Daily Archives: January 20, 2013

Jan20

Veg: 2164 Gulf Gate Dr. Sarasota, FL

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veg kale saladUpdate! I felt that it was important to add an undated entry for Veg. I actually go there pretty frequently on my lunch breaks from work and decided that my first review of it really didn’t do it justice- especially because at that point, I’d only tried take-out. This photo is of the amazing 2164 Salad: chopped kale, shoestring carrots, shredded raw beets, purple cabbage, toasted sunflower seeds, avocado, organic pea shoots; papaya seed citrus dressing. This salad has become my favorite at Veg and I can’t seem to stop ordering it. It makes me feel SO healthy and tastes seriously amazing. As the saying goes, we eat with our eyes first, and the beautiful colors of the beets, carrots, avocados and kale make for an incredibly tasty display of color. There are tons of awesome choices on Veg’s menu, and I still have a long way to go before I’ve tried them all. I find it very difficult to move on to new choices when I get so easily hooked on the ones I’ve had so far. Bravo Veg! Thank you so much for giving me such a great place to go to for lunch. See you again soon!

Here’s the original post:

I had take out lunch from Veg a few days ago and it left a great impression on me. The menu had so many wonderful sounding, healthy and reasonably-priced options that I wasn’t sure what to order. When I called to place my order for pick up, I decided to ask if the women answering the phone had any recommendations and was told that the special of the day was looking excellent. I took her word for it and ordered the shrimp/lobster cake sandwich. It had a definite seafood taste, but was not filled with chunks like I was hoping for. It really could have been shrimp, lobster, fish, crab or anything else- but for under $10, I had a VERY filling and flavorful lunch on a hearty roll with a side of great cole slaw and a little slice of watermelon. Great deal, easy, peasy, done. I will definitely be back soon.

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Jan20

Goichi Sushi Cafe: 4562 Bee Ridge Rd, Sarasota, FL

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sushi1goichi sushisushi 2

 

On my way home from work last week, I was at that stage of hunger where I couldn’t seem to decide what I was in the mood for. I called my honey and had him do a quick search for what was a good in-between spot for us to meet at. With a sushi craving (well, that’s pretty much every day for me) and not a ton of money to burn, we were lucky to find Goichi Sushi Cafe. The website advertised a ‘3 roll combo for $10.95’, and had reviews that were good enough to warrant giving it a shot.

I was lucky that he had called ahead because when I arrived, there were people waiting outside because the restaurant is tiny, and all the tables were taken. The little one on the end had a ‘reserved’ sign on it, which I came to find out was actually for us. Yay! The waitress clearly had her hands full waiting on all of the hungry patrons, and we patiently waited along with them. She arrived with menus and water within a few minutes and we ordered a seaweed salad to share to start with. After looking over our options for the 3 roll combos, we each ordered 3 different ones so we could share them all. We also ordered a bottle of sake to share- and were impressed by the very fair price.

I would be lying if I said the food came out quickly. We came to find out that there is only one chef, and he had been extremely busy trying to keep up with the orders that kept rolling in. It probably took at least a half hour to get our food. That said, it really was all quite good and fresh, with the seaweed on the outside as we requested. The waitress was very personable and apologetic about the long wait.

Overall, I happen to really like the minuscule size of this cafe. It feels intimate and personal, and I got the feeling that most of the people in there were regulars. It’s pretty much on my way home from work, so it’s very convenient for me. With incredibly reasonable prices and an awesome selection, I think it’s safe to say that I will most likely become a regular too. I just may choose to call ahead and pick up my orders in the future to avoid the long waiting time.