Report Card: Houlihans

http://www.houlihans.com/my-houlihans/upper-arlington

 

Overall GrubGrade B

The Breakdown:

Atmosphere: Grade B+: Houlihan’s in Upper Arlington is not what we’d call an upscale restaurant, but it actually comes pretty close. We would actually classify Houlihan’s as a med-level steakhouse. From the outside, Houlihan’s looks pretty neat, with a blocky, contemporary style. The décor inside is fairly contemporary and the place was quite clean. The inside wasn’t too loud when we first arrived, but the restaurant wasn’t really very busy, either. By the time we finished eating, though, it was starting to get a little loud. Houlihan’s might have scored in the A- range except for one thing: the bench seat. Much like other restaurants that we’ve dinged for having this set-up, Houlihan’s is also guilty of having the same seating arrangement. Plus, with a nearly empty restaurant and a fairly young couple (that being us), I would expect the bench seat to be the last place we would be seated. But no. We were walked to the middle of a very long bench seat. In the case of Houlihan’s, at least they didn’t seat anyone right next to us on either side, so we were at least spared being witness to other peoples conversations against our will.

High marks: Clean, contemporary décor, fairly quiet upon arrival

Low marks: Giant bench seat

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Service: Grade B+: Our server, Tara, was quite attentive without being annoyingly clingy. She seemed to have a decent sense of humor and was sociable. We were allowed to settle into our seats before Tara arrived to take our drink order. This is important. We cannot stand when a server asks us what we want to drink before we’ve even picked up a menu. Please give us a minute or two…especially for Katina, who can be a little needy when it comes to drink menus. I can always opt for what’s on tap, but she’s a little more refined in her drink tastes. Once we ordered everything, there was minimal wait for the food. There was one error in our meal with Katina getting the wrong side dish, but otherwise the service was very solid.

High marks: Attentive without being oppressive, nice attitude and sense of humor

Low marks: One small error with our meal

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Food/Spirits: Grade B-: We started our meal by ordering the pot-stickers for our appetizer. The menu states they are pan-fried, but we felt they could have been left on the stove a little while longer. They were a little disappointing because they were soggy. Katina also had a bowl of French Onion soup and I tried the chicken tortilla soup. We both found our soups to be good, but neither of us felt they were the best versions of those soups we’ve had. The French Onion soup has less of a beefy flavor than Katina is used to, and I felt the chicken tortilla soup had a nice flavor but was a little under-seasoned, and therefore slightly bland. For her entree, Katina ordered the almond crusted tilapia and I opted for the Kansas City strip steak. Katina found the tilapia to be good, but almost all of the flavor came from the sweet, creamy sauce. I found my steak to be really good…actually better that I had anticipated. Our side dishes included green beans, chips and salsa, and some unwanted asparagus (that’s the mistake I mentioned earlier). The green beans were excellent and exceeded both of our expectations, while the chips and salsa were nothing special and tasted like they came from a bag and jar, respectively. Oh, I almost forgot our drinks…and that’s probably because they were quite forgettable. We opted for a mojito mule and a black cherry mojito, neither of which tasted like they had any liquor in them.

High marks: Better than expected steak and green beans

Low marks: Tilapia, chips and salsa, pot-stickers and drinks were all ho-hum

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Value: Grade B-: While Houlihan’s wasn’t outrageously expensive for a pseudo-steakhouse, it was the average tasting food that kept the value score low. But, Houlihan’s would make a nice first date spot…a little classy but not real expensive.

High marks: Not too expensive

Low marks: Food could be a little better …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Technical: Grade A: One bright spot for Houlihan’s is their website. Online reservations are available, as is their full menu including gluten free designations for some of their dishes. You can also find complete nutritional information for all of their dishes on their site as well. The site is very clean and easy to navigate. The only thing missing is the option of ordering online for those of us wanting to enjoy the food but not the crowd.

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Autism Friendly Score: 5: Online reservations (as mentioned above) are available, as is a gluten free menu. But no online kids menu and lack of free Wi-Fi keeps this score right in the middle of the scale for Houlihan’s. If your child has an adventurous palate they might find that Houlihan’s is not overwhelming due to sensory input it the crowd is light, but it might be too noisy if you visit during peak times.

Report Card: J. Liu

Wow. Doesn’t J.Liu look nice!

http://www.jliurestaurant.com/

Overall GrubGrade B+

 

The Breakdown:

Atmosphere:  Grade A-:  First off, before you click the link above and visit the website for J.Liu, make sure you turn down the volume on your computer.  It’s loud!  I didn’t turn down my volume and accidentally made a little water in my britches when the music came blasting out of my computer.  It’s not what you’d expect.  On the outside, J.Liu is nearly identical to the buildings adjacent to it, one of which is a bank.  So what, you ask?  You just need to make sure you have an idea of where you’re going or else you might just drive right on by it.  On the inside, J.Liu is nicely decorated with a distinct upscale vibe.  Check out the menu online first though, because you’re not going to be able to determine what kind of restaurant J.Liu is based on its décor.  Tables are nicely spaced and the place was spotless.

High marks:  Nicely spaced tables, clean, upscale

Low marks:   Upscale décor lacks theme

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Service:  Grade B:  If you happen to check out any other reviews of J.Liu (and you shouldn’t since our review is the best), you might see some comments on inconsistent service in the dining room and at the bar.  We’ve dined at J.Liu a number of times and have never had bad service in the dining room.  We can’t really speak for the bar area since we go to restaurants to dine and we go to bars if we are looking to tie one on.  Our server, Kate, did a really nice job of providing for us.  But again, this is one of those occasions where we had good service but nothing spectacular.  There was nothing memorable about the service.  Food arrived promptly and our drinks were replaced with minimal wait, but the service was professional but a little lacking in personality.

High marks:  Quick and accurate service

Low marks:   Nothing memorable about service

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Food/Spirits:  Grade A-:  Let’s talk about the good stuff, now.  For our drinks, I opted for the Rogue Dead Guy Ale, which I’ve reviewed a couple of times already.  Katina, on the other hand, ordered a drink named the “Royale.”  She found the drink to be delicious, with a pronounced blackberry flavor (both of us are quite fond of blackberries).  We opted for the potstickers for our appetizer.

yummy potstickers

My gripe with potstickers (and to some degree egg rolls and spring rolls as well) is a noticeable lack of meat and an overwhelming amount of veggies.  These appetizers are text book cases of unbalanced dishes.  However, the potstickers at J.Liu were pleasantly packed with meat.  They were quite tasty.  For her entrée, Katina settled on the spicy chicken with a side of fried rice.

“Spicy” chicken

While the dish was tasty, Katina did not feel there was any spiciness to the dish at all.  But the dish came with an abundance of sauce, which is a great way to get on Katina’s good side (the girl loves her sauces).  I ordered the Pasta Diavolo, which was quite delicious.

Pasta Diavolo

The spicy cream sauce was decidedly not spicy, but still flavorful.  What surprised me the most was the amount of meat in the dish.  Usually an entrée like this one would have a ton of pasta and a couple of scraps of meat, but in this case I actually needed more pasta since I ran out.  We decided to indulge in some dessert on this occasion, so Katina ordered a piece of key lime pie and I ordered a piece of chocolate flourless cake.  The key lime pie was very good, but I found the cake to just be average.  I am not a huge chocolate cake fan, so I might not really be the best qualified person to rate this particular dessert.

High marks:  Great appetizer, tasty entrees       

Low marks:  Spicy dishes not actually spicy, chocolate cake uninspiring

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Value:  Grade A-:  J.Liu almost made me part with one of my Benjamins, but for the quality of food, and the fact we had drinks, appetizers, and dessert, the price was not too bad.  If you were so inclined, you could probably make it out of J.Liu with a reasonable bill.  With an Asian flair but lots of non-Asian dishes to choose from, almost everyone can find something to eat at J.Liu.  If you haven’t found your favorite yet, stop lollygagging and get to it.

High marks:   Very good quality food, fairly reasonable price

Low marks:  Take a credit card if you plan on living it up