Morrisville Restaurant Reviews on NC Triangle Dining

August 1, 2015 by Ron Wen Leave a Comment

Saffron in Morrisville: Still Delivering a Great Indian Lunch Buffet

Front of Saffron in Morrisville and yes, this is an old picture- NC Triangle Dining

RETAKE: When I first arrived in North Carolina from the San Francisco area, Indian food was one of those cuisines I really missed. There weren’t a lot of great options so I was happy to hear about a tasty new Indian spot, Saffron. I made it out to Saffron for a couple of meals but really never had a chance to re-visit in the last five years. Luckily a friend of mine is up for an Indian buffet and she suggests Saffron so it’s time for a re-visit!

Interior of Saffron in Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

Inside, Saffron is a bit different than most local Indian restaurants. High ceilings, concrete floor, the interior is spacious and a bit more business-like but in all honesty it hasn’t changed much since my first visit years ago, good and bad. The dining room is already busy a bit after noon-time, it’s the RTP lunch crowd piling in. We’re seated in the back and put in our drink orders. Saffron’s buffet is in the back room, set off from the dining area.

Vegetarian side of lunch buffet at Saffron in Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

Non-vegetarian side of lunch buffet at Saffron in Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

At the buffet we dove into their steam trays! Vegetarian on the right: corn fritters, veggie fried rice, saag, cabbage with potates, peas and chick-peas. A good assortment for you non meat-eaters. On the left, they have chicken biryani, chicken tikka masala, tandoori chicken and more. Gulab jamun for dessert and some tea for a bit of sweet.

Well-made naan at Saffron in Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

Back at the table, they bring us a basket of naan and it’s time to dig in. My plate is nice and colorful, love the stewed cabbage and potatoes, the tikka masala is solid but the tandoori chicken is probably the stand-out. Soft, charred drums with that delicious spicing, excellent. Paired with the great naan, you are in for a good lunch here at Saffron. Bonus is that given all their customer traffic here, the steam trays are well-stocked. Service for our water glasses was also very good.

Yummy plate of Indian food at Saffron in Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

Overall lunch at Saffron was a pretty good experience. The lunch buffet had a nice range of meat and vegetarian dishes and it was well-stocked. Service was prompt and polite but a limited experience given the buffet. And the interior, while a bit dated, still works ok if you’re not up for fancy-shmancy. So nice job Saffron! You’ve kept up the good Indian eats that I remember from years back and people still love you for it. If you’re in the area and up from some aromatic Indian food, stop on by…

Saffron Morrisville

McCrimmon Corners

4121 Davis Drive

Morrisville, NC 27560

919.469.5774

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May 10, 2015 by Ron Wen Leave a Comment

Buffalo Wild Wings in Morrisville!

Front of Buffalo Wild Wings, Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

In the world of chicken wings, Buffalo Wild Wings (BW3) was always on the top of the heap in my mind. My favorite location in Chapel Hill closed down years ago so cravings for their wings would come and go but there were no convenient locations near home! Thankfully, two new locations opened up in Durham and Morrisville. Finally after years of waiting, it was time to get my chicken wings on. So on a chilly September night, we headed out to Morrisville in search of wings and some Monday Night football!

Main dining room at Buffalo Wild Wings, Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

Located in one of those huge strip plazas that dot the Morrisville landscape, it’s hard to not miss this Buffalo Wild Wings location because it’s BIG! We step inside and the place is aglare with neon lights, large high-def panels and more. Young waitstaff in outfits that look like ref uniforms bustle about and we head on back to the bar area. TV’s dot the entire back area along with some trivia games and video machines. BW3 is bright and noisy, a mix of sports and Top 40 from the speakers overhead. With the domestic beer specials, this is about as Merican as you can get! We grab a seat at a large, round high-boy and try to figure out the menu.

Bar at Buffalo Wild Wings, Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

I put in an order for some pretzels to get things started. With the 30 or so flavors and dry rub options at BW3, it may take you a while to figure out what you want. I go with my fave garlic-parm wings, mango-habenero wings along with some pretzels to get things started. It takes about 10 minutes before the pretzels show up and they look quite nice. Three steaming, hot, plump pretzels with some Southwest sauce and more. A good and fattening start to the meal!

Pretzels app at Buffalo Wild Wings, Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

About 10 minutes after that, our wings show up. I’ve got about 16 in my medium order ($14.49). I bite into my garlic-parm wings and they are good, a bit different from what I remember, less garlicky! But still solid. And the wings at this location are well-fired and a good size. They’re well-sauced so they are coated but not dripping, wing pro’s in action here! I bite in the mango-habanero wings and there’s fruit on top with some sweetness. Waiter had warned me they were spicy and he was RIGHT. After 5 or 10 seconds, the heat kicks in on the back of your throat and it keeps on going. I reach over for my beer knowing that it won’t douse out the heat but I don’t have any milk at the table! I eat three or four more of these wings and everyone agrees that they are H-O-T, hot. Probably about a 8 on a scale of 1 to 10, the only thing that saves me is that I had some Bida Manda wings recently that were probably 10 out of 10.

Medium wings (garlic-parmesan, mango-habanero) at Buffalo Wild Wings, Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

A basket of onion rings finished off the night along with the Kansas City Chiefs finishing off the New England Patriots, boo! We ask for the checks and it’s time to go home! Service at Buffalo Wild Wings was ok but the place was nearly empty so it should have been. My tab come out to about $38 which is the kicker. While I love my wings from time to time, at this price point I could have gone to nearly any restaurant in the area ($25 entree, app, beer) for about the same price. i mean I really was glad to have gotten my fave wings but the equation for eating at chain restaurants was reinforced for me. Passable food in corporate surroundings with usually, below average service. That’s the formula for chain restaurants and every single time I give one a shot, the end results are about the same. Buffalo Wild Wings, I missed ya. I’m glad you’re back in the area but outside of a night when you’ve got some real specials, I don’t imagine I’ll be back in anytime soon…

Buffalo Wild Wings- Morrisville

1300 Village Market Place

Morrisville, NC 27560

919.469.7872

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February 21, 2015 by Ron Wen Leave a Comment

Blaze Pizza, Morrisville: Build Your Own Pizza Yelp Elite Event

Order counter at Blaza Pizza in Morrisville, NC Triangle Dining

In the world of pizza, I’m a huge fan of thin-slice Neapolitan, NY and New Haven style pies. Just the right mix of crust, sauce, cheese and toppings make for a fantastical dining experience. So I was both excited and curious to hear what the new Blaze Pizzas would be bringing to the Triangle. A small chain based out of Pasadena, California, Blaze does BYOP (Build Your Own Pizza) and delivers them to you after 180 seconds in the Blaze oven. Artisanal pizzas that quick? Sign me up. Thankfully a Yelp Elite event brought me to the first Blaze Pizza in NC, located at the Grace Park shopping center in Morrisville. It’s time to mangia!

Dining area at Blaza Pizza in Morrisville, NC Triangle Dining

Given how big this plaza is, you might have trouble finding Blaze Pizza. It’s located across from Gander Mountain if that helps. Inside Blaze, I’m greeted by the Yelp team (Lauryn and Kristine) and put on my California Culinary Academy apron for tonight’s event theme. The space at Blaze is large and open with a interesting mural on one side “Chart Your Own Course” and the order counter in back. Pretty minimalistic and basic, think modern pizzeria style! We’ve got carte blanche on the menu today and thankfully it’s small. 9 specialty pizzas, 6 or so salads and you can build your own pizza from scratch. I go with the Link In: sausage, onions and peppers with red sauce and mozzarella.

Pizza dough making at Blaza Pizza in Morrisville, NC Triangle Dining

Toppings at Blaza Pizza in Morrisville, NC Triangle Dining

I’m intrigued by the custom build of my pizza. On the end there’s a young guy forming the pizza dough in a large red pie press. Out comes a round dough base with a lipped crust on a wooden pizza peel. It heads down the assembly line where they’ve got bins of colorful and fresh ingredients. A spin of red sauce, smattering of shredded cheese and then the toppings. I ask the Blaze pizza experts to bling my personal pie out with some fresh basil, yum!

Pie assembly at Blaza Pizza in Morrisville, NC Triangle Dining

After assembly is complete it heads on over to the pizzaiolo and the short wait begins after I grab an unsweetened tea. At our table is the requisite shakers of red pepper flakes, oregano and more parmesan cheese. And even with the very busy line of hungry Yelpers, it only takes 15 minutes or so to get my pie. I imagine that most times, service would be much quicker at Blaze.

Link In pizza at Blaza Pizza in Morrisville, NC Triangle Dining

And it’s a great looking pie nicely melted cheese with a good balance of sauce and nice hunks of sausage. Just enough toppings without being over-done. I lift up the crust and there’s a bit of char on the bottom, just the way I like it. The pizza at blaze is definitely thin-crust and probably a cross of Neapolitan and NY. While they don’t use fresh muzz on this pie, the topping and sauce density is more bare-bones, similar to a Neapolitan. I take a bite and the slice is excellent, some toothsome crust with a good mix of basic ingredients (sauce, cheese, toppings). Taking a look at the other pies around me, they seem to be doing an excellent and consistent job putting out pies even with this heavy crowd.

Nicely charred pie crust at Blaza Pizza in Morrisville, NC Triangle Dining

Red vine pie at Blaza Pizza in Morrisville, NC Triangle Dining

I finish up the meal with half a smores pie which I should have requested heated up but my bad! Empty pie plates are picked up quickly and we are asked about our meal, nice job there. So what can I say but I’m pretty impressed with Blaze Pizza. While it may not be DiFara’s in Brooklyn or Pepe’s in CT, it’s an excellent version of thin-crust pizza that suits my fancy and is a reasonable price ($8/pie). For a quick-casual chain restaurant, they are doing a solid artisanal pizza that mimics some of the best pizza in the country. So if you’re a pizzaholic like I am, check ’em out. With aggressive plans for additional locations in the Triangle, you’ll likely not have to travel far to get your Blaze pizza on.

Blaze Pizza

1024 Market Center Drive

Morrisville, NC 27560

919.465.9590

Blaze Pizza menu

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August 8, 2013 by Ron Wen 2 Comments

Taste Vietnamese in Morrisville

Taste Vietnamese, Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

“Turn left on Wade Ave and take a right on Dixie Trail” said my iPhone. But no, I was trying to get to Taste Vietnamese out in Morrisville, not Taste in Raleigh! Punched in some new data and off I go, eventually showing up at the old Mawa’s restaurant. In its new remake as Taste, some of the old colors and decor remain but the new Taste is all about the spice and flavoring of Vietnamese cuisine, one of my favorites.

Inside of Taste Vietnamese, Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

I grab an open booth by the window, Taste Vietnamese is a casual cafe with plenty of open space. Bright hued paint on the walls large counter up front along with some plate glass windows, probably some remnants from its previous incarnation as an African restaurant. A quick check of the menu and it has all the Vietnamese standards: rolls, pho, banh mi, com (rice plates), bun (noodle bowl) along with some other entrees and bubble tea, cool! A slightly shorter menu than what I’d typically find in a down-home Vietnamese eatery but plenty enough to choose from.

Summer rolls at Taste Vietnamese, Morrisville- NC Triangle Dining

I order up some summer rolls along with grilled pork-shrimp bun. They’ve got some beer here at Taste (Corona and Heineken) which makes the waiting a bit easier. My summer rolls show up first, two smallish, tightly wrapped rolls. Some people call VN summer rolls a salad roll because they are filled with cold noodles, mint, lettuce carrot along with some shrimp and pork. Taste’s version is decent, not outstanding but definitely fills the need. My bun plate shows up which is a bit odd. I’ve eaten a LOT of Vietnamese over the years and it’s typically served in a large open bowl, so yeah it’s different. Taste-wise, the bun here is pretty good with nice grilled-charred shrimp, tasty pork which contrasts against the cold, noodles. A great dish for the summer but I’ll admit that Taste’s version was a bit off for me. The noodles were a bit thicker, broken into smaller pieces and a bit wet which made for tricky eating with chopsticks. Typically the noodle for bun is a not that wet and cooked at full length which makes for easier pick-up with chopsticks. The texture of the noodles here was more pasta-like which may be another nod to a more Americanized palate.

When all is said, I do like Taste Vietnamese. It does a decent job with the flavors of Vietnam but just misses a bit in small ways. However, since I live about 2 miles from Pho Far East, it would be hard for me to find a reason to eat here again unless I was in the area. But for those of you in the hood, give Taste Vietnamese a try if you’re up for some flavorful Asian cuisine!

Taste Vietnamese

152 Morrisville Square Way

Morrisville, NC 27560

919.234.6385

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Morrisville Restaurant Reviews on NC Triangle Dining

Saffron in Morrisville: Still Delivering a Great Indian Lunch Buffet