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DawesWilliams's Profile

Tay Do Vietnamese in the Eden Center

The #13 is the Bay Lo 7 Special that the family always seems to recommend. Maybe it was actually sekelmaan that raved about it, but it was very good. I assumed the lettuce was meant to be used as a wrap, but I only gave it a very awkward attempt before I gave up!

Tay Do Vietnamese in the Eden Center

Based in part on your reviews, we found our way back to Bay Lo and had two of the #13s on the blue menu, along with an order of soft shrimp rolls. It was all fantastic, though we were a bit confused about what to do with the lettuce. (Is it to be used as a wrap?) The family that owns it was really warm to us, and we will definitely return. In fact, we will no doubt eat our way through all of Eden Center, as we love Vietnamese and it seems like a real gem. We're really missing our New Haven restaurants (small city, but remarkable food scene), and Eden Center has been our favorite find to date. Now if we could just find Mexican and Indian that "wow!"

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Eden Center
Falls Church, VA, USA, Falls Church, VA

Tay Do Vietnamese in the Eden Center

As a Connecticut foodie that recently transplanted to DC, I was pretty excited to make my first trip to Eden Church this evening. Given your reviews, sekelmaan, I headed straight for Tay Do. Unfortunately, it is currently closed. The sign out front says that new ownership will be reopening the restaurant on October 29. Too bad. I hope it maintains the same menu and quality. Unfortunately, I understand that this seems to have happened fairly routinely through the years.

New Haven, CT Top 5 Favorites

Union League
Ibiza
Thali
Guadalupe La Poblinita
Modern

Honorable mention:

Bentara
Zinc and Zinc Kitchen
Barcelona
Torterilla Michoacan
Caseus

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Bentara
76 Orange Street, New Haven, CT 06510

Thali
87 Main Street, New Canaan, CT 06840

Union League Cafe
1032 Chapel Street, New Haven, CT 06510

Caseus
93 Whitney Ave, New Haven, CT 06510

Caterers - Berkshires (Recs needed)

Cowgirl: does your comment stem from a specific incident at Sunset Farm, or are you speaking generally? I'm always skeptical when I can only find one or two reviews, and those reviews are bad. It seems to me that people are more often motivated to leave a review when they've had a bad experience, even if that bad experience is, on the whole, the exception rather than the rule. If your comment is based on a specific experience, even if by word-of-mouth or general reputation, I'd really appreciate any info you can pass on.

Caterers - Berkshires (Recs needed)

I just saw this post and was hoping someone could comment further on their experience at Sunset Farm Inn Bed & Breakfast in Tyringham. My fiance and I are considering booking the location for our wedding next year, and just really loved the barn there for our reception and the picturesque backdrop for our ceremony. I was hoping someone could comment on the food there, as it's obviously something that is important to us. Also, if anyone has actually had a wedding at Sunset Farm, we'd love to hear about your experience. We've only been able to find two reviews online, and, frankly, they're both horrible, which is strange because we really thought the owner seemed quite accommodating and nice when we met her today. So, any info would be greatly appreciated.

Block Island

Just returned from a weekend on Block Island myself. We had two dinners on the Island, one at the restuarant at the Hotel Manissis (Spring St.), and one at Eli's (Chapel St.). I think the consensus is that these are the two best dinner options on the island. The Manissis was very good, albeit overpriced. I had a filet that was cooked a perfect medium-rare and came with grilled asparagus and blue cheese-scallion mashed potatoes. My girlfriend had their version of peking duck, which was entirely unlike a traditional peking duck, but was very good, nevertheless. They have a fresh herb garden outside, which is always a good sign. Again, this is a nice restaurant with a good atmosphere, but certainly overpriced (that's often the trend for food and drink on the Island--bring your own alcohol!).

Eli's was also good. My girlfriend and I split an order of tuna nachos that were good, not great. She had an arugala salid with warm goat cheese that was fresh and big enough to fill. I had grilled swordfish in a navy bean ragout that I thought was good, but slightly bland. All and all we had a nice meal.

We also had a light lunch at The National, but it's nothing to rave about. Bad, overpriced drinks and fried seafood, mostly. I'd steer clear. I hear good things about Three Sisters for lunch (a sandwich shop), but we had a good breakfast buffet included with our hotel package, and were never hungry for a real lunch. Which reminds me, I would recommend the breakfast buffet at the 1661 Inn. I believe that those who are not staying at one of the participating hotels can still pay to eat there. One last recommendation would be to at least get drinks or coffee on the porch at the Spring House. Definitely the best view of the Atlantic of any of the hotels!

Enjoy! It was our first visit to Block Island and we thought it just beautiful.