Establishment: Temple Street Eatery
Location: Ft. Lauderdale
Meal: Dinner
Drink: fountain Sproke (half Sprite, half Coke)
Appetizer: Wonton Tacos
poached shrimp, guacamole, lettuce, gochujang cream, pineapple salsaAppetizer 2: Buddha Mix (one of each dumpling)
ground chicken, onion, napa cabbage AND ground pork, napa cabbage AND minced shrimp, house seasoning AND edamame, carrot, vermicelli noodle, baby bok choy, tofu
Main: Bibimbap Rice Bowl
choice of rice, inari, mushroom, pickled vegetables, scallion, marinated bean sprout, fried egg, gochujang sauce
Side(s): Brussels Sprouts
(it was the special, so the menu description wasn't available, but there were apples and red onions mixed in)
Dessert: n/a
Server: the order taker's receipt says Jeff L, but I doubt that was *her* name
The older I get, the more I love me a Buddha ... not for any religious reasons, but because there's something about the smiling bald big-eared round face that reminds me of ... ME! This particular establishment offers up affordable options with Chinese, Vietnamese and Latin influences and is a companion to the well known long established Christina Wan's "four star" dining nearby. To see how what is only the second Asian influenced taste fared in the Troy-score, see below:
AMBIANCE: 10/10 (outdoor seating was an option [even if it was next to a busy parking lot], and the interior was clean and bright and welcoming and full of nice touches like the Buddha faces everywhere and the happy cat with the waving paw at the drink station ... and the best part may have been how busy it was [without a slowdown in service], because there's nothing more encouraging than knowing you are eating somewhere loved by many)
FOOD: 8/10 (the place has a mission statement of bringing "comfort foods ... with the affordability of street food" and every bite made me feel more and more comfortable at the choice we made for this particular taste ... and although there were little things that I wish would have been different [the edges of the brussels dish were cold, the dumplings were delicious but so small, the fried egg didn't ooze like we wanted], the flavors were so strong and tasty on each item that I'll lump my mini critiques all into representing just one point lost ... and a second point is lost because I was excited to eat my first bibimbap, but disappointed because I thought a key identifier was a crunchy crusty fried rice bottom that wasn't a part of this particular presentation)
SERVICE: 9/10 (with it being a counter service location, there are usually limited opportunities to interact with staff, but I do believe we managed to see almost every employee ... from the order taker to the food deliverers [items came out as they were ready, so we had three rounds -- each from a different person], and every employee was happy and smiley and friendly and able to answer questions ... just a point lost because they use one of those modern ipad programs that pushes the tip a little too hard during the checkout process, which seemed out of place for a counter service style that had a giant tip jar right next to said machine -- which is where I tipped, btw)
BACON: 9/10 (even though the word bacon wasn't on the menu ... the next best thing *was* AND it's visible as items added on to the bibimbap in the main photo -- so there's three points a piece awarded for those delicious pork belly chunks)
BONUS: 10/10 (+3 for the variety of all the sauces, +3 for a quick turnaround from the kitchen despite it being busy, +3 for taking the time to present the food attractively and +1 for being a place to which we will return as there are more menu items to try and because everyone loves a little comfort every now and then)
TroyScore: 46 out of 50 -- aka 92, a low A
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