Tobacco Road Sports Cafe

If you live in or near Durham, you've probably heard of the Tobacco Road Sports Cafe.  I've never gone because I can't seem to tear myself away from my favorite haunt, Cuban Revolution that's like 200 feet away.

So anyways, one day we were on that side of town and decided to try it based on some recommendations from coworkers.  We got on Blackwell St. but couldn't find the place.  There was also some construction going on so we didn't see the restaurant right away.  Couple of minutes later, I saw a small sign pointing in the direction of the cafe.  We walk in and it's a light-filled airy and bright space.  We seated ourselves at the bar and ordered a couple of drinks.  I didn't particularly like their draft selections and the couple of things I wanted to try, they didn't have.  

So coming to the food, I was happy to see they had a few mains for vegetarians and quite a few appetizers as well.  I ordered the pimiento cheese and fried green tomato on wheat. It came out perfectly done and delicious!  It also came with a side of Mexican rice and black beans.  I actually thought I could've eaten the side by itself, it was SOOO good!!  That was some good eatin'!!!

Just in case you're wondering, pimiento cheese is a famous cheese spread in North Carolina.  And it is DELICIOUS!!!!!  It's usually cheddar cheese, red pimiento peppers, sometimes mayo (yuck!!) and spices.  

Restaurant review Cholanad

I went to a new little Indian restaurant for lunch the other day. It's called Cholanad and it is fantastic! The sign said they opened at 11:30, but I got there a few minutes after that and the door was still locked. I stood around waiting for a couple of minutes until the bartender saw me and opened the door. The place is brightly lit and has a modern feel. The bar is nice and long with plenty of seating. As soon as I walked in the place, I felt it would make a nice lounge. Some of the seating was semi-private with high walled curved seating, as if you had been in a small capsule.

I ordered the vegetable kurma and butter naan. It arrived pretty quickly. The plating was nice with modern style dinnerware in pure white. The naan was deeelicious! It wasn't the usual soft naan. It was flaky and full of ghee on the outside and tender on the inside. The kurma was also superb. I'm a fan of the more spicy dishes, but this was flavored so wonderfully with a ton of ginger and garlic and I didn't miss the extra spicy flavors I usually crave. I also loved that they didn't cook the vegetables into a mush. They sliced them into matchsticks and left them slightly crunchy. It was a beautiful pairing. But after dropping close to $11 for this lunch, it will have to be a once in awhile outing. A-

Linda's black bean burger & sweet potato tots

I just went to Linda's on Franklin St. for a pickup order. It was my first time there, so I wasn't sure how my burger would end up. I heard really great things about their amazing cheese fries though. So I brought it back to my desk and was so excited to see the pretzel roll bun! It is delicious y'all!!! This is by far, the best black bean burger I've ever had. It's not hard or glumpy like a lot of other places where the black beans are not fully cooked through. Oh, and those sweet potato tots! OMG. So so good!! They hit the spot with the jalapeno ranch sauce. I also heard they have live jazz on Thursday nights, so I might have to go check that out.

working lunch

I work everyday just like many of you. The daily grind is both exhilirating and annoying. Exhilirating because I enjoy what I do and love my boss. At the same time a little annoying because I have to go in instead of being able to work from home. Also annoying because I'm so not into fast food and prefer something from home. Usually it's leftovers, but this morning it was a toasted almond butter and honey sandwich on 7-grain bread, a red delicious apple and some craisins and apricots. I was able to pack my lunch while making my morning chai.

What's in your lunch bag?

corn salad or makke ki bhel

i was reading something somewhere the other day about corn. sorry i can't seem to remember where i read this, but it said that fresh corn has hardly any starch. the starch is created once the corn is cooked. this was music to my ears my friends. all this time, i thought i was in love with the enemy. a practically nutrient deprived vegetable. but oooh, i love me some corn. and i especially love summer corn. i love grilled corn, i love roasted corn, i loved boiled corn. shoot, i even love corn nuts. oh yeah, and i love any items made with corn.

did you know in baroda (in the state of gujarat in india) there is an entire restaurant dedicated to this golden haired sunshine of a vegetable? they make everything out of corn. corn bread, corn roti (tortilla), corn rotlo (flatbread), corn fritters. you get the picture. i didn't get a chance to go this time, but there were some idiots around me who kept talking about it the whole time. people suck. big time.

it's not quite season yet, but my mom couldn't help picking up these 2 lovelies at SunHarvest. here, she's made a popular street food in mumbai called corn bhel. it is basically a salad with some crunchy savories added - sort of like the crunchy noodles you get at a salad bar. but the indian ones come in different shapes, sizes and thicknesses. they are called sev and they are made out of chickpea flour which is sometimes labeled 'gram flour' on the packaging. don't bother making these at home, they have to be deep fried and require a special tool. besides, for the small quantity you need for this recipe, it's just better to buy them ready made at any indian grocers.

Corn Salad or Makke ki Bhel

serves 2

prep time: 10-15 min

into each bowl add:

• shuck an ear of corn and season with salt
• add a tablespoon of chopped red onions (we used Texas 1015's)
• add 1/2 diced jalapeno or to your tolerable heat level
• add 1/2 tomato
• add 2 tablespoons of sev
• add cilantro
• squeeze some lime over the top and serve immediately

Notes: not using sev won't comprimise the taste of this dish, however the crunchy texture that it provides will be missing. another alternative would be to cut up a corn tortilla into strips and fry until crispy or bake in an oven and crush over the top.

Listening to: the handsome, the suave, late Gregory Hines track - 'Creole Boy' from the cast recording of Jelly's Last Jam (1994).