Category: Reviews

Food, housing, Reviews, travel, Uncategorized

A Review: Randy’s Steakhouse in Frisco, and the NYLO Hotel in Plano

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B and I try to hit a new restaurant during Dallas Restaurant Week, every year.  This year, he sent me the list of participating restaurants and I narrowed it down to five I wanted to try, and he picked Randy’s Steakhouse of out that short list.  The Open Table reservation options were limited, so we did the unorthodox thing of setting our reservation for the evening of Thor’s birthday, sending him to Grandma’s house (where he wanted to be anyway), and celebrating the anniversary of our having become parents over Randy’s prix fixe Restaurant Week menu.

We shared appetizers of beef empanadas with horseradish sauce and calamari with remoulade sauce, then had a first course of turtle soup, followed by entrees of prime rib and sea scallops, with desserts of cheesecake and bread pudding.  Randy’s also offered a wine pairing to go with each course, so we indulged in that as well.  Randy roamed the restaurant chatting up guests and making sure everyone was  happy.  We certainly were.

The empanadas were light and flaky, and the beef filling was juicy–I would order those on their own for a meal if offered!  The calamari were all right, but nothing special.  Neither of us had ever had turtle soup before.  I liked the taste, but I couldn’t get past the fact that I was eating turtle, and that ruined it a little for me.  The turtle itself (which was ground) had the texture of pate, or soft tofu.  B enjoyed his more than I did mine, but we both agreed that it tasted quite nice.

B said his prime rib was excellent, and my scallops were absolutely perfect.  I didn’t try the cheesecake because our wine pairings (don’t even ask me what we drank, but all of it was lovely) had gone to my head, but the bread pudding was very nice.

The atmosphere was pleasant and friendly.  The waitstaff was attentive and helpful.  Randy seemed like a really nice man.

This is a place we would certainly go to again.

4.5 out of 5 stars

After dinner, we drove over to the nearby NYLO hotel for the night.  The NYLO wants to be in Manhattan, and I thought it did a really good job of bringing that industrial, hipster-loft feel to the bustling yuppie-land of Plano.  Our room overlooked one of the frou frou strip malls on Preston, so not exactly the Meatpacking District, but still fun.

Room with a view (of a bunch of restaurants.)

The loft rooms at NYLO are long and skinny, and reminded me alternately of the tiny apartment showroom displays at Ikea and my dad’s RV.  I think the size of it was about the size of the RV, and the clever furnishings and use of nook space was 100% Ikea.

I loved the platform bed (good mattress and a billion nice pillows), and that you could go up two steps to stand behind it and set the air conditioner to your level of cool, and work the blinds that did a surprisingly good job of blocking out all the neon from across the street.  Also surprisingly good: how well the room was soundproofed from the traffic of Preston and 121.

The room was tricked out with all sorts of useful gadgetry, and was comfortably furnished.  I wouldn’t have minded staying there for a couple of days, save for one thing.  The bathroom.

And on this wall, you have the bathroom.  Smoked plexiglass shower stall–great for making shadow puppets!

The bathroom itself wasn’t bad.  The shower was big and roomy, and the sink was a really nice, deep bowl that sat up on the granite counter.  However, the bathroom was only separated from the rest of the room by a glorified screen.  You had a good 3 feet of open space from the top of the sliding door/smoked plexiglass shower wall and the ceiling, meaning that when I was in the bathroom, I could converse with B easily.  I didn’t even have to raise my voice for him to hear me. So you can guess what else he could hear.  And vice versa.

I’m not shy about bodily functions, but I did really consider going down to the hotel lobby to use the restroom this morning.  Fortunately, my digestive system didn’t kick into gear until after we left, so I could have my privacy without making it clear that I was going to have some privacy.

For a night, I thought the NYLO was great.  If I were on my own, I would absolutely take advantage of their great rates (really, really good rates) and great digs.  For a night where I am sharing a room with someone else?  No way.  That bathroom thing kills it.

2.5 out of 5 stars for more than one person

4 out of 5 stars for one person

 

Chef Lane, Food, movies, Reviews

3 Breasts: A recipe and a review

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I used 3 chicken breasts (on the bone with rib meat) and made 4 different meals.  To cook the meat, I warmed EVOO in a stewer over medium heat with 2 Tbs of garlic paste, and 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary.  When that was warm, I browned the breasts, skin side down, then added water to cover.  To that, I added 2 Knorr chicken flavor cubes, sea salt and a variety of herbs that smelled nice.  I brought that to a boil, then simmered for 45 minutes

I shredded the meat of all 3 breasts, added about 1/4 of it back to the broth with a cup of carrots, a cup of cauliflower and 1 1/2 cups of lentils to make soup (cooked for another 20 minutes before adding the chicken back in.)  With the next 1/4, I made shredded chicken tacos with fresh, homemade salsa, and used the final 1/2 for a plain chicken meal for Thor, and shredded chicken sandwiches for dinner.

To make the salsa, coarsely chop 2 large tomatoes, and finely chop 1 banana pepper, 1 small jalapeno, 1 small onion, 3 cloves of garlic, and juice 2 limes.  Put the peppers, onion and garlic in a strainer and pour 2 cups of boiling water over them and let drain well.  This softens them and brings out some flavor.  Mix everything together with salt and chili powder to taste, then refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

For shredded chicken sandwiches, mound the cold, shredded chicken on foil and sprinkle with cheddar cheese, then broil until cheese is bubbly.  Serve on hamburger buns with horseradish sauce.  Tasty!

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B and I went to see Total Recall last week.  While the 3-Breasted Hooker made it back into the film, the bomb-mask (my favorite thing from the original, other than Arnold’s accent) did not.

I didn’t have high hopes for the film, so I wasn’t disappointed when it wasn’t great.  I was surprised at what was the whole trouble, though.  First, Collin Farrell and Kate Beckinsale were very good in their roles.  Farrell was believable as an Everyman who might be a revolutionary.  Beckinsale was the perfect sociopath.  Both are very easy on the eyes, and stood out against the perfectly dystopian backdrop.  Their chemistry was right on target.  They reminded me a bit of Pitt and Jolie as Mr. and Mrs. Smith.

The first quarter of the film was promising, though I did lean over to ask B why everyone spoke in an American accent if the only places left on earth were the UK and Australia, and why everyone other than the main characters were Asian.  That was a startling defect.  How can the whole of the world be Asian, but the only people important to the plot be white, pretty people?

But I could suspend my disbelief.  The action was good, the gadgets were cool, and I could get behind Rekal as a possibly safe, possibly sinister place.  Then, something horrible happened.  Jessica Biel.

Biel has gorgeous hair, beautiful skin, and has an amazing figure.  She cannot act.  Period.  Every scene she was in was diminished by her presence.  I wish I could be nicer about that, but it’s sad and true.  She brought absolutely nothing to the role other than pretty hair, and really just served the purpose of making me think, “Dang…I never realized Kate Beckinsale could act.”  Listen, Beckinsale playing dead was better than Biel playing anything.

Brian Cranston was woefully miscast, as was his wig.  Bill Nighy was wasted in his role.  He should have had Cranston’s part.

Overall, I had a fine time.  It wasn’t the worst movie I’ve ever seen (The Messenger), and it wasn’t the best movie I’ve ever seen (you wouldn’t believe me if I told you.)  It was all right.  The bad did outweigh the good, so I only give it 2.75 out of 5 stars.

books, Reviews

What is Lane Reading?

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I read Alison Arngrim’s memoir, Confessions of a Prairie Bitch, over the weekend and was so delighted by her sense of humor and so enjoyed her style that I threw myself headfirst into Melissa Gilbert’s, Prairie Tale.  Listen, Nellie was always the best character on Little House.  She only bawled when she came up with a face full of mud, unlike that squinty, squawlbag Half Pint.  Let’s just say that the actors didn’t fall far from the tree.

Prairie Bitch. Prairie Awesome!

Arngrim describes a violent, nightmarish childhood with charm.  Read that sentence again.  This was a child who suffered true abuse and neglect, and who grew up to have not only a sense of humor about it, but a healthy sense of humor.  No whistling in the graveyard with this one.  She’s done her work to heal the wounds, and talks about them like that scene in Lethal Weapon, where Rene Russo and Mel Gibson compare battle scars.

More than that, Arngrim shares her history like she’s talking to a friend.  I want to be her best friend now.  I want to hear the stuff she didn’t tell!

Melissa Gilbert, on the other hand…  Click here and scroll down for the review I gave to Rob Lowe’s memoir, Stories I Only Tell My Friends.  If the real Melissa Gilbert is anywhere near as insufferable as the author Melissa Gilbert is, she and Rob Lowe were a perfect couple.

I realize that people don’t become actors because they are shy of self-aggrandizement, but this was just silly.  Every other page, Gilbert has broken down in heaving sobs over something or other, or is having a screaming fight with a boyfriend, all the while telling us how she never allowed herself to feel anything, or display any emotion.  Because crying and yelling are what?  Oy.

I am also in the middle of a memoir by Clint Hill, Mrs. Kennedy and Me.  Hill was on Mrs. Kennedy’s secret service detail. He clearly adored his charge, and I am enjoying Camelot through his eyes.  Hill does come off a little like a sophomore in love, and he is more than happy to tell you how awesome he was personally, but that doesn’t detract from his storytelling.  It is also really funny to read about the 60s when it comes to telephones and travel.  I am so spoiled by technology!

What’s next?  Well, I should round out the Little House girls by reading Melissa Sue Anderson’s memoir, The Way I See It.  After all, both Arngrim and Gilbert were blunt that she was the real little hmph on the prairie.  But do I really want to read another book by an actor, telling me how wonderful she is?  Not so close on the heels of Half Pint’s, thanks.

It’s probably time to read some history.

music, Reviews

Memphis the Musical: A review

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Thanks to Nicole Barrett and radio station KLIF, I won two tickets to opening night of the Dallas Summer Musical performance of the Tony Award winning Broadway musical, Memphis.  It’s always great to get out to a show, and the free-er, the better!   I’m sure that’s what the people in front of me thought when they got the free peepshow of my panties.  I got my dress caught on a theater seat and somehow managed to yank both it and my slip up over my hips.  Sorry, people!  At least you weren’t charged for the view.

I enjoy musical theater.  I have no problem with people bursting into song at odd moments, full orchestras invisibly swelling behind people who are suddenly dancing and singing.  I mean, except for the musicians, I do that all the time.  Why shouldn’t everyone else?  And, since my latest guilty pleasure is SMASH!, I was very excited to go see Memphis.

Sadly, I was disappointed.

First, though, the highlights.  Felicia Boswell, who played Felicia Farrell, was fantastic.  Her vocals were wonderful, and I would sit and listen to her sing all night.  She also cut a smashing figure in her costumes, and moved beautifully.  She’s got some amazing arms.

The choreography was a lot of fun, and I really enjoyed watching the dancing.  Made me wish I could move like that.

The costuming was great.

About half of the numbers were truly enjoyable.  The other half?

So, when you leave a good musical, you should be humming a song, or at least have an earworm.  Even after the first episode of Smash!, I was humming “Let Me Be Your Star” without realizing it.  A good musical should have at least one number that you want to stop, rewind, and play again.  Memphis didn’t have any of these for me.  I’m not saying I didn’t enjoy the music–in fact, there were a couple of songs Boswell sang that made me wish I could replay the stylings she gave them, but that was everything to do with her, and nothing to do with Memphis.  I walked out and couldn’t have sung you a bar from any of the songs they performed, and given my Mockingbird like recall for music, that’s saying something really sad.

Several of the actors seemed to be having trouble with their mics.  At least, I’m going to give them that benefit of the doubt, otherwise I can’t see why they would have been cast.  Dialogue was garbled and unintelligible in places, with Boswell and a trio of supporting actors being the only characters I could completely understand.  The star of the show, Bryan Fenkart, who plays Huey Calhoun (the fictionalized version of Dewey Phillips, upon whom the story is built) was just not good at all.

Most of the time, Fenkart couldn’t be understood at all.  He, and the rest of the cast, adopt what passes for a Tennessee accent (if you have never been to Tennessee) and on top of his hick twang, he has added a version of Steve Martin’s wild and crazy guy hiccoughing affectation.  I could catch two or three words of every sentence.  Having no knowledge of the musical beforehand, when his character first appeared, I thought he was playing the stereotypical Southern Mentally Challenged trope.  That’s how affected his speech was.  It took a couple of scenes before I realized he was the star, and quit waiting for him to meet some end like Mercutio.  His vocals were marginal and his dancing made me think he’d been cast for his vocals.

The story was all right.  I feel like the subject matter could have been handled much better, but that would have required taking the focus from Huey and putting it on Felicia–rewriting the show entirely.  I was very uncomfortable with some of the language.  Racial epitaphs are a part of my family’s conversational history that I have worked hard to distance from, and it was actually painful to sit through listening to dialogue that sounded like it had been tape-recorded off my Granny’s back porch.  Yes, it was historically accurate, but also yes, the seriousness, danger and sadness of the era were completely glossed over in lieu of using a few slurs to set a tone.  It made too light of the violence and hate that were rampant in those days, relegating the truth of the matter to two offhand comments and one short scene in the matter of 2.5 hours.  If you’re going to do a show about racism in the 40s, 50s, and 60s, you’ve got to commit.  People died.

I wasn’t engrossed, and there was a massive shift in Huey’s character after intermission surprised me.  Though, I think I was supposed to infer that he had become a drunk because he drank from a flask twice in the 6-8 year span of time the last half of the play covered.  His speech and movement never changed, so who knows?  I just know he started behaving differently toward Felicia.

I liked the parts revolving around Felicia, and wished there was more to her story, her brother’s story, and the people around her, and less about the herp-derp DJ.  I appreciated that Felicia was a strong-willed, independent woman, and was glad for how she ended up.  I guess I liked everything about her.

So…I’d give it 2 out of 5 stars.  It wasn’t bad.  It wasn’t great.  It was somewhere short of average for me.  I loved having the night out, though, and do really appreciate the free tickets!

movies, Reviews

Double Feature

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Thor had a movie weekend, getting treated to The Pirates Band of Misfits in 3-D and The Avengers in plain old D.  Grandma and I took him to the former, and the latter was a BFamily outing.  I am happy to say I enjoyed both, though The Avengers has already placed itself as movie of the year for me.

Pirates, coming from the mastermind behind Wallace and Gromit is a good-natured morality tale about the importance of loyalty and friendship.  I adored the daft hero, voiced by Hugh Grant, and loved that the super villain was none other than Queen Victoria herself.  Thor laughed out loud several times, and so did I.  There was plenty of humor for the grown-ups, without breaking the 4th wall as the Shrek movies are wont to do.  We left the theater happy, and happy to talk about what we’d just seen.

We left The Avengers cheering, and Thor has gone to bed talking about what kinds of things he would smash, were he The Hulk.  Y’all, five minutes in and I leaned over to B yodeling, “This is everything I wanted The Hunger Games to be!  Why couldn’t Joss Whedon have directed that?!”

I clapped.  I cheered.  I squealed.  I scrunched up in my seat and said, “oof!”  I found myself sitting forward, hands on my armrests, eyes wide, mouth open, waiting for the next scene to come, and I thought, “I never want this to end!  Ever!”

Since I have nothing bad to say about the movie, I’ll just list my favorite things:

  1. RDJ and Goop have amazing chemistry.  Amazing.  I would pay to watch a movie that was just the two of them flirting with each other.  I would.
  2. RDJ.  75% of what was wonderful about this movie was Tony Stark, and 100% of what is wonderful about Tony Stark is RDJ.
  3. I love The Hulk.  I grew up watching the Bill Bixby tv show, and I was not disappointed by this movie version of the mild scientist you shouldn’t make angry.  And when Hulk smashes?  When Hulk smashed, my heart grew two sizes.
  4. The dialog was snappy and snarky, and just as well done as the engaging CGI.  It isn’t often that an action movie’s dialog can live up to the great action sequences, but you could have taken out the action and had a great movie, and you could have taken out the dialog and had a–  Actually, the dialog built the movie up.
  5. Joss Whedon.
  6. Thor and Loki.  I love everything about Thor and Loki.  Tom Hiddleston is a brilliant villain.  Chris Hemsworth is a brilliant dumb-jock-god.
  7. Everything about The Avengers.  Twice.  And again.