Papermoon Diner

As a childless (childish?) adult, I’ve gone to Papermoon Diner and wondered at the crazy, eclectic, chaotically awesome interior and loved it despite the less than stellar service; usually a bit slow and not overly friendly.  On the day L was supposed to have her cast removed (Broken arm on the second day of school), I decided to wow her with this place as a special treat before our appointment.

Why I thought it would be any faster than it has ever been in the past is beyond me. We had a very short window between her pick up at school and her appointment, but I figured we were going there at 11, so how bad could it be? When they only have one poor guy doing all the cooking, it could be pretty slow. Though, honestly, in the history of my visits there it was actually probably one of the faster ones but I was a little stressed about time so it seemed like it took forever! All in all it was probably a little over an hour. Still not great for a speedy lunch, but not bad. The server was fine but not jumping for joy that we were there.

Anyway, on to the rest of it. L was amazed with this place. The first thing to catch her eye was the wall of Pez dispensers at the entrance. 

PEZ!!

She had recently been introduced to Pez at a friend’s birthday party (Star Wars) and then later got herself a Hello, Kitty dispenser at one of the ticket exchanges at Ocean City. I believe that was when she and my husband managed to hit the ‘jackpot’ and get 1,000 tickets one day. Of course she couldn’t get a few really high ticket items. Instead, it was a whole mess of little things that are really just junk to get lost or for me to step on.  But I digress. When we were inside, she was wowed all over again by the kitsch all over the place. Hanging from the ceilings, lining the walls, etc. 

Seriously in awe.

The fun décor allowed us to pass the time by playing I Spy while we waited for our food.  She’s not really good at this game. She always picks the things that are like, right in front of your face, or uses descriptors such as, “It’s a blue chair hanging from the ceiling.” I mean, come on, that’s not even trying! But that is probably for me the biggest plus of the restaurant. And luckily enough, L did not feel the need to run over and touch everything, which would have probably then turned that into the thing I liked the least about the restaurant. 

Perusing the Menu

 

The food was ok. Because I was in a hurry, I just ordered from the first thing I saw on the menu, which was a cheesesteak. 

Not the greatest I’ve had, but certainly not the worst. I might try something more fun in the future, but would have it again.  The fries were nice and crisp and the sandwich wasn’t so overstuffed that I felt the same way.  Their menu is cool and has some unusual things, as well as some down home favorites. I really like the idea of their TV Dinners, which are some old classics like meatloaf. I’m not sure if they come out in a little segmented tray, but I hope they do. Things are certainly a bit pricey but I guess you’re paying extra for the experience. Something has to help cover all the trips to the thrift store!

L got the chicken tenders and fries, which was actually a bit of a surprise since she usually opts for Grilled Cheese when it’s available. They were your average chicken tenders and really just a distraction from our game for her. 

See how distracted she is in the background

As you walk in/exit you can see the display of huge cakes that beckon you. If I had the time, I would have tried a piece, but instead I just took her out for Maggie Moos after her appointment which was good enough for her. 

Look, ma, no cast!

I am excited to go back again and linger over our meal since coming up with new games could be fun and I feel like you will never actually see everything. I also didn’t get a chance to hit the bathrooms to check those out but I will next time!

Kid Friendliness :  4 (though I suppose it depends on the kid and the day. It could end up being a nightmaer)

Service : 2.5/5

Prices: 3/5

Taste: 3/5

George Martin's Grillfire

When I visit my mother and step father in Long Beach, NY, we often go to George Martin’s Grillfire and I have always very much enjoyed it. I actually request it when I'm visiting because they give you freshly baked hot pretzels at the beginning of the meal! When I learned that a Grillfire was opening near Arundel Mills, I of course knew I’d have to check it out (alas, I learned that there are no pretzels with dinner service here).

I meet some of my non city friends for lunch ~once a month and we decided on this venue. It’s located not far from the Arundel Mills Mall in The Hotel at Arundel Preserves. Going there I was a little annoyed because the exit was closed, but the detour was quick. However, since I started off a little irritated, I was less than forgiving when there was no parking out front! Until I realized there was a free garage connected to the hotel. My bad. So parking was great and it’s really easy to get to from the Arundel Mills exit from 295!

I had placed a reservation since it was 3 adults, 2 kids a little over one, and 2 preschoolers. Sometimes I find the restaurants I reserve through opentable.com don’t read the comments when I ask for high chairs, but this one did. We had a great table with two high chairs already set up next to each other (so Mr. B could sit next to his date, Miss A). I always love bench seats for kids because I feel they need the sprawling room, so L and her friend G got to sit next to each other on that side.They gave us some crayons for the kids, but no special activities or pictures on the kids' menu.

 Their kids menu  had the standard fare as well as things like kids’ salads and steaks listed, which I thought was nice and allowed for kids to eat like adults. The kids’ entrees were a little pricey, I thought, with the kids’ chicken tenders and fries coming in at $7, but not so egregious that I refused to pay it. The waitress was competent and pretty speedy, so we got the kids’ meals not long after we placed the order. I told L that if she split her meal with B I would get her one of the $3 kids’ desserts so that’s what we did. She opted for the aforementioned chicken tenders and I was so distracted getting them fed that I didn’t take a picture until midway through their meal! Oops. Here is what some of it looked like. 

I opted for the chopped tomato and bleu cheese salad with a bowl of the French Onion Soup and thought that was a little high but not enough to make me balk at $10. I’ve had the salad in NY and I was not disappointed with it here. Overdressed for those who don’t like a lot of dressing, but the perfect amount for a standard chopped salad I think. Very tasty and filling and I will get it again. The accompanying soup was pretty much what you’d get anywhere else. It fits the standard formula but it isn’t special. Again, half my salad was gone before I remembered the pic.

Since I promised the girl dessert, I ordered her the $3 ice cream sundae and it came topped with some fresh berries, which I very much appreciated. The adult desserts seem run around $9 (I didn’t see a menu, just asked on the price) so I passed on that. I instead ordered B a $3 brownie ala mode and split it with him. I was pretty disappointed that he wanted to eat as much of it as he did. Oh well, better for my waist line. He enjoyed it so much that he actually kept picking up his plate to lick it. They do offer a s'mores dessert over an open flame, but with the crowd I was keeping that seemed a little too dangerous. The kids’ dessert portions were nicely sized– the way they should be without being so big and delicious that you keep eating it well after you’re full and you end up sick.  

Traditionally at dinner service, the check arrives with fresh spun cotton candy. One of the servers who kept oohing and ahhing at the babies came by with a cone for each kid, which they very much enjoyed. Well, L and her friend did, the babies not so much. Be refused to try it and Miss A seemed to think it was a hairbrush and kept trying to brush her hair (and B’s) with it. Overall, sticky, but adorable! And now my kids are so very high on sugar. At least once the cotton candy came out, L chose not to finish her ice cream, so that's a small consolation. 

The bathrooms were clean and had a nice changing table. The wait staff was attentive without being overbearing. The kids were not too loud, but it wasn’t so crowded that I worried too much.  It is definitely geared more toward adults, though I would bring kids here again. However, I would like even more to go with my husband and stay in the beautiful hotel afterwards!

Kid Friendliness:  4/5

Service: 4/5

Prices: 3/5

Taste: 4/5

City Cafe

After taking our children to the BSO Tiny Tots program of Babar on Friday, we decided to head on over to City Café for lunch.  I was sans Mr. B since I didn’t think the Meyerhoff and a 15 month old would mesh, especially since it was during his nap.  

There were two options for us at the Café – the Café itself which had a coffee bar and sandwiches, or the Restaurant. We opted for the latter and headed on over to the hostess station for a kid friendly seat. They took us upstairs, which was a good call. Four 3/4 year olds and a 2 year old can cause enough of a ruckus that I would have felt uncomfortable in the main dining area. The booth we got was against one of the walls and looked perfect. What I didn’t realize until I was midway through the meal and my friend, Janelle, commented on it was that the wall was only a half wall overlooking the restaurant. To be completely honest, it would have taken quite a feat for one of the kids to fall over but as a parent I couldn’t concentrate for the rest of the meal because I kept imagining one of them toppling over so was pretty white knuckled every time one of them moved around on the bench.  Which was a lot. I’m sure I’m not the only parent whose imagination is such that it always goes there, right? Right? That aside, it was really nice to have the small upstairs area to ourselves for the majority of the meal. And added bonus distraction was that one of the other walls was a railing with Plexiglas panels so the kids had a ball standing by them and looking down at the tables below.

Unfortunately this place did not have a kid menu, which always drives me crazy because I hate spending adult size money a pint sized person who will usually not eat a large meal. That alone will dock the Kid Friendliness score down. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t NEED for the kids’ menu to be standard chicken nugget type fare, but I also don’t NEED my almost 4 year old child to eat an adult sized portion and don’t want to have to pay for that.

Because of her love for the grilled cheese, we opted for that. It comes with a side and a bowl of soup. L’s not a big soup fan so they did end up taking a couple dollars off the meal since I got it without.  It was a standard run of the mill grilled cheese and nice and crispy shoe string fries, that L was kind enough to share with her friends. I can’t really complain about that, since, in most cases, a grilled cheese is a grilled cheese is a grilled cheese. One day I want to try the winning place reviewed on the (cool) progeny blog by Mary Alice, but this didn’t exceed any expectations. 

I got the French Dip and sweet potato fries and they were delicious! The meat wasn’t very fatty, the caramelized onions lent a nice sweetness to balance out the melted Swiss and the jus was delish. The sweet potato fries were certainly better than the Alexia ones in my freezer (which I also like) and it was a very satisfying meal, even if I chose not to finish it all. Though I did come pretty close because it was tasty.

The report on the bathrooms is that there was no changing table and because I didn’t have Mr. B with me, I can’t report on the high chairs.

The server was very accommodating to our party and didn’t seem at all scared or annoyed. I ordered L’s sandwich long before anyone else ordered because she can either take forever to eat, not eat at all, or start eating right away and scarf everything down and I had no idea what kind of day it was. For the record, it was the last one, but as noted she was kind enough to share.

I thought the prices for an adult sandwich were average, but I thought that charging $3.50 each for a soda and for a lidded cup of diluted lemonade was kind of ridiculous. If places can serve a soda for $1.50, I don’t understand why somewhere else thinks it’s ok to charge $2 more. 

Overall, I would go there again with my husband and/or friends but I don’t think I’d hit the restaurant side again with my kids.

Kid Friendliness:  2/5

Service: 4/5

Prices: 3/5

Taste: 3/5

Reading back over this blog makes me realize that I’m actually pretty cheap. Interesting.

Cafe Hon

I was in Hampden getting my kids silhouettes cut by Erik Johnson at Soft and Cozy Baby. Since the appointment was for 11:45 after L’s school, I decided that I would take the kids out to lunch afterwards. My plan was to go to Golden West because I seem to think I’m a hipster or something. We parked across the street from Café Hon, where I had already very loudly and vehemently (in my head) declared I would never go out of principal because of the scandal and, frankly, after seeing the owner on Kitchen Nightmares, I wasn’t too fond of her. As we are walking over to Golden West, I see a little boy walking down the street with a Café Hon balloon. Now, I know that almost all kids love a balloon. L loves a balloon. But B LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVES a balloon. I have never seen that kind of laser focused obsession as when B has a balloon or sees a balloon or thinks about a balloon or senses a balloon in the vicinity so I decided to throw my principals to the wind and step foot inside the infamous restaurant for the first time since the scandal broke.

The new Gordon Ramsey décor is very cool and actually served as a diversion for L for awhile, which was nice. We were greeted promptly at the door (which had never happened any other time I visited or tried to visit) and they set up a table with two high chairs. As soon as I put B down he started crying. Foolishly I assumed he was hungry, but it was really because we walked by the balloons and he did not currently possess one. The manager (?) came over and asked if I minded if she gave them a balloon now. Minded?? Hell, it was like she was an angel who descended from the heavens to make my dining experience more pleasurable. After securing the balloons to the high chairs and having two very happy children, I finally got a chance to peruse the menu.

Like most restaurants you get a paper kids’ menu with some coloring activities and a box of crayons. L very much enjoyed the tracing and maze activities. B enjoyed his balloon and the occasional crayon grab and scribble. The kids’ menu is standard fare and reasonably priced. No surprise that L opted for the Grilled cheese, which came with either fruit or fries for $3.99. I went with the fruit. Drinks were another 99 cents. The thing that I thought was really awesome was their offering of a toddler plate – slices of cheese, slices of bread, a pickle, french fries (the one downside), and cucumber slices for $1.99. I thought this was a really refreshing change since I hate ordering a 14 month old a meal and sometimes I’d like to order something that is just for me and not have to worry about whether or not a baby would eat it.

The one big negative was the amount of time between ordering and actually getting the food. The restaurant was pretty crowded, but you know how hard it is to sit and wait with a hungry kid who keeps asking about their grilled cheese, making 20+ minutes seem like 40+.

The food finally arrived and it was good. My Hampden Burger was perfectly cooked, though lukewarm. The caramelized onions and ‘special’ sauce really did make it quite tasty. And where the burger was very large, the bun was Too large. On the plus side, the fries were not too soggy and not too crispy and were the perfect quantity. Since I have trouble with not eating all my fries, I was happy that there weren’t 250 of them on the plate. The accompanying pickle was my favorite kind – not too sour and not too crunchy, kind of like a Claussen spear.  For the record, since I wanted to try the dessert, I didn’t finish my burger or my fries! Overall, I’d say it was good but too pricey at $12.  L’s grilled cheese looked good but the fruit cup that accompanied it was very nice. Strawberries, pineapple, bananas and blueberries.

B’s toddler meal was ok. I probably should have requested wheat instead of white bread if I was thinking about it, but he was happy with the offering and for $1.99 I can't complain. Apart from the cucumbers, which he refused. It’s amazing how different two kids in the same family can be! 

Because the cakes looked so good when I walked in, I ordered a piece of yellow cake with fudge frosting to split with B and ordered vanilla ice cream for L because she would eat that every day if she could. I assume the ice cream was fine, but the cake was a little dry or possibly stale. B enjoyed the non frosted pieces that I gave him and I enjoyed the icing pieces that I saved for me. To keep him from the chocolate, of course. However, it was definitely not worth $5.99.

Despite the wait, the scandal, and the prices, I would take my kids here again. The manager paid extra attention to my kids and the décor was charming. It was also loud enough that I didn’t feel that embarrassed while the kids were squealing with delight over the balloons or just being kids. 

Kid Friendliness :  4/5

Service : 3/5

Prices: 3/5

Taste: 3/5