Vic Cassano...I love you!

Cassano's Pizza King...you were the first pizza my Mom ate and the last I ever want to eat!

Cassano's Pizza (Click for Locations)
MULTIPLE LOCATIONS
Dayton, Ohio Metro Area

I think I need to first say that yes, I am indeed a Yankee. Born and raised in Dayton, Ohio. A Buckeye girl in a Bama world. Secondly, I need to issue a warning here to simply save you from what you may encounter if you mention pizza to someone from Dayton, Ohio. Now, there are a couple of local pizzarias in the area, but when you mention Cassano's Pizza...a change occours. Some may provide hand gestures as if they are grabbing those tiny squares of goodness out of thin air. Some may take a deep breath and go on and on about their favorite pizza pie. Then there are those of us who have moved out of the Dayton area. A far away look of longing comes across our face...memories of the "Big Cheese" begin to form a slight smile on our lips and then you hear the 'sigh' because we know that a Cassano's Pizza is nowhere close to us and all we have are the memories. Just the memories...until we venture home, that is...

*sigh*

Apart from the drama (ha!) Cassano's Pizza is GREAT pizza! Classic thin crust, salty sausage and fresh toppings all topped with gooey cheese and cut into squares! Delish! There are other offerings on the menu, but I must admit...in my 36 years, I have never ventured off of the pizza menu! I have heard stories about the awesome sandwiches and the delicious pasta and appetizers, but I cannot speak on that personally. Perhaps one of my hometown friends can chime in and comment on the goodness of the non-pizza items! :-)

I am fortunate enough to go home several times a year and the one place that remains on my culinary list of "things to do while in Dayton" is to pick up a Deluxe Pizza with extra cheese for me and my family to nosh on! Now THAT makes me smile!

I will say this and leave you be...if you ever find yourself in the Dayton, Ohio area...it would GREATLY benefit your tastebuds to try this hometown classic which is Cassano's Pizza.

(pssssst...word on the street is that we can order frozen pizzas online...but i'm not one to gossip, so you didn't hear it from me!)

Lyn's Gracious Goodness

Oh Lyn...we are graciously happy for your goodness!!!

Lyn's Gracious Goodness (Click for Map!)
2306 Whitesburg Drive South
Huntsville, AL 35801-3818

You know it deep down inside when you've found a good place to eat. A friend and I arrived a bit after the lunch rush and the lunch special...gone. The famous deviled eggs...Gone. The salad you were dying to try...all that remained was the sign in the cooler...GONE! *sigh* It was enough to almost run me back to the car, but since I didn't drive, I gathered my senses and made alternative choices. BOY, if what I had was considered "second choice"...I need to camp out overnight for my first choices!

I honestly think that Lyn's entire menu is exactly what the sign says "Gracious Goodness"! I am SO glad that she followed her heart's desire and opened up a cute, modern and bright eatery here in the Huntsville Medical district! Her bio reads:

After studying cooking through Maxim’s Restaurant in Paris and with French chef, Alain Senderens at the Great Chefs of France school at the Robert Mondavi Winery in Napa, Lyn Newcomb Wiginton decided it was time to fulfill her dream of opening a small restaurant.
With the opening of Lyn’s Gracious Goodness, she is where she has always wanted to be - cooking delicious, homemade, Southern food with a touch of something special.

And yes, it is very special! On this trip we ordered REAL pimiento cheese spread, the shrimp salad, The Beef Tenderloin sandwich and the Chicken Pita and I cannot forget to mention the MINT SWEET TEA *gasp AND swoon*!!! Everything was delightful even down to the homemade sweet pickles that came with the Chicken Pita. I can't wait to head back to visit Lyn. You should too...and if you do...call me and I will leave my carry out order with you! :-)

Ode To Chocolate Cake

This is totally a rambling :-)

Ode to Chocolate Cake

My House! (no map...sorry!)
My Street
My Town, Alabama

You cannot get more local than your own kitchen! When the mood strikes, I find an overwhelming urge to find a recipe and make some noise in the kitchen! This round of culinary combat found me baking a cake especially for a friend of mine! Not just any cake, CHOCOLATE cake! The recipe...well, I yoinked it from my cousin up in Savannah, Tennessee (THE Catfish Capital of THEE World, or so the sign says) and modified it slightly (that way I can grind her gears when I tell her that I didn't really take her recipe! Ain't I a stinker? Ha!) I am unsure if this recipe is in print and I will not divulge the recipe here. We may need it for our family cookbook someday! :-)

I will just give a quick ode to chocolate cake in a haiku

Chocolate Cake Haiku


This great chocolate cake
Tastes so wonderful to me
I may need more milk.



Thank you ::takes a bow::

I encourage you to go boldly into your kitchen and create something GREAT! If you can read, you can cook! :-)

Papa Gyro's!

There's nothing like a dollop of hummus in the afternoon...

Papa Gyro's (Click for map)
4925 University Drive NW
Huntsville, AL 35816

So once again...another fine jewel that is located in a shopping plaza! I absolutely adore this place. The people are friendly, the food is wonderful, the lunch crowd is steady and the tables stay full!

Papa Gyro's has a variety of Greek entrees that varies from falafels to a veggie plate with dolmades (vegetable mixture wrapped in grape leaves) to hummus

A friend and I ventured off for this wonderful Greek adventure one cloudy afternoon and as always, we were very pleased. If you have never had a gyro...I would strongly urge you to find your nearest full blooded Greek friend and ask them, no, BEG them to point you to the best gyro you can have in your city or town. If you have to drive a little, eh, gas up the stationwagon Martha...ROAD TRIP! :)

On this visit we ordered a chicken gyro (for me!), an original (lamb & beef) gyro, fries, potato and lentil soup, hummus with warm pita bread and baklava!!! (I guess we were kinda hungry!)

This will always be one of my most favorite restaurants in the area! Nothing like a good gyro in the afternoon to put everything into perspective! :)

Mezza Luna!!!

Mezza Luna...Mediterranean Italian Cuisine

Mezza Luna (Click for map)
2724 Carl T. Jones Drive SE
Huntsville, AL 35801

So a friend of mine who knows I am on my local foodie quest, recommended Mezza Luna to me and I am SO glad she did! This trendy restaurant is so vibrant and fresh, but laid back enough to have a quiet lunch, which is what we did!

This is a Mediterranean Italian restaurant which to me meant it brought dishes and flavors from Italy that are closest to the Mediterranean Sea...makes sense to me!

Their website says...

At Mezza Luna, a true trattoria atmosphere will preside where the patio provides Huntsville’s most popular and lovely outdoor dining and room for an overflowing crowd. Casual, but with no compromise in quality or presentation, the seasonal menu offers fresh gulf seafood, naturally raised meats and locally grown organic poultry, lettuces, and vegetables. The wood-fired brick oven crisps the flatbreads and pizzas perfectly, gives the roasts and braises their signature hickory seasoning. Fresh seafood, meat and game are all cooked over a huge wood-fired grill, resplendent with the soul-satisfying essences of Tuscany, Andalusia, Sicily and North Africa.

I was kinda close! ;-)

A couple of colleagues and I started our meal with a "chip and onion dip" appetizer that was really good! The chips were freshly made in the restaurant and the dip was creamy and delicious! For our meals, we all ordered pizza. The same pizzas! All three of us! Ha! Well, you can never have too much of a good thing! Next time I will have to venture out into a more hearty entree!

I must say that I am very happy that Mezza Luna is here in Huntsville because it offers a very nice slice of variety here! You should check them out!

Ol' Heidelburg!!!

German? Ja!!!

Ol' Heidelburg (Click for map!)
6125 University Drive
Huntsville, AL 35806

German...in Alabama? Why, yes indeed! For many who may not know, there are many German-Americans in Huntsville, Alabama. In the 1950's many German rocket scientists were awarded US citizenship to help with the engineering and building of missles and rockets here in Rocket City, USA better known as Huntsville, AL! I am pretty sure that a restaurant or two with wonderful offerings from the German culture would still be around today to tempt a sweet African-American lady like myself *blink, blink*

Well, a very handsome dude and I ventured off into Ol' Heidelburg, which is in a shopping plaza on one of the busiest streets in Huntsville. Needless to say, there was lots of traffic and we were ready to head in for a nice meal!

The decor was, of course, German inspired and our hostess and waitress was wearing traditional German dirndl. It was like stepping into Oktoberfest! I loved it! My companion ordered a very dark German beer and I was introduced into wonderful German cuisine!

Our meal started off with salad. House salad with homemade bleu cheese dressing for me, cucumber salad for him as well as a very tasty potato and leek soup that was absolutely heavenly! A bread basket full of warm, dark bread was brought to us as we waited for our main courses. I ordered the Hungarian Schnitzel which is sauteed chicken with mushrooms, onions, red & green peppers in a hunters sauce with a side of German style potato salad and he ordered the Schweinebraten which is roasted pork loin prepared in a natural gravy, served with potato dumplings or Spatzle and red cabbage.

I was NOT ready! *faint*

Everything was quite divine and enough to feed a small village! (yay doggie bag!)
I was told to start off easy and go with the chicken because, hey, you really can't go wrong with chicken! But I think next time I will venture off into sausage land...or perhaps pork or veal...hummm, decisions, decisions....

Anyway, the cost was a bit higher than I expected with entrees starting at $15. I have been spoiled with less costly meals around town! However, I think that for an authentic German experience, it was well worth every penny! And did I mention they had maaaaybe 20+ different desserts?

You are not ready. LOL!

Well, I give this tasty adventure two thumbs up! I hope to visit again very soon!

Thanks for reading...and of course, enjoy the pics!

LeeAnn's Fun, Food & Great Spirits!

Ok, so this week's adventure took me to LeeAnn's in Huntsville!
*peek at the link for more pics of LeeAnn's...the atmosphere is SO nice!!!*

LeeAnn's (click for map)
415 Church Street NW
Huntsville, AL 35801

Ok, so I meet a bud down at LeeAnn's for a late lunch. No crowds and not busy at all. Cool! LeeAnn's is a very nice place with southern food cuisine and great appetizers and sandwiches...a "meat and three" kind of place, which usually translates into good eats! I didn't indulge in the "Great Spirits", but the selection looked amazing! I hear they have a happy hour...

So we sit and order the daily special for Tuesday...Smoked Pork Butt! Ok, ok, ok...so what is a pork butt? A pork butt is a cut of meat from the shoulder of the pig that contains a little more fat than other parts of the pig which makes it good for smoking or bar-b-que in an "low and slow" method (low heat, slow cooking)!

Ok, so we both ordered the daily special which was Pork Butt (which came with traditional bbq sauce and the infamous north Alabama white bbq sauce!) and a choice of 2 sides. For my 2 sides, I ordered fried green tomatoes and sweet potato fries! Mmmmmm!!! Doesn't that make you wanna smack your Momma? I just knew I was in for a treat, and indeed I was! The plate was HUGE! And it included a soft drink and a corn muffin...all for (wait for it...) $8.00!!! YAHOOOOO!

I would like to go back soon for appetizers or just for the atmosphere. It was a very nice place and I am so glad I ventured here! There ARE great local joints here in Huntsville!!! YAY! I am so happy and encouraged!


Here is a horrible picture of my meal...I need a better camera! :)


Support your local establishments!!!

Thanks for reading :)