The Greater Reno Grub and Gripe Group gathered at Moo Dang for what turned out to be another spectacular meal. The consensus of the group was that every dish was executed well and we would order them all again.
We started with the leafy garden rolls and fried wonton. The wonton was a standard version of the wonton but the sweet basil tamarind sauce kicked it up a notch. I love the garden rolls. The leafy vegetables (see my photos) enhance the sense of freshness. There’s mushrooms, carrots, lettuce and basil with nothing overwhelming the roll. We got one order with tofu and one with pork. The garden rolls are a must order for me.
We went with tom yum soup. All the pigs on the other half of the table ate the first bowl we got, so our half of the table got a special creamy version with shrimp. The broth was excellent. I’d never had creamy tom yum before and it was a nice change up.
For our entrees, we ordered ba-mee moo dang, which is red pork with meatloaf, bok choi, green onions and noodles. This proved to be quite popular. The pork was nicely done and the rest of the ingredients blended well with the noodles. We also ordered mee kra tee, which are noodles with a tomato sauce and tofu. Again quite tasty, although I liked it better when I added dry red pepper.
I arranged in advance for special menu item, three-flavor salmon. The flavors I believe were sweet, sour and salty. The group raved about it and how perfectly it was cooked. I liked the crispy texture.
We ordered the dishes family style. We had too much food and got out of there for less than $25 per person before tip. I think the group was quite satisfied.
Moo Dang
1565 S Virginia St
Reno, NV 89502
(775) 420-4267
thaimoodang.com

The Greater Reno Grub and Gripe Group took over half of the patio at Centro for what turned out to be a fabulous meal. We drank much good wine, which added to the merriment. The small plate philosophy at Centro works best with groups. We had 13 but three or four would be fine.
We started with bowls of nuts and olives. I always love the olives at Centro and its sister restaurant, LaVecchia. The group wanted anchovies. I hate anchovies but RevAndy explained these are white anchovies. The fishy taste was minimal and the fried breading added a nice contrast to the fish.
Then came the picked egg. I liked the egg but wasn’t too keen on the citrus marmalade. Next up: scallops. Look at my pictures of the scallops. You’ll notice a couple of huge ones and smaller ones. Rather than grab a big one, I had a strategy. I’ll take a smaller one and then after everyone has taken one, I’ll take another. It totally backfired on me. Scallops this good are not left long. I had to settle for my one measly scallop. It was perfectly cooked and quite tasty.
We also got fingerling potatoes with Basque chorizo and crispy Brussel sprouts. I didn’t taste any chorizo with the potatoes but the potatoes themselves were excellent. They had nice potato flavor. You can’t complain about that. The Brussel sprouts were meh. I wouldn’t get them again.
Two that I would get again were the pork belly and the shrimp po boy sandwich. Everyone seemed to love the pork belly. Tender and delicious. The shrimp po boy had tasty shrimp, tasty bread and some wonderful Cajun-style flavors. It was a winner and maybe my favorite dish of the night.
We also got Thai sticky ribs. I liked them and everyone else seemed to like them too. I like the Korean ribs at Centro better. They’re more savory. These ribs were a little too sweet. Obviously they’re sweet to balance the heat but the sweetness could have been dialed back for me.
The octopus was also nice. Not too rubbery.
The bar makes some of Reno's better cocktails. It's also right next to 1864 Tavern, which is one of Reno's better bars.
The tasty small plates at Centro is an excellent addition to Reno’s dining scene.

To describe my enthusiasm for The Aroma Club, I’ll start with the summer borscht. Normally, I hate cold soup. I haven’t had a gazpacho I like, for instance. At The Aroma Club, the summer borscht has a purple broth and wonderful fresh beet flavor. With too many borschts the fresh beet flavor gets cooked right out. One member of the group liked it so much she’s ordering it to feed 75 at her son’s wedding reception this summer.
And they have other interesting takes on Russian/Slavic dishes and from places like Georgia and Uzbekistan. I got to try these during the semi-annual Russian Food Festival and again during a Greater Reno Grub and Gripe Group dinner. Everyone agreed the food was exquisite and different.
I liked almost all the dishes but I think for my two favorites I will go with the mushroom appetizer and with satsivi chicken, or chicken in a thick walnut paste. Sadly I didn’t get any details on the mushrooms used in the appetizer or the method of preparation, but I’m a sucker for mushrooms and these delivered the mushroom flavor. I’d say look at my photo.
The satsivi chicken is served cold. It is coated with a heavy, delicious paste of ground walnuts. Again very nice flavors.
Two dishes that rotate in and out of The Aroma Club menu also showed up at our GRGAGG dinner. The stuffed cabbage was delicious. It had a nice tomato sauce on the outside and tender cabbage. The stuffing was a bit softer than the stuffed cabbage my mom used to make but was quite delicious. We also had pelmeni, a dumpling supposedly introduced to the Russians by the Mongols. It’s a cousin to Chinese dumplings. It seems like they’re cooked in a soup but served without the soup. The dough was tasty and the meat filling, I think pork, was also tasty.
We all got a half of a chiburekki or chiburek, a fried meat turnover. This does not rotate on the regular menu but shows up at the Russian Food Festival and special dinners. It was nicely done with nicely seasoned meat and perfectly cooked crust.
The Russian potato salad is a good take on regular potato salad. The eggplant appetizer tasted great when served on their rye bread. I also loved the house-made farmer’s cheese. We got it as an appetizer and again at the end in a blintz served with a semi-sweet blueberry compote.
At the GRGAGG meal everyone was happily stuff. The way The Aroma Club normally works is that the owner will make a batch of food, saying stuffed cabbage, and sell that until it runs out. Then she will make a batch of something else. In winter she seems to rotate among borscht, lentil soup and sometimes sorrel soup.
The owner opened The Aroma Club as a perfume store and coffee shop about nine years ago. She still sells specialty perfumes but the focus of her store behind Round Table Pizza in Reno Town Mall is food. One of our group members proclaimed an Aroma Club latte the best he’s had in Reno.
The food is different and tasty and deserves the attention of foodies in Reno.
The Aroma Club
Reno Town Mall
4001 S Virginia St
Reno, NV 89502
775-432-7963