Review: Pei Wei Asian Diner in Woodbury, MN

Pei Wei is a Chinese/Asian inspired bistro chain that can essentially be considered a mini P.F. Chang's.  And appropriately so, since it is in fact a branch of the P.F. Chang's franchise.  I normally prefer to steer clear of chain restaurants, but Pei Wei is nowhere near the scale of over-saturation set by Applebee's, Chili's, etc.  My wife and I discovered the restaurant in Woodbury, MN last year, assuming that it was a high-profile Chinese buffet of sorts.  Although I was somewhat disappointed that it was not a buffet, the food definitely did not disappoint, nor did the restaurant itself overall.

In a similar fashion to my review of the BitterSweet Gluten Free Bakery, the categories in this review will be slightly modified to account for the fact that there is no dedicated server beyond someone bringing the food to your table.  The categories are as follows:

1)      Overall Service

2)      Food Quality

3)      Catering to Dietary Needs

Overall Service

The way you order your food at Pei Wei is very similar to your typical buffet experience, if you've ever eaten at a place like Ponderosa, Old Country Buffet, or Golden Corral where you pay for your food before being seated.  There is a large menu as you walk in, and a more compact version posted right in front of the registers.  You order, they hand you an order number card and a cup to fill yourself at the drink fountain, you get your own silverware, and you find your own table to sit at. 

“So where does the actual service come in?” you may be asking.  Despite the lack of overall customer to employee interaction, I have yet to have a negative experience with any of the employees.  It goes without saying that the service doesn't compare to what you would get at an actual P.F. Chang's restaurant.  We have rarely been treated rudely by any of the employees, and they have been quite helpful by first introducing us to the gluten-free menu they offer.  The servers have always asked if we need anything else after delivering our food, and are quick to correct any mistakes made or answer any questions about the food.  Finally, although inconsistent between visits, the servers have sometimes returned to the table to take our dishes away and box any leftovers.  The inconsistency of this is not a big deal since you can just leave with the dishes on the table, but could potentially be annoying to other customers that prefer more of a full-service dining experience.

My one real complaint is that the service appears to be disorganized at times.  One instance in particular was when we had our order number card displayed, yet when the server was ready with our food he walked around the entire dining area before returning to the kitchen.  Moments later he returned and finally found our table.  Not a huge issue, but annoying all the same.

All things considered I believe the service is on par with other restaurants of its kind, and spares the customer potential unsatisfactory service they risk getting from a full-service restaurant.

RATING: 7 / 10

Food Quality

The menu at Pei Wei is relatively small, especially if you compare it to the selections available at P.F. Chang’s.  The selections available are expanded upon when one considers that many of the entrées have as many as 3 meat selections (or vegetables and tofu for vegetarians) including chicken, beef, and shrimp.

Of the selections on the appetizer menu, I have tried their Crab Wontons and the Edamame.  The edamame, while in small quantity compared to other establishments, has always been perfect.  A nice amount of salt, the pods were never soggy or over-cooked, and the pods were never cold – as if they had barely been cooked.  Though one would think preparing soybeans would not be a big deal, it surprises me how often I am served improperly prepared edamame.

The crab wontons are hard for me to come to a firm decision on.  I do like them, however they always seem to be lacking in some form.  The texture and taste of the wontons combined with the spicy zing of the sweet chile dipping sauce is good overall, but it’s missing a certain level of sweetness that I’ve come to expect from crab wontons.  Despite cream cheese being listed as an ingredient, I never actually taste it in a wonton.  This could be a good thing in regards to overall healthier eating and the strong possibility that my preferred taste is derived from cheap buffet wontons stuffed with cream cheese, and if that’s the case then I applaud Pei Wei.  For all I know however, there could be just as much in these as there is in the buffet wontons, and if so then I expect to have that satisfying sweet flavor as I bite into each piece.

As an entrée, I always opt for the Signature Dishes category over the Noodle & Rice Bowls as a matter of personal preference.  Of these dishes I have tried the Honey Seared Chicken, Pei Wei Spicy Chicken, and most recently the Sweet & Sour Chicken.  As an eternal fan of spicy foods, I have to rank the spicy chicken dish as my favorite.  If you enjoy real General Chu/Tso/etc chicken, not the bland buffet kind without spice or taste, I guarantee that you will love this dish.

I have no real preference between the honey seared and the sweet & sour, as they are both delicious choices.  I don’t completely agree with how the honey seared chicken is advertised on the menu however.  Despite not having the signature “spicy dish” icon next to it on the menu, this dish does in fact have some spice to it; most likely on account of the chile oil listed in the ingredients.  Perhaps even too much spice for those of you that prefer to steer clear of food with “heat”.

The sweet & sour chicken dish is, in my opinion, the best dish available at Pei Wei for anyone that wants to avoid the heat.  The sweet and sour sauce is delectably sweet without overtaking the taste of the chicken, and the pineapple pieces are a delicious accent to eat bite.  I recommend cutting the pieces of chicken first, so you don’t look silly like I did trying to stick a fork full of rice, chicken, and pineapple into my mouth at once.

For all of the entrées I would say that there is only one real issue, which can vary in significance depending on your point of view.  The quality of the rice (choice of white or brown) has suffered at times, and considering it makes up half of the plate on signature dishes, this could be a big problem for some people.  My complaint is that there have been a few times when the rice, although cooked, still had a significantly grainy…uncooked texture in the middle at times.  This has only occurred twice that I can remember, and it didn’t hamper my dish so much that I couldn’t finish it.  I always get the brown rice instead of the white, so perhaps this could be an isolated issue.

Despite a few quirks I have enjoyed every meal at Pei Wei.  While none of them would be in my list of favorites, any lover of Chinese food will not be disappointed in what they have to offer.

RATING: 7 / 10

Catering to Dietary Needs

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised to find that this restaurant, unlike general Americanized Asian restaurants, has a gluten-free menu available.  Sadly it is a small menu, consisting of only 6 items: 2 appetizers, 2 salads, and 2 entrées.  As with the regular menu however, this is slightly expanded to 9 items since one of the salads and both entrées have a choice of either chicken or shrimp.  As an added bonus, gluten and dairy-free patrons are able to enjoy a specially made batter on their sweet & sour chicken dish (this could apply to the Pei Wei Spicy as well but I have not yet verified).  After asking one of the managers, I was informed that the gluten-free batter does contain eggs, but no ingredients with gluten or dairy.  Whether this varies between restaurants I do not know, but I recommend verifying with the closest Pei Wei establishment.

Despite these positive notes, the restaurant doesn’t seem to be very willing to go beyond their set limitations on the menus.  If two of the entrées can be gluten-free, why can’t the others?  Perhaps it’s a matter of company-specific sauces, or certain ingredients that can’t be left out…whatever it is, it really is a disappointment in my eyes.

While Pei Wei does take a few steps beyond most restaurants in catering to dietary needs, it seems to be overall inflexible beyond its set limitations of the gluten-free menu.  These are steps in the right direction but I would like to see a lot more.

RATING: 6 / 10

Despite not being one of our favorite places to eat, my wife and I always choose Pei Wei when we want to have some good Chinese food.  It’s fast, it’s good, and they have food she can eat without having to worry about her food allergies.

*** OVERALL RATING: 7 / 10

Pei Wei Asian Diner

8300 Tamarack Village

Woodbury, MN 55125

(651) 286-3990

http://www.peiwei.com

UPDATED Review: Good Earth in Roseville, MN

Quick update here in regards to Good Earth.  On a recent visit, my fiancée asked the server if one of their latest seasonal entrées contained dairy or gluten.  She said that she did not believe there was any, but living up to the helpfulness we had come to expect, immediately went to the kitchen to verify.  Upon returning she informed us that the dish did not have any dairy or gluten ingredients, and handed us a slip that listed every single ingredient that goes into the dish.  Much like what you would see on a product purchased from the grocery store.

I felt that this event deemed Good Earth worthy of an update despite the already high score I gave it in my original review.  The update falls into the categories of: Service and Catering To Dietary Needs.

Server Helpfulness (Original Rating: 8 / 10)
By not only verifying the possibility of ingredients in the food, but also bringing us the actual list of ingredients, this particular server helped bump my overall opinion of the helpfulness up another point.
UPDATED RATING: 9 / 10

Overall/Average Service (Original Rating: 7 / 10)
As a result of the increased helpfulness rating, the overall service score has been improved as well.  I do hope they continue to work on the overall attentiveness, of course.
UPDATED RATING: 8 / 10

Catering To Dietary Needs (Original Rating: 9 / 10)
Although one day I would love to see a restaurant where almost any dish can be prepared gluten free or dairy free, being able to provide one's customers with a specific list of ingredients on request is far beyond what most restaurants can and will do.  Even in today's increasingly more health-conscious society.
UPDATED RATING: 10 / 10

I think it is no mystery that I love this restaurant, and plan on dining there for as long as I live in Minnesota.  For those of you that have yet to dine here, give it a try.  I can't guarantee you will like everything, but I can almost guarantee that you will not be disappointed. "Almost" because...well some people just can't be pleased.  For those of you that have had the pleasure of dining here and need to know the ingredients for your own dietary purposes, don't be afraid to ask!

*** UPDATED OVERALL RATING: 9 / 10


Good Earth
1901 Highway 36 West
Roseville, MN 55113
http://www.goodearthmn.com

Review: CRAVE at the Mall of America in Bloomington, MN

If you've been in the Mall of America, you know that there are many restaurants scattered around every floor, never leaving you at a loss for a place to eat. Simply roaming around the food court on the third floor provides a decent number of them, excluding your typical [fast] food court selections of course. One in particular is the aptly named Crave, located near the food court, which had been recommended by several people before my fiancée and I finally decided to give it a try.

Three words define Crave, as can be seen on any of their advertisements: Fresh, Vibrant, and American. The restaurant definitely lives up to all three, and the successfully executed combination makes for an overall great dining experience.

As before, the overall ratings will fall into five categories:

1) Server Attentiveness

2) Server Helpfulness

3) Overall/Average Service

4) Food Quality

5) Catering to Dietary Needs

Server Attentiveness

This is a category in which the servers performed decently overall, but is sadly not quite up to par in some respects. On our most recent visit, our server was energetic and checked with us on a relatively regular basis. He was around the area quite often, and would always stop to answer questions or address issues without making us wait with the old "I'll be right with you" line.

The server on a previous visit was fairly attentive, but there was a period of time where we felt as if we had been forgotten. There was an extremely long gap between getting my appetizer of Leek & Potato Soup (more on that to follow) and being informed that there is a delay in the preparation of our food, let alone actually getting the food. Personally, I believe that this particular server simply forgot to put in our order at first. I could be wrong, though even if she did I am not above recognizing that mistakes are made from time to time. However, this is still a detriment to the dining experience as a customer.

Finally, the server for our first visit was definitely the weakest of the three. While not a bad server, she didn't make much of an effort to check on us regularly beyond taking our orders and getting the food. Plus after being informed that a gluten-free menu was available, she disappeared for at least five minutes before she brought it to us. Admittedly the restaurant was crowded at the time, but I saw her walking toward us and grab the menu off a table not ten feet away after she disappeared and left us waiting.

Synopsis: Despite the most recent server's attentiveness easily deserving a 9/10, the average is brought down significantly by the others.

RATING: 6 / 10

Server Helpfulness

In regards to helpfulness the servers performed well overall, but were not particularly outstanding. The first server informed us of the gluten-free menu, but otherwise was not very helpful on account of the fact that she seldom stayed around long enough for questions to be asked if we had any. The second server was overall quite average, though she was quite knowledgeable of ingredients for certain meals we had questions about. The third and most recent server was by far the strongest in this area, based on how questions about the food were handled and especially one particular event. My fiancée ordered the Mango & Prawns, which was on the gluten-free menu, but we did not think to ask whether there was any dairy in the meal. In this case, butter. The moment we informed our server the dish was taken to be completely re-prepared and a free soup or salad was offered for her to eat during that time. Whether or not this is standard practice at Crave I don't know, but it definitely impressed us at how everything was handled. This individual's service I would easily rank 10/10.

Synopsis: All of the servers were helpful, though most of them did not exceed that of your average service at any restaurant.

RATING: 8 / 10

Overall/Average Service

Despite excellent service on our most recent visit, the overall service at Crave appears to be on par with your average sit down restaurant.

RATING: 7 / 10

Food Quality

Of the various foods I have tried at Crave, I have not had a single item that I didn't enjoy.

The appetizers I have ordered are: the Artisan Bread Basket and the Leek & Potato Soup. The bread basket includes three different breads and two house made spreads. The breads include a roll sliced into 5 pieces, bread sticks, and slices of loaf bread. The loaf slices are my personal favorite because of their texture in addition to the taste, though the other breads are delicious as well. The two spreads that came with the basket were a honey walnut butter, and a chipotle "butter". I include the quotations because I consider this to be more of a cheese spread than butter. The honey walnut spread was by far the favorite at our table, with its taste complementing the taste and texture of every bread type wonderfully. It may be a little too sweet for some, but I have a sweet tooth so it was perfect for me. The chipotle spread was good, but falls short due to personal taste. The cheese used is a very sharp cheddar, which I am not a fan of. There was a nice touch of heat that finishes off every bite with the spread, but a more subtle cheese flavor would have complemented the heat in a more pleasing manner in my opinion.

The leek & potato soup tasted good, but was overall underwhelming. The texture wasn't very pleasing for me, very grainy with no actual substance. To me a potato soup needs to have chunks of potato, which this is very much lacking. Luckily the taste does make up for the unfavorable texture, so I recommend giving it a try since texture preferences vary for everyone.

I've tried a few different entrées here, including sushi and the Turkey Burger. I have tasted my fiancée's dishes as well, though I don't feel comfortable reviewing them at this time.

I've had sushi on two different occasions, and on both it was prepared excellently. The fish was always fresh, rolls made perfectly tight, and the pieces never fall apart, which is a problem with more restaurants serving sushi than you might think. The first time I had the Unagi and Minnesota rolls; both of which were delicious, though I did learn that Unagi rolls are inferior to Unagi nigiri (on a bed of rice). The second time I got the Sushi Bento Box which includes 12 pieces of tuna, salmon, eel, and cucumber rolls (3 pieces each), vegetable tempura, spring mix salad, and fresh fruits. The sushi was all basic: seaweed wrap, sticky rice, and tuna/salmon/etc. While not outstanding, each piece showcased the individual ingredient wonderfully. The vegetable tempura reminded me of the "Bloomin' Onion" from Outback Steakhouse, but without all the heavy grease, and the addition of other vegetables including carrots. Probably my favorite part of the entire dish. I wasn't a fan of the salad, though I have a preference of romaine lettuce or spinach leaves. These were darker greens with what I am guessing was a sesame dressing (or perhaps a peanut dressing?) and it just wasn't to my liking. The fresh fruits were exactly that: fresh fruits.

The Turkey Burger was my favorite by far. The ground turkey was nice and juicy, definitely not overcooked. It is topped with avocado, chipotle mayo, bacon, and pepperjack cheese. The avocado and bacon contrast each other perfectly, with the crunchy saltiness of the bacon melding with the cool creamy texture of the avocado. Then the chipotle mayo and pepperjack cheese add a wonderful amount of spice to the burger without being overwhelming to the palate. To be completely blunt, this was the best turkey burger I have ever had. No exaggeration in the least. Try it and see for yourself if you don't believe me.

Synopsis: Though I found the potato soup to be a bit lackluster, the food here is absolutely delicious overall.

RATING: 9 / 10

Catering to Dietary Needs

I have to say that Crave does a very good job of handling the dietary needs of its customers, at least from our experience. Their gluten-free menu contains over 22 listed items, plus a note that any of the sandwiches can be served without the bread and/or wrapped in lettuce. By far the largest menu of this type I have seen thus far. In addition to this, the servers would not hesitate to find out whether a particular dish contained dairy or not, and would inform us if said ingredients could be removed. A great example of this is the most recent event regarding the butter on the mango & prawns.

Synopsis: The combination of a very helpful staff and a relatively large specialty menu takes Crave above and beyond the majority of restaurants in its class in this category. I can't vouch for the safety of persons with Celiac Disease due to contamination, I believe they would take the extra care to ensure the safety of their customers.

RATING: 10 / 10

Although some of Crave's servers could use some improvement in regards to their attentiveness, the helpfulness, delicious food, and expansive gluten-free menu take this restaurant into the upper ranks of excellence. Especially when you consider that it falls into the category of American Food, which tends to be saturated with restaurants of much lower quality (e.g., Applebee's, T.G.I. Friday's, Chili's).

*** OVERALL RATING: 9 / 10

CRAVE (Mall of America)

368 South Avenue

Bloomington, MN 55425

(952) 854-5000

http://www.craveamerica.com/

Review: Good Earth in Roseville, MN

Until recently I never would have imagined going to an organic and natural foods restaurant and really enjoying the food, let alone liking it enough to go often. Good Earth changed my mind completely on this matter, with its delicious and excellently prepared food. It is quite popular and always has a good crowd, though the longest I have ever had to wait for a table was around ten minutes (table for two). I have dined at this restaurant four times now and have decided on overall ratings in the following categories:

1) Server Attentiveness

2) Server Helpfulness

3) Overall/Average Service

4) Food Quality

5) Catering to Dietary Needs

Server Attentiveness

If I had only been to Good Earth on my most recent visit, this category would be given a solid 8. Possibly even a 9. Our server was quick, checked on us often, and was extremely polite. The attentiveness was not quite so excellent on previous visits however. I will say this: none of the servers have ever been rude. I don't know if politeness is emphasized in the work ethic there, or if they have been extremely lucky to employ so many pleasant individuals, but that is definitely their highest marking. In regards to how often we were checked on and the speed of service however, the other visits fell short. Twice, we sat at our table between five and ten minutes before the server came for our drink orders. Not a horribly long period of time to wait, though it does leave one feeling forgotten when you don't even have your water yet. There were usually lengthy gaps between the server checking on us as well, leaving us occasionally wondering if we had been forgotten.

In short: While there are obviously some excellent servers there, and they are all very polite, attentiveness to the customers could be improved overall.

RATING: 6 / 10

Server Helpfulness

This is by far where the servers at Good Earth shine. My girlfriend is allergic to both dairy and gluten, which restricts what she can eat at many restaurants (this will be revisited in the final category). Without fail, all of our servers have been more than happy to let us know exactly what is in the food, what can be removed or replaced, and even recommendations of the chefs or the manager related directly to our questions. Some of these servers were experienced enough to give us first hand information, others would gladly go back and ask the chefs directly no matter our questions or concerns. However on one visit she ordered the Good Earth Burger (more info on this later) without cheese or a bun. The burger did come out with no cheese, but it was on a bun, which is not a big deal for her since she can simply take the meat, etc off and put the bread to the side. The problem is, a person with Celiac Disease would need to have their burger completely remade because some cases can be so severe that foods simply coming in contact with gluten can cause major problems.

In short: The servers are extremely helpful, but simple oversights have the potential to cause problems.

RATING: 8 / 10

Overall/Average Service

To summarize: While the servers are very helpful, the overall attentiveness needs some work.

RATING: 7 / 10

Food Quality

I'd like to preface this category by restating that this restaurant serves meals made with organic and natural foods. If you get a burger it's not going to be greasy and sloppy, and the food isn't going to be full of preservatives that manipulate how the food tastes. That being said, the food here is nothing short of delicious. I'll go into far more detail in an upcoming food review, but allow me to explain.

To begin the dining experience, your waiter brings a bread basket to the table that contains various breads (including flatbreads) and hummus to dip them in. While there's nothing particularly special about the bread, it is very well made and a delicious little appetizer to snack on while waiting for the meal. I'm partial to the whole wheat flatbread dipped in hummus myself.

In regards to entrées, I have ordered the Good Earth Burger twice and the Grilled Chicken Quesadilla once on previous visits. The quesadilla is nothing special, but it tastes very good, the tortilla is nice and crispy, and is worth every penny. The burger on the other hand is one of the best I have ever had. Now don't get me wrong, I love a good greasy cheeseburger full of BBQ sauce and other things terrible for my health, but this bison burger has won me over and combines the toppings wonderfully.

For my most recent visit, I decided to give the "Just Right For You" meal a try. You get 3 courses in this meal: appetizer, entrée, and dessert; all in smaller portions but definitely not lacking on quality. For my appetizer I ordered the One Potato, Two Potato, Three Potato soup. This different take on potato soup (at least from my experience) was delicious in every way. The potatoes were tender and delicious, as were the carrots and small pieces of onion. The soup itself is wonderful, with just a bit of spice to give it a nice heat. Now I love spicy food so I may be biased when it comes to this, but even if you're not a fan of spicy food, don't be afraid to give this soup a try. The heat I speak of adds to the flavor of the food without being overwhelming, even for those potentially more sensitive to the spice. Also, try dipping a piece of the bread from your basket in the soup. I believe you'll like what you taste.

For my entrée I ordered the Lemon Pepper Chicken, which comes with roasted potatoes and braised spinach. Let me just say that this was one of the most tender chicken entrées that I have ever eaten, and the potatoes and spinach were prepared equally as well. The lemon pepper sauce complimented the foods well, but it was missing something for me. A little kick, a little extra flavor. A few quick twists of the peppercorn grinder fixed everything. I believe the exciting taste of the potato soup left my taste buds wanting more, and the sauce by itself didn't live up to its predecessor. This is a minor complaint though, since it was easily remedied with the addition of a little more pepper. I'm sure the sauce more than meets the expectations of other patrons that don't crave spice and heat the way I do.

For my dessert I ordered the Chocolate Cake with Kahlua Cream Sauce. The chocolate cake itself had a wonderful chocolate flavor without being too rich or overbearing in its sweetness. It also had a wonderful brownie-like texture, which made me want to pick it up with my fingers and eat it like my inner 8-year-old desired to. On top of the cake was a small dollop of vanilla ice cream, which enhanced the cake with its rich flavor. Then there was the Kahlua sauce which tasted great, though the texture was a bit off-putting at first. It has sort of a grainy texture, almost like the texture when you eat sugar straight from a packet. I've done that more than once in my life. Don't judge. Then I thought about it and considered that the texture is probably due to unprocessed/unrefined sugar in the sauce which is most likely organic. Seriously though, the texture is another minor issue because the overall taste makes up for it tenfold.

In short: The food is excellent overall with a few minor quirks that will vary depending on one's personal tastes.

RATING: 9 / 10

Catering To Dietary Needs

Due to my girlfriend's allergies to both dairy and gluten, extra emphasis has been made to find places that cater to special dietary needs such as hers. I find this to be a necessary category that many reviewers/critics overlook, so hopefully my reviews in this area will be helpful.

Every time we have been there, any question we had about the foods in regards to ingredients, possible ingredient replacements, or even the possibility of leaving out certain ingredients was immediately addressed by our servers. With the exception of the bun being left on her hamburger on our most recent visit, there have been no issues with our requests to alter the meals in any way. In my eyes this goes beyond the simple "gluten free menu" that some restaurants opt for, and limits what a person can eat to maybe four or five dishes. While not many of their foods are necessarily food allergy friendly, their willingness to cater to our needs is exceptional. Especially when one takes into consideration that many (perhaps most) restaurants don't even bother to provide special menus.

In short: If you have certain dietary needs related to your lifestyle (ex: Veganism), food allergies, Celiac Disease, etc. then Good Earth is a great place to go. They will work with you and cater to your needs as best as they can.

RATING: 9 / 10

Needless to say Good Earth is a great place to eat. Their service is definitely above average, though the overall attentiveness could use some work. The food by far makes up for this though, and their willingness to cater to dietary needs is exceptional. I'll be dining at Good Earth again and again for a long time to come, and definitely recommend that everyone at least give it a try.

*** OVERALL RATING: 8 / 10

Good Earth

1901 Highway 36 West

Roseville, MN 55113

http://www.goodearthmn.com