This is in my backyard?

Last Thursday, July 10th, McCormick and Schmicks opened at the Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh. It’s a chain restaurant, but I had a great experience when I was there and wanted to let you all know what I thought. I was able to eat there last Monday with 3 of my colleagues for lunch. Between the 4 of us we had 2 appetizers, 4 salads, 4 entrees and 2 desserts. We had the calamari and crab-cakes for our appetizers, both of which were good, but nothing to different from anywhere else you go. Next we had our entrees, Jennifer and I both had their Salmon (which came with Asparagus and Mashed Potatoes) which was served on a cedar plank and was pretty tasty. Nancy had the Crabmelt sandwich which she really liked. I’m not a huge fan of mayonnaise, in fact I hate it, so I didn’t really like the sandwich, but everyone else seemed to. Then came Doug…Doug had the shrimp and scallop Macaroni and Cheese. When I first read the item on the menu I was like seafood in Mac and Cheese, I’m not so sure about that, but it was amazing! The sauce was really light and the shrimp and scallops were so good. Something you probably want to share because it was huge and very filling, but delicious none the less.

Then came the best part of all….dessert! We ordered the Tiramisu Cheesecake and the Chocolate bag. The Tiramisu Cheesecake was really good, but next to the Chocolate bag, nothing compares. I have never seen a dessert like this. They melt down dark chocolate, put it into a bag, freeze it and then use the frozen chocolate as a bag. They then fill it with white chocolate mouse and fresh berries! I was so stuffed by the time we got dessert. I literally couldn’t stop eating it. If anything go there to see and try this dessert!

One of my favorite parts about Spring, Summer and Fall is getting to sit outside and eat dinner, whether it’s grilling out and eating on your porch or going out to eat and sitting on their porch. My sister and I also have a dog so we love to go places where we can eat outside. You can se my sister, her dog, and my best friend in the picture, we were eating at one of our favorite restuarants in Charleston. We love Red’s because the food is good, the atmosphere is super relaxed, and you can bring your dogs!

I know of some places in Raleigh where you can take your dog: Stone Wolf Coffee, Moonlight Pizza, Tavolla Rossa on Sunday nights, and… That’s my question to you all. Where in the triangle can you take your dog, sit on the porch, enjoy the day/night and have great food!?!?!

Looking forward to hearing from everyone and trying some of these places out!

Below is part of a press release I recieved last week. 

Richard Holcomb and Sarig Agasi, the farmer and chef partners of

“After working the soil and discovering the sheer bounty produced at Coon Rock Farm, I began dreaming about a restaurant based primarily on this farm; a place where you can enjoy the kind of food we ate as kids, and honor the way it comes to the table — from neighboring farms,” explained DeMent. A native North Carolinian, DeMent was raised around her family’s farm supply store and developed an interest in organically farmed foods and environmental issues after seeing nearby farms slowly disappear throughout her childhood. Holcomb, who began Coon Rock Farm in 2005 after 20 successful years as a software entrepreneur, is pleased to have a new outlet for his heirloom vegetables and pasture raised meats including chickens (and eggs), pork, lamb, goat and more.  

Named for the

Chef Sarig Agasi, whose farm-driven restaurant Zely & Ritz was named one of the “Top 20 Organic Restaurants in America” by Organic Style, will work closely with Eno’s Chef de Cuisine, lending his keen understanding of how to operate a restaurant kitchen supplied primarily by a single farm, Coon Rock Farm.  

Eno will bring the farm even closer to the table through their restaurant staff work-share program whereby cooks and servers alike will handpick and nurture vegetables in the garden and livestock in the pasture. As a result, Holcomb and DeMent imagine a more informed conversation between their staff and diners, and ultimately a rare opportunity for Eno patrons to have a very intimate relationship with the farm and the food on their plate.  

Similarly, a retail market adjacent to the restaurant will bring the farm to the customer, making local, seasonal goods from Coon Rock Farm and their farm partners available for sale on a daily basis. A separate entrance will enable customers to purchase goods from their farm and other farm partners, to pick up their Coon Rock Farm CSA order, or special custom orders. 

Eno Restaurant & Market will serve lunch and dinner daily, and brunch on the weekends.

Jessica took Doug to Julian’s Cafe while I was on vacation, as soon as I got back the first thing Doug said to me was I had to try this place! Doug described it as mexican food without the cheese. I love cheese so I was a little hesitant about that, but he says it’s so good you don’t need cheese. So last week Doug and I went back and I took my camera. We didn’t have Jessica with us so we didn’t know exactly what we were eating, and the video kinda reflects that! Hope yall enjoy the video and if you know of anymore fun places to try, let me know!

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!