By Isaiah Freeman

Newk’s eatery is tucked away in Gambrills Maryland sitting next to the Navy Federal Bank off of route 3 in the Waugh Chapel. Dan Newcomb founded Newk’s in 2004. Newk’s sells anything and everything from pizza to Sandwiches to salads to wraps. Walking into Newk’s eatery you are greeted by the smiles and pleasant voices of the high school-aged cashiers just trying to make an extra buck before college. As you walk through the eatery, you’re hit with the warm feeling of upbeat indie rock music and walls resembling the evening rush; painted in crimson red, yellow, and orange. The ambient lighting is extremely inviting, along with the exceptional service from the workers, this is definitely a place that you would like to bring your friends and stay awhile.

What I ordered was a chicken salad and I topped it off with the roundtable breadsticks, extra virgin olive oil, and parmesan cheese. I also had ranch dressing off to the side just in case I needed to save my taste-buds.

First Bite Impression:

Very good, all the ingredients tasted so fresh and so lush the salad didn’t need ranch dressing. It’s a literal sensation of freshness. Although the chicken taste hit me at the back of my throat, it is not as overpowering like other chicken salads. However the croutons are tough and heavy, I’m more of a light and delicate crouton guy. When I added the ranch dressing it became apparent that this dressing was not the average hidden valley, in fact it surpassed the taste of hidden valley ranch dressing. The taste is subtle but voluptuous, creamy and moderately thick in which it glides through the crevices of your salad.

Portion Sizes:

The size of the chicken salad was very substantial. I’m a one-hundred seventy-five pound guy and I felt pretty full when I left the eatery.

What I did not like:

The chicken to lettuce ratio may as well have looked like the teacher to student ratio at a big college. I found myself trying to spread my chicken sparingly throughout my salad but my efforts were in vein seeing that I had a considerable amount of lettuce.

Rating:

8 out of 10. I recommend spending your next lunch outing at Newk’s indulging in their great-tasting chicken salad.