First Look: Ziggie's Sidewalk Cafe and Pub

The house platter

Instead of living up to the delicately plated dish picture in the menu, this starter was a sad, greasy pile. What happened to the bed of lettuce separating the four choices? And where were the three dipping sauces pictured? This is definitely your 3 a.m., night-ending, drunkenly-ordered food mistake that you barely remember the next day, which probably explains the picture in the menu. For almost $10, this is one expensive letdown.

Granted, we visited the restaurant on the fifth day it was open, so maybe the kitchen hadn’t worked out all of the kinks. But even still, how can this be called an “appetizer”? Our visit took place around 2 p.m. -- after the lunch rush -- so you would think a little more care could have been tossed its way. Had this not been for a Metromix review, I would have asked for my money back on this dish.

The onion rings were passable, but the jalapeno cheese poppers tasted like the sort you'd find in the frozen food section of a grocery store. Same goes for the Buffalo chicken wings, which were sauced, then cooked, resulting in a tasteless tough exterior and slimy meat inside. The potato skins were just all right, but the bacon in them had been cooked to a near-jerky consistency. Save some money and skip this "appetizer." After we gave it a once-over, we certainly did.