One thing that is remarkably different about the second trimester versus the first, is that I actually want to eat salads.  But I don’t want to eat a salad full of lettuce, vegetables, and more vegetables.  I want good stuff in my salad.  Creamy stuff.  Flavorful stuff.  Delicious stuff.

I want stuff like bacon, eggs, creamy dressing, avocado, and plenty of cheese.  This salad has some of those things.  However, sometimes my salads have all of those things.

Whatever. The lettuce totally cancels out all that stuff.

One of the star ingredients in this salad is Cloister Honey Bourbon Honey.  I’ve been using this stuff to marinate all kind of meats 1) because Brad is in love with this stuff and I think it’s pretty awesome too and 2) because I’m not doing social media for Cloister Honey and I’m pretty sure they’ll give me as much as I want.  This stuff is amazingly good.

NOTES:
Dressing suggestions: ranch dressing (my personal favorite right now), Green Goddess dressing (Brad’s favorite), citrus vinaigrette, red win vinegar + extra virgin olive oil

You can purchase Cloister Honey Bourbon Honey here.

The post Spring Green Salad with Honey Bourbon Chicken {Gluten Free} appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

After blogging about food for about four years, I’ve received some pretty cool opportunities.  One of my favorite things to do is judging food competitions.  It’s not like I don’t already “judge food” on a regular basis (Ask Brad. I’m awfully judge-y).  But when someone actually cares enough to hear my opinion, well that’s just awesome.

I should hold a sign up at an intersection that says “will give opinion for food”.

I recently attended a cook-off at Johnson & Wales sponsored by Vedgee Tortillas. Some of the college’s best and brightest culinary students faced off to create their own dish using Vedgee Tortillas and I was one of their very lucky judges.

The judges scored the dishes based on four criteria: Taste, Creativity, Ease of Practicality, and Presentation.

Here were the tortilla creations and my scoring thoughts:

Vedgee Sweet Pineapple and Honey Tostada with Jezebel Sauce

I really enjoyed the flavors in this dish.  I am not a fan of pineapple, but found that the taste was very subtle in this dish, which I really liked.  I scored this dish lowest on practicality because it the description (per the chef) seemed very complex.  Otherwise, I thought this dish was tasty and very creative.

Vedgee Multi-Veggie Mexican Bites

When it comes to taste, this dish was my favorite and tied for first place on my scoring sheet.  What the description leaves out is the creaminess of the bites, which I’m 99% sure was from cream cheese.  I could have eaten a whole plate of these and it didn’t seem overly complicated to make.

Vedgee Roasted Beet and Carrot Salad

This was my least favorite dish mostly because the beets weren’t roasted enough in my opinion.  To me, they tasted like they were boiled, and I do not like boiled beets.  However, during competitions like this, I try to keep personal preference out of it so I can be as objective as possible.  However, since the dish was supposed to have “roasted beets”, I had to grade the dish down.  However, the dish is a pretty addition to a plate and very healthy.

Vedgee Summer Vegetable and Goat Cheese Pizza

I really liked this dish and it reminded me of something I would make.  However, I had to grade it down on creativity.   I feel like tortilla pizzas have been done to death.  I used to make them in college as a fast meal, so I was kind of unimpressed that this came from a culinary student.  However, if you’re looking for a quick meal, this is something to definitely keep in your cooking repetoire.  This dish scored high points for practicality.

Vedgee Big Kahuna Fish Wrap

When I heard the description of this dish, I would have bet it was going to be my #1 pick.  However, I found the fish wrap to be a little dry.  The homemade salsa could have used more lime juice or the fish should have been prepared with some kind of sauce to compliment the flavors and moisten the pallat (these are plated dishes, we were served appetizer portions without the garnishment of sauces). It definitely wasn’t bad at all and something I would think is pretty good if I had eaten it at home.  But if eaten at home, I would have went back to the kitchen to add more salsa.  It was good, just not a home run.

Vedgee Pina Colada Napoleon

Ya’ll are going to be so proud of me.  This tied for my second pick, even though it contained a big slab of grilled pineapple.  I told you I could be objective.  And I have to admit that pineapple when grilled really isn’t that bad.  If I had to create a similar dish, I probably would have went for grilled banana (which is amazing), but overall I thought this dish was very creative, not too difficult to make, and a beautiful presentation. (Recipe at the end!)

After meeting the culinary students who created the dishes, some re-tasting, scoring, and tallying the results, the winner was announced.  The winner was…

Brian Ferris of Winston Salem, NC for his “Vedgee Pina Colada Napoleon.”

My other top choice which tied for first place on my scoring sheet, the Vedgee Multi-Veggie Mexican Bites, came in second place. I seem to have a sixth sense about these things.

Vedgee Tortillas will be available in supermarkets in the “produce” section later this spring.  By adding vegetable puree, garden herbs and pure olive oil, our premium tortillas will inspire you to create amazing meals. They are available in eight distinctive new flavors: Garden Cucumber Dill, Chiptole Corn Chives, Multi Veggie Garlic, Spicy Chipotle Pepper, San Marzano Tomato Garlic, Sweet Pineapple Honey, and Baby Spinach Garlic.

The winning recipe:
VEDGEE PINA COLADA NAPOLEON
Vedgee’s twist on the traditional napoleon, topped with coconut infused raspberry sauce and crispy toasted coconut shaving. 

Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:
3 Vedgee Sweet Pineapple and Honey Tortillas
1 cup white sugar
1 cup water
1/4 fresh pineapple, cut into rings

Topping:
1/2 Tablespoon white sugar
1/2 cup toasted coconut
1 cup fresh raspberries
1/4 cup coconut rum liquor

Cream:
1/4 cup white sugar
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
2 Tablespoons low-fat vanilla yogurt
1/2 Tablespoon vanilla extracDirections:

Vedgee Tortilla Crisp:
1. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar and water.  Bring to a boi, sitrring until sugar has dissolved.
2. Slice Vedgee tortillas into squares by first cutting tortillas in half, then cutting the rounded edges off each half to make rectangles, and finally cutting the rectangles in half to make squares.
3. Brush tortillas with cooled simple syrup and place on a sheet pan.  Bake in oven at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes or until slightly crispy and golden. 

Cream:
4. Beat egg yolks with sugar.
5. In a separate bowl, whip buttermilk and heavy cream together, then fold in the egg yolks.
6. Place mixture in a saucepan and simmer at 185 degrees F for 10-15 minutes, or until liquid reaches 165 degrees.
7. Remove from heat and cool cream mixture.
8. Add the yogurt and vanilla extract, then whip until peaks form.

Topping:
9. Over medium heat, heat liquor in a deep saucepan until it starts to boil around the edges.
10. Toast the oven in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 3-5 minutes until browned.
11.  Heat the berries and sugar in a deep saucepan for 5 minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat and add the heated liquor.
12. Put the pan back on the heat and light a long wooden match over the liquor fumes. (Note: Do this as soon as the liquor goes into the pan with the berries to keep from ruining the flavor.) Shake pan back and forth until the flame dies.
13. Remove raspberries and heat sauce until thickened, approximately 2-3 minutes.

Layering the Dessert:
14. Slice the pineapple into rings and set aside for plating.
15. Take the tortilla crisps and layer the cream between each one.  Then stack them one on top of the other.
16. Spread remaining cream on top and sprinkle with coconut.
17. As soon as you are done with the topping, ladle the sauce and place the berries on top of the dessert.

Plating & Presentation Guidelines:
Place two pineapple rings on the plate (stacked on top of each other) and cut the napoleon into squares.  Sit the cake on top of the pineapple rings and draw lines of sauce on the plate.

Thanks so much to the folks at Vedgee for inviting me to participate in this fun event and for the hardworking culinary students at Johnson & Wales for feeding me so well!

**I was not compensated for this post or my time.  All of opinions expressed are 100% my own.**

The post Vedgee Tortilla Cook-Off at Johnson & Wales {Event} appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

For the past three years, I’ve celebrated my birthday at Vivace, a sleek modern Italian restaurant in Charlotte.

Three years ago, I ate there with my family.  Last year, I celebrated there with friends.  And since it was my 30th this year, Brad reserved the whole second floor so I could celebrate with my friends and family.

It was wonderful having the whole second floor because our friends could bring their kids and it didn’t matter if they ran around, danced, and wielded imaginary swords.

My best friend, Candace brought me an amazing cake and balloons.

The inside was white cake with fudge frosting in between the layers.  And it was sooo cute!

Somehow I forgot to take a photo of the amazing key lime cupcakes my mom made herself and brought. I love key lime pie flavored anything and these were amazing.  Both the kids and adults loved them and there wasn’t a single one left at the end of the night.

Couldn’t you just pinch his cheeks?  I got in my fair share of baby love that night.

Brad had Vivace put out a cheese and charcuterie board when we arrived.  This was after we had made a significant d

We mingled for a good hour and a half before sitting down to dinner, which was also a positive to having their second floor space.  Everyone got to talk to one another, which is usually more difficult when sitting at a table. And boy, do my friends know how to mingle.  I think they’re all as chatty as me, which I guess is why we’re friends.

Here’s a shot of some of my favorite people in the world.  My goddaughter, Lizzie, my best friend, Candace, and Kevin, her husband and one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet.

Here are a few shots of the table and my wonderful friends and family:

Do we look 30?  Don’t answer that.

I ordered a ravioli dish with ricotta and spring peas and roasted chicken.  It was very yummy, but I think my dad and Brad tied for best order of the night.  Brad ordered the sea scallop risotto and my dad got a black linguini dish with lump crab meat.  I knew I should have went for the shellfish!

Thanks so much Brad and Candace for making my 30th birthday extra special and to all my wonderful friends who showed up to celebrate.  It wouldn’t have been the same without every single one of you there.

The post My 30th Birthday at Vivace appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

When I wasn’t sure if I was having a little boy or girl, my mind spinned at the girlie nursery things I saw online.  What’s funny is that when it came to boy stuff, I’ve been very sure of what I wanted right from the get-go.  Picking out boy stuff for me has been easy.

I was immediately drawn to a red, white, and blue(s) nautical theme and have been thinking about it ever since I saw the bedding below.  In fact, the entire nursery has pretty much been created around the bedding. I just love it, so deciding to plan a nautical nursery was an easy decision.

Here are some of the nursery items we are purchasing or using for inspiration to create Baby E’s nursery.  If you want to pin any of these ideas to Pinterest, use the link provided below each picture so you actually get the source of the photo.

Pin nautical bedding here.

This shop on Etsy has collections of patterns that can be used to create custom bedding.  I’ll choose a different pattern for the skirt, sheets, bumper (2-sided) and any other bedding we decide to order.

Pin crib here.

I fell in love with a different crib from Pottery Barn but the difference in price between this crib from Target, that I like almost just as much, just couldn’t be beat. I don’t love the the “Poverty Barn” crib $500 more.

Pin distressed lamp here.

I love the look of distressed furniture and decor and this lamp from World Market will be perfect on the little table that will sit beside my rocker.

Pin lamp shade here.

Here’s the lamp shade I picked out to go with it, which is also from World Market.

Pin sailboat mobile here.

I pinned this mobile when I first started dreaming of a nautical themed nursery.  Brad saw it and loved it, so we tracked it down and ordered it.

Pin Wingback Rocker here.

This has been the most expensive item thus far.  But it makes sense to get a really nice rocker since I’ll be spending a lot of time in this chair.  I was in love with it at first site.  We cashed in some credit card points and used some leftover Pottery Barn gift cards, so that helped a lot with the cost.

Pin waves rug here.

This run is another thing that I pinned, but Brad found later by himself.  Great minds think alike! It’s so whimsical and I just love it. It’s sitting rolled up in my living room right now.

Pin nautical prints here.

We plan to paint the walls an off white and then decorate them with fun nautical things like these prints.

Pin sailboat print here.

Pin mommy and baby whale print here.

This one is definitely my favorite.

I have a few more pieces of furniture that I’ve purchased to share, but I’ll save that for later, when the nursery comes together. We have guests in town this weekend, and then we’ll start removing our furniture from the guest room so we can transform the space into Baby E’s nursery.  I’ll definitely share the final results when everything is complete.

The post My Pregnancy: The Nautical Nursery appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

I’ve been spending every Monday night at Bradley Classes which is a class that teaches you strategies to have a healthy and natural child birth (i.e. no drugs).  One of my favorite things that our instructor has said is that if we like eggs, we should eat two whole eggs (not egg whites) a day.

Challenge accepted.  I adore eggs. Scrambled, fried, poached, deviled, and especially in egg salad.

If you love deviled eggs, then you probably also love egg salad because it’s basically just an easier way to get the same flavor, except you don’t have to fiddle with trying to scoop out the yellows, mix them with mayo and other ingredients, then carefully scoop them back in without breaking the egg whites.

BLT’s have been high on the cravings priority list for quite a while, so I thought combining the two would be delicious and a great way to get some extra protein.  Protein is so important during pregnancy and after monitoring my intake last week (for class), I realized that I need to be getting a little more in my diet. This egg salad BLT is a good start.

The post Egg Salad BLT {Quick Meal} appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

Check out the video here!

Being on TV is so much easier when you have someone leading you through the segment by asking you questions.  It’s so much easier than being the sole person in front of the camera! I had a great time and really enjoyed being on Fox New Rising.  I didn’t seem too nervous, did I?

Thanks Jess for snapping these photos! And thanks everyone from Fox Charlotte for having me drop by to share some healthy snacks.

The post Healthy Snacks for Kids on Fox News Rising appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

It’s become increasingly difficult to remember to take these photos, so I’m just going with when I remember to do them, which means I’ll be skipping a few weeks here and there.  Time really is flying by.

Symptoms:
It really is true when they tell you that you’ll have a lot more energy during the second trimester, but it’s still possible to over-do it.  We had a big cookout for Brad’s 30th birthday this past Saturday (his birthday was actually on April 8) and going and going all day must have been a little too much.  I still felt exhausted when I woke up on Sunday and after church, a coffee date with Brad, and brunch with friends, I crashed and didn’t get up for the rest of the day. I napped only to wake up to a headache, a neck ache, a lot of sneezing, and my nose bled every time I blowed my nose.

We googled the nose bleeding and it turns out that this is common in pregnancy when allergies.  From Baby Center:

Pregnancy can cause the blood vessels in your nose to expand, and your increased blood supply puts more pressure on those delicate vessels, causing them to rupture more easily

It can also be a sign of high blood pressure but I’m not concerned of that in the least.  When you’re pregnant, you get your blood pressure checked monthly and mine has always been very healthy (like 107/60) during and before my pregnancy.  It’s more likely that my nose is just very dry.

Cravings:
My sweet-tooth has been on overdrive this past week and the opportunities to satisfy it has been a contributing factor.  In my Bradley Childbirth Class, we have to record what we’re eating and our protein intake for four weeks.  This is SO hard for me! Ever since I stopped extreme dieting in college, it’s really hard for me to write down everything I eat which has been kind of a good thing, until now.

My 30th birthday is coming up on Sunday and I’m vowing to not eat any dessert until then.  I went to Amelie’s yesterday and didn’t eat a single macaroon (pats self on the back).

Fun Stuff:
This may fit appropriately under “Symptoms” but I prefer to put it under “Fun Stuff”.  I’ve felt the baby flutter a couple of times weeks ago, but this past week, I finally felt him kick.  I woke up at 3 am on Tuesday night and couldn’t go back to sleep.  Then Baby E started kicking gently (or maybe punching?) and kept it up for the next four hours.  I woke Brad up because I knew he would want to feel him.  It was such an amazing feeling that I didn’t mind that I couldn’t sleep at all.  It was more because of the excitement than the baby keeping me awake.

Since then, I’ve felt him kick and move around here and there, at least a couple of times everyday. But it hasn’t been anything like that first time when he kept it up for so long.  It was wonderful!

The other fun thing that has been going on this past week is ordering things for the nursery.  I’ll do a follow-up post on planning our nursery.  But for now, I’ll just say it has been both a little nerve-racking and a lot of fun.

The post My Pregnancy: 21 Weeks appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

The Palm

Links	Website | OpenTable
Phone	(704) 552-7256
Address	6705-B Phillips Place Court, Charlotte, NC 28210
Price	$8 - $35
Cuisines	American
Location	Charlotte, South Park

A few weeks ago, The Palm in Charlotte reached out to me to try their new lunch menu.  Lunch has been on their menu in the past, but their new Three Course Power Lunch is brand spanking new.

Honestly, up until this point, I had never tried The Palm.  I don’t frequent chain restaurants very often, and it’s down in Phillips Place which I rarely think of when we’re picking a restaurant.

I invited my friend Amy along for the ride, who loves trying new food as much as I do, and we immediately jumped into the bread basket set before us.  Their nutty wheat bread (front of the basket) was warm and delicious.  Sometimes I pass on bread because it’s “just okay”, but this bread was chewy, soft in the center, and just right — a definite problem when you’re trying to save room for lunch.

I chose the half sandwich half salad option and started out with a caprese salad — one of my favorite salads ever at any restaurant.  Rather than dousing the salad in balsamic, The Palm sends out two glass bottles of balsamic vinegar and olive oil so you can dress your salad any way you like.

Beefsteak Tomato Capri
sliced tomatoes, basil and imported mozzarella di bufala, stacked two high

Fresh and delicious.

Next, out came our main course.  Amy ordered this beautiful salad.

Sesame Seared Ahi Tuna Salad
with baby greens, peppers, tomatoes, toasted almonds, oranges, fried wontons and soy vinaigrette

The salad was massive (you’ll find it under the Big Salad portion of the menu) and looked like something I would order, if I wasn’t avoiding raw fish at the moment.

I feel like lobster on any menu in NC is somewhat of a rarity, especially on a lunch menu so I went with the Lobster BLT.  Also, if you’ve been following any of my pregnancy posts, you know BLTs have been high on my list of cravings.  My eyes went immediately to this sandwich.

Nova Scotia Lobster BLT Sandwich
crispy bacon, baby arugula, oven dried tomatoes and Goddess dresssing 

The Goddess dressing (which is one of my favorite dressings) was icing on the cake.  This sandwich was delicious and I loved that the dressing wasn’t too powerful.  Amy says that she’s tried a sandwich like this before (not at The Palm) and the bacon overtook the taste of the lobster, which is what you’re really paying for when you order anything with lobster.  Not the case with this sandwich; I could definitely taste the lobster in every bite. This sandwich was just what I wanted.

About halfway through our meal, we discovered that we hadn’t ordered off the Power Lunch menu, which is really what they wanted us to try.  So the manager came out to explain that we would be getting a few more courses to our meal.  Amy and I decided to box up the rest of our lunch so we could attempt to taste the rest of the food being brought out to us.

The Power Lunch is a three course lunch, something you might usually get for dinner.  We skipped the salad portion and went straight to the entrees, but first The Palm wanted us to try the crab cake sandwich.

Jumbo Lump Crab Cake Sandwich
baby arugula, tomato and remoulade sauce

I rarely order crab cakes at a restaurant because my mother-in-law has completely spoiled me.  Out on the coast, we throw out crab pots right off their pier and then she uses the fresh crab meat to make burger-size crab cakes that has hardly any breading and fries them in a bit of extra virgin olive oil.  They’re amazing.

That beings said, I really enjoyed the crab cake sandwich served to us at The Palm.  It was a generous portion of crab cake, but it was crispy because after making the crab cake, they roll it in panko bread crumbs before frying it.  Not too “bread-y” and a generous portion size means this sandwich is worth ordering in my book.

The first entree to come from the Power Lunch menu was their chicken parmesan.

Chicken Parmigiana

I’m not a heavy pasta dish kind of girl, but I enjoyed the few bites I had of this meal.  Although it’s hard to tell in the picture, this dish is made up almost entirely of chicken with only a side portion of pasta.  Most restaurants go easy on the pricier protein and load you up with cheaper pasta.  I can’t see chicken parmesan without thinking of my brother Wess who orders chicken parmesan at every single restaurant possible.  He’ll order it at a Mexican restaurant if they have it.  He would have loved this dish.

Our second and final entree from the Power Lunch was the filet mignon.

Filet Mignon Medallions (two 4 ounce)
A la Stone with Bordelaise Sauce

This was served with toast topped with peppers and onions.  The filet was cooked perfectly and just happens to be my favorite cut of steak.  Filet mignon is also something I’m picky about and only order it at good steak houses where I know it will be cooked perfectly.  I would definitely order the filet at The Palm as well, based on my experience here.

Next up was dessert, starting with cheesecake.

New York Style Cheesecake

The cheesecake was rich and creamy and I really liked that they topped it with maraschino cherry juice but only two cherries.  I actually like the juice but not the actual cherries (I prefer black cherries).

Our second dessert was key lime pie.

Key Lime Pie
key lime custard, graham cracker crust, blueberry compote and whipped cream

Key lime pie is one of my very favorite desserts, especially during warmer weather.  I have never thought to top with blueberries and really enjoyed the pairing.

Our final dessert is not on the Power Lunch menu, but you can order it any time.

Bag of Warm Doughnuts
dusted with cinnamon sugar and served with chocolate and raspberry sauce

I just love food that requires a presentation.

The doughnuts come in a bag with cinnamon and sugar, which the server shakes just before emptying the contents of the bag onto your plate.

Although I was stuffed to my gills, I couldn’t leave without dipping a doughnut into the chocolate sauce.  These rivaled my love for the key lime pie, and that’s saying something.

The Power Lunch at The Palm is for someone who wants to really do it up big for lunch.  It would be perfect for a client lunch or to celebrate a special occasion.  The portion sizes are very generous and the food is delicious.  I’ll definitely think about The Palm the next time I’m throwing around restaurant ideas, especially for lunch.

*My pride will not let me end this post without pointing out that while Amy and I tasted everything served to us, we did not in fact eat all of this food.  We had leftovers for days.  While my belly is much bigger nowadays, my appetite does not have super powers.

**As a guest of The Palm, this meal was provided to me free of charge.  However, the opinions expressed here are 100% my own.

Have you visited The Palm? 

The post The Palm {Restaurant Review} appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

I’ve been hanging on to two products that have been burning a hole in my pocket pantry: Cloister Honey Bourbon Honey and Palmetto Farms Stone Ground Grits.

The first product has been sitting on my shelf for a while.  I have four other jars of Cloister Honey that I’ve been working my way through and was holding off on opening this flavor until I made more of a dent in my other honey. But when I mentioned that there was bourbon honey in our pantry to Brad and it just happened to be infused with his very favorite bourbon, Woodford Reserve, I later found him eating the honey out of the jar with a spoon.

In other words, if you like bourbon, you’ll love this stuff.  It really tastes like bourbon.

The second product, Palmetto Farms Stone Ground Grits, is a little more of a recent find.  I dropped into the Gluten/Allergen Free Wellness Event last weekend to interview Chef Peter Pollay of the gluten-free Asheville restaurant Posana Cafe. While I waited, I checked out some of the vendors, one of which was Palmetto Farms.  They drew me in with their hushpuppies and after chatting with one of the owners for a bit, I was given this sack of stone ground grits to try free of charge.

I’ve actually been eating a lot of grits lately 1) because I really like them (especially mixed with a scrambled egg and a bit of cheese) and 2) because they’re a great source of iron, which is great for pregnant ladies like me.

The grits dish was simple, but satisfying and a nice change from the other grains and “carby” sides that I usually serve.  With no butter or cream, the grits became the perfect grits consistency — velvety smooth.  Stone ground grits are much better for you than instant (which I’m sometimes guilty of eating when I’m in a pinch) because they’re less processed.  They’re also heartier and more likely to fill you up for a while, much like the way steel cut oats does versus instant oatmeal.

NOTES:
Capitol Hill Seasoning from Savory Spice Shop is a spice blend of dried shallots, salt, pepper, dill weed, parsley and chives. You could obviously make a blend of these spices instead of purchasing this product, but I really think that its worth the money.  It’s a great spice blend for all types of dishes.

You can substitute the water and bouillon cube used in the grits ingredients for 4 cups of vegetable or chicken broth.

The post Bourbon Honey Pork Chops with Herbed Grits {Dairy and Gluten Free} appeared first on Foodie Fresh.

The Roasting Company

Links	Website | OpenTable
Phone	704-521-8188
Address	1601 Montford Dr. Charlotte, NC 28209
Price	$4 - $10
Cuisines	American
Location	Charlotte, Myers Park, North Carolina

Today I met my friend Jessie and her precious baby boy Levi for lunch at The Roasting Company.  This wasn’t the first time I’ve eaten at the casual restaurant whose menu focuses on roasted chicken.  But it was the first time I have visited since starting my blog four years ago.  It’s been a while.

The Roasting Company is not a Southern restaurant, but like a Southern restaurant, they have a lot of “vegetables” (i.e. sides).  In case you didn’t know, at a real Southern Restaurant, baked beans are a vegetable.

They have 16 “Fresh Veggies” listed on their menu, but they also have a few special daily sides written on the board over the register where you order your meal.  The Roasting Company also has a daily meal special.  On Thursdays, their special is chicken n’ dumplings.

Usually I’m a HUGE chicken n’ dumpling fan, but with the warm weather I just wasn’t feeling it.

Instead, I went with 1/4 of the dark meat chicken with the house salad as my side, plus a cornbread muffin.

The cornbread muffins have little bits of jalapeño for a kick.  They’re slightly sweet, which is the way I prefer my cornbread, even though that’s not the traditional southern way of making cornbread.

I’m on the fence about this — when you order 1/4 chicken, you either get dark meat or white meat.  You can’t get both unless you order a 1/2 chicken.  Dark meat is my favorite so that’s what I went for, but sometimes I want some white meat too.  Regardless, it was delicious.

Brad always thinks that it’s funny that I eat every edible piece of bone-in chicken.  When I’m done, all that’s left is the bone.  No cartilage, not skin.  Nothing.  It was the same with this chicken.

It was juicy and delicious and the skin was perfect.  I enjoyed every bite.

My entire meal, plus a drink, was only $7.79, which I think is a great deal.  I don’t abide by this rule, but somewhere deep inside, I feel that lunch should never cost more than $9.99.

The Roasting Company is a great casual place for lunch or dinner, especially if you love roasted chicken as much as I do.  But they also have several vegetarian options, including a vegetable plate which you can make up yourself by choosing 3-4 of their numerous sides.

I won’t wait four more years before visiting The Roasting Company again.

The post The Roasting Company {Restaurant Review} appeared first on Foodie Fresh.