{"id":388,"date":"2010-04-03T15:22:17","date_gmt":"2010-04-03T20:22:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/?p=388"},"modified":"2010-08-12T13:19:52","modified_gmt":"2010-08-12T18:19:52","slug":"the-pantry-restaurant-a-mixed-bag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/general\/the-pantry-restaurant-a-mixed-bag\/","title":{"rendered":"The Pantry Restaurant – A Mixed Bag"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Todd Barron @ FoodieCuisine.com<\/h4>\n
\"\"<\/a>

The Pantry<\/p><\/div>\n

My wife and I joined three of our long time friends (one a husband\/wife couple) for dinner at The Pantry<\/a> in Little Rock, Arkansas last night.\u00a0 We had not planned on going out to eat there but were hungry after leaving our friend\u2019s 40th Birthday Party (Happy\u00a040th Shane!).\u00a0 We showed up at around 7:30pm and were told there would be a twenty minute wait.\u00a0 Not too bad, especially given the multi-hour long waits you can experience in larger metropolitan areas.\u00a0 We took our seats and proceeded to wait.<\/p>\n

After about forty-five minutes we got the impression that they had forgotten us.\u00a0 One of our group members complained and we were seated within just a few minutes.\u00a0 Something tells me they did indeed forget us.\u00a0 Anyways, on with the show.\u00a0 I really enjoy the decor of the restaurant as it has nice warm colors and feels very inviting.\u00a0 I forgot to mention earlier that the waiting \/ bar area was very nice and had a few tables to eat at.\u00a0 It appeared to have a nice bar as well.\u00a0 The place has been completely overhauled from before when it was Gypsy\u2019s Restaurant.\u00a0 The structure and layout is still the same but nothing else is.<\/p>\n

As it turns out, we picked probably the worst night to review the restaurant.\u00a0 We were seated next to an 18-top table.\u00a0 For the non-restaurant speakers out there that means a table that had 18-seats or people at it.\u00a0 Look at the picture I posted above and notice the wall on the right side.\u00a0 A group had pushed together all the chairs and tables on that side of the restaurant to form one long table full of people.\u00a0 They were also insanely loud.\u00a0 I think the libations may have blocked their hearing canals given how loud they were.\u00a0 The restaurant staff even had to partially shut the doors towards the back of the restaurant to block some of the noise from the back room.\u00a0 Unfortunately, we were in the corner in the same room with the loud group and had nowhere to go.\u00a0 I understand\u00a0enjoying a good time, but at some point you need to listen to how loud the group you are in is and assist in reducing the noise output.\u00a0 I\u2019ve done this many times when in large groups and it\u2019s an easy and courteous thing to do.\u00a0 If the group is being too loud, point it out to your group and tell them to lower their voices some.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The Pantry's Board Appetizer<\/p><\/div>\n

Now on to the service and the food.\u00a0 We had a friendly waitress who was attentive to us given the rather large distraction next to us.\u00a0 We received our drinks and placed our appetizer order after about ten minutes.\u00a0 I prefer to place drink orders right away, along with appetizer orders, but gave them some slack given the circumstances.\u00a0 I ordered The Pantry\u2019s Board<\/strong> ($16.75) for the entire table to share.\u00a0 It\u2019s a meat and cheese board complete with Smoked Pork, House Made Pate, Italian Ham, Feta Cheese, Kalamata Olives, Toasted Bread, and what appeared to be homemade bratwurst.\u00a0 The pate is made from chicken livers and had a nice flavor to it.\u00a0 The bratwurst was the most tender bratwurst I\u2019ve ever had and\u00a0was very well cooked.\u00a0 The only problem I had with the bratwurst was that it lacked a spice kick.\u00a0 I expected more spice to it given how well it was prepared and was a little disappointed in that category.\u00a0 The cheese was, well, cheese.\u00a0 The smoked pork was too smoky tasting for my liking and was a bit dry.\u00a0 Overall, I give the appetizer high marks though and would order it again.<\/p>\n

In addition to the Pantry\u2019s Board we also ordered (2) orders of Truffled Deviled Eggs<\/strong> ($4.95 per order.)\u00a0 You receive (4) small half-eggs per order which is why we ordered (2) of them.\u00a0 The deviled eggs are made out of small eggs, and are sliced on the bottom so that they stand up well on the board they bring them out on.\u00a0 The eggs have the deviled mix in the middle as you would expect and are topped with a small Parmesan cheese crisp.\u00a0 I ended up eating (3) of the eggs, way too many for me, but somebody had to do it and they were too good to let go to waste.\u00a0 Of everything I had for dinner the deviled eggs were the best choice.\u00a0 I would definitely order them again and recommend you try them out if you visit.<\/p>\n

We finished off the appetizers and then waited for our entrees.\u00a0 We ended up waiting half an hour or so, which is too long to wait between courses.\u00a0 You typically should wait no more than ten to fifteen minutes at a restaurant.\u00a0 They have to turn tables to make money after all and they don\u2019t\u00a0need you sitting around any longer than you have to.\u00a0 The entrees all arrived, with the roasted pork shoulder coming last, and we dug in.<\/p>\n

I had given up on ordering lasagna at restaurants because I am always disappointed.\u00a0 My family has lasagna every Christmas, instead of Turkey, and I look forward to it all year.\u00a0 My grandfather used to make the lasagna and since he passed away my grandmother has taken over for him.\u00a0 They were both kind enough to share the family recipe secret with me several years ago though and now, on occasion, I make my own pan of lasagna.\u00a0 The lasagna takes (2) days to complete though and is quite expensive to make; therefore, I only make it once or twice a year.\u00a0 The point here is that the lasagna I get for Christmas or that I make myself tastes much better than anything I can buy at a restaurant.\u00a0 But, this time I heard how much the staff at The Pantry likes the lasagna, and the menu says it uses homemade pasta.\u00a0 I love homemade pasta, and it\u2019s such a rare thing to find in Arkansas that I had to order the Lasagna al Forno<\/strong> ($12.50) for my entree.\u00a0 So how was it?\u00a0 Did the world break out in peace and song after I ate it?\u00a0 Turn on the news and you will find otherwise unfortunately.\u00a0 The lasagna was well baked, and had a good flavor to it, it just lacked the punch I expected.\u00a0 It kind of reminds me of the bratwurst.\u00a0 It looks like it should be good, and has all of the textures done right, and appears homemade, but it lacks kick or spice.\u00a0 Maybe the chef is going after more generic palates?\u00a0 The pasta did taste fresh, which gives them high marks in my book.\u00a0 Overall it tasted good, it just wasn\u2019t great.\u00a0 Would I order it again?\u00a0 Probably not, but then again, I\u2019m very picky when it comes to lasagna.\u00a0 It was better than some of the other dishes we received though.\u00a0 Read on for more info on those.<\/p>\n

My wife ordered the NY Strip<\/strong> ($24.95) and asked for it to come Medium Rare.\u00a0 Interestingly enough, steak is very simple to cook but is also very easy to mess up.\u00a0 Most of the restaurants I have been to don\u2019t know how to cook a steak properly.\u00a0 And the ones that do know how, are inconsistent.\u00a0 Sometimes it has a perfect crust with tender red meat in the middle.\u00a0 Other times you have no crust at all, or even worse, it\u2019s overcooked.\u00a0 The stars were in alignment this time around though as the steak was cooked perfectly!\u00a0 It could have been trimmed more and was not a super high grade of meat, but then again, we didn\u2019t expect a US Prime steak either.\u00a0 It had seasoning applied very well and tasted great with the addition of melted butter on top.\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t have changed anything with it, except maybe use a higher grade of meat.\u00a0 But, like I said, for the price you can\u2019t expect US Prime or better.\u00a0 I would order it in the future.<\/p>\n

Our friend ordered the special of the night, called the Rustic Bowl<\/strong> ($15.00 but price varies.)\u00a0 It changes every week or so and this time it was a shrimp dish with tomatoes, tarragon, green beans, and some other flavors.\u00a0 It looked and tasted like shrimp with marinara sauce except the tarragon gave it a sweet flavor I wouldn\u2019t expect in a marinara sauce.\u00a0 It tasted okay but wasn\u2019t anything special.\u00a0 I\u2019m a little perplexed as to what the chef was thinking as the dish was missing something.\u00a0 Maybe they should have tossed it with a fresh angel hair pasta?\u00a0 It was seasoned well but I wouldn\u2019t order that particular special again.\u00a0 I hear it changes every week though so I\u2019d have to see what it is the next time I visit.\u00a0 And yes, I do plan on going back.<\/p>\n

Our other friend had the Wiener Schnitzel<\/strong> ($11.95).\u00a0 Schnitzel<\/a> is fried pork and has its origins in Austria.\u00a0 The Wiener Schnitzel was served with potatoes and lemon.\u00a0 He was going to order the Jager Schnitzel, which is promised to be smothered in a mushroom gravy, but was steered towards the Wiener Schnitzel\u00a0by the waitress and our friend who recommended the place.\u00a0 I really wish he would have gotten the Jager Schnitzel though.\u00a0 The Wiener Schnitzel looked great and was very tender.\u00a0 It lacked any spice though and was extremely bland.\u00a0 I would never order it again unless they promised to change the spice characteristics.\u00a0 It was the strangest thing, and seems to carry\u00a0the reoccurring theme of the restaurant.\u00a0 The pork was fried perfectly and was tender.\u00a0 The\u00a0sides that came with it were good too.\u00a0In the end, it was under spiced and lacked much flavor and that is a foul ball in the food world.\u00a0 He did order\u00a0a side of potato dumplings with cabbage and onions.\u00a0 They tasted okay, although uneventful.\u00a0 If you were really hungry I could see ordering them, but they were not something I would order in the future.<\/p>\n

Last but not least, our third friend had ordered the Roasted Pork Shoulder<\/strong> ($11.95).\u00a0 The dish is exactly what you would expect and was served with Czech potato dumplings and braised\u00a0red cabbage.\u00a0 The pork tasted great and was very tender.\u00a0 It had a great spice flavor to it and although\u00a0was very basic, is something I would order again.\u00a0 It\u2019s funny that I don\u2019t have much to say about this dish but it was good and there isn\u2019t much\u00a0I would change on it.\u00a0 Of all of the entrees, this one was my favorite and I recommend it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We also ordered a Goat Cheese Flatbread<\/strong> ($10.95) to split with the group.\u00a0 It would have been too much food but we did order dinner with this article in mind.\u00a0 I had to take one for the team and order a variety of things\u2026.It\u2019s a tough job but someone has to do it!\u00a0 I expected a flat pizza of sorts with goat cheese, mushrooms, caramelized onions, and olive oil.\u00a0 What we received though was a burnt\u00a0square of flatbread, with a few dollops of goat cheese, some onions, and no mushrooms to be seen.\u00a0 There was however a large mound of salad in the middle with cucumbers.\u00a0 The cheese and other toppings did not come close to covering the flatbread.\u00a0 If I would have ordered the flatbread as a main entree I probably would have asked for a refund.\u00a0 It was that bad.\u00a0 I have no idea how the taste was supposed to be but my bread was so burnt and hard that I couldn\u2019t enjoy the food.\u00a0 Adding the salad in the middle to a piece did help by adding some much needed moisture, but the flavor profile was all wrong.\u00a0 I never plan on ordering a flatbread again and was very disappointed with their execution of the dish.\u00a0 The unfortunate part here, outside of them not getting money from me again on the dish, was that is sounded great.\u00a0 The flavors would work together and would taste great if\u00a0 it was executed properly.\u00a0 Burnt bread and too few toppings do not equal proper execution though.\u00a0 Never again on this one.<\/p>\n

By the end of dinner we had spent two and half hours as the restaurant and were hoarse from\u00a0trying to yell to talk to one another.\u00a0 The\u00a0very loud group next to us left about (5) minutes before we did and the restaurant let out a sigh of relief when they exited.\u00a0\u00a0At least it was\u00a0good to hear from the other\u00a0tables that\u00a0they were\u00a0just as annoyed as us.\u00a0 The restaurant staff also apologized extensively\u00a0and\u00a0recognized the problem.\u00a0 I can\u2019t think\u00a0of\u00a0much they could have done about it though.\u00a0 They do have\u00a0 a private dinning room but it had regular patrons in it.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The tab for my wife and I\u2019s portion came to $80 USD which is very reasonable given the amount of food we had.\u00a0 My wife had two glasses of wine in that amount\u00a0of time and I had a glass of iced-tea.\u00a0 While there were some misfires, I really enjoyed the Pantry Board, the Deviled Eggs, and the Roasted Pork and may go back in the future for those.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The Pantry
\n<\/strong>(501) 353 \u2013 1875
\n11401 Rodney Parham
\nLittle Rock, AR 72212<\/p>\n

Lunch:\u00a0 Mon-Fri\u00a0 11-4\u00a0
\nDinner:\u00a0 Mon-Sat\u00a0 4-Midnight\u00a0
\nBar:\u00a0 Mon-Sat\u00a0 4-till\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Todd Barron @ FoodieCuisine.com My wife and I joined three of our long time friends (one a husband\/wife couple) for dinner at The Pantry in Little Rock, Arkansas last night.\u00a0 We had not planned on going out to eat there but were hungry after leaving our friend\u2019s 40th Birthday Party (Happy\u00a040th Shane!).\u00a0 We showed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[5,205],"tags":[112,111,72,73,88],"class_list":["post-388","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general","category-reviews","tag-little","tag-pantry","tag-restaurant","tag-review","tag-the"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=388"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":656,"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/388\/revisions\/656"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/foodiecuisine.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}