This morning, I set out for my long-standing Saturday morning ritual of breakfast at Italian Market and Grill. I arrived to find a perfunctory sign on the door stating they've gone out of business.

I'll miss that place. They had the best biscuits & gravy in town.

I posted more about it here.

Anybody have the scoop on what happened?

We went to Ruth's Chris for our anniversary celebration. Even though I didn't think we'd need one on a Wednesday night, I made a reservation. (You can make them online.) It's a good thing we did. They were packed. The bar was full, there were guests at every table, a banquet room in the back and the one downstairs both had parties.

The restaurant was slammed. Amid the controlled chaos, the staff stayed remarkably composed, but tensions were showing. It affected the service and the food, and not in a good way.

"It was really more like some sort of Sea Monkey holocaust than a drunken shrimp party."

(From this review at MetroBlogging Nashville.)

Finally made it over to the new Tomato Head in Maryville yesterday. Our review is here. Bonus feature: Free Parking!

We finally made it back over to the Foothills Milling Company last night to see if it is still as good as we remember from the first review.

It is.

Read more...

The Maryville Daily Times reports the excellent news that we're getting a new Cuban restaurant in Blount County.

Tostones is set to open in early August in the New Midland Plaza shopping center. The article has a great tutorial on Cuban food.

That's one of the things we miss about Florida, good Cuban restaurants, and especially Cuban sandwiches. (Even the Publix Supermarket delis down there would make you a great Cuban sandwich.)

We've tried the place over on Homberg, but it seems to be hit or miss.

This new place at Midland sounds like it will be pretty great, and certainly more convenient for us folks over here in Blount Co.

UPDATE: Cool, looks like they've already got their website up and running, sort of.

UPDATE: A reader recommends A Taste of Havana in Fountain City, just at the start of Tazewell Pike (just off Broadway) near Rita's Bakery and National Fitness Center.

Some have wondered whether or not America's best days are behind it. Others have asked if the sun is setting on the world's sole superpower.

In 12 glorious minutes, a 23-year-old from San Jose, CA, put those fears to bed:

In a gut-busting showdown that combined drama, daring and indigestion, Joey Chestnut emerged Wednesday as the world's hot dog eating champion, knocking off six-time winner Takeru Kobayashi in a record-setting yet repulsive triumph.

Chestnut, the great red, white and blue hope in the annual Fourth of July competition, broke his own world record by inhaling 66 hot dogs in 12 minutes — a staggering one every 10.9 seconds before a screaming crowd in Coney Island.

The coveted Mustard Belt is back home on America soil.

Russ McBee (who, by the way, is a great recent addition to the Tennessee blogosphere whose blog you should be reading) has tagged me with another one of these blog chain letter/meme things. Read more...

The Riverside Tavern is still open. Apparently the Ruth's Chris Steak House takeover has been delayed, at least for a while. We are told that Riverside will remain open under the current setup until at least July 1st.

UPDATE: Another source says the end of this month is it for Riverside. And either way, there are concerns about getting the renovations done in time for U.T. Football season.

Check out this guy's recipe that got him in the Krystal Lovers Hall of Fame.

As a follow up to the previous news about Ruth's Chris buying the Riverside Tavern...

We hear it's a done deal, and Riverside will be closing May 13th for renovations. We heard a figure of $6 million, not sure if that includes renovations, but it apparently doesn't include the lease for the land with apparently belongs to the U.S. federal government.

Employees aren't sure of their fate. From what we've heard they aren't being told much except that Ruth's Chris will start with a "clean slate" with the possible exception of some managers who would undergo retraining in Orlando.

All of this is rumor and hearsay, for what it's worth.

Saw this headline in the Maryville Daily Times and was a little disappointed.

The good news, though, is that they are negotiating with Ruth's Chris Steak House. So at least it won't be a Ruby's on the River or something. Ruth's Chris is pretty nice and that would be a fabulous location for them.

Sandy Beall is quoted in the Maryville Daily Times article: "It's a high-quality restaurant chain and they treat each location like a locally owned and operated restaurant. They have a solid management team, and it would be fantastic for Knoxville."

It's possible that the best restaurant in Knoxville isn't in Knoxville. It may be in Maryville. In fact, it may be one of Blount County's best kept secrets.

Speaking of breakfast, thanks to Up Goose Creek for organizing Breakfast at Patty's and to everyone who showed up.

We had RedmondKR, Mello, Up Goose Creek, Betty Bean, Rikki, friends of RedmondKR's who came later and I apologize I don't remember their names, the Mrs. and me, and Mello's special surprise guest, Blount Co. Commissioner Wendy Pitts Reeves.

(Oh, and Caner1 stopped by and revealed herself. She runs the gifts and antiques shop next door to Patty's and apparently does a pretty good business on eBay.)

There was a whole lot of yakking and gossip going on with this bunch, and it was great meeting some of the new folks in person for the first time.

It was fun, and the food was great. The pancakes were as huge as they were the first time we were there, and I don't think anyone finished them. And special thanks to Up Goose Creek for the custom made tin-foil hat and the I (heart) South Knox badges.

If y'all are over in the Rockford/Alcoa/East Maryville area, check out Patty's Place Cafe for breakfast or lunch. But make sure you're hungry.

We stopped by for a late breakfast. I had...

Have you ever driven by the Shrimp Dock on Kingston Pike and thought about stopping in for some fresh shrimp, fish, gumbo, etc. but didn't because you were on a mission and thought it would spoil before you got home?

Here's a tip:

They sell these nice little logo/branded soft-side coolers (with a free bag of ice) for $5. It kept our shrimp and crab cakes cool for about two hours as we finished errands. We'll keep ours in the car from now on. The proprietor says they're a bargain because they will be collector's items someday. OK, then.

Another tip: they will peel your shrimp for $1 per pound. Tail on or tail off, your choice. And they're fast at peeling shrimp, so there's very little waiting.

P.S. In addition to fresh shrimp and fish, they have a nice selection of fresh/frozen crawfish, lobster, crab, octopus, squid, and gator tail. They also have a great assortment of etouffees, gumbos, and bisques, plus assorted Louisiana style condiments and ingredients.

The Shrimp Dock
5210 Kingston Pike
Knoxville Tennessee 37919-5018
(Map)

Hours
Monday - Saturday
10:00 am - 6:00 pm

One of our annual traditions has been to go to Pizza Palace for a pizza and a curbside Budweiser on the Friday after Thanksgiving as a sort of turkey antidote.

But we had so many leftovers, and they were so good, and we ate so much at two family Thanksgiving dinners that I guess we didn't have room left for pizza. Maybe next year.

Or maybe later this week. I think we had the final turkey dinner for a while last night, and the rest is in the freezer except for scraps that are going into turkey soup, turkey salad, turkey casserole, or turkey pot pie, not sure yet.

Anyway, what's your antidote for turkey overdose?

First and foremost I'd like to encourage y'all to drop by for pumpkin pie at the Greek Chevron on Chapman Highway. When hot out of the oven it is out of this world. Unlike the traditional pumpkin pie it is made with filo dough for crust and the filling has a chunky texture and great flavor. A slice is $1.50 and you can order a whole pie for $14.95. Limited time only.

As for the South Waterfront project I don't know what to report. It seems to have gone from "let's save the quaint neighborhoods" to "well we'll keep the form of the neighborhoods but new buildings can be 3 1/2 stories high but don't worry they'll fit in just fine because of all the street trees we'll plant after we squeeze a 50' road section into a 35' wide r.o.w...."

One thing I do know is that the Greek Chevron is slated to become a park. I hope that they can find a replacement location in the neighborhood.

Yet another employee v. customer incident at McDonald's. Bonus: law enforcement jurisdiction controversy. But again, no gunplay, so there's that.

This one is a cranberry/apple. The Granny Smiths are from North Carolina and the cranberries from, I suppose, some bog near Cape Cod. The pie is fairly tart, so it's good to add something like Breyer's French Vanilla ice cream. The plate is by Russel Wright, made in Liverpool, Ohio, around 1946 and found at the Powell Flea Market (remember that one?) several years ago.

The inmates residents here at the Cheneworth Gap Home spent the day smoking half a dozen brined chickens and baking our first ever fresh pineapple upside-down cake á la cast iron.  The smokin' we know.  The cast iron business will come to us in time.

BH, the slide show was created using a generator in an old Photoshop 7.0 that was tweaked a bit (We teach that here at the Home).  Do you know if they offer campfire cooking classes at the correctional facility?

made with NC granny smiths

My wife just got back from her thrice yearly trip to LPM. That's London-Paris-Milan to us non-fashionistas. She didn't get the Milan leg in but she did get a wine buying spree in. You may have already heard, but the 2005 Bourdeaux is stunning. Wow. I am amazed by the one bottle I dared to open. I don't want to finish it, but finish I must!

Chateau Haut Glanet 2005 -- It's an chateau bottled example that runs the low-end of the French market (5.56EUR). A big opener that was warm to start then mellows into currants, cherries and a strong hit of the terroir. The finish was slightly tannic with no heat as befitting a truly nice wine. I had a snoggle of Opus One recently and this approaches and it is less than $7 a bottle. No kidding.

The other bottles I got are more upscale, but wine writers are saying drink now until forever. I advice is the press your local store to get bottles of the low-end stuff in. It is as good as it gets and might drive you to invest in a couple or three of the pricer vintages. 

Overheard at Italian Market & Grill:

Teen girl: Jesus, I love omelets.
Teen boy: I don't think Jesus would've approved of omelets.
Teen girl: Why not?
Teen boy: Because of the ham. Jews don't eat ham.
Teen girl: He wasn't a Jew, He was a Christian. His name is Jesus H. Christ, not Jesus H. Jew. God, you're so stupid.

Happy Rosh Hashanah.

Good news for Blount County. The Tomato Head is opening a new location in downtown Maryville.

We got around to trying the new Salsarita's over here in Blount Co. The McAllister's Deli also opened this week and we tried it out, too.

Salsarita's is a fancier Taco Bell with a few more options. Plus cilantro. Not bad. Not great. Wouldn't plan a visit, but might stop by in a pinch.

McAlister's is a fancier Subway with more options plus salads and baked potatoes. It was better than expected. It doesn't suck. They even have an imitation muffuletta that might fool a faux Cajun from Minnesota.

(Service at McAlister's was head and shoulders above the recently opened Panera's, where the service most definitely sucked.)

There were numerous SUVs and W stickers in evidence at both places, filled with disgusting, foul-smelling carnivores and their evil spawn, spewing poison and gauche from suburban chariots of hellfire and doom. All within sight of a Super Wal*Mart. Al Gore could not be reached for comment.

(Ed. note: For anyone late to the party, the title and tone of this post are in reference to the discussion of previous restaurant review.)

this one's a white peach and wild blackberry. all local fruit. the blackberries were picked in july and frozen until pie time. i took the advice of one of the knoxviews bloggers and weaved the lattice crust.

I stopped by the Greek Deli at the Chapman Highway Chevron and ordered the Gyro which was quite good with a refreshing sour cream(?) sauce. I got a free sample of Al-Hubh sauce thinking this might be good to take to a party as a dip but anyone who came near would get garlic breath not to mention the poppyseeds might get your drug tested pals thrown off the job. The service was cheerful but a bit slow as a family of former Katrina evacuees on their way to Pennsylvania from Texas had arrived right before me. Usually you get pretty quick service. Pretty good baklava, too.

Now that I’ve gotten your attention, shall we discuss the urban renewal that’s threatening this place of business? I asked the owner where she would go if the city took the deli for a park and she said “I’ll answer that when the city really does take this for a park… meanwhile I’ve got enough things to worry about” and “this building’s been here 60 years, it’s not going anywhere”. Now I’m confused. I thought denial was a river in Egypt, what’s it doing in a Greek Deli? More likely she was so busy with the store she didn’t read the paper.

Now the city is all set to advertise an urban redevelopment zone. The city says they’re going to protect the neighborhoods but haven’t quite gotten around to giving out any legal language to that effect. There’s not even a pretense they’ll protect the businesses on Chapman Highway. My heart won’t break if the muffler place moves a little farther out but a convenience store/deli is a real asset to the neighborhood. Can this kind of place afford the rent in a brand new condo tower?

We got our first taste tonight of Fleming's Steak House, and our last.

The food was acceptable, but not great. Service was slow and inattentive. The dining area is one big room that's excessively noisy and dark. The margarita I tasted was watery. My first Nut Brown Ale was cold, and the second one was warm.

In exchange for indifferent service and bad drinks, you pay too much money. Imported beers were $4.50, and our entrees were $25 to $35, served a la carte. We thought that three of the four entrees were stingy. If you want prime rib, come back on Sunday, which is the only day it's served.

Next time we'll go to Connor's, which is also in Turkey Creek. They have almost the same menu, with better food, better prices, and better service.