Maru Sushi and Grill
1745 W. James River Road, Ozark

Gracie Schwarz’s Take 2.5/5
Immediately walking into the establishment, it gave off date night vibes — the dark lighting and red decorations made it feel very romantic. I ordered the Shrimp Bento box with a side of fried rice. The Bento box itself was very enjoyable, and the variety of different foods helped keep my distracted mind interested. When looking at the fried rice in comparison to the Bento box, the difference was prominent. The fried rice lacked flavor, and while it traditionally has vegetables or meat stir-fried with it, this was just dry, golden rice. I was severely disappointed, but I was relieved that I at least had my shrimp.

Hailey Webster’s Take 2/5
Maru is a cute restaurant. As soon as you walk in, a big swordfish sits right in front of the restaurant but don’t let that fool you, it was a classy place. Our waiter was very polite and gave a great impression of the restaurant. I ordered orange chicken with fried rice. The orange chicken was very flavorful and crisp to the bite. On the other hand, the fried rice was good but fell short of flavor, it was bland and had no crunch like other fried rice may have. I do very much recommend the orange chicken, but I wouldn’t order the fried rice from here unless bland is your cup of tea.

Tasia
4728 S. Campbell Ave. No. 100, Springfield

Gracie Schwarz’s Take 4/5
I loved the atmosphere of Tasia. When we sat down, I immediately noticed the strings of lights along the walls that nicely brightened up the area. There were lots of red decorations, and it added nicely to the environment. I ultimately got the Pad Thai with Tofu, and while I’ve never tried this dish, I was pleasantly surprised by the savory peanut sauce. We both ordered fried rice, and when comparing Tasia’s rice to the rice at Maru, Tasia’s won. It was plated in a satisfying way and bits of egg could be seen on the top. The fried rice was very flavorful, and although there was no extra add ons, it wouldn’t need anything else. Not to mention, the cost of my meal was less than $20. I would recommend Tasia to anyone wanting to try new cuisine.

Hailey Webster’s Take 4/5
When you first walk into Tasia, you are greeted with a warm welcome by the people and the environment. The mood was lit by lanterns and lights stringed around the whole restaurant making it a calm and elegant vibe. I ordered the sweet and sour chicken with a side of fried rice. The food came out smelling as good as it tasted — amazing. The sweet and sour chicken had pineapple and carrots and the chicken had little kick to it. The fried rice, unlike at Maru, had egg and a lot more flavor to the rice, taking the win between the fried rices. The dish was plated beautifully showing each and every bit of its flavors.