What are the VERY BEST places to eat at in Delaware, yes anywhere in Delaware. (Wilmington: fit in, college)

[Erinys]

Cool Springs in Magnolia is OUTSTANDING! It's not a plain pile of frozen fried shrimp on your plate, it's a melange of flavors merging the basic nature of the fresh and therefore always varied meat/fish and the artistically created sauces. Dennis is a genius and Carolyn should run for State House. It's been named Critics Choice Best Restaurant in Kent County repeatedly, best Prime Rib at least twice, wins Rehoboth chocolate festival repeatedly. The house dill dressing is extraordinary. If you have a developed palate, I've never found anything better. Someone recommended Maynards in Middletown (which changed hands a few years ago), but it and its frozen deserts don't hold a candle.

The specials are amazing. Where else can you get shad roe (eww, but still, they have it)? Our favorites are the thick and juicy butt steak with HORSERADISH coating instead of standard shallot version on the menu and parmesan encrusted swordfish instead of the menu version (pepper maybe?). They have rack of lamb and Chilean sea bass, grouper, monkfish, whatever. They have fish I haven't even heard of. I wish they had bay scallops instead of or in addition to sea scallops, though. The pasta dish was disappointing, but if you ask they'll give you options on what they can do to the pasta instead of the menu version. Never go rare on the beef, when Dennis isn't working 'rare' sometimes arrives 'raw.'

The desserts rotate, so it's bad to get hooked on one and have it disappear. Heaven and hell cake is amazing, almond joy torte rocks and the bread pudding is huge and delicious. Pass on the coconut cream pie - it's made there but somehow has a pre-packaged frozen taste.

Cool Springs is kind of like a club. If you aren't comfortable rubbing elbows with the governor or secretary of state, go away. A lot of the club members sit at the bar. If you're a regular they will bend over backwards for you. But don't cut the lemons - they are purely decorative. And leave the kids at home. There is no children's menu (thank god!).

The drinks are a bit pricey and kind of iffy. Make sure the wait staff know exactly what you expect your drink to be (at least I do, but my drinks are weird).

[Erinys]

Mari Monti is the best Italian in the Dover area. Real Italian, not what Americans think Italian is. This is not your mother's Olive Garden. Incredible variety, excellent service. Prices as one would expect for real entrees by a real chef and not just a pile of pasta.

Roma in Dover has some great Americanized Italian dishes. Delicious and you'll probably feel more like you've gotten more for your money. Their carryout is really slow, but great with many flexible options. Wish they had delivery.

[Erinys]

A real British pub in Delaware. Genuine Brit pudding desserts. YORKSHIRE PUDDING (Saturday nights, too difficult to do everyday)! Fantastic selection of beer, but it's pricey. I go for the environment, Stoney's musical choices, friendly staff, Bangers & Mash and Toad in a Hole. I don't like having to duck when people are playing darts, and it can be annoying when they have bands play (might be Friday nights). Closes pretty early - not a 2am bar kinda place.

EDIT: Jeez, now I'm craving Bangers.

[janiceguazzo]

Originally Posted by Blessed123

What are the name of a few mexican food "chain restaurants" in DE? I've heard of Casa Gallardo, Don Pablos, On the Border, Chipotle, etc. but don't know if they are in DE. Any "wing" restaurants?

Wings to Go were really good as far as my husband says. We used to get them all the time when we lived there. There were locations in Smyrna and Dover.
And I agree with the other poster on La Tolteca. Very good.

[doctorjef]

How, oh how, can you think Tolteca good? Instead, I'd recommend Mariachi in Rehoboth Beach, which is more interior of Mexico oriented. Tolteca is some of the worst attempt at Tex-Mex I've ever had. It's a good thing, I suppose, that people around here don't know any better.

[Gone-2-Beach]

Originally Posted by doctorjef

How, oh how, can you think Tolteca good? Instead, I'd recommend Mariachi in Rehoboth Beach, which is more interior of Mexico oriented. Tolteca is some of the worst attempt at Tex-Mex I've ever had. It's a good thing, I suppose, that people around here don't know any better.

Jeez, could you be any more insensitive? You've insulted janiceguazzo and others who like the restaurant as well as the "people around here" who "don't know any better".

There ARE valid opinions other than yours and all opinions should be respected!

[elizamary]

Erinys........I must agree on both your mentions. We went to Mari Monti's for the first time the friday before Mothers Day. I was impressed with white linen table covers with an elegant flair.......
The food is great. Walking into Mari Monti's reminded me of our vists to Italy.
New years Eve we had an early dinner at Roma and I was also impressed.
Food and atmosphere were excellent. We had lived here 2 years wanting to try this but my neighbor said Roma was horrible. Since we were advised not to go, we didn't. Plans changed New years so we went.

As far as Olive Garden goes...They serve a bunch of slop that all taste the same with a different shaped noodle.

DH and I had been looking for more of a finer dinning for a special occassion. Now we found it with Mari Monti's and Roma.

I am not a mexican food lover but I understand the mexican food in the east is a joke. If you go to California......you will find excellent authentic Mexican restaurants. But then again I'm not into the mexican flavor.

I also need to share again one of my everday favs.......The Countrie Eaterie of South state street in Kent County.
Breakfast, lunch or dinner with a great price.....can't beat it.
Had the stuffed pork chop for dinner one night which was heavenly....
You get soup or salad (I think), rolls, butter, beverage, entree and dessert for the pork chop dinner costing $9 something. Oh and dessert I had the creme brulee'. Oh to die for.

[doctorjef]

Originally Posted by Charley

Jeez, could you be any more insensitive? You've insulted janiceguazzo and others who like the restaurant as well as the "people around here" who "don't know any better".

There ARE valid opinions other than yours and all opinions should be respected!

I'm just saying that easterners are naive about Mexican cuisine generally. Tex-Mex is basically slop anyway, thought at least in Texas it is tasty slop that is the state comfort food. Interior of Mexico styles are far more refined, tastier and interesting. Decent Mexican is hard to come by in these parts. Mariachi in Rehoboth does some good stuff. I'm sure that around Wilmington and Elsmere some of the little Mexican taquerias have some good stuff. La Tolteca/Tonalteca is a joke -- sorry if the truth hurts.

[toobusytoday]

I think opinions about food and restaurants in general are very, very subjective and reviews should always be taken with a grain (or scoop) of salt. In our family four out of five of us love spicy food, but my oldest son thinks that anything spicy just doesn't taste good. If I make any dinner and three out of five of us like it, I consider it a success.

While I agree with doctorjef that easterners in general are not very knowledgeable (I think naive is the wrong word here) about true Mexican food, I also think it's patronizing for anyone to assume that the posters on this board are in that category. If I don't like something at a restaurant that everyone else LOVES, I assume that my tastes are different, that I ordered a particularly bad item or maybe the kitchen had an off night. I don't usually assume that I know more then the other reviewers.

[doctorjef]

And yet, cooking can be held to a particular standard. It's not purely a matter of subjectivity. Although I haven't read through all of this thread, I've noticed here and elsewhere that there seems to be a general consensus that the "Italian" stuff purveyed by Olive Garden is considered a pretty pathetic imitation of anything truly Italian. Of course, someone who had never been exposed to Italian cooking in their life would have no way of assessing Olive Garden on anything but subjective impression. However, there are objective criteria, as well as benefit of wide experience that can be brought to bear on assessing Italian cooking or any other cuisine. Pasta, for example, can objectively be under-cooked or more frequently over-cooked. The standard is that it should be firma al dente -- neither excessively chewy nor cooked to a limp and starchy blob, but rather firm to the teeth.