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Restaurant review: Texas Roadhouse in Hadley

The chain’s Hadley restaurant, located on Route 9, reflects the chain’s in-your-face country-western personality.

Big, bold, and brash is the agenda at Texas Roadhouse, the Louisville, Kentucky-based casual dining brand.

The chain’s Hadley restaurant, located on Route 9, reflects the chain’s in-your-face country-western personality, from the rustic “pine-board” decor to the plaintive country ballads that play in the background.

The menu at Texas Roadhouse is all about red-meat enjoyment. The chain prides itself on the hand cut steaks and slow cooked ribs that represent its signature offerings.

Steak choices include four sizes of USDA Choice Sirloin as well as a Dallas Filet ($20.99) and a Bone-In Ribeye ($25.99). Prime Rib ($22.99) is available, as is a cheese-and-onion-topped chopped steak that’s mischievously labeled “Roadkill” ($10.49)

Other options Texas Roadhouse makes available range from Portobello Mushroom Chicken ($11.99) and Grilled Pork Chops ($10.49) to Fish & Chips ($11.99) and Grilled Salmon ($14.99).

Burgers, salad plates, and several sandwich variations complete the lineup.

Starters are of the hearty sort. Fried Pickles ($4.99) are featured, as are Boneless Buffalo Wings ($8.99) and Rattlesnake Bites (cheese-stuffed jalapeno nuggets — $5.99).

We began our dinner by sharing a Cactus Blossom ($5.99), the restaurant’s version of a pull-apart onion appetizer. More than enough to share, the batter-dipped, deep-fried onion came with a horseradish dipping sauce ginned up with a dash of Cajun spice.

Texas Red Chili ($2.99) is another agreeable possibility. Heavy on the chili powder, a characteristic that gave the “Texas Red” a distinctive cumin kick, the chili was served topped with grated cheese and diced red onion.

From the eatery’s steak repertoire, we settled on two favorites. A Ft. Worth Ribeye ($18.99 for a 12-ounce cut) was cooked as we’d specified; its beef flavor only lightly “enhanced” by a proprietary brush-on. The New York Strip ($18.99) was equally to our liking; both steaks had been grilled, rather than being “charbroiled,” the latter a technique that too often translates as “burnt and slightly bitter.”

Steaks at Texas Roadhouse can be “smothered,” for an additional $1.99, with any combination of mushrooms, onions, Jack cheese, and brown gravy. We opted to enhance our red meat moment with the mushrooms and were pleased to find they’d been simply prepared – butter, some salt and pepper, and a whisper of garlic.

Roadhouse’s “Fall-off-the-Bone” Ribs ($14.99 for a half slab) were also agreeable enough, with a low-key smoky flavor and barbecue sauce brush-on that contributed suggestions of caramel and molasses.

The same sauce dressed up the BBQ Roasted Half Chicken ($10.99) we enjoyed, the sauce enhancing the pleasantly moist poultry.

Main course selections come with a choice of two sides picked from a roster of a dozen options. Based on our experience, the house does a great job with salad, whether one opts for the “house” or “Caesar” variations. Baked potatoes, whether white or sweet, are freshly prepared and generously buttered.

The seasoned rice, however, is just like grandma used to make — assuming she wasn’t a very good cook. Flecked with green pepper and flavored with brown gravy, the rice was mushy and overly salted.

Meals come with a basket of dinner rolls and cinnamon butter is provided to slather onto them.

Beverage options at Texas Roadhouse include a dozen beers, six mass-market wines, and various margarita variations. Soft drinks, iced tea, and flavored lemonades are available as well.

Picking from the trio of desserts Texas Roadhouse promotes, we decided to share Granny’s Apple Classic ($5.99).

“Big” is the adjective of choice to describe Roadhouse desserts. Our “Classic” proved to be a whole quarter of an apple pie mounded with vanilla ice cream and dark caramel sauce. The dessert was enjoyable but had nothing remarkable about it beyond its size.

Other dessert possibilities include a “Big Ole” Brownie and Strawberry Cheesecake (both $5.99).

Texas Roadhouse offers an early dine menu that features 11 entrees such as sirloin steak, pulled pork, and country fried chicken. Days and times vary by location, but at the Hadley restaurant the “early dine” deal is available until 6 p.m.

Name: Texas Roadhouse
Address: 280 Russell Street, Hadley
Telephone: (413) 584-0100
Website: texasroadhouse.com
Hours: Monday through Thursday 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday 4 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturday noon to 11 p.m.; Sunday noon to 10 p.m.
Entree prices: $9.49 – $26.99
Credit cards: American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Visa
Handicapped access: Accessible, with restrooms equipped for wheelchair use
Reservations: Call-ahead seating

Restaurant review: Kobe Hibachi Sushi and Bar in Greenfield

The sushi bar at the back of the restaurant specializes in a typical assortment of nigiri and sashimi favorites.

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At a time when most Far Eastern restaurants are taking a menu-expansion approach to the choices they offer, Kobe Hibachi Sushi and Bar in Greenfield is pursuing a more focused strategy.

Housed in a repurposed coffee shop chain location at the foot of the Mohawk Trail, Kobe is a specialist, limiting its offerings to sushi and teppanyaki cookery.

The restaurant itself is spacious; a large rectangular bar greets patrons as they enter. Off to one side are a half dozen grill-equipped tables; a separate dining room for those not interested in hibachi is also available. The decor is nondescript, with a few examples of East Asian artwork setting the mood.

Nearly a dozen hibachi possibilities are described on the menu. These range from a teppanyaki preparation of assorted veggie ($14.55) to a top-of-the-line “Land & Sea” ($27.55) that features shrimp, scallops, steak, and chicken. Other grilled-to-order selections feature Calamari ($16.55), Red Snapper ($17.55), and Steak ($19.55).

The sushi bar at the back of the restaurant specializes in a typical assortment of nigiri and sashimi favorites – Ebi (shrimp — $4.25), Saba (mackerel — $4.75), and Maguro (tuna– $5.25), to name a few.

Maki choices include the commonplace (California Roll –$5.25) as well as a few more creative options, such as the Fashion Roll ($6.25) that brings together grilled eel, avocado, cream cheese, and flying fish roe.

Rounding out the restaurant’s offerings are several Udon (wheat noodle selections) as well as a customizable “Chef’s Special” in which diners specify meat, tofu, or seafood in one of four sauces.

Among the “Kitchen Appetizers” at Kobe can be found everything from a Spring Roll ($3) and Seasoned French Fries ($3.50) to a Pu Pu Platter ($16.95).

To begin we chose an order of steamed Gyoza ($5.25). Simply but dramatically arranged around a small black bowl of sauce, the eight half-moon-shaped dumplings had a pleasing chewy exterior and a pork-based filling flavored with ginger and garlic.

Our second starter selection, Crab Rangoon ($5.95) were similarly presented, the eight crunchy packets surrounding a dish of duck sauce. Biting into the deep-fried wonton crust released a burst of seasoned cream cheese filling.

A bit more decorative effort was put into the maki we ordered. Our Crazy Roll ($9.95) arrived with greenery tucked under it, while the roll itself feature tempura shrimp wrapped up with avocado, “crab” stick, and julienned cucumber. A generous drizzle of spiced-up mayonnaise did, indeed, lend a measure of “crazy” to the proceedings.

“Sizzling plates” are the restaurant’s entree surrogate for those not inclined to indulge in a hibachi chef’s tableside tomfoolery.

The Scallop Sizzling Plate ($14.95) we decided on was a tasty-looking piece of work. Served on a cast-iron sizzle platter, the dish came to the table sputtering and hissing, a teriyaki glaze lending it flavor and shine.

Carrots, broccoli, zucchini, and summer squash dominated, while scallops sliced in half crosswise served as focal point. Likeable enough, we decided, but not particularly memorable.

The visual artistry that’s characteristic of traditional Japanese cuisine was a big part of the Chirashi Dinner ($16.95) that we enjoyed. An assortment of a half-dozen varieties of sashimi (raw fish) arranged into a colorful abstract, the plate also include a scoop of sushi rice.

Portioned out into the traditional lacquered tray, our Shrimp Tempura Bento Box ($11.95) incorporated five different elements. In addition to the namesake panko-crusted shrimp, the box included fried rice, four pieces of California roll, and some shrimp shumai. All were competently prepared and attractively presented.

Sushi bar entrees at Kobe come with a simple green salad and miso soup. The salad, we observed, had a particularly tasty version of pickled ginger dressing, while the miso soup soothed with its understated miso flavor.

As is customary for restaurants serving East Asian fare, Kobe offers an array of budget-friendly luncheon specials with prices starting at $6.99.

Name: Kobe Hibachi Sushi and Bar
Address: 254 Mohawk Trail, Greenfield
Telephone: (413) 772-8888
Website: kobemass.com
Hours: Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday noon to 9:30 p.m.
Entree prices: $ 7.95 – $27.95
Credit cards: American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Visa
Handicapped access: Accessible, with rest rooms equipped for wheelchairs
Reservations: Accepted