Tobin's Pizza

A couple of weeks ago on my husband's date night he announced that we were going to Bloomington to try Tobin's Pizza.
In business since the 1960s, Tobin's is one of the top names in pizza in the Twin Cities. From what I hear, either you are a fan of Tobin's or you are a fan of Lucca, kind of like the whole Beatles/Rolling Stones debate.
I would have to say after trying Tobin's, I am a fan of both.
The decor was what a pizza parlor should be: not too bright, not too new, cozy and well loved. I would have preferred hearing some Italian mob hits, but that's because I'm not a fan of country music, which is what was playing during our visit.
We had to wait about 20 minutes for a table during the height of Saturday night dinner, which many other people were happily doing.
After hearing that this was our first time there, our waitress told us about their most popular deal, the Family Buck Stretcher. Order a 16" pizza and for just $1 more you can receive the same topping pizza in a 10" size to take home for later. We opted for their "Special" with sausage, mushrooms, onions and pepperoni but skipped the green peppers.
The piping hot pie was thin crust, nice and crispy and the toppings were of nice quality, simple and flavorful. I especially enjoyed their sausage, which I usually just tolerate to appease my husband.
I did see that a ton of what appeared to be birthday cookies were going out of the kitchen and noticed that they have a birthday club that seems to be wildly popular.
We also noticed that a gentleman who appeared to be an owner was visiting each table to make sure everything was OK, and was also pitching in to help bus tables on a busy Saturday night.
They also were doing a bustling delivery business and the parking lot was an almost never-ending stream of delivery cars.
If you're not a fan of pizza, Tobin's has many other items on the menu such as fried chicken and spaghetti, but I can't imagine not having pizza when I come back.
If you're already a fan or want to give it a try, there are currently a few $50 gift certificates available for $25 to save you some dough on your pie.

Caffé Italia Ristorante

My husband works in Bloomington every so often, and he has been raving about a little place called Caffé Italia Ristorante.
He had been hooked by their cheese pizza, and had also tried one of their pastas of the day and raved about the sauce.
I had a chance to have lunch at Caffé Italia a few weeks ago. I ordered the Pizza al Formaggio and a drink and took a seat in the café to await my meal.
Several of the diners appeared to be regulars, possibly from nearby State Farm. Many of them were also partaking of the Italian holiday treats the restaurant had in stock.
My pizza arrived shortly, and it was indeed delicious, with a wonderfully crisp crust.
Beer and wine is available, as well as a couple of my favorites: Gelato and cannoli.

World Gourmet Foods

World Gourmet Foods comes up almost every time I talk to one of my friends about shopping in Bloomington. She and her boyfriend love to stop in and sample cheese each time they are in town.
I visited World Gourmet in November and perused their wide selection of coffees, teas and ethnic and gourmet items. Eventually I made my way to the cheese sampling and tried six cheeses they had available for tasting. Knowing my husband's taste, instead of going with one of those I selected a half pound of a six year aged cheddar from Wisconsin.
I tossed in two pieces of Baklava for myself and a bag of ginger chews (something I don't have to worry about the husband bogarting) and I was set.
After trying the cheese melted on burgers and breakfast sandwiches, I think I may become a cheddar snob. The flavor was incredible.
My Dining Companion, who was my partner in crime for this shopping event, also made off with a few hunks of cheese.
Before leaving we wandered past the buffet area in the restaurant and saw that it was not a run-of-the-mill selection. Several people were enjoying lunch in the dining area.
World Gourmet will be on my list of stops the next time I am shopping in Bloomington.

Beningo's Restaurant

I've been remiss in not writing about a great meal we had a few months ago at Beningo's Restaurant in Bloomington.

My husband was looking for something different to do as we were in a little bit of a rut, ran across Beningo's on the web and noticed a picture of a nice looking pizza pie on their website, so he suggested we try the place and made a reservation.

The restaurant is located in a nondescript brick building.

On the phone, my husband had been asked if we wanted upstairs or down. He mentioned we had not been there before and the hostess said we wanted upstairs then.

We were taken to our table in the 1960s style dining room.

I looked over the menu which had a lot of pasta offerings, but with pizza being what made my husband pick the place I decided we needed to try it.

We went with one of their pre-arranged topping pies, the Sicilian, topped with sausage, tomatoes and hot peppers.

There was a cracker basket on the table and we munched on those a bit while we took in the atmosphere and waited for our food.

After looking around at some of the other diners it occurred to me that they served alcohol, which I hadn't realized when ordering.

We noticed some people showing up were leaving, apparently feeling that the wait for a table was too long or being told that there was no room.

We decided to see what we were missing in the basement so we headed down the stairs.

We were blown away by the decor! It reminded me of the early 1970s basement of my mom's friend's house when I was growing up, complete with vintage carpet. We decided it would be a blast to eat down there some time.

Back at our upstairs table the pizza soon arrived. It was wonderful! The pie took me back to the way pizza tasted as a kid at family-owned restaurants. The cheese (which I am picky about) and the sausage (which I am normally not a big fan of) were great.

With a pie like that paired with good service and great atmosphere, now that we've found Beningo's, we'll certainly be back.

Meat Heads

StfRon's been raving about his new favorite lunch stop in Bloomington, Meat Heads.
I stopped by 305 North Veterans Parkway to give the place a try for an early dinner.
Meat Heads is all about burgers and fries. There's not much else to the menu, save for a grilled cheese and hot dog.
Simple can be good.
The mainstay is the hamburger for $4, two certified Angus patties on a bun, adorned with your choice of toppings.
Being a fairly small person (and hoping to stay that way) I went with the 'Lil Meat Head, a single burger patty, and ordered it crowned with cheese, mustard, ketchup, pickles and raw onions (they also have grilled onions), and based on StfRon's recommendation I also ordered a small order of their fresh cut fries with bacon ranch sauce.
My ordered was delivered to my long booth in about five minutes.
The burger was juicy and good, and the combination of my selected toppings gave it just the zest I was looking for.
The fries were salted and tasty, and the bacon ranch (which I never would have ordered without a recommendation) lent a savory flair to the spuds.
With an iced tea, my meal came to about $11.
If you're all about burgers and fries, Meat Heads has got you covered.

Reality Bites

No, it's not 90's movie night...I recently had occasion to visit Reality Bites, 414 N. Main Street in Bloomington.
It's too bad their menu would not come up on a Mac running OS 10.5.x in either Safari or Firefox, as I was going to give a more detailed description of my lunch, but suffice it to say that it was good.
As for the restaurant, it features nice exposed brick walls and wood floors, with a few earthy colored walls.
I've wanted to check the place out for quite some time. My friend M reminded me of it this week, and said she had recently had a nice orzo salad there.
Reality Bites was doing a pretty good lunch business at noon, with the sidewalk dining and inside bar tables, so I was offered a seat at the bar counter or upstairs. I decided to sit at the bar.
I didn't get too far into the menu before I saw the seared Ahi tuna on the cold plate menu, served with some sort of cucumber pepper salad with a puréed carrot dressing. I went with that, and scarfed down the tuna, accompanied by ginger, soy sauce and wasabi. Once I got to the salad, I found it interesting and attractive. After sampling some cucumbers I got to one of the peppers, which looked like strips of green bell peppers, but were surprisingly spicy. After biting into one and feeling the heat, I vaguely remembered thinking they would be spicy based on the menu description, but I had forgotten by the time my food arrived. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the salad and I managed to eat several of the pepper slices and all of the cucumbers.
The manager-type gentleman behind the bar was friendly and helpful, and my server was friendly and efficient, too.
With an iced tea, my bill came to $11.92 before tip.
There were many other entrées I would be interested in trying, and the dessert menu caught my eye, too.
I can say the film version of Reality Bites didn't live up to my expectations, but the restaurant was a nice surprise.

Reality Bites menu now works on a Mac running Safari 4.0. Excellent, as I will be visiting there again soon!

Grady's Family Fun Park

After dinner Friday night, StfRon had a surprise for me. A trip to Grady's Family Fun Park, 1501 Morrissey Drive in Bloomington.
Grady's is filled with batting cages, go karts, bumper boats and cars, mini golf, a video arcade, and carnival rides.
They also have fair food such as funnel cakes and deep fried candy bars. Unfortunately, we arrived kind of late, and while we were riding some rides the concession stand closed for the night.
I was a little skeptical about going, but once StfRon and I got on the bumper car floor and were the only ones out there, I ended up laughing my ass off at chasing him around, shooting his car and smacking into him. The kind of crazy laugh where you feel your lips are stuck to your teeth in a fiendish grin. I just couldn't help myself.
The other ride we tried was the go carts, and it was pretty fun zipping around the track with the wheel cranked all the way to the side to try and make the turns. It was only once we got home that I noticed all the tiny bits of dirt stuck to my face from the track.
It was great to cut loose a bit at Grady's.

Caboose Smokehouse

Ever since hearing about the Caboose Smokehouse over on Central Illinois Life in fall 2007, it was on my list of places to check out. This weekend we finally made it.
We took advantage of our GPS to get us right to the door at 608 W. Seminary Avenue in Bloomington, which is good, because the restaurant is tucked away at the end of a residential area.
StfRon did comment that he could smell the smoke when we turned onto the street around 7 p.m.
Stepping inside, we found a dark, cozy bar/restaurant atmosphere, with a few people playing video poker games and a group sitting down to dinner in a booth. We took a seat along the booth section, wooden booths along a wall lined with a dog-eared fence looking wainscoting that added to the cozy feel.
Once our eyes adjusted to the darker atmosphere, we noticed we had taken a seat at a booth that had not yet been wiped, but no sooner than we had noticed, a manager type lady was right over to wipe it down.
There was, of course, a small amount of train memorabilia such as model trains and signs on the walls to add to the railroad theme.
The special for the night was prime rib, but StfRon went with the full rack of ribs, after ascertaining from our waitress that they were using a Southern Pride smoker. I decided to try the brisket.
While waiting for our entrées, we were served iceberg lettuce salads topped with shredded cheese and a nice loaf of bread on a wooden cutting board.
Our food arrived fairly quickly, and we dug in. The brisket was tender, and after sampling a piece, I decided to try it dipped in their BBQ sauce, which was pretty good.
The bones of the ribs, billed St. Louis style on the menu, actually pulled right out of the meat with nary a scrap of meat left on the bone. StfRon also found that the bones would easily snap with a small amount of pressure, so it seems like they were cooked for quite a long time. I sampled a piece of the meat and loved the rub they used on the ribs. If we find ourselves back there, I'll bet I would go for the ribs, unless some fowl festooned with the same rub tempted me.
StfRon enjoyed the first section of ribs, but found the second piece to be tips, which he is not a big fan of.
The whole time we were eating, I kept glancing at the sign on the table that advertised homemade desserts. The dessert mentioned on the sign was cheesecake, and homemade cheesecake sounded great, but after eating almost all the brisket and most of my baked potato, cheesecake was the last thing I needed right then.
The prices were pretty reasonable, and the lone waitress we saw did a pretty good job of keeping on top of things. She checked in with us a few times throughout our meal.

Jim's Steakhouse

I've never really eaten at Jim's Steakhouse. We did have an office Christmas party there one year, but I think the menu was selected for us.
Jim's location at 100 SW Jefferson in Peoria was suggested to us for our birthday dinner, so we decided it was high time to try it out.
We went in at about 5:00 on Sunday and had a drink in the lounge while waiting for the rest of our dining party. The only table in the restaurant that was occupied when we arrived hosted Aaron Schock and his dining companion.
The bar is decorated in greens and dark wood, with brass accents and wide plank wood flooring. The piano was silent on a Sunday night.
I had a glass of Rodney Strong Cabernet and StfRon had a Sam Adams. There wasn't a wide selection of imports. When my dad arrived, he went with a Newcastle.
The bartender informed us that since they only had reservations for six people all night, they were not serving prime rib.
We decided to go take our table and let the meal begin. Looking over the menu, I saw a porterhouse steak priced at $44, the stroganoff, which my mom assures me is wonderful, priced at $18, and filets priced at around $22. There were also some seafood selections on the menu.
I decided to try the filet medallions oscar, a dish I've enjoyed lots of places, which was $26 and included a soup or salad and a side. I went with the salad with brittney dressing and green beans as my side. I guess there were daily side choices as well, which I heard another server mention later in our meal.
The soup of the day was cream of chicken, which sounded kind of dull to me, but we saw a bowl later, and it looked very good.
StfRon went with the tortellini, prepared in a cream sauce, with bacon and peas, for about $18. He also had the salad with brittney dressing.
My parents both went with a filet, and salads with brittney dressing.
The dressing was quite good, not too sweet, like some brittneys I've tried.
I had ordered my steak medium rare, and it did seem to be more on the rare side, being very red inside, but was hot, as were my green beans and asparagus. The steak also had a brown sauce on top, which took me by surprise, and a huge amount of crab in the middle. The asparagus was topped with hollandaise. The meal proved way too much for me to eat.
StfRon said the tortellini was wonderful.
By this time, there were three more tables of people in the dining room, and the two waitresses were busier. Our waitress became a bit more scarce toward the end of our meal. My parents were out of wine for a while, but we ended up just requesting the bill.
Walking through the bar, I also noticed the bartender was serving food to a couple of tables dining in the lounge.
Maybe if I'd chosen a different entree, I would have been bowled over. We did have a nice time, though, due to good company.

Redfire Grille

We ventured to Bloomington tonight to check out the Redfire Grille, a family-owned restaurant that opened about a year ago.
Redfire Grille, located at 1605 South Morrisey Drive, serves a wide variety of fare.
On a Saturday night, I was a little concerned we might need to see if they take reservations, but when we arrived, we were seated as soon as someone came by the podium. They were not overly busy at 7:30.
We considered selections like the hardwood smoked brisket, cider reduction pork, tender beef with sundried tomato butter and thai curry orange roughy. The menu also features salads, burgers and sandwiches.
We started with appetizers of bruschetta and baked brie. Both were quite good.
I settled on the tilapia florentine, StfRon went with the prime rib, our brother-in-law had the seared sashimi tuna and his lovely bride had the smothered flat iron steak.
The tilapia was served in a ceramic boat, which was piping hot. The fish was smothered with jack cheese, and paired with a vegetable medley. The fish was OK, but I guess a jack cheese is a bit mild for my taste. The vegetables retained some of their crispness, and were very good. I also ordered the soup of the day, a seafood bisque, homemade, which was good.
StfRon had ordered his prime rib medium rare, and asked for a more rare piece when his meal came out. Our waitress returned with the most rare piece they had left, which was also the last piece of prime rib for the night. It was a little late for dinner, and the prime rib was a special feature that night. He said the prime rib was dry, and not quite as rare as he had hoped for.
The smothered flat iron steak was said to be very good, and it did look tasty.
We also partook of some desserts. I couldn't resist trying a gelato, and went with the coconut flavor. The gelato was creamy, filled with coconut shreds, and the coconut flavor was not overpowering.
StfRon tried the cheesecake, which was OK.
Our companions split the apple crisp, which was huge, served hot in a boat, topped with ice cream and plenty of oat topping. The crisp had a great cinnamon flavor.
I noticed signs throughout the restaurant touting take and bake features, and also live music some nights.
Our waitress did a good job of taking care of us.
I would check out the Redfire Grille again. I'd like to sample some of their other fare.

Fired Up

One business I have inadvertently overlooked blogging about for a while now is Fired Up, 4532 N. Prospect Rd. in Peoria Heights.
My first visit to Fired Up was with "the girls" in June. I took a walk around the studio looking at the selection of bisque items available for hand painting. There are coffee mugs, bread pans, bowls and even pet food and water dishes. I ended up selecting a small square dish that I figured I could use to keep my rings in after I take them off for the day.
Fired Up charges a flat studio fee, and you also pay for the cost of your chosen bisque piece(s). The pieces start at under $8 and go up from there.
After selecting my paint colors, I sat down to enjoy wine, hummus, veggies, pita chips, tortilla chips and wedding ring cookies brought by my friends.
It was fun to see everyone else's creations at the table. H chose an egg plate and painted it with accents of purple and pink, then spattered with black paint over all. Minney made a very cool switch plate cover.
A week later, our pieces were finished being fired by the studio and ready to be picked up.
My little ring tray now has a place of honor in the bathroom at home, and gets used every day.

Last month, we convinced some of our guys to go along for another trip to Fired Up. The promise of being able to bring booze might have had something to do with it.
The outing seemed to bring out the creativity in everyone. I was very impressed with my friend J's plate design. StfRon used chalkboard paint for his creation, and my friend M used a chili pepper stamp on one of her tiles.
There were comments about how Zen the whole thing seems, and also reminiscing about kindergarten and preschool art projects.
This time I chose a rectangle tray with handles at each end, and painted it a salsa red and vibrant yellow. I plan to use it to carry glasses of wine or snacks about.
Fired Up is definitely something different to do. It would make a great Mother's Day outing, too. Just be sure to make reservations during any holiday seasons, and it's worth checking their web site for any coupons or specials. And for those of you on the east side of the river, there is now a Bloomington location.

Ozark House Restaurant

A 50% off certificate and the temptation of some good hickory smoked ribs sent us to the Ozark House Restaurant in Bloomington a few weeks ago. The restaurant is located at 704 McGregor in a mostly residential area, and we were glad we had our new Magellan GPS on board to get us right to the door.
The restaurant is casual, 1970s-era, with several large fish aquariums throughout, which captured the attention of the children who were dining that night.
I ordered the smoked 1/2 chicken with BBQ sauce, accompanied by a sweet potato and a salad with creamy garlic dressing. The dressing was sweet and very good, and the salad was filled with lots of red cabbage and carrots. There was a cracker basket on our table, so we munched on those, but we saw several tables eating bread and butter. Ours ended up being delivered with our meal, which seemed a little odd, but maybe the kitchen was backed up.
StfRon had what is dubbed the "famous baby back ribs" with shredded au gratin potatoes and finished his meal with a very good coconut cream pie that seemed to be home made. Everything we ordered was good.
Our service was prompt and friendly, and when we got low on drinks, another server took the time to top them off for us.
Our only complaint was regarding the music, some slightly too loud almost elevator music. I think if it had been a little quieter, it would have blended nicely into the background. This would not keep us away, though. We had a nice meal, and it was a change from our typical Tazewell/Peoria County haunts.
The Ozark House also offers carryouts, nightly specials and banquet services.

Ming's Buffet

Admittedly, I am not a fan of buffet restaurants.
A few years ago, I was with a group and visited Ming's Buffet in East Peoria, at 1000 Riverside Drive. I didn't have high hopes.
The decor was a surprise. The place looks bright and clean, with sheets of cracked glass topping the tables, and glass panels on the walls with pictures carved into them.
The food is plentiful, of course, but also has been hot and seemed fresh each time I have visited, which sets Ming's apart from buffets I have visited in the past.
I especially like the green beans and the lo mein noodles from the buffet, and the large variety of cold fruit and veggies. They also have a decent sesame chicken.
Ming's also offers a selection of sushi, a salad bar, prime rib during dinner, crab legs, crab rangoon and plenty more.
Lunch runs about $8 and dinner about $12. It's still a buffet, but as far as I'm concerned, it's the best buffet I've been to.
Ming's has also opened a Bloomington location.

Interstate Center

Finally, this coming weekend on August 19, I think I will make it to the Third Sunday Market at the Interstate Center in Bloomington.
This event features antiques and collectibles from 400+ dealers in air-conditioned comfort. A good entertainment alternative on a hot, August day.
The Mennonite relief sale is also hosted here, plus livestock shows, poker tournaments and much more. The site is also available for rentals for your event.
The Interstate Center is off I-55 at exit 160B, on Route 9.

Schooner's

I think it's high time I gave up some love for Schooner's.
Schooner's serves up large, well, schooners of ice cold beer, great wild (or mild, be sure to enunciate well) wings and garlic wings, burgers, turkey burgers, chicken sandwiches (including an awesome buffalo-style bird), excellent tempura-style onion rings and more. Plus, a huge king tenderloin which is served with four buns. Great for sharing, or a good pig out.
The garlic wings are one of my favorites, covered with chunks of minced garlic. I eat these babies at lunch and have no guilt of my garlic breath for the rest of the day. I'm an unabashed garlic lover.

I am most familiar with the cozy War Memorial Schooner's in Peoria Heights, but there is one in Morton as well, and I have been there, and a Bloomington location, which I have not visited. The Peoria location is my favorite, as it's more like home. One wall of the restaurant is covered with photos of people and their morel mushroom finds.
The Peoria location also features a decent-sized beer garden of sorts, filled with picnic tables and tall wooden tables.

The Bronze Frog

The Bronze Frog is a unique shop located in the strip mall at The Shoppes at Grand Prairie in Peoria, next to Cold Stone Creamery. There is also a Bloomington location at 105 Krispy Kreme Drive.
When I stopped here recently, I was pleasantly surprised to find several cute dresses made in the USA.
The shop also has many great gift ideas; fine stationery; wedding accessories; customized invitations; fun glassware and kitchenware; and offers cooking classes, some featuring Chef Kevin.

Lucca Grill

I've driven past Lucca Grill, 116 East Market St. in Bloomington, many times, and have always wanted to try the place out.
This weekend, I had my chance.
Lucca Grill has been serving up Italian favorites in the same building since 1936. It's a neat place, exposed brick walls and tin ceilings, with old memorabilia covering the walls; the friendly kind of place where you feel comfortable on your first visit. We didn't check out the upstairs, but there was a lot of traffic headed up there.
There's a bar along one side, with several cushy seats to sit in while you enjoy your brew.
They even have a dumbwaiter to move food and dishes from level to level.
We started with an appetizer of fried meat ravioli. It didn't seem fried at all, almost baked, with no greasy flavor. The cornmeal coating gave it a very nice crunch.
We then went for the gusto, a meat combo pizza, covered with sausage, pepperoni, ground beef, ham and bacon. The bacon was my favorite part. This pizza is on a homemade, crispy thin crust.
Now, knowing what I've been missing, the next time, I might not be able to just drive on by.