stilgar

Closed 12/2021

I am heading to Rehoboth in September so I was doing a little recon here for anything new. What I did find out however is that Bramble & Brine and 208 Social are both permanently closed. 208 Social was fantastic. I never made it to B&B.

My experience here left me scratching my head. Rock hard cantaloupe, tomato avocado app perfect for sharing if you are a party of one, bland osso buco. Service was great but the food was meh.

Nora is closed.

And there you have it.

Now Closed. No idea why.

They seem to have a fairly loyal local following. A few of the bars in old town manassas have them on tap. I find most of their beers to be unbalanced as you said and just not pleasant to drink. I do however enjoy their Freedom Isn't Free IPA. I thought that one brought a nice complexity along with a hoppy finish.

First visit here. The service is just slow enough to notice. I got the three taco plate. Tacos were braised lamb, steak, and carnitas. The lamb and steak were both delicious. The carnitas were dry. Couldn't finish that one. My mom got the shredded beef enchiladas. She was pleased. I tried a bit of her enchilada meat on the remainder of my tortilla, it was indeed excellent and I immediately wished I had got that instead of the carnitas. Complementary chips and salsa were excellent as well. They both reminded me of Uncle Julio's.

I used to be a regular at Red Rocks when I lived within walking distance. The food is decent. I have not had anything terrible there. The fried tacos are pretty good. I enjoy their chicken wings. The sauce is made from cholula hot sauce which I don't really care for but in wing sauce form it's good. They have a very good happy hour. $1.75 domestic drafts, $6 wings and nachos. They have a large group of regulars for happy hour. All of the servers except one who I won't mention are great. The owner recently started charging $1 credit card processing fee.

Drove by this the other day. For sale sign out front. Their facebook page says that their last day was Aug 31.

Panama City Beach I just returned from Panama City Beach last week. Have a couple places to share. First is Joe's Corner Pub. This is located on the east side of the Hathaway bridge on US 98 in Panama City. No frills hole in the wall watering hole. They only serve beer and only take cash. But what they also do is make some of the best buffalo wings I have ever had. Whatever their secret is they are doing it right. The wings are a perfect size, they cook them correctly without having to ask for extra crispy, and the sauce is out of this world good. The blue cheese is mediocre, but the wings are the star here. Map Next was Dusty's Oyster Bar on Front Beach Rd., Panama City Beach. Fresh local oysters. They will do them any way you like. I like them raw. $5.99 a dozen. Also had blackened scallops one of the three times I went there. They were great. Map

Returned from another trip to Orlando this week. Went to two places of note. First is Del Frisco's off of Lee Rd. It seems that this location is what the Del Frisco's chain is based on, but this one is supposedly independently owned and operated. Straight forward steakhouse. Prime beef and a la carte sides. As fate would have it I was at Ruth's Chris the week before and I would say that I preferred Del Frisco's steak. Website Second was The Ravenous Pig in Winter Park. Had been trying to get there for some time. It was excellent all around. Only issue I had was the pork belly starter was too small to share and believe it or not a little too fatty. Was still delicious. My main was duck cassoulet. Real depth of flavor throughout and crispy duck skin. Co-signing on what many others have said here, if you are going to Orlando go here to eat. You will not be disappointed. Map Website

Continued... Lunch was Willie Mae's Scotch House. Wife went with Chicken fried pork chop with potato salad and peas. I had the three piece fried chicken with mac and cheese. They were unfortunately out of red beans when we got there around 2:30pm. I couldn't believe it when our server told us that. I will let the pictures speak for themselves here. Map Last up was a late dinner at Mother's. We both got the Ralph sandwich, which has to be one of the worst names for a food ever. But it was one of the best sandwiches I have ever crammed in my maw. Ham, roast beef, a delicious concoction called debris, cheese, mayo, mustard, cabbage, and pickles. 2/3 size shown. We shoulda split one. The sweet potato pie was out of this world good. Map I also want to give a shout out to Abita beer. Loved it. Also thanks to everyone who has posted here about the awesome restaurants in New Orleans.

The wife and I went to New Orleans for a long weekend, Oct 20 - 23. Thanks to the many fine reviews here on DR we had some awesome dining experiences. First up was K-Pauls as we arrived on Thursday evening. I know some people are not that impressed, but I am a Paul Prudhomme fan and couldn't pass up the opportunity to eat here. We started with the Pan-Fried Rabbit Tenderloin with Creole Mustard Sauce. The presentation left a bit to be desired but the rabbit was excellent. The sauce was truly the star. Plenty of mustard flavor without being overpowering. For our mains my wife had the Bronzed Chicken with Shrimp Miranda. Was very good. I opted for the Blackened Louisiana Drum. Since it didn't say 'Redfish' specifically on the menu I do not know if it was red drum or black drum, but supposedly they are very hard to tell apart. And in retrospect I don't care because it was friggin awesome. Topped with crab and a compound butter. I will remember this one forever. Unfortunately my pictures of these two dishes did not turn out. Map Friday morning, Cafe Du Monde Map For lunch we went to Lüke, owned by John Besh. Started with raw gulf oysters. Wife had the roasted beet, Bayou blue cheese, and spiced pistachio salad. We shared the bacon cheeseburger on the recommendation of our waiter, who was awesome btw. Best burger I have ever had. Meat was a 50/50 mix of brisket and top round according to our waiter, who coincidentally was from Reston. The fries were hot and crispy. The picture blows of the burger because i was halfway through eating it when I realized I forgot to take the pic. Trust me, it was great. Map Dinner that evening was at Hersaint, a Donald Link restaurant. My wife had the Beef Short Rib with Potato Rösti and Salsa Verde from the small plates menu. She loved it. I had the Kurobuta Pork Belly with Turnips, Brussels Sprouts and Apple-Mustard Vinaigrette. Kurobuta pork speaks for itself. It was of course melt in your mouth delicious, but the brussels sprouts were fried. And great. For dessert we had the Banana Brown Butter Tart with Fleur de Sel Caramel and the Housemade Blood Orangecello. The tart was great, the orangecello was not. It was very bitter. Map Breakfast the next morning was at Elizabeth's. Praline bacon and perfectly poached eggs over crab cakes. I wish i could get that every weekend. Map

Just back from Myrtle Beach and went to a couple places that were very good. Chianti South in Little River is excellent. Was our third time dining there and they do not disappoint. We started with the Italian Antipasto comes with prosciutto, salami, cantaloupe, mozzarella, olives, anchovies, and tomatoes. The meats are melt in your mouth good, and the vegetables and cheese are very fresh. The cantaloupe was sweet and juicy and was just awesome paired with the prosciutto. House salad of field greens, all dressings made in house. I went with the house specialty - the veal chop. It was approximately 16 oz and all of it delicious. Seasoned perfectly. It was a little over cooked however. Ordered it medium rare, came out medium but still great. Served with three sad roasted red potato halves. They could improve a lot there. Plate looked silly with the large chop and three quarter sized potatoes. The wife had the veal special that day, veal scallopine with a garlic white wine sauce, roasted red peppers, olives and artichokes. Came with pasta marinara. Hers was delicious as well. The only bit i would criticize would be the marinara. It is a bit too acidic for me. The pasta however is great. They make all their own pasta. They have an extensive wine list covering the major wine producing regions of the world. I forget how many exactly, but my best guess would be 900 - 1200 bottles. We didn't do desert as nothing on the desert menu was grabbing us. Service was very good, attentive but not in our face. Before wine the bill averaged $35 per person. $6 charge for sharing. Map Carolina Roadhouse in Myrtle Beach is part of a restaurant group that has locations throughout the south. This place reminded me of a slightly more upscale Sweetwater Tavern. They have one of the best salads around. Boiled egg, bacon, tomato, and almonds. Really good. The croissants drizzled with honey are light and delicious. I went with the bone in NY Strip. Cooked to a perfect medium rare. Slightly under seasoned. Came with underwhelming fries. The wife had an entree salad. Worked out to about $17 per person. Menu Map For the best fried shrimp you have ever had go to the Inlet Crab House in Murrells Inlet. They are fresh shrimp lightly battered. I can't recommend anything else there because I only get the fried shrimp. Website Google maps has it in the wrong place. Here is the correct place - Map Lastly there is Key West Grill at Broadway at the Beach. This is in the tourist trap shopping mecca of Myrtle. It was surprisingly good however. $3 Red Stripes all day.

Awesome image, go with that Also, I had to ask for chopsticks.

My wife and I went to Hooked last night for the first time. The restaurant itself is quite nice on the inside. I was a little surprised at this given the location in a strip mall next door to a Petsmart. We sat at the bar as we arrived during happy hour. $3 Kirin Ichiban draft is not bad. There also was a Heineken promotion going on as we were each given a free bottle. So things started out great. We ordered the edamame starter. It was good but nothing special. Steamed with some seasalt. My wife ordered the crab cake and I ordered the combo #1, which was my choice of two maki with a wakame salad. I asked to sub the salad for miso soup which are the same price. My sushi arrived at the same time as the edamame. My rolls were spicy california and yellowtail. They were super heavy handed with the spicy mayo on the cali roll. That was all I could taste. The fish in the yellowtail roll was not the freshest. It tasted like day old fish, almost a mealy texture. I never received the salad or the soup I wanted to sub it with. My wife's crab cake on the other hand was awesome. It was about 4 - 5 oz. It was the mini cake on the small plate menu. There was something holding the meat together but you couldn't taste it. All you could taste was the crab. Was mostly lump with a bit of backfin, probably 90/10. Service was average. We were at the bar with 2 bartenders and 8 - 10 diners. I would go again for the crab cake and try something from the menu. I will stay away from the sushi.

Dewey Just back from a long weekend in Dewey. I will have to say that The Cultured Pearl is a must for anyone going to the Rehoboth area.

Well, I had a lengthy and detailed review written for One Fish Two Fish but I lost it somehow so here is the abridged version. Had the calamari and onion starter. It had a horseradish sauce poured over the top that made everything soggy. Crab cake main. Worst crab cake I have ever had. Remoulade sauce was overpowering. And it wasn't just finished with the sauce, the crab was tossed in it. Terrible. Wife had shrimp and crab scampi. Was excellent. Daughter had crispy fried parmesan flounder. Was not crispy at all. Barely had any color to it, slightly brown. Fish was done however, not sure how they screwed that up. Overall, I think this place could be excellent. Right now they are only getting 95% right.

My brother bought an indoor fryer. He hasn't used it yet. I'll update when he does. Indoor turkey fryer

If you are looking to go off the beaten path in Orlando, here are a couple options. Pollo d'Oro on W Colonial Dr (SR 50) west of I-4 is some of the best rotisserie chicken ever. Is a bit of a hike if you are staying near Disney, but worth it. Map Beefy King is a local sandwich shop that has been around for 40 years. They specialize in steamed roast beef sandwiches, but also have ham, turkey, pastrami, corned beef, BBQ beef and BBQ pork. Crispy tater tots, or 'spuds' round out this local experience. Website Map One other that I visited recently is Johnnie's Hideaway. This might sound like a tiki themed tourist trap, but it is not. This is an upscale eating establishment, along the lines of Vito's and Charley's, which are corporate cousins of Johnnie's. We started with the steamed mussels. The mussels alone were great and full of flavor, but the broth was magical. You will want to save that for bread dipping. Our main consisted of broiled grouper topped with blue crab meat and a white wine sauce. Fish was cooked perfectly and the sauce was excellent. Sides were bacon creamed spinach and lobster mac n cheese. Both very good. Finished with a creme brulee. Excellent meal. I travel to Orlando often to visit friends and usually try to avoid the Disney area like the plague, but I will go here again. Website Map

I believe in the Alton Brown recipe referenced here he uses a cup of orange juice and a cup of margarita mix in the foil pouch. This makes for a tasty sauce when combined with honey, ketchup, and worcestershire sauce and reduced. The high acidity in the liquid helps break down connective tissue making for a tender rib. I finish mine on the grill. I didn't see the link for the recipe above. It is different. Here is the one i am talking about.

Foundation is closed. I believe the plan is to have Okra's expand into the space that Foundation occupied.

No argument there

I went there yesterday and was ignored by the bartender at the outside bar. I walked across the street to Uncle Julio's. That is not indicative of the usual level of service there or at any GAR in my experience. The french dip sandwich is huge and awesome. The fries blow however. If they borrowed the fries from Sweetwaters it would be a big improvement.