Here's my latest column for the Charleston Gazette-Mail:
My favorite week of the whole year is practically here: Charleston Restaurant Week.
It’s the one week of the year where you can enjoy specialty menus, eat a three-course meal and try a local restaurant outside your normal rotation, all for one price.
Except, this year, as you may already know, it’s two prices: $25 and $35.
That’s in an effort to allow some more flexibility for diners, as well as include some new restaurants that align better with a lower price point. That means more restaurants, more meals and much more fun.
Hosted by Buzz Food Service, the sixth-annual event all happens next week: Jan. 28 through Feb. 2. If you haven’t already carefully planned where you’re eating each night of the week, a) you have far more restraint than I do, and b) you can do so at cwvrestaurantweek.com.
This one week in January is an exciting opportunity for folks in Charleston to support local restaurants during a time of year when business tends to be slow. After a busy holiday season, it’s often tough to find the extra money in the budget to accommodate dining out. But armed with options of delicious specials at a reasonable price point, you have the ability to support your fellow community members — all while eating delicious food.
According to Buzz Food Service, restaurants throughout the years have reported serving more than 10,000 meals during the course of the six-day event. The total economic impact, which includes revenue from meals, bar sales, gratuity, taxes and incidentals, is estimated to exceed $500,000 each year.
There are a number of participating restaurants: ones that are reserved for special occasions and ones that are perfect for Saturday evening drinks. Ones that will satisfy your sweet tooth craving and ones that are perfect for the whole family. Ones that will serve old favorites and ones that will deliver you dishes crafted with ingredients you’ve never seen before.
Maybe you can switch up your typical order of spaghetti for a rich, indulgent dish of rigatoni, sausage and peas in a Parmesan cream sauce. Instead of your standard salmon, try a jerk mahi mahi special. Skip the typical burger and opt for crispy pork belly topped with a sweet-and-spicy glaze. Or, try them all. I’m not here to judge.
Is your mouth watering yet? I know mine is.
I’ll never pass up the opportunity to try something new, and I’m looking forward to seeing some new faces and new dishes this year. So, check out the website, make your reservations and join me for one of this year’s best local events.
Don’t forget to tag your photos with #cwvrestweek and share that food porn with the rest of us. It’s time to eat!
In full disclosure, I volunteer for the committee that organizes this event. I’ve loved this event ever since it started six years ago, and I am honored to help promote it with my fellow food-loving friends.
Braised Short Ribs
Chef Paul Smith, Charleston's star celebrity chef, created this recipe. It's warm, comforting and exactly what I need on a chilly winter day. Smith is not only a super talented chef, he's involved with the planning of Charleston Restaurant Week. So it only makes sense to share one of his signature recipes.
3 pounds boneless or bone-in beef short ribs
1 cup flour
2 ribs of celery
2 quarts beef broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1 yellow onion
2 teaspoons tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1 large carrot
1/2 cup red wine of your choosing
salt and pepper
Season the beef with salt and pepper before dredging in flour.
Sear olive oil until brown and remove from pan.
Add vegetables and cook until caramelized. Add tomato paste and cook for two minutes.
Deglaze with the red wine of your choosing.
Return the beef to the pot and add the beef broth to cover, then bring to simmer and cover with foil or lid.
Cook on 325 degrees for three hours or until beef is tender. You can also use a slow cooker.
My favorite week of the whole year is practically here: Charleston Restaurant Week.
It’s the one week of the year where you can enjoy specialty menus, eat a three-course meal and try a local restaurant outside your normal rotation, all for one price.
Except, this year, as you may already know, it’s two prices: $25 and $35.
That’s in an effort to allow some more flexibility for diners, as well as include some new restaurants that align better with a lower price point. That means more restaurants, more meals and much more fun.
Hosted by Buzz Food Service, the sixth-annual event all happens next week: Jan. 28 through Feb. 2. If you haven’t already carefully planned where you’re eating each night of the week, a) you have far more restraint than I do, and b) you can do so at cwvrestaurantweek.com.
This one week in January is an exciting opportunity for folks in Charleston to support local restaurants during a time of year when business tends to be slow. After a busy holiday season, it’s often tough to find the extra money in the budget to accommodate dining out. But armed with options of delicious specials at a reasonable price point, you have the ability to support your fellow community members — all while eating delicious food.
According to Buzz Food Service, restaurants throughout the years have reported serving more than 10,000 meals during the course of the six-day event. The total economic impact, which includes revenue from meals, bar sales, gratuity, taxes and incidentals, is estimated to exceed $500,000 each year.
There are a number of participating restaurants: ones that are reserved for special occasions and ones that are perfect for Saturday evening drinks. Ones that will satisfy your sweet tooth craving and ones that are perfect for the whole family. Ones that will serve old favorites and ones that will deliver you dishes crafted with ingredients you’ve never seen before.
Maybe you can switch up your typical order of spaghetti for a rich, indulgent dish of rigatoni, sausage and peas in a Parmesan cream sauce. Instead of your standard salmon, try a jerk mahi mahi special. Skip the typical burger and opt for crispy pork belly topped with a sweet-and-spicy glaze. Or, try them all. I’m not here to judge.
Is your mouth watering yet? I know mine is.
I’ll never pass up the opportunity to try something new, and I’m looking forward to seeing some new faces and new dishes this year. So, check out the website, make your reservations and join me for one of this year’s best local events.
Don’t forget to tag your photos with #cwvrestweek and share that food porn with the rest of us. It’s time to eat!
In full disclosure, I volunteer for the committee that organizes this event. I’ve loved this event ever since it started six years ago, and I am honored to help promote it with my fellow food-loving friends.
Braised Short Ribs
Chef Paul Smith, Charleston's star celebrity chef, created this recipe. It's warm, comforting and exactly what I need on a chilly winter day. Smith is not only a super talented chef, he's involved with the planning of Charleston Restaurant Week. So it only makes sense to share one of his signature recipes.
3 pounds boneless or bone-in beef short ribs
1 cup flour
2 ribs of celery
2 quarts beef broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1 yellow onion
2 teaspoons tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1 large carrot
1/2 cup red wine of your choosing
salt and pepper
Season the beef with salt and pepper before dredging in flour.
Sear olive oil until brown and remove from pan.
Add vegetables and cook until caramelized. Add tomato paste and cook for two minutes.
Deglaze with the red wine of your choosing.
Return the beef to the pot and add the beef broth to cover, then bring to simmer and cover with foil or lid.
Cook on 325 degrees for three hours or until beef is tender. You can also use a slow cooker.
Cincinnati is a major city that's just a few hours outside of Charleston.
So, I recently took a weekend trip there with my friend, Dawn.
And, of course, restaurants were the top thing on my mind!
One of the first place that came up as a "must-try" each time I searched was "Taste of Belgium."
This waffle restaurant was known for their authentic Belgian waffles:
Each waffle is baked individually in a specialized cast iron press, just like they were centuries ago by master cooks in the city of Liège, Belgium. We have perfected an old family recipe, passed down for generations, to bring you the taste and authenticity of a true Belgian favorite. Unlike other waffles, they are made from thick dough and a coarse Belgian beet sugar that caramelizes inside the waffle iron. The secret to a good waffle is a good waffle iron. We do not make a good waffle, we make the best waffle and our waffle deserved the best waffle iron.
Even Guy Fieri has made his way to Taste of Belgium.
The interior is bright, modern and cozy.
The menu is varied and every bit of it looked delicious. Under the classics, though, was "waffle and chicken" and it was calling my name.
First off, I had no idea what a Belgian waffle was supposed to taste like until now - they're small, dense, sweet and crisp on the edges. Absolutely phenomenal. I never was a big fan of waffles because those massive, mushy things just don't do it for me. This, however, as phenomenal. The spicy chicken on the side was the perfect combo of spicy and sweet.
I also got a side of goetta, which is a meat and grain sausage with German inspiration that's popular in the Cincinnati area. I thought it was tasty - not too dense or greasy.
Dawn went a more traditionally sweet route, which I snuck a bite of. All of it was delish.
I love Vandalia Donut Co., and I always try to check out their new specialty flavors. I think we have a new winner, folks!
{Lemonberry Poppyseed} - A cake donut covered in a tart lemon poppyseed glaze and topped with whipped blueberry cream. Something bright and zesty for these gray winter days!
Yum!
{Nutella Crunch} - A Number 42 topped with whipped Nutella cream , drizzled with Nutella ganache, and sprinkled with toasted hazelnuts. (Just in case you didn’t get enough chocolate over the holidays.)
Have you tried either yet?
Did you know there's a Peruvian restaurant in a mall food court in West Virginia?
Miskycha, in Bridgeport's Meadowbrook Mall, is a juice bar with a variety of traditional dishes.
I ordered the Lomo Saltado, which is stir-fried steak or chicken with onions tomatoes, green onions and cilantro. It's served with white rice and french fries. Delish.
And this purple corn drink! It's made with cinnamon, cloves, lemon, pineapple and apples. And it sounds different, but I loved it!
Have you been?
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