Hurricanes

Today I was treated to lunch at a new restaurant on Century Drive. Hurricanes offers light breakfast items and sandwiches, but the main attraction is the "whirlwind of desserts". Today was opening day, so things looked a little sparce. The shop is coming together well and I think this will be a great little lunch place. They are tucked into the little shopping center across from Skjersaa's, where Bend Pet Express and Cascade Cleaners are also located.

I ordered "Hurricane Ivan". The menu describes it as "Aged Brie and black forest ham with stone ground mustard aioli and mixed greens." My sandwich was impressive - stacks of black forest ham and lively greens on a beautiful ciabatta roll. I really wished that I had brought my camera, because it was so pretty! The ciabatta rolls are made on the premises and the flavor and texture of the bread was spot-on. The plentiful ham had good flavor; the brie was creamy and nutty. The mixed greens had a slightly peppery flavor. The mustard was fresh with a bit of heat - perhaps from a dash of horseradish. The sandwich was very tall and I had to work to take the first few bites. All of the flavors blended nicely!

My friend ordered "Hurricane Helen", which is described as "Curried chicken salad - white meat free range chicken with apples, nuts, and grapes." Because of the curry, it was not as pretty as mine but still big and appetizing! A generous amount of the chicken salad was heaped on the ciabatta. A helping of greens were served on the side. I managed to score a couple of morsels of chicken and it tasted very good - nice curry flavor and heat, with a hint of sweetness. The chicken was tender and the chunks were a good size.

Along with the sandwiches you also get a side of classic potato salad or tortellini salad. I had the tortellini - it was tasty, not too much dressing, and nice amount of red onion and red pepper mixed in. My friend had the potato salad, and enjoyed it. (I abhor potato salad, in any form... sorry Anne!)

I read the dessert descriptions and found one irresistable: Hurricane Peanut Butter Torte. Nothing says "buy me and take me home to Scott!" like anything chocolate and peanut butter. Lunch was so filling that the box containing his dessert isn't even tempting me... yet. The cake has thick layers of moist chocolate cake with creamy peanut butter filling. It's covered with a beautiful fudge frosting with a layer of chopped nuts around the edge. Yummm... it looks and smells delicious!

I highly recommend Hurricane's for lunch or a special treat. Remember that they *just* opened today so things might not be running 100% smoothly yet... but your tummy will tell you it's worth it!

Hurricanes
133 SW Century Drive #204
Bend, OR 97702
541-385-9179

p.s. Thanks go out to The Troll for lunch today!