Smalltown Favorite

This evening, for about the 4th time in 2 months, I had dinner with my family in a little, out-of-the-way joint named the Duncan Family Restaurant @ 159 West Main Street in Duncan, SC. It is an unimposing brick building sandwiched between the railroad tracks and the miniscule office of the local law. There are no huge crowds, the decor is simple, and everything is fresh.
Tonight's special, (one of 6 or 7), was a NY strip with 3 vegetables for $7.95. I chose the corn nuggets, ranch potatoes, and coleslaw. Having eaten here before, I know that the food is prepared by a chef who knows how to put his passion into his food and cares about creativity and quality. Someday, I will meet this man! Ah, but back to the food.... The food came out hot and fresh, and the first thing I bit into was a corn nugget. A not-too-thick layer of crispy crunchy tempura batter surrounded a warm, melty sweet corn center. The whole thing was about the size of a tater-tot, so they were perfect bite size. These cover both the southern fried craving and the sweet corn flavor--perfect!
Now, I am very picky about my coleslaw. I have had it sweet, sour, fruity, vinegary, too dry, sopping wet, you name it, but I have never had coleslaw like this! It had finely chopped bits of many shades of fresh green cabbage and ?, but best of all, it had fresh herbs. The flavor of the herbs took me quite by surprise, but a pleasant one! I have never had such a well-balanced coleslaw--not too sweet or sharp. To my as yet uneducated palate, the herb tasted like cilantro, but that is just a guess. Someday, I will be able to identify them all blindfolded. (It is good to have dreams, no?!) This is the coleslaw that all others aspire to be!
Now, I am not a fan of scalloped potatoes, but tonight I became a believer, hallelujah! I have never had such perfectly cooked scalloped potatoes, but beyond that were the succulent ingredients that made these potatoes drool-worthy. A ranch cream sauce bathed them in flavor, bacon chunks gave both texture and taste, and they were topped off by a blanket of gooey, melted cheddar cheese. Oh, my goodness, this is scallop de nirvana! If I were attempting these at home, I would add a package of the powdered ranch, as I believe it will mimic the flavor of this dish better than a watered-down liquid version. I will be sure to let you know if I can experiment successfully with it at home.
Now to the steak! I have mentioned before that I prefer well-done beef, so sometimes it is a gamble finding a chef with the finesse to coax out doneness without going over the edge to dry and rubbery. There was a good chew to the meat which was very successful here, and the sear was perfect, but the flavor was completely unexpected. This flavor could only come from the kitchen of a chef who loves herbs and can make them sing in any dish. I have never put such a bite into my mouth. My guess is that he marinated the meat first, but what set it apart was what I can only guess was an herb butter bath to finish it off instead of the usual salt and pepper nod to flavor. The result was juicy goodness! Stay tuned, as I intend to learn more from this chef as time progresses.
I would add that my 5-year-old, Ethan, proclaimed the generous baked spaghetti dish "the bestest spaghetti he had ever had"!
If you go for a visit, the scallops they serve on the seafood plate melt like butter in your mouth, and the pork chops are definitely worth looking into.
Overall, my favorite small town eatery. At least once during our meals, the children were entertained by the train whizzing by outside the window.
Price: $7.95
Flavor: fresh herbs rule!
Best Bet: You can't go wrong with the daily specials
See you there soon!

A Night In France

Tonight we went to Paris for a light repast of fruit and cheese. The streetlamps flickered on and glowed on cobblestone streets as a cool breeze blew down the Seine. The peaceful evening scene was broken only by the muted sounds of laughter and the clink of crystal and china. Shadow and light danced over the water as I waved at the Barefoot Contessa strolling over the bridge on Jeffrey's arm. I turned back to the pastry menu, trying to decide which delicate offering to succomb to....MOMMY!!!.....
O.K., so I wasn't really in Paris, I was at Whole Foods trying to collect the ingredients for a simple but satisfying supper. There is nothing better than sitting down to fresh fruit and a variety of cheese. Something about the meal slows you down for just a little while and says, "enjoy". Tonight's supper consisted of fresh strawberries, sweet pineapple, crunchy Gala apples, Pacific Rose apples, juicy cantaloupe, and perfect grapes. Don't waste your money on the Pacific Rose apples unless you like their neat rosy coloring. In my opinion, they are just glorified Red Delicious, and nothing to write home about. All of the other fruit "hit the spot". There is no comparison to fresh fruit in the spring.
I absolutely love going to a bountiful cheese counter and choosing new flavors and textures to try. You can never go wrong with a good brie. Tonight we tried the Brie Metropolitan 70%. All of the cheeses we tried tonight were cow's milk cheeses and the other offerings were: Cheddar Tintern with shallots and chives,Petit Asour, Robusto, Hirtenkase, Chimay Grand Cru, and Amadeus.
The cheddar Tintern I will buy again and use in a meat or pasta dish, as the flavor was very good, but strong. The Robust and Hirtenkase were harder cheeses with a much stronger flavor, and I really did not enjoy the Hirtenkase. The Petit Asour and Amadeus were very good choices for a cheese plate, but I doubt I will pick up the Chimay again, as the texture mirrored the brie, but I gleaned absolutely no flavor from it.
When you are in Whole Foods, pick up some dips or soup by Epiri Foods. The tzatziki dip was to die for, and the kids downed it with pita chips. The dips had been made that morning, and I have never had tzatziki so fresh--there is absolutely no other way to eat it! Mr. Epiri himself was serving samples also of his white bean soup, an absolutely delicious Latvian dish that has no gluten or several-other-nasty-things in it. Overall, we had a very fresh and satisfying meal, and one which I intend to repeat soon.
So what country shall we visit next week for dinner?

Welcome to my blog

Today, I enter the world of blogging with some trepidation. I am setting out on a long journey soon, and wanted a place to share my gastronomic point of view as I cross the country. I gingerly stuck my toe in the water this evening by making notes on the meal I shared tonight with my family. We ventured into Longhorn Steakhouse in Greenville, SC. Surprisingly, for a Friday night in our neck of the woods, we only had a 10-minute wait. Our waittress Melissa was very attentive and helpful. My strawberry limeade was a bit watered down, but the general flavor was good. I ordered the "new" crab stuffed filet with mixed vegetable and mashed potatoes. There was a good bit of speculation among us that the crab did not originate in a shell, as the texture was odd and the flavor quite fishy. The layer of spinach and the herb cream sauce were both good. There was a fabulous sear on the well-done filet, although I suspect the use of blackening seasonings, as the crust was surprisingly spicy though not unbearable. My filet was melt-in-your-mouth delicious and not at all dry as well-done beef can sometimes be. I will die of shock if I ever actually get a side of mixed vegetables that has not had all the life cooked out of it and lies soggy on my plate. There has to be a better way to hold vegetables over for service. The mashed potatoes had a good flavor, but the texture was a bit thick and "gluey". My guess is a mix of real and packaged potatoes.
Final Observations:
Price: 21.99
Entree: Fabulous filet, but tell them to leave the crab in the kitchen
Sides: Average
Service: Very good, although I can't help wondering if she thought I was a secret shopper as I madly scribbled notes between bites!
I will very likely return, as I am very much a meat and potatoes girl and love a good steak. That was the best I have had since I can't remember when. I plan to try the ribeye next time.
Always try something new!