Watts Grocery

Last week we made our way to the well-known and highly rated Watts Grocery in Durham.  The restaurant has come highly recommended to us by several people and offers sustainable fair from local farms.  Colin was really excited when he saw they had chess pie on the dessert menu online, so we decided against an appetizer so we could save room for dessert.

We were a bit worried that we would need reservations, since the restaurant seems to be very popular, but when we called there was only an opportunity to leave a message. We took our chances, hoping that a 5:45pm dinner on a Wednesday night would not be a popular time.  Upon arrival, there were very few people dining and plenty of open tables. The space was larger than I anticipated with quite a few tables and a bar area.

Shortly after we ordered, we were presented with four very basic dinner rolls and butter. I'm guessing the butter was local and maybe the bread was baked in-house, but Colin was expecting more.  He commented on expecting who grain rolls, or some sesame seeds, and maybe some olive oil and vinegar, or chive-butter.  The dinner rolls did not match our expectations for a pricey, sustainable restaurant.

Since the restaurant sourced it's meat locally, we decided to try the steak and the chicken.  The Pan Roasted Chicken Confit came with yellow grits and butterbean and pea succotash.  I had to go back to the menu to know what the butterbeans were because they were so soft and very rich. Originally, I thought they were pork fat.  The dish was very flavorful, maybe a little too rich and flavorful.  After a few bites, I was already full (well, saving a little room for dessert).

The Grilled Hand-Cut Angus Ribeye came on smoked tomato and bacon braised collard, and with broccoli and Four Leaf Farm pea shoot butter.  It's too bad we didn't have the butter for the bread! Neither of us used the butter with the steak dish, which was also very flavorful. The meat was very tender and cooked perfectly to Colin's liking (medium-rare).  The collards, in their smoked tomato and bacon sauce were a bit too rich for me, but Colin was a huge fan.  While the steak did not beat his favorites in NYC (The Post House, Strip House and Angelo Maxies) or the amazing steaks we ate in Aruba, he thought the meat was the best we've had in the Triangle.  His highest marks went to the collards, which he'll likely try to replicate at home.

Both entrees tasted amazing as leftovers (especially since I could cook the steak a little more to my liking)!

Pan-Roasted Chicken Confit

Grilled Hand-Cut Angus Ribeye

Once Colin got his heart set on the chess pie, he had me convinced we had to get it for dessert. So when the waitress came over to ask if we were finished, and we requested a box to pack up our leftovers, Colin immediately ordered the chess pie.  Imagine the letdown when the waitress explained that the dessert menu had not been updated online in awhile!  Oh boy were we disappointed.  It pretty much ruined the whole experience for Colin.  We were brought the updated menu and couldn't find anything on it that remotely resembled the chess pie, so we paid for our bill and left.  

On our way out of Durham, we stopped to get dessert at Dulce Cafe.  There were only a few varieties of desserts to choose from (but had lots of each dessert).  We had been preparing for chocolate so we went with the chocolate cake filled with a cherry filling and a chocolate/chocolate cupcake.  We brought it home to enjoy in the comfort of our sweatpants!  The desserts were good, but certainly nothing to rave about. I doubt we will make a trip out there for desserts again.

Chocolate cake with cherry filling (L) and chocolate cupcake (R)

Where can we get amazing chess pie in the area?  

Now we just can't seem to let it go!

A New Series of Posts Starts with 18 Seaboard

Colin and I have decided to give ourselves something to look forward to at the beginning of each week.  We have decided to try a new restaurant in the triangle every Monday or Tuesday night.  Colin needs something to balance out not looking forward to starting the work week, I want the date night with the opportunity to spend time alone together without distractions.  

We are using the lists of "five faves" in the entertainment section of the local news station, WRAL, to find highly rated restaurants in various categories. Categories on our list to try first include; "best restaurant," "best vegetarian," and "best barbecue."

The first restaurant selected was 18 Seaboard, located in a historic-looking area of Raleigh, very close to Peace College.  This restaurant was listed as one of the top 5 "best restaurants" and boasts locally sourced food.

Not having been to this area of Raleigh very often, we struggled to find parking when we first arrived.  Once we drove around to the back of the restaurant however, we found a much larger parking area with plenty of open spots.  My first impression of the restaurant was that it set a romantic mood.  The lighting was low, the tables were not crowded together, and the contrast between the dark wood tables and light colored tableware was relaxing.  Once I paid closer attention, I decided my favorite decorative area was the single brick wall.

The menu offered lots of variety for a "sustainable" restaurant, and I ended up going with a Mahi-Mahi wood grilled fish after consulting my app on sustainable fish to be sure it was not high in mercury or in danger of overfishing.  Colin opted for the wood grilled BBQ brisket.  My fish was from Florida and only the Swordfish was locally sourced. Since Swordfish is high in mercury (a big no-no for women of childbearing age) and I really wanted fish, I went with the Florida Mahi-Mahi. Our choices for sides included mashed potatoes with goat cheese, pistachio-lavender grits, bacon braised collards, and fennel with bok choy.

Brisket, grits and collards above

Mahi-Mahi, mashed potatoes and fennel/bok choy below

The standout (in a not-so-good way) was the very salty fish! I know restaurants use a lot of butter and salt to flavor their foods, but someone definitely overdid it with the salt shaker.  The vegetables (both the fennel/bok choy and collards) were also doused in butter.  I love food that tastes good and is healthy and it just seemed like the chefs were not able to provide delicious flavor with healthy ingredients.  It's such a shame that so few restaurants can provide both local, sustainable ingredients AND good flavor.  There are lots of other healthy seasonings that could have been used instead of the butter and salt (things like lemon and vegetable oils for marinating, and seasonings likes fresh rosemary and thyme). The pistachio-lavender grits, and BBQ brisket were merely ok.  The best food on both of our plates was the goat cheese mashed potatoes.

For a restaurant that sources local ingredients and offers a seasonal menu, prices compared to similar restaurants ($16-28 per entree).  The service was fantastic, the ambiance - very romantic, the presentation was beautiful, but the taste left much to be desired.  Colin and I left the restaurant feeling full, but not feeling satisfied. 

Do you have any restaurant suggestions in the triangle that are sustainable and tasty?

Visiting Savannah, GA April 21-22

Savannah, Georgia has been one of the towns I've always wanted to visit, so you can imagine my excitement when we decided to go there first on our spontaneous road trip.  My impression of the area before visiting came from the scenes from Forrest Gump.  I imagined plantations, parks and warm weather.  The beauty of the town exceeded my expectations right from the start.

Arriving into the historic district late on Thursday, we checked into our perfectly situated hotel on Liberty Street.  Even at night, we admired the wide median that boasted beautiful oak trees with hanging Spanish moss.

Tree-lined Liberty Street - location of Hilton Savannah DeSoto

Since we always try to travel on a budget, we decided to save ourselves about $6 by parking on the street instead of in the garage.  The only caveat was having to get up to pay the meter at 8am.

It was difficult to see anything at night, but the first thing we both noticed was all the parks.  So many of the streets we drove down had a block with a park in the middle of the road at just about every intersection.

 One of the many streets interrupted by parks

Waking to partly cloudy skies, we got our running gear on, paid the meter, and set out to explore the area with a run.  As Colin puts it, the experience was a "postive sum," I liken it to the term "win-win."  We exercised, did some sightseeing, and were able to see more in less time.  Our run took us up park-filled Bull Street to Forsyth Park, down park-filled Abercorn Street, and along the riverfront.  While exploring the riverfront, we stopped to read about the history of Savannah, which was posted on signs at short intervals.

 One of the many parks we ran through

The partly cloudy skies threatened rain at times, but none fell and the air remained hot and humid.  It felt a little swamp-like. Because of the temperature and run, it felt wonderful to take a dip in the hotel swimming pool before checking out.

 Hotel swimming pool from our room's balcony

Colin and I choose local, sustainable and/or organic foods whenever we can.  It's funny that we get many of our foods at the grocery store when we travel, so that we can spend a little more to eat a sustainable lunch and/or dinner.  Many of the restaurants I find come from the website search Eat Well Guide, which identifies local, sustainable and/or organic eateries and grocery stores.  Savannah offers several options for sustainable meals, with only a few open for lunch.  We opted for The Green Truck Pub, which sources meat and other ingredients from local farms.

My "Rustico" chicken burger with goat cheese, balsamic carmelized onions, roasted red peppers and basil was amazing.  And the cabbage soup offered that day was also delicious.

Colin's "Mighty Veg" sandwich with bean chili, banana peppers and red onions with a side salad was also really good.

I love traveling with Colin because we enjoy so many of the same things.  It's fun to order dishes we both like and split them, go running and use the time to explore, and just to make a road trip happen.  I guess we are two peas in a pod!

Before leaving Savannah, we were able to win another Priceline bid on a hotel in Jacksonville, FL.  We really wanted to stay at a hotel on Amelia Island, but couldn't get any hotels for our low bid.  So, we opted for the next best choice, which was to stay downtown.  We were able to get the Crowne Plaza on the waterfront for $65/night. 

So after feeling very satisfied with our meal, it was off to Jacksonville for the next leg of the trip.

Have you ever been to Savannah, GA?
What are some ways you explore new areas?