oh my goodness....New Belgium's Skinny Dip Summer Ale---Beer Review #2

New Belgium Brewery's Skinny Dip Summer Ale was the second craft beer that I wanted to blog about this summer because it was just that danged good. I've had many of their beers and their summer seasonal didn't disappoint. I've always enjoyed their beers and thought, why the hell not. Made sure this little baby was ice cold and cracked it open the other night. To say the least, it was nothing short of beauty in a bottle. Perfectly blended cascade hops are very prominent in this one. Cascades are very rich in flavor and have such a playful bitterness that when blended correctly, offer a very fruity, and rich bitterness that dances on your tongue. Then you get a blast of citrus taste that rocks a smooth finish on this wonderful craft brew for a home run. I give it solid 8 out of 10 and considering that I'm a very tough judge and an outlandish beer snob....that says a lot. I would deeply recommend their "Fat Tire," "Mothership," and "1554" which is an excellent beer to cook with. See my recipe blog for my Black Ale Pork Roast . Here is New Belgium's website just in case you wanted to look around at their beers.

Review #2---Carlo's Cafe

I went to Carlos Cafe in Rock Hill the other night which is one place I've always enjoyed in town. My wife had never eaten there and she had never really tried Cuban food. I've had a couple of the sandwiches in this delightful small bistro type establishment. My favorites being the pork sandwich and the cuban sandwich. There isn't much to these sandwiches but some shredded roasted pork on a pressed roll. The pork is marinated in citrus juices and just bursts in flavor. You add some cheese and that fresh bread and you have something truly delicious. They also do Cuban style espresso which is very sweet and strong; a perfect compliment to the joyous flavors going on in the pork. Another thing to go into the mix is to try their rice with black beans. I can't put into words how wonderful the food, atmosphere and the people are at Carlos Cafe. I've always wanted to have some of their desserts but have never been able to make it to eating one. They have home made Flan and Molten Chocolate Lava Cake on their menu ad well as the loving sweetness of caramel filled churros which I did partake in as a sinful snack one day. I promise that you will enjoy everything about this place as it is true authentic Cuban cuisine. I give it a solid A+ for taste, authenticity, and atmosphere. Here is their website.

Restaurant Review #1----Sonny's Dutch Mill

My first review is going to be for the cheeseburger enthusiast who doesn't want to leave Rock Hill to get a top notch burger. I like to separate styles of burgers in two ways....truly grilled burgers(open flame) and ones that are cooked obviously on a hot griddle. You can't compare the two. Two distinct tastes separate these styles of sandwiches and Sonny's Dutch Mill has the griddle burger on lock down in Rock Hill. While I have definitely had better burgers in my lifetime, Sonny's is truly a great place to eat and always has been. The greatest thing about the double cheeseburger basket as the Mill is the natural cut home cooked fries. Skin on sticks of evil greasy goodness that are the cherry on top to compliment a very good burger. The bun is nothing fancy and neither is the burger itself. What makes this burger outstanding is the chili. The chili sauce that they put on the burgers there is great enough to bring any man to shed a tear of happiness. It is greasy, spicy, dry, meaty, and goes great with just mustard and onions. Just the mere thought of these burgers is enough to make Homer Simpson start to slobber. The atmosphere is also one that is a good touch. Its some tables, a red and white checkered floor, and a couple of soda stand stools at a lunch counter (aka DIVE). That is what I like and live for. No fancy upscale crap. You don't need it. It is a dive with a good christian base atmosphere that is both family friendly and filled with really nice people. I just wish that I could live on the Wimpy payment plan every now and then. Anyway, also try some of the other favorites they have there like their hot dogs. Everyone reveres the Ebenezer Cafe for their dogs, but I find the Dutch Mill dog to beat it hands down. Call me crazy if you want but that is the way that I feel about it. The only downside is the price at the Dutch Mill is not that great and that is its only flaw. I give the overall quality of the dining experience there to be a solid 7.5 out of 10.

Thomas Creek River Falls Red Ale

Here we go with my first beer review in my new venture. Tonight's choice was a local craft brew from Greenville, SC known as Thomas Creek River Falls Red Ale. This was a pleasantly good red ale with a lot of burnt caramel flavors of a typical ale of its color and bouquet. It had a slightly sweet frontal taste with a good hoppy middle and a kiss of caramel of the baked malt that it uses on the end. Surprisingly tasty and refreshing at the beginning of the bottle but once it warmed a little and settled...it was a different story. A truly great beer will taste very well slightly chilled as it does ice cold, but this got a little flowery once it warmed and not in an overall great way. Not too bad though but I would rate it somewhere around a 5 out of 10. If you want to check out their website it is thomascreekbeer.com Check out some of Thomas Creeks other beers. They are done surprisingly well for a small brewery and they are getting much better.

Starting a New Blog

I'm going to try to add a new place every week and add some reviews intermittently on places I know of and frequent. If anyone has any suggestions for me to go to, let me know. I love writing about my own food but going to places and loving other kinds of food is also one of my passions. I will also review beer on this blog as well as my cooking blog.