The Iron Rabbit: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!

Kath says:  The Iron Rabbit in the West side of Olympia is a very eclectic American Bistro. I love to eat here. The atmosphere is interesting, as is the background music selection. (Not to mention the hand drawn bunny cartoons over the kitchen area advertising the upcoming strawberry season specials)

Our waitress was friendly, courteous and informative.  At her suggestion, I had a Mojito. (I LOVE Mojitos! muddled mint, lime simple syrup and light rum, tasty and refreshing) and it was a very good one, they definitely got it right.

The special of the day was Rockfish Tacos, served with strawberry salsa, but none of us chose that.  We started off with an order of bats and chokes. ($8.99) Bats and chokes are deep fried green beans (bats) and artichoke hearts (chokes) which is served with a lovely aoli for dipping. 

Now I know one can never go wrong with deep fried ANYTHING dipped in a good aoli, but the fresh taste of those green beans was fabulous, and the artichokes were simply delicious.

Kath decided to go the vegetarian route (don't faint!) and ordered the Artichoke Cakes. Two cakes of artichokes, red peppers and black olives drizzled with a roasted red pepper aoli and served with garlic mashers and fresh sauteed green beans.($14.99) It was crispy on the outside, but moist and tender on the inside and really flavorful. The aoli was just the perfect touch to compliment the cakes (They were croquettes, if you ask me, and they were very good.) Potatoes and garlic are two of my favorite foods. 

Liz had the chicken artichoke heart pasta Alfredo.($14.99) I thought it was awesome! The creamy sauce was really delicious. The chicken (which Liz insisted I try) was moist and yummy. There were grilled artichokes all around the edge of the plate. It was beautiful, as well as delicious.

Mike had the Cowboy Iron Burger.($12.49) Natural Angus burger, smokey bacon cheddar cheese,  spring greens, tomatoes and burger spread (secret cowboy sauce?) with beer battered onion rings and bbq sauce on a toasted kaiser bun.  Its is served with fat french fries that Mike adores, or coleslaw, or chips and salsa.  I didn't taste it because I have eaten it before, and it was very good. How can you go wrong with Deep Fried Onion rings and BBQ sauce??? Yum Yum, and get extra napkins.

Liz says: Kath, Mike, and I went to the Iron Rabbit and started our meal off with the famous bats and chokes!  They were fabulous and the sauce they came with was great!  I ordered the Chicken Artichoke Heart Alfredo and it was great...the chicken was cooked perfectly, the sauce was great, there were tons of artichoke hearts and it was just awesome!  We had great service, everyone was so happy with their meal, and I would definitely go again!  The best thing was I had leftovers for the next day and it was just as great the next day!

Guest comments from Mike:

Cost of dinner: (with gratuity)

Kath and Mike $50.00

Liz:

website address: http://www.ironrabbit.net/index.html

Address: 22103 Harrison

Olympia Wa 98501

Phone:  360 956 3661

Hours:

Mon - Thurs: 11am - 9pm

Friday: 11am -11pm

Saturday: 11am -10pm

Sun: 11am - 9:00pm

Heres what they say about themselves: Locally owned and operated since 2005 the Iron Rabbit is committed to creating an atmosphere that inspires conversation and creativity while providing a high quality dining experience suitable for the entire family. We are happy to provide a casual atmosphere that is built upon great service, amazing food and high quality beverages.

Heres what they said about US!!

Kath, Liz & Mike
Thanks for coming into the Iron Rabbit and WOW what a great write up. I
shared it with my team. It means a lot to get such an articulate and well
thought out response to the Iron Rabbit experience. Creating a dialogue
between individuals with wonderful conversation and exploration of the
senses is the ultimate.

On behalf of the Iron Rabbit team and myself,
Thank you,
Christian

Fuji Japanese Steakhouse

Kath Says:

Kath was really excited about this meal! Liz says its her favorite. Kath had never been to a teppenyakki before, and had heard many fun things about it.  Teppenyakki is a Japanese restaurant where the grill is in the middle of the table and the chef prepares your meal as you watch. It is usually accompanied by some interesting knife work and a bit of a "show"  They seat people until the table is full, so you may be dining with strangers, but its usually fun.

We were seated with a family of four, who pretty much kept to themselves.  Our chef arrived with his trolley full of goodies and proceeded to light the grill on fire. (to warm it up, he said) He make fancy work of frying rice and tossed rice balls into our mouths. Well, I should say into LIZ's mouth...I missed mine, twice. Next he made an onion ring volcano and had it spew fire, which he sprinkles sesame seeds into and called them fireworks. He extinguished the volcano with a rubber fireman who when squeezed, peed on the fire. (Kath thought this was a little in bad taste to simulate urinating on food)

The Chef then continued to saute vegetables and cook the meat of choice for each person. Liz and I both had the shrimp/steak combination. The shrimp was succulent, and Kath thought it was the shining star of the meal. Everything was really fresh and delicious, and you get plenty to eat.

Dinner comes with salad, soup, steamed rice, appetizer, vegetables, hot tea, and dessert. You can choose the protein from a list that includes various seafood and beef, chicken and tofu combinations.  Its a little pricey for dinner, but the cost also includes the cooking show.

Liz Says:

 First off, let me say that it's possible, the "awesomeness" of the Fuji Steakhouse has worn off a tad which is my fault since I've gone there three times in the past couple months.  When you get to the point where you CAN catch the rice your first time and you know all the little flares the chefs do or can pretty much do the commentating yourself, you know it's time to stop going for a while.  My favorite part is definitely the show...who doesn't like to have a giant fireball go off in front of their face before dinner?!  It's fun to see all the neat stuff they do and I find myself mezmorized everytime...I love the miso soup and salad they serve before the "show" starts and the shrimp is just to die for...I keep telling myself the next time I go (which will need to be a few months from now), I will get nothing but shrimp.  I ordered shrimp and steak with veggie fried rice and it was all delicious...I did notice the orange sauce seemed a little different and not quite as awesome as it usually is...as others can tell you, I pretty much see the veggies and shrimp purely as a vehicle for eating the orange sauce.  Anywho - all in all, it was a great fun experience - great company, fun, and yummy! 

Cost of dinner: (including gratuity)

Kath $34.56

Liz  $34.65

Website: www.fujijapanesesteakhouselacey.com

Address:

7914 Martin Way E. #3

Olympia, WA 98516

Phone: 360) 459-4499

Business Hours:

• Mon - Fri : Lunch 11:30 am - 2:00 pm
• Dinner 5:00 pm -10:00 pm
• Sat - Sun : Dinner 4:00 pm -10:00 pm