NC Cuisine with a kick

Last night I had a chance to dine at one of my all time favorite Durham restaurants, Watts Grocery. From the creative talents of local chef Amy Tornquists Watts Grocery is dedicated to offering stellar North Carolina cuisine from local suppliers, many within about two hours of the restaurant. Her menu changes seasonally and I believe last night marked the beginning of the summer menu, which made my decisions very hard as everything seemed to be calling my name.

We began with a couple of appetizers including the Farmer's Market Cheese Plate with honeyed walnuts, a great combo of flavors thoughtfully packed together, the Sauteed Shrimp and house-cured bacon on a biscuit (you can't avoid ordering anything biscuit related here), and the Southern Bruschetta, which was flavorful and intensely fresh tasting. I think I'd be hard pressed to find an appetizer that invoked the image of garden fresh more so than the Southern Bruschetta, it is a great fit for a summer menu.

Our table debated entree choices for what seemed like forever seeing as how this task meant choosing one delicious dish over another equally delicious dish, but we settled on the Ribeye with shitake mushroom smashed potatoes, a steak that my friend gushed about for well over an hour. We also ordered the South Carolina Frogmore Stew which is a traditional dish served with crabmeat, shrimp, andouille sausage, and veggies in a seafood broth that both smelled and tasted great; another landslide victory. And finally the Honey Glazed Duck with poached blackberries, I mean really, how does that even sound like something you can avoid? My taste buds were truly thankful as the combo of the sweet blackberries and the salty, buttery duck meat helped me forget something like Bieber Fever exists in the world.

Our amazingly friendly and comical server, Naomi, was a bonus to the evening, capping off our experience with a gold star. It's always great to have a server that will help you pronounce items on the menu, and even though I still don't know what a rillet tastes like, I do know how to pronounce it (ri-yay); good for me. She also made a great meal that much better upon recommending some explosive desserts which included a cobbler with the catchy name: the Summer Berry Slump. I had one, and had a hard time not ordering a second.

If you are in the mood for a sophisticated yet not at all pretentious dinning experience that you'll remember for a long time, you need to check out Watts Grocery and their new summer menu. I can't wait to head back and sample some of the other items that just couldn't fit in my belly.


http://www.wattsgrocery.com/

Looking for some great seafood?

It's hot outside and I want to be sitting on a beach somewhere, however, Durham isn't a coastal city so it's necessary to create that ocean feeling in other ways; like eating some awesome, fresh seafood. Luckily for us, the Fish Shack just opened up, located right beside the Q-Shack in what used to be the short lived Rockwood Filling Station. The restaurant has only been open for around a month or two but I've already been twice in the last few weeks with plans to frequent the joint several more times in the near future. With a great atmosphere and an awesome menu of diverse offerings often hard to find in Durham, at reasonable prices to boot, the Fish Shack shouldn't have any problems becoming a local hot spot.

On my most recent trip the Fried Catfish Tacos, which for around $9 you get three or four filling tacos with Chipotle tartar sauce and some fresh pico de gallo, plus one side which ranges from fried okra to red beans and rice. Also of note is the market priced pound of Crawfish which come in a big basket filled with corn, sausage and potatoes, this is more than enough to share and will only set you back around $10. I really haven't heard anything negative about any menu item and I can also highly recommend the Po Boy sandwiches that are stuffed to capacity. On the radar for future trips are the low country boil and the big daddy: the Hook Up, which will set you back almost $20 but contains catfish, shrimp, oysters and flounder in a huge basket, it's probably something you'd want to share, but not required if you're feeling especially in the mood for an amazing saltwater bounty.

All in all I have to recommend you try the Fish Shack, the casual atmosphere and beachy menu alone will keep me coming back, but as an added bonus they are conveniently located directly across the street from Local Yogurt, and you have not idea how good a chocolate and blackberry LoYo tastes after throwing down on some super spicy crawfish.

2512 University Drive
Durham, NC
919-401-HOOK
Open Tuesday - Sunday from 11am to 9pm

http://thefishshackdurham.com/