This is in my backyard?

It’s been a little over a week now since I got back from my cruise and I have to say I’m still getting used to these numbers on the right side of all the menus. Yes, the prices, I don’t like them, on the cruise everything’s free and I loved it..probably a little too much! The food on the cruise was so good and always there! From the Breakfast Buffet that started at 6am with anything you could want. They had hot foods, cold foods, cereals, freshly made omlets, and every pastry you can imagine.

Then came the lunch buffet! It was event better, everything you could ever want was on the buffett: Pizza, pasta, salads, sandwiches, soups, and so much more..and everything is so good! Then the ice cream machine opened and you could get as many ice cream cones as you wanted! Chocolate was my favorite..go figure right!

The best part of the day was always the 5-star dinner we had! Charlie and Johnson were our waiters (of course that wasn’t their real names, but that’s what they told us to call them since we couldn’t pronounce their real names) They would give you a menu with 5 or 6 appetizer choices, 7 or 8 dinner choices, and then 4 or 5 desserts! I would order around 2 of each one each night! Lobster night I definitely went for more! There were a couple things that didn’t really impress me (Lobster Bisque, way too much Sherry), but overall it was all delicious and I always ate way too much!

Oh ya, and if that wasn’t enough the promenade had a cafe that was open all the time with sandwiches, desserts, cookies, just incase you get hungry while your walking around the ship. And…don’t forget the free room service!!

Nothing gets better than some of the restaurants here in Raleigh, but when sailing the high seas you can’t go wrong with all you can eat dinners, cafes, and buffets!

So It’s not exactly locally owned and operated, but I’m on vacation for the next 9 days so I thought I would write about the food on a cruise ship. I’ve been on one Carnival cruise about 5 years ago and had a great time. Having everything catered to you and waking up in a new and different place each morning is definitely something I could get used to.

One of the best parts about being on a cruise is the all you can eat food. From the 24-hr ice cream and pizza bar, to the midnight chocolate and fresh fruit bar, to the 5 star all you can eat meals! This time I am going to the eastern carribean on a Royal Carribean cruise and heard it doesn’t get any better! When I get back I will let you all know about the food, my experience and then of course start getting back into the locally owned and operated restaurants around the Triangle!

In the mean time keep the suggestions coming, I still have the Cuban restaurant in Cary on my radar and am looking for!

On April Fools Day of this year Wake Forest’s downtown had a new kid on the block - Wake Forest Coffee. Located at 156 S. White Street Wake Forest Coffee caters to just about anybody in Wake Forest. They have your daily selection of coffees, lattes, desserts, breakfast items, iced drinks, smoothies,  ice cream and more! All the drinks are hand made by their well trained baristas.

 It’s a great place to come for meetings, hanging out, studying, and to just get a good cup of coffee! The atmosphere inside is something to look at as well. With the big open window in the front, the dark hardwood floors, and local artists artwork displayed on the walls of the store you really feel at home.  I frequently use the coffee shop as a place to meet with people in the Wake Forest community and to get a great cup of coffee. The customer service is great and they want to make sure you are satisfied with what you get while you are there. They also like to make up a lot of different drinks and combinations so you’re always in for a treat!

So next time your around downtown Wake Forest stop in and say hello to Albert and the crew!

Hi everyone! I’m going to a new Italian restaurant in Clayton tonight, called Mulberry on Main, and I’m really excited  because I’ve heard so many good things about it! I’ll be taking my camera so expect to see something soon on it!

 My question today though is……where are some good locally owned and operated restaurants in your town! I’ve gotten some good suggestions in the past and am always trying to discover more places! Let me know what your favorite is, so I can check it out!

McLean’s Old Time Cafe is definitely a hot spot in Zebulon, NC. We heard from a lot of the local citizens that if we were hungry we had to try McLean’s, so what did we do….tried McLean’s for lunch! Court and I got there around noon and the place was pretty busy and stayed that way the entire time we were there. Everything on the menu looked sooo good, Court and I had a hard time deciding what we were going to get. While we were waiting they brought us homemade biscuits and hush-puppies that were melt in your mouth good! We finally decided on what we were going to get. Court picked homemade Chicken Salad and I picked Chicken fingers. As I was ordering I was told that the bbq chicken fingers were the way to go. With the chicken fingers I got a choice of 2 sides so I went with the mac and cheese and the broccoli. Court’s sides were the sweet potato casserole and the broccoli. At the end of the meal we split a piece of Chocolate Cream Pie which was amazing, they make a lot of their desserts along with their food right there in the store! Both of us really enjoyed our lunch, loved the staff, and had a great time with the local citizens. We talked to Suzie who has worked at McLean’s for a couple years now and absolutely loves the restaurant and it’s people. Check out the video and if you want to learn more about McLean’s check out their website or better yet go and visit them in Zebulon.