the creped crusader

I’m aware that the title is a bit of a stretch, but it’s incredibly hard to think of puns involving the words marc and market.  Gimme a little slack.

This evening I went to Marc’s on Market, which is on Market Street towards Ogden.  To be particular, it’s across the street from Burger King, right past Bojangle’s in a small shopping complex-looking area.  Heed this information, because I accidentally drove right past it and the table had to wait for me, since I was late :x But all was forgotten as soon as we sat down to eat, because man was it good.  In fact, I got home and immediately got on my laptop to write this post.

We were given bread for the table.  It’s baked in-house, and is served with olive oil.  Two things that are absolutely necessary for me to be excited about restaurant bread.  So this was a win, from the very start.

I ordered the soup of the day:  a creamy corn soup with lobster, green onions, and truffle oil.  Mmmmmmm.  It had a great sweet tangy flavor, a little buttery to compliment the lobster, and then fresh from the green onions.  Truffle oil can sometimes be overpowering, or fancy for fancy’s sake, but I think it was used very delicately in this case.  It complimented the sweetness of the corn, and worked very nicely.  I ordered a cup…. I recommend that you order a bowl because I wanted more of this delicious goodness.

For my meal I ordered the Skillet Roasted Organic Scottish Salmon.  That’s a lot of adjectives for salmon, and I’m about to add a lot more: delicious, succulent, well-balanced, perfectly portioned, and delicious…again. It was served with grilled avocado (a first for me) and a pearl pasta salad in a gazpacho vinaigrette.  The salmon was cooked absolutely perfectly.  Being skillet roasted, it had a great crust on the outside, and yet tasted smoky almost like it was cooked on the grill.  Absolutely perfect.  To go with it was a pearl pasta salad which was just great.  Cool, acidic, bright…just right to balance out the heartiness of the salmon.  AND I love the contrast of hot and cold, so the cool pasta with the warm fish was just great.  And then the grilled avocado had a great bright, tangy taste, and the amazing richness that only avocados have was just the perfect thing to round out the dish.  (now would be a good time to mention my love affair with avocados.  anything with avocados in it automatically makes me 50% more in love with it.)  I recommend putting some of everything on your fork, closing your eyes, and then enjoying the perfectly-balanced bite.

I didn’t order dessert because I was completely stuffed from the salmon, but they offered a coffee creme brulee that sounded amazing, and a flour-free chocolate torte.  As one of our diners is gluten-free, I really appreciated that they had an option for the siliacs out there.  I’ll have to make sure to get the dessert next time I go back, which will hopefully be very soon.

In addition to the sheer yumminess of the food, the prices were very reasonable, all entrees were around $25.  Also the service was great.  We had a twelve-person party, and they were fast, remembered who ordered what, and were really friendly.  Also there’s a separate dining room for large parties, so we could hear everyone in our party and really relax and enjoy our meal.

So the verdict: Marc’s on Market is a win.  Go and enjoy some great, simply delicious food.  

-The Creped Crusader

Marc’s on Market: 7213 Market Street  Wilmington, NC 28411 http://www.marcsonmarket.com/ 

I’ve always known that spicy and creamy things go well together.  Such as buffalo wings and blue cheese, jalapenos and tuna salad, jalapeno poppers, cheddarjack cheese…. i could go on and on, but my mouth would just continue to salivate.

I’ve recently become addicted to my new creation, and I figured I’d share with you.  

Basil Cream Cheese Omelet

This tasty omelet is simple, delicious, and satisfying.  I find that it not only works for breakfast, but it’s good at all times of day (and night).  Also, it’s made with things that most people have on hand on a regular basis.

Ingredients:

2 eggs

2 T cream cheese

4 basil leaves, cut into thin strips

Sriracha

Serves 1.

That’s it.  Beat eggs with salt and pepper. (Don’t use milk! Ina Garten said once that it affects the egg proteins and makes for a less dense egg. And I like dense, eggy eggs)  Coat small frying pan with cooking spray, and pour in beaten eggs.  Let brown for 1.5 minutes.  Carefully flip egg to cook other side.  As soon as you flip it, put dollops of cream cheese on one half, and sprinkle basil on top.  Fold second half over to melt cheese, and remove from heat.  

Once cheese is ooey and gooey, put a few stripes of sriracha on top of the omelet.  For those who can be over-zealous, I recommend putting the sriracha on the side and dipping on a bite-by-bite basis so that if you put too much on one bite, you can cut back next bite and find the perfect balance of heat.

This omelet is awesome.  It’s creamy from the cream cheese, the sriracha gives it a kick, and the basil gives it a burst of freshness.  Absolutely awesome.  I meant to take a picture, but once it was finished I was focused on devouring it and forgot all about the picture.  I guess I’ll just have to make another one tomorrow :]

-Creped Crusader

I am a lover of all things cheesy.  Give me a restaurant that allows me to dunk things into a pot of gooey, delicious cheese, and I will be a happy girl.  This weekend I was presented with just such an opportunity, at The Little Dipper in downtown Wilmington.

My roommate proposed an outing, and I couldn’t help but say yes.  We walked in, and I was hit with the smell of melting cheese, and I knew it was a good choice.  Lucky for us, it happened to be Restaurant Week, so we were able to get a great deal on our meals: $25 per person for a four-course meal. 

The first course was a cheese fondue.  My side of the table chose the Tuscan Sun-Dried Tomato fondue, a creamy combination of provolone, parmigiano, and mozzarella, with white wine along with sun-dried tomato and a blend of Italian herbs.  We were given a multitude of dippers to soak up the cheesy goodness, including bread, broccoli, apples, grapes, and carrots.  It was absolutely fantastic: smooth, creamy, a little tangy from the wine, and perfect with the dippers (especially the grapes).  The other side of the table had the Cheddar Ale Fondue with a Yuengling base (my favorite of the three choices of beer), and the taste I had of that was also absolutely delicious.  With the mustard and beer you’d expect it to be more on the bitter side, but it was creamy and just a little tart. Fantastic.

For our second course, we had the choice of soup or salad.  (When the waiter asked me which I preferred, I requested a regular-sized salad as opposed to a super salad.  ….I couldn’t resist)  I chose the broccoli-parmesan soup of the day.  It was very good: nutty and salty from the parmesan, and still had vegetables so you felt a little less guilty.  

For my third course, I chose a plate containing filet mignon, shrimp, ravioli, and root vegetables to cook with the White Merlot and Vegetable broth.  To accompany it, I chose the au poivre, lime wasabi aioli, and asian ginger sauces to dip.  I made good choices.  Especially the lime wasabi aioli, EVERYTHING tasted good dipped in it.  Even the raviolis!  The au poivre was also really good, especially when the wonderfully tender filet mignon was dipped.  After this course I found myself so full that I didn’t think I could continue to course 4… until it came to the table.

For course 4, my roommate and I chose the turtle fondue to share as our dessert.  It’s a combination of dark chocolate, caramel, and nuts… what more do you need in one place?  Add that to the beautiful plate of strawberries, grapes, cream puffs, marshmallows, and pretzels for dipping, and needless to say I found some room for dessert.  It was absolutely incredible.  Rich, decadent, smoky almost from the caramel, and absolutely perfect. 

In addition to just how fabulous the food was, the service was also terrific.  Our waiter was incredibly friendly, knowledgeable, and personable.  Also very attentive, and he didn’t mind that my table was the last to leave the restaurant.  

All in all, this was a really incredible dining experience. I highly recommend accompanying it with a glass of wine, and following all fondue etiquette (when you drop food into the fondue pot, you have to buy the person next to you a drink or give them a kiss.  not bad either way).  When you feel like treating yourself to a relaxing, invigorating, and exciting dining experience, go to the Little Dipper. You won’t be disappointed.

Let’s get something on the table: Indian food.  A cuisine which highlights bright, exciting, rich flavors.  That, along with the fact that many of their dishes are served with rice, which is a staple ingredient in many of my go-to meals.  These are the makings of some of my favorite meals, but I generally don’t cook it myself. I turn to Indian restaurants with lunch specials so I can try everything for one price, such as India Mahal (which is absolutely amazing).  

But today, I stepped outside of my comfort zone, and tried my hand at making Indian food. The dish? Chicken Tikka Masala.

I had found a bag of garam masala at Saigon Market, and couldn’t resist.  So my first step was to choose the perfect recipe.  As the foodnetwork junkie that I am, of course I turned to Aarti Sequeira, and used her chicken tikka masala recipe which can be found here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/aarti-sequeira/chicken-in-creamy-tomato-curry-chicken-tikka-masala-recipe/index.html 

To make it a bit lighter, I made a few alterations.  I replaced the heavy cream with fat free half and half, used 1 Tbsp of butter rather than 3, and used non-fat yogurt.  And it still created a delicious, hearty, rich dish. 

I used a good Hungarian paprika, bought from Budapest during my visit last summer, and the garam masala, which gave it a great, deep, almost nutty flavor.  I was brave and kept the seeds of the serrano pepper, and it had just the right amount of heat.  It took about an hour to prepare, but if you break it up into more steps like the recipe suggests (like marinating the chicken overnight), it probably wouldn’t be so long. But it’s totally worth the time, and it’s not difficult at all to make.  So the next time that you’re feeling adventurous, or you missed the lunch buffet at India Mahal, or you just want a new way to make chicken, try this recipe.  You will not be disappointed.

If there’s one thing I’ve discovered in the past couple years, it’s that hoisin sauce is delicious and should probably be used in everything.  Whether you’re just making a simple stirfry, trying to find a kicked-up dipping sauce for chicken fingers, or making asian barbecue, it’s perfect for everything.  And today, I made asian-esque barbecue-esque chicken. With hoisin sauce! 

Believe it or not, the recipe is from the weight watchers website… and it’s delicious! (and only 4 points, if you care about that stuff :p  ) It calls for boneless, skinless chicken thighs marinated in hoisin, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, orange juice, and black pepper.  The full recipe can be found here: http://www.weightwatchers.com/util/prt/RecipePage.aspx?Type=1&RecipeID=146401 

It’s super simple, I marinated the chicken last night and threw it on the skewers and into the oven today. Twenty minutes later, and voila. 

I had this with chili-lime corn (zest and juice a lime, add a teaspoon each of chili powder and half a teaspoon of salt, and a bag of prepared frozen corn. yum.)  Enjoy the hoisinous deliciousness!

Being a college student, I must make certain sacrifices.  Sleep for the sake of homework.  Homework for the sake of mental health. Et cetera et cetera.  One of my main sacrifices is financially-based: I don’t buy soda or beverages in general, aside from one gloriously cheap thing.  Tea.  And when I say tea, I mean tea bags.  Because being a college student, I require a daily dose of caffeine.  And I don’t have the time to drink a cup of hot tea before class every morning…because that would sacrifice another ten minutes of sleep that I just can’t get myself to do.  So the solution!

Iced green tea.  Yes, you can buy iced green tea, but it has a lot of sweeteners and etc.  I’ve been trying to be healthier this year, and so whenever possible I try to prepare the things that I eat and drink.  

This iced tea contains two key elements: a. it keeps me awake. check. and b. it is cheap.  when you buy green tea in bulk!

I bought this beautiful box of tea bags from Saigon Market on S. Kerr for about $3.  I bought it in January.  And I drink green tea every day. I’m only halfway through. Win.

So, I’ve been playing with some tea ratios recently to make the perfect green tea, and I’ve crafted one that I really like so far.

Vanilla Green Tea

This only requires 3 things:

4 green tea bags

1 vanilla rooibos tea bag (tea of life recommended)

8 cups water

Boil water.  Remove from heat, and steep tea bags for 30 minutes.  Remove tea bags, chill tea for 6 hours.

And that’s it.  Simple, I know, but this simple tea has brought so much joy to my life.  It’s sweet because of the vanilla rooibos tea, tart and bright from the green tea, and wakes me up. I’m thinking that the next time I go to the store I’ll pick up some sort of fruity tea and try throwing that into the mix as well, to give it another note.  So I’ll keep you updated.  Until then: 

expect to see me like this. Especially in the am.

-The Creped Crusader

On Saturday, I made a trek down Oleander to try out Flip’s Barbecue.  Being a girl from New Jersey, I’ve made it my mission to enjoy as much southern food as possible in the remainder of my time here in North Carolina (graduation isn’t that far away!) so I’ve frequented Jackson’s Big Oak Barbecue.  I had heard things about Flip’s and thought it was time to give it a try.

News flash: it’s delicious.  I got a barbecue sandwich (with slaw, of course) and corn nuggets: little tasty bites of fried creamed corn.  Also, the nice man behind the counter threw in a fried mac and cheese bite. I must say…. it was phenomenal.  Well-priced, fast, and great service.  The sweet tea was great, too. (I think that’s the true sign of whether a restaurant is good)  

The big question here is, how does it compare to Jackson’s? 

….it might be better.  The barbecued pork from both places is equally delicious, but Flip’s won me over in a few other ways: their sides had great variety and were all delicious.  Their slaw is creamier than Jackson’s, which I think plays better with the vinegar-based barbecue that both places have to offer (it is North Carolina, after all).  However, Jackson’s hushpuppies are lighter and fluffier than Flip’s.

So verdict? I will have to go to Flip’s every other time that I crave barbecue…and Jackson’s the rest of the time. Both are great, both are well-priced and have great service…. and you really can’t go wrong with either. Win.

Yesterday, I craved a reuben with every fiber of my being.  So I went to South College Deli, because I’ve been there a few times before and have loved the reuben sandwich every time.  Yesterday was no exception.

Not being a fan of sauerkraut, I ordered the reuben with corned beef (you can choose to have it with either corned beef or turkey), and minus sauerkraut.  South College Deli bakes their own bread… I’ve only tried one flavor because I don’t have the heart to try something else.  The sundried tomato bread is absolutely delicious, and makes every sandwich (…so every reuben) I’ve had there fantastic.  Not to mention the delicious thousand island dressing and hearty portion of corned beef and cheese on the sandwich.  And the house-made potato chips dipped in ranch? Woah, nelly.

And the absolute icing on the cake was the fast and friendly staff.  Their order form is designed perfectly for a deli: it has a column for sandwich choice, bread choice, any items to be withheld from the sandwich, side, and customer’s name.  They think of everything.  Also, the nice guy at the register threw some Snickerdoodles into my bag (which were also DELICIOUS).

So, my verdict on the South College Deli? Go. It’s reasonably-priced (I got my whole meal for just under $9), service is exceptional, and the food is just great. 

restaurant info:

South College Deli»> 332 S College Rd  Wilmington, NC 28403

Hello all,

Today, while faced with a couple hours of waiting for files to convert, I caught up on all of my favorite food blogs.  And it made me realize that a. I love food blogs, b. I am a growing foodie all of the time, and c. I have a tumblr account!

So, naturally, I did the only logical thing I could do: revamped this blog into something that will be truly delicious.

In it I will be sharing recipes, food discoveries, delicious restaurants, terrible restaurants, and everything in between that is food-related.  

So get ready for the college-budget, limited-time foodie endeavors of a college-budget, limited-time college student!

<3 leanne, the creped crusader