Today the Madre and I decided to head to the Seminole Hard Rock Casino for lunch and of course to try our luck at a drawing happening. I had been invited by the Casino to check out the new Rise Kitchen and Bakery and figured we could give it a try. We usually eat at the buffet when we go, basically only because I have a ‘slight’ addiction to their ranch dressing. Anyways…. Back to the good stuff.
First let me say that the new restaurant is so spacious! It’s in a new section of the casino that’s 100x’s less smoky too, just another plus. I was surprised to be seated immediately. Usually there’s always a wait at any of the restaurants there.
We started out with the smokey french onion dip & house made potato chips. This shit was DELICIOUS! I’m not even a chip person and loved it.
We both had salads. I had to basically build my own. I chose a small Shrimp Louie and made it vegetarian friendly – minus shrimp and the Louie dressing. I added cheddar cheese and ranch dressing because as I stated before, I LOVE the ranch dressing at the casino. Yes, I am indeed a tad bit crazy, but trust me. I know a good ranch dressing when I see/ taste one (Beef ‘O’ Brady’s in Citrus Park and on North Dale Mabry also has one of the best ranch dressings EVER).
My Mom had a small Italian chop house. I tried a piece of her swiss cheese to taste the dressing. I’m not usually an oil dressing person, but it was also equally delicious. Take away the turkey and salami and I may have to get that next time.
For our entrees we stuck with sandwiches. My Mom ordered a Chicago style roast beef sandwich. She said it was pretty close to what she misses in Chicago. “A little more garlic and it would be just right”. I tried some au jus on the bread. It tasted very familiar.
In case you’re wondering, I haven’t always been a vegetarian.
I ordered a “Giant” grilled cheese sandwich which came with plenty of cheesiness warnings from our waiter, Raymond. He wanted to make sure I understood that they don’t skimp on the cheese here. 9oz of ooey, gooey provolone, American and cheddar.
For those that know me know that I have to really be in the mood for dessert and I was after all that savory goodness.
I ordered the St. Louis gooey butter cake and my Mom ordered a pecan diamond bar.
There was plenty left to take home for another meal too. Can you believe all of this was just under $50?
The best part of this experience was just how open they were to altering my choices to make my meal vegetarian friendly. Not many restaurants do that and usually if they do it’s not worth eating.
You can see their full menu here
You can Tweet with the Seminole Hard Rock Casino @SHRTampa and connect with them on Facebook
Btw….. after about 4 hours of gambling on $60 and down to my last .17 cents I won $120!
Holy awesome day!!!
Side note: I’m considering redesigning this blog to have sections for everything I enjoy talking and blogging about. What do you guys think about me adding a vegetarian section to this blog? I’m thinking about blogging about my experiences being a fairly new vegetarian. Recipes, restaurant experiences etc…
