dscott

No salt and pepper on the table. I understand that the chef believes the food is perfectly seasoned. As the diner, I may beg to differ.

I thought that they taught you to do this in "server school"? No complaints when your mouth is full.

I'd suggest that root veggies are a must for a fall celebration. Added bonus, there's enough variety to go with almost any meat you choose.

I never know if it's the end of summer or the beginning of fall that makes me so happy. I enjoy a ripe tomato as much as anyone (but they haven't been great in VA this year) but I really don't like summer. Way too damn hot for me. Fall is crisp yet sunny and still provides enough fresh produce to cook up fantastic meals. It makes me so happy to have the kitchen doors and windows open (no A/C, woohoo) while cooking up some good roasts w/ mashed rutabagas. It's so great to be able to turn the oven on again. Plus, it's one step closer to ski season.

Hallelulah Holly! I couldn't agree more. Completely unrelated note for Holly: Thanks for the Sweatman's BBQ review on Holly Eats. Stopped in there on the way to see family in SC. Holy smokes that was some good Q. You were on the money. It's up there with Allen and Sons. Thanks again.

Schneier, The new Wegman's are so good that I will most certainly venture to one of the Northern Virginia stores from Richmond (which is a grocery store desert). Not to say that I'll make it a special trip, but if I'm up in D.C. or Tyson's (as I sometimes am), I will definitely detour to pick up the week's provisions at Wegman's. Yes, they are _that_ good.

My favorite way is roasted and simply drizzled with a really good balsamic.

Saranac's sparkling lemonade is really good too

Excellent suggestions everyone! Many oohs, ahhs and "good idea"s from my dining crew. Grazing in Raleigh was a consensus pick. Now we have to decide where? Sticking around Five Points looks like a great suggestion, Varmint. In the interest of an eclectic experience, what do you think about sharing some apps and entrees at a few different places? So instead of either NOFO OR Lilly's, maybe start with a slice and a beer at Lilly's, head over to Bloomsbury Bistro for apps and end up at NOFO for some apps or entrees. Finish it all up at Hayes Barton Pharmacy for dessert. Now, I've never been to any of these places except Lilly's, is this too ambitious for a Friday night (crowds)? Also, it looks from Mapquest that they're all pretty close to each other. True? Thanks for the other suggestions also. We try to get to Chapel Hill 2x/year and are always looking for new places to try.

Thanks for all the recs.

How should one prepare the green ones? I think I know what a ripe mission fig should taste like but I'm less certain with the green. My neighbor has a green fig tree growing over into my yard and the one I tried last year just didn't taste ripe. Is this a fruit that I should plan on poaching regardless of ripeness?

Didn't mean to waste your time, V. I wanted to make sure that I wasn't missing a good new place. I really like your food hopping idea. I will present that to the crew and see what the reaction is. Now, I just need to make sure that I get to CH in time to hit Allen and Sons for lunch. :smile:

Varmint, thanks for the reply. Here are some more specifics (I apologize for the length). If it were just the wife and me, I would choose Mag Grill b/c of the amazing food w/o an uptight atmosphere. I have no problem paying the extra $$ to get that food. However, my dining partners aren't so loose with their wallet. (I'm guessing that they wince at the Lantern's prices but we've gone with them before and they've sucked it up.) So, I'm looking for similar good food in an unpretentious atmosphere. Drinks are less important since wife is pregnant and the other 2 aren't big wine drinkers (which means that I get outvoted). I'll probably end up with a couple of glasses of wine. "Crazy fun"? Not sure exactly what this means. Definitely not looking for a drink-your-socks-off-and-fall-in-the-gutter birthday experience (see pregnant comment above). If fun equals loud, I guess that's not what we're looking for. I enjoy places like Four-Eleven and Cafe Parizade but they can get awfully loud on a Friday night. I'm the only unabashed foodie in the group although the other three all enjoy good food. I'd be willing to take one for the team and substitute food for the experience if there's a place with a nice atmosphere, is relatively inexpensive and has good (but not amazing) food (e.g., Acme in Carrboro). What kind of food? Contemporary American (plus fusion), seafood, and modern italian all come to the top of my head but I'm sure that I'm not too hamstrung on this point. If there's good East-Asian fusion (or south Asian fusion [mmmm Tabla]) other than the Lantern, I think the crew would be game. They're definitely NOT game for tripe on a bed of chicken feet or anything of that nature. (You'll have to report on your NYC lunch for that). I'm definitely not averse to going back to the Lantern. I was just surveying to see if there's anything else I'm missing. Thanks again Varmint. I told my wife that you'd come through! Hell, thanks for all that you do as the Southeast coordinator. Love those posts.

Blackout at Rocco's? I bet the food was cold.

(From last night): I will never again... try to salvage soggy tortilla chips (due to inadvertant refrigeration) by baking them in the toaster oven. The result is very large flames. Thankfully, the sink is right next to the toaster oven and the soot marks all over the white cabinets overhead did come off with a quick wipe!

On a spur of the moment deal, the wife and I have decided to visit friends in Chapel Hill this Friday for a b-day dinner for my wife and one of our friends. It's been a year since I've been in CH and I'm looking for good middle-high-end restaurant recommendations. High-end places like Mag Grill, Nana's, Fearrington, Fins, etc are a bit over the top (in terms of the $$$). What's good in the next step down these days? My default would be to go to The Lantern. I've had two delicious meals there and enjoy the atmosphere as well as the food. I think that my 2nd choice might be Pop's in Durham (although it's been several years since I've been there). I would probably prefer to skip Crook's b/c I've been there so often and I'm looking for a little something different. Chapel Hill is our first preference for location, Durham 2nd, Raleigh is a distant third. Your recommendations are appreciated.

This is where my Atlanta native bride introduced me to boiled peanuts. Do they still have the guys selling boiled peanuts? mmmmm, boiled peanuts.

Can I ask for a more specific recommendation in SB on the nicer end of the spectrum? Some friends are heading there for their anniversary. What would you recommend for an anniversary dinner in Santa Barbara? (not that the seafood shack, taqueria and Brophy's don't sound awesome)

Thanks Kathy. That'll come in handy on those long drives from Richmond to Atlanta. Is it close to I-85? How about "downstate"? I'll be driving to Hilton Head in a few weeks and would love a good place to eat lunch (bbq or not) near I-95 (South of Florence). Hilton Head recs welcome also.

Gasp. "Hot dogs"? No no no! They are "Fenway Franks"...and they are yummy.

Mmmmm, Lyle's Golden Syrup.

I concur that your first mistake, as you noted VM, was trying this concoction in Northampton. I would stick to Scotland and the states between NC and AL for such deep-fried delicacies (though I have not tried the Twinkie variety myself). I know that A Salt and Battery in NYC serves Deep Fried Mars (UK)Bars. That's not too far a trip from Northhampton (4 hrs?) and has the benefit of other culinary masterpieces (Chish and Fips, Chip Butty, Mushy Peas, etc.). They do have Snickers in the UK now. I believe that they used to be called Marathon way back when but then they decided to homogenize labeling in the EU. Hence, Marathon became Snickers as in the rest of Europe. (Or at least I _think_ that's how the story goes). Hmmm, English chocolate. I'm currently hording Flakes, Jaffa Cakes, Maltesers, and Hob Nobs at home. A deep-fried Jaffa Cake? That might be quite tasty. Too bad that I won't deep fry at home (can't stand the stench).

No affront intended for Harry's. I was in Atl last weekend and lamented that I had flown. Had I driven, I would have done a week's shopping at Harry's and brought it back with me to Richmond. I wonder what market specifics (i.e., strength of local economy, population density, demographics) that grocery chains look for before entering a new market? Maybe with all the Philip Morris bigwigs moving back to Richmond, we'll have enough $$ to entice Harry's/Whole Foods, Publix or Wegman's to move in. Anyone with any knowledge on these matters?

I agree with phaelon56 about Houston's. Consistently decent food that's a cut above other moderately price sit-down chains. I also think that California Pizza Kitchen is an easy fix and generally pretty decent when one is stuck in a mall dining atmosphere.