Dixie Quicks

Shane and I love watching the show "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives" on the Food Network. Recently, we watched an episode about a place in Omaha called Dixie Quicks. I had tried to find this restaurant once before, when I ended up at Shucks Fish House & Oyster Bar. This time, I looked up the new address in Council Bluffs and we ventured out to see what the hype was all about. The restaurant was very modern, with an interesting wait staff and an even more interesting "menu". The menu is written on a chalkboard in the middle of the restaurant, and from our seats, it could not be read. There are no descriptions of what each entree consists of, and you have to stand around in a group of people trying to decide what you would like to order.

In this photo, you can see the menu against the far wall. Personally, I found it frustrating that I would have to stand in front of the chalk board to decide what to order, and that there was no way of knowing what each item was (without asking). After looking at the chalkboard, you would have to remember your order until the server came to take it from you. Everything on the menu was divided into price groups, the appetizers were all one price, salads another, sandwiches another, and entrees another. From the quality and portion size of our meals, this place is really overpriced.

Each of the entrees came with corn bread and a salad. The salad was bland, and Shane and I agreed that the best thing about the salad was the one grape tomato that they included with it. The corn bread was decent, slightly dry, but fairly good with added butter and honey. 

Shane ordered Chilaquiles, a decent Mexican dish that was obviously Americanized. Traditional Chilaquiles is made with corn tortillas, but this dish was made with tortilla chips and had a texture similar to a frito pie. 

I ordered chicken fried steak, and was surprised by the brown gravy when it arrived. My side of green beans were obviously frozen beans that had been steamed and completely unseasoned. The chicken fried steak was okay, but could have had more spices to boost up the flavor. The mashed potatoes were just that, mashed potatoes... nothing to write home to mom about. 

After our experience with yet another Triple D restaurant, we are starting to think that maybe the restaurants that we dream about on "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives", may not actually be as great as they look on the show. Dixie Quicks is just one more Omaha restaurant that we will be adding to our "Don't Visit Again" list, as it was an overpriced meal that I could have made at home and been ten times happier with the outcome.

Tacos Peligro

After reading reviews online about the "best tacos in Omaha" and the "most authentic Mexican food in Omaha" we decided to try Tacos Peligro. Pulling up to the restaurant, we had our doubts as the restaurant had been tagged with graffiti and there were bars on the windows. 

We entered the incredibly small restaurant and seated ourselves at a booth in the corner. Taking a look around, we knew we were in the right place, as the clientele were all Hispanic, and all looked very happy with their authentic dishes. The server brought us some homemade chips that resembled pita chips with a cup of salsa, some delicious avocado salsa (with a small kick), a dark red salsa (that was very, very spicy), and a cup of lime wedges. He also brought the menu's, and we were shocked by the incredibly low prices (so many things under $5).

After reviewing the menu, we decided to order a variety of the items priced under $3 to share. We ordered a carnitas (pork) pupusa, a lengua (tongue) taco, and a cabeza (head) sope. The man taking our order seemed somewhat surprised at our choices, but left to place our order. 

Once again, I forgot to take pictures of everything we ordered, and we downed the pupusa before we realized we had not taken a photo. The sope (pictured above) was so delicious, the corn tortilla-like sope was very flavorful, topped with the most tender cabeza meat in the world. The flavor of the meat was so succulent and delicious, and it almost melted in our mouths. The sope was covered in lettuce, tomato, a thin Mexican cheese, and a homemade sour cream sauce.

The lengua taco was very tender and delicate, but also full of flavor. The taco was covered in cilantro and onion. We added the avocado salsa, the red salsa, and the limes to each of these dishes, and were blown away by the authentic goodness in each bite. 

We loved our meal so much that we decided to order one more sope and one more taco, this time trying the tripas (tripe) and carne asada (marinated steak). The carne asada was incredible, and while the tripas were not my favorite, Shane seemed to love them. 

One important thing to know if you plan to make a stop at Tacos Peligro, is that they only take cash, so come prepared! We had to make a trip to the bank and come back to pay our check, since we were unaware of the cash only policy.  Overall, this restaurant was so delicious that I was dreaming of the tacos a few days later and had to return within 4 days with a coworker for lunch. I tried two different types of tacos and was still just as impressed as before. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the real deal, true authentic Mexican, and heavenly deliciousness!

Saigon Restaurant

Shane and I had just finished watching a movie at Westwood Cinema and were in the car headed home when we saw Saigon Restaurant across the street. Since we were still on a mission to find a Vietnamese restaurant that compares to our favorite Minnesota restaurant, Viet Flavor, we decided to stop and look at a menu. I ran inside to grab a to-go menu and came back to the car to look it over with Shane. The menu featured a variety of spring rolls, as well as different types of Pho that were reviewed online as the "best pho in Omaha". There was also a special running on three different types of Bahn Mi. Thinking that we might have found our new "Viet Flavor", we ventured in to Saigon Restaurant.

We were seated at a very large booth and promptly brought two glasses of ice water with a cucumber in them. The cucumber gave the water a funny aftertaste, so much so that Shane asked for a water without cucumber.

The server was very nice about getting a new water, but seemed surprised that someone would request to not have any cucumber. When it was time for us to order, I asked the server what her favorite spring roll was, which she told me was the shrimp and pork spring roll. We took her suggestion and ordered the spring roll, and also asked for one combination Bahn Mi and one pork Bahn Mi. She got a confused look on her face, went to the kitchen and came back to inform us that they did not have the right ingredients to make the combination Bahn Mi. Since we wanted to try a variety of foods, we ordered the chicken Bahn Mi instead.

The spring roll was very dry, and contained a lot of mint. There was hardly any pork in the spring roll, leaving it bland and boring to taste. Even after adding quite a bit of their homemade fish sauce and peanut sauce (which were both quite spicy), the spring rolls were still not up to par.

The chicken Bahn Mi was decent, with moist and flavorful chicken and a small amount of daikon. The menu said that each sandwich came with a liver spread, but it was undetectable in both sandwiches. There was also a homemade mayo that traditionally comes on Bahn Mi. The mayo was put on the sandwich so sparingly, that it was undetectable as well. 

Since we wanted to share the sandwiches, we asked the server for a knife. She returned with the knife and seemed slightly agitated. The pork Bahn Mi was similar to the chicken, average in flavor, lacking cilantro and jalapenos and with a minimal (unnoticeable) amount of liver spread and mayo. Since the mayo is one of our favorite parts of Bahn Mi, and since these sandwiches were lacking, we requested a side of mayo to add to our sandwiches. The server, seeming even more agitated, returned to the kitchen and came back to tell us that she could not provide a side of mayo, as they only made a certain amount and needed some leftover for future orders.

This restaurant was easily my biggest let-down in the city of Omaha. The Bahn Mi would have been much better, had they been served with jalapenos, additional mayo, and some more cilantro. We would have requested jalapenos or more cilantro, if the server had ever come back after our request for extra mayo. Overall, this restaurant had poor service, unauthentic food, and left a lot to be desired. This is easily one restaurant we will never be returning to.

Latino Restaurant

A few weeks ago Shane and I went to Latino Restaurant for dinner. We had read reviews about this Salvadorian and Colombian restaurant and were intrigued enough to try it for ourselves. The restaurant is small, and shares its space with a bakery that looked absolutely delicious but closed before we were finished eating dinner. When the server asked us if we knew what we would like, I bombarded him with my usual questions of "what is your favorite, what are customers favorites, and what is the most authentic thing on the menu". The server reassured me that everything on the menu is authentic, and told me that the Chicken Crema was both his favorite and the most popular dish. 

The meals come with complimentary chips, beans, and salsa. The beans are some of the most flavorful and delicious beans I have ever tasted, and Shane (who hates beans) loved them as well. The salsa was rich in flavor and not overly spicy, and was absolutely amazing when mixed with the beans. The chips were thick and homemade, similar to pita chips.

We looked over the menu for a few more minutes, and noticed that they served pupusas with pork, beans, and cheese for under $2 each. We decided to order one pupusa to share, I ordered the Chicken Crema, and Shane ordered the Mofongo (a fried and mashed plantain dish) served with pork. 

The pupusa came out first, with fresh slaw and a red runny sauce. We were so hungry, and it looked so delicious that we dove right in and forgot to take a picture. It basically looked like a pancake but the center was full of meat, beans, and cheese. It was absolutely amazing, and the "shell" tasted like homemade corn tortillas, except it was thick like a pancake.

When our meals came out, the smell was deliciously intoxicating. My Chicken Crema was nothing like I had pictured, with its red sauce, but it was so rich and full of flavor, and actually surprisingly creamy for being a red sauce. The salad portion of my meal was a basic iceberg lettuce with cucumbers, tomato, and a sauce that tasted like Italian dressing, and the rice was a simple white rice. That being said, the chicken was so moist and the flavor was so intensely different from anything I had ever tasted, that I was very happy.

Shane really enjoyed his Mofongo, saying that the plantains were the perfect combination of crispy and creamy. The pork served with his meal was incredibly seasoned, tender, and full of flavor. Shane's meal also came with a slaw that was light in flavor, but was delicious when mixed with the peppery slaw that had been served with the pupusa.

Overall, we were incredibly happy with our decision to visit the Latino Restaurant, and will definitely be back. And maybe next time, we will be able to try the bakery as well!

El Basha Mediterranean Grill

Of all the places I have tried in Omaha thus far, El Basha Mediterranean Grill is easily my favorite. I have been to El Basha twice since I moved here, once during my first week, and once a few days ago with a colleague. El Basha is a very small restaurant with limited indoor seating, and a small outdoor patio with limited seating as well. The menu is posted on the wall above a counter and has very small cursive font. It is difficult to read the menu and the descriptions are not the most helpful if you are not very experienced in Mediterranean cuisine. 

During my first visit, I asked the woman working at the counter about her favorite dish, which she said was the chicken shawarma wrap. Not believing that chicken could be better than beef, I opted to order the beef shawarma wrap combo, which came with mashed potatoes and a side salad. All of the meals at El Basha come with a fountain drink of your choice, which you fill on your own after placing your order. The woman gave me my number and a cup, and due to the amount of people in the restaurant, I chose to sit outside. My meal arrived rather quickly, and upon first glance I thought that the salad dressing had been forgotten. My salad was made up of romaine lettuce, a slice of tomato, and a slice of cucumber. It looked as if the salad had been spritzed with water, but was void of dressing. Upon taking my first bite, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the salad "dressing", was crisp, light, and zesty. In fact, it was some of the best salad dressing I had ever tasted in my life. The beef shawarma wrap was about 8 inches long and 4 inches wide, and was wrapped in foil and cut into two parts. It contained lettuce, tahini sauce, tomatoes, and onion. The beef was very flavorful but slightly dry, with crisp edges. The mashed potatoes were lemony and delicious, with small lumps of potatoes and a zesty tang with each bite.

On my second visit to El Basha, I knew before arriving that I had to have the salad again. Taking the advice I was given last time, I ordered the chicken shawarma salad. My colleague had been to El Basha before, and ordered the hummus and pita bread appetizer, saying that it was the best she has had in Omaha. Once again, I was amazed at the light, crisp, deliciousness of the salad. Savoring every bite, and knowing that I could eat this salad every day of my life. 

 The salad had a dollop of tatziki sauce and two buttered and grilled slices of pita bread. It was savory, zesty, and delicious. My colleague shared her hummus with me, and I was very happy with its rich garlicky flavor. 

I can't wait for my next visit to El Basha, and have told everyone I meet about the amazing salad that has changed my life... I love El Basha!

Rivera's Mexican Restaurant

One evening Shane was browsing the internet and read reviews on Rivera's Mexican Restaurant, saying that it has some of the most authentic Mexican food in Omaha. As a woman who could eat Mexican food every single day and never get sick of it, I headed out to see what all the talk was about. Rivera's was a very small restaurant, and at 6pm, it was incredibly busy. Looking around, I noticed that every single person in the restaurant was ridiculously gorgeous. I'm not sure if the restaurant is located near a modeling agency, or what would have caused the strange clientele, but I was enjoying the view so much that I texted a picture of the man across from me to my RD BFF. 

I am the type of person who tends to judge a Mexican restaurant by its chips and salsa, as they are part of my top five favorite foods. The salsa at Rivera's was orange in color and tasted of spices and tomato paste. It was not horrible, but not my favorite type of salsa either. The chips were very thin and lacking salt, but went well with the salsa. If I had judged Rivera's on their chips and salsa alone, I would have been sadly mistaken. I asked the waitress what her favorite dish on the menu was, and she told me the Carne Asada. Taking her advice, I ordered the Carne Asada tacos. 

The tacos came with rice and beans, and were topped with the perfect amount of pico de gallo and cilantro. The corn tortillas were obviously homemade and reminded me of my visit to Honduras over 10 years ago. The beef was seasoned perfectly and had a small "kick". The beans were thin but flavorful, with shaved parmesan on top. The rice was bland in flavor, tasting similar to plain white rice. Aside from the rice, this meal was so over-the-top authentic that I will definitely be returning for more.