BD's Mongolian BBQ

nice!

FUCKING WOOT!

Back in the 90s we used to wait for hours to get a table at the Royal Oak, MI location. But I haven't been back in so long. Pacific Grill at Levis is smiliar but this place is so much better.

My wish list for other restaurants:
1. Bonefish Grill
2. Romanos Maccaroni Grill
3. Cheesecake Factory
4. Bahama Breeze

I really liked Chammps, but I guess I was the minority there.

Not sure about this new place. I like to go out to eat for the experience. This create a bowl thing is off putting for a nice lunch or dinner out. For me anyway.

I liked Champs too, but I won't travel very for to get to a sports bar, there are too many of them.

If we could wish up restaurants - Brazilian steak house is my choice.

http://www.fogodechao.com/menu/dining-experience/

Now that I have this on the brain I'll have to go and find one. Someone told me there was one up the Detroit area.

Ryan, check out Blue Pacific at Levis Commons, also one of those create-a-bowl places. A group of us went there for my b-day one year and it was a blast.

I'm confused - wasn't the Elephant Bar in the former location of Champs? Did it close?

(I don't venture to the mall area very often, so I'm probably out of the loop.)

I'm confused - wasn't the Elephant Bar in the former location of Champs? Did it close?

(I don't venture to the mall area very often, so I'm probably confused.)

Sigh - that's what I get for browsing from my phone. Sorry for the double post.

elephant bar was the replacement of Champs and IS still there.

So... Elephant Bar has closed?

I think AquaMan22 meant the former Ruby Tuesday space in Franklin Mall...?

Ahhhhh. GOOD RIDDANCE

Gotcha - that would make more sense! I thought the Elephant Bar was still open last time I was in the mall area. (I like that place, though I don't get a chance to go there very often.)

Haven't been to Mongolian BBQ in ages - we had one in the town where I went to college, and it was a very popular place. Hope its still just as good now!

Elephant Bar is right next to Dicks entrance. Champs was in the space closer to Macys. It's not the same space and has been empty since Champs closed.

OK Can somebody explain ohiokimono's post to this apparently ignorant out of the loop retiree? It's really bugging me.

Never mind. I googled woot. You can tell I went to high school in the 60's. This is what I remember being taught about good writing:

"Good writing is good because the writer has expressed clearly what he or she wants to say, has made sure that everything relates to the topic, and has ensured that the ideas are clearly connected and easy for the reader to follow."
http://wikieducator.org/Academic_writing/Rules_of_good_writing

Old school, with emphasis on the old. This net, tweet, blog, text language makes my head spin.

As to the topic at hand. Toronto has several good Mongolian BBQ's. When traveling there we make a point to find one. Hope this one is good. We'll certainly give it a try.

Oh goodness, I had to laugh at the 'woot' issue.

The use of woot online is widespread, and modern lingo that has expanded from online to the real world. No need to lecture me about good or bad writing because you were unaware of the use of some slang.

My mother is amusing when it comes to some of this stuff. She catches onto it, and uses it. Nothing like seeing a 50 something frowning with deep motherly disapproval and saying "Fail, you fail sir".

I've been wanting to eat there for a couple years now. Though the closest one that I'm aware of is in Columbus.

Can't wait!

There are a couple of stores in Columbus and one in Ann Arbor... I had heard that they have been investigating bringing one to this market for some time now... I can't wait for it to open... it's a great place to keep going back and experimenting with flavors and spices...

OhioKimono, I got it, I lolled, I love netspeak and use it all the time. My younger sisters and daughter complain my texting is like hooked on fonix, lol. love that pic, too.

I learned my lesson by JR, so, has anyone eaten here since they opened? How was it? Price?

Woot! There was a thread about this earlier, but glad to see that it is a definite now and not just speculation :)

Can't wait to go.

We attempted to go last night... wait was 45 minutes at 8:45... no way I was waiting until 9:30 to eat. I figured it had been open long enough that the wait time would come down... especially on a Tues. night. Seemed they were still having grand opening festivities... there was a mime.

Oh well... Mongolian BBQ may have to wait a few more weeks as well as I'm concerned.

Holy crap! That long for a mongolian BBQ? It must be good!

There is a chinese place at Falling Timbers like that. Been there twice each time it's been 45m-1hr wait. Still never had a meal there and it's been open a while.

PF Changs?

INeedCoffee, I go to Chang's often & they always say 45 minutes but I've never had to wait that long. I hope you can give it a try it really is good food.

I've had BD's in MI and enjoyed it, I hope the one at Franklin Park does well.

Deho, I went out there Tuesday as well. Got there about 6:30 and it was only a 5 minute wait. A lot of people did come in about 7ish, so I'm not surprised at the wait.

This was my first experience at a BD's. If I remember right it was about $12 for a single trip up, or $15 for unlimited trips. At dinner they have an unlimited salad bar and soup. If you ask me the pot sticker appetizer was the best part of the meal ($6). It's very loud in there, so if you want a quieter time see about getting seated in the bar.

Overall opinion: I might go back. I thought the selection at Blue Pacific at Levi's Commons was nearly identical and fresher. The staff was amazingly friendly. So, lets call it a 3.5 out of 5.

We tried to go to BDs last Friday night. At around 7 p.m. the wait was 1 1/2 hours.

We left and went to Koto Buki.

LOVE me some Koto Buki!

Ok, this will date me, but I still miss Farell's Ice Cream at the mall. My kids really missed out on a fun place! ):

I'm a little confused by the timing on this thread. Is it open now? Had the impression it was still being built but lots of posts about people who went.

INeedCoffee, it opened the Monday after Easter.

We went on a Tuesday right at 6 p.m. and waited about 5 minutes (though there were 15 empty tables once we got into the dining area). During our meal, the lobby filled up with new arrivals. There was a clown making balloon animals to entertain kids - cute!

I enjoyed the unlimited salad bar (sliced beets, blue cheese chunks!) but the soups were not exactly in keeping with the Mongolian/Genghis Khan theme: chicken noodle and broccoli cheese.

It was very noisy. We were directed to stand in line at the grill with our bowls full of uncooked food (plus a sauce bowl) while waiting our turn -- not very comfortable for the older people who were in line behind us. Although I had mixed together a vegetarian bowl for myself, there was a meat chunk in it after it got scraped around on the communal grill.

For the money we spent, I would rather have gone to PF Chang's for a really awesome meal. However, the noise and novelty make BD's an interesting destination for the curious. There is something for everyone there: sliced sausage, meatballs, pasta, and fajita ingedients (all available at the raw bar), in addition to more traditionally Asian ingedients.

I'm sure that it's a fun destination for many, but it doesn't sound like my cup of tea. If I'm going out for dinner, I really don't want to think about mixing a slew of ingredients, sauces, cooking styles. I'd prefer to cook myself. And to know that it's loud, what like a cafeteria? With a line to wait? And it's no cheaper than PF Changs (another ehhh, whatever, non-local chain)?

I'm glad for them that my feelings are not those of all of Toledo. But I would hope that more of you prefer your dollars going to a nice, locally-owned restaurant where you aren't doing most of the cooking yourself.

Len, I like to patronize local businesses, too, especially for produce, groceries, and household/hardware needs. When it comes to restaurants, though ... there are some v-e-r-y mediocre establishments that are locally owned (with bad white bread, dirty floors, where the waitress asks "And what do you want for your STARCH?", where the salad dressings are heavy on the high-fructose corn syrup).

When I go out, I'm not always in the mood to gamble with my money and my appetite: mostly I just want a good meal that is better than what I can produce at home. When I find a chain that consistently delivers what I like, I don't feel that I'm letting the city down by not going back to a locally-owned place that has disappointed me once or twice before.

I want to like local, I really, really do. But it doesn't always work out for me.

viola, I hear you!
but the same goes for chains... there are a LOT of bad ones
just go to sites like www.yelp.com and check out the highly rated local places if you're interested in keeping your money in the region. :)

Oh don't get me wrong, I've had bad local restaurant experiences. And I think it's totally fine to call them out, like "FUCK YOURSELF Fritz and Alfredos!" If I had someone asking me "And what do you want for your STARCH?", I would be double-ewe-tee-eff.

So, if you have a chain restaurant that you love, go for it! I know it's totally sick, but when I have a hangover I am a sucker for a bean burrito with guac (sic.) and sour cream from Taco Bell.

But, when I'm in the right of mind, let's be real. I've had so many great local food experiences. High and low... Fifi's, Frog Legg Inn, or Mancy's Steakhouse to Gus' Yum Yum, Rudy's, or the back counter of the Toledo Market.

I'm not busting on anyone for liking a chain. I'm just saying it's not my kinda place. I would simply prefer to cook at home rather than play "make-believe-chef", paying top dollar for some douche to toss my choices in an engorged wok for me.

The only chain that I frequent is Elephant Bar. Love the menu, the location and the wait staff EVERY SINGLE TIME I have been there has been superb. That plays a big factor for me if they are "in on the fun" of going out. My usual is a few Grey Gooses (or is that geese?LOL!) and the Ahi Tuna.

Just went to Blarney today for lunch, something I might not have done without a TT recommendation (several months ago). The food was great & we'll definitely go back.

Ironically, we were on the way to Tangos, subject of another thread, but they don't open until 3 p.m. on Saturdays.

A very hip dude, I would say a musician for Miss Underwood, was dining at The Blarney too. It's great to see those band tour busses downtown!

And thanks for info about Yelp; I will check it out.