The Unvegan

11/26/2008 Reviews Charlotte

Manchu Wok (CLOSED)

It's hard to order food without vegetables when it's pre-made... — It’s hard to order food without vegetables when it’s pre-made…

Stuck in the Charlotte Airport between flights at dinner time, I was hankering for some Chinese food. Enter: Manchu Wok, a Panda Express-style Chinese fast food place. I stared at the strange variety of stir-fried meats that mildly resembled what my own wok would look like if I tossed every single food in my kitchen into it. I decided to order the “Pick 3 + Noodles or Rice” and do my best to avoid dishes with vegetables. My chosen trifecta was Sweet and Sour Chicken, Pineapple Chicken and General Tso’s Chicken, with noodles.

The food was lazily all tossed together into a styrofoam container, which made it virtually impossible to tell the differences between the different chickens.

Airports Charlotte Chinese Fast Food Food Meat National Chains Restaurants

11/25/2008 Reviews El Segundo

Quizno’s (CLOSED)

I couldn't make this look good, so I opted for the open-face look. — I couldn’t make this look good, so I opted for the open-face look.

Today I ordered Quizno’s for lunch. Quizno’s, a sub shop can be found just about anywhere in the country. Apparently in El Segundo, California, they have delivery and it’s quite fast. It had been a few days since I had some (good) red meat, so I ordered the Prime Rib and Peppercorn. On top of the prime rib, the sandwich comes with mozzarella cheese, sauteed onions and a mild peppercorn sauce. I made sure to get mine without the dastardly onions.

I’ve had Quizno’s before and it has never been spectacular, so when my sandwich arrived, my expectations were pretty low.

Delivery El Segundo Fast Food Meat National Chains Restaurants Sandwiches

11/24/2008 Reviews Evanston

Giordano’s

On my last day in Chicago, I was craving Chicago-style deep dish pizza, but I didn’t have enough time before my flight to wait for an entire pizza to cook. Luckily, I was told that Giordano’s can “half-bake” a pizza for you so you can finish it off later without losing the texture and flavor typically lost in a reheated pizza. With this knowledge, I called Giordano’s up to order a half-baked medium with pepperoni. Giordano’s has locations throughout the Chicago area, with my pizza coming from the Evanston branch.

I brought the 10-pound monster of a pizza on my flight back to Los Angeles and threw it in my fridge for the next day.

Chicago Delivery Evanston Food Franchises Italian Meat Pizza Restaurants

11/22/2008 Reviews Chicago

Cousin’s (CLOSED)

A pretty-looking doner of meat and the veggies that would remain untouched.

I was craving shwarma. It was late and it was freezing, so my options were limited to food within walking distance. Once again, I found myself in Lincoln Park, Chicago, and needed to find food fast. As luck would have it, I was directed to Cousin’s, a Turkish restaurant.

Cousin’s has the general ambiance of a typical Turkish or Middle-Eastern restaurant, with pictures of Turkey, arts, urns and hookahs on the wall. As a bonus, it also has some floor seating, which I can only assume is the traditional way to eat in Turkey.

Chicago Food Illinois Lincoln Park Meat Mediterranean Middle-Eastern Restaurants Turkish

11/22/2008 Reviews Chicago

Duffy’s Tavern and Grille

On Saturday morning, I headed to Duffy’s Tavern and Grille in Lincoln Park, Chicago. Duffy’s is the big Michigan bar in Chicago, so on a Saturday football morning, it was loaded with recent graduates. My friends and I were unable to find a place to sit, but we were more than happy when we found a table top to stand next to, eat/drink on, and lean against. Since Duffy’s is more of a bar than a restaurant, I didn’t order anything to eat until taking down at least three beers (I always lose count at three).

With the beers in me, I scoured the menu for something greasy. Only a few items down from the top, I found a shining beacon of grease, sliders!

Bar Food Burgers Chicago Hamburgers Illinois Lincoln Park Meat Restaurants

11/20/2008 Reviews Los Angeles

Gloria’s Cafe

Tonight I ate dinner at Gloria’s Cafe in the Palms neighborhood of Los Angeles. Gloria’s specializes in Mexican and Salvadoran food and was recommended by a friend of mine. When I walked in, I saw someone had a bowl of soup with entire crab legs hanging out of it. I knew this was my kind of place. I was told that this was the Sopa de 7 Mares. Aside from that, they have quite an impressive menu with your typical Mexican fare of tacos quesadillas and such, enhanced with Salvadoran Pupusas. Speaking of which, have you ever noticed that a Latin American restaurant can never be just simply Peruvian or Salvadoran, etc…? There always has to be Mexican involved in some way. It’s similar with Asian restaurants. You can never seem to find a Cambodian or Vietnamese restaurant unless it also has Thai, Chinese or Japanese food.

Food Los Angeles Meat Mexican Palms Restaurants Salvadoran

Featured Posts

A Touch of Canada at The Kroft

The Best of 2015

Duluth Grill’s Rolled Flank Steak

A Torta at Tortugas