Jasmine

As promised, I will continue talking about the amazing meals we've had over the past few months. There's plenty to write, as after all, just because the blog seemed to be on hiatus, our appetites were not.

One of our favorite places to visit has been California Tortilla. Eventually, I will get to that, but right now it's only being mentioned because it is a means to the next delectable location.

For a few weekends in July, California Tortilla would randomly close early (which was quite sad, some of the time). However, on one specific occasion, we made lemonade out of the lemons known as "closing early". We'd been eying some nearby places for awhile, and this seemed like the most apt time to take a chance on one. We took a short walk around the corner and ventured into Jasmine Asian Bistro's Quarry Shopping Center location (Greenspring Ave):

The interior of Jasmine was gorgeous and simple, some Asian-themed decor and a slightly dark atmosphere (not too much in the way of overpowering lights!). Overall, though, we didn't get a good look at it during this visit (but we did on a later date), but instead ended up enjoying the great outdoor seating on the patio.

Out on the patio, the sun kept us warm, and the breeze kept us cool, and the building across the street provided decent shade from the setting sun. The wire-frame tables were fitting for the patio atmosphere, and the accompanying chairs were some of the most comfortable patio chairs I've ever had the pleasure to sit on while eating.

The food at Jasmine is a mix of Chinese (American Chinese), Japanese (some American, some traditional, plus sushi - including American sushi ideas), and Korean (specifically, they're big on Korean BBQ). My PIFC felt that it was the perfect day for sushi, and thusly ordered a plate of Philadelphia rolls. I went for a favorite staple of mine, chicken, and ordered "crunchy honey sesame chicken", which seemed like a great combination of ingredients.

When the food arrived, it looked absolutely amazing. The Philadelphia rolls looked just like normal sushi rolls, but tightly rolled with a gorgeous piece of fish and wonderful, fluffy bit of cream cheese. The chicken was golden-brown with a hint of red tint, slathered with sesame seeds and served on a bed of rice noodles.

Both orders lived up to their appearance: the chicken was crispy and sweet, while the sushi was soft and delectable. I usually hate cream cheese, but I loved it in the combination it came in.

The only real drawback to Jasmine is that it's a bit pricey compared to similar destinations.

Been busy... Eating.

My PIFC and I have been very busy. We've still been eating (or else I wouldn't be here to write this, I suppose), but I haven't had enough time to sit down and write anything on here. Soooo, as a consolation, I'm going to try to sum up some of the awesomeness we've experienced since early July.

First, and foremost (only in chronological order, though, I suppose), we tried out the delicious food of Quarry Bagel & Cafe on Greenspring Avenue:

At the Quarry Bagel & Cafe, they sell an assorted array of sandwiches and salads. Some have interesting names (they call egg on a bagel an "eggle), while others are simply WISIWYG (like the turkey burger). Their prices are little higher than you'd expect when buying a simple bagle (3.25 for an Eggel, which is simply egg on a bagel), but it's well-worth the money, in my opinion.

The first time I attended (no photos, sorry), I had a delicious turkey club. The bread was perfectly toasted, and the tomato was probably one of the juiciest tomatoes I've ever had on a sandwich. The turkey was dry, but that kinda cold dry that is what you'd want on a club. My PIFC had a delicious salad, full of vegetables and other assorted goodness, all piled high on a square plate.

The second time, I got my BREAKFASTY SUPER SPECIAL SANDWICH: A blueberry bagel with bacon, egg, and cheese. I "created" this abomination (well, some call it that, but I call it "awesomeness") by accident, years ago, when I worked at a deli. A daily breakfast customer came in, and we just happened to be out of almost every type of bagel. In fact, we only had one type of bagel: blueberry. So, he asked me if I thought it would be a good idea have his BEC on a blueberry bagel. I told him that I wasn't sure, but I'd try it if he would. We both ended up loving it - the blueberry gives a nice fruity, sweet taste to offset the mounds of sodium in everything else on the sandwich. It was a hit with me, and a hit with him - he came back and got his BEC bagel on blueberry every day from then on - and I continued the craze, too. But enough about the history, I suppose...

Their version of this was awesome. I don't know where they get their bagels, but I wish I did, because I'd buy bagels from that place constantly! The egg was thick and fluffy, and the bacon crispy... While the cheese melted nicely over everything.

Soon after, we made it back to The Rumor Mill^[1]:

At The Rumor Mill, we partook in various parts of that weekend's "Market Menu",^[2] as well as things from the regular menu. I had their Orange Cashew Chicken as an entree, while my PIFC ordered a rice ball appetizer and something else that I can't remember right now.^[3]

The Orange Cashew Chicken came with tiny, tiny, tiny chopped-up pieces of cashew, and a delicious orange sauce (I am guessing it was probably manadarin, as it had that kinda sweetness to it), as well as bowl of crispy vegetables and rice. It was an absolutely delicious take on a simple "American Chinese" food dish. And while that was great, I have to move on to one of the most interesting things I've ever seen in a restaurant.

From the appetizer menu, we ordered FRIES AND KETCHUPS. Yes, that says KETCHUPS. The fries came with four flavored ketchups: Mandarin/orange, Ginger, Truffle, and Spicy. All four flavored ketchups were absolutely amazing and each added a unique flavor to the slightly salted, crispy fries.

Finally, from the Market Menu, my PIFC ordered a delicious banana beer, and we shared an amazing chocolate cheesecake (also from the Market Menu).

Next up: Jasmine Asian Bistro and Ikea (yes, I fucking said Ikea!)^[4]


1. Earlier entry on The Rumor Mill.
2. Our waiter described it as a menu of special things for a particular weekend, made up of foods purchased from local stands and distributors.
3. It came in a bowl and was delicious, though, apparently.
4. And yet to come... Z-Burger, Chili's (yeah, we had something that's wroth writing about on here), Osaka Asian Fusion, unknown-named diner @ an Amish Market, and the wondrous, magical, masterful Mexican grille: Mari Luna.