Jordan Mendenhall

I think I would go with Carrburritos or Foster's for lunch, possibly Jujube or Lime & Basil if you'd like to do Asian. I would highly suggest Milltown over Tyler's for that afternoon pint but Tyler's has an excellent dinner menu (Milltown's is nice as well). Beer selection at Milltown is excellent and a lazy afternoon can easily turn into a late night there. I disagree wholeheartedly about the quality of caps at Driade but I do believe it is the best option locally. Actually, it seems a local person at the Daily Grind on UNC's campus went third in the barista regionals so heck, you might even find a better cup there. The nice thing about Driade is the outside seating away from it all and in the woods where as Milltown is very much downtown and people watching.

...some of those times after Time Out I woke up smelling like both fried chicken AND the bar...but it's all a normal part of the weekend in CH Have to be careful with Krispy Kreme. I'm original from Winston-Salem so I've had my fair share of times with those things. I love southern food but damn can you put on some weight if you go on a week-long bender. Too much beer + too much late night fried chicken or KK = need to buy larger jeans DD. PS. Tabasco slim jims and "roller" ie. a nasty hot dog that rolls around on the grill at a convience store. That is my typical drunken fest and I love it. ←

Of course, this was still while intoxicated, so the first mentioned does not count as place I, nor anyone else I know, would eat at sober: 1) Time Out, Chapel Hill, NC - southern-fried goodness served up 27/7, 365 days a year; I was particularly fond of the mashed potatoes with gravey and buttermilk biscuits Now, at the time, that was delicious. I have also walked 40 min down the train tracks to and from the 24-hr Harris Teeter to get a microwavable chicken pot pie at 4.30 am I would say the best drunken food I've had that I would also consume sober would be from the shawarma shop outside my metro station, Primorskaya, while living in St. Petersburg, Russia. Nothing tasted better after coming home from the clubs at 8 am. And if I didn't feel like cooking I could always make a quick trip there. Cheap too. About $1.25. -JM

Thanks for the pictures, as they reflect a typical walk down the streets in most of the cities I've been in: fresh food markets and ice cream stands. Though I don't think the bananas are exactly grown in Bulgaria As stated above, the cuisine is typically Balkan, a bit heavy a times, especially because things are served in huge portions at most traditional Bulgarian restaurants. Case in point is a restaurant I went to in Veliko Tarnovo the other day: There were two menus, one for Bulgarian dishes and one for pizza and pasta. Both menus ran at least six pages each. Pizza is the second side to Bulgarian food and I think probably makes up almost as much as the diet here as the traditional food. I've seen things served in several different ways. Grilled meats take up a large part of a menu. They can come skewered, plated on their own, or in other various forms. Usually quite simple and delicious. There are also dishes served in clay pots, that are heated (I don't know how) on a little stand underneath. These can contain what looks like stews, though some are a bit thicker than most stews I've seen and typically come with a plate to have the food ladled from bowl to plate. Also, because the pot retains so much heat, the contents in the bottom of it can be extremely hot, so this will help them cool off. Also, there are casserole-looking things, that I think are typically labeled as zapenkas. I had one the other day that had a meat sauce of some sort, with beef tongue, beef filet, and potatoes, with cheese baked over top. My friend had a similar dish the other night with chicken, broccoli, and cheese. Word of warning: the cheese used will either be what I think is a feta, but they just call it 'white cheese' here and can completely take over a dish. I like feta, but used sparingly. My friend had a bit of trouble finished off the aforementioned dish as the feta was too much and too overpowering. Some really popular small dishes that I'm sure you can find a recipe for on the web are tarator, which is a cold yogurt and cucumber soup, and the banitsa, cheese fried in filo pastry that people eat in the mornings. Here's a recipe for a typical dish called mish-mash that my friend really enjoyed: Mish Mash Something very simple, cheap and very tasty. Try it and you will see! Ingredients: 8 eggs 2-3 tomatoes or 300 g tomato puree 10 fresh capsicums or 500 g roasted and pilled off red paprika salt, oil Preparation: Fry the capsicums (paprika) for about 10 minutes in a pan, then add the tomatoes (tomato puree) and fry until the tomato juice evaporates. At the end add the eggs and fry lightly. That's all and takes no longer than 20 minutes. Hope that helps a bit, I'll be here for another couple days so will try and be a bit more thorough in documenting what goes into ye ole belly. -JM

for anyone looking at this thread in the future, it's worth mentioning that Sofia, Bulgaria is an amazingly cosmopolitan as well as inexpensive city to dine in. Yes, italian restaurants may be a sign of quality food in not so well off nations in the Balkans, but Bulgarian cuisine can match the best of the Italian tradition some of its hearty dishes. In Sofia, there is a wonderful restaurant near the top of ul. Angel Kanchev called 'Ms. Caprice' that has a varied and affordable menu. I had stuffed potatoes with cheese, ham and mushrooms for only $3 and proved to be a filling lunch. The restaurant also has a lunch menu, from which you can choose a soup/salad, main, and a beer/drink. Definitely worth checking out for some non-standard Bulgarian food. For a more traditional place, I would recommend 'Divaka' on ul. Gladstone. It is open 24 hrs and serves all types of meat, veg, and soup dishes. The meals are huge (like at most Bulg. restaurants) and is popular with locals. Come for lunch or early/late evening as the place fills during the dinner rush and it's nearly impossible to get a seat.