Richie’s Deli and Pizza

Let the battle continue.  This is proving harder than I expected as most of the trucks have boarded up shop for the summer.  Richie’s is one of the most popular food stands on campus, and I have yet to figure out why.  Most of what I have ever ordered there has been mediocre and the service isn’t incredible.  How did Richie’s do in my grilled cheese battle?  Not great.

Overall appearance: 8 Not toasted quite enough–too much white
Overall taste: 6 It was quite tasteless, even with the ham added in.
Size: 8 Not too big, not too small.
Greasiness: 5 Not enough! Did they grill it without butter? It was SO dry. Dryer than E & E’s.
Cheese (quality and quantity): 6 Tasteless and not very much in there. But maybe they under-compensated because I asked for ham.
Carbohydrate Delivery System: 6 Average white bread that was barely toasted.
Price: 5 $3.75 because I ordered ham. A regular grilled cheese would have been $3 and would have been way to much for the quality.
Extras: 8 None included but I ordered ham for an extra $.75. Two slices of really cheap ham.
Service and timing: 7 Not very friendly and I had to wait a while, I think because lots of people had placed advanced orders.
Accuracy of order: 9 It was almost a lower score. They gave my sandwich to someone else but caught their mistake as she was walking away.

Total score: 68

Loews Hotel conference lunch

There were at least a few hundred people at the conference lunch I went to today, and it was surprisingly tasty. The first course was a pumpkin soup.

A bit thin and luke warm but I finished it.

Next up was a cold chicken and quinoa salad main course. Pretty delicious–tender chicken and flavorful salad.
The salad greens were nice and fresh and had a spicy kick to them.

Apple cake for dessert. I loved the autumn-themed dishes.

The servers were a little brusque, but they were serving hundreds of people.

Chris’ Taco Stand

There’s an unassuming truck parked outside of the Fox School of Business called Chris’ Taco Stand. Before you see it you’ll smell the grilled meat wafting from the tiny metal box that Chris stands in all day.  Chris cooks everything fresh and to order.  He makes his own salsas and sides and offers a nice selection of Mexican sodas and juices.  I’ve eaten here twice this summer, and plan to go back to sample the rest of his menu.

On my first visit, I tried the chicken taco.  Everything about this was fresh and tasty.  The soft corn tortillas barely contained the generous portions of fresh veggies and chicken.  I thought I’d miss cheese or sour cream, but I think it would have overwhelmed the ingredients.

On my next visit, I ordered the carne asada quesadilla and a Mexican apple cider soda called Sidral.

The quesadilla was bigger than my hand and bursting with skirt steak, cheese and veggies.  The cheese stayed gooey and warm the whole time I ate it and there was a piece of steak in every bite.  Dare I say this, but there was actually a bit too much meat for me in this quesadilla, and the chunks of steak a bit big.

This was delicious, but on a hot day it was a tad heavy, and the lighter taco would have been a better choice.

The Sidral was light and bursting with flavor, and it felt a bit naughty to drink out of a glass bottle on campus.

Chris assured me he’d be around all summer, a time when a lot of the trucks shut down until the students return in the fall.  I assured Chris I’d be back to sample everything from his menu.  And in my next post on Chris’ Taco Truck, I’m hoping to report on where his meat comes from, as I am trying hard to be a locavore.