Ali Baba Mediterranean Grill Restaurant - Dallas (Lakewood)

Went to Ali Baba Mediterranean Grill Restaurant with a couple of coworkers today. It's an all-u-can-eat restaurant. I think it also has entrees but we did the buffet.

We got there around noon. It wasn't too busy. About ten minutes after we were seated then got our food and then sat again to eat, the place started to get filled. There seemed to be more large "family-type" parties showing than like business luncheons or even just two people.

Overall, the food was pretty good. I've had tasted most of the food choices before with being friends with a Greek family so I kind of knew what to expect. However, part of the problem I had was that there were no labels to describe the many different dishes available. I could kind of tell what some foods were but there were many that I just couldn't tell.

This was a nice change of foods and some good dishes to eat. I'd much rather go back more often to a BBQ or Chinese buffet restaurant. Will I go back to Ali Baba? Maybe, sure, if someone I know suggests it and it's been a while since my last visit.

Pappas BBQ - Dallas (NW Hwy near I35 )

This was my lunch today from Pappas BBQ on NW Hwy in Dallas near I35.

It's the pork trio special. It comes with two pork ribs, pork sausage and pulled pork for like $10.95. I comes with a choice of two sides which I picked the mac & cheese with large pasta shells and cole slaw.

Both sides were very good. The cole slaw was exactly like I like/prefer it. The mac & cheese was good too and my kids will love it!

As far as the meats...the sausage, pulled pork and ribs were tasty but nothing extraordinary that would put them above any other BBQ joints' offerings.

FINAL VERDICT: Would I recommend Pappas BBQ? Sure. The food wasn't bad and the price was on par with the likes of Peggy Sue's BBQ, Baker's Ribs and Sonny's BBQ.

The difference in my preference would be that my Pappa's meal was roughly $15.00. I've had the all-u-can-eat BBQ buffet at North Main BBQ in Euless for $15.00 (the price as of my last visit around a year ago).

East Hampton Sandwich Co. (Park Cities/Dallas, TX)

For Mother's Day, I thought I'd stop by a local sandwich shop that a few people have said, "It's pretty good but may be somewhat pricey." The wife is worth any expense on any day but especially Mother's Day!

The place is called East Hampton Sandwich Co. It's been around a little bit and it looks like they've got two locations. I'm closer to the one in Dallas at Snider Plaza.

As I was walking to the entrance, an elderly couple was walking to the entrance at the same time. Being the courteous man I am, I opened the door and told them to go ahead before me. I should have assessed them a little better. I saw that they were old...pretty old. I saw the lady had a cane. I did not realize HOW slow she was walking. I thought it was just because of the step up to the curb from the parking space but it was because she was SO FREAKING SLOW!! Luckily, I wasn't in any type of hurry because freshly-removed-from-freezer ice cubes would have melted by the time they got from three feet outside the door to the counter for ordering.

The entrees in the photo are half of the Cheeseburger with avocado, cured bacon ($9.58 sandwich + $1.00 for avocado & cured bacon) on the left and half of the Seasonal Salmon Sandwich Special of the day/week on the right. I don't recall the exact price of the salmon but my total bill came to like $24.00. So I'm assuming the salmon special was around $12 because adding 8.25% tax would make it almost $24.

Anyway, the cheeseburger was really good. It's two hamburger patties that were not too thick but also not too thin. The bun is tasty. The avocado was good and the three pieces of bacon were very good. It comes with a side of chips that aren't fantastic but the wife said she liked them and, for me, it adds a crunch to each bite.

The salmon sandwich was pretty good. I didn't expect the layers of salmon to be as plentiful as they were. If you look at the photo, you can see the onion between the salmon (on the bottom) and the tomato (on the top). That's a good portion of salmon and it looks just as thick as the burger patties. It came with the same chips.

Between the two, I think the burger was more flavorful. The salmon was juicy and tender but maybe not as well seasoned.

I will go back for more but next time I might try the lobster roll. I heard it's very, very good. My only hesitation is that it's like $16 and I like to make sure I get my monies worth when it comes to seafood...well, any food really. I have seen a few people in the restaurant order the lobster roll and it looks plentiful but I don't know if it was more filler or lobster. Eventually I'm sure I'll try it.