Date of dining experience: July 23, 2018
Place: The Angry Italian Restaurant
Location: 16 6th Street in Bristol, TN
Appetizer: Garlic Cheese Bread ($5.95) - Sliced Italian bread baked with mozzarella cheese. There was a lot of cheese... it looked just as good as it tasted!
Entree: Sacchatino ($13.25) - Delicate pasta purses filled with zesty Italian sausage and Parmesan, served with Keith's special sauce. Not knowing what the sauce was, I ordered this dish anyway. I don't know exactly what the sauce was, but it was delicious!
This is a very good restaurant that I would recommend to anyone. The owner is from Chicago and boasts that the food is authentic Chicago-style Italian. It is perfect for a nice lunch lunch with the family or business partners, and could be a nice place for a quiet, romantic date dinner as well. Try it out for yourself and let me know what you think! Enjoy!
Thursday, July 26, 2018
Drake's - Bristol, TN
Date of dining experience: July 22, 2018
Place: Drake's Restaurant
Location: 508 Pinnacle Parkway in Bristol, TN
Entree: Beer Cheese & Bacon Burger ($12) - Beer cheese, bacon, pickles, house mustard, and an added fried egg... what more could you want? This was an amazing burger. I think more restaurants should start putting beer cheese on burgers. With my burger came a delicious side of Drake's Fries.
Beers:
Much like Aubrey's, this is another very good restaurant that I would recommend to anyone, though this place has a little more of a pub-style "party" vibe. Try it out for yourself and let me know what you think! Enjoy!
Place: Drake's Restaurant
Location: 508 Pinnacle Parkway in Bristol, TN
Entree: Beer Cheese & Bacon Burger ($12) - Beer cheese, bacon, pickles, house mustard, and an added fried egg... what more could you want? This was an amazing burger. I think more restaurants should start putting beer cheese on burgers. With my burger came a delicious side of Drake's Fries.
Beers:
- SweetWater TripleTail - a perfect IPA with just the right amount of hops.
- Sierra Nevada Otra Vez - still probably the best sour beer out there. It would be hard to find a better gose.
- Highland St. Terese's Pale Ale - one of my favorites of the night! A delicious pale ale goes well with any meal.
Much like Aubrey's, this is another very good restaurant that I would recommend to anyone, though this place has a little more of a pub-style "party" vibe. Try it out for yourself and let me know what you think! Enjoy!
Aubrey's - Bristol, TN
Date of dining experience: July 21, 2018
Place: Aubrey's Restaurant
Location: 430 Pinnacle Parkway in Bristol, TN
Entree: Asian Chicken Salad - Grilled chicken, fresh greens, mandarin oranges, crispy wontons, and sesame seeds, served in a Thai vinaigrette.
Sides: Macaroni & Cheese and Parmesan Spinach - The mac and cheese was very good, but the creamed spinach may have been the best I have ever eaten. Yes, even better than at Ruth's Chris!
Beers:
This is a very good restaurant that I would recommend to anyone. Try it out for yourself and let me know what you think! Enjoy!
Place: Aubrey's Restaurant
Location: 430 Pinnacle Parkway in Bristol, TN
Entree: Asian Chicken Salad - Grilled chicken, fresh greens, mandarin oranges, crispy wontons, and sesame seeds, served in a Thai vinaigrette.
Sides: Macaroni & Cheese and Parmesan Spinach - The mac and cheese was very good, but the creamed spinach may have been the best I have ever eaten. Yes, even better than at Ruth's Chris!
Beers:
- Yee-Haw Dunkel - a very good beer anywhere, always a favorite.
- Highland Gaelic Ale - another delicious beer, just this perfect amount of hops in this red ale.
- Cigar City Jai Alai - a very good IPA, but I only sampled it so I could get a full glass of the next one...
- Alltech Lexington's Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Blackberry Porter - hands down the very best porter I have ever had! And a perfect "starter" porter to recommend to your friend who doesn't care very much for porters.
This is a very good restaurant that I would recommend to anyone. Try it out for yourself and let me know what you think! Enjoy!
Saturday, July 21, 2018
Gigi's - State College, PA
Date of dining experience: July 19, 2018
Place: Gigi's Southern Table
Location: 2080 Cato Ave. in State College, PA
Entree: Southern Shrimp Carbonara ($20) - Blackened Shrimp, Andouille, Linguini, Basil, Tomato, Sweet Peas, and Parmesan. This was a delicious dish, with the perfect amount of flavor from each of the ingredients.
Beers:
Place: Gigi's Southern Table
Location: 2080 Cato Ave. in State College, PA
Entree: Southern Shrimp Carbonara ($20) - Blackened Shrimp, Andouille, Linguini, Basil, Tomato, Sweet Peas, and Parmesan. This was a delicious dish, with the perfect amount of flavor from each of the ingredients.
Beers:
- Weyerbacher Berry Monks - A deliciously fruity version of a Belgian Tripel.
- Troegs Crimson Pistil - Still the best IPA I believe I have ever had the pleasure to enjoy.
- Dogfish Head SeaQuench Ale - A wonderful Gose that tastes more like a tart limeade than a sour beer. Highly recommended!
Dessert: Red Velvet Bread Pudding - Served warm, this dessert was the perfect ending to a perfect meal.
This is an amazing restaurant with the perfect cozy atmosphere no matter where you sit. You can never go wrong with a little southern-style comfort food. This place is perfect for a romantic rendezvous, a dinner out with friends, or simply a nice sit-down meal with the family. As I plan to return here frequently, I highly recommend this restaurant. Try it out for yourself and let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Thursday, July 19, 2018
French 75 - Denver, CO
Date of dining experience: July 12, 2018
Place: French 75
Location: 717 17th Street, Suite B, in Denver, CO
Green Hour (Happy Hour) Appetizers: Again, Audry and I split a number of dishes.
Green Hour Drinks: There were so many options, we had to try a few of them.
Sides ($6 each): Ratatouille and Goat Cheese Creamed Spinach. We were getting full from our appetizer eats and drinks, so we decided just to order a few sides to accompany our meal made of sampling all the appetizers.
Audry and I very much enjoy the French culture and cuisine, so eating at this restaurant was a given for us as soon as we saw it come up in a Google search. If you are in the area and would love a delicious meal, this is the place for you. I highly recommend the Nicoise Salade with the House Red Wine. You will not be disappointed. Try it for yourself and let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Place: French 75
Location: 717 17th Street, Suite B, in Denver, CO
Green Hour (Happy Hour) Appetizers: Again, Audry and I split a number of dishes.
- F75 Pomme Frites ($4) - Very good skinny French fries.
- Fritto Mixte ($7) - Shrimp, Calamari, and Aioli.
- Moules ($6) - Buerre, Garlic, and Parsley.
- Nicoise Salade ($9) - Seared Tuna, Potato, Egg, and Sherry Vinaigrette.
- Tarte Flambee ($6) - Carmelized Onions, Bacon, and Gruyere.
Green Hour Drinks: There were so many options, we had to try a few of them.
- House White Wine ($5) - A beautiful, crisp blend with the taste of a Sauvignon Blanc and the smoothness of a Chardonnay.
- House Red Wine ($5) - A very delicious blend, similar to my favorite red, Cabernet Franc.
- Stella Artois Draft ($5) - A standard for any establishment that carries it on draft.
- Absinthe - A delicious pour of floral absinthe, served to taste with ice water dripped over a cube of sugar.
Sides ($6 each): Ratatouille and Goat Cheese Creamed Spinach. We were getting full from our appetizer eats and drinks, so we decided just to order a few sides to accompany our meal made of sampling all the appetizers.
Audry and I very much enjoy the French culture and cuisine, so eating at this restaurant was a given for us as soon as we saw it come up in a Google search. If you are in the area and would love a delicious meal, this is the place for you. I highly recommend the Nicoise Salade with the House Red Wine. You will not be disappointed. Try it for yourself and let me know what you think. Enjoy!
La Loma - Denver, CO
Date of dining experience: July 11, 2018
Place: La Loma Mexican Restaurant
Location: 1801 Broadway in Denver, CO
Happy Hour Appetizers: Audry and I split a number of delicious dishes.
Happy Hour Drinks: House Margaritas ($7) - 100% blue agave tequila, triple sec, their own all natural citrus mix, and, of course, on the rocks.
Entree: Chile Rellenos ($16) - Roasted Anaheim green chiles with cheese in a crispy shell, served with their famous green chili, rice, and refried beans.
This is hands-down the best Mexican restaurant I have ever been to. To add to the wonderful experience, it was a beautiful day in downtown Denver, so we got a table outside on the patio. If you try this place, and I highly recommend that you do as soon as possible, you have to try the green chili. You will not regret it. Once you pay a visit, let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Place: La Loma Mexican Restaurant
Location: 1801 Broadway in Denver, CO
Happy Hour Appetizers: Audry and I split a number of delicious dishes.
- Chile Con Queso ($4) - Melted cheese, Anaheim chile achiote, served with jalapeno peppers and roma tomatoes.
- Mini Flautas ($5) - Shredded chicken rolled in fresh corn tortillas, topped with sour cream and guacamole.
- Sarapes ($5) - Shredded chicken wrapped in crispy shells, served with a side of their famous green chili.
- Mini Rellenos ($5) - Roasted green chiles with cheese fried in a crispy shell, served with their famous green chili. This was absolutely the best chile rellenos I have ever eaten. And the green chili they say is so famous is even better than the rellenos! This dish was so good I decided to get the bigger version as my meal.
Happy Hour Drinks: House Margaritas ($7) - 100% blue agave tequila, triple sec, their own all natural citrus mix, and, of course, on the rocks.
Entree: Chile Rellenos ($16) - Roasted Anaheim green chiles with cheese in a crispy shell, served with their famous green chili, rice, and refried beans.
This is hands-down the best Mexican restaurant I have ever been to. To add to the wonderful experience, it was a beautiful day in downtown Denver, so we got a table outside on the patio. If you try this place, and I highly recommend that you do as soon as possible, you have to try the green chili. You will not regret it. Once you pay a visit, let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Wednesday, July 4, 2018
China - Suzhou, Nanjing, and Changchun
Dates of dining experiences: June 13-28, 2018
Places: All of the local eateries in three Chinese cities
Locations: Suzhou, China; Nanjing, China; and Changchun, China
I just spent an amazing 16 days traveling around China, eating all of the local foods at all of the local restaurants, and presenting at a couple music teacher conferences. It is amazing how fresh and delicious all of the food is in China. Of course, the customers cook the food themselves at their table at most of the restaurants. Whether eating hot pot or Korean-style barbecue, you boil or grill the food yourself at your table. The food is always fresh, you can cook it to your liking, and the seasonings and spices of the hot pot or dry rub are simply delicious.
Some of my favorites foods in China were the grilled octopus on a stick, just about anything that you can put in a hot pot, and, of course, any kind of steamed dumpling (especially if it contains shrimp or pork). One thing that was a little hard to get used to was everything being cooked with the bones, but you get used to the way little fish bones feel in your mouth.
I did eat some rather "weird" things by American standards, such as intestine from a couple different animals, throat, pig ear, duck tongue, stinky tofu, and even a silkworm chrysalis. However, I liked it all! (The silkworm did require some spicy seasoning to get past the texture.) All of the local people I interacted with were very surprised that I tried all the foods without hesitation, and even more surprised that I like it all!
This was an amazing experience and I simply cannot wait to go back. There are still so many different Chinese foods that I have not yet tried, and so many places I have not yet seen. If you were every considering it, I highly recommend a vacation in China. (You can stay in pretty nice 4 and 5 star hotels for the same price as 2 and 2.5 star hotels in the United States.) If you visit, please let me know your thoughts on the local food cultures you experience. Enjoy!
Places: All of the local eateries in three Chinese cities
Locations: Suzhou, China; Nanjing, China; and Changchun, China
I just spent an amazing 16 days traveling around China, eating all of the local foods at all of the local restaurants, and presenting at a couple music teacher conferences. It is amazing how fresh and delicious all of the food is in China. Of course, the customers cook the food themselves at their table at most of the restaurants. Whether eating hot pot or Korean-style barbecue, you boil or grill the food yourself at your table. The food is always fresh, you can cook it to your liking, and the seasonings and spices of the hot pot or dry rub are simply delicious.
Some of my favorites foods in China were the grilled octopus on a stick, just about anything that you can put in a hot pot, and, of course, any kind of steamed dumpling (especially if it contains shrimp or pork). One thing that was a little hard to get used to was everything being cooked with the bones, but you get used to the way little fish bones feel in your mouth.
I did eat some rather "weird" things by American standards, such as intestine from a couple different animals, throat, pig ear, duck tongue, stinky tofu, and even a silkworm chrysalis. However, I liked it all! (The silkworm did require some spicy seasoning to get past the texture.) All of the local people I interacted with were very surprised that I tried all the foods without hesitation, and even more surprised that I like it all!
This was an amazing experience and I simply cannot wait to go back. There are still so many different Chinese foods that I have not yet tried, and so many places I have not yet seen. If you were every considering it, I highly recommend a vacation in China. (You can stay in pretty nice 4 and 5 star hotels for the same price as 2 and 2.5 star hotels in the United States.) If you visit, please let me know your thoughts on the local food cultures you experience. Enjoy!
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