Polenta Crusted Calamari
Chaska

Chaska

16 Midway Rd, Cranston, Rhode Island, USA, 02920, United States

Indian • Asiatic • Mexican • Bar-lounge


"We were looking to dine at an Indian restaurant on our way to Connecticut, and I had come across numerous positive reviews for Chaska. I was a bit hesitant at first, mainly because some comments mentioned that Chaska focuses on modern Indian cuisine or fusion dishes rather than authentic food. However, we decided to give it a shot, and I'm so glad we did! I'm not sure what "authentic" even means anymore, as the food we had was the best Indian cuisine we've enjoyed in a long time. Chaska truly excels in both food and service. We made an online reservation before our visit, which turned out to be a smart decision, especially since we arrived after the peak lunch hour. This reservation system would certainly come in handy during busier times. The lunch portions are available until 3 PM, allowing us to choose from the lunch menu. I appreciated that all allergens were clearly listed, making it easier for those with dietary restrictions, including vegan and vegetarian options. The employee who assisted us with our order was incredibly knowledgeable and friendly—it's rare to encounter staff with such expertise about the menu. He provided helpful suggestions and guided us on spice levels. We ended up ordering a few mocktails, lassis, and a cocktail. For appetizers, we tried Cauliflower 65, grilled paneer, and Chicken 65. Our main dishes included vegan garlic naan, onion/chili naan, roti, jackfruit kofta (which was innovative and delicious), veg kadai (OMG, I'm still drooling), chicken biryani, and chicken kadai. One of the best features was that we could specify the spice level and how creamy we wanted the gravies. We loved every dish and were too full for dessert, though the dessert menu looked equally impressive. I learned that Chaska is owned by the same group behind several other Indian restaurants in Providence. My family and I thoroughly enjoyed our dining experience, and I highly recommend Chaska to anyone visiting Rhode Island!"

Brass Monkey

Brass Monkey

55 Little West 12th Street, City Of New York, 10014, United States Of America

Beer • Casual • Drinks • English


"This happened a couple weeks back, but I thought I 'd share my experience at this place. What a bizarre experience. We had a company outing at Brass Monkey, and I had 2 drinks. After starting to feel slight discomfort in the stomach, my friend and I went to the bathroom. A lady bartender with wavy, blonde hair followed us into the bathroom and stood there, peaking under the stall !!! to see what was happening. She immediately said that I had to leave if I was feeling sick, to which my friend responded that I was feeling discomfort from earlier and needed to relieve my stomach. The only thing she said was you need to go and went to grab SECURITY GUARDS to escort us out. After having 2 drinks and simply feeling sick inside a stall i.e. private space where you have the right to simple privacy to do whatever you need to do , the security guards met us at the door of the bathroom and told us they would call the cops unless we left. So we didn 't oppose because it was completely unreasonable- feeling nauseous on a FRIDAY evening around 5pm is apparently not something they can handle as a business. I explained to them the circumstances, to which Erik, their security guard/manager, said, WORD FOR WORD, I dont care if you 're bulimic, if you 're throwing up it 's a bad look for the restaurant- you need to go. I tried to reason, explaining that I have friends who have struggled, and it 's not at all okay to say. Eric could not even make eye contact with me, and instead decided to express his annoyance with a talking hand motion, completely disregarding that what he said is extremely harmful. I would understand this reaction if my behavior was disruptive, inappropriate, rowdy or whatever else. I was absolutely fine, calm, and reasonable. All in all, I realize that restaurants, as private businesses, have the right to refuse service. HOWEVER, the way this was handled, the condescending comments Eric made in regard to our age alluding to the fact that I can 't handle my alcohol , the talking hand motion, and all the snarky remarks like the sooner you leave, the faster we 'll forget your face, so maybe we will let you in next time made our time at Brass Monkey absolutely traumatic. We seriously couldn 't fathom that feeling sick in a PRIVATE BATHROOM could ever result in this. Shame on the security guards and the management for not having the proper manners and experience to handle this correctly and respectfully. As a suggestion to the actual business owners, maybe invest in a proper training program? Finally, as a side note: Eric, just so you know, karma will get you"

Alchemy Juice Cafe

Alchemy Juice Cafe

625 Parsons Avenue, Columbus, 43206, United States Of America

Cafés • Salad • Juice • American


"EDIT: Happy Cow apparently doesn't allow 5 star reviews of non veg cafes, which is kinda BS IMO. I'd give 5 stars if I could. Alcehemy is 95% veg. I just happened to stumble across Alchemy online the other day. I'd never heard of it, or never noticed it I should probably say. It grabbed my attention though, so I decided to check it out with the wife yesterday (I'm vegan and she's vegetarian and like 98% gluten free FYI). The inside of the cafe looks good, and personally I enjoyed the chill music being played. We went on Sunday afternoon and barely anyone was there, so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. The staff was very friendly and patiently answered all our questions, since it was our first time there we had a few. We ended up ordering quite a bit haha. Too start, my wife got the tomato bisque soup, and she absolutely loved it, and I thought it was quite creamy and tasty as well. I grabbed some curried chickpea salad, and oh... my... god... it was phenomenal. It reminded me of real potato salad, but chickpeas instead. Alexis, the co-founder of Alchemy, was there and after telling her how much I loved the chickpeas, she gave me her card for her website Hummusapien, which includes her recipe for the curried chickpea salad. I thought that was very kind of her. We each also got smoothies. I ordered the snickerdoodle and my wife got the peanut butter. I think I preferred the peanut butter, but both were good. These were the best smoothies I've ever had at a healthy/vegan cafe/restaurant. Usually they are really thick and heavy, but Alchemy uses a good amount of almond milk to really lighten them up a bit, which I prefer. For sandwiches, I got the bean burger (which didn't tasty very beany at all surprisingly). It came with a zesty' cashew mayo, and I think zesty is the right word. It wasn't too spicy or tangy, but had a good amount of... well, zest. My wife got the hummus and hemp pesto sandwich, which was creamy and crunchy, definitely what I want to order next time. Finally, we got a couple of the peanut butter no-bake cookie ball thingies. I thought they were good, the wife didn't care for them as much though. All in all, Alchemy is a spectacular find for us. We live in Grove City, so it's nice to have a place to go that isn't all the way on the north side of Columbus for a change. We will for sure be coming back. I hope Alchemy is doing well financially, because as a vegan, it's great to see vegan/mostly vegan places like this exist"