Today's yarnsalad featured an extra big portion of lunch.
Let me explain.
There is a great restaurant right across the street from the hospital where I work called SoBo. Seriously - even with my weak arm I could throw a rock and hit the place from the front step of the hospital, it's that close. It's a beloved establishment. As you might imagine, it is frequented by hospital staff and this week at lunch hour, the conversation topic has pretty much revolved around their menu.
Today I decided to order lunch from them. My coworker had me order something for her too. I ordered:
Bison Burger $3.5
Killer Fish Taco $6.5
Green Salad $6
At a price of $3.5 for a Bison burger, I assumed it was a mini-burger, which was perfect given my sampling of their food. My coworker ordered one too. I figured with tax, the order would come to about $21.
I was presented with a bill of $40. Shock! No no no, The Bison burger was only supposed to be $3.5 each, not $14. The server went and grabbed Artie, the owner. He came out and apologized for the mix-up, was glad I pointed out the error on the website, and asked how we could rectify this. That was easy. I would take one of the burgers and split it with my coworker. No problem. The bill ended up being a bit more than I expected, but not as much as it was originally!
I will be honest here. After hearing everyone rave about the food, I was prepared to be wowed. I don't really want to refer to myself as a 'foodie' or a 'gourmet', but I guess my taste in food reflects that I am. Dan, my husband, is a really good cook. So good that I am often disappointed when we go to restaurants that other people rate highly. I'm sorry to say, SoBo didn't meet my expectations.
I'll start with the Bison burger. I was warned when I ordered it that they were, in fact, out of bison and using beef instead. That's fine. I like beef. It was basically a beef brisket po'boy sandwich, but it really it pales in comparison to what I'm used to having been to Pig BBQ Joint in Colwood & Victoria. Sorry SoBo, your sandwich only gets a 5 out of 10. You need more sauce, crispier onion rings, and while the 'slaw' was good, it wasn't a real slaw.
Then was the Killer Fish Taco. I don't know what was 'killer' about it, other than it was spicy. All it was was a hard taco shell with spicy hot fish in it, served with a side of fruit salsa (apple, pineapple, red bell pepper, cilantro) and refried beans. The fish was extremely dry and not very flavourful. I guess I'm spoiled after having such good fresh fish out here. Also, if you've ever had a Fish Taco from Tacofino, you're pretty much ruined for fish tacos everywhere.
Now the salad gets a high rating. I love salads. Especially good ones. Dan makes some amazing salads, so I get them fairly regularly. SoBo's salad had some very healthy feeling greens in it, shreds of carrot and beet, and a whole bunch of sprouted legumes. It was delicious. I would order just that salad (though a bigger size) and be happy.
I wish I was more impressed, and to be fair, I've never had a sit-down meal at SoBo, it's always been take out. I'd like to try their pizzas. Apparently their drinks are excellent. I'll have to save up for it, because this is not a cheap restaurant.
Let me explain.
There is a great restaurant right across the street from the hospital where I work called SoBo. Seriously - even with my weak arm I could throw a rock and hit the place from the front step of the hospital, it's that close. It's a beloved establishment. As you might imagine, it is frequented by hospital staff and this week at lunch hour, the conversation topic has pretty much revolved around their menu.
Today I decided to order lunch from them. My coworker had me order something for her too. I ordered:
Bison Burger $3.5
Killer Fish Taco $6.5
Green Salad $6
At a price of $3.5 for a Bison burger, I assumed it was a mini-burger, which was perfect given my sampling of their food. My coworker ordered one too. I figured with tax, the order would come to about $21.
I was presented with a bill of $40. Shock! No no no, The Bison burger was only supposed to be $3.5 each, not $14. The server went and grabbed Artie, the owner. He came out and apologized for the mix-up, was glad I pointed out the error on the website, and asked how we could rectify this. That was easy. I would take one of the burgers and split it with my coworker. No problem. The bill ended up being a bit more than I expected, but not as much as it was originally!
I will be honest here. After hearing everyone rave about the food, I was prepared to be wowed. I don't really want to refer to myself as a 'foodie' or a 'gourmet', but I guess my taste in food reflects that I am. Dan, my husband, is a really good cook. So good that I am often disappointed when we go to restaurants that other people rate highly. I'm sorry to say, SoBo didn't meet my expectations.
I'll start with the Bison burger. I was warned when I ordered it that they were, in fact, out of bison and using beef instead. That's fine. I like beef. It was basically a beef brisket po'boy sandwich, but it really it pales in comparison to what I'm used to having been to Pig BBQ Joint in Colwood & Victoria. Sorry SoBo, your sandwich only gets a 5 out of 10. You need more sauce, crispier onion rings, and while the 'slaw' was good, it wasn't a real slaw.
Then was the Killer Fish Taco. I don't know what was 'killer' about it, other than it was spicy. All it was was a hard taco shell with spicy hot fish in it, served with a side of fruit salsa (apple, pineapple, red bell pepper, cilantro) and refried beans. The fish was extremely dry and not very flavourful. I guess I'm spoiled after having such good fresh fish out here. Also, if you've ever had a Fish Taco from Tacofino, you're pretty much ruined for fish tacos everywhere.
Now the salad gets a high rating. I love salads. Especially good ones. Dan makes some amazing salads, so I get them fairly regularly. SoBo's salad had some very healthy feeling greens in it, shreds of carrot and beet, and a whole bunch of sprouted legumes. It was delicious. I would order just that salad (though a bigger size) and be happy.
I wish I was more impressed, and to be fair, I've never had a sit-down meal at SoBo, it's always been take out. I'd like to try their pizzas. Apparently their drinks are excellent. I'll have to save up for it, because this is not a cheap restaurant.
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