Author: gatorgirl.outoftheswamp@gmail.com

Homewood Diner – Homewood, AL

Bright and early on a cold morning is the perfect time to get a big, hearty breakfast. Diners are naturally the perfect place for these types of breakfasts. The Homewood Diner can be a little hard to find the first time but it is a wonderful place and well worth looking for.

The diner was crowded when I got there. I was able to get one of the last booths. They have many options and combinations to choose from. I wanted something with pancakes because I had not had them for a while.

   

I went for one of their special breakfast plates. The Patriot Breakfast offered up everything I wanted. Eggs, grits, bacon, and a pancake. Just in case there is interest in this plate, you can have hash browns instead of grits and sausage instead of bacon.

I got my eggs scrambled; these are my favorite way to have eggs. The grits were firm but still creamy. I added some butter to add a little salt. The bacon was amazing. The slices were thick and extra crispy. I love extra crispy bacon, plus they gave a very generous portion. You can never have too much bacon.

The pancake, which was why I ordered this breakfast plate, was huge. It was the actual size of the plate it came on. There is something about restaurant pancakes that I just cannot replicate at home. I love the taste of the batter which is a little sweet and the way it gets salty when cooked on the griddle. A great pancake to me is when it tastes just as good with a little melted butter as it does with a topping of maple syrup.

In addition to breakfast Homewood Diner also offers a great meat and 3 lunch option. Check out their breakfast menu at their Facebook page: Facebook.com/HomewoodDiner

Enjoy!

T

 

 

O Sushi – Hoover, AL

Once again I found myself craving sushi. I started thinking about it at work and decided that was going to be my dinner. It was just going to be me so I was excited that I could make the choice of where to go. I decided to try a little family owned local place called O Sushi.

It is a cute place at the corner of a shopping center. I was greeted by the wonderfully friendly staff as soon as I walked in. They have a beautiful bamboo wall that separates the entrance from the main dining area.

Rather than sit at the sushi bar, I went for a small table so I could spread out a little more and just relax. It felt so private with the ornate screens in the window.

They were running a happy hour special on sake while I was there. I decided to get a small hot sake to start my relaxing evening.

 

Their menu had great options to choose from. There was hot and cold appetizers, classic rolls, specialty rolls, homemade ramen noodle soup, and bento boxes. I was really hungry and everything sounded delicious. However, since I was there by myself I knew I could not order too much.

I started with a bowl of miso soup. It was a classic broth with a few slices of seaweed wrapper and tofu. It acted as a great palate cleanser before my sushi came out.

I ordered the tuna tartare off the cold appetizer menu. This had spicy tuna, avocado, a seaweed salad, and fried wonton chips. The presentation was beautiful. The avocado slices lined the bottom of the plate and the finely chopped tuna was placed on top. Decorating the top of the tuna was the seaweed salad.

The tuna was tender and soft. The avocado added a creamy texture and the seaweed salad added crunch. It was the perfect combination. I really liked the seaweed salad. I was expecting it to be salty but it was not. It had a neutral taste that had great crunch but did not take away from the flavor of the tuna. The fried wontons were a great way to eat this dish. I wish I had gotten more of these because they were a great snack.

For my choice of roll, I went for a specialty one called the Caterpillar Roll. It was an eel roll wrapped on top with avocado and drizzled with eel sauce. This roll also had a beautiful presentation on the plate. I was very excited to take a picture of it. If you love avocado, then this is a roll that will make you happy.

The eel itself was fresh and tender. It was paired with a chunk of avocado and wrapped with seaweed and rice. Tightly rolled around the outside of the rice was more slices of avocado. This was the creamiest roll I have ever had. The eel sauce (which is one of my favorites) added sweet flavor to each bite. There was no reason to use any soy sauce with this roll because it was perfect just how the chef prepared it.

I really enjoyed my meal and I can’t wait to bring some friends and family here. There are so many other rolls I want to try. Plus, I want to try some homemade ramen on a cold day. Check out their menu at http://www.osushihoover.com/

Enjoy!

T

 

Mr. P’s Deli – Birmingham, AL

One of my great friends told me about a deli that was a must try. Heading up the mountain to Bluff Park between Birmingham and Hoover, Alabama is where I came across the little place called Mr. P’s Deli. It is a deli, butcher shop, and market all in one.

You can get an array of sandwiches to either eat there or take home.

Want to cook some fresh steaks or pork chops at home? Mr. P’s has you covered.

Need a bottle of wine to go with that steak? They have a nice selection of wine to choose from.

I stopped in at lunchtime and was exited to try one of their sandwiches. It was a tough choice but I finally picked the Big Italian Sub. It is a 1/3 pound sandwich packed with ham, salami, and provolone cheese on a white hoagie roll. It was the perfect size for lunch.

The sub came out toasty warm. The cheese was perfectly melted between the meats. The hoagie roll was fresh and soft, it made taking a bite so easy. They drizzled a balsamic vinegar dressing on one side of the hoagie roll. It added a sweet and tangy taste to the salty meats. Plus, the sub came with a crunchy dill pickle.

This was a great find and I am so glad my friend told me about it. I look forward to going back for another sandwich. Check out all their options at http://www.mrpdeli.com/

Enjoy!

T

 

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