BetsyinKY

Just thought I'd give a short report on lunch and dinner in Asheville yesterday... My parents, brother, sister-in-law, and I made a quick trip over the mountains to see Biltmore done up for Christmas. We left home around 8:45am and arrived in Asheville just before lunch time. I really wanted to try the Tupelo Honey Cafe, but when we go there at 11:45, there was already a 30 minute wait. The interior was packed and it was cold and windy outside, so we headed up the hill to the Early Girl Eatery. I had read nice things about Early Girl on this site, (plus I noticed that it's run by the brother of the chef of the Hominy Grill in Charleston, SC, which is one of my all-time favorite restaurants) so we decided to give it a try. Luckily for us, there was only a 20 minute wait and there was room to wait inside. The wait ended up being only about 10 minutes, and then we were seated in the cozy dining area overlooking the park. Everything is homemade/local/organic according to the menu....all I know is that everything was very good! I had a fried-green-tomato BLT and a cup of vegan vegetable soup, which was perfect for the cold day. My father and sister-in-law had a pulled barbecue chicken sandwich with coleslaw, which they both enjoyed. Mom had the turkey club with fries, and my brother had the most interesting sandwich of our group, which was grilled eggplant with spinach, onions, and some other veggies that I can't remember. We left the Early Girl quite satisfied, both with the meal and with the price. With tip, this pleasant lunch was about $10 per person. (Rachel Ray would be so proud! haha!) We didn't plan on having lunch and dinner in Asheville, but Biltmore had timed entry to the house, so although we were at the Estate at 1:30pm, we couldn't get into the house until 4:15pm. By the time we toured and got back onto the road, it was nearly 7pm. We stopped in at Rezaz, in the Biltmore Village, but the wait for five without a reservation was 1.5 hours, so we headed back downtown. We ended up at Zambra, which was very fun. The interior of this restaurant is decorated in a sort of Moor-ish style, which definitely adds to the atmosphere. Zambra is a tapas restaurant and this was our first family experience with tapas. Tapas is fun, because you get to try more food than you might if things were served as regular-sized entrees....however, the negative is that when you find an item you really love, you don't want to share it with anyone else! We tried quite a few items, including the pomegranate braised pork spring rolls with mango dipping sauce (very good...i didn't want to share these, as there were only two on the plate!), the pork tenderloin with cranberry sauce and potatoes, vegan paella, paella valencia (chicken, shrimp, andouille), mussels with tomatoes and ham, a house named seafood dish, and a roasted portobello served with local cheese and vegetables. We also had several bread dishes. The plates ranged in price from $3 for bread to $14 for some of the paella dishes. Our total bill with drinks and no dessert came to $120, which included the gratuity, which they automatically added for parties of 5 or more. My only complaint with this restaurant was that the service was a bit spotty. The kitchen brings each dish out as it becomes ready, so there were long periods where no one had anything to eat. Our waiter was not the most attentive, either, although at one point he did appear to apologize for the delay, saying that the kitchen had gotten backed up. All in all, we had a pretty good experience at both places in Asheville. On my next trip, I would like to try the Early Girl for a different meal (their breakfast menu looked very good) and while I would definitely return to Zambra, I think I will try some other places first.

Let me preface this post by saying I've been to Charleston 3 times in the last 6 months and I've eaten at a lot of places, including Slightly North of Broad, Magnolia, Blossom, Poogan's Porch, 82 Queen, Sticky Fingers, G&M Fast and French, 39 Rue de Jean, Hank's, Peninsula Grill, Hominy Grill, and in Mt. Pleasant/Sullivan's Island, the Boulevard Diner and Poe's Tavern. Of all those restaurants, I would gladly return to most of them, with the exception of 82 Queen. Sticky Fingers and Poogan's Porch I would go back to if the person I was traveling with wanted to eat there, but they wouldn't be my first choice. However, you asked for the two places we would most want to eat, so here are mine: Choice #1: Peninsula Grill-We ate there on our anniversary in June of this year. It more than met the hype on this board. Our food was delicious, the service was perfect, and the atmosphere was posh, but not pretentious. It was expensive, but well worth it. If you go, try the lobster corn chowder and don't miss the coconut cake for dessert. I'm still having dreams about both items! Choice #2: Hominy Grill-I absolutely adore this small restaurant and have eaten there on every trip to Charleston. This is the restaurant that made me fall in love with grits. The food is very fresh and well-prepared, nothing super fancy, just a slight twist on good southern cooking. The atmosphere reminds me of my grandmother's kitchen, with it's white walls, bright pictures, and mismatched chairs. I have yet to make it here for dinner, but I can vouch for both breakfast and lunch. Their shrimp and grits is my favorite version of the dish.

Just to update those who posted..... We just got back from Charleston last night and our favorite meal of the whole trip was at the Peninsula Grill. It was fabulous! I was a bit worried about my husband's reaction on two counts...one, the aforementioned dress-up issue, and two, his tendency to like only "plain" food. I needn't have worried about either! In terms of dress, we both fit in perfectly. I wore a sleeveless dress and heels, he wore a short sleeved linen shirt and nice slacks. When we entered the dining room, he grinned at me, because I had sort of pushed for him to wear a tie and he didn't want to. I let him win the discussion and he was pleased as punch to see that there were very few ties or jackets in the place that night. Food-wise.....I had the lobster and corn chowder to start. This has to be one of the best soups I've ever eaten. For an entree, I had the scallops, which were served with a yellow tomato cobbler. They were wonderful....tender, sweet, fresh...My husband had a steak and potatoes, which he said were excellent. For dessert, we each had a slice of the famed coconut cake (because my husband said he wasn't going to share!) I was pleasantly surprised when the server brought out our dessert plates and said "Happy Anniversary!" When I looked down at the plates, "Happy Anniversary!" was written on the edge in chocolate. When I made our reservations a few weeks ago, the hostess had asked if it was a special occaision. I thought this was a very nice touch. The cake, by the way, was even more fabulous than we had heard. All in all, it was a wonderful dining experience. The server was excellent and quickly put my non-foodie husband at ease. The atmosphere was posh, but comfortable and not at all stuffy. I can't wait to go back! Thanks to all those who said "DO IT!"

I need some eGullet guidance. Here is my problem... My husband and I will be spending a week in Charleston for our anniversary. Now, I've been to Charleston a couple of times recently, and have hit a lot of the well-known/highly recommended restaurants. I have been trying to decide on a special place for our actual anniversary dinner. I had pretty much decided on the Peninsula Grill, but now I am starting to have some second thoughts. I had never read anything negative at all about the Peninsula Grill until today when I started to poke around online. It seems that there is a group of people out there with some rather harsh things to say about both the food and the service. Normally, that would not give me pause, since everything I have read here has been positive (and I have learned to trust eGullet advice). However, I think it comes down to comfort zones, and I guess this is my real question...How froufrou is the Peninsula? The website says "jackets recommended, but by no means required". How dressy will folks be at the end of June, when the heat and humidity are high? Obviously, I would not go traipsing in there wearing shorts and flipflops, but my husband is a man who is much more at home in a nice pair of slacks and a buttondown shirt than he is wearing a coat and tie, particularly when it's hot outside. I don't want to sacrifice his comfort for my tastebuds, particularly if there is a chance of the food being "off" that night. Is the atmosphere stuffy? Is the food worth it? I know there are several of you who have been. Please share so I can make an informed decision....I don't want my romantic anniversary dinner to earn me the cold shoulder from my husband! :)

Shrimp with mushrooms, shallots, and chopped bacon over cheese grits at the Hominy Grill in Charleston. Served with a large wedge of warm cornbread and a tall glass of sweet tea...a little more "down home" than some other choices, but it was so good that I was practically purring like a cat as I ate!

Iris, If I had to chose just one for dinner...hmmm! I think it would depend on what sort of meal I was in the mood for. I love 39 Rue de Jean and all three meals I've had there have been very well prepared. I have been dying to have dinner at the Hominy Grill, but that would be a more low-key down home type of meal. On my December trip, I had really good meals at S.N.O.B. and Poogan's Porch. All of the places that I've eaten have been in the historict district (with the exception of the Boulevard Diner, which is across the river in Mount Pleasant) and are within walking distance, except the Hominy Grill. I don't know that you would want to spend any of your precious time in Charleston wandering in search of restaurants, so I would look up the addresses of the ones that interest you beforehand. A great resource that I stumbled on is the website www.cuisineofcharleston.com. This site lists sample menus, hours, chef profiles, etc. for close to 30 Charleston restaurants. Also, Kaminsky's Most Excellent Cafe has wonderful desserts, but the greater appeal to us was the fact that it is open late, so we could walk around for a while after dinner and let our food digest before eating dessert. (However, if you see the raspberry coconut cake in their display case, please order a slice for me, too!) Hope this helps! Have a great trip! Betsy

Just back from a 3 day trip to Charleston and thought I would post a quick report. First of all, this trip was with my parents, which colors our food choices a bit, because Mom is on the slightly picky side of things, and Dad is king of all that is low fat. This meant that the restaurants we chose had to offer a variety of choices that included items for the less adventurous diner, as well as the health conscious. Sunday night found us arriving in town around 9pm. Mom and Dad had never been to Charleston before and this was only my second trip. Dad wanted to immediately get out and explore almost as soon as we were checked into our suite at the Andrew Pinckney Inn. After a long walk around downtown, we wound up at Kaminsky's. I was amazed that my "fat-free" father wanted to break over for dessert (at 10:30pm, no less), but it was his suggestion. He had a slice of their Mountain of Chocolate cake and I had a slice of carrot cake. Both were very good. Monday morning breakfast was at the Inn. The breakfast was the only problem that I had with the Andrew Pinckney. The room was nice, the service was good, but breakfast was pretty sad! Although it was called a "deluxe continental", it consisted of two choices of cereal, frozen waffles, croissants, and stale raisin bread. There were also some suspiciously pale little biscuits and a crock pot of crusty looking gravy. The first morning, we thought that it was just picked over because we didn't get there until 9am (although it was supposed to last until 10am). However, we discovered that it didn't matter if we got there at 8am or 9am, the selection was the same. Also, there was not enough seating and every day they were either out of milk, plates, utensils, coffee....something was missing that prevented us from being able to make the most out of the sad selections. I realize that it was a "free" breakfast, but I've stayed at far cheaper places that have had better breakfasts. Anyway, I digress..... Monday lunch was at 39 Rue de Jean. Mom wanted a burger and she found a great one here. Dad absolutely loved the bouillabaisse that he had, while I enjoyed an omelette with fine herbs and frites. We sat out on the patio and enjoyed a gorgeous day and a delicious lunch. Service was excellent. Dinner on Monday was at Blossom Cafe, which was Dad's choice. I had BBQ red snapper, which was very good. Mom liked her salmon very much, until she came upon a bone. Dad was not quite as happy with his herb roasted chicken because he said it didn't have much flavor. I also had a very good salad with mixed greens, warm golden raisins, almonds, and goat cheese. We didn't have dessert here, because Dad was thinking about cake from Kaminsky's again. The atmosphere in Blossom Cafe was very nice and service was good. Dessert was at Kaminsky's again. Mom had a slice of Snicker's cake, which she said was good. Dad and I both had a slice of Raspberry Coconut Cream Cake, which was one of the best cakes I've had in a long time. It was a very light white layer cake, with raspberry filling and coconut dusted on the outside. Mmmmmm! Tuesday-breakfast was the same tired looking choices at the Inn. We were hoping it would be better, if we were earlier getting there...no such luck! Tuesday lunch was at Middleton Place in their garden cafe. Another meal that was not really worth writing about, as it was just sandwiches that were not particularly memorable. Tuesday dinner was at Anson. The space is beautiful, but on the loud side. Service was good. The only problem was that Mom had chosen this restaurant based on the cashew encrusted grouper....only after she ordered it, the server returned to tell us that they were out! Not only that, but they were out of the entree Dad selected, too. Mom and I wound up having the whole crispy flounder with Apricot Shallot sauce, which was excellent. We picked the bones clean! I don't remember what Dad had, other than it was some sort of fish. He liked the fish very much, but did not like what it was served with. Dessert was at Kaminsky's...again! Dad had something chocolate, Mom had a HUGE brownie sundae, and I had a huge slice of a delicious coconut cream pie. The slice of pie was almost as big as the plate it was on and it was easily one of the top 5 pieces of pie I've ever eaten. Wednesday.....This was easily the best food day, overall. I was dying to go to the Hominy Grill again, so I told Mom and Dad that breakfast would be my treat. I just love this place. It is so relaxing and comfortable to hang out in, plus the food is wonderful. Mom had a traditional breakfast....scrambled eggs, bacon, grits, and toast. Dad and I had the omelette special of the morning, which was an omelette filled with grilled vegetables and parmasean cheese, served with homefries, which I substituted for grits. Everything was very good. Wednesday lunch...We were on our way from the Yorktown to Fort Moultrie, so lunch was in Mt. Pleasant. We stopped in at the Boulevard Diner, which is housed in a converted Dairy Queen building, but this is a place, where you can't let the exterior fool you, because the food is great. Mom had a cheeseburger that was so large she could barely finish it. Dad had scallops that looked wonderful, flakey and tender. I had a spinach salad with carrots, cucumbers, and slices of apple, served with a warm buttermilk dressing that had shallots and bacon in it, and the whole thing was topped with five of the best fried oysters I've ever put in my mouth. I just about start drooling every time I think of this salad! The interior here was very pleasant and there was a decent crowd, even at 2:30 on a Wednesday afternoon. Service was friendly and efficient. Wednesday dinner....We wound up at 39 Rue de Jean again. Mom and Dad both had a grilled pork chop with red cabbage. They said it was delicious and ate every bite on their plates. I had the NY Steak Frites, which was very good. I love this restaurant, but it was very loud on this particular night, and our server was very distracted, not only in his treatment of our table, but also with the table next to us. Thursday was our last day, and since we wanted to get a fairly early start for home, we had one last ho-hum breakfast at the hotel. I hope this report will help anyone traveling to Charleston soon. I can't wait to go back!

Wah!! No fair! I am stuck all way over here in KY where all I can do is dream about Le Pichet. I still wake up with drool on my pillow after a good dream about their baked ham and eggs dish. Let's see....four more months until I can get back to Seattle.....wah!!

Granted this is not necessarily something that you can find only in Seattle, but I just made a pretty decent hot chocolate at home using Williams Sonoma's Peppermint Hot Chocolate. It is shavings of bittersweet Guittard chocolate that have been infused with peppermint oil. The chocolate melted almost instantly in the hot milk and it was just the right degree of sweet and rich. The peppermint added a nice holiday flavor.

Wow! This is why I love the south and am proud to consider myself southern! I asked a similar question on another eGullet forum back in the spring and hardly received any responses, but you all have outdone yourselves with helpful suggestions! Thanks so much! I can't wait to start mapping out my "plan of attack" for meals! :)

Thanks, everyone, for the suggestions! I will continue to research and check back here between now and the end of next month. If anyone thinks of anything else, please post it and I will give a nice, long trip report when I get back!

Ok, so here is my dilemma....My best friend and I are going to Charleston for four days between Christmas and New Year's. We are both really excited about the trip, but as usual, he is leaving all the research to me. Now, some people travel to see new things, but not me...I travel to eat in new restaurants! The problem is, that as adventurous as I am when it comes to new food, he is the exact opposite. His idea of a good meal is either a burger or chicken fingers. He is one of the pickiest eaters that I know. We went to New Orleans a few years ago and when we ate at "good" places, he generally did not eat, choosing to snack later. This drove me absolutely nuts, but at least my sister was with us on that trip, so I wasn't eating alone with him sitting there with no food. On this upcoming trip, it will just be the two of us. So, that's the background...here is where I need eGullet advice: What are some good restaurants in Charleston where we both might be happy? I have read all the threads on here that I can find about Charleston food, but would like more comments from those who have been there. I am not picky at all, except when it comes to quality...if it is good, I will usually eat it! However, I would love to find some places where we both feel comfortable when we look at the menu. Price is not a big issue. Thanks!

I love Angeli on Decatur. I am not sure of their exact hours, but I am pretty sure they are open until 1am or so on the weekends. The food and atmosphere are very casual, but good. The food has a Mediterranean influence.

My sister (who now lives in Indianapolis and had a large Indy contingent at her wedding) used Moon Pies and RC's at each place setting as wedding favors, along with a little tag outlining the history of this southern delicacy. Her friends seemed to enjoy them and there were quite a few of them who had never sampled the Moon Pie before. Around here you can find the traditional chocolate Moon Pie in all the grocery stores and mini-marts, along with other more exotic flavors, such as the banana Moon Pie.

Thanks for the link, Marinade! Lots of great Louisville restaurant info. Now I won't have to eat at the same old places when I'm in town for conventions, etc.

I will admit that I have not had a chance to try it yet, but I have heard good things about Lynn's Paradise Cafe. My aunt ate there and really enjoyed it and I have read positive things about it in Southern Living magazine, as well.

Being a true hillbilly, I have known about poke sallet all my life. In fact, my small town even has a three day Poke Sallet Festival every year during the first weekend of June. Among the highlights of the festival are the poke sallet recipe competition, along with the traditional poke sallet dinner of poke sallet, soup beans, and corn bread, served at one of the local restaurants. Strangely enough, I've never eaten poke, mostly because I don't enjoy greens of any form (mustard, etc.), but also, because my father told me when I was 5 or 6 that the poke plant was poisonous. I think that this was to discourage me from trying to eat the purple berries that appear on the plant in the late summer, but at any rate, it was enough to keep me from ever trying this Harlan County delicacy!

Hooray for Scorched Palate and many thanks for posting the link to that coconut cream pie recipe. I have been dreaming about that pie since April! I can't wait to see if I can recreate it. javascript:emoticon(':biggrin:')

Glad to help! We are less than two hours from Knoxville, and go shopping there about every six weeks or so. It is a rare trip that doesn't include a stop at Litton's!

I don't know what sort of food you are looking for, but if you are in the mood for one of the best burgers ever, you need to go to Litton's. They are a market/restaurant located on Essary Rd., in the Fountain City area of Knoxville. Litton's is locally owned and very much a family/neighborhood type place. I literally have dreams about their burgers...they are that good! They also have great desserts. I tend to go for the turtle brownie (two layers of pecan-laden brownie, sandwiching a gooey layer of caramel), unless they have Baby Jane...their delicious version of a strawberry shortcake. Hmmm.....I may have to make the drive to Knoxville soon! Oh, they are closed on Sunday's.

For all you Big Red lovers out there who are watching your figures...Today I was prowling through the aisles of our one locally owned grocery store and what did I discover in the soft drink aisle? DIET Big Red! Who knew?! I didn't buy any, though, so I can't give a report on the taste.

Just got back from a family vacation in Naples and made one new food discovery that I thought I'd share. We ate dinner one night at Bha!Bha!, a Persian bistro. We all really enjoyed this restaurant. It is located in the Pavilion shopping center, heading north of town on the Tamiami Trail. My father was a little worried about eating there until he saw it, because he was fearing a cheap-looking, strip mall ethnic food joint. However, once he saw Bha!Bha!, he was more excited about the meal. The restaurant interior was decorated by the owner/chef, who is apparently a man of many talents. The space features a small fountain in the middle of the floor, surrounded by hassocks, comfortable banquettes lined with pillows covered in exotic fabrics, and tapestries and other woven hangings on the walls. Our waitress told us that they even have bellydancing on the first Saturday of every month. The menu features both traditional and innovative Persian cuisine. We started with a mango/pear salad that has to be one of the best restaurant salads I've ever eaten. The salad featured 5-6 slices of fresh pear and 5-6 slices of ripe, juicy mango, on a bed of mixed greens sprinkled with feta cheese and dressed with a pomegranate vinagrette. It was absolutely delicious! Entrees for our group included a spicy apricot chicken, duck with an orange, pomegranate, and walnut sauce, and another type of chicken off the traditional Persian menu. All of the entrees were wonderful. Desserts were an almond custard with caramel sauce, which looked a lot like a creme brulee, a flourless chocolate cake that my parents really loved, and then a jeweled squashcake that I had, which was very good and not too sweet. As we were paying the check, my grandmother asked our waitress what Bha! Bha! means in Persian....turns out it means, "Yum! Yum! Good! Good!" I would say that this is a restaurant that the name truly describes! Oh...I forgot to mention the prices....The salads were around $7, most of the entrees fell in the $14-$20 range, and all of the desserts were $5.50. All in all, a good value for the quality of the food.

I just visited Seattle for the first time last month, but I didn't have a single bad dining experience, thanks in part to this board! I will second some of tsquare's recommendations and add one or two others that I really enjoyed. Cafe Campagne Le Pichet....loved the baked egg dish here. Dahlia Lounge...coconut cream pie to die for! (The rest of the meal was good, too!) The Flying Fish Matt's in the Market Wild Ginger...Pan Asian....the duck here is just yummy and served with buns that are little pillows of heaven!

This may not be a fancy enough gift idea for you, but when I was in Seattle last month, I purchased several jars of different locally made fruit spreads/jams at Pike Place Market to bring home to my parents. My father is also on a low fat diet and the jam was a perfect gift for him because it is fat free. My parents particularly liked the Tayberry spread and recently served it to rave reviews with homemade oatmeal muffins.

I'll second Malarkey's recommendations of Cafe Campagne and Matt's in the Market. I had great lunches at both of them last month. I also had a wonderful lunch at Le Pichet. I'm still dreaming about their baked ham and eggs dish!