Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

July 16, 2016July 15, 2016 / Dora Hiers / 7 Comments

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to our favorite mountain getaway, Blowing Rock/Boone area of North Carolina and to The Local.

One block off King with a private parking lot across the street…WIN!

This eating establishment also boasts big screen TVs to watch your favorite sport teams. Located a block off the main drag (King Street), the restaurant gives you the feel of an eatery for locals just waiting to be discovered by visitors.

Dora here. And don’t forget about the dedicated parking lot across the street, FREE. Bonus!

Hubby’s pointing to a dog bowl, letting these folks know The Local is pet friendly!

Dora here. What a wonderful outdoor space. With two garage doors that roll up, it’s a relaxing experience for sure especially when the day is as nice as this. Cool breeze, great food, and it’s PET FRIENDLY! People lined up to sit outside on the patio and I almost felt sorry for the ones who opted to eat inside. Even so, the interior is spacious, clean and beautiful.

Awesome, comfortable interior but everybody lined up to eat outdoors on the gorgeous deck 🙂

The one thing on the menu that drew us to this place was the Asheville County “squeaky” cheese curds. These curds were parmesan crusted and fried, served with a Chipotle dipping sauce. Let me say, we were not disappointed. Great from the first bite, the cheese was gooey, and the batter perfectly cooked.

Cheese Curds Appetizer ~ Soft and yummy!

Dora here. Soft and smokey, melted goodness. Yum, yum!

For my lunch, I chose the Boonie Burger. Smoked pimento cheese, fried green tomato, and dill cole slaw topped a huge patty sandwiched by a soft bun. The mild flavor of the pimento cheese combined with the crunch of the slaw and the juicy patty, this is one burger everyone needs to try. And the sprouts? Outstanding!

Boonie Burger with Sprouts-Outstanding!

Dora here. I ordered the Na’an Traditional Cuban, and boy was it ever! Non traditional, that is. lol. Inside that na’an you’ll find pulled pork, bacon, swiss, pickles and mayo. To me, all the individual elements were great; the pork was tender and juicy, the na’an soft. Unfortunately the bread couldn’t hold up against all that juicy goodness, and the sandwich as a whole needed a jazz of flavor. Overall, not one of my favorite dishes, but with so many other dishes on the menu calling my name, next time I’ll try something else because, trust me, this place is definitely going on our favorites list.

Na’an Traditional Cuban…boy was it ever!

What’s your favorite appetizer?

We rate this restaurant 5 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving outstanding food. Dora here. 4.5 for me, 5 for Ernie. 🙂

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

June 11, 2016May 30, 2016 / Dora Hiers / 3 Comments

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to a great little breakfast place in Boone, NC, Sunrise Grill, a family owned restaurant that boasts about serving creative food in a relaxed environment.

Waiting zone to the left, restaurant on right

Dora here. Sounds about right. 🙂

Don’t be in hurry when you visit because tons of people have already found this gem, so there may be a wait.

Tight inside and always jammed!

Dora here. We’ve visited twice so far and the wait has ranged between 20-30 minutes. They could definitely use a couple more tables out on the front deck. Too bad it was misty. 🙂

They could definitely use more seating out here

I ordered the Breakfast Chimichanga Grande special. Mexican rice and beans, onions, chorizo, hash browns, and scrambled eggs in a shell combined together to create a unique tasting breakfast. I’m glad I opted for chili on top rather than queso. The queso was super spicy, but the chili provided just enough heat. Overall, this dish was great.

Breakfast Chimichanga Grande topped with chili rather than queso

Dora here. And gigantic! Good thing our son was with us to help you eat it. 🙂 I opted for something a bit…smaller. lol. Homemade Corned Beef Hash. Two light and fluffy scrambled eggs, chunks of corned beef and hash and homemade wheat toast…delicious!

Chunks of corned beef in the Homemade Corned Beef Hash. Delicious!

What’s the most unusual dish you’ve tried for breakfast?

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

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

June 4, 2016June 6, 2016 / Dora Hiers / 14 Comments

This edition of Exited about Eating is back in the US at Amelie’s French Bakery in the NoDa (North Davidson) Arts District of Charlotte. This bakery, that also serves a variety of sandwiches, salads and other specialties, is a go-to place to quench not only your sweet tooth, but also your savory cravings.

Amelie’s French Bakery in NoDa

Dora here. You can say that again. Wait until you catch a glimpse of their dessert counter. Yowza!

Fun, eclectic interior. Order at the counter

I ordered the Provence B.L.T with Red Potato Salad and because I had no idea what a Tartine was, a Ham & Gruyere Tartine. The B.L.T. was served on a crispy baguette with loads of bacon, lettuce, and mayo that combined for the perfect bite, crispy on the outside and loads of flavor on the inside.

BLT with Potato Salad

The Tartine is actually an open-faced sandwich. The baguette was blanketed with ham and melted Gruyere cheese.

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Dora here. Talk about gooey and cheesy delicious!! We could’ve made a meal on the tartine alone! But we didn’t. 😀

The Strawberry Candied Almond Salad called to me. Because you know I’m all for salads with fruit, right? Yum! I added chicken for protein and my mouth exploded with flavor with the almost-sweet balsamic vinaigrette and the crunchy candy almonds. Yum! My only negative about this dish would be that it was entirely spring mix (Ernie calls them “weeds”). I would’ve preferred romaine and should’ve asked for the switch.

Strawberry Candied Almond Salad with Chicken – YUM!

Still Dora, the interior is eclectic and homey, like a family dinner, with all sorts of conversations flowing and swirling around you. Can you spot my sweetheart in this pic? xo

Homey and eclectic

Still Dora. What’s up with the big guy? He petered out at the best part. lol. Of course, we couldn’t pass by that bakery case without ordering dessert–awesome marketing ploy on their part, don’t you think? The Monkey Bread (Ernie’s choice) looks sickeningly sweet, doesn’t it? But so not! So delicate, it reminded me of an apple fritter without the chunky apples. And that’s a coconut macaroon next to it. I admit to being disappointed that it wasn’t dipped in chocolate at first, but one bite of that chewy ball of coconut made up for it. Mmmmm.

Monkey Bread, Coconut Macaroon, Chai Tea Lattes (iced and hot)

Amelie’s definitely made it on our “must go back” list.

Everybody lines up in front of this extensive dessert case to order. Like you could resist, right?

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

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Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers

Excited about Eating by Ernie Hiers