Catalina's Pizza -- Teriyaki Chicken

Meal	Small Teriyaki Chicken
Price	$6.32
Speed of Service	5 minutes
Time of Meal	6:00 PM, Weekday
Taste (1 to 10)	8
Value (1 to 10)	9
Décor (1 to 10)	5
Service (1 to 10)	6
Other Thoughts	Quick, hit the spot, fair price. Not a great neighborhood, parking around the block.

Toyko Steakhouse -- Sushi

In retrospect, i'm wondering if I should have gotten Teppanyaki at the Tokyo Steakhouse in Peabody than the Sushi I ordered.

I'm not saying that it was bad, but I think that I was looking for more on that day, and this meal probably would been decent on most days, but for today it seemed to be a bit too little.

My meal consisted of four Maki rolls: an Idaho Maki (tempura sweet potatoes), Oshinko Maki, Cucumber Maki and a Seaweed Salad Maki. I'd probably rate them in that order. Not sure if there's much else to say, it was good, not great, but not bad. Service wasn't particularly good or bad, ambiance was fairly neutral, everything here was pretty plain.

The only memorable thing was the parking, which was a problem, as this place is stuck inside an overcrowded mini-mall, and maybe it was a particularly bad weekend, but I lucked out from having to drive around for 20 minutes to find a space.

Meal: Sushi (Idaho Maki, Oshinko Maki, Cucumber Maki, Seaweed Salad Maki)
Price: $20.00
Time of Meal: 1:30 PM, Weekend
Speed of Service: 10 minutes

The Restaurant -- Corned Beef Reuben

If you drive down Main Street in Woburn, there's a restaurant simply called "The Restaurant". I can imagine many patrons have had Laurel and Hardy-esque situations while pondering to come here, but when they do decide on the visit, they'll find it wasn't bad for what they get.

My meal was a corned beef Reuben (they also have roast beef and turkey), which came with a pickle, although I decided to add on a slice of Pecan Pie with the bottle of soda, which probably wasn't necessary since this sandwich certaintly filled me up. Must've been a third pound of meat on there and the Russian dressing and saurkraut was flavorful if not overpowering.

The price was about average for what you'd expect from a wait staff establishment, although the line between counter service and formal service is blurred here since they have both a cafeteria line and waiters to bring you out more complicated items.

Parking's alright, and superlative compared to what you'd find in other downtown establishments in the area.

Meal: Corned Beef Rueben, Pecan Pie, and Drink
Price: $13.36
Time of Meal: 11:30 AM, Weekday
Speed of Service: 5 minutes (a cross between counter and wait service

Hornet's Nest -- Buffalo Chicken Sandwich

If you've never been to North Reading, Massachusetts, basically it's divided into two parts: Route 28 and Route 62. Route 28 is comparable to most other parts of Massachusetts on a smaller scale: an urbanized/suburbanized line of strip malls. But Route 62 is another story entirely, it's a rural little town and there's only one real place to get any food that I saw: the Hornet's Nest almost directly across from the library. 

Named after the nickname for sports teams at North Reading School, which is only a few thousand feet away, the Hornet's Nest has long been a local pizza/sandwich joint for students and townies alike apparently, and has seen a bit of a renovation since it burnt down a few years ago.

I came here and ordered the Buffalo Chicken Sandwich, and I was definitely pleased with what I received; the meat was tender and fresh, the Buffalo coating was both crispy and spicy, but not overpowering in its zest.

Add some shredded lettuce and blue cheese, and that's it. Nothing fancy, but nothing more is needed. This sandwich hit the spot, and I'd be happy to go there again if I was somewhere in the area. 

Meal: Buffalo Chicken Sandwich and Mountain Dew

Price: $9.08

Speed of Service: 10 minutes

Time of Meal: 6:30 PM

Kowloon -- General Tso's

If you've ever heard that blowhard Pat Whitley talk about restaurants, you've probably heard him talk about Kowloon on Route One in Saugus.

This is primarily because it seems they have paid him off somehow (there was some kind of advertisement for something he was doing in the lobby), because I couldn't recommend this place per the General Tso's test.

Hell, i'm beginning to wonder if it's worth ordering General Tso's anywhere anymore. If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: small croquettes are critical if you're going to make General Tso's in the traditional manner. Otherwise what you get from places nowadays is fat and ligaments and all other kinds of unexpected garbage at prices where you deserve much better as a customer.

I asked the staff here if they made their General Tso's with white meat, and I think they interpreted it as a request to make it with white meat instead of a question as whether they do or not.

What they gave me was left over chicken fingers, it seems. And not even good chicken fingers, the meat was stringy at times and the rest of the meal was subpar, if edible at least.

The service was adequate enough I guess since the meal came quickly, and if you can imagine your local old school Chinese place that doubles as a dive bar and turn it into a very small resort location, that's what it looks like inside Kowloon. Maybe i'd come in here someday for a drink and a show, but the Chinese food definitely wouldn't warrant a second visit.

Meal: General Tso's with Fried Rice and Crab Rangoons
Price: $10.03
Speed of Service: 10 minutes
Time of meal: 12:00 PM Weekend

Colombo's Pizza and Cafe -- Sicilian

A little Italian deli/bistro in Reading, Columbo has alot of charm and it wasn't too bad when it came to food either, at least when I went there.

My meal was a Sicilian sandwich, prosciutto, cappicola, tomato and mozzarella with some olive oil and basil, and the ingredients worked together well here at this place, although it would have been nice to get a little more for what I paid for the sandwich and accompanying drink.

Not sure what else to say. Fairly convenient location if you're in Reading, parking's pretty good, ambience is nice, it was over the counter so service wasn't a major concern. Maybe they could have toasted this sandwich, but otherwise I was fine other than the price. 

Meal: Silician Sandwich and Lime Rickey

Time of Meal: 3:00 PM Weekend

Price of Meal: $10.95

Speed of Service: 5 minutes

Royal Dynasty -- #33

This place is probably right there in the dictionary next to the definition of a old school Polynesian-Chinese-American Restauarant. And like with most old school places, the real test is when you order the right thing and this place did well in that respect.

What I got was the #33, a mix and match of typical old school items, in this case crab rangoon, chicken fingers and beef terriyaki. I cannot complain on any of them and the fried rice was decent too.Parking's decent, this place is located in a little mini-mall just off 93.

In terms of service the courtesy was fairly neutral, which I can live with, and the speed was outstanding. If they lopped about a dollar off the price, I would call this place exceptional when it comes to what they serve where they serve it. At the very least though it is a solid option.

Meal: #33 
Time of Meal: 1:30pm 
Price $8.29 
Speed of Service: 10 mins

China Cuisine -- LS 9

I am not sure what to think after a meal at china cuisine in North Reading. From appearances, I figured I would give them the General Tso's test, but they failed, the meat was stringy like so many other General Tso's you'd find elsewhere.

But despite this attribute, which is usually a disqualifier for a good review from me, everything else was decent or better. Even the meat itself wasn't too terrible even though its far below what one should get if ordering General Tso's.

Maybe I will try a different dish at this place in the future, I can't fault them for heading back to the roots of general tso's and using inferior meat instead of the standards that are available at some restauarants elsewhere today.

Meal: LS 9 Combo

Price: $10.02 
Time of Meal:2 pm 
Speed of Service10 mins