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Shannon:
I greatly anticipated our lunch today, and could not wait to get off work to meet up with Grace. Although, faced with having to renew my licence plates, I briefly considered that we should just go out for lunch and blog another day. A stroke of genius hit when I realized the E-Check station and the restaurant were both located in Westlake, and only four minutes apart! So I called up Grace to tell her I was driving, and I was again very excited for our outing.
The drive to AJ's Urban Grill was relatively straightforward, despite not looking up the directions beforehand, we arrived without any complications. As soon as we entered the restaurant we were in a space between bar seating and a large dining area. Exposed light bulbs hung from the high ceiling, the walls were composed of various browns with metallic silver adornments, and all over was big grained wood. We were seated at a table that could seat four, with a booth against the window on one side and two chairs on the other. Grace sat down on the window seat, of which the back dramatically covered most of the window with an asymmetrical top that probably looked like waves from outside looking in. Once we received our waters, Cassandra told us what the soup of the day was, which I inquired about wondering if it was vegetarian. The soup was sadly not, but she went over all the vegetarian options on the menu with me. She also pointed out things that are not vegetarian but could easily be modified, which I greatly appreciated. I decided on the Grilled Portabella sandwich, intrigued that it included cream cheese. She suggested I get the sandwich on Ciabatta bread, and I tacked on sweet potato fries as a side.
We did not have to wait long for our orders to arrive. My sandwich was delivered on a long rectangular white plate with the perfect amount of fries on the side. The fries were accompanied by a little dish of honey, and the plate was topped off with a huge pickle spear. After polishing off the pickle, I started nibbling on a few fries, trying them in both honey and ketchup. The fries were thick cut and garnished with coarse black pepper. The honey amplified the sweetness and the ketchup paired well with the zest of the pepper. Either way they were extremely delicious. I started on my sandwich after a few fries, and upon my first bite my eyes rolled into the back of my head. The portabella mushrooms were grilled with a light oil and was framed by cheese. Provolone was melted onto the bottom slice of Ciabatta and chive cream cheese was spread and melted across the top slice. Between the cream cheese and mushroom caps were crisp tomato slices, red onion, and the most amazing roasted red peppers I have ever had. A lot of vegetarian sandwiches include roasted red pepper as a staple, but these peppers were soft and sumptuous from the oil on the mushroom cap and roasted to perfection. Before finishing the other half I gobbled up my fries, all the while Grace and I commenting on the perfect helpings of fries we were given. Normally if I finish everything on my plate I feel slightly uncomfortable from being so full, but this plate held just the right amount for lunch. My hunger was sated and my taste buds were extremely satisfied.
AJ's Urban Grill was an absolute treat. It's grand opening was at the end of last year, so definitely make it to this place for lunch or dinner! Our waitress, Cassandra, was so sweet and helpful. She made it so easy to navigate the menu, and she constantly checked up on us throughout our visit. If you can, make sure you're seated in her section, because you will be treated royally!
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Grace:
I honestly did not expect to be as impressed with AJ's as I was, seeing that it is a new establishment. However, from the moment I walked in, I was entranced. The decor was a mix of rustic and industrial, and, in my opinion, they did not play one bad song during our stay. I had looked at AJ's Urban Grill yesterday, and decided that it looked right up our alley.
Let it be known that I have gone back to eating meat (with the exception of red meat), so there were a lot more options for me than for Shannon, but that didn't seem to bother her. I was debating between a Veggie Pesto Pizza, and the Buffalo Chicken Grinder. I ended up choosing the Buffalo Chicken Grinder, but for the life of me, could not tell someone what a grinder actually is. It said on the menu that it was "lightly toasted on a fresh baked roll"--so I assumed a grinder was a sandwich! I asked our waitress if the sides were separate, and she said yes. I decided to splurge and get some waffle fries with my sandwich. My meal came on the same rectangular plate that Shannon's did, and I was incredibly happy to see we both got a pickle! We both started munching away at our pickles first. I exchanged one of my waffle fries for one of her sweet potato fries, and again, for the life of me, cannot decide which one I liked better! They were both so fresh and I could tell they were made there and not placed in some bag to be frozen until ordered. Shannon and I even talked about how waffle fries are made, and we both found the process to be fun and something we would like to try at home sometime. I dipped one of my seasoned waffle fries in some ketchup before moving on to the main attraction, my sandwich.
My sandwich was out of this world. It included chicken tenders with a sauce of your choice dripped onto them. I chose the medium sauce, and it was not as spicy as some other medium sauces I've had. The grinder also included some tomatoes, mayo, provolone cheese, lettuce, onions, banana peppers, and oil. I asked Cassandra if I could have the sandwich without onions, but when I bit into the sandwich, I noticed they had put onions on it. I'm actually not upset about this because every single bite was still as incredible as I hoped it would be. With any dish that includes buffalo sauce, it is customary to ask whether ranch or bleu cheese is preferred, and I always choose ranch because I can't stand bleu cheese. There was a little container of ranch on my plate, and I had fun spilling it onto the sandwich so that every bite was the perfect combination of spicy and creamy.
I can tell that the cooks at AJ's Urban Grill know the perfect portion sizes to make their customers happy and satisfied. Since I never really eat leftovers, I can't stand going to a place and feeling like I am, in a way, burdened with the task of eating every single morsel on the plate in order to get my money's worth. Shannon and I already have talked about coming back to AJ's Urban Grill, and I honestly can't wait! From the music, to Cassandra's great service, to the food--it was all a mood-enhancing dining experience that everyone deserves to have.
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Outside AJ's Urban Grill
Cucumber waters
Dining area
Awesome light bulbs and wall decor
Buffalo Chicken Tender "Grinders" sandwich and waffle fries
Grilled Portabella sandwich and sweet potato fries
More seating area
Table alcove
Bar
Chandelier
AJ's sign
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AJ's Urban Grill was as awesome as it was tasty! We are greatly anticipating our next visit, perhaps for dinner and drinks next time! If you stop in for dinner, let us know what's good!
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