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    Essential Kitchen

    4.5 (2 reviews)
    Closed 6:00 am - 3:00 pm
    Updated 1 week ago

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    Cracker Barrel Old Country Store

    Cracker Barrel Old Country Store

    2.8
    (304 reviews)
    0.9 mi
    $$

    We came here to celebrate my wife's birthday. She chose it because it brings her warm memories…read more We were thankful because CB didn't change anything like was planned last year. The food is still delicious! I always get breakfast and this time I ordered the Grandma plate, which was awesome. You can see my pictures below. The only reason I didn't give a full 5 stars is because our server was unusually sassy and we could tell she was using a passive aggressive tone to share her displeasure of us asking questions. We still tipped, but not our usual. The kids all bought toys from the store and we left with great memories! The vibe is comfortable and we will be back. It's the closest one to our house... 45 min away.

    This particular location was next to the hotel we stayed at when we went to Great Lakes. I'd been…read moreto a Cracker Barrel in Florida so I thought this wasn't a bad choice for lunch. Wrong... First, I don't know how many times we circled around to find the entrance until we realized we have to go through the gift shop to get in. Second, the menu was very limited. There wasn't really anything appetizing but since we're already there, we just ordered whatever from the menu. We got two steak entrees, a fish and fries, another item I can't remember. Yeah that's how bad the experience was. As expected, nobody enjoyed it. No one finished any of the entrees. There's no condiments available in the tables. I wanted catsup for my friends but we didn't know where the server was. There was only one other customer in the restaurant so it wasn't busy at all. We spent over $100 here for a meal we didn't enjoy. Never again.....

    Photos
    Cracker Barrel Old Country Store
    Loaded tater totes
    Loaded tater totes
    Cracker Barrel Old Country Store

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    Merienda Cafe

    Merienda Cafe

    4.8
    (114 reviews)
    3.5 mi
    $$

    The Tocino wasn't what I'm used to. Was more like beef then Pork. Didnt have the chewy texture,…read morenonetheless flavor was good. Ube pancake with the ube butter and coconut jelly was made just right. The Galbi topsilog was good. Very rich marinade, not what I like, but on this plate with the garlic rice it works. Drinks were good, the Ube matcha was good on sweetness and the Calamansi lemonade was on point. Customer service was very good, the guy behind the counter saw us looking at the menu and asked if we'd like to hear about the specials... and they checked on us although at the table even though it felt more like a self serve style diner. Overall, good spot to get a quick fix for Filipino food craving.

    Been wanting to come here for a while and finally the opportunity presented itself. Cute little…read moreintimate cafe/restaurant. You order at the counter and then seat yourself. Came on a Thursday after lunch and it wasn't too busy. Ordered the Tocilog - which is sweet pork with a side of garlic fried rice, and an egg cooked any way you like. Also came with a side of noodles (pancit). Since I was here, decided to order some calamansi wings to go. And of course an ube milk tea. I really enjoyed my meal. The Tocino was a little different from what I'm used to. I'm used to a slab of pork pan fried with the fat fried to a slight crunch lol. I'm also used to tocino being red in color. I guess the tocino here is a little more leaner and no artificial colors - which works for me as I'm kinda allergic to red dye. But it tasted good, very flavorful. Loved the garlic rice as well. Pancit noodles were okay - could have used a little more seasoning but I could dig it Calamansi wings were low key fire. The crisp of the wings were perfection and the meat was not tough - still nice and juicy. I would get these again. They did have other flavors available that I need to come and try as well such as adobo and salt & pepper. Servers were nice and food came out pretty fast.

    Photos
    Interior of the cafe
    Interior of the cafe
    Merienda, home of the Deconstructed turon cheesecake.
    Merienda, home of the Deconstructed turon cheesecake.
    Ube latte

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    Ube latte

    Essential Kitchen - vegan - Updated July 2026

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