Melty Way

Melty Way
821 W. State St. #3
American Fork, UT

Grilled cheese is one of my favorite meals. Some may think it's crazy to go out and order grilled cheese, because a 5 year old could make it. But I'm a sucker for it and couldn't wait to try Melty Way, a gourmet grilled cheese restaurant.

I met up with a few of my old roommates from college. It was a perfect place to meet up with girlfriends.

What We Got...
Tomato Basil Soup-Good tomato soup. It wasn't wanything out of the ordinary, but it was just as good as any other tomato soup.

Artichoke and Tomato ($4.99)-Provolone, pepper jack, marinated artichokes, grape tomatoes, and basil pesto. I fell head over heels for this sandwich.  The artichoke and melty cheese, was delicious.

The Italian ($4.99)-Whenever I see fresh mozzarella or pesto on a sandwich it is an easy decision. This sandwich had both! This was good too, but I preferred the artichoke and tomato.

They also have a variety of dipping sauces that I would recommend trying. I liked the sriracha sauce for a little kick.

Service..
This is an order/pay and then they bring out your food. We didn't have a waitress, but the service we did receive was good. Also our food came out quick.

Overall...
Green Light Restaurant. I loved it. I may be a little biased because of my love for grilled cheese, but you better believe I'll be back to try the many other sandwiches I was debating on getting. 

Scale Rating Descriptions

Green Light: I'll be coming through all the time, call me a regular, recommend to everyone and all, I'll crave this place when I'm pregnant, loved it!

Yellow Light: I'll be slow to go through,  I'd go back if someone suggested it,  nothing special, not something I'm going to crave, it was ok.

Red Light: STOP! Don't go, tried it once and that's enough, warn people not to go, thinking about it brings back bad memories, didn't like it.

Communal

Communal
102 University Ave.
Provo, UT

It was my birthday a few weeks ago and I wanted to go somewhere good. I had been wanting to go to communal for about three years, no joke. The one-time I did attempt to go we didn't make reservations and there was no chance we were going to be seated without one. So finally, three years later, I returned excited to try it out because I had only heard good things.

We had a large group, nine of us, and it is family-style so we ordered about 12 different dishes to share. I like this because you get to try so many different dishes in one visit. The portions end up being small because we split them between nine people and you end up getting a sample. By the end, the women were full but all of the men joked about stopping at in-and-out burger on the way home. We reassured them quality over quantity and they couldn't argue about that.

What We Got...

Caramelized Fennel and Mushroom Tart-A great appetizer to share, because it was big enough to split between the group.  I never have cooked with fennel, but it tasted so good on the tart.

Shrimp Cocktail- your average, nothing special shrimp cocktail.

Roasted Winter Squash Salad- This was the groups favorite salad of the night. The little bits of squash were so good in the salad.

Fried Clifford Farm Egg- It was good but we liked the squash salad better.

Pan Seared Salmon- Good but nothing special.

Roasted Mary's Farm Chicken- I loved the maple sauce that the chicken was served with.  It was moist and the maple compliment the dish well.

Asian Pork (special that night)-This was the tables favorite protein choice. It was delicious!

Roasted Root Vegetables-Perfect blend of vegetables. I think the secret ingredient was butter. They were drenched in butter, I think that's why they tasted so good.

Macaroni and Cheese-Good Mac and Cheese. We all wish this had been a bigger portion because we literally only got one small bite.

Anson Mill's Fried Polenta

Yukon Gold Potato Puree-Fancy mashed potatoes with cheese curd. Mmmm, they were good.

Service...
The service was good. Our waitress explained the menu to us and she recommended that we get the mashed potatoes with cheese curds and I'm glad she did because they were delicious.

Overall...
Green light restaurant. Everything we got tasted amazing. The top favorites and what I would recommend getting are the roasted winter squash salad, Asian pork, roasted Mary's farm chicken, and yukon gold potatoes.  Don't waste your time with the average dishes, ask for their most popular dishes, and enjoy them.  The menu is always changing and I like that they try to use fresh, local ingredients in the dishes. Because it is a little pricier it wouldn't be a place that I would be able to go to all the time. But when I can find a good excuse, special occasion, or whatever reason, I'll take it so that I can go back.

Scale Rating Descriptions

Green Light: I'll be coming through all the time, call me a regular, recommend to everyone and all, I'll crave this place when I'm pregnant, loved it!

Yellow Light: I'll be slow to go through,  I'd go back if someone suggested it,  nothing special, not something I'm going to crave, it was ok.

Red Light: STOP! Don't go, tried it once and that's enough, warn people not to go, thinking about it brings back bad memories, didn't like it.

La Jolla Grove

La Jolla Grove
4801 N. University Ave Suite 610
Provo, UT 84604

If you want a fun romantic restaurant or a great place to go with the girls, come to La Jolla Grove. When you are seated, you feel like you are dining in a grove of lemon trees. I have gone here several times, and am always pleased with my meal. They use fresh ingredients and the portion sizes are smaller than the average restaurant these days, but still filling.

What We Got...
Herb Chicken Pappaedelle $13.75
Any pasta dish served with fresh homemade noodles is that much more delicious. Jen got this dish and said it was amazing.

Shrimp Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes and Spinach $14.95
The shrimp was served over angel hair pasta, my favorite, with a light citrus butter sauce. It had a wonderful blend of tomatoes and spinach. Another winner at La Jolla Gtove.

Butternut Squash Ravioli $14.25
I thought this was a nice change from regular cheese and meat ravioli.  The butternut flavor was great. On top was a thin slice of apple, for a touch of well thought detail. The dish was delicious, served with a savory pumpkin cream with carrots and potatoes.

Service...
The service was ok. A bit slow. When I mean slow, I refer to the waiter in being slow to get us rolls, fill drinks, and bring our check. We got our food in normal time, but we were at the restaurant for a while because of the other factors. It was fine because we weren't pushed for time, and it was fun to chat and catch up with friends both times.

Overall... 
Green light restaurant. I've gone back several times as each time I can't wait to come back and try something new. Also each time, my plate is scraped clean. Not a drop left.

Side note: They just opened a location in Salt Lake downtown at the gateway.

Scale Rating Descriptions

Green Light: I'll be coming through all the time, call me a regular, recommend to everyone and all, I'll crave this place when I'm pregnant, loved it!

Yellow Light: I'll be slow to go through,  I'd go back if someone suggested it,  nothing special, not something I'm going to crave, it was ok.

Red Light: STOP! Don't go, tried it once and that's enough, warn people not to go, thinking about it brings back bad memories, didn't like it.

 

Cravings Bistro

Cravings Bistro
63 E. Main St
American Fork, UT 84003

Next date night/girls night/I don't want to cook night, stop in at Cravings Bistro.  It has a total girly girly atmosphere, but guys don't let this scare you. It's definitely worth a try. The menu is displayed on multiple chalk boards through out the restaurant.  I wanted to order everything. I always know it's going to be good when I want to order one of everything on the menu. See the menus below.

See what I mean, it all looks good. I wanted to try everything: fresh squeezed lemonade, grilled strawberry smore, (I'll skip the grilled twinkie), gourmet mac & cheese, TBA, hot cocoa, etc... Since I'm not a hippo or loaded with cash, we used a coupon we got in the mail for two half grilled cheese and soup for $10. The coupon is actually, how I found out about Cravings. They consistently have a coupon in the blue coupon mailer and finally we decided to try it out. 

What We Got...
Tomato Basil Soup-See those croutons on top, wait... they aren't your ordinary croutons, but grilled cheese croutons.  It's all about the little details and mini grilled cheese croutons put this soup over the top.  Watch your tongue though, it was hot, but perfect considering the cold Utah weather we are stuck in.

ABC-Apple, Bacon, Cheedar Sandwich. An interesting twist with the apples, but I'm glad someone thought of it. My only complaint is I wish there had been at least two more apple slices on the sandwich. It looked a little skimpy once I opened it up. 

Cheesy Potato Soup-This soup was just as good as the tomato. I liked that it had chunks of potato, as some potato soups are smooth through and through. It had a great flavor, and if I could get my hands on their recipe, I would so I could make this at home.

K.I.S.S (Keep It Simple Silly)-Your basic grilled cheese. On the menu description it says lots, and lots, of cheddar. This picture doesn't show off the thickness of the cheese in the sandwich, but there was plenty. Another thing I liked about their grilled cheese was the thickness of the bread. They use big, thick, slices of either white or wheat bread on their sandwiches. Overall, there wasn't anything special about this sandwich. I would recommend trying something else, because I feel like you could make this at home. Next time I want to try the gourmet or tomato pesto. 

Chocolate Chip Cookie-If you apt in to be in their text club you get a free cookie. I couldn't resist and got the chocolate chip cookie. They warmed it up for me and it was ok, I like my chocolate chip cookies a little softer, and gooier. 

Service...
This is a order/pay type place and they bring out your food when it is ready.  It takes at least 15 minutes to cook the grilled cheese because they have to make sure the cheese is nice and melty, just fyi. The cashier was nice, and gave us samples of the soups because we couldn't make up our mind. Excellent service.

Overall...  
Green Light.  Even though the K.I.S.S wasn't anything special, I feel like that was my fault. I wanted something more original, but my husband wanted a simple grilled cheese, and that's exactly what he got. Putting that aside, when I leave and can't wait to come back to try everything on the menu, this deserves the highest rating.  Now I just need to find an excuse to go back.

Scale Rating Descriptions

Green Light: I'll be coming through all the time, call me a regular, recommend to everyone and all, I"ll crave this place when I'm pregnant, loved it!

Yellow Light: I'll be slow to go through,  I'd go back if someone suggested it,  nothing special, not something I'm going to crave, it was ok.

Red Light: STOP! Don't go, tried it once and that's enough, warn people not to go, thinking about it brings back bad memories, didn't like it.

 

Banana Leaf

Banana Leaf

409 N University Ave
Provo, UT 84601

Banana Leaf, is a restaurant that provides an experience meal! Any foodie adventurous will love Banana Leaf!!  The featured menu items come from Singapore and Srilanka. Most of their entrees are cooked in a banana leaf (hence the name). The banana leaves are fresh and shipped from Florida, and give this restaurant an original edge.


What We Got...
It was girls night out with Jen, Stacie, and I. With three of us we got a good sampling of what they have to offer. 

Drinks 

Avocado Shake ($3.99)
Rich avocado blended with ginger, vanilla bean, cream and sugar. Don’t be intimidated by this green drink, it is sooooooo good. I now crave it! It has the perfect sweetness, with chocolate syrup, vanilla bean, whipped cream, and avocado. Plus if you put an avocado in anything BAM, instantly made healthy!

Mango Lasi ($3.99)
Fresh mangos pureed and blended with Sri Lankan yoghurt. Jen can’t resist mangos and naturally got the Mango Smoothie. Sometimes mango flavored drinks disappoint, but this was delicious and tasted just like a mango!

Appetizer

Pa’an flatbread ($2.99)
This reminded me of Naan (the flatbread served at Indian restaurants) but on a diet. It was thinner and seasoned with a garlic salt.  I love anything with garlic and the pa’an was great.

Dinner

I got the Sri Lankan Beef Kothu ($12.25)
It came out on a huge leaf platter. The beef was almost like bbq beef strips. It was served with vegetables, a mixture of cheeses, egg, masala curry, spices, and shredded pa’an. It was tasty. I would say out of the three dishes I tried this was the least exotic tasting. It is a safe dish if you’re not feeling adventurous.

Jen got Indonesian Style Shrimp Nasi Goreng ($14.99)
Order this dish mild or spicy depending on your spice meter. The shrimp, vegetables, and basmati rice were seasoned with the Chef’s secret sauce. Comes with 2 mussels on the side. I don’t recall ever trying mussels, so I thought I’d give it a try. I’m an adventurous foodie right? Today, I don’t regret trying it, but I know I NEVER want to eat another mussel in my life. Just the name brings back the rubbery, I can’t swallow this, experience I had (I did swallow, but it took a good 3 minutes of chewing before I could down it, ekk). For all you mussel fans you get not one, but two with this shrimp dish. Let me know before hand if you like’m and I’ll box them up and ship them to you, free of charge.  

Wrapped and cooked in the banana leaf

Unwrapped

Stacie got the Sri Lankan Lamprice ($12.99)
If monkeys wrapped their presents it would look something like this dish. Wrapped nicely in a banana leaf was seamed seasoned rices, a fried egg, curried chicken, potatoes, with sambols and chutneys.  It was delicious. It reminded me of a tin foil dinner because everything was wrapped up and cooked together, but in a banana leaf. I never knew with each bite what flavor I was going to get.


Service... 
The menu at first was overwelming, mostly because everything looked sooooo good and I couldn’t make up my mind. The waiter came by and asked if he could explain some of the menu items. He was great, and described the unique aspects of all the dishes.  Once we ordered our food it came out quickly and someone was always around to fill up our water.

Overall..
Green light restaurant.  I would make a quick stop to the Banana Leaf for another sip of the avocado shake!! I have nothing bad to say about this restaurant. It was a restaurant that let me travel the world through food, and that’s what I dream about!

Scale Rating Descriptions

Green Light: I'll be coming through all the time, call me a regular, recommend to everyone and all, I"ll crave this place when I'm pregnant, loved it!

Yellow Light: I'll be slow to go through,  I'd go back if someone suggested it,  nothing special, not something I'm going to crave, it was ok.

Red Light: STOP! Don't go, tried it once and that's enough, warn people not to go, thinking about it brings back bad memories, didn't like it.

Pizzeria 712

Pizzeria 712

320 South State Street Orem, UT 84058

Mmmm, pizza at it’s best! Right when you walk in you can’t miss the wood fired brick oven, which makes for a top-notch pizzeria. You won’t find your every day pepperoni and cheese, but a unique blend of fresh toppings that make for delicious pizza. Handpulled mozzarella (sounds like something the pioneers went through), fennel, grana padano, fresh tomato sauce, I start to salivate just thinking about it.

What We Got…
They have a lunch and dinner menu which don’t vary too much, but the menu is seasonal to insure for fresh quality ingredients (I love that).

I met my grade school friend Sarah for lunch. First thing we were excited about was, instead of the usual breadsticks or loaf of bread, they brought out complimentary paprika hummus with soft bread to dip.  We devoured the hummus and wanted to ask for a hummus refill, but felt too embarrassed. 

To start we got the la nay ferme greens, peach, potato, rockhill gruyere, almond, sherry vinaigrette ($10). Sounds fancy shmancy, with words I’ve never heard of before, but it was good! I recommend trying it. I never would have thought to put red potatoes in a salad, but they fit in just fine.

As for the main dish, we got the creminelli sausage, caramelized onion, roasted fennel, tomato sauce, mozzarella pizza. ($14)   The crust was one of my favorite parts. Not to flat, not to doughy, but just right! And the sauce still had a fresh tomato taste. 

Service…

Our waitress was friendly and we even got the name of the lady who does her eyelashes, but she wasn’t Lighting Macqueen.  After we got our pizza it was like we didn’t exist. My glass was craving water, and it seems like whenever you have a waiter that leaves your refills hanging, that your thirst meter automatically goes to empty. Does this happen to anyone else?  Slow to pour and slow to charge. I had to go up at the end and give her our cards because she was taking forever. 

Overall...

Despite the slow service, I give Pizzeria 712 a Green Light. You better believe I’ll be back!


Scale Rating Descriptions
Green Light: I'll be coming through all the time, call me a regular, recommend to everyone and all, I"ll crave this place when I'm pregnant, loved it!

Yellow Light: I'll be slow to go through,  I'd go back if someone suggested it,  nothing special, not something I'm going to crave, it was ok.

Red Light: STOP! Don't go, tried it once and that's enough, warn people not to go, thinking about it brings back bad memories, didn't like it.