Archive for the ‘American’ Category

Awful Annie’s Lincoln

Saturday, May 8th, 2010

We were here 4/25/2010 for breakfast. Although Awful Annie’s serves food all day long (breakfast, lunch, and dinner), they’re most known (and revered) for their breakfasts. There were ten of us at breakfast, and I can’t even begin to remember what everyone ate…I had some great cinnamon French toast, however, with a side of bacon. The bacon was good and meaty, and not over-done…their French toast is awesome…just awesome. Awful Annie’s is packed weekend mornings, so if you’re planning to go, you should probably make reservations the day before (no joke). They do have a beer and wine license as well, so if you want a Sunday morning mimosa, all is good. Sometimes they’ll give you a tiny bottle and let you mix it yourself…here’s my suggestion: 1) give the orange juice to an underage member of your party; 2) drink the champagne (no, not out of the bottle…ask for another glass). If Bloody Marys are more your style, I hear they have good ones (tomatoes are great turned into pasta sauce, ketchup, or served on hamburgers…I’m not into drinking them). Anyway, I happened to be driving on this occasion, so it was coffee and water for me (don’t feel too bad, I drank so much coffee I couldn’t sleep for a week). The restaurant is definitely cozy, there are two levels (not really stories, since the upper level is maybe five feet above the lower level), and when they’re busy, it’s packed!

The bathroom is pretty nice, I’m sorry I don’t have more pictures (I can’t believe I forgot my feet picture), but it’s a one-person bathroom and there was a line outside the door…and I don’t want to inconvenience anyone having to use the bathroom (I don’t appreciate it much). I kinda tripped out over the chalkboard, I’m not really sure why it’s there, but if I had more time (and some chalk), I would have at least put BathroomGoodies.com on it. I’ll have to do that next time, and I’ll grab some more photos (including a feet shot!) next time I’m there. Three rolls for an average clean bathroom, plus half a roll for the chalkboard (man I wish I’d had some chalk!)

:mrgreen:

Rating: ★★★½☆

Awful Annie's Entrance   Awful Annie's Toilet   Awful Annie's Chalkboard

Claim Jumper Roseville

Friday, January 29th, 2010

Mmmmm…Claim Jumper. In my series of “wow-I-can’t-believe-I-waited-this-long-to-post-a-review” reviews, I visited Claim Jumper October 17, 2009. Yes folks, you read that right…I’m still…ahem…behind

I honestly can’t remember what I had that night, but I can say without a doubt my bread choice was a sourdough roll. Sourdough bread has to be on my all-time list of favorite breads, very near (if not at) the top—and Claim Jumper does a great job on their sourdough. I even tried to become a fan on Facebook, or join a group, or something…but there weren’t any good ones (well, there was one, but it was for bakers intersted in naturally leavened breads, pretty outside my scope of “sourdough bread tastes good, I like to eat it…”). If you’re interested, you can see it here.

Okay, enough food talk…let’s get to the meat and potatoes of this review! ;)

Their bathroom utilize dark woods and dark-colored tiles (dark green and a purple-red), and offsets that with bright lighting and a white floor (although there are dark green tiles in the floor). The result is a warm inviting—almost cheery—bathroom that’s not overly intimate or too cozy. Claim Jumper keeps their bathrooms clean, which is pretty amazing since it’s hard to even get a seat in the bar area (where we ended up sitting) on a Saturday night. Add to that generous portions and a stacked bar and if you weren’t on top of things…well, I’ll leave that to your imagination—Enjoy!

Claim Jumper gets four rolls for cleanliness and design…and I still don’t really get why bathrooms need to have AC adapters…hmm…maybe I shouldn’t ask…

:mrgreen:

Rating: ★★★★☆

Claim Jumper Roseville Entrance   Claim Jumper Roseville Urinal   Claim Jumper Roseville My Feet

Claim Jumper Roseville Huh #1   Claim Jumper Roseville Huh #2   Claim Jumper Roseville Huh #3

Red Robin Lincoln

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

Home of gourmet burgers (Zagat rated them #1) and Endless Fries™, Red Robin is sort of 50′s-ish diner in execution…and sort of not (I’m pretty sure 50′s diners never had in-floor TV’s or flat screens in every corner). They have fantastic drinks, too…all-in-all a recommended restaurant. I even got to watch my Panthers take the lead over the Cowboys while I was there Monday (9/28/09)—we won’t discuss the second half…(40 years of Monday Night Football!!! crazy!!!)

The bathroom is a pretty happy place at Red Robin (like the rest of the restaurant)—lots of bright vibrant colors and a friendly reminder as you walk in to wash your hands after using the restroom (check it out in the entrance picture). Oddly enough there’s only one urinal in here, too (and emergency lights…still laughin’)maybe it’s a new-restaurant-in-Lincoln thing (both Red Robin and Mimi’s were built here within the last couple of years). Three-and-a-half rolls for the clean well-lit brightly colored bathroom.

:mrgreen:

Rating: ★★★½☆

Red Robin Lincoln Entrance   Red Robin Lincoln Urinal   Red Robin Lincoln My Feet   Red Robin Lincoln Emergency Lights

Mimi’s Cafe Lincoln

Tuesday, September 29th, 2009

I dropped by Mimi’s for breakfast yesterday (9/28/09)—they have good food and a wide array of breakfast (and lunch and dinner, but I was there for breakfast) options. I’m especially fond of the Pain Purdue—cream cheese and orange marmelade stuffed between two layers of French toast. I wouldn’t recommend this as a daily meal but on the rare occasion that I have it, I’m sure it shortens my lifespan. Oh well, it tastes good. I’m not sure why they serve muffins with the pp but they do, so that muffin became this morning’s breakfast (when a single muffin has more calories, fat, etc. than French toast stuffed with cream cheese…well, it’s best not to do that more than once in a great while). Not realizing it, I got Mimi’s Meaningful Muffin, for which they donated $1 to Share Our Strength®, an organization dedicated to ending childhood hunger. All I was thinking was “Pineapple Coconut Crumb sounds pretty good…” (it was, by the way). If you’re interested, you have two more days (the muffins are served til 9/30/09) to grab one. I suggest you do—help out a great cause and get a tasty muffin.

Overall, the bathroom is clean and well-designed. I’m not sure why there’s only one urinal, that seems odd where the minimum is usually two. It’s not a big deal or a dealbreaker, just odd. I love the tile floor you can see in picture three, and I had to laugh when I looked at the emergency lights (shown in picture four). The thought of getting stuck in a bathroom when an emergency occurs and having it lit up like a football stadium makes me laugh. Yeah, I probably do need help. Three-and-a-half rolls.

:mrgreen:

Rating: ★★★½☆

Mimi's Cafe Lincoln Entrance   Mimi's Cafe Lincoln Urinal   Mimi's Cafe Lincoln My Feet   Mimi's Cafe Lincoln Emergency Lights