First Visit: Luigi & Sons Italian Restaurant

We visited Luigi's on Cherry Rd in Rock Hill Friday night to celebrate Nate's birthday. 

The star of the table was definitely their pizza. Taylor said it was the most delicious pizza he's had in a while. "I can't wait to wake up in the middle of the night and eat the leftover slice!" He said. 

Bob had the meatball roll, which was beautiful to look at it. He liked it, but said it really had too much cheese in it. It's probably right for most people, but he and I don't, as a rule, eat just a ton of cheese. 

I had the eggplant rolatini. I'd rate it just "passable." It was seriously lacking in flavor, namely salt. But the eggplant was cooked appropriately...not too oily, and the pasta was al dente. I'm not really impressed with their sauce. It just seems sort of bland. That said, I will eat the leftovers. Not all the pasta, but I'll definitely finish the eggplant. Oh, and the salad. Ask for the dressing to be on the side. I was served a wonderful side salad with nice, fresh-looking ingredients, but they drowned it in dressing. You know what they say about "assume...."

About the restaurant itself: it's very much a family style restaurant and shows its age...mismatched tables and chairs, and aging decor. 

Service was terribly, terribly slow. But the staff were all gracious and friendly, even if not real attentive. It was not full in the dining room, so I figure their takeout and delivery must be pretty heavy. 

Would we go back? Probably not. But if I lived in Rock Hill, I'd probably make homemade pizza a lot less often. 

First Visit: Spice Wagon Kebab Food Truck

We were bumming around SouthEnd. We hadn't really been thinking about lunch, but we were open. We stopped in at the Atherton Farm Market and there in the parking lot was this kebab food truck. Taylor perked up immediately. "It's been a long time since I've had a kebab," he said. And so we queued up.

Let me first say the food was good and plentiful. But the process was an exercise in patience and nerve-calming. 

First, it took an incredibly long time to get our food. Bob and I had jerk chicken kebabs and Taylor had beef. I don't know if we got there just as they were about to make another batch of meat or what, but the wait turned into about 20 minutes. And it was a little chilly outside. There were tables behind the food truck that are part of the Atherton area,, but the generator they had on the back the truck was SO LOUD and SMELLY that we really weren't up to sitting back there.

I suspect they might be better on a food truck night, when things are fast and heavy. They probably have more food ready then. Like I said, the food was good. I wouldn't say it was excellent. The corn was fairly old but not totally gummy and the Parmesan they sprinkled on it was really good. The fries were a tad soggy for me, but not terrible. They had a spice dust on them that could have used some salt. The meat on the kebabs, though, was cooked perfectly (they were thighs, which hold well) and seasoned nicely. There was a small pita underneath the kebabs, and you got a little container of tzatziki on the side. The tzatziki was good.

It would not be a "destination" for me. I'm sure I won't wake up one day next week wishing I had another of their kebabs. But it wasn't a disappointment or waste of money.

First Visit: Tamaleria Laurita, on Arrowood

We ate in the car. And loved it. 

This little tamaleria was written about in Charlotte Five last week, which is what brought my attention to it. It's a tiny place with 6 tables in a strip mall on Arrowood. It ended up being an hour-and-a-half experience for us, which we will make again. And probably again. And there may be nights when I'll text Mensa Boy and beg him to stop by and pick up supper there before coming home.

The menu is simple. Tamales. And some American options for people who probably have no business going to a tamale restaurant, but have been dragged there by someone they love. We ordered a plate of 3 tamales. No sides. We could have gotten a combination platter that had rice and beans but we wanted to just try the tamales. There was a fantastic pork one, a chicken one, and a third one we didn't even unwrap because we were full. So next time we'll try that one first, I guess. We each took our third tamale home and Taylor had them the next day for lunch. There were two sauces, a red sauce, which CharlotteFive characterized as "mild," but made our eyes water and noses run (and we eat spicy food), and a very mild green tomatillo sauce. 

Go there. Really.

First Visit: Yama Izakaya, a Ramen Restaurant on Central Ave

This is not my photo. I lifted this from Yama Izakaya's Facebook page. The restaurant was just too dark for me to take my own photo.

I visited this place with my friend and acupuncturist, Adrienne Wei, owner of Inner Peace Acupuncture and Wellness. Adrienne and I have been close friends since I started as her patient five years ago. We go out to lunch or dinner whenever we can, and it's usually Asian. This last Friday I texted her and asked, "Are there any ramen places?" And so we found Izakaya.

We absolutely gorged ourselves! We started with a seaweed salad that about blew our minds. It had a sesame dressing on it and the flavor of the sesame was just delicious. As usual, I forgot my reading glasses and the darkness in the dining room made it absolutely impossible for me to read the menu. So she ordered for me. We each got these giant bowls of ramen that were full of pork belly, fish cake, poached egg, sesame and other things. My broth was salted chicken and hers was tonkostu, which is made from pork bones. 

We toasted our friendship with warm sake, which really didn't trip my triggers. It seemed almost oily to me. Oily and thick. I'm more of a wine chick. Adrienne commented that the cups were unusual. I'm not sure what she was thinking of there. She felt like the cups may have made me feel the way I did about it. I dunno. It just seemed like a liqueur that didn't have much alcohol or flavor. It was a house sake, so maybe next time we'll do something a little more specific. 

I have to say the only thing I'd change if I ran this place, is that I'd serve the ramen noodles separately, like they do in many Japanese noodle places in Japan. Then you add the noodles a bit at time add them to the broth as you eat along. 

We'll definitely go back there again.

Trisha Yearwood's Chocolate Pound Cake

Actually, this is my Chocolate Pound Cake. Which I made with Trisha Yearwood's recipe on Food Network.

Pretty, huh? I haven't tasted it yet. I'm taking it to work tomorrow to celebrate a dear friend's birthday.

I've never made a pound cake before. I'm not sure why. I've really only eaten it a few times. If it's good, I may make it more often. It was easy enough to make. Just sift the dry ingredients. cream the fat and sugar, add 5 eggs, one at a time, and then add the dry ingredients and milk, alternating. 

I should mention that mine took 90 minutes to bake. The recipe calls for a 10-inch tube pan and this pan was 9.5 inches. I expected it to take little longer, but not quite that much. 

First Visit: Way Back Burgers

I have never heard of this place, so when I saw it as we pulled into a shopping area, I assumed it was an independent burger joint. But I googled it and noticed it was part of a chain. Ok. I'm always skeptical of chains, especially burger or chicken places. But they had a veggie burger on the menu so I figured we should give it a try. 

I wish we hadn't. Foodwise, anyway. 

The staff was wonderful, the food was not. 

We were greeted by Sarah, who immediately figured out we'd never been to one of their restaurants before. She explained the menu options and set us up. Later she came back to our table and said she'd charged us for an item we didn't order and gave us a refund for it. 

Now. To the food:

My chips were the best part of the entire meal. They were beautifully crisp and nicely salted and they offered various dipping sauces for them. Bob's fries were just ok. They were skin-on potatoes and had a nice flavor but they were fried in oil that was not hot enough, so they were slightly greasy. 

The burgers were not great. Bob's patty melt seemed ok but it was served in a smashed, but toasted bun and just looked unappetizing. The veggie burger was also served on smashed bun, not toasted, just doughy. I'm not at all sure what ingredients went into the veggie burger. It looked like a hash brown potato cake with some flecks of carrot and maybe a few other diced veggies in there, a couple black beans and maybe some grain like oatmeal? It was greasy and seved with a slice of pretty white iceberg lettuce and and a terrible slice of tomato. 

A gentleman came by and asked how we like our food and Bob told him very kindly that the buns could use some work. He was polite and friendly and didn't seem to mind the criticism, but he offered that we might could ask for the bun for the veggie burger to be toasted so it wouldn't seem so doughy. He didn't apologize for the meal at all. 

So there you have it. We definitely won't try them again. 

First Visit: Brown Dog Deli, Charleston

This is a fun little deli in Charleston. They have a great variety of stuff on their menu: a hot dog line-up, burger line-up and vegan/vegetarian one, too. I had a Caribbean Black Bean burger that was pretty good (after I lifted the burned crust off one side):

That's pimento cheese sauce and mango salsa on top. They do not have fries, so I opted for a broccoli salad, which was pretty good. 

The decor is a ton of fun. It's all really bright colors and there are paintings (one is just a childlike painting of a dachshund on a solid background) and posters from old rock bands. There are stacks of record albums and 45s around, but I'm not sure the jukebox actually works. 

The bathroom has great stuff on the walls too, like this giant painting of Godzilla:

Next it was that picture of beetles. Here is shot of the entire thing:

I like how it explains itself: "A Bunch of Beetles on a Chart."

I'd go back there. I know Bob would. He said his Turkey wrap was one of the best sandwiches he's eaten. It did have bacon on it...

First Visit: Books on Broad, Camden

We are on our way for a short vacation to Seabrook Island, SC. It's just two nights, and it's raining pretty much nonstop so we won't be doing much biking or walking on the beach, but we'll be out of the house. That's what really matters.

It's pretty wet down here in central South Carolina. We are taking the scenic route through Camden, Sumter, and Manning and will drive right between Lake Moultrie and Francis Marion National Forest before hitting Charleston. We've never been through some of these places so we are enjoying the scenery. But there sure is a lot of standing water! 

We stopped in Camden for coffee at Books on Broad: 

It's a cool bookstore with new and used books in the front and then a coffee shop in back. The staff are very personable and had a tip for a place to eat in Kiawah, should we venture there. 

The coloring book craze has hit here, too, and the store sponsors a monthly coloring party!

Now, everyone who knows me, knows I would never find coloring to be a relaxing activity. I'd stress out about what colors to use, and if I strayed out of lines, I'd give up. There is also all that hunching over my poor neck couldn't tolerate. 

But this coloring party! Now THIS could be something I could do! Wine! Refreshments! Count me in!

My Favorite Things: Wellibob Rain Boots

I have never in my adult life owned rain boots. For that matter, I've never owned a raincoat, either, until last year. 

What changed my opinion about the usefulness of these? Two things: 

1. It keeps rainin'. And rainin' and rainin'

2. I have been replacing all my old shoes with expensive, orthotic-friendly shoes and I don't want to wreck them. Or the orthotics, for that matter.

Being a huge fan of all things British, my hopes naturally went to wellington boots. But who wants to wear the huge, black boots you see in all the BBC series...farmers mucking about in muddy farmyards wearing these boots that reach nearly to their knees. Wellington is style, not a brand, by the way. I didn't know that. 

I wanted something that would be able to accommodate an orthotic because I would be walking the dog in them. And I wanted something that would short. And so I found Joule boots. I love these. That's all.

By the way, Joule sells all kinds of things. You should shop around in there. Not just boots, but also shoes and clothing. Pretty cool stuff.

Perfect Turkey Gravy

I've only managed gravy this great twice, so I'm writing it down:

The day before

Roast some turkey parts in the oven at 350 degrees until they are caramelized. If you have spatchcocked your turkey, these parts can be the backbone and neck. If you have not, you can purchase a package of wings or drumsticks and use those. 

After you've roasted the pieces, deglaze the pan with a cup of water, scraping all those wonderful roasting bits from the pan. Pour all the liquid into a container and store in the fridge to use the next day. 

Take the pieces you've roasted, and simmer them for a couple hours in 6-8 cups of water. Store that stock you made in the fridge for  the next day. Do not pour the stock into the pan drippings you made. Use a separate container.

On gravy day

Melt a stick of butter in a saucepan and whisk in 3/4 cup flour. Turn it down low and cook this (yes, it's a roux) for 4-5 minutes. Keep stirring it during the cooking time to prevent scorching. Don't allow it to get very brown...just a dark golden color.

Get the pan drippings and the stock containers from the fridge. Skim off the fat layer from the top of the pan drippings and discard. Whisk the remaining pan drippings into your roux. Now start whisking in some of the stock in 1/2 cup increments. You most likely will use 3 cups of the stock, but add it slowly. You want to monitor the thickness of your gravy so you get exactly what you want. As you add 1/2 cup, it'll seem watery and then tighten up with a few more seconds of cooking as it absorbs the flour from the roux. Once you get it the thickness you want, adjust the salt and pepper. Let it simmer for a few minutes.

I made my gravy about 3 hours before dinner. So poured it into my very small slow cooker and let it wait there on warm. It didn't scorch and didn't require any real attention. But you'll want to check it periodically to be sure your slow cooker isn't too hot. 

Pour Over Coffee

I found one of these in my stocking and immediately put it to good use. Really, I don't know why I never bought one. They really aren't expensive...maybe $10...and they do make the best cup of coffee you can have. 

The real advantage of pour overs is that you can control the temperature of your water and the speed of the brewing. And if you periodically end up buying beans that "aren't your favorite" because you couldn't get to your regular purveyor, you can fool around with the grind, temp and pour to make it work. After all, if you popped $12 for the convenience of getting beans at your grocery store, you don't necessarily want to throw them away when the coffee sucks. Granted, sometimes you have to. I threw away a pound of organic, free trade beans marketed by a local grocery store chain once because there was just no redeeming quality to them that I could find. But this morning I brewed a cup of a major coffee chain's "Breakfast Blend" that I think is roasted too dark, and it was a lot less bitter than it was yesterday through my drip maker.

Do you really need this ceramic pour over cone to do a pour over? Not really. I have done pour overs using the brewing basket from my small Black&Decker coffee pot (Mine doesn't have one of those shut-off things that stops the water from coming through if you pull the carafe out). I just put a filter in there, set it on top of my coffee cup, and pour over that. But the basket of my coffee pot has a flat bottom, so while it makes a pretty good cup, a cone makes a REALLY GOOD cup.

Cones work better because, when you pour the water in and wet the all the grounds, it runs down through more grounds before landing in your cup. Flat bottoms allow the grounds to cover a wider surface area in a thinner layer, so you end up extracting less coffee from each square millimeter of grounds.

As to the temperature, my trusty Black&Decker doesn't heat the water all the way to 212 degrees. Again, it makes a pretty good cup of coffee, but when the water is at boiling and poured, I find I get a better cup. For me. Other people might prefer it cooler.

Do you need a fancy schmancy pour over pot, with it's curvy spout? No. My electric kettle works just fine. Just pour over the grounds in a thin stream, wetting all the grounds, and wait for it to go through. Repeat a time or two, and then enjoy!

Peace Doves

I started making paper cranes on November 18, 2009. I was sitting at the reception desk at work during our regular receptionist's lunch. I was bored. I can't do my own work there because all the stuff I do is confidential. So I started surfing the 'net and stumbled upon origami cranes. I always give the cranes away and the following spring I made 132 for the class of 2010 and mailed them in a letter after graduation. I've done this for every class since then.

In the letter I congratulate them on their accomplishment, tell them who I've sent their final transcript to (if they are going on in their education), and how they can get transcripts in the future. 

I've always closed with a personal note based on Psalm 91:4 (which I've also written on the inside of each crane), telling them it's my prayer that they will always sense God's leading and guiding and protecting hand in their life.

Each year I reconsider making all those cranes. The classes have gotten larger and larger and should I continue to put a Christian message in that letter? Each year, as I think about that and fold cranes, I end up with one or two parents or graduates who cross my path and tell me how much the letter and crane and meant. And so I keep doing it. Last year I reached 1000 paper cranes, hitting 

 with the class of  2015.

But I think it's just a matter of time before someone complains about the letter. 

So I'm going to switch it up before that happens. I'm going to switch from cranes to doves and I think my letter is going to mention peace. These are hard times now, with suspicious, angry people all around and scary things happening. I want our graduates to seek peace and help spread peace. 

Here the first few I've made. I think I'm going to use colored origami paper and fold them inside out. That way there will be little peeks of color on some of the edges. 

Movie: Caffeinated

Saturday we watched "Caffeinated" on Amazon Prime. This is a
"Farm to Cup" documentary about the coffee we drink. There was a lot of good information about good coffee. Not mass-roasted and sold Folgers, but the small batch coffees we drink at our local coffee shops and roast in our homes. (Yes, I'd love to get into that.)

The documentary allowed us to meet a couple of families who grow coffee, taking us from the plant to the bag, and then we followed the coffee to the roaster and ultimately the cup.

Oh, and this film confirmed what I've always sort of half thought: sometimes the worst cup of coffee you can have is in the place where it is grown. Most growers send their best beans to the U.S. and other countries, and they drink the leftovers at home for the locals.


If you like food movies and documentaries, this is a great one to watch.

A New Home for My Knives

Yesterday Mensa Boy put up my new knife magnets. I'm delighted with them! Last year I received my first Shun knife from Taylor for Christmas and since then I've added a couple more, along with a Victorinox slicing knife.

We have pretty much no wall space in our kitchen, so we really had to think about where to put them. The options were: on the side of the cupboards by sink (our choice), underneath the cupboards, or inside them. Because the slicing knife is so long (the blade alone is a foot), and to avoid accidentally snagging one doing things around the kitchen, this location seemed best. It's slightly creepy having sharp knives hanging at eye level, but we should adjust ok. The magnetic strips were $15.95 each and are 10 inches long. They come in a variety of lengths and you can buy them at Lowes and other places, but the shorter lengths are harder to find. Be sure you read reviews. Some strips out there don't have magnets that are strong enough to feel secure. 

The Best Offer

I keep thinking about how much I enjoyed this movie the other day. Geoffrey Rush plays a renowned fine art auctioneer (with a secret), who is hired by an agoraphobic heiress to auction off all her art and expensive pieces. He suffers a range of emotions in his dealings with her, from disdain to skepticism, from anger to compassion and finally love. I wish I could tell you WHY I was so fascinated by this movie, but that would reveal the ending and that just wouldn't be right.

Just watch it. Really. Netflix.  

The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah

As much as I'm a little worn out on WWII novels, I have to admit I've enjoyed listening to The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah.

Yes, I know it's been on the NY Times Bestseller list for a while, so really who cares what little old me thinks about this historical novel?

But here goes: the book does often veer into the tried-and-true narratives about the Nazi occupation in France, as well as the brutal mistreatment of members of the resistance in the camps. BUT, the really great part of this book is the story of two women who worked to help people.

The bolder, brasher sister helped down ally pilots escape the Nazis, escorting them over the Pyrenees on foot to safety. These pilots, from various ally countries, met up with their units, allowing them to fly again.

The older, milder and more cautious sister, stayed in her hometown with her daughter as she waiting for her husband to be released from prison. She had Nazi officers billeted at her home, and ultimately saved more than a dozen Jewish orphans from certain death in the camps.

There many readers who say they chose their book because it was compared with another bestseller, "All the Light We Cannot See," by Anthony Doerr. I don't really see a resemblance, other than that both take place during the same time and same place. I personally didn't get to finish "All the Light," as I returned it to Audible after attempting to listen to it for 4 hours. I might try it again, but I got bogged down by the author's extremely detailed descriptions. There was just so much painting of the scene, that I couldn't hang out long enough for the real story. Maybe I'm shallow? I always feel a little shallow when this happens.

Weekend Breakfast

My weekday breakfast always happens around 8:30 or 9. At home I make a bowl of oatmeal with all the goodies and no liquid. At school, after all the students are tucked into their first block classes, I add hot water and cook it a couple minutes in the 'wave. Most of the front office staff eats breakfast around 9. And a lot of them eat oats or grits. 

But on weekends I like eggs over easy. Normally I slide them onto toast, but this morning I got to thinking about grits:

These are stone ground grits cooked with water and leftover cream from Thanksgiving. I stirred in some shredded cheese and set it aside. I cooked my egg and slid it on top. 

Will there be lunch in my future today? Most likely not. 

Oh, and don't tell Bear. I forgot to give him a piece of the egg.

Tolja

Richard Blaise, whom I've always thought was a leeeedle full of himself, apparently shares my opinion of Grayson, the chef I talked about on this blog the other day.

Here is link to his comments about episode three of Top Chef: I Have to Call it the Way I See it and Taste it. He refers to her as playing with a "chip on her shoulder." Good observation, Richard!

In other Top Chef news, here is a great, entertaining blog about it, written my Max Silvestri

First Visit: Smelly Cat Coffeehouse & Roastery

Mensa Boy and I went "bummin'" Sunday and needed up in NoDa at Smelly Cat. I had some vegan chili and a pourover of their grind of the day. It's a nice little coffee shop, and on Saturaay they have a little artisan market behind them.

The chili was good but had soy crumbles in it...not my favorite way to cook vegetarian or vegan. 

They have a separate little bar for pourovers, which is nice, since they take some time to make. 

When He Wants to Spend $100 on a Tree Stand

Let him.

Last year our stand leaked and we didn't catch it for a day or so. It soaked several board feet of our bamboo flooring and Mensa Boy had to replace it. 

So he searched high and low and came up with this super-de-duper stand with a foot pedal you use to lock the tree in place, and a FLOAT that tells you the water level! It's the Krinner Tree Genie XXL, and I won't have to put water in until it tells me to!