Soddy-Daisy restaurants Archives - Page 3 of 3

Blue Ribbon Cafe, Revisited-March 27, 2012

March 29, 2012

Would I totally destroy my credibility as a reviewer if I write a review about Blue Ribbon Cafe every single time I go there? Man, I love that place. I feel like it’s my “hometown restaurant”. I guess it is, really….it has a true smalltown feel and I see someone I know almost every time I go there. I might…in fact probably would….even go so far as to say that it’s my favorite restaurant.

This visit I was with my mom and my cousin, as Philip was working out of town on Tuesday. I met them there around 6:45. There weren’t a ton of people there, but it wasn’t close to empty either. We sat down and Dianne, the owner, quickly took our drink order. It took me forever to decide what to order. The special of the day was chicken and dressing with corn and okra, and they also had chicken carbonara and a few other dishes featured on their blackboard. I also contemplated “Forrest Gump’s Favorite” (shrimp & grits) or chicken or shrimp alfredo.

In the end, though, I decided I wanted some fries and decided to go with “The Hippie”. The Hippie is shaved ribeye with grilled onions and red and green peppers and tzatziki sauce on warm pita bread. I love all of the above, and this is one of my go-to meals at BRC. It’s huge, and I always eat the whole thing. And I never feel bad about it…because it’s worth it. The meat is shaved so thinly, seasoned and cooked perfectly. The tzatziki doesn’t have a really strong garlicky or cucumbery flavor but works really well with the meat and the charred veggies. The pocketless, soft pita bread is one of my favorite things, and if anyone knows where I can purchase some, please let me know. I haven’t found anything comparable and haven’t found a recipe I like. Of course, I can’t get enough of their handcut fries….this is one of my favorite places to eat fries!

My mom and cousin both went for the ribeye wrap, which is, as you might assume from the name, shaved ribeye with cheese, lettuce, and cusabi (cucumber and wasabi) dressing. I think there might have been some onion on there, too. Anyway, it’s all wrapped up in a tortilla and served with a side (I didn’t mention this before, but all of the sandwiches come with fries, sweet potato fries, housemade chips, potato salad, or okra. Maybe slaw, too….I don’t remember. I always order fries!). I tasted my mom’s and it was really delicious, with the perfect meat just like on my sandwich. The dressing had a very faint spicy, wasabi flavor…definitely not overpowering. I should have opened the wrap up to take the picture, but completely forgot!

On the dessert menu that night, they had Coca-Cola cake, carrot cake, and carmalicious brownies. Dianne recommended the carrot cake, but I wanted some Coca-Cola cake to share with Philip (with some of the homemade coffee ice cream I made Saturday!). Dianne slipped a small piece of carrot cake in my bag too, though. Both were delicious. Coca-Cola cake is one of my favorites….so chocolately and sweet. However, if I had to choose between these two desserts, I would choose the carrot cake. It had pineapples and nuts (walnuts or pecans? I couldn’t decide which.) and a perfect cream cheese frosting. Cream cheese frosting makes anything better! Well, almost. Today Blue Ribbon posted a picture of a pink lemonade cake on Facebook. I’m gonna have to try that one out!

Maybe one of these days Pioneer Woman will post her coffee ice cream recipe on her blog and I can link you to it! It's better than store-bought!

If you haven’t been to Blue Ribbon Cafe, I’m not sure what you are waiting for! They are located at 9705 Dayton Pike, Soddy-Daisy, TN 37379. They can be reached at 423-332-5005. You can find them on Facebook. They are open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday-Friday. That’s the only thing I don’t like about them-I wish they were open on weekends (or at least Saturdays)!

Delia’s Taqueria-December 26, 2011

December 29, 2011

I have a confession to make. I know that being a food blogger, I should be adventurous and be willing to try new places sight unseen….but that’s not my style. I don’t usually try new eateries until someone I know has recommended them. Example: Kioto. My assistant ate there before me (Thanks Melissa!) and recommended it….so I knew it was safe. Another example: we recently tried to “have an adventure” and try a brand-spanking-new local place without hearing anything (positive or negative) about it….and it was a complete disaster.

That being said, when I saw Delia’s Taqueria while driving through Soddy-Daisy a month or so ago, I knew I had to give it a try, the sooner, the better. There’s just something about hole-in-the-wall Mexican joints; they are always, ALWAYS the best. Not that you could really call Delia’s a “hole-in-the-wall”, since it’s free-standing. Really, it’s more like a stationary taco truck. There’s not really any seating to speak of…a couple of picnic tables out front is all. So, get it and go….and that’s okay with me, because food this good….well, you really don’t want just anybody seeing you eat it. Oh, and another plus for me: I love being the person to tell Urbanspoon about a new restaurant! That’s just plain fun. But, I digress.

Delia’s is a little red food truck, cart, trailer, whatever. I guess you just have to see it to get the visual. It’s connected to a trailer that used to be the office of a used car lot, which I am assuming has been transformed into a storage facility or office of sorts. They have a little covered porch where you walk up to the window to order, and their menu is a huge board of pictures and descriptions of dishes (think of the menus in Mom & Pop Chinese joints). We took a few minutes to peruse before ordering. The man who took our order was very friendly. Philip asked him if they had been doing good business and he told him that they had been. He also told us that they make all of their food fresh, right down to the tortillas and the chips. Okay, I’m sold. We ordered and were on our way within 10 minutes, and that is with the guy in front of us ordering for himself and his 5 children. I’m not kidding! That’s what I call speedy service. The worst part of this was having to smell the intoxicating bouquet (ha!) of the food while we made the 10-minute drive home….but somehow I made it and even managed to photograph the food before ripping into it.

Of course, I have a gene that does not allow me to eat food from a Mexican restaurant without having chips and salsa. I cannot physically do it. These (fresh and homemade) chips and salsa did not disappoint. Oh, do you need me to repeat that for you? THEY MAKE THEIR OWN TORTILLAS. The chips were fantastic, and the salsa was very fresh-tasting and tomato-ey, just slightly spicy but safe for lightweights like myself. They did include tiny cups of “hot sauce”, one red (just a little spicy) and one green (medium to hot…I only took one bite) that each had fantastic flavor.

Chips & Salsa-Hot, Fresh, and Homemade for $2.00!

There were many items on the menu that were extremely tempting for me, but I decided that I would go simple on this first trip since I feel like you can really judge a restaurant based on their most simple, basic items. I chose the taco platter, which included two chicken or beef tacos (I chose beef), rice, and beans. You can choose the type of tortilla that you want (corn or flour), and of course I chose flour. The tacos also had lettuce, tomato, and white cheese (queso blanco? I’m not sure what kind of cheese it was!). The menu states that they are made with pico de gallo but there wasn’t any on my taco, and honestly I was happy with that. I prefer my tacos without salsa or pico. The tortillas were not fried, which I love. You don’t find a lot of Mexican restaurants that offer tacos in corn tortillas that are not fried (although I’m sure most of them would do it if asked). It’s more authentic this way. The tacos are served in two tortillas each, which helps with the “breakage issue”. The meat was incredible. It was perfectly spiced but not greasy at all and was not in a thick sauce as you typically find in more Americanized Mexican eateries. The produce was fresh and tasty. The beans were perfect-not too thick, not too thin….and there was NO SKIN on them, which is so important! I really loved the rice, too. It was not overly flavored and didn’t have a lot of weird chunks like Mexican rice sometimes does. I ate every bite of my meal. And I didn’t regret it.

Two Beef Tacos, Rice, & Beans-$4.99

Philip decided on the Fiesta Burrito, which is available in ground beef, steak, chicken, a mix of steak and chicken, shrimp, pork, a combo of steak, chicken, and pork, barbacoa (the best description I could find for barbacoa was “Mexican barbecue.” Traditionally sheep meat is used for barbacoa, but this is Soddy-Daisy, so I am assuming they used beef…), al pastor (which to me sounds like it would be lamb but apparently is pork with a chili sauce), Mexican sausage (chorizo, I presume-are there other varieties of Mexican sausage? I’m embarrassed to say I don’t know!), or vegetables. The Fiesta Burrito is prepared with rice, beans, pico de gallo, and sour cream. Philip chose Mexcian sausage. When he took a bite, his eyes rolled back in his head and he proclaimed the meat “incredible”. He insisted that I needed to try it, so I did. I typically don’t like sausage because I don’t care for the spice combinations, but this stuff truly was incredible. Of course, Philip finished his burrito as well, and then stated that, “Now there’s no need to ever go to Q’doba.” I won’t argue with that!

Mexican Sausage Burrito ($4.99), before....

Mexican Sausage Burrito, After-I had to show you the inside!

All of this incredible food, my friends, was had for around $13. They also serve fountain beverages and the traditional bottled drinks that you see in the “international foods” aisle at the grocery store, which always look so tempting and yummy, and Mexican Coke, which is made with cane sugar, not high fructose corn syrup. They also served flavored fresh waters in flavors like mango and tamarind. I must try these at some point. Also, I recommended Delia’s to my mom, who went and got take-out that same night….and then again the next night-so clearly it made an impression on my parents, too.

I love promoting truly local businesses, especially these tiny operations that don’t generate a lot of publicity in the traditional ways. This place is amazing. Please eat there, all of you, so they will stay in business and we can eat there whenever we want! You will not regret it!

Delia’s is located at 105 Porter Street, Soddy-Daisy, TN 37379 (near Wal-Mart). You can reach them at 423-521-7145. They are open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. At this time, they do not have a website or Facebook page. I have sent the menu to Urbanspoon to be uploaded onto their Urbanspoon page, but here it is for you!

The Sandwiche Shoppe-July 29, 2011

August 4, 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.

Blue Ribbon Cafe-April 22, 2011

April 23, 2011

Okay, so technically Blue Ribbon Cafe isn’t in Chattanooga….but it’s in Soddy-Daisy, which, in my opinion, is close enough. Besides, I’m from Soddy-Daisy, so it’s only fitting that I start my Chattavore adventure there.’Blue Ribbon Cafe is one of my most favorite restaurants in the world. I am so happy that such a fantastic restaurant is located right here in good ole S-D. The food is fresh and homemade….which makes me ecstatic. I’ve never had anything I didn’t like there, and I’ve had several things on their menu. Chicken fingers (handbreaded) and fries (skin-on) are a no-fail option…..so is The Hippie (shaved rib-eye on a pita with cheese, grilled onions, and grilled peppers) and Whatta Pig (BLT on grilled sourdough with cheese). Of course, the daily specials are a huge hit, ranging from hamburger steak to chicken and dumplings, plus soups and an ever-changing range of desserts written on the chalkboard (I just LOVE restaurants who write their specials on a chalkboard!).

So anyway, BRC often posts their daily specials on their Facebook page. Friday’s special is always cheeseburgers and fish tacos-two of my favorite things. I’ve been dying to go on a Friday specifically for this purpose…..but that darned job thing is always getting in the way (we don’t go out to eat on Friday nights very often because of crowds…..and fatigue)! Good Friday provided the perfect excuse….so off we went.

Something you should know about me is that cheeseburgers are like a religion to me. I don’t just go anywhere and order a cheeseburger. I have to eat at a restaurant a few times before I take that step….but if you can win me over with your burger, well, you’ve won me over. Clearly, I had to get the cheeseburger. Secretly, I hoped that Philip would order the fish tacos so we could share, but he decided on the burger too. Oh well. Summer is coming up, so maybe another Friday trip is in the stars.

Let me tell you about this burger. It was gigantic. The buns are homemade, and they were the size of our heads! There was nothing fancy about this burger….no aioli or parmesan cheese crisp or onion jam. No need. Meat on a bun with nothing (Parks and Recreation, anyone?)…well, with a melted slice of cheese. The owner, who took our order, brought out a bottle of mustard and a bottle of mayo before our food came, and there were a few pieces of onion and some lettuce, tomato, and pickles on the plate (I skipped the onion, as is my usual practice). The burger, when all was said and done, probably weighed at least 3/4 of a pound, maybe more. And I ate almost all of it. I could have finished it, but I have a weird thing about cleaning my plate in a restaurant. Somehow I think the meal will not make me gain weight if I leave a few bites on the plate….so I left about 3 bites of the burger and maybe 10 (amazing) fries. Philip finished his burger….but he ate fewer fries than me, so I think we’re even.

The total cost for the two enormous burgers was $16 and some change. The service was great, and if I had any more space I would have loved to have shoveled in some Coca-cola cake….but that will have to wait till next time. And there will definitely be a next time!

Some other popular menu items at BRC include hand-battered chicken tenders, served with coleslaw and fresh-cut fries; Curly Joe, a pasta salad with sliced almonds, grilled chicken, and parmesan cheese; the Jimmy Buffet, a mixed green salad with mango-pineapple vinaigrette; the Hippie, shaved ribeye with melted cheese, grilled onions and peppers, and tzatziki sauce served on a pita; and the Wednesday special, chicken and dumplings served with a roll. The dessert menu is reason alone to visit, however. It features ever changing and always fabulous treats like Coca-Cola cake, Mountain Dew cake (To. Die. For.), banana pudding, Rocky Road cake, Caramelicious Brownies…..I could go on for a while.

Update: On July 22, a friend came over for an informal breadmaking class. As “payment” for the class, she treated me to lunch at Blue Ribbon (she lives in Murfreesboro and was excited about trying the restaurant, especially since it was cheeseburger Friday). You know what that means-cheeseburger Friday is also Fish Taco Friday! So, I finally got to try my fish tacos. I should have asked what type of fish they use, but I forgot. It was very mild, so I am guessing it was tilapia or cod or something of that sort. These fish tacos were somewhat different from my fish tacos. There were a few strips of fried fish and some lettuce on each flour tortilla (I make mine with cabbage and corn tortillas). There was a pink sauce that was very mildly spicy. It was actually pretty similar to my mayo & sour cream based sauce. It was served with a side of pineapple salsa, black bean and corn salad (black beans, fresh white corn, red onions, and tomatoes), and rice. Everything tasted great. I am sure that purists would argue that they were “not authentic”, but I wonder what is really considered authentic. I really enjoyed the black bean and corn salad. I snapped a picture with my phone…I wish I had thought to take a picture of my friend’s cheeseburger! She was extremely excited about it, especially since she’s a bread snob like I am and the buns are homemade. However, I was almost certain she was going to go into a food coma when we got back to my house!

I had already eaten half the taco when I thought to snap a picture!

Blue Ribbon Cafe is located at 9705 Dayton Pike, Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee. They are open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday. You can reach them at 423-332-5005. Oh, and they do special orders for their baked goods-hooray!

For a more recent review of Blue Ribbon Cafe, click here!

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