(restaurant)Review: Arcadia

Cocktail menu

Woohoo! It's my first restaurant review. Now, Arcadia isn't exactly a hidden gem in San Jose -- it's connected to the Marriott in downtown -- and it's also a Michael Mina restaurant. I have a confession to make; I like this place much more than the actual Michael Mina in SF. MM is a fine dining restaurant akin to Applejack's Manehattan relatives' favorite place, with small portions of nicely arranged food. Arcadia, on the other hand, is a fancy but also rough-and-tumble steakhouse in the heart of Silicon Valley. It's right next to the hotel bar, TANQ, so it can and does get a little noisy sometimes during events.

FYI, this review is actually a combination of two visits only a few days apart from each other. Why? Well, as some of you may know, foie gras was banned in California on July 1, 2012. I absolutely love foie gras, so my partner decided to take me on a foie tour of our area before the ban. Unfortunately, I only had the same foie gras dish on both visits because Arcadia actually stopped serving their foie gras sliders the day before. Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

Strawberry Rhubarb Royal

 Let's start with the drinks. All of the drinks I've tried at Arcadia are quite good, but they are fairly expensive. The Royal above was fantastic; it wasn't too boozy nor sweet and had a nice, distinctive flavor. It tastes a bit like something you would drink at Thanksgiving Dinner (for the Americans out there) because of its sparkling and somewhat cider-y quality.

Manhattan

Honeybear's favorite cocktail is the Manhattan, and Arcadia's doesn't disappoint. None of the ingredients were overpowering, it wasn't uber-boozy like Manhattans can be, and it was an easy drink. I normally hate them, but even I would order Arcadia's again.

Ginjo Raspberry Sake

Another drink as refreshing as it sounds. Again, it wasn't too sweet and had the perfect balance of alcohol and mixer. My partner ordered this drink and enjoyed it.

Le Bouffon

 Now this was a drink I regretted ordering. It wasn't bad per se, but it does have Absinthe in it, which makes it overpoweringly licorice flavored. Great if you like Absinthe or licorice... bad if you don't. I normally don't mind a bit of licorice, but this drink was almost like drinking straight black licorice.

Bourbon Bramble

Phew, okay, last drink. This drink, surprisingly, is the sweetest of the bunch, possibly due to the quality and smoothness of the bourbon. It comes with little bits of blackberry and orange, which I liked but could be weird for people who like their drinks clear.

Now, on to the appetizers...

Yummy butter and tapenade

Yummy, warm!! bread. I can't tell you how much I appreciate restaurants that serve their bread warm.

Lobster Corn Dogs

These. Were. Amazing! My partner wanted to try these because of the concept, even though he hates lobster. However, these were made with lobster dogs and were so tasty, we ordered them again on our next visit. They don't have the weird gumminess and sometimes artificial taste that school lunch corn dogs have, and the mustard sauce it came with accentuated it perfectly. They're both airy and flavorful at the same time and would be perfect with either a casual lunch or a fancy dinner.

Ahi Tuna Tartare

This is a dish Arcadia is famous for, unfortunately, neither of us liked it. It might have been an off night, but the dish we had was so overpowered with sesame oil that all we tasted was sesame oil with Asian pears. The fish was really fresh, though, so it was a shame that the dish was so one note.

Braised Beef Potato Skins

We ordered this thinking it would be a slightly tarted up version of the typical TGI Fridays potato skin, but we were pleasantly surprised when this came out. These were cheesy, beefy, tender, and just potato-y enough that I could make an entire meal out of them. They also came with a horseradish sour cream that took the edge off the richness and gave it a subtle freshness. Delicious.

Oysters

Lastly, oysters. I love these types of oysters as they're not as briney-salty as the typical oysters you get (the ones with the giant shells and the giant meaty parts, you know, very James Bond). I believe these are Kumamotos and Miyagis, which are smaller but chewier and meatier. The taste is much more substantial and sweet, and they hold up to sauces better than the typical oysters. I always eat them with just lemon, though. Is best. These were really small, though, so they weren't a great buy for the money.

Now, onto the entrees.

Arcadia is a very decent steakhouse. This strip steak was very decent. There's not too much else to say here.

Filet Mignon with Potato Cake, Portobello Mushrooms, Chard, and Hudson Valley Foie Gras

This is the dish I came for and ended up ordering twice because they stopped serving their sliders. The foie was perfect, if a bit small. The steak was tender, the cake and chard a good compliment. The wine sauce really tied the dish up.

Duck Fat Fries

Artichoke dish with a coddled egg

Bone Marrow

The sides were pretty good, too. The fries were really tasty, perfectly fried, and went well with or without ketchup. The artichoke dish was a little weird and I couldn't really get into it, even though I like artichokes and I love over easy eggs. The marrow was... blech. I thought they would be more like the marrow from a braised lamb shank, but instead they were pretty flavorless and came with a weird topping. If you're not used to eating marrow, I would give this a miss.

*breathes*

Well, that's the end of the review! We didn't have dessert because their dessert menu didn't look all that interesting to us, though they have pretty typical desserts for this type of restaurant. My final verdict is... go here! It's usually not terribly busy, and there's usually always seats at the bar if they run out of tables. Most of their dishes are great, and you could definitely make a meal out of the appetizers if you don't like steak or are low on cash.

8/10 almost everything is amazing, and if you're at Fanime and can afford it, definitely go here!

Arcadia, a Michael Mina restaurant

(food)Review: Hannah's Naturals Strawberry & Cream Mini-Swirl Lollipop

 

Oh, lollipops. Where should I begin? They're fun to eat, make you feel like a kid again, and are so very bad for you. Thankfully, we now have some alternatives to make us feel a little better about eating candy, because by doing so we're totally saving the world.

(Excuse the poor shape of the lollipop, I accidentally dropped it once and then left it in my car on a hot summer's day, which fused the candy into the shape of the wrapper somewhat.)

These adorable lollipops are from Hannah's Naturals, which makes lollipops using only natural ingredients, including natural food dyes. I received this lollipop in the June Foodzie tasting box, themed on carnival/boardwalk goodies. They taste just like they sound, although the cream part of it is more like a candy "cream", rather than a true, rich cream flavor you would get with a candy that actually contained cream, such as a Sees lollipop. The strawberry flavor is nice, fresh and clean tasting, unlike other conventional strawberry candies. For some reason I can't put my finger on, the flavor reminds me of Christmas.

Nutritional Facts

The size is a little awkward for people with small mouths -- which I am not a part of -- but is small enough to finish in one sitting. The texture is airy due to the baking soda, and because of that the lollipop can have a lot of bigger air bubbles, so be careful because it gets sharp near the end. The entire lollipop can last a little more than an hour, so it's perfect for a movie or a reading snack.

Since the lollipop doesn't contain coloring from beetles, it should be suitable for those on a vegetarian diet. I'm not a big fan of the corn syrup in there, but if I ever see another Hannah's lollipop in a different flavor, I may just have to give into my inner Pinkie Pie and have a taste of that colorful spiral. 

As of this writing, I could not find a website for Hannah's. The closest I could find was Madrona Specialty Foods at Candy.com.

(health)Review: Natural Vitality Energy28

Like I said I would, I'm reviewing Natural Vitality's Energy28 supplement that came in this month's Conscious Box. Unfortunately, I tried it while I was at the gym, so I didn't get a chance to take a picture of it. All of the nutritional information is here at their website, so if this interests you, go check it out!

First of all, this is a non-caffeine-based energy supplement. I know some of you out there are immediately scoffing at the idea of getting energy from anything but caffeine and sugar, but trust me, this stuff works! It contains maca, which is being touted nowadays as a vegan superfood and energy-giver, due to its abundance of B vitamins and its positive effects on hormone balance. It even purportedly increases libido and sexual function in men... ladies.

*eyebrow raise*

All joking aside, maca also contains essential minerals such as calcium and potassium, along with amino acids.

Energy28 also contains D-Ribose, which is used by the body in metabolic pathways and is the R in RNA. According to NV, D-Ribose is used up in metabolism faster than it can be produced, so supplementing D-Ribose should theoretically boost stamina and endurance.

The other two ingredients, golden chlorella and rhodiola, are plant based and provide energy through essential minerals and vitamins, as well as Omega-3-6-9 oils from the chlorella.

"But girl," you might say, "what about the taste? Does it even work?"

I'm already 20% cooler than the original Hasbro toy!

I'm getting to that, Rainbow Dash. The taste isn't exactly cupcakes and candy, but it's... fine. It's a little tart and acidic, so be careful not to hit the back of your throat when you're taking it. Since you only have to take a bit of it, you can get away with downing a spoonful without dealing with a huge can of foul-tasting energy drink. It's also nowhere near as bad as NV's liquid vitamin supplement, which is similar, with a added hit of vitamin bottle funk and a slight bitterness.

As for effectiveness, yes, it does work! I was feeling pretty blobby up until my workout time, and one shot of this really perked me up. It doesn't make you jittery and hyper like caffeine does, instead providing a stream of energy that lasts as long as you need it to.

So next time you're at the gym or at the races, if you can get over your caffeine addiction and the taste, try a shot of this and see how you do!

I'm on it!