Twenty-Five Forty (Old town): Restaurant Revisit Review

Went to Twenty-Five Forty recently with SuperBoy (it was supposed to be a date but the babysitter couldn't come).

Quick report:
--Service a little slow to start as usual, but they're working hard to make the good food

--Bread basket: just as delicious if not more than usual; SB's eyes lit up when he tasted the corn bread mini-muffins and he kept taking more bread

--Zucchini soup: blander than the soups I've had there before, but ok

--Side salad: not as good as I remembered, ok. 

--Eggplant parmesan ravioli (minus bacon): SO GOOD. They make the best fresh pasta here. Sauce was delicious too. Not a huge portion, but would get again.

--CH got rigatoni and enjoyed it a lot. He also got bratwurst with fresh sauerkraut and he seemed to like that too

--SB's grilled cheese sandwich: a good buy for $10 (since it's not only for kids). He got cheddar only. Was grilled on a delicious baguette/panini roll, with good cheddar; fresh steakhouse fries on the side; and some spring mix.

--Shoyu cosmo. Very tasty. Couldn't tell the difference between that and a real vodka cosmo.

So a couple of missteps tonight, whereas I never had anything less than superlative here before. But we would still come again.

25 Forty Bistro (Old Town): Dinner and a Show, Part Two!

Before seeing the amazing Allegiance, we went to 25 Forty Bistro and Bakehouse in Old Town.  Like our last visit several months ago, we thought this is just an amazing restaurant that is so under the radar (TOO under the radar - they should have more business on a Sat. night - patio was hopping but was mostly empty inside).  Go, taste!

Delicious things tonight:
--their bread basket: so ridiculously delicious and worth paying $4: three adorable warm mini-muffings, superb whole wheat mini-roll, two foccacia-type rolls that CH hogged, and fab baguette. Great butter

--ordered soup of the day: zucchini: just as scrumptious as when I ordered cauliflower soup last time. Very delicate.

--CH got the simple green salad (super bargain at $4) and liked it as much as I did last time

--I got a white sangria made with soyu vodka (they have a wine list but can't do anything with hard liquor except soyu).  Not the best best cocktail ever, but refreshing and tasty and interesting enough. AND only $6.

--I got a crazy delicious homemade fettucine with organic veggies. LOVED. THE. GREEN. BEANS. Don't normally like green beans.  Scarfed up all of the veggies - they were so flavorful.  Pasta was great too. Beautiful presentation.

--CH got a ribeye, which arrived looking so impressive, on a block, with gorgeous fries, a little greenery and some sea salt.

Service not the fastest ever, but it takes some time to make great food. And they were very friendly.

(Baby near us was crying loudly and luckily didn't stay too long. Too bad to get a babysitter and then listen to other loud babies! But the crayons on the table are a nice touch for well-behaved toddlers)

We were too stuffed to get dessert, which is what they're apparently known for.

New list of favorite restaurants in SD:
1. Grant Grill
2. Alchemy
3.  25 Forty
4.  Searsucker
5. Cucina Urbana

(so-so meal at Charisma pushed it off the list. Still haven't had a bad dish at 25-Forty)

Cafe Coyote over Old Town Mexican Cafe (Old Town)

Ate at OTMC with a Comic-Con visitor and TruckBoy yesterday (he was so well-behaved I am going to call him SuperToddler). OTMC gets all the buzz ("best Mexican"), but I'm sorry...Cafe Coyote is way better! SuperToddler had a great time we were at Cafe Coyote last time. Food is delicious; comes fast; is served in lovely patio setting; plus there is a lot of space for wandering, stairs to climb, even a parrot.

Plus ColdStone is across the street and can be held out as a reward for good behavior. (And the trolley is close by if you have time for a real outing!)

Other than the decent tortillas at OTMC, my meal was undistinguished. Not making the mistake again of going there instead of CC!