foodie

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 / 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

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

/ Dora Hiers / 4 Comments

So today we kicked off our sampling of restaurants in and around Charlotte, North Carolina. Today’s choice was Big Ben British Restaurant and Pub. Located in Atherton Mill on the south side of Charlotte, this pub had great food in a sports bar environment. 


When we arrived only a few tables were taken, but unknown to us, a Chelsea vs. Manchester City soccer match was about to start and the place was buzzing with people within 15 minutes. We started with the Bubble & Squeak appetizer. This traditional English dish consists of mashed potatoes and sautéed brussel sprouts, but here they substituted cabbage. The dish had a great consistency and was very tasty. For our meal, my wife went with the Famous Southend Haddock N’ Chips and I took our waiter’s suggestion, the Chicken Pot Pie.


The Chicken Pot Pie was definitely a unique dish. Rather than the traditional pot pie served in some universal type of container, this pot pie was formed inside of an exceptional puff pastry type shell which held in all of the goodness of the dish. It was served with fluffy mashed potatoes, fresh steamed vegetables, and topped with chicken gravy. 


The Haddock N’ Chips was far larger than most persons could eat at one sitting. Luckily, my wife was willing to share. It consisted of flaky haddock, cooked to perfection, crispy pub fries, cole slaw, and a pickle that they call a Wally which in England means a “dill pickled baby cucumber”. The fish was great, not greasy nor overly fishy. The pub fries were cooked flawlessly, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and the average cole slaw complemented the dish.

So, our takeaway…if you’re not a soccer fan, ask to be seated outside the viewing area of the huge screen or you’ll feel like you’re at the game. And go early. We snagged a parking spot right in front, but when we left, vehicles were lined up, circling. Oh, and if you like a coffee after your meals, be sure to stop in Not Just Coffee, located on the back side of Icehouse right next door and wander around the indoor farmer’s market.

I would rate this establishment 5 spoons out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving outstanding food.

Dora here, adding my two cents about this first experience. 

1. Check the times/days that the restaurant is open. Yes, we neglected to do that and our first choice wasn’t open. Which brings me to my next point…

2. Bring the list. Since we didn’t bring our list, we had to switch gears. With a little help from Yelp, Big Ben Pub ended up being a fabulous alternative. 

3. Don’t wait until hunger pangs strike. Charlotte is a thirty minute drive from our house and after factoring in the time it took to navigate one-way streets and to snag a parking spot, let’s just say I could’ve faced down a bear and won. Those of you who deal with sugar challenges might want to bring a snack. 🙂

4. Leave the dog at home. In the cooler months, Bruiser enjoys tagging along with us. So long as we have a container of water and leave the windows cracked, he’s happy. We didn’t think it would be a problem to find a parking spot in downtown Charlotte on a Saturday, but we were wrong. Rather than park in a garage a few blocks away, we chose to drive a bit farther out of downtown where parking was more accessible and Bruiser was close. 

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed our first Excited about Eating venture. 


Big Ben British Pub & Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Do you enjoy experimenting with new restaurants? 
Or do you prefer to frequent the same ones?