Fran's Fueling Station Feeding Frenzy and Skanking

It is very rare that I eat myself into uncomfortability. Last night was one exception. With a heady mix of beer, good food and friends, I chowed down like it was my death row meal and at the end of it all, I was full.

It all started with the Mrs. and I deciding what we wanted for dinner while sitting on the couch having an after work cocktail. We had tickets for The Pietasters show and knew we needed to stay up late. We gathered some ideas and called up the Whiskeys to see what they were up to. Between calling them and them calling back we stumbled upon the idea of going to Fran's. I had never heard of it before so I checked out the website and decided it looked promising. Just after finalizing arrangements with the Whiskeys, we got a call from Mr. Chelsea about a matter of which will be discussed in a future post. Spoiler Alert, half a cow. So we convinced the Chelseas to join us and we were on our way.

We met around 6:30 and the place was packed. It is a small space with a dozen or so tables. I would not recommend any groups larger than six. We had a bit of a wait ahead of us so we got a round of drinks. The selection is limited, but a good mix of craft brews and imports. We discussed news of the day and the finer points of Olympic competition. Realizing our wait could be awhile we asked for a menu to get a few appetizers. I would have preferred it had been offered, but no big deal. The staff seemed half crazed and slightly overwhelmed. We skimmed the menu and all of us hit "it" at the same time. A hush fell upon us in awe and wonder. "Bacon wrapped tatter tots, are you kidding me, Yeah, we'll have some of those. Fried Pickles, sure. And an order of deviled eggs for the Mrs." As these tasty items arrived, our table was ready. So we sat and devoured our morsels.

The tater tots were good but not as life altering as hoped. The Bacon was outstanding but the tots themselves didn't quite hold their own. Mr. Chelsea would disagree with me on this as his world was suitably rocked. The fried pickles were deceptively tasty. First taste and you say, "eh". Then a few seconds later, "man those are good". They use sweet and sour dills and a cornmeal crust that, could have been fried a tad longer but still awesome. The deviled egg was gone by the time I had paid our bar tab, which is just as well since I am not a fan. But, the Mrs. says it was delicious. Deviled eggs are done as a daily special, last nights was Bloody Mary and reported to be very Worcestershire saucy. When our waitress finally made it around to us she had some specials to tell us about and we listened intently. And as we did, another collective hush fell upon us, "did she just say Pastrami wings". Picturing Pastrami wrapped around a chicken wing I was slightly disappointed to find out it was Pastrami spices on a chicken wing, but my curiosity got the best of me and a basket was ordered. Some questions were posed and answered, another round of drinks ordered, and we were left again to decide on our meals. And when our waitress arrived with wings we were ready.

In an effort to fulfill my New Years resolution and prepare myself for our upcoming trip to Brussels I ordered the mussels in beer and herb stock, with fries of coarse. The Mrs. had the Mac and cheese with a side of collards. Mr. Whiskey had pot roast, Mrs. Whiskey the Mediterranean veggie burger, Mr. Chelsea got the beef and lamb, burger of the day and Mrs. Chelsea seconded the mac and cheese. With orders taken we turned our attention to the wings, which were unique in a good way, very meaty and also deceptively tasty. Their true selling point was how moist they were. Rarely do you get a wing that is that well cooked.

Next our attention turned to convincing Mr. Whiskey to accompany Mr. Chelsea and I on a beer adventure to the East in celebration of the impending arrival of baby Chelsea. Since he is not the biggest beer fan we tried plying him with the promise of food. Though not convinced last night, we will break him.

On to the main coarse, I will start by saying I have not had mussels since I was a small child and, as you may have gathered, I'm not a huge fan of the bounty from the sea. But, fortified with beer and having been on a No Reservations bender for the last few weeks, I dove in. It was really good. The mussels were not rubbery or fishy; just tasty. Everyone seemed truly enthralled with their food, we were shoving bites of this and that in each others direction and cooing like children. The pot roast was excellent, the lamb burger thing also very tasty. The mac and cheese was almost perfect and the collards would make any southern grandma proud.

And, just when we thought it was over."Would you like dessert?" , "Oh sweet Jesus" (pause) "well, what have you got?" The Mrs. and I decided on the malted milk ball pudding. Chocolate overload, but we finished it.

And, with that the carnage was over. So we waddled out the restaurant and said our goodbyes promising to come back but never eat that much again and see each other soon.

The two negatives of the evening were that the service was a bit slow and haphazard but they easily made up for this with personality and self deprecation, and really, we were in no hurry. The other issue was either the fryolator was having a hard time keeping up with the constant flow of people or the kitchen staff was pulling it a little to quick to keep up. In either case nothing was woefully undercooked. It just wasn't quite to my view of fried perfection.

We capped the night at the Visualite Theater skanking to the sounds of the Pietasters, a ska band from our youth who haven't lost a thing. And we arrived just in time to see the opener IED, who are friends that I did not realize were on the bill.

Fran's Filling Station - is located in Dilworth at 2410 Park Rd. - Facebook

For the beer lovers

So, I got off a little early today and stopped by my local, Revolution Pizza. Today was apparently Big Boss day. And more importantly, Revolution got 2 of only 4 kegs of a new pale ale they are test marketing. Of coarse, I had to have one. In general, I am a fan of Big Boss so its no surprise I was a fan of this beer. It was a well balanced crisp beer with a nice hop finish. No, it was not ground breaking, but it was an easy drinker; and when your session beer has started to reach 7 - 8% a 5%er is a nice change of pace.

Farmers Market and Modernist Art

Finally, a chance to get to the market. With plans from the last few weeks being foiled by weather, work or both. The Mrs. and I finally got a chance to get back to the Yorkmont Farmers Market. And, although there was little in the way of veggies to be had from our local farmers it was good to see them all and catch up.We got some eggs and sweet potatoes; picked up some meat, including some fresh salami. The real reason we were there was to get the low down on ordering a half cow. We have a chest freezer begging to be filled and some friends who want to split the order with us. We finished or shopping on the wholesaler side if the building, picking up what we needed for a broccoli soup from Orangette . To finish off our visit we stopped by the Harvest Moon Grille and got some breakfast from Cassie. The Harvest Moon is a small food trailer operated by Grateful Growers and serves meals created from local products, including their pork. I had an egg and pork wrap with diced potatoes and herbs, and the Mrs. got an egg sandwich on focaccia.

Sunday was our fist chance to go check out the Bechtler Museum. Since the weather was agreeable we decided to ride bikes and enjoy the day. I am not a huge fan of Modernist art but there is almost always something to like in every museum. My real reason for wanting to go is slightly less altruistic.

At the time of the opening of the museum I was reading a book on art forgery called, Provenance. The artists represented in the book are all represented in the Bechtler collection, so what i really wanted to do was contemplate whether or not the art was genuine. Is that wrong? But, while listening to the stories about the art from the little talk box, I leaned the Bechtler family were personal friends of most of the artists; therefore the possibility of them being fakes is low. With that said I did enjoy the museum quite a lot and will definitely be making return trips as the collection is rotated. The Mrs., however nearly had a nervous breakdown when we entered a room of sculptures by swiss artist Jean Tinguely that were composed of found objects, old wood, animal skulls and electric motors that apparently move when switched on. Unfortunately, they all had large "Do not touch" signs over their switches. It was very hard for her to not turn them on. And, who could blame her? As we finished up we had an interesting conversation about the use of the term "Modern art" and its misuse in place of "Contemporary art" and whether we should use "Modernist art" instead to differentiate.

From there we finished the day anxiously awaiting the USA vs Canada hockey game.

Cuban Pete's, Charlotte Squawks and a winter wonderland

So, here I am sitting on my couch with a lovely glass of port staring out the window as the town is blanketed with quiet. It is a great way to unwind from an evening of too much food and a healthy helping of laughter.

We started the evening, as the snow was just starting, at Cuban Pete's in Plaza-Midwood. They opened Wednesday and normally I like to wait a week or two before checking out a new restaurant. But, since the sign went up the Mrs. and I have been ravenously craving Cuban food so we had to go.

I will start by saying, as I spent the vast majority of my youth in South Florida, I feel uniquely qualified to judge a Cuban restaurant. It is located in a spot previously occupied by a slew of contenders that fell by the wayside including Joe's Raw Bar, The Graduate and most recently The Nook. I had not been to any of these establishments so I had no frame of reference for which to judge the new interior. I am guessing though that it is quite a drastic change. It's a little gimmicky for my taste but fun none the less. There are beach cabanas in most of the corners and tables here and there. After being warmly greeted and seated quickly we got our menus and knew immediately what we wanted to start with. Ham croquettes when done right are a magnificent pairing of crunch and soft and sweet and savory. Cuban Pete's did not disappoint. As we were munching, the owner came by to check on us and chat a bit. And as we were talking a second order of croquettes showed up. Who am I to turn down free food. Our waitress came by often to check on us and refill water. She was a bit on the chatty side but sweet as could be. With ham goodness only so satisfying we moved to our main courses. The Mrs. ordered the thing she came for, a Cuban sandwich. I did get a bite of it and it was pretty spot on; very delicious. On the side of the sandwich was an odd pile of potato sticks. I myself ordered Picadillo, which is a beef hash. It came with a side of rice and Cuban black beans. The hash was just a tad dry but very tasty and easily moistened with a splash of bean juice. Ahh the beans. They were fantastic. For dessert we had a flan. I am not the biggest flan fan but the Mrs. had just had a tres leche cake the day before. The custard was fine; but the topping was odd; it was hard; like peanut brittle without the peanuts. With dessert we ordered a pair of Cuban coffees, which came in the traditional tiny cups and were just the right blend of bitter and sweet. All in all definitely worth the visit.

After our meal we trudge back out into the snow and moved on to spirit square for Charlotte Squawks, where we met up with Mr. and Mrs Whiskey. We got there a little early so we could catch up with them and then moved into the theater. For those unfamiliar, Charlotte Squawks, is a musical sketch satire based on local and national current events. This is the third time we had been and we were quite glad to see an almost entirely new program. The basic gist is that they re-write universally known songs with topical lyrics. The highlight of the night was the "Thriller" skit done as "Twitter". Other highlights included "Que Cera Cera" done as "Oh Sarah Sarah" about Sarah Palin as well as a good "Take it easy" as "Take it Easley". A good time was had by all. We bid adieu and made our way home in the winter wonderland.

Cuban Pete's - is located in Plaza-Midwood at 1308 The Plaza

A glorious day of eating and drinking: Loco Lime, Grapevine and Twenty-Two

After the usual Saturday morning routine the Mrs. and I decided to throw caution to the wind and make a day of a meandering car trip. We didn't go far but it was nice to cruise around and chat. Our first stop was a new American-Mexican restaurant owned by the same folks who have opened Hawthorne's Pizza and Common House. Both of which are solid restaurants but not worth going out of my way for. The decor is exactly what you would expect, an over the top color explosion with tchotchkes and mariachi music playing in the background. We were seated promptly and our server quickly followed looking to take our drink order. I ordered a Port Royal as I am unfamiliar with Honduran Beer but was quickly shot down, they had a run on it the previous night. Undeterred, I ordered my Mexican favorite, Dos XX and started perusing the menu. Some chips came to the table with a couple of dipping options one being a standard salsa and the other being this amazing tomatillo-jalapeno dip that had a slight creaminess from the addition of avocado and sour cream. I could not get enough. A quick word about my feelings on Mexican food. I love both kind; I love deep fried americanized abominations of cheese and meat, I also love authentic simple tacos al pastor that can be had from many local eateries. Loco Lime is definitely for the fans of the fryolator arts. After looking through the menu I decided on a combo plate of the two items that all places like this should be judged, Chile Relleno and Tamale.

The Mrs. went for her personal favorite of Huevos Rancheros. When the plates arrived I was pleasantly surprised by what I found before me. The Chile Relleno was fried to perfection; with a tender poblano filled with beef and cheese encased in a lovely crispy batter. The tamale was only slightly less impressive. The masa was cooked perfectly with the ability to hold its shape while remaining tender without any chewiness. My only complaint was the masa to chicken ratio seemed a little skimpy on the chicken. The plate was then finished with Rice, Beans and a "salad". If it is Americanized Mexican fare you seek, skip the chain places and head to Loco Lime.

Our next stop was down in Fort Mill, SC. The Grapevine is a small wine and beer store and bar, located in Baxter Village. I have been following them on Facebook for a time and had been impressed by their dedication. Their true claim to fame is the growler program with five or six hard to find beers on tap at all time for re-fills. I held off on the growler since it is such a long haul from our place but If I find myself there on a regular basis, as I suspect I will, I might have to break down and get one. The space is quite small with the front half taken up by the bar and some cafe tables. The back is split between beer and wine fairly evenly. As I examined the beer selection I was amazed at the selection packed into such a small place but what truly got my attention was as I scanned the rack my eye hit a bottle of Thomas Hardy Ale 2007 and above that sitting on top of the rack was an, unfortunately empty, Pliny the Elder bottle. I touched it just because I could. I made due with the Thomas Hardy and moved on down the rack. My other find of the day was a bottle of the 2008 reunion from Bison which is a red rye brewed with caraway. Look for a review of that soon. After shuffling through the rest of the store I made my way to the bar to pay. There, I was met by Dave who tried to get me to partake of the tasting they were doing of Barleywines. I declined but the Mrs. and I decided to sit and have a drink. I asked for and received a glass Of the Sierra Nevada Bigfoot, a clean hoppy beer with a smooth malty finish, worthy of its moniker. We chatted with Dave and a couple of apparent regulars who were doing the tasting. After finishing we set sail for home; doing a quick grocery run on the way.

On the way home we remembered we had plans with Mr. and Mrs. Whiskey to check out a photo exhibit of a mutual acquaintance being held at a newly opened bar we had been meaning to check out, two birds and all that. After retuning home and slaving in the kitchen over loaves of bread and cupcakes the Mrs. got cleaned up and back out the door we went.

Twenty Two is a small modern space located in Plaza-Midwood, mixing bar and gallery space. The show last night was a photography exhibit by a fried of Mr. Whiskeys whom I have met on a number of occasions over the years. His Photos were interesting, mostly fish-eye, of people within the counterculture of Charlotte and travels abroad. The bar is a little pretentious feeling but the beer selection is amazingly diverse for a place with only seven or eight taps. I started with a Blache Du Buxelles, a quintessential Belgian white. I moved on to take in the exhibit and chat with those I recognized. I then moved on to a Delirium Tremens, another stalwart of the Belgian beer scene. After finishing drinks and conversations it was off to home and bed.

Loco Lime - is located in Plaza-Midwood at 1101 Central Ave. - Website

Grapevine - is located in Fort Mill, SC at 1012 Market St. - Website

Twenty Two - is Located in Plaza-Midwood at 1500 Central Ave. - Website

Charlotte Craft Beer Week

Just wanted to let everyone know about Charlotte craft beer week coming up March 18th - 28th. Looks like fun with some interesting events. The schedule is here . So make plans now, and I'll see you there.

In related news The Grapevine in Baxter village is having Beertopia March 13th. I have yet to check this place out but I am drawn to the fact that they have a growler program with a constantly rotating selection. I'll try to get there soon and do a full report. You can check them out here.

Later

The Dandelion Market and teen angst

On the recommendation of my sister-in-law we made plans for last evening with some friends to see Spring Awakening. It is here, in Charlotte, on its national tour. We made these plans with Mr. and Mrs. Whiskey, so obviously dinner was of grave concern for all parties.

We decided to try the new restaurant from the Tyber Creek/Connolly's group. The concept is vaguely Irish Tapas/gastropub. Gastropub being the new buzzword in our town. The interior is pub all the way, lots of wood and brick, very cozy. It is fairly small and a little loud but not overly so. This is a new restaurant so I will not hold some of the small gaffs against them this time and as you will learn there will be another visit.

We sat immediately with the Whiskeys right on our heels. Giving the menu a quick glance we realized the beer and cocktail menu was no where to be found. On his first visit the waiter quickly got us one and we asked for a couple of minuets. They have four or five specialty cocktails, 24 beers on tap, 4 wines by the glass and a good selection of wine by the bottle; each bottle costing twenty five dollars. I went with the Blue Point toasted lager since it was new to me. It was very good, lager crisp with a hint of caramel. The food menu is a great expanse of everything from fried sage leaves to lamb "lollypops". Their true contribution to Charlotte food culture, however, is the idea that you can order everything on the menu for $200.00. There are 32 items so a very good value indeed if you can round up a couple of friends to go with. We, unfortunately had neither the time or the requisite numbers to pull off this feat. So the Mrs. and I started with a coarse of potato croquettes and sausage bites. Both were delicious. The Croquettes were grilled perfectly with hidden bits of bacon inside and the sausage came in a crock full of kielbasa pieces in their own juices and a dollop of mustard floating in the center. This was all very tasty but staring across the table at the duck confit flatbread made up our minds as to what our next round would be. So we put in the order. When Mr. and Mrs. Whiskey got there beer cheese fondue we figured our pizza was right behind it. We were wrong. Luckily they were kind enough to share and it was very tasty. As our waiter came back around we politely asked the whereabouts of our pizza; he politely excused himself and quickly returned with the obligatory "It will be right out". It had obviously gotten lost in the melee. It showed up fairly quickly though and it was totally worth the wait. Duck bits, Brie, rosemary, yum. To finish we had a rhubarb crisp with buttermilk ice cream. The ice cream seemed homemade and was very tasty but I have a real soft spot for rhubarb anything. It was the perfect end to our meal. So we got our check and dashed across the street for the show.

My basic conclusion is that Dandelion market will only get better as the staff, especially the kitchen, gets used to the small plates concept. The menu is perfect and the staff was very friendly and eager to please. Go support a great new restaurant.

The second part of our evening was the broadway touring show of Spring Awakening. It is a re-telling of a banned play from the late 1800's told in a mash up of then and now with a soundtrack that was obviously written by someone who owns every Dashboard Confessional record and comes out of the late nineties, early two thousands emo scene. It is a very well told coming of age story with nudity and cursing and emo hair. I enjoyed it quite a bit. It was nice to see something edgy come around again. The sad thing is we have plenty of great alternative theater all over the city but few people see it. Unless it has the broadway stamp of approval most Charlotteans won't give it a chance. Oh well, their loss.

until next time.