Chloe Elan, 445 Ada Dr SE, Ada - 5/28/13

 

This lovely space along the Thornapple River formerly housed the Thornapple Village Inn / The Daily Grill for many years. The deck is still there but the old wood charm and cozy bar have disappeared. Instead, you are welcomed into a very open, modern sleek bar, with casual seating behind it facing the river, and a dining room to the right and to the left.

One of us had been here a few times before but this was the first visit for the two of us together. Last summer, Scott Bell, the event coordinator, had promised a tour when we were both here, and as odds would have it, he led us to our table today. Our year-old promised tour was provided. 

The Thornapple River had flooded the lower level of the restaurant in April and the floor had just been re-opened the day before, finally eliminating the need for the outdoor port-a-potties. Although completely redecorated from its Daily Grill days, the lower level still holds its charm and offers two banquet rooms, one for about 50 people and the other more intimate for about 20.

The patio is a lovely setting with a wonderful view of the now receded river and the beautiful garden growing food for the kitchen.

It was a very late lunch and we joined one other couple in the dining room to the left of the entrance. We decided to start with tuna tartare (sashimi tuna, avocado, cucumber, spicy soy, wonton crisps, pickled chiles, wasabi). It was beautifully presented, and the pickled chilis were so delicious but for the amount of tuna, we would have liked more wasabi & spicy soy. And yes, we could have asked and we know they would have been more than happy to provide. 

We bypassed the sandwich lunch menu and went right to the main course offerings, first up shrimp scampi (sautéed, herb pappardelle, broccoli, roasted garlic, bacon, classic scampi sauce). The pasta was perfectly prepared al dente, broccoli and bacon were crisp, sauce was light and exquisite, and we know we can’t get fresh shrimp in the midwest but these were fine, and everything is better with bacon...

Seafood pasta was our second dish (linguini, mussels, clams, shrimp, scallops, garlic, shallots, fresh herbs, spinach, light tomato broth) and it was another wonderful dish. Again, the pasta was perfectly prepared and the tomato broth was light, mouth-watering delicious, and wonderfully complemented the dish. Mussels, clams, shrimp, scallops - wherever they came from - they seemed fresh and were well prepared.

Both portions were huge and on our way out we asked if lunch portions were available, and the owner assured us that we just had to ask.

A light soundtrack was playing easy/contemporary music low-key enough not to be distracting. Service was exemplary and the food is wonderful. We’re not going to talk about the personal history of the owner and the restaurant name, or the personal information formally displayed in one of the dining rooms. You can read about that elsewhere, or sit in the dining room to the right of the bar.

Happy hour specials and musical events are abundant so check out their website or find them on facebook. Ada is 15 minutes east of downtown Grand Rapids straight down M21/Fulton, so check it out, Grand Rapidians. 

www.chloeelan.com 



                              

Reserve, 201 Monroe Ave NW - 4/3/13

This was its first week open for lunch (other than during ArtPrize) so we were happy to be there. Regardless of your feelings about the DeVos family, the restaurant is worthy of a visit. ‘Open Water,’ the 2009 ArtPrize winner (pictured first in its original ArtPrize location), after spending some time in the Art Museum, was purchased by Dick & Betsy DeVos and now hangs beautifully in this restaurant. 

We enjoyed a dinner here last year and partook of the lovely wine bar and charcuterie offerings. But lunch time is different, and the menu reflects that. It’s small, creative, and emphasizes locally obtained ingredients.

 

To begin, we ordered ‘Bacon Jam with Warm Bread’ - yes, Bacon Jam :-) along with ‘We Can Pickle That,’ which featured winter root vegetables in a pickled state. Both were so interesting and a treat for the tastebuds.

We selected our sandwiches accompanied by Potato Soup (with spicy guanciale & rosemary oil) and the soup was the standout; we wanted to take some home. The roast beef and lamb reuben sandwiches were delicious, as was the fried perch, but the perch sandwich was too large to eat as a sandwich and had to be de-constructed before consuming.

 

Added to that, we had to happily try the ‘Pork Fat Fries’ with garlic mayonnaise - recommended if you’re not too afraid of occasional tasty fat.

Service was very attentive and a little obsequious, but customers were light on this day and employees outnumbered them. A bored hostess stood nearby waiting for customers and willingly answered our questions about the restaurant.

The menu will be ever-changing and take-out is available. There is a small and somewhat hidden outdoor deck (far left in photo) that we will visit if summer ever arrives. So check it out, Grand Rapids.

Update:  6/1/13 Visit

 

Green Restaurant, 2289 East Beltline Ave NE - 3/6/13

This sign is what first led us to Green Restaurant - we had to find out what this was and half-expected to find someone selling meat out of the back of a refrigerated truck.

But this is what we found instead: a clean, neat restaurant with about a dozen tables for two or four, and a juice counter that seats about thirteen, featuring two TVs. Green is tucked in between Noodles & Co. and Biggby Coffee, and adjoins Noodles, with whom they share restrooms.

So what’s different about this place? Several things, the main one being that the food is mostly organic. No factory-farms are supported by this restaurant, and although it’s not vegetarian, the menu serves only free-range, grass fed animals. Vegetarian and gluten-free dishes are also available. The best news is that all of the food is free from hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, and herbicides, and locally sourced. Restaurant materials as well as the food are environmentally friendly.

We started off with gluten-free chicken & rice soup, which was quite flavorful and delicious. It was perfectly balanced for us being light on chicken and heavy on vegetables and rice.

Next, we had to go with the unusual burgers. The Chipotle Bison Burger with house-made chips was a success (tasty, juicy) but the Elk Cheese Burger less so. The description sounded wonderful: tzatziki sauce, feta, lettuce, tomato & onion. But the huge quantity of feta overwhelmed it all. Additionally, the napkins are small and thin, and entirely inadequate in handling the burgers. 

But that won’t prevent us from stopping in again to support and enjoy this very interesting restaurant. Lunch specials are posted, and calories are provided for food items. Check out their creative menu online and stop in soon for an intriguing meal. Find more information on their Facebook page.

Edited: As of November 2013, the restaurant obtained a liquor license and has a full bar available.

www.greenrestaurantgrandrapids.com   
            

Sheshco Mediterranean Grill, 2121 Celebration Dr NE - 2/12/13

Conveniently located near Celebration Cinema North movie theater, we recently made our third visit before heading for the movie. This is a large restaurant divided into two rooms, both of which are heavily decorated with things that include a stuffed bird and framed daggers. Light fixtures are also diverse and somewhat interesting but it seems to be a bit much overall.

There’s a large counter that services take-out orders, and behind that is an open kitchen with a brick, gas-fired oven. Cool oven with flames visible but the counter gives the room a strange vibe, making it seem more like a counter-order restaurant.

Each visit found us seated in booths right next to other diners when plenty of other seating was available. We would have seated ourselves otherwise but the sign clearly asked us to wait to be seated (so we dealt with the loud-talkers oblivious of their surroundings).

We always experienced friendly and efficient service but the highlight of this restaurant will always be the puffy pita bread automatically brought out with a fantastic garlic spread (garlic, jalapenos, lemon juice, and olive oil). This alone warrants a visit.

Both the Falafel and Fried Kibbeh were slightly over fried but otherwise alright. The lamb vegetable soup was delicious, and the house salad was fresh with a nicely seasoned dressing.

Hommous topped with lamb is highly recommended but the Shawarma had a really heavy all-spice flavor that was too strong for us. The Beef Shish Kabob with the crisp vegetables was nicely spiced and spot-on.

Take-out seems to be a big part of their business as we watched many people walk in for their orders. The restaurant does not have a liquor license but instead offers raw and freshly squeezed juices. The owner also owns the two Le Kabob locations in Grand Rapids. Find them all on Facebook.

We later inquired about the origination of the name of the restaurant and heard back from the owners that it was derived from "Shish Lick or Shish Cabab" and "Co" from "A Cook."  Inventive enough.

This is a fine addition to Grand Rapids’ Middle Eastern restaurants and a nice alternative to Ming Ten for Celebration Cinema North attendees.

www.sheshcogrill.com