sandwich/burger/hot dog restaurants Archives - Page 6 of 11

Dutch Maid Bakery & Café (CLOSED)

July 6, 2014

Dutch Maid Bakery & Café at Chatt-R-Bug is no longer in operation, but has been replaced by Twins Bakery & Cafe. I haven’t been yet, but you can check out Lisa Denton’s review from the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

Philip and I like to go “the back way”. Actually, I’ve always preferred highways and generally take the way that’s the fastest when driving alone. Philip, on the other hand, prefers to avoid traffic as much as possible so he will sacrifice time for a back way most of the time. I’ve adopted a few of these back ways as my usual routes. One of those out of the way routes is the back way to Target in Hixson, crossing the railroad track on Old Hixson Pike (then back down behind the Hixson ballfields…but you don’t really care about that). If you turn onto Wilbanks Road just past the tracks, you’ll see a cute little store named Chatt-R-Bug. I still haven’t been in the store, but noticed recently that there were signs for “Dutch Maid Bakery and Café”. Naturally, I had to check it out.

Philip and I stopped in last week and found a tiny little space attached to the shop and a painting studio (Palette to Palate) with five tables. We were quickly greeted by a very sweet college-age girl (Abbie) and a very nice lady named Kim. Abbie brought us some menus and told us that the day’s soup was cream of mushroom and that they also had an apple pie special, then Kim brought our waters and talked to us a bit about the restaurant. Turns out everything is catered in from Dutch Maid Bakery & Café in Tracy City, Tennessee, from breads and cakes to meats, dressings, and soups. Kim brought us some samples: Kentucky Bourbon bread, maple-pecan bread, and peach moonshine bread. They were sweet, quick bread types and while they were all delicious…..peach moonshine was by far our favorite.

The menu consisted of sandwiches-basics like chicken salad, turkey, Reuben, a BLT, and a few others-and salads, including a plate with a slice of quiche and some chicken and pasta salads. You can choose your bread and Kim told us that a lot of people like the chicken salad on the croissant, so since I was thinking about trying the chicken salad I decided to try that out along with a bowl of soup (there was a soup and half sandwich combo). I heard her telling some “regulars” who came in that the chicken salad didn’t have fruit in it that day, so I assumed that the chicken salad usually did have fruit (grapes and apples, perhaps?) in in. Instead, it had celery and onions and it was delicious. It was made with white and dark meat chicken, not too much onion, and just enough mayo to hold it together. The soup was thick and creamy with tiny pieces of mushrooms and some rice in it. It had a good mushroom flavor but since I love mushrooms I would have loved for it to have more mushroom pieces in it. The fruit I think was the tropical fruit mix that comes in a jar. It was pretty good for jarred fruit mix but of course I would have preferred fresh fruit.

Kim also told Philip that Abbie made a mean Reuben. He decided on half a Reuben and soup. The Reuben was a triple decker with Thousand Island (not Russian) dressing and cheese melted on both layers. Philip actually took out the center slice of bread because he just didn’t want that much bread. However, he thought that the Reuben was really good, though it didn’t beat out his vote for “best Reuben in Chattanooga” (Vine Street Market). There was a good balance of ingredients-corned beef, melted Swiss, sauerkraut (very good sauerkraut), and dressing grilled on the freshly baked rye bread. Philip liked the soup a lot as well.

There was a shelf where you could pick up some individually-wrapped treats (cookies, bars, caramel apple dumplings) and another shelf with breads, jellies, and preserves. Like I mentioned, they also had a dessert available but we decided to pass that up. I was very tempted to bring home a loaf of the “salt-rise” bread just to find out what it tasted like and had to check out the Dutch Maid Bakery & Café website after I got home to find out more about it. Turns out that the menu at the main location is a little larger than the one here (no surprise since they are making everything in house). There is no mention on the website of whether or not they do this catered-lunch model in other locations.

This is a little out of the way but there were several people there while we were there that seemed to be on a first-name basis with the staff (of course, Kim sat down, introduced herself, and asked our names, so I guess it’s easy to get to know people that way). These were some super-friendly people and we liked the food. If you’re looking for a quiet little lunch spot with wonderful, friendly service and the promise of yummy baked goods in Hixson, Dutch Maid Bakery & Café at Chatt-R-Bug is a place worth checking out!

Dutch Maid Bakery & Café is located at 5231 Wilbanks Drive, Hixson, TN 37343. You can call them at 423-842-0905. Check out Dutch Maid Bakery & Café’s website, http://www.thedutchmaid.com, and the Dutch Maid Bakery & Café Facebook page. You can find out more about Chatt-R-Bug on their website, http://www.chatt-r-bug.com or the Chatt-R-Bug Facebook page.

Mean Mug Coffeehouse (Downtown Chattanooga)

April 12, 2014

Mean Mug Coffeehouse, located on Main Street, serves great sandwiches and desserts (and other food) and delicious coffee and tea-based drinks.

It’s Spring break! It’s Spring break! I am excited to have a week off and I’m very excited that the weather this weekend has been perfect, especially since it’s going to be a little chillier than I like this week (51 degrees is the predicted high temperature on Tuesday). While you might read a comment on here about the Tennessee summer heat, you will never read a complaint. Since it was a wonderful 80 degree day, we were in the mood for something a little on the not-so-heavy-side and since we were headed down to main to pick up eggs and coffee at Enzo’s, we decided to stop in next door at Mean Mug Coffeehouse.

Mean Mug Coffeehouse has been around for a few years but somehow we haven’t made it there yet (which is surprising since they are owned by the same guys that owns The Terminal and Honest Pint, two of our favorite places). We hit it at a good time, around 1:30. There was no one else in line when we walked in and were greeted by a friendly guy who showed us the menu and the special (an Italian breakfast casserole) and talked to us about the pastries and desserts in the case, including a mascarpone brunch parfait with strawberries, layered in a Mason jar, Key lime pie, hummingbird cake, and oatmeal cookie sandwiches (basically oatmeal cream pies). They serve your standard coffee drinks, mostly made with Velo coffee but they are featuring a special “guest” coffee right now by Argo Sons. They have their own Velo blend and you know I had to pick up a bag of that. The atmosphere was nice, with dark wood, varied seating (couches, tables, a counter), and a nice outdoor seating area.

The menu includes breakfast (biscuits, steel-cut oats, house made (!) yogurt), starters (hummus, salads, soup du jour), and sandwiches. Breakfast is served all day and I’d like to try out their biscuits at some point (you know, to see if they measure up to mine) but as soon as I saw the BAT sandwich-bacon, avocado, and tomato-I knew that was what I would order. The sandwiches are served panini-style on white or wheat bread or you can order a wrap. I decided to get it with Brie. Each sandwich comes with a choice of side-chips, cheese grits, fruit, or pasta salad-and I decided on the grits. The sandwich was large but not ridiculously so, nicely grilled, with a perfect balance of bacon, mashed avocado, tomato, and melty Brie. I have never ordered a sandwich with Brie and it’s definitely an unusual cheese offering but it was delicious on this sandwich, which held together much more nicely than many grilled sandwiches that include non-cheese foods. The grits were maybe a little thinner than I’m used to but delicious, very peppery, not super-cheesy.

Philip decided to order the Dijon Frise with turkey, Brie, sliced green apples, sautéed onions, and Dijon mustard. He also opted for wheat bread and cheese grits. The sandwich was great with a great sweet-tart-salty thing going on with the green apples, the turkey, and the Brie. Philip doesn’t like Brie usually, much to my chagrin (I keep trying to fix this, but it isn’t working, you guys. I think it’s the rind….I think they make rindless Brie but I haven’t found it in a store yet.) but he thought that it worked well here. His only suggestion was that it needed more sautéed onions.

When I saw the hummingbird cake in the case I knew that I was going to have to order it. This is a recipe that I’m going to be making here soon…in case you don’t know, hummingbird cake is a traditional Southern cake with mashed bananas, pineapple, pecans, and cinnamon iced with cream cheese frosting. Theirs was amazing, with a perfect banana flavor and just the right amount of icing. Philip also ordered a Chai latte (I forgot to take a picture). It was very good, not overly sweet with a decent amount of spice.

I liked the food here a lot. I’ll admit that I felt about fifteen years too old to be in there, though, since almost every other patron had a laptop and one or more textbooks…but I won’t hold that against them. The food was excellent and I need to go back to try some more of the menu or items from the case and the coffee drinks.

For great coffee or food, why not check out Mean Mug Coffeehouse?

Mean Mug Coffeehouse is located at 114 W. Main Street, Chattanooga, TN 37408. They are open Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m.-5 p.m., and Friday-Saturday 7 a.m.-11 p.m. You can call them at 423-825-4206. You can check out their menu at http://meanmugcoffee.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Menu-1-2014.pdf. You can like Mean Mug on Facebook and follow @MeanMugCoffee on Twitter.

Other restaurants in the area: Enzo’s Market Café, Blue Orleans, Bluegrass Grill, Main Street Meats, and Taqueria Jalisco.

Vine Street Market (River View)

March 2, 2014

Vine Street Market serves delicious homemade sandwiches, soups, and desserts as well as take and bake entrees. And it’s NOT located on Vine Street!

Quiz: Where is Vine Street Market?

If you said Vine Street, then you are WRONG. Vine Street Market is located on Hanover Street in the Riverview area of Chattanooga (right down the street from the former Greenlife building). I really didn’t have my heart set on any place in particular this weekend and my interest was piqued when a Facebook follower suggested Vine Street Market, adding that they make their own breads, salad dressings, and baked goods. Sounded like my kind of place!

I visited Vine Street Market once when I was a freshman in college (um, that was seventeen years ago. Whoa.), when they actually did have a location on Vine Street (next to the infamous David’s…any UTC alums remember that? I was pretty square in college-some things never change-so I never went, but boy did that place have a reputation!). I laughed when I thought about it because my roommate and her boyfriend were trying to set me up with one of his friends so we all met there for lunch. Pretty sure dude and I did not even make eye contact. The only thing that I remember about the food is that I ordered a sandwich-no idea what kind-and Ruffles. Boy, I was an adventurous eater back then….

Anyway, this location is in a cute little house with a little gravel parking lot. The staff was very friendly and the girl who took our order showed us the specials and got our drinks while we decided. I did something out of character and ordered the “Vine Street Market Famous Mint Tea”, which she told Philip lots of people like to cut with unsweetened tea because it is pretty sweet. It was indeed sweet but I didn’t find it cloying. It had a great flavor but I wouldn’t say it was extremely minty. They also serve their own special cranberry tea that I’d like to try (back before my water-guzzling days I was a big-time sweet tea drinker).

Ordering was a little bit difficult, only because there were so many things that I wanted to try. Since they make their own salad dressings, I kind of wanted to try a salad (they offer a basic tossed salad, a Greek salad, and a chef’s salad with your choice of turkey, ham, or both as well as a chicken or tuna salad plate). They serve daily soup specials, today’s being Brunswick stew, cheesy squash soup, tomato-basil, and chili, and you can build your own sandwich or choose from their specialty sandwiches. You can also do pretty much any combination you want of soups, salads, and sandwiches. They also have daily casserole specials (chicken enchilada and chicken, broccoli, and cheese). The counter was covered with lots of dessert options, including Texas sheet cake, fudgy brownies, lemon squares, and apricot bars.

I was intrigued by the cheesy squash soup…I can honestly say that I’ve never had a soup made from yellow and zucchini squash (and I’m a little mad that I didn’t think of it before visiting here, but you can bet I’ll be making it now!). I decided to get a special they were featuring with a cup of soup and a whole pimento cheese sandwich, which I ordered on honey wheat bread (remember that all of their breads are homemade) with lettuce and tomato. The pimento cheese was thick with cheddar cheese, not drippy with mayonnaise as some pimento cheeses are, and well-seasoned with pepper. The honey wheat bread was sturdy but soft enough that I could bite through the sandwich without squishing the pimento cheese out the sides, and the vegetables were fresh. And the soup? Delicious. It reminded me of a cheesy summer squash casserole made into a soup, with onions, squash, chicken broth, cheddar, and lots of pepper. It was perfectly salted as well, which is a problem I have with a lot of restaurant soups-they are either over- or under salted.

Philip decided to try Brunswick stew-something he’d never had-and a Reuben. I’ve mentioned before that Philip loves Reubens but he’s had a hard time finding a restaurant that serves one he really, really likes these days…but he has to look no further. He took one bite and proclaimed this one the best he’s ever had. Let’s review: the bread and salad dressing are homemade. Pair that with Boar’s Head corned beef and melted Swiss and just the right amount of sauerkraut and grill it up…and you have a perfect Reuben. The Brunswick stew was thick with carrots, potatoes, and mushrooms with shredded beef and chunks of chicken in a smoky broth. Like my soup, it was well-seasoned and very peppery.

We decided to pass up the desserts this time, but I can guarantee you that next time I’ll be trying something…or getting it to take home (by the way, they do catering and take & bake meals). I regret that it took us this long to make it to Vine Street Market. This was definitely one of the best meals we’ve had in a laid-back and friendly atmosphere. A handful of people came in while we were there who were clearly regulars, as the employees called them by name and seemed to know what was going on in their lives.

This is definitely the kind of place you want to come back to…and I can’t wait to go back to Vine Street Market.

Vine Street Market is located at 1313 Hanover Street, Chattanooga, TN 37405. They are open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. You can call them at 423-266-8463. You can also visit their website, vinestreetmarket.com or like Vine Street Market on Facebook. For their regular menu, click here; you can find the catering menu here.

Also in the Riverview area: Tremont Tavern, The Farmer’s Daughter

Got any restaurant suggestions for me in the greater Chattanooga area (includes Dayton, Cleveland, and North Georgia)? Leave a comment!

Main Street Chattanooga: Main Street Meats/The Hot Chocolatier

January 5, 2014

A day spent on Main Street Chattanooga must include a burger at Main Street Meats and some hot chocolate at the Hot Chocolatier!

If you read any of my farmers market posts (I wrote them weekly for several months in 2012), you probably remember my weekly bacon from Link 41 (here’s a sampling of posts where I have mentioned Link 41). Man, I was obsessed with that bacon. Unfortunately, the only downside of my job change is that I am too far away from Main Street Chattanooga to get to the farmers market every Wednesday, which severely limits my access to that wonderful bacon.

When Main Street Meats opened, it took me a minute to figure out that it was basically an expansion of Link 41, from a place from which to procure fantastic charcuterie to a full-blown butcher shop, complete with daily lunch offerings. Including a burger. As soon as I read the description of the burger on the Main Street Meats blog, I knew I had to have it.

It was an awfully cold day to be walking around on Main Street Chattanooga but I was willing to brave the cold for that burger (I’m a wuss, I know, but I’m from the American South. I can’t help it. Bring the heat!). The lunch menu for the day was the House Burger and beef stew, and we both decided to have the burger, with bacon (of course). The meat was taken out of the case after we ordered, cooked to a perfect crispness on the outside in cast iron, and served simply on a Niedlov’s bun with mayo and a smear of brown mustard, some gruyere (which is one of our favorite cheeses), caramelized onions, and some perfectly cooked bacon. There is nothing not to love about this burger. It was perfect. PERFECT. Drippy but not messy, if that’s possible, with an indescribable flavor. The lack of toppings (or options for toppings) may be off-putting for some but really….it needs nothing. This is a burger Ron Swanson would approve of (meat. on a bun. with nothing. Who knows what I’m talking about?).

Talking to Dan Key (an owner? I forgot to ask!), I learned that the meat is dry-aged for a minimum of 14 days. All the beef at Main Street Meats is local and grassfed, and you have your pick of beautiful meat in the case to take home. They offer beef, pork, lamb, and chicken (all local) and of course the charcuteries that made Link 41 famous…but also some take home items like pre-made heat and eat meat pies and deli containers of chicken salad. We paid $9 per burger, plus chips and drinks…worth every penny, and that money pretty much goes right back into the local economy and supporting local, humanely raised meat.

Main Street Meats is located at 217 East Main Street, Chattanooga, TN 37408. You can call them at 423-602-9568. Check out their website, mainstreetmeatschatt.com. You can also find Main Street Meats on Facebook and follow @MainStreetMeats on Twitter.

After our lunch, we stopped off at Enzo’s Market to pick up some Velo Coffee and some Alchemy Spice Wake & Bake Sweet Spice Blend before heading on to The Hot Chocolatier to have some, well, hot chocolate. How have I not been here before? A reader tipped me off (after reading about my affinity for all things lavender in my Milk and Honey post) that they have a lavender-vanilla hot chocolate, so I didn’t even have to think about my order (thanks, Kat!). Philip ordered a hazelnut hot chocolate, and since their marshmallows are house made, we of course had to top our mugs off with one (you can also have whipped cream). I managed to show a little restraint and resist the beautiful handmade chocolates and amazing pastries in the cases, but I did pick up some photographic evidence for you.

Can I just say that if you are a chain coffee shop addict (you know which one I’m talking about) it would do your soul good to check out a place like this? Yes, it’s out of the way (since there isn’t one every five miles) but this is just the kind of hot drink that makes you stop and thank God for chocolate (and I’m sure that their coffee and tea beverages make you feel the same way about coffee and tea). There was no Swiss Miss involved here….just deep, rich, sweet chocolate and milk. Definitely “European-style”….this is the kind of hot chocolate that is so rich you have to take your time…but you also have to drink every. last. drop. The marshmallow on top makes you question every Jet-Puffed marshmallow you ever consumed (though in my opinion those things have one use and one use only). And it’s difficult to walk out without making some, ahem…additional purchases.

The Hot Chocolatier is committed to making the best and the freshest products possible:

The Hot Chocolatier is located at 201 West Main Street, Chattanooga, TN 37408. You can call them at 423-266-3066. Check out their website, thehotchocolatier.com. “Like” The Hot Chocolatier on Facebook and follow @ahotchocolatier on Twitter.

More on Main Street Chattanooga: Taqueria Jalisco, Conga Latin Food, Enzo’s Market Café

Slick’s Burgers

December 8, 2013

Slick’s Burgers is a popular burger spot, formerly located in St. Elmo and now on Main Street in Downtown Chattanooga, serving house-ground beef burgers.

A few weeks (maybe a month?) ago I was driving back to my school after a meeting on West 40th Street in St. Elmo when I saw a sign at the old Sugar’s Ribs location (across from the Incline and adjacent to 1885 Grill) for Slick’s Burgers. I filed it in the back of my head and kept moving…I was starving and needed to get back to work in time to eat lunch before time to get the kids up from their nap.

Last weekend I was dying for a burger, but Philip was sick so we ended up staying in all weekend. I have a list of several places that I’m planning to go in the next few weeks, but there was one reason or another not to go to any of the places that I had ticked off in my own head before we left the house. Philip had noticed a post on Facebook about Slick’s Burgers and suggested that we head out there since I had been wanting a burger. Sure! Why not?

We were greeted when we walked in by a man whose name I didn’t catch but who I think may have been the owner or manager. He quickly explained the menu to us and told us that all of the meats are ground in-house (they get their beef from Buckhead Beef in Atlanta) and they hand-cut their own fries as well. They have a very small regular menu-burgers in various sizes, a chicken sandwich, grilled cheese, and hot dogs, fries and a handful of other sides, a soup of the day, and a specials menu. I love restaurants with small menus because that often means that they are focused on quality, not variety.

Philip and I both decided to get the 7-ounce “Slick” burger (I briefly debated getting the 4-ounce “Sissy” burger but then I decided that I am probably never going to be satisfied with a 4-ounce burger). The burgers come with lettuce, tomato, red onion, and pickles on a Niedlov’s bun. I added cheddar cheese to mine and Philip added pepper jack (pictured below). They also offer American, Swiss, and blue cheese. Ketchup and mustard are on the table and they bring mayo to you when they deliver your food. We split an order of fries (they offer truffle fries and chili-cheese fries but we decided to just have regular). We just drank water, but they also offer fountain drinks, Pure Sodaworks bottled drinks, and a decent selection of beers. Our total was $19 and some change.

The food came out pretty quickly, about ten minutes after we ordered. The fries had been split between the two baskets-I love when restaurants do that! The burgers were open so that we could put on the toppings as we wished (except for the pickles, which were on the bottom bun). The cheese was melted on top of the burgers, which you would think would be a given but…isn’t. The burger was huge, and when I moved the bottom bun to put some mayo on it there were tons of juices soaked into it. Yum. And the verdict was….wow. This was a great burger, pink on the inside and so juicy. I know some of you are queasy about pink on the inside of a burger, but I am not and this was glorious. If you don’t like pink…be sure to tell them to make it well-done. It was delicious, simply seasoned with just salt and pepper and simply topped. I had considered getting the BBQ burger but I’m glad I decided to go with the Slick so that I could taste how good this burger was in its simplest form. The fries were also fantastic….skin-on, perfectly crispy, and wonderfully seasoned.

So…I officially loved this place….in fact, if I see fit to revise Chattavore’s Top Five Burgers, they may garner a spot (there may be an opening depending on whether or not the rumor I heard about Merv’s closing permanently is true or not. Update 2/14: not true! Not true! Merv’s is reopened!). Philip grumbled a little bit about the music (they were playing The Doors and he hates The Doors) but I was find with the music. The atmosphere is great for a little burger joint and the guy we talked with when we came in as well as the cashier were very friendly. The service was quickly but not suspiciously so, and the food was great. And, a big plus for a St. Elmo place, they have their own fairly large parking lot (as odd and jumbled as it may be-not sure who designed that lot!).

I strongly recommend that you check out Slick’s Burgers!

Slick’s Burgers is located at 7950 Tennessee Avenue, Chattanooga, TN 37409. You can call them at 423-385-8392. They don’t currently have a website but you can find them on Facebook.

Also in St. Elmo: 1885 Grill, The Purple Daisy, Pasha Coffee & Tea

Other great burgers in Chattanooga: Main Street Meats, Tremont Tavern, The Terminal, Merv’s, Southern Burger, The Honest Pint, Tubby’s