This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to Carolina Ale House, a sports bar and grill that boasts over 50 TV’s located in the busy Concord Mills Mall area. This family friendly place has an extensive menu featuring wings, burgers, tacos, pizza and much more.
Dora here. When we first moved to this area, we were disappointed at the lack of sports pubs. That changed when Carolina Ale House came on scene, and we especially like that they offer tables and booths separate from the bar area, which makes it great for families.
We like that this restaurant has tables and booths separate from the bar area
For our appetizer, we chose the Beer-battered Cheese Curds served with a red pepper jalapeno jam dipping sauce. These curds were great with a soft smooth center and a light batter on the outside and when combined with the slightly sweet dipping sauce, just kept me coming back for more. Next time I would ask them to be a little crispier, the way I really like them. Dora here. The curds could’ve used an extra minute both in the fryer and the drying basket, since they were just a tad greasy. But that didn’t stop us from eating every last one of these little nuggets. Yum! And the sauce was a great dipper, tangy with a tinge of sweet.
Cheese Curds could’ve used an extra minute in the fryer and the drying basket, but that didn’t stop us from eating every last nugget!
For my meal, I chose the Crispy Ribs with onion strings. These ribs were slow-cooked, dropped into the fryer to crisp up the outside, and then tossed in a BBQ sauce. The ribs were great, fall off the bone tender and the crispiness added a completely different texture. Just a warning, that Thai chili dipping sauce was HOT, so try a little before dipping the entire rib into it.
Crispy Ribs, great! Fall-off-the-bone tender and the crispiness added a completely different texture. But the sauce is HOT!
Dora here. Hot? I think I heard Ernie’s taste buds sizzling. haha. The Chicken Dunkers are a promo that I hope end up on the regular menu. Coated in a beer batter, these plump little cluckers were crispy and golden and delicious! The pepper ranch dipping sauce soothed after the kick from the mango habanero, so I appreciated both. A bite of heat, a bite of cool. lol.
Chicken Dunkers. Crispy and golden and delicious!
Quite a generous sized portion for less than $8, don’t you think? So, maybe fried chicken and fried cheese wasn’t the healthiest of lunches, but I did gnaw on those carrots, too. I’d order this same combo again.
Chicken Dunkers filled this entire plate! I’d definitely order this again.
What about you? What unhealthy choices do you splurge on?
We rate this restaurant 4 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving great food.
Weaving a Legacy of Grace 