Famous Joe's Pizzeria

It was the week between Christmas and New Year’s and we were getting tired of holiday food—turkey, turkey curry, turkey and ham fried rice. So… pizza!
Beardy, Smalls, and I decided on Famous Joe’s Pizzeria on County Line Road in Madison. Apparently, Joe is famous. The restaurant’s Web site lists Joe’s awards and accolades, including being the Guinness world record holder for the highest pizza toss.

Wintzell's Oyster House

Beardy, Smalls, and I had a late lunch on a recent Sunday at the Wintzell’s Oyster House in Guntersville. We got there at about 2:00 in the afternoon, and there were a few other tables of people eating lunch, but the main excitement was the baby shower going on in the front dining room. The hostess assumed we were looking for the baby shower, and at first I thought, why would she think that? Then I realized we had a baby (sorry Smalls, a BIG GIRL) with us, and I was carrying Smalls’ snacks in a paper bag that could have been a gift bag. We should have crashed the shower for the cake. I bet it was good cake.

We sat down, and the waitress brought us a kids’ menu/coloring sheet with two crayons. Smalls started drawing balloons immediately, and the waitress was so patient when Smalls wanted to show them off to her. The kids’ menu consisted of popcorn shrimp, chicken or catfish strips, grilled cheese ($4.99) or chicken Alfredo ($5.99). The drinks were included in that price, and every meal came with fries. You can get free ice cream if you clean your plate. I mean, your kids do. There’s no reward for you if you clean your plate. We didn’t end up ordering Smalls anything because we really had enough food for her. The meal came with bread, and I’d brought applesauce and cheese with us because I wasn’t sure where or when we’d be eating lunch that day. Also, my shrimp and grits came with several choices for sides, so I ordered broccoli in the hopes that Smalls would eat some (she did—almost all of it!). She prefers broccoli fed to her with chopsticks (this really happens at our house sometimes. Maybe it's a bit indulgent.)

As Smalls gets older and we order off of kids’ menus more for her, I’m going to start asking questions like, can we substitute fruit or vegetables for the fries? I bet some restaurants will be ok with that. I’ll let you know what happens. At least until Smalls demands those fries… We’ll deal with that when it happens.

We had a good lunch at Wintzell’s. Entrees on their lunch menu (available 11 AM until 4 PM every day) are all about $10. You can look at the menus online here: http://wintzellsoysterhouse.com/menus.php. Try to use a real computer, though. The mobile version of their site is annoying. There’s also a Wintzell’s here in Huntsville near the intersection of University Drive and Wynn Drive, but the one in Guntersville is nice because it’s right on the lake. I know the Guntersville location gets the same seafood that they ship to Huntsville, but it’s nice to eat seafood and look out the window and see a body of water. It just makes the shrimp seem fresher.

Toddler friendliness ratings:

Atmosphere: 4.5 out of 5 booster seats

Food: 3.5 out of 5 booster seats (glad they have a kids’ menu, but I’d like to see a side other than fries)

http://wintzellsoysterhouse.com/co_loc_gun.php

Blacksmith’s Bistro and Bar, Chattanooga

So it’s Saturday, and we’ve survived a meltdown at the Tennessee Aquarium, calmed down during a relaxing drive up to Lookout Mountain, and now it’s lunchtime, well, actually way past lunchtime. I know almost nothing about where to go in Chattanooga, so I looked at Google Maps and noticed that there were several (non-chain) restaurants in the St. Elmo district, so we headed that way. This area is at the bottom of the incline railway, so you could ride down and have lunch there. There are a few restaurants within walking distance. We ended up at Blacksmith’s Bistro and Bar because it was a gorgeous Saturday afternoon and they had a nice outdoor seating area.

Tony’s Pasta Shop and Trattoria, Chattanooga

Beardy, Smalls, and I recently spent part of a weekend in Chattanooga. We drove up on a Friday afternoon, had dinner, spent the night at a hotel in downtown Chattanooga, and went to the Tennessee Aquarium and for a drive on Lookout Mountain Saturday. We went to Tony’s Pasta Shop and Trattoria for dinner Friday night. The restaurant is in an “arts district” on a bluff above the Tennessee River.

Big Ed's Pizza

Big Ed’s Pizza

Yes, Beardy, Smalls, and I eat quite a bit of pizza. I make a lot of pizza at home, and it’s often pretty high up on the list when we go out, too. On a recent Friday night, Smalls and I met Beardy after work at Big Ed’s Pizza in Huntsville. Big Ed’s had been in Huntsville since the 1960’s, and its current location is near the intersection of University Drive and Memorial Parkway. We’ve been there before, but I don’t think we’ve ever been there with Smalls. At least, not since she’s been able to sit up at the table with us and sample real food.

Newk’s Express Café

Once there was a Chinese/Korean restaurant on University Drive where a friend from Malaysia suggested that I eat food from the non-English menu. She ordered us kimchi and seafood stew. She held up a rubbery chunk and said, “I don’t know what you call this in English, but when it’s alive in the sea, and it’s scared, it throws up its insides.” I said, “Oh, sea cucumber. Yum.” Not the best way to describe something while you’re eating it, but good to know.

This sea cucumber story is only relevant because now the building that I always associate with the disgusting habits of the sea cucumber is a restaurant called Newk’s. Because its name on the sign is written in a colorful, crayon-y, tilty font, I always assumed that it was a kiddie restaurant (kind of how I think of Red Robin now), with crayons at every table and balloons for all. But now I’ve been to one, and while it’s more grown-up than I expected, it’s still pretty kid-friendly.

The kids’ menu is pretty good. They have toasted cheese, ham and cheese, or turkey and cheese. The sandwiches come with chips or fruit—yay.  On the website (http://www.newkscafe.com/index.php/menu/category/little-newks-favorites/) fruit isn’t listed as a side, but on the menu on the restaurant wall it is. They also have cheese or pepperoni pizza. The pizzas don’t come with a side. The kids’ meals come with a drink (whole milk is available) in a plastic kiddie cup with a tight-fitting lid and a big straw. For grown-ups, they have sandwiches, salads, soup, and pizzas. My mom and I both had the pesto chicken sandwich. It had a LOT of goat cheese on it, but was good. And they have Orangina. Mmmm.

While we stared at the big menu on the wall, I asked Smalls what she wanted, pizza or a choo-mop (choo-mop = sandwich. Yes, I shouldn’t encourage mispronouncing words, but it’s so cute). She chose pizza, and the cheese pizza is very good. It didn’t taste like a Totino’s frozen pizza; it’s possible they made it just like their grown-up pizzas. Sometimes that’s not the case with the kids’ pizzas. It was big enough for two meals for Smalls. And I asked her if she liked the pizza, and she said yes. But, just to establish a baseline for her truthfulness, I asked her if she liked wolverines and rabies, and she said yes for both of those, too. I think she was just in a yes mood.

One logistics note, when you walk in, you order and pay at the counter. Then you have to get your drinks yourself, and find your own table and high chair (there were plenty of high chairs), so try to have a free hand or to do this or bring a friend to help out. They bring your food to your table when it’s ready, though, so that’s a plus.

Toddler friendliness ratings:

Atmosphere: 4 out of 5 booster seats. Lots of high chairs available, and a very casual atmosphere.

Food: 4 out of 5 booster seats. Glad to see fruit as a choice, even though we didn’t get it.

Newk’s Express Café

http://www.newkscafe.com/index.php

We visited the one on Whitesburg Drive, near Airport Road (851 Whitesburg Drive), but there's also one on University Drive (4925 University Drive, Suite 190).

Five Guys Burgers and Fries

Five Guys

1395 Enterprise Drive, near the Target shopping center on University Drive in Huntsville.

I just might be the last person in Huntsville to try Five Guys Burgers and Fries, but Beardy, Smalls, and I went there for lunch for the first time recently. Smalls and I were in Target, waiting to get a flu shot for me, and we got the call that Beardy could meet us for lunch. We’d heard that Five Guys had really good food (especially the fries), and the rumors were true. I liked the limited menu (only hamburgers, cheeseburgers, grilled cheese and veggie sandwiches, fries, and hot dogs). It seems like if a restaurant does just a few things, they do them better. Beardy and I both got hamburgers and, on the cashier’s wise suggestion, we shared a regular order of fries. Really, even that was too many fries. The hamburgers were really good; they actually smelled like hamburgers (maybe you have to go smell a hamburger to know what I mean). Smalls got a plain hot dog. Because this was an impromptu meeting, and I wasn’t familiar with the menu, that’s all Smalls had for lunch there. Next time, I’ll bring some fruit or something for her to make me feel better about the fast food lunch. The total for our lunch was almost $20, which seems high for burgers and fries, but I guess these are high-quality burgers and fries.

There were plenty of clean high chairs and booster seats available, and it’s a fast-food atmosphere, so if Smalls had been a little noisy, probably no one would have noticed. She had a good time playing with a straw and eating her hot dog, though, so we were fine this time.

Allergy alert: The door is flanked by stacks of boxes of peanut oil and a box of actual peanuts for customers to snack on. It was almost as if they are there as talismans to ward off anyone allergic to peanuts. The peanut box displays a warning not to remove peanuts from the store. Because there are no peanuts in the outside world…? I guess they're just being careful. Anyway, based on the volume of peanut oil guarding the door, I assume the fries are fried in peanut oil, too. At least they don’t encourage you to throw the peanut shells on the floor. If they did that, they’d feel the need to have a footbath outside the door like they have on farms to control foot and mouth disease. 

The peanut warning.





Toddler friendliness ratings:

Atmosphere: 4 out of 5 booster seats. It’s a fast-food atmosphere, nothing special, but nothing toddler-UNfriendly, either (unless you’re allergic to peanuts, then I guess this is 0 out of 5)

Food: 2 out of 5 booster seats. The menu is very limited, and there are no side items other than fries. The simplicity of the menu was attractive to me, but not for a toddler. You’ll probably want to bring something healthy to counteract the hot dog or grilled cheese.

Gadsden Variety and Deli (Gadsden, Alabama)

If you happen to find yourself in Gadsden, you should visit Gadsden Variety and Deli. It’s downtown on Broad Street, and it used to be called Nelson’s. It’s a five-and-dime store, and they have a good variety of toys (from really cheap plastic toys, to classic Radio Flyer tricycles and wagons). They also have holiday decorations, craft supplies, Alabama and Auburn gifts, candy, and lots of other stuff, and it just feels very old-fashioned. It’s pretty neat.

They even have a lunch counter, but if you’re with a toddler, do not eat at the lunch counter. If you’re not with a toddler, go ahead and have lunch there (really, just for the experience--how often do you get to eat at a lunch counter in a five and dime?). The food is good; they have sandwiches and “salads.” I say “salads” because the salads are gooey tuna salad, creamy blueberry jello-type salad, and pasta salad; they're not lettucy, leafy salads. They use an ice cream scoop to serve these salads.

But, getting back to the toddler issues, there’s no kids’ menu at all. There are hot dogs and grilled cheese on the menu, but the only sides are the “salads” and chips. I ordered a ham sandwich for myself and a turkey sandwich for Smalls. I figured Smalls could eat cheese, bread, and turkey, but it came slathered in Thousand Island dressing (I think that’s what it was. It was pink). I was ok with that, but it might have bothered Smalls. She didn't eat much of it. If I had known there would be dressing, I'm sure could have asked them to leave it off. Smalls ended up eating mostly dried apricots and cranberries I’d brought with me. I got the pasta salad with my sandwich, and Smalls nibbled on that, too.

The dining area is definitely set up for business people on a lunch break, not people with small kids. There was not a single highchair or booster seat in the place (that I saw), and no one to ask. The two restaurant employees I saw were very busy filling orders at the counter, so I didn’t want to ask them about highchairs. So Smalls sat in the booth with us, and didn’t slip down under the table or anything, so it was ok, but not ideal.

But, if you are in Gadsden, go to Gadsden Variety and Deli anyway, just to shop in a neat store. Also check out Hicks Family Shoes a few doors down. This is another store that’s been there on Broad Street a long time. They have great kids’ shoes (good brands like Stride Rite and Willits), and really helpful staff.

Toddler friendliness ratings:

Atmosphere: 1 out of 5 booster seats (I just can’t give it a higher booster seat rating, considering there were no booster seats. It's just not set up for kids.)

Food: 2 out of 5 booster seats (No fruit or veggies choices as sides, and no notification about weird sandwich dressing).

Earth Fare’s Family Dinner Night

The health-consious grocery store Earth Fare advertises its Family Dinner Night pretty well on Facebook, so I knew that kids eat free every Thursday night. This Thursday was their Halloween event, including a costume contest and free stuff for kids, so we decided to take Smalls. Smalls is dressing up as an eggplant for Halloween, so I figured a health food grocery store would be the perfect setting for us to sweep a costume contest. Now, if she’d been an ORGANIC eggplant, that would have just been pandering to the judges, but we’ll call her a conventional eggplant, just so we’re not kiss-ups.

Anyway, I’ve shopped at Earth Fare several times (most often when I have a coupon for something free with a $5 grocery purchase. And I can get Smalls a gallon of organic milk for a little over $5, which is decent for organic milk, so I feel like I would buy that anyway.) Oh, and they have great samples. I’m a sample junkie.  I used to be a big fan of Sam’s Club’s samples, but they’ve cut back; I blame the economy. But I’d never paid much attention to the restaurant area at Earth Fare. Turns out it’s just tables where you can eat the deli/salad bar/bakery food that you’ve bought in the store. We were a little confused when we walked in. But the staff were pretty helpful; they hooked us up with a kids’ menu form and explained the steps to get our meals. I’m going to explain it to you, so if it’s your first time there, you won’t look like bumbling rubes like we did.

1.  Fill out the kids’ menu form.
2. Return the form to the employee at the table in the dining area. They’ll give you a number and a bar code for the cashier to scan when you check out.
3. Go to the deli/salad bar/pizza counter/bakery area, and get your grown-up food and drinks. 
4. Wait for the pizza counter cooks to put together your kid’s dinner sack and put it up on the counter. 
5. Take all of your food and drinks to the regular cashier and check out. This was the best part, because we all ate for about $9. (Beardy and I had pizza that was really good, but probably the least healthy food there… Next time we’ll know how it all works and explore the deli/hot food case more.)
6. Go find a table and a highchair in the dining area and sit down and eat.

The kids’ menu is great, with nine entrée choices (five are vegetarian), four choices of sides (no fries in sight), six snack choices, and three drink choices. And it’s free on Thursday nights. On other days, it’s only $3.99. 

Oh gosh, a villian called High Fructose Fred? Way to be subtle, Earth Fare.





Overall, a $9 meal for three people (or two and 3/4 people) seems like a good deal. And the food is good.

Toddler friendliness ratings:

Atmosphere: 3 out of 5 booster seats. Bustling around in the deli/bakery section with various take out containers, bottled drinks, and a toddler wearing an eggplant costume was awkward. But highchairs were plentiful, and it’s family night, so there were TONS of other kids there, so we felt comfortable.

Food:  4.5 out of 5 booster seats. Earth Fare is trying hard to provide healthy food that tastes good, and it’s pretty good.

Find info about Earth Fare’s Family Dinner Night here: http://www.earthfare.com/FamilyDinnerNight.aspx

Download the kids’ menu here: http://www.earthfare.com/FamilyDinnerNight/~/media/Images/Itty%20bitty/IBB_BWmenu_Nuggets%209-10.pdf

And make sure you look at the comic characters that are valiantly saving the world from childhood obesity here: http://www.earthfare.com/FamilyDinnerNight/IttyBittyBites.aspx They’re cringe-worthy in a Captain Planet sort of way.

1892 East-Sunday Brunch

Beardy and I have been married for seven years as of last Sunday, and to celebrate, we went to brunch at 1892 East. We felt like we were taking a chance because Smalls had not had a good day the day before. Her performances the day before included a complete breakfast meltdown at a hotel in Chattanooga, and a full-on writhing on the floor tantrum at the Tennessee Aquarium. We had been to 1892 East before, but for dinner, sans Smalls. For some reason, it didn’t seem to be all that kid-welcoming, even though their online menu included a kids' menu. That impression was wrong, and we were pleasantly surprised by the toddler-friendliness of the restaurant at brunch. We got there at about 10:45, and there were only a few other customers. By the time we left, though, there was a 10-20 minute wait, so I’d suggest you get there before 11. But we got a table right away, with a highchair and… wait for it… an ENTIRE box of brand new crayons and a blank sheet of paper. Smalls loves crayons, so we were very grateful. She also likes to play with the sugar and artificial sweetener packets, and those were readily available.

1892 East's business card plus Smalls's artwork with the crayons the hostess provided.

Beardy and I ordered coffee and readily accepted the mimosas that are included with brunch entrees. I got milk stout pancakes (made with locally-brewed stout) with bacon, and Beardy got the southern breakfast platter. The food was great, better than what we’d had for dinner during our previous visit.

1892 East does have a kids’ menu that consists of French toast, bacon and eggs, or macaroni and cheese for brunch, and cheese flatbread, macaroni and cheese, or roasted chicken for dinner. All the kids’ items are $6. Smalls didn’t get to sample the kids' menu, though, because at 10:45, she had already had breakfast, and wasn’t ready for lunch yet. And we were too spooked by her behavior the day before to risk messing up her food schedule, so she just grazed from our plates a little and ate some Cheerios. I like the sound of the kids’ menu, though. And I like the fact that they HAVE a kids’ menu.

The best part was the way the waitress and hostess made Smalls feel comfortable, and made us feel welcome being there with her. There was the box of crayons, but the waitress was also careful not to set our hot coffee, drinks, and plates down within arm’s reach of Smalls (her reach is surprisingly long). That’s the kind of thing I would never have thought of before I had a kid. And I’m not always paying attention when a drink is set down in Smalls’s zone (recently, I was distracted by Beardy quickly rescuing HIS beer from Smalls’s right hand while her left was spilling mine in my lap!). By the time we left, we were one of several families with small children and babies in the restaurant, so we really did feel comfortable being there with Smalls. Maybe we could even brave it for dinner one evening. I want to try that macaroni and cheese off the kids’ menu—um, I mean Smalls wants to try it.

Toddler friendliness ratings:

Atmosphere: 5 out of 5 booster seats. The waitress and hostess made us feel very welcome with a toddler.

Food:  I shouldn’t rate something we haven’t tried, but based on the menu, I want to give it a tentative 5 out of 5 booster seats. I’ll update/confirm this rating once Smalls tries that mac and cheese.

1892 East

720 Pratt Avenue NE, Huntsville, Alabama

http://www.1892east.com/

Sitar Indian Cusine

Sitar Indian Cuisine, Lunch Buffet

Sometimes Smalls and I meet Beardy for lunch. A few months ago, we tried the lunch buffet at Sitar Indian Cuisine on Jordan Lane in Huntsville, and we’ve been back several times since then. We (Beardy and I, Smalls didn’t exist yet) lived in England for a few years, where we became addicted to Indian food. But for some reason, we’ve been avoiding Indian food in Huntsville in the four years we’ve been back in Huntsville. Maybe we thought it wouldn’t live up to what we remembered in England, I don’t know. Anyway, the food at Sitar is wonderful, and the buffet is fresh and well-stocked with chicken and vegetarian curries, tandori chicken (you can smell it from the parking lot!), spinach and potato dishes, naan bread, and pickles and chutneys (I haven’t seen lime pickle yet, but I have hope.)

Smalls likes the naan bread, the orange slices, and the mango pudding. She also likes an extremely limited amount of gulab jamun (which, I’m sorry, Indian food purists, I refer to as “those sweet balls in syrup”). She knows her limit and stops at about ¼ of a ball. Any more than that would probably make her start making the crazy horse noise that signals sugar overload. She’s made the noise twice—once after a giant pink cupcake at a church “singin’” in Walnut Grove, and once after my birthday party at my sister in law’s house. Storebought icing was involved in both incidents.

I haven’t encountered anything extremely spicy on the buffet, so I expect I can start getting her to try some of the vegetable dishes and chicken curries soon.

There are plenty of highchairs at lunchtime because the crowd is mostly businesspeople on lunch break. We usually get there early, about 11 or 11:15, and at that time it’s not crowded, so we don’t have to wait around for a table. It starts to fill up a little more at about noon, but I’ve never seen every table full. The staff is always really nice. We are only charged for two buffets (obviously, since Smalls only eats a piece of naan and a few orange slices). But it’s nice to think she’s eating free anyway.

The only disadvantage I can think of, if you’re bringing a small child, is that it’s a buffet, so once you sit down and get your baby settled in the highchair, you have to get up and fill a plate. This is fine when Smalls and I meet Beardy for lunch, but if you were by yourself with the baby, do you want to leave her there at the table while you load up on delicious rice and curries? Probably not. Do you want to haul her up to the buffet with you, or try to corral her with your feet while you overload your plate, in an attempt to get all the deliciousness you need in one trip? Probably not. I guess this is an obvious issue with any buffet, but it's one of those things you just don't think about until you're dining out with a baby. 

Toddler friendliness ratings:

Atmosphere: 5 out of 5 booster seats (No complaints. Smalls seemed perfectly welcome.)

Food: 3 out of 5 booster seats for the buffet (You’ll probably need to bring food from home for kids to eat to supplement the naan bread and the orange slices to make it a healthy lunch.)

Sitar Indian Cusine

420 Jordan Lane, Huntsville