5 Guys Famous Burgers and Fries

5 Guys Famous Burgers and Fries is a rapidly growing regional chain (based out of D.C., I think?). A store recently opened on Highway 1 near Lewes, and I went to check it out. I gotta say, LOVED IT. You order at a counter in the same manner as you would at a fast food joint, but that's where the comparison ends. First, the beef is fresh, not frozen, and you can really taste the difference. Second, the selection of free toppings is unusual, with choices like sauteed mushrooms, fried onions, and jalapeno peppers. I found the topping selections so tempting, that I decided to forgo the toppings that you need to pay extra for, such as cheese and bacon. The fries were fried in peanut oil, and were very tasty. While you are waiting for your order, grab some peanuts to munch on. 5 Guys offers burgers in two sizes, "standard" and "little". I found the "little" to be plenty big (particularly if you are also getting an order of fries, which is of generous size). I loved this place ... I'll definitely be back.

DiBonaventure's Provincial Bakery

Alright, so it's not a restaurant, but I have to pass along the good word about DiBonaventure's Provincial Bakery just outside of Lewes. I popped in there the other day and bought a loaf of garlic mozzarella bread, and it was awesome! The bread at DiBonaventure's is baked in a wood fired oven, creating an unbelievable crust. I look forward to going back to this place to try their other breads and focaccia.

Tijuana Taxi - Rehoboth Beach

I don't know what we were thinking heading toward downtown Rehoboth Beach on Memorial Day weekend. However, we were craving Mexican, and wanted to check out the new Dos Locos location on the avenue. The front of the restaurant was packed, made worse by the hostess chatting with friends rather than taking names for the waiting list. After eventuallly finding out it was a 45 minute wait, we decided to walk across the street to the Tijuana Taxi for our Mexican fix. I hadn't been to the Taxi in years, and friends had told me that it has reallly gone downhill. With low expectations and growling stomachs, we heading in the door, pleasantly surprised to find tables readily available.

The meal started off with the standard-issue chips and salsa. Unfortunately, the chips were slightly stale. My main course was a chorizo quesadilla. This selection was very tasty and was a huge portion. My DP's (dining partner's) fajita was also tasty. Overall, if your looking for reasonably priced Mexican without having to wait for your table, give Tijuana Taxi a try.

One other note: if you like Margharitas, order the smallest size. I'm a bit of a geek, and it's more cost effective to order the smalls. Yep, I did the math. The price/ounce of beverage goes up as you increase in size. Weird ...

Irish Eyes -- Milton

It was the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend ... all of the restaurants in the region are going to be ready for the crowds, right? Irish Eyes has been in the area for a long time now, with locations in Rehoboth Beach and Lewes. The Milton location has been open for a year or so now, and we decided to pop in for a (theoretically) quick lunch. It turns out that Milton was having their horseshoe crab festival, and parking was a bit sparse. We made our way into the restaurant, and surprisingly the restaurant was only half full. It took a long time to get seated, which should have been our first warning sign of things to come. We ordered the conch fritter appetizer to share, and we each ordered sandwiches. The server asked if we wanted the conch fritters with our sandwiches, or as appetizers. We said that we were pretty hungry, so we would go with whatever would get us our food the quickest. She said that she would put the whole order in together, so as to not delay the sandwiches. Wow ... if that was Irish Eyes version of NOT delaying something, I can't imagine what the slow service is like. We waited, and we waited ... and did I mention that we waited? After filling our iced tea glasses for the umpteenth time, the server asked if we needed anything. Ummm ... how about some food? I'll take to the manager, she politely stated. I don't want to tell Irish Eyes how to do their business, but it shouldn't take intervention from the manager to get food produced in the kitchen. The food eventually made it to our table; unfortunately, I can't say that it was worth the wait. The conch fritters were okay, in a "dump some frozen food in a deep fryer" way. My chicken teriyaki sandwich was inedible. The surface of the skinless, boneless breast had hardened to crunchy crust. I literally tore the sandwich apart to make sure that a foreign object hadn't accidentally made it's way to my food. The rest of the chicken was completely dried out.

By the time we paid our bill, people had wandered over from the Horseshoe Crab festival and the restaurant was starting to fill up. Based on the slow service we received when the restaurant was half full, I expect that those people are still waiting for their food.