Welcome to the Food Blog!

Here in this blog I will introduce you to the surprising variety of food available in Rexburg, Idaho. Being a relatively small town, with relatively not a lot to do, and yet pressure to go on dates anyway, I decided it would be fitting to analyze the many local eateries and help you make important decisions such as "Where do I want to eat today?" or "What restaurant would be good tonight?" or "Where so I take my date to dinner?" Therefore, check out the reviews (written by an amateur connoisseur) and make your decisions accordingly. Since some of the restaurants are major chains that you can find all over the place, I chose to ignore those and focus on the smaller chains and local gems. for you convenience I will list what restaurants were reviewed in what month. You can also follow them as links. You can also also follow the labels to find specifics such as desserts, burger joints, or the coveted Top 10. (The labels are at the bottom)

June:

Frontier Pies

5 Buck Pizza

Da Pineapple Grill

BRC’s Frozen Custard/Franks Pulled Pork/We’re Twisted Pretzels

Gator Jack's Sandwich Shack

Snoasis Sno Shack

Big Jud's Country Diner

The Cocoa Bean

Paradise Donuts

Joe's Filling Station

The Flap Jack Shack

JB's Restaurant

Craigo’s (The Pizza Pie Café)

Idamont Café

Mill Hollow Frozen Yogurt

Kiwi Loco

Twizlberry

G’s Dairy Quality Dairy Products

Karie Anne's Frozen Desserts

Nielsen's Frozen Custard

Nipa Hut

Ying Yang Oriental Kitchen

El Garden

Ramirez

Gringo’s Mexican Restaurant

Taco Buses

May:

Teriyaki Express

Original Thai

New Fongs

Fongs (Old Fongs)

Mandarin's Chinese

 April:

Rexburg Root Beer Selection

Great Harvest Bread Company

College Ave. Deli

Sammy's Cafe

New York Burrito

Screw Flanders.

Da Pineapple Grill

Located on by the roundabout and Colonial Apartments, next door to Alphagraphics

From the outside Da Pineapple Grill, hereby referred to as the Pineapple Grill, looks to be a fast food restaurant with a Hawaiian flare. From the inside, it’s actually a kind of cool sit down restaurant/sushi bar. The ambiance is relaxing, decorated with a kind of luau based theme. I just felt like chillin’. I can’t explain it, nor will I try. It was just cool, a’ight? Don’t judge.

The thing to do is show up from 12 to 2 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. That’s when you get the lunch specials. This is important, because the Pineapple Grill isn’t remotely cheap. the lunch specials are a little more so though. The pineapple chicken is highly recommended by some, but I went to try their sushi since it’s a sushi bar.

I selected a platter and then sat at the sushi bar while they made the food. You could watch them prepare everything. My favorite is the tuna nigiri, although the salmon nigiri is really good too. Nigiri is raw fish served with rice, pressed together. The Hawaiian Rolls (otherwise known as California Rolls) have crab, seaweed (more tasty than I thought), and avocado, with rice. And there was this delightful little pouch of rice and sesame seeds called inarizushi. I guess the pouch is made of fried tofu. But it’s fried so it’s okay. What I didn’t dig as much was the ginger and wasabi. Since ginger looks a little like raw fish I ate some, and it was awful. But that’s the ginger’s fault, not the establishment. The sushi was good, better than I thought it would, but in the end, price is a determining factor. If you want a classy date though (Prom?) (the college equivalent of Prom?) then this is a good spot to go. It’s bodacious.

Nipa Hut

Located across the street from Horkley's, near Porter Park

The Nipa Hut is something new. It's a Filipino food shack, named for the regional palm frond. The shack is brightly colored, and joy of joy! they give out free samples. I was super excited when I went over. We pretty much ordered one of everything. A popular food is their Adobo, which is a marinated meat - I believe they used chicken. It was slightly tangy, and the flavor was subtle. They also had marinated chicken, which tasted a little like teriyaki, but really good teriyaki. I mean really good. Get their marinated chicken - that's an order. And while you're at it, they have lumpia. Lumpia always makes me happy. It's like a fried spring roll, and when you get it it also comes with a sauce that is sweet, sour, and spicy rolled into one, and it's to die for. I would finish it off with a spoon. And, as a way to make the food go further, they would also include rice. Rice is always good. The service is quick, the wait is short, and if you speak Tagalog you're in good company. When it's sunny outside, you should eat something tropical-ish. Filipino food is tropical-ish. And I haven't met a single person who went to the Nipa Hut and regretted it. Could this new player make it into my top 10? They just might.

Ying Yang Oriental Kitchen

Located near Domino’s and Viking books, in that little plaza across the street from Broulims

When Ying Yang first opened up, there would sometimes be a line. It is a fancier sit down restaurant, and of very high quality food. I happen to be rather fond of cheap Chinese food or even imitation Chinese food, but this is a little more authentic (a little) and of higher quality than most (a lot). By quality I mean both the food they use and their preparation of it. My favorite is their orange chicken. Their sweet and sour was lacking in sauce (a big requirement) but their orange most certainly was not. Their pepper beef was also quite good. There was enough rice to feed an army, and the portions are quite large. They are kind of expensive, but you get what you pay for – they can fill you up. Their menu changes from time to time (if I understood correctly) but I went with a lot of people, tried everything they had on the menu, and was not disappointed for doing so. If you want to go on a fancy date, or eat something neither fast food, sandwich, or tex-mex (your options in this town) go to Ying Yang. It’s a classy place that will hook you up for dinner - You’ll be glad you went.

Teriyaki Express

At the old Hogi Yogi, across the street from the BYUIC

The Teriyaki Express originally started as a trailer parked at Horkely’s that had a 15 minute line whenever you showed up. Now that they’ve moved to the old Hogi Yogi, the lines seem shorter, since you can sit and wait in peace. Famous for their large portions, the house special is chicken thigh and white rice, with what I believe is a homemade teriyaki sauce (but don’t quote me on that). You can spring extra for chicken breast, beef, sometimes pork, or replace the rice with vegetables, but why mess with a classic? The lovely part is that for $6 you can feed two people or yourself…twice. They advertise two days worth of food for $6, and it’s totally worth it. On dates, as long as she doesn’t think you’re cheap it’s easy to share. You can order smaller, separate containers if you want to be less awkward. Their beef is a little dry – I much prefer their chicken, which is a rarity, but these guys do a good job. One day, all the construction will finish there, and the restaurant will look more conventional, but I admire that they keep feeding us during the remodeling. Seriously my mouth waters every time I walk by. This is on my top 10 for sure, and as such I insist you check it out during your time in the ‘Burg.

Original Thai

On Main street,  a little bit closer to Broulim’s than Fongs is

I have had some good Thai food in the past, and this place ranks among my top 5 Thai Restaurants. Their green curry is excellent, and it’s the only place that can get me to knowingly eat egg plant. You can go spicy or not on most dishes, and I vote you should, but I won’t force you. I also hear good things about their pad Thai. This isn’t the kind of restaurant you go to looking for meat though – everything is dominantly vegetarian, but that’s okay. It isn’t the kind of vegetarian restaurant that makes me want to eat ribs to make a statement – it’s just the recipes don’t need a dead cow. That is the only time I’ll ever say that too. My only concern is that the portions are small and pricey. It’s not that the cost is more than any other restaurant; it’s just how little you get for the price. I believe they serve what are known as single portions, not the American portions I’m used to. However, if you’re looking for a classy and exotic date in town, this is one of the best places to take your lady friend.

New Fongs

Between the roundabout and Porter Park

I broke convention and didn’t order sweet and sour anything the one time I went here. Instead I bought orange chicken, and think I made a mistake. It seemed to me that they only had two sauces, the brown sauce that was used whenever sweet and sour isn’t called for is mediocre at best. It wasn’t the worst food I’ve ever had, but I didn’t like it. The recipes are similar to those at Old Fongs, but blander and not as satisfying. I’ve known a few people who prefer New Fongs to the Old, and more power to ‘em, but as for me personally, I prefer actual flavor and variety. Not a big fan.

Fongs (Old Fongs)

Main Street

I ate here when I first came to Rexburg, and as such, I’m rather fond of it, mostly for nostalgic purposes. When I go to Chinese restaurants, I consistently order Sweet and Sour chicken or pork, and try to convince someone to order the orange chicken. Their sweet and sour is the best in the ‘Burg. Dripping in sauce (as it should be) it has a perfect flavor, and there is neither too much nor too little. What is left over easily mixes in with their fried rice. They also offer chow mien, but not your typical noodle laden chow mien. This is a mix of celery and other vegetables. To be honest, it looks uncomfortably gross. I had ordered it myself once because my date had, and while I had only seen it before, I didn’t want her to be alone in having it on her plate, so I got it too. Not one to turn down food I bought, I started to eat it, and it’s actually pretty good. I don’t have a single complaint about the taste, only the look. But I don’t buy food to look at it – if I did, there wouldn’t be any point in saving up for that Picasso I always wanted. So if you aren’t a fried rice fan, get the chow mien – it’s delicious, just don’t scrutinize it. I usually just order from the back of the menu, their lunch/dinner specials. There is actually a very large selection of meals, but it’s been my experience that the sauces are more or less the same, so I just have my regular and am perfectly satisfied with it.

Mandarin's Chinese

Just past Big 5 on N 2^nd E

The most recent Chinese food establishment in Rexburg, it is very similar to Fongs, but a little more out of the way. True to form, I ordered my sweet and sour pork, which was good but unremarkable. What was much more intriguing was the Mandarin Chicken, which came out in large strips of lightly marinated meat. Normally I love my sauces, and this was a little skimpy, but it was actually very well balanced and excellent. I stole more of the Mandarin Chicken then I ate of my own pork. The orange chicken was also well done – you dip the fried chicken in the orange sauce, which was plentiful. Not my favorite orange chicken, but probably the best in Rexburg. The fried rice was a step above, and would have been perfect with a little more green onion, but overall gets a 9 out of 10 on my fried rice scale. The chow mien looked gross, much like the chow mien at Fongs but actually tastes fine. I would almost recommend it if their fried rice wasn’t such a cut above. However, since their fried rice is so excellent, don’t bother with the chow mien. You’ll be glad you listened to me.