I walked into Indigo Joe’s Bar and Grill about noon-thirty for lunch today. Initially I noticed the hundred-something TV’s hanging from the ceiling and crammed into the walls outnumbering other lunch-goers. I look down and saw a modestly sized place with nice waiters/waitresses but nothing about the atmosphere was particularly interesting. For the last 8 or so months I’ve decided to try out being a vegetarian so I ordered the veggie burger (no mayo) and fries. I’m not particularly fond of veggie burger patties but I liked that it had sprouts and avocado. Got my food after a short bit of zoning out and watching baseball. The burger seemed fresh and the fries were crispy and pretty good. Overall I’ve got little to complain about but I’m not really sold on their lunch options. They didn’t have any lunch specials or deals and everything else was just a little overpriced in my opinion. I guess it’s more of a night-time attraction but I don’t really care to go back. I’d say it’s a mediocre restaurant but I did appreciate the veggie burger option!

Today we did things a little differently, instead of going to a restaurant and sitting down for lunch we headed over to AJ’s Fine Foods Grocery and ate at their outside grill. The setting provides for a slightly different atmosphere as you are basically eating at a small group of tables underneath the groceries awning. It felt more like a picnic than a “fine foods” dining experience however trailing off the beaten path was nice for a change. (more…)

The new Pita Jungle is located right across the street from Mesa Community College on Southern between Dobson and Alma School. I am a big fan of meat so I didn’t think I was going to be a big fan of the place. As I opened the menu I surprisingly found that there was actually quite a variety of courses along with a lot of meat options. I decided to go with the Tuna Sandwich Special with a cup of tomato soup. We started out with an appetizer plate of hummus and pita bread. The hummus came with three different flavors (Red, Green, and White). Well the hummus was excellent. Shortly after my soup came out which was also excellent. The tuna sandwich was cooked just right and was served on really good bread.

In conclusion I would recommend The Pita Jungle to anyone interested in a good healthy meal. It is sometimes hard to find a healthy meal that actually tastes good and Pita Jungle has many great healthy dishes to choose from. I have since been back to this pita jungle and both times we are seated immediately.

So last week was my birthday, and the guys gave me the privilege of choosing the restaurant for lunch. Hmmm…privilege. Why is it that when you recommend a restaurant you feel like you’re introducing your boyfriend to your parents for the first time? “Oh please don’t screw up…” you think to yourself as you arrive, “I’m counting on you to make me look good!” Add to the pressure the fact that I’m the only vegetarian…that they’ve ever seen up close. Granted, most of these guys are up for anything…but I knew a few of them needed some convincing.

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……tasted like parts of my meal came from the jungle…..no fertilizer….natural, the breads were ground on a rock and cooked over a fire. If you like that kind of stuff, great, swing in from your tree house and enjoy.

I ordered a Tuna sandwich. It came with lettuce, tomato, and onion. I asked for mayo, they said “no mayo”, and served up some honey mustard. I do not like honey mustard, I like mayo, especially on my tuna sandwiches.

I was left with an empty feeling, in my stomach! It amazes me that when I go to these places there is never a person in them over twenty, nor is there a person that could beat me in a foot race, arm wrestling, standing long jump, ping pong or anything else of a physical nature and I’m fifty. Healthy?

But, to each his own, so I guess if this healthy food thing, is your thing, this is probably about as good as you will do clean, friendly, quiet, and the prices are not too bad.

First Impressions

Pita Jungle’s latest location is right across from Mesa Community College, in a large-looking building that formerly held a series of unpromising-looking Chinese buffets.

The inside is painted a light lime-green, with random artistic objects on the walls.  Closer inspection shows price-tags on them; either the place just opened, or local artists peddle their wares to customers.  The kitchen is open for viewing, and seemed hectic yet reasonably tidy.

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Pita Jungle is a vegetarian and health food restaurant that has multiple locations across the valley. If you’re a health food nut or just a lover of organic food, this place may be the place for you. The menu consists of a variety of hot and cold pitas, hummus, salads and wood-fried baked pizzas. It’s very hard to eat healthy in todays society. McDonalds, KFC and Applebee’s seem to take every corner of every intersection. But I think that Pita Jungle offers a unique taste and has such a variety of foods, that everyone should eat here……or at least check it out.

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ohh pita jungle, dare I say you are amazonian…like canopy leaves froth with chickpea butter… in droves, the fauna, they fill your airplane hangar like structure and slurp away…the noise is unbearable, but your food is not…your service is mediocre, yes even the ones you thought not. Play some music, and put some sound proofing up on your walls… I felt like a disillusioned schizo listening to all that grassroots hippie chatter.

To start, a piece of pita bread and hummus…yummmm….

2 hours later…

a lunch special item- $7.95 yellowfin tuna sandwich, cooked medium, fairly raw in the middle, perfect!…served on a wheat bun with country potatoes and a few greens, spicy pickle, tomato and onion. Late came the horseradish mustard, delivered so very promptly by our very 80’s stewardess, i mean waitress…. I had already eaten 3/4 of my sandwich, thanks doll…I really appreciate it.

Had a coke and some water…good company, good food, poor ambience, fair service….B….holler!

This week was Ali’s birthday (Happy Birthday Ali) and when there is a birthday we always let that person decide where to go to lunch. Ali is a vegan and because of that I threw out the idea of going to the Pita Jungle out in Mesa. She agreed as she had been there before and from what I understand really liked it. We got to the restaurant around noon and our group of twelve-ish was promptly seated. After gazing through the menu I think a good majority of us had mixed feelings about the joint. (more…)