Tannoor Grill in Cordova, Tennessee

A new restaurant popped up in the neighborhood recently, and because I only saw the sign while maneuvering rush hour traffic, I thought there was a new Indian place with a Tandoori grill. But upon further inspection the place is called Tannoor Grill, and is a Mediterranean/Middle Eastern version of the Brazilian churrascaria restaurant. Large skewers full of grilled meats are brought around to your table over and over until you say "stop!"

Tannoor Grill
830 N. Germantown Parkway
Cordova, TN 38018
(901) 443-5222

I stopped in for lunch by myself. Although the restaurant is all-you-can-eat, the place is classy and all food is brought to you. For dinner, they have an expanded menu and it's a little more expensive, but I must stress to all of my readers that the following feast was brought to my table for the bargain price of $13 (plus tax and beverages), and at any time I could request more of any of the courses.

First up was a freshly prepared fatoush salad full of tomatoes and cucumbers:

Followed by a slice of grilled eggplant topped with ground beef and yogurt:

Mezze! Pita, baba ghanoush, hummus:

Then chicken legs, served off the skewer:

Nicely seasoned ground beef kebabs:

Moist and succulent chicken breast:

Slices of rare sirloin. I could have kept going for a long while with this:

Chunks of well-done beef (chuck roast?):

After modest portions of everything I signaled defeat and Chef Shadi Alrammal came by with a whole pineapple, peeled, coated in brown sugar and grilled. I had two slices:

While this is an amazing bargain for lunch (and you can try everything without hurting yourself), I can't wait to try it for dinner to sample the lamb and all of the other extra options. That's the kind of dinner that requires fasting for a few days ahead of time and a lot of time on the exercise bike for the following week. Check it out, and tell 'em I sent you.

Opening Night at Pasta Italia

This is not a restaurant review, because it's not appropriate to review a place on the first night that it's open. Rather, I'm just sharing an experience of revisiting a restaurant I loved that just came back to the Memphis area. And it was the day after Valentine's Day, so I was glad to splurge on a fancy dinner and introduce Julia to this very authentic northern Italian restaurant.

Pasta Italia
8130 Macon Station Dr. Suite 106
Cordova, TN 38018
(901) 751-0009

That's the basic address info, but I'm going to give some local advice since I can walk to this place from my house. It's near the corner of Germantown Parkway and Macon, but Macon is not a single street. Instead, it is an endlessly frustrating set of roads in Cordova that begin and end in different places, and there's one point where you can be at the corner of Macon and Macon. Simple directions: turn east between Walgreen's and O'Charley's and then take a right just before Gateway Tires. You'll find yourself in a charming little commercial development, and the restaurant will be on your left.

Much like the prior location in Collierville (and I assume in Chattanooga), the dinner begins with bread, olive oil, and carved chunks of Grana Padano cheese, a hard one that is well aged with little crunchy bites of naturally occuring calcium lactate crystals.

The restaurant does not have its liquor license yet, so I brought a couple of wines with me. One was a forgettable red blend, but the other was the superb 2011 Coppola Sofia Rosé from Monterey County. $19, 12.5% abv. 80% Syrah, 20% Grenache. Back in the day this used to be made from Pinot Noir, but I really enjoyed the Rhone-style blend. Dry, but with aromas and flavors of watermelon with a hint of lemon. Mild and fruity while exhibiting outstanding balance, and it was tasty with the antipasto di italiana ($23.50 for two) of cured meats and marinated vegetables. It was packed that evening, and while I had an advance reservation, I was sharing a four-top with Julia, and was feeling friendly. Maybe it was the opportunity to speak Italian with the chef and house manager, but I kept inviting people over to sit with us rather than stand outside in the cold, and the staff kept bringing extra wine glasses so I could share. I wouldn't do this to dent actual wine sales in a restaurant, but in a unique experience like this it was a lot of fun and everyone enjoyed the Sofia. The hostess even saved the empty bottle so she could purchase a full one later.

Julia ordered the cannelloni di spinaci ricotta ($24.99, pictured at the top of this post), a savory treat served in the earthenware roasting dish in which it was baked. The handmade pasta was delicate and the filling was rich without being heavy. (She also proclaimed that the béchamel sauce was better than mine, and I have to agree.) We ended up bringing two of the cannelloni home with us.

I knew from an early peek at the menu that I had to have the linguini di mare ($29.99). What arrived was a massive platter of homemade linguini and a lot of seafood. I've carved turkeys on plates smaller than this one. The lighting in the restaurant is dim and a lot of the seafood was under the pasta, so what I initially thought was a big shrimp turned out to the first of two lobster tails. There were both clams and mussels, and after digging through for a while I discovered tiny squid rings, baby octopus, and scallops. Amazingly, everything was cooked just right: not raw or tough. That's very difficult to do with so many finicky ingredients, and the entire pasta dish was swimming in just enough salty seafood stock with the gentle application of herbs and garlic. Bowing to tradition, no cheese was put on the seafood pasta dish, which made me immensely happy. I thought fondly of some great seafood mixes I had in Italy along the Ligurian coast, which included a lot of the day's catch and whatever was fresh. The mix of ingredients may not be the same next week, but flavor and freshness are far more important.

Neither of us were able to finish our primi piatti, much less check out any of the meat-based secondi piatti like lamb chops and chateaubriand and veal saltimbocca. But we did have to have a little dessert. The tiramisù was a bit freeform, but light and fresh, and unlike the solid versions that are becoming denser and more like cheesecake every year. The picture of dessert did not turn out well, but I did snap a shot (with permission, of course) of the complimentary end to every dinner at Pasta Italia: vin brulè, a hot mulled red wine rich with citrus and spice. The recipe was just as good as I remembered (though perhaps a bit different from the link I provided), and just an espresso cup's worth was the perfect serving. Julia was a little hesitant about trying hot red wine, but absolutely loved it.

Overall, we had a great time. Great ambiance, friendly staff, and amazing food. I'm hoping that some of the old favorites like osso buco come back, and am also excited to see which other traditional dishes make it on the menu. As always, I encourage my fellow Memphians to escape the I-240 loop and try some of the great food out here in the suburbs.

Note: This wine was received as a sample, but the meal was on my own dime.

Ethiopian Restaurant

I live in the northeast suburbs of Memphis, and often bristle at the downtown/midtown criticism of my neighborhood as nothing but a sea of chain restaurants and those kind of people that still use forks at Chinese places. Sure, these things exist, but the spaces in between reveal a wealth of gastronomic diversity and enthusiasm, as well as a diverse immigrant population that might surprise you if you don't live in the area.

In an area that is associated with a car culture, I have amazing choices within walking distance (2 mile radius): two Thai places, one Vietnamese, a giant international grocery store, an independent bakery, three Middle Eastern restaurants, two Indian, and much more. Just last week I was going past the movie theater (half a mile away) when I noticed a brand new Ethiopian restaurant (right next door to the grilled fish and chicken place owned and inspired by a South African), and a couple of doors down from the fun dim sum joint, and within view of the Taiwanese bubble tea cafe.

The name of the restaurant is, simply:
Ethiopian Restaurant
1134 N. Germantown Parkway, Ste. 107
Cordova, TN 38016
(901) 283-8161
Open Tuesday - Sunday

Takeout is available, but I'd really suggest eating at the restaurant and bring some friends. I fell in love with Ethiopian food years ago at Abyssinia in Midtown, and learned the joys of true communal dining. Not just eating at the same table, but from the same large dish with hands and injera.

If you're unfamiliar with Ethiopian cuisine, you have to start with the odd light brown spongy bread that lines the bottom of platters and is used to pick up food. This is injera, a sort of light sourdough pancake traditionally made from teff, but also made from regular wheat flour. Injera is not as strong as tortillas or naan. Closer to crepes but with way more bubbles, and often the size of a medium pizza when fully unrolled and uncut. Using only your right hand, you tear off pieces of injera to grab thick stews and vegetables and other goodies, and then eat the bread when it gets soggy (and delicious). I particularly love the leftover pieces at the bottom of the platter that have been soaking up the stew juices for the entire meal. I'll reach a point of sensible satiation and decide to stop eating the protein and vegetables, but will still continue nibbling on injera.

It's so much fun to eat together from the same platter, especially since everyone will have different favorites and different combinations, and there's a gentle combination of trying to enjoy the heavily seasoned meat without depriving your fellow diners.

When I found the restaurant, I didn't want to wait to recruit some fellow food enthusiasts in the Memphis metro area. So close to my house and it's been so long since I've had Ethiopian? I'm there. But I'd never eaten it alone, and wasn't sure how this would work. Thankfully, the restaurant is well-equipped for the solo diner. If you're eating in a group they will plate everything more traditionally, but I was delighted with my large platter that ran me a mere $12. I ordered beef tibs--a grilled beef dish that's normally reserved for special occasions back in the home country. The beef was cooked with onions and berbere (a chile/ginger/garlic spice blend) and served with stewed potatoes, carrots, and cabbage, a little salad (sort of a dry salsa with parsley, onion, garlic, chiles), and creamed corn. Peeking out of the bottom right is stewed spinach, which is often combined with a kind of ricotta-like cheese.

The waitress asked me if I needed a spoon, but I politely declined and dove in with the injera. The food was amazing and while I didn't quite scrape the plate clean, I got close. So many wonderful, exotic flavors, and such a different style of dining, all amplified by the Ethiopians around me speaking solely in Amharic. This kind of experience really fires up the food lover soul on every sensory level.

A few days later, I had to go back but this time I tried takeout. I decided to go with the doro wat, the most famous Ethiopian dish. There's a dense chicken stew served with the above sides plus a whole boiled egg. The doro wot was delicious, but consuming it out of a styrofoam container wasn't quite the same.

Right now the menu is temporary, and I can't wait to see what they offer in the future. Check it out, and if you eat there, let me know what you think.

Humdingers

Last year three people opened a casual restaurant here in Memphis: a local, a Californian, and a South African. Called Humdingers, the first location at Poplar and Massey specializes in healthy grilled fish and chicken, with a series of sauces and seasonings built on the southern African piri-piri pepper. In a land of fried chicken and catfish, lots of people praised the restaurant's fresh, light approach. While I'd heard good things about it, I didn't actually get out to the restaurant.

This summer, a second location opened up within walking distance here in Cordova, so I had to give it a try. I strode up to the counter and said, "Goeie middag! Ek praat nie Afrikaans nie..." Just kidding. It's the kind of place where you order at the counter and they bring the food out to your table, but there's real plates, silverware, they serve wine, etc. I elected for takeout, and got the sampler of tacos (grilled shrimp, fish, and chicken) with a side of corn and black bean salsa.

As you can see, the tacos are not topped with the Tex-Mex staples of lettuce and cheese. There's a sort of Asian slaw made with shredded cabbage, carrots, and a dash of creamy "Humdingers" sauce. I brought home the three piri-piri sauces (there is a fourth lemon pepper sauce I skipped). They are mild, medium, and hot, though all three are intensely spicy and flavorful, somewhere between a BBQ sauce and standard hot sauce in texture and complexity. The spice burst you get (again, I'm talking flavor, not heat) is similar to various south Indian sauces, so if you're not used to that kind of taste bud explosion start easy with the mild, and just try a bit. As for me, I'd like to have a few bottles around the house to slather on everything.

Among the various tacos, the shrimp is best, followed by the chicken and then the fish. Nothing's wrong with the fish, but I felt the spices worked best with the first two. Most importantly, nothing was overcooked or rubbery--perfectly cooked and tender for all three. The rest of the menu includes various grilled fish and chicken entrées, paired with fresh fruits, grilled vegetables, rice, and other healthy but tasty sides. I think what I like about the place is that it's not tied to a specific culinary tradition, nor is it just a trendy fusion place. They're simply taking quality, fresh ingredients, and combining them in delicious ways. Which is how I think a lot of food enthusiasts are approaching their home cooking these days. Does something simple like grilled zucchini really need to be pigeonholed? Does it become Indian if you dash garam masala over it, or Asian if you splash it with soy sauce, or Italian if you drizzle oil and vinegar? Who cares as long as it tastes good.


P.S. I did not get a look at the wines available, but if you're doing takeout, I'd suggest a well-chilled South African Steen (Chenin Blanc) for most of these dishes. Not just because of the connection with the piri-piri, but also because the fruit and minerality will stand up well with this type of cooking.

Dinner at Grace

Ben and Grace had dinner at Grace, which is run by Ben, but Grace wasn't there.

Wait... That doesn't make any sense. Fortunately Renaissance theatre shows the way: a comedy of errors like this demands a proper dramatis personæ!

Ben Carter - Me
Ben Vaughn - Chef and founder of Grace Restaurant
Original Grace - My friend
Grace Restaurant - The restaurant
la fille Grace - Chef Vaughn's young daughter, for whom the restaurant is named
Marshall "Mars" Sanchez - Original Grace's significant other and general manager of the restaurant (there's not another Mars in this story, but I just wanted to clarify that the Roman God of War wasn't stopping by our table to check on things in the little-used deus ex culina literary device)

All we need is a little cross-dressing and a marriage proposal and we've got ourselves a Shakespearean classic. And yes, the temptation to write this tale in iambic pentameter was strong.

ACT I

Original Grace invited me out to dinner as a belated birthday present. And frankly it was getting to the point that if I didn't eat at the restaurant soon, I was going to be kidnapped by her and forcibly taken there blindfolded. As much fun as that might have been, I accepted her... gracious invitation and sat down to an 8 p.m. table at 938 S. Cooper. We placed ourselves in the skilled hands of the chef, and the following is what we ate.

Note: I'd suggest a starter ($10-12) followed by an entrée ($25-30) and dessert. We tasted through a bunch of plates here, due to the various webs of friendship involved, and the fact that the restaurant is still in a soft open phase: testing recipes and waiting on its liquor license. So maybe this isn't purely objective on my part, but it was an amazing dinner and I had a lot of fun. Why not share it with the readers? Plus it was a birthday present from the lovely and generous Original Grace. If the descriptions of the individual dishes don't inspire you to call for a reservation... wait a week and there will be a whole new menu incorporating local, seasonal ingredients wherever possible.

I took the photos handheld with ambient lighting; they are blurry in places, but I didn't want to disturb other diners with the flash. Plus I was pretty excited to dig in to each new and amazing course. As always, click the thumbnails for larger versions.

ACT II

As stated above, at the time of writing, the restaurant does not have their liquor license. Beer is available, and you're welcome to bring your own wine. Hopefully the license will come through soon, so be sure to ask about the status when you call to reserve a table. I got to take a sneak peek at the wine list, and while it's still in progress the focus will be on France, Italy, and Spain, with a handful of prominent Californians. I brought a bottle of a well-rounded Italian white that I felt would go with a wide range of ingredients.

The $15 2007 Santi Soave Classico Vigneti di Monteforte comes from northeast Italy and is comprised of Garganega with a bit of Trebbiano. There's an initial earthy, funky aroma that gives way to a spicy, full-bodied white with an apricot profile. Dry, not too tart, not flabby, a pretty well-rounded wine. Soaves have been getting some more attention recently, but they're not so popular that the prices have risen. Yet another fun, delicious, and affordable wine from the boot.

The first course is pictured here with a split-open brioche roll. The Grace brioche is becoming pretty well-known through word of mouth. It's crispy and crusty like a good roll, but on the inside it's soft and delicate, and there's so much butter involved in the production that it tastes more like a croissant than anything else.

We started out with the seared bigeye tuna, accompanied by skinned heirloom cherry tomatoes and a basil gelato. We had multiple gelati throughout the evening--a machine was inherited from the prior occupants, a dessert restaurant. Instead of purely sweet applications, Grace Restaurant has developed a series of herbal and savory gelati. The tuna was amazing, the tomatoes were bursting with tart juice, and the gelato provided a pure essence of basil along with a creamy texture that you couldn't get from a simple emulsion of herbs and sour cream, for instance.

For the second course, the chef sent out portions of Apalachicola oyster bread pudding. It's sort of like a cross between oyster stuffing and a crab cake, but distinct and delicious in its own way. Served with a rémoulade sauce and garnished with--to my pure joy--a slice of spicy pickled okra.

This had the consistency of bread pudding combined with the seasoning of a crab cake, and the oysters were just barely cooked. Oyster stuffing tends to get overcooked and the bivalves become tough and rubbery, but these were still soft, tender, and distinct as big chunks of oyster. My wine was holding up well here, but this really called out for a good sparkling wine. Though a beer would go well if you were having this for lunch.

ACT III

I'll take a moment to point out here that for a new restaurant, everything was running smoothly and efficiently in the dining room. I got to see a couple of cycles of diners, and even witnessed a few moments like a customer breaking a wine glass handled with deft attention. Courses appeared with military precision, Mars kept an eye on the comings and goings of the customers, and best of all, I saw a lot of happy faces leaving even happier. I've eaten at restaurants that had terrible food and great service, as well as vice versa. It's wonderful when both parts are working harmoniously.

With a loosening of the belt and an additional glass of water, it was time for the third course. From the bottom up: a corn cake, thicker than a johnnycake but thinner than a corn muffin; a layer of cheese (Gruyère?); a prawn the size of a small lobster tail; a bit of flaky cod around the edges, and a light lemon-butter sauce. A garnish of microgreens on this and other courses. I enjoyed growing the little plants a few years ago and love the peppery, green flavor.

This far from the coast we're not accustomed to shrimp the size of a baby's fist, so I was pretty excited to see this on the table. The prawns were perfectly cooked, buttery and rich with a flavor closer to shrimp than lobster. The corn cake was great as well, and the whole combination was a savory pleasure.

ACT IV

We had a brief intermezzo of more basil gelato in a tiny stemmed glass, just a bit to cleanse the palate before the fourth course. And what a course it was...

I am a lamb fanatic, and while I appreciate the shank after a long stew and a quickly grilled leg, the rack is my longtime favorite. But I've never had it smoked. This half rack (four ribs) was lightly smoked and cooked to a beautiful medium rare. In this, the worst of my photos but finest food of the evening, I've cut the "ribeye roast" off in order to expose the texture of the meat. It was some of the best lamb I've ever had, but the sides were great as well: an insanely rich low-country dirty rice made with mushrooms and foie gras, and a fennel gelato. (I know this sounds like a lot of gelato, but keep in mind most folks aren't going to be running a gastronomic marathon through this many courses.)

While I'd admitted defeat halfway through the lamb, there was one more course awaiting us... dessert. Between the two of us we sampled several of the treasures from the restaurant's talented pastry chef. Original Grace had a bit of homemade ice cream with knots of puff pastry and a small pot of fresh, warm chocolate sauce. I was presented with the trio of a dark bread pudding (broken and topped with a sweet vanilla cream sauce by the waiter); upside-down peach cake with homemade ice cream, and homemade baklava topped with Roquefort and a few caramelized nuts. Lord have mercy, I did not have the strength for all of this. I tried a bit of each and begged for a to-go box so that I could enjoy it at a later time.

ACT V

I spent a rainy Friday night with a dear friend, and several new friends, in the setting of a cozy candlelit restaurant in the heart of Cooper-Young. This neighborhood already feels like a world away from Memphis... While I was dining, I was chatting with the manager, and the chef and his wife were both there, working together and talking to the diners. With a small but constantly adapting menu based off local ingredients and seasonal quality, I really felt like I was in Europe, in some little bistro or trattoria. I love this city. It's my home, and when I walk into a BBQ joint there's no illusion as to where I am on this planet. But part of the magic of proper dining out is stepping into a fantasy world for a couple of hours. If you'd like to enjoy some of that feeling, give Grace Restaurant a try. I can't wait to see what sort of dishes are going to emerge from that kitchen as the afternoons darken, the ground hardens, and we slide into winter.

Cleveland: Bar Cento/McNulty's Bier Markt

While exploring the amazing culinary landscape of Cleveland, I made two trips to the Westside Market-area restaurant run by Chef Jonathan Sawyer. The establishment is divided into two sides that share a common kitchen but operate different bars, and I had to try both.


First up was the left hand side, Bar Cento: I sat at the bar near the kitchen, close enough that I could feel the heat off the ovens. I loosened my tie and settled in for dinner. It wasn't until I saw the tattoos that I realized Sawyer was right there in front of me making pizzas and running the kitchen. I had a wine flight of unnamed Barbera, Sangiovese, and Nebbiolo--all quite good for the $10 flight special. A warm biscuit was delivered in a brown paper bag with a dish of butter to whet the appetite. I gazed over the menu and finally decided on the Shiitake and Wild Boar Salumi pizza. Excellent crust, great combination of ingredients, and I got to watch the whole process, meaning I got to see Sawyer place full sprigs of thyme on the pizza and then carefully remove them after cooking. Full thyme flavor without having to pick the stems out of your teeth.

One great note about Bar Cento was the music. As I was sitting there on a weekday afternoon, I noticed that Genesis was on the music system. Geez, I haven't heard "Land of Confusion" in a while. After the second Collins song, I saw that the cover for the Invisible Touch LP was propped up nearby. And just to the left, a turntable spinning away. I realized that the record albums stacked above the bar weren't just for decoration, and even enjoyed the minutes-long pause between the A and B sides when the bartender remembered to flip the record.

Later that week I made my way over to the right side for McNulty's Bier Markt, known more for it's massive beer selection. If you love the well-crafted beers of Belgium you can waste a lot of time at McNulty's. I started with a glass of the St. Bernardus Abt 12 dark beer, and followed up with the lighter Delirium Tremens. Two seriously produced Belgian beers from the enormous and well-thought out beer menu. Sadly, the ladies next to me were drinking Corona and Michelob. Oughta be a law.

I had the burger (topped with Dutch cheese and peppery greens) and a side of frites. The burger was great enough to make you cry and call your Mom, but those frites... By far the best I've had in the US and damned close to those available in the Netherlands. They're served with sprigs of rosemary and roasted garlic, and a tiny ramekin of salt and a pepper grinder are provided for you to further season them. And you get a dish with a dollop each of ketchup and three homemade mayonnaise blends incorporating different flavor profiles.

I had greasy fingerprints all over my newspaper, but I was a happy lad. Along with Lola, Lolita, and the Flying Fig, this place is on the Must Visit list for anyone coming to Cleveland.

Friends of James Beard Benefit

I miss a lot of the wine dinners and other special occasions around Memphis due to work commitments or simply being out of town. But I made sure I was free for Wednesday night's dinner at River Oaks to raise money for the James Beard Foundation. Six great chefs from around Memphis came together to make one unforgettable evening, all for a great cause.

I got to meet some fellow bloggers, local wine and food notables, and made several new friends. I regret that I have no photos to share with you, but here's the menu served, slightly altered from the one announced in advance:

Appetizer Course
Clay Lichterman - Grill 83 Madison Hotel
Ginger and Lemon Pickled Halibut
Kumamoto Oyster and Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho "Shot"
Kobe Beef, Braised Short Rib, and Foie Gras Slider with Tomato and Red Onion Marmelade
Caesar Salad Mousse with Micro Bacon and Crispy Bits
Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin, Brut, Reims, France
Caymus Conundrum, California, 2006

1st Course
Wally Joe - KC's and Brushmark
Crudo of Hamachi and Tuna
Avocado Panna Cotta and Tomato Oil
SA Prum Riesling Kabinett, Germany, 2007

2nd Course
Rick Farmer - Jarret's
Pan Roasted Roulade of Alaskan Halibut, Wild King Salmon and Dungeness Crab
on Seafood Risotto, with Tomato Fondue and Fresh Basil
Merryvale Starmont Chardonnay, Napa Valley, 2006

3rd Course
Ben Vaughn - River Oaks
Roasted Quail and Foie Gras
Red Onion Marmalade, Pain Perdu, Pancetta Crisp
Belle Glos "Meiomi" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast, 2006

4th Course
Erling Jensen - Erling Jensen the Restaurant
Lightly Smoked Kobe Loin, Marrow Flan, Summer Greens,
Lingonberry Vinaigrette, Cabernet Reduction
Caymus "Special Select" Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, 2005

5th Course
Jason Severs - Bari
Trio of Tortas
Sweet Tomato Tortaloni with Reggiano Parmesan Gelato
Local Strawberry and Black Pepper with Balsamic Gelato
Gorgonzola Cremaficato and Pear with Basil Gelato
King Estate Vin Glacé, Oregon, 2006

Lolita

The last time I was in Cleveland I had a spectacular meal at Michael Symon's Lola. This time I tried the sister restaurant Lolita.

Located in the historic Tremont neighborhood on the edge of downtown, Lolita is more casual and less expensive than Lola. For a martini, a glass of wine, two courses, and a tip I got out of there for under $50. And if you want to dine on the cheap, the happy hour menu has food and drinks for next to nothing.

I got there right at the 5:00 opening and discovered the bar was almost full and all tables had been reserved. I squeezed into a spot at the bar wedged behind the hostess and next to the wine rack. Got to talk to my fellow diners, who were grabbing a bite to eat before The Tribe faced Oakland. Lolita has a much more casual and neighborhood feel than Lola, which is more of a fine dining experience. Symon was in the restaurant that night and aside from a quick hello I didn't spend any time speaking to him. Lolita has a partially open kitchen and he was in and out of the prep area looking over things.

I started out with the aforementioned martini (Tanqueray and a twist) and the roasted dates. The dates were cooked in olive oil with pancetta and almonds. Really delicious without being overly sweet. Also, they managed to serve these just slightly below the temperature that burns your tongue. Amazing.

For the main course I had the hanger steak and ramps with a glass of 2006 Maggio Vini Nero D’Avola. I loved this Sicilian grape the last time I had it and was glad to see it offered by the glass. This was the first time I'd ever had ramps, the wild vegetable that's somewhere between a leek, a green onion, and garlic with edible greens on top. The ramps were sautéed with peas and assorted seasonings. Great combination of sweet and astringent onion flavors.

As for the hanger steak, it was my first time trying this cut of beef and I'm now officially in love. It hangs off the diaphragm of the cow and rests on the kidneys, which give it a deeper, earthier flavor that you normally find in organ meats, but with the texture and appearance of sirloin.

Tremont is an interesting neighborhood. You've got houses and churches and bars and schools and jammed cheek to jowl. In one direction you've got the tall buildings of downtown, and in the other a bunch of smokestacks from factories and mills. A couple of blocks away from Lolita is the St. Theodosius Russian Orthodox Church, with beautiful onion domes. It was built in 1911 and featured in the 1978 film The Deer Hunter.

Cleveland's got a bunch of remarkable architecture, but you're rarely able to get a shot without a bunch of powerlines in the way. At least the minivan provides a sense of scale.

Le Relais

While in Louisville recently, I had the pleasure of dining at Le Relais (French for "relay races") located in the original building of Bowman Field, built in 1919 and Kentucky's oldest civilian airport. Now it's mostly used for private aircraft, but a third of the building is devoted to a classic French restaurant. Not dressed appropriately? You can always sit outside on the deck, located right on the tarmac. Oh, please don't throw me in that briar patch. Don't make me sit right next to a lovingly restored biplane and a Lockheed Lodestar*.

Alas, I was properly attired and sat inside, where I got to gaze at vintage 1930s Air France posters while dining. I had the carpaccio of beef followed by the pheasant breast stuffed with a wild game mousseline and accompanied by roasted fingerling potatoes and carrots. This place has a huge wine list including a great selection of half-bottles that's distinct from the main list. I finally settled on a half-bottle of the 2005 Domaine Bosquet des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Still bright, a little tart with the cherry flavor, but increasingly mellow and delicate as it breathed. I later got hints of eucalyptus, a touch of tobacco, and a little stewed fruit underneath. The name of the AOC translates to the "new house of the Pope", a reference to the Avignon Papacy and the producer is something like the "thicket of the Popes".

Dining at Le Relais is a true joy: amazing food, intriguing location, and classy atmosphere. The light jazz on the music system helps contribute to an overall but not overwrought connection with Rick's Café Américain in Casablanca. Most importantly, if you visit I promise it will be the best experience you've had at an airport in nearly a decade. Due to my father I grew up around aviation both private and commercial. At times it's easy to forget that many of the smaller airfields in this country don't require heavy security and surrender of your dangerous 4 oz. liquids. For the first time in years I sat just yards away from aircraft and a runway, having a wonderful meal and watching the planes take off. And everyone around me was happy, relaxed, and smiling...

*Thanks to Dad for the ID on the Lodestar, a plane I clumsily identified as "a small DC-3 with the tail of a B-24".

Bari Ristorante e Enoteca

For a long time I avoided local restaurant reviews out of courtesy to Fredric. The subject matter was in eminently capable hands, and for decades he guided the city through the wide and occasionally strange world of local restaurants.

One of those recommendations (that was delivered several times in person) was Bari Ristorante e Enoteca over on Cooper near Overton Square. Now, I have no desire to become a restaurant reviewer, and I'm not going to tell you about the parking and the ease of getting high chairs, but I don't mind reporting when I've had an amazing meal, and I'll give a bit of advice for dining there.

If you're looking for Dean Martin on the soundtrack and red checkered tablecloths, you're in the wrong place. If you're expecting "stuffa you face" portions of pasta and red sauce, there are numerous other restaurants in town that will fill you up. That's not to say that you're going to go home hungry--I was pleasantly stuffed by the end of my meal, and I'd only had four courses and no dessert.

At the start, the waiter will explain to you that the portions are small and you're supposed to enjoy several courses. This is how things work in Italy, where dinner may take three hours and involve dirtying a dozen plates. (What to do with the interstitial time? Try talking to the people at your table! Drink some wine, have fun!) The benefit here is that you can easily customize your meal depending on how hungry you are and what you're craving.

Here's what I had:

• Polipo con Pompelmo: Grilled baby octopus with red onions and grapefruit. I never pass up baby octopus, and these didn't disappoint.
  
• Radicchio e Indiva: Grilled radicchio and endive with gorgonzola cheese and a red wine vinaigrette. My brother has a rule about not ordering anything in a restaurant that he can cook himself, but I broke that rule for this one. I enjoy grilling the various chicories at home, but was quite happy with these two. The radicchio was of the treviso variety, more elongated than the normal chioggia you see in the store. Gorgonzola was a perfect match here.
  
• Orecchiette alla Pugliese: Little ear-shaped pasta (tasted fresh to me) with roasted cherry tomatoes, salted anchovies, and rapini. Rich, flavorful, and surprisingly filling for the portion.
  
• Branzino alla Griglia: Given the efficient portions on all other courses, I was surprised by this one: a whole European Sea Bass stuffed with fennel and oranges and grilled. Probably a pound or so. Delicate, flavorful flesh that came off the bone beautifully. I'll warn you that this dish takes a bit of effort if you don't eat much whole fish, but it's well worth it.

Two Great Cleveland Restaurants

Salute to Cleveland Week continues with the gourmet side of C-Town. Never thought that haute cuisine and Cleveland would be mentioned in the same sentence? It's sort of like that mousy girl from high school who ended up playing bass for a punk band: you may not have noticed it on the surface, but the talent was always there.

Last time I was in Cleveland the weather was terrible and I didn't have a lot of free time. But during this trip the sun was shining, the snow was melting, and I had the flexibility to move around the city a bit. Number one on my to-do list was to have dinner at Lola in downtown Cleveland.

Michael Symon is an up and coming celebrity chef who aside from his Food Network success has established a great pair of restaurants in his native Cleveland and writes a blog called Symon Says. One of his signature dishes is a gourmet twist on a regional Polish favorite: the beef cheek pierogies with wild mushrooms and horseradish crème fraîche. Of course when I went there I had to order this, and I was not disappointed. Think about the most intense, concentrated beef flavor you can imagine and condense it down into soft fibres of facial muscles that have been slow braised and seasoned to perfection. These are stuffed into delicate pierogi dough and then boiled and pan-fried before being served with the mushrooms and white sauce. Simply amazing. I'm going to be dreaming about these for months.

For an entrée I decided on the smoked Berkshire pork chop with cheesy polenta and BBQ onions. The pork chop was a bit over an inch thick and was served sliced over the polenta. I'll admit that the flavor of smoked pork made me slightly homesick for just a moment. I suppose that's one of the highest compliments a Southerner can give to a pork dish prepared north of the Mason-Dixon line. I enjoyed both dishes with a spicy Argentine Malbec called Terra Rosa.

The place is quite popular and while I was able to snag a small table by showing up at opening time on a Saturday afternoon, I chose instead to eat at the bar. Turned out to be a great idea because of the excellent bartender and the friendly local couple seated next to me who struck up a conversation and recommended similar restaurants around town. Topping their list was...

The Flying Fig in Cleveland's Market Square. I went there the following week and had a salad and meatloaf. Sounds like a depressing cafeteria meal served by some surly Eastern European waitress whose last name has an excess of consonants from the second half of the alphabet, all bathed in the dead lights of flickering fluorescent tubes. WRONG! Best salad I've had in months combined with the finest meatloaf I've eaten in my entire life. This is a charming little restaurant in one of those cool, trendy sections of town comparable to Cooper/Young in Memphis. Lots of great restaurants within walking distance, anchored by the Great Lakes Brewing Company.

The salad was a mesclun mix with a honey vinaigrette, prosciutto, mission figs, roasted pistachios, and some sort of dry goat cheese in thin, broken strips. And the meatloaf... good Lord the meatloaf... It was a veal and wild mushroom blend served with a rutabaga purée and a truffle-sage jus. Bit of wilted spinach for greenery. I'm going to have a lot of fun trying to recreate this one back home. Best thing about the meatloaf: aside from the gourmet ingredients, the individual slices had been pan seared to allow for a nicely caramelized crust on all sides. Not greasy at all, just savory bliss washed down with a glass of 2005 Anne Amie Cuvee A Pinot Noir from Oregon.

I ate at many other great restaurants, including a wonderful Lebanese place and an establishment near my hotel that had an amazing pork osso buco. But why spoil all the details for you? If life takes you to Cleveland, you're in for a pleasant surprise.

Deep in the Heart of Texas

The Girlfriend and I went on a road trip to Texas last weekend. We drove ten straight hours from Memphis to Houston. The following morning, we went to The Houston Museum of Natural Science in order to see the 3.2 million year old bones of the Australopithecus afarensis Lucy. While the majority of the exhibit focused on Ethiopian history and culture, the last portion was dedicated to Lucy. In a small glass case you get to see a partial skeleton the size of a seven year old child. It's a humbling experience.

Ed. note: in reference to the first comment on this post, I picked up a couple of awesome "I Love Lucy" refrigerator magnets in the gift shop. A perfect mix of history and kitsch, which is what fun weekend getaways are all about.

Then it was off to Dallas. The hotel offered a complimentary glass of wine to be delivered later, and I just checked off the box for the sparkler. I wasn't expecting much, maybe a dull Korbel that flattened en route from the bar. Much to my surprise, I received two 187 mL bottles of NV Chandon Brut Classic in an ice bucket. A bit of toast on the nose, with crisp Chardonnay flavors and just a touch of lemon.

No hotel cooking on this trip... Instead we had a lovely dinner at The Oceanaire. The lady enjoyed the pan-fried trout in brown butter, while I had goat cheese crusted corvina with beet risotto. Simply amazing. I enjoyed mine with a glass of a Sancerre from Mollet: nice hints of apple and pear, solid structure and balanced acidity.

At right, the Old Red Museum of Texas history in downtown Dallas.

The most interesting part of the meal had to be the oysters. Out of the dozen varieties on the menu I told the waiter to pick six for me. I had Beau Soleil, Blue Point, Hurricane, Indian Point, Malpaque, and Tatamagouche. I really loved the smaller ones, some of which had a buttery flavor (such as the Indian Point). The Beau Soleil had an incredible, fresh from the ocean saltiness. The largest was the Blue Point, though even it was dainty compared to the big mud rocks we get in Memphis.

The next morning we were off to Dealy Plaza to visit the site of the JFK assassination. The photo at left was taken looking across the road where the event occurred. (If you click for the larger version, you might get to see little white crosses painted in the road to denote where the shots impacted.) It was surprising to see how small the entire area was; the plaza is split by a pair of roads that lead to and from the interstate, and the infamous Book Depository is a rather nondescript seven-story building on the corner. All of this is on the west side of Downtown Dallas.

I can highly recommend the museum in the Book Depository building. The displays and artifacts are tasteful and comprehensive, filling up the sixth floor where Oswald was perched. For instance, one display includes a sample of every kind of camera that was present at the event, and a future exhibit about photography is planned for the top floor.

Afterwards we made an appearance at a wedding reception then it was back home. A short but fun-filled trip: 1200 miles, two major historical exhibits, one fabulous seafood dinner, and gorgeous weather all the way.

Denver Restaurant Review: The Tuscany

I'm in Denver this week and next, so pictures might be a bit thin on this otherwise colorful blog. But I do have to give high marks to The Tuscany, located in the luxurious Loews Hotel (I'm not staying there). Had a light dinner at The Tuscany tonight, and although I did bring my camera with me on this trip, I think I'd feel the hand of my mother smack me if I took pictures during a meal in a restaurant. I'm not slamming those bloggers that do this--I love the photos from The French Laundry and other great establishments, and Lord knows I've taken pictures of all the dishes at various private dinner parties--but something in my upbringing prevents me from whipping out the camera in a nice restaurant. It's one of those activities on the same level as giggling in church.

I wasn't starving, so I had a simple dinner of white wine and fish... First came the amuse bouche of a razor-thin slice of cucumber wrapped around mango salsa and drizzled with a pomegranate-balsamic vinegar sauce. For the wine, I had a glass of the 2004 Coppola Diamond Chardonnay, an old favorite. And for the main course, a slab of grilled halibut on top of lobster pancakes (a heretofore unknown treat) layered with spinach, all topped with spring onions and seated in a shallow pool of a light-tasting yet dark brown sauce. Savory, sweet, and bitter all in glorious harmony.

Excellent service, and I've got to give the host tops for directing this solitary diner with a book to a table with excellent lighting.

The Grove Grill

This is an old post that I neglected to submit back in November. Sometimes I'll write a few articles and hold on to them for use later. Rather than submit a half dozen posts in one weekend, I try to space things out a bit. Figured I might as well get this one published.

Over the Thanksgiving weekend I had the pleasure of dining with a couple of friends from high school. We had dinner at The Grove Grill in East Memphis, in the same shopping center as the Davis-Kidd bookstore. I had the barbecued duck, and ordered a bottle of the 2002 Chateau Ste. Michelle Indian Wells Merlot for the table. I don't normally order full bottles of wine in restaurants, but there were two other red wine drinkers present and I really wanted to try this wine. I got to taste it in 2004 at a blind tasting and again in 2005. In both cases it was the most full-bodied and hearty Merlot I'd ever tasted. (I've referred to it as the Merlot that will make you forget Sideways.) Deep purple color, dark and inky, with complex blackberry aromas and spice flavors. I wasn't disappointed with this tertiary tasting, which showed that this plucky little wine still has a long way to go before it softens.

After dinner, I declined dessert, instead comforting myself with the final glass of wine, riddled with flecks of sediment and tartrate crystals. I did accept a sip of Nocello from the lady to my left; it's a walnut and hazelnut liqueur similar to Frangelico but not syrupy sweet.

Happy New Year; Restaurant Rant

I wish everyone who reads this a Happy New Year. I did most of my celebrating the night of the 30th--details on the roast duck might be forthcoming. Tonight I've really kept it low key, drinking rum and snacking on hummus and pita. I've got no desire to fight traffic with drunks and similar ignoramuses. I even passed up on a few parties--the girlfriend is out of town, as are several close friends. Due to an upcoming hellish week at work, I was really wanting a peaceful evening at home with the dogs. And thus I am quite pleased.

I've seen much linking to this rant about how to order wine in a restaurant without looking like an... ignoramus. I think I've touched on this before, but I rarely if ever order wine in a restaurant. Especially here in Memphis, where local wine taxes are ridiculous and, if ordering by the glass, you won't often be able to find out how long the bottle has been open. I'll give an example. There's a really nice seafood joint near my house. Great food. They list the Folie à Deux Menage à Trois White for $35. That's a $10 wine at retail prices; even being generous I assume it's maybe $7.50 wholesale. I'm not a cheap person*, but damn. And prices per glass are often as bad, if not worse--typically around here a glass of wine costs roughly the retail price of the entire bottle. This is discouraging, because if you like the wine you know precisely how much extra you're paying, and if it's a new wine that you're curious about, it hardly seems worth it to pay the cost of an entire bottle for a mere five ounces.

For those reasons, if I want wine with a meal I'm more than happy to bring my own and pay the corking fee. Heck, there are some joints around town that don't charge a corking fee, though they don't really advertise that fact. (One note: whether you charge or not, providing glasses and opening the wine are helpful. Recently I had a waiter ignore the wine through the entire ordering process and through the conclusion of the salad course.)

Now, I understand that restaurants are in business to make money, and there's a lot of profit to be made in the sale of alcohol... But I think that the pricing structure and taxation of wine in the US are crazy, and hinder mass acceptance of wine as an everyday accompaniment to meals. Wine makes food taste better and vice versa; why not price things in order to facilitate this? I'd love to have a local restaurant that had a small but constantly changing wine list, along with a guarantee that wines sold by the glass came from bottles that were open for less than 36 hours.

Since I don't do a lot of eating out with groups--in those situations I really enjoy cooking at home for everyone--a lot of my restaurant experiences these days are solo ventures with a good book or newspaper. And thanks to my recent trip to Boston, I've rediscovered a love of beer, which really works well for those informal lunches or quiet after work dinners when you just want to relax and unwind. And let's face it, when you're eating a Reuben, can any wine compete with a pint of Guinness?

*I'm honestly more willing to spend the money on all the wine and ingredients to feed eight people a fantastic meal than I am to buy myself a mediocre meal with mediocre wine in a restaurant.