inspiration

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

/ Dora Hiers

For this edition of Excited about Eating we travel to San Juan, Puerto Rico. Why Puerto Rico? Because I judged the Smoking Hot BBQ event and then took some time off for a 7 day cruise.

It’s a challenge sometimes to find a good restaurant in an unfamiliar location but after some research, we selected Ropa Vieja Grill in the Condado area of San Juan.

Ropa Vieja Grill in San Juan

It was a thirty minute walk from our hotel but we were up for some exercise. The streets were clogged and sidewalks crowded, and a policio (police) told us that there was a large festival going on a few blocks away.

We found Ropa Vieja Grill to be very casual and a place where the locals eat. Since I had been judging BBQ all afternoon we decided to share an appetizer and meal. For our appetizer we ordered the Carne Frita con Tostones Peseteros which is Fried Pork Chunks with Fried Green Plantains.

Fried Pork Chunks with Plaintains

The fried pork was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside with just the right amount of seasoning coming from the marinated onions. Plantains are starchy and must be cooked before eating (usually fried or baked) and are very popular in the Caribbean, as well as Florida where I lived for the first 49 years of my life. Many people confuse plantains with bananas, but plantains are longer and have thicker skin. The plantains tasted fresh and were sliced a little thicker than potato chips. The one thing that would have put this dish over the top would have been a dipping sauce.

For our main dish, we ordered the Canoas de Ropa Vieja, plantain “canoes” filled with Shredded Flank Steak and blanketed with an unidentifiable cheese. The sweet plantain and the shredded flank steak were a perfect match for each other. The sweetness and firmness of the plantain with the hearty savory taste of the shredded flank steak kept you coming back for more. The white rice and black beans were a great complement. Dora here. I wasn’t a huge fan of the fried pork chunks, but the canoas hit a homerun! 

Canoas de Ropa Vieja

This is a small restaurant and as the crowd increased, the noise level did also. If you are looking for a quiet dining experience, I would suggest you try another restaurant. Dora here. I enjoyed the food, but definitely noise overload. If you’re like me and find it difficult to tune out background noise, you’ll find conversation a challenge. Not a romantic dinner for two kinda place. 🙂 

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

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

/ Dora Hiers / 12 Comments
Terrace Cafe
This edition of “Excited about Eating” takes us to the Terrace Café located in the Piedmont Town Center in the heart of SouthPark. This multi-use Town Center features shops, restaurants, offices, and residential properties arranged in a walkable community.
We arrived at 12:10 on a Saturday to a 75 minute wait. Honestly, we debated leaving but decided to wait and that was a great decision because it turned into a manageable 40 minutes. We had a great view of the industrial style loft area and the charm that comes with this type of structure. 

Terrace Café offers a wide variety of options for breakfast, lunch and dinner. While waiting, we noticed that most of the dishes coming out of the kitchen were breakfast. Although they looked appetizing, we opted for lunch.

We started with an appetizer of Fried Green Tomatoes served with a warm pimento cheese dip. 
Fried Green Tomatoes

The Fried Green Tomatoes arrived quickly and were crispy outside and tender inside with a slight vinegary taste. They were great. Even my wife, who really doesn’t like tomatoes, enjoyed them. I think they could serve the cheese dip on anything and it would be great.

I ordered the Nashville Fried Chicken tossed in hot sauce and served over braised collard greens and mashed potatoes.
Nashville Fried Chicken
The chicken was outstanding, crispy and tender, but the mashed potatoes took the prize as the best component of this dish. They were light and creamy with just enough lumps to let you know they were freshly made. The collard greens were a combination of sweet and vinegary, and tasted great. The portions were huge, and definitely not for someone who doesn’t like heat as the Nashville hot sauce lived up to its name. Dora here. Definitely a “forehead slicker.” lol.

My wife ordered the Chicken Salad Croissant, a Hawaiian version of chicken salad on a fresh croissant served with lettuce and tomato and sweet potato waffle fries. 
Chicken Salad Croissant
The chicken salad, made with cream cheese instead of the normal mayo, included grapes, pineapple, pecans, and mandarin oranges. The sweet potatoes waffle fries were a first for us, but something we’d definitely order again.

I finished off my meal with a Peanut Butter Cup Latte and my wife chose the Tiramisu Latte. Both were excellent and a great way to cap off our meal. Dora here. Lip-smacking yummy!
Tiramisu Latte
Overall I would highly recommend this restaurant for someone looking for a unique restaurant offering exceptional food. I would rate this establishment 5 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving outstanding food.

Terrace Cafe on Urbanspoon

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

/ Dora Hiers / 14 Comments
This edition of “Excited about Eating” has me stepping out of my comfort zone as we visited Hazelnuts Crêperie.  
Now, I wouldn’t consider myself a crepe-type guy. I tend to steer toward BBQ and chicken wings, but I am willing to try anything once. If you have never had a crêpe, it is a very thin pancake, usually made from wheat or buckwheat flour and is cooked on a crepe griddle. Their consumption is widespread in France. 

Hazelnuts Crêperie is tucked inside the lobby of a skyscraper in downtown Charlotte. 
Their menu offers a variety of sweet, savory, and vegetarian options. I chose a breakfast crepe, “The Mariachi”, which incorporates scrambled eggs, black beans, bacon, tomatoes, mozzarella, red onions, avocados, and Jalapeno cream inside of a perfectly cooked crepe. 
My wife also chose a breakfast crepe, the “Chevre & Mozz”, which integrates scrambled eggs, bacon, mushrooms, olives, red onions, and goat and mozzarella cheese. 

As for my first crepe ever, “The Mariachi” was surprisingly good. I can truly tell you that I was not expecting the depth of flavor that melded together. If fact, I have never really liked avocados, but mixed with the Jalapeno cream, the taste was exceptional with just the right amount of kick.
The Mariachi
My wife’s “Chevre & Mozz” also had very deep flavors. For the most part, I do not like mushrooms or olives, but this combination was outstanding, and the goat cheese definitely was the star of the show.
Chevre & Mozz

For dessert we shared “The Chunkster” which consists of peanut butter, bananas, chocolate chips, trail mix and maple syrup. As a peanut butter lover, this crepe was a little on the sweet side. 

One dessert crepe cut in half
My wife, not being a peanut butter lover, felt that the peanut butter overwhelmed the crepe and for the most part, it tasted like a warm pb&j minus the jelly. Not one she would try again.

Overall I would highly recommend this restaurant for the crepe connoisseur or for anyone that has never tried a crepe. I would rate this establishment 4 spoons out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving great food.

Dora here, adding my two cents. Although I was excited to try a crepe, I really thought I’d be raiding the pantry by mid-afternoon, but that wasn’t the case. The Chevre & Mozz and half the dessert crepe were hearty enough to last me until dinner. The fridge and pantry were safe. 🙂

Unlike last week, we left Bruiser at home, but still, parking was an issue. We ended up parking in a nearby garage and forking over $5. So, if you’re heading here, make sure you factor in the cost to park.

Have you tried crepes? What fillers do you enjoy in your crepes? Do you prefer sweet or savory?

Hazelnuts Crêperie on Urbanspoon