Original Memo
This food review has been a completely new experience for me. I have never done one before so it was a little complicated to get started on the writing process. If I would not have had the list of questions to answer I would have been completely lost and I do not know how I would have written the review. Once, I got started on writing it came to me a lot easier than I thought it would! My only issues were that I was having a hard time including enough detail to be showing instead of telling and I did not know how to transition from paragraph to paragraph without transition sentences. The best way for me to add detail was to just write the review and go back and add detail at the end. I found writing the review in chronological order was the best way to allow my review to flow and make sense.
When I gave my paper to my peer review group, I told them my concerns were the transition and flow of my review and the amount of detail. I was hoping that they would guide me in the right direction. When they read my first two paragraphs of my review they helped me a little with the two, but I was still paranoid about how my review would be received by a reader. The second peer review workshop was not nearly as helpful as the one I had for my narrative, unfortunately. There were two suggestions that I did take and use. In my review I addressed the outdoor tables that were inside and one reviewer suggested that I include more detail about that seating arrangement. I described the floor layout of the restaurant and the table more. The other suggestion was that I include more descriptions of food on the menu. I got a few suggestions that I did not really agree with so I did not make any changes to my paper. One suggestion was describe my friends food more, but it was such basic food there I had issues thinking of more to say. It was also suggested that I was repetitive with the word amazing. I only used it twice in 5 pages and I could not figure out a way to change that word without being repetitive with other descriptive words.
When I gave my paper to my peer review group, I told them my concerns were the transition and flow of my review and the amount of detail. I was hoping that they would guide me in the right direction. When they read my first two paragraphs of my review they helped me a little with the two, but I was still paranoid about how my review would be received by a reader. The second peer review workshop was not nearly as helpful as the one I had for my narrative, unfortunately. There were two suggestions that I did take and use. In my review I addressed the outdoor tables that were inside and one reviewer suggested that I include more detail about that seating arrangement. I described the floor layout of the restaurant and the table more. The other suggestion was that I include more descriptions of food on the menu. I got a few suggestions that I did not really agree with so I did not make any changes to my paper. One suggestion was describe my friends food more, but it was such basic food there I had issues thinking of more to say. It was also suggested that I was repetitive with the word amazing. I only used it twice in 5 pages and I could not figure out a way to change that word without being repetitive with other descriptive words.
Food Review
Mellow mushroom, a diamond in the rough
Lining the busy roads of Greenville, North Carolina are restaurants stacked beside each other. The restaurants are so abundant, restaurant goers can often get lost in the sea of restaurant choices. Even though there is a multitude of restaurants, it often becomes a difficult task to find a restaurant worth repeating a trip too. There are sports bars, Japanese food, delis and fast food, but in front of the Greenville Mall, sits a diamond in the rough, Mellow Mushroom Pizza Bakery. This restaurant stands out with its unique ambiance and delicious, unique pizzas. The outside of the restaurant is simply stunning with the carefully finished, different shaded, brown wooden panels. It is decorated with a red, black, green, and yellow color-block mosaic and an eye-catching Mellow Mushroom sign with a giant Mushroom smirking at all of the restaurant goers. The left side of the restaurant is an outdoor patio that looks relaxing with the swirling overhead fans and black metal, picnic style tables. The design looked like it was carefully planned out to look modern and catch a hungry citizen’s eye. Standing by the door is a modern, abstract sculpture of a pirate, letting everyone know that this Mellow Mushroom was built for this college town.
A semi polite hostess greeted me as I walked in through the wooden, double doors. She seemed to be preoccupied, but I disregarded the half-hearted welcome. I was asked if I would like to sit in the bar, the dining area, or the outdoor patio. Before I answered the question, I was alarmed with a sanitation score of 96.0. Considering local fast food restaurants such as McDonalds have higher sanitation scores, I started to become nervous about my dining experience that was too come. Choosing the dining area, I was immediately escorted into a completely different atmosphere. Walking through the dining area was like stepping back in time to a mellow 70’s vibe with a modern twist. Modern, abstract structures are hanging from the ceilings and mushrooms decorate the whole restaurant. It was a type of atmosphere the stereotypical 70’s hippie would enjoy. Mushrooms were incorporated in almost all of the decorations to represent a decade of drug users and red and yellow tie-dye covered the picture frames. I was seated at one of the black metal, picnic style tables that are outside on their patio in the middle of the inside dining room. It was not the most comfortable seating arrangement and I was left to glare enviously at those tucked away in booths that seemed to be very comfortable that were lining the side of the wall. Even though the seating arrangements in the middle of the restaurant were not ideal every diner seemed content in the dining area and the food smelled heavenly. The aroma of pizza filled the entire room and made everyone excited to try one of the bakery’s unique pizzas. The smells drifting from the bakery allowed the eagerly awaiting costumers to practically taste the melting cheese and the mixture of sauces and spices. The bar area was rather popular with adults and older college students watching sport center. It would have been a great environment for game day. Those that were seated outside seemed content at their picnic table styled chairs (probably because they were made to be outside, not inside). Everyone at Mellow Mushroom seemed to be mellowed just by being there in the uniquely created atmosphere.
A polite and cheerful waitress approached the table, while handing me the menu she politely greeted me and took my drink order. I ordered my usual, a sweet tea and I started to flip through the menu. The cover was an abstract image of mushrooms in darker reds and greens that went along with the theme of the restaurant. I was faced with a list of salads, pizzas, calzones, hoagies, munchies (appetizers), and dessert and I immediately knew that it was going to be difficult to pick from all of the extraordinary options on the menu. The description of each item on the menu was enough to make your mouth water; there was every pizza option you could ever imagine available. A large array of toppings from the usual pepperoni or sausage to the not so usual Pesto Chicken or Avocado was listed down the side of the entrée options; you could even replace the typical pizza sauce with another sauce such as pesto or olive oil and garlic. I quickly realized building your own pizza would become quite a task so I turned toward the list of unique descriptions of pizzas known as the “Specialty Pies.” This list especially caught my eye and I started to read through the multitude of unique options. There was a Caesar Salad pizza, Hawaiian pizza, and pizzas with names like Magical Mystery Tour and Kosmic Karma that almost could make you skeptical to try the specialty pies. The Magical Mystery pizza was a pesto sauce based with pizza, topped with Portobello mushrooms, spinach feta, and jalapenos, all on melted mozzarella cheese. The Kosmic Karma Pizza was a pizza topped with mozzarella, sun dried tomatoes, spinach, feta, Roma tomatoes, and a pizza swirl. The one pizza that particularly stood out to me was the Buffalo Chicken Pizza. The menu listed the pizza to have mozzarella cheese, buffalo chicken, caramelized onions, applewood smoked bacon, and a swirl of buffalo sauce and ranch dressing. My mouth was watering before I even placed my order.
My waitress came back in a timely manner and took our orders and delivered my sweet tea, which was the perfect thirst quencher. She immediately took the order back to the kitchen. As I anxiously awaited my food I observed the waiters and waitresses, referred to as the Shroom Crew. They were all extremely polite and knew how to kindly wait on the customers. They were able to appeal to people of all ages by respectively talked to adults but playfully talking to children. I was very impressed with the servers and their expert people skills. They quickly delivered the food to the waiting customers and always kept drink glasses full. As I carefully observed the restaurant, I glanced back and saw chefs tossing pizza dough in the air behind a table covered in pizza dough. It was like watching the cooking channel! I was able to see them toss the pizza in the air as the dough swirled around over their heads, delicately place the correct toppings on the pizza, and slide the pizza in the oven. It was their own form of art, and I watched them create it in awe. Each party that received there pizzas all looked pleased with the delicacies placed before them. As I waited on the food the busboy placed pale green and yellow plates on the table in front of one person along with shiny silver pizza stands. We were left to separate the utensils for ourselves, but as I waited for the food it was not much of an inconvenience.
Finally, I saw the shining silver trays being carried to the table of the pizzas my friends and I had ordered. One friend got a meat lover pizza, which had sausage, pepperoni, and bacon as toppings and one friend got a plain cheese pizza. Both were simple entrees but still looked more delicious than any pizza I had ever laid my eyes on. Although, both looked amazing, neither pizza looked half as good as my Buffalo Chicken Pizza. The crust was covered in shredded mozzarella cheese and was steaming from being fresh from the oven. The orange buffalo sauce and chicken swirled around the entire 10-inch pizza, alternating with swirls of ranch dressing on top of melted cheese. I slid the first slice of pizza on to my pale green plate and began to cut into this delicious work of art. The combination of buffalo chicken and ranch dressing flavors filled my mouth and consumed my taste buds. It was delicious and unlike anything I had tasted before. The dish was cooked to absolute perfection, not too greasy or cooked, which allowed me to appreciate the unique taste. After two slices of the gourmet pizza, I was completely stuffed and could not take another bite, no matter how much I desired too. The pizza was very filling which allowed me to take two slices of the heavenly buffalo chicken home in a to go box to enjoy later.
The waitress shortly returned with the checks and asked if our food had turned out good. I could not have mustered a complaint about the food, if I had tried too. I could not have complained about her phenomenal, timely service either. My overall experience at Mellow Mushroom had wrapped up to be amazing and something I would definitely repeat unlike many of my experiences at the other establishments in Greenville. The food was some of the best food I have ever had, and it was definitely the best pizza I have ever had. It was delicious and most of all it had the ability to leave a taste in your mouth that you would remember and would leave you wanting more. The atmosphere was interesting and had the ability to catch your eye, but it still was a relaxing, mellow environment. The service of the waiters and waitresses was phenomenal and timely. They were polite and made sure to serve the customers to the best of their ability. My only complaints were the supporting staff was lacking politeness and general manners as a restaurant employee. Also, the seating arrangement of the restaurant was not ideal and left many in uncomfortable locations. Overall Mellow Mushroom exceeded all expectations and gave me as a customer a good eating experience.
A semi polite hostess greeted me as I walked in through the wooden, double doors. She seemed to be preoccupied, but I disregarded the half-hearted welcome. I was asked if I would like to sit in the bar, the dining area, or the outdoor patio. Before I answered the question, I was alarmed with a sanitation score of 96.0. Considering local fast food restaurants such as McDonalds have higher sanitation scores, I started to become nervous about my dining experience that was too come. Choosing the dining area, I was immediately escorted into a completely different atmosphere. Walking through the dining area was like stepping back in time to a mellow 70’s vibe with a modern twist. Modern, abstract structures are hanging from the ceilings and mushrooms decorate the whole restaurant. It was a type of atmosphere the stereotypical 70’s hippie would enjoy. Mushrooms were incorporated in almost all of the decorations to represent a decade of drug users and red and yellow tie-dye covered the picture frames. I was seated at one of the black metal, picnic style tables that are outside on their patio in the middle of the inside dining room. It was not the most comfortable seating arrangement and I was left to glare enviously at those tucked away in booths that seemed to be very comfortable that were lining the side of the wall. Even though the seating arrangements in the middle of the restaurant were not ideal every diner seemed content in the dining area and the food smelled heavenly. The aroma of pizza filled the entire room and made everyone excited to try one of the bakery’s unique pizzas. The smells drifting from the bakery allowed the eagerly awaiting costumers to practically taste the melting cheese and the mixture of sauces and spices. The bar area was rather popular with adults and older college students watching sport center. It would have been a great environment for game day. Those that were seated outside seemed content at their picnic table styled chairs (probably because they were made to be outside, not inside). Everyone at Mellow Mushroom seemed to be mellowed just by being there in the uniquely created atmosphere.
A polite and cheerful waitress approached the table, while handing me the menu she politely greeted me and took my drink order. I ordered my usual, a sweet tea and I started to flip through the menu. The cover was an abstract image of mushrooms in darker reds and greens that went along with the theme of the restaurant. I was faced with a list of salads, pizzas, calzones, hoagies, munchies (appetizers), and dessert and I immediately knew that it was going to be difficult to pick from all of the extraordinary options on the menu. The description of each item on the menu was enough to make your mouth water; there was every pizza option you could ever imagine available. A large array of toppings from the usual pepperoni or sausage to the not so usual Pesto Chicken or Avocado was listed down the side of the entrée options; you could even replace the typical pizza sauce with another sauce such as pesto or olive oil and garlic. I quickly realized building your own pizza would become quite a task so I turned toward the list of unique descriptions of pizzas known as the “Specialty Pies.” This list especially caught my eye and I started to read through the multitude of unique options. There was a Caesar Salad pizza, Hawaiian pizza, and pizzas with names like Magical Mystery Tour and Kosmic Karma that almost could make you skeptical to try the specialty pies. The Magical Mystery pizza was a pesto sauce based with pizza, topped with Portobello mushrooms, spinach feta, and jalapenos, all on melted mozzarella cheese. The Kosmic Karma Pizza was a pizza topped with mozzarella, sun dried tomatoes, spinach, feta, Roma tomatoes, and a pizza swirl. The one pizza that particularly stood out to me was the Buffalo Chicken Pizza. The menu listed the pizza to have mozzarella cheese, buffalo chicken, caramelized onions, applewood smoked bacon, and a swirl of buffalo sauce and ranch dressing. My mouth was watering before I even placed my order.
My waitress came back in a timely manner and took our orders and delivered my sweet tea, which was the perfect thirst quencher. She immediately took the order back to the kitchen. As I anxiously awaited my food I observed the waiters and waitresses, referred to as the Shroom Crew. They were all extremely polite and knew how to kindly wait on the customers. They were able to appeal to people of all ages by respectively talked to adults but playfully talking to children. I was very impressed with the servers and their expert people skills. They quickly delivered the food to the waiting customers and always kept drink glasses full. As I carefully observed the restaurant, I glanced back and saw chefs tossing pizza dough in the air behind a table covered in pizza dough. It was like watching the cooking channel! I was able to see them toss the pizza in the air as the dough swirled around over their heads, delicately place the correct toppings on the pizza, and slide the pizza in the oven. It was their own form of art, and I watched them create it in awe. Each party that received there pizzas all looked pleased with the delicacies placed before them. As I waited on the food the busboy placed pale green and yellow plates on the table in front of one person along with shiny silver pizza stands. We were left to separate the utensils for ourselves, but as I waited for the food it was not much of an inconvenience.
Finally, I saw the shining silver trays being carried to the table of the pizzas my friends and I had ordered. One friend got a meat lover pizza, which had sausage, pepperoni, and bacon as toppings and one friend got a plain cheese pizza. Both were simple entrees but still looked more delicious than any pizza I had ever laid my eyes on. Although, both looked amazing, neither pizza looked half as good as my Buffalo Chicken Pizza. The crust was covered in shredded mozzarella cheese and was steaming from being fresh from the oven. The orange buffalo sauce and chicken swirled around the entire 10-inch pizza, alternating with swirls of ranch dressing on top of melted cheese. I slid the first slice of pizza on to my pale green plate and began to cut into this delicious work of art. The combination of buffalo chicken and ranch dressing flavors filled my mouth and consumed my taste buds. It was delicious and unlike anything I had tasted before. The dish was cooked to absolute perfection, not too greasy or cooked, which allowed me to appreciate the unique taste. After two slices of the gourmet pizza, I was completely stuffed and could not take another bite, no matter how much I desired too. The pizza was very filling which allowed me to take two slices of the heavenly buffalo chicken home in a to go box to enjoy later.
The waitress shortly returned with the checks and asked if our food had turned out good. I could not have mustered a complaint about the food, if I had tried too. I could not have complained about her phenomenal, timely service either. My overall experience at Mellow Mushroom had wrapped up to be amazing and something I would definitely repeat unlike many of my experiences at the other establishments in Greenville. The food was some of the best food I have ever had, and it was definitely the best pizza I have ever had. It was delicious and most of all it had the ability to leave a taste in your mouth that you would remember and would leave you wanting more. The atmosphere was interesting and had the ability to catch your eye, but it still was a relaxing, mellow environment. The service of the waiters and waitresses was phenomenal and timely. They were polite and made sure to serve the customers to the best of their ability. My only complaints were the supporting staff was lacking politeness and general manners as a restaurant employee. Also, the seating arrangement of the restaurant was not ideal and left many in uncomfortable locations. Overall Mellow Mushroom exceeded all expectations and gave me as a customer a good eating experience.
Second memo
After writing my food review, I was very confident that I had written a very strong paper. My first paragraph impressed me because of the amount of detail I was able to include. I read the food review to myself and I felt like I had allowed the audience to actually be able to imagine my dining experience at Mellow Mushroom. “You’ve gotten good grasp on the other stuff” was your last comment on the review you did on project 2. Although, it may not seem like anything significant it gave me a lot of confidence at this point in the semester. Peer reviewing Stephanie’s essays was always difficult because she is such a talented writer, so I was not feeling very strong about my writing. That is what convinced me to include this project in my portfolio. I was really able to focus on sentence structure on this project, because of the detail I included in my original version.
You did bring up a lot of corrections I would have not thought of otherwise. In my fifth paragraph where I am discussing the pizza options on the menu, my first draft seemed like I was just making a list. I tried to combine details and add variety to the sentence structure versus just listing ingredients. This led to many more changes throughout the review. I had never considered combining sentences as a change in sentence structure, I had only looked at rewording sentences. There were also points in my review where I thought I was “showing” more than I actually was. One example was saying, “It was a type of atmosphere the stereotypical 70’s hippie would enjoy.” Although, my first impression was that I included enough detail, you made me realize how much more I could elaborate. Another example of this is when I describe the smell of the pizza. Mentioning the aroma filling the room was not enough, I needed to go into detail and discuss what the smell was. Another correction I had not noticed was my use of “you” and how that can be confusing to an audience. This allowed me to go back and edit the use of pronouns. Dennis’ main contribution to this paper was helping me with the wording after my revisions. He really helped me avoid being too wordy in sentences I was trying to show more detail.
You did bring up a lot of corrections I would have not thought of otherwise. In my fifth paragraph where I am discussing the pizza options on the menu, my first draft seemed like I was just making a list. I tried to combine details and add variety to the sentence structure versus just listing ingredients. This led to many more changes throughout the review. I had never considered combining sentences as a change in sentence structure, I had only looked at rewording sentences. There were also points in my review where I thought I was “showing” more than I actually was. One example was saying, “It was a type of atmosphere the stereotypical 70’s hippie would enjoy.” Although, my first impression was that I included enough detail, you made me realize how much more I could elaborate. Another example of this is when I describe the smell of the pizza. Mentioning the aroma filling the room was not enough, I needed to go into detail and discuss what the smell was. Another correction I had not noticed was my use of “you” and how that can be confusing to an audience. This allowed me to go back and edit the use of pronouns. Dennis’ main contribution to this paper was helping me with the wording after my revisions. He really helped me avoid being too wordy in sentences I was trying to show more detail.