Avocado's

For some reason this Blogger thing isn’t too format friendly.  Sometimes it inserts two lines, instead of one, below a paragraph.   I have no idea why and it drives me crazy because when I go to edit it all looks fine.  Ugh….

The majority of the review below was submitted for Rochester Southwest Life and has already been published.  This is my original review with some stuff added to it.  What appeared in the aforementioned magazine was edited for length.

Avocado’s Mexican & American Grill, located off of Broadway just north of Whiskey Creek (1647 South Broadway), is Rochester’s newest restaurant with a Mexican food focus.  They opened their doors September 27^th and was my choice for lunch on a Saturday.

I arrived at Avocado’s with my brother around 12.30 and we were immediately greeted by a hostess.  She sat us in the nearest of two dining areas and was shortly followed by our waitress who took our drink orders.  Avocado’s has Pepsi products, beer, wine, and a full bar that features 20 specialty cocktails with a tropical feel.  Like most Mexican restaurants you get chips and salsa when you are seated; Avocado’s is no exception.

The menu at Avocado’s is huge and features mostly what you would expect: appetizers, salads, wraps, vegetarian options, quesadillas, burritos, enchiladas, fajitas, molcajetes, house specialties, combination dinners, a children’s menu, dessert, a dozen very American-style food choices, and a few dozen side items.  Two menu categories that stuck out were the molcajetes and some of the house specialties as I have not seen some of these offered at other local places and were a nice diversion of the usual.  Avocado’s features a weekday lunch menu from 11am to 3pm with 20 typical offerings, a senior menu with about a dozen options, and food and drink specials that rotate each day.  Their menu was huge, like a lot of Mexican places.  I suppose a lot of it is using the same ten ingredients in slightly different manners.

I was intent on not ordering anything I considered typical, like tacos, but I ended up ordering tacos from the grill for $10.  It included three tacos with a choice of four meats, beef, chicken, carnitas, and chorizo sausage and included tomatillo salsa, pico de gallo, and refried beans.  My brother opted for the Carne Azada, which I’ve always seen spelt Carne Asada, for $11, which included beans, rice, guacamole, and tortillas. 

The complementary chips were unsalted, though they were crispy and had a pleasant roasted corn flavor.  Two salsas were provided; a tomato salsa and a white salsa like you get at Dos Amigos.  The tomato salsa had a vibrant tomato flavor that was cut with a nice spicy note, a fresh crunch from the onions, and the love it or hate it fresh, herbaceous flavor of cilantro.  This salsa contrasted the creamy white salsa that was much more luscious, with a pronounced sourness, a slight sweetness, and a hint of spiciness.  I found both to be pleasant. 

Our food came out quickly and everything looked good.  The steak for the first taco had a great sear on it, but was overcooked and tough.  It was cut small, however, so it was easy to eat.  The carnitas was succulent, well seasoned, very tender, and had the needed crisp exterior.  This was the best of the three tacos.  The chorizo taco was like a good version of a ground beef taco.  The texture was similar, but the flavor was superior.  It had the nice caramelized bits, fattiness, the earthy spices, and a milder than hoped for spiciness.  Each taco was double wrapped in seared white corn tortillas.  The tomatillo salsa was tied for the best thing I tasted.  This salsa had a great roasted tomatillo flavor, sharp acidity, a great chili flavor without being overwhelmed by spice, and nicely seasoning.  The pico de gallo was very fresh with the great mix of acidic and sweet tomatoes, sharp onions, spicy jalapeños, and the bright flavor of cilantro.  The refried beans were what I expected, creamy, though surprisingly under seasoned.  Usually refried beans are salty, these were not by any means.  A little more seasoning in them would have made them pop with flavor.

My brother’s Carne Asada was good, though overcooked.  He ordered it medium and it came out well.  Still, it has not overly tough, had a great sear on it which produced a deep beef flavor; however, the seasoning could have been a little more aggressive.  The rice was well seasoned, had a slight tomato flavor, and was cooked well.  A sample of the guacamole proved to be rich and creamy, with crunchy onions to provide a textural contrast, some spiciness, and a nice overall seasoning level.  A little acidity would have balanced it perfectly.  

The service was adequate, though inconsistent; there were times where a server was absent for a while and others where one checked in often.  The atmosphere was pretty nondescript with many beer special advertisements, colorful Mexican styled banners hanging from the ceiling, and TVs in the bar.  Other than the music, there wasn’t a lot that had the Mexican restaurant feel in terms of atmosphere.

Overall I was pleasantly surprised with the food, there were a few miscues, but the flavors of the carnitas and tomatillo salsa made up for them.  I can certainly recommend Avocado’s for lunch or dinner if you are in the mood for Mexican type food; it is better than you can get at some of the more established places in town. 

To recap:

Food:  Much better than I expected.  I was hesitant to try this place because I have had some legit Mexican food before and was afraid it would be too much like Fiesta Mexicana, which I am not a fan of whatsoever.  Thankfully I was proved wrong.  I found the tomatillo salsa to be superb and the carnitas was also excellent.  I ordered carnitas once at Fiesta Mexicana and they made it with pork loin.  I’m not Mexican, but I know you make it with pork shoulder.  Avocado’s did it right and it even had the crispy, fried exterior that I know is traditional.  I have been meaning to get back to Avocado’s just for the carnitas.  I recommended this place to one of my co-workers and he had a chimichanga and said it was tasty.  I haven’t been to El Carambas for a while, but I have enjoyed everything I have had there.  But Avocado’s definitely ranks up there with them for a good example of Mexican food.

Service:  From what I can remember it was mostly adequate, though often less than spectacular.  Somewhere along the line the idea of a service job, such as a waitress, lost the important part of service.  This is by no means directly only at Avocado’s, but to about every restaurant not named Chick-fil-A.  It is particularly troublesome when a tip is expected instead of earned.  When I was in culinary school we learnt how to serve tables; it’s too bad those who do that job do not knows this.  OK, my rant on servers is done.  Avocado’s was, by today’s standards, adequate in the service department.  I have had much worse service at other places.

Drinks:  I did not try any of their bar drinks so I can’t rate any of those.  Like most places in this town they have Pepsi products.  I think they at least had Dr. Pepper.  There is also the routine beer roundup that is expected at a Mexican place.

Ambiance:  When I was there a few months ago there wasn’t much ambiance whatsoever.  Perhaps they have improved it since.  Even so, I know creating a nice ambiance can be expensive, but it is also represents the restaurant.  Avocado’s had the predictable beer signs and Cinco de Mayo-esque decorations.  Other than that, however, it was very nondescript and unexciting.  It doesn’t need to be like Fiesta Mexicana, but something that would make the restaurant stand out a bit would be nice.  The restaurant should be as exciting as the food and drinks.

Conclusion:  Better than the food you can get at Dos Amigos (or whatever it is called nowadays) and Fiesta Mexicana.  From what I recall it was El Carambas good, but I haven’t been to El Carambas in a long time.  Check this place out and hopefully you can find flavors that were as good as the ones I found.  The carnitas were as legit as I have had at a place in town and the tomatillo salsa was delicious.  It’s too bad they didn’t successfully cook the beef when I was there, but maybe they’d be better at it now.  Hopefully they have smoothed some of the rough edges since I had been there.  Check it out if you feel like Mexican food, you could do much worse here in town.

Crossings Bistro and Bar

This following review was written for Rochester Southwest Life shortly after Crossings opened, though I have added a bit more to it. 

One of Rochester’s newer restaurants was the choice for a Saturday lunch.  Crossings Bistro and Bar (http://www.crossingsbistroandbar.com/index.html) recently opened downtown, connected to the Kahler Inn & Suites and across Center Street from the Gonda Building; it has a great downtown location. 

Upon arriving in the restaurant we were greeted promptly and seated.  Immediately one of the other wait staff arrived with menus and to take our drink orders.  Crossings has Coca-Cola products, coffee, tea, milk, a well stocked bar with signature mixed drinks and cocktails, a handful of tap beers, about two dozen bottled beers, and several wines by the bottle or glass.  Happy hour is from 3 to 7 pm everyday where five different drink specials are featured for the beer, wine, and signature drinks. 

The ambiance of Crossings has a modern, sleek feel to it with open spaces, various earth tones, blacks, dark wood, and exposed rock.  The restaurant was well lit and there were flowers and plants all around, though I found some of the plants to be too close to the booths where they interfered with the comfort of sitting in the booth.  There is also a large patio to sit at when it isn’t one of the nine months of Minnesota winter. 

Crossings has soups, salads, a nice selection of sandwiches, and more substantial entrées made with chicken, beef, pork, seafood, and pasta.  The items on the menu sound well thought out and a little different from the regular Rochester fare, such as Pot au Feu and Shrimp au Poivre. 

The menu says they specialize in catered premium office luncheons, which is a great idea for their proximity to downtown businesses.  Because of this I opted to try one of the several sandwiches on the menu.  The Reuben sandwich is one of my personal favorites, though I hesitantly order it at restaurants because it is often improperly prepared.  I decided to give it a try anyhow.  I also upgraded my side from the kettle chips to the truffle fries.  My two dining companions opted for the Steak Sandwich and the Patty Melt. 

Our food came out after a short while, which was quite impressive for such a new restaurant.  My Reuben, at $12 including the $2 side upgrade, was fantastic, as in the best Reuben I’ve ordered at any restaurant.  I’ve ordered dozens of Reubens before and this easy was tops.  Seriously.  The reason is simple; they used the correct corned beef.  Crossings uses beef brisket for their corned beef which is absolutely essential due to its fatty, tender richness.  The sandwich was a beautiful combination of flavors, textures, and tastes.  The bread was nicely toasted and studded with caraway seeds, the corned beef, as aforementioned, was rich and decadent, sauerkraut provided a nice vinegary acid, the cheese was salty and creamy, and the sauce was rich, sweet, and tangy.  It was very well balanced.

The truffle fries were fantastic, easily the best fries in town and probably the best fries I have ever tasted.  I am not a huge French fry fan, but I have gone back to Crossings just to order these.  I’d take them over Newt’s “best fries” any day.  The truffle component provided a nice, earthy note; they were seasoned fantastically with salt, cheese, and some herbs, and cooked perfectly.  Inside the fries were creamy and outside they were crispy.  This is how fries should taste and should be made.  They could easily stand alone on their own, unlike any other fries in town.  Also served with the sandwich was coleslaw that was creamy, acidic, crunchy, sweet, and had the taste of celery seed.  Overall it was fine coleslaw. 

Next up is the Steak Sandwich, also at $12 with a $2 side upgrade to the fresh fruit.  The steak was requested to be cooked medium and it was cooked nicely.  With the char-grilled steak was Ama Bleu cheese and caramelized onions on a toasted sourdough roll.  Overall the sandwich was successful.  The steak was a little tough, but the richness of it was cut nicely with the sweetness of the onion and funkiness of the blue cheese.  All of this was sandwiched between the toasted bread, which provided an excellent contrast in texture to the soft onion and cheese and the chewy steak.  The fruit assortment was nice and a departure from the normal.  Besides melon and pineapple there were strawberries and raspberries.  All were fresh, sweet, and delicious.

The Patty Melt, also at $12 with a $2 side upgrade, was also successful overall.  The same bread was used for this as the Reuben and was toasted equally as nicely.  Melted on the burger patty was both Swiss and Cheddar cheese and there were caramelized onions on it as well.  Although the burger to bread ratio was a bit amiss, the sweetness of the onions, the richness of the beef, and the salty cheeses worked nicely with the toasted bread to create a nice sandwich.  The same truffle fries and coleslaw were served with the Patty Melt.

Our server at Crossings was good, though the service was lackluster.  It seemed that our server and another were serving the entire restaurant while two others stood around and didn’t do much.  There were a couple times where the service could have been quicker, but our waitress did a fine job; she was pleasant and professional.  With better teamwork the service could be constantly great.

Crossings Bistro and Bar was a pleasant find that I look forward to revisiting soon.  The food surpassed my expectations and I’m sure the service will be improved.  If you are looking for a nice place to eat downtown, check out Crossings.  They are open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, conveniently located, and offer some fantastic food options.

Since the above review I have been back to Crossings a few more times to get the Reuben again and to try a few other menu items.  Everything I have had has been tasty.  I have not been there in the last few months so I hope they have kept up their food’s tastiness.  One area that I have repeatedly noticed as lackluster in all of my visits is their service.  I mentioned this above, but I hope it has gotten better in the last few months.  The times I had been there I thought that if they could have the service match the food they would be in good shape.  I will have to make it back there again soon, before they close because Rochester hates anything that isn’t a chain, to get another Reuben and truffle fries. 

I was disappointed to see that Crossings was a runner up to best new restaurant, with the Texas Roadhouse claiming victory.  I’ve only eaten at Texas Roadhouse once, and that was a few years ago in Bismarck, North Dakota.  I remember it being good, or at least I don’t remember being offended by it, but still, I think Crossings should have claimed that title.  If nothing else it is local and it was open longer.  Oh well, we all know the best of Rochester thing is all a popularity contest anyway.  How else does some subpar dish at Victoria’s always win best Italian dish in town?

To recap:

Food:  Excellent.  They have a great variety of food, with some not so run of the mill offerings.  They make the best Reuben I have ever had at a restaurant, narrowly beating out Homemade Café in Pepin, Wisconsin.  Crossings truffle fries are also wonderful.  I am not a French fry fan and I make it a point to pay an extra $2 for these deliciously seasoned and cooked fries.  These fries have overtaken my former personal favorite fries, Tinn’s.  They also had a nice fruit assortment that wasn’t under ripe melon and pineapple and part way to raisin grapes.  I have had a few of their different menu offerings and found all to be great.

Service:  This is going off of memory now, but it was a little lackluster.  The servers I have had have been good to average, but overall, it seemed that the servers lacked teamwork with some certainly not pulling their weight.  Even so, the food came out in a timely manner and the servers that I have had have been helpful in menu suggestions and seemed knowledgeable.

Drinks:  They have Coca-Cola products so that is an instant victory over most other restaurants that serve that vile Pepsi stuff.  They have a full bar, wine, bottled beer, and tap beer.  They have the typical Minnesota taps that are a sorry excuse for beer, but also a couple properly made beers.  The last times I was there they have had Summit EPA and Sam Adam’s Boston Lager.  Their daily happy hour seems to have some great deals.

Ambiance:  It’s a cool looking place.  Quite modern in a good way, sleek, exposed rock, dark wood, lots of light through the windows, and a nice sized patio for the few days a year it is above freezing here in Minnesota.  Some of the interior plants seemed to be placed poorly that limited movement in and out of the middle booths, for example, and I don’t like feeling like plants are attacking me. 

Conclusion:  If you can’t tell, I am a fan.  Go there.  Often.  Unless it has gone way downhill in the last few months you won’t be disappointed.  The service may leave something to be desired, but the truffle fries and the Reuben are worth it.  Try some of their other stuff too; I’m sure it is at least better than decent.  I sure hope they can make it in Rochester’s utterly pathetic restaurant scene.  Great news!  We are getting another Denny’s!  Ugh.  It’s places like Crossings that make eating out worth it.  Now I need to get back there again soon….perhaps this weekend.