Winnie's Tavern, Wilmington, NC

I've heard from some people that I trust, most especially Paul Stephen of Port City Foodies, that this is one of the best burgers in the area so it has been on my short list for quite some time. Today we finally got the opportunity to stop.

Winnie's Tavern is located just south of Wilmington in an industrial area and from the outside it looks like a dive bar. When you get inside you know it is a dive bar. The people are friendly and the bartender acted as if we were long lost friends who'd come over to visit. The people on either side of us were similar. The one fellow next to my wife was talking her ear off like she was a regular.

The menu is very limited, but I knew what I wanted. We both got cheeseburgers, I had bacon on mine. We added grilled onions, lettuce and tomato, all at no extra charge. Now one of the problems with hearing so much good about a place is that you can be in for a serious letdown when you do try it. Not the case here. The burgers came out in about fifteen minutes (this is not fast food) and they looked great. I picked mine up and looked it in the eye, well a burger doesn't have an eye but if it did I would have looked in it, and took a bite. I took a second one right away and I was in agreement with Paul. This is a darn fine burger, one of the best I've ever had and that's saying something. It would have gone real well with a couple of beers, but since I was driving I stuck to iced tea. The fries were okay.

Make sure you bring cash, because that's what they take. You don't have to bring a ton of it though. Two burgers, two iced teas, tax and tip was under sixteen dollars. The guy next to us said he gets a burger and fries along with three beers and with tip he's under twenty bucks. How can you beat that?

No website that I could find, but you can be a facebook friend. One word of caution, they've been getting some good press lately and they may be a bit busy. That's a good thing, we want them to do well. Also, this may not be a place to bring the kids so make it a date night. A cheap date night.

Update- I stopped back for a burger and it was every bit as good as the last one. I also had a nice chat with Dee and I peeked over her shoulder into the kitchen and I saw her secret for making a juicy burger. I won't tell you what it is though, you'll have to go have one there yourself. If you haven't been there yet, what are you waiting for?

Indochine, Wilmington, NC

I'd heard quite a bit about Indochine, and it was all good. So when my daughter suggested we go there for a late dinner I readily agreed. Now I'm not a huge fan of Thai and I've never had Vietnamese food, but I like Indian and Chinese. After looking at the menu I saw there is something for everyone.

They have a good beer selection and I ordered a Bellhaven, a Scottish ale and the waitress aproved of my choice. Hearing her accent I could see whay and I placed her as being from somewhere in the British Isles.

I decided to go with three appetizers instead of a full meal as I wanted to try some different things. I had the calamari, shown to the left, and it was crunchy and properly cooked. I also got the dumpling sampler, six different dumplings all excellent, and the Galloping Horses, shrimp wrapped in chicken. All were amazing. Teresa ordered spring rolls and a Satay while Rachel got chicken with peanuts and AJ ordered a shrimp in curry sauce. Every dish was perfect.

The service was excellent, prices reasonable, the food amazing and great atmosphere. We'll be back. They have a website for more information.

Station Taproom, Downingtown, PA

We've been meaning to go here for a bit, but they're always busy when we've tried. My son-in-law raves about the Lamb Burger and the Thai Curry. He also pointed out that they have a rather large beer offering as well.

They were offering Fuller's ESB on cask, but I was informed the cask kicked. I went with a double IPA from Great Lakes Brewing and it was quite nice. I followed that with an American Pale Ale from Weyerbacher that was okay. The food menu isn't that extensive, but it seems they do what they do right. I'd rather see a limited menu done well than an extensive menu done mediocre.

Teresa got the Greek salad at $6 and a small plate (rather large plate it turned out to be) of edamame for $5. My daughter had the Black Bean Burger, my son-in-law the Thai Curry and the bay chicken fingers.

I debated the lamb burger, the fish and chips, and the Cuban panini and decided on the duck salad at $13. It was duck cooked to perfection over mixed greens with brie, walnuts, apples, and dried cherries. Very good. Turned out to be a wise choice.

Overall the food was excellent. The restaurant is clean and well decorated with a brick arch separating the small kitchen area from the diners. I like a restaurant that has nothing to hide and allows you to view the chefs cooking. From what I saw it looked like the cooks were enjoying what they did.

They have a website for more information.

Brick House Tavern and Tap, Willow Grove, PA

Kobe Burger

Here's a place we've been passing by for a few years now and always wanted to stop. Two things kept us from doing so though. The first is that we pass by often at night when the parking lot is packed and the second is that we are less than an hour from our destination when we pass by. Today we planned on stopping and at 12:30 on a Sunday afternoon (on July 3rd) the place was almost empty.

It has a sports bar feel inside (TVs all over tuned to sports gave that away) and there is quite a good beer selection, both draft and bottled. They even have a few cask beers and they have some cool sounding drinks mixing beer with other things. For example, the French Kiss which is Blue Moon with champagne.

I looked over the menu and decided on a burger, the question was which one. I decided against the black and blue burger at $9 and went with the Kobe Burger with wagyu beef, sauteed onions, brie, roasted tomato, spring mix, red pepper aioli and a brioche bun for $14. It came with a generous supply of good fries. The kobe beef was good and almost cooked at the medium I requested. The combinations of the other ingredients were very good and brought that lean flavor of the beef out nicely. Teresa had the regular cheeseburger for $8 and she said it was good.

I never knew it was a small chain of about seventeen locations. They have a website for more information, and locations.

Update- We went back a second time and I got the Kobe Burger again. It was just as good as the first time and it was perfectly cooked to the medium I'd ordered. 

Tomato Cafe, Fishkill, NY

A week or so ago we drove through Fishkill, after having already eaten, and noted that a few new restaurants deem to have popped up on the main drag near route 9. I made a mental note to stop back sometime when we were in the need of food, and today was the day.

I found a spot to park on the street and we looked at a few restaurants to decide where to eat. The first one we looked at, The Tomato Cafe, won out because the menu looked interesting and there was a nice smell to the place. The aroma of fresh sauce filled the air. We were seated and given water and menus.

Looking at the menus there were just too many options to choose from, and the prices were reasonable. I decided to go simple and ordered the BLT on sourdough rye and added a cup of tomato soup. They are called the Tomato Cafe after all. $6.95 for the sandwich and $2.50 for the soup. That soup (pictured above) was delicious. It had a nice texture to it and there was just a bit of heat added, as well as some basil. The sandwich was good with plenty of bacon. I originally ordered a salad in place of the fries, but after I realized my sandwich was going to be a salad sandwich I quickly changed it to a side of fries. I also added a bottle of Hurricane Kitty.

Teresa had it narrowed down to two choices and the waiter recommended the Chicken Sandoval. She ordered the half portion, at $8.95 plus a caesar salad. I tasted the chicken and a piece of the pasta and it was delicious. Our waiter was right. She thought at first that the portion was small, but then she said that if it were the full size she would have brought half of it home so I guess it was just right.

Service was excellent, food delicious, prices reasonable, free wi-fi and clean bathrooms. I recommend you stop by and give them a try. I know we'll be back. The website will give you the menu and directions.

Cowboy Burger, Ward's Bridge Inn.

A personal favorite of mine is Ward's Bridge Inn in Montgomery, NY. I don't get there near often enough, but every time I've been there the food has been delicious. I've reviewed them before. Today I was there for an end of the school year lunch with some colleagues. Most of my dining companions got the special, a filet medallion steak sandwich, but I wanted the burger. Look at the picture and you'll see why.

This is the Cowboy burger, one of my favorites and quite possibly one of the finest burgers I've ever had anywhere. It starts with good quality beef and perfectly cooked. I ordered it medium and it was perfectly that with a bit of red in the center and cooked on the outside. That wonderful beef sits atop a fresh kaiser roll with cheese and bacon and a whole bunch of crisp onion straws. They gave me the option of fries, salad or Caesar salad. I got the Caesar salad and it was quite large.

My friends were all as pleased with their meals, especially the steak sandwich, but mine was perfect. If you haven't been there yet, make it a point to stop in.

Headwaters Pale Ale, Victory Brewing

I haven't done a beer review in a long time now, and since the title is Burgers and Brews Food Reviews it is about time. Add to that the fact that I have found my new favorite beer and here we go.

Victory Brewing Company is located in Downingtown, Pennsylvania and my daughter and son-in-law live in the area. I've been there quite a few times and I've done a review of the restaurant there, as well as this one of the beer. The food is good, especially the pizzas, but the beer is great. My favorites are; Storm King Stout, Hop Devil, Hop Wallop and Uncle Teddy's Bitter. They have a few beers on cask as well and what a difference it makes.

At any rate, I sampled their newest offering, Headwaters Pale Ale, a few months ago and loved it. I had a draft of it at the brewery and it was even better. It seems to me to be a cross between an English Pale Ale and an IPA. Smooth, slightly hoppy, and crisp. You can have a couple of them since it is only 5.1% and no after taste. This is my new favorite beer.

Check out the companies website for the beer.

Two Steps Downtown Grille, Danbury, CT

Someone asked me where I find these restaurants and my answer was that they were either recommended or we saw them in passing. Sometimes I do some research and look online for someplace new and that's why we tried Two Steps Downtown Grille in Danbury. I Googled Danbury restaurants and saw this place and it, and the menu, looked good.

The GPS got us there easy enough, it is only about 2 miles from the mall. We were there in the mid afternoon and there were no crowds. We were seated right away and given menus by one of the owners. The waitress came over after and offered some suggestions.

After looking over the menu I ordered the burger for nine bucks. You can get anything you want ('cept Alice) on it at no extra charge so I opted for bacon and Swiss. Then you have a choice of fries, sweet potato fries, onion rings and salad. I got the sweet potato fries which were just right, but I saw an order of onion rings go by and they looked good. Next time. The picture below is the half-eaten burger so you can see the medium that I ordered it is how it came. Good quality burger, cooked just right. Actually a very good burger.

Teresa got a chicken panini that was done on sourdough bread. She got the salad as the side. She said it was good and it looked it.

Bottom line is good food, good service, good prices. We'll be back again. They have a website for more information.

Steel House Restaurant, Kingston, NY

The waterfront in Kingston, the one by the Rondout Creek that is, is an area that has been gentrifying over the past few years. Many new restaurants have opened and it is a hopping place on a nice day. Today wasn't a nice day, rainy, so the place was deserted at four o'clock when we got there.

After looking around at some of the restaurants, and realizing that a couple of them didn't reopen for dinner until five, we decided on the Steel House Restaurant. We went in and were seated right away. It was quiet in there and they were starting to get ready for a school prom that night.

We looked over the menus and debated a few choices. I looked at the burger, but the menu said it was char burger, and I'm not crazy about burgers done in the broiler. We decided on seafood, Teresa got the shrimp scampi and I had the shrimp puttanesca, each were sixteen dollars. Both were good with plenty of shrimp. Mine had a slight heat to it, with a hint of something sweet in the background, perhaps the red onions.

The manager came over and chatted with us for a bit and the service was good. They have a website for more information.

DeStefano's Olde Erie Pub, Middletown, NY

DeStefano's, Chi Chi's, Scali's, Diana's, Tony Boffa's, are all names of good old school Italian restaurants in Middletown, NY. The only one left from the old days is Tony Boffa's, but DeStefano's is now called The Olde Erie Pub and is located on West Main. I shouldn't really say now, as they've been there for a few years. We've been there a couple of times for functions and always been pleased, so when we were going out with friends we decided to try them for dinner. In short, it was a good decision.

We got there at six-thirty and there was a crowd. The Kiwanis were meeting in the front room and there was an umpire's meeting upstairs. The bar was crowded, some of them people waiting for their meetings to start. We were shown to our table in the back room and given menus. I looked the menu over and there were some interesting choices. I decided on the Veal Savoya, beaded veal with prosciutto, roasted peppers and cheese with a lemon sauce. Teresa and Kathy got the Italian sampler special and Dan got pasta with scallops. We shared breaded and fried calamari as an appetizer. Everything was delicious and the portions were huge.

The bottom line? Good food, large portions, excellent service, good prices. You should stop by and pay them a visit. Skip the chains and eat good old school Italian food in a family run restaurant. They have a website for more information.

Pimento Burger and LA burger from Bobby's Burger Palace

No need for any comments here, the pictures speak for themselves.

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.