Chattavore

What I ate, plate by plate.

Kioto Japanese Restaurant-September 9, 2011

I’m not going to lie to you. When I drove by what used to be Tinker’s Barbecue just down the street from my house in either late June or early July (I don’t remember which) and saw a sign saying that “Kioto Japanese Restaurant” was coming soon, I snorted a little. And yes, I know that should be spelled “Kyoto” but that isn’t how they spell it. Anyway…..I guess I’m a little snobby about little hole-in-the-wall restaurants and my policy is that I usually don’t even try them until someone I know tells me they’re good. So, when my assistant told me last week that she and her husband had dinner at Kioto and loved both the food and the prices, I decided to give it a shot, hoping that a new blog post was in the works (FYI, there have been several planned posts that got derailed because the food was not bloggable. Despite all the positive that you read on here, I don’t love every restaurant I try, but if you’ll read my post “Keepin’ it Light, People“, my mission is not to hurt anyone’s business, so my policy is, if I don’t have anything nice to say, I don’t say anything at all!).

So anyway…..last night we went with some friends and had dinner there. And it was good! I’ll go back.

When you walk in to Kioto, I won’t lie, there’s not a whole lot in the way of “atmosphere”. Tables and chairs. That’s pretty much it. If the food is good, though, I don’t really care about the atmosphere, unless it’s a bad atmosphere (for example, I’m not really a fan of the typical “sports bar” atmosphere. No offense to those who are). The server who seated us was extremely friendly, and I wish I had caught her name. She took our drink order before she left the table, then gave us a few minutes to peruse the menu.

As far as what they’re serving, Kioto is somewhere between Typhoon of Tokyo and Ichiban/Kanpai. They serve the soup and salad like the more expensive restaurants, but the prices are definitely closer to Typhoon prices. They pretty much immediately brought out the little cups of chicken broth, which, I’m not going to lie, tasted like it was made from bouillon cubes. Pretty quickly after that came the iceberg salad, and they brought out squeeze bottles of ginger dressing and “white sauce” (which was actually more pinkish-orange than white, but was very tasty). They also brought ranch dressing out for my friend’s 8-year-old to put on her salad. Again, I wasn’t a huge fan of the ginger dressing. I love the ginger dressing at Ichiban, but this was somewhat overpoweringly ginger-y. I ate it off of the top layer of my salad and then used the white sauce for the rest of my salad.

The soup-basically chicken bouillon with a few green onions floated in it.

Iceberg salad

The menu included items such as grilled vegetables, sesame chicken, shrimp, and scallops. All menu items were served with zucchini and onions (lunch entrees are served with carrots instead of zucchini). Unfortunately, there was not a lot of diversity to our order, so I don’t have very many pictures to show. We all ordered the filet mignon dinner, which, at $9.95, is a huge bargain over what you would pay at a full-service hibachi restaurant. My friend even changed the doneness of her meat from medium to medium-rare just to be funny since the rest of us ordered ours medium-rare. Soooo, I can only tell you about the filet. But that’s okay.

The food came out pretty quickly, and the meat was done very nicely, which is always impressive because it’s hard enough to get a whole cut of steak perfectly medium-rare, much less meat that is cut into chunks. There was a ton of rice, and the meals automatically come with fried rice (as in, you don’t have to pay extra like you do at the more expensive hibachi restaurants). There were peas and a little bit of corn in the rice (I’m not sure I’ve ever had fried rice with corn in it, but I don’t know. Maybe I have. It was fine, though), and onions and zucchini served on the side. The vegetables were cooked very well-the zucchini was tender without being soggy, and the onions were cooked just to the point that they weren’t quite caramelized but they also were not crispy, which was definitely a deal-maker for me, because, if you’ve read some of my posts, you know that onions that are raw or undercooked make me want to cry, and not because of the fumes. I just can’t deal.

The filet mignon dinner-tell me, what other restaurant is going to serve you filet in any form for $9.95?

Here’s the thing. This was a ton of food. I kind of wish I had just skipped the soup and the salad and saved that stomach space for the entree. It’s not that the soup and salad were bad, but they just weren’t anything to write home about. The main dish, though, was very tasty, and I could have finished it if I hadn’t ended up with a stomachache. I definitely overdid it, which is not something that I do very often, but it does seem easy to do at a hibachi restaurant for some reason. I also ingested copious amounts of the white sauce. At the end of the meal, we were brought a fortune cookie, which always makes me laugh-a Chinese cookie at a Japanese restaurant? Did you know, though, that fortune cookies were actually created right here in the US of A? So really, it’s an American cookie masquerading as a Chinese cookie being served at a Japanese restaurant. But I digress. Anyway, my fortune told me not to oversleep today-that it was going to be a productive day. What? Clearly Confucious did not know that today was Saturday, and I ignored the advice and slept all the way till 8:30 this morning (that’s late, right?). Anyway….

Including the tip, two filet mignon dinners (we drank water) cost us about $27.00. If we had gone to Ichiban, that would have been more like $50 or so. Now, I’m definitely not saying that we’ll be going to Kioto in place of Ichiban. Ichiban, in my opinion, is the gold standard for Hibachi restaurants, but it’s a special occasion sort of place, and we don’t go very often because, honestly, it’s a little weird to sit with people you don’t know. Kioto is a little more expensive than Typhoon, but it’s also infinitely closer to us (less than two miles away!) and we will definitely go back. If you want a show and the atmosphere, spend the money and go to Ichiban. If you just want some tasty hibachi food, save your cash and check out Kioto.

Kioto is located at 8719 Hixson Pike, Hixson, TN 37343 (near the Dallas Bay Bi-Lo). You can call them at 423-521-8444 or 423-521-8445. They are open Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. You can call ahead and pick up at their walk-up window. Kioto does not currently have a Facebook page or website. However, they did have take-out menus, so I’ll share it with you!

Kioto on Urbanspoon

The Terminal BrewHouse-August 20, 2011

So….Wednesday was my birthday. Alas, we went out to dinner on Tuesday night because we were short on time and I was craving queso….so on Wednesday I forced myself to use up the eggplants I bought at the farmers market to make eggplant parmesan. Anyway this has been a stressful couple of weeks (school started on the 10th, and the first month of school is always the most stressful!) and I was definitely getting a decent meal out somewhere, although until last night I wasn’t sure where. When I got home from work yesterday, though, Philip showed me a picture of the pimento cheese fritters that he had tried while eating lunch with friends at The Honest Pint. If you’ll remember my Honest Pint post, I mentioned that The Terminal and The Pint are owned by the same people….so that made me start thinking about the terminal, and my mind was made up. Lunch today would be had there.

We’ve been to The Terminal a lot, and we’ve never been disappointed (well, except for the time that we tried to go there with a group of four friends on a Saturday night and couldn’t get seated for an hour…so we had to go elsewhere. That was disappointing). The Terminal BrewHouse is located next to the Chattanooga Choo Choo (THE Terminal) in the Stong (no, there is NOT an R in that word) building, a posh hotel back in the day. It is fully renovated (clearly) with wooden booths and cool tables made from reclaimed pine, a large bar taking center stage downstairs, brick walls, three floors, and a “green roof” where you can sit outside and they often host musical acts.

The Terminal is called a BrewHouse because the are a microbrewery, with six beers brewed on the premises. Their website promises that “the beer you hold in your hand is pulled fresh from the tank,” and also reminds diners that they “do not order more beer, [they] craft more beer,” and therefore some of their beers may be temporarily unavailable. I don’t really drink beer….I don’t really drink alcohol at all….but I have great respect for restaurants that are going out of their way to craft something-anything-from scratch. Great beermaking is a science and an art, and from everyone that I’ve heard from, The Terminal has mastered it.

Since Philip and I started going to The Terminal, I have heard more than one person say, “Isn’t that a bar? I don’t like bar food.” This is not bar food, my friends. This is just good food. The menu is divided into nine sections: beer, appetizers (“Start Me Up”), soup and salad “stylings”, entrees (Market & Main dishes), “outstanding” pizzas, “Galactically Famous BrewHouse Burgers, sandwich shop, sides, and desserts (happy endings). The menu items have funky names, like Mr. Frog’s Super Happy Fun Journey (an appetizer sampler), Navin R. Johnson (a salmon entree), and the FruFru, a grilled chicken, brie, and pear sandwich.

Our server, Jennifer, came to our table within 15.2 seconds and took our drink order, then as she walked back by Philip asked her to bring us an order of FESTO (Feta Basil Pine Nut Olive Oil spread, or Feta Pesto, baked to “gooey perfection” on Niedlov’s bread). The FESTO came out quickly, and we scarfed it down just about as quickly. This stuff is so good. It has the salty briny taste of feta with the nutty bite of pine nuts, all bound together with olive oil, spread on crust bread, baked until the edges are just perfectly crispy, and sprinkled with basil. Oh my. We get this every time we go. I keep thinking that we need to order another appetizer, like Twisted Hummmmmmmus (“Tahini and Garbanzo mixture tweaked out with black bean and roasted red pepper goodness. Served w/ fresh chips and pita bread”) or the BrewHouse Nachos (not on the online menu, these are back by popular demand-slow cooked maple chipotle pot roast, queso, onions, and diced tomatoes on corn chips. I’m thinking that’s more of a meal than an appetizer, and that’s probably how I’ll order it)….but we just can’t ever bring ourselves to not order the FESTO.

Feta Basil Pine Nut Olive Oil Spread: We call it FESTO - Slathered on fresh bread from around the corner and baked to gooey perfection.

It didn’t take me long to decide what I wanted. In fact, I knew what I was going to order before I walked in the door. I gave the menu a quick once-over just in case I changed my mind, but I didn’t. I had been craving a West By God salad for about a month. I couldn’t possibly order anything else. Now, I almost never order salads as my meal in a restaurant. In fact, this is the only one. I’ve never had a salad like this anywhere else (unless you count the copycat that I make at home). The West By God is described in the menu as “Grilled steak and French fries over house greens, candied pecans, tomatoes, onions and bleu cheese. We climbed the mountain and brought down this West Virginia classic (we left the crushing poverty though).” I order it with the Terminal’s housemade Ranch dressing, as recommended by the server the first time I ordered it. I realize that for some, French fries on a salad may seem strange, but don’t knock it till you try it. The combination of grilled steak (it’s shaved before it’s grilled, so it is similar to what you might find on a Philly cheesesteak as opposed to if you grilled it first then sliced it), French fries, and bleu cheese is not to be believed. It’s like a sandwich….on a salad….and the candied pecans are icing on the cake. Of course, I order mine without the onions, because raw onions make me want to cry (and it’s not the automatic eye-watering effect that comes from slicing an onion. I love cooked onions but I HATE raw). The ranch dressing-wow. If you’ve never had ranch dressing that didn’t come from a bottle, I encourage you to try it. Here’s the recipe I use. It’s fresh, herby, and delicious, and it’s the perfect compliment to the wonderful-ness of this salad, which contains delicious bitterness from the mixed greens, grilled spiciness from the steak, warm, salty, crispiness from the hand-cut, skin-on fries, pungent tanginess from the bleu cheese, and sweet toastiness from the pecans. Do you get my point? This salad has so many flavors going on that you might think it would be too much…but it isn’t. It’s a perfect salad. Perfect.

West By God: Grilled steak and French fries over house greens, candied pecans, tomatoes, onions and bleu cheese. We climbed the mountain and brought down this West Virginia classic (we left the crushing poverty though).

Philip took a little bit longer than I did to decide what he was going to order, but not long. He considered the bison burger (which he’s ordered before) and even looked at the Philosopher’s Burger (which is new and not yet on the online menu-ground lamb, seasoned with cinnamon, oregano, shallots, and sea salt, served with feta aioli and candied red onion on a Niedlov’s bun) before settling on a regular beef burger with cheddar cheese and bacon, fully dressed with lettuce, tomato, onion, mustard, and mayo, with hand-cut fries. We always order our burgers here medium. Now, the menu doesn’t point out where the beef comes from, and I didn’t think to ask, but so many of their ingredients are locally sourced that I am going to assume that I can trust their beef. Besides, they have a statement in their menu (I wish I’d written it down!) about the doneness of their burgers. They’ll cook it any way you want it. Medium is the way to go….but then, if you know me, you know I’d rather poke my eye out than eat overcooked beef. Some people are grossed out by pink-ness. I am grossed out by brown-ness, black-ness, charred-ness. What’s the point? But I digress. This burger is just amazing. So far, it’s my favorite burger in town (I love FoodWorks’s burger….but The Terminal has them beaten by a smidge). The handmade Niedlov’s kaiser roll is amazing, the meat is perfect (it’s just the right amount of greasy!)….it’s so fresh, the vegetables are always right. I can’t say enough good things about this burger. It’s also gigantic, so if you order it, prepare to be stuffed because if you’re like me, you won’t be able to leave any on your plate (and you know my rule that I always-almost always, anyway-leave something on my plate).

Galactically Famous BrewHouse Beef Burger: All burgers are ½lb and fully dressed with lettuce, tomato, onions, mustard, and mayo on a Niedlov’s Kaiser. Served with fries or Sweet potato fries.

When we were done, Jennifer tried to tempt us with dessert. Specifically, she tried to tempt us with floats made from Clumpie’s ice cream and beer. Now, that doesn’t sound like my thing, but if you are a beer lover, perhaps it’s yours. People tend to have very strong feelings about mixing/not mixing their beer with things. What does sound tempting, though, is the Brewer’s Wife Stout Bundt Cake. Alas, we were stuffed, and dessert was not to be had. Someday.

If you aren’t in the mood for a burger or salad, I’ve heard great things about (but have yet to try) the pizzas. The stuffed sandwiches are great and made a convert of a friend of mine who for some reason did not like the food on his first visit. The It’s Always Sunny In Philly (cheesesteak) is great, and Philip really liked the Dirty Hippy, a mushroomy vegetarian sandwich.

If you haven’t tried The Terminal BrewHouse, I encourage you to give up your notions of “bad bar food” and give it a try. Tell them Chattavore sent you.  The Terminal is located at No.6 14th Street, Chattanooga, TN 37408 (right next door to the Chattanooga Choo Choo).  They can be contacted at 423-752-8090.  Check out their website and their Facebook page.

The Terminal Brewhouse on Urbanspoon

Taco Mamacita-August 6, 2011

Saturday night we decided that we were going to go downtown to eat and then pick up groceries at Greenlife after.  Our first thought was to go to The Terminal, but because it was Saturday evening we weren’t too sure how long we’d end up waiting if we went to a more “bar-ish” restaurant.  We tossed around a couple of ideas and then Philip suggested Taco Mamacita.  I had been once, and, to be honest, was not bowled over that first time.  Not that there was anything bad, I just wasn’t dying to go back.  Since Philip hadn’t been, though, I was willing to give it another try-and I’m glad I did.

We got there pretty early-around 5:30 or so-so we didn’t have to wait at all.  We walked right in and got seated, and our server came over immediately, took our drink orders (two waters, of course), and talked to us about the menu.  I had tried their chips and salsa the first time I was there, so we ordered chips and queso.  They came out very quickly.  The chips were hot and fresh, and the cheese sauce was very similar to what you get in more “traditional” Mexican restaurants, but a thicker with a little more complexity to the flavor (look at me throwing out all the fancy terms!).  Still, pretty much standard queso-which is not a bad thing.

Chips and queso

Our server went over the menu with us really quickly when she took our drink orders.  She recommended that if we were really hungry we would probably want to get a salad or enchiladas, which are both a full meal.  Philip’s ears perked when she pointed out the brisket rancheros enchiladas (I believe I have mentioned that he has a thing for brisket) but in the end we both decided that the name of the restaurant isTACO Mamacita, so we wanted to get the namesake.  We each ordered the two tacos and a side meal.

 I decided on the Oy Vey (slow-cooked chipotle beef brisket, topped with ranchero sauce, crispy lettuce, pico de gallo, monterey jack cheese, guacamole, and fresh escabeche), the black bean taco (housemade black bean cake topped with crema, crispy lettuce, pico de gallo, monterey jack cheese, guacamole, and fresh escabeche), and Mexican street corn (off the cob).  Philip decided on the Memphis (slow-braised pork, diced white onion, chopped dill pickle, jalapeno corn slaw, dry rub seasoning, and barbecue sauce) and the Taco Royale (double-stacked taco-yes, as in double decker a la Taco Bell-with roasted chicken, salsa verde, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo, crumbled chorizo, black bean mash, and chipotle cream sauce) with churros beans, which our server described as beans in a vinaigrette.  Those four tacos really just scratched the surface-Taco Mamacita offers fourteen different tacos!

As I mentioned before, I wasn’t totally sold on my first try here.  I guess I ordered the wrong thing!  My tacos were really, really great today.  The chipotle in the brisket gave a really nice smoky flavor, and all the different flavors and textures really worked together.  I wasn’t too sure about a “black bean cake” on a taco, but the server recommended it (she pointed out that the shrimp po’boy BLT taco I was contemplating was “pretty fattening.”  She clearly doesn’t know me!) and I was willing to give it a try.  I wasn’t sad that I did!  It was like a great black bean burger, but on a taco.  The corn was really good, too….but it was corn.  No big news there.  Philip’s “Memphis” taco was simply fantastic.  I will definitely order it when I go back.  It had all the classic barbecue flavors, and the dill pickle really set off the flavor.  I didn’t try the Taco Royale, but Philip said that it was really good.  The charros beans were very interesting-I’ve never had beans in vinaigrette before.  Tasty!

Oy Vey on the left, black bean on the right...

...and again

Taco Royale in front, Memphis in back...

AAAANNNNND again!

By the way, Taco Mamacita serves their tacos on flour tortillas.  I really prefer corn, but I guess with all the toppings flour tortillas hold together a lot better (corn tortillas fall apart if you look at them too hard!).  I was hoping that they were housemade, but my server checked and told me that they buy them.  However, she did point out when she was going over the menu with us that everything is made fresh to order, so if you want them to leave something off (or add something, I presume) they’ll be happy to do so.

I always feel like I should at least mention atmosphere, and with a lot of small local restaurants I feel bad because I am always trying to gloss over the lack of decor.  I don’t feel like it’s necessary to judge a restaurant on its appearance, but Taco Mama definitely has atmosphere.  It’s brightly (but not eye-jarringly) decorated with large pictures on the wall, decorative tabletops, and pendant light fixtures.  There’s also a patio so you can eat outside if you like, but it was so hot that we did not think that was a good idea!  There were families with children there, so I think it’s safe to say that it’s a family-friendly atmosphere (the toddler sitting at the table next to us apparently enjoyed his/her food, as it was all over the floor!).

If you are in the mood for Mexican food with an interesting twist, I’d definitely recommend that you try Taco Mamacita.  They are located at 109 North Market Street, Chattanooga, TN 37405 (the old Durty Nelly’s location).  They can be reached at 423-648-6262.  Check out their website or Facebook page.

Taco Mamacita on Urbanspoon

The Sandwiche Shoppe-July 29, 2011

The Sandwiche Shoppe in Soddy-Daisy is easy to miss, if you don’t know it’s there.  It’s just a restaurant, in a very nondescript brick building, with another store located in the same building.  If you aren’t looking for it, you might drive right by!  I am not sure how long it’s been around; it started in a different location and moved to this location years ago.  We affectionately refer to it as the “sandweesh shoppie” because of the spelling…because we’re silly like that.  And we love the Sandweesh Shoppie, so it truly is affectionate!

The decor at The Sandwiche Shoppe is spare….diner-style tables and chairs, a few pictures hanging on the walls, and a few snapshots on the counter.  It’s okay.  Honestly, I don’t expect a lot of “ambiance” from a restaurant like this.  It’s definitely not an unpleasant atmosphere.  One thing that I really like is that the food prep area is right in the middle of the dining room, surrounded by a counter.  There is no funny business going on, and the proof is right there for you to see!  Of course, my favorite part of the decor is the table of desserts that are pretty much front and center….but more about that in a minute!

The menu is very simple.  Sandwiches, salads, desserts, drinks, and a very limited number of sides.  There are seventeen (yes, seventeen!) sandwiches available, plus a corndog…maybe that fits into the sandwich category?  I’m not so sure about that, but I’m not likely to order a corndog there (or anywhere).  Four salads are available: garden, chef, teriyaki, or cajun chicken.  I haven’t tried the salads, and to be honest, I probably haven’t even looked at the salad menu!  Now that I look at it, though, I need to try the teriyaki!  Sounds good.  But anyway…

The sandwich menu, as I said before, is pretty extensive.  It ranges from standards (BLT, Club, Roast Beef) to more unique or unusual, such as the Muffaletta (I know this is not “unique” but you don’t see this on a lot of menus…it includes Genoa salami, ham, provolone, olive salad, and onion), The Pizza Sub (sauce, cheese, pepperoni, ham, bacon, beef, onion, olives, and jalapenos or pepperoncini), and the Hawaiian Hero (ham, swiss, pineapple, mayo, and lettuce on a honey-wheat bun).  Choose between 14″ ($7.75) or 7″ (4.95); the price includes the sandwich and a side of chips or homemade potato salad (by the way, potato salad, chicken or tuna salad, and pimento cheese can be bought by the pint or half-pint).

On this visit, Philip decided to try the Manna Sub-kind of a Maid-Rite or sloppy Joe sort of sandwich with a twist.  I had eyed that one, but since he decided to order it I decided to take a bite of his and order myself a French dip.  The Manna is described as “perfectly seasoned ground chuck with Swiss and special sauce”.  It was very nicely seasoned, and the sauce was slightly sweet with an unusual flavor (in a good way!).  Philip had the potato salad; I am not really a potato salad fan but I tasted it and it was very good.  The French dip is described as “sliced roast beef, provolone, mayo, and au jus dipping sauce”.  I had chips (original Lays) with mine.  It was great!  The cheese was perfectly melted, there was just a little bit of mayo, and the roast beef tasted great.  The jus was warm…not too salty, not too oily.  The bread on both sandwiches was fresh.  We were impressed.

The Manna Sub

The French Dip

On to desserts…on any given day, when you walk into the Sandwiche Shoppe, you will find an assortment of cakes and pies (usually four or five).  On the day we were there, there was Key Lime cake, Italian Creme cake, chocolate cake, and Hershey chocolate cheesecake.  Some others available are pineapple upside down, red velvet (I must find out when they have this!), and strawberry.  They also offer several pies, such as pecan, key lime, and coconut creme.  We decided to split a slice of chocolate cake for $3.25.  Now, the cakes are gigantic-three layers.  The chocolate cake was super-rich.  It tasted good, but it was just chocolate cake.  I have a feeling I would have been happier with key lime cake-but Philip doesn’t like key lime…oh well.  I wasn’t sad that we got it!  Whole pies can be ordered for $14.00, and whole cakes can be ordered for $24.00-$26.00.

Chocolate Layer Cake

If you are in Soddy-Daisy, please check out The Sandwiche Shoppe.  It’s been around for at least ten years (more, I believe-if anyone knows, let me know!), and to be around that long they must be doing something right.  I have never had anything there that I didn’t like, and every time I go I think that I should go more often.  They also offer catering services.  They do ask for 24 hours notice for catering or whole pies or cakes.

The Sandwiche Shoppe is located at 8855 Dayton Pike, Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee.  They can be reached at 423-332-0320. Their hours are 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.


Sandwich Shoppe on Urbanspoon

Riverside Food Works-July 14, 2011

July 14 was mine and Philip’s 10th wedding anniversary!  To celebrate, we decided to go to one of our favorite restaurants, Food Works.  It crossed my mind that maybe we should try a restaurant we hadn’t been to, but then there’s always the chance that you’re going to get a dud and be disappointed.  Stick with what you know for special occasions!  Here’s a picture that our server took of us:Anyway…enough with the shameless celebrating our 10 years of marital bliss!  Let’s get down to business.

Food Works is a restaurant that many love, and some loathe.  As for the loathers, I don’t really understand.  I will say that I have ordered a couple of dishes that I did not like, but the ones that I did overshadowed those that I didn’t.  Perhaps if my first experience had been a bad one, I would feel differently.  I, for example, would not recommend the roasted red pepper alfredo with chicken added….but I have learned that I never like pasta dishes in restaurants that have chicken added.  The chicken always tastes to me like it just came out of the freezer, so I just avoid them.  I have, however, heard others say they like this dish, so to each his own.  So, now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, on to the experience of the night.

Food Works takes reservations as well as walk-ups.  We always make reservations just in case we happen to go on a night that the city decided to come out in droves before 7 p.m.  You never know.  For this night, we decided to go at 5:30.  I guess we were feeling particularly elderly (remember that commercial a few years ago-it’s fun to eat at 4:30 p.m.!  Anyway….).  Lucky we did!  From 4-6 p.m., an early bird special is available.  With the early bird, each diner gets a starter, entree, and dessert for $20 per person.  Not all menu items are included on the early bird menu, but there was a good selection, and we both found what we had in mind.

Philip ordered the Caesar salad (which is his standard salad order, except at Food Works-more on that in a minute) and shrimp and grits.  While I generally try to change up my order when we come here, Philip ordered shrimp and grits on our first visit, and he loved it so much he has never ordered anything else.  And he won’t order shrimp and grits anywhere else, for fear of being disappointed if/when they do not measure up.  The shrimp and grits is sauced with a creamy, slightly spicy sauce that contains small bits of Tasso ham, and rather than spoonable grits, the grits are a cheesy, fried grit cake.  I have tasted it, and it is wonderful.  I won’t even attempt this at home, because I know I’ll never make the cut.  The Caesar salad is good-very peppery, with ciabatta croutons cooked in butter (!) over whole leaves from romaine hearts.  Once our salads came, though, Philip remembered that he usually orders the house salad, because even though the Caesar is good, the house is better.

Hearts of Romaine, House Caesar Dressing, Parmesan, Cracked Pepper, and House-Made Croutons

Sauteed Gulf Shrimp, Tomatoes, and Green Onions over a Smoked Cheddar Grit Cake served with a Tasso Scampi Cream Sauce

So, now, let me tell you about my order.  I ordered the house salad and the Food Works burger, medium, with cheddar cheese (if I trust my source, I always order my burgers medium.  Steaks medium-rare.  Mmmmmm.).  The house salad here is to die for, and I always order it, even though it’s pretty expensive at $6 and I would never pay that price anywhere else.  It’s mixed greens, sliced Roma tomatoes, candied pecans, and bacon with a honey-balsamic vinaigrette, and it is so good.  That’s all I can say about it.  I’ve never had a salad this good anywhere else.  Their burger is fantastic as well, one of my favorites in town, although I was slightly disappointed that mine was more medium-well than medium, but it still tasted great, and the sky was looking pretty ominous so I wasn’t going to hang out to wait on another one.  I was still happy.  The bun was grilled, slightly charred even, and I thought that really added to the flavor and texture of the burger.  The onions were grilled as well, or else they would have been instantly removed from my burger.  The fries were nothing special-skin-on, seasoned-but very good all the same.

Fresh Greens, Tomatoes, Smoked Bacon, and Candied Pecans Tossed in a House Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette

8 Oz Angus Burger Grilled to Order with Green Leaf Lettuce, Grilled Red Onions, Tomatoes, Kosher Pickles, & Aioli on a Kaiser Roll with Fries

For dessert, Philip was torn between the creme brulee (he loves creme brulee) and the coffee bread pudding, but chose the bread pudding after (a) I reminded him that I would be making it in a couple of weeks when my aunt visits; and (b) our server recommended it over everything else on the menu.  He was not disappointed.  It was a GIGANTIC hunk of “Heath Bar” bread pudding (he actually brought about half of it home), warm with coffee-flavored creme anglaise (basically a custard sauce).  I tasted it, and it really was delicious.

House made Heath Bar Bread Pudding with Coffee Creme Anglaise

I decided on the strawberry shortcake.  It was decidedly simple, basically just a biscuit with strawberries and whipped cream.  The strawberries were macerated (a fancy word for marinated, maceration kind of breaks the strawberries down a little, softens them, draws out some of the juice and creates a syrup) in Grand Marnier (an orange-flavored liqueur).  I could taste the orange; it wasn’t overpowering but added to the overall flavor.  The biscuit was warm, which added a nice temperature contrast to the cold strawberries.  The biscuits tasted good, but I’m gonna toot my own horn here for just a second and tell you that my homemade biscuits are better.

The strawberry shortcake is not listed in the current online menu, so unfortunately, I have no "menu description" to provide here! See the preceding paragraph for details.

With our early bird special, we got two (usually very expensive) salads, two entrees, and two desserts (we almost always drink water wherever we go) for $40+tax+a 15% tip that was automatically added, presumably because it was the early bird special.  That’s never happened before, and we did find that a little bizarre, especially since there was no line for an additional tip when the server brought the ticket back for Philip to sign.  Luckily, we had some cash (a rare occurrence) so we were able to leave an appropriate tip for our server, Geoff, who did an excellent job.  He was friendly and attentive without being overbearing, and he was very knowledgeable about the food.  I was very impressed at the questions that he asked about specific components of each item that we ordered.  Plus, he took our picture!  I feel very strongly that great servers should get a tip that matches their level of service.

I meant to take some pictures of the interior.  Food Works is located in the old knitting mill on Manufacturer’s Road, and I really love the atmosphere.  If no one in your party has trouble with stairs, I recommend that you ask to be seated upstairs; it really does make a difference in the ambiance.

Riverside Food Works is located in the Signal Knitting Mill at 205 Manufacturer’s Road, Chattanooga, TN 37405.  For reservations, call 423-752-7487.  They open at 11 a.m. daily, serving lunch and dinner, as well as brunch on Saturdays and Sundays.  You can read about them and view their menu on their website; they also have a Facebook page.

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