Rook

A few weeks ago, Tim and I decided to go to Rook for dinner with some friends.  They serve mostly just sandwiches (banh mi) for lunch, but I'd seen pictures on Facebook of some of their street food inspired dinner dishes, and was anxious to try it.

When we arrived, we were a bit nervous because it was empty except for one other couple.  This was around 6:30 on a Friday night, mind you.  And it didn't get much busier while we were there.  This joint needs more word-of-mouth, apparently.

We were also off to a so-so start because ordering is slightly confusing.  They keep the order-at-the-counter thing going from lunchtime, so you step up and take a look at the chalkboard to see what's on offer.  After negotiating with Tim about which items we'd be splitting, we then ordered from the cashier/waitress.  None of that is terribly out of the ordinary, I know.  But the confusion came when we paid.  There was a line on the receipt for a tip, but it hadn't really been explained to us yet how the whole thing would work.  So, neither my friend nor I filled in the tip line.  We felt awful when we then learned that the cashier would also be bringing us all of our food and drinks when it was ready.  This was easily remedied by leaving her a cash tip on the table, but that didn't make me feel like much less of a heel for not just tipping her up front.  And what if I hadn't had cash?  So confusing! 

Luckily, the food made up for the rocky start (and now I'll know what to do when I return).  We started with the Thai Sour Sausage Dumplings ($6).  They came four to an order and were spectacular!  The sausage inside was very pink--we even suspect borderline raw--but it tasted so freaking good that we both decided we didn't care what diseases we may be getting.  The sausage itself gave a rich, meaty flavor to the whole thing, and the sourness was perfect and made them so addictive.  The spicy mustard they were served with complimented them perfectly.  I could eat several orders of these easily. We also got one Pork Belly Steamed Bun ($3.50 for one).  The pork belly was so tender and full-flavored, and I loved the finely chopped peanuts on top.  Again, I could eat these in bulk.  Omnomnom.

We decided to get two "mains" and split them.  The first was the Karaage (Japanese fried chicken, $8), which was thighs that were lightly breaded and served over rice with a great sweet chili sauce.  This was also crazy good.  The thinly sliced peppers gave it a nice kick, and it had just the right amount of heat.  We also got a Raven Banh Mi ($8), which contains Korean-style marinated bulgogi beef along with the usual veg and cilantro.  It was served on a great roll.  I found the beef to be a bit tough, enough that I wasn't loving the sandwich despite its great flavor.  Luckily, Tim really loved this sandwich, so I ended up finishing off the chicken while he ate most of my half of the sandwich.

Our friends felt this was a pretty light meal, considering the total price (with beer, tax, and tip we were in the high $30's), but upon reflection it was a reasonable amount of food for Tim and I, at least (our friends ordered a bit less).  Still, it was really yummy and a nice Vietnamese inspired alternative, and Tim and I plan to return.  I'd love to go at lunch to try a Thai Sour Sausage banh mi...

Website:  Rook