Alley Street Eats in Rosewood

Everyone in the neighborhood has eagerly awaited the opening of Alley Street Eats. I read an article about these folks and their concept.  Asian street food, of different styles.  The decor is cool and modern. The menu is extensive without being overbearing and features the variety we so desperately need in our area.

Viv and I shared shrimp and zucchini tempura to start.  Their tempura is light and crispy, just as it should be.  Next, we had an order of the Sichuan wontons. 

These are delicious.  Pork wontons with soy, scallion, cilantro and garlic. I was expecting them to be spicy, given "Sichuan" but they were actually pretty mild, but very flavorful.  I bet next time I can just ask for them to be spicy and they would oblige. 

Next, we had the Yaki Udon Noodle with shrimp.  This was also quite delicious. Soft, pillowy Udon noodles in a soy based sauce with red bell pepper, scallion and mushroom.  The shrimp were nicely cooked, which as we all know, can be a 50-50 shot in some restaurants.

Viv and I are excited about this place.  We've often lamented the fact that almost every Chinese place we know of has a zillion dishes on their menu, yet they all taste the same.  We love, love, love Mai Thai but sometimes the trip to W.C. just isn't in the cards. And, our Korean and Japanese choices are limited.  Now that we have Alley Street Eats right here in the neighborhood, we can get our Asian food fix much more readily!  Here's the link to their MENU. Support our locals!

Free Range from a Friend

When you give yourself the luxury of a few minutes of quiet time to just think, you realize just how cool this life is. We all meander in and out of each other's lives; sometimes only once in a blue moon, sometimes daily. But, regardless of frequency, these relationships are truly what life on this planet are all about.

Neil and I live in an awesome neighborhood with neighbors that we've known for many years. Yeah, it's that kind of place. We move here, get to know each other and we never leave. We are Rosewood lifers.  One such neighbor is Sharon.  She and her sig-other James decided a few years ago to become farmers.  They still live around the corner but they operate Carolina Bay Farms over in the Hopkins area. As I remember, it started with fresh eggs.  But, just a few days ago, Neil ran into her and became aware that they are now raising heritage meats. He came home with a bag full o' pork chops!

Tonight we cooked those little babies. Neil is big on really tasting the flavor of meat, so all we did was salt & pepper them. I seared them in my grill pan for about 2 minutes/side on high heat then transferred them to a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes.  Meanwhile, I made a mushroom/white wine sauce to serve alongside.

In a word...perfect.  The pork is so flavorful without a lot of "flavoring."  No need to marinate, is what I'm saying.  The time and method of my cooking resulted in a perfectly cooked yet moist pork chop, which you all know can be quite a challenge at times. I toasted some good Italian bread and served our chops with mushroom sauce over the bread and green peas on the side.  As Wayne & Garth would say, SCHWIIING!

So, if you have not heard about Carolina Bay Farms, please check them out.  Thankfully, Columbia is hot and heavy (finally) on the farm-to-table and eat local movement. Sharon and James are doing good things just 20 minutes from town. Seek them out, support them and eat good pork chops!  

Local and Loving It

Rosewood Drive is one of Columbia's major thoroughfares. It's a retail/commercial corridor that those of us living in Rosewood and Shandon traverse and rely on daily. Our kids go to school on Rosewood, we shop at our Publix on Rosewood, we eat and shop in the Rosewood Market, treat ourselves at the Dairy Bar and Pelican's Sno-Balls, some of us even live right on Rosewood Drive. I can pretty much make my way up this street and get every errand accomplished and run into several of my neighbors along the way.

This is exactly what my friend Stephanie Bridgers identifed and banked on when she decided to open The Local Buzz at the corner of Rosewood & Shandon Street. Stephanie loves coffee.  She loves to serve coffee. She loves to bake. She loves her 4 kids and she loves all the kids they go to school with too.  So, her idea for her coffee shop took on a shape that most business owners don't consider.  It's the LOCAL buzz.  See, that's significant for a few reasons.  Obviously, she's a local.  She sells other local businesses' wares (Double Trouble doughnuts, Silver Spoon Bakeshop, Sweet Cream Co. ice cream).  But, what really sets The Local Buzz apart is Steph's vision and desire to make it a local hangout. 

And, she's been successful in achieving it. Kids and parents come in after school to tackle homework and eat ice cream. The morning crowd comes in for coffee, leaves their personal cup behind and the staff washes it and hangs it back on the wall for tomorrow.  There is a little free library.  She hosts "Rosewood weekends" where she donates some of the proceeds of Rosewood families' sales back to the PTO.  She's hosted movie nights.  And today was no different.  As the kids left school for Spring Break, they were invited in for an Easter cupcake decorating party.

The kids were given a blank "canvas" cupcake, supplied with various decorating supplies and were then given free reign. 

As you can probably imagine, the kids were in heaven.  Add in banana, strawberry and pineapple smoothies and you have a successful kid gathering! 

If you haven't made it to The Local Buzz, put this on your calendar.  Preferably on a day when you can take your time, relax on the big sofa, read a book or just chat with friends.  The coffee's great, the sandwiches and soups are homemade and the atmosphere is all community.  

The Gift of Good Grits

Yes, it's happened again.  A major, unintended hiatus from writing. Since my mom got hurt in August, our whole family has been spinning in various directions at various speeds. Thankfully, there is a light at the end of the tunnel and here I am at the computer; writing.

I have known my friend Elizabeth Miller since the 6th grade.  While I don't see her all that often, we stay in contact via Facebook. She does tons of volunteer work with the homeless. She has a humongous heart. Recently, she sent me a message and mentioned that she was also now working for our local Congaree Milling Company.  She was planning to stop by my house and leave me a "care package."  Yahoo!  Locally milled grits and a reason to write!

She delivered.  I came home one day to find Congaree Millings' yellow quick grits, fine white cornmeal and blue corn polenta.  

Oh, my head began to spin.  All the delicious possibilities!  What to make first?  Now, being a Southern girl who enjoys the creek more than the beach, I've caught and cooked more than my fair share of shrimp.  Therefore, I've tasted and created many, many versions of shrimp and grits.  I could turn into Bubba Blue here.  

But, I pinned a simple one on Pinterest and have been dying to make it.  You see where this is headed.  

First, I headed to Aldi for cheese.  If you aren't an Aldi fan, you need to just walk in their door and you'll become one.  Dairy products are an amazing deal at this place.  With my gouda and fresh corn in hand, I proceeded to the checkout to drop about $3.00. Then, I produced one of my favorite versions of shrimp and grits, to date.  

Ummm, gouda and lots of it!

 

Shrimp all seasoned and ready for action

 

Bubble, bubble, butter ain't no trouble

Get in my belly!

A work of art.  Which we quickly devoured.

Seriously good recipe, friends. And, so incredibly easy that you can easily whip this up on a weeknight.  Don't let yourself get into that rut of a mindset that seafood has to be a complicated ordeal that is reserved for special occasions. It's good for you and it's easy to prepare!  Stock up on shrimp, salmon, tuna, whatever and cook.  

And, I highly recommend Congaree Milling Co.'s grits.  I met the owner, Ken DuBard, at the Soda City Market and told him how excited I was about the sampler package I'd gotten from Elizabeth.  He gave me a tip...since his products are organic, after opening the package, store the rest in the freezer.  To Elizabeth, all I can say is THANK YOU!  What a wonderful gift and inspiration to get me into the kitchen and now here on the page. 

Memories of Bread

As a junior in college, I "set sail" for a semester living with a family in France.  I was attending the Universite de Haute Bretagne in Rennes.  This is located in NW France.  It's rainy, gray and drab.  Why did I choose to go here?  A husband & wife professor team from Wofford had just returned from a stint there and they raved about it.  I won't elaborate but suffice it to say that their impressions were vastly different than my own.  But, hey!  I was in France!  

I lived with a family (Yves, Nicole & their daughter Christelle) outside of Rennes.  A little village called Mordelles, to be exact. There was another American (Pam from Michigan) about 3 doors down at the home of some friends of my family.  It was great having her there.  We rode in on the bus together and had most of the same classes.  We became good friends which was good for our mutual mental health since we were living with some slightly crazy people.  But aside from the meat-eating bird in the kitchen, the fact that it took 3 weeks for my cotton sweater to dry because I wasn't allowed to use the dryer, and the fact that they left me alone for Christmas, the parties were great and hey, I was in France!

All kidding aside, though, living in a little village had some charms.  For instance, they still had the specialty shops...the charcuterie, the patisserie, and the boulangerie (the bread bakery).  Every other morning, before the rest of us were up, Yves would walk to the boulangerie and bring back a loaf of fresh "pain de campagne." Country bread.  This stuff was just heavenly.  It was a round loaf and he would always have the boulanger slice it.  It was kind of chewy and stood up well to rich butter, jams or even as a sandwich.  (I almost gave Yves a heart attack when he found me loading up pain de campagne with ham & cheese for a picnic.)  He got over it but I hope he learned from me that this stuff is great sandwich bread! 

Anyway, this all took place back in 1988.  Yes, way back in the mythical 80's.  Since then, I've often thought of that bread.  I miss it.  A simple breakfast of strong coffee, country bread and butter can't be beat.  But alas, back here across the pond, I've never found any country bread.  Until now.

I found it.  I have neighbors who own Rosewood's Crust Bakehouse over near Rockaway's.  I wandered in recently just to see what they had that day.  I really love their semolina bread...also great sandwich bread.  As we checked out the daily offerings, I glanced over at the "day old" rack and there it was!  Pain de campagne!  Right there on that rack, right here in my neighborhood! I couldn't believe my eyes.  Without one iota of hesitation, I was paying the lady.  I couldn't wait to get it home and see if it could possibly be anything like the pain de campagne from Mordelles.  To my delight, it was exactly as I remembered it!  It was 1988 again and I had my own loaf of happiness.  I can't even begin to tell you how excited I was to know that someone else knows about this simple, peasant bread and is making it right here in my neck of the woods.  

OMG, I may have to get a loaf as soon as they open tomorrow!

I lifted this pic from their page; an example of some of the daily choices

If you haven't visited Crust, you need to make a point of going by.  They are real people, not a chain.  They bake different breads du jour so you can follow them on Facebook to see what the daily choices are.  I can't wait to try the bread with smoked gouda in it!  

Arepas!

I'm happy to say that Columbia's "Soda City Market" is definitely alive, well and thriving.  What started small has grown to become not just a weekly market, but an event.  Today the venders were so numerous that they spilled over into Boyd Plaza at the Columbia Museum of Art.  

Ran into Grandma & Grandpa there

Boyd Plaza outside the art museum

Me and my sweet baby girl

Kettle corn samples!

The three of us enjoy going not just to check out the produce but to eat.  The food vendors now range from restaurant favorites like Rosso & The Oak Table to the other awesome street vendors serving delicious tamales & empanadas, African foods, soba noodles being stir-fried in giant woks, the BBQ bus, the Wurst Wagen, huge kettles of corn and my new favorite...Mary's Arepas.

 I'd never heard of arepas until today.  I approached their tent and saw two griddles with what looked like johnny cakes on them.  I had to ask.  

Arepas on the griddle

It was explained that this is a food from Colombia, South America.  It's a cake made from corn flour, butter, milk and fried on the griddle.  Then, it's sliced and filled with various yumminess.  Today's choices were a vegetarian mixture (eggplant, peppers, onions, etc.), chicken or beef.  They had already run out of chicken by the time I got there, so I chose the beef.  It looked like it was a combination of ground beef, onion and carrot.  I watched as the lady (Mary?) sliced about halfway into the arepa and spooned the hot beef filling into in then topped with a bit of cheese.  I'm always intrigued by anything I've never heard of and so I was truly excited to receive mine.

Fresh and hot right off the griddle!

Pretty disappointed I only ordered one; that means I have to share

The arepa is a lot like a johnny cake but it's much more tender and soft than the old Southern classic.  The outside was crispy & golden and then the soft interior cradled that beef filling.  In a word, it was fantastic. Neil and I shared one and afterwards I declared that next Saturday we're going back for another one, if nothing else.

The market itself was really fun today.  The awesome violin player was there.  So was the balloon artist.  Vivi got a nice rendition of "Frozen" face paint.  

In the artist's chair

Complete with jewel between the eyes

Glittery and Frozen

We got a sample of the kettle corn, which was really great (bringing some of that home next time.)  They use gourmet popcorn that pops up big and round and perfect.

Kettle Corn Fresh & Hot

 We had Vivi's favorite: the pork tamale & a beef empanada. She used her own money to purchase a ginger lemonade and a rice Krispie treat on a stick.  

Rice Krispie Pop

The Wurst Wagon was serving schnitzel today.  I would've loved to buy that too, but after sharing tamales, empanadas and arepas, I was about at the limit.  Next week, though, if schnitzel is on the menu, I'm there.  I've also never tried the BBQ bus, which I really want to do.  Oh yeah, that soba noodle booth was rockin' the house too.  

Island noodles rockin' the wok

Clearly, next week I need to fast after noon on Friday and just go to the market to binge eat on Saturday morning!


If you haven't put Soda City on your weekend calendar, you need to get a pencil right now.  I overheard a man today telling someone on his phone that he was at "some kind of festival."  I whispered to him, "It's the weekly local market, every Saturday."  He stopped and the face paint lady, Neil and I kept feeding him other details which he then relayed to his phone friend.  That's right, Columbians, it's EVERY Saturday.  Come load up on fresh veggies, homemade pasta, homemade goat cheese, local honey, handmade jewelry, birdhouses, art, photography, science demonstrations, freshly made juices, and boiled peanuts!  

Beautiful 'shrooms

Neil and Viv in market euporia dream sequence

We love the blue-haired peanut lady!

Don't forget, the businesses along the way are there for you too...Wine Down, Mast General Store, Good Life Cafe & Paradise Ice.  The market is held every Saturday in the 1500 block on Main Street, just outside the art museum.  If it rains, don't worry, they just move into the nearby parking garage!  See you next week at the market...

The Kraken is Serving Brunch

You know how it feels when you have a good local place that you want to succeed?  That's how I feel about The Kraken on Rosewood Drive.  We live in Rosewood and from virtually Day 1, we have been avid supporters and word-of-mouthers for them.  We love the owner, Aaron.  He lives in the neighborhood and like a smart restaurant owner, he and his wife are on-site all the time.  To own a restaurant or bar and think that you never have to be there is like placing a pallet of food and booze in your parking lot with a sign that says "take me."

The Kraken is probably best known for their extensive and ever-changing beer selection.  I don't know how many they feature, but it's a lot.  You can like them on Facebook and get updates about new brews that they have brought in.  They are also known for featuring a really interesting menu that is far more than a typical bar menu.  Interesting like lobster grilled cheese, poutine, smoked wings, truffle frites and fried green tomatoes. And, beginning yesterday, The Kraken now offers a Saturday and Sunday brunch.

The brunch menu is pretty impressive: soft shell crab Benedict; shrimp, catfish or crispy pork belly over grits, grilled cheese BLT, sriracha peanut butter glazed doughnuts and fruit/granola parfait, to name a few.  Neil ordered the pimento cheese on toasted brioche with a side of the house-milled grits, the little gourmand only wanted an order of bacon and I chose the grilled cheese BLT.

I didn't try Neil's sandwich simply because mine was pretty big.  I did try the grits however.  I really wasn't a fan.  They are from the Congaree Milling Company and ground in the restaurant.  Neil really liked them because he felt like it tasted like corn on the cob. But I felt like they tasted like old corn.  You know when you were a kid and you took a bite of that dried, multi-colored Indian corn you always see at Thanksgiving?  That's what it reminded me of.  But, we all have our own taste buds, don't we? 

My sandwich was quite good with one minor critique...it needs more bacon.  A BLT of any description really must showcase the bacon. That's an easy thing for them to fix though.  The cheeses (brie and cheddar) were a great combo and were nice and melty and gooey. 

The tomatoes were flavorful and dripping that juicy goodness onto the toasted sourdough.  As I stated before, the only thing I'd add is more bacon.  I chose the Potatoes O'Brien (chunky hash browns with onions & red bell pepper.)  This dish was well seasoned, the onions and peppers were well cooked and the potatoes were crisp yet tender inside.  But, they weren't hot.  Warm, but not hot.

There was a little disappointment though. The Kraken has very slow kitchen time. It has always been that way.  When they first opened, it was attributed to the small size of the kitchen and a new staff cooking in a new place.  I get that.  I assumed, like everyone I'm sure, that they'd get broken in and that would improve.  But, unfortunately, every time I've been there, the wait time for food has been way too slow.  I've heard it chalked up to the small kitchen, but the folks at Motor Supply Co. have been cooking in the world's smallest kitchen for what? going on 20 years now? It occurs to me that regardless of size, you simply get tons of prep work done and then get your system in place. Today, we were excited to try out the new brunch, but from start to finish, we were there close to 2 hours.  I will concede that we chose to go on the maiden voyage weekend but I guess after being open as long as they have, I was hopeful that just cooking a different menu wouldn't affect their turn time. Investing a couple of hours in brunch is a bit much, especially if you're hungry when you get there.

As I said before, we love the owner, the menu, the awesome beer selection, the cool quaint basement setting and the fact that we have this hip neighborhood joint within walking distance of our house.  That leads me to be honest in my critique of The Kraken.  I am not writing today to bad mouth or bash them. Instead, I hope my words will serve as honest feedback that may help them improve.  Aaron is always there and asks his customers for their opinions and how they are enjoying their food. And for you who is reading this post, let me be clear...if you have not been to The Kraken, you need to go.  It's really a unique atmosphere and is always a good time.  I just hope our next brunch isn't quite so much time!  

Support locals!  

Cali's Cafe

The Main Street revival that so many of us have craved for years is finally beginning to happen.  Mast General Store is attracting retail shopping back to Main St.  Paradise Ice is cranking out the best ice cream known to man. Cantina 76 has opened a 2nd location there. It's starting. 

My dad had read about a little place just off the corner of Main and Taylor. He's been wanting to go check it out, so we headed that way.  At first glance, one might think opening a cafe right next to the Oliver Gospel Mission might be an odd location.  And frankly, if Main Street weren't finally coming back to life, I'd agree completely.  But, this location may work just fine.  Especially since they feature many vegetarian menu items and a large healthcare organization, owned by a health-conscious vegetarian, is renovating 3 buildings right around the corner on Main.

Cali's Cafe is probably the smallest restaurant I've ever been in!  It has 3 booths and a few stools at the window.  But its smallness creates a friendly, intimate environment.  Within 2 minutes of entering, we had been welcomed and introduced to the owner, her sister and her mom, who are all in the restaurant helping out.  I posed my age-old question about the chicken salad...you know the one..."Does the chicken salad have celery in it?"  Yes.  Yes it does.  However, the owner told me that she doesn't really care for it either so she chops it finely.  She sent me a sample of the cranberry chicken salad to try.  It was very tasty, but a little too sweet for me, so I chose to order one of the sandwiches.

I ordered the "Redwood." I really liked the flavors of this sandwich, especially the brie.  If you look closely, you can see the good ooziness of the cheese.  My one critique of the sandwich would be that the meat was a bit scant. Just one more slice of turkey and one of ham would have given the sandwich the "heft" to stand up to the bread and the horseradish.  Would I get this sandwich again?  Yes, but with my suggestions.  

The sandwich was accompanied by some pasta salad. I must be honest.  I got burned out on pasta salad at its advent...in the 80's. Yes, of course, I've had some pasta salads over all these years that have been pretty good, but for the most part, I'm over the whole pasta salad thing. Unfortunately, Cali's is serving exactly what I hate about pasta salad.  Pasta with some bell pepper, carrot, whatever, drowned in bottled Italian dressing.  Not a winner on any level.  I'd rather have any other side on the planet. Even just simple chips would do.  

As you can see from the photo, this all came served on a styrofoam 3-sectioned plate.  Styrofoam..well, I don't need to say much here.  But, if you're going to use a 3-sectioned plate, be it plastic or china, there should be something in that 3rd section.  Presenting a plate with an empty slot, well, it just screams "Something's missing!"  And that's because it is.  I mean, even just plopping a pickle there would solve this problem.  But, please,make it a good pickle. 

So, it may sound like I'm all critical and $%&t, but I'm really just telling it like it is.  And this is what it is...I like this little place. I like the wonderful, friendly and inviting family of women that run the place. I want them to succeed.  Thus, my comments and suggestions.  I hope you will check out Cali's Cafe.  If people keep them going they will do well when the Main Street explosion happens, which I think is on our near horizon. 

M.Grille

Michelle Wang seems to be unstoppable.  And I'm not complaining.  I've been a fan of her restaurants dating way back to the original Miyo's on S. Main St. Her newest restaurant, M.Grille, is open in the Vista.  Funny thing is that it's about one block from M.Vista. I knew before walking in there that this was a continuation of her fresh, healthy, "now" concept that is found at M.Fresh. As you enter, you're greeted with the similar clean, hip, sharp interior as M.Fresh.  The tables are all attractively set and busy chefs are working away behind the sushi bar. I love the look of the place, all the way down to the square plates on the tables.

I went with my mom and dad for lunch.  My dad opted for a salad topped with a grilled flounder filet.  It was very attractive and he was quite pleased with his choice. Mom went with the "Cobb" salad. She's a fan of any Cobb salad and is always eager to try new variations of the classic. Again, she was happy with her selection.  I chose the grilled sweet and sour chicken with pineapple. It was actually two thin chicken cutlets (which I prefer over big, thick chicken breasts) in a light sauce with diced pineapple over the top.  It was served with brown rice and steamed broccoli.  The chicken was awesome, but my broccoli was undercooked and completely unseasoned.  Personally, I think brown rice sucks. I know we all make ourselves eat it because it's good for us, but it's just a flavorless scoop of mush. I am a huge broccoli fan, but I like it cooked.  This was practically raw. And, as I've said before and am continually backed up here by the "Chopped" judges, food needs to be seasoned. With something. So, I pretty much just ate my chicken.

Complimentary Asian slaw for the table to share.  Nice touch.

 

Dad's salad with flounder

Mom's Asian cobb salad

My sweet and sour pineapple chicken

Overall, I like this place.  But, I have to tell you one thing that's been bugging the crud out of me ever since we went there last week. We had a very pleasant and accommodating waitress.  She was knowledgeable about the menu and asked if we'd ever been here before, any questions, etc.  We all ordered unsweet tea, as usual.  My mom asked her for some sweetener.  Her response was "Oh, all we have is natural sugar."  This prompted me to say "You don't have Splenda?" and she replied "We try to stay on the healthy side." 

First, sugar is natural.  Always.  It's like saying natural cotton.  All cotton is natural.  Second, when I was pregnant, I was told I could only use sugar (but in super moderation because pregnant women are at risk of gestational diabetes) or Splenda.  No Sweet 'n Low, no Equal, just Splenda.  Third, to what planet did these people go to have someone tell them that sugar is "healthy?" Sugar may be natural but that doesn't make it healthy.  For instance, for a diabetic person, sugar is most assuredly NOT healthy.  Not healthy for a Type 2 diabetic like the man sitting across the table from me (Dad).  

I love the concept of fresh and natural but I hate it whan any business that I'm patronizing trying to B.S. me.  For years my mom has ordered her food with no onions.  Countless times, it's arrived with onions, like the cook is trying to convince her that she's going to like them.  Well, what if onions cause her to break out in a rash?  If a person with a peanut allergy orders fried chicken, you can't deliberately cook it in peanut oil because you think they're exaggerating.  Same thing here.  I have a friend whose 2nd child is a juvenile diabetic.  If the kid wants to come your restaurant and drink tea, have some damn sweetener available that won't kill her.  It would be a shame for someone to go into a coma because you served them something "natural." And, maybe, just maybe there are people like me who just can't stand the sappy, syrupy nature of sugar and just prefer something else.  All I can say to the M.Group on this subject is go buy some stevia and quit telling people you only have sugar because you "tend to lean toward the healthy side."