CROAKER'S SPOT RESTAURANT - RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

During our recent trip to Richmond, Virginia a friend recommended we visit the Croaker's Spot Restaurant. What we heard as they described how wonderful this restaurant was "soul" food. What we found was the "soul of seafood".

We were told to go early and we did. Best advice ever! Croaker's lines were out the door and wrapped around the building and it wasn't one 'clock in the afternoon! Once again, the building was small. Too small for the clientele they serve. It was crazy at best! We waited some forty minutes before we were finally taken to a table. And then the wait times got down right ridiculous!

The atmosphere was extremely pleasant and the service was good. The staff was personable and friendly and everyone there seemed to be enjoying themselves. Our server introduced herself fairly quickly and took our drink orders. Twelve minutes later we were still waiting for those two sweet teas to come to the table. But we didn't fret. It gave us time to study the menu.

Clearly, there was some misunderstanding in the translation that we were looking for "soul" food. This is not your fried chicken and collard greens kind of establishment. It's heavy seafood with a soulful spin.

When the waitress finally returned after that twelve minutes I ordered the Shrimp and Grits. It was shrimp sautéed western style with peppers, onions, and mushrooms served with cheddar ranch grits and a block of cornbread. Big Daddy ordered the Eggleston's Fried Fish Boat. It was two fillets of fried fish adorned with a "secret" sauce of bell peppers and onions with house potatoes and cornbread. Big Daddy requested that sauce be put on the side since he wasn't feeling secret sauce with his fried fish.

And this is where the experience nose dived for me. We sat for exactly 48 minutes to get our meal. 48 MINUTES! It was fish and seafood! They cook faster than anything else and it took 48 minutes to get ours to the table. Big Daddy joked that the cook drove to the coast, pulled the shrimp traps, dropped his fishing line, caught our dinner, drove back and then cooked the meal! He joked but I was hungry and it wasn't funny.

To say that we were disappointed is putting it mildly. My shrimp were tough and I am not a fan of their cheese grits. I didn't like them and I love cheese grits. The cornbread looked good. It was oversized and heavy. But it tasted of too much backing soda/powder and not cornmeal. I also like a sweet cornbread and this was neither sweet nor cornbreadish. It was not good to me. 

He was okay with his fried whiting. It wasn't bad but it wasn't spectacular. The potatoes were okay as well. I did like the "secret" sauce. It reminded me of chow chow or mango chutney. It had a very nice flavor and I would eat it again.

I won't count out this place. I wish I'd ordered the crab stuffed salmon. The man at the table beside us did and it looked spectacular. He seemd to be enjoying it as well. We both agree that our expectations were too high. As well, the lengthy wait time made us, or me, testy. Then when the meal was just mediocre it was a formula for disaster. But I would definitely give them another try and I would do it within minutes of them opening the front door!

MAMA J's - RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

I love when we travel! I get very excited when I start Googling restaurants for us to try. Admittedly, I'm food-obsessed, so it's like finding a new vein of drug to explore and try. I probably need an intervention or some form of rehab but as I often say to Big Daddy, if food is my only vice, it's an addiction I can live with. Recently we were in Richmond, Virginia for the season two premiere of author Iris Bolling's The Heart TV series.

Our first night a friend gave us two suggestions to try. My Google search put them at number one and number two on the best places to eat in Richmond. We both got very excited! Our first choice was Mama J's Kitchen which promised authentic soul food. When we arrived, there was a line waiting to get inside. We took that as a good sign. The building is exceptionally small. There is enough table seating for maybe twenty-five to thirty people with an additional eight seats at the bar. Business is brisk as they also do take out and that was a whole other line! The wait wasn't as lengthy as we initially predicted and we were seated in under thirty minutes. 

There were only two servers and a third person who seemed to do nothing but deliver food and plates to the tables. The two servers were hustling about taking orders. The young man who was delivering the food didn't move with any sense of urgency. I'm thinking that if he had hustled a little harder, the lines might not have been that long.  The young woman who took our initial order was very pleasant. Then the tide turned as she stood huddled with one group of young men and then another, someone or something souring her mood. Service went downhill from there.

One of the servers had recommended the pork chops, promising Big Daddy that he would not be disappointed. I chose the fried catfish. The portions were large so I traded the big guy one of mine for one of his.  Sides are a la carte. He opted for the mashed potatoes and gravy and I selected the macaroni and cheese. A single dinner roll came with our plates.

Now, I'm not a fan of a la carte menus. I believe they only serve to run up the bill in order for you to get a full meal. I tend not to order much when all of the sides are a la carte but that's just me and Big Daddy doesn't always agree with me.

The fish was my favorite part of the meal. It was nicely breaded, the cornmeal coating absolutely divine. It was seasoned nicely and fried to sheer perfection. We have had better pork chops. They were just okay. Half the flour coating had fallen off so part was crispy and part wasn't. It was also exceptionally greasy, indicating that the oil might not have been hot enough when it was put into the fryer. And don't even get me started on that one cold dinner roll! It was really bad. The sides were nothing to write home about. I enjoyed the macaroni and cheese but I was also hungry. It wasn't the best I've ever had but it also wasn't the worse. The same can be said about mashed potatoes. The sweet tea was just okay and since getting our server to handle refills seemed to be a challenge, it wasn't anything special either.

Since we'd heard much about their desserts we ordered a slice of their chocolate chocolate cake to share. Hands down that was the best part of the whole meal. We devoured it before I could get a picture! The cake was rich, decadent with the creamiest icing. If we hadn't been full we would have ordered another slice!

We weren't disappointed with our meal but we weren't as thrilled as we had hoped to be. On a scale of one through ten I'd give it a seven. He gave it a six. We'd both try them again and we'd order the fish.

JOYCE & FAMILY RESTAURANT and CATERING - FUQUAY VARINA, NC

We live for an All-You-Can-Eat Buffet! Especially a really good one!. I don't know how Big Daddy found this little hidden gem but when he suggested we go give it a try I beat him to the car. Now I love buffets not because I can eat until I'm sick but because I can taste everything without people giving me the side eye!

Located in cutest little town with one of the best art galleries I've visited in a good long while, Joyce and Family Restaurant and Catering is family owned and operated and Miss Joyce is there to greet you at the door!

Everything about this space screams comfort! From the food to the staff it all simply feels like HOME! There is an abundance of love within those walls and that love has spilled into the food. The buffet is a smorgasbord of comfort food. There's fried chicken, BBQ ribs, pork chops, vegetables galore and some of the best lemon meringue pie that I've ever add. And what was truly a delight was the cooked-to-order fried flounder!

I could detail each individual item but I won't. There's just not enough time. I'll just say that all the food was exceptionally good. Big Daddy has put them in his Top Five for fried chicken. It was that good! And the fish was simply divine!

We will definitely visit Ms. Joyce again and I, personally, can't wait!

HOMETOWN CAFE - FRANKLINTON, NC

We stumbled upon Hometown Café quite by accident. We were traveling back home after visiting with family and a Google search for restaurants landed us in their parking lot. Now I'll be honest, I was a bit skeptical at first. The café was empty and it was close to five o'clock in the afternoon. Late afternoon in the South is dinner time so I was thinking maybe we should eat some place else. But Big Daddy never backs down from a challenge so we picked out a table in the center of the room and ordered!

Hometown Café was basic and country. Everything about the place felt down home. The staff was pleasant and our waitress was friendly. Big Daddy asked a ton of questions about the menu. How were the pork chops? Did you get one or two? Were the potatoes real or out of a box? She was patient and pleasant and answered each one as if her tip was dependent on giving the right answer. It wasn't but her enthusiasm about the food was encouraging.

He went right for the fried chicken with string beans and mashed potatoes and gravy on the side. I ordered the catfish with collard greens and macaroni and cheese. We both asked for sweet tea. Right out the box the tea wasn't the best we've ever had. It wasn't fresh brewed and there wasn't nearly enough sugar sweetening it. It was just okay at best and didn't invite any refills.

The fried chicken was exceptionally generous. The exterior was nicely seasoned and crispy and the interior was tender and moist. It wasn't exceptional but it was very good and we both agreed that we would eat the chicken again. the string beans were nicely seasoned and not boiled to mush. They had just enough bite to be perfect. He enjoyed the mashed potatoes and gravy. I didn't taste them so I'll take his word that they were creamy and the gravy flavorful.

The fried catfish was very good. It was seasoned well, cooked just so and left me licking my fingers. But there wasn't enough. The single fillet left you wanting more. I liked the macaroni and cheese and although it looked like it was out of a box, it tasted homemade. There was a hint of something I didn't recognize that flavored it in a good way but no one could tell me what the secret ingredient was. The collard greens were on point. Seasoned nicely and cooked to perfection. I'd go back just for the vegetables because both were done exceptionally well.

Their hidden gem was the dessert case. Individually sliced cakes and pies sit behind the counter for you to select from. We took two slices of the chocolate cake with chocolate icing to go and once home I regretted not getting a whole cake! Moist, just sweet enough with the creamiest icing! The dessert was definitely a highlight for me.

Would we go back? I don't see us making any special trips but if we ever find ourselves in the area we would definitely eat there again. Two thumbs up!