6 Overall Rating - Mountain Rose Cafe in Winter Park, CO 2/10/12

78542 US Highway 40
Winter Park, CO 80482
(970) 726-1374

Paul, Greg & I stopped at this local favorite a couple times during our ski trip in Winter Park/Mary Jane.

Ambiance: 5
This is a great little local spot. The small dining room and open kitchen is perfect for this local ski area.

Food Quality: 6
Greg's "Ain't Skairt o' Nuttin" was something to see - judging from the look of the plate, we should all be scared! I did try a bite and it was surprisingly amazing. It's a good thing we were spending the week skiing because I will need all the exercise I can get to work off this meal!

I ordered their quiche du jour which had mushrooms and some other stuff which I can't recall. The quiche lacked flavor, so it was quite disappointing after tasting Greg's dish. The biscuits & gravy were cold and the hashbrowns were bland.







On my second visit, I ordered their "Sweet Thing Breakfast Sandwich"...oh my. The strawberry sweetbread and honey cream cheese with sliced bananas and all the other yummy toppings were heavenly! It was the perfect dessert, except that this is a breakfast item. As I stated earlier, it's a good thing we're skiing five days because I'll have to work off the extra calories!

Service: 10
I loved the small-town nature of this restaurant and the friendly service that comes with it.

Value: 3
$50 for the three of us to have breakfast seems a little expensive.

7 Overall Rating - Kozmo Gastro Pub 2/2/12

Kozmo Gastro Pub
11890 Douglas Rd
Alpharetta, GA 30005
678) 526-6094
http://kozmogastropub.com/

Dinner and drinks with Stephanie.

Ambiance: 8
This little restaurant tucked away in an unsuspecting location lacks curb appeal, but once you step inside you'll be pleasantly surprised with what Kozmo Gastro Pub has to offer its patrons.

We ate at the bar where purse hooks were conveniently installed under the bar counters. For those who know me - you know I absolutely can't stand the thought of putting my purse on the dirty floor! While I do carry with me my own handy purse hanger, they don't always fit on the table and they do sometimes fall off of the table. I absolutely love built-in hooks!

I'd expect this restaurant to be located somewhere inside the Perimeter. It's nice to know that you can find a hot spot tucked away deep in the suburbs. Kozmo is simply finished with concrete floors throughout its restaurant. The lighting and upholstery in the dining room help to add warmth to the otherwise cold floors. Restrooms were simple as well, but could use better attention in terms of cleanliness.

Food Quality: 6
All food items come highly recommended. Stephanie's Kozmo Salad with the added salmon met much approval in terms of presentation, but the salmon portion looked awfully small. Luckily for her, she wasn't looking for a heavy meal.

Me, on the other hand, am never shy when it comes to food and especially foods rich in flavor. I opted for the not-so-healthy side of White Velvet Mac & Cheese and the Blackened Tilapia BLT. Sadly, both items were more deliciously described on the menu compared to how they tasted. They weren't bad by any stretch, but they just weren't as good as I had expected them to be. I would chalk it up to the menu engineer doing such a fabulous job "selling" their menu items...now the kitchen just needs to live up to expectations.

Although given a lower rating for food quality, I would definitely return and will look fowrard to trying other menu items as there were many appealing choices listed.

Service: 5
Service was fine, but I experienced nothing abovce average expectations.

Value: 6
Fair pricing. I wouldn't consider anything to be of great value, just what you might expect.