Iron Hill Brewery - Wilmington, DE

I wanted to go to Iron Hill in Wilmington all summer, but as luck would have it, there was no real convenient time.  Luckily, Mother Nature blessed us with a beautiful October Saturday and I was able to lunch with husband on the top deck overlooking the Christiana River.  I am kind of a snob with Iron Hill, really only wanting to go when I can sit outside - I like to enjoy my "outside" places in the summer and go to other restaurants without outdoor seating areas in the colder months.  Iron Hill is a definite winner in my book - good food and beer with vegetarian options highlighted on the menu.

I had a slight dilemma when picking my sandwich.  Should I go with my usual - the Mediterranean Wrap?  Or mix it up with the Black bean burger?  Since the weather was warm, I decided to go with the Wrap, and save the burger for a colder day (yes, I decided to come back and sit inside).  The wrap is a nice mix of veggies and protein - stuffed with hummus, cucumber, roasted red peppers, tomato, arugula, feta and balsamic syrup in a spinach tortilla.  I ordered a tossed salad of lettuce and herb vinaigrette for my side and stole a sweet potato fry from my husband - about 4x the size of a normal fry and really tasty!  The wrap is definitely tasty, with the hummus playing the starring role - there is a nice mix between the soft ingredients and the crunchy cucumber and arugula.  The herb vinaigrette on the side salad was delicious and I may consider getting a full salad sometime when I go there just to have more of it.  I decided that a Raspberry Wheat beer would be the perfect accompaniment to this Indian Summer meal!


Updated January 2013:

My husband and I went to dinner with another couple at Iron Hill Brewery in Media, PA.  I am writing about this experience because I tried something new!  Almost every time that I have gone to an Iron Hill, I have ordered the Mediterranean Wrap (delicious!), but I wanted to try something new.  Alas, there was a Southwestern Black Bean Burger.  So I gave it a try.  It is homemade with black beans, mushrooms, sweet potatoes (!), red and green bell peppers, and corn.  I never expected to see sweet potatoes in a burger, and they were actual chunks!  It was topped with pepper jack cheese, a tomato, and green chile aioli.  It was good!  The burger was bound together well and I could definitely taste the black beans and sweet potatoes.  The pepper jack and green chile aioli added a little spiciness to it.  I definitely recommend it.  I’m not sure that I like it more than the wrap, but a very good alternative.

Mikimotos – Wilmington, DE

 I really enjoy the atmosphere and food at Mikimotos restaurant in Wilmington.  As you walk in, you are greeted by a nice bar area on your left, a sushi bar in front of you, and dining room tables on the right.  The restaurant is well-lit, but in no way harsh.  It is warm and inviting.

      I usually order the Side Salad – mix of vegetables with carrot ginger dressing – and Zen Tofu – stir fried vegetables in Szechwan sauce with crispy tofu with steamed rice.  Both are very delicious.  The Tofu dish is spicy, but not too hot and the vegetable mix provides a crispy texture contrast to the tofu and rice.  This last visit, though, I decided to try something new.  I ordered the Vegetarian handroll assortment – five seaweed cones with sushi rice and vegetables.  There was one with each of the following: carrots, avocado, cucumber, passion fruit, and one more that I cannot recall.  They were fine, but they were not served with any sauce and were not nearly on par with the vegetarian sushi at Masamoto.  I definitely missed my Zen Tofu – and now I know, at Mikis, I’m staying with what I love!

Stuffed Peppers - Somebody Else's Way

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/stuffed-peppers-my-way/detail.aspx

This stuffed pepper recipe was good, but not great.  I think that it would taste much better with a red, orange, or yellow bell pepper to add some sweetness.  The green peppers were a little too bland for my taste.  The recipe says that it takes 1 hour, but if you multi-task (i.e. roast the peppers while cooking the rice mixture), it only takes about 30 minutes. 

The only change that I made to the recipe was with the Italian seasoning - we didn’t have any, so I mixed together some onion powder, oregano, and sage – it worked well with the other flavors of the dish.  The rice mixture had a somewhat salty taste – from the feta and extra salt – so I plan to cut the salt back to about ½ tsp., or even omit it completely.  The texture of the rice was a good contrast to the more firm consistency of the pepper, but I will roast the peppers for less than 25 minutes so that they are more firm.  Overall, a good dish, but could use some improving to make it more “My Way”.