Houston Restaurant Weeks - Lucille's

Lucille's is a neighborhood gem that I had begun to hear lots of rave reviews about, so it was only appropriate that I take advantage of the Houston Restaurant Weeks and check it out. I have found myself being much more open to trying different liquors in my cocktails these days, so I opted for a kiwi bourbon drink. I don't think that I have had a kiwi cocktail before and I am just beginning to explore the bourbon world, so I was taking a huge risk here. What I found was it not not sweet, it had more of a tang to it and the bourbon was subtly apparent in the aftertaste of the kiwi. Most people think that when you use fruit in something, it automatically makes it sweet which isn't the case. For me this was a good experimental drink and was pleasantly surprised.

I feel like I am not a very good Southern girl because I haven't had some of the staples until recently and fried green tomatoes was just another example of me failing. Thank goodness that this was on the menu so that I could rectify that. This dish came with four fairly large pieces of tomato coated in a spicy cornmeal breading and served with a spicy aioli. The tomatoes themselves didn't taste like a normal tomato. To me they were milder and less acidic which went well with the spicy cornmeal. There was quite a bit of heat to it, but not enough to overwhelm the dish. The aioli had a bit of heat to it, but balanced out the tomato. I am glad that I got to try them as I feel much more in touch with my Southern roots.

And speaking of becoming more Southern, I decided to try shrimp and grits in the Houston fashion. Based on my experience in Charleston were every version was different, I had no idea what to expect. What was delivered to me was something like a cross between shrimp and grits and a light gumbo. There were grits in the bottom of the bowl topped with shrimp and lots of andouille sausage with a sherry tomato broth over it all. The sausage wasn't spicy but had a nice flavor. Between the shrimp and sausage it became a very filling dish. The broth helped keep everything moist and the consistency of the grits made the very sturdy. These were stone ground grits which are ground using a traditional mill so they have the corn bran and tip cap in them (the little specks you see in the grits). This would be a lovely meal for a cooler fall evening as it it very hearty.

For the sweet finish, I chose the bread pudding. When they brought it out, I was shocked at how small the serving was and then that it was served in such a large bowl. The middle of the bowl was proportionate to the piece of bread pudding but there was a huge rim on the bowl that seemed like it didn't belong. After I got over the interesting presentation, I found that the bread pudding itself was just normal but the sauce it was served with was what made it so tasty. It sort of tasted like a caramel cream rum sauce. I was a denser sauce, but had a lovely combination of flavors. The berries on top added some freshness and texture to the dessert. Though I wasn't overly impressed with dessert, the rest of the meal was very fulfilling and so I will definitely be back to try the regular menu. Don't let the fact that this place is a little hidden deter you from trying it out.

Hominy Grill

When Food Network recommends a restaurant, I try my best to make sure that I go check it out. Hominy Grill is located in a quaint little house with a covered courtyard patio and the infamous grits artwork on the side of the building. They only take reservations for dinner, but the brunch is what everyone was raving about...especially the shrimp and grits. It was recommended that you get there right when the opened because there would be a pretty long wait. We arrived before they opened and sure enough there was already a line of about 20 people. With that being said though, this places knows how to get people in (once they opened we were seated in less than 5 minutes) and out and the efficiently! The inside it like you are sitting in a cottage with lots of windows and and eclectic set of furniture...definitely very homey feeling though. As we were working our way to the door, I noted that there was another delicious sounds cocktail with honeysuckle vodka, lemonade and raspberry - SO YUMMY!

Feeling a little abnormal, I opted to try some of the smaller brunch offerings so that I could try more. Plus the shrimp and grits were already being ordered, so I was definitely getting to try those. I chose pumpkin gingerbread and a egg, cheese and bacon biscuit sandwich. The pumpkin gingerbread reminded me of fall and would be perfect on a chilly fall morning with a steaming cup of coffee. It wasn't too sweet and there was hints of cinnamon, nutmeg and nuts. I am no determined to find a way to recreate that because it just made me feel warm and fuzzy. I am not the biggest fan of biscuits, but probably because most of the ones I have tried have been small and thin. These were big and cloud like and hot out of the oven! The eggs and bacon would have been yummy on their own, but all together it was like a breakfast symphony...exactly what a breakfast sandwich should be.

Like all the shrimp and grits we tried, this one was completely different from the others. The grits were pure white and the shrimp didn't have any sauce. What I found to be interesting was that this dish seemed to have an Asian influence to it. The spices were definitely more prominent, but that may have been because there was not sauce. In addition to the shrimp, there were scallions, mushroom and bacon. And yes since it's the South bacon is pretty much in everything (and I am definitely not going to complain about that). Just for another comparison, there was an order of just cheese grits. These grits had a consistency that was similar to oatmeal. I really liked that they used real shredded cheese instead of cheese sauce. The cheese added a touch of salt to the grits and gave it a creamier texture.

Though I know that is it not necessarily customary to eat dessert at brunch, the dessert lover inside all of us came out and so we had to give it a try. They had several yummy options like hummingbird cake, a coconut layer cake, and a lemon icebox pie. I am not a huge pie person, but we decided to try the lemon icebox pie. It was light and fluffy with a very lovely fresh lemon taste. The whipped cream on top added some sweetness to the pie. However, in this pie it was was really the crust that was the star. It was the perfect combination of buttery graham crackery goodness. It didn't crumble into a million piece and yet still managed to have a fair amount of crunch to it. Hominy Grill should definitely be on your restaurant list when you visit Charleston whether you make it for breakfast, lunch or dinner because I am sure that you will be impressed.

Culinary Tour - Dixie's

Because I am all about food, I managed to stumble on a company that did culinary tours. Umm yes! Yes of course, I put this on the agenda. This tour was with a company called Bulldog Tours. It was a walking tour of some of the best food related places in Charleston, complete with samples, food history lessons and tons of recommendations. The first stop on the tour was a tiny, slightly hidden (mostly) breakfast place called Dixie's. Up first on the sample menu was a piece of sweet potato cornbread. This tasted like a gingerbread spice cake, but was very delicious! I didn't feel like I was eating cornbread because it was sweet, had tons of spices (like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves) and oddly enough the consistency seemed to be slightly different. Next were the stone ground cheese grits. These were completely different from the grits at SNOB. They were richer, as they were made with butter and cream, had a much more apparent cheese taste, and literally melted in your mouth. They were the best grits I have ever had and I don't think that I could ever eat the boxed kind after tasting these. I can honestly say that I have now been turned into a grits fan, but only if they are made the right way...now I just have to figure out how to recreate them.

The next stop on the tour was at Tony, the Peanut Man's stand. You can't go anywhere in the South without having something fried. So a fried peanut it was... because you should try everything once in your life right?! I was pretty skeptical about this, especially when the tour guide said that it was pretty fibrous because you eat the shell and all. Also to be honest it looked a little odd, but I gave it a try anyways. She was right, it was pretty fibrous, though I was surprised because I thought it would be super salty which it really wasn't. You needed some water afterwards to wash it down. I can't way that I was a huge fan, but it could have been much worse. Stayed tuned for the next stop on the Charleston culinary tour.

Slightly North of Broad

When you are walking down the street, sometimes you stopped to look at something because of the name. We walked by a restaurant called Slightly North of Broad, aka SNOB because it was a name that got my attention. But you know a place must be good when you are looking at the menu and a stranger stops to tell you how it is one of their favorite places. So what did that mean... we needed to try it out. Because we were all finally reunited, we needed to celebrate and so I did that with a refreshing cocktail called Cathead Blues. This was made with honeysuckle vodka, lemonade and muddled blueberries. I have never had honeysuckle vodka, but it is definitely delicious. (Now I just need to figure out where I can get some around here) The fresh blueberries and the tartness of the lemonade were refreshing and mixed quite well.

The South is well known for grits, and shrimp and grits is a quintessential Southern dish, so of course that was definitely on the list of things to try. When this dish can out, I was actually quite surprised because it didn't look like what I had seen before. This shrimp and grits dish was more what I would equate to gumbo because of the sauce that was served with it. When I think of gumbo, I think of a dark "gravy" with meat that's served over rice...which was what this was. It was shrimp, ham, sausage, tomatoes, green onions and garlic served over grits. It was a bit spicy and the grits had a hint of cheese mixed in with them. You can definitely taste the difference between boxed grits and the real kind...the later are ten times better! The combination of meat made this a very hearty dish and would be yummy on a cool fall evening.

I don't eat seafood a lot because I am somewhat picky about it, but knowing that this was a great place for seafood I decided to go for it. Next up was the grilled salmon with a lemon dill butter and asparagus. I can say that this is some of the best salmon I have had. It was tender and flavorful. The grill added some smokiness to it. Salmon and lemon are a well-known combination, but the butter added some creaminess to the dish. The asparagus were crunchy, but fork tender and soaked up the lemon dill butter sauce. It was a dish that didn't leave you feeling super stuffed afterwards.

Obviously when you are down South, you should eat crepes, right?... Okay maybe that's not a given, but it was worth a try. This was a mushroom spinach crepe, with tons of spinach and mushrooms. The spinach wasn't super soggy and I was surprised to find that the crepe wasn't soggy either. The restaurant itself is open but has an intimate atmosphere. It is a fun place to dress up and go a fancier dinner. SNOB is a place that you definitely need to try when you are in Charleston, but be sure to make a reservation as it is one of the city's hot dinner spots.