To celebrate my thirty-ninth birthday, my wife made took me to the Bonefish Grill in Novi. In short, the food was excellent! We started off with cocktails, my wife enjoying a Pomegranate Martini while I had the Ocean Trust Mango Martini. Her's was pretty good, but I really liked mine more. For entrees, my wife had the grilled Sea Scallops & Shrimp. My wife originally wanted the Imperial Longfin--Tilapia stuffed with stuffed with shrimp, scallops and crab meat, but thought it would be too big of an entree to finish and decided on just scallops and shrimp. She said she couldn't remember having scallops so good, not even while she was in New York for four years. I've never had scallops before and actually liked the couple of bites I had.

I had the grilled Longfin Tilapia, and it was the best fish dinner I can remember. To me, it was like getting a steak from Smith & Wollensky, except it being fish. We asked the waiter what the secret was for their fish tasting so fresh, and he said they fly the fish in from the market every other day. My wife and I also thought that the wood-grilling also must give the fish its excellent texture.

We shared a piece of the Deep Dish Key Lime Pie, which was also excellent. It had a very mild lime taste, with fresh whipped cream on top.

As for the price, we had two drinks, two entrees and a dessert for $51.40, which I thought was a good value for the quality of the food. If you prefer large portions of whatever you eat for $10 or less an entree, you should stick to Red Lobster. However, if you like reasonably sized portions of high-quality food for a reasonable price, you should check out Bonefish Grill.

My wife is already planning when we can go again. If you want to try this for yourself, be sure to call ahead for a reservation. Yes, an actual reservation, not call-ahead seating. You will need to call around lunchtime for a dinner reservation. I highly recommend this restaurant to any seafood lovers out there!

(3)

Before I went to see my accountant to have my taxes done (yes, I get them done late every year), I stopped in for dinner at the Berkely Front a biergarten in Berkley. While the interior wasn't much to write home about, at least it didn't have the antiseptic feel of a TGI Friday's or Chilli's. They have forty beers on tap, and at least a hundred more bottled choices. The burger I had was pretty good as well. To take advantage of happy hour prices, you definitely want to get there before 7:00 PM. Definitely recommended.

(1)

Having eaten at the Stillwater and the Stout Pub on numerous occasions, I decided that Deborah and I would try Lu & Carl's for a change.

We were able to get a table upon arriving, which is atypical for any quality restaurant @ 6:00 PM on a Saturday night. The speakers overhead played 70's music loudly, giving the place a barroom atmosphere. This could explain the younger crowd present, who probably enjoy a rowdy, boisterous atmosphere. (I think I stopped qualifying as a young person years ago!)

My wife ordered a Pomegranate Manhattan for a cocktail, which she really enjoyed. I had a Labatt's on draft, which was as good as usual.

My wife and I both had a serving of coleslaw and sweetbread before our entries arrived. The coleslaw wasn't the creamy kind. I believe they used a vinegar dressing of some kind. Not that I minded. I'm sure that this variety is less fattening than the former. We both liked the sweetbread, which was most and tasty.

For an entrée, I had the Parmesan encrusted whitefish, which I liked. The Redskin potatoes were good, as were the green beans. The price for this special, $15, seemed a bit much, though.

My wife had the Hawaiian Chicken, one of the more popular dishes according to the menu. She really didn't take to it much. The chicken was cooked with a coconut breading that tasted bland. The dipping sauce that accompanies it gives the dish its unique flavor. The chicken was served on a generous portion of wild rice mixed with a tomato-based sauce. Deborah doesn't like any kind of rice with tomato sauce at all. In fact, I usually end up eating her portion whenever we eat in Greektown.

Overall, I'd give this dining experience a grade of fair. Points to the owners for the copious pictures of dogs on the walls, which did not go unnoticed by my wife, who loves dogs.

(3)

Oh the trials and tribulations of going out to eat on Sweetest Day. If you haven't already made a reservation a week in advance, you're left with driving out and checking the wait time of one or more chain restaurants. And since most chain restaurants don't take call ahead seating on Sweetest Day, you know you're not going to get a table until sometime after 7:30 PM. For those of you who don't know what Sweetest Day is, its a holiday based in the northeast USA that is a reminder for husbands to be nice to their spouses. After being married for almost eight years, I need as many reminders as I can get!

After driving around for over a half-hour, my wife and I decided to try out a place that is a few miles away from our house. Located on Plymouth Road just west of Merriman, Giulio's is the place I'd told my wife on more than one occasion that "we should give it a try," and then promptly forgot all about it. Thankfully, remembering it this time salvaged our night on the town.

We arrived just after 7:00 PM, and were immediately seated. That's right, we were immediately seated. On Sweetest Day, before 7:30 PM. For those of you not familiar with Livonia, MI, our city tends to get really quiet in the evening, with grocery stores like Meijer's being the notable exceptions. My wife ordered two glasses of Domani for us, and we sat back and took in the atmosphere. The decor was very nice: fancy but not overbearing. There was a guy playing tunes on his keyboard up front, who occasionally bordered on cheesy but overall was pretty good. Our meals came promptly and hot. Deborah had the Bistecca Oscar, a steak dish she really liked. I also enjoyed my entrée, the Vitello ala Marsala, and admired that I could actually taste the wine in the sauce.

We didn't partake of dessert, but that was fine as both my wife and I try to cut back a bit these days. Overall, I rate our Giulio's experience as "very good". If you find yourself in the quiet enclave that is Livonia, MI, I definitely recommend giving Giulio's a try.

Giulio's
31735 Plymouth Road
Livonia, MI 48150
734-427-9500

(0)