📍 Address: 8409 SE Division St, Portland

⭐ Stars:⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4)

Thai Fresh's interior was surprisingly warm, plush and inviting. I loved the dark hardwood floor and high ceilings. The waitstaff were great. They were friendly, explained the menu, and checked back with me frequently. As I sat down, I was provided with both a lunch and dinner menu. Many of the items are the same on both menus, but as the waitstaff indicated, the dinner menu options are larger and more expensive. From the lunch menu, I ordered the mixed vegetables (plus beef) and as an appetizer, the Sleeping Prawns. As I waited for my order, I pondered the rain outside and the pedestrians passing by with umbrellas. Despite having lived in Seattle and Portland the bulk of my adult life, it has never occurred to me to own an umbrella. The Sleeping Prawns was the first item to arrive at my table. This was my favorite dish - prawns, with slivers of carrot, wrapped in rice paper, deep fried and served with a delicious sweet/crumbled peanut dipping sauce. Next came the wontons. I didn't per se order them, but they automatically came with my lunch. Not so good. The puffed up wonton shells were extremely tough. And what was on the inside? Mostly just air. Seriously! They were hollow, with so little filling I couldn't even taste the filling. My Wok-prepared vegetables and beef then arrived. I liked the square-ish china plate/bowl that the beef, rice and vegetables came on/in. There was a brown broth at the bottom of the dish/bowl. The beef was very sparse, but was okay in flavor and tenderness. As I've mentioned in other reviews, how well-done vegetables should be is entirely a personal preference. Having said that, I was disappointed with the way undercooked vegetables in this dish. Crunchy carrot, crunchy cabbage, crunchy broccoli and crunchy cauliflower. Just call me Captain Crunch! Frankly, this was a tedious and not particularly flavorful dish to eat.

📍 Address: 6120 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland

⭐ Stars:⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4)

There are many places for Pho in PDX, but this is a good one. The pho is top notch. I also tried the Banh xeo and loved it. It was served with plenty of the necessary fresh greens and herbs. The service is good. So this place is in our rotation. It is a solid four star establishment.

📍 Address: 10515 N Mopac Expy, Ste 300, Austin

⭐ Stars:⭐⭐⭐⭐ (3.5)

A "step" above the chain sandwich shops in terms of options and ambiance, but still overpriced for how average your meal experience is.

📍 Address: 177 Tremont St, Boston

⭐ Stars:⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4)

Incredible food, drinks and service. Interior is unique and adds to the experience. Have the mussels even if you don't like shellfish - amazing. And the ravioli were the best I've had, and I'm from and Italian family so to publicly admit this may remove me from someone's will, it is still a fact that Teatra does it best!

📍 Address: 19 S Orange Ave, Orlando

⭐ Stars:⭐⭐⭐⭐ (3.5)

I have been to Ichiban a couple times and I've never had bad service or terrible food. The location is awesome if you want to grab dinner before going out. Also, the happy hour is great! I was here with a group of about 12 people and the service was excellent...maybe a little slow but nothing extreme. I had the Mango Saketini and it was fantastic :)! Also I had their Ichiban Soup ( for 2 bucks you can't beat that!) and their Rock n' Roll and Spider Roll. Both were really good, I prefer the Rock n' Roll over the Spider...the Spider was a bit bland. Nevertheless I enjoyed both items. Overall, everybody was satisfied with their food and the service did not disappoint.

📍 Address: 136 Adams St, Newton

⭐ Stars:⭐⭐⭐⭐ (3.5)

They've gotten even better. Tonight I tried their Honey Glazed Walnuts of 3 Delights. Wow it was the best, the walnuts were so crunchy and I gota tell you........ When they arrived they really looked too go to eat. Each walnut was so perfectly formed and they glistened in the light, I guess that was the glaze. Anyhow I was so taken with the look of this dish......... It truly impressed me as a visual work of art. Lovely and tasty. My wife had the Seafood Pan Fried Noodles thing she enjoyed it but should have asked for it hot and spicy. No problem ! When I ordered my dish I asked for it HOT & SPICY and they provided me with an extra dish of spicy sauce which she used right down to the bare plate. All in all we had a super night out on the town for $26. We were surprised with the presentation of GRATIS servings of an interesting chocolate swirled fruit ice cream at the conclusion of our dinner. Cheap at twice the $$$