We're MOVING!

Moves can be exciting and frightening at the same time. So much to look forward to in your new environment, yet fraught with anxiety and tension because of the unknown.

For a couple years now, I've been considering moving from Blogger to Wordpress. I prefer the functionality of Wordpress, but like the ease of Blogger. But with two author sites and a separate blog, I finally decided to take the plunge.

We're MOVING! 

And while it's only a blog address, it's still a bit scary. Lots of details to fine tune and kinks to work out, but we'll get there. Just like after a move, those last few pesky boxes take months to unpack. 

Come on over and check out our new digs. We'd love to know what you think. :)

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to Millstone Bake House & Provisions in downtown Davidson, NC. This bakery/restaurant uses organic, natural and local ingredients in all of their food. 

When you first walk in, it appears to be primarily a bakery. But, they also offer a variety of salads, sandwiches, and specials to satisfy your lunchtime appetite. 
Dora here. This place would be a perfect choice for a lazy Saturday morning, especially during the warmer weather when you could sit outside. Do NOT plan to go here if you're in a hurry. It was jammed, and service, while helpful, was a tad slow.

For lunch, I chose the Grilled Ham & Cheese, chili and fries. The sandwich was loaded with real cooked ham, not typical deli ham, and grilled to perfection. The half sandwich was larger than most full sandwiches, and I liked the little kick from the spicy mustard. The chili was full of favor, light on meat but loaded with multi-types of beans. The shoestring fries are my favorite, and I had to fight my wife off from eating all of them. 

Grilled Ham & Cheese, chili, and fries

What? I did not steal any of those pencil-thin fries!! You lucked out on the soup, too, because I prefer only pinto beans in my chili. And it's a good thing I ordered iced tea and not a latte. I would've laughed if they set that coffee cup in front of me! What do you think? How's this for perspective?

Good thing I ordered the iced tea! I would've laughed at the size of this coffee cup.

The Ham and Asparagus Quiche was a good choice. Although I'm not a huge fan of asparagus, it wasn't overpowering. Everything came together in a light and fresh combination. 

Meat Quiche: Ham & Asparagus

What's your favorite breakfast food? Do you enjoy quiche?

We rate this restaurant 4 forks out of 4 for a family friendly restaurant serving great food. 

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us on a road trip to Vidalia Restaurant and Wine Bar in Boone, NC. 

We visit the Boone/Bowling Rock area of North Carolina regularly and thought we'd hit just about every local restaurant, but to our surprise, we missed this one. This family friendly eating establishment is located at the end of the historical downtown Boone, just blocks from our favorite pizza spot, Capone's. If you're not looking for it, you might miss it.

Dora here. I always panic a bit when hubby suggests trying a new restaurant in our beloved vacation spot. We have so many favorites, it's challenging to squeeze them all in during a long weekend. How can we possibly add another without dropping one off the list?  I came up with a solution. Just come back more often. What do you think? ;) 

Awesome upscale, casual interior

We ordered their namesake, Vidalia Onion Rings. Thick onions, ale-battered and cajun seasoned. These onion rings were great! With a robust batter that did not fall off like other onion rings and a creole dipping sauce with a little kick, they would have been worth the trip by themselves.

Vidalia Onion Rings. Worth the trip just for these!

Dora here. Thick doesn't begin to describe these monster onions! I don't particularly care to order onion rings because I almost always regret eating them later. Not so with these. Light and delicious! :)

For my meal, I chose the Fish Tacos. Crispy chunks of tender cod blanketed by remoulade slaw served on flour tortillas. Outstanding, and the tangy slaw was a prefect condiment for the dish.

Fish Tacos

I also ordered a cup of Bison Stew, that day's special. Thick, meaty, and full of corn, carrots, and potatoes. Perfect for a cold day. 

Daily special: Bison Stew, perfect choice for a winter day!

Dora here. Yep, he did. Ernie's going to make a believer out of all you Fish Taco haters. :)

I was a bit bummed that they didn't carry Sweet n Low for my iced tea, but it was all uphill after that. Oh my goodness, so many goodies on their menu that I wanted to try! Mac and cheese with pork cracklings, awesome-sounding salads, and a couple different hamburgers all called my name. As if that wasn't enough, then our server rattled off a list of 4-5 intriguing specials! 

I finally settled on the Cranberry Chicken Salad Sandwich. Well, I didn't really settle because it was fabulous! People tend to be picky about chicken salad. Or is it just me? lol. No worries, though. The bread was fresh, and the chicken salad popped with cranberries and apples and texture. Thankfully, it wasn't heavy on the ever-present raisins and celery (why does everyone insist on adding these useless ingredients??), and the mayo was subtle. The only other element I would've added myself was grapes. YUM!

Cranberry Chicken Salad Sandwich

Here's a better look...

A glimpse inside the Cranberry Chicken Salad Sandwich

Even the housemade pickles were delicious, as pruny as they looked. Don't neglect them. :)

What about you? How do you take your chicken salad?

We would rate this restaurant 5 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving outstanding food.

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to Euro Grill & Café in the Plaza Midwood neighborhood of Charlotte. 

With an eclectic menu, you will find various Mediterranean, German, and Bosnian dishes. This is a small restaurant, only five tables, so you may have to wait. Dora here. Actually, the entire time we were there, every table was occupied, and people lined up. Don't wait until you're starving to go. Speaking from experience. :)

Only two people worked both the back and the front, and they were slammed. I must've looked about ready to pass out from hunger because they very graciously offered us a complimentary Sopska (a Greek salad) due to the delay on our meal. 

Sopska: delicious and colorful!

Delicious, colorful, and some of the best Feta cheese I've ever tasted. Yum! I'd definitely order this again. We were both digging deep for the last few blocks of cheese. :)

When visiting a new restaurant with food from countries that I am not familiar with, I always like to try a variety of options. So I chose the Mjesano Meso. This Meat Lovers Medley included three pieces of skinless sausage (Cevapi), one thin burger (pljeskavica), one chicken kebab (raznjici), and one piece of spicy sausage, (sudzukice), all served on house-made Bosnian flatbread. 

Mjesano Meso

This was truly a sampling of the entire menu. The cevapi reminded me of breakfast sausage, and the pljeskavica would pass for an American hamburger. The chicken raznjici was tender and the sudzukice was great. But the star of this dish was the Bosnian flatbread. Soft and fluffy, I think I could have made a whole meal off just the bread. 

Dora here. That flatbread rocks! So light and fluffy! And the kebab chicken was so tender. But I'm glad I ordered the Beef Burek. Filo stuffed with minced beef, it was tasty, light, and so delicate I had to check to make sure I was eating beef. I ate almost the entire burek, but didn't have that heavy, bloated feeling.

Minced Beef Burek

If you're hoping for ambiance or privacy, this isn't the restaurant. But you might be surprised at this tiny spot. Unusual dishes, large portions, and great prices. How can you go wrong?

We would rate this restaurant 4 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving great food.

What's your time limit on waiting for a table?

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to Yama Izakaya, a Japanese tavern in the Midwood neighborhood of Charlotte on a rare dinner review. This small and trendy restaurant is tucked into a shopping center, so parking is not a problem. 

Ample parking

Cool vibe

They offer a variety of small plates, specialty dishes, and the main dish that called us, ramen. After our first experience with ramen in DC, we planned to share, so we started with a couple small plates. First up was the Gyoza, pan-fried pork dumplings. Soft on the outside, tender and full of favor on the inside, and served with a Japanese dipping sauce that would have been great on anything. Dora here. Light, delicate, delicious!

Gyoza, pork dumplings. Light, delicate, delicious!

We also tried the Fried Chicken Wings. They appeared to be like typical chicken wings until I took the first bite. The waiter told us they were seasoned with a Korean chili spice. Whatever it was, they definitely had a unique favor and were crispy and juicy.  Dora here. I wish I was a fan of chicken wings because they always smell delicious! I gave these a try, but they didn't tempt me with a second bite. 

Fried Chicken Wings

Now if you have never tasted ramen, you are missing out. Ramen is an Asian-style soup with noodles, and we chose the Miso Ramen. Marinated Braised Pork Belly (chashu), seaweed (nori), sesame seeds, scallions, bamboo shoots (menma), seasoned egg (sometimes called a Ramen egg), corn, and colorful fish cakes. The ramen was very good and the taste of the pork and seafood rose above everything else. 

Miso Ramen. Huge portions! Plan to share.

Dora here. Don't let all the names scare you. It's just a soup with some deliciously flavorful elements. Tasty, warm, and a wonderful go-to comfort food in winter. This photo really doesn't do the serving size justice. It's a HUGE bowl! We ordered extra toppings in DC, but forgot to do that this time. If you plan to share, adding extra toppings might make it a bit beefier, er...porkier. :) Oh, and the restaurant rates this "spicy." Maybe a little kick but definitely not a forehead slicker. Go for it!

Our server might've scored higher if he didn't keep pushing the Sake and spoke a little slower for us hearing-challenged folks. And the music? Hoping that same constant beat changes before our next visit. :)

What about you? Have you tried ramen or pork dumplings? Do the pics look yummy? Would you give it a go after reading this review?

We rate this restaurant 4 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving great food.

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers