As much as I love eating, I’m not one to write restaurant reviews. What people look for in an experience dining out differs so greatly that reviews can be so subjective and not catch what …
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As much as I love eating, I’m not one to write restaurant reviews. What people look for in an experience dining out differs so greatly that reviews can be so subjective and not catch what really matters to individual readers.
That being said, I love talking about specific dishes. Recently I came across one that had my boyfriend, Doug, nearly yelling across the table, “write about this!”
You see, we had plans to go and see “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” last Friday with a friend. Seeing as how the movie wasn’t until 7, and our usual dinner time is about 5, we decided to grab a bite before the film. Normally we can’t decide on a place to eat to save our lives, but since we were both ravenous the first thing that came to mind was already the right answer.
Remembering that we had invited a friend to meet us at Bettola on Rolfe Square a week or so ago and had ended up going somewhere closer to them we figured that it would make a good time to stop in.
After deciding on our meals and ordering, just before the waitress left, I blurted out that I’d like an order of the “Bangin’ Broccoli.” I had noticed it under started and it had all the hallmarks of something I’d like. It was fried, covered in a spicy Asian style sauce and made of broccoli. All of those things directly appeal to me, especially the broccoli part as it has been a favorite since childhood.
I know, I was a weird kid. Spinach and broccoli were my favorite vegetables, albeit covered in cheese or surrounded by dough in the form of a calzone.
Anyway, back to the best broccoli I’ve ever had. Oh, did I say that out loud… or in text, I guess? Yeah, I did, and I meant it.
“Bangin’ Broccoli” is basically a big bowl of joy, or to be more accurate, a bowl of crispy tempura broccoli coated in a sweet & spicy garlic chili sauce.
With an instant sweet and tangy flavor, the crispy crunch of tempura batter hits your mouth just before the heat starts to build. The broccoli was cooked perfectly, leaving it with an al dente crunch of its own and a satisfying texture and freshness that helps battle the slowly building burn from the garlic chili sauce.
I’m a sucker for almost any Asian food. Sushi, General Tsao’s, butter chicken, matcha tea and I could just keep listing things, but I always have an extra soft spot for sweet chili anything. I worked at Longhorn Steakhouse for years and thought their sweet chili sauce was hard to beat, but now I’m having second thoughts.
Of course, now I have to beat it. You see, I’m a fan of cooking myself, and nothing is more fun than trying to create your own version of a dish you’ve eaten elsewhere. Maybe next week I’ll tell you all how it went.
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