Posts Tagged ‘Quantity-DoggieBag’

Frankie’s Pizza and Pasta

Thursday, April 16th, 2009

Frankie's-exterior OGF: 4/5
A traditional American-Italian restaurant serving pizza by the slice,  calzones, lasagna and pasta dishes off a reasonably priced lunch menu.  As with most pizza by the slice, it’s better when it’s fresh, so try to judge by taking a look at the tray as you enter to see which pie looks the freshest.

Taste: 4/5 – Pretty much what you’d expect from a decent place of this kind.  If you were looking for a classy dinner you might be disappointed, but as a lunch option it beats the chain options.

Price: 4/5 – The base prices of most dishes are reasonable, but adding a salad to anything but a pizza slice is a little more pricey than I’d like ($4 extra).

Quantity: Doggie bag – unless you get a single slice you’ll probably get more than you should eat (but maybe not more than you could…).

Wait Time: 15 minutes

Rotation: 2 days a week

% MSFT employees: About Half

Parking: Easy

Prime Card: No

Don’t Miss: The house special calzone with a small caesar salad to start.

Frankie’s Pizza & Pasta

16630 Redmond Way, Redmond, WA
http://maps.live.com/?v=2&ss=ypid.YN925x15775283&encType=1

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Posted in Italian, Pizza | No Comments »

ZenYai Noodle House

Saturday, February 21st, 2009

ZenYai-exterior

OGF: 4/5
One of the more interesting of the abundant Asian pseudo-ethnic restaurants surrounding the Microsoft campus, ZenYai serves primarily Thai dishes of widely varying quality.  Sometimes excitingly named, it’s worth going in with a recommendation or spying on your neighbors dishes before making a decision as while the “Hot Mamma Noodles” (usually on special) are delicious, dishes like “Noodle Explosion” are decidedley “meh”.  Despite the name, there are also a large variety of non-noodle dishes.

Taste: 4/5 – While we’ve had our share of bland dishes here (avoid the Ramen and the  aforementioned Noodle Explosion), they have a number of delicious and highly satisfying options such as the “Angry Curry Noodles”, “Hot Mamma Noodles” and “Crispy Garlic Chicken”.  It’s also hard to go wrong with Thai staples such as Pad Thai and Panang Curry.

Price: 3/5 – What you’d expect, roughly $8-10 a meal.

Quantity: Doggie bag – always more than you can eat.

Wait Time: 15 minutes on a normal day, but this place can get busy!

Rotation: 1

% MSFT employees: close to 100

Parking: Difficult – in the frustrating Mayuri/Trader Joe’s/Can-Am complex

Prime Card: No

Don’t Miss: The Hot Mamma Noodles when they’re on the special’s bored at the front if you like spicy food, or, if you’re feeling unadventurous, the Crispy Garlic Chicken is a decidedly unhealthy yet scrumptious option.  Also, unlike the entrees, their appetizers are universally acceptable.

ZenYai Noodle House

15400 NE 20th St, Bellevue, WA
http://maps.live.com/?v=2&ss=ypid.YN925x15738201&encType=1

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Posted in Asian, Thai | No Comments »

Black Bear Diner

Saturday, February 21st, 2009

Black-Bear-Diner-exterior

OGF: 3/5
Upon entering Black Bear Diner, you may feel as though you’ve been transported out of the software developer cultural epicenter that is Redmond and straight into small town American West.  A chain started in Mt Shasta, California, the Redmond location certainly exudes the National Park family restaurant vibe.  Surprisingly given its proximity, it doesn’t seem to be frequented by many Microsoft employees, but rather a selection of the plaid button down shirt types.

Taste: 3/5 – Typical American restaurant food with burgers, sandwiches, salads and breakfast served all day.  Many of the entrees have a California twist, often by incorporating avocado in some way.  Most of us opted for the breakfast options and were not disappointed.

Price: 4/5 – Undiscounted prices are what you’d expect, however recently they’ve started offering a generous 20% prime card discount.

Quantity: Doggie bag

Wait Time: 20 minutes

Rotation: 1

% MSFT employees: 25% or less

Parking: Easy

Prime Card: 20% off

Don’t Miss: The “hobo” omelet with it’s huge accompanying biscuit

Black Bear Diner

14804 NE 24th St, Redmond, WA
http://maps.live.com/?v=2&ss=ypid.YN925x151462429&encType=1

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Posted in American, Family | No Comments »