Hominy Grill - Charleston, SC

March 26, 2011

Finally back to food posts again... =)


I feel like every city where you can find a lot of good food always has at least one small, charming, crazily busy and popular breakfast place.  In my childhood hometown (the SGV), that place was Marston's in Pasadena - insanely long lines for breakfast, at least an hour or two by nine am on the weekends (what is it about weekend breakfasts that make everyone think it is ok to wait that long for breakfast food, lol?  That is a rhetorical question btw, kind of anyway).  

In Charleston, that place is definitely Hominy Grill.  Ever since I've moved to the South, I've had a continual interest in finding the best of four different kinds of southern food: fried chicken, bbq, sweet tea, and grits.  In my visit to Hominy Grill, I was hoping to be lucky enough to find the best grits in the South (or at least a reasonable facsimile to compare to all the other grits I've tried).  And at least from the sign for the restaurant on the side of their building, it looked like I went to the right place!  

So, especially in the summertime, the waits on the weekend get really long (the typical hour or two that I mentioned above for Marston's is your typical guideline for a breakfast place like this), because it is a charmingly, but slightly irritatingly (at least while you are waiting) small place.  In Charleston, the long wait for table at Hominy Grill most likely result from all the tourists that come into the area from the North (and West) looking for a good ol' Southern breakfast. I've been to Hominy Grill on two occasions now - the first time on a Sunday in the summer, and the second on a Sunday in the last week of January.  The photo above is a partial view of all the people waiting outside for breakfast on a summer day - I actually couldn't get the whole group into the photo - and when we went in the dead of winter, there was no line - we walked right in, no wait, plenty of tables to choose from...well, you get the picture.  =)  I definitely enjoyed the second visit more - it felt much more intimate, with just locals sitting there and enjoying the beautiful mild winter day.  Is it worth the wait in the summer?  Hmm, difficult question, with no good answer - if you are a breakfast connoisseur, then probably.  If you aren't, then the wait might irritate you, especially if you are hungry.        

The first of a series of photos from our first summer breakfast at Hominy Grill, of a mimosa - (OJ and champagne, in case you've never ordered one) and a plain old cup of OJ that I ordered for myself off to the side.  What better to start off a breakfast on a nice day than people's two favorite drinks - OJ and alcohol?  =).

We ordered some fried green tomatoes with some ranch dressing (another one of those southern dishes you can only find in the South) as an appetizer.  They weren't particularly memorable to me - they just kind of filled me up, and I ended up feeling like I should have not ordered them...

The first of our main dishes for sunday brunch - an order of shrimp and grits.  Although there may be places with better grits (if you know of any, please tell me so I can try them!), these are the best I've had so far in the South.  It's kind of hard to explain why they were better...something about the texture and taste - smooth and creamy, yet also slightly thick and gritty, but also not too watered down.  I've had plenty of grits at different places before this, and have not been too impressed so far, but after eating the grits here, I understand why people can like them so much.  Cooking grits must be an art, not a science.  Anyway, I'm getting off topic.  The shrimp sauteed with mushrooms, bacon, and scallions on top was a sophisticated twist on the simple shrimp and grits I've had elsewhere, and were delicious also.  

The shrimp and grits came with a side of cornbread...

And you have to balance a savory breakfast dish with a sweet one, so we ordered some french toast - in this case, cinnamon french toast with an apple maple syrup and pecan butter.  The french toast was slightly crunch on the outside, thick and soft on the inside, and the cinnamon provided a nice spice contrast with the sweetness of the apple syrup.

This was the second of our sunday brunches at Hominy Grill, this time in January - although we were lucky, it was a gorgeous, warm day in the 60's, so we got to sit outside again.  I didn't feel like breakfast this time and I also saw a daily special on the menu that interested me more - a sliced pit roast lamb shoulder po' boy sandwich with molasses bbq sauce, on a french baguette.  It was served with a side of ginger cole slaw (vinegar based) and a piece of pickled okra.  I like the sandwich - the french baguette was soft, and the lamb had an slightly smoked flavor and a chewy texture.           

After enjoying their grits so much the first time, I of course had to order them again, at least a side of grits.  Just like last time, it was smooth, creamy, and thick (without being too thick that you it could hold up a spoon).  

We also ordered their onion, leek, mushroom, red bell pepper and goat cheese omelette (I think it was also a daily special, but I'm not sure).  This was actually the better of the two dishes - very tasty, and the goat cheese was mild, but flavorful.  It was served with home fries and toast.

We ordered dessert the second time around - we heard that their buttermilk pie was good, and so I couldn't go without ordering a slice!  It was incredibly delicious...I couldn't pick out the buttermilk flavor, but it was sweet and creamy, with just the slightest hint of lemon.  Awesome dessert, definitely a must try!

Short Street Cakes - Asheville NC

Short Street Cakes is a small bakery located on the outskirts of Asheville, and while the location itself is unassuming, the baked goods coming out of here are anything but ordinary. We stopped by here just before driving back to Columbia SC with hopes of getting a sweet snack to enjoy on the three hour drive back, but ended up with several extraordinary desserts, including a slice of chocolate ganache cake that was by far the best that I've ever had in my entire life! Even though I'm currently a whole state away from this place, part of me seriously wants to make the three hour drive back right now just so I can try some more of their desserts - of course, I have a major sweet tooth, but that kind of comes with the territory for a place like this =).

The bakery specializes in lots of vegetarian and gluten-free bakery options, which is pretty singular in itself, and they also do a lot of special-order cakes. The two cupcakes pictured above were both vegetarian, but still moist, and if someone did not tell me that before I ate it, I would not have been able to tell at all.

We also bought a slice of chocolate ganache cake - the only way I can describe this cake is to say that it was a slice of chocolate heaven. =) It was wonderfully moist, thick, and rich without being dense, and the flavor - well, frankly, words fail me. I can say that the chocolate flavor of this cake favorably compared in quality to the fudge brownie from Baked NYC, in that both just taste wonderfully "chocolatey" without being overly sweet. This place will now be a definite must-visit for me whenever I go to Asheville!

Aria - Atlanta, GA

On our first trip to Atlanta, we decided to go to Aria, a restaurant in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. I was expecting a good meal, but as I soon discovered, there are many delectable food offerings here, including one of the most well-prepared and delicious pieces of foie gras that I have eaten so far in my life, without a doubt. =) As a short back story, just a little while ago, I discovered photos I took from Aria and another restaurant while we were on a trip to Atlanta a long while back (a year or so back - I thought I lost the photos, but was happy to find them on a camera we don't usually use). Atlanta is actually the first big metropolitan city we traveled to while in the South, and we were quite happy to discover a wonderful restaurant like Aria on our first trip here. Onto the food!

Because we were in Georgia, it seemed only appropriate to start off the meal with a peach drink, in this case, a peach martini. It was lightly sweet and refreshing, with a piece of fresh peach on top.

We started off with a beet salad with goat cheese and arugula. (Apologies for the dark photos, I wasn't using my regular camera, and it didn't have a low light setting). The goat cheese was relatively mild, which I enjoyed, and the beets were very fresh. Delicious!

As a second appetizer, we ordered a foie gras dish with cherry compote. What was served to us was quite possibly the most delicious piece of foie gras I've ever had. Why? For starters, the serving size was excellent - sometimes, a restaurant serves pieces (sometimes slivers) of foie gras that are just too small to fully enjoy the flavor of foie gras. At Aria, they offer a healthy serving, which I appreciate a lot. Second, the foie gras was fresh - from a local farm in Georgia. Third, the foie gras was cooked perfectly, seared with just sea salt and fresh pepper. Fourth, it was paired very simply, with a little bit of cherry, which was a perfect pairing with the foie gras, because it was only slightly sweet, and the residual tartness matched well with the rich, full-bodied, deep flavor of the foie gras.

We enjoyed the foie gras so much that we ordered a second plate. Cholesterol busting? Yes, definitely. But it was completely worth it - this was a foie gras dish to end all foie gras dishes. Ok, that last bit was hyperbole, but I can say it was the best I've had so far in my life, and that is after eating at pretty good restaurants in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver, Las Vegas, and New York (pre-blog and post-blog).

As one of our main courses, we ordered the duck, paired with more seasonal cherries. Just like the foie gras dish, this was a generous, and much appreciated, larger serving of duck. =)

As our second main course, we ordered lamb prepared two ways: a slow cooked braised shoulder, and a rack of lamb. Both main courses we ordered - the duck and the lamb - were prepared very well and tasted delicious.

For dessert, one of my favorites - a simple sorbet. They offered four flavors - passion fruit, lemon, peach, and strawberry, on top of a meringue. It was also creatively presented - I liked the architectural whimsy - it was much more visually interesting than sorbet set out flat in a bowl or dish.

Our second dessert - a semolina pudding, served with fresh blueberries, raspberries, and vanilla ice cream.

Overall, our food experience at Aria was wonderful, and if I was closer to Atlanta, I would definitely be going there a lot more regularly. =)

My Doughboys Addiction - Back Again!!!

Doughboys is back, Doughboys is back!!!! http://www.doughboyscafe.com/. One of my favorite places to eat at in all of Los Angeles was closed in 2007, but it is open again in 2010, and everyone that lives in Southern California are the better for it. =). They have a new renovated exterior and interior, and, they now have an online ordering option! https://doughboyscafe.gimmegrub.com/. Even though I'm on the East Coast right now, I am tempted to order something online and fly back to Los Angeles just to eat there today at lunch =). Seriously. Do you think they would deliver to South Carolina? =).

In case you've never had the chance to go to Doughboys, you have to go and eat there at least once - they have the best red velvet cake in the city (Oprah once anointed the red velvet cake here as the best she's ever had west of the Mississippi), I think their breakfast offerings are one of the tastiest in Los Angeles, and their sandwiches, salads, and soups are truly top notch (bread is freshly baked and fresh) and delicious. Please go and support this wonderful location, this is one of my favorite places in Los Angeles, and I never want to see them close ever again.

I will obviously be back to Doughboys when I go back to Los Angeles, but until I can update this post again, and because the photos are at least helpful in showing how good the food at Doughboys is, below are some photos from my previous posts (Note: all the photos are of dishes are still offered on the Doughboys menu, I just checked, so the photos should be accurate. The posts also have more commentary on the food, just in case you need more info):

The warm portebello mushroom and pancetta salad.

S.O.S. - a breakfast dish, grilled asiago bread and home fries, topped with homemade beef and two steamed eggs - looks kind of unappetizing, but it tastes good, and even better as a leftover, as strange as it sounds. And yes, it does stand for something, look at my previous post if you're really interested.

The pan bagnat: Doughboy's fresh sourdough bread filled with a salad nicoise (tuna, artichoke, green beans, tomato, red onion, olives, capers, peppers, hard boiled egg, and pesto).

A "sandwich" (if you could call it that), called "The Monster" - one of my favorites, it tastes great, although it is really messy: a big, round piece of grilled foccacia (looks like a fat tortilla), topped with melted emanthal cheese, grilled onions, mushrooms, and roast beef, served hot, and open faced (it looks like a pizza and you eat it like a big taco). It comes with some shredded lettuce, diced tomato, and horseradish sauce

And the piece de resistance: tons of photos of their red velvet cake, truly delicious, sweet, moist, yummy cream cheese frosting - this is the best red velvet cake I've ever had, even after wandering around the South for awhile now.

This cake is sooo good, it deserves more than one photo...=)

And a closeup - it is prepared so well, and so moist, that you can easily see it in this photo!

Eat up! And please enjoy Doughboys as much as I will be!

A Three Hour Tour of Devereaux's - Greenville SC

On a short weekend trip to Greenville, South Carolina awhile back, we took the opportunity to expand our indulge our tastebuds at Devereaux's, a restaurant that definetly aspires to offer a high-end culinary experience like you would get a big metropolitan city like Atlanta, New York, or Los Angeles. It had been awhile since I had a good, creative meal, and after hearing good comments about the place, I was excited to try the food there. The atmosphere of the restaurant itself is very comfortable - warm, but dim lighting (great for dates, bad for my blog post =P), exposed brick walls, etc. However, the space itself is pretty large with higher ceilings, and depending on where you sit, you might get a slight feeling of a cavernous space, rather than a more intimate one.

As for the food, we of course ordered "The Chef's Ultimate Tasting Menu" after finding out something like that was on the menu, because I love to see how creative chefs can get with their food (especially with fond memories of my more recent meals at Fleur de Lys and Water Grill). Devereaux's offers a standard tasting menu of five courses, and the "Chef's Ultimate Tasting Menu" of ten courses. A ten course meal is never going to be cheap, and the one offered here is not for the faint of heart (price-wise), but if you're a foodie, can you ever say no to a large variety of food? I can't. =).

Before getting into the meal, a couple of overall comments about the tasting menu: Overall, Chef Devereaux Greene definetly has an impecabble sense of modern, minimalist food presentation, as you will be able to tell from the photos. And some of the dishes were truly very delicious, although a bit small at times. However, I do have a couple of service-related critiques that hopefully the restaurant can improve on. First, the waiter, although friendly and gracious, could have had more knowledge about the food, and it seemed that he had a lot of area to cover, so we didn't seem him very much. Second, the timeliness of the dishes was a problem - it took three and a half hours for the entire meal to be completed....Gilligan and his friends took a three hour boat tour of Hawaii that they were planning to be shorter than the length of our meal. That comes out to be about twenty minutes between each dish, and with the amount of food provided on each dish, it didn't take long to finish it. We had exhausted every topic of conversation twice over by the time dessert was served. Admittedly, we do eat pretty fast anyway, but a high-end restaurant should have its waiters communicating with the chef to adjust the timing of the dishes served.

Anyway, enough service-related comments. We are really here to enjoy the food, right?


First, we were served an amuse bouche: a crab salad with cumin and carrot puree. A very nice, light start to the meal, and I enjoyed the color and flavors provided by the puree.

Second for the meal was a Tasmanian salmon sashimi, served with a cucumber flower. I've eaten a lot of high-quality salmon sashimi at some very good Japanese restaurants, and this stood head-to-toe with them. The dish was excellent, and one of the highlights of the night for the both of us. The presentation with the cucumber flower was a very nice touch also.

Next, we were served a two-part dish: on the left, an apple and beet tartar, and on the right, a gazapacho with beef.

For our fourth dish, we were presented with a celery root soup with smoked bacon and potato. A little bit too creamy, but I enjoyed the smokiness of the bacon.

Next, a grilled tiger prawn with apple salad. The most underwhelming dish of the night for me, partly because I felt that it would have been more effective with at least two or three, instead of just one tiger prawn. I enjoy minimalist dishes as much as the next person, but too little on a dish seems a bit parsimonious.

The sixth dish was foie gras on a french baguette with bittersweet chocolate and passion fruit. The quality of the foie gras was pretty good, and I enjoyed the contrast in texture between it an the baguette.

A Japanese red snapper in bonito broth. The bonito broth was a bit too light, and could definetly had more body, but it was interesting to see such a simple Japanese dish in this mix of food, but I appreciated the timing of the dish, to balance out the heaviness of the foie gras before we ate the next dish...

The eighth dish was the best dish of the night, in both our opinions: It was quail prepared three ways: at the top, a flash fried quail leg encrusted with panko and stuffed with beef tenderloin; in the middle, pan seared quail breast; and not visible (under the quail breast) was quail risotto. It was a creative trio of quail - the quail leg was fried perfectly with a very enjoyable contrast in texture with the beef tenderloin, the pan seared quail breast was quite succulent and juicy, and the risotto had a deep, mellow, flavor.

The last main course was a soux vide beef short rib. Like all soux vide dishes, the short rib was very tender.

I don't like strong cheeses, so honestly, I didn't appreciate this next dish very much - a Roquefort cheese and jam.

A pre-dessert palate cleanser: a lemon posset (basically, a simple lemon/key lime pudding).

Lastly, at the end of three and a half hours, we were finally served our dessert: carrot cake with vanilla ice cream.

Shealy's BBQ - Columbia SC area (Batesburg-Leesville)

Shealy's BBQ is probably one of the favorite and more well-known southern bbq buffets in South Carolina, and for good reason - it has an incredible spread of Southern food that I haven't seen matched at any of the bbq restaurants I've been to so far (but they don't have one of my favorites, hush puppies, what's up with that??). It is deep within the SC countryside, almost a one hour drive away from Columbia, with at least twenty to thirty minutes of that drive off the I-20 exit. But the drive is good in a way, because by the time you get there, you will definitely have developed an appetite for the food, and it is all-you-can-eat! =)

The restaurant itself is very large, with at least three large areas to seat everyone (you get assigned area to sit in after you pay), but it still fills up very quickly. When we got there, we still waited in line for about ten-fifteen minutes or so before getting a seat, but the line moves pretty quickly.

With these Southern BBQ buffets, my general approach is to take photos of individual parts of the food spread to show what they offer, but there was so much food here and it was so busy that I didn't have a chance to take photos of the area like I usually do (and, I ended up missing some of the food - I got all the hot food that Shealy's was offering, but totally neglected their cold vegetable section...cole slaw, potato salad, salad greens, etc. So the fact that you don't see photos of that doesn't mean they don't offer it!). Instead, I got individual portions of everything that I could get my hands on...I was stuffed by the end of the meal, but can't say I didn't try to show y'all everything at Shealy's! =)

For my first dish, I grabbed some of my favorite Southern foods: fried chicken, hash (for a hash explanation, please look at my post for Little Pigs), creamed corn, some green beans, and some corn bread.

I couldn't fit everything I wanted to on the first plate, so I grabbed a bowl as well, and grabbed some mustard and vinegar pulled pork bbq as well as collard greens. Yep, a bowl of meat. =)

One of the specialities at Shealy's is their pulley bone chicken - a piece of fried chicken cut around the pulley bone. Where is that, may you ask? I previously had no idea before going to Shealy's, but I found out it refers to the wishbone area of the chicken. This piece of chicken was cooked pretty well; it was pretty juicy despite being white meat, and the texture of this chicken piece was a bit chewier than eating a chicken breast, if that makes any sense. Interesting, but I still prefer my dark meat. =)

I enjoyed the fried chicken at Shealy's a lot (but not more than my favorite place in Columbia, Palmetto Pig) - I thought it was good enough to grab some more in a second round, along with some other hot food they offered: some lima beans, pasta (not my favorite, I should have grabbed some cole slaw or potato salad), as well as more creamed corn and a dinner roll (you're better off with the cornbread IMHO, they are no different than any other dinner roll I've had purchased in a market).

After two plates and a bowl of meat, I was definitely ready for dessert. And Shealy's does not disappoint! Two types of fruit cobbler (peach and apple), two types of pudding (banana and an unknown flavor), as well as apple pie! I love my desserts, and this was quite enjoyable for me.

If the first dessert plate wasn't enough, I also saw a soft-serve ice cream machine on the way back, and being a dessert glutton, I wasn't going to leave Shealy's without eating some soft serve as well! =) They definitely have something for everyone! (Thanks to Alyssa for letting me borrow her IPhone for photos, got so excited about this place I forgot my camera!)