking. We will have control of that land and in the future, and will have control of much of that block."

Mayor Adam Bradley said the property could be used temporarily for parking and that long-term plans for the site have not been decided.

"I'm not prejudging saying what we should do, or when we should do it, but I do think that given the essential nature of that portion of our city to the future development of our city—it's wise to take action at this point," said Roach.

Roach explained that the City already owns much of the block. Though the former Bengal Tiger site abuts a City owned parking lot, Roach said there is a lack of parking in the area.

"This is a parking lot. Running a country club is something the City is not equipped to do," said Roach.

Though a bond ordinance to issue $15 million in bonds to acquire and renovate Ridgeway Country Club was moved from Nov. 5 to the Dec. 6 agenda, the council did not approve the issuance of the bonds.

"The issue with Ridgeway you got to remember—the was council seeking some kind of business plan or study that could show it could of supported itself, but that was never provided to us," said Roach. "That really is the underlying basis for the council's failure to move forward with that purchase."

Bradley said that it was "very clear" that the bids Ridgeway received to purchase the site are sealed. Officials for Ridgeway Country Club did not immediately return phone calls from White Plains Patch.

La Manda's, White Plains

La Manda's Restaurant
(No Website)
251 Tarrytown Road
White Plains, NY 10607-1622
(914) 684-9228

Upon the recommendation of a friend who's frequented it, and despite the many negative reviews I've read online, I cajoled the husband to try out La Manda's tonight.

I've lived in Westchester about ten years and have passed this joint to and from work every day, and finally decided "tonight's the night."

Our first red flag was that we were caught off guard when we read on the menu "no credit cards." We quickly checked our wallets and figured out we had enough for dinner.

One of the things my friend raved about was their house salad, a simple yet enjoyable combination of greens and tomatoes, oil, vinegar, salt and pepper and maybe some oregano. I totally forgot about this when I saw they had escarole soup on their menu.

Sadly, the escarole soup seemed more like a chicken vegetable with some random noodles in it which they simmered some escarole in the broth. It was also curiously tangy. I'm hoping it's lemon in the broth. I can't think of any reason why escarole soup would be tangy.

As far as me and my stomach are concerned, we're on standby for some agita.

The husband opted for the lentil soup, which was also sorta tangy, which we're hoping was due to whatever tomato puree or other tomato product they put in the soup.

He opted for the chicken cacciatore (boneless) and I opted for the linguine a vongole. Both entrees fell short of our expectations.

For starters, the cacciatore seemed "off," as far as texture. The chicken cubes were stringy and the sauce had the consistency of Campbell's tomato soup, which was thickened with too much starch.

The linguine vongole initially appeared promising, as the bowl atop the dish revealed a veritable mountain of small clams. It was only upon opening each of the shells that revealed the amount of clam meat that would measure roughly that of the fingernail on my pinky. I now feel sorry for all those clams that gave their lives and died in vain for my disappointing meal.

The brodo that the clams and linguine were in, wasn't flavorful enough. No white wine and the garlic was hardly noticeable. Sure there were chunks of garlic, all golden and gently sauteed, leaving the chunks with a sweet and slightly nutty taste, but for garlicky punch... there was none.

We decided to cut our losses and not attempt their desserts or coffee. I'm sure the waitress was on to us, as we had plenty of leftovers which we politely declined being packaged up for left overs.

The decor is old and dated, and part of their charm. It's a place where time has stood still. It's a cozy, familiar local family run place, and probably looks not much different than it did when it opened in 1947.

The location is nice, with plenty of alternate, off street (as in, off of Rt 119) parking.

When we got in there, there was a small line, and a short wait. People seemed friendly enough.

Wasn't there long enough to check out the cleanliness of the bathroom.

Cost for our two soups, two seltzers, and two entrees came to nearly $46. Inexpensive. I could see this as a good selling point for this place.

The husband and I are both split on whether to return to try them out one final time before giving up on it entirely or putting it in the rotation for our "usual spots."

I hold out the (perhaps it may be false?) hope that the "golden egg" of this place is their chicken or eggplant parmesan or perhaps their pizza really is their specialty.

The husband says, and I quote, "There is no force on this earth which would make me go back."

I'm just glad we gave it a try.

For me, for the area, the "Kings" of this "genre" of family style Italian restaurant/pizzeria are Nicky's and Magnotta's. So, I'd like to find out for myself how La Manda's stacks up in the pizza department.

I'll be back. Just don't know when.

City Limits, White Plains

City Limits, White Plains

This isn't a review for a specific day, more over a collective opinion on the vast amounts of times I've been to this place.

Without a doubt, it is one of my favorite "go to" places when I'm in the mood. Breakfast, lunch, or dinner, I have never been disappointed (well, we WERE disappointed when they took their fried chicken off their menu a few years back) in all the times we've gone there.

Breakfast has a huge amount of offerings. For the longest time their boar sausage quesadilla was frequently ordered and has now been replaced on their menu w/a chorizo quesadilla. I'm overly fond of their veggie frittata, and on occasion have splurged w/their crab cake eggs benedict. All their baked goods are baked fresh on the premises, so any meal involving that is worthwhile.

Usually for lunch, I'd opt for their BLT on foccaccia or their burgers; the husband enjoys their shrimp wrap sandwich. A friend of mine who I meet with frequently for breakfast or lunch is fond of their ruben (which I've had at least once and loved its massiveness:) on potato bread.

Dinner for me usually is either their hanger steak, or their chicken paillard salad, or something off their prefixe menu. My husband usually gets their Bell and Evans chicken or their soba noodles, or tagliatelli. All delicious, and hearty sized portions (we love leftovers in our house).

Their service is top notch, and from what I can tell (in all the times I've been going there and a "regular" since 2001) they don't have a tremendous amount of turnover in their wait staff or their runners, so their service and quality is consistently good.

Location is convenient, and even on days when they are jam packed, there is "spill over" parking on Central Ave (metered) as well as a municipal lot across the street (also metered).

I tend to shy away from there on Friday or Saturday nights (especially if there is a big event at the County Center across the street); however, now that City Limits has a feature where you can place your order online, it's no problem to call in an order after leaving work and picking it up on my way home. I love this feature, as if there is a substitution to be made or an omission (as in no dairy for the husband), it's clearly in black and white, and rarely have we had a problem where we get home to discover there's cheese or sour cream on something that shouldn't. Very little margin for error this way. And on the rare occasion where after I've placed an order online and they ran out of something, they're very quick to call the number I provide, to let me know, and to arrange for an alternative. Terribly convenient!

I was sad to learn they closed their location at the Westchester Mall; but was immensely grateful that the Central Avenue location is open for business as usual. It truly would break my heart if this place closed up. If not for any reason I've listed above, but their chicken soup is the only thing that makes me feel better when I am sick, and is usually the first thing I attempt to eat after being sick.

Given how fond I am of this Livanos Restaurant Group endeavor, I'm now curious about Molyvos, which is in the neighborhood I frequent for appointments every two weeks. Perhaps I can convince the husband to meet me there for dinner one of these days. I have no doubt it'd be just as good!

Strike Two: Full Moon Asian/Thai Restaurant, White Plains

Against my better judgment, I tried my luck and ordered lunch from Full Moon Asian/Thai Restaurant. Let's just say, my gamble "crapped out."

This time, someone whose first language is English answered the phone and took my order. I knew I would have trouble when I ordered the fried squid (which was supposed to come w/pineapple, ginger, peanut and sweet chili sauce). I specified twice, nearly thrice, that I wanted the FRIED appetizer.

OVERALL IMPRESSION THUS FAR: DISAPPOINTED; WON'T RECOMMEND TO ANYONE.

I had a reasonable expectation of some squid rings and tentacles to be either lightly battered or merely dusted w/cornstarch and deep fried, not to mention the pineapple et al in the appetizer I ORDERED. You guessed it, the order was INCORRECT, and I ended up with the GRILLED squid appetizer, no pineapple, and was unsettled by the pork patty. There had to have been enough rings and tentacles from two small squids. They were cooked until barely opaque (stay tuned if I get sick from this), and it wasn't as substantial as I hoped. As a result, I had to raid the vending machine here at work.

I also ordered up the Tom Khar Gai, a chicken soup w/coconut milk and fresh lime juice. Flavor wise it was nice enough; the color was murky (as if it were made perhaps YESTERDAY), and despite me asking for it to be "spicy," it was dishwater bland. Tasty, but blandish for tom kha gai. This was the least expensive thing in today's lunch, at $5.

COST: $$: The squid appetizer mix up was $9, not inexpensive for an appetizer. Their spring roll selection is just as pricey--$7 for the least expensive spring roll type appetizer. For $9, I hoped to have gotten a hopper of fried squid deliciousness dripping in chili sauce and studded with pineapple and peanuts; and let's just say I got the antithesis of that.

When asked how business has been their first week since opening, the gal (who rang me up) quipped about business being poor, and suspected it was due to the Jewish New Year holiday. Funny thing is, where the restaurant is located is in the heart of a rather depressed part of White Plains, as it's near: transitional housing, family court & probation, Open Arms men's shelter; a few blocks from the old "drop in center" around the corner, and about two blocks from the projects.

They obviously have not done any market research in: what their projected clientele would be (subtext: predominantly business folks, and city/county/and state workers within walking distance); and they haven't searched out what the market should bear in regards to pricing the items on their menu.

White Plains is not completely without Thai food; as on Broadway we've got Reka's, an established Thai eatery (plus Reka gives instruction via classes thru the local college etc, or HAS in the past), with quality products, good service. I would visit Reka's MORE; however, I'd need to drive to get there from my office.

If I am going to pay $15 (like I did just for this soup & appetizer I had for lunch), I'd just assume to go Reka's for one of their $9.95 COMPLETE lunches (price might be higher, as I have an old menu on hand here), which includes: Soup of the day or Rekka's Green Salad, a main course, dessert of the day, and hot tea or coffee.

Despite their intention to make the restaurant itself really beautiful--and IT IS quite nice to look at while you're in there; the kitchen hasn't gotten its act together.

The only GOOD thing I can say about today's lunch experience is that it got me to take my take out menu out of my file, and I think I'll be going to Reka's this week to enjoy some truly wonderful Thai food, and to rinse the Full Moon disappointment out of my mouth.

On second thought, I think my time and money would be better spent patronizing businesses which are established, respected and present delicious food (and are not affected by constructive criticism). Here are a few spots I will continue to spend my money:

Reka's Thai Restaurant
(914) 949-1440(Thai)
2 Westchester Avenue, White Plains

Siam Orchid Thai Restaurant
(914) 723-9131(Thai)
750 Central Park Avenue, Scarsdale

Swaddee House Of Thai Food
(914) 769-8007 (Thai)
886 Franklin Avenue, Thornwood

Thai House . . . (914) 674-6644(Thai / Vegetarian)
466 Ashford Avenue, Ardsley

Mix It Up: A Salad Boutique, White Plains

Though I had designs on having Thai today for lunch, that fell through, so I had to get something reliable from an established eatery. I ran some errands and popped into Mix It Up on Mamaroneck Avenue in the downtown area of White Plains to get a salad.

Normally there is a crowd/line right up to the door, but today, I lucked out and there were about six people ahead of me in line. Luckily at my "knit night" last night, my friend and I were discussing local eateries for lunch, and Mix It Up came up in conversation. So I already had a taste for their City Center salad (arugala, dry cranberries, goat cheese, grilled chicken). While I stood in line, I decided I wanted a few more add ins: candied walnuts, croutons, red onion, and their raspberry vinaigrette dressing.

I've been to Mix It Up more than one or two dozen times. They're consistently good salads with fresh ingredients.

Cost:
I'd put it on the higher end (for salads locally). My City Center salad with the extra add ins (3) and one peanut butter cookie cost me nearly $13. I don't have it in my budget as an every day expense, but it's nice that it's available.

Quality/Quantity:
They offer a good variety of "designer" salads (i.e., chef; "bistro"--which is a take on a traditional Nicoise; Calabrese, Cobb, and Greek, to name a few) or you can design your own with the assortment of greens and add ins and dressings. All delicious. Quantity, to me is a great selling point. I have often joked with friends and co-workers that these are some hefty salads. I've threatened to bring my kitchen scale into work one day just to WEIGH one of these salads. Easily I guess there's about 1-2 lbs of stuff in each salad. I could be wrong, but they are really hearty portions.

Offerings:
Salads are their primary focus, however, I do believe there are paninis and even soup on their menu. Some baked goods are offered up by the front register (i.e., choc chip, oatmeal or peanut butter cookies, as well as their chocolate cheesecake brownies, which I have on good authority are quite good). Today I ordered up a peanut butter cookie and it lived up to my expectations.

Location:
The "boutique" is conveniently located on Mamaroneck Avenue, easily accessible on foot for the many folks who work in the downtown area, and there's metered on street parking in front. The decor isn't much to speak of, but a nice attempt was made to make the interior cheerful and modern. There are about two tables located as soon as you enter the boutique, so needless to say their focus is heavily on take out customers.

Note:
This place is only open during the day, and appear to close up towards the late afternoon. So their focus is on the lunch rush.

Overall opinion:
Good solid, dependable, delicious, hearty. This is a place I have gone to many times in the past, and plan on continuing to keep it in my "lunchtime rotation."

Haiku, White Plains

Just a quickie post devoted to my first visit to Haiku, located along Mamaroneck Avenue, in downtown White Plains.

Overall first impression: Great location. It's occupying the same space that Acapulco Mexican restaurant once did. Convenient location for plenty of foot traffic for the many folks who work for the state and county offices right here in White Plains.

Where we ate: Me and my lunch companion did not eat-in; we opted for take out. So we availed ourselves of the lounge area off to the right of the entryway. Everything is ultra modern and comfortable, and I can easily see being unable to get inside on a Friday or Saturday night. The bar area sports several big screen TVs, and in the lounge there's an LED type screen of bamboo which streams out the name of the bistro, in an artistic fashion. Comfortable seating in the lounge, to boot, too.

Service: The hostess was attentive and took our orders without hesitation.

Cost: Haiku offers several delicious lunch offerings which are pretty reasonable, ranging from $7.25 to $10.95. Chinese, Thai, and Malaysian food are all represented on the lunch special menu, and the lunch specials all include a choice of rice, and soup or salad. Affordable enough to become a regular haunt.

Eaten: My friend opted just for some shrimp shumai (which were delicious, but nothing "out-of-the-ordinary" as far as special. It was your basic shrimp shumai. I ordered up the Szechuan Crispy Shredded Dried Beef lunch special, which I got with brown rice, and wonton soup. The soup was good, if not basic, though the broth was not overly salted dishwater broth; it was light and pleasant with some greens I suspect were baby spinach in it, and two tasty wontons. The crispy shredded dried beef was just that. It was not dripping in sauce, but the strips of beef were fried to a crisp, tossed with some mildly sweet sauce and served w/a sprig of cilantro and some shredded mango. Both my friend and I agreed this was worth a return trip back just to get this dish again.

Portion size: As the Szechuan crispy shredded dried beef lunch special was $8.25, I found it to be a bargain. With the soup and the rice, it turned out to be quite filling, and I've saved half of it for lunch tomorrow. All I need is more soup, and I've got another full hot lunch!

Suggestion: Serve this dish with a small wedge of lime. While the dish wasn't overly sweet, the lime can really do wonders with perking up the mango shreds and bring a new layer to the dish. It'd be nice to have the option of lime.

I am already planning a return trip back there. What do I get? Do I get the tempura appetizer of battered shrimp and veggies with an order of miso soup? Or do I opt for the crispy calamari salad with a few pieces of sashimi or sushi to start (scanning menu... sea urchin! my favorite!)? Or do I go in another direction entirely and opt for the Malaysian style red curry with jumbo shrimp?

Result: I can't wait to go again, I'm checking off my take out menu of all the things I want to try next.

Thanks for a great lunch!