RESTAURANTS

Hoping to find a new place to play our favorite NTN game in Palm Springs,
we noticed Flaherty's had been added to NTN's official website. With so few
places to play out here in the desert we were eager to check it out.

It's location was discreet in an unmarked plain concrete building next to
other rental spaces that looked unoccupied. A couple of unkempt fellows
with thick Irish accents sat smoking at the entrance. Without any windows
and the front door leaking no information I was a bit leery. One look inside
and I was ready to leave. This place looks like it party's hard.

The interior was nothing a guy would complain about with hunter green
walls, oak paneling, 3 pool tables, several televisions, a juke box and an
abundance of beer advertisements. I cringed looking at the worn carpets
and filthy sofas. I nudged my husband pointing at the sofa with the corner
of my mouth askew, but he was not phased saying that after a few drinks
no one really cares.

The bartender, doubling as a waitress, was friendly and gregarious. She
led us to the dining area in an adjoining room where many of the tables had
been left the way they were long after the occupants were through. She
welcomed us to sit anywhere we liked and proceeded to clear it of the dirty
plates and glasses, gave it a quick rub down and handed us menus while
she went off to mix our drinks.

The menu left me squirming, with seemingly typical greasy bar fare and
other dishes which I didn't have much faith in, especially with the prices so
cheap. I reluctantly decided upon an appetizer, the Slider ($2.95). This
mini burger was a bargain and hardly small either, with a quarter pound of
beef on a nice french roll with cheese. Things were looking up cause this
was really good. Just as good was the Fish Tacos ($7.95) another amazing
bargain with three huge tacos filled with grilled or breaded fish, cabbage,
salsa and ranch. We chose the deep fried fish which was tasty and a
shame to leave the last one, but we were too full, eating an finishing an
order of their sweet Onion Rings ($3.95) which were light and crunchy and
paired well with our other choices.

The food, which seemed to surpass it's surroundings, now made other
menu selections sound more appealing and included a pound and a half of
Alaskan King Crab Legs ($29.95), Pork Chops ($7.95) and a Porterhouse
Steak or Filet Mignon ($14.95).

The good food and hospitality makes me regretful to say there was also an
ant problem at the bar with a couple of hitchhikers making their way to our
table via our plate. The bartender confessed she'd seen them at the bar
where the cook had set our food and apologized up and down. As nice as
she was I think the place could benefit immensely from her cleaning more
and talking less.

Open 7 days a week from 11:00 A.M. to 2:00 A.M.

Located at 436 S. Indian Canyon Drive in Palm Springs

Telephone (760) 325-4913

I'd heard of "Brazilian Barbecues" for years. Highly touted by carnivores, I
avoided them. I'm just not a big meat eater. Sure I've had some wonderful
cuts of meat prepared perfectly which has swayed me not to cheat myself
of all that life has to offer, but Samba totally took me by surprise.

As the boys checked in with the hostess, I quickly scanned the menu for
something I could get by with. Happy to make do with my plan to order an
appetizer, I joined group en route to our table.

Along the way I admired the fearless use of color here with the brightest of
yellows and fiery reds dangerously close to screaming shades of greens
and blues. It was an exciting backdrop for an adventure. When we'd
arrived at our reserved table there were baskets of bread already waiting
with two places for dipping; a bean puree or an addicting garlic oil with
offensive amounts of minced garlic.

As the dinner progressed a bottomless bowl of salad arrived and after that,
bowls of farofa carrots, rice, black beans, creamed spinach and sweet fried
plantain. The plantain was curious, slightly charred, chewy and rather
meaty in itself. Throughout the meal meat on large skewers would arrive
at random which had been marinated or seasoned before grilling. They
looked and smelled so good I had to sample, just to be sure. I was
pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed so many of the offerings. The boys
went crazy over the Rare Steak, but I was impressed with the Slow Roasted
Pork & Pineapple, Teriyaki Chicken and Honey Brushed Turkey Breast
Roulad Wrapped in Bacon. The meat kept on coming with skewered "Alho"
Style Chicken Legs, Brazilian Style Baby Back Pork Ribs and "the poor
man's lobster": Monkfish.

Besides the All-You-Can-Eat Barbecue ($34.95) Samba has a full menu
with specialty entrees which include 1# Australian Lobster Tail Surf & Turf
($100) and Rigatoni Pasta ($19) with peas, pecorino cheese and garlic
cream. Though I would have been happy to have my own plate of endless
meat, I was happily with my Empanadas ($8.62). These couldn't have
been made any better with hand made pastry wrapped around perfectly
seasoned beef and served with a slightly thick spicy puree.

A Cuban classic Mojito ($10) muddled with rum, fresh mint and lime went
beautifully with everything, but mostly I'd hoped the mint would conceal
the enormous amounts of garlic I'd consumed from the bread and oil. Not a
chance, but it was all worth it anyways. This place is a dream.

Located inside the Mirage in Las Vegas

Telephone (702) 791-7337 or for reservations (702

Chin's, a recognized restaurant to this area, brings back memories from days
when Chinese food was an adventure. Food is so much more advanced now
with sushi and fusion cuisine all the rage. Chin's is a big step up from the hole
in the wall places that dish out bland plates of noodles and stir fry, but it isn't
trendy either. It's one of those places that people grow old with, relying on it
for their favorites.

The ambiance has a comfortable formality with tables draped in white and
waiters distinguishing themselves with proper attire. Dim lighting makes it
easier to forget the day, for a while. It's time to dine.

Two visits isn't nearly enough time to tackle the menu, but it doesn't take long
to find some great flavors. The Pu Pu Platter ($13.50) offers some of my
favorites with a sampling of six of their appetizers. The Paper Wrapped
Chicken ($6.50) was one of the best with a generous chunk of chicken
wrapped with it's marinade and green onion in foil before deep frying. The
Teriyaki Beef Stick ($6.50) was very tender and flavorful, and the Golden Fried
Shrimps ($8.50) came eight to an order with the shrimp butterflied before
donning it's thin crispy coating. These are addicting dipped in Chinese
mustard. The homemade chili sauce that accommodated the Pot Stickers
($7.50) nearly drove me to tears, literally. Though it was incredibly spicy it
had a fantastic flavor that I couldn't get enough of and dipped everything in.
My nose was a faucet by the end of the meal.

Their most expensive entree on the menu, the Surprise Lettuce Delight
($16.95) is assembled table side with minced chicken, shrimp, mushroom and
water chestnuts topped with a plum sauce which is eaten like a taco from
iceberg lettuce cups. This makes a great appetizer for four to share or a meal
in itself for one person. The Szechwan Hot Braised Delight ($16.95) combines
shrimp and sliced chicken breast in a sweet and sour tomato chili sauce. I
wasn't so sure about the sauce, but the chicken was so tender I couldn't stop
eating it. Our waiter's favorite, the Shrimp with Honey Walnuts ($14.95) was
one we enjoyed on both trips, with a generous plate of shrimps coated in a
creamy honey sauce and scattered with crispy baked sugared walnuts.

Equally pleasing was the staff. The hostess welcomed us the minute we
stepped in and the waiter was equally friendly and patient to answer any
questions. It's restaurants like this that deserve to be in business.

Located at 445 N. Escondido Blvd. In Escondido.

Telephone (760) 480-4115

Website: www.visitchins.com <http://www.visitchins.com>

Other locations in Carlsbad, Encinitas, Oceanside, Scripps Ranch, Rancho
Bernardo, Vista, Miramar, San Marcos, and Hawaii.

This place really surprised me. I'd stayed in the Paris Hotel for vacation
and passed this place up so many times. The place was clean and put
together well, but the wooden tables seemed too country casual making
me think this was a fancier sort of coffee shop. The laminated menu left
me with no further hope of a meal that my fussy palate would approve of.

Admittedly I'd come with a group of guys who really could have cared
less what they ate, but I did. I figured I'd get through it with something
small, and hope for something better later. The boys ordered a bottle of
2001 St. Francis Merlot ($45). This tasted like a bargain for the money. I
was impressed with the choice. My Lobster Bisque ($7) arrived and what
a lucky start. It was a big bowl, flavored with aged cognac and creme
fraiche. This could be quite filling in itself had I not been lured away
before finishing with some fantastic entrees.

The chef was on fire this night. Flavors leapt off the plates starting with
the Pesto Chicken Penne ($15) with grilled chicken and sun dried
tomatoes in a light pesto cream. This seemed like the best choice until I
tasted the Baked Parmesan Crusted Chicken ($19). This had more flavor
than I imagined poultry was capable of. This sat amidst marinated
artichoke hearts, button mushrooms, roasted potatoes and a Chardonnay
butter sauce. Equally unbelievable was a perfect Pan Roasted Sea Bass
Fillet ($23), so buttery tender and moist with a caper white wine sauce.

Wow my head was spinning. The casual menu and unpretentious
surroundings fooled me. I'd realized I'd cheated myself. I wanted a "do
over". The meal ended with a wonderful Creme Brulee ($6), and me
vowing to return.

Open daily from 11:30 A.M. to 10:30 P.M.

Located in the Paris Hotel at 3655 South Las Vegas Blvd. in Las Vegas.

Telephone (702) 967-7999

Restaurants are a dime a dozen, and then there's that one, that one that
does everything right and everyone knows it. For these places people will
wait endlessly and drive many miles. It's no wonder Tokyo Kitchen found it
necessary to expand, it was a little place in big demand.

Tokyo Kitchen was a tiny place when we first visited back in 2001. We had a
whirlwind romance with their sushi and looked forward to the day we'd
return. When we did we were surprised with a much bigger place and it was
packed! A bar now inhabits the place where we once ate sushi. It's
understated and casual with numerous teppan grills claiming most of the big
room with the sushi bar tucked in the far back corner.

Back then when we were just venturing into sushi the Manly Roll ($12)
with spicy crab and shrimp tempura and the Spicy Tuna Roll ($6.50) were
our favorites here. The Stuffed Tomato ($9.50) was much more daring with
raw scallops and langostinos tossed with tempura crunchies and spicy
mayonnaise then served in two small mounds on rice with a wide slice of
raw tuna wrapped around each. The seafood in this was sweet yet firm and
the tempura gave it great texture. This was even better than we
remembered on this second trip.

I couldn't believe they had a roll with my name on it and the Cari Roll ($11)
was exactly how I would have designed it with lobster, tuna and avocado
inside then topped with chili oil, green onion and masago. This was
fantastic. I really took notice of the rice they use in their rolls which has a
clean taste that elevates the fish. The Eel Special Roll ($11) was one of the
better eel rolls I've had with shrimp tempura, crab and avocado inside and
grilled freshwater eel on top along with sesame oil, ponzu and teriyaki
sauces, green onion and masago. The Oyster Shooter ($7) was more
enjoyable than daring with a chopped oyster and octopus in a shot glass
with sake, a raw quail egg, green onion and lots of masago. It's so generous
I found myself finishing it with chopsticks.

I'm convinced our sushi chef, Supi could make anything taste good. He was
more than willing to create and accommodate. He urged us to try the
Pamela Special with baked ono ($9.50) which he said with pleasured tone,
"It's to die for." It was too late we were stuffed. I had remembered another
dish too late that patrons urged us to try years earlier the Pompano ($5)
with small white fish deep fried and served whole or served sushi style with
the bones deep fried and intended to be eaten like french fries. We felt
honored to be given the belly of the salmon which is a rare offering not
found on the menu with only one plate to offer per fish. We couldn't believe
how buttery it was, deep fried and served with a ponzu based sauce.

I'd find it difficult to pass up the sushi here, but the teppan grill seems to be
a big attraction at Tokyo Kitchen. I could see why, the food is so fresh and
their teppan menu offers more than the usual. There are many
combinations to choose from and include Sesame Chicken ($15.95), Filet
Mignon ($22), Lobster Shrimp & Scallops ($31), Vegetarian ($14) and Fish
of the Day (halibut or orange roughy) ($19.90). Teppan entrees are served
with shrimp appetizer, soup, salad, vegetables, seasoned rice and ice
cream.

Whether one is looking for quality or quantity Tokyo Kitchen fits the bill, and
if I lived closer I wouldn't be able to pay mine. This place could be an
addiction.

Open for lunch weekdays 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and dinner nightly starting
at 5:00 p.m.

Located at 8851 Central Avenue in Montclair

Telephone (909) 625-5588

Website: www.tokyokitchen.net