TUPELO HONEY CAFE

She says:
While in Asheville, we also re-visited one of my favorite spots - Tupelo Honey Café. As expected, we waited outside for a good 30 minutes before getting in for a late lunch. This is how we found the restaurant in the first place... If there are a dozen people waiting outside, it must be good, right?

Even though the contemporary Southern cuisine Tupelo Honey Café is cooking up is actually pretty healthy and environmentally savvy, it still satisfies the craving for some good old comfort food. My nutty fried chicken was made with organic, free-range chicken scaloppine (cutlets that are pounded so that the chicken is thin for frying), and didn't have the slightest hint of oiliness. It was smothered in creamy gravy and came with some scrumptious veggies - asparagus and mashed sweet potatoes (though the potatoes could have been creamier) - and, of course, a biscuit. Overall, I wouldn't say the food is extraordinary, but comforting and wholesome - yes.

He says:
I had the fried chicken on my first visit to Tupelo, and I agree with Uptown Girl's assessment; it's good but it won't blow your mind. The same thing can be said about the grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup I ordered for lunch. The grilled cheese can be ordered with two types of cheese (choices include swiss, cheddar, brie, havarti, gorgonzola, goat, or pimento) on Texas toast. I opted for the Brie and cheddar. The result was pretty darn good - how can a grilled cheese not be? - but it could have been magnificent if Tupelo had used higher quality cheeses. A sharper cheddar would have contrasted beautifully with a rich, double-cream Brie, but Tupelo settles for generic cheeses. Consequently the sandwich doesn't live up to its potential.

A side order of pesto grit cakes sounded promising but didn't properly execute; the pesto wasn't strong enough to liven up the grits. But while my meal was a little shaky, the atmosphere more than made up for it.

She says:
Tupelo Honey is a casual place, bustling with the comings and goings of customers and the informal service of hippie waitresses. We unknowingly got the best seats in the house - the kitchen counter. We took them in order to get seated faster, but sitting next to each other at the wide wooden counter was far more intimate than staring across the expansive tables that fill the café. Plus we got to watch the cooks in action, jovially joking around as they grilled chicken and sautéed vegetables.

We say:
Whether it's the contemporary spin on southern cooking, the relaxed atmosphere of the café itself, or just that it's in a great location and has a great name, there's something about Tupelo Honey that really draws a crowd ... so be prepared to wait!




Tupelo Honey Café
12 College Street, Asheville, NC 28801
http://www.tupelohoneycafe.com/

TABLE

He says:
When Uptown Girl and I first stumbled across Table while wandering the charming back alleyways of Asheville, NC last year, this upscale eatery seemed, at least to me, nothing short of a revelation. While most of the other restaurants in the vicinity were folksy establishments serving mediocre platters on heavy china, Table offered itself as a clear counterpoint of smart design and good taste. With its square serving dishes and waiters garbed in avant-garde black, let's just say Table seems more Upper East Side than Cold Mountain.

But great food always speaks for itself, and Table does plenty of talking. The Croque-monsieur I ordered on that initial brunchtime visit was simply stupendous, perhaps the best single dish I had tasted since moving to the Southeast. The combination of grilled ham, Gruyere cheese, and béchamel sauce appears deceptively simple at first, but that stunningly complex first bite will quickly convince you otherwise.

She says:
A year later, we were back in Asheville, and with Downtown Boy's enthusiasm for that Croque-monsieur unwavering, a trip back to Table was inevitable. This time it was for dinner.

We started with a delicious and delicate appetizer of escargot, which came, untraditionally, mixed with a light cream sauce on a small bed of pappardelle (don't quote me on the cream sauce).

I also enjoyed my North Carolina scallops, which were very fresh and flawlessly seared. They came with a fruit puree (my memory is eluding me on the details of this one too), which contrasted nicely with the scallops and really made the dish. But the best part was actually the grapefruit, radicchio and lobster salad. You can probably add lobster to any salad and make it taste great, but the sweet bitterness of the grapefruit and the subtle richness of the lobster meat made a particularly great combo.

He says:
The lamb shank served with kale and potato gratin is a true gut-buster, nearly rivaling Vinocity's "mastodon" pork shank. If the Vinocity's offering was the size of a varsity football, then Table's was the JV version. Bigger isn't always better though, and I would have gladly sacrificed half my plate for a more tender cut with a bolder and more sophisticated braising sauce. I wasn't too wild for the sauted kale either, but the mushroom potato gratin was superb. Chef-owners Jacob and Alicia Sessoms certainly have the skills to perform magic with their cooking, but I'm not sure if it applies to all their entrees ... at least not yet. Ultimately though, I simply cannot complain about the food at Table, especially when they serve such an excellent cup of post-dinner coffee.

We say:
The only thing we can really complain about is the price, which the website mistakenly describes as "moderately priced." Shrinking wallets aside, Table is the fine-dining gem of Asheville.



Table
48 College Street, Asheville, NC 28801
http://www.tableasheville.com/

SALA

He says:
When it comes right down to it, Sala doesn’t dazzle you with its food, even if it was rated the best Mexican restaurant in Atlanta by Citysearch in 2007. Nevertheless, the festive atmosphere and friendliness of the staff make a visit to this Virginia Highland mainstay a worthwhile trip.

The first thing you might notice about Sala is the wondrous array of Aztec masks jutting from the wine-colored walls; it’s a quirky touch of personality. The second thing you might notice is just how well the restaurant is laid out. The interior tables and booths along the perimeter are placed the perfect distance away such that the surrounding conversations give the place a lively buzz without rising to an obnoxious volume. On our last visit, even the screaming gaggle of girlfriends trading Christmas gifts two tables over didn’t entirely distract us from our meal.

She says:
None of the entrees were calling to me that night, so I sampled a few appetizers instead. The orange and jicama salad was fresh and zingy, and the duck taquitos were crispy and meaty, although the "duckiness" really didn’t stand out. The chile relleno was my favorite… The monstrous poblano chile (seriously, this is the biggest chile I’ve ever seen!) was stuffed with cheese and coated with chipotle sauce. The vivid and spicy flavor of the poblano distinguished it from other chile rellenos I’ve had.

He says:
The wood-roasted pork with tomatillo-cascabel sauce and Oaxacan cheese I ordered was a serviceable if unspectacular dish. The pork was not as tender as I would have liked, and it relied almost entirely on the zesty cascabel sauce for its flavor. However, even this average platter stood head and shoulders over the uber-bland vanilla egg custard that followed for dessert.

We say:
Sala is not a place for gourmands, but its overall charm can make for a great night out with friends.



Sala
1186 N. Highland Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30306
http://www.sala-atlanta.com/index.htm