Travels in the South

Last week I told you about a restaurant that mom/dad went to with Aunt Tina a couple of months ago while visiting Chicago.  This is the second half of that posting.

On this night, mom/dad split a meal.  They do that a lot.  On tonight’s menu it was a Fontina Pork Chop.  I know – I know.  I was shocked too.  Thank goodness I’m not that kind of pig!

This pork chop was boneless, had fontina cheese, garlic and prosciutto ham and a mushroom marsala sauce.  Mom said it was the best pig that she ever had…besides kissing me that is – snorts and rolls with piggy laughter.

They served it with garlic whipped potatoes and one of dad’s favorites – crab fried rice – which dad absolutely fell in love with!

This was the first time that mom/dad had visited this restaurant but they say they will be back for sure!  Wait until next week to see the dessert – oh yum ❤

 

Travels in the South

 Sometimes you just want to try a new restaurant.  Daddy has been seeing a certain restaurant on the television for weeks now and telling mom about it.  With that being said, this another week that I’m going to let daddy discuss his thoughts – take it away daddy!

Thank you Bacon.  I’m glad you understand these things when it comes to food.  After seeing this advertisements on television and pestering asking the wife to go, we looked the restaurant on line to see where the closest one was to the Hotel Thompson.  The closest one was about 25 minutes away from us several towns over.  Now we tried to go on several different occasions but something always came up.  Maybe that was an omen we should have listened to?  You decide.

So we get to this place and it’s a barbeque restaurant where you order in one place, pay and then pick up your food.  We told the person at the counter when we ordered we had never been there before.  They said, “Ah, okay, what would you like”.  And that was that.  No smile, no welcome, no greeting.  Okay, so customer service is not their best.  Some of the best food can still be found in places like this.

I ordered waffle fries, potato salad (I know double potatoes – LOL), ribs, pork and brisket.  The food came out lukewarm.  It was okay – nothing to write home about or put on your list to visit again.

The wife unit ordered something called a frito pie.  It had Frito’s on the bottom, covered with pinto beans and brisket and topped with onion strings and barbeque sauce.  She ordered it the same time I did mine; however, it literally took them about 20 minutes to put something together that the ingredients were all ready.  I personally think they forgot about her and was thinking the next person was going to do it, etc.  It doesn’t look appealing but she really enjoyed it.

So this wasn’t a place we would visit again anytime soon.  Maybe they were having an off day.  We might try it again but it will definitely be some time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enough With the Spam!

Are you tired of getting all of this Spam lately?  I just can’t take it anymore.  Stomping piggy hooves!!  Enough already – Spam should be outlawed – snorts.

You thought I was talking about email and blog spam?  Silly humans.. of course not.

I’m talking Spam.  Do you know what this stuff is made out of?  Come closer and I’ll whisper it to you – sshh – pork products.  You do realize what that means, right?  The Spam site explains it this way:

Spam is made of two cuts of the same piggy – the shock of that!  It says that the cuts come from (A) the pork shoulder because of its juiciness, tenderness and flavor and (B) the pig’s rear which is surprise – thick and flavorful.  OMP (Oh my pig!)  It’s bad enough that daddy looks at me sometimes feeling my rump wondering how many biscuits I would make.  The nerve!

I have to stop this insanity.  Why does it have to be pig?  Why can’t it be cow?  Heck, why can’t it be tofu?  Yep, I think personally that’s the way to go – tofu.  🙂

Let’s start a campaign now and take a stand – NO SPAM.  But I do have to say thank you to the Spam peeps – I am jucy, tender and flavorful – sticks tongue out!  Happy Friday my friends!

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Take Note:  This was all in fun jest.  I’m not dishing the Spam makers or eaters.  I was having fun.

 

Travels in the South

They say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and I agree.  Mom has fixed me omelettes for breakfast and dinner.  However, I’ve never had an omelette like this one before.  It seems mom likes something called a Colorado Omelette.  It has all kinds of wonderful yummy stuff in it – some things I can’t mention because well I’m an oinker and it wouldn’t be good for me so I’m letting mom take it from here.

For obvious reasons – this omelette is loaded.  Loaded with goodness that is.  It has bacon, sausage, shredded beef, ham, onions, green peppers, mushrooms and cheddar cheese.  And let’s not forget to top off that deliciously wonderful omelette with salsa.  Yum.  Have you ever had an omelette topped with salsa?  It just brings so much more to the table.

 

 

Travels in the South

Hello sweet friends.  How was your Valentine’s Day yesterday?  In honor of the sweetest day of the year, mom/dad shared a little love yesterday as well.  They went out to dinner and afterwards enjoyed this delicious concoction.  And hey, splitting a dessert means half of the calories, right?  But who’s counting calories on Valentine’s Day – snorts.

This lovely creation is called a Margarita Cheesecake which is seasonal special at a local steakhouse called Logan’s Roadhouse.  Now, it’s like other cheesecakes made with cream cheese but it has Logan’s signature margarita blend on the graham cracker crust.  And don’t forget about the sliced strawberries all over the place.  Mom said it was – what was the phrase she used – delightful to the fullest!

So, if you are near a Logan’s Roadhouse, make sure you check it out for this wonderful dessert.  You won’t be disappointed.

 

 

 

 

Travels in the South

Welcome friends to another Travels in the South.  This week mom/dad went seafood.  At our local Joe’s Crab Shack, they have an appetizer that mom/dad like to get and share.  Pair it with a salad and you can say perfect meal.  What is this appetizer?  Joe’s Crab Shack calls it Crab Nachos.  Mom/dad call it a little heaven.

It has almost everything in it – lots of delicious crab dip, pico de gallo, black beans, lettuce, corn, cheese and an awesome avocado lime dressing.  And there are plenty of nachos to scoop everything up with and enjoy.  And the bonus is that the nachos don’t get soggy.  You know how sometimes they get limp and wet with regular nacho toppings.

So the next time you are craving something seafood but with a curb of delight, check out your local Joe’s Crab Shack for this delicious appetizer… or make it a meal like my mom/dad do.

 

Travels in the South

Hello friends – welcome back to mom/dad’s Travels in the South.  Today is a good one…. snorts – I say that every week don’t I?  Rolls with piggy laughter.  Well as you know mom/dad have been changing their way of eating.  It’s definitely a work in progress for sure.  Well, a couple of weeks ago mom took dad out for his birthday.  Dad wanted to go to a local steakhouse for dinner.

Dad went for a steak of course ❤   He ordered a prime rib and mom said since it was his birthday he could have french fries.  Nice of her huh?  Snorts!  Mom went with the strawberry fields salad.  Doesn’t that look awesome?  It has everything in it from nuts to grapes to strawberries to oranges.  Yummy huh?

 

Travels in the South

Are you asking yourself, “Self, just what is this creation on Bacon’s Travels in the South this week?”  I’m glad you asked my friends.  See last week for dad’s birthday, he wanted to go to our local Bojangles where he wanted to try this creation.  Now I’m going to let mom describe what it is… she says I don’t need to know what’s inside of it.  I think we all knows what that means.

This fabulous looking bowl is called the Pulled Pork Bowl.  It starts with Bojangle’s spicy Cajun pintos, then they add a sweet and smoky sauce along with pulled pork and topped with cole slaw.  Even I was questioning if this would be good or not.  In fact, I tried not to like the taste I got out of the hub unit’s bowl.. but I couldn’t help myself.  It was delicious!

So if you have a Bojangles in the area, stop in and try this creation – I think you’ll like it too 🙂

 

Travels in the South

Hello sweet friends and welcome to another great edition of Travels in the South.  This past weekend, my mom/dad had to go to Alabama for a quick trip.  While they were gone, they stopped at a restaurant called Top O’ The River in Gadsden, Alabama.  Now this restaurant has special meaning to mom/dad.  You see it was over 20 years ago that dad and his family ate here.  They then told mom about it and mom and  her family ate here.  But mom/dad together have never been here.  So going to this restaurant was kind of like a coming home if you will.

When mom/dad arrived at the restaurant, there was not a single available parking space in the entire lot.  It was barely 5:00pm and there were 100’s of cars.  Mom says this is a sure sign of good food to come.  Finally mom spotted a parking space, they parked and entered the restaurant.  That’s when they saw lots of people waiting in line.  Mom/dad knew they were going to be in for a long wait so they put their name in and started looking at the menu.  You can see the menu here.  Amazingly, mom/dad might have waited less than 15 minutes and their number was called.  Mom/dad were ecstatic to say the least.  There were lots of big parties here that night so thank goodness it was just mom/dad.

Mom/dad got a fantastic seat at a booth next to the windows which was what – overlooking the top o’ the river.  Cute huh?  And what a view they had that you can see from this picture.  Beautiful and serene, lots of green trees and there were some ducks swimming around in the water.  Can you imagine what these trees are going to look like when Fall finally decides to get here?

The sweet little waitress came to the table and mom asked her what was good to get.  She said that there platters were awesome and way more food than one can eat… although the platters say for one.  So mom/dad said why not and went with the platter to share.  Boy, were they surprised when the waitress came back with some starters in the form of cole slaw and cornbread.

If you have never had southern cornbread, you are in for a treat.  Cornbread is one of mom’s specialties and dad says she makes the best. In fact here in the south, a good cornbread  will get you a good man… so says mom/dad – snorts.  But mom said this cornbread was fantastic!  Cornbread is made with cornmeal, milk, eggs, some people add a little sugar although mom doesn’t, and this cornbread had corn and jalapeno peppers.  This cornbread was served with a delicious creamy cole slaw and sliced onions on the side.  Mom/dad said they could just eat these starters and be just fine.  That’s country folks my friends – simple food for a fantastic experience.

But mom/dad ate all they could and before they knew it, it was time for the main course.  Remember the platter was suppose to be for ONE person? Well here is that platter in it’s glory.  There is boneless catfish fillets, popcorn shrimp, fried shrimp, chicken fingers, hush puppies and french fries.  Doesn’t that platter look simply amazing!  And the size of it compared to dad’s hand.  Remember, the platter was for one person.  There is no way!  Mom/dad were so glad they decided to share the meal.

They ate to their hearts desire both of them afterwards being so full and happy.  That’s what this experience was all about.  Enjoying each other, sharing a wonderful experience and just enjoying the time and scenery.  For a while, time stopped and mom/dad sat for a while and just relaxed for a bit away from everything.  And of course, you all know my daddy.  He’s never met anyone that he can’t talk to.  Today was no exception.

On the way out of the restaurant, he met the restaurant mascot, Mr. Catfish at the exit door.  They had a moment to discuss politics, the secret recipe for those wonderful catfish fillets and dad got directions home… that is after they visited the back deck of the restaurant for one last final view.

And that final view is what I leave you with today my friends.  A reflection of a great meal with some wonderful memories made.  And I have to ask you.  When was the last time that you had a dinner with family that you just sat in comfort with each other, laughed and just let everything stop for a moment.  Enjoy my friends.

 

Travels in the South

Today we continue our travels in the south series.  I’m going to take you back to Tybee Island, Georgia.  Why?  Because that happens to be one of the places in the entire world that mom/dad can get to for an escape of reality to find inner peace.  You believe that, right?  Snorts with piggy laughter.

So there mom/dad was in one of the many stores on Tybee Island, wondering around aimlessly looking for ‘it’.  You do know what ‘it’ is, right?  When woman know they need something but can’t quite put their manicured finger on what it is they need.  You follow me now?  So there they were in this store, mom looks up and says to dad, “There it is!”  Oh dear have mercy is what I think dad mumbled.  What was it?  Take exhibit A in the picture to the left.  For a moment mom thought they were in the South Pacific on Easter Island.  Where else would they be finding this ‘dude’?

You know Easter Island – There are mysterious moai statues that are huge – averaging 13 feet and weighing 14 tons.  Although they stand silent reaching for the stars, they speak volumes on how did they get there and how were they constructed which to this day is a mystery.  So was mom surprised when she found “Junior” here on Tybee Island, Georgia of all places.  Now, mom thought Junior would be awesome standing either on her front porch here at the Hotel Thompson or on the deck.  See, mom’s weird like that.  And I’m sure us anipals would have endless nightmares of Junior chasing us in our sleep.  So, this is the one time that I can say dad talked some sense into mom… this time.  But if Junior is still there the next time mom/dad visits the island, I can’t promise it won’t come home… yay.

 And another “it” that mom found while shopping endlessly for nothing, was a treasured Tybee Island rock.  You know this rock did make it home to the Hotel Thompson and is now treasured with our other pet rocks.  They all get along and have been talking non-stop about the beach and the fantastic water.  I foresee a pet rock excursion taking place to Tybee Island in the near future.  Do you?

Now, I’m stepping away from this part on food – take it away mom/dad ❤

For obvious reasons, Bacon doesn’t need to see this.  This creation is one of mine and Jim’s favorite breakfast foods while visiting Tybee Island.  We even introduced it to Jean/Bill from Canadian Cats and to Fozziemom/Fozziedad from All Fur One and One Fur All when they visited.

It is hash browns well done crispy sprinkled with chopped up fried bacon.  See, that’s why Bacon didn’t need to see this.  It is insanely evil and so delicious.  You won’t look at plain hash browns the same way.

Hope you enjoyed this week in our Travels in the South series.  Until next time