Everyone talks about how great Crisp is. I, unfortunately, did not find it so. Sorry.
First, I’m not a fan of the minimalist furnishings. I felt like I was in a FroYo shop. The chairs were tiny and uncomfortable (read cheap) and the interior was so tight that even at the off time we ate (late lunch) we were still in people’s way with my knee walker.
My husband and I both ordered a cup of soup and a sandwich. The soup of the day on this day was a tomato basil. That is my favorite soup, so I was excited! This soup, however, was absolutely flavorless. How can that be? I’m telling you, I would have preferred a bowl of Campbell’s.
Tomato Basil Soup
I got the Turkey Gobbler which billed itself as a “house roasted” turkey sandwich. It looked (and tasted) like any sliced turkey you could get in a dairy case. The bread looks so good with its Panini press marks, but it was all a disappointment. The sandwich was no better than a turkey sandwich I made at my house.
Turkey Gobbler
Dustin got the Roma sandwich. It comes with prosciutto, salami, Mozzarella, tomatoes, roasted red peppers, basil,and a Balsamic Reduction on grilled bread. Sounds amazing and flavorful, right? Well, it was better than mine, but just barely. Everything we tried simply lacked flavor of any kind.
The Roma
We were so disappointed, we did something we haven’t ever done before (to my memory). We brought the food back up to the counter, asked for a refund and went to another restaurant. In Crisp’s defense, they didn’t fight us. They offered to make us something else, but after sampling 3 different menu items, we just didn’t feel confident that we would be happy.
I’ve been to Mama’s now 3 times, and each time I go it gets better. It’s right around the corner from my doctor in Charlotte (the wonderful Bruce Cohen of OrthoCarolina Ankle and Foot Institute) so we went for lunch after one appointment. After this, we knew we had to go back for dinner. So, the foodie crew loaded up and went! Twice!
Actually, for a nice dinner out, Mama Ricotta’s is very reasonable. They offer family sized entrees to share and I’ve never left there when we all weren’t full as a tick. Also, the restaurant is lively and nearly always crowded. You would probably do well to get reservations on a Friday and Saturday night. We’ve always been well taken care of by our servers, too.
SALADS and SIDES
The Caesar Salad is a classic Caesar with cheese, croutons and dressing. The dressing is tangy and delicious, and the romaine was crisp and fresh. My only complaint was that the darn thing was perhaps too cheesy. Is that even a problem? But it really was overloaded, I’d prefer a bit less next time.
Caesar Salad
My dinner companion ordered a side of roasted vegetables. They were grilled over the wood fire, very simply prepared, and very fresh.
Grilled Vegetables
MAIN COURSES
The pizza is not thin and crispy, and not deep dish. It is made in a wood burning oven so it gets lightly charred on the bottom and remains chewy on the inside of the crust. The toppings that you choose (we’ve tried Italian sausage, chicken sausage and prosciutto) take on that smokiness from the oven, as well, for a rustic flavor. My only complaint is with the house-made chicken sausage. Our order had far too much anise in the sausage, making it taste very licorice like. I’d not get that topping again.
PizzaChicken Sausage Pizza
The Penne alla Vodka is perfect by itself, and a great favorite of the restaurant. You honestly cannot taste the alcohol, either. It’s a very creamy tomato sauce which is perfect with the penne pasta. I’ve had it with both shrimp and chicken and both are delicious additions. The shrimp is cooked perfectly, not at all rubbery. The chicken is tender and flavorful. This is one of my favorite dishes.
Penne alla Vodka Family StylePenne all Vodka with shrimp
Spaghetti and Meatballs is a staple at most Italian restaurants, and these meatballs were no exception. They were tender and savory, clearly simmering in the warm tomato sauce for a long time. The pasta was also perfectly cooked, with the tomato sauce having just enough acidity to counter the pasta.
Spaghetti and Meatballs
The Amma’s Cheese Ravioli is filled with creamy ricotta, mozzarella, romano and Parmesan cheeses and topped with a savory marinara soft. The pillows of ravioli is soft and moist and very light, in spite of the many cheeses. It is a very basic dish, but a solid one.
Ravioli
Veal Parmesan was a slight disappointment to my husband. I’m not sure what he was expecting, but he thought it could have been better seasoned. He said he would not get that the next time he visited.
Veal Parmesan
Maybe my favorite dish here, the Papparadelle with Oxtail & Kobe beef ragu is like your Italian grandmother’s version of pot roast. It is hearty, with a beef stock based sauce, filled with slow cooked, tender beef and small cubed carrots. The papparadelle is handmade, too! It is comforting and rustic and reminds me of Autumn. I’ve ordered this twice now.
Papparadelle with Oxtail and Kobe Beef RaguPapparadelle with Oxtail and Kobe Beef Ragu
The lasagna is another popular favorite. Mama Ricotta’s version is full of meat and cheese and smothered with marinara sauce and more mozzarella cheese. It is creamy and very filling!
Lasagna
Crab and Shrimp Risotto has also been one of my favorites. A large mound of creamy risotto topped with lump crabmeat, shrimp and mussels and with just a hint of lemon for the bite of acid. It was comforting and luxurious at the same time. On my next trip, I will be ordering this dish.
Shrimp and Crab Risotto
DESSERTS
The desserts are not the highlight of this restaurant, admittedly. We’ve tried quite a few and while we were happy enough, they weren’t exceptional enough to revisit the next few visits.
The Ciabatta Bread Pudding is topped with a generous scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream, that melts over your warm pudding to create a richly sweet sauce that mingles with the caramel goodness leaking out of your pudding. It was yummy, and a good version of the dessert.
Ciabatta Bread Pudding
Tiramisu is a typical Italian dessert made with ladyfingers soaked in coffee and mascarpone cheese sweetened with sugar and layered with a sprinkling of cocoa on top. Though coffee is not my favorite flavoring, this version was smooth and delicious…also very pretty!
Tiramisu
That night there was a special dessert on the menu. It was a chocolate cupcake, filled with a creamy white center, supposedly in the style of a Hostess Cupcake. It was delicious and full of robust chocolate flavor.
Chocolate Cupcake
The last dessert we enjoyed was the special cheesecake. It is layered with cake. My friend pronounced it delicious!
300 East is a quaint little restaurant in a house on..well..you know. It has plentiful parking in the back and even some seating outside in the front. It also has these gorgeous picture windows that if you are lucky, like me, you can sit behind and see all that the folks outside do, unobstructed, and still enjoy the air conditioner.
For starters we had soup and salad. I had the tossed salad which had organic mesclun greens, tomatoes, cucumbers and topped with a Balsamic Vinaigrette that was tangy with just a touch of sweetness. It was fresh and delicious. Dustin had the soup of the day, which was tomato basil. It was creamy and hearty, and the basil provided a refreshing bite to the rich soup.
Garden SaladTomato Basil Soup
For his entree, Dustin got the Asian Tuna burger. That’s a burger made with fresh ground tuna (not from a can), grilled and topped with Thai chili sauce, seaweed salad, pickled ginger and wasabi served on a wheat Kaiser roll. He chose black beans as his side. Though he loves tuna, I don’t think it was rare enough for him (gross), but he ate the whole thing. I did try the black beans and they were flavorful and spicy!
Asian Tuna Burger
I chose the Grilled Shrimp BLT Panini ~ The shrimp were grilled and cut in half (to life flatter on the bread) and topped with applewood smoked bacon, pepper cheese, arugula and a tomato aioli on crispy sourdough bread. It was served with a side of potato salad. The bread was so crunchy it was a perfect balance to the tender shrimp and the tangy aioli. That peppery arugula was the perfect capper to cut through all of the richness of the aioli and the cheese. It was the waitresses recommendation, as well.
Grilled Shimp Panini
This charming restaurant is a favorite of Charlotteans and we can understand why. I’m going to need to go back for dinner soon!
The Foodie Group visited Chima Brazilian Steakhouse this week, and guess what? I didn’t get a single picture of the food 😦
There are several reasons, but the most true was simply because I was so darn hot in there I couldn’t think straight.
When you enter the building, you are immediately impressed by the winding staircase. The dining room is downstairs by maybe 10 steps? A tiny bit annoying to those with walking trouble, but a nice way to feel separate from the door traffic. Can’t please everyone, right?
Cool things about Chima:
Free Valet
Unlimited Salad Bar
Unlimited meat
People come around and shave meat right onto your plates until you say stop.
The servers communicate by Iphones.
Not so cool things about Chima:
It was really hot in there.
They automatically added a gratuity to our table of 6.
Did I mention the heat?
We kinda had to look around for drinks.
We had to beg for our check as our waiter just disappeared on us.
When you are seated and your drinks are ordered, they bring around these little tapas for you to enjoy. We had cheese stuffed popovers, breaded meatballs and this turkey spread that was surprisingly yummy on that meatball. Once you were ready, you helped yourself to a plate and ran through the well stocked and beautiful salad bar. That was the best salad bar I’d ever seen and I was like a kid in a candy store. Everything was good, but my favorite was the endive salad.
Turn your coin over (it’s a cardboard circle, but whatever) and the parade of meat begins. You’ll see ribeye, filet, lamb, fish, chicken and other stuff. I will say that the “schtick” here is the overwhelming AMOUNT of meat you get. And it is overwhelming. But if you are someone who prizes quality over quantity..welll..you may just want to head to your favorite steakhouse. The meat is good enough, but it is really expensive. $50 for the meat and salad bar. $30 for the salad bar alone (we had a difficult friend dine with us that night *Jeri*). They had a fish and salad bar option, but we didn’t price it.
I’ve heard wonderful things about Chima, and was excited to try. However, my dining companions all agreed we wouldn’t be going back. Sorry Chima.
Another Charlotte Restaurant Week comes to a close and we celebrated by going to Sullivan’s Steakhouse. We brought our friends Jeri and Robert Walton to dine with us, and we all ended up getting nearly the same thing. But, you know, it’s Restaurant Week and you only get a certain amount of choices, so duplications are an inevitability. We left our home early, anticipating trouble from yesterday’s ice storm, and arrived at our destination without incident, happily, and 30 minutes early. As we sat down to wait, we were seated within 5 minutes! Score!
Our server was prompt and thorough. We never wanted for anything. For our first course my husband and I had the Caesar Salad. It was really large for a simple side dish, and the dressing was creamy and delicious. Nothing fancy, but decent. Our friends tried the Lobster and Shrimp Bisque and the Wedge Salad, which came with blue cheese crumbles, fresh diced tomatoes and blue cheese dressing.
For our second course, we all chose the filet mignon with grilled jumbo shrimp. It was served atop a pile of horseradish mashed potatoes and alongside a tumble of grilled vegetables. The filet was fine, though 2 of our steaks were switched. We didn’t discover until we dug in, then there was the awkward figuring out who had who’s steak and switching among ourselves. The shrimp were delicious, cleaned well (huge plus) but everything was heavily spiced with pepper. There was nothing wrong with my filet, but I’ve had the same flavor at home on our grill. So, yes, nothing special. I loved the creamy horseradish potatoes most, but they can keep those under-grilled and under-seasoned veggies that were limply sitting on the side of our steak.
Our last course, dessert, was for me the best course. We had the Bananas Foster Bread Pudding with vanilla ice cream. It was so yummy! Sweet and creamy and not too banana-y. It was amazing. Our friend had the chocolate mousse, bless his heart.
In the end, I have to give Sullivan’s a thumbs down, only because nothing I had was over the top delicious. You can get a better steak at many other Charlotte restaurants: Beef and Bottle, Firebirds or Morton’s.
BreadMartiniWedge SaladCaesar SaladFilet and ShrimpBananas Foster Bread PuddingChocolate Mousse
I’ve been hearing about P.F. Chang’s for quite a while.Usually I turn my nose up at chain restaurants. I have been proven wrong. We visited for the first time today after living here over a decade. What was I thinking? All of this time I’ve missed!
The interior is richly appointed with dark woods and a couple of statues of Chinese warriors. The setting is elegant, though when we visited at 3pm, we and most everyone else were dressed casually. I’d dress a little more “nicely” for dinner.
The service here, from management to wait staff was exceptional. Everyone seemed to work together in perfect synchronicity to make the dining experience all it could be. Seriously the best I’ve been treated in a long time!
We were informed that they had a new menu, and they have this “Dinner for Two” deal on the back where you get 2 soups, 1 appetizer to share, 2 entrees and 2 mini desserts. All for $40. It was a deal! It also gave us an excellent sampling of all of the great dishes we’d heard so much about.
Hot and Sour Soup
We selected the Hot and Sour Soup and the Egg Drop Soup. The Hot and Sour Soup was dark and flavorful and properly tangy. The Egg Drop soup was lighter, but had no less flavor. We both agreed it was the best of both soups we’d eaten.
Lettuce Wraps Unassembled
Lettuce Wraps Assembled
For our shared appetizer we chose the lettuce wraps. Don’t miss this! Small dices of water chestnuts, chicken, mushrooms, scallions and seasonings accompany leaves of iceberg lettuce, which you assemble like a taco. Fresh, light, crisp and wonderful!
Kung Pao Scallops
We had Kung Pao Scallops and Mongolian Beef for our entrees, and of course shared. The scallops were my favorite. They were fried, but not over cooked, and then tossed in a hot and sweet sauce with peanuts and chili peppers. It was fabulous. The Mongolian beef was so tender, you cut larger pieces easily with a fork. It was garnished with scallion tops and both were served with steamed white rice.
I wish I could comment on dessert, but they were out of mini desserts, so our server gave us the option to have our soups deducted from the over all price to compensate for it. We were so stuffed, we readily agreed.
I ate there 12 hours ago and I’m ready to go back 🙂
IKEA was a big deal when it first came to Charlotte, but my abbhoration of crowds prevented me from going to the opening. I’ve finally made it, and I can report every piece of furniture would look great in a college dorm room. If you are currently living in a dorm, go.
If you like cheap food, go. I’d long heard about the wonderful Swedish meatballs served and they really are good! But. They taste and look like they’ve been mass produced and frozen. But that’s kind of IKEA’s deal, right? They’re still good. You get 15 meatballs, mashed potatoes (real!), cream sauce and lingonberries for $3.99. For real.
But what is even better? The North Atlantic Saithe crusted white fish served with mashed potatoes and carrots. It’s a buck more, but I so dig fish, I didn’t care. It is NOT fishy tasting in the least. I felt like I was eating all healthy and it was delicious.
Now, you are energized to go shopping in the biggest store I’ve ever been in. Get your Swede on.
P.S. Sorry about the crummy pictures. I got the camera at IKEA 😉
Are you looking for the *best* hamburgers in Charlotte? Look no further than Bad Daddy’s. It used to be called Big Daddy’s Burgers, but for some legal reason they had to change it. Whatever. The delicious food is still the same.
Bad Daddy’s has 2 locations. The one I visited was in Dillworth and is a hopping place. And parking sucks. But you have to go. The only time I’ve ever been dissatisfied with my food was when we sat outside in November (covered area with big heaters) and my food got cold before we could eat it. Next time in winter we will be patient and wait for an indoor table.
This is my standard order. I never deviate from it, I feel you shouldn’t mess with perfection. It is a build your own burger, well-done (but you can get them cooked any way you like!) with cheddar cheese, lettuce, pickle, crispy onions, mayo, ketchup and mustard.
I opt for the tater tots as my side and they come with this amazing Bad Daddy’s dipping sauce that tastes like a smoky/spicy BBQ sauce mixed with mayo. My husband brilliantly asks for them to be fried extra crispy (I know what you’re thinking, but look, this isn’t health food anyway.). I did not do that this trip, but they were plenty crispy for me. Who needs mushy tater tots? Napoleon Dynamite?
I’m setting you up for my next admission by this picture and showing you how Bad Daddy’s “well-done” looks. My husband decries my choice saying that my burger is dry, but it just isn’t so. Plus, I have a terror of e-coli. Now, the real reason I show you this is to prove I cut my burger in half and ate only half because I ordered THIS MILKSHAKE for dessert:
When it arrived, I was reminded of the scene in Pulp Fiction where John Travolta was complaining about the $5 milkshakes. Which this was. And worth it! Thick and creamy, and you can even get adult versions with some liquor if you desire! Our waitress was kind enough to separate ours into 3 small cups for sharing.
We love this restaurant. It is a cheaper choice in Charlotte, but don’t expect it to be 5 Guys cheap. But do expect it to be delicious.
Bonterra first came onto my radar when Groupon offered a deal for $50 worth of food for $25. I looked at the website and was less than impressed. It wasn’t bad, just…amateurish. Plus, once I arrived, I found the menu they have posted online was actually much more abbreviated than what they actually offer. In fact, if not for that Groupon, I don’t know that I’d have even given Bonterra a chance. And what a mistake that would have been.
Let me apologize immediately for the quality of the photos. I brought my decent little digital camera, but decided against the flash in this fancy little place. What looked good on my display translated to dark blurry images once downloaded. How disappointing!
I’m sorry the photos don’t show it, but the food was amazing. Simply delicious. The service was just as good, possibly. Our waiter was not as knowledgeable as he could have been, but he made up for it in kindness and attentiveness. In fact, I asked a few questions (in preparation for writing this blog post) and he had to run off and go ask the chef (presumably) about every one of them.
To start off we enjoyed the Chef’s Choice of Charcuterie and Fromage (meat and cheese) with these yummy little accompaniments : honeyed pecans, thinly sliced pears, baby vegetables and one grainy mustard and one smooth mustard. It also came with house made crackers and bread. It was amazing.
Like idiots, we both ordered seafood for our entrees. We just couldn’t help it. In fact, we both wanted the scallops, but there was NO WAY I was going to get the same exact entree, so I quickly swapped my choice to the Grouper. And I am so glad I did. It was so juicy and tender. It was so full of flavor and cooked perfectly. It sat on a bed of kale and bulghar, which I never knew I loved. Huh.
My hubs got the seared scallops. Lord have mercy, they were good, but not quite as good as mine. The scallops were properly seared and you’ll notice the same sauce (not honey mustard) is under both seafood dishes. The only difference is that this dish had a parsley spaetzle. Those were doughy and not that great to me, but my hubs liked them, so there ya go.
Yep, even after all of that food, we had to get dessert. Once again, I was foiled when my hubs chose the creme brulee’, but I kindly deferred to my second choice, which was simply heavenly. The creme brulee’ though….yummmm. Just like that other thing men love so dearly, creme brulee’ is good, even when it’s bad. Creamy custard topped by scorched sugar. What’s not to like? It was perfect.
So, I got the chocolate hot lava cake. I wanted a souffle but didn’t want to wait, so lava cake it was. Again, always good. This one was yummy and melty in the middle, like you’d expect. Notice the sauces swirled alongside: creme anglaise, raspberry coulis and some chocolate shmear. The real star accompaniment was the pistachio ice cream. Fresh and tons of flavor…not like the nuclear green ice cream Breyers puts out.
So, the food was brilliant. The most awesome thing was that this restaurant is in an old church and is absolutely stunning inside. And it was packed. You don’t hear a lot about Bonterra when combing the “Best Of” lists, but if you don’t go, you are sincerely missing out.
The hubby and I went to dinner at Luce for Valentine’s, and we were a bit disappointed. I can see where this restaurant might be a great place to go back on a night that isn’t so hectic for them, though timing wasn’t the problem. We were just so underwhelmed with the food!
The best part of the meal was the free bread they brought us to begin! It was crusty on the outside, soft in the middle and served with a white bean soaked in olive oil and vinegar topping that was out of this world! I could have eaten that with a spoon! For starters, Dustin had a salad of tomato slices and buffalo mozzarella stacked up and drizzled with a balsamic olive oil reduction. It was merely ok. The tomatoes were not in season, or flavorful, so I’m surprised that item made it on their very limited Valentine’s Day menu.
I had a bowl of lobster bisque for my starter and it was delicious, if a bit watery. The flavor was nice, but not special. Our main meal is where the disaster occurred. Dustin got seared scallops over mushroom risotto, and while it was fine, he got 3 scallops on a bed of creamy rice. And these weren’t big scallops! That was roughly $10 a scallop. They were cooked perfectly, but not worth $10 a scallop.
I had 2 entrees (and didn’t eat either one). My first was a pan seared Chilean Sea Bass on a bed of lentils. The fish was gelatinous, and the lentils looked unappetizing, but were actually quite flavorful. The waitress noticed I wasn’t eating my entree and insisted on bringing me salmon. The salmon itself was nicely cooked, but just plain and underwhelming. It sat atop a mixture of what I can only describe as warmed up and thickened Pace Picante Sauce. I couldn’t eat it either, as I was waiting on the second entree for a while and I simply lost my appetite.
The service was spotty, as well. They serve drinks in small glasses and were not on hand for refills of water or drinks, so we sat dry for a bit. The dining room was a bit bland and our table was in a corner next to a drink station (water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink). I just did not have a good experience at Luce. If you decide to give them a try and have a different experience I’d love an email!
barenakedchefsaidso.com 