Pei Wei Asian Diner
6159 N. Keystone Avenue, Suite 100
Indianapolis, Indiana 46220
http://www.peiwei.com/index.aspx

This is my second visit to Pei Wei, my first was in Nashville, Tennessee in 2004.

When Pei Wei was announced a few years back, I was pretty excited about it.  However, not that excited because it took me a few years to get there.  There is really no reason it took me this long.   I didn’t hate it the first time.   Basically, when I am in Glendale, I usually go to somewhere in Broad Ripple.  Odd location, but I am sure there is a reason.

For the record, I am not a fan of PF Changs.

What I Ate: Dan Dan Noodles and Mongolian Beef; both were around $6-$7.

Mongolian Beef is a go to for me when I am not really sure what I want.  I never had a version that I hated so I played it safe.  Then again, how crazy could you get at Pei Wei?  This dish had a lot of problems.   Primarily, the noodles.  They were way too soft and mushy.  Pretty bad actually.  The scallions were cut as long as my ring finger.   I can’t say that it really helped the presentation, but the problem was trying to eat them because if you didn’t cut them, it was too much scallion.  The meat was okay, although there was not enough of it, but it was fine.

My fiancés Dan Dan Noodles faired better.  The noodle had more texture than mine and I liked the crunchy texture of the bean sprouts and cucumbers.   The chili seared soy sauce had a touch of spice, but not enough to validate the spicy note that was on the menu.   A good combination of flavors and textures.

Would I Buy It Again?  I don’t know.   No to the Mongolian Beef for sure.  This is the Noodles and Company of Chinese food.   For the money, I like it better than Panda Express.  I actually like it better than paying more money for questionably better product at PF Changs.  For the price, it is a buck or two more than a combo meal and you get a ton of food.  Honestly enough to make two meals out of it.

The problem is that one dish was awful and the other was decent.   I am sure that I will give it another try sometime in 2013 and report back.  If so, what should I order?

-wibia

Jack in the Box
http://www.jackinthebox.com/

This is the third review of a three part series introducing the Jack in the Box menu to the new Indianapolis market (first review and second review). The focus of this review is some of their unique sides and the value menu.

What I Got:  Three piece Stuffed Jalapenos (pictured above); ~$2.79.

Breaded, spicy jalapeños stuffed with a blend of melted cheeses and served with Buttermilk Ranch dipping sauce. I lost my receipt for this order but the three piece comes in at around $2.79. I must say that I liked the firm crunchy outside coating that did not allow for any leakage of melted cheese from the inside. However, at about ninety cents a jalapeno, if you need some melted cheese, go for the bacon cheddar fries instead.

Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger; $1.19  and Jr. Jack (pictured below); $1.00.

Jack has four burgers on its value menu. The Jr. Jack and Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger(pictured below) share the same type of bun, and a very bad one to say the least. It is a typical white enriched flour type of bun where the outside easily breaks apart, is dry, and tastes awful. The Jr. Jack has lettuce tomato and mayo, but as you can see from my picture, the mayo was lacking, the lettuce was soggy and the tomato lacked any taste. You pay an extra $0.19 for the bacon but the Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger was just as bad as the Jr. Jack. Stay away from both of these and choose The Big Cheeseburger for children and the Jumbo Jack for the adult appetite. Both come with a Sesame Seed Bun and are juicy in comparison to the other two dry Jr. burgers on the value menu.

Value Fry; $1.00.
I thought the portion was fair for $1.00. Jack’s fries are not great but good enough if you are there for some of their other menu items. A Jumbo Jack with a value fry is the cheapest way to get through Jack at $2.69 plus tax combined if you do not need a drink. Speaking of drinks, thankfully they have Coca-Cola products, but their drinks are nearly twice the price of McDonald’s and just do not seem to taste as good.

Egg Rolls(pictured above); 1 for $1.49 or 3 for $3.49.

Egg Rolls are one of my favorite foods, but considering the focus is fast food burgers, my expectations were low. Jack’s egg rolls are pork, were crispy, and contained the common ingredients you find in any other standard egg roll. The sweet and sour dipping sauce was the disappointment. The top ingredient in the sauce was high fructose corn syrup, which we know is bad for us and quickly disappearing in a lot of our food. The result was an awful overpowering sauce that was all sweet and no sour and inedible in my opinion. I was surprised to see a California based company still using a product that its primary ingredient is high fructose corn syrup and I would not buy them again until they get an improved dipping sauce.

Chicken Nuggets (pictured above); $1.29 for five nuggets.

The nuggets were white meat and had a flavorful crisp coating on the outside. My daughter loved them and so did I. Jack’s nuggets are a winner, especially when comparing them to their competition and one of the better value menu items.

Would I Buy It Again? Of Course. If you have not been to Jack yet, it is time to give it a try. Just like any fast food burger stops, it has its winners and losers. For the price, you can’t beat the Jumbo Jack and it is worth the forty cents to add cheese. Breakfast items are almost all winners and so are their sourdough sandwiches. Jack has a couple of deli sandwiches, some good looking salads and even a chicken teriyaki bowl that I have yet to try giving it some unique menu items and creating niche for itself here in Fast Food City of America (Indianapolis). Although Jack is a nice addition to the Indianapolis market, I still long for the king of west coast fast food, In-N-Out Burger to come here. Its eastern most location is Texas, so I think we will be waiting for a while.

-EatHSE

Buffalo Wild Wings
http://www.buffalowildwings.com

It happened again; I got suckered into free wifi.  Needing to get a connection for about three hours, Buffalo Wild Wings was my closest option with beer.  The beer part was the most important.  Then I found out it was wing night which is $0.40 cents per wing.  I know that I might sound like an old fart, but when I was in college, they used to be $0.10on wing night.  Plus, they were good then, oh….how the mighty have fallen.

What I Ate:  A few wings with Asian Zing and a few with Caribbean Jerk.

According to the menu, Asian Zing is where sweet meats heat.  Chili pepper, soy and ginger.  To be honest, it is where sweet meats sweeter.  Sure, they had a little bite in them, but I tasted sweet more than anything.  I really didn’t taste any ginger.  It reminded me of a spicy version of sweet and sour that you get at a dumpy Chinese takeout.  A very unhappy ending to these wings and if I was of Asian decent, I would be royally pissed off.

Caribbean Jerk is a red pepper based sauce with island spices.  What does that even mean?  Island spices.  Maybe there is some Red Stripe and some weed in there…who knows.  What I tasted was a lot of black pepper.  I didn’t pick up any cinnamon, nutmeg or thyme that you would usually find in a jerk rub.

Would I Buy It Again?  Nope.  Too sweet, the pieces were too small and it just was pretty bad.  I might catch some grief on this, but my favorite wings are still Hooter’s Hot.  I need to find some more places for wings, what are your suggestions?

-wibia