Amber Indian Restaurant

This is one of our favorite restaurants. We've never been disappointed here. It has all the elements of a good restaurant: fantastic food, good price, exceptional service, and a decent wine list. And it doesn't hurt that we only live a few blocks away.

They have a lunch buffet for $9.99. Our favorite items are the Navrattan Korma, which is nine vegetables in an unbelievably tasty sauce, and the Chicken Makhni, which is pieces of chicken in a creamy, spicy tomato sauce. God, it's good. About 1/2 of the items in the buffet are vegetarian, so it feels healthy. If you have a cold, this food will clear your sinuses. It's awesome. They have some kind of soupy rice pudding for dessert (not sure what it's called) which is also delicious.

We give Amber Indian Restaurant two enthusiastic thumbs up, and strongly recommend it!

Royal Buffet, Dickson City

Sigh. I really don't want to write this. This is one of those places that everyone raves about, but we're not feeling it. Maybe it's us. Maybe we're too picky. Or maybe uncooked chicken and gristly meat are all the rage around here. Or maybe we're just jaded from eating out all the time. But wouldn't you agree that if you have to spit a mouthful of food out into your napkin, you're probably not going to go back to that establishment?

Ok, let me tell you about the place. It's across the street from Home Depot. We loved the decor. The floor has lights in it! The staff is very attentive and very nice. And that's why it pains me that we just weren't impressed with the food. We were impressed, however, with the sheer variety of food availabe. There is a complete salad bar. They have tons of seafood. There's a sushi bar. There is a hibachi bar, where you pick out your meat and fixins and the guy cooks it for you before your eyes. There's an unbelievable dessert bar. There's an American food section, complete with pigs in the blanket and mac n' cheese. Name it, and they have it.

But I think that therein lies the problem. If you have hundreds of items on your menu, then it's safe to say that it's impossible to have prepared even half of them fresh daily. Then again, it is cheap ($7), proving the old axiom "you get what you pay for".

I had a salad, chicken w/broccoli, rice, steamed dumplings, and sampled various desserts. The chicken and broccoli was a stir fried dish, and the chicken was sliced paper thin. However, it was raw. I mean slimy raw. And I didn't realize this until it was already in my mouth. Gross. I'm praying I don't get sick today. Danelle bit into what the sign said was a cream cheese wonton. She realized after she took a bite that it had seafood (which she hates) in it. She not-so-demurely spit it out into her napkin. Because she's a classy lady.
Then I bit into my steamed dumpling, which had pork in it. It was tasty, but had a huge hard gristle piece in it. So I spit it out into my napkin. Because I'm a classy lady.

Now that we've no doubt whetted your appetite, here's the deal: if you're really hungry, or just like to eat and you're not picky, this is the place for you. If you do go, and have to spit something out into your napkin, please tell us about it. And stay classy.

Uno Chicago Grill

Today we had lunch at Uno Chicago Grill in Dickson City. Why did we eat pizza at a chain restaurant when we live in NEPA? Because we've lost our minds! But only temporarily, as it will never happen again.
Really, it wasn't my idea. Anyway, here's the rundown:
We got there early - 11:10 am. (We'd been up since 4:30 am). We were the very first customers. The waitress seated us, and took our drink order. Right after we get our drinks, another party of five comes in. A family. With kids. Now, the whole restaurant is empty except for us, and it's a pretty big place. So naturally, they seat the family with rambunctious child RIGHT NEXT TO US! Literally no more than eight inches away from us! We could hear them chewing their food (and vice versa), for pete's sake. So right off the bat, we're pissed. One can only conclude that they obviously don't want repeat customers, because, come on, that is such a douchy thing to do to a customer. They could very well have afforded us a little privacy but didn't.
And why? Because the lazy server doesn't want to walk three extra steps?

We ordered a deep dish pizza, chunky tomato and cheese. It's just not good. Honestly, I can't even believe I'm wasting my energy writing this, because normal local people probably wouldn't go here anyway.
So here's my take on the pizza. Tastes like Prego sauce from a jar. The cheese is ok, the crust is way too filling, and not particularly flavorful. Danelle like it, though. But then again, her idea of haute cuisine is Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.

Unless you like being intimate with strangers and eating sub par pizza, skip this one and go anywhere else in town if you're craving pizza. I mean anywhere.