Chef Flack has spent most of his life in these islands and his pride and passion for creating magnificent coastal cuisine is evident in his many offerings. With a smile on his face, he loves coming to diners’ tables to answer questions or make suggestions about entree choices and preparation selections.
Walking into Martin’s Tavern is like taking a trip through time. While equestrian paintings are the prominent artwork on display, don’t be fooled into thinking this is a horse-themed restaurant. The original owner, Billy (William S. Martin), was a pro basketball, football, and baseball star who opened this Georgetown watering hole in 1933. Billy was on the 1914 Boston Braves team that won the World Series. His humble tavern has been a favorite of locals and several of our nation’s presidents, albeit before they were elected to the nation’s highest office.
Jose Andres — now a nationally-renowned chef with restaurants from South Beach to Beverly Hills — opened Jaleo, his first, in Washington’s Penn Quarter entertainment district in 1993. Recently renovated, Jaleo is bright and lively with large windows looking to the busy sidewalks outside. Our favorite dishes here include sauteed spinach with pine nuts, raisins, and apples; shrimp sauteed with garlic; and chorizo sausage with mashed potatoes and cider sauce.
Sobrino de Botin is the oldest working restaurant in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records. Founded by a French chef in 1725, Botin is now owned by Antonio Gonzalez and his family. Every day, they serve their world-famous roast suckling pig and roast lamb to tourists, celebrities, royalty, and regulars alike.
The buffet itself was art. Shrimp and snails were piled majestically into a silver tureen with the hotel garden as a backdrop. Delicate slices of salmon were deliberately draped across a silver tray. Fresh salads of every type glistened with olive oil and glowed with the colors of freshly-picked vegetables.
Sheila fills a large bowl with the ingredients, then transfers the batter to six-quart buckets. Those buckets go into the cooler, and she starts the process again. She’s a busy lady on batter-making days. Sheila said, “We have to keep plenty of batter ready at all times.” Owner Johnny Evans estimates that they use 200 gallons of mix in a day.
If you like horses, country music, fried food, beer, a thrilling ride down a steep bluff in the back of a pickup truck, and sitting inside a large cave, then Tuscumbia, Alabama, has a spot just for you. Seven Springs Lodge and Rattlesnake Saloon are located on a 6,000-acre plot of land on Mount Mills Road. Just turn left at the sign pointing to the Coon Dog Cemetery. (Yes, Coon Dog Cemetery. Think Reese Witherspoon and Josh Lucas in the movie Sweet Home Alabama.) It’s off of Highway 157/Alternate Highway 72 West. Meander around the curves and woods on Highway 247, and you’ll be getting close.
The local experience of the chefs may influence the comfort level the kitchen has with working with local pork and duck, Carolina coastal shrimp and oysters, South Carolina peaches and figs, and a variety of squashes, peas, beans, and greens.
From the oven to your table, the pizza arrives in uncut, unadulterated layers of cheese, vegetables, meats, even fried eggs. It is your duty — nay, your pleasure — to slice into it yourself, fold the thin pieces over like a sandwich, and slip them into your mouth before all the toppings slide out. For the traveler and Milanese alike, stomachs stretch like reptilian jaws after a day of city walking, so there’s no need to feel guilty at eating a whole pizza yourself. Your neighboring diners surely will.
Charleston, South Carolina is a food town. Good old southern cooking is available, but so is fresh farm to table cuisine. Located at 18 Pinckney Street in the historic district is a charming old house off the beaten path with culinary magic happening inside.
