RESTAURANT REVIEWS
Upscale cafe, Mexican drive-through highlight area’s diverse lunch options
8/2/2012
Southwest chicken and lime salad at Chandler’s Cafe.
Southwest chicken and lime salad at Chandler’s Cafe.
Located in downtown Sylvania, Chandler Cafe has enough hipster swank to attract the yuppie crowd yet also plenty of down-homeyness to not scare away the Harley enthusiasts.
It seems to be a recipe for good business, especially with this year's Jamie Farr Classic teeing off next week.
The cafe has plenty of sandwiches, soups, and salads, and it serves Seattle's Best brand of coffee.
During our visit, we sampled the Southwest chicken and lime salad ($9.79), and three sandwiches: the Chief ($7.99), Rocket roast beef ($7.49), and Uptown chicken Melt ($7.99).
The salad had generous strips of grilled chicken on top of a crisp bed of mixed greens with shredded cheddar cheese, cherry tomatoes, tortilla chips, and a low-fat lime vinaigrette. The accompaniment of freshly made black bean and corn salsa and guacamole helps this dish stand out from the crowd.
The Uptown was a gooey cheesy panini with large, juicy slices of chicken: The melted parmesan and mozzarella cheese are perfect with the toasted bread and rich spinach artichoke spread.
The Rocket's marble rye was a great foundation for the classic delicatessen sandwich, which includes swiss cheese, tomatoes, bistro mustard sauce, and greens.
The Chief was made up of ample grilled chicken, bacon pieces, cheddar cheese, and Ranch dressing on a grilled flatbread.
CHANDLER CAFE
★★★
Address: 5648 N Main St., Sylvania.
Phone: 419-517-5088.
Category: Casual.
Menu: Cafe.
Hours: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through; 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.
Wheelchair access: Yes.
Average Price: $
Credit Cards: AE, Dis, MC, V.
Web site: chandlercafe.com.
●
Taco meal at Gloria’s Tamales.
If you're looking to get some Mexican takeout, there's no reason to "run for the border" to a fast food chain when Toledo has better options such as Gloria's Tamales.
Located on the corner of Lewis Avenue and Laskey Road, Gloria's is housed in an unassuming former ice cream stand -- it even has a drive-through window.
Gloria's is strictly takeout -- there are some dingy-looking picnic tables -- and it's a good idea to call ahead if you have a large order.
When you have "tamales" as part of your namesake, they're a must-try, and Gloria's didn't disappoint.
The pork was sold out, so we ordered the shredded beef variety ($13 for a dozen, $9.50 for a half dozen, $2 for a single). Gloria's packs the beef inside her homemade masa, which we suspect used plenty of lard because it released from the husk so easily. We were well pleased with the spicy beef concoction.
We also had a football-sized chicken burrito ($4.50) with shredded beef, onions, cheddar cheese, and beans; chicken and beef soft tacos supreme ($6.25 for the meal), which were very filling with plenty of meat; and shredded-chicken quesadillas ($6.50), which weren't very spicy and could have used some more oomph.
The beans and rice were obviously homemade, if perhaps a little bland. Also, the red and green sauces and the pico de gallo were fresh and outstanding.
GLORIA'S TAMALES
★★★
Address: 5004 Lewis Ave.
Phone: 419-476-1000.
Category: Casual.
Menu: Mexican.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.
Average Price: $
Credit Cards: AE, Dis, MC, V.
Contact Bill of Fare at fare@theblade.com.
Chandler
C afe ★★★
Address: 5648 N Main St., Sylvania.
Phone: 419-517-5088.
Category: Casual.
Menu: Cafe.
Hours: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday
through; 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday;
9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.
Wheelchair access: Yes.
Average Price: $
Credit Cards: AE, Dis, MC, V.
Web site: chandlercafe.com.