Red Bank restaurants Archives - Page 2 of 3

Mojo Burrito (Red Bank)-October 20, 2012

October 21, 2012

It’s a little bit embarrassing to admit that Mojo Burrito has been around in Chattanooga for ten years now and I am just now getting around to eating there. Ten years exactly, in fact. They were celebrating the ten-year anniversary this weekend at the St. Elmo location (the celebration is still going on today, 10/21, with giveaways, live music, and food/drink specials, FYI!). It’s been a while since we’ve been to a restaurant with a menu like this (burritos, nachos, tacos, etc.) but Q’Doba was always our go-to, since I used to work on Brainerd Road and Philip used to work at Unum….the two former locations were very close to our workplaces. Sorry, Mojo Burrito! We’ve learned our lesson (and that was before we were local-food-obsessed, anyway).

As I called out the names of restaurants that needed to be checked off of my iPhone list, Mojo Burrito caught Philip’s attention. We needed to head to Greenlife to pick up some maple syrup anyway, so the location (Dayton Boulevard at Signal Mountain Road) was convenient, and a huge plus was the fact that, as I looked at their website, I discovered that they buy as many local products as they possibly can. Off we went.

Now, I have to admit…I never order a burrito. Ever. Anywhere. Generally at places with similar menus (Q’Doba, Moe’s) I’ll order nachos, but the fish tacos also caught my eye. It took me a second to make a decision but for the sake of comparison I decided to go ahead with the Macho Nachos, a huge plate of white tortilla chips covered with pinto or black beans (I chose black), queso sauce, pico de gallo or tomatoes (I chose pico), green onions, fresh or pickled jalapeños (I passed on the jalapeños), and sour cream. You can also add meat for $1.99 to $2.40 (steak costs more than chicken or chuck) or sub veggie chili for the beans for an additional $1.25, which the staff member making my nachos suggested I may want to try next time. Duly noted. Embarrassingly, I’ll admit that I ate almost the whole plate. They were delicious! Everything tasted so fresh. The tomatoes in the pico were very fresh and I got the feeling it was freshly made; there was a great balance of ingredients-tomatoes, onions, jalapeño, and cilantro. The black beans were perfectly cooked, firm like black beans should be. The chips were thin and crispy, which I love, and the queso was also a perfect thickness and spiciness.

Unlike me, Philip almost always orders a burrito when they are available. He decided on the signature Mojo Burrito-chicken or ground chuck (he chose chuck), black or pinto beans (he got black) and Spanish rice rolled up with toppings in a large flour tortilla. Philip topped his burrito with cheese, sour cream, pico de gallo, and fresh jalapeño slices. The gigantic burrito was served with a basket of chips and salsa. The salsa was the texture that I like-thin and not chunky-and had a perfect level of spice for someone who doesn’t like her tastebuds to be seared off but thinks that salsa should burn just a bit. The burrito was stuffed full but not so full that Philip needed a fork to eat it. He was really impressed by the flavor of the meat, which had an interesting seasoning to it and is locally produced, which makes me wonder if it is grass-fed (which also lends an interesting flavor). He stated that it “wasn’t as good as Delia’s”, but (a) he orders chorizo at Delia’s; and (b) you can’t really compare a place like Mojo Burrito to an authentic Mexican joint. Apples and oranges. He really liked it, though.

Because it was Saturday, the Red Bank location was serving 99-cent tacos (the St. Elmo and East Brainerd locations feature 99-cent tacos on different days of the week). Next time I visit, I will probably try the fish tacos (fried tilapia on flour tortillas with lettuce, jalapeños, pineapples salsa, and remoulade, served with rice and beans). They also have delicious sounding quesadillas (including spinach), salads (side, spinach, and taco), and appetizers (like Texas caviar, which is made with black-eyed peas). Our total for the nachos and burrito was about $16 (we drank water). It’s a very vegetarian and vegan-friendly establishment with lots of options already in place and others that can easily be adapted. The cashier explained (unprompted) the policy of buying everything that they possibly can locally (which is probably the reason that the menu says prices are subject to change-I am sure that the prices are subject to availability and market prices, and I’m okay with that for local products) and that all of the artwork in the restaurant is local as well. Even the table tops in the dining room were made by local artists! They also have a patio for outdoor dining.

A restaurant with a philosophy of giving as much support as possible to other local businesses and individuals is the kind of restaurant I want to support. Remember that at restaurants like this you are not only supporting that local business and its employees but the owners and employees of every local business that they support. I truly believe in keeping my food dollars as local as possible. Their food is so fresh and the atmosphere unique and interesting. We thought it was fantastic and we’ll be back!

Mojo Burrito Red Bank is located at 1800 Dayton Boulevard, Chattanooga, TN 37405 (423-870-6656), with other locations at 3815 St. Elmo Avenue, Chattanooga, 37409 (423-822-6656), and 1414 Jenkins Rd. Ste. 100, Chattanooga 37421 (423-296-6656). By the way, 6656 spells MOJO on your telephone. You can also check out their website: http://mojoburrito.com or find them on Facebook or Twitter.

Nooga-Q: September 1, 2012

September 2, 2012

Saturday was one of those days that we set out with no real plan in place. I scrolled through my “list” on my phone and pretty much came up nil. Not that there was nothing worthwhile, but I was feeling pretty undecisive. Philip suggested Merv’s (a bar/dive in Red Bank that’s touted to have the best burgers in Chattanooga) but we nixed that idea because (a) Philip really wasn’t feeling greasy food; and (b) it’s a bar, which means it’s probably going to have to be a to-go sort of deal. We don’t do cigarette smoke. We drove down Signal Mountain Road and considered Petunia’s Silver Jalapeño (I think we’ll end up visiting them at their Warehouse Row location for the seating) before deciding on Nooga-Q.

I can’t remember if I’ve seen this place before or not, but someone (I don’t remember who) recently suggested it to me. It’s smallish and not too decorated, with concrete floors and a big aluminum panel on one wall (or at least I think it was aluminum). A friendly girl told us to be seated then brought us menus and took our drink orders (water, of course). There were not a ton of other people in the restaurant, but there were several other tables being occupied by diners.

The menu had more than you usually expect of a barbecue menu. A fairly large appetizer section boasted fried pickles, fried green tomatoes, and barbecue quesadillas (among other items). Soups and salads included chili, Brunswick stew, and a “Boss Hog” salad topped with smoked pork (interesting concept!). A full page of the menu is devoted to catering/bulk to-go items. There are sandwiches (BBQ sandwiches come with sauce and slaw), burgers, and hot dogs (all of which can be made into a combo for an additional $2.25) and plates (including ribs, catfish, and country-fried steak) that include 2 sides and Texas toast. And, since this is Chattanooga (and apparently this is a Chattanooga thing) there was a menu of stuffed baked potatoes. Smoked meats include pork, beef, chicken, and beef brisket (somewhat unique…most BBQ restaurants around here don’t have brisket).

I couldn’t decide whether to order the pork sandwich or a stuffed potato. Our server recommended the potato, so I took her recommendation. It was a large potato, chopped up and topped with smoked pork, cheddar cheese, butter, sour cream, and barbecue sauce. The pork was tender and smoky, but not artificially so. There was just the right amount of topping; nothing was overpowering and I could taste each topping. Sometimes if the meat is sauced before being placed on the potato, the flavor of the sauce drowns out everything else. Not so here. I even liked the Texas toast….it was buttery and crispy. I would have added some chives or chopped green onions, but I found this to be a pretty tasty meal.

Philip knew that he was going to order a plate but couldn’t decide between the smoked pork and the brisket-two of his true loves. The server recommended the brisket, so that’s what he ordered, with baked beans and fried okra. He decided to forego the Texas toast (he truly hates Texas toast). I think the okra was frozen, which is one of my great disappointments with most restaurants. It really is difficult to find fried okra that isn’t frozen (Wisteria Café was the only place I’ve found it, and now it’s gone!). It tasted okay, though. The baked beans were really good, smoky and with a sweetness that we couldn’t quite place (molasses? Brown sugar? We never did figure it out.) and a big chunk of smoked pork in it. He did really like the brisket, which was sliced and drizzled with sauce. It was very tender with a nice amount of smoke flavor.

Our total for this meal was around $15 before tip. Here you pay at the counter, where we asked the girl who was serving and working the counter if the sauce was homemade. She wasn’t sure…which makes me think that it might not be, since it seems like if it was everyone would know. It was good enough, so I’m not complaining…but I’d like to know the answer.

We really love smoked meat here in the Haymaker house. This was pretty good as smoked meat goes but I don’t think I’d call it my favorite. I have yet to decide where my favorite is, to be honest…I’m still sampling. One of these days we’re going to get a smoker! Until then, the search is on for the best barbecue in Chattanooga. Give Nooga-Q a try and let me know what you think….or if you have any other suggestions for me!

Nooga-Q is located at 301 Signal Mountain Road, Chattanooga, TN 37405. You can call them at 423-752-1935. Check out their website at www.nooga-q.com.

Serendipity Cafe-May 7, 2012 (CLOSED)

May 8, 2012

***Note: Serendipity Café closed in September 2012 due to the owner’s decision to retire.***

Philip was working out of town this past Friday and Saturday, and Sunday he was tired and in no mood for crowds or anything too energy-consuming, so we didn’t get around to a restaurant review. Instead, we decided to head out to dinner tonight. We started out going to the Rice Boxx in the Lupton Drive area, but got there and realized that they are not open on Monday! So…we headed over toward Red Bank to Serendipity Cafe. Actually, I have thought about Serendipity Cafe on several occasions, but since we generally do our review visits on the weekend-and they are closed on the weekend-it hasn’t worked out to this point. Perfect timing!

Serendipity Cafe is located in the former Captain D’s building on Dayton Boulevard (near Red Bank Middle School). Honestly, this area seems to be an area of town where local businesses go to die…it seems that every restaurant that goes opens in the former Shoney’s building next door quickly closes. Serendipity Cafe has been open in this location for several years (after existing as Serendipity Delights in a smaller space for some time before), so clearly they are doing something right!

Serendipity Cafe has a drive-thru for call-ahead orders. For ordering in, you walk up to the counter to order. There is a case showing available desserts and some of the menu offerings as well as dry erase boards to the right telling the daily breakfast, lunch, and dinner specials and soups of the day. There are daily soup specials and daily dinner specials. The dinner special was spaghetti and the soup was broccoli-cheese. I quickly noticed that the Wednesday soup special is spicy taco…I’ll have to go on a Wednesday! There was a little case by the register with a couple of different types of jumbo cupcakes-red velvet was one, but I don’t remember the other. There was also something called “almond pillow cookies”. Serendipity Cafe has several types of salads (chicken, tuna, broccoli salad, Waldorf, etc.) which are available as sides or as a “scoop plate” that allows you to sample several different types of salads.

Since I am a pimento cheese fanatic, I had to give theirs a try. I decided on a half pimento cheese sandwich on regular wheat bread (their options were white, honey wheat, whole wheat, sourdough, and rye. Normally I would choose sourdough, but pimento cheese goes best with soft breads.), a small broccoli cheese soup, and a corn muffin (crackers were the other option besides cornbread). The soup was very thick and not super-cheesy….it was really more like a cream of broccoli to me-not that that’s a bad thing. It was very tasty, seasoned just right with small bits of broccoli throughout. The sandwich was not overly stuffed with pimento cheese so that the lettuce and tomato would slide all over the place, and you could see the individual shreds of cheese, so it was clearly made in-house. It had a distinctly sweet flavor and tiny green flecks in it, which I am pretty sure was relish. Overall, I liked it. I was afraid that the corn muffin would be sweet, because when I think of corn muffin, I think of Jiffy. It was not, however, and I was relieved. I was raised on non-sweet cornbread and that’s how I like it. This cornbread was yummy and very similar to what my mom makes-score! They also scored big points with me by serving real butter, not “buttery spread” with the corn muffin (and having it on the table…along with half and half instead of nondairy creamer). You know how I feel about buttery spread! There were also chips….Ruffles. Not much to say about Ruffles!

Philip decided on the quiche Lorraine, which the lady described to him as quiche with bacon, cheese, and onions, along with a side of Waldorf salad. The quiche was also served with (undressed) mixed greens and a pack of Club crackers. He commented that there wasn’t a lot of bacon in the quiche (I load mine up, believe that!) but that it tasted very good. The cheese on top looked like cheddar. I took a bite and loved that there was a lot of cheese. The quiche was “done” perfectly…not soggy or watery, as is so easy to do to quiche, and seasoned just right. The crust was flaky and perfectly browned. The Waldorf salad was interesting, unlike any version I’ve ever had or heard of. It had apples, celery, raisins instead of grapes, mini-marshmallows, and some sort of whipped creamy concoction (Cool Whip, I assume). This made it more “dessert-y” than traditional Waldorf salad, which has apples, celery, grapes, and mayo, but it was very good.

While we were ordering, I was eyeing the gigantic red velvet cupcakes next to the register, but Philip was ogling the bread pudding with Irish creme sauce in the case. Since I had a Federal Bake Shop cupcake at work that day (hooray!) I let him choose the dessert without any input from me (I do like bread pudding, though). Here’s a little factoid I’ll never forget….on our first date, we went to Rembrandt’s coffee shop and he ordered a latte with Irish creme flavoring. Mmmm, Irish creme. As I’ve said before, I don’t really drink alcohol (I don’t like the taste) but I do love using liqeurs for flavoring, such as a tablespoon or two of Bailey’s in my hot chocolate. They really nailed the flavor of Bailey’s; I’m assuming it was an Irish creme flavored extract but perhaps it was actual Irish creme..who knows? The bready part was very moist and Philip compared it to a sweet dumpling. It was indeed very sweet, and we each ate one of the three scoops and we were done (but would definitely order it again!).

On the table, they have a list of their daily specials. We’ll definitely have to visit on a Tuesday or Wednesday (which is also spicy taco soup day, remember?). There is also a list of desserts, which are not all available every day.

If you are in the Red Bank area during the week and looking for a tasty and homecooked meal, check out Serendipity Cafe. The food was delicious, the service very friendly, and they make no bones about the fact that quality is more important than speed. Serendipity Cafe is located at 3510 Dayton Boulevard, Chattanooga (Red Bank), TN 37415. You can call them at 423-875-3477. You can check out their website, http://www.serendipitydelights.com. You can also “like” them on Facebook.

Old Saigon Vietnamese-January 6, 2012

January 8, 2012

Have you ever eaten at Old Saigon Vietnamese restaurant? Were you even aware that there was a Vietnamese restaurant in Red Bank? If you said no, you’re probably part of the majority. Old Saigon is at the corner of Dayton Boulevard and Martin Road….it’s at a traffic light, in a building that used to be Esquire Cleaners. We had actually eaten at Old Saigon once before, several years ago, when it was in the Rush complex in Hixson. Oh, you didn’t know that there used to be a Vietnamese restaurant there? I didn’t think so. In fact, it was so, um, well-hidden that we ate there once and even though we really liked it, we never went back. Yesterday we were out looking for somewhere to eat, somewhere to blog about, and we passed Old Saigon…then promptly turned around and went back.

There was no one else in the restaurant when we went in at about 3:10 on a Saturday afternoon. Granted, that’s not really a busy time anywhere, but that was one tip that this is one of Chattanooga’s best-kept secrets. Anyway, we walked in and were quickly greeted by one of the owners, one of the sweetest and most friendly people I have encountered dining in a restaurant. The restaurant is clean and very simply decorated, unlike many local Asian restaurants that almost seem too ornately decorated, like they’re trying too hard. We ordered potstickers and water while we perused the menu. It took me forever to decide what I wanted to order. I started to order sesame chicken, but I kind of had a feeling that sesame chicken is not really a traditional Vietnamese dish, so instead I ordered bánh xèo, described as “a special crispy pancake filled with chicken, shrimp, cabbage, carrot, broccoli, and bean sprouts”. I wanted to order pho, a traditional Vietnamese soup, but I was pretty hungry and a little concerned that it may not be filling enough…Philip decide to have mi xao, described as “shrimp, chicken, beef, and steamed vegetables in a special sauce served on a bed of crispy fried egg noodles”.

The potstickers arrived very quickly. As you can see below, they didn’t look like much…but they were delicious. If you’ve never had a potsticker, they are wonton wrappers filled with ground pork, sliced scallions, and seasonings. They are seared on the bottom and them steamed to cook the whole thing. These were served with soy sauce. They were fantastic!

Philip’s mi xao was a huge plate of fried egg noodles dripping in sauce, vegetables, and meat. The owner suggested that he try it with sriracha, telling him that it was delicious on the mi xao. He did try a bite, because usually he loves very spicy foods, but was unable to put it on the whole dish…he’s had a sore throat and just couldn’t go there. The noodles were very crunchy around the edges of the plate but soft where the sauce was. I tasted it, and it was delicious. I can’t even describe it. Honestly, it’s different from anything I’ve had at a Chinese or Thai restaurant, so I wouldn’t even know how to begin to compare it to anything….so you need to try it! Philip finished the whole thing. It was just too good to stop!

All right, I feel bad even saying this…but I wasn’t crazy about my bánh xèo. It was very crunchy, and everything was obviously very fresh and well-cooked. It was fairly bland, but it did have a sauce that I was a little scared to use because it had something that looked like chili flakes floating in it. It wasn’t spicy, though, so I poured some over my bánh xèo. It wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t for me! It was huge, and I could only eat about half of it. I found myself wishing that I had gone ahead and ordered the pho (pronounced “fuh” if I’m not mistaken) or the fried rice, which I had the last time that we went there and loved. In fact, I would go so far as to say that, aside from Ichiban, it was the best fried rice I’ve ever eaten in a restaurant. I recall that it was delicious!

We were far too full when we were finished with our meal to order dessert, but their desserts sounded delicious. Fried banana-fresh banana wrapped in egg roll skin and fried, sprinkled with powdered sugar? Mango sticky rice-sticky rice topped with fresh mango, coconut milk, and peanuts? Yes, please! We’ll just have to eat the pho when we go back so we’re not so full and order one of these treat! We’ll definitely be back, and it won’t be another five years this time.

Old Saigon is located at 2601 Dayton Boulevard, Red Bank, TN 37415. You can reach them at 423-876-0322. They are open Wednesday-Saturday, 11:30-8, and Sunday, 11:30-2:30.

McHale’s Brewhouse & Pub-November 26, 2011

November 27, 2011

We visited McHale’s on my brother’s suggestion. The place was pretty much empty; 0f course, it’s a bar and we were there between 6 and 7:30 on the Saturday night following Thanksgiving, so pretty much not high time for a fairly new pub in a fairly suburban area.

McHale’s is located on Ashland Terrace, in the former location of The Rusty Duck, which is now a few doors down. It’s a dive, don’t get me wrong. Since it’s a 21 and over establishment, of course there are some of the smoke issues that you will always encounter with a place that allows smoking, but it was faaaarrrrrr from being the worst that I have experienced. There are a few tables in the bar area, right when you walk in the door, and more tables (quite a few more) in the other room, where there are also pool tables and dartboards. We were greeted when we walked in the door by a very friendly server, who gave us a menu and a beer list (I’ll get back to this in a minute) and told us that, while fried pickles were not on the menu, they were available….so I quickly ordered some. I LOVE fried pickles and was so very upset when Durty Nelly’s, my favorite place to order this treat, went out of business a few years back.

The menu was fairly limited: a handful of appetizers, including Scotch eggs (a boiled egg wrapped in sausage, traditional Irish pub fare), mozzarella sticks, and chili cheese fries (among a few other things) and a few entrees: Cornish pie, Irish Stew, hamburgers, sloppy joes, and a chicken finger salad. Since we hadn’t heard anything about the food, we decided to play it safe and try a burger.

The fried pickles arrived without fanfare with a cup of ranch dressing on the side. They were good, not great-very hot, fresh out of the fryer….but not Durty Nelly’s. The burgers arrived pretty quickly, and they were pretty average as burgers go: standard bun, standard patty, a little greasy (not necessarily a bad thing), with American cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, and, in Philip’s case, onion, with fries that I don’t doubt came out of the freezer. This was not a culinary masterpiece, but it also wasn’t a disaster. Typically, a non-disaster would not qualify for a blog post, but I decided to focus instead on their brewing operation. After all, McHale’s, like most other bars/pubs, sells food secondary to their libations.

My brother made the recommendation to visit McHale’s because he is friends with their brewmaster. When you walk in, you look to the left, and you see their brewing operation in a room behind a glass door. This is true microbrewing. Philip and I actually joked about a bunch of Mr. Beers sitting in a back room, and, of course, this is much more sophisticated than that, but it is true small-batch brewing, much smaller than the other microbreweries that we think of (Calhoun’s, Big River-nothing wrong with those, but this is a much smaller operation). Our server told us that Adam, the brewmaster, has been brewing at McHale’s since January 2011, and in May won a Pale Ale contest at the Chattanooga Market for Best Pale Ale in Chattanooga. McHale’s offers a variety of house-brewed beers that rotate on a regular basis. If you “like” their Facebook page, they announce the brews as they offer them. On this particular visit, they were offering a stout, a stout injected with nitrogen, “Bloody IPA”, “Black Pixie”, a Scottish ale, McHale’s light, and a red ale. A pint is $4.00, or you can order 6 4-oz sample glasses for $6. They also sell growlers for $14, and you can take your growler back for a refill for $10. Their bartender, Mike, has also created several original well drinks that include the house-brewed beer and spirits. He and our server spent a lot of time talking to us about the drinks, the history of different beers, and the advantages of small-batch brewing. I realize that this is something that probably wouldn’t happen if the place had been busier, but could you go to Big River and have a chat like that? I won’t say it isn’t possible, but I will say it’s probably unlikely.

Look, I’m not a beer-drinker, so I can’t make any recommendations about beer. What I can say, however, is that I have not seen, heard, or read anything from anyone who has tried McHale’s beer (or beer brewed by their brewmaster) that has been negative. This is the real deal, and from all accounts, Adam knows what he’s doing. These are down-to-earth people trying to make a small-town establishment work. Since Philip and I didn’t shop at any local shops for Small-Business Saturday, we saw our jaunt to McHale’s as our way to promote small business. I love to support local business, and I am fascinated by the idea of homebrewing and microbrewing and I love that McHale’s is confident enough to do true microbrewing. I will recommend McHale’s to anyone who is looking to try a truly different beer that they can’t get anywhere else. And look, if bars start to sell more food, they will start to focus more on their food. I am not likely to become a regular here at this time, but if someone asked me to go back, I would. Support your local microbrewery!

McHale’s is located at 724 Ashland Terrace, Chattanooga, TN 37415. You can call them at 423-877-2124, check out their website: http://www.mchalesbrewhouse.com/ or look them up on Facebook.

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