OMG Noodle House--a new Asian food option in Abilene

The OMG Noodle House on S. Willis (in the same shopping area as AM Donuts) is Abilene's newest entry for Asian food offerings in Abilene. The restuarant currently has fairly limited hours, only being open for dinner Wednesday-Saturday. 

Chicken Pad Thai

The menu is not particulary big. Pad Thai, soups, and rice dishes are the primary options along with fresh spring rolls (these are NOT the deep fried ones), shrimp rolls, and egg rolls as appetizers. There are not currently any curry options on the regular menu. You may find one as a special on occasion though.

My dining companion and I both ordered chicken dishes. I had the fried rice ($10.75) and he had the pad Thai ($12.75). 

The restaurant is small. There are about 8 tables inside. We arrived at 4:45pm and by 5:15pm all the tables were full on a Thursday evening. 

Orders are taken at the counter for both take out or dine in and they will bring out your food when it is done. They do not have servers to take orders at the tables. There was a busy take-out business going on as well. 

The food came out relatively quickly and the ingrediants were fresh.  Nothing on the menu was more than $15. The soups come in both medium and large sizes and are the most expensive items on the menu. 

The presentation of the food was very nice. The chicken in the dishes used thigh meat, not breast meat, if that makes a difference to you. Also, the seafood options on the menu are a combination of seafood and there does not seem to be a way to ask for just shrimp if you are not fond of several types of seafood. The rice and noodles were cooked perfectly in our dishes. 

Chicken fried rice

Both of us thought our meals could have used more seasoning. I needed to add quite a bit of soy sauce to my rice to give it a flavor boost. The pad Thai came with a side of a sauce. However, my date was not full after finishing his meal so I shared my dinner with him.

The soups may be the biggest draw, along with the beef loc lac, spicy Thai chicken, and ginger beef or chicken. There are other spots in town that have better fried rice and pad Thai. These were just familiar options to get for our first try. Next time, I will order something else and also get some shrimp rolls or egg rolls to go with the dinner. 

Give them a shot and support your local businesses when you can! 

OMG Noodle House

Sunday-Tuesday Closed

Wednesday-Saturday 4pm-8:30pm

Facebook page--https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570049674472

No website listed

325-704-1723

202 S. Willis St., Abilene, TX 79605

Sumptuous Pasta at La Terrazza in Banff, Alberta, Canada

Rosellini al Funghi

Recently on a summer vacation to Banff, Alberta, Canada, I had the chance to eat two stellar dinners at La Terrazza. The restaurant is located inside the Banff Park Lodge Resort Hotel. I rarely give an almost perfect review but the service at La Terrazza really impressed me and the food was delectable.

Our server on both nights that we dined at La Terrazza, our first and last nights in Banff, was Ibon Quinoy. He was from the Basque region of Spain. Ibon was exceptional, which is not a small task with a family group of 9 individuals! He took wonderful care of us and we really enjoyed his sense of humor.

 

Ciabatta bread with herbed butter and tapenade was provided for the table. There is no need to order the garlic knots on the appetizer menu as the ciabatta that was provided was superior to them. We did not try any other appetizers.

 

The Rosellini al Funghi that I ordered for my dinner the first night was the best pasta dish I have ever eaten in my life (so far) but I have not traveled to Italy--yet

Bison Cannelloni

. The pasta was formed into the shape of a rose with wild mushrooms, ricotta, spinach, and mozzarella in a creamy pesto sauce. It was not garlic heavy which I appreciated. I absolutely loved it. Several people in the party ordered bison cannelloni and ate every last bite of it and said is was delicious. All the dishes we had the first evening were scrumptious!

 

One our second night dining there, I ordered the Risotto al Tartufo which had wild mushrooms, spinach, truffle oil and parmigiano-reggiano cheese. It was very good and I enjoyed it, but it was not to the stellar level of the pasta I had the first night. Everyone was very pleased again with their meals, with one exception. My sister found the eggplant parmigiana, served with spaghetti and seasonal vegetables, rather underwhelming. However, my brother-in-law enjoyed his steak and it was cooked perfectly. For dessert, several people had the tiramisu cheesecake boxed "to go" and enjoyed it later in their hotel room when they were not quite so stuffed from dinner. I only good reports about it.

The restaurant is rather small, so reservations are recommended. We had a large group but they were very accommodating. We dined on a Monday night at 8:30pm and again on a Thursday night at 6pm. Neither were the peak dining time between 7pm-8:30pm which probably helped the restaurant staff handle such a large party.

Salmon

 

La Terrazza's prices were not out of line with my expectations, particularly considering the quality of the food and the service in a tourist heavy town. Entrees ranged from $27-$54 (Canadian). The menu changes with the seasons. If you are ever in Banff, you should eat there.

La Terrazza (inside the Banff Park Lodge Hotel)
201 Lynx Street P.O. Box 2200
Banff, Alberta, Canada T1L 1K5

Hours: 5pm–10pm daily

Reservations 403-760-3271 our use OpenTable

For reservations of 6 or more, please email terracemanager@banffparklodge.com.


 

CLOSED --Trent "Country Club"--Tasty steaks on the weekends if you don't get lost

I wasn't certain I wanted to write a review of the Trent "Country Club". It crossed my mind to keep it to myself as a hidden gem...mouth-watering grilled steaks, ribs, catfish and shrimp out in the boonies down a dirt road between the towns of Trent and Merkel, Texas (west of Abilene). In the end, it is better to share knowledge. If you look them up on your GPS you may not get there anyway. It was smart that I went with someone who had been there before my first go around because it would have been a challenge otherwise, particularly in the dark. Knowledge of this local favorite is almost all word of mouth. The Abilene paper did a story on Trent Country Club a few years back so you will find an item or two on the internet but most people I've mentioned it to have never heard of the place.

I'm told the lights are up year around.

Tank and Moo with red beans and boiled yellow squash.

First, it isn't really a country club. The name is firmly tongue-in-cheek. There is no golf course or swimming pool. What is at the location is a small restaurant with a caliche parking lot that is open on Friday and Saturday evenings between 5:30pm-9pm and it is filled with local folks. I recommend calling ahead before making the road trip unless you just happen to find yourself on Interstate 20 in the vicinity of Trent around dinner time on the weekend.

Menu

Gray dot in the middle is the location.

 I went there with three friends and we all ordered the "Tank & Moo" which was catfish (fried or grilled) and a nice sized NY strip served with two sides. My steak was perfectly cooked and well-flavored. No A-1 needed. The server told me the owner has his own secret marinade/seasoning. The steak was tender and weighed in at about 10-12 oz. At $23.00 for the meal, it was also reasonably priced. The catfish was alright but I like mine extra crispy. The side dishes were homemade. I had red beans and boiled squash but you could go for potatoes or a salad as well as several other options, including a seasonal one such as black-eyed peas (check the chalkboard inside).

Chocolate pie.

Beverages served are tea, soft drinks, or water. You are allowed to bring your own adult beverages if you so choose. However, if you want to have a birthday cake, there is a $15 set-up fee. After dinner we were too full but the desserts on the menu and the chalkboard were to tempting not to try. The chocolate pie was piled high with meringue, just like grandma used to make. There was also two kinds of cobbler and bread pudding, all for only $3.00 each.

I'll be returning and will go for the filet. I'm sure my husband will want the 16 oz ribeye that is the specialty of the house. See you there (if you can find it)!

Trent Country Club

1573 County Road 365

Trent, TX

(325) 862-0400

No website