Thank you! I'll add Terri to my list.

Thank you for your helpful response. I've looked at Tu-Lu's website and could never really tell if they just did gluten-free cupcakes or if they also did vegan ones.

I didn't know about Stogo---and will now make note of it.

Does anyone have any info on this topic?

We always stay in Reading when in town visiting our daughter. I did some research and discovered at least 3 Puerto Rican restaurants in Reading. However, when searching for details on each, I found very little info outside of addresses and phone numbers.

Does anyone know anything about these 3 restaurants?

Old San Juan Cafe --- 808 N. 9th Street

El Bohio -- 309 N. 5th Street

Yoly's Puerto Rican Cuisine -- 248 S. 8th Street

Specifically, I want to know if the food is better in one place over the other. Also, what is the parking situation like at each place? Are any of these places big enough to accomodate a party of 7? Are they all sit down places with waiter service?

Or do you know of any other Puerto Rican restaurants in Reading/

Thank you for any information

I've been to Babycakes and the now-closed Cocoa V. Is Blossom now in the Cocoa V location? I know Blossom has vegan cupcakes.

Where else can one get vegan cupcakes?

Thank you!

"lighten" the cuisine? I don't know about anyone else but when I want good Jewish deli food, I'm not looking for "light" food LOL! I want a thick, juicy pastrami sandwich along with a bowl of matzo ball soup.

All that said, I, too, hope that the food is not only good but the real thing!

We always stay in Reading when in town visiting our daughter. I did some research and discovered at least 3 Puerto Rican restaurants in Reading. However, when searching for details on each, I found very little info outside of addresses and phone numbers.

Does anyone know anything about these 3 restaurants?

Old San Juan Cafe --- 808 N. 9th Street

El Bohio -- 309 N. 5th Street

Yoly's Puerto Rican Cuisine -- 248 S. 8th Street

Specifically, I want to know if the food is better in one place over the other. Also, what is the parking situation like at each place? Are any of these places big enough to accomodate a party of 7? Are they all sit down places with waiter service?

Thank you for any information.

Thank you, everyone! This is all very helpful :)!

Thank you both!

Wildfire is owned by the Lettuce Entertain You group. The restaurant originally started in the Chicago area. You can get their steaks through the Lou Malnati's website.

Actually, we found Wildfire to be just Okay. I had a filet wrapped in bacon with a horseradish topping. The horseradish had no kick at all. All in all, I would rate Wildfire in the middle of the pack when it comes to steak houses. In other words, I've had better and I've had worse.

I know I'm about 2 months early :) However, we plan to visit our daughter and son-in-law for Thanksgiving and suggested to them that we all go out to eat on that day.

Our daughter works in KOP and will be asking co-workers for suggestions. I thought I'd ask here, too.

This is what we're looking for in terms of a restaurant --- It doesn't matter if it is a buffet or if it is served at the table. In addition to 4 adults, we will have 3 kids ages 3, 5 and 5. So it would have to be a place that is kid/family friendly. For dress code, casual or business casual is preferred. Cost isn't a huge issue --- we realize that for a truly good meal, one can expect to pay more.

We have no problems making reservations so if any recommended places require reservations, please pass along that info in addition as to how far in advance to make reservations.

I appreciate all recommendations! Thank you!

We're planning a visit to the Museum of Moving Image and would like to stop somewhere for some galactaburiko. What we're looking for specifically is a place where we can order a piece and a soft drink, then be able to sit in the place and eat it.

The address of the museum is 36-01 35 Avenue (at 37 Street). We'll either take the M train to Steinway Street or the Q train to 36 Avenue. So if there is a spot somewhere in that vicinity (or nearby and easy to find), I would appreciate any info.

Thanks for the help!

Great suggestions, everyone! Thank you for taking the time to pass along your favorites. I will pass along this info to our daughter and son-in-law!

In Crystal City, consider Tagolio. If you like pizza baked in a coal-fired oven, Tagolio's the place to go. They also have other Italian entrees.

I picked this geographical range because our daughter and son-in-law recently moved to the area and their work/home area is within those towns.

What is your favorite pizza in that general area? I'd like to hear about your favorites and why you like them so much. They recently moved there and we'll be visiting often. They've yet to find a pizza place that they really, really like. Thank you for your help!

I wondered about Arthur Avenue. Last time I was up there, I noticed some Albanian-owned business. One of my brothers is friends with Kosovar immigrants who took him to a place (quite some time ago) in the Pelham Bay Area. This was before the smoking ban and he said that you could hardly breathe in there. Plus, there weren't any women to be seen in place. I've read that many of the restaurants owned by Albanian Muslims either don't allow women in there---or at the very least it is frowned on. Plus, in many places, the staff doesn't speak English. I only know a smattering of Albanian words and on top of that, there are different dialects. That's why Qebaptore Kalaja intrigued me. It appeared to be a place that was welcoming and accepting of everyone.

MVNYC---Do you know if any of the places in the Arthur Avenue vicinity have staff that speak English and are welcoming to all? If so, I would be interested to know about them. Thank you!

That's a shame. I was seriously thinking about trying it next time I was in town. It seems that when someone opens up an Albanian restaurant, it doesn't last long---even in communities with many Albanians. I thought Cafe Appollonia in Boston would last since there is a sizable Albanian community there and figured that Qebaptore Kalaja would hang in there for the same reason.

IMO, part of the problem is that many people don't know a thing about Albania. Many times I've had people ask me where Albania was. Some even think that Albanians are the same as Albinos (seriously!) or that I'm talking about people from Albany. For reasons like that, one of my cousins just tells people she's Greek. She says it's a lot simpler than trying to explain it all.

So...given all that, if people don't know about Albania, they're not going to seek out the food. I just figured that the local Albanian community would have supported the place...

My husband liked the bistec encebollado at La Fonda Boricua. I actually liked the chicarrones de pollo sin huesos (without bones). For the rice side dish, they make great arroz con gandules (rice with pigeon peas). Also, the standard rice and beans with red beans is good, too.

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La Fonda Boricua
169 E 106th St, New York, NY 10029

I once wanted to try La Taza de Oro but saw one too many reviews saying how filthy the place was. That really put me off.

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La Taza de Oro
96 8th Ave, New York, NY 10011

There's a great place in The Bronx that we recently tried but since this is the Manhattan forum, I don't think I can mention it here---or can I? If I can mention it, please let me know.

Thanks, kathryn. I tried the search function but nothing recent seemed to come up. Those links you posted were very informative.

I recently tried the Doughnut Plant. It was a place that I had long wanted to try. Everything I had heard about it had me convinced that one bite and I would be blown away---I would never feel the same way again about other doughnuts. Well...in reality, it turned out to be quite different than what I'd expected.

When we went, we encountered a short line and both got yeast doughnuts with vanilla bean glaze. The glaze was delicious. The doughnut itself was another story. It was tough and very chewy. I shouldn't have to fight with a doughnut! IMO, it should be easy to bite off a piece and easy to chew.

So...was my experience par for the course? Or did we hit it on an off-day? If so, should I try again? Are the cake doughnuts better? Your thoughts and feedback, please. Thanks!

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Doughnut Plant
379 Grand St, New York, NY 10002

What an interesting thread! I'm half-Albanian---born and raised in MA. As for Albanian restaurants in MA --- My family had friends and relatives in the restaurant business, however they didn't serve Albanian food. One owned a diner while the other owned an American-style meat and potatoes kind of restaurant. A few years ago, there was an Albanian restaurant in the Roslindale section of Boston called Cafe Appollonia but it appears to be long gone. I regret that I never got to try it.

Most of the Albanian foods I grew up eating were very similar to Greek cuisine. That is understandable since Albania was occupied by the Greeks for many years. Plus my family came from southern Albania near the Greek border and are Orthodox. There are some differences. For example, Greeks make "spanakopita" which has feta cheese in it, while Albanians make "lakror" or "burek" and use cottage cheese rather than feta.

I looked at the menu at Qebaptore Kalaja---and to be honest, the only item that was familiar to me was the baklava.

Still, it would be very interesting to try the food there. Thanks for starting this thread!

Thank you for the recommendation!

I like a good avgolemono soup. To me, a good one is one that has the lemon flavor clearly coming through. Last time we were in NYC, we went to Uncle Nick's on 9th Avenue and did like theirs.

The reason I ask for recommendations --- in the past, I've been to Greek restaurants where the avgolemono has no lemon flavor. Near where I live, the owner of one Greek restaurant, when asked, told us that he used to make it with lemon flavor but customers complained! So...he dumbed it down.

If you've had a good avgolemono soup in a Greek restaurant in Manhattan, I would appreciate hearing about it. Thank you!

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Uncle Nick's
747 9th Ave, New York, NY 10019

An update---She found some fusili at AJ's Fine Foods. Thank you all for your help!

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AJ's Fine Foods
1836 S Val Vista Dr, Mesa, AZ 85204

Once again, thanks everyone! I'm forwarding all of this to my daughter!

Thanks, everyone! If anyone has more ideas, please pass them along! I'll also pass along all this info to my daughter.

Thanks for answering. It looks like this:
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=h...

My daughter lives in Mesa and recently headed to her local Safeway looking for a box of fusili but came up empty. Does anyone know of a supermarket chain or a specialty store in Mesa that sells it? Thank you!

I know Bonefish Grill has them on its seasonal menu. However, I was wondering if anyone else is offering them---especially in Fairfax and Loudoun counties. Thank you!