Tag Archive | foodie friday

Foodie Friday: Nahm Thai Cuisine #thairestaurant #alpharettaga #foodie #goodeats

Welcome to the latest edition of FOODIE FRIDAY!

It has been ages that I have posted about a restaurant. The main reason is that I have been so busy and it has been hard for me to find the time to upload all my pictures. Recently, I decided that I would post using my cell phone and I think that is going to help considerably.

The other day, I was in Alpharetta, GA for work and my colleagues suggested we go to Nahm Thai Cuisine. Since they have been highly rated on many food sites, I was eager to try them out.

For an appetizer, I ordered the sampler trio which had shrimp tempura, corn fritter, and pork dumplings.

TOW Opinion: I liked all three. They were paired with sauces that were a delicate mix of sweet, spicy, and salty. My favorite would have to be the shrimp. I should have ordered a plate of just that! Perfect tempura can be difficult to find, but Nahm knows how to get the flavors right every time.
***Allergy warning for the dumplings: They were garnished with peanuts. Since it was just sprinkled on top, I removed that layer and ate the bottom ones.

For my main course, I ordered Massaman chicken curry. If you have never had Massaman, the paste is first fried with coconut cream, and only then are meat, potatoes, onions, fish sauce or salt, tamarind paste, sugar, coconut milk and peanuts added. And topped with avocado.

Massaman is usually eaten with rice, in a meal together with other dishes.

They added cashews instead of peanuts. I asked for them to leave off the nuts, but they did not.

TOW Opinion: I ordered medium heat and it was just right. I did think it was too sweet and I did not have enough rice to balance out the sweetness. The potatoes were not fully done all the way through. I still enjoyed the food. I took home my leftovers and ate later after cooking some more rice. Even better then next day!

Foodie Friday: Atlanta restaurant – Atlanta Fish Market #atlantaGA #review #foodiefriday

Dec15

I went to Atlanta Fish Market with some business associates. I cannot remember how many times I have passed this place and did not even pay attention to its location. This is despite the fact there is a giant fish statue in front of the building. Sometimes I can be oblivious to my surroundings. Good thing we made reservations because the place was packed.

For an appetizer we ordered sushi. Everything was really good. The flavors were light and fresh.

For my main course, I chose my fish and the style of cooking. Of the many different varieties, I ordered salmon and another white fish.
There were four cooking choices:
SAUTEED, BROILED OR BLACKENED / with olive oil & lemon plus select two sides
HONG KONG STYLE sherry soy, scallions, ginger, spinach & bowl of sticky rice

I decided to go with Hong Kong style. On paper this sounds awesomely delicious. But the reality was not as spectacular. I thought it would be pan fried with Asian spices, but it was essentially boiled fish. I am not a big fan of boiled fish. The flavor was good but the texture was not my preferred method of eating fish. In retrospect, I should have ordered sautéed or blackened for the cooking method.

I cannot really rate the restaurant poorly for the fish entrée because they gave me exactly what I ordered. I know for next time to ask more questions to determine how the fish is cooked. On the upside, the sushi was the best I have had on the east coast. I do not usually order sushi unless I am on the west coast because I know how far the fish has to travel before getting to my plate. In the case of Atlanta Fish Market, they have planes flying in their fish fresh every day. I know I should feel bad about my carbon footprint this whole equation, but it was so decadently tasty.

Italian in Savannah GA #FoodieFriday

Aug4

This Foodie Friday is about a restaurant in Savannah GA.

Cuoco Pazzo
Cucina Italiana
606 Abercorn Str , Savannah GA

To be honest, the only reason why we pick this Italian restaurant in Savannah was because it was in walking distance from our bread and breakfast inn and we were hungry. We looked at their menu before hand. Hubs wanted spaghetti and meatballs and that should’ve been simple. I did not see simple spaghetti plate on the menu and Hubs pointed it out.

I said, “What Italian restaurant does not serve simple spaghetti with meat sauce? That is like Italian 101.”

Well I got my answer.
Cuoco Pazzo does not serve spaghetti and meat sauce or meatballs for dinner. They serve it at lunch, but not for dinner.
Talk about being annoyed.

I asked if we could order a side of spaghetti and a side of meat sauce. They only had marinara sauce. Not meat. Yeah, Hubs would not go for that.
I asked if they had angel hair pasta. The only two pasta options they had were spaghetti and pappardelle.

“Do we need more time before we order?” asked the server.

Absolutely. While my mind was still reeling from the fact that they do not have spaghetti and meatballs, we decided to order Capricciosa flatbread. This had tomato sauce, ham, artichoke, mushroom, and mozzarella cheese. Also to be noted, this was the only flat bread with meat.

At this point, the mood and our table was not good. Neither of us ordered what we really wanted and we were too hungry to go elsewhere.

We had an added complication: it was 7 PM on Christmas Eve. If we got in our car and drove around downtown Savannah who is to say anything else would even be open?

The server told us at the flatbread was “excellent” and “out of this world “. He even said it was the best he ever had because it was cooked in a brick oven.

The reality was that it was not that impressive to me. The middle of both of our flatbreads was soggy. Hubs ate the toppings only. I ate two of the four pieces, leaving some of the crust because it was too soggy and tasted like raw dough. The server asked if Hubs did not like his flatbread, and I told him the crust was soggy.

They offered to make a new flat bread for us to take. We said we did not want it, but they insisted.

TOW Final word: A lot of people were very satisfied with the food, but we wish we had had another option. I wish the kitchen could have been more flexible or at least offered more than the limited options for dinner. Service was great though. Check out their menu online and if it appeals to you EXACTLY as written, you will probably like this place.

The Flying Biscuit Cafe- Midtown Atlanta #foodiefriday

Jan20

Welcome to the first FOODIE FRIDAY edition 2017!

foodiefriday

Restaurant: The Flying Biscuit Cafe

Location: Midtown Atlanta

We arrived Sunday about 12:30pm for Brunch.
I now realize this is the busiest time in all the best brunch restaurants in Atlanta.

This day, it did not matter. I was determined. I might have been starving and hangry (yes this is real), but we would wait the quoted hour to have a delicious brunch in a restaurant I have passed by countless times. Fortunately we didn’t wait the entire hour. We were seated in about 30-40 minutes.

I ordered the Egg-stravaganza. 2 eggs (fried hard), bacon (turkey or pork option- I chose pork), grits (I substituted their breakfast potatoes), and French toast.

brunch

french toast

I loved everything about this meal. EVERYTHING. The biscuit was flaky and buttery. The jam that was with it tasted like it was made in house. The breakfast potatoes had hints of herbal seasoning. The pork sausage was seasoned and cooked just right. Delicious!

TOW Final Word: it is worth the wait to eat here. You will not be disappointed. The food exceeded my expectations. I cannot wait to go back, especially for the biscuits.

Guest @hopeclark reviews her fave #restaurant in @edisto_beach @McConkeysJS #foodiefriday

Aug5

This guest post is by C. Hope Clark from www.chopeclark.com

McConkey’s Jungle Shack

Every Visit to Edisto

My current mystery series takes place on Edisto Beach, South Carolina, a secluded, noncommercial piece of sand that reduces down to around 600 people off season, exploding to several thousand when weather turns warm. Having just released the series’ third book, Echoes of Edisto, I currently work on book four, which means yet another trip to the beach. Research, you know.

And a girl has to eat after sweating over all those words. At the beach, that means a dose of seafood here and there. The residents refuse to allow franchises, so that means each eating venue reigns unique. My restaurant preference depends on what I want to eat that day, but when I’m not sure, my go-to place is McConkey’s Jungle Shack on Jungle Road.

McConkeyLogo

Trust me, the term shack is not used loosely. The handful of tables are set on a porch, cooled with fans and an over-worked air-conditioner in the summer (sorry, humidity stays), and warmed with porch heaters inside rolled down plastic sides in the winter. The months in between just means you eat outside under a roof. The kitchen is bigger than the dining area.

The wait staff all wear colorful t-shirts, often tie-dyed, with the Tarzan-looking character on a vine. I own six of those shirts, by the way, for the times I miss Edisto. The staff has worked there for ages, and the service has never failed me, usually with the food arriving way quicker than expected. The place may be small, but they can work a crowd like nobody’s business.

McConkeys-2779

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The menu has its regular favorites like fish tacos, fish and chips, shrimp, and hand-formed burgers (I prefer pimento cheese and jalapenos on mine, as does Callie Morgan in my books), and if you eat there, you’ll see them all come out of the kitchen, usually by your table on their way to another. The place isn’t big as a minute. A huge selection of beers and ale, and yes, wine.

Burger

But the main draw, in my opinion, is the homemade touch. All the desserts are from scratch, from bread pudding (yum) to peanut butter pie. And some days you see something entirely new on the dry erase board beside the kitchen entrance, simply because the cook had a different sweet tooth. In the winter I experienced the best black-bean soup I’ve ever tasted, again not on the regular menu. In the summer maybe a different sort of wrap. You never know until you show up what the specials might be.

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I guess I deem McConkey’s symbolic of Edisto Beach, touting a name that has represented the area for almost 140 years. While the family’s history is quite colorful, and uniquely tragic, the restaurant is successful and sound, a beacon to all who arrive from the mainland. Take a seat at one of the hand painted, beach scene tables, enjoy the local paraphernalia hanging around the place, and don’t look for a dress code. Wear whatever you happen to have on because it’s more about relaxing and having a good meal. After all, you’re at the beach.

Oh, and by the way . . . the best sweet tea on the island.

BIO: Hope Clark’s newest mystery, Echoes of Edisto, is available August 5 wherever books are sold. Echoes is book three in this highly popular Edisto Island Mystery Series, and if you head south to the coast, chances are you’ll find a copy in most rentals on Edisto Beach, South Carolina as well as on the shelves of the Edisto Bookstore with all the other Hope Clark books. www.chopeclark.com