Hot Pink Cake Stand, Wilmington, NC

This is a picture of that elusive dream I've been chasing, that Quixotic quest for bacon perfection, my Holy Grail. Yes folks, this is a bacon cupcake and I got it at the Hot Pink Cake Stand on Front Street in Wilmington, North Carolina. I figured since I tried the other cupcake place in Wilmington I should stop by here to do a comparison. Well, I'm not a cupcake aficionado so to me the two stores were close, but I'd give a slight edge to Hot Pink for moistness of the cupcake. I also like the fact that you can sit and watch them create the masterpieces.

The Bacon cupcake had bacon flavor in the cake part, the whipped part and of course on the top. It was mixed with a light maple flavor and tasted quite good, and quite addicting. We also had a Cadbury Egg cupcake and a lemon drop cupcake. Overall a neat experience and we'll be visiting them again.

They have a website with more information and you can friend them on facebook too.

Krispy Kreme Donuts, Wilmington, NC

We had a Krispy Kreme in Middletown a few years ago. One day when I went there for a donut and coffee I saw that they were closed, the windows covered with brown paper and my eyes covered with tears. I still get a lump in my throat thinking about it, heck I carried my coffee club card around for almost a year hoping it was just a temporary thing. It wasn't, and I didn't get closure on the issue until I finally threw the card away.

Given my love for the glazed Krispy Kreme you have to realize that whenever I find one I just have to stop. In Wilmington, on College, sits a beautiful building housing my favorites, glazed donuts and black coffee. Usually I stop out, eat two, and bring a dozen back to the house for the grandkids but today we were headed out for ice cream so it was a simple breakfast of two donuts and coffee. The donuts were pulled off the conveyor belt still dripping that glorious glaze.

I know, some of my Wilmington friends will tell me there are better donuts in town and I'm sure they're right. But a Krispy Kreme donut? That's my idea of true comfort food. Now if only they had one with bacon on it . . .

Olympia Greek Restaurant revisited, Wilmington, NC

Last Summer we visited Olympia in Wilmington and we had a great meal. This week we (eleven of us including four children) were set to go out to a restaurant that I've raved about and we had a $25 coupon from Restaurant.com that we'd purchased. When we looked at the door my daughter noticed a sign that said they were no longer accepting certificates from that company so we all looked at each other and debated where to go. After a few minutes we decided to go to Olympia where we knew we'd get a good meal and be taken care of.

There was a slight bit of confusion when we went in as to the number of us, but we counted once again and determined that there were indeed eleven of us. That allowed the waitresses to set up the tables for us.

I started with a Mythos. If you've never had one imagine a German beer like a Saint Pauli Girl and you're close.

I was thinking about trying something a bit different, like a seafood dish, but in the end I decided on the beef gyros, see the picture below. What I did try different was the Saganaki, which is cheese over sliced tomatoes and set on fire as it is delivered. A nice twist and a tasty dish. I've seen it done a bit better in Greek Town in Chicago with more fanfare, but the taste was very good. The others in our party had the personal pizzas, veggie pitas, two more gyros, chicken fingers for the kids, and hummus and pita. All were good.

As I mentioned before, I decided to have the gyros, my favorite here, and it was as good as ever with crisp fries and a very well executed taziki sauce.

Olympia is a good Greek Restaurant in Wilmington.

Coastal Cupcakes, Wilmington, NC

I’m not a huge sweets fan, but I had a craving for a cupcake while we were downtown in Wilmington so we popped into Coastal Cupcakes for a treat. I’d read once that they make bacon cupcakes and when I asked about it they said they do on occasion, but today wasn’t one of those occasions. No matter, we chose six different cupcakes and split them among four adults and four kids. They are rich enough that one is enough and a half of one is plenty for a small child.

Very good cupcakes, but a bit pricey at fourteen dollars for a half dozen. Okay, they were worth it and I still want that bacon cupcake. They have a website for more information.

The Basics at the Cotton Exchange, Wilmington, NC

My daughter Rachel told me about The Basics at the Cotton Exchange, she said she had a great burger there, so on this visit to Wilmington we decided to stop by. After eating there, all I can say is that she was right. The food is excellent, the service friendly and the prices right. Four adults and four children ate for fifty bucks plus tip. Well, three children ordered, the seventeen month old ate a bit from everyone else. About the tip, I forgot to add it to the charge (I was going to leave cash on the table and just forgot) and I called them a couple of hours later and apologized to the girl. She said she could add it to the bill.

I had the burger of the day, bacon and cheddar cheese, lettuce and tomatoes, with BBQ. I opted out of the BBQ. For the side I chose the salad with a nice blue cheese vinaigrette dressing on the side, but I could have had mac and cheese or any one of a few other choices. Teresa had the fried green tomato sandwich with bacon. Nicole had the grilled pimento sandwich with tomato soup and a side of the mac and cheese, two of the kids had chicken fingers (nicely spiced) with a side of fruit. All were very good, my burger was one of the best I’ve had.

If you haven’t been there yet, I recommend you pay them a visit, and soon. I do recommend the lunch menu instead of dinner. I think the selection is bigger and the value better. They have a website for more information.

Nu-Cavu, Wallkill. Another great meal.

One of my favorite places to eat is the Nu-Cavu Restaurant in Wallkill and I had an urge to go there for the Pescadore, it was a Friday in Lent after all. As always, the food was delicious, the service excellent and the atmosphere warm and friendly. Teresa had the eggplant lasagna and we shared the Raspberry Tower shown to the left. Raspberry sorbet coated in chocolate. Rich and tasty.