Feastcation 2009 - The Food

So we have arrived home after our wonderful vacation which was mostly planned around restaurants! Here is a sampling of what we enjoyed during our 2971.4 miles, 12 state tour.

Neely's Bar-B-Que - Memphis

Our first stop on the cuisine adventure landed us at Neely's. We enjoyed the sausage and cheese appetizer followed by a sampler of their bar-b-que which included pulled pork, ribs, beef brisket, and turkey. Hubby liked the brisket and I enjoyed the fall off the bone ribs. The turkey was just okay and we both thought hubby's pulled pork was better. The coleslaw had a spicy taste that was very different and good. The atmosphere was not what we had expected but it was clearly their original restaurant, functional and no fuss. I'm glad we went so that we can say we've been there, I would probably not go back for a second visit.

Emeril's - New Orleans

This was undoubtedly the best meal we've ever eaten. Everything was perfect. The food was amazing in both taste and presentation. The service and atmosphere were excellent. I the Baby Spinach Salad with Fresh Strawberries, Goat Cheese, Spiced Almonds, Crisp Potato and Warm Chourice-Pimenton Vinaigrettefollowed by Pan Seared Filet of Beef with Creamy Mascarpone Polenta, Slow Roasted Pork Belly, Wilted Swiss Chard, Confit Tomato and Goat Cheese. Delicious doesn't even begin to describe it. A regular at the restaurant suggested the pork chop to hubby explaining that it was the dish that the chefs all tried to outdo each other on. It was the thickest pork chop I have ever seen and hubby thoroughly enjoyed it. For dessert I had the dark chocolate torte and hubby had the pecan pie with bourbon chocolate ice cream. All I can say is that if you ever get to New Orleans Emeril's flagship restaurant is not to be missed!

The Court of Two Sister - New Orleans

On Sunday morning we decided to check out this jazz brunch. It was delightful. The music was enjoyable and the food was delicious and plentiful. Eggs Benedict and omelets were made to order and the rest of the food was served buffet style. It included multiple types of meats, veggies, salads, and desserts. The sweet potatoes were to die for and the rolls melted in your mouth. There was a chicken salad that was unlike anything I've ever tasted and I'd love to have the recipe.

Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse - New Orleans

This restaurant was recommended to us and was our first big disappointment. I chose the special, which I ordered medium and received a steak that was somewhere between medium well and well done. Other than dessert, we've had better meals at chain steakhouses for a third of the price. The service was adequate but nothing special and the atmosphere was very dark and heavy. There are numerous restaurants to pick from in New Orleans so I wouldn't suggest picking this one.

Mothers - New Orleans

We were anxious to try this diner after seeing it on TV. The show was clear that this was a small family owned eatery so we knew what to expect. It was everything we expected and more. The sandwiches were ginormous and very tasty. I had the "Ferdi" and enjoyed every bite of it that I could manage to eat. We were fortunate to be visiting in the slow tourist season so we only had to wait in a short line - not the usual "out the door and around the corner" line. The service was highly efficient and friendly. This is definitely on my "places to eat" on a return visit list.



Cafe du Monde - New Orleans

This is on everyones "must visit" list and I agree, it is a must. The beignets are wonderful, although messy, and hubby enjoyed the cafe au late. I tried it but since I'm not a coffee drinker I'm sure I didn't properly appreciate it. It was fun to eat in the outdoor cafe and just enjoy the weather and people watching.



Thanksgiving Dinner at the Shotts - Florida

The next meal worth noting was Thanksgiving dinner with family at my niece's house. The food was good, the weather was nice, and the company was great! I'm afraid you won't be able to try this particular stop on our feastcation so you'll just have to take my word on it that it was delicious - especially the pecan pumpkin pie.

Paula Deen's - Savannah

This was our last official feastcation stop and it did not disappoint. We had the buffet lunch and also ordered the fried green tomato appetizer off the menu. The tomatoes were absolutely scrumptious! The buffet was basic home cookin' comfort food, nothing fancy, but all well prepared and tasty. Hubby and I each picked a different dessert so we could share both of them. I chose the banana pudding and it was the 2nd best I've ever had. Hubby got the sweet potato butter cake and it was heavenly!

The trip was great fun and we look forward to planning feastcation 2010. However, I do need to figure out how to make the trip without gaining almost five pounds!

I think our next adventure we will be heading to the east coast, the Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire area, so if you have any great restaurants to suggest please feel free to do so in the comments.

Oh My Goodness!

Okay, I've said before that I'm not big on reality TV. Actually, I'm finding more and more, I'm not big on much of any TV.

I have to admit, however, that I've gotten caught up in the Food Network's "The Next Food Network Star" competition. I find the challenges to cook for a variety of people in addition to the judges and to create new dishes each week entertaining. Although there are a few competitors who for one reason or another I'd be happy to see go, I haven't been cheering for a particular chef.

Until this week, that is. This week is when reality/competition TV collided with my reality. You can go here to check out the whole show but the Cliff notes version goes like this -

The Main Ingredient - fish (Kelsey chose tilapia)
The challenge - two main dishes, one to compete for a spot on Red Lobster's menu and one with some bizarre ingredient. (Kelsey chose white chocolate)

The outcome was that the Red Lobster chef chose Kelsey's white chocolate challenge dish instead of the Red Lobster dish to put on their menu - available across the country on June 23rd.

Chocolate and fish? Really? I mean, I've always said that chocolate could make anything better but I meant situations, feelings, not food. Let alone fish! Since I do like to try new foods and this whole idea of chocolate fish and being able to actually taste one of the concoctions from a chef on the show intrigued me, my husband happily accommodated my desire to have dinner out at Red Lobster Monday night.

The hostess gave us our menus and about the time our waitress arrived to take our drink and appetizer orders I excitedly interrupted to announce to my husband, "There it is!" pointing at the Macadamia Tilapia with White Chocolate Beurre Blanc on the fresh fish menu. He explained that while we hadn't decided on the appetizer yet, I knew what I wanted for dinner and that was why we came. The waitress queried as to if that was really the reason we came in and said they'd gotten to try the dish a little earlier. She also said a few people had called during the day to see if it was on the menu yet. At some point my quest to try this chocolaty fish combination granted me minor star status as another waitress and the manager stopped by our table to see how I liked my meal. Let me explain the answer to that in bite by delicious bite detail.

The waitress placed my order in front of me and it looked very appealing with the toasted nuts and coconut on top and sitting in the creamy sauce that looked a lot like melted white chocolate. I took a small bite being sure to get some of the toasted toppings and the sauce to get the full effect. It practically melted in my mouth - my eyes got big - I swallowed as my husband asked, "Well?" "OH MY GOODNESS!" That's what I said. My husband looked a little puzzled (as in, was that a good "oh my goodness" or a bad "oh my goodness"). In response to his look, I sighed "Oh! My Goodness!" Obviously I wasn't at a total loss for words, just any that might describe this delectable delicacy. He grinned and I finally found a vocabulary greater than three words and said, "You've got to try this!" I gave him a fork full and his response - a hearty "Wow!" I'm telling you, the combination of flavors and textures in this dish is just, well, perfect. It would leave Webster at a loss for words. The best way I know to describe it is like this:



Yep, it was like that!

That's when the manager stopped by the table to see how I liked it (I suddenly felt like a Red Lobster VIP as the other wait staff in the room created a E.F. Hutton commercial). The only thing I could think or say was "How long will you have this?" To my great relief she said it would be on the menu until September when the Food Network starts the new NFNS. While I was telling her how good it was, my head was calculating how many more times I could afford to eat at Red Lobster before September and being grateful that I didn't have to try to dine there every night this week. I finished ooohing and aaahing through the rest of my meal, then leaned back in stuffed contentment.

As we left the restaurant the hostess offered a friendly thank you along with "come back and see us." "Oh, believe me, I will," I replied. She grinned knowingly.