Whistle Binkies Olde World Pub

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5 out of 5 avocados (we will be back!)

Another Sunday adventure on a beautiful day! We wanted lunch with a shady, enjoyable outdoor seating–Whistle Binkies Pub was the answer. This is the north location, not the south location, got it? They have a wonderful back patio area with plenty of greenery and so off we went.

Parking is usually not an issue at all for Whistle Binkies and this time was no different. We found ourselves seated on the back patio in the shade of an umbrella in no time at all. I am a sucker for huge, hanging baskets of flowers and so enjoyed the view. The arborvitaes are pretty cool too, adding to the laidback atmosphere.

Our friendly server was with us in good order and we ordered a few pints. This place always amazes us at how inexpensive their drinks are, particularly the “specials.” I had a pint of Rusty Truck Red ale for $2.50 for crying out loud! By the way, this was the first time I have tried that beer and was pleasantly surprised. Anyway, back to the meal. We sat perfectly content in the shade watching the world go by, feeling the pleasant MN breeze and enjoying good conversation. This is the Sunday lunch I was hoping for!!

Food

For our meal we ordered the Coconut Shrimp Po’ Boy with steak fries and the Guinness Rueben with regular fries. A very helpful fellow brought these out in a nice amount of time and we were happy. One bit of improvement, however, could have been the presence of salt, pepper, and condiment sauces on each table. I love pepper on fries and would have enjoyed the addition. Alas.

We very much enjoyed our meals and they delivered on their promises. If you are curious about the combination of seafood and cheese on the Po’ Boy, it actually works, who knew?? The shrimp were sweet and coconuty (is that even a word?) A bite was the perfect bite of sweet, spicy, and savory. The fries were seasoned and cooked perfectly as well. The meal did not disappoint and we took half the sandwich home.

The Rueben was quite good and very large! I was only able to make it through half of this thing and had to take the rest home. The rye bread was yummy and you will note in the picture above the seeds along the edge…nice touch! Overall is was a good sandwich and the fries were tasty! If I were to pick on something, I would have to say that the brisket needed to be cooked longer so that the fat could render a bit more. I could also wish this sandwich had a bit more punch to it as it was very smooth and mellow. I don’t know, maybe some spicy kick? or a bit more acidy tang from the sauerkraut? But I suppose this mellow style matches the pallet of the upper Midwest (no offense meant, just an observation). Or maybe I want more spice because I have had a torrid affair with smoked ghost chilis lately? Anyway, great sandwich, great fries.

People

Everyone working was friendly and eager to help. No issues there at all! We felt so sorry for our server, however, as she was the only one for the patio and there were probably eleven tables to take care. I think she even had some tables inside that she was managing. Wow! It appeared that there were only two servers for the whole place, and I am guessing it was because of the shortage of help that every business seems to be experiencing right now. That said, yes, we waited longer than normal, but we were fine with it because she was working so hard and we didn’t need to make her job any more difficult. Thankfully, she did get some help from the other server towards the end of our time there.

Cost

Like I said in the intro, you can’t beat this place for price, especially on the beer side of things. We had four pints and the cost was a small $10! We usually enjoy the flights of beer too, so that we can sample multiple beers at a time–these are outrageously inexpensive too. Good value at Whistle Binkies!

Covid precautions: None to speak of.

We will most certainly go back! Who knows, maybe it could be a Sunday lunch favorite? But what to do when winter sets in?

Five West Kitchen + Bar

🥑🥑 (2 out of 5 avocados – we won’t be going back)

Week of August 22, 2021

We have fond memories of Five West from some years back when we visited Mayo Clinic. It was something of a needed rest from the hectic schedule of doctors and tests, and we loved it. That being said, I keep getting disappointed by this establishment and it makes me so sad. I want to love it and keep going back, I really do, but I can’t justify giving them my business for such lackluster performances.

Building and Atmosphere

I loved. The dreamers and the designers of this concept must be congratulated! I love the high ceilings with wood accents. I love the garage door wall. Just going in makes you feel “cooler” than you were. ha! Seating is easy and plentiful with easy views all the way across the restaurant. The outdoor bar design is fabulous and tonight I saw the fire-table sitting there longing to be used!!

I hated. We asked to be seated on the patio since it was a wonderful summer evening. Well, the patio faces west and there isn’t much shade. If you want to eat outside, make sure it is dark or cloudy, otherwise your experience might be less that stellar. Each table asked for shade and got an umbrella that missed the mark.

The People Factor

Mixed reviews here. My guess is that they are short-staffed like so many other places in town and that puts a strain on the whole operation. At any rate, it seemed like the servers were not the happiest group of people — you can tell when people are happy to be at work. A manager stopped by to see how our dinner was and that was a nice surprise. Our server was very attentive and we never wanted for anything, well done!

THE FOOD!

Five West scored a 50% for the food they placed on the table (2 meals were good, 2 meals were not). This factor is why I won’t be going back.

Macaroni and cheese with bacon was wonderful and quickly disappeared. A large bowl of tater-tots with real cheese sauce were fabulous and everyone at the table made yummy noises at how crispy and fresh they were. These dishes were warm and awesome.

Fish Tacos. The presentation of these three tacos was very appealing, right down to the lime wedge. They were nicely breaded and of a good size. I am, generally, not a fish lover but the fish in the tacos was not overpowering and I found them quite pleasant! Each taco had a layer of a bitter cabbage slaw at its base that did not lend to the overall taste of the taco. After removing the bitterness from each taco things improved greatly. On the side were some tortilla chips that were sprinkled with a Doritos cool ranch mix that underwhelmed a bit.

Blackened Chicken Quinoa Salad. This salad was a sad excuse for a dinner entree. I did see what one was supposed to look like as they brought it to the table next to me. Too bad I didn’t get the same experience. The preparation of this salad was done by a worker who wanted to be anywhere else. My chicken was poorly sliced and I had to finish the job after I found it at the bottom of the pile. The menu description said “avocado” and I discovered that I had two, yes two!, tiny slices of avocado thrown in under the the pile. I keep saying “pile” because that is what it was — no presentation, no imagination, just a pile. The peppers were good as was the cheese. There was so little quinoa that I wondered why they even bothered at all? Terrible!!

Five West Burger. Meh. It’s a burger. It did have crispy bacon and the sauce was pretty good. I would not go out of my way to order this burger again though. The fries that came with it were overcooked which I was sad about. The fries have been really, really good in the past. I had a burger in the past from here that was a-maz-ing. My daughter and I can’t stop talking about it. It had a bourbon glaze and was absolutely divine. It is no longer on the menu. I don’t know. Just disappointing all the way around.

Drinks

Mojito. Average. The drink was served in a clear glass that gave the muddled mint the appearance of being rotten/slimy, and that was off-putting. It was also overly sweet and could have been made with more care.

Gin Martini. Average. Gin (check), vermouth (check), ANY twist or garnish whatsoever (nope). I wish this drink was made with more art and craft.

Price

When we go to Five West we expect to pay more, but it is not worth the price. I have had several experiences in a row where the food just doesn’t deliver and so I refuse to pay that amount for it.

Parking and the rest

The parking lot can be quite full and hard to manage at times, especially at peak hours, but we found a spot near the front right away. Walking in and walking out were simple and the line-of-sight was easy and clear. At times, the traffic noise from West Circle Dr. was overpowering and distracting.

Covid 19 Precautions — None. No staff wearing masks, no distancing.

Summary

From an aesthetic perspective I absolutely adore going to Five West and want to continue going there, but that won’t be happening. We go to restaurants for the culinary offering and Five West just isn’t pulling a consistent win in our book. Sometimes they shine but most times they fail. Sorry old friend, you get two avocados and we likely won’t waste any more money.

Porch Fried Chicken

https://www.porchrochester.com/

👎🏼 Overall 0 avocadoes out of 5 (great food; beyond AWFUL service)

We enjoy a great piece of fried chicken! We also enjoy eating a great lunch on a Sunday afternoon. Why not combine the two and have a great piece of fried chicken for lunch on a Sunday? That was our thinking for two consecutive Sundays last month when we went to Porch Fried Chicken.

Ordering online was so simple (yay!) and we took advantage of the special, the Holy Clucker. Making fun of religions aside, we found this $6 deal (drink included) a wonderful budget option for lunch…we ordered four of them. Our choices included the sandwiches, iced teas, additional add-on of mac and cheese on one sandwich, and added side of mashed potatoes and gravy .

Off to the Porch we drove and picked them up in pretty quick order. Waiting at the front entry was a bit awkward and we felt like we were in the way, but our order was brought out and off we went. Upon arrival at home we opened our yummy package and discovered the prettiest chicken sandwiches you could hope for.

The food was wonderful! The chicken was crispy and well cooked, the buns were of good quality, and the mashed potatoes were clearly made in-house. Everyone around the table was making lots of “yummy” noises as we enjoyed our lunch. The iced tea was a big hit as well! Of note for visit #2, the cooks put the additional mac and cheese as a side dish for one of the sandwiches and so we assumed it was a Side rather than a topping for the sandwich itself.

The food at Porch Fried Chicken on visit #1 was sooooo good! Five out of five avocados! The service would probably get a four out of five avocados due to the awkwardness.

Well, if one time was good, why not try two? The very next Sunday we were off again to Porch to pick up four Holy Clucker meals. Unbeknownst to us, however, was that this time would be quite different than the last.

Again, pickup was a bit awkward as there is no dedicated staff-person to take care of pickups. As we stood waiting, a family asked what appeared to be a server about sitting outside on the patio. The gal was clearly irritated and she told them they had to do everything themselves because she “had other things to do.” Okay then! Note to self, servers too busy to serve customers at the Porch. The rest of the employees seemed angry/upset/irritated too; you could clearly get the feel of the place and it wasn’t nice. And, of course, where there is smoke, there is fire. This would perfectly describe our coming interaction with this restaurant on this visit.

Upon our arrival at home, we opened our little sack eagerly awaiting our super-duper chicken sandwiches and sides. This time we ordered two of those great mac and cheese additions that scored so well last visit…but they were nowhere to be found. Oh well, we’ll take care of that later, let’s eat now while it is still warm.

The sandwiches did not disappoint and were well done again. Great job, Porch cooks! The mashed potatoes were, however, quite sour for some reason and no one around the table finished their portion. We could not quite put our finger on why the potatoes were sour: too much sour cream? bad dairy? what? And let’s not forget the omission of those two additions of mac and cheese.

Fast forward to the end of the meal. I called Porch and politely informed the gal on the other end that we had not received two addition mac and cheeses on our sandwiches. “How can we fix this?” I asked. After some clarification she said they would refund the additional charges, great, thanks! Some short time later we got a call from Porch and the woman on the line basically argued with us and rudely informed us that it was just $1 each and that these were simple toppings to the sandwiches, not sides. Okay, thanks for the condescending attitude and argumentation! Whatever these stupid things were, we paid for them and didn’t get them, end of story. An upstanding employee would quickly refund the cash after realizing the error.

Why in the world would a restaurant go through the trouble of calling customers and telling them they are stupid because they didn’t “understand” what these things were even though they were paid for and not delivered??? So here we see the issue…a terrible work environment that runs on hostility. Thanks for showing us what kind of business you are running there, Porch.

In sum, we thought we had a clear winner for price, convenience, food quality, and pick up. What we ended with is a toxic business that would rather argue with customers over things it didn’t provide than give them a good experience. HARD PASS, Porch Fried Chicken, HARD PASS. Attitude determines altitude.