The 128 Cafe - Eye Feast

This restaurant did not disappoint. The 128 Cafe is definitely one of my favorites now in the Twin Cities area.

Luckily, we stopped by here for Restaurant Week.

Sadly, I don't recall everything we ordered, but I assure you every dish was amazing. Especially the dishes we had low expectations for.

Here's a feast for your eyes:

Beef Tartare

Gnocchi

El Tequila Restaurant Review

I never thought one amazing dish could keep me coming to one restaurant over and over again. In regards to Mexican cuisine, I pretty much assume their typical dishes will easily compare to other restaurants. However at El Tequila their chicken enchilada in the green sauce is pretty much AH-MAZING. I am constantly craving this dish.

It's hard to not re-order this dish every time I go there.

Chicken Enchilada with green sauce

Chaulafan

Seriously, not sure how far you live from this place, but it's worth a trip just for their enchilada. It's the best I've ever had. Their chaulafan was pretty mediocre, but who orders "fried rice" at a Mexican place, my boyfriend. I've also had their chicken quesadilla on our second trip there. It was good, but I thought it was a little over-priced for what it was and a smaller portion size for the price. However, I can't stop eating their addicting free chips and salsa once I get there - so no big deal.

Their customer service is pretty good. However, there was a bit of a language barrier with one of their waitresses, but she's attentive. 

What are some of your favorite Mexican restaurants? Have you been to El Tequila before? What do you usually order. 

Szechuan Restaurant in Roseville Review

This was a spur of the moment pit stop after dropping off a package at FedEx. I was expecting an over-priced/American Chinese food based on the design of the restaurant, but it actually the opposite.

Szechuan was fairly reasonably priced and looked much nicer than your typical family run Asian restaurant. I thought the flavoring of the food was stellar, but the meat quantity was lacking for the price.

Chicken Fried Rice

Beef with Green Peppers

They had a lot of dishes that were different from the typical fast food Chinese joints, so it caught me a little off guard as well as items written in Cantonese/Mandarin. So I was a little out of my element and not prepared to order. I'm still waiting to give them place a chance to wow me and try some of their specialty dishes.

Have you been to this place before? Any suggestions?

Osaka Sushi Review

Grabbed a quick dinner with a good friend of mine at Osaka Sushi in Roseville.

The service was fast, and the food was reasonably priced. 

I ordered the shrimp and salmon teriyaki box. It was delicious and the portion was reasonable. The leftovers made for a great snack/brunch the next day.

I'd definitely come here again. The atmosphere was great for a fun and low-key event. 

Have you been to any of the Osaka locations? What did you think? 

Corner Cafe Review

Had a quick lunch here with the BF at Corner Cafe (which he frequents fairly often).

It was pretty much adorable. Loved the atmosphere and the sandwiches were fairly good, and at a a great price. We were both having a pretty crappy work day, and it was a great spot for us to get away, but be able to rush back to workload.

I ordered a made-to-order wheat bread with turkey, lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, onion, and hummus. I also loved that you had the choice of just having your bread toasted or the entire sandwich. This was only half a sandwich. I was worried that it would be tiny, but it was the perfect portion for me that day.

I'd definitely come here again, and see the appeal of it. It was fast as well. It's the equivalent to Acoustic Cafe in Eau Claire, WI except there are no hoagies.

Didn't get to try their soup, but I will next time.

The Rest of Target's Customer Service

Well obviously there's the customer service at the actual retail locations at Target, but what about the rest of Target customer service?

For example, the online and telemarketing services. Recently, I purchased Up&Up toothbrush replacement heads, and it had serious quality issues.

You really do pay for what you get. I decided to go with the cheaper Target brand compared to the brand name like Oral B. The Up&Up brand toothbrush head was loose which caused it to snag the inside of my lip causing it to bleed. Like any idiot, I still continued to give it 4 more tries. I thought I was the problem. Well, 3 out of 4 times, the toothbrush head snagged my lip. It was time to get a refund and report the issue.

Problem: No receipt, and one was used.

I contacted the number listed on the back of the box to see if I could get a refund. I wasn't in the mood to go run to my nearest Target.

Basically, I wasted 15 minutes of my life to mainly prove a point. My point being, I don't think any one manned the number that I called. All it did was continue to ring and then say "We're sorry to keep you waiting. Calls are answered in the order they are received."

My first thought was "How many crazy people are calling to complain about stuff?!" Then, I was like "I don't know maybe more than I know."

Next, I tried the website listed on the packaging.

Also no good.

However, it did finally redirect me to a different page, where I filled out a form. The only difference to getting to that page...not entering in the "www."

So it said someone would respond within one to two business days. I didn't believe it, and went to the store to return it. 

I went to the DT Minneapolis store with the opened package and missing used toothbrush head replacement ready to fight the customer service employee for my money back. It was easy and painless. She told me I probably wouldn't get the full amount back, and it was only for store credit. I was satisfied!

They actually did respond to me within one to two business days as well. It was asking for a variety of information about the product though, which I no longer had since I already returned it. Hopefully, no one else gets the same experience with the product as I did though.

How do you feel about Target and its customer service? I felt pretty satisfied with the in-person service, and the online/email service wasn't too bad.

Simple Courtesy Can Get You Far in Business

I recently set up a phone call with a potential client, and she picked the date and time when she was available. However, when it came to the time for the call. She did not expect us and was not ready for the call.

Why?

We didn't or more so I didn't send her an Outlook invitation.

This is a person who is busy, and I'm the one who wants her to make time for me. I should take the extra time and effort to send her an Outlook invitation. This way we both know it's going to happen, and I know that her time is blocked off for us.

It seems like a simple and no-brainer act, but it's something that is necessary. It's a courtesy to them and basically how the rest of the world functions with a few exceptions. Plus, if you want someone's time and you want to make sure it happens. This is the best solutions.

So just a quick reminder that if you are ever contemplating sending anyone an Outlook invitation or any kind of reminder...it's a good thing to err on.

What do you think? It is always necessary to send an Outlook invitation for a call or meeting?

Top 5 Apps I need on my iPhone

I'm been trying to figure out what I have been doing with myself. Surprisingly, I have not tried a new restaurant to blog about.

However, I have been dedicating perhaps too much time on Netflix, Amazon Prime, on my BF's iPad, and of course my iPhone.

Although, I love technology...I don't entirely trust technology. I mean why does a game need to have access to my contacts? Huh?! So there's limit as to what I put on my iPhone. Plus hello! Unnecessary battery drainage and data usage. No thanks!

So here are the top 5 apps I do need on my iPhone.

1. Google Maps
This is by far the most important. Because to be completely honest...I have no clue where I am or how to get to where I need to be most of the time. I do have a Garmin, but it gets confused often.

2. Facebook
I know. Even though I'm not as active on this social media as I have been in the past. I still used this all the time. Where else am I supposed to get my news? Seriously, my news feed from my friends and family allows me to learn about the weather, current news, and traffic all in one place. Thanks Facebook friends! Also, how else would I kill time without this?

3. Instagram
Honestly, I use Instagram to keep up with my friends more than Facebook nowadays. I'm much more of a visual person. It also helps expose me to some awesome work out tips and detox drinks/smoothies.

4. Bubble Mania
Although, I'm currently stuff on the level I'm on. It's a fun and addicting game. Also...hello...no WiFi connection needed. You know what that means? I can play this game when I'm on an airplane. Yes, books should be a great alternative for on flight entertainment, but I rather much play a game.

5. Uber
Uber is pretty much a life saver. No need to hail down a cab or be on a hunt for one. It's cheaper than a cab as well. Plus, I personally think it's more convenient. I can see an estimate of how much the fare will be, and I don't have to worry about if the cab driver takes cash only. Super convenient.

What are some of your top 5 apps on your phone?

Basha Restaurant Review

It was pretty much disappointing.

We have been talking about stopping by this place multiple times and finally decided to come here for a low-key celebratory dinner of our 9-month anniversary.

I was excited going off of the fact that it was a Mediterranean restaurant filled with Mediterranean patrons.That's usually a good sign.

The food was mediocre and the service was decent. Although, I'm not entirely sure if I only thought the food was decent, because I'm not a fan of Mediterranean food.

We ordered a falafel appetizer, and we both decided we don't like falafel.

Next, the BF ordered chicken tikka served with biryani rice, and I ordered the chicken and beef shawarma. I thought the portion size was reasonable.

The best thing was their complementary oven roasted bread. Although I enjoyed the meal the second time around for leftovers the next morning.

Have you been here before? What did you think? Any other suggestions for Mediterranean cuisine?

 

Crystal Ball Event at the International Market Square for New Year's Eve

Over-priced and underwhelmed. This event was called the Crystal Ball event...but there was no crystal ball. Am I foolish to assume there would be? It should have been called the confetti event in my opinion.

As usually, I would rather stay at home and have a Die Hard marathon, but I ended up going out this year since it was the BF and my first New Year's Eve together. Aww. I know.

We almost had to stay in because my tenant's side had no heat...luckily...only on the first floor. But after spending $130 some dollars on our general admission tickets which was only for an entry fee - no free booze not even a class of champagne for the toast - I was determined to go out.

We arrived there around 9 pm...a little too early for there to be a crowd. There was a $4 coat check and the coat check attendants were only allowed to take $4 exactly (I overheard). Luckily we had exactly $4 otherwise, I'd shit bricks. Also...longest wait was for the coat.

One of the pros of the event...it didn't take us that long at all to get a drink and plenty of bathrooms so no super long wait.

To each his or her own in regards to how you prefer to ring in the New Year...would not go to this event again...although the headliner was what reeled me in. Dessa who I have learned of from the Tiny Desk Concert Youtube video. I think she gave a decent performance...but either the sound system sucked or I was to drunk to really understand her lyrics and songs clearly.

Where were you on NYE? Were you at this event? What was your perspective?