L is for Licari

We went to Licari's Sicillian Pizza Kitchen in Grand Rapids August 8!  So yes I am behind again!  We were able to get a table for four with a short wait.  If you are there on the weekends, prepare to wait, it is popular!

After we were seated, Amy and I ordered cocktails and the guys ordered wine.  We had the Limoncello Martini and it was FABULOUS!  They make their own Limoncello.

Our waiter's name was Royce was awesome and gave us insight into Sicillian cuisine and how the owners wife makes the meatballs and aranici each day.

Amy ordered the spaghetti with meatballs.  It is very BIG and definitely required a doggie bag.  Amy liked it but said the sauce is sweet and required some getting used to.  The meatballs were amazing and obviously hand
made.

Greg ordered teh linguini with sausage and meatballs.  It was good but Greg wished he had ordered what I had... He should listen to me more often!

John had a pizza with pepperoni, sausge, basil and goat cheese.  He liked it and would order it again.


I had the penne with shrimp, spinach, and mushrooms.  It comes with a heavy white sauce but I asked them to lighten it a bit with white wine and they did.  It was excellent!

Royce was quite entertaining and made our experience great, but it sounded like he wanted out of Grand Rapids by winter!  The restaurant is much bigger than it appears from the outside and is comfortable.  It is reasonable and great for a casual night out.

Here is what is left of the homemade cannoli!!

K is for Kalamazoo Beer Exchange

Ok so we finally made it to K in May!  Kobe had actually been drawn but John vetoed it, based on the fact that it broke the rule because it was a chain restaurant.  SO we went back to Kalamazoo Beer Exchange in downtown Kalamazoo.  If you follow the blog you know that we were here once before after eating at the Epic Bistro.  We only had drinks and had decided we wanted to return, so none of us fought John on the veto.

We were there on a Friday night and WMU had graduation celebrations going on so it was very busy.  I think we had a 1.5 hour wait.  It was ok they take your cell number and call you so we just walked around downtown and went to a little brewery called Tibbs.  It is really great beer and the staff and guests are fun.  We didn't mind the wait at all.  We returned to the KBE and were seated upstairs.  If you are not familiar with KBE the beer list is listed on giant screens all over the bar.  The prices are market value based on supply and demand.  The prices go up, down, or stay the same every 30 minutes.  There is also a CRASH several times a night when beer prices drop DRASTICALLY for 5 minutes.  It is a lot of fun and people watching is spectacular!

We ordered beers of course and our waitress was very nice although she looked exhausted.  She was great about checking in and was quick to stop by during the crash!  We ordered nachos and fried pickles for appetizers.  Delish!

Amy and I split a burger which was huge!  I don't honestly remember what all was on it, but it was amazing.  Good thing I took a picture!  Greg ordered Mac and Cheese and was very pleased.  John had a burger that had bacon and egg on it and loved it.

We would definitel recommend stopping here if you are in Kalamazoo and need a break from Bells.  It si literally a 2 minute walk from Bells.  Downtown Kalamazoo is very nice for walking and the park area is beautiful.

J is for JD Reardons

Oh dear I am WAY behind!   I am really glad that I take notes when we go to the restaurants!  We went to JD Reardon's on FEB 28!  The restaurant is located just north of downtown GR on Monroe in the Boardwalk Building.  It was pretty quiet when we arrived and had a nice cozy feel.  There are booths and tables but also compy couches and areas to play games or cards.

They have a decent selection of beer on tap, cocktails, and a limited but decent wine selection.

We were greeted promptly by our waitress, Ashley.  We ordered drinks then appetizers.  We chose the Loaded tater tots which were as good as they sounded.  Great for a cold winter snack!  We also had the pulled pork crostini which we all liked.

For dinner, Greg ordered the Blackened Chicken Sandwich which he said had really good flavor and the aioli was great!  Amy had the Angry Reardon with Chicken which was a bit spicy but she liked the zip.  I had the Hangover burger but substituted a veggie burger.  It was excellent and very filling.
John had the Gatsby which was basically a club sandwich but as John said, "a good club sandwich".

We would recommend JD Reardons for a quick drink and meal after work or before a concert.  Nice place to hang out with friends.  It is off the beaten path a bit so maybe a great place when everything else is crowded.

I is for....Indecisive

As it turns out we were unable to find a restaurant the starts with "I" so we decided to throw three options into the hat.  1) Skip I. 2) Each person chooses a random restaurant.  3) Indian food from a place that at least had I somewhere in the name.   Our wacky waitress picked random restaurant.  So we ended up at Bar Divani which was submitted by Amy and I.

Bar Divani is downtown Grand Rapids near the Van Andel arena.  None of us had been there so we were really looking forward to a new adventure... A less dicey one anyway!  

It was busy downtown so we utilized the valet parking which we decided was worth it in light of the bitter cold and crowds.  We were able to make reservations which was great and were greeted immediately and seated in a cool booth in the front window.  The vibe in Bar Divini is casual but elegant.  You can definitely wear jeans and the furniture is comfy for a long leisurely dinner.  

Mike was our waiter and greeated us quickly and matched us up with a bottle of wine.   He did well considering the four of us don't always agree on what we want in a wine!  

We began with appetizer section of the menu which has some unique choices but nothing too weird.  Greg and Amy ordered the Pulled Pork rangoons which had an Asian style sauce and were very tasty!  John and I split the crab cakes which were tasty but not the best we've ever tasted.  

There are only about 8-10 entree choices but they have something for everyone.  We each tried something different so we covered half the menu!  Our waiter offered many tips in choosing and convinced 3 of us to order outside our first choices.  Mike was also great at understanding John's diary allergy.  

Amy opted for the Filet Mignon which was served with an amazing potato gratin and green beans.  Her entire plate was fabulous! The steak was done perfectly, seasoned with enough to add flavor but not take away from the flavor of the filet, and was melt in your mouth tender!  Honestly the potatoes and beans were almost as good as the filet.  

I had the Scottish Salmon as recommended by our waiter.  It was excellent!  It was seasoned and broiled then topped with a marmalade for sweetness.  The kale and couscous that accompanied it were so tasty!  

John was talked into Duck Two Way which had a grilled duck breast served on top of duck confit with curried lentils.  It was a touch spicy and had great flavor.  John liked the duck confit the best!  

Our waiter worked his magic and convinced Greg to order the pappardelle pasta dish which had a chestnut cream sauce butternut squash, arugula, and homemade fennel sausage.  Greg loved the sausage and the pasta and sauce were made to perfection!  

Obviously we were very happy with Bar Divani!  It is cozy and fun yet nicer than a basic bar.  As far as prices go they range from 15-28 for entrees which I thought was fair considering the portion size.  The fact that they take reservations is a nice bonus!  We will be back... I'm trying to figure out why we haven't been there before!

Pulled pork rangoons

Crab cakes

Scottish salmon

Filet

Duck two ways

Pappardelle