Month: January 2017

Gianmarco’s – Birmingham, AL

I have written about several awesome restaurants throughout Birmingham. Just when I thought I had visited all the hot spots, I was told about an Italian restaurant that was a must try. Gianmarco’s is a small restaurant located in the Homewood area. The parking lot is tiny so be prepared to possibly have to park on the street.

As soon as I walked in I could smell pizza and garlic. It made me even hungrier than I already was. The entrance takes you through their car area. It’s a small space but if you are looking for a quick bite to eat or an after work cocktail, this would be perfect.

   

I had a table in the main dining room. As I walked through my eyes glanced into the kitchen. That is where I saw the wood fire oven. After seeing that hot over, I am certain that their pizza is amazing.

I started off with the Pasta Fagioli soup. It was the perfect size portion to start the meal off. The soup had great flavor. The broth was very creamy. The parmesan cheese that was melted on top added a little saltiness to the broth. There was a generous amount of vegetables in the soup. I loved all the cannellini beans that were in it.

I was in the mood for pasta for my main dish. Every option on Gianmarco’s menu sounded delicious. I knew no matter what I chose it would be amazing. So after a quick game of eenie-meenie-miney-mo in my head I decided to order the Rigatoni Quattro Formaggio.

The first bite of the rigatoni made my heart just melt. It was so rich and creamy. The sauce had a combination of four cheese mixed with some heavy cream. It was an adult version of macaroni and cheese. The pancetta that was on top added texture to the sauce. The richness of this dish filled me up quickly.

Unfortunately, I got too full from my pasta and soup so I was not able to try any desserts. I am certain that I will be returning, not just for dessert but to try on of their other dishes.

I would recommend Gianmarco’s to anyone. You can check them out on their Facebook page at facebook.com/Gianmarcos

I would recommend that you make a reservation since the restaurant is small. To see their menu visit http://www.birminghamrestaurants.com/

Enjoy!

T

Rock n Roll Sushi – Hoover, AL

It had been a while since I had sushi and I was hungry for it. A friend of mine at work recommended I try her favorite sushi restaurant, Rock n Roll Sushi.

Just by the name I could tell that the theme of the restaurant would be music. Sure enough, when I walked in I saw guitars and posters decorating the walls.

  

I sat at the bar so I could watch them make all the different rolls. They have a large menu of creative rolls named after different bands and artists, like the KISS Roll or the Elvis Roll.

I started off with their ginger salad. It’s the typical style salad that I get at other Japanese restaurants. The difference here is they make their own ginger dressing. It was a creamy dressing that was similar to a yum-yum sauce.

I also shared some mini eggrolls. These had chicken in them and were served with a great sweet chili sauce. They were the perfect size appetizer.

The roll I went with was the RNR roll. It’s eel and avocado topped with eel sauce. I love eel sauce. It is sweet and tastes good on so many things. The eel was fresh and tender. I liked he creamy texture of the avocado paired with the eel.

Since that one roll was not filling enough I ordered their tuna twister. It is spicy tuna wrapped with sliced avocado and drizzled with their sweet chili sauce. They were also topped with crunchy flakes. The presentation was beautiful.

The avocado was sliced so thin that it just melted in my mouth. The tuna naturally was the star of the dish. It was so fresh I would have thought it was just pulled from the ocean. They chopped it up into small bite size pieces. It too just melted in my mouth. The sweet chili sauce was fantastic on the tuna. It enhanced the flavor of the tuna.

I loved everything that I ordered and I cannot wait to go back for more. I highly recommend Rock n Roll Sushi. Visit their website at: www.rnrsushi.com

Enjoy!

T

 

Galley and Garden – Birmingham, AL

I found another wonderful place to have Sunday brunch. Galley and Garden is a quaint old house that has been converted into a restaurant. It is located in the 5 Points District of Birmingham. There is no parking lot so you will need to valet park but it is convenient.

The old house was very cute. When you walk through the front door you enter the foyer where the hostess will greet you. I was seated in one of the room to the left of the entryway. I pictured this room as the old dining room of the house. The space was open and not packed with tables. There was a beautiful bar set up along the center wall to make all the excellent brunch cocktails.

My table was the closest to the kitchen. In the remodel of the house, they added big glass windows so you can watch the chefs do their magic.

Brunch could not start properly without a mimosa. The orange juice that was used was fresh and sweet. It paired well with the brut champagne they used.

Their brunch menu had several traditional items plus as assortment of specialty dishes. What caught my eye was the Braised Hereford Short Rib Benedict. The chef took something that felt familiar and added his unique flair to the dish. I just had to try it.

This dish came with two poached eggs on top of short ribs and a fresh made buttermilk biscuit. The hollandaise sauce was drizzled on top over the eggs. Also decorating the plate was an andouille potato hash.

To start breaking down each component, the biscuit was fantastic. It was fluffy and light. I enjoyed when the yolk from the egg and the hollandaise sauce covered the biscuit. It made the taste become creamy and rich. The egg itself was cooked perfectly. The whites were completely cooked which I prefer. Having this served over a biscuit verses an English muffin is my new favorite way to eat this. I wish more restaurants would serve it this way. The soft texture of each bite is better than the hard texture of the English muffin.

The short rib was amazing! The meat was perfect just by itself. It had a juicy, salty flavor with a few crispy edges. When combined with the eggs, biscuit, and sauce the taste became hearty. The meat was not overwhelmed with the flavor of the egg yolk or sauce. Each component worked together. The saltiness of the short rib was softened by the yolk and sauce and the biscuit brought in a sweet taste.

I have not forgotten about the potatoes that came on the side. I really liked how the skin of the potato was crispy. They were slightly peppery with the seasoning that the chef used. I added a little extra flavor by dipping the potato in the left over hollandaise sauce that I had. This was not a traditional hash; it was more just roasted potatoes with a ton of flavor.

For a fun time at brunch with great service and delicious food, then Galley and Garden will be perfect. For warmer days, they have great outdoor seating. Check out their menu at http://www.galleyandgarden.com/.   Some of the items will change based on what the chef is felling. However, the Braised Hereford Short Rib Benedict is a staple of the menu.

Enjoy!

T

Victoria Gastro Pub – Columbia, MD

Located about 30 minutes outside of Baltimore is the city of Columbia, Maryland. I was excited to be invited out to dinner at Victoria Gastro Pub. This restaurant is a hot spot. It was packed on the inside so thank goodness we had reservations.

They are known for the large selection of beers, so if you are a beer drinker then this is the perfect place. I went for a Moscow Mule. That seems to be a good go to drink for me.

There were so many great choices on the menu. They are known for their mushroom burger and their duck fat fries. I was not hungry for a burger but the fries were a definite yes. I have started seeing a trend that newer restaurants are serving duck fat fries. These were served in a bucket and were great for sharing. They came with a garlic aioli and were covered in a truffle sea salt. There was added earthy flavor in these fries, plus they had great crunch.

 Since I was in Maryland I needed to get a crab cake. Victoria’s has a lemon basil lump crab cake served with a sweet corn and mustard sauce.

The crab cake was all crab, no breading or fillers at all. The crab meat was sweet and tender. The lemon added a freshness to the taste. The crab cake sat upon the sweet corn. This was not quite a creamed corn, but it tasted like one. There were whole kernels of corn sautéed in a creamy sweet sauce. I wish I had a spoon to be able to scoop up all the sauce. I did use one of their homemade biscuits to soak up the sauce. The biscuit itself was sweet.

The portions at Victoria’s are perfect. It is the right amount of food so that you do not feel like you overate. I am definitely planning on coming back to try some of the other items on the menu. The thought of the Duck Fat Poutine Fries makes me hungry all over again. Get hungry yourself by visiting their website at http://victoriagastropub.com/

Enjoy!

T