Review of UCLA Food Items (a work in progress)

De Neve-

Vegetarian chili in bread bowl- DO NOT EAT WITHOUT UNLESS YOU HAVE MILK! Or something else that will alleviate the spiciness of this dish. I found myself crying like a baby. The flavor is great. I found some squash, some bayleaf, some onions, some tomatoes, and about three types of beans. It's very well made.

Salisbury steak with string beans and mashed potatoes- The Salisbury steak is nothing special. It's tender, and not dry, and tastes okay with gravy. The gravy was rather bland. The mash potatoes, while not the chunky kind, taste delicious. I'll probably ask for a triple helping of mashed potatoes, without the steak or the gravy next time. Then, I'll pour Southern-style gravy or something else on it to make it taste good. The string beans were overcooked. They fell apart when I stabbed at them with a fork. Overall, an unexciting dish.

Artichoke pizza- a bit on the sour side, and not very savory. Don't try unless you like artichokes.

Seafood enchilada- this was kind of an accident, since I didn't read the sign and assumed they were chicken enchiladas. The sauce is much better than the chile verde that is usually used with the chicken enchilada. It's a little heavier, and it has a creamy texture. I do like the chile verde, though, and I really didn't taste the seafood. I think I'm mildly allergic to shrimp, so I got kind of sick after eating this.

Peruvian Chicken with Potatoes- delicious. I want to learn how to make this. It's not too spicy, and the chicken is very tender. I suspect that the potato slices were stir-fried in oil, because they didn't fall apart in the dish, and looked slightly dipped in some kind of batter. This dish contained tomatoes, purple onions, and some interesting combination of spices. I spritzed some lemon and added additional raw chopped onion to make it more interesting.

Lemon square- a refreshing dessert with its merits, and not too heavy. I'd try to get one without frosting. It gets kind of sticky when I eat it with a fork.


Bruin Cafe-

English Breakfast tea- weak, watery, and disappointing, since it costs two dollars. It's from tea bags, so I'm not expecting the finest teas, but it barely tasted like tea. Next time, I want to see if I can ask for a double tea bag. That should help a little. Of course, since I'm used to these really fine teas from China that my parents get for Christmas, I'm picky when it comes to tea. I wish they would sell a simple, strong tea without additional weird flavors, like strawberry creme, and mixes (ceylon and black?). That sort of stuff just washes out the merits of the tea leaves they use. They could be using artificial tea, for all we know.

Ginseng Peppermint- tastes only a bit like ginseng, and only with a hint of peppermint. Once again, this is a disastrous mix. I'm probably going to start asking my mom for a decent ginseng mixture that I can take to school. At two dollars a cup, it's not bad. I did learn something new from this experience, though. Apparently, despite its wonderful effects, natural ginseng is not caffeinated. I must have looked like an IDIOT while complaining about that! I totally shot myself in the foot, complaining about that so much. I guess, overall, this is a tolerable drink.

More later. I'll try to update every day.