Excited about Eating by Ernie & Dora Hiers

July 29, 2017July 18, 2017 / Dora Hiers / 14 Comments

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to Cha Da Thai, an authentic Thai restaurant that incorporates a “balance of textures, colors and flavors” in Boone, NC.

Cha Da Thai Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Rather unassuming building, but free parking lot across the street!

Dora here. We’ve been frequenting The Local, right next door to Cha Da Thai, for years, but the exterior of the restaurant never really invited us in. But after our son returned from his year-long journey and cooked a Thai meal for us, we knew we had to try this place. The interior was huge and clean, and the server friendly and helpful with suggestions. Oh, and a FREE parking lot across the street is always a bonus!

Huge interior and CLEAN! Servers friendly and offered suggestions.

For my lunch, I chose the Sweet & Sour Pork. The pork was breaded and deep-fried, and the plate was loaded with onion, pineapples, cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes, bell peppers, and rice on the side. Different than other sweet & sour dishes I’ve tasted, more of a stir-fry. They lived up to their philosophy with vivid colors, crunchy texture, and perfectly balanced flavors.

Sweet & Sour Pork

Dora here. Our son suggested we try the Tom Kha soup, and ya’ll know how much I love dumplings. So, I opted for two appetizers. Win, win, right? Oh, yeah.

According to their menu, the Tom Kha soup is “pure Thai comfort food.” The flavors were vibrant, wake-you-up intense, with every dip of my spoon. Huge slivers of chicken, chunks of tomatoes, and mushrooms all mingled in a coconut cream soup infused with lemon grass and chili paste. Deep, complex, and wowza! I can’t say that I would consider it comfort food, but I would definitely order it again. And again. 🙂

Tom Kha Soup with Chicken, wowza!

And the dumplings were unlike any I’ve sampled before. You have a choice between fried or steamed, and I went with steamed. Pork and chicken and other tiny goodies packed into thin wrappers and served with a sweet (honey?) sesame sauce with a hint of citrus. Oh. Yes! Come to mama! lol.

: Steamed Dumplings…oh yes! Come to mama!

We will be back. And I’ll probably order the exact same thing. lol.

What about you? When you find a certain dish on the menu that you enjoy, do you order it every time you visit that restaurant?

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

Excited about Eating by Ernie & Dora Hiers

July 15, 2017July 6, 2017 / Dora Hiers / 23 Comments

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to one of our favorite pizza spots, Capone’s Pizza in Boone. Formerly located in a small hole-in-the-wall store front in historic downtown Boone, recently they moved into a larger space in New Market Centre.

: Their new spot in New Market Centre. Plenty of parking now!

Dora here. Capone’s moved from a prime location on King Street, but that prime spot costs them in terms of customers due to lack of parking. Also, maybe, they squeezed twenty booths in that cramped space. In their new New (lol) Market Centre location, diners have room to spread out in here. Much nicer than their cramped King Street location. And parking galore!

Capone's Pizza Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

You can really spread out in here. Much nicer than their cramped King St location. And parking galore!

When we visit Capone’s, we have two favorites, the Chicago Style Deep Dish and the Don Vito stuffed pizza. This time we went with the Chicago deep dish, meat supreme on my half and just pepperoni on Dora’s. This pizza is outstanding, with a thick chewy crust (which I usually do not eat because I’d rather eat an extra slice), topped with pepperoni, hamburger, crumbled bacon, diced ham and sausage. The meat items are fresh and the pie has just the right amount of sauce.

Dora here. Just a heads up. This isn’t authentic Chicago style, but it works for us. Light on the marinara, not overly cheesy, and a ginormous thick and doughy crust. YUM! Every time we come, we say we’re going to order something different because Capone’s has a robust menu loaded with non-pizza options, but it never happens. We alternate between the Don Vito Stuffed Pizza and this Chicago style deep dish. One day we’ll try their Stromboli or the Meatball Sub or…um, probably not.

Chicago Style 1/2 pepperoni, 1/2 meat Not really authentic Chicago style, but it works for us. Love the thick, chewy crust!

Our server was friendly and the pizza came out quick. If you’re a resident or just camping out in the area for a few days, Capone’s is a MUST TRY!

What about you? How do you like your pizza?

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

Excited about Eating by Ernie & Dora Hiers

June 24, 2017June 12, 2017 / Dora Hiers / 9 Comments

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to a century old building that was once the maintenance station of Tweetsie Railroad in Boone, NC, and now houses Café Portofino. This casual restaurant offers a wide variety of sandwiches, pastas, and steaks.

Cafe Portofino Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Parking in front, but also a bigger lot on the side with FREE parking!

Dora here. I must confess I was a bit apprehensive about trying this place since it’s practically right across the street from Appalachian State. I expected it to be a student bar/hangout. And, since we entered the establishment from the parking lot on the side, that was precisely my first impression of the narrow, dimly-lit room. But that’s the wrong door. The front door’s on the other side. lol. The restaurant portion is actually quite spacious.

It’s actually quite spacious on the inside if you enter from the correct door. lol (Sorry for the fuzzy picture!)

But who wants to sit inside with such glorious weather? And–bonus!–the outdoor patio is dog friendly! There’s an adorable Corgi puppy hanging out under the table next to us.

Cafe Portofino Fiction Faith & Foodie Ernie & Dora Hiers

Bonus, the outdoor patio is DOG friendly!

For my lunch, I chose the Portofino Spaghetti, a meat sauce made with ground beef, Italian sausage and garlic served over spaghetti, served with a side salad and a roll sprinkled with parmesan. Their Greek feta salad dressing was outstanding, and the spaghetti cooked flawlessly. The yeast roll was hardy, perfect for dipping up the meaty, thick, garlicky sauce, and I appreciated the spoon they brought for the pasta without me asking.

Portofino Spaghetti, meaty and thick

Dora here. The server was friendly, efficient, and knowledgeable and helpful with suggestions. The Grown Up Mac & Cheese was a notch above typical pub food. Penne pasta, grilled chicken and broccoli blanketed with a cream sauce, and then sprinkled with another layer of cheese. Although I enjoyed this dish and all the components, I would’ve preferred less sauce. Overall, though, a pleasant surprise and one I would order again with a special request of less sauce.

Grown Up Mac & Cheese, a pleasant surprise. Next time, though, I will order it with less sauce.

What about you? What was the last meal/restaurant that exceeded your expectations?

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