T.S.D.O.B: Day 11 - The Iron Press

It's Day 11 of Thirty Straight Days Of Blogging. I'm glad you could stop by for another exciting post. What we have today is a place I almost walked right past, The Iron Press.

The Iron Press is located in the same shopping center as Portola Coffee Lab and Surfas. I discovered this restaurant as I was getting ready to leave. I had just finished a coffee and croissant from Portola and was taking a little stroll to see what else was there. Just when I decided to head back home, I happened to glance through a store window and saw someone wearing a shirt that had "Beer and Waffles" written on it. For me, anything mixed with beer is usually a good combo. Adding waffles to the mix just sounds delightful.

The picture above is pretty much the first thing I saw when I walked in. I have to say that's kinda cool. I'd like to see the place when they are busy. As I sat down, I just looked around and checked out some of the art on the wall and the overall scenery. Kind of a swanky place. It has to be with all the hipsters in that shopping center. In any case, I was digging the vibe. Good music playing and Sportscenter on the TV. You can't go wrong.

When the server handed me the menu, I looked it over and was slightly confused. Don't get it twisted, I wasn't staring at it and drooling all over myself. It's just that the way they have the combinations set up is different than the standard. One size combination means you don't get a side. Another means you do. A special combo might get you certain sides. Not the most straight forward, but it made sense after the server broke it down for me. Maybe I just left my brain at home that day.

Since I rode my bike there, I chose to go with a half-waffle sandwich with tater tots and a beer. The sandwich had prosciutto and cheese with arugula. The server recommended a fried egg and avocado. She was a cutie pie with pretty eyes, so I went with it. Hey, I'm a sucker for pretty eyes. :)

They have a ton of beer on tap, lots of them being micro-brews. I forgot which one I got. It was some beer from Belgium, and it was tasty. I just didn't like the size of glass it came in. I wanted to get a little more beer for my $6.

When my food came, this is what I was looking at:

Let me remind you, this was a HALF ORDER! I was relieved I didn't go for the full. They would've had to wheel my ass out of there!

I cut it in half and was able to pick it up at that point. After tearing through this plate some, this is what it looked like:

For real, this was a great plate of food. The tater tots were dope. I got to try 3 different sauces with it. A maple-habanero, regular maple, and a salsa...I think. I really need to take notes! In any case, I learned that dipping tater tots in maple syrup is almost sinful. It took a little restraint not to lick my fingers to get every last drop of that sweet, sweet goodness. The spicy maple was good, but I preferred the regular.

The sandwich was well put together. The waffle was good and held up well. It wasn't tough at all, yet it held everything together. I don't order prosciutto that often, but I could tell that it was of good quality. The fried egg was good, as it usually is. Overall, just a really good sandwich.

When I finished the plate, I thought "Fuck, I still need to ride home!" I was ready for a nap at that point. But, I knew I had to get to home eventually. So, I got my big butt up on that bike and slowly made my way home.

That's about it for this one. On a side note, I have to say that last picture of the half-eaten sandwich is my favorite. In my opinion, I think it came out great. Probably one of my best, if that's saying anything. I'm no artsy-fartsy photographer, but for some reason I really like how it came out! What do you think? Good pic or just whatever? Let me know!

See you tomorrow!