My Dinner Table

Lamb Curry Wrap @the Manx

The Manx

12-year-old Macallan

Moon River Brewing Co.

Our first night in Savannah we headed out for something simple. Our first choice, Noble Fare, was closed, so after a quick perusal of eGullet and Chowhound we settled on Moon River Brewing Co. It is a brew pub in a pretty touristy area of Savannah. We started with their crab cakes that were highly recommended on some of the online forums. They weren't bad, but not quite what I had hoped for and what some others had said about them. The corn and black bean relish and roasted red bell pepper sauce wasn't bad either. Just nothing really special.

For my dinner I went with the Lowcountry Crab Melt. Grilled Texas toast topped with fresh blue crab in a mayonnaise-based salad and Monterey Jack cheese, smothered with a creamy Parmesan sauce and baked. Again, not bad. Nothing to write home about though. It was a pretty generous serving of crab though. The fries were unremarkable. But the thing was, the beer at Moon River was terrific. I had two pints. The Swamp Fox IPA, which was fantastic. Huge hop flavours. Good bitter flavour. Great nose. Loved this beer. The other I had was a pale ale. Not quite as big a hop flavour. Tasted almost sweet after the pint of IPA. Also terrific, but I preferred the IPA. If you love hoppy beers, order the IPA.

Daphne had the spinach salad. I probably should have just had a salad too considering all the meat we had been eating, but well, I was on holiday. It was a pretty ordinary spinach salad. Overall the food at Moon River was a little disappointing given some of the online reviews. It was pretty much just ordinary pub food. Nothing special, nothing terrible. However the beer at Moon River was great. It was as good as any brew pub I've been to. Next time I'm in Savannah I'm not sure that I would go to Moon River for dinner, but I would definitely go and have a few pints. And if I was hungry after a few pints, I'd order their food, I just wouldn't go specifically for dinner.

Moon River Brewing Co. 21 W. Bay St. Savannah, Ga. 912-447-0943.

Cheeseburgers at Holeman and Finch

Another day, another burger. This time at Holeman and Finch. Upon our arrival in Atlanta, Daphne's brothers threw us a party at Holeman and Finch, a bar that Jonathan liked. It's specialty was small plates. So we didn't actually have cheeseburgers for dinner. Dinner was made of things like marrow, pimento cheese, deviled eggs, short ribs and other tasty little bites. That and a pretty decent selection of beer. Daphne even spotted a bottle of Trevor Jones wine that she loved and ordered. But before heading off on our trip South, I had read about the cheeseburgers at Holeman and Finch. They're not on the menu and they only make them at 10 p.m. And they are a limited supply. They will run out. Apparently people will start coming into the bar just before 10 so they can get a burger. Now, I understand that this is mostly a marketing ploy by the bar. Granted, a clever marketing ploy, but a ploy nonetheless. But I was pretty sure it wouldn't work unless the burger was at least pretty good. Well, the burger was excellent. I'm pretty sure it was a brioche bun, good quality meat cooked properly, melty cheese. What wasn't to love. It reminded me of the perfect diner hamburger. I would still place it behind the Moderne Burger burger, but it was very good. Better than The Works. So if you're near Holeman and Finch and it is nearing 10 p.m., I'd say, head on over and indulge in a little grease and cholesterol.
Holeman and Finch. 2277 Peachtree Rd NE. Atlanta. 404-948-1175

Margaritas and Nachos at CBGB

For one night of the trip west, we went to Whistler and stayed at the old Delta. Now a Hilton, the bar remains a decent place for a drink and a bite to eat with great specials. For the Thursday night we were there we had the pitcher of margaritas and plate of nachos at the bar in the hotel, the Cinnamon Bear, Bar and Grill. CBGB, get it? The plate of nachos was huge. Almost a meal unto itself. And the margarita hit the spot. I had wanted a slurpee earlier in the day, but could not find one, so the slushy drink was just what I wanted. Cool, refreshing. It made a little bit of a mess pouring it, but I really didn't mind all that much. The nachos were piled high, lots of toppings. It may lack the scene of some of the other places in Whistler, but this is a great place to go for a drink.

Wild Wing

I went to Wild Wing on Saturday night in search of a great chicken wing. I love chicken wings and have fond memories of going for a pre-game meal at Duff's in suburban Buffalo. For me they are the gold standard for wings. The ones that I compare all other wings to. Ross had heard great things about Wild Wing. Apparently, he has friends who hit the place up on a regular basis and love it. Wild Wing is kind of a little mini-chain in Ontario. The one we hit up was on the east side of Ottawa. The decor is pretty sparse. Perfect for a wing place. A caddy with sauces, a roll of paper towel and a bit metal bucket for wing bones on each table. The place meant business. With 101 different wing flavours, the menu was a lttle overwhelming. Two pages of different wing flavours. A full page of flavours that combined different sauces that I found a little odd, but looked interesting. For my first order though I stuck with the plain hot. Flavoured with Frank's Red Hot sauce, a pretty standard hot sauce. Like Duff's, their menu warned that their medium was hot and their hot was even hotter, I was prepared for a hot wing. I was a little disappointed. It wasn't that hot. It was a pretty good wing though. Cooked well, not overdone, not too chewy. Solid. Could have used a little more sauce and I forgot to order a little blue cheese dip to go with it, but otherwise I quite enjoyed it. I'd get it again.

Ross went with the Smokey Mountain. A sauce covered wing. A combination of mesquite and teriyaki. Pretty good. Sweet. A little too much sauce for my taste, but flavourful. If you weren't looking for a hot wing, I'd recommend this wing, but I do love a hot and spicy wing.

For the second round I went for the one of their combinations. Something called Smoke that Jerk. A combination of the mesquite and jerk seasoning. I liked the mesquite flavour of Ross's wings, but wanted a little heat. This really missed the mark for me. First, it looked kind of gross, with some sort of jerk sauce poured over the mesquite sauce covered wing. Second, it wasn't very hot. I definitely would not order this wing again.

For Ross's part, he ordered their boneless wings, done medium. Essentially chicken fingers, coated in hot sauce, or well, medium sauce. You get seven of them for the price of 10 normal wings. A pretty generous serving. Probably more meat than the 10 wings. If you don't like eating the wings on the bone, this would be a smart option.

I liked Wild Wing and I"m not the only one. Lord of the Wings, an excellent chicken wing focussed blog, also gave it high praise and he's a far fussier chicken wing eater than I am. The service was quick and the wings arrived at the table piping hot. I'm not sure about a restaurant that advertises on their menu that they use McCain french fries and the sorts of store-bought sauces they use, but I suppose it is not the end of the world. This was definitely no Duff's. That still remains the finest chicken wing I've had by a country mile, but I'll go back to Wild Wing again for sure. I think I might just stay away from their weird combinations of sauces and stick with the hot or extra hot wings.

Fish and Chips at the Earl of Sussex

We went for a beer late Friday night after I finished work. This time we hit the Earl of Sussex, one of the many pubs in the neighbourhood. I wanted to go to the Earl of Sussex because of their patio. I love sitting outside on the patio and having a beer on a patio is one of the great joys of the world. But, I was hungry, so food was also in order and a beer and fish and chips are like Oreo cookies and milk.The fish and chips at the Earl of Sussex aren't bad. The fish was pretty good. Beer battered. Not too heavy, solid. Well short of places like Go Fish or Pajo's, but better than the fish and chips I had at Darcy McGee's a couple of weeks ago. The chips on the other hand weren't. I really dislike the seasoned frozen fries. Why mess up fries with that crazy salty seasoning. All fries really need is salt. I'd go back to the Earl of Sussex again though as I do love that patio. I might even order the fish and chips again as the fish was pretty good.

Lunch at the Black Thorn

I went for lunch at the Black Thorn today. It's one of the many little pubs in the Byward Market and it's open for lunch. The menu is pretty ordinary. Burgers, a club sandwich, a few salads and some thin crust pizzas. Sitting on their back patio, tucked away from the street, I told myself, whatever the food is like, I'm coming back for a beer or three. It's a nice little spot. A little quieter than the ones around the corner from home. I settled on their Texas Chicken pizza. Barbecue sauce, chicken, bacon bits, carmelized onion, cheddar cheese and scallions, it sounded pretty appealing. I love thin crust pizza, so hopes were high. It wasn't bad. the crust wasn't as crisp as I would have liked, but it was OK. I've had better. I've made better. I thought it was a little overpriced, but it is a pretty touristy area, so I guess that's what you have to expect. I'll be back to the Black Thorn though as it really looks to be a nice spot to enjoy a beer. I might not order the pizza again though.

Burger at Darcy McGee's

I went for a beer and a burger after work on Friday night. I don't often go, but sometimes and I do love the burger at Darcy McGee's. I know it is a chain pub, but I don't care. It's a pretty straight forward burger. This certainly isn't the Works with all their crazy toppings. The patty is a half pound of ground up prime rib. The bun is a wonderful soft roll. I like mine with mushrooms. The twist are the fried onions they top the burger with. They're seasoned with I'm not sure what, but I think there might be a bit of curry powder in there. I love them and they make it my favourite burger in Ottawa. I wish the fries were better though. They are very ordinary fries, tasting like the frozen variety. A burger of this quality deserves better fries. Hand cut, fresh potato, double fried. Real fries. That's one of the things I so love about Mordern Burger. Not only is it a great burger, but the fries are also fantastic.  So Darcy McGee's, if you're listening, you've got a great burger. Just work on the fries.

The Vortex

I had lunch at the Vortex last Saturday so this is a little late, but I thought I would post a little something about it anyway as it was a very good buger. After driving to Atlanta we headed to the Vortex for lunch, home of what has been named by many as the best burger in Atlanta. I had the Swiss mushroom burger with a beef patty, cooked medium. It has been a long time since someone asked me how I wanted my burger cooked. You can't seem to get one with even a hint of pink in Vancouver, so I was quite happy. This was a strong burger. I wouldn't say the best I've ever had. That title might go to Moderne. But this was a damn fine burger. I had it with tater tots. I know a little weird, but Jim just kept talking about tater tots that I felt I needed to have them. I'm not quite sure what to make of the Vortex, but they make a great burger.