Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

/ Dora Hiers / 9 Comments

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to the Elizabeth neighborhood of Charlotte and to Hawthorne’s New York Pizza and Bar. 

Nice covered patio!

Elizabeth is named after Anne Elizabeth Watts, the only Charlotte neighborhood named for a woman. You can read more about the history here. 

Interior

Dora here. Don’t let this picture deceive you. We arrived right at eleven, and by the time we left, both inside and out was jammed. Hawthorne’s appears to be a popular place for locals as many people walked here.

The garlic cheese bread appetizer was cheesy with just the right amount of garlic. It came out fast, the cheese bubbling and gooey, and browned to perfection. 

Garlic Cheese Bread


Dora here. This cheesy bread reminded me of our favorite pizza place in Florida. We always divided it up into equal portions because our son ravaged it. Same thing happened this time, but with our grandson. A sure sign that it was a winner. 🙂

We wanted to pace ourselves, so we ordered the 9” Meat Eaters pizza, and we were glad we did.

9″ Meat Eaters Pizza

This pizza was loaded with meat (pepperoni, Italian sausage, beef, ham, bacon) and mozzarella. In each bite, I tasted all of the different meat flavors, and they all worked together. One thing we noticed, unlike other meat pies which tend to be greasy and heavy, this pizza was light with no greasy aftereffects. 

Slice of Meat Eaters


Dora here. I really wanted to order the Sicilian, but that only comes in GIANT size, so since we were ordering cheesy bread and dessert, I compromised on this. Not my favorite pizza, but it was good. I appreciated that it wasn’t heavy on the sauce or spice. 

Check out the Cannoli Plate, three mini cannolis. 

Cannolis

Dora here. We first sampled cannolis in Sicily, and loved them! Since then, we’ve tried the US versions, and none of them have come close to what we experienced overseas. Not that we’re food snobs, but buttercream filling..really? Yuck! Hawthorne’s cannolis tasted like the real deal, ricotta and cream cheese goodness in a fried pastry! Three minis were just the right size to cap off our meal. Well, Little Man didn’t think so. 🙂 

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

What’s your favorite pizza hangout?


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Enjoy Christian books? Come by and meet Savvy McCord, heroine of BECK’S PEACE

/ Dora Hiers / 4 Comments
Tell us your name and a little bit about yourself.
Hi! I’m Savvy McCord. My day job, if you could call it that, is firefighting, and I teach second graders at my church.
Tell us about where you live and why you choose to live there.
I live in the country just outside Harrison, North Carolina. Rori Harmon is my closest neighbor and my best friend since elementary school. I hung out at her house more than I lived in mine. My parents, well, we didn’t have the best relationship. Not since my sister died.
I almost moved away after Beck left, but I just knew that eventually, he would come back.
What is a quirk of your personality that most people wouldn’t know?
Most of the time, I wear pants and long sleeves to cover the scars on my arms and legs from the same gas explosion that killed my sister. Prevents the gawkers and rude questions. Mostly.
What obstacles did you have to overcome to reach your happily-ever-after?
You mean besides Beck actually coming home, right? LOL. Well, Beck surprised me by showing up at Rori’s wedding, and my date, Corbin, the local vet, wasn’t exactly thrilled. Corbin knew it was over then. But the biggest issue? Whether Beck was back home for good or just stopping through.
Tell us about your knight in shining armor. What makes him special?
When we were kids, he was always trying to make me feel better about my home life. He was always finding ways to make me laugh when I was down. But now? Can you believe I stumbled upon him at the hospital? I’d stopped by to visit Maria, a teenager we pulled out of a house fire. He was amazing. Kind and gentle, and trying to make her feel better about her scars. Did you know he was the one who brainstormed “Savvy Scars,” a support group for teen burn survivors? As if that weren’t enough, he fixed my house after a storm rolled through while I was working, surprised me with a picnic dinner at the fire station, and gifted me with Purrtygirl, a homeless kitten. And did I mention the man can kiss? Oy!
But none of that compares with his newfound faith and how he’s always whispering that I’m beautiful…
The first time you saw him, what did you think? Did you like him immediately, or did he have to grow on you?

Haha. That’s kind of a trick question. We grew up together, so a little of both, I guess. It just took him a few years and much life experience to get to the same point. But, that’s OK because now he’s home to stay.
 Coming JULY 24-Preorder here

Burn survivor Savvy McCord doesn’t blame her best friend for running away. She can’t even look at her scars without wincing. When Beck’s disappearing act spans years, she relinquishes dreams of love and marriage. 

Unable to face Savvy’s expectations of happily-ever-after, Beck Harmon deserts her, far away from the rumors that he’s just like his father. When the wanderer returns, dreams of forever blossom in Savvy’s heart, but she worries he’ll leave again. 

Can Beck convince Savvy that her true beauty comes from her inner strength and faith? Will his idea to help burn victims regain their self-confidence restore Savvy’s trust in him? Will love be what the wanderer needs to find peace for his hurting soul?

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

/ Dora Hiers

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to Nantucket Grill, located at the corner of Hwy 54 & Farrington Rd in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. 


With its friendly casual environment, Nantucket Grill caters to couples, families and UNC fans with a wide variety of menu options. 

We visited on Saturday night for their much anticipated free cake night,  a free slice of mile high goodness with each entree over $13. 

Dora here. Confession time. We come up with excuses to make the two hour drive here on a Saturday just for the cake. Feast your eyes on this dessert case. Wouldn’t you?

Cake case. Bam! Right as you enter.

Since I judged BBQ that day, my wife and I shared the full portion of the Grilled Scallop Kabobs (2 skewers), served over herb rice and mixed vegetables and drizzled with lobster cream sauce. 

We were surprised when the meal came out already divided on two plates. 

Grilled Scallop Kabobs (full portion divided in half)

Dora here. Yeah, this plate is only half the meal! Yowza!

Generous scallops perfectly cooked, golden on the outside, tender and meaty on the inside. The rice, peppers and onions complemented the dish, but the main star was the lobster cream sauce. Creamy, with only a hint of seafood, a sauce that would raise any seafood to the next level. Outstanding!

Dora here. Oh. My! Smooth. Luxurious. Every bite leads to one more. I practically licked my plate clean!

And then…the Chocolate Peanut Butter cake. Six layers of chocolate cake separated by peanut butter filling and topped with chocolate butter cream icing, a Reese cup and peanut butter drizzle. Normally, I am not a big chocolate cake lover, but this cake was great with the peanut butter taking a back seat to the chocolate. So rich, it was difficult to eat the entire slice in one seating.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

Dora here. Speak for yourself, Ernie. I had no problem eating mine! 


Every time we visit, I scan the case for something different, but I always opt for my usual, Coconut Cake. Moist and rich, but not so rich I can’t eat every bite! A tip, though, get it to go and enjoy it later when you’re not so stuffed. You can thank me later. 🙂

Coconut Cake

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


Ernie & Dora Hiers
Fiction Faith & Foodies Blog

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