Foodie Friday Fun
* note: I didn’t get to post this yesterday, so Foodie Friday Fun will go up on Saturday!
I haven’t done a food post here lately, so I figured I would write about this weeks adventures all in one post.
As it is, I really hadn’t been out and about much anyway until this week due to being SO super busy. However I managed to catch up in just a matter of days.
It started off with a private gathering to sample some of the beers that Lazy Dog Growlers has to offer. Something I always find interesting is that there are more varieties of beer than there are of wine, as we were told during the tasting (and I have heard before).
I also got to have a tour of the unfinished Tubman Museum- it’s going to be totally unreal when this thing is finished, y’all. I’m thinking it’ll also be the next hotspot for downtown parities and fundraisers. It will be simply beautiful.
Afterwards, I met my friend Katie for dinner at Tic Toc Room. This is the home of my foodie epiphany, so to speak, and where I had one of my very first high end restaurant jobs during college. One of the most fun parts of working there was when I got to help come up with ideas for the new menu.
When I arrived, Katie had already ordered the hummus to start out with. Hummus is one of those simple items that can vary so much from place to place- to the point of being either superbly sublime or just untouchable. As I am sure you can tell, there was no problem with this kind.
I decided this evening to treat myself. It had been a little while since I had gone to Tic Toc, so I ordered the Filet Oscar: a beef tenderloin with crab meat and Hollandaise sauce, on top of whipped potatoes and asparagus. This has always been one of my favorite items at Tic Toc, and sometimes I’ll even substitute the Hollandaise for the Bearnaise. It was a tough choice between this item and the petit filet, but the crab meat won me over 😉
Katie would order the pork loin with the Bourbon glaze and completed with the smoked Gouda macaroni and cheese. That Gouda macaroni- wow. It’s SO rich, almost to the point of being a dessert- but not quite, and in a good way. Otherwise you wouldn’t be able to concentrate on anything else!
Phew! Can you say stuffed? Because I know I sure was. And to make it even better, Chef Julio would send out a decadent dessert that I ended up having to take home.
The next evening, i would make it back to my usual haunt at Dovetail, and got sufficient grief from some of the staff for not being in lately. After all, there was a time when I was there twice a week- and now I hadn’t been in in nearly a month. Hey- success keeps you busy! But, I got back out. Sadly, I didn’t have my Nikon with me so I didn’t get the superb pictures like you see above- but I did have good ol’ Instagram to document the event.
We got the cheese plate to share, but then I ordered something that I don’t usually get: the duck. I had this duck by accident the last time I was in there, for the Macon Pops performance, because somehow our order got mixed up. It was amazing then and it was amazing the other night as well.
This duck breast is grilled and served on Red Mule Grits with tomato jam, toasted walnuts and feta. You might think tomato jam sounds odd, but I think it’s like a divine bite of Southern charm. I don’t know what they do to it but I couldn’t even tell that it was a tomato jam. It brings out the sweetness of the tomato and when eaten with the duck and grits provides a mix of delight and intrigue.
When it came time for dessert, Tristan suggested the Dovetail strawberry shortcake. I let my friend choose what she wanted, and she went for it. I’ll admit, when Tristan said it was made with Georgia Olive Oil- I had to look at him sideways, complete with one arched eyebrow. Olive oil? Really? But yes, it’s made of a Georgia olive oil cake, with ginger and strawberry puree, and strawberry buttermilk ice cream.
I don’t know why I even questioned them. I should know better by now. I wouldn’t have ever ordered even the duck if it hadn’t been brought by mistake that time- and I would rather be a trooper than send something back. Now, that duck is a favorite.
So, what kinds of foodie adventures have YOU had lately? I have a few scheduled on my horizon- so keep your eyes out for more foodie fun- even if I don’t post it on a Friday!
Love to all y’all,
Molly
