Uppercrust Bakery

4116 NW 16 Blvd
Gainesville, FL 32605
(352) 376-7187

Uppercrust is easily the best bakery in town. I know that's a lofty statement, but I have proof to back it up! Furthermore, it's not just a bakery, but we'll get to that in a minute. Let's focus on the baked goods first!

Whether it be baking baguettes and batards or crafting croissants and crostinis, Uppercrust is on top of their game with some of the best tasting bread around. You can buy a few rolls for tonight's dinner or get a whole loaf for a week's worth of sandwiches. Their whole menu is available on their website but some of my dear favorites are as follows:


Rosemary: This delicious dough has just the right amount of olive oil and rosemary flavoring to give the bread a rich, sensuous flavor. It goes perfectly with Italian food, especially red sauces. They add a sprinkle of sea salt to the top before baking which provides a wonderfully crispy crust while giving a touch of extra flavor.

Butter Bread: Baked with the same dough that is used for the croissants, the butter bread is a delicacy fit for the gods (Greek, Roman, etc). You can eat it by itself or add butter and fruit spread for a dessert/breakfast treat. It also perfectly accompanies any hearty gravy based meal. Perhaps my favorite feature, however, is that it looks like a perfectly shaped cartoon loaf of bread. To sum up, imagine if Hawaiian Rolls had a sexy older sister and you have Uppercrust's Butter Bread.


Etcetera!
They also have countless pastries, what they call their Bistro selection (usually baked goods with cheese and vegetables inside), a great wine selection, coffees, teas, chocolates, cheeses, olive oils, vinegars, and on and on.

We are fortunate to have such a wonderful little boutique market in town. It's high quality without being pretentious, delicious without being prohibitively expensive, and most important to me, close to my house. It also doesn't hurt that they employ some of the most gorgeous girls in town.

Just stop in for a smell that will knock you off your feet and I guarantee you'll be walking out with hands full of fresh baked goods.

Wards Super Market!

I had the brilliant idea of highlighting some of the wonderful stores, shops, bakeries, and groceries that we have in this town. We have several which are far superior in quality to any I've seen. In fact, you might just want to find your dinner inspiration in one of these fine establishments. That being said, I would be remiss to not kick things off with dear old Ward's Super Market!

Ward's Super Market
515 Northwest 23rd Avenue
www.wardsgainesville.com

Ward's is your one stop shop for local meat and produce, organic goodies, bulk food items, craft beer, and just about anything else you could ever want from a food store. While most towns' alternative food markets reek of thinly veiled corporate backing as they try to sell more ambiance than food, Ward's is too legit to quit. First off, it's old. Real old. Second, an actual family owns and runs it. Third, they focus on buying produce directly from local farmers whenever possible. Fourth, they feature products (coffee, barbeque sauce, cheese, milk, baked goods, shampoo/soap, and more) from local businesses. This list could go on and on.

I've started buying all my fruits and vegetables at Ward's and quickly started adding other items from the shopping list. It's actually cheaper than Publix and has nearly everything you'd need. I still hit up Publix for some things, but Ward's easily supports 3/4 of my weekly grocery list.

Let's preview each section:

-Produce: The organic section is nearly as big as the non-organic, and unlike Whole Foods, the prices aren't that much higher than non-organic items. Nearly everything tells you exactly where it came from (state specific, not just "from USA") and they highlight local items regularly. For me, produce is the crown jewel of the place.

-Meats: I don't eat meat, nor have I ever purchased meat from Ward's, but their deli section is supposed to have some of the best, freshest cuts around. They also try to buy locally whenever possible and you'll be sure to know about it.


-Bulk: Looking for nuts, rice, grains, or other similar items? Check out the bulk section for ridiculously cheap prices on as much or as little as you need.

-Traditional Grocery Store Stuff:
They still have typical store brand cookies, chips, junk foods, canned stuff and everything else you're used to in the Traditional Section. It also has a very large aisle of organic versions of all of these.

-Frozen/Cooler Section:
The dairy case features some amazing cheeses, yogurts, and other milk products that are organic and/or come right from North Central Florida.


-Beer!
If a beer is commercially available in this part of the state, Ward's has it. It has totally ruined me for fancy beer bars, as I'd rather pay the same price for a six pack as I would a lone bottle at Stubbies or Alcove.

I've only begun to scratch the surface of what they have here. There's a small nursery out front with decorative and food based plants, a huge chocolate section, a wall of coffee, ethnic foods and condiments (thai, indian, japanese, chinese), a health and beauty section featuring many environmentally friendly products, tons of baked goods from local bakeries and a solidly respectable wine section that can't be beat in price.

You really should be doing most of your food shopping at Ward's!

El Indio : Gainesville's best Tex Mex

El Indio: 5 thumbs up!
Two Locations!
407 Nw 13th St
5011 Nw 34th St

Menu Highlights: Veggie Tacos, Super Bean Burrito, Carne Asada soft taco, Chips and Cheese Dip

Price Range: While you won't get the same bargain basement prices as Taco Bell, you'll immediately know where the extra money goes. Still, a full meal will run you 6-9 bucks.

El Indio is another golden gem of the Gainesville gastronomic gauntlet. It's cheap, filling, tastes great, and is available almost immediately. This town definitely doesn't have a shortage of burrito joints, but in my opinion El Indio is the best. Not everything on the menu is amazing, but the highlights definitely make up for the shortfalls.

I gave up beef many years ago, but the carne asada taco legitimately tempts me each time I'm here. Also, their queso dip is a quesaholic's dream. Made from scratch out of cheese and spices, it's naturally flavored and colored, unlike the yellow orange crap you get from fast food equivalents. Be sure to pick up a bag of chips to go along with that queso. They fry them up each day and when you get 'em fresh, you'll never be able to go back store brand chips again.

I know what you're saying, I'm bored of grandpa's plain ol' burritos just wrapped up in a flour tortilla. Never fear, as El Indio has the solution. Make that burrito "super" by adding enchilada sauce and melted cheese to the top. It really adds an extra oomph of flavor.

I've never had their breakfast, but it looks pretty outstanding as well, with all that you'd expect of a tex mex place. Egg and cheese tacos and juevos rancheros will surely fill your stomach early in the mornin'.

Always get the "hot sauce on the side," which isn't really hot at all. It's just a salsa fresca which is quite delightful.

I'd stay clear of the fish tacos and I've never been a fan of their shredded chicken. For you vegetarians, you can't go wrong with the veggie taco. Even the vegan version is still pretty outstanding with beans, guac, pico, lettuce and tomato.


(the delicious vegan version of the veggie taco)

Whenever you need a quick bite and you're in the mood for tex mex (which should be pretty regularly), be sure to stop in at El Indio.

The Top

The Top: 5 thumbs up!

Menu Highlights: Buffalo Tempeh, Pecan Encrusted Tofu, The Top Salad with Blackened Tuna, sweet potato fries, the burgers (veggie and real).

Price Range: Dinner for 2 with drinks will cost you about 40 bucks with tip.

Every town needs that one cool restaurant/bar that helps define it's culture (or counterculture). For us Gainesvillians, The Top is just that. Let's face it, The Top is an old standby, always there for you when you need it. For those of us who have been going there ever since it was just the one smoky room with a one page menu, we can't help but be pleased to see its constant evolution and improvement. Currently, they boast a selection of around 50 beers (craft and common), the menu is a whopping 6 pages with extensive daily specials, and the desserts are pretty outstanding.

Their appetizers are all perfect accompaniments for heavy drinking situations, deep fried tempeh with a vegan buffalo sauce, deep fried breaded creamed corn nuggets, thick cut potato chips covered in a gorgonzola cream sauce, sweet potato fries with creamy garlic dressing. Need I go on? All amazing, all heart attack-inducing. For dinner, try out their burgers (beef and veggie) which can be prepared in a half dozen different ways. The Top knows how to serve tofu and their pecan encrusted tofu is probably the best vegetarian item on the menu. The pecan breading is so flavorful that you don't even really notice or care that what you're eating is tofu. If you don't want to clog an artery, try one of their amazing salads, all served with wonderful ingredients and with the option of adding chicken, blackened tuna, or blackened tofu.

The Top is also famous for their Sunday brunch which features a hearty menu of breakfast favorites. I'm not a big fan of the brunch, however, as the service is always slower on Sundays and the place is just as dark and moody at 11:00 AM as it is at night. I guess it's a welcoming environment for the hungover, and that may be just the point.

To me, it's the restaurant/bar in town that has it all. It can deliver the goods to the meat eaters in your dinner party while making the vegetarians/vegans ecstatic. Now, I know you ain't losing any pounds by eating there on a regular basis, and you may or may not have been able to purchase illicit substances in their bathrooms for a while (Libel disclaimer: i have no proof of this, only rumors), but it's a fun place. Ideal for a date or a big party. You just feel cool when you're in The Top, and you're bound to run into a few friends.

Don't miss out on this legendary Gainesville institution!

Just Desserts: Mochi

Mochi Japanese Frozen Yogurt and Toppings bar: 10 thumbs up!!

Highlights: watermelon was actually really great. Chocolate too.

Price: you pay by weight. Two decent sized cups with toppings cost us 6.50

Wow. Why have I waited to try Mochi? Do you remember being a kid and going to the neighborhood TCBY or Baskin Robbins and wanting ALL of the toppings on all of the flavors? Your mom wouldn't let you because each flavor and topping cost extra money. Once again, leave it to the Japanese to provide a vehicle with which to satisfy your unfulfilled fantasies. Go ahead and get that Watermelon, Chocolate, and Green Tea swirl with jelly beans, butterfinger crumbles, strawberries, sprinkles, and wasabi peas. No one will judge you!

Just like gas pumps in New Jersey, most soft serve establishments don't let you touch the equipment. I've actually heard stories of elderly Garden State natives not knowing how to pump their own gas when out of state. Much like these feeble xenophobes, I was a bit intimidated to find that I'd have to operate the yogurt pumps myself. First, you grab a cup. Next you pick your flavor of yogurt. In fact, while you're at it, you may as well pick all 10 flavors, it don't cost extra! Then you proceed to the toppings bar, featuring 50 or so of your old favorites mixed in with a few bizarre Japanese oddities (rice based gummies flavored like taro?!?!). No matter what you put in your cup, it all costs the same based on the overall weight.

This place is a little kid's dream come true. The yogurt wasn't your typical partially gelatinated non-dairy gum-based treat; it was made from real yogurt (which meant it was a bit sour in certain flavors). It truly was a unique take on an American establishment. As an added bonus, you feel like you're in the middle of Hello Kitty's brain when you're inside the place.

I loved it and can't wait to go back!

Kabab House : Great, fast, affordable Indian!

Kabab House: 5 thumbs up!

Menu Highlights: It's all good! The vegetarian pita (with seasoned potatoes, onions, tomatoes, and yogurt sauce), Vegetable Biryani.

Price Range: 7-11 bucks for a meal

Next stop, India. Birthplace of Ghandi, Bollywood, and the savory goodness that is vegetable biryani. Long has man sought out the exotic musk of the subcontinent oft referred to by natives as Hindustan. For centuries, scores of seafaring sailors set sail seeking such scented spices sold since Sanskrit stood solemnly several seas away. Vagabonds, these men hunted the shortest route from their home countries to reach the delectable cinnamons and curries, paneers and peppers.

I have long thought that these men were obviously after opium and not spices and the history books were merely unable to teach middle school children such truths, however, one bite of Kebab House's Vegetable Biryani will make you realize that these spices were in fact the true treasure coveted by kings.

I bought a small portion of the rice dish (which is very similar to fried rice in it's theme) as well as some garlic naan for under 10 dollars! The portion was HUGE and although starved, I barely put a dent in it. The veggies were very crisp and tasty and the naan was fresh and delicious. It seemed as if the small, undecorated take out restaurant was actually trying hard at something by using very high quality ingredients.

The rice had a very zesty, spicy taste and was chock full of veggies. I couldn't get over how good everything was.

I do feel, however, that Indian food can be likened to a fire drill in elementary school. You can't have it more than a few times a year. Every time I eat Indian food, I'm stuffed for a day and a half. It also tends to wreak havoc on the digestive system from time to time. Fortunately, with the exception of some minor heartburn, this food left me feeling satisfied and full.

Whenever I'm in this part of town, I don't miss out on Kabab House and neither should you!

Downtown Duds part III: The Lunchbox

The Lunchbox: no thumbs up

Menu Highlights: None

Price Range: about 10 bucks for a meal and drink

Wouldn't it be cool if someone took the old downtown bus station building (right in the downtown plaza) and converted it into a nice little lunch/dinner spot? Well, let's begin analyzing that query with two additional questions.

First, is a restaurant with only outdoor seating a good idea in a city that boasts 90+ degree temperatures for half the year?

Second, do you consider derelict vagrants trading their government issued meds for cash/crack/coitus to be warm ambiance?

I wouldn't be so harsh on the place if it was actually good. As of my last visit, their menu only features two vegetarian options, tofu tacos and tofu sandwich. I ordered the taco while my lunch associate ordered the sandwich. Both featured tofu prepared in the same exact manner. Baked. Boring. Tofu is hard to spruce up, but many places do it regularly. The Lunchbox chose not to do anything to the tofu other than bake it, giving it a brown outer coating and zero additional flavor. Well, wait just a minute there mister, what about the rest of the taco ingredients? They were mostly cabbage (read flavorless). The protein/amino acid based gruel they served in the Matrix probably had more flavor than these tacos.

Furthermore, as the order was taco based, some chips were called for. Here is where The Lunchbox really lost me. I was given 3, THREE, 1+1+1 chips. Literally 3 chips. My friend was also served 3 chips with his sandwich. I'm not talking a handful, I'm not talking a small bag, I'm talking about 3. Meaning, the "chef" had to actually single fingeredly pick out 3 separate chips and place them on the plate. How much do goddamn chips cost?

Not only was I unimpressed with the vegetarian selections, but I was turned off by other typically vegetarian items being boasted about for being NOT VEG FRIENDLY. Take the french fries cooked in goose fat for example. I'm sure they're quite tasty, but for the love of god! Has any semblance of eating healthy gone out the window?

I rarely ever say anything negative about a place to the workers, but I was ready to go off if any of them happened to come by the table and ask how everything was.

The Lunchbox strikes me as yet another Gainesville establishment run by someone with no business in the kitchen. Maybe they make their goose fat fries for superbowl parties and their friends say "oh, you should totally open a restaurant, you're such a good cook," but you're really not. It really is a shame because we need quick, nice restaurants downtown. I can honestly say, however, that the building was being put to much better use standing vacant all those years.

Downtown Duds part II : Dragonfly

Dragonfly Sushi: 1 thumb up

Menu Highlights: Meh

Price range: Rolls range from 5-20 bucks depending on their ingredients/complexity

Smack talking on Dragonfly is akin to criticizing the kid who beat Polio to become President of the United States of America. Or, at least it's like mocking the guy who beat clinical depression to become guitarist in the Presidents of the United States of America. In other words, they're a great hometown small business success story, so naysayers aren't welcomed.

That being said, this place is WAAAY overrated. Sorority girls expect to be taken there for their birthdays, and dude's think they're sure to get some action by bringing a date (note the correct usage of "their" there" and "they're"). It's nearly always impossible to get a table and the rolls aren't that impressive.

(See yesterday's post about Ichiban for my sushi guidelines)

Dragonfly doesn't really meet them either. The rolls are almost always very small. Now, I typically enjoy rolls with pieces of fish on the outside and believe these are to be the most impressive pieces the chef uses: The Money Fish. They are to be beautiful and generously sized, covering the top of the rice completely. Dragonfly doesn't seem to agree, as the top pieces are always small and unimpressive.

I seem to only end up here when it is somebody's birthday, which is fine. It has a really trendy/hip atmosphere that always makes me think of a Japanese Cheesecake Factory. I think you could do alot better for your buck if you head out to Fuji in Jonesville, but then again it's way in no man's land. I gave it one thumb up because it's not THAT bad. Also, you might meet some drunk birthday girls and, who knows, you just might get lucky.

Downtown Duds part I: Ichiban

I've been hesitating to post this blog for some time as I don't wish to propel more negativity into the infinite realm of the internet; however, many friends have urged me to just go ahead and say the following: there are alot of shitty restaurants in this town (please note the usage of a comma, a semi-colon, a colon, a period, and parentheticals in this sentence). Many of them happen to be within spitting distance of my office, therefore, I find myself at them from time to time.

Today, let's start with Ichiban's new downtown sushi location!

Ichiban Downtown: no thumbs up

Menu Highlights: none

Price Range: the lunch special was 8:50 (two rolls and a small salad).

I sometimes eat at the Ichiban on 43rd St because it's near my house and always when I'm in a pinch for time. It's never good. At best, it's mediocre. I've always said that you can tell good sushi when you first see it and even before tasting it. The rolls are crafted with pride and are therefore aesthetically pleasing, the fish appears fresh and moist, and the internal components of the roll maintain their integrity and don't mush into a burrito style hodgepodge. Ichiban rarely has one of these factors let alone all three at the same time.

Today's lunch started out with something that presumably existed only to serve as an example of the minimum amount of effort devoted to a lettuce based dish that could still qualify as a "salad." It was followed by a tuna roll and a rainbow roll. The tuna roll smelled and tasted fishy while the california roll contents had already converged into a mush like the one described above. No amount of ginger or wasabi could resurrect these rolls from their Tokyo tinged tedium.

On a side note, Tony's sushi in Ocala (which is a great sushi establishment) gives you a california roll, 3 pieces of sushi, a salad, soup, rice, and a generous portion of chicken teriyaki or tempura for the same price as Ichiban's lunch "special."

Book Lovers' Cafe

Book Lovers' Cafe: Four thumbs up.

Menu Highlights: Tempeh Reuben, Lasagne, any of their vegan salads

Price Range: 10 bucks for a meal and a drink/cookie.

Book Lovers is always a good choice when you are at a total loss of ideas for a meal out. It's not always the first thing that pops into my head, but it rarely disappoints. A bonus is that the cafe serves as the figurative heart of a used book store.

Now, I've had discussions with friends about what makes a book store a "good" book store, and we've all agreed that the number one essential is ease of access/presentation. In other words, can you discover potential treasures without scouring through dozens of shelves? Do you feel the urge to just pick random books up? Unfortunately, this is only half the case with "Books Inc." (the name of the bookstore portion). The building features several rooms with varying content from antiques and new releases to worthless novels and bizarre sci fi crap. Fortunately for them, however, the cafe keeps foot traffic heavy as they serve up some great vegetarian/vegan food.

Most meals are made of local/fresh produce and ingredients. Some of my all time favorites are the Tempeh Reuben which in no way makes me feel that the tempeh is a substitute for anything. Also, their lasagna is actually better than any other local Italian restaurant's. If you don't know what to get, try the 3 salad sampler which you can create from the daily selections (get there early so they don't run out). Their eggless egg salad will cause you to wonder how the hell they did that, while the plumber's pasta salad features an ingenious usage of ramen noodles.

I like this place. It's always good to great. Don't bring a first date here or even your parents (unless they're vegetarian), but do eat here often.