Perfectly decent Tex-Mex. Good combo plates, reasonable prices.
I must say that I liked El Caribe a good bit better than the previous TexMex incarnation in this spot (Salsasitas or some such). The salsa was pretty good, with a nice taste and bite, as was the queso flamedo, and I liked my chorizo-stuffed chicken breast quite a bit (Mike wasn't far off when he called it "a Mexican Chicken Cordon Blu"). They even acceded to my Atkins-fueled request to give me a plate of cut up onions and hot peppers on the side in lieu of rice and beans.
The next time I'm in the mood for Mexican, El Caribe will get strong consideration.
Eddie V's has that nice old polished wood look to it. Unfortunately, that look makes the whole place pretty dark, unless you get a window seat. I'm sure those seats must have a very nice view, given the hillside location. Also, the dark polished wood look, for me, clashed with the 50's pop music they were playing in the background. I have nothing against the music: it just didn't seem to belong in that space. (Maybe some nice string quartets would go better.)
That said, though, our meal was excellent. My salmon filet with a horseradish crust was tender and buttery and perfectly cooked: "Ah-ha," I said to myself, "this is what salmon should taste like." With only two of us dining, I wasn't able to get a really good sample of side dishes, but the crab fried rice was very good: not at all greasy, and the portion was probably big enough to make a cheap meal for one (perhaps with a salad).
The service bordered on overkill. Between the crumb-scraping and the napkin refolding if you got up from the table, I was starting to feel subtilely reprimanded every time someone came around. A little of that stuff goes a long way, folks.
After our meal, I was already looking for an excuse to make another trip back. Then I got into a conversation with some friends of the SDC (and sometime co-conspirators) who told me about their rather unpleasant experience at the same location: in short, one of them was served an entree that was still frozen, the kitchen re-heated it and served it after the other diners had already finished, and no one seemed interested in apologizing (let alone maybe, say, comping the entree). I do still want to go back, but I found this tale rather distressing: it didn't match our experience, but I trust my fellow conspirators. Some caution may be in order. (If someone from Eddie V's wants to make a belated effort to put things right, I will put them in touch with the co-conspirators and keep you posted.)
I have to admit that Eddie V's Edgewater Grill does the upscale seafood thing with style. Nice interiors, waiters (and waitresses!) in tuxedos, and probably a pretty decent view (at least for the Arboretum location) if you get a window seat (we didn't).
The calamari was very good (if not quite up to the amazing standard set by new calamari champion The Clay Pit), and the mussels were reasonably good as well. My grilled snapper with lump crab was tasty, but not as tasty as it could have been (more butter is in order, I think). Service was very attentive, though they do seem to exhibit the same napkin refolding fetish we've noted before.
All in all, I think that Truluck's does a better job in the food department, but Eddie V's is certainly a credible contender. I wouldn't mind visiting again (especially if someone else was paying).
Adequate chain barbecue. You can get fries with your combo plate, and the prices aren't bad, but the barbecue itself is just mediocre. I'd recommend Rudy's over this.
Dwight and I are in total agreement about the best thing served at Pok-E-Jo's: the cut white onions are fresh and crisp, with a nice tang. Very nice white onions.
Too bad the BBQ sucks. The pork ribs are passable, the beef ribs aren't, and the brisket is one step up from Bill Miller (i.e., crap).
Since the location we visited is situated between Texas Rib Kings and Rudy's, there's no reason in the world any sane BBQ fan would eat there. We had last tried Pok-E-Jo's about ten years ago, when I also thought it sucked. We tried them again because that was before we started keeping the web pages, and to see if they might have improved. Nope. The next time we visit them should be shortly after David Letterman's Cold Day in Hell Special.
Turkey City.
See the logs for October of 2002.