The Grove

A couple weeks ago we got the rare privilege of dining at The Grove. Mel was turned on to it by a coworker who said that we had to try it and that it was one of the best restaurants in town. So we found time to head out there. They have it where you can either choose to a 3 course meal, or you can eat al a carte. We both chose the 3 courses, with a starter and dessert.

We started with a plate of three of the starters. We chose the goat cheese with fried biscuits and saffron honey and orange marmalade; chicken wings with kimchi, peanuts, and curry; and cheese hush puppies with a sriracha sauce. The goat cheese paired really well with the honey and marmalade, and the fried biscuits were really good. It was the pick of the three. The wings were good as well, but not as much to Mel's liking. They had a little bit of heat and the kimchi paired well with it. The hush puppies were really good too. The cheese was in with the actual hushpuppy and it went really well with the sauce. The only thing I didn't like as much were the pickled veggies that came with them.

Mel's first plate was a gnocchi with pumpkin and duck confit. The gnocchi were perfectly made and paired well with the sweetness of the pumpkin and saltiness of the confit. It also had nice balance with the greens that added a little bitterness to round out the flavors of the dish.

I started with the quail with beans, a mustard sauce, and a fried egg. This was the first time I had eaten quail, and it was very good. I would liken it to more like a duck or the dark meat of a turkey than to chicken. The egg had a nice runny yolk that mixed in well with the beans. The mustard sauce paired really well with the quail. Overall a very good dish.

Mel had the potato soup next. It had a little salad and potato chips with it. The soup was incredibly creamy and the chips added some texture. The little salad also brought a little bit of freshness to the soup. It was a good second dish in the meal.

I had the seared and rare steak salad. In addition to the steak were peppers, caramelized onions, fried shoestring potatoes and greens. There was also a parsnip puree. The steak was delicious. While rare, it had a lot of flavor to it. The fried potatoes added some texture and onions and peppers some sweetness. The puree went great with the steak. The only issue I had was not enough steak and too many peppers. If there were a few more pieces of steak I would have been a lot happier. But over all it was good.

Mel's final plate was pork two ways, with roasted loin and crispy pork belly. It came with roasted potatoes and squash, and fried grits. The veggies were good, and so was the loin. Nothing really special. The pork belly and fried grits though were outstanding. The fattiness and saltiness of the belly was the perfect foil to the grits. A plate of just that would have been worth the price.

My final plate was walleye with patatas bravas, harissa sauce, radishes and veggies. The walleye was cooked perfectly and went really well with the sauce. The patatas bravas were well seasoned and had good flavor. The radishes provided a nice crispness to the plate. Once again a good plate.

We finished with a buttermilk lemon poppyseed ice cream. It was the perfect end to the meal. The lemon was refreshing while the buttermilk added some tanginess and creaminess to the ice cream. The poppy seeds brought some texture to the ice cream. A good end to the meal.

Overall I was extremely impressed with The Grove. It easily gets my recommendation. In fact it is better than some of the more established restaurants in the city. I would happily put this up there with Bistro Bella Vita and will definitely go there again.

Fajita Republic

A few weeks ago we visited Fajita Republic by Celebration Cinema North. Mel was craving some Mexican food, so we decided to try someplace new. Overall it was a pretty good experience.

(pictures coming soon)

We started with the chicken flautas. The best way to describe the flauta is that it is like a large taquito. It was filled with chicken, tomatoes, and a bunch of different spices. It is then fried. Accompanying them was a chipotle ranch dipping sauce. These were by far the best part of the meal for me. The tortilla was nice and crispy on the outside, but still soft and pliable enough that it didn't fall apart when bit into. the filling was well balanced and the dipping sauce highlighted the flauta. They were very yummy.

For the main we got three tacos. The tacos come in pairs so we just split each plate. We got the carne asada tacos, grilled tequila lime chicken taco, and Mexican Coke carnitas taco.

Overall the tacos were good. They aren't the best I have had. That honor goes to San Jose Taqueria. But they were, for the most part very good. Mel and I were split on our favorite. I liked the steak carne asada best. It had skirt steak with a cilantro salsa and chili oil, topped with queso fresco. The chicken is marinated in tequila-lime, with a roasted corn salsa, chipotle ranch, and queso fresco. This was Mel's favorite. We were both in agreement that the coke carnitas was our least favorite.

We had a great server who made some excellent recommendations, especially with the flautas. On a side note, I was very happy to see that they have a ghost chili salsa that packs a bunch of heat. You know how I like my hot stuff.

I can definitely give Fajita Republic a recommendation. Is it the best Mexican restaurant in town? No it isn't. But it is a good alternative to a place like On the Boarder. If you are wanting Mexican food and are in the area or seeing a movie, I think this is your best bet.

The Good Life Bistro

Mel and I decided to go to a restaurant we hadn't been to in a while for her birthday. So we went to Bistro Bella Vita, located downtown GR.

The service was outstanding. In fact, it went above and beyond expectations. He was attentive without hovering and would check back to make sure our orders were made correctly. This was appreciated as one of Mel's dishes was wrong. The sauce was too soupy and watery. We brought it to the attention of our server, who promptly took it back after noting that it did look wrong. A replacement of her dish was promptly brought back out and was correctly made. When we got the bill her entree was not on the bill. They had taken it off since it was not correctly made the first time. Needless to say we tipped him very generously for his outstanding service.

We started with one of the specials for the day. It was a crostini with herbed goat cheese, fresh peas, and chorizo with a red wine reduction and olive oil. Everything really worked well. The red wine reduction added both sweetness and acidity which helped cut through the heaviness of the cheese and chorizo. The cheese brought some saltiness to the dish as well as creaminess that off set the texture of the bread. The chorizo had some nice smoke and spice. The peas and the olive oil added some nice "green" flavors that helped elevate all the other flavors. Overall this was an amazing beginning to the meal. It was well balanced and had great flavor.

For my entree I chose another special, duck orecchiette with baby kale, red bell peppers, butternut squash and a garlic cream sauce. There was also pecorino cheese. The pasta was perfectly al dente and the perfect vehicle for this plate. The duck was confit and was succulent and added some richness and saltiness. The bell peppers and butternut squash added sweetness to the entree while the baby kale brought some bitterness that complimented everything else. This was the first time I had ever had butternut squash. The only squash I have had was the regular yellow squash that people usually cook with a little butter. I don't really like that squash. But I really liked this butternut squash. I have since used it in meals at home. Back to this though, it was a very good pasta dish that was very well balanced with a ton of flavor. That duck was the star of the show and everything else either served as its vehicle or supported it. Very good dish.

The first one

The replacement

Mel ordered the four cheese ravioli. It comes with tomatoes, spinach, onion, and garlic in a white wine butter sauce. As you can see, the top plate was the one that was brought out the first time. Notice how watery and how much sauce was in there. The second one below was how it is supposed to look. Much better. The pasta was of the right thickness and texture for a ravioli. The cheese filling was outstanding. It was creamy and flavorful. I find it easy for cheese ravioli to be bland. The wrong proportion of cheeses can lead to a flavorless mess. Not so here. The tomatoes added some nice acidity. And, surprise, worked well with the ravioli and spinach. Go figure, an Italian dish with tomatoes. The sauce compliments the cheese, pasta and veggies. The onion and garlic added some sweetness to balance out the acid and savory of the other ingredients. It is a nice ravioli dish. It is fairly traditional type Italian food, but done very well.

For dessert we chose another of the specials, a pound cake with rum soaked pineapples, coconut flakes and coconut whipped cream, with salted, rum caramel. The cake was very dense, but it was delicious with a distinct vanilla flavor. The pineapples were sweet and tart and had a bit of a rum flavor to them. The salted caramel offset the sweetness of the whipped cream and pineapples. The coconut rounded out everything. It was a very successful dish that was sweet without being cloying.

Bistro Bella Vita has a reputation as one of the best restaurants in the city. It certainly lived up to the hype. Great food and great service is a winning combination. Definitely a great place that we will go back to again. Highly recommended.

Ruth's Chris Anniversary

Last month we went out to Ruth's Chris steak out for our anniversary. Two years! In fact now that I think about it, I have been doing this blog for two years. I guess it seems appropriate that this restaurant is the one that gets the honor of being the anniversary post.

We wanted to go back to Ruth's Chris as it is the place we got engaged. Well, ok, not actually in the restaurant. It happened in the Amway prior to going to dinner there. Nonetheless we felt it would be nice to go back for a special dinner. First off, the staff were awesome and continually congratulated us on our anniversary. The wait staff were attentive without hovering and did a great job moving the dining experience along.

(Pics to follow soon)

We started with a plate of tempura fried onion rings. The onion was sweet, which meant it was cooked through. The batter was light and crispy, as a tempura should be. It was also free of excess grease which means that it was fried at the correct temperature. The dipping sauce was Asian inspired with tastes of soy, green onion, a hint of chili pepper and ginger. It was a really good pairing of the sweet onion rings with the savory sauce.

For our entree we both ordered the filet. I ordered mine Med-Rare, Mel, Med. Their steaks are always so tender and flavorful. I barely had to use my knife to cut through my steak. I don't know if they finish with butter or not, but their steaks just taste better than any other steaks I have eaten. And it is surprising because technically, this is a chain restaurant. You just don't get the same quality control of the food with other chains. The beef melts in your mouth. A few chews, let the flavor linger, then swallow. No need to chew for 30 seconds to break down the steak. It is that tender. I could almost use just my fork, and we are talking about a thick piece of meat.

For the sides (they are ale carte) we chose the au gratin potatoes and fresh asparagus, because it's spring and asparagus is in season. The potatoes were perfectly cooked. They kept their shape and integrity, meaning they weren't over cooked into a mash. They were covered in butter and delicious cheese that was gooey and melty and delicious. The asparagus was cooked beautifully with a hint of salt and was served with a perfect holandaise sauce accompaniment. Both paired well with the steak we were eating.

For dessert there were multiple options, but we chose the special of Key Lime pie. When it came out, around the rim of the plate was written "Happy 2nd Anniversary" with a little heart. It was a nice touch. The pie had a wonderfully sweet and intense lime flavor with a little bit of sourness on the finish that created a nicely rounded dessert. There were also little dots of cherry flavored syrup that added a nice punch with the key lime and chocolate. It was one of the best Key Lime pies I have ever had, and that is saying something as I love Key Lime pie.

Overall it was a wonderful night out on the town where we could splurge a little, as we had been saving up for a night out for our special day. The food, the service, the little touches, all contributed to making this a great experience. I happily recommend Ruth's Chris Steakhouse to anyone. Is it pricey? Yes it is. But I think it is worth it.

Harmony Brewery

A few weeks ago Mel and I went over to Harmony Brewing in East Town. We had heard that they made a mean pizza, so of course we had to try it out.

We started off with some of their bread sticks. To be blunt, they were really good. They start out like many other bread sticks you would find at any number of restaurants, flat bread topped with cheese. But then they add a balsamic glaze, drizzled on top. It is just the right amount, where there is a nice acidic bite that cuts through the heaviness of the butter and cheese on top of the bread. So you get this great butter and cheese flavor accented by a bright burst of acid. On top of that is a little bit of oregano that adds a little herbaciousness to the bread sticks. It is really an interesting idea that I am surprised more places haven't done.

We ordered the crispy pig pizza. It comes with prosciutto, pepperoni, ham, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil. There were generous portions of each meat on the pizza. They definitely do not skimp on it. The cheese has a great creaminess and elasticity. It is very mild and allows the other toppings to shine. The basil balances everything else out. Because of course basil, tomato, and mozzarella go together like peanut butter and jelly. The crust was good as well. I would have liked it to be done just a little bit more. One side started to get this great, browned, almost charred edge. After being in Italy, I am convinced that every great pizza should be almost burnt on the edges and underneath. It adds a lot more flavor to the crust, especially if it is wood fired. As it was, only half of the pizza started getting this. The other half was fairly dough colored. That is not to say the dough wasn't any good. It was. I personally would have liked it a little bit darker. Overall though it is a really good pizza. Up there with the best GR has to offer.

I recommend giving this place a try, especially for the pizzas.

Dewey and Wintzell

Last on my round up (finally) are the seafood joints of Wintzell's and Dewey Destin's, two of my favorite places to eat anywhere. Wintzell's started out in downtown Mobile in the 1930's, but has now franchised out into other areas like Saraland, Spanish Fort, Huntsville, and even Pittsburgh. Dewey Destin's is in Destin, FL and is basically a little shack on the water. It too has branched out into two locations, though both are very close to each other in Destin.

First up is Wintzell's. The one we went to is the first "new" location in west Mobile, off Airport. I don't remember when this one opened, but it has been there for a while. I would guess at least 15 years. I make it a point to go there every time I visit Mobile. We started by ordering a basket of fried pickles. I am of the opinion that no place can fry pickles (let alone many other things) like the South can. I don't know why, but all the fried pickles that I have had anywhere else just don't taste as good. Once again, these are good fried pickles. The coating was crispy and well seasoned, the pickles still juicy and flavorful. It came with ranch dressing to dip them in. I don't know if it was house made, but it passed my ranch aficionado wife's approval.

Brent and I ordered a dozen oysters on the half shell to split. I love fresh, raw oysters. I know they weird some people out, but I find them tasty. They also always taste a little different depending on the time of year, the salinity of the water when caught, and other environmental factors. They can range from sweet to briny to minerally in taste. The ones we had were on the salty/briny side, my favorite. Winzell's is known as an oyster house, and as such they get their oysters in fresh everyday and you can tasted that it is so. They send the oysters out with crackers, horseradish, and lemon wedges and there is ketchup and hot sauce at the table. I like they give the options because some people like to eat their oysters with the different toppings and/or on crackers. I personally like to add some toppings, but my favorite is just nude out of the shell.

Brent and I split the J.O. Platter. We chose the fried one because why not. Fried seafood is delicious. But there is a broiled option as well. The platter comes with fish, scallops, stuffed crab, oysters, and shrimp and we chose cheesy grits for the side. A quick aside about the grits; they were cooked well and very cheesy. The seafood was fried perfectly. It wasn't greasy. It was crispy on the outside yet the seafood was perfectly done on the inside. It is quite a feat to achieve, as most seafood when overcooked turns tough and rubbery or simply falls apart. The shrimp and scallops were sweet and perfectly cooked right in the sweet spot between "not quite done yet" and "turned into rubber." The oysters kept their silky texture. The fish was flaky and moist. The stuffed crab was sweet and savory. The hush puppies were also perfectly fried. I can't express enough how hard it is to fry seafood perfectly. And to have a huge platter like this come out with everything the way it should be is impressive. I have been to higher end, "upscale" restaurants that have had trouble with having all the seafood come out perfectly done.

The service was good overall, although there was a point where our waitress didn't come back for a while. But she was very polite, apologized, and explained the situation (If I remember correctly someone didn't show up for their shift or something like that). Really and truly, there is no place like the south for service and hospitality.

As mentioned Dewey Destin's is in Destin, FL. The one we went to is the little shack on the water known as the Crab Island location. This place knows its seafood.

I started off with a cup of gumbo. A little warning, this gumbo is on the spicy side. But I love it that way. The flavors are so deep and together. It really has a great seafood flavor to the base. The Gumbo is loaded with shrimp and crab. It also has okra, rice, onion, bell pepper, and celery. They make one of the best gumbos in my opinion.

I got the crab claw basket. It was loaded with crab claws, perfectly fried. The crab was incredibly sweet. The batter is a little bit on the lighter side, but doesn't lack for flavor. It also comes with fries and hush puppies, and I chose some cole slaw as a side. 

Mel got their cheeseburger and added bacon to it. The burger was cooked nicely and was loaded with tomato, pickles, onion, and lettuce. It was a tasty little burger. You would generally think being a seafood shack the burger would be and afterthought. But it wasn't. It was good enough to be on any restaurant menu. It came with fries. (I apologize for the the tilted picture. For some reason every time I upload it, even if it is the right way, it posts sideways.)

Brent ordered the stuffed shrimp. The basket contains huge shrimp, cased in fresh crab meat, which is then wrapped in bacon, and then deep fried until crispy. I will let that sink in for a minute.... If that does not sound epic for seafood, I don't know what is. The fact that it all cooks well, and nothing is over or under done is amazing. It is so over the top. But so good at the same time. The crispy, salty bacon is the perfect foil to the sweeter crab and shrimp.

 We finished with a slice of home made key lime pie. It was a good slice of pie that was perfectly balanced between sweet and tart. It had a great lime flavor that was natural and not artificial. The crust was graham cracker and was the perfect base for this. The texture was spot on, being silky smooth. It was a great end to a great meal and great time.

The people there were incredibly friendly and treated us like we were regulars they have known for years. And it is hard to beat the view too

View from the table

A pod of dolphin not too far off the dock

Jason's Deli and Zaxby's

(Pictures to come soon)
This time I will be doing a short write up on two chains, Jason's Deli and Zaxby's as I try to get these done. My backlog is growing as I continue to work three jobs... not enough time in a day!

Jason's Deli is a soup and sandwich chain with a ton of restaurants across the country. We stopped by because Brent said they had a good muffeletta sandwich. And he was right. It was pretty good. Now is it going to be as good as the ones you can order in the Big Easy? Well, of course the answer is no. Those are magical concoctions. But it is good, and is huge. A half sandwich is the size of a normal sandwich at most other places. It is loaded with olives and ham. It was good and better than I expected. The price for what we got was good too. The gumbo was decent too. It had a little kick to it, but overall had good flavor. Definitely better than any I have had up here. I definitely recommend it for a place to grab a quick bite. Also, free ice cream!

Zaxby's can be though of as a little more upscaled Chick-Fil-A. Chicken is their thing, and they do their thing well. Mel and I both got grilled chicken on our sandwich, so I don't know how Zaxby's fried chicken sandwiches compare with Chick-Fil-A's classic fried chicken sandwich. But I have to say ours were tasty and the size of the chicken breast was large. I ordered a cajun spiced sandwich and it had a little bit of a kick, but was balanced over all. I liked going there as a change from Chick-Fil-A. I don't know if I would say one is better than the other, but they both have their places next to each other.

Whew, two more down, only two to go from Mobile. Then I can get back to the local backlog.

Saucy-Q

Entry two for Mobile eateries is Saucy-Q BBQ. I'll just say that we didn't have a great experience. Brent had a game that night. So Mel and I went to the game, and after all three of us drove down Government Street to go to Saucy-Q. So we looked on the website to see when they close. The website said they closed at 9. We arrived a little after 8. We originally were going to dine in. But we were informed we would only have 20 min. to eat before we got kicked out and the restaurant closed for the night. We looked at each other all with the same, "you can't be serious" look. I have never heard of a restaurant telling people ordering food before they closed that they only had so much time before they got kicked out. If someone was in well past close just sitting there, I can understand telling them to leave. But not when you arrive almost an hour before close. So we all ordered the ribs, because the chicken was out. So we got our food to go and ate it at Brent's place. It was, fairly pedestrian. The ribs were ok. Nothing great though. I would compare them to what you can get at Famous Dave's.  Maybe even a little worse. I don't know. They were that unremarkable. There was some smoke flavor. They were somewhat tender. The sauce was pretty standard fare. So to recap, horrible customer service, coupled with mediocre bbq equals no endorsement from me. If you want BBQ, especially if it's pulled pork, go to the Brick Pit. Skip Saucy-Q

The BrickPit

For the belated first entry in the Mobile eatery series, I am writing on Brick Pit BBQ. This place is located in a little house off of Old Shell Road near the University of South Alabama. If it wasn't for the sign and for Google Maps, it would have been easy to miss. It is set off the road a little bit with some beautiful old oak trees out front. Add to the fact it was dark and raining, you can see how it might be hard to miss on first pass. The one clue was the delicious smell of smoke in the air. Inside are a bunch of tables with walls covered in the names of past visitors as well as decorations of Alabama and (unfortunately) Auburn football.

First things before I get to the food, the staff was so friendly, welcoming, and inviting. We found a table as it was a sit on your own. We were immediately greeted and asked if it was our first time there. We said it was, and he immediately walked around from behind the counter and stand next to us and show us the menu. He treated us like we were regulars, asked if we wanted anything to drink, and had it on the table before we finished deciding what we wanted to order. We felt at home.

We all ordered the pulled pork. This pork is smoked for 30 hours and it tastes like it, in a good way. The meat had this beautiful smokey, crispy exterior that you get little bites of in the dish. When you order, they ask if you want the normal sauce or the hotter sauce. Mel got the normal, I got the spicy. Both perfectly complimented the meat. The regular was a little sweet with a good vinegar taste that is traditional to the south. The spicy still had that as well, but with more heat. However it didn't take away from the pork. The meat was incredibly juicy and had a beautiful smoke ring. The sides were awesome as well. The beans must be smoked in the smoker with the pork as they have this wonderful smokey flavor that compliments the beans without being overpowering. The coleslaw and the potato salad we of similar high quality. I have been to a few great BBQ joints, this is by far the best pulled pork I have ever eaten anywhere.

With the incredibly warming and welcoming staff, and the amazing pulled pork, I highly recommend Brick Pit BBQ. If you are ever in Mobile you need to go there.

The Mobile roundup

At the beginning of March, Mel and I went down south to visit my brother in Mobile, AL. Since we were on vacation, we decided to splurge a little and eat out a number of days. Over the next week I will be doing in depth reviews of some of the restaurants (with pictures), but for now I wanted to give a short overall summery of our experiences. Also I will be doing another review of a local GR eatery. It is exciting for me to be able to do this again, as it has been a few months since Mel and I have been able to eat out.

Seafood
Wintzells: This is one of my favorite places to go get seafood when visiting Mobile and Destin. Great gumbo, fresh oysters, perfectly fried fish, and a good selection of non-seafood items. Also have great fired dill pickles.

Dewy Destin's: The place to visit for seafood when in Destin, Fl. Fresh seafood brought in on the boats. The restaurant is literally right on the water, boats can dock up to it. Prices are decent, but they have gone up quite a bit compared to what it used to be. But the product is worth it.

BBQ
Brick Pit BBQ: Seriously good BBQ. Easily in my top two BBQ places I have ever been to.

Saucy Q BBQ: We went based on reviews we read online. They were wrong. I'll leave it at that for now.

Other:
Jason's Deli: We got the Muffaletta sandwich. It lived up to the reputation of the New Orleans classic. Also they make a pretty good pot of Gumbo

Zaxby's: Similar to a Chik-Fil-A but offer a little bit larger selection of sandwiches.

As I said, I will be doing more in depth reviews of these over the next week. Also I will be doing on on Bagger Dave's (apparently I never posted it), and a revisit to Electric Cheetah. Welcome back everyone.