Marble Slab, Grande Prairie

Generally speaking, this place has been on my favorite list for years. There are so many flavours to choose from, dozens of ways to mix in toppings, a handful of various cones and a fun, bright atmosphere. Love the creative display of candy. I can't even begin to list the top combos, but let's just say that Cake Batter is good. Really good. Sans raw eggs!
Things to fix (every location:)
The punch card scenario. It's really irritating as a repeat consumer to be limited to one location to redeem a free ice cream. Not only that, but to put an unreasonable expiry date on the card. Really, who is going to buy SIX giant ice cream combinations in a few months. Sort of silly.

South Common: Unkempt teenage/adult employees. Remember the days when combed hair, non-denim wearing, clean shaven, and smiles were basic standards for selling a product? To be honest, I was sort of grossed out to have these type of people scooping up my potential food item.

It gets better.

The floor is dirty. Not the type of dirty that just happens from a little foot traffic. VERY dirty, as in hasn't-been-mopped-all-day DIRTY. Kind of makes me want to eat some ice cream. Yum.

One of three teenagers plops himself in front of the cashier till/computer and commences internet perusing. Yes. Where I could see and also while we were enjoying our recently purchased product. Of course the other unkempt teenagers couldn't keep away from such an exciting event and so they gathered together.

The whole South Common experience was quite ridiculous and I won't be going back to that location. Too bad Mr/Mrs Franchisee. If this is how that location is run, you'll be out of business soon.
GRADE: A- I'll stick to my Grande Prairie or Whyte Ave locations, thank you very much.
Sticker price: around $8-$10 for the works.

Royal Oaks (on the Bypass, across from Joey's Only)
10416-116 Avenue
Grande Prairie, AB
780.532.4140

Wok Box, Grande Prairie

This place is fun.

Lots of red in their tasteful decor, variable seating options, open kitchen, menu diversity. I really can't say enough good things about Wok Box. And they even have the classic, fun "Chinese" takeout boxes, complete with chopsticks. Like I said, fun.

What's extra great about Wok Box's food is the fresh factor. You can actually watch the fresh vegetables being tossed around in the giant wok.

Some of my personal faves:
Mongolian Beef and Broccoli with the skinny noodle (its on the spicy side)
Butter Chicken--very creamy, but skimpy on the chicken.

Make sure to grab some fresh lime wedges to bathe your noodley goodness in. You'll thank me.

I usually grab some takeout on my way back from Grande Prairie. Forget Subway. Actually, they were forgotten years ago in my book. But anyway. Head over to Wok Box next time you're in GP and think of me, your FSJ Food Critic.


GRADE: A- This place can be on the pricey side. Quite honestly, for a few dollars less per box, I would be a very happy Wox Boxer.

Sticker Price: without extras--around $24 for you and a date.

Wok Box
104-10915 104A Avenue
Grande Prairie, AB
780.532.9269

Panago Pizza

Very cool, old Italian flyer received in the mail. The photographs scream vintage and I wanted to be a part of it.

Fast forward to one of those nights where you don't want to go anywhere, yet your cozy sweats and fuzzy slippers are pleading to be paired with a movie and pizza.

So, naturally I thought of Panago's New York Deli pizza that happened to be front and center on that artistic cover.

This is how it went:

Ring, ring. Ring.

Someone from a place other than Fort St John answers and proceeds to take my order. That is weird. Process is pretty standard with Miss Teenager who mumbles a few sentences together too fast for my aging brain to pick up. I ask her to repeat some. Again, standard. Very pleasant, but still weird that Vancouver location is quoting me on my local pizza.

Miss Teenager quoted me 35 minutes. With all my ninja knowledge and expertise assisting me, I strategically arrived 15 minuted ahead of said quote. The pizza was staring at me as I walked in.

I find that pizza quote times here in FSJ (all across the board) are off. As in you in the pizza joint and your pie is already done and waiting. Ideally, you walk in and you still wait a few minutes--'cause then it's hot! And fresh! And delicious!

Not congealing as you drive there, stuff it in the special heater bag they sell you and continuing to congeal as you speed home only to find that the piping hot circle of goodness is really a semi-warm mass of meltedness.

Yuck.

I will say that Panago's choice of meat on this particular pie is good. I was surprised. It didn't taste like the weird processed stuff you find in some places (Dominos) or those totally gross frozen pizzas at any given grocery store.

Panago's dough is even better. I made the very correct choice of going with the Hand Tossed. Oh. Yeah.

I say cut off Vancouver and handle your own phone calls, FSJ Panago. I don't care if you "update your system in sync with theirs." You misquoted me and made me eat an expensive, luke-warm pizza. And I'm telling my friends.

GRADE: B+
I'm willing to bet that this place could deliver (pardon the pun) great pies if the timing was right.

Panago Pizza
(Totem Mall)
2050-9600 93 Ave
250.310.0001

From the Tip Jar

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From RestaurantOwner.com - December 8, 2009
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This Is a Great Time to Recognize the Manager You Want to
Keep
 
You can't create and sustain a successful restaurant
without good management.
 
In smaller restaurants the bulk of the management may be
provided by you, the owner, but few restaurant owners want
to spend their entire career managing day-to-day operations. 
 
Unless your goal is to create a job for yourself, you need
good managers who can lead people and run your restaurant
as well as (or even better) than you can.
 
You already know who your good managers are but here's a
quick checklist to quantify and evaluate some specific
traits and the effectiveness of your management staff.
 
 - Do they say what they will do and do all that they say?
 
 - Do they seem to attract quality staff to the business?
 i.e.,some of your best hires were a result of their
 recommendations. 
 
 - Have you seen sales and profits grow since they became
 managers?
 
 - Do they take the initiative to suggest new products,
 systems and procedures and have helped you put them in
  place successfully?
 
 - Do other staff members seek them out formally and
 informally for help, guidance, direction, support?
 
If you have managers who exhibit some or all of these
traits, you do not want to lose them. And rest assured,
there are businesses inside and outside the industry that
would love to have them on board.
 
The holiday season is a good time to let them know how
much you value and appreciate the contributions they make.
Do something that makes them feel good about being a part
of your team. It may increase the odds they'll still be with
you next year at this time.

Saigon Noodle

Great, new location in the Totem Mall with access indoor and outdoors.

Fun, bright, interesting décor that doesn’t look like it was purchased at the local Walmart. The owners actually put some thought and effort into the ambience.

Friendly cash register girls.

Nine, four-seat tables, entered at a dinner rush, food took around 20 minutes. At a full service restaurant, that would be a long time. A place such as this should, essentially, be quicker.

Food ordered: #14 Pork Slice Spring Rolls…something about Lemon Grass Pork….a very plain dish as far as flavour goes. Vietnamese restaurants everywhere take note….Hoang Long of Edmonton does an EXCELLENT Lemon Grass Anything. Look it up next time you’re in that city.

#19 Chicken Pad Thai….excellent noodles-almost velvety in texture, scrumptious flavour overall, decent amount of chicken, abundant veggies and crushed peanuts. I would get this again and again. This dish will bring me back. My only request would be fresh lime to squeeze over top.

#20 Shrimp Egg Noodles…another excellent dish in terms of flavour. The fresh garlic is prominent but not overdone. I kept wanting more of that delectable taste in my mouth. Speaking of more…there were a mere 5-6 shrimp in this dish. That would be fine if the oodles of noodles and grandiose plate presentation didn’t make it look out of balance….oh yes, and the fact that it cost 9.95. Hi, I could buy an entire bag of shrimp less than 9.95. Stop being so cheap and throw three times the shrimp on there! Your customers will thank you by good word of mouth and ordering again and again! I feel as though I should bring some extra shrimp from home to add to my plate (psstt……the shrimp weren’t seasoned so it would totally work…)

Loved the assortment and variety of condiments on the tables, as well as real silverware and chopsticks. So nice not to use the toss-away types.

And let me tell you about Maggy one of the owners—what a nice lady! We saw her walk around to every table as well as ours, and converse. Not the obligatory How-was-everything,-etc., but actually talking to people! Wow…..now there’s something that a consumer does not see. A rarity.

Saigon Noodle comes to mind when I think of Asian takeout. So unlike Ming’s.
GRADE: B+

Saigon Noodle
9600-93 Ave (Totem Mall)
250.785.1628

Safeway VS Tim Horton’s (Doughnut Style)

Bring in the boxing ring. American competitor vs the good, ol’ Canadian standby.

Round one: Presentation (Kevin from The Office: “That means what it looks like…)
T: Great, attractive packaging for any amount ordered.
S: One giant box even if you’d only like half a dozen. I find myself usually purchasing three. One for me, one for my spouse and one for me for later while winding down from the tornado kids.. When and if a “6 doughnut box” existed I would prolly load up to maximum capacity. Instead, I would rather have my three remain un-squished and unsullied in the paper bag.

Round Two: Taste & Freshness
T: Dry out much quicker and are made somewhere other than the respective location. They’ve got some great combinations (Honey Crueller,-on the light side, eggy, nice balance of sweet, fun design.

Yet, I’m still surprise that others are still around (Double Chocolate tastes like coffee granules were substituted for the cocoa during mixing.

Beware of any fritter—usually there is a substantial portion of the middle that remains raw.

S: Made on site, every day. There is nothing better than fresh. Nuff said. S’s doughnuts are light and chewy with slight bread taste to compliment the sweetness. Sometimes I’m really wishing for a slightly thicker icing to balance the bread side of things.

Do your own freshness test. Buy a few from each place and see how long they last on your counter. P.S. Works best in a paper bag to allow limited air flow. Do not, repeat DO NOT seal your little, baked goods in Tupperware. They need air.

Round Three: Aftertaste
T: Sometimes my tummy hurts after consuming a T.H. doughy morsel. Maybe it’s the preservatives. (No, I doughnut pig out thus creating abdominal discomfort. Sheesh.)
S: I’m ready for another. No pain there.

Although, I must flesh out a negative here, Yesterday I shared a fill morsel with my spouse and the filing had a ring of rancidity to it (oil-based product.) Somebody cut a corner. Oops, Mr. or Mrs. Baker person.

Round Four: Availability
S: Friday is their busiest day so double batches are ordered up. My fave there is the Glazed Croissant drizzled in chocolate. And they do not disappoint. Deelish.
T: Hit and miss. My fave is the Sour Cream Glazed and quite honestly either location can’t guarantee them consistently. Perhaps they should supply more for the demand, hmm? I’ve tried finding them on different days of the week, different times of the day and various seasons throughout the YEAR. Clearly I spend too much of my time trying to perfect their supply science. At any rate, I was frustrated so I started looking elsewhere. (Enter Safeway doughnuts.)

Round Five: Cost
S: Usually a single doughnut will run you somewhere in the ballpark of 70 cents. I believe I’ve seen them for as low as 49 cents.
T: Almost one dollar. What is it, 85/89 cents? And they’re smaller. Even when comparing apples to apples, they’re still smaller.

Round Six: Business Hours
S: 7-11pm
T: All the time. But don’t let this fool you. Because their product is not made on site means you can’t have it at 3am.

Overall, I’m a Safeway fan. Dear Safeway, could you build a drive-thru? I would love you even more.

Safeway GRADE: A-
Timmy’s GRADE: B-

From the Tip Jar

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RestaurantOwner.com Best Practice of the Week - November 3, 2009
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I Am Your Guest

You often accuse me of carrying a chip on my shoulder,
but I suspect this is because you do not entirely
understand me. Isn't it normal to expect satisfaction
for one's money spent? Ignore my wants and I will no
longer appear in your restaurant. Satisfy those wants
and I will become increasingly loyal. Add a little extra
personal attention and a friendly touch and I will become
a walking advertisement for you.

When I criticize your food and service to anyone who
will listen, which I may do whenever I am displeased,
take heed. I am not dreaming up displeasure. It lies in
something I perceive you have failed to do to make my
eating experience as enjoyable as I have anticipated.
Eliminate that perception or you will lose my friends
and me as well. I insist on the right to dine leisurely
or eat in haste according to my mood.

I refuse to be rushed as I abhor waiting. This is an
important privilege that my money buys. If I am not
spending big money this particular time, just remember,
if you treat me right I will return with a larger appetite,
more money and probably with my friends.

I am much more sophisticated these days than I was just
a few years ago. I've grown accustomed to better things
and my needs are more complex. I'm perfectly willing to
spend, but I insist on quality to match prices. I am above
all, a human being. I am especially sensitive when I am
spending money. I can't stand to be snubbed, ignored or
looked down upon.

Whatever my personal habits may be, you can be sure that
I'm a real nut on cleanliness in restaurants. Where food
is concerned I demand the strictest sanitation measures.
I want my meals handled and served by the neatest of people
and in sparkling clean dishes. If I see dirty fingernails,
cracked dishes or soiled table clothes you won't see me again.

You must prove to me again and again that I have made a
wise choice in selecting your restaurant above others. 
You must convince me repeatedly that being a restaurant
guest is a desirable thing in the first place. I can,
after all, eat at home. So, you must provide something
extra in food and service. Something so superior it will
beckon me from my own table to yours.

Do we understand each other?

(You may have read this before but it never hurts to be reminded
of job one - taking care of your guests.)

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