Restaurant Review: Yard House - The Banks

Recently we headed to Yard House for a reunion lunch with former coworkers. It's just down the street from where we work and can accommodate a big table without much trouble.   

The guest of honor who set up the lunch chose the pizza/salad combo ($9.95). Unfortunately the pizza wasn't cooked all the way - you can see the cheese is barely melted. She said it was okay - but wasn't too excited. 

I decided to try their Street Tacos - they have quite a few options - I chose:

GRILLED KOREAN BEEF SHORT RIB ($4.95)

spicy green papaya, sriracha aïoli, chili threads

VAMPIRE TACO® ($6.50)

cheese crusted tortilla, carnitas, bacon chorizo, chipotle salsa, roasted garlic, cumin crema, guacamole, cilantro

The short rib taco is on the bottom and it was fine but nothing to write home about. Short ribs are typically very tender and this wasn't. I think the flour tortillas are a little overwhelming for the filling. I think a corn tortilla and a smaller taco would highlight the flavor of the ingredients more.

I also added on rice and beans - let's discuss this first. The rice - terrible. Like not even a question - just plain bad. Dry and flavorless. Blech. The beans were really good - they weren't refried - they were saucy pinto & black beans with melty cheese on top. Those were yummy!

Here's the Vampire Taco - I was really excited about the cheese crusted tortilla but it was a big letdown. It was just too burnt and lost the cheesiness. Then the ingredients - bacon chorizo, carnitas, guac, crema, salsa - it all sounds so good and mouthwatering.

Unfortunately it wasn't. The meat was bland and it just wasn't that great. I had high hopes but they were dashed. :-(

Why Should You Go? They still have a hella beer selection...