Hattiesburg Food Blog

Two thumbs up for Darwell's Cafe

2011-06-26T11:00:00.000-07:00

This weekend Mrs. Food Blogger and I spend some time on the Gulf Coast and had the opportunity to take in a establishment that we have both been wanting to try for some time – Darwell's Cafe in Long Beach.

I am usually skeptical of joints that I see on the Food Network, with one exception – Dinners, Drive-ins and Dives, and even Guy Fieri's rave review of a certain Gulf Coast BBQ joint that will not be named had me scratching my head.

But, back to the focus of the review – Darwell's.

This is a fun, quirky, eclectic eatery provides a one of a kind dining experience on the Coast. Upon entering the front door you order at a counter. Behind the counter you can see directly into the kitchen where Chef Darwell Yaeger and his staff are hard at work. With the extensive menu on small signs all over the walls. That was my only complaint, I studied the small signs for a good 10 minutes and I still couldn't come close to telling you what all they serve.

They had a dry-erase with some nightly specials, being somewhat confused I just blurted out a special that sounded good.

I ordered the “Blackened Filet Tips with Lump Crab”, Mrs. FB ordered “Blackened Shirmp with Lumb Crab”. We also ordered a crab cake appetizer.

After placing you order you move to the beverage station where you order your drinks, and then decided where you want to sit. Darwell's features both indoor and outdoor dining,. Being it's June with temps pushing into the mid-90's we opted for indoor dinning.

After picking up our Coke Zero's at the beverage station we picked out a table in their back dinning room (it was about 15 degrees cooler than the front dinning area), started looking at the unique folk art and water-colors that adorned the walls. Most of the art is the work of Darwell's father – Papa D.
It wasn't long before our crab cakes arrived.

They served them with a nice hollendaise sauce and a vidalia onion dressing.

Upon cutting into the nicely portioned crab cake it was easy to tell that Chef Darwell's lump crab to bread-crumb ration was off the chart! These crab cakes were some of the best I've had, and I've long been known as someone who loves crabcakes. The hollendaise sauce was the perfect compliment, but if you prefer a sweeter taste the vidalia onion dressing was nice.

I'll be honest here, I probably ordered my blackened filet tips because of the confusing menu display, because as a rule I do not like “blackened dish” weather it be steak, redfish, or whatever. I think my general disdain for “blackened” dishes is because 90% of places don't know how to do it correctly.

Do not include Chef Darwell in that 90%, the blackened filet tips were exceptional! Filet tips grilled to near perfection. The tips were cooked medium with a perfect amount of blankening seasoning. They were served in a large shallow bowl, with slice of french bread in the middle of the bowl. The filet tips were served around and over the toasted slice. Then huge chunks of lump crab meat were played in the middle of the dish.

The crab itself was not blackened, just steamed, lightly seasoned and served atop the steak tips.

Having dinned at a large number of seafood restaurants over the years I think the lump crab was largest chunks of succulent crab I've been served.

Interestingly, the dish wasn't served with any sides, but that was the only complaint anyone could make.

The lump crab took on hints of the seasoning from the blackened filet tips, and the toast was a nice touch.

Mrs. FB was kind enough to exchange a few of her blackened shrimp for a few of my filet tips, and while the blackened shrimp had a touch more spice than the tops, they were also excellent. The shrimp were sauteed to perfection, with a rich full deep water taste. They were plated in the same manner as the tips with lump crab and french bread.

Several times while we were dinning Chef Darwell emerged from the kitchen to talk with patrons and to insure everyone's dinning experience was up to his high standards.

In all this was an outstanding dinning experience, we'll be back in the future to try some of their other Southern Coastal inspired dishes, and that doesn't even take into account huge smoker churning out BBQ with Papa D serving as pit-master.

The low light in the back dinning area wasn't good for photos, and they didn't come out, so sorry for no accompanying photos.

Darwell's Cafe gets two big thumbs up from the Food Blog Family!

Back from walk-about

2011-06-24T10:14:00.000-07:00

I'm sure we all remember that cinimatic master piece Crocidile Dundee when lead character Mick Dundee (Paul Hogan) would go walk-about.

Dundee would just basically be gone for extended periods of time and nobody would really know where he's been or why he's been gone or even that he was leaving. That pretty much explains my absense from the blog.

In reality life caught up from me.

I can't pledge that I am going to be back at full strength moving forward but I am going to try to get a couple of reviews up and maybe a new dish to try every month.

So in short, I'm back.....for better or worse.

Rio Grande - The Good and Very The Bad

2010-02-05T16:20:00.000-08:00

Took in a late lunch earlier in the week at Rio Grande near Turtle Creek Mall. It's one of the few Tex-Mex places around the area that I have not tried. The decor is pretty much Tijuana meets Pier One, but I found the dining area to be clean and well kept. The clientele was pretty much mall workers and soccer moms with kids in tow.

The chips and salsa were pretty bland honestly. The salsa was runny and not terribly flavorful.

Not wanting an overly heavy lunch I ordered two soft tacos and a tamale.

I asked that they to leave off the iceberg lettuce (which may be the worlds most worthless editable item) and tomato and replace them with pico de gallo.

When they arrived the soft shell tortillas were stuffed full of flavorful ground beef, white cheese and a better than expected pico de gallo. And while these won't compare to traditional tacos they were some of the better Tex-Mex tacos I've had in the area.

In retrospect, I should have stopped right there, but I didn't. I moved on to what may be the single worst tamale I have ever attempted to eat. I am not sure it could really be classified as a tamale as the masa de maíz to meat ratio was about 9/1 and it was almost totally flavorless. I won't even dignify that sorry excuse for a tamale with a photo.

The most disappointing part was when I mentioned to the server how dis-satisfied I was with the tamale he indicated that he really didn't care what I thought.

I won't be back...there are too many other Tex-Mex establishments in the area that want my business and would be interested in trying provide decent service.

Newk's Express impresses

2010-01-29T20:05:00.000-08:00

When a business associate invited me to meet him for lunch at Newk's Express Cafe this afternoon I had little to no intention of reviewing the establishment. Frequent readers know that I tend to avoid chain restaurants, and even a home-grown Mississippi based operation like Newk's usually is of little interest to me.

But, since he offered to put it on his expense account, how could I say no?

Newk's is the brainchild of Don Newcomb and his collaborators Debra Bryson and Chris Newcomb. They turned a converted gas station into a small deli in the heart of a college town in to one of the most successful regional chains around - McAllister's. They very well could be headed in that direction with Newk's.

Newk's has a hip, urban feel with a modern design and interior. The concept is visually appealing with a great layout and unique atmosphere.

I ordered the toasted Italian with a side of Tippah County Cavier and a sweet team. My associate ordered the sandwich and soup combo featuring a half toasted club sandwich with Lobster-crab Bisque.

When the server brought out our meal, honestly the portions looked small. A feature that I really like about Newk's is the condiment bar which isn't your standard ketchup, may and mustard. It features anything from premium pickles, capers, pickled garlic cloves, peppers, and a variety of sauces and more traditional condiments.

I helped myself to a small cup of the pickled garlic and capers, thinking they would go well with the "Tippah Co. Cavier".

I started with the Italian sandwich, and I'll say it was good, really good. It features capicola, mortadella, pepperoni, salami, and provolone. And while that would provide more than enough for a solid sandwich experience it was fully dressed with mayo, spicy mustard, tomato, onions, pickled cherry peppers and a signature Italian sauce.

I think you would be hard pressed to find a better sandwich from any chain, on 10 scale this was an 8.5. The bread was good, not great and it was pretty small as far as deli sandwiches go, but it certainly wasn't small on flavor!

The Tippah County Cavier is really just a spicy black-eyed pea salad served cold. It was a pretty good cold side, but when you add a few capers and the pickled garlic it came together nicely.

My associate reported that his club sandwich was good.

The only disappointment in the meal was the Lobster-crab bisque. It just wasn't good, no real way to sugar coat it. He took two bites and set it aside, I didn't believe him and had to at least taste it....I didn't make it to the second bite.

It had an odd orange color and had an over powering fishy taste, apparent that a low quality imitation crab had been used.

In all this was a very positive dining experience, and while I probably won't become a regular at Newk's I certainly have a better understanding of why they've built a loyal following in Hattiesburg.

The Magic Tomato - Round II

2010-01-08T15:28:00.000-08:00

A few months ago I reviewed The Magic Tomato. During that review our meal was ravaged by entree envy after seeing Chicago style deep dish pizzas brought to the table next to ours. I vowed that I would return to try them and I have...

Mrs. Food Blogger and I decided that we both wanted to try the deep dish pizza and one of their pasta dishes that seem to be popular with their patrons.

We ordered the Baked Mostaccoilli which is a penne pasta with meat sauce, provolone and parmesan cheeses baked and served in a huge bowl. This is very much like a baked pasta dish Mrs. FB makes at home, it was very nice and if you're looking for a change from a lasagna or spaghetti this would be a solid choice.

But, we were on a mission, at least I was, to get a taste of those amazing pizza pies that I could only covet from afar our last visit.

For our Chicago Style deep dish pizza we ordered "the Sicilian" which is a perfect selection for your carnivorous side. This specialty pizza salami, pepperoni, thick slicked ham, chunks of bacon with mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

The 8" round pizza came to the table piping hot and it must have been close to three inches deep. It had to weigh close to 2-pounds.

When I served slices to myself and Mrs. FB, the aroma of the fresh meats, the herbs in the sauce game wafting out of the pizza.

I admittedly came in with very high expectations after thinking about it for nearly five months, and it didn't disappoint. The Chicago Style Deep Dish was excellent, you usually can't find an authentic Chicago Style pizza in the South and especially not in a smaller city, but The Magic Tomato is hitting it out of the park.

They serve a good New York Style Pizza, but the Chicago Style Deep Dish steals the show. Enjoying it on a cold January night may have made it even better.

Lookout 49 - Gulfport

2010-01-02T07:09:00.000-08:00

Over the New Year's Holiday the wife and I dined at Lookout 49 in Gulfport. We began enjoying the Lookout while it was still in Long Beach harbor and have continue to drop by on occasion while traveling to the Gulf Coast.

Lookout 49 serves fresh caught Gulf seafood and the menu changes with the season and what's available throughout the year.

While we've enjoyed some visits more than others I can't remember being disappointed on any occasion that we've dined there. This visit the experience was exceptional.

We began our meal with seafood stuffing cakes, pretty much crab cakes with both crab and shrimp. They were prepared nice, fried golden and served with a tangy ramoulade sauce. They were good, could have been fried just a bit longer, but in all they were well received.

Side salads for the entrees were good, they were a fresh mix of spring greens and baby spinach. Fresh house made croutons and dressings highlighted the salads. I enjoyed a very nice bleu cheese and my wife had the ranch dressing, both house made and very nice.

I ordered the "Catch of the Day", on this occasion it was speckled trout filet served on a bed of rice with a creamy Lyonnaise sauce with chopped bacon, shrimp, sun dried tomato and basil. A side of steamed, mixed vegetables were served - green beans, parsnip, and broccoli.

This was the largest speckled trout fillet that I've ever been served in a restaurant, and it was fried to golden brown perfection. You can tell that it was cooked at a high enough temperature that it left the crusting crisp while leaving the fish tender, flaky and moist. The Lyonnaise sauce was creamy with ample amounts of shrimp and large pieces of bacon, the sun dried tomatoes were a nice compliment to the sauce and the basil married all the flavors together. This was one of the better seafood dishes I've had in a very long time, it was simply exceptional.

My wife ordered the Grilled Stuffed Amberjack. A nice Amberjack steak served over a bed of fresh greens. It was topped with a grilled seafood cake much like our appetizer dish. It was served with the same side of steamed vegetables as the catch of the day.

The texture and flavor of the Amberjack was very good and the grilled seafood cake was a nice compliment. Adding a fresh squeeze of lemon to the jack steak and a bit of the ramoulade to the seafood cake accented the dish well.

The service was very good from the polite hostess to the attentive servers, I would be hard pressed to come up with a negative about this dining experience, so I won't even try.

Windham's Restaurant in Magee

2009-12-23T10:07:00.000-08:00

Over the years while having conversations about great hamburgers with friends almost always someone will bring up the world famous Zip Burger. Ok, maybe it's not world famous but if you know someone from Simpson County, Mississippi, chances are that they've told you about the Zip Burger.

Served only at Windham's Restaurant in Magee, Miss. I think I first heard about this local legend while in college, and then it's popped up in conversations throughout the years. Recently I made time to stop in Magee to try this much talked about meat and bread.

Each Zip Burger is hand pressed by the kitchen staff so no two patties are exactly alike, but they're nice. I would guestimate about half a pound cooked on a classic flat top grill to medium well. Served on a straight no frills large bun with lettuce, tomato, onions and Zip Sauce.

Now I can't be certain what all is in the zip sauce, and I am sure they're not going to tell anyone, but it's good. A taste similar to thousand island dressing with a smooth creamy texture without any of the relish or onion bits.

This is a good burger, a really good burger. I won't go so far as to say it's the best burger I've had, but it'll rank up there close to the top when discussions of where to get a great burger comes up again.

Another local twist is the hand-cut battered home fries. It's basically just what it sounds, some hand cut home fries dipped in a flour and seasoning batter and deep fried. They do give you a large cup of the Zip Sauce for dipping with your fries, and you could probably eat just about anything with enough Zips Sauce on it.

A pet peeve of mine is some restaurants not having the firers turned up hot enough and the fries turning out a bit too soft, I think Windham's was guilty of that on my visit. I really liked the concept of the battered home fries, but they just missed the mark.

Overall, this was a great experience. A true small, mom and pop type of place that was the norm for having lunch anywhere in Mississippi until the mid-80's and the explosion of chain establishments from the gulf coast to the delta.

If you're driving through Magee between Hattiesburg and Jackson, Windam's is worth a stop, and my guess is you'll probably try it again.

Pericos Mexican Grill in Wiggins

2009-12-03T19:19:00.001-08:00

Traveling around South Mississippi you come across all sorts of intersting places to eat. Today I was passing through Wiggins and decided to find somewhere to take in a late lunch. I stopped in at the new location of Perico's Mexican Grill. The lunch crowd was thinning out and they were not terribly busy.

They have an extensive menue of Tex-Mex and a few more traditional Mexican items on the menu. I saw a dish that you don't see too often in establishments around South Mississippi - Huevos con chorizo.

It's traditional dish that is pretty simple and straight forward eggs and chorizo (Mexican/Spanish sausage) scrambled together and served with re-fried beans and Spanish rice.

My server brought out the obligatory chips and salsa, the salsa was about average and the chips were good and fresh.

In addition to the huevos con chorizo, I ordered a tamale. The tamale was better than average and the chili sauce served over it was a nice compliment and quite good.

There was a wait for the main course, but that's fine. Lets me know that weren't just taking it out of a box and putting into a microwave.

The texture and flavor of the Huevos and chorizo was very good, it was a more traditional Spanish (hard) style chorizo than what you find in most grocery stories in the States.

The beans and rice were good, not great. But the heuvos con chorizo was much better than I expected, you never really know what you're going to get at a small town place, but I would recommend Pericos'.

Divine Swine BBQ

2009-12-01T07:51:00.001-08:00

There are a number of good barbecue places in Hattiesburg, moreso than you would generally expect for a town this size. Another interesting aspect of barbecue in the Hub City is that there are influences from just about every regional variation.

I could do an entire series of blog posts on how under appreciated Mississippi barbecue really is on a regional and national level.

For lunch I stopped in at one of my favorites Divine Swine BBQ. Located on Hardy Street just off the USM campus, is consider by more than a few to be Hattiesburg's best barbecue. Divine Swine shares it's store front with the Jr. Food Mart and it's easy to miss if you're not paying attention.

I've pretty much sampled everything on their menu and haven't found much of anything that I don't consider to be quality. Today I ordered the large rib plate. It consists of six large smoked pork ribs with two sides, I selected baked beans and mac & cheese. The plate comes with a roll and a side of their signature sauce.

Divine swine blends two different styles of barbecue into a taste that is pretty unique. They begin with a Memphis style dry rub of herbs and spices that crust the outside of the meats when they're being smoked out back on the big smoker that's fed with pecan and hickory. They serve pork ribs, pulled pork, beef brisket and chicken at Divine Swine covering pretty much every regional favorite as far as the meats go...All of them get a nice coating of the dry rub before going into the smoker.

The second part is an Eastern Carolina style dipping sauce with a Southern drawl. I don't believe there is any tomato in the sauce at all. They guard their recipe but it seems to be a vinegar based sauce that starts out sweet and finishes with a spicy kick. It's sweeter than a traditional Eastern Carolina sauce, which is why I say it has a Southern drawl. It's got to have a sweetener like honey blended with spices including an ample amount of red pepper flakes that you can see in the sauce.

The ribs I had today were nice sized pork ribs, fall off the bone tender and the dry rub was crusted perfectly bringing out the flavor of the meat. The dipping sauce was a perfect compliment to the dry rub and they blend together for a unique barbecue experience.

The sides were fresh and hot, the mac & cheese is a house made favorite that will bring back a lot of memories, but you didn't get mac & cheese like this out of a box when you were a kid. The beans are better than average.

The dining area is pretty simple a few gold picnic tables, some USM posters on the walls and one TV usually turned to a ball game. It's simple and clean. They could use more parking but, being land locked as they are I suppose they're doing the best they can with that.

In the end the unique blend of the Memphis dry rub with the Eastern Carolina style sauce is just about barbecue perfection for me. Divine Swine is my pick for the Best Barbecue in Hattiesburg, and that's saying a lot because the Hub City is a Barbecue Town and there's a number of really good barbecue joints here.

Online Coupons for Divine Swine

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Jaybird's Stone Fired Pizza

2009-11-29T19:41:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend the wife and I ventured into the commercial sprawl to find a Christmas Tree. We had some luck and found a nice Douglas Fir for a very nice price. On the way home we began a discussion on where to dine. I brought up an establishment that I've not had in some time – Jaybird's Stone Fired Pizza. She agreed and the debate didn't rage into something that would rival the Scopes Monkey Trial.

Just across Hardy Street from the main entrance to the Southern Miss campus and in the same strip mall as an independent coffee shop it's to be expected that they serve an eclectic mix of college students, young professionals, old hippies and families. On our visit all of the above were represented.

Jaybird's offers a traditional hand tossed and a New York style thin crust in personal (7”), medium (12”) and large (14”). They have a number of specialty combination and a large selection of toppings to make your own. You can also have any of the specialty pizzas made into a calzone.

We decided on a large Greek pizza. The pizza is topped with beef sausage, sun-dried tomatoes, red onions, black olives and three cheeses including feta.

The wait for the pie was pretty short and the dining area is simple, clean and well lit with a serve yourself beverage bar.

When they brought out our pizza the aroma was wonderful! The pizza was hot and baked to near perfection.

Upon first taste I could tell the ingredients were high quality, fresh and in good proportions. The beef sausage was flavorful, the texture of the sun dried tomatoes and red onion was the perfect compliment to the creamy cheeses. The black olives and feta tied the entire dish together. My wife is usually not a fan of black olives but, she even agreed that the combination of flavors was very nice.

Regretfully we don't have any photos for this entry either, we had decided on an unplugged weekend and left the cell phones at home. I highly recommend trying that from time to time.

Good pizza has come a long way in Hattiesburg in the last few years and Jaybird's has played a major part in bringing real hand made, stone oven pizza to the Pine Belt.

Eating Big and Spending Small

2009-11-27T06:29:00.000-08:00

If you've read this blog for very long you know that I love to save money. When dining out in South Mississippi it's easy to eat big and spend small if you're willing to take a little time and do some research.

By now pretty much everyone knows about WDAM-TV's Half-Off Thursday's, where they feature a local eatery almost every Thursday and provide an avenue for readers of their website to purchase $50 in gift certificates to local restaurants for only $25.

Over the past couple of months they've featured Brownstone's, Dickey's Barbecue, El Taco Loco, Wagon Wheel Steakhouse and more. Each Thursday that they offer a new deal they put up between 75 and 150 certificates and it's a first come, first serve, you can buy up to 5 (five), and they usually go fast. Sometimes they sell out within minutes.

The next offering they have is $50 in certificates for Walnut Circle Grill for $25, those will go on sale on Thursday Dec 3rd at 8:00 AM, expect them to go fast. They currently have $50 in certificates to Miki's in Laurel for $16.50.

I've recently come across a very similar offer made by several local radio stations including 103.7 The Fox. They call their promotion Discount Deals and it's not related solely to restaurant gift certificates. It's pretty much the same deal, you purchase $50 worth of gift certificates for $25, but the number of certificates offered is a lot more limited, between 30 and 50 for each promotion. That's ok, because not nearly as many people seem to know about this promotion and it usually takes a couple of days for them to sell out.

Discount Deals also features a good selection of local eateries with recent offerings from - La Fiesta Brava, The Magic Tomato and Plaid Rhino. They currently have limited certificates left for past offerings - Magic Tomato, Plaid Rhino and La Fiesta Brava (Laurel location). Their next new offering will begin on Wednesday, Dec. 2nd at 8:00 AM.

Links to these two promotions can be found on the left hand side of the blog. I wanted to give links to a couple of deals that I have found around South Mississippi, that are not permanent links.

Coast Cuisine from WLOX - Is basically the same promotion as WDAM's Half off Thursday's.

Dealz on Mealz from Coast Radio Group - Another similar program to those above. Deals starting from $12.50 on $25 certificates.

By taking advantage of these deals you can eat out in South Mississippi on a regular basis, at a variety of restaurants and save a lot of money!

Mediterraneo's in Ocean Springs

2009-11-22T08:04:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend my wife and I dined at Mediterraneo's in Ocean Springs. They serve a fusion of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisine in a cozy bistro setting on Government Street in the downtown.

This being our first time to dine at Mediterraneo's we decided to take advantage of their tapas menu and order and share several different items. Now the lighting and setting of this small eatery doesn't work well for photography so I am not able to include photos of the items, so I'll do my best to describe them.

We ordered four items from the tapas menu – Hummus, Spanakopita, Seared Scallops and Spanish Shrimp.

While waiting for the tapas plates to arrive we were served a small loaf of artisan style olive bread with an olive oil and balsamic with garlic and spices for dipping. The olive bread was quite good with an excellent texture and was nice and warm when it got to the table.

The hummus was served chilled with pita wedges and a little olive oil. The hummus was good, it was not quite as good as I was expecting but was better than what you can expect from most chain restaurants.

The Spanakopita was exceptional, the phylo crust was near perfect with generous portions of spinach and the feta cheese was very high quality. Served piping hot from the kitchen garnished nicely on the plate the presentation simple and elegant.

The seared scallops were also excellent! Far too often when ordering scallops they come rubbery and almost inedible. These seared scallops were cooked very well and the seasoning complimented the dish without being over powering. They were served on a bed shredded cabbage and avocado with a cilantro infused mayo. The avocado was a perfect compliment to the scallops.

The highlight of the meal may have been the Spanish Shrimp. Fresh white shrimp sauteed in an infusion of garlic, Cointreau (orange liquor), olive oil and lemon with crushed red peppers. The contract of sweet and spicy was a fantastic combination and brought out the clean deep water flavor of the white shrimp. Slices of toasted baguette were served with the shrimp for dipping in the saute.

We finished the meal by sharing a baklava dessert. Again the phylo crust was well made and the filling was very nice. Unlike some places they didn't try to drown the baklava with honey and it was served with a caramel sauce that complimented the desert very well.

In all this was one of the more enjoyable dining experiences that we've had in quite some time. Mediterraneos is an elegant but not pretentious bistro where you won't feel out of place in jeans and a polo. The service was good and our server was attentive. The presentation of each dish was well received. A classical guitarist playing and it set the mood for a romantic dinner.

One of the best parts of the entire evening is that because of the tapas menu we were able to sample a variety of items and have desert for about $40.00 including tip.

The Depot Deli

2009-11-16T08:27:00.000-08:00

Work takes me all over South Mississippi and recently I was in Beaumont. There's not many choices when you find yourself in Beaumont for lunch, so I headed to The Depot Deli. I've been before and the first time it was a pleasant surprise.

With the weather turning a little cooler I wanted a hot meal and they had just the ticket. A hot, open-faced roast beef sandwich with a cup of house made vegetable soup.
The soup was hot and the veggies were fresh, it had that home made taste with the carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, green beans, ect.

About the time I was finishing up the soup my sandwich arrived, steaming from the hot gravy. The sandwich was served on a toasted baguette, with two cheese, the a generous portion of thick sliced roast beef, brown gravy and chopped green onions.

Yeah it was just as messy as it looks, no chance of picking this thing up it was a knife and fork all the way. This was down home sloppy, delicious goodness on a plate. The gravy complimented the beef, the melted cheeses added to the creamy texture and the onions contrasted that with a crispy crunch.

It was served with a side of potato salad, which was average, probably a Sysco product, but not bad.

Next time, I find myself in Beaumont for lunch, I'll be back at the Depot Deli. Well, it's not like I have much choice, but I certainly won't be there begrudgingly.

The Wagon Wheel Steakhouse

2009-11-11T06:58:00.000-08:00

For some time I had been wanting to try the Wagon Wheel Steakhouse just east of Petal on Hwy 42. Over the weekend the wife and I went there for dinner. I had fairly high expectations going in because of some good reviews that I have read and from talking with friends that have been there.

When we arrived the parking lot was pretty full, but we didn't have to wait long to be seated. Our hostess and server were polite even if they were a bit over-worked that night.

The decor was kind of what you would expect from a steakhouse, western motif, but they may be trying a little two hard. But, it was clean, well kept and inviting.

We began our meal with an order of onion rings, they were pretty much run of the mill pre-cut, pre-battered rings and were honestly over cooked.

For the entrees we both decided on the 12 oz. New York Strip cooked medium, house salads and loaded baked potatoes.

The salads were pretty standard steakhouse fair, my bleu cheese dressing was good, I am sure not house made, but good quality. They do seem to house make their curtons which is a nice touch. The yeast rolls were nothing to write home about, but they were not bad.

When the steaks arrived, I was impressed, my strip certainly looked to be larger than the advertised 12 oz. They were still sizzling when they got to the table. My steak was a bit on the rare side of medium, but the flavor was great, no steak sauce wanted or needed. They were seared with a Chicago style dry seasoning, a perfect compliment to the steaks. My cut was very good, my wife's cut was not the same quality as the one I was served, but it was still a nice cut.

The loaded baked potatoes were good, nice portion and not over baked.

The Wagon Wheel has not been in business that long, and I am sure they will only get better in time. The Wagon Wheel is a good value and very good steaks, if they can improve their sides to a quality anywhere close to their steaks they will hit a home run every time.

Lunch at Oishi Japanese

2009-10-29T13:43:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week I received a call from a friend inviting me to lunch. Seems he had a few bucks left on his monthly expense account, usually when I meet up with someone for lunch I'm the one paying so this was refreshing. He suggested Oishi Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi, having never dined there, I was looking forward. When I arrived the parking lot was absolutely packed.

The decor of Oishi was nicer than I had expected with a large sushi bar, nice sized dining areas with hibachi grills and lots of seating. He had decided on a booth which was fine with me, not being in the mood for a hibachi show.

He had ordered fresh steamed edamame. I must say they were quite good - fresh, flavorful and very crisp.

Browsing the lunch menu, I decided on the Teriyaki Chicken lunch, in addition to the chicken and fried rice the lunch also had two nigirl-zushi (one shirmp and one crab) rolls and a four piece maki-zushi California roll. Fresh oranges, ginger and wasabi garnished the lunch.

This lunch was good, it wasn't spectacular, but I don't have a single negative to say about the plate. The texture of the fried rice was good, the sushi was fresh and the chicken was good.

We also decided to order some of their specialty rolls. We ordered a crawfish roll, a super crunch roll and and spicy tuna roll.

These rolls were good, better than average, they were good enough that I'll take Mrs. Food Blogger back sometimes soon.

They were fresh, the ingredients we quality. They were served at appropriate temperature, meaning that the hot rolls were just that hot and the cold rolls were that cold.

I honestly didn't come in with high expectations, but even if I had I don't think I would have come away disappointed. I would recommend Oishi for lunch and look forward to going back to try their dinner menu.

Lots of Plaid, good burgers

2009-10-23T18:27:00.000-07:00

Today a business associate suggested that we meet for a late lunch at the Plaid Rhino. Despite having heard some good things about this establishment I had not been before and honestly had some reservations. I kept having flashes of a traumatic experience with a Chucky Cheese's a few years ago...But, I reluctantly agreed.

I'll be honest the decor and dining area was much nicer than I thought that it would be. They do have a gaming area with arcade games, but it's pretty well separated from the main dining area. Nothing like a Chucky Cheese experience, that's a big positive!

We started with an order of chips and salsa, nothing special about the chips, but the salsa was good. It was a chunky house made salsa with fresh tomatoes, onions, chilies, cilantro and lime juice.

This place is known for their burgers, so there's no way I was getting anything else. They have a number of specialty burgers, but one thing I like is that they offer a standard hamburger bun, a wheat bun or a sourdough roll.

The Plaid Rhino is one of the few places in town that grinds their own hamburger meat daily. I decided on one of the signature burgers the Savannah Sunset Burger on a the sourdough roll. It's a half pound patty cooked to order (med-well), with lettuce, tomato, pickles, pepper jack cheese and the kicker - a sunny side up fried egg tops everything off. I asked them to hold the tomato and put a couple of slices of bacon on my burger. I had skipped breakfast so it was lunch and breakfast all rolled into one artery clogging goodness.

This burger isn't all for show, it's a really good burger... It's just as messy as it looks and isn't that pretty much how a good burger should be?

It was served with a side of seasoned fries, nothing special, but they were crispy.

Over all I was really impressed with the Plaid Rhino, it may be partly because I didn't have any expectations before arriving.

I think we may have a new contender for the 'Burg's Best Burger.

Low and Slow Pork Tenderloin in Herbs

2009-10-19T17:25:00.000-07:00

With apologies to my blogging friends at the Cynical Cook and Eat Twin Forks. I am far to messy in the kitchen to photo document my culinary misadventures. But, every once in a while I get something right and that's what happen with this evenings experiment.

Low and Slow Pork Tenderloin in Herbs:

INGREDIENTS:

3/4c - red wine vinegar

1/4 - stick of butter

2 - teaspoons of seasoned salt

1 1/2 - teaspoons of dried thyme

1 1/2 - teaspoons of dried oregano

1 1/2 - teaspoons of garlic powder

1/4 - teaspoon of black or white pepper

2 - boneless pork tenderloins

DIRECTIONS:

1 - In a medium sauce pan combine the red wine vinegar, butter, and herbs. Bring to a rolling boil and simmer for 3 minutes.

2 - Light brush the bottom of a slow cooker (Crock Pot) with olive oil. Place tenderloins in crock pot on high. Pour simmering herb mixture over the tenderloins and allow to cook for two hours or until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F.

3 - Remove pork loins from crock pot wrapping in alumium foil and let rest for 10 minutes.

4 - Unwrap and lightly seer on a grill for about 5 min per side.

This produces a tender, flavorful pork loin that is far from the run of the mill. Slow cooking in the vinegar and herbs infuse the loins with the flavor of the herbs and naturally lock in moisture. Despite what you may think, the loin will not have a strong vinegar flavor, but will take on the flavor of the herbs.

Pockets Diner - Lucedale

2009-10-06T06:14:00.000-07:00

There's something comforting about the familiar sizzle of a flat-top grill. At Pockets Diner in Lucedale that put the old flat-top to good use.

My "real" job takes me all across the state and on Monday I was in Lucedale for business. After my appointments it was getting pretty late so I stopped in at this little road-side eatery. Pretty simple looking from the road, no fancy signs just a cedar and white siding building with a with sign that said - Pockets Diner.

It was about 2:00 PM and and I was the only customer in the place, I was instructed to "sit anywhere" when I walked in. I picked out a table pretty close to the door, you never know when you'll need to make a fast exit in unfamiliar surroundings.

The server was very nice. After scanning the menu, which included breakfast served all day, I settled on a diner favorite. I ordered the chili cheese burger and a side order of hash browns. I asked that some of the chili be served over my order of hash browns.

There wasn't really much deconstructing of this burger, because it was a messy one. The entire meal was cooked on the flat top from the slight browner than I would have liked hash browns to the hand pressed hamburger patty to warming of the bun itself which has soaked up a little of the clarified butter that keeps the flat top sizzling.

The burger was a diner classic - hot, juicy and full of flavor. From the butter soaked into the bun to the fresh beef to the meaty chili. I can't be sure that the chili was house made, it was good chili not great chili.

The has browns were good with the chili as well.

When I got up from the table I was feeling pretty good about my meal and Pockets and was considering putting them on my list of semi-regular stops.

When I got the register things went down hill. The waitress gave me the total and I gave her my debit card to swipe.

When I got the key pad to enter my PIN, I noticed that the total was $2 higher than what I had been told. That was when I was shown a very small sign by the register that can easily be over looked that there is a $2 per transaction sur-charger on using a credit/debit card. I seldom carry any cash so I was pretty much out of luck at this point. I was assertive but not rude when I expressed my disbelief and displeasure on having to pay the fee.

The food is pretty good at Pockets and the people are nice enough but I can't advise anyone to go there unless you have cash.

McElroy's On the Bayou

2009-09-27T18:33:00.000-07:00

On Sunday afternoon Mrs. Food Blogger and I made one of our semi-frequent excursions to the Gulf Coast. I had taken the time to pick out three Ocean Springs eateries that I have been wanting to try. Sadly when we arrived we found that all three close around 3:00 PM on Sundays. Mrs. Food Blogger suggested McElroy's on the Bayou.

I grew up eating at McElroy's in Biloxi, and had not tried the post Katrina McElroy's on the Bayou. After I was forced to accept the fact that we were not going to be eating Mediterranean/Middle Eastern because all three places that serve that cusine in town were closed, I sort of began to want a good po-boy.

Upon entering we were greeted by a very nice receptionist who handed us off to a seating hostess who took us to the table and introduced our server. We were given menus immediately and our drink orders were taken. After a few minutes she returned to ask if we were interested in an appetizer.

We ordered fried crab claws. They were out and served in a reasonable amount of time. They crab claws were lightly breaded and seasoned. They could have used a little more seasoning, but they were not overly salty like you find at some places. They were served with tarter sauce and cocktail sauce. We thought that they would have been complimented well by a nice remoulade sauce.

By this time we had both decided on po-boys. The wife ordered her standard the fried shrimp po-boy, while I fought back an initial urge to order the soft shell crab and ordered a half/half on shrimp and oyster (pictured).

The po-boys were served with fries, they were not hand cut, they were standard processed fries. The positive was that they seem to fry all their seafood and fries in very hot oil and the food has very good texture.

As I deconstructed my po-boy I found ample amounts of seafood on both halves. The shirmp could have been fried a couple minutes more and could have used a bit more seasoning in the breading. They were good, a bit above average but not great. The oysters were well above average, good flavor (fresh), good texture and a good amount.

The food overall was respectable, but not outstanding. The atmosphere was a bit unusual, nothing like the McElroy's in Biloxi that I grew up with, but the people were to notch. Kind of felt oddly Shoney's-ish. Kind of just cookie cutter in the tables, chairs, drab wall art. The view out the back deck over Bayou Fort is beautiful, but they didn't have table service set up outside.

The service we received was top notch. Everyone we talked with was a cut well above average from the receptionist, to the servers to the chef, they made it into a very nice dining experience.

Lunch at Cafe Ma'me

2009-09-21T13:14:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I found myself meeting a prospective business partner in Oak Grove for lunch. He suggested a recently opened eatery near his office - Cafe Ma'me. I was pretty excited about the prospects of trying out this newly opened boutique cafe. I had heard good things about it from our friends at myHattiesburg.com, so I was looking forward to trying it myself.

From what I can tell this is an extension of D. Morgan Catering, with a modest dinning area sharing the kitchen with the catering company. The setting is cozy, about half a dozen mismatched tables in an intimate setting.

Cafe Ma'me bills itself as "true French with Creole and Cajun influences".

I enjoy Cajun/Creole cuisine, Mrs. Food Blogger's family traces roots from the Mississippi Gulf Coast to New Orleans (Old Metry as they call it) and back to France. So, she quite frankly spoils me with some of the best Cajun/Creole you can find anywhere.

Cafe Me'me is open Monday-Friday from 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM, and serve a limited menu. Today the lunch special was a "Creole smothered steak with mashed potatoes and English peas".

The Lunch special was served with a small pone of cornbread. The cornbread was pretty good, it was sweetened and that's just a pet peeve of mine, I don't like sweet cornbread. I grew up eating a more coarse ground savory cornbread and that's just the way I prefer it. If you like sweet cornbread, you'll probably really like this as it was served piping hot with fresh spread.

The smother steak and mashed potatoes were well above average. I'll go so far as to say one of the better "home style" lunch plates I've had in some time. The steak was not a chopped or cubed steak. It had the texture of a thickly sliced roast beef cutlet that was "cut with a fork" tender. It was smothered in a creole flavored brown gravy that was quite nice. Now when I say it was a Creole gravy don't think spicy. Authentic Creole cooking is not about the heat it's about flavor. And the flavor always starts with onions, bell pepper and celery, and they blended together in this brown gravy to near perfection.

The mashed potatoes were home made, not out of a box. They were creamy with that unmistakable texture of real mashed potatoes. The Creole gravy on these home made mashed potatoes was just excellent The English peas were good but not to my taste, these peas were sweeter, they had to have added maybe some creme fresh or maybe butter and sugar. They were not bad, but this is another item that I tend to prefer savory over sweet.

To finish the meal the offered s complimentary bread pudding desert. Again you can tell that this was home made and not out of a box. I was pleased to taste hints of not only the traditional cinnamon, but also nutmeg. A light fresh creme sauce was served over the bread pudding, could have used a bit more of the sauce but in all a very nice desert.

The red beans and rice looked and smelled wonderful, but I didn't get to try them, I'll check that out the next time I am out that way.

Weekly Specials - 9/21 - 9-25, 2009

Gold Post Sandwich House

2009-09-16T20:01:00.000-07:00

A Hattiesburg institution for more than 40 years - The Gold Post Sandwich House. This is my father's favorite, always has been, for as long as I can remember anyway. My first po-boy came from the Gold Post, and it was a shrimp po-boy, because that's my dad's favorite po-boy. Looking back I may have been 12 or 14 years old before I knew that you could get anything besides shrimp between a split baguette.

I visited the Gold Post for the first time in years this week. I can say this, there's something for consistency, because it was just exactly like I remembered it, I'm not sure that it's changed one bit since the early 80's when I would go there with my dad.

Stepping to the counter the menu was a lot more extensive than I remembered. I was sort of bummed out that I didn't go on one of the days (M-W-F) where they have their house made gumbo. On, Tuesdays and Thursdays they have a house made veggie soup which I hear is also good. I had my heart set on gumbo.

I ordered a shrimp po-boy and order of onion rings and a diet coke. That's what my dad would have ordered had he been there with me. I didn't remember it being quite this expensive, the lunch setting me back almost $11.

After a short wait my number was called and I stepped to the counter and back in time 20 years. There it was, one of my dad's favorites. The classic Gold Post shrimp po-boy.

I found a table, and deconstructed my po-boy. The Gold Post may have the best bread of any sandwich joint in town, so it's good, real good. The shrimp were like I remembered but different than most shrimp po-boys. The shirmp were not individually breaded and fried, there were kind of clusters of 2-4 shirmp that were breaded and fried together into little mini-ship patties? It's really quite unique. They also fry them darker than the golden brown you would probably expect.
The same onion rings from my youth, I didn't really like them all that much then and I still don't. These aren't house made rings, they're mass produced and are not ringlets of sliced onions. They were pretty much processed onions formed into rings coated in batter and fried. Fried is always good....right? Well, not so much with these rings.

The dressed po-boy was good, not as good as in my memory, but good. The remoulade sauce that they serve on their seafood po-boys is good, flavorful, but not what I consider spicy...so I added some Tabasco sauce.

While I sat in the Naugahyde booth with the wood grain Formica table top and ate my sandwich, I noticed something. The people I watched people walk in and out who have been coming to this Hardy Street Icon for not years but decades.

My mind kept wondering back to those first po-boys with my dad. I became a dad for the first time not that long ago. I hope that in a few years my own son can look back with some memories like the ones that I relived over a decently good, somewhat over priced, shrimp po-boy in a little sandwich shop that I really hadn't even thought about in years.

Maybe it wasn't really a po-boy, maybe it was a time machine.

The Magic Tomato Eclectic Eatery

2009-08-30T07:27:00.000-07:00

This weekend the wife and I were shopping (as much as I hate that) on the western fringes of the Hub City. When it became time for dinner we began to talk about different places. This can be a challenge for us, because we both have very strong opinions on what we want and where we want to go. After a vigorous discussion that could have rivaled some of the great debates of the 20th century, we decided to go somewhere that neither of had ever been before - The Magic Tomato.

This cozy, eatery is nestled quiet unassumingly in a strip mall located right in front of Oak Grove High on Old Highway 11. You notice two things when you open the door, first the scent of italian herbs coming from the kitchen and the terracotta colored walls, that are more warm and inviting than it probably sounds. Like I said it's cozy, a dozen tables at most. It has the feel of a European bistro or cafe.

After perusing the menu we settled on the Cancun Quesadini and a 14" New York Style Sicilian pizza.

Lets start with the Cancun Quesadini, I suppose this is Italian-Tex-Mex fusion. I think that once upon a time an apprentice pizza chef went to Mexico on spring break, had too much tequila and when he woke up slumped over on a table this is what he found in front of him...

It's thin rolled pizza dough full of peppers, onions, garlic, three kinds of cheeses, and seasoned chicken folded and grilled. They served it with a chipotle sour cream that was very nice. This was an ok experiment, not sure that it'll catch on and you'll see it at other Italian places. Not sure that I would order it again, but I don't have any negatives.

A few minutes later our server brought out our pizza, we ordered the Sicilian, which is a carnivore's dream. A thin crust New York style pizza with a very good marinara sauce, but the meats - Salami, peperoni, bacon, thick sliced ham we all fresh and flavorful. It had two different cheeses.

This was a good pizza, I was very happy with my order until...the server brought out Chicago style deep dish pizzas to the table next to ours. Before they could even dig into these three inch thick pie-sized pizza creations entree envy had set in with a vengeance.

I enjoyed the rest of our meal, but I couldn't help thinking that man, I should have gotten that, and you know I will, Oh, I will....Magic Tomato I'm coming back...

A & B Discount Grocery and Chinese Take-out

2009-08-25T17:49:00.000-07:00

Today I picked-up take-out from one of Hattiesburg's most unique establishments A & B Discount Chinese Take-out. A combination of discount grocery, Asian market, and Chinese restaurant, A &B looks like the divest of dive take-out joints, but don't like the view from the street keep you from going inside and placing an order. They've got a modest dining area with about a eight or so booths and the place is usually full at lunch.

Today I was in a rush so I ran in for some take out. I've had it a couple of times and have never been disappointed with anything I've ordered. Their shrimp fried rice is much better than the average. Today I just ordered a couple of egg rolls and an order of six cream cheese ragoons.

The egg rolls were hot, crispy and very fresh. The texture was great and they were served with a high quality sweet and sour sauce. It was not a typical duck sauce, it had a little spice to balance out the sweet, a pleasant surprise.

The cream cheese ragoons may be the best in Hattiesburg. A & B keeps their fryers hot enough to create the crispy outside while the inside remains moist and flavorful. They're hand-made and larger than what you see at the buffet places.

It's hard to beat the low prices that A & B charges for their lunch specials and really all the items on their menu.

This little hole in the wall is one of Hattiesburg's best kept secrets. Plus, they carry items for cooking Asian cuisine that you can't find in many places like fish sauce, oyster sauce, Thai chili sauce and other Asian staples.

Blow Fly Inn - Gulfport

2009-08-15T20:06:00.001-07:00

On Saturday night the wife and I dinned at a Gulf Coast landmark - The Blow Fly Inn. For years I have heard about the Blow Fly Inn. In the last year it has been featured by Guy Fieri on Food Network's Dinners, Drive-ins and Dives.

Without question the location and setting of the Blow Fly Inn on the banks of Bayou Benard is one of the most picturesque locations of any dinning establishment on the Gulf Coast. As we arrived the sun was just setting over the bayou and it was a beautiful sight.

The restaurant was packed, we had to wait a little while to be seated (about 10 min.). The hostess was polite and within a couple of minutes of being seated a server was there to take drink orders. Our server on this visit was very nice, professional and attentive.

We began our meal with an order of onion rings. I don't recall Guy making a big deal out of the rings on the show, but they are something to write home about.

A huge helping of hand cut, wet battered onion rings cooked at the perfect temperature. They used a dredge of mainly flour with just a little corn-meal mixed in, seasoned to near perfection with a blend of cajun spices. The last ring on the bottom of the pile was as crispy as the first ones off the top - that's a rare find. Most of the time the grease drips down the pile and the last few are soggy and inedible. I am sure that at some point I've had better onion rings than these, but for the life of me I can't remember where or when.

Our server was polite enough not to serve the side salads along with the appetizers, a few minutes after the rings arrived she brought out the salads.

Pretty standard fare of lettuce, tomato, cucumber a few red onions with some boxed croutons. A pleasant surprise was that my blue cheese and my wife's ranch dressings were house made and better than average. Honestly, with that big plate of rings on the table, far from empty, I didn't wast much time on the salad.

I kind of had my mind made up that I was going to try the stuffed flounder that was featured on Triple-D, but they did have three weekend-specials that were very tempting. This weekend they featured a grilled Amberjack, a broiled redfish fillet and a fried grouper fillet served over rice, topped with a crawfish and shirmp etouffee.

I fought the urge to try one of the specials and ordered the stuffed flounder. Flounder is in my opinion the most under appreciated of our native near-shore species. The flavor is mild, delicate and is one of the easiest fish to clean and prepare due to it's unique skeletal structure.

The flounder was served whole (headless), it was bisected down the midline and the fillets were pulled back. Inside the chef packed the flounder with a generous amount of lump crab meat stuffing. The entire fish, stuffing and all, was flame broiled to near perfection.

The flounder was well seasoned on the outside with a cajun blend that also covered the suffing, it was garnished with lemon slices and parsley. The flounder was flaky and the texture of the slighty chared skin was compliment to the stuffing. The stuffing had plenty of crab meat and only way that this dish could have really been improved, in my opinion, is to use a slightly smaller amount of bell pepper in the stuffing. It sort of grabbed you instead of melding with the onions, celery and spices.

This is one of the better seafood dishes that I have encountered on the Gulf Coast since Katrina.

This portion of the review is provided mainly Mrs. Food Blogger. This was a unique interpretation for grouper. Grouper is also somewhat of an under appreciated local fare. It's usually found filleted, fried and stuffed in between a po-boy bun. This is one of Mrs. Food Bloggers favorite off-shore fish because of it's mild flavor and firm flaky texture.

The grouper was battered in a mix similar to that the onion rings were dredged in, but had more texture, maybe added egg whites? The breading was seasoned nicely. The fillet was served over a large bed of rice, and garnished with steamed whole green beans, carrots and what we believe to have been parsnip.

Over the entire dish was poured a better than average crawfish and shrimp etouffee. The combination of flavor was nice, the fillet had a little too much batter and may have been slightly over-cooked. Had the dish had more of the etouffee and a little less rice it would have garnered a better review.

We each sampled the others entree, and both agreed that the grouper dish was slightly above average, but the flounder was very good. In all it was a fine dinner, the service was well above average, the meal as a whole was very good, and the setting on Bayou Benard is second to none.

Fox's Pizza Den - Oak Grove

2009-08-14T13:47:00.000-07:00

As a rule I generally don't review chain restaurants, but I've had a number of emails asking me to give Fox's Pizza Den, in Oak Grove, a try. This afternoon work had me in the area and I took in lunch.

A little back ground info, the origional Fox's opened in Pitcairn, Pennsylvania in 1971 and since then has spread across the country. They're just beginning to show up in Mississippi. They have two in the Hattiesburg area, the one in Oak Grove and according to their website, there is one in Sumrall.

I arrived after the lunch rush was over and the place was about 1/3 full, local franchisees Robbie and Sonya Gates were hard at work making sure things were running smoothly. One thing that really impressed me was that while I was there, at some point either Robbie or Sonya (or both) went to each table and thanked the patrons for their business. I know that's something pretty small and simple, but it made a big impression on this blogger.

Having heard good things about the "Wedgie's" I decided on the Beef, Bacon & Cheddar Wedgie.

This may be one of the most unique sandwiches I've come across, it's basically a pizza crust that has been baked fairly crispy, cut in half, layed with meats, cheese, mayo, lettuce and tomato, then folded over and cut in half again.

I'm not sure this photo dose it justice, this is a big sandwich. It's made from a 9" pizza crust (they also offer a 6").

The beef in this particular wedgie was sliced roast beef, and not too thin either, they give you a good portion of roast beef in this thing. The bacon was crispy the veggie's were fresh, but they could have used about half as much lettuce as was piled on mine.

I don't think I can give much of a food snob review of a Wedgie, I liked it. It was hot, the crusts were fresh baked, the meats were flavorful, the cheese was high quality and the veggies were fresh.

I had a sweet tea with my meal and it was satisfactory.

Readers know that I love to save money and Fox's makes it easy, check out these coupons you can right on your computer - Fox's Coupons. Wish I had found them before I went in...

Fox's moves way up on my list of chain's. I don't know if all Fox's are run like this one, but the Gates are doing something right!

KaRock's Famous Ka-Bobs

2009-08-13T13:44:00.001-07:00

If you blink you may miss this roadside chicken stand on Highway 11 near the Jones Junior College campus. But, if you find yourself in Ellisville it's well worth a stop.

Finding myself in Ellisville and in need of a late lunch I decided to give KaRock's Famous Ka-Bobs a try. I've heard good things about this little place for years, and I found it to be mostly true.

You'll notice that this is a place that loves to play on the college theme, decked out in the cardinal and gold of JCJC the place is a mini-shrine to all things sports in Jones County.

When I walked in about 2:00 pm and saw that the fry cookers were still up and going it had to be a good sign. The place wasn't packed but there were a number of patrons eating. KaRock's is catered towards the college crowd but that doesn't stop it from drawing soccer mom's, blue collar workers and professionals from around town.

Proprietor Rocky Purvis put KaRock's on the map with his Ka-Bobs, but I decided on the Kat Kombo, which consists of three chicken fingers, a hefty order of seasoned fries, a bread stick and ice cold sweet tea.

The fries although I am pretty sure were not home cut were pretty good, they were crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. That's a sure sign that they keep the fry cookers hot enough. Purvis was manning the fryers himself during my visit, it's a pleasure to see chicken fingers being breaded by hand instead of just opening a box.

The chicken fingers were cooked nicely. They were crispy and light with a flavorful breading. Again cooked at a appropriate temperature that left them crispy on the outside while locking in all the juicy goodness inside.

A bonus was the bread-stick that was served with the meal, it was soft and piping hot - a nice addition.

The "Rock Sauce" for the tenders was a bit better than your average run of the mill chicken finger sauce. It wasn't that it was spicy hot, but you could definitely tell that it was full of flavor. It works just as well on the bread stick as it does the chicken fingers.

It's not a four-star rated dinning establishment, and nor is it trying to be, but the ever expanding roadside chicken shack has a loyal following and now I know why.

The Catfish Wagon

2009-08-09T07:50:00.000-07:00

Heaps of golden fried catfish have been served on these grounds for more than four decades. Originally this was the site of Herbert's Fish Camp and Music Hall. A few years ago, the original structure burned and Herb shut the place down. A small town in Mississippi just isn't right without a Catfish House. The Hodge family purchased the property and completely renovated it into The Catfish Wagon.

We've been to the Catfish Wagon, which is located on Hwy 42 just across the Perry County line from Petal, several times now. I guess it's pretty much in the Runnelstown Community. It's a very large, open family style restaurant. They're proud to serve only Mississippi farm raised catfish and will show you the boxes if you ask. The decor is rustic/redneck with at least a dozen deer heads, bass, bobcats, turkey and other indigenous game mounted on the walls.

The wife and I took in a dinner there over the weekend, I ordered the all-you-can eat catfish platter, while the wife ordered the five piece fillet dinner.

They start the mean by serving a large bowl of better than average cold slaw that's a sweet mayo based with sweet and sour undertones. It's finely chopped cabbage and I believe that it is home made.

My wife loves fried dill pickles and we got an order of those as an appetizer. I've had them before at the Catfish Wagon and they've been fine, but someone went crazy with the salt shaker on this batch and they were very salty, editable but just barely.

Now on to the main attraction - the catfish fillets.

The service in bringing out the platters was very reasonable, the fish was fried golden brown.

They use a very nice cornmeal fry that is lightly seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika and possible a little onion powder. The fillets were crispy on the outside and flaky and tender on the inside. You can tell that they fry at a very high temperature. They offer raw onions and tomatoes to compliment the meal. Their home made tarter sauce is fresh, tasty and much better than any pre-packaged you may get at some places.

The fries were good, crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. My wife reports that the hush puppies were pretty average, I rarely eat hush puppies and was more concerned with the fillets to be honest.

If you judge solely on the fried fillets, this is one of the better catfish houses in South Mississippi, their fries and hush puppies could be better.

I've never had a negative experience at the Catfish Wagon and I've eaten there several times. It's a bit out of the way and you could find yourself waiting half an hour at times, because they do a good business, but all in all if you love good fried catfish this place is well worth a try.

Lunch Buffet at Strick's

2009-08-06T17:48:00.000-07:00

I am usually not a buffet fan, but there are a few exceptions and Strick's is one of them. Today I had lunch with some friends at the Original Strick's on 4th Street. The Strickland Family has owned and operated Strick's for years and it's become a lunch staple for an interesting group of college students, professionals, blue collar workers and an unusually large number of mail carriers.

This was only the second time I had been in since the renovations after Katrina, and the atmosphere is nice and kind of makes me feel at home. Yes, I am a redneck at heart...

Today their Southern comfort buffet featured several home style vegetables including small lima beans, butter beans, collard greens, fried squash and creamed corn. They buffet also included fried chicken, smoked chicken, smoked ribs and sausage.

I got a couple of veggies, a smoked chicken breast and a couple of ribs. The veggies were very good, fresh, hot and seasoned well. I used some of the pepper sauce on the baby lima bean. The fried squash was a little over cooked and got a little "mushy".

The smoked meats were the highlight of the meal. I'll be the first to say I really don't care much for the BBQ that Strick's makes, but they do a great job with their smoker. The chicken was tender and cooked to near perfection. The ribs were good, not great but good. If only I could sneak in a little of my favorite BBQ sauce it would be great.

On a side note, they have great sweet tea!

Traditional Tacos at El Taco Loco

2009-07-19T07:54:00.001-07:00

Last night the wife and I tried El Taco Loco for the first time. We took advantage of the Half off Thursdays promotion sponsored by WDAM-TV.

Located at 603 Broadway Drive in Hattiesburg, from the exterior it looks like Tijuana threw up on a long forgotten chain restaurant. But, don't worry about that you can't see the outside once you're inside. The interior decor is probably best described as Mexican tacky, but it was very clean and the the service was top notch.

El Taco Loco is one of the first Mexican restaurants in Hattiesburg to merge their Tex-Mex menu with a menu of traditional Mexican fare. Over the last few weeks I have heard a number of positives about El Taco Loco.

The menu is a bit difficult to read, not because of the language, but because the bright artwork on the pages make it difficult to read the print on the menu.

We ordered the Loco Dip with our tortilla chips and it was pretty good, a mix of cheese, beans, avocado chunks and pico di gio. I know it sounds a little weird, but just mix it all together and dig in.

I went straight to the back page and found the authentic Mexican tacos. The list was pretty extensive and they're served a la carte, at $2.25 each. I decided on one each of the Al Pastor, Barbacoa, Chrizo, and Tripita. I finished my order with sides of beans and Spanish rice.

The tacos were served Gringa (using wheat taco shells) instead of the corn shells you will find at some establishments. They were topped simply with fresh raw onions, chopped cilantro, and a very nice pico di gio.

The highlight was the barbacoa, the slow roasted beef with spices and chilies was so tender it falls apart. The Chrizo was good not great, very spicy, but not over powering. The Al pastor was good and was perfectly complimented with the pico di gio and a squeeze of fresh lime. This was my first experience with the tripita (tripe), and I was pleasantly surprised. The texture was quite good and the flavor was pleasing, also great with a squeeze of the fresh lime.

The rice and beans were good, they are more of the Tex-Mex standard that the beans and rice you may get at other places, but they were fine.

My wife ordered one of the Tex-Mex offerings - shrimp quesadilla with a side of Spanish rice and a Tex-Mex taco. She had positives to say about the quesadilla, which was packed with large, tender shrimp. Her taco was a bit on the bland side, and I think in the end she may have had some entree envy over the great tacos I had on my plate.

I think I may have found a new favorite Mexican restaurant in Hattiesburg, the authentic Mexican dishes are something that I will work my way through over time while my wife will have the option of ordering the more traditional Tex-Mex offerings.

Interestingly, not long after we arrived, local celebrity chef Robert St. John and family arrived. Which leads to only one question...."RSJ are you following me?"

Tamales at Shucker's Oyster Bar

2009-07-18T08:19:00.000-07:00

Shucker's in Oak Grove is one of Hattiesburg's hidden gems. Located off of Hwy 98 W behind Lake Serene Grocery in an unassuming strip mall is one of the areas most unique establishments.

An oyster bar by trade Shucker's has a very limited menu, but what they do they seem to do well. They specialize as you have probably guessed in oysters, but they serve some other traditional Cajun fare in seafood gumbo, red beans and rice, and boudin. Their shrimp boudin is excellent.

On my last visit I asked about the tamales, and was told that in addition to the beef tamales that were listed on the menu that they also had venison tamales. Always ask if they have any off-menu items or daily specials.

I ordered some of each, and I'll be honest they're pretty small as far as tamales go, but at $1 each it's not too bad. I enjoyed both the beef and venison tamales the texture was good and the they were seasoned almost perfectly. The flavors were distinct and the venison had a more mellow flavor than the beef. The were served with a chili sauce that was flavorful and spicy, but not too spicy.

I know good tamales are hard to find in this area and not many places make them, but if you're craving a few finger sized tamales, then stopping by Shucker's may be just the fix you need.

El Taco Brown offers Traditional Mexican Fare

2009-06-28T19:29:00.000-07:00

Over the past year or so a culinary trend has emerged in Hattiesburg, a number “traditional” Mexican restaurants have started popping up and others have began to add traditional and regional items to their menus. There's a cookie-cutter Tex-Mex joint on just about every corner in Hattiesburg and some of them do a really good job, and some are akin to the Old El Paso dinner in a box you can get at the grocery store.

A few weeks ago I noticed a new establishment on the Hwy 42 by-pass, - El Taco Brown. I'll be the first to admit that it's not the most appetizing name, but don't judge this place by the sign.

It was late afternoon when we stopped by for a few tacos. The place is small, but newly renovated, clean and well kept. Big flat screen TV's on the wall, but unless you're into soccer or speak Spanish they're pretty much useless.

We were given menus and were brought some whole tortillas for dipping in a bean sauce. I was pleased to find that the menu was not the run of the mill Tex-Mex fare, it was chocked with traditional dishes from various regions around Mexico.

We each decided on the three-taco plate, which gives several choices. I selected one Taco Lengua, one Taco Barbacoa and one Taco Chorizo.

I'm just becoming familiar with authentic Mexican fare, so I am going to assume that some of our readers may not know what some of these dishes are, so I'll break them down for everyone.

All three taco were served on soft corn tortillas. They were dressed quite simply with raw onions, a little tomato, fresh chopped cilantro and each had a slice of lime to squeeze over the tacos. They also brought three different chili sauces to the table each with slightly different flavors and consistencies.

Chorizo is a type of pork sausage that traces all the way back to Spain and Portugal, it's commonly served as a breakfast food in Mexico, but is also used in tacos, burritos and other regional fare. The Chorizo at El Taco Brown was quite spicy and full of flavor, the lime was a perfect compliment for the dish.

The Barbacoa is a traditional way of preparing beef, a particular cut of beef. It's the tender beef from a slow cooked cow's head. This is fare indigenous to northern Mexico, and the slow cooking was often prepared in a pit.

The Barbacoa at El Taco Brown was very good, tender, slow cooked beef seasoned to perfection with local chilies, spices, garlic and onions. I enjoyed this unique dish with a nice helping of the spicy chili sauce provided with the meal. This was my favorite of the three tacos.

The most unusual of the three tacos was the Lengua. No way to really sugar coat this one, Lengua is beef tongue. Before my visit to El Taco Brown I had never eaten beef tongue. Just about every culture around the world has a use for this often overlooked part of a cow. But, some how I had manged to miss it until now.

The Lengua was coarsely chopped into about ¼” cubes and slow cooked with onions, chilies and garlic. This is one of the most unique dishes I've ever enjoyed, the flavor and taste with the fresh onions, tomatoes, cilantro and lime was tasty, but I'll be honest the texture is pretty funky and is not for the faint of heart.

If you're interested in traditional Mexican fare and are interested in trying something a little different El Taco Brown would be a great place to get your feet wet. But, at the same time they have plenty of items on the menu that are not nearly as adventurous.

Other Notes:

- ample parking
- ADA accessible with free standing tables
- Happy Hour

Half Off Thursdays from WDAM-TV

2009-06-26T09:42:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let our readers know about a way you can try some great Hattiesburg area restaurants on the cheap. WDAM-TV has an ongoing promotion called Half-Off Thursdays. This promotion allows you to purchase $50.00 in gift certificates to select restaurants for only $25.00 (28.75 including S/H).

The selection changes weekly and the sponsoring restaurants will make anywhere from 50 to 150 of these certificates available. Sometimes they go fast. This week Wagon Wheel Steakhouse in Petal offered 75 certificates and they were sold out with in a few hours. As of this writing there were to previous offers still open El Taco Loco in Hattiesburg and Miki's in Laurel.

In the upcoming month they will feature Dicky's Barbeque Pit, Brownstone's, and The Bottling Company.

In these tough economic times, us foodies have to stick together and pinch our pennies anywhere we can. Taking advantage of this promotion from WDAM and their partner restaurants is a great way to dine out on the cheap, and it may even convince you to try a new restaurant or two.

Sidelines Sports Cafe

2009-06-23T14:27:00.000-07:00

Ok, well lets get something straight, this ain't no sports "cafe" it's a "sports bar" in every sense of the word. Big TV's, sports video games, pool tables, a foosball machine, a menu of pub grub and lots of draft beer taps on the wall. To my knowledge it's the only sports bar in Oak Grove. Now that we have the pleasantries out of the way, lets get down to business.

I've been to Sidelines Sports Cafe a number of times since it opened about two years ago, and to begin with I wasn't all that impressed, but over the past year they've gotten a handle on the kitchen and are producing a consistent product.

Today I stopped in for their Tuesday lunch special, which is always a ribeye steak sandwich, I would guess it's about a 6 oz, (pre-cooked) ribeye on a six inch po-boy bun, with all the toppings and a side of fries for $7.95. That's not a bad lunch special, it's getting to where you can hardly find a decent lunch in Hattiesburg for under $8.

The ribeye sandwich was good, I asked to be cooked medium and that's what I got, the fries were not hand cut, but they were hot, right out of the fryer and not mushy. The toppings were fresh, and the service was pretty good.

In the past I've had several of their burgers, and I often wonder when debates come up about who has the best burgers in the 'Burg why they don't get more mentions, they grill a good one. They have several signature burgers, but the Black Bean Burger being my burger of choice at Sidelines. It's not a burger made from beans or anything before ya'll think I've gone all vegan-crazy or something, it's half-pound Angus beef burger topped with black beans and pepper-jack cheese. It's a pretty unique taste.

They're located at Cedar Creek Strip Mall right on Oak Grove road right by the intersection of Oak Grove Rd and the Lincoln Rd extension.

All in all Denny, Coach and the rest of the crew at Sidelines have come a long way in the last year, and they're putting out some pretty good pub grub right now.

Bangkok Cafe

2009-06-16T16:27:00.000-07:00

Today the wife and I took in lunch at Bangkok Cafe on Hwy 49 South in Hattiesburg, near Forrest General Hospital. I had heard several folks talk about it on MyHattiesburg.com and wanted to see what all the talk was about. The rumor was that they had a lunch buffet.

When we arrived the parking lot was packed and there was only one empty table in the dining hall. Very good signs if you ask me. I then noticed two other things - there was indeed a buffet and local celebrity chef and food writer Robert St. John and a couple of friends were having lunch. If RSJ is there, the place is usually well above average.

We were seated quickly by a friendly host and our beverage order was taken by an attentive server. Being relatively new to Thai cuisine I was honestly wondering how they would pull off a Thai buffet.

On the buffet they had a full compliment of several traditional Thai dishes. The kind folks at Bangkok Cafe are kind enough to list on the buffet how spicy each dish was from mild to Thai Spicy.

When making my first round I over-heard (so sue me) RSJ recommend the Gia Katiem (Chicken) to one of this lunch friends, so I just had to take his advice. The Gia Katiem with thai fried rice was very nice. The Gia Katiem was chopped chicken with Thai Chilies, fresh basil leaves, onions, in a very nice red sauce.

Another highlight of the buffet was the Pad Khing with chicken. Pad Khing consists of sauteed chicken with fresh ginger, onions, mushrooms, bell peppers and baby corn in a medium spicy light brown sauce.

In addition to the above mentioned dishes they had Thai fried rice with shrimp, Thai Spring Rolls, Gang Curry (Pork), and several other dishes that I really can't remember.

I would say that this is well above average for any Asia buffet that I've had and despite my reservations, they pull off a pretty good Thai buffet. Overall, I would say that this was a very positive dinning experience and I would recommend their lunch buffet to family and friends. I can't wait to go back another time and try their sit-down service and menu.

Menu:

Page 2:

Ray Ray's Fried Chicken

2009-06-15T18:18:00.001-07:00

This afternoon I was in a rush for lunch and hit the drive-thru at Ray Ray's Fried Chicken on Old Hwy 11 in Oak Grove. Having heard mixed reviews I wanted to give it a try myself.

I ordered the three piece mixed dinner with two sides - mac and cheese and red beans and rice.

I got a wing, thigh and leg in the box. Was kind of disappointed that it didn't include a breast. The chicken was better than average with a nicely flavored breading, it had flavor, but I wouldn't call it spicy. It was hot just out of the fryer. The chicken was juicy, but not overly greasy, usually a sign of being cooked at a high temperature.

The mac and cheese was actually pretty good while the red beans left something to be desired.

It's pretty good fried chicken, not saying it's anything like mama makes, but I'd probably take it over most of the national chains. It's a bit on the pricey side but I kind of expected it considering the location.

Lil' Ray's in Long Beach

2009-06-14T09:11:00.000-07:00

Last night the wife and I found ourselves on the Coast. We decided to stop at a staple of Gulf Coast cuisine "Lil' Ray's". The original Lil' Ray's was opened in Waveland in the 1970's and since then the family has opened other locations across the coast in Gulfport and Long Beach.

I've often stopped at Lil' Ray's Long Beach location while working on the coast and suggested that to the wife because we were visiting friends on the west side of the coast.

The decor is simple and what you would expect from a seafood/po-boy shop along the coast. The server was friendly, fast and efficient.

We started with an appetizer of smoked yellow fin tuna dip. The tuna dip was probably the highlight of the meal, it was fresh, seasoned very well, large helping of smoked tuna served over a bed of lettuce with fresh sliced tomato.

I ordered the fried Grouper (fish) po-boy with a side of fries. My wife ordered the half/half shrimp platter. That consisted of half an order of fried shrimp and half an order of grilled shrimp.

My Grouper sandwich met the expectations that I have for Lil' Ray's. The fish was fresh, flaky and fried to a golden brown. It was not over or under cooked. Served on a fresh bagget (they truck their bread in daily from New Orleans). The homemade tater sauce was a pleasant complement to the tasty grouper. The fries were very average and over-priced for what you get, in hindsight I should have gone with a cup of seafood gumbo or shrimp and corn bisque.

The shrimp platter was good, not great. The shrimp were fried in a flour and cornmeal dredge that was a little too thick for fresh shrimp. They were not bad, but average is about as high as I could rate them. The grilled shrimp on the other hand were much better. They were lightly seasoned with some cajun/creole seasonings and then grilled over the open flame just right. The potato salad served witht he platter was average at best, but the hush puppies were nice.

All in all it was a good meal. A bit on the pricey side with the total for two people being more than $40 for a pretty simple dinner, considering that the only beverages we had was sweet tea (very good sweet tea).

When most folks from the Hattiesburg/Laurel area travel down to the coast we end up eating in Gulfport or Biloxi and far too many times we end up eating at a chain you can get at home. I encourage everyone to venture to some of the smaller towns - Bay St. Louis, Pass Christian, Long Beach, Ocean Springs, D'Iberville and try some of the home-owned establishments.

Angus Jack's Steakhouse

2009-05-30T06:33:00.000-07:00

The wife and I dined at Angus Jack's Steakhouse for the first time on Friday night. I had heard from several friends that it good, and I love a good steak. It's located in the old Cane Creek Seafood building, and is a bit off the beaten path located on Lakeview Rd.

Upon arriving the only change to the outside of the building was the sign. Cane Creek had been open for about 20 years and was a good seafood place, but was often kind of forgotten because of the location. The parking lot was quite full when we arrived and I considered that a positive.

We were seated promptly and within a couple of minutes our waitress was at the table. Service was very good and our server was polite and attentive. She offered the specials which included a Ribeye Dinner for two and a seafood platter.

We decided on the Ribeye Dinner for two, which included two 12 oz. ribeye's, two salads, two sides, garlic bread and a dessert to share all for $40.00.

We both ordered our steaks medium, I choose the loaded baked potato and selected the home made blue cheese dressing for my salad.

The presentation of the meal was simple, kind of like a traditional 1970's steakhouse, with the stainless steel warmer platters, the salads in simple bowls the garlic bread was served on mini-cutting boards with honey butter.

The salad was a simple steakhouse staple of iceberg lettuces, red onions, tomatoes, and a mild pepper chino. The blue cheese dressing was surprisingly good with large chunks of blue cheese and good flavor.

My steak was nicely grilled, not over or undercooked. It was trimmed and didn't have enough fat or gristle to really mention. The beef they serve is dry aged and has been aged for at least 21-days. It has that distinct dry-age flavor that I enjoy. They used a Chicago style dry rub on the steaks while cooking, I didn't even think of asking for steak sauce for my cut, because it simply was not needed nor wanted.

My loaded baked potato was a bit over-cooked, but hey when you have a good steak you almost forget you even have a side.

We shared a large slice of turtle cheesecake, I am almost positive it was not home-made, but it was decent and the presentation with drizzled chocolate and caramel sauce was quite nice.

My experience was positive with Angus Jack's, I won't tell you that it's the best steak in town, because you can get better in Hattiesburg, but I am not sure if you can get a better value on a good steak in Hattiesburg.

The Alumni House

2009-05-28T20:25:00.000-07:00

Having been to the original Alumni House in Ridgeland, I was pretty excited when the one here in Hattiesburg opened. But, having been there three times now, I have such mixed reviews.

Unrealized potential is how I sum up the Alumni House at this point.

I love the concept, I really like the atmosphere and the building is great, loaded with all sort of sports memorabilia, tons of TV's and it's always really clean.

The food has always better than average, and they have reasonable drink prices. I have pretty much liked every thing I have ordered there from the wings to the shrimp po-boys to the nachos, ect.

They're pricey, not overboard, but they have got to get a handle on their service. I've never been in a place where so many employees seem to be walking around not doing anything, and then it takes forever to get service. If they ever get your order taken, the kitchen gets it out pretty quickly, but you never know when they'll be back to refill your beverage and the like. And while you can hardly waive down a waitress, over eager busboys will snatch a plate, with half your meal on it, before you even realize that they've come by the table.

This afternoon I met a colleague there to watch a little baseball and I honestly agreed to go hoping that I would find improved service from the waitstaff.
I really want to like this place and right now, the food, which is good, is not enough to overcome the sub-par service that I have sadly come to expect.

Hoyt's Hotdog Stand

2009-05-27T20:03:00.000-07:00

Being a bit of a rush for lunch today, I found myself working on Broadway Drive. This was the perfect opportunity to try Chef Hoyt Tanner's Hot Dog stand, that's right I said Chef Hoyt Tanner.

Known to many in the Hattiesburg area as simply "the Hot Dog Man", Hoyt Tanner is a classically trained Chef with a background in Classic French and Continental Cusine, before moving to Hattiesburg from New York City, Tanner owned his own restaurant and has more than 25 years experience with much of it being an executive chef. After moving to Hattiesburg he served as the Executive Chef/General Manger of Walnut Circle Grill for about two years.

I said all that to say this, the man is a little over-qualified to be smearing mustard on a dog for folks not to appreciate it. I won't pretend to know how or why such an expert in the culinary arts is slinging Hot Dogs out of a tag-a-long cart on Timothy Lane between West Pine Street and Broadway drive, but the man has hot dogs down to an art.

He has several lunch combos and the like, but having a bottle coke in the car, I ordered one of his regular New York Style Hot Dogs and a Spicy Jumbo Sausage on a bun. The NY style hot dog was just that an all-beef "Sabrett" more than bun length frank that was hot, juicy and had that all important "snap" when you bite into it. But, this spicy jumbo sausage on a bun is one of the best meat on a bun that I've had in a long time.

As you know I am pretty traditional when it comes to hot dogs, some mustard and a few onions are about all I need.

I highly recommend stopping by and seeing Hoyt, great dogs and not to mention that he's quite a character if you get him going.

Happy Eating

Bianchi's Pizzeria

2009-05-10T18:15:00.000-07:00

Tonight the wife was in the mood for "something Italian", so we headed downtown and stopped in at Bianchi's Pizzeria. It's been a few months since we've been there but have always had positive experiences.

Bianchi's is located downtown in a very nicely renovated building that is contemporary and simple. Red and white checked table cloths, the brick ovens open to the dining area, a bit warm for us to sit outside, but a number of patrons had chosen to do so.

Tonight, I'll be honest, I was a little disappointed. They were operating with a skeleton crew and were noticeably short-handed. I know what you're thinking, 'Isn't it unfair to review a restaurant under those conditions?'. To a point, but if you're open you have a chance to make a positive or negative impression on a customer that could become a life-long patron. We didn't have service problems despite the small crew.

We decided on calzones which we've had there on other occasions. I ordered the Prosciutto and Gorgonzola Calzone, while my wife ordered the Shrimp and Scallop Calzone.

When they were brought to the table, there was a noticeable difference from the previous times we had eaten calzones there - portion size. The calzones were much smaller than I have ever seen them at Bianchi's. I understand the state of the economy, the price on the menu was unchanged, but I would rather pay a buck more and get a larger calzone.

A positive was the quality of the calzones have not suffered. My Prosciutto and Gorgonzola was very nice. The plating was simple with a cup of a creamy sauce for dipping.

Prosciutto and Gorgonzola are both very strong, distinct flavors and are probably better suited for a more "experienced" pallet. Despite not being as large as I would have liked, it was fresh, hot, creamy with a nice portion of both main ingredients. I have no complaints in the least about taste.

My wife's shrimp and scallop calzone was good, not great. The portion was also noticeably smaller than in the past and the scallops were a bit over-cooked. But, it too was hot, creamy and loaded with shrimp.

Bianchi's is Tom White's second venture in Hattiesburg, and it some times seems to be a stepchild to 206 Front. It's better than any chain, but it could be so much more, and for the price it should be. Now, I am not going to tell you that it's not a good place to eat, but I can't in good conscious tell you that it's a good value with the portion size we were served.

Big Herb's Hotdog Stand

2009-05-09T07:47:00.000-07:00

My "regular" job takes me all across the greater Hattiesburg area on almost a daily basis. An interesting trend is emerging across the area - lunch trucks and street vendors. To my knowledge there are now three traveling vendors selling hot dogs in the Hattiesburg area, one just off of Broadway Drive near Timothy Lane, one just off of Lincoln Road near the Hancock Bank. And a third in Petal on Central Ave. on the property where David Dearman Auto has closed. Our friends at myhattiesburg.com have also pointed out that there's a Gyro vendor operating (or soon to be) on Westover Drive.

While working in Petal today, I stopped at "Big Herb's New York Style Hot Dogs". He's the vendor on Central Ave. Very nice man, who hopes to be in business there for a long time. He has a modern vending cart with running water, propane burners and his station was very clean.

He offers a lunch special which included two hotdogs, a bag of Lays chips and a 12oz. canned coke for $5.00 including tax. That's a pretty good deal.

Now the dogs that he is serving are not your run of the mill grocery store franks, these are the real deal that you would get from a vendor in New York, a more than bun length all-beef frank that were fresh, hot and had that all familiar "snap" when you bite into them.

He's got all the condiments on the cart that you care for - chili, onions, relish, sauerkraut, a couple of different kinds mustard, ect. All the condiments looked to be fresh and stored in a sanitary manner.

The dogs were great, the service was fast and friendly. I wish Big Herb well in his endeavor, I know that I'll be stopping in often.

Over the next few weeks I am going to try to make it a point to stop in and try the other vendors that have popped up around Hattisburg.

Jamaican Inspired Pork Roast

2009-05-04T13:05:00.000-07:00

If you're looking to spice up a traditional American dish try this dry rub on your next pork loin roast. It's not a true Jamaican Jerk Pork roast, but it contains most of the seasonings that you would find in a traditional dry jerk rub.

This isn't a true jerk seasoning, hence it being Jamaican “inspired”.

First make the a pseudo-jerk dry rub:

Ingredients:

1 – tablespoon dry onion flakes
1 – tablespoon of onion powder
1 – tablespoon of garlic powder
2 – teaspoons of kosher salt
1 – teaspoon of coarsely ground black pepper
1 – teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 – teaspoon of all spice
1 – teaspoon of dried thyme
¼ – teaspoon of ground nutmeg
¼ – teaspoon of ground cinnamon

Combine all spices in a mixing bowl and mix.

Open and dry tenderloin (3-4 lbs.) and rub mix onto meat, refrigerate for at least two hours to let the roast absorb the spices.

Wrap tenderloin in aluminum foil, kind of form a bit of a bowl so none of the juices can leak out. Roast in the over at 325 degree. A good rule of thumb, roast about 35 min per pound of pork loin.

In Jamaica sweet potatoes are often paired with pork or other jerked meats. So I would suggest some baked sweet potatoes with real butter and sprinkled lightly with cinnamon and brown sugar.

Rayner's Seafood House

2009-05-02T13:58:00.001-07:00

For sometime have heard friends and family rave about Rayner's Seafood on Hwy 49 North of Hattiesburg. Having never tried it the wife and I stopped in a few nights ago. I love catfish and it's been their speciality for more than 40 years.

With that kind of track record, I admit I went in with very high expectations. Plus, lets face it we're in Mississippi, you can get a pretty decent catfish dinner at any Church fund raiser or on just about any corner. Fried catfish has been one of my favorite Southern staples for years.

They've spiffied up the outside of the restaurant in the past couple of years, but the inside was dimly lit, and could use a major over-hall. At the same time, I understand that people don't usually go to a catfish house for the ambiance, they go for heaping mounds of golden fried fillets.

After a brief glimpse at the menu, I ordered the "All you can eat" catfish fillet dinner, my wife ordered the three piece fillet dinner.

It was served with cold-slaw, fries and hush puppies. The sides were all about average with the hush puppies being a little above average.

I have to say I was underwhelmed with the catfish itself, the breading was rather bland and they were not nearly as crispy as I would like, almost as if the fryers were not quite hot enough for cooking.

I went in really wanting to agree with so many others and was wishing I could rave about it on the blog. I love down home, mom and pop, places more than anything. I may give it another try at some point, but with so many really good catfish houses in and around Hattiesburg, it'll probably be in the distant future.

The End Zone for Lunch

2009-04-27T16:13:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite college watering holes has turned into a destination for Southern Comfort Food. The End Zone on located on 4th Street has been open since 1977, and was long know as one of Hattiesburg original sports bars. About two years ago owners Mike and Gail Walker opened a full service grill and expanded by adding a seating area that is more family friendly.

The End Zone offers a daily lunch plate that ranges from red beans and rice to pork chops to country fried steak. They also have one of the most under-rated burgers in town. The gravy cheese fries may be Hattiesburg's best bar food offering.

Today I met a colleague there for lunch and sidled up to their best selling (according to Mike himself) entree - the hamburger steak platter. This is good, down-home Southern Comfort Food. The Platter consists of a half-pound hamburger steak grilled served with gravy, sauteed mushrooms and onions. I oped for their home fries and requested that grave be poured all over them as well. I may die of a clogged artery in the near future but I'm counting on the gravy to help keep things sliding along.

The service was good, the lunch was good and the atmosphere was uniquely - The End Zone.

My guess is that many reading this review only know of the sports bar portion of the End Zone, if you've not tried them for lunch you're really missing out.

You can choose to eat in the Bar or in the Grill, due to the Hattiesburg city ban on smoking in bars and restaurants the End Zone is no longer the smoke filled pool hall and sports bar of my youth, in a way I miss that. But, since I don't smoke and rarely drink, I'm pretty happy to see the grill packed on just about every occasion I've been there recently.

La Fiesta Brava

2009-04-26T17:51:00.001-07:00

While attending school La Fiesta Brave became a regular hang-out for my group of friends. Last week a few friends came back to town and we took in "the Brava" at the new location near the Grand Theatre. This was the first time that I've been to the west location since it moved into the current building. I usually dine at the University location on Hwy 49.

I was surprised at the décor which was much nicer than the old west location or the University location. Bright, open with large tables and wide booths. They were busy as I have come to expect the the service was quick and efficient.

I ordered a staple – the Big Burrito which is a giant stuffed with rice, beans, beef and chicken. The massive burrito is then covered with their signature white cheese sauce and chili con carne sauce. This burrito is pushing two pounds, I've seen big guys not come close to finishing it, although I've never seemed to have that problem.

The Big Burrito can be a bit inconsistent and can change a little in what comes stuffed inside depending on who's in the kitchen, but it's a safer bet than drinking the water in Tijauna. Sometimes it could be a little more chicken or maybe you'll find some steak strips instead of the usual ground beef, but it's all good, it's a 2-pound burrito for $7.

I won't pretend that "the Brava" is authentic Mexican fare, it's pretty much Tex/Mex in the tradition that most American pallets have forced them into being. I won't say that it's the best Mexican in Hattiesburg, or even really good Mexican, but it's an old favorite that I still enjoy from time to time. "The Brava" won't win many culinary awards, but hey, it brings back a lot of memories.

To be honest the best part was probably catching up with some of my best friends from college.

Dinner at Brownstone's

2009-04-17T20:27:00.000-07:00

Having dined at Brownstone's several times I was looking for a little something different and asked the waiter for a recommendation. The owner/manger was walking by at the time and suggested that I try their signature “Zesty Tuna Steak”. I agreed and ordered the crab cakes appetizer. My wife ordered the Cajun Shrimp Alfredo.

The crab cakes were good, not great. The texture was good, and there was an ample amount of crab. They blacken their crab cakes, for my taste it's just not needed. The crawfish bordelaise sauce that is served on top of the crab cakes was a nice touch.

I had the Spring Mix side salad and it was nice, very fresh mix of baby greens topped with blue cheese and roasted pecans. A very nice, very light salad. I chose to just lightly drizzle my salad with some EVOO (extra virgin olive oil).

Now the main course, the Zesty Tuna Steak. I've had quality tuna steaks at different restaurants round the country, but this was as unique of an interpretation as I have experienced. The well proportioned tuna steak was grilled to near perfection. It was plated on top of a bed of garlic mashed potatoes, which was a very interesting take on a traditional dish. Over the tuna steak and potatoes they poured a cream sauce of roasted red peppers with sweet citrus and honey. The dish was garnished with tomatoes and fresh green onions.

This is without question the most unique tuna steaks I've ever encountered and the grilled tuna lends it self so well with the sweet and lightly spicy cream sauce. When married with the garlic mashed potatoes it's an excellent combination. This is not a melding of flavor that I would have ever considered and I am so glad I took the recommendation to try this very unique dish.

The portions were generous, the presentation was very nice, and the atmosphere was well received. A very nice dining experience that was highlighted by the flavor of wonderful, unique signature dish – the Zesty Tuna Steak!

- HubFoodBlogger

Lunch at Jutamas Thai Restaurant

2009-04-15T19:51:00.000-07:00

After hearing rave reviews from friends and fellow foodies I decided to give Jutamas Thai Restaurant a try today.

Nestled in an unassuming cinder block building between West Pine Street and Broadway Drive, this may be one of the best kept secrets in Hattiesburg.

The decor is contemporary and upbeat with white table cloths and fresh flowers on each table. It far exceeded my expectations.

I took in a late lunch and found an interesting mix of college students, professionals, and working class patrons.

I'll be the first to admit I am not as familiar with Thai fare as some other offerings so I decided that I would order one dish that I was at least semi-familiar with and something else of which I was totally unfamiliar. I'm no Andrew Zimmern, but I'm not afraid to try something different.

I began with the unfamiliar and ordered an appetizer - Toong Tong.

Toong Tong - Is a combination of three meats (crab, shirmp and pork) mixed with onions, garlic and Thai spices formed into a ball, wrapped in filo dough and deep fried.

The presentation of the dish was very nice, with two of the dough wrapped concoctions placed on a bed of shredded cabbage garnished with tomatoes and cucumbers.

The Toong Tong was a delightful surprise. It was light, delicate and the filo was crispy. The filling was moist but was not weighed down by the oil in which it was cooked. It was served with a sweet and sour dipping sauce that was very good.

For the main course I took the advise of a fellow foodie who raved about the Thai Fried Rice with Shrimp.

Thai Rice - Basic description for just about any Asian fried rice - stir-fried rice with onions, tomatoes, eggs and shrimp. The difference is the Thai spices.

The presentation was again very nice, garnished with cucumbers onions and a spicy Thai chili sauce. I enjoy spicy foods.

This was the single best Asian dish I have encountered in Hattiesburg. I am big on texture, and this dish was outstanding. The texture was perfect, it was not mushy or oily. The dish featured a fantastic blend of Thai spices including cilantro, white pepper, chili powder, and several they wouldn't disclose. The onions, garlic, and tomatoes were fresh and the color was wonderful. The shrimp were large and were lightly grilled before being turned into the fried rice.

This will not be my last visit to Jutamas, and I look forward to trying many other dishes, but I'll admit it will be hard for them to top one of the best first impressions I can remember at a local eatery.

Lunch at Po-Boy Express

2009-04-07T21:06:00.000-07:00

Today I had lunch with a couple of friends at a Hattiesburg landmark – Po Boy Express. I won't even try to pretend that I'm not a bit biased to this establishment. For the past decade proprietor Darren Smith has been serving one of the most consistent selections of Po Boys, burgers and salads you can find in town.

Located on 4th street on the east side of the Highway 49 overpass, where they've been a staple for an eclectic mix of college students, professors, firemen, police officers, bankers, construction workers and just about every other demographic you can think about.

Today I ordered the lunch special with a PBE original “Floyd Special” which is a meat lover's favorite. Between the sliced fresh bagget you'll find ham, turkey and roast beef stuffed inside with a couple of slices of provolone cheese and your favorite toppings. A consistent product that doesn't promise to be more than it is – a really good sandwich.

You can get a good po-boy at a lot of places in Hattiesburg, but I think the atmosphere draws me back, from the Southern Miss memorabilia on the walls to the cast of regular “characters” that congregate at the back tables and hold court on a daily basis. You may find anyone from Southern Miss coaches Corky Palmer and Larry Fedora to local outdoor writer and radio personality Ben Willoughby talking more than they're eating. It's not uncommon to see local politicians, community leaders, and other Hub City movers and shakers.

The place is usually packed at lunch and for good reason. Fun, food and friends is the best way I can describe a lunch at Po-Boy Express.

They deliver, but be mindful they are one of the busiest delivery places in town, so make sure you get your order in before 11:00 AM.

Hattiesburg's First Food Blog

2009-04-04T18:46:00.000-07:00

Being a bit of a foodie, I enjoy eating out and seldom go to the same place more than once a month. In recent years the food scene in Hattiesburg has actually become very respectable for a city of it's size and demographics.

I've long enjoyed reading the food blogs to cities in which I often travel - New Orleans, Memphis, Tampa, Charlotte, ect. When you try looking online for reviews of Hattiesburg dining establishments they are dreadful. When you have page after page of fast food joints being rated four and five stars you have to ask yourself have these folks ever eaten more than Spaghetti O's and TV dinners?

In this blog I will review various dining establishments in and around Hattiesburg and South Mississippi. My reviews are totally anonymous, the establishments don't know when I am coming and they don't even know who I am. I don't ask for free meals or any perks, I'm just a guy sometimes with sometimes without the family who loves a good meal.

Unlike many food critics, I'm not a chef nor have I had any culinary training, I'm not a food snob, you can get a great meal almost anywhere. I'm just a guy with a big appetite who loves good food and wants to share it with others. I'm a pretty decent cook, and I love to entertain.

What you won't find is a review of any chain resturants, while some do a very nice job and provide a quality product you likely wouldn't find me there.

Thanks for dropping by and happy eating.

- HubFoodBlog