Do We Really Want to Know?

In the grocery store, there are nutrition labels on everything from soup to frozen pizza, but what about the foods we buy in restaurants?

You can spend a little time and look online to find some nutritional and calorie counts for fast food restaurants like McDonalds and Taco Bell, but other fast food restaurants like Taco Time refuse to list their information online anymore because of New York City’s restrictions on trans-fats that require restaurants to post their nutritional information on site.

But do we really want to know what we are eating when we dine someplace other than a fast food restaurant? If you knew that the pasta you ordered had 27 grams of fat and 900 calories, would you order it? How about 45 grams of salt for that Chinese stir fry?

Watching what I eat from calories to fat grams is a natural part of my day, so when I eat out it would be great to have a way to gauge what I was ordering. As a cream sauce junkie, I usually just place my order and enjoy my meal out. Then in an attempt to counteract my mystery meal, I eat salad and veggies for the rest of the week.

Perhaps having quick nutritional counts (calories, fat, sodium, etc) printed directly on all menus would help American’s make better choices as more than 133 million of us eat out everyday. Maybe if we knew the facts of what we were eating, we wouldn’t be so quick to order a 1,200 calorie “salad.”

Take a Respite at the Campbell House

When you are ready to celebrate something special, or just the fact that you made it through Thursday, a beautiful and delicious meal at the Eugene’s Campbell House is the ideal spot to truly enjoy yourself.

From the moment of our arrival, everything was taken care of. They took our coats and gently guided us to an intimate table by the window. From the table clothe to the stemware, it was obvious that the proprietors love what they do, caring about each and every detail of our dining experience.

The Campbell House’s wine selection is impressive and deep, so don’t be afraid to ask for suggestions if something bubbly isn’t already being chilled on your behalf.

We started off with the Shepard’s Plate which included chesses, olives, cured meats and crusty bread (10.) and shared a Romaine Hearts salad (8.)

For dinner, we ordered the catch of the day, which was Salmon (29.) that was served with seasonal vegetables that snapped with each bite. The fish was fresh, succulent and almost melted off the fork. Filet Mignon (31.) with balsamic-fig glaze and frites along was the perfect compliment – juicy, tender and perfectly cooked. And you can never go wrong with homemade frites!

For dessert we settled on the Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with coffee ice cream (8.). It was crisp, cool (from the ice cream) and deeply satisfying. A fine dinner without dessert is unthinkable.
Another aspect of dining at a five-star restaurant that I adore is along with amazing food, the service is impeccable. The service staff does their jobs with speed, purpose and grace, but it never feels intrusive, just efficient. The Campbell House is a place to genuinely enjoy a meal and never feel rushed to turn the table and make room for the next seating.

From start to finish, our experience at the Campbell house was exceptional. The ambiance was relaxed and unhurried, the food and wine surpassed all expectations and the service superb. So if you are celebrating something special or just Thursday, consider a meal at the Campbell as a well deserved retreat from the real world.

Who's Writing Restaurant Reviews? A Profile!

Restaurant Reviewers are an entertaining and essential ingredient of Menu Network! As editor-in-chief, I am lucky to work with dedicated Foodies who are excited to share their dining adventures by rating and reviewing restaurants in their area, so the rest of us will know where to eat when we hit their part of the country.

In an effort to tell the world about these wonderful Food Lovers and talented writers, it is my pleasure to profile a Menu Network Reviewer so you can get to know (and adore) them like I do.

I’m starting my series with Mindy Schwartz, aka Nashville Photo Queen.



Born in the Bronx, Mindy transferred to Nashville in 2001 as part of a corporate career move. Although not a Country music lover, she embraced the move in the way she embraces her life—fully. Not even given a chance to make her first mortgage payment, Mindy was laid off (along with everyone else) and while the severance package made breathing easier, she didn’t know what she was going to do in a new town without a clear career path in front of her.

Mindy’s friends helped out by reminding her that she loved taking photographs and was good at it. They suggested she try getting them into galleries and selling her prints. And Shazam…a new career was born! Mindy’s first show at a local pub was a complete success when she sold every single piece she in the exhibit.

Mindy knew she was well on her way when Alan Jackson’s manager called asking to use her photo of the World Trade Center to accompany his signed lyrics of "Where were you when the world stopped turning?" for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation auction. (see photo). The project was label as “priceless” and Mindy felt fortunate to be a part of this special occasion. Since that success, Mindy has donated many of her photos to other charity organizations such as Hospice in remembrance of her Nana.

Fast forward seven years and we find Mindy, enjoying her status as a professional photographer, writing restaurant reviews for Menu Network (!), and using her years of corporate skills to build her own business, Full Circle Admin Services. “Everyday brings something different,” Mindy says. “And I wouldn’t change a thing.”

Read Mindy’s restaurant reviews and check out her photos! Drop her a line too--she's really cool!

Your Recommendations Matters!

In the glut of restaurants, we all have our favorites, but with the economy taking a drastic downturn, how can we make a difference in whether our neighborhood bistros, coffee houses, burger joints and secret romantic dinner eateries stay in business and not disappear from the culinary landscape?

Easy! Tell everyone you know about your favorite haunts. Write snappy, short reviews and give them an honest rating.

With more than 71% of American logged on the Internet for daily use, your opinion makes a huge difference in keeping your favorite restaurants alive and busy! Really.

The number one reason people stop by website like Menu Network is to find restaurant recommendations. They are looking for the best Fish & Chip places, gourmet pizza or a safe restaurant to take their lactose intolerant mother-in-law and that’s where you come in.

Rating and reviewing restaurants on Menu Network is easy. Just use the Search to find your favorites, then click on the stars to give your favorite restaurants the attention they so rightly deserve!

Recommend your favorite restaurants-you’ll be doing us all a favor!!

Blended Carmel Frappuccino--Coffee or Dessert?

Carmel syrup flavoring, crushed ice, a dash of coffee for color with a topping of whipped cream and people call that’s coffee? This “coffee” sounds more like dessert than the down home jolt of caffeine that I want from a cup of Joe.

Coming in at 270 calories with 35 grams of fat (ouch) that’s not coffee (black coffee has 2 calories) that’s 40 minutes on the treadmill.

I am a dedicated coffee drinker and love to join my friends for a cuppa and gossip, but I always order straight up coffee with room (half & half, 1 TBS 20 calories). This way, when I leave my friends I don’t have to rush straight to the gym to relieve sugar blues.

So tell me…
Carmel Frappuccino, Mocha Macchiato and Iced Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha—coffee or diabetic coma?

Worth the Stop -- Yamhill Grill

YAMHILL GRILL – NEWBERG, OR

If you are headed to Oregon Wine Country or the coast, you will drive through Newberg, a town that looks like only a stopping point on the way to somewhere else. While it might not be a tourist hotspot, you will not starve on your journey if you know where to pull in.

Not knowing where to go for dinner, my sister Beth and I did what any good travelers do—we asked for a recommendation. “Yamhill Grill,” we heard from more than one source, so that made it easy to decide where to go for dinner.

A calm and crisp interior helped me take a deep breath and relax after a tough day, and when our server Mylee sat us in a booth by the fireplace, I was in heaven. Mylee was friendly and kind and offered further information about any of the items on the menu.

One look at the extensive menu and I knew our dinner advisors were right; this was the place to come for a non-hurried dining experience. From steaks to seafood, pasta to salads, Yamhill Grill offers something for everyone, with the added bonus of a “Lite Menu.”

After serious deliberation, Beth and I both ordered side salads and fish from the Lite Menu, which just meant a smaller portion, not smaller flavor, and no guilt when we ate the entire thing. Beth decided on the Broiled Halibut (13.95) with smashed red potatoes and I ordered the Broiled Salmon (12.95) with rice pilaf, each dish accompanied by seasonal vegetables.

Our dinners were delicious. Deeply flavorful and satisfying, the fish was moist and savory, the veggies were firm, not over-cooked into mush, which I always appreciate, with the rice pilaf properly seasoned giving the plate just the right balance. Beth and I finished our meals without any remorse and even had room left for a little dessert.

A chocolate-peanut butter disk arrived at our table topped with whipped creamed and chocolate sauce. Peanut butter and chocolate is one of my all time favorite combinations and this dish sent me beyond the moon. Sweet, but not too sweet, this dessert is a must for any chocolate lover. I would go back to the Yamhill Grill just to share this dessert with a friend over a cup of coffee.

In my travels I always make it a practice to ask the locals for dining recommendations, and they didn’t steer me wrong with the Yamhill Grill. While Newberg might be a speed bump on the way to somewhere else, it’s worth your time to park the car and stop into the Yamhill Grill for respite and a delicious meal on your journey.

A Healthy Travel Diet--is it Possible?

Hitting the open road means dining out becomes a necessity, not an optional activity. So if you are on a diet, like millions us, including me, then you might be wondering—what can you eat while traveling and still maintain a healthy diet?

The first thing to remember according to Fineliving.com is eat! Just because you are sitting on a plane, walking around a theme park or laying on a beach, doesn’t mean that your body doesn’t need fuel.

Be sure to eat three meals a day—including protein, veggies and fruit.

Here are some other helpful hints to pack along with your walking/jogging shoes:

Use Healthy Words when ordering food
Grilled
Steamed
Poached

Think Low Fat when deciding on an entrée
Fish
Chicken
Lean Meats
Salads—with dressing on the side

Drink Water
Buy bottled water
Pack your reusable bottle and fill ‘er up

Plan Ahead
Pack Healthy snacks like pretzels, low fat mozzarella, baby carrots, and fruit
Avoid getting too hungry – bad food choices follow a growling stomach

Sure, staying true to a diet or healthy eating regimen is tougher when traveling, but with a little planning, bottles of water and strong word choices—you won’t have to pack extra weight home as a souvenir of your trip.

Do you have healthy eating secrets to share? Please do…I need all the help I can get!

Healthy Airport Food--Oxymoron or Pipedream

When I hit an airport, I know I’m in for a day of tasteless travel food. The thought of prepackaged muffins and brown-water they refer to as “coffee” is enough to make me pack a picnic of edible food—then I remember that security will just confiscate it anyway and I’m back to square one.

So what’s a traveler to do?

Eat airline food, which nowadays is limited to peanuts and pretzels that are nothing but astronomical fat grams? Maybe stand in line and grab a burger and fries between flights? On travel days, I am destined to eat at an airport because I can’t from here to there without changing planes at least once and statistically speaking, will probably enjoy an unscheduled delay of some kind.

According to an article on MSNBC, airports are jam packed with high calorie comfort foods that passengers gobble up in an attempt to damped frustration, boredom and the stress of traveling. Limited food choices force us to consume things that we might otherwise never touch.

So…what do you eat when you travel?

What are the options at your local airport?

If I’m not interested in getting my years worth of fat grams in one sitting—what restaurants should I look for as I make my way across the country?

Read more at: www.menunetwork.com

Discover Davis'

DAVIS' - EUGENE, OR

I was one of eight hungry people gathered together for a lunch meeting at Davis’, a fairly new restaurant and bar in downtown Eugene with a reputation for killer cocktails and long lines on the weekends. More than once I have heard of their hip atmosphere, great live music and lip smacking beverages, but I had never heard a peep about their food.

Well, I’m here to not only peep, but crow.On the corner of Broadway and Olive, the restaurant interior floods with natural light from the bank of wide windows on two sides, then bounces off the Bamboo floor. (Way to be Green!) The long bar with bottles and bottles hugging the back wall, actually invites you to sit down and ponder your choices, but not be intimidated by all the options. With tables, stools and long padded benches, you have a choice of seating and all of them are comfortable.

We didn’t arrive as a single group, but trickled in one by one. The staff showed us to our table with warm smiles and the offer of something to drink before we sat down. To curb the noisy grumbling stomachs around the table, we started with three appetizers: The Mezze Plate with Hummus, Tzatziki, Baba-Ganouj, olives and warm pita triangles (9. for a full order/ 5. for a half), Chicken Wings with their tangy mustard sauce (10. /6.) and the Salmon-Crab mini-cakes with Tarragon Aioli (12. /7.)

Each dish offered a different texture, flavor and food group, and was eaten in relished silence until nothing was left but a smudge of sauce on the Chicken Wing plate.

The best part of a table full of people was that the menu was divided evenly and everyone ordered something different. From burger and fries to vegetable cannelloni (shown below) to chicken skewers, there was enough variety to make sure that any appetite or dietary food preference would be served.

The Davis Burger with tobacco onions and fries (8.)Charcuterie Plate with house made sausage, sauerkraut, deviled eggs and bread (10.)Caesar Salad with a Parmesan crisp and chicken (11.)Sum Yum Gai chicken skewers with cucumber salad and a sweet-spicy dipping sauce (12.)The authentic Monte Cristo sandwich surprised Matt, who had never seen powered sugar on a savory sandwich. He cleaned his plate, but never quite settled into a ham, turkey and Swiss cheese sandwich with a side of Raspberry jam. (9.)Even a basic like the Turkey Sandwich stood out of the norm with Provolone cheese and avocado dressing on a Pain de mie bun along with mixed (Sweet, Golden & Russet) Fries. (8.)

No one ordered the Vegetable Pot Pie, which sounded perfect for a cold day, so I guess that means I have to go back again and give it a try. Poor me.Our meeting progressed with unobtrusive interruptions to refill beverages, add and remove plates and the staff quietly made sure that we had everything we needed. Each person around the table fell into a contented food-fugue and readily agreed that dinner at Davis’ should be on the menu in the near future.

If lunch was this good, I imagine dinner will be something special.

Here’s the final crow on Davis’: comfortable atmosphere, friendly and efficient wait staff and delicious food. Go—for lunch or dinner. Eat. Drink. And enjoy.