Category: Food Review

Food Review: Coffee Corner in Maumelle

I’ve heard such great things about the new Coffee Corner in Maumelle, so I had to check it out. Here’s the breakdown!

ENVIRONMENT

Sitting in the shopping center between Boudreaux’s and Se´ñor Tequila, Coffee Corner is a small coffee shop, but with huge flavor. It’s nothing fancy inside, but the coffee and food sure are!

(A sneak peek over the counter to watch the croissant process.)

MENU

The menu is mostly coffee and homemade croissants and croissant sandwiches. I love a simple menu where you know everything on it has been perfected.

FOOD

I ordered lunch to go for my husband and I. I tried a white chocolate mocha with skim milk that I sipped on while I waited for my food. It was one of the best coffees I have ever had. Wow! I’ll be back for that, for sure.  It was in a to-go cup, so I missed out on the pretty froth design on the top I saw many others had in their coffee cups. I did get my Hershey’s chocolate bar with it, just like everyone who dines in gets with their coffee as well. I love that little detail!

For food, I tried the last chocolate danish, a plain croissant, and the Classic croissant sandwich which came with bacon, cheddar, tomato, and omelet.

The plain croissant was massive! It was so flaky and buttery, so you can’t go wrong here.

The sandwich I ordered without cheddar and was happy to see some pickled carrot strings to add to my sandwich. It really brightened it up! While there wasn’t much bacon, the egg and tomato with the carrots was delicious.

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The star, however, was the chocolate danish. It was crunchy and flaky on the outside, but the interior has a decadent chocolate filling that was very flavorful. I’m not surprised I got the last one, I bet these go quickly!

Lastly, I want to mention the people that own and work there. They are SO friendly and make everyone feel right at home. And I must say, we all love the Italian accents!

Hours are 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday.

 

 

Food Review: Goku Ramen Bar in Maumelle

There’s a lot of talk about the new Ramen bar in Maumelle, so I had to give it a try. Let’s break it down!

ENVIRONMENT

Goku Ramen is located in the small space that used to be home to Pizza House, and before then was Pasta House for years in the shopping center at 1900 Club Manor Dr.
The interior looks much different than it did, with a fun, modern feel and tv’s playing shows about ramen. How great is that?!
Since the space is small, and there are many tables and bars for seating, it can feel a little cramped if it is a busy night.
When you arrive, you find a seat, look through the menu for what you want, then go up to the ordering bar to order and pay for your food. It is brought to you when it’s ready, but you have to get your own drinks and refills. *They do charge a 3% fee for using a card, so bring cash if that isn’t something you want to pay for.*
The only complaint I have about the environment is what is on each table. While you have salt, pepper, and chili powder, there’s no soy or sriracha. If you ask, you can get soy sauce, but they do not have sriracha. Next time, I may bring my own. Finally, the napkins are problematic. Each table has a large roll of paper towels, but the kind that are impossible to tear off and disintegrate after your first wipe. Please trade these for some with “tear-a-square”. We were knocking things over trying to tear these paper towels. At least it was entertaining!

MENU

You can find their full menu on their website. While it is small, with mostly different ramen and rice bowls, there are so many fun appetizers that are unique and priced fairly.

FOOD

TAKOYAKI, $8.25
Description: Fried octopus pastries with Japanese mayo, takoyaki sauce, green onion, and fish flakes

My friend and I shared a couple of appetizers and this takoyaki was new to me. Honestly, octopus is not my favorite, but Cristianna said it’s one of her favorite dishes. When I tried it, I loved it! There’s only a tiny piece of octopus in the middle of these pastries. the rest of the pastry is a wonderful and unique texture, like a savory mochi. The sauces and fish flakes bring so much flavor! Though, a little heat from sriracha would have perfected these. This was the best thing I had the whole meal.

VEGETABLE CROQUETTE, $5.11
Description: Deep fried mashed potatoes and vegetables with sauce and yummy mayo.

I chose this appetizer because it sounds amazing. However, it was a little lack-luster. There weren’t many vegetables at all in the croquettes, so it was similar to a really tasty hash brown, but with smooth mashed potatoes instead. With not much sauce, I had to add soy sauce to mine for a little more flavor.

TONKOTSU RAMEN WITH BRAISED PORK
Description: Pork soup base with green onion, soft boiled egg, napa cabbage, corn, and protein of your choice (shrimp, braised pork, chicken breast, fried chicken karaage, or vegetables and tofu)

This is a pretty decent ramen! I love tonkotsu ramen because it has the most flavor than the other options, in my opinion. This broth was good! The braised pork was tender and delicious! The noodles were the perfect texture, and there were SO many noodles. After picking through and eating all the bites I wanted with the pork, egg, and veggies, I had over an entire to-go cup full of leftover noodles. These were great the next day heated up with some other pork I had on hand.

FRIED CHICKAN KARAAGE, $2.51

Cristianna is a menu wiz and figured out it would only cost $2.50 to get a side of fried chicken since they only charge you this much for two proteins. This is a great deal! Do it!
The chicken was flavorful and crunchy and really good dipped in the ramen broth.

Overall, I think this is a wonderful addition to Maumelle- a place you can get ramen for comfort food or try something new with their appetizers. Go give Goku Ramen a try, if you haven’t already!