Nevada Chicken Cafe - Arroyo Crossing

I'm not really sure how I feel about Nevada Chicken Cafe. The food was a little on the bland side and I didn't feel the need to finish everything on my plate.

They have an extensive menu of sandwiches, rotisserie chicken, wraps, ribs and salads, but nothing stood out to me so I ended up with a Hawaiian wrap with fruit salad.

The chicken was ok, but not very plentiful or flavorful. All of my dining companions had the same lackluster response to the meal. 

For the price, the meal didn't really live up to our expectations.

Location: 7340 Arroyo Crossing Pkwy, Ste 105, Las Vegas, NV 89113

Items sampled: hawaiian chicken wrap with fruit salad.

Made L.V.

Fall weather calls for fabulous patio work lunches.

We arrived before the lunch rush and were seated out on the patio. They have a lot of great options, so we decided to share a number of items and we couldn't resist dessert.

We had the baked artichoke, mussels, corn and shrimp fritters, extra garlic bread to sop up all the rest of the juice from the mussels and we topped off our delicious lunch with freshly made doughnuts with raspberry dipping sauce.

Everything was great and I look forward to coming back to try the rest of their menu. I highly recommend the mussels and baked artichoke. Service was great and refills were plentiful. 

I haven't been to Tivoli very often, but with places like Made LV, I'm willing to explore Tovoli a little more often.

Items sampled: baked artichoke, corn and shrimp fritters, mussels and doughnut holes.

Location: 450 S Rampart Blvd, Ste 120, Las Vegas, NV 89145

Jinya Ramen

This is a welcome addition to the corner of Flamingo and Decatur. 

The restaurant is cute and modern. They recently started serving lunch during the weekend, so my fella and I decided to stop by. 

We shared a crispy rice with tuna as an appetizer and I opted for the spicy tonkotsu and my fella ordered the spicy chicken ramen.

I wouldn't recommend the crispy rice appetizer. The texture and taste were completely off. The ramen was tasty. Not the best I've ever had, but decent. The spice levels were good and not overly salty like others I've had. 

The noise level was a little high in the restaurant. I like having music accompanying my meals, but it was overwhelming and hard to hear.

Service was very friendly and efficient. I wouldn't mind coming back to check out their happy hour.

Location: 4860 W Flamingo Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89103

Items sampled: spicy chicken ramen, spicy tonkotsu ramen, crispy rice with tuna.

Da Kitchen Cafe

Our first meal in Maui was a solid one. 

We arrived in town starving and I already had a plan to try out Da Kitchen first thing. 

We arrived and the places was bustling for lunch, but we were seated quickly and given menus. My fella and I decided to share some appetizers since we didn't want to get too full for dinner. 

We tried the kim chee crab cake, deep fried spam musubi and the wontons. We also tried the Macademia nut cream pie for dessert. 

Everything was really good and there were so many different items on the menu that looked amazing, so we were actually interested in returning a second time during our trip to try a full meal, but didn't get a chance. 

Da Kitchen is definitely worth a visit when you're ever in Maui.

Location: 425 Koloa St, Ste 104, Kahului, HI 96732

Items sampled: kalua pig wontons, kim chee crab crake, deep fried spam musubi, macademia nut cream pie.

Mama's Fish House

With so many rave reviews and a visit to Maui on the horizon, choosing Mama's Fish House for my birthday dinner was a no brainer.

We arrived early for a 7pm reservation, hoping they would be able to seat us early. They had a packed house, so we instead enjoyed some cocktails at the bar while we waited. 

Service at the bar was superb and the wait time flew by. 7pm finally came rolling by and we were seated at a lovely table with a personalized birthday card. 

Our server came by quickly to introduce himself, take our drink orders. Throughout our entire meal, our server and all the other employees made were wonderful. Attentive, friendly and they seemed to predict what we needed and wanted telepathically. 

We started with the lobster guacamole with taro chips and sashimi trio. My fella who doesn't even like avocado, was practically licking the bowl to savor every last morsel. The sashimi was so fresh, it melted in my mouth and every bite made me smile. 

For entrees, I opted for the opakapaka with Maui onions and avocado and my fella order their famous macademia nut crusted mahimahi stuffed with crab and lobster. This dish was a star, but both dishes were so incredibly fresh and delicious, there are really no words to describe how wonderful our food was.

When it was time to decide on a dessert we ended up with a macademia nut and banana crisp. They also brought us some guava and strawberry ice cream as a birthday treat. Both desserts were incredible, but we were so stuffed from our meal, we weren't able to finish either, despite our best effort. 

All in all, this was the best meal of our entire visit to Maui. It lived up to all our expectations and we  will be back the next time we visit the island. 

Location: 799 Poho Pl, Paia, HI 96779

Items sampled: lobster guacamole, sashimi trio, opakapaka, macademia but crusted mahimahi, banana and macademia nut crisp and guava and strawberry ice cream

808 Bistro

I Great breakfast spot with a relaxed atmosphere and really tasty food.

I ordered the crab cake benedict, my fella opted for the original benedict and we shared a slice of the banana nut bread french toast. I'm not the biggest fan of banana nut bread but this was a nice dish and not overly sweet. The crab cake benedict was great. It had a spicy kick and the hollandaise wasn't overly rich or runny. 

It is BYOB, so if you're craving mimosas with breakfast, that's an option. The servers were friendly and personable and generous with the refills.

Items sampled: crab cake benedict, eggs  benedict, banana nut bread french toast

Location: 2511 S Kihei Rd, Kihei, HI 96753

Gazebo Restaurant

This is a great little restaurant with a view to die for. When walking up there was a short line, which was only about a 10 minute wait. The line got crazy after we arrived, so we were lucky to get there at the perfect time. 

We finally for a seat and enjoyed the beautiful ocean view while we decided what we wanted for breakfast. 

My fella and I decided to share the fried rice omelette and a combination pancake with bananas, macademia nuts and coconut. The pancakes were fluffy and very tasty. The fried ride was solid. Not the best fried rice I've ever had, but everything tastes better with an amazing view like that. Portions were extremely generous and even with a small order of pancakes and a half order of the fried rice, we had a lot leftover to take back to the hotel with us.

The service was friendly and attentive, making our meal all the more enjoyable. Definitely worth the trek. They even have umbrellas for those waiting in the sunny line for a table. 

Location: 5315 Lower Honoapiilani Rd, Lahaina, HI 96761

Items sampled: fried rice omelette and combination pancakes

Lyfe Kitchen

I had read and heard many mixed reviews about Lyfe Kitchen, but I came to try them for myself.

The restaurant is modern and clean. I enjoy the entire concept of this restaurant. Healthy food, that is more incentive and tasty than other restaurants of its kind in town. 

My friends and I were able to sample a good amount of items and enjoyed just about every item we ordered. 

The food was fresh and I, for one, found everything to be delicious and that was the consensus around the table. I was entirely impressed that they were able to showcase all the flavors of the food and still keep the calories down. My friend raved about the buffalo chicken, and even put in a second order because it was so good.

My chia and cucumber drink was really great and I look forward to coming back and trying the assortment of all the different smoothies and drinks they have available.

They have several menus catering to different dietary needs and programs, which is helpful. I look forward to coming back soon.

Items sampled: Brussel sprouts with butternut squash, barramundi noodle bowl

Location: 140 S Green Valley Pkwy, Ste 142, Henderson, NV 89012

Ka'ana Kitchen

A celebration deserves a great restaurant. When we were in Maui, I was given a list of possible places for our meal and I wasn't really feeling any of them. Ka'ana Kitchen was on this list and although the food looked great in all the pictures, I wasn't sure what to expect. 

I gave in and decided to give this place a go and couldn't be happier that I did. 

Our planner made reservations and although we arrived a little early, we were seated immediately at a beautiful outdoor table overlooking their bar and the water. It was a beautiful view and the restaurant was gorgeous as well. 

Our servers were all so attentive and helpful with their suggestions. We ordered several dishes to share and were absolutely thrilled with all our selections.

We started with the octopus and pork belly which were both delicious in their own right. The pork belly was sweet and spicy with a great kick to it. The octopus was perfectly cooked and the goat cheese really complemented the Flavors in the dish. 

Next we shared the abalone risotto and snapper. The fish was cooked so well and it was a very subtle, yet well-executed dish. The abalone risotto was the star of the show. Creamy, cheesy and extremely decadent.

We favored every item we ordered and finished with a chocolate dessert that was probably the only part of the meal that I didn't love, but it did not put a damper on our meal, it just wasn't a stand out. 

Everything was very reasonably priced for the quality and quantity of the food and drink we received. I was tempted to come here twice while we were on Maui, but decided against repeats. I would definitely come back the next time I visit and recommend it to anyone who was planning a trip.

Location: 3550 Wailea Alanui Dr, Kihei, HI 96753

Items sampled: octopus, pork belly snapper, abalone risotto 

Joe's Italian Ice

I've had Joe's on my radar for a few years and I finally made the time to stop by during our recent visit to Disneyland. 

I ordered the sour blue raspberry and my fella ordered a gelati. Mine was intensively sour, just the way I like it and despite its bright blue color that dyed my entire mouth blue, it had a very natural flavor. The gelati was smooth and creamy. Just the way I like it.

They have a cute little outdoor area to enjoy their creations, but they also have a little indoor area, which is where we ended up so we could escape the heat and enjoy the air conditioning. 

I'll be back next time I'm in the area!

Location: 12302 Harbor Blvd, Garden Grove, CA 92840

Items sampled: blue raspberry Italian ice, galati

Monkeypod by Merriman

In the mood for happy hour, we headed to Monkeypod on a drizzly weekday afternoon.

The restaurant is located on the second floor in a strip mall. They were busy, but they were able to seat us quickly with a good view of the TV that was airing the game. 

The happy hour consist of 50% any of the non-seafood appetizers and discounts on most of their cocktails, beers and wines. We weren't in the mood to drink, but we decided to share two pizzas. We got the truffle mushroom pizza and the Maui gold, which was kalua pork and pineapple. 

The pizzas were very basic and a little on the soggier side. Flavors were ok, but I preferred the truffle mushroom over the Maui gold since it was more savory. 

Service was standard, albeit slow because of how busy the restaurant was. There wasn't much that stood out about Monkeypod, so I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to give them a try.

Location: 10 Wailea Gateway Pl, Ste B-201, Kihei, HI 96753

Items sampled: Maui Gold and Truffle Mushroom Pizzas.

Spaghetty Western

Any time I meet my OG for dinner it's always great fun, even better when he's treating me to celebrate my birthday! We were debating where to eat and he randomly mentioned spaghetti western in another context not realizing it was the name of a restaurant in town. We took that as a sign from the food gods that it was time for pasta.

The restaurant is very small, good for takeout and they have a very small dining room where we took a seat and perused the menu. I ordered the pappardelle and my friend ordered the spaghetti and meatballs. 

The pasta was perfectly cooked and al dente. The flavors were balanced and I enjoyed every bite of my dish. We both scraped our plates clean.

If Spaghetty Western was anywhere near where I live I would be there regularly. Despite the distance, I will be back!

Location: 10690 Southern Highlands Pkwy, Ste 103, Las Vegas, NV 89141

Items sampled: pappardelle with speck, peas and tomatoes and the spaghetti and meatballs.