In Praise of the First Morning Cup

You coffee drinkers will understand this....

That first, magical cup of coffee first thing in the morning. With the right temperature, and richness, that very first taste of Java goodness is an almost transcendent experience. It just makes life in the early hours a little more worth living. The second cup, while good, doesn't quite have that feeling.  Maybe tea drinkers have the same thing, I don't know. 

Try to take the time to enjoy, and savor, that first awesome cup of Joe in the morning!

Doctor's orders!!!

Basil

Home Grown Basil

Asheville Dining. Ups and Downs

We have blogged numerous times about our dining experiences in Asheville, North Carolina.

Most of our meals in Asheville have been outstanding. But, alas, we were disappointed during out last trip this past spring.

It was a short one day stay, as we were going to Charleston, South Carolina the next day.

During a walk in the Biltmore village, near our hotel, we were hungry, and we saw The Cantina.

The Cantina is a reincarnation of an earlier Mexican restaurant in the same space. When we walked in, it was open and airy.

Our server seemed friendly enough, and we placed our orders.

I ordered their Sangria, but I instantly got a headache after the first couple of sips. Now, I don't get headaches, and this was a bad sign.

Unfortunately the food that followed was bland and under seasoned. We expect seasoning in Mexican dishes, but lacking in our meal.

My increasing headache further dampened my enthusiasm for my meal.

Tammy's food was equally unimpressive.

We Skipped dessert….

We hope to head back to Asheville in the Future, and we expect to have great meals there, without headaches.

If you ate at the Cantina in Asheville, let us know. Were we right? Or are we off base?

Home Made Pesto Time

Not quite time to travel again (that's for another post). We've been using our Aero garden to grow some herbs.  Soon enough, we had plenty of Basil and Parsley, and it was time for our first harvest. It was time for Tammy to Make Pesto!

  The Pesto was a pretty straight forward process.  Plenty of Basil, Parsley, Olive Oil, salt and pepper, and Parmesan Cheese.  Tammy also add poached garlic.  All into the food processor.  And we had a tasty fresh home made pesto.

Tammy used a thin Spaghetti, and a toasted Panko Bread crumb topping.  We recommend a Pinot Grigo to go with this meal.

Happy New Year!

I'll keep this brief, since you probably have better things to do tonight.....

I just wanted to wish everyone a happy new year, which is, for a brief moment, a clean slate.  As for us here in Gallia, we will be spending a quiet evening at home, and no, we are not going to Watch Miley Cyrus perform.  I just hope she doesn't get frostbite.

2014 will have a full agenda of places to travel, and places to eat.  But for tonight, have fun, be safe, and try to make 2014 the best year ever!!! 

Christmas Dinner, 2013

No matter how great a restaurant eating experience can be, sometimes nothing beats a home cooked meal.  Absolutely no travel for us this Christmas season, so a homemade Christmas meal was in order.

The photo above hardly does justice to this years' feast.  We start with Beef tenderloin, which we purchased locally. Side note, we try to shop locally, when we can.  The food is often fresher (better), and helps your local economy and businesses. The corn was also brought locally and frozen earlier.  Our menu consisted of scalloped potatoes, with lobster tails, poached in butter and white wine.  Rounding out our meal was Pop Overs.  The wine was a Zinfandel we purchased from the Biltmore winery.  Dessert (not shown) was a marvelous Pumpkin Pie.

Many Thanks to Chef Tammy for a fantastic meal and another successful Holiday at home!

We now have some delicious leftovers to enjoy.

Best wishes to everyone, and I hope everyone can have a Fantastic 2014!

A Foodie destination in the Mountains.

Sometimes one needs to get away for a few days. Our vacations don't always correspond to traditional holidays, which in many ways can be a great thing.

We decided a week in December would be a good time for a brief getaway before the Christmas holiday. Our first stop is Asheville, North Carolina. As any well-informed hungry Foodie should know, Asheville is the place to go when one is in this part of the country, looking for things to eat. The choices in Asheville can vary from traditional Carolina Barbecue, to Indian street food, and everything in-between.

I can devote a lot of words describing all the cuisine available in Asheville, but for the sake of brevity, this entry will focus on only one example of unique restaurants in Asheville.

Rezaz is a restaurant specializing in a modern take on Mediterranean cuisine.  The Chef owner, Reza Setayesh, (pictured above) received his culinary training in Asheville, and now owns two restaurants in the area.  Rezaz also boasts a wine bar, but local brews and cocktails are available.

We selected the Bar Menu, and selected items such as Coppa (cured pork shoulder) Cheeses with onion jam, and Small plate selections, such as Scallops crab cake.

Everything was cooked well, and with care towards presentation.  Our server, Frank, was friendly and knowledgeable.  What sealed the deal for us, however, was the presence of an on site pastry chief, with freshly made desserts that were made on site. 

You can elect to eat in the bar area, or choose the main dining room, which we will do when we come back, or as some patrons have done, is have a glass of wine while waiting on your table. I think it will be enjoyable either way.

There are a lot of great places to eat in Asheville, but you should include Rezaz on your list. Check it out yourself at Rezaz.com.  We will certainly do that next time we're here!

The Greenbrier, Day Two: The Main Dining Room.

Tonight we went to the Main Dining Room.  Very old school and elegant.  This part of the resort was built in 1913, and expanded in 1930.

If you come here, remember there is a dress code.  Every one was well dressed, and our service was excellent and attentive.  I had the Sea Bass with a pea sauce and tomato jam.  The presentation was good.  The fish was a bit dry, but the taste was good, and I really liked the Pea Sauce and Tomato Jam.  The Scarbolo Pinot Grigio went well with our meal.

Tammy had the Sole, which was also a bity dry, and the rice was a little gummy.

If you want to experience elegant dining, this is the place to go, because it is an experience.  We were a little disappointed with our fish dishes.  We'll probably have a beef dish next time.

So, tomorrow, a new place.  We're going to eat light for lunch!

The Greenbrier Resort

Well, we're back! We've let the blog lapse a while, but we are back on the job!Our journeys now take us to The Greenbrier Resort, located in southeast West Virginia. This resort has a long history, dating back to the Civil War. Presidents and Celebrities have stayed here, and the resort hosts a yearly PGA tournament. I could spend this whole post on all the amenities' available at the Greenbrier but I am the hungry doctor, so we're talking food. There are a number of restaurants on the property, so I'll do a series of posts on each of them, since we'll be here a few days for a Medical Conference. First off, I should say, if you are staying at a world class resort (and paying the prices that go along with it) you have certain expectations. That applies to the food, of course. We'll start with Draper's. This is located near the Casino, and is a little more informal that some of the other establishments. We had friendly wait staff, and we were seated immediately. This was Thursday, and the place was not very busy. Décor was nice in the Greenbrier tradition. So let's start. The appetizer was crab artichoke and spinach dip. It was fairly mediocre, not horrible tasting, but again, we had expectations. So dinner... I had the crab cakes, filled with green pepper, which is unfortunate. The cole slaw was a little runny. The French fries weren't bad, but the fries I had a Five Guys earlier in the day at the Mall was better by far. Tammy had the Chicken Pot Pie, which was pasty and thick, probably due to the large amount of flour. We're taking world class resort here, folks. We both had the Lemon Meringue pie. Unfortunately, it was weird sticky, and cloyingly sweet. None of the light tartness I like in my Lemon Pies. They are supposed to have a pastry team here? Disappointing, but to be fair, the Coffee was great. Fully bodied, and no bitterness. It was not the greatest start of our culinary tour of the Greenbrier, but it is only our first evening. There are three other Dining establishments here, and we'll try another one tomorrow. Stay tuned for more!

Pancakes!

When you go to Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge, Pancakes are a must.  There are numerous local Pancake houses in the area and they are popular.  If you go, go early or be prepared to wait in line.

Here in Gatlinburg, we tried the Log Cabin Pancake House, located on the Historic Nature Trail.  We really didn't have to wait, since we came early on a Monday morning. It is what you would expect of a Tennessee Pancake House.  Lots of different varieties of Pancakes and Waffles. You can have alternatives to Pancakes and Waffles, but what's the point of that?  Service was prompt, and our waitress was friendly, and kept my coffee cup filled. Prices are reasonable for getting stuffed.  Lots of calories will be consumed, so just be prepared for that. For me, it's not something I would eat every morning, but you should try it at least once. Other places to consider are the Pancake Pantry, The River Road Pancake House, and Flapjacks Pancake Cabin.  I think we'll go lower calories tomorrow, and get in some Smoky Mountain Hiking!

Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

Well, it's time for another road trip.  We're heading back to the Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge area of Tennessee after a absence of a few years.  This part of the country is a very popular destination spot for a lot of people, especially those of us from Ohio.

This is a high volume tourist destination, so there are a lot of places to eat, with wild variations in quality.  Restaurants devoted to Pancakes and breakfast are very popular here, with a mixture of Mom and Pop places next to all the major chains.

We'll start with Pancakes and breakfast, and go from there. Stay tuned for our impressions of this popular vacation destination! 

The Beans that wouldn't cook. A cautionary tale...

Growing up in West Virginia, I ate beans quite a bit. Usually it was Pinto Beans, with Cornbread.

Nowadays, we still like the occasional beans and cornbread, and we like to buy dry beans and soak and cook them with ham.  With a nice cornbread, this is a tasty dish.

This week, we wanted to try Flageolet Beans. We soaked them overnight, and put them on the pot to cook as per usual.  And Cook.  And Cook.  The Flageolet Beans insisted on staying crunchy no matter how long we cooked them.  Finally, we decided to put them in the fridge and go out to eat.

The next morning, we put them in the crock pot. Surely slow cooking all day long will make them tasty and tender, with added ham goodness.

Unfortunately, that was not the result we were looking for.  Still firm, and not very tasty.  We don't know if it was this particular bean, or was it something else that went horribly wrong?

We may never know, as they are going down the garbage disposal.

Maybe we need to go back to Pintos!

Finally Home and Happy Easter!

After six states and about 10 hours on the road we finally made it home yesterday afternoon.

Today is Easter, and after eating out all week, the last thing we wanted to do was to go out.  Fortunately, we were pretty well stocked, and Tammy and Sarah made homemade noodles to go with Ham, a nice Carrot and raisin salad, and peas. Dessert was homemade Clafoutis (see picture above).  It was excellent homemade comfort food, and we were able to enjoy Easter at home together.

I hope everyone out there were able to do the same!

Well, tomorrow it is back to work, and time to watch the calories. 

Stay tuned.......

Tea and Beer

Today was devoted to walking around the historic district of Savannah. The day was nice and sunny, and the temperatures were a little warmer, less chilling wind. We retraced our trolley tour, but with walking, we could really take our time and take everything in. After much walking, came hunger. Tammy and I decided upon the Gryphon Tea Room. The Gryphon Tea Room specializes in Breakfast/Brunch, Tea, and Baked goods. We loved the book-lined dining area. The wait staff are students from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). Our server was a Photography Student. We had a pot of Vanilla Tea, now I'm generally a Coffee drinker, but I really enjoyed sharing a pot of this Vanilla Tea with Tammy. The salad was fresh and tasty, with fresh romaine, raisins, and pears, with a light breaded, fried, goat cheese (see above). This was a totally different lunch experience from yesterday. We decided to finish the day at Molly MacPherson's Scottish Pub, in the City Market district. A nice Scottish Ale, Scottish hard boiled eggs, and a nice burger, filled out our day.

Tomorrow will be our last full day in Savannah. We hope to go out on the water on a dolphin cruise. Maybe some seafood might be appropriate?

Hyman's Seafood

The rain had stopped in Charleston, but it was still cloudy and cold. We decided to try Hyman's Seafood a try again, and this time we got in after a 10-15 minute wait. The restaurant is actually much bigger than it looks from the outside. We were led upstairs past photos of different celebrities who ate there. Apparently Dr. Ruth and Sinbad ate at our particular table. We ate a little lighter after our brunch at Magnolia's. I had the crab cake sandwich. What I liked about it was the generous amount of crab, and not overdone with sauce. Even the bun was toasted, and not soggy. The hushpuppies were cooked well, and not too greasy. Serve was good, and you definitely know it's a family business. After dinner, we took a winding path down to the Hyman's General Store, where you can get some ice cream, or do a little shopping. It's a big tourist destination, but that's ok. If you want fish in Charleston, try Hyman's!

Resturant reviews. Fair or not?

On a recent episode of ABC,s "The Chew", Co-Hosts Mario Batali, and Guest Chief Josh Capon discussed Restaurant secrets. http://beta.abc.go.com/shows/the-chew/episodes/March-19-2013

Part of this discussion centered on online restaurant reviews. It was apparent that Mario and Josh were not fans of online review sites, even mocking some of their negative reviews, reading them to music.

So, do they have a point?  Should we ignore online restaurant reviews?  Granted there are trolls out there who love to criticize just to criticize.  But I'm thinking they do have a place.  There have always Restaurant critics, but in today's world we all can be food critics (myself included).

Whenever we go to a new city or location, we scout out common sites such as Urban Spoon  urbanspoon.com  tripadvisor.com, among others. If your checking a place out, try to read as may different reviews on and many different sites as possible.  Everyplace will have a negative review, but as you go through them, you may be able to see common threads, such as service, wait times, and food quality.  If the reviews are consistently bad, then it's time to move on to another restaurant.

We're hoping to leave on a little early spring break, going to Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia, and not doubt, we are going to try, what we think, and going to be some great places to eat.  And yes, We _will_ be reviewing them online for your reading pleasure.

Sorry Mario!

In the beginning......

Many great things have a humble begining.  Hopefully this will be one of them. I've thought of starting a blog for sometime, partially as a creative outlet, and to voice my opinions in a little wider forum. I would like to credit Tammy, my wonderful wife, for urging me on.

With that out of the way, this blog will be multipurpose.  First and foremost, to document our eating adventures.  Some of these I'm sure will be great, some not so much.  I will, in this context, try to be fair.  I am by no means a food snob, but I like what I like.

We won't, however, be just limited to eating.  Travel, politics, guns, and anything elses that grabs my fancy may be fodder for this blog.  Remember, you have been warned!

We'll start with this nice Woodpress platform, and see how it goes. I'm open to any feedback.

Meanwhile, sit back, and relax.  Let the fun begin!