The Marlay House - St. Bernardus Beer

In the past i have heard a few of my friends mention this St. Bernardus beer that is essentially famous for its 10.5% alcohol content. A few years ago these high gravity beers became legal in GA and beer drinking hasn't been the same since. Ironically the person i had heard the most talk from was my 98lb friend Natalie, who for the record has never divulged her weight to me but suffice it to say is tiny.  This is an important piece of information when you are drinking beers with 10.5% alcohol and ironic because you would never expect her to be downing the most potent beer on the menu.

Nevertheless I had never tried this beer because when i go out "drinking" i am usually in it for the long haul, meaning i want to have more than two beers or know it will be more than a two beer night. I also mistakenly thought that because this beer was dark, it was heavy. Boy was I wrong.

Since Natalie talked up the St. Bernardus it was only fitting i shared my first one with her at The Marlay House in Decatur. A couple of Fridays ago we met for happy hour and when i arrived she and my friend (and realtor) Thomas both had a St. Bernardus sitting on our pub table and were ready to indulge.

Opting to save time and make things easy, I decided it was my time to try the beer. I didn't really know what to expect as the beer looks like a more transparent version of Guinness, which is not at the top of my beer choice list. However, after my first sip I knew i was in trouble. Not only did it taste great, I found you can't always judge a beer by its color. While it is darker than an amber beer and not quite as dark as a stout, it tasted like a medium bodied beer with attitude. I like attitude. My first one went down WAY too easy and I knew drinking  more of these 10.5% alcohol beers was in my future. Plus the monk is really funny looking and makes me smile :) .

At this point, I am not sure why i ever deprived myself  and thought 10.5% was too potent for a beer. I drink red wine all the time that has 13% alcohol, or more. In fact my friend Shannon refuses to buy wine that is less than 13% alcohol and i have recently adopted her policy. So what is the big deal about a beer with 10.5%?

Well, for one i don't really love beer. I like beer but am typically going to order a Jack and Ginger or a big glass of wine before i order a beer. There are a few exceptions to this rule for example 1. if I am at home i am making an Old Charter and coke (or ginger, or sprite) because Old Charter is way better than Jack. Unfortunately GA restaurants just have not caught on to what we Louisiana folks have known for years or 2. If i am at APC (see older post) eating pizza, i'll order a fat tire. or 3. If i am eating crawfish there is nothing like a COLD bud light (aka - yard mowing beer).

Anyway, i digress, so i don't order beer a lot but that all changed with this St. Bernardus. Now i know what all the hype is about and 3 beers (30%) and a salad later I'm telling Thomas all my secrets. Well, not all of them, he couldn't handle that but that's a different story.

I like this beer so much by the middle of the week I am begging my friend Melissa to go eat with me at the Marlay so I can get this beer. I even went so far as to research what other bars/pubs in Decatur have St. Bernardus on tap when Melissa said she was not interested in going to the Marlay that night. I has such a huge craving I almost went myself and attempted to get one "to go". Again, a Louisiana thing that Georgians don't understand.

Finally two weeks later on a Saturday afternoon my craving was fulfilled and my wish was granted when I met Julie and Liz at The Marlay and promptly ordered that delicious St. Bernardus that had me salivating before my goblet of beer arrived. It did not even matter than not 2 hours earlier I had stated that I "did not" want to drink all afternoon. Guess that plan was foiled.

Nevertheless, I should limit myself to two of these gems, but that has proven to be a problem so far. Or maybe i should just eat more when I drink these double alcohol beers since both times i've been more interested in drinking than eating when i consumed these bad boys. Luckily the lack of interest in eating does not happen often.

Where else can i get these suckers on tap? The Brick Store frequently has St. Bernardus on its rotating tap as my other Liz friend used to order it there and also previously raved about this beer. I am sure other bars/pubs do as well but its a pretty rare find the farther you get from the Decatur Square (i.e. none of this stuff at Melton's, Shorty's or your regular ole restaurant).

Now that I have had this beer a few times, you would think my craving would have subsided, but i just can't get enough of it. I'm sure I will tire of it soon, but until then i can't wait until this weekend to mosey into the Brick Store or walk up to the Marlay and order a good ole St. Bernardus.

I guess paying my ridiculous Decatur taxes is worth it if St. Bernardus on tap is within walking distance.

Happy Eating! and Drinking for that matter.

Little Red Hen Bakeshop at the Saturday Decatur Farmers Market

One of the best things about the Decatur Farmers Market on a Saturday morning (aside from the fresh produce) is the presence of Little Red Hen Bakeshop. This booth situated at the entrance to the market has coffee, juice and some other beverages that I am not really concerned with, because i am here for the baked goods. They have an assortment of donuts (baked ones, not fried), scones, and other baked delights that vary from week to week

These goodies are situated on cookie sheet like trays with rustic hand written or uptown printed placards identifying your choices. The blueberry scones are literally blue because there are so many fresh berries in them and you can actually see the slices of fresh peaches in the peach scones. These are a far cry from the micro blueberry dots or peach flavoring you get when you order a scone from one of those chain bakeries and makes my decision a tough one.

The blueberry and peach scones look great and I'll have to try them someday soon, but two items immediately catch my eye. First I am drawn to the word Salted CARAMEL which comes in the form of icing on a donut.  Caramel is one of my weakness and i really have a difficult time passing up anything that contains burnt sugar and butter. I mean who does not love the wonderfulness of caramel? It is butter + sugar after all.

But wait, the scones look wonderful too and I need to choose. That's when i notice none other than a pimento cheese scone! Heavens to Betsy and Come on Irene; How am i supposed to chose between two of my favorites, caramel and pimento cheese? (If you've read my previous posts you'll know i have a thing for pimento cheese.)

As the vendor puts both items in my bag he remarks that i have chosen something savory and something sweet. Hum, i think to myself I am not really a sweet person... i mean i don't really like sweets... but I have to try this salted caramel gooey deliciousness and i certainly was not going to pass up a pimento cheese scone. Sometimes making a choice is overrated.

I decide to try the donut first and it is a cake style donut but has the consistency of an slightly dense but airy cupcake. It is not as dense as fried cake donut, but thicker than a cupcake. I am not a lover of cake and really only got this item for the caramel so immediately remove all the cake that is not topped by the caramel and discard it. I do the same thing with cupcakes (tear off the bottom part) and before you get all flustered, and think I am crazy for not eating all the cake just know this is the only food item i can think of where i voluntarily reduce the calorie count. Trust me, I'll make up for it later.

Anyway, now that all that cake is gone I can get down to business.  The salted caramel is good. It's sweet, but not too sweet and is balanced by the hint of salt taste which is there without you really knowing its there. The cake is ok. I appreciate that it is not dense and good as far as cake goes, but it was all about the caramel for me.

Now onto the real gem, the pimento cheese scone. As soon as i take my first bite i swear the heavens parted and birds started signing. I'm sure i let out a "yuuummmm" that those around me could hear and i began to wonder why i even bothered with the sweet at all.

This scone is so light you almost are sure there are no calories and it has just the right cheesy flavor plus a bready-sconey flavor with pieces of real pimentos that not only give it nice color but also flavor. I was only going to eat half of this, but since I really only ate half of my donut, I decide to go all out. I came here after an hour at the gym after all.

As i am walking around the farmers market making no bones about eating my scone i begin to wonder if my workout that morning still counts if i ate a donut and a scone right after finishing it. Oh well, i guess i am better off than i would be if i did not work out at all.

My addiction to LRHB started a few Saturdays ago when i decided i need to eat healthier and went on a mission for veggies. The produce mission was accomplished because I bought so much produce I had to leave, go to the ATM and then come back. But unfortunately the healthy part didn't go so well on account of that bakeshop stand right at the entrance.

Oh well, I am waiting for the folks at LRHB to tell me because they use all natural ingredients and are at a farmers market the donut and scone were actually good for me. I am sure it is going to happen.

Until then, i am craving another scone and think if i get up early, go the gym and then still get to the farmers market by 9:30 AM I deserve a scone, dammit.

So go to the Decatur Farmers Market next Saturday and make sure your first stop is the Little Red Hen Bakeshop. Get your breakfast and walk around enjoying it while you admire all the wonderful produce from local farmers. Even if you don't buy any of that, the scone and the scenery are worth the trip.

I'm already craving my next pimento cheese scone. Get there early, they do sell out, which is very sad for a pimento cheese addict like me.

Note: photo coming soon. that is if i can remember to take one before i devour the thing!

Happy Eating

Avondale Pizza Cafe - BBQ Chicken Pizza

Eating at Avondale Pizza Cafe (APC) is nothing new for me as I've been going there for years and in the past few years my friend Julie has decided it is her go-to place. In fact we used to come here every Thursday night and most every Sunday night, but recently life has gotten in the way.

Nevertheless for whatever reason I had not tried the BBQ Chicken Pizza which was added to their menu after their semi-recent move from Avondale Village to the shopping center across from Waffle House. Well, i should not kid around, i haven't tried this because i rarely look at the menu and honestly didn't realize it was there because i know what i am going to order 1. the meat lovers pizza 2. the steak and cheese sandwich or 3. a calzone.

But Julie has been cheating on me and going to APC without me and remarked that she like the BBQ chicken pizza. Hum, i thought, maybe next time i will try that.

 This is not their pizza, by the way, just an example.

A couple of weeks later we were finally back to our Thursday night routine and firmly ensconced in our booth at APC. The "what should we order" game started and i actually look at the menu to review the BBQ Chicken Pizza. It didn't look too exciting, but anything is better that Julie's typical choice of pepperoni pizza. She has the palate of a Jr. High Boy, ya see (more on that later).

So Julie, Liz and I decide to go for it and order the pizza. I should have known not to trust Julie's palate but i was here for the fellowship more than the food. Love ya, Julie! :)

Needless to say i was not impressed with the pizza. It was really just some BBQ sauce, covered in onions, sprinkled with flavorless chicken and topped with standard cheese. You say, duh, that is what BBQ chicken pizza is, but... no the California Pizza Kitchen pizza out of the box is better.

To me BBQ Chicken Pizza is good BBQ sauce covered with some nice flavorful home cooked chicken, sprinkled with good mozz cheese, sprinkled with purple onions (they are not red, didn't you learn your colors) and topped with some gorgonzola cheese. There are other variations but, that is mine.

Unfortunately this pizza tasted like bread topped with BBQ sauce and melted cheese. I didn't even eat the leftovers, which is sure sign "me no likey". But on the plus side they do use Cattleman's BBQ sauce, which for all you Jacksonians is what Keifer's uses for their Chicken Yavne (YUM!), but I digress.

Anyway, I'll cross that APC Pizza off my list and remember julie eats like a teenage boy.





I don't want to completely knock APC though. I do like their pretzels, calzones, steak and cheese sandwich and some pizzas (The Primo, the Supremo and Meat Lovers to name a few). Make sure Mike is working, he's the best cook. But i do wish they would ditch the Sysco chicken and cook their own...and put Fat Tire back on draft... and turn the air down a little bit or the heat up (depending on the season)!
They also have the best waitstaff! Shout-outs to Meredith, Mary Beth, Kelly & Annie... and the rest of you I have yet to meet.

PS- don't try their buttery, gooey, hot pretzels made from pizza dough and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese unless you want to fight the cravings for these. They are yum!

Happy Eating!

Food Trucks - Woodruff Arts Center & 10th at Peachtree

A few months ago my friend Elizabeth posted on Facebook that she had used her lunch hour to mosey on down to the Woodruff Arts Center and have lunch by way of the latest craze, food trucks. Naturally I was jealous as I work about 1 hour south of Atlanta and couldn't have lunch at the food trucks if I wanted. C'est la vie

Then my friend Chanel had to go and post on FB that she dined at the same food trucks on Thursday after some toddler event at the High Museum of Art. This makes me HATE my commute even more, as if i needed a reason.

Finally it was the last straw when my friend Shannon mentioned that after watching an episode of Chopped she hunted down the winning chef at 10th & Peachtree and bought some of her goodies.

I had had enough! I had to get myself to those food trucks come hell or high water. Good thing the next Thursday I didn't have to work due to summer break. Food trucks! That is what I shall do, right after i go to the gym.

My first concern was where to park. I hate to pay for parking; but oh well, it is all about the food. First I went to 10th & Peachtree and paid $6 to park in a lot across from the Federal Bldg and Empire State South. Done!

This food "area" as I shall call it, has tents, not trucks. Well that is not entirely true, there were two trucks including one from Decatur's own Marlay, but they were across the street and seemed to be out of place.

I love The Marlay, but i can walk there from my house and was there specifically for The Hungry Peach's pimento cheese, thanks to the recommendation of my friend Shannon. I couldn't be bothered with the King of Pops yet, or Taqueria's Pop up Chef event, I just needed some pimento cheese, and i got it. A small container (you know what i am talking about) was $5 and I was on my way.

Hum, i just paid $6 for parking and plan on eating a day's worth of calories in one sitting so maybe i should walk from 10th to 14th? Okay but it is 97 freaking degrees and even hotter since i am surrounded by all this asphalt. Whatever, I'll walk...

A few (several) hot sweaty blocks later I am at my destination. As I am walking i remember how much i miss working in the city. I also remember how sometimes i forget that i live in a city because i never come downtown. Alas, look at all these suits, and single young guys, and women wearing skirts and heels, am i out of my element or in it?

I'm too hot! sweat is dripping down my back. but hell, let's EAT!

Since i did not know what i was here for other than the food, of course, i spent the first several minutes scouring the area for what i wanted to sink my teeth into. I got there a little after noon and the place was packed and there were already long lines at Tex's Taco, Yumbi and The Pickle. WOW of Decatur fame also had a line and I decided that would be my first choice.

They specialize in arepas (Venezuelan tacos as they explain them) and have four types. I chose the beef and cheddar and went on my way. Like a good girl I ate this while standing in line at the Pickle truck.

The arepa was nice, although i was not a fan of the corn cake part, i could certainly taste why their famous sauce is famous. I could have just eaten that. Which i ended up doing. I actually threw most of the corn cake away and noshed on the beef, cheddar and famous sauce.

Now onto the Pickle....

The crab cakes seemed to be their specialty as they were offering it as a salad and a sandwich, so I chose the sandwich. I'm sick and damn tired of lettuce, ugh. I also got a homemade pickle because... well, this is the Pickle Truck after all.

Being civilized and all i decided to sit down in the little shade i could find and eat this sandwich. It is served with Lay's potato chips which are useless in an arena like this, as i am here for food, not chips, but nevertheless i stuffed those in my purse for a later date.

The crab cake was good. I could see pieces of crab in the cake and it was not mayonnaisey, which is good because i loathe mayonnaise. But the star of the show was their tomato remoulade sauce. It had just the right spice and i found myself removing most of the bun and sopping up every last bit of sauce i could find. The pickle? not sure if this is their claim to fame or if they just like the name pickle, but i did not like the pickle. In fact, it is still in my fridge in hopes of being eaten someday.

Well, that is done, on to another truck. First I decide on Yumbi because I have heard so much about it and it seems to be popular based on the line.

As I stand in line, sweating profusely, wondering why I thought this was a good idea. I remember I have to be careful about Asian ingredients as I am allergic to peanuts. I go back and forth thinking I'll just ask when i get to the front of the line and thinking this is a waste of time. Finally I decide it is not worth the potential hospital visit or casket purchase.

So on to the tried and true. Tacos. At first I remarked, snore... Tacos are everywhere, I make tacos, and tacos are old news. But when in Rome. These seem to be popular so hey, I'll try them out. Now sweat is running down my back and when i hear the guys behind me talking about coming back to the food trucks in the fall, I think, wow! why didn't I think of that! Genius! But I'm too hot to talk, food please.

It is only 97 degrees or more like 120 on this asphalt. Oh well, two tacos please. The chicken with grilled onions and the Pastor Taco are my choices. The guy taking the orders was great and the tacos were just tacos. By this point i was ready to go, so maybe that was why i was underwhelmed, but they were just tacos. The grilled onions were really sweated onions, the pastor was ok and the chicken was chicken. Nothing special here, but good... ok... if i worked in midtown a good excuse not to bring a lunch.

Now it's time to separate the women from the girls and get dessert. My choices are Westside Cremery and Yum Yum Cupcakes. I don't want a cupcake because 1. their flavors don't excite me and 2. i had two huge ones from Gigi's on Tuesday.

So onto Westside to get a scoop of ice cream. As I am standing in line thinking about how many times I am going to have to walk around the block to work off these calories i hear a guy order peanut butter ice cream and realize Danger! Danger! Rather than asking the server if she uses a different scoop or each ice cream or how she washes the scoop I decide to make my way back to 10th & Peachtree and get  the chocolate sea salt Popsicle from King of Pops I saw earlier. Yes, there is a KoP at Woodruff, but i had been waiting for the perfect opportunity to try this chocolate sea salt flavor. The day is here.

As I am walking back I was wondering who else would take a day off work to eat at food trucks? Oh well, bring on that Popsicle. And another container of pimento cheese please. Yep, i did it. I realized somewhere along the way that one container was not enough and boy was i glad i got that second container. They were BOTH gone within a week. You know they are perishable and all.

Two thumbs up for the chocolate sea salt pop and for the pimento cheese. It is different, but good different.

By the way, i sampled the pimento cheese with my finger while walking down Peachtree. Then ate the rest the same way standing in front of my fridge (don't you know there are no calories that way). You should do the same. It tastes better that way.

The Verdict: The food trucks were an adventure and if had the pleasure of working in or near downtown it would be a great escape from the office and something that is very citified! But it is hot as hell right now and i'm not going anywhere near those trucks until the temperatures are about 20 degrees cooler. I had to come home and take a nap after all that heat and sun! My Irish self was not amused.

My rankings:
1. Chocolate Sea Salt Pop (and i don't really like chocolate)... think yummy jello pudding pop, but  refined
2. Hungry Peach Pimento Cheese (thanks Shannon)
3. Crab Cake Sandwich - The Pickle Truck- really the tomato remoulade
4. Arepa- WOW truck
5. Tacos- Tex Tacos

I was glad i took the time for this little adventure, even though it was hot. Did i mention that? But even more excited when i found out later in the week that Yumbi and The Pickle were finalist for the Great Food Truck Race on the Food Network. Cool-

By the way, all the servers/order takers/people at the windows of the trucks were great! They all seems to be having a great time and competing in their own episode of the Great Atlanta Food Truck Craze.

Happy Eating!

Oh and thank Elizabeth, Shannon & Chanel for their marketing skills !

I'm back

Well yes, obviously I took a little hiatus from this blog. I started it a few years ago (wow, has it been that long) and got sidetracked. I'm not sure what happened other than I was eating out so much the posting seemed laborious and I thought I had to post something about EVERY meal I ate outside of my home (and some at home too). I'm a Virgo i.e. perfectionist so forgive me. I also am a teacher who gets so frustrated with the spelling and grammatical errors my students make in their papers, emails, and speech that I pour over my posts for hours making sure they are grammatically correct. Which is ironic because English was my least favorite subject in school and I hated for my mother to correct my grammar. Karma's a bitch.

Anyway, a few years ago I was also concerned with anonymity and didn't want anyone to know who was writing this blog. Now, i couldn't care less. No one knows me anyway, so who cares.

Nevertheless getting this blog active has been on my list for a while now, so here goes. Scratch this one off the list.

This time I pledge to:
1. not stress about posting about every meal i eat at a restaurant, you probably don't care if i don't
2. not care that i don't like to make the effort to capitalize "i" in posts, you'll just know its me writing
3. not to be neurotic about spelling & grammatical errors, everyone makes mistakes
4. view this as fun, my job is work, this = fun!
5. put myself out there... My name is Claire and sometimes i go by clairesse, clarabella, claire bear, bella, hey you (not really), or Clairece (of Jodie Foster fame)
6. mention the names of my friends because boy! are they some characters

 

Happy Eating-

taqueria del sol w/ christene lauderbach!

Yeah, so i typed this wonderful post last night about my latest TDS experience and damn if the power did not go out in the middle of perhaps my best blog post EV-er! But i hung in there, kept typing and finished this most wonderful post. I was so proud of myself and damn was it witty. So, i go to save the thing because i was way past my bedtime and ... then... i see... internet explorer cannot connect ... YEP i forgot once again that the internet needs power! You think i would have remembered this from my 2 day power outage earlier this year, but how soon you forget. I guess i thought the internet operated on those invisible waves, like cell phones, that you can't see but continue to operate without any power. But i am here to tell you... nope... no internet without power. SOOOOOOOOOO now that i have gotten that out, lets move on...

Yesterday... another day of rain... about 36 hours of it, in fact. I realized i would be driving home not only in the dark, but also in the rain. Therefore I decided my safety was much more important than staying an extra hour at work and took it on to the house. On the way home i was i laughing about this speaker i had heard at the Decatur Book festival and her remarks about cereal resembling cat food.

Naturally by leaving work early my mind starting thinking about 1) how much trouble i could get into or 2) where i could eat! Yep that is it... Eat--- . Taqueria del Sol seemed like the perfect place since i was craving cheese dip, it is walking distance from my house and since i would be arriving in Decatur at 5:30 it would be the perfect time to descend on TDS... no line... seat at the bar guaranteed!

So, i sash-shay in trying to talk myself out the cheese dip that i know deep down i am not going to talk myself out of, and eye my spot at the bar... but i had to go to the bathroom, i had just driven for an hour. Now... take 2... walk out to eye my spot at the bar and oops, now there are only 2 seats left. I know the rules of TDS therefore i squeeze in next to the single person so when the other person leaves a couple can sit down. Whatever! Damn Taco Police...
i have no idea who i am sitting next to, all that is on my mind is cheese dip and whatever else happens to be bouncing around in my head at that moment. I am in my own world until the lady next to me orders 2 fish tacos. I would know that voice anywhere, even though i have only heard it once. Ahhh, i think my day is looking up and it certainly was worth it to leave work early. This person is none other than Atlanta food critic Christene Lauderbach. Ok, lets rewind a little bit.

When I moved to Atlanta i took it upon myself to read everything i could about Atlanta so i could learn about this big ole city i had just moved to. It seemed reasonable that i would read Atlanta Magazine and subscribe since that is cheaper than buying it each month! OF course i always turned immediately to the back and read the food/restaurant review first. I do the same thing in Creative Loafing, as well. anyway, once in while i would get around to reading the rest of the magazine, but i always read Christene Lauderbach's review first.

This year at the Decatur Book Festival(my fav festival by far) i heard CL speak (along with Warren St. John and John Edge) about Atlanta food and other stuff... It was the highlight of the festival and of course, who except me would go to a book festival to learn about food... umm humm that is me.

Most days i would have noticed her, thought about how cool it was, sat there, left, and then told my friends about it later. Kinda like i did when i sat next to Alton Brown on the plane back from Gulfport. Anyway, i am trying to get better and branch out so i mentioned something about the rain, the weather, the rain... as we were gazing at the tv. We chatted for a bit and then at the lull in the conversation i knew that was my cue, i had to take it or leave it. So! i did it... I told her i heard her at the DBF and was still laughing about her comparison of cereal to cat food. And so it began. She is a chatty cat, and a little difficult to understand sometimes due to the loudness in TDS and her still prevalent French accent. But this was still the highlight of my day and perhaps my week.

We chatted about 1. food (my fav subject) 2) piss poor planning in Atlanta (one of my top 5 fav subjects) and 3) forensic science (another fav unless it is Friday). i also learned a lot more about the Atlanta dining scene and traffic control.

What? Oh... the food. yeah i did eat. The cheese dip was good as usual. Extra creamy and tasty today. Probably because it is Tuesday and there are no leftovers (although i can't ever imagine that is the case). I also got the Shrimp Flautas, the seafood special. It was spicy but good. The more i ate the spicier it got. The seasoning on the shrimp was spicy and the sauce on top was as well. It was nothing special but sure did not keep me from cleaning my plate. I even used some of the deliciously crispy flauta shell to dip into my cheese dip. Yep right in front of Christene! Oh Well!

It is not Chris-tene. Since she is from France it is Chris-te-anne. Does not look like i expected either... Maybe she will remember me as her daughter's middle name is my first name.

Ah, i could have stayed all night, but my bladder was calling again. Oh yeah, i forgot to mention those 2 beers i had. Nevertheless i had to leave... but i want her job. Food and Critic?, my 2 favorite things! Luckily, I did not act like a crazed fan, but wouldn't it be so much fun to get paid for 2 things i love to do, already do and do so well?... Eat food and criticize, that is... I know one day i will be looking back at this post and laughing because i will be eating and criticizing for a living... somewhere, somehow! Maybe...

Happy Eating...