Recipes

Tina’s Leftover Skillet Bake

July 20, 2013

This recipe comes from my mom, the queen of making leftovers fun again. Enjoy this Greek-inspired chicken and potatoes recipe!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup OLIVE OIL – for lightly frying
2 GARLIC CLOVES – minced
1 SWEET YELLOW ONION – chopped
1 JALAPENO – seeded and chopped
3 or 4 POTATOES – best with leftover baked potatoes, cooled
1 or 2 cups CHICKEN – cooked and chopped
1/2 cup FETA CHEESE – or as much as you like
1/2 cup PARMESAN CHEESE – or more if you want

Instructions:

Heat the OIL in a fry pan. Add the GARLIC CLOVES, the ONION, and the JALAPENO. Saute until they are soft and smell yummy.
Add the POTATOES and CHICKEN. Fry for 10-12 minutes until it all starts to brown a little.
Remove from the heat. Add the FETA CHEESE and the PARMESAN CHEESE. Stir until well mixed and slightly melted.
Get your FORK and dig into this pan of YUMMINESS !!

Tina is an amazing cook… not such a great photographer, though.

Quote of the Week

This week’s quote is in honor of the brewery tour I went on Saturday with Lauren, Ben, Doug, Regina, and Regina’s mom and Brother AND our VIP friends John and Laura. Hope everyone’s having a great week! I know I’ve been slack on my restaurant reviews, but I’ll pick it back up on Friday, I promise!

“Beer is good food”
–Rita Rudner

Can your breakfast do that?

2 Comments

Quote of the Week

Quote of the Week 7/8/13

July 9, 2013

This past week saw a nice long road trip to Cleveland, OH with some of my bestest friends in honor of 4th of July and my cousin’s high school graduation (which explains why I’ve been so MIA the past week. Internet is expensive and I went over my data with Verizon). In case you didn’t know, 11 hours in a car is a mind-numbingly long time. Definitely not in a hurry to do that again. Road trips are overrated.

We did manage to eat some pretty delicious food while in Cleveland, so expect some Ohio restaurant reviews in the coming weeks. I looked up a bunch of restaurants in Cleveland that have been featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives and made a list of places I wanted to go. We only ended up visiting one (Lucky’s Cafe), which was delicious. Next time I’ll try to cross the others off my list.

This week’s quote is in honor my road trip and comes from journalist Charles Kuralt.

“You can find your way across this country using burger joints the way a navigator uses stars.”
–Charles Kuralt

You gotta admire a man who can pose with a parking meter and still look cool.

Quote of the Week

Quote of the Week 7/1/13

July 1, 2013

Happy Almost-Independence-Day everyone! Hopefully you all have a short week this week and you spend lots of time eating and drinking and blowing crap up with people you love!

This week’s quote comes from Chinese writer Lin Yutang and is in honor of July 4th (hot dogs and hamburgers anyone?).

“What is patriotism but the love of the food one ate as a child?”
–Lin Yutang

I bet that dude was the life of the party.

Charleston, SC Restaurant Reviews

Craftsmen Kitchen & Tap House – CLOSED

June 28, 2013

Last Wednesday, after a hilarious night of improv at Theater 99, we were struck by hunger pangs and looking for somewhere to eat. I consulted my handy dandy Yelp app to find a restaurant in Charleston that was still serving food at 10:30, and we were lucky enough to stumble upon Craftsmen Kitchen & Tap House. Located on Cumberland Street in the old Johnson’s Bar spot, Craftsmen is a cool space featuring 2 bars and an outdoor beer garden area.

No, not that kind of beer garden. [Photo: Tilly’s Nest]

I started off with a beer from Frothy Beard, one of Charleston’s newest breweries. The Photuris Pale Ale (apparently a photuris is a lightning bug. Who knew?) was good, but I think they still have some work to go on getting their technique right. Or maybe I just don’t like pale ales. I would like to try their Peppermint Porter (which hopefully I will be able to do this weekend at the brewery!) But, I digress. The beer menu is pretty cool, featuring 48 drafts on tap, which they rotate out regularly. I’d like to stop by during the day to take advantage of the outdoor space. The interior bars are also really well designed and have a very comfortable feel to them. Here are a couple of pictures of the two bar areas:

2 Bars, One cup [Photo: Eater]

The menu is divided into 2 parts. One one side, you have their “Bar Classics” which are available daily. On the other side, you have their “Daily Features,” which change out daily depending what they have in the kitchen. Laura and I both ordered the BBQ Pork sandwich (pulled pork, cole slaw, fried pickles on a sesame seed bun) from their daily features menu. It was delish. The bun was toasted ever so slightly and the fried pickles had just the lightest coating of batter and were delicious with the coleslaw. The sandwich was served with their “fries” which were more like fat potato chips.

I’m so glad I live in the south so I have access to good BBQ.

John ordered the Delta Catfish and Chips with Comeback sauce ($10) from the Bar Classics menu. He said it was delicious with a “good fry on it, nice sized chunk of fish, and good catfishy flavor.” I love catfish, and just looking at it from across the table, I could tell it was delicious.

It kind of still looks like a fish. Like it’s swimming across John’s plate.

Ben ordered the Farmhouse Burger (beef, pork, idazabal, beer pickles, and bibb lettuce) from the Bar Classics menu. I took a bite of it, and let me tell you, it was outstanding. Not as good as a Husk burger, but still pretty darn good. The combination of beef and pork was very interesting and gave it an extra layer of depth. The idazabal cheese was good too, and added an almost smokey flavor to it. Really, really good.

You can’t really see the meat because of the lettuce, but trust me, it’s there (and it’s delicious).

I’ve had like 4 people tell me that I should get the Crunchy Dame (BBQ Pork belly, butterkase, cherry jam, sunny egg, $9) from the Bar Classics menu. Apparently it’s “unreal” and it “may have brought tears to my eyes,” so when I go back I’ll have to give that a try. All in all, I was very impressed and definitely recommend you try this place out.

I mean, the space is so freaking cool.

Craftsmen Kitchen & Tap House
12 Cumberland St
Charleston, SC 29401
(843) 577-9699

2 Comments

Quote of the Week

Quote of the Week 6/24/13

June 25, 2013

Spent a very relaxing and fun (Read: Drunk) weekend in Raleigh with Sean, Christine, Lily, Chrissy, and Ben. Even though it rained every time we got into the pool, we still managed the make the most out of our weekend. Also, Monster’s University was amazing.

“A man seldom thinks with more earnestness of anything than he does of his dinner.”
–Samuel Johnson

And judging from his girth, I’d say he was a very earnest thinker…

Charleston, SC Restaurant Reviews

Taco Boy

June 21, 2013

I don’t know why, but I’ve been on a serious taco kick lately. I’ve been craving them like crazy. So as such, I’ve tried pretty much every taco place in Charleston. My favorite, by far, is Taco Boy downtown. Not only are their tacos spectacular, the atmosphere is really freaking cool. The inside is all mismatched and looks like someone just put together a restaurant by stealing furniture from all of their neighbors. They also have an awesome patio that is what I see in my dreams when I think of the coolest possible patio there is. If you don’t like tacos, you should definitely come hang out just for the ambience. I also love their mismatched light fixtures and chandeliers. It’s just really cool.

I don’t know why I love restaurants with mismatched furniture so much.

To start, we usually get the appetizer trio consisting of salsa, queso, and guacamole (market price). Their guac is killer. It’s so good. If you don’t want a whole trio appetizer, I definitely recommend getting the guac. Unless you’re weird and don’t like avocados. Weirdo. Their queso is also pretty darn good. Their salsa is good too, but not necessarily anything special.

Appetizer samplers are the best.

I’ve tried pretty much all of the tacos on their taco menu. They’re delicious. I’ll highlight a few of my faves here. My number one favorite is the Fried Chicken Taco (seasoned, breaded chicken breast, lightly fried, with marinated carrots & red cabbage, jalapeño cilantro mayonnaise & chipotle bbq sauce, $3.75). It’s so yummy. Sometimes it’s really spicy, and sometimes it’s not. I think it just depends on who’s cooking. I always get it on flour, because I think it tastes better that way. I also really like the Carnitas Norteno taco (tender slow-roasted pork with poblano rajas & ancho chile sauce, $3.50). I think I like it because it tastes like a pulled pork taco. It’s so juicy and tender and delicious. I get this one on corn. I don’t know why. I just do.

Carnitas on the left, fried chicken on the right.

My 3rd favorite is the Grilled Fish Taco (chipotle marinated Mahi Mahi with cilantro dijon sauce, field greens & salsa cruda, $3.95). For some reason I think this one tastes the best in the bibb-lettuce wrap (which is $0.25 extra, btw). I love the cilantro dijon sauce. It’s so good. I also really like the Chorizo & Potato taco (spicy mexican ground pork sausage & potato with green chile sauce & onion, cilantro relish, $3.95). Sometimes I get this one on corn and sometimes on flour. It just depends on my mood. I think this one is really tasty, but if you’re not a fan of chorizo (like my mother), probably don’t order this one.

From left to right: Grilled fish on lettuce wrap, Chorizo & potato on flour, fried chicken on flour.

Some other tacos I’ve had:

Baja Fish Taco (tempura fried Mahi Mahi, thinly sliced red cabbage, cilantro & ancho chile yogurt sauce, $3.95). This one is really popular, but I don’t really love tempura, so it’s not my favorite. Ben and my Dad love it though.
Al Pastor (thinly shaved spitfire pork, roasted pineapple salsa & pickled red onion, $3.95). I love al pastor usually, but for some reason, this taco just doesn’t do it for me. There’s something weird with the pineapple salsa and I’m just not sure what it is.
Southwest Seared Tuna (Southwest seared market tuna with chipotle slaw and cilantro, Market Price). Not my favorite. I love tuna, but this taco was just a little bland and needed a little more texture.
Southwest Seared Swordfish (southwest market swordfish with chipotle slaw & cilantro, $3.95). Better than the tuna, but I still prefer the grilled fish.
Kimchi Beef (Mexican spice marinated grilled flank steak, Korean BBQ sauce, kimchi, sesame seeds & cilantro, $3.95). Ben likes this one, but I did not. Not even a little.
Tempura Avocado (tempura avocado topped with a sweet Thai chili glaze & a citrus, $3.95). I know people who love this taco. I’m not one of them. But I don’t like tempura, so that shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Here’s a picture of Laura seducing me via taco.

I’ve also gotten the grilled chicken quesadilla, which is good. It’s kind of hard to screw up a quesadilla, though. I like that they serve the quesadillas with sour cream, salsa, and guacamole (yay! more guac!). Here’s a picture of Ben from work eating a quesadilla the British way (because he’s British).

Like a sir!

They have really good (read: Strong) house margaritas, which I love. I also recently tried their pineapple-infused margarita which is really delicious. And lucky for those of us who are on a diet, they feature skinny versions of both their house and pineapple-infused margaritas.

Sorry. I tried to take a picture when it was full, but it was just too good.

Basically, if you’re craving tacos, Taco Boy is the way to go (but go to the downtown location. For some reason I don’t think the Folly Beach location is as good….probably because it’s all the way out on Folly Beach).

I would eat the crap out of some tacos right now.

Taco Boy
217 Huger St
Charleston, SC 29403
(843) 789-3333

5 Comments

Quote of the Week

Quote of the Week 6/17/13

June 17, 2013

Hope everyone had a great weekend! Mine was awesome (albeit busy), with a bunch of people visiting from out of town. First Taylor came with 2 of her friends, and then Lauren came Friday night, and Cullen and Ben’s friends Saturday afternoon. It was a whirlwind of games, wine coolers, lounging by the beach, lounging by the pool, watching movies, and eating. Basically all of my favorite things.

This week’s quote is in honor of my weekend spent with good friends (both new and old). Enjoy!

“Cooking is not about being the best or most perfect cook, but rather it is about sharing the table with family and friends.”
–Skye Gyngell, My Favorite Ingredients

Which is especially true if you’re cooking brussels sprouts. Gross.

1 Comments

Restaurant Reviews

Velo Fellow, Greenville, SC

June 14, 2013

Last weekend, I went home to Greenville to visit some of my family and friends. I spent some quality time with my mom shopping at the Haywood Mall before being overcome with hunger pangs and deciding to go get lunch. My mom suggested we go downtown to the Velo Fellow–she’d been there before and really liked it. She read me the menu as I drove, and the food sounded amazing. So with high hopes, we entered into the Velo Fellow.

We so pretty!

They market themselves as a “british publick house,” and the interior was dark and filled with leather chairs, wooden booths, and mismatching furniture to make the place look like it had been there for years. I instantly loved the way it looked inside; it was so homey and comfortable. And the bar was really impressive. As we settled into our booth, our emotionless, condescending waitress (looking annoyed that we’d decided to eat there) came over to get us drinks (I ordered sweet tea. This was not southern sweet tea. This was unsweetened tea that someone put some sugar in. Not what I had hoped for). We asked her some questions about the menu, which she answered matter-of-factly and without any detail other than what was required. So far, our trip was not off to a great start. [My favorite Yelp review stated that “Hipster McHipster meetings here on Tuesday nights (bc Wednesday is just too middle of the road and complacent).” Very accurate…and hilarious]

*Photo taken from the Velo Fellow Facebook page

We decided to order appetizers first, before deciding what we wanted for entrees. The first dish we ordered was the fried green tomatoes with garlic pimento cheese ($8.95). The tomatoes came out hot and crispy, and we eagerly dug in. The breading was cornmeal based and a little thick for my liking, but they were fried to perfection. The garlic pimento cheese had a really good taste to it, but the texture was kind of weird–it almost tasted gritty. All in all, I’d say this dish was pretty good.

Also, only ice cream should keep the shape of a scoop after serving.

Our second appetizer was the Bowl O’ Tots (deep fried tater tots covered in melted cheddar cheese, $5.95). If you know me at all, you know I’m pretty obsessed with tater tots. And cheese. So this should have been my new favorite thing. And it was good, don’t get me wrong, but it was literally fried tater tots toped with shredded cheddar cheese. A monkey could make that dish. I was hoping for some housemade cheddar cheese sauce or something creative and awesome. And although it tasted good, I really just felt like they could’ve done more.

Judging from this picture, it’s apparent who I get my tot-obsession from.

Our third appetizer was a cup of the soup of the day (price varies daily). It happened to be creamy tomato-basil soup, topped with croutons and served with a nice hunk of bread. The bread was delicious. The tomato soup, however, would have made more sense being served atop spaghetti noodles instead of in a bowl. It was way too thick to be a soup, and although it tasted good, I just couldn’t get over the feeling like I was eating tomato sauce out of a jar with a spoon.

Sorry. I ate the croutons before I took the picture. I’m a monster, I know.

Our final appetizer was the basket of raw fries under bleu cheese crumbles ($6.95)…because we hadn’t gotten enough carbs with our carbs. My mom really liked these and ate basically the whole basket. I’m not a huge fan of potato chips, and I was hoping that these were going to be more on the undercooked, potato-y side, but they were very much potato chips. I think they would’ve been better had they been a little more “raw,” but to each his own.

Pictured: Blue Cheese Potato Chips… nothing raw about them.

After being unhappy with our appetizers, we decided not to bother with entrees. I was really sad, because I wanted to love this place. But from the service to the food, I was really disappointed. They have a 92% approval rating on Urbanspoon, which leads me to believe that maybe our experience wasn’t the norm. I’ll be willing to give it another shot sometime in the future, but I don’t think I’ll be ordering any of these appetizers again.

*Photo stolen from Yelp.

The Velo Fellow
1 Augusta St #126
Greenville, SC 29601
(864) 242-9296

2 Comments

Quote of the Week

Quote of the Week 6/10/13

June 10, 2013

This weekend was a soggy one–one rain storm right after another–which really put a damper on my plans to lounge by the pool all day. Despite the issues the rain caused, and my trip to the dentist’s office, this weekend was quite pleasant. I ate way too much, but I guess that’s not really out of the ordinary.

This week’s quote is from baseball player / manager Tommy Lasorda, and although it’s actually about baseball, I think it works just as well as a food quote.