The Leptologists Eat at Hae-Paul's

Paul: Do you know what cuisine we've never done before?
Candice: Scottish!
Paul: No! Well, true, but what I was thinking of was Korean.
Candice: Too bad. I would have enjoyed some haggis.
Paul: You're joking, aren't you?
Candice: Maybe. So Korean?
Paul: Hae-Paul's is a new Korean restaurant located in downtown Columbus.
Candice: Oh, right. It's getting some good buzz. Didn't they recently change their name?
Paul: Yes, it used to be called Natalie's. The owners/chefs are Hae Ran and Paul Yow. It's located a block or two south east of the Ohio Statehouse.
Candice: We're not walking, are we? Did you see the ice out there?
Paul: No, I'm bringing the car around.
Candice: I like the look of this place. The decor is simple and elegantly kitschy. It's clean and open.
Paul: It smells wonderful as we enter.
Candice: Debra the waitress asks us to seat ourselves and I pick the long blue table by the window.
Paul: You seem distant today.
Candice: Ha ha.
Paul: Debra is soon over to get our drinks and tell us the specials. Her infectious giddiness makes this lunch seem special already.
Candice: The soup of the day is a Chicken Bulgogi Soup and the special of the day is an Egg Cake with Avocado Cream Filling.
Paul: Those both sound good.
Candice: Yep. I order the Egg Cake, Calamari, and the Pulled Pork.
Paul: I order the Chicken Bulgogi Soup, the Mung Bean Cakes, and the Beef Bulgogi.
Candice: Debra is more than happy to bring two spoons and two plates for sharing.
Paul: The Calamari arrives first.

Friend Calamari

Candice: It comes with a lovely kimchee tartar sauce, which is spicy but not too hot.
Paul: This is very good calamari. Not chewy fish-flavored bubblegum that is sometimes served at restaurants.
Candice: It's lightly coated and not greasy. The light breading means I can taste the calamari. Yes.
Paul: There's ample amount here, but it came out on such a big plate that the portion looks meager.
Candice: Yep.

Chicken Vegetable Soup

Paul: Here's the soup.
Candice: It's a basic vegetable and chicken soup.
Paul: Carrots, turnips, onions, and bulgogi chicken. It's spicy, hot, and good. I like the rice in here a lot. But you're right - a basic soup.
Candice: The chicken is fresh.
Paul: The next appetizer arrives, the Bean Mung Cakes.

Mung Cake

Candice: Ah, now this is what I think of when I think Korean food. Lovely, nummy flavor.
Paul: This is good. I see a variety of vegetables in the cake, and a leafy lettuce of some sort underneath.
Candice: It's spicy with a contrasting sweet sauce atop it. A very good combination of flavors.
Paul: Agreed. Very, very good appetizer.
Candice: Paul Yow visits us at our table. He says we eat food like he does, a wide range of flavors in the appetizers and entrees.
Paul: He mentions that the process of making Mung Cakes requires no leavening and that they are a prime example of Korean street food.
Candice: He also mentions that the restaurant has been open since November 7th as Debra did earlier.  Good to see them doing so well.  The place is packing in now...
Paul: That was nice of him to stop by and you're right, a decent crowd. Here's our last appetizer, the special of the day, the Egg Cake.

Egg Cake

Candice: It looks and tastes like a crustless quiche, Debra said, and I agree.
Paul: This has got a smooth, gentle flavor. The egg holds all these subtle ingredients (zucchini, avocado, and green pea dip) together.
Candice: The Egg Cake is definitely more your thing than mine.
Paul: I like this a lot, more as I eat more of it. It's a well-crafted dish. Ah, here's the entrees and extra plates.

Beef Bulgogi

Candice: The Beef Bulgogi is savory and there's a variety of vegetables to complement the taste.
Paul: Yes, the beef is well done and it has a strong flavor. It's an excellent dish.
Candice: The soba noodles served cold with the pulled pork are delicious.
Paul: Yes, this is the flavoring I think of when I think of Korean food. The noodles are awesome.

Pulled Pork

Paul: Well, overall what did you think?
Candice: The food all around was excellent especially the Bean Mung Cakes and the Soba Noodles.
Paul: Yes, I liked the Calamari and the Egg Cake. The combination of flavors in the entrees were also very good.
Candice: Agreed. And the price was $42 for all this food. That's three appetizers, one soup, and two entrees for those keeping score at home. Very much worth the price.
Paul: Certainly worth the wait. Debra took good care of us.
Candice: I'm for sure coming back. Our only critique would be the plating.  It left some of the dishes looking sparse. Use small plates and pile those delicious calamari on!
Paul: Here! Here! I'd come back too. I want to try the sesame beef burrito.
Candice: That does sound good. Thanks for the great suggestion, Paul.

	Candice	Paul
Worth the Price?
Worth the Wait?
Worth Coming Back?

The Leptologists Eat at Pies an Pints

Candice: You gave me no choice today. You must have something in mind.
Paul: We're going to Pies and Pints.
Candice: Oh, yes, it's been getting a lot of buzz.
Paul: It's a twenty minute drive from downtown, but we've gone farther for less buzz.
Candice: Let's hope it stands up.
Paul: We manage to drive around the entire strip mall in search of the place.
Candice: Driving over those speed bumps in an otherwise empty parking lot...
Paul: I like to obey the laws.
Candice: Uh huh. I know you well enough to ask, "Which laws?"  Here we are. The location is large with three wings surrounding the kitchen.
Paul: There's also an outdoor area for better weather than today's.
Candice: Mark, our server, sits us in the front wing.
Paul: It smells vaguely of disinfectant.
Candice: Look at this selection of microbrews. Breakfast Stout, Elevator Dark Horse. There are lot of local brews on the menu here.
Paul: Good for them. And the menu is full of specialty pizza pies.
Candice: I'll have one of those, the Garlic Mushroom Pie, and for appetizers, the Chargrilled Hot Wings and the Rosemary and Roasted Garlic Flatbread.
Paul: Good choices there. I'll go with their most famous pie, the Grape Pie, as seen on TV.
Candice: I haven't seen it.
Paul: Me neither, but Mark assures us it has indeed been seen on TV.
Candice: As have you, if we're including "internet" TV.  Ah, here are the appetizers, nicely presented.

Rosemary and Roasted Garlic Flatbread

Paul: The flatbread is drizzled with balsamic. A lump of something sits in the middle.
Candice: Goat cheese.
Paul: This is excellent bread.
Candice: Yes, if this is their pizza dough, then I have high hopes. The goat cheese is an excellent contrast to the sharp balsamic.
Paul: The wings are also good.

Chargrilled Hot Wings

Candice: It's not a buffalo sauce at all, they're grilled with  sriracha hot sauce, citrus, garlic and cilantro.  Fabulous.
Paul: They're spicy, not tangy. They have a deep flavor that goes all the way to the bone. They're moist and fresh.
Candice: My favorite thus far.  And...the hostess manages to sit a couple right next to us in an otherwise utterly empty room.
Paul: How are you supposed to shout your opinions with someone this close to us?
Candice: Me?  Shout?
Paul: Are we doing the <blank stare> bit again?  'Cause, I gotta tell ya, you're gonna lose again.
Candice:  Meh.  Win, lose..as long as I'm eating good quality food.  I must admit, this is one of my pet peeves. Use the rest of the room before you seat two parties next to each other.  Not that I don't like people, but we do discuss more than just the food on these excursions, ya know?  Trying to help a fella out here...
Paul: Point taken.  Let's skip the blank stares then.  Look, the pizzas are here!

Mushroom Garlic Pie

Candice: Indeed, they are.  Mine is a beautiful pie. It smells divine.
Paul: There's a lot of mushrooms on that thing.
Candice: You should try some fungus for once.
Paul: Um....
Candice: My pie is savory with the earthiness of the mushrooms and the sweet of the onions.
Paul: You make it sound good.
Candice: That's because it is.  I don't tend to say things I don't mean.  My one complaint, however, would be that it needs something acidic to the cut through the sweetness. Try it.
Paul: Okay.... Oh, I hate mushrooms. I see what you mean -- it's savory -- but mushrooms aren't my thing.

Grape Pie

Candice: They're good for your health, man.  Thanks for trying, though I gotta say - you're not a fun guy.
Paul: I see what you did there.
Candice: < blank stare> How's yours?
Paul: It has an excellent crust. The cheese is wonderful. The grapes... are interesting. A small explosion of sweetness. A great contrast of flavor and texture.
Candice: Let me try. Yes, you're right. This is an interesting pie.
Paul: "Interesting" is an interesting word. It can mean so much.
Candice: Open to interpretation can be a good thing.   You know what your pizza could use?
Paul: Some sausage?
Candice: Or some pepperoni.  A light, tangy, thin sliced...
Paul: I agree. Even so, it's an awesome pizza to try at least once.
Candice: Mark informs us that the crust is a standard pizza dough, except for a touch of honey and a coating of garlic oil around the edge.
Paul: They have the crust down. It was excellent.
Candice: Yes, I'd come here for the crust alone.  Repeating myself, I declare that the best part of the meal was the chicken wings.
Paul: Is that why they're going in your box?
Candice: You had more than I during lunch. I'll take the rest.
Paul: Of course. Your thoughts?
Candice: They have a great dough for their flatbread and their pies. The wings were fabulous and it looks like their selection of beers is local and wide.
Paul: The prices were decent. The wait was non-existent.
Candice: I'd definitely come back again; there's lots more on the menu a person could try.  Thinking a great place for a weekday dinner for the family.
Paul: I do have one of those...
Candice: And, a fine example of one you have, sir.  Let's get to work so I can get home soon to have our...I mean, these wings for dinner, eh?

	Candice	Paul
Worth the Price?
Worth the Wait?
Worth Coming Back?