Olé Tapas Lounge

It's unfortunate to be a Spanish tapas restaurant within a fifty mile radius of Jose Garces' Amada and Tinto in Philadelphia. You are going to be measured by the high bar Garces has set, and, probably, not measure up. And that was the case with our first visit to Olé Tapas Lounge in Newark, DE.

It was probably a mistake to dine at Olé Tapas on Valentine's and being forced to order their prix fixe menu, but if their website or the person who took my reservation over the phone had mentioned the holiday menu, I probably would have saved Olé Tapas for some other evening.

I'm not fond of prix fixe menus because: 1) half of the time restaurants don't have vegetarian options (Olé Tapas was thoughtful enough to accommodate vegetarians); 2) vegetarians can always eat cheaper off the menu; and 3) you don't get to order the foods you like. But it was what it was, and our party of four settled. Plus, the seven courses with seven wine pairings for $70 per person was not that bad of a deal.

Olé Tapas sits in a strip mall between a Dunkin Donuts and a Jackson Hewitt. The interior with crescent booths, large round tables, and bar has a feel of new construction trying to be warm and cozy, but misses the cozy mark. Large tables sit as islands in the aisle between booths on the wall and the bar, making the dining experience not so intimate, and a TV above the bar tuned to sports seemed out of place in a restaurant that is obviously not a sports bar.

Things started off rough when our server appeared fifteen minutes after we sat down to apologize for not seeing us and bringing water. Didn't see us?

The night's menu was printed on cards, but the wine pairings and vegetarian options were not. So when our first course was dropped off without any description and the wine did not appear until five minutes later, also without an explanation, we all started thinking, "Um...hello!" It took a couple rounds of courses having to explicitly ask the server what we were being served and what the wine was (she could only point to the wines on the list) before she got into the groove of informing our party what we were eating. Our server was plenty nice, patient, and accommodating, so I'll have to blame the managers/owners for not training their servers how to present food and wine pairings.
Everyone at our table agreed that the pumpkin hummus was a winner with it's subtle pumpkin flavor and velvety texture. The flavors aren't huge with this humus, but are still delightful.
This peasant-type dish of garbanzos (the server called them lentils) with spinach and onions was the best dish of the evening, and, while I did not see this dish on their regular menu, it should be added to the menu (Update: it's on the menu as garbanzos con chistorra, but you'll have to request it be made without the sausage if you're veg.) The spices (my palate has been failing me lately on singling out spices) were complex and interesting.
The third course befuddled us all. Olé Tapas called this thick potato soup-like dish a potato omelette. I get that traditional Spanish tortillas are like omelettes with potatoes, but this was neither a tortilla nor an omelette. With a fried waffle-cut potato chip atop a thick potato slurry, this dish tasted like liquid sour cream and onion potato chips. Not a bad thing, just not an omelette.
This salad of greens, red onions, pickled grapes and a strong cheese (don't eat with a notebook, sorry) was interesting just because of the pickled grapes, which I enjoyed quite a bit, but another at our table was put off by the whole plate. To each his own, I guess.
A glass of Cava poured over strawberry sorbet and a strawberry seemed like a cop-out course and wine pairing, but was quite delightful. I would have preferred a glass of Cava unmuddied by sorbet alongside a cup of sorbet unmuddied by Cava. And to each his own, again!
The main course of mushroom and goat cheese tart with accompanying onions, pumpkin, peppers and beets was quite large and filling. The tart filling was musty and mushroomy good, but the tart shell itself was flavorless and lacking the elusive flakiness. The vegetables were mushy and lacking interesting spices – kinda like baby food.
The study of chocolate dessert course was hit or miss. The white chocolate ice cream with raspberry swirl tasted great, but was already ice cream soup when it landed on our table. The chocolate tart with toasted almonds was flavorless and lacking intensity. The truffles rolled in cocoa, on the other hand, were quite intense and satisfied the chocolate craving that the tart could not.

I can't say we had anything unpleasant at Olé Tapas, but, other than the garbanzo and spinach plate, there was nothing that excited me or made me want to return and order it again. Unfortunately, Olé Tapas is missing the intense flavors and brilliant combinations that Garces delivers just 40 miles down the road.

I will say that in comparison to Delaware's other Spanish tapas restaurant, Orillas in downtown Wilmington, Olé Tapas has a wider selection of vegetarian dishes and cheaper prices. And if you eat at the bar on weekdays during happy hour, you can't beat Olé's half-price tapas. And on weekends, Olé has half-price wine bottles. (Update: just check their website for specials; they apparently change.) Orillas in downtown Wilmington wins on atmosphere, though, with their tighter more intimate quarters in an older building with exposed brick walls. Either way, Delawareans, you at least have a couple decent Spanish tapas options if you're just too pooped to drive into Philly.

Olé Tapas Lounge
1126 Capitol Trail (Kirkwood Hwy), Newark, DE 19711
302-224-9378
Mon.-Thurs., 11:45am-9pm; Fri., 11:45am-11pm; Sat., 4pm-11pm; Sun., 4pm-9pm

Home Grown Cafe - Grew Up To Be A Crack Ho

What makes small college towns tolerable? No, not beer pong every Friday night. If a small town has a college, they usually have a vegetarian restaurant to accommodate those crazy, tofu-eatin’ kids.

I was happy to find Home Grown Café in Newark, DE, home of the University of Delaware, when I arrived in the Delaware Valley a few years ago. As the restaurant's name suggests, they have/had a college town, hippy vibe going on. Why wearing patchouli and growing dreads in college is a rite of passage, I do not know.

A few years ago, a shop selling jewelry made by the owner and hippy-themed goods was connected to the restaurant. The adjoining shop was phased out to expand the restaurant, as were the large tie-dye wall hangings in the restaurant. The restaurant now has vampy booths, low lighting and a bar specializing in frou-frou cocktails. They dropped the healthy, hippy vibe and joined the slick, metro bandwagon. Incongruously, the name of the restaurant and its rainbow swirled sign remain, as well as a few jewelry cases.

Get past the jewelry cases and you can get to the menu. About 75% of Home Grown’s menu can be made vegetarian or vegan, usually by substituting seitan. In the past, I’ve eaten a couple of their different seitan wraps, spaghetti with "meatballs", falafel, burrito, and “chicken” sandwich.

The seitan “chicken’ sandwich with garlic aoli was my favorite, and I ordered it every time I went after I discovered it. I crave this sandwich, but I have not been to the restaurant in over a year. I finally paid a visit last week to see a friend’s band play, and…they changed the menu!!! Gone was my garlic aoli “chicken” sandwich, along with the polenta fries and some other things I used to order. What was I going to order?

I thought about mac and cheese, since I’m obligated to try it when I go out, but theirs sounded sooo wrong – "panko and tortilla crusted macaroni and cheese served with avocado lime aioli, chipotle ketchup and micro herbs." You know that saying about how you should take off an accessory before leaving the house? Well, that mac had waaay too much bling going on. It scared me. Just Say No!

I decided to order the green apple wrap with seitan, brie, granny smith apples, walnuts, tomatoes, and apple vinaigrette. All of the ingredients listed in the wrap, with the exception of the seitan, were indistinguishable in each bite. I could not have told you what was in the wrap and the vinaigrette was not tangy.

A choice of side – chips, field green, or mashed potatoes – comes with wraps and sandwiches. I’ve had the field greens, and they are just that – a smattering of some greens. Not too exciting. I’ve also had the mashed potatoes and remember them being buttery and yummy. The mashed potatoes I got were cold.

My friend ordered a falafel. The first thing she said was that there were too many onions in her sandwich. When will kitchens realize that onions are strong and need to be either caramelized or sliced very thinly? The falafel balls were as dry as a desert and slightly burned. I don’t think I’ve tasted a worse falafel. I felt embarrassed that I had praised Home Grown before bringing my friend.

My frou-frou drink was not as pretty as they used to be, either. Last time I got a red candy rim on my glass with a slice of apple. This time? ¡Nada!

What the hell, Home Grown? I suggest you wipe that coke from your nose and go back to tokin’.

Warning – Home Grown is really more of a restaurant than a bar, but bands play on a small stage and it can be loud. Avoid the restaurant on music nights if you want to have a conversation with your date. Also, late at night, squealing college kids – it is a college town – come in to drink martinis and look chic. Annoying and comical at the same time.

Home Grown Cafe, 126 E. Main St., Newark, DE 19711, 302-266-6993
Mon.-Sat., 11a.m.-1a.m., Sun., 10:30-11pm

Cafe Chettinad - Southern Indian in Newark

Edit 3/28/06 - Cafe Chettinad has closed, but some other Indian restaurant has taken over the same spot. I haven't tried the new place.

I love Southern Indian food on account of Devi at Touch of India in Columbia, SC. I swear my soul that it doesn't get any better than her food. I love her dahi puri - an appetizer made with puri, potatoes, yogurt, and tamarind chutney. I have yet to find it on the menu at another Indian restaurant. The other day, I tried out Cafe Chetinnad on Kirkwood Highway between Wilmington and Newark to see what was up with Southern Indian in the Wilmington area.

Short answer - not much!

I walked in with my partner about 9 p.m. on a Friday evening and only two other couples were eating. I figured it was probably all about the lunch buffet like most Indian restaurants. The atmosphere was like any standard restaurant in a strip mall - nothing fancy, but usually the good finds are stuck in some defunct strip mall. They weren't playing any music, which detracted from the atmosphere. Play a soundtrack from a Bollywood movie! It's what one expects. It was too quiet in there. The poor couple next to us had to listen to me talk about sex. Hell, play anything!

We placed our order for the andra spicy masala dosa - a crepe with potatoes, onion, coconut, tamarind, and chutney - and an entree that contained paneer. We were told that they were out of paneer, lamb, and shrimp. OUT OF PANEER? Are you kidding me? This is like a pizza joint running out of cheese. We gazed again at the vegetarian entrees, and most had paneer as a main ingredient. We order bhindi masala - main ingredients okra and tomatoes.

The service was pretty much non-existent. Both servers would peek around the corner from the back and gaze off into the distance at imaginary customers, never making eye contact with us. Or they would gaze at the floor as they walked past us and lift their eyes after they had passed. It was rather difficult getting their attention to order a beer that we had forgotten to put in with the food order. When we finally got their attention, they gave us a choice of about four beers. We chose one to have them come back and offer us a choice of one beer - not the one we wanted. OUT OF BEER! That lunch crowd must get crazy.

The dosa was good. I recommend it. It's not the best, but most certainly not the worst - the worst are flimsy, old dosas sitting on a buffet. The crepe was crisp and the filling was delicious - not too spicy. The dosa came with the standard sambar side and coconut side. It also came with a tomato chutney that was unimpressionable. The tomato chutney reminded me a little of condensed tomato soup (I guess it did make an impression, just not a good one). I asked for a side of raita - a yogurt condiment, which was not listed on their menu but they produced it.

The bhindi masala was most disappointing. It was edible (we ate it), but instead of Southern Indian, the dish tasted more like Southern! Memories of my mom's okra and stewed tomatoes over rice came to mind. These are good memories, don't get me wrong; okra is one of my two favorite vegetables. This dish was simply missing the complex mix of fresh spices and the heat that I normally associate with Southern Indian food.

Back to service. When we were given the check, the server hovered over us as we looked at the bill and did not leave. She literally looked at the bill as we were filling out the tip amount, and actually touched one of the copies in her attempt to help us find the right one to fill out. This was very unnerving. I honestly think she was mentally a little gone or suffering from effects of drugs. I've never had this happen at a restaurant.

Seeing as this restaurant is in a location that I rarely find myself, I probably will not be back. There was nothing to rave about - mediocre food, poor service, poor atmosphere, and a poorly stocked kitchen. They blew it on first impressions, which, like your parents or teachers tell you, count for a lot.