Restaurants Offering Easter Brunch in Fort Mill Area

Millstone Pizza And Taphouse

May 7, 2013 By Christin M 2 Comments

Pizza and Beer. Almost as great a combination as peanut butter and chocolate.

Brendan Kuhlkin and David Clapp have opened a new restaurant in Rock Hill named Millstone Pizza and Taphouse that focuses on this popular combination of food and beverage.. Their wood-fired pizzas and 40 craft beers on tap will make this place a regular on your dining out schedule.

The City of Rock Hill has made great efforts in recent years to revitalize the downtown area which is referred to as Old Town Rock Hill. Millstone Pizza and Taphouse is located on the backside of the building on Caldwell St which will be housing the brand new indoor Old Town Market, which incidentally opens for the 2013 season this Thursday. (Previously Old Town Market operated out of a parking lot.)

The interior of the restaurant is warm and hip with soaring industrial ceilings, exposed brick, and a bar made out of reclaimed wood. Large garage door windows line the side of the building, letting in lots of light into what would otherwise be a very dark space. They can be opened on a nice day to let fresh air in. There is also a spacious outdoor eating area along the side of the building.

The owners of Millstone Pizza and Taphouse did extensive research before opening, traveling around New York and Chicago sampling some of the best pizzas these cities have to offer. Their efforts paid off. The pizza at Millstone is superior in quality to any made in the area. This is due to their carefully sourced ingredients and 900 degree custom hickory-fired oven.

Cooking the pizza at such a high temperature creates a very crispy crust. The restaurant ships in Caputo OO flour from Italy, custom-made meats from New York, and uses local farm to table cheeses. All ingredients are superbly fresh.

Perhaps my favorite thing at Millstone is the choose your own beer flight. You pick 4 from their 40 beers on tap. There are lots of good choices and a plenty of variety, including many IPAs which tend to be my favorite. They also have a preselected beer flight of the week for a little less money. Our waitress, who was exceptionally friendly and attentive, took the time to write the name of each beer on a coaster. A big plus since between my husband and myself, we had ordered 8 different beers and never would have remembered which beer was which.

For an appetizer, the Salt and Pepper Calamari was very delicious and not at all greasy. After a little debate, we settled on the Meat Pizza with Italian sausage, meatballs, pepperoni, Prosciutto di Parma, and buffalo mozzarella. It proved to be a good choice.

Other pizzas include a Seafood Pizza with white garlic sauce, shrimp, clams, calamari, sea salt, pepper, basil, and red pepper olive oil and the Funghi Pizza with white garlic sauce, cremini and portobello mushrooms, and local goat cheese.

For dessert, you can’t go wrong with the giant chocolate chip cookie cooked in a skillet in the wood-fired oven. Yum!

If you tend to be a late eater, every Monday-Thursday night from 9pm to midnight, pizzas are $2 off and all draft beers are $1 off. I’m sure this deal is popular with nearby Winthrop University students.

Millstone Pizza and Taphouse seems to be doing lots of business. It’s so nice to see some locally owned restaurants doing well in a city that is way too overloaded with chain restaurants. Be sure to also check out Erin’s Restaurant located a few buildings down Caldwell ST, as well as The Yolk which serves up delicious breakfast foods on Mt Gallant, and Culina Modern Comfort Food over by the hospital.

Millstone Pizza and Taphouse

121 Caldwell St

Rok Hill, SC

Mon-Sat 11am-12am

Sunday 11am-10pm

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Filed Under: Restaurants Tagged With: pizza places, places to eat, Rock Hill Restaurants

Growlers Pourhouse

April 30, 2013 By Christin M 1 Comment

Growlers Pour House, located in the always a good time NoDa Neighborhood of Charlotte, does 2 things and does them well. Craft Beer and what they term ‘Beer Food’. Located next to the Crepe Cellar (same owners) on North Davidson, Growlers Pour House has a unique selection of American Craft Beers, with 14 on tap. For 2 years in a row, they have been chosen as one of America’s Top 100 Beer Bars by Draft Magazine.

Exposed brick and dark wood set the scene. A mix of bar stools, booths, and a large community table in the center provide seating for patrons. It’s not a huge space and it’s best to go early if you want to avoid crowds. If you can’t decide what you want to order right away, go ahead and ask for some complimentary popcorn. There’s nothing special about it, but I can’t ever pass on free food.

We enjoyed 2 Bell’s Midwestern Pale Ales, raw oysters on the half shell (does anything go better with beer?), and some chicken wings which were definitely above average in my book.

Beers on tap rotate regularly and their beer menu on the website names only styles of beer: seasonals, pilsners, hefe, amber/red, brown, belgian, IPA, double IPA, American Strong, Porter, and High Gravity.

Also notable at Growlers Pour House is a refurbished 1936 Gaskell and Chambers beer engine from which you can try cask ales, hand-pumped and served at cellar temperatures. These brews are unpasteurized, unfiltered, and naturally carbonated by a second fermentation.

After enjoying our wings, we devoured 2 reubens. I was really looking forward to this reuben because it was named Best Sandwich in Charlotte by The Charlotte Observer in 2012. The menu description sounds very tantalizing- corned beef, sriracha russian dressing, swiss, purple slaw, Juniper berry sauerkraut on marble rye. It was quite good, although I don’t think I detected the taste of the sriracha or the juniper berries and I don’t think I would consider it the Best Sandwich in Charlotte. But I might have to go back to have another one just to make sure . I do love a reuben.

I might however nominate the fries for Best in Charlotte. We devoured them.

Growlers Pour House also makes an array of homemade sausages and they grind all the meat in-house with choice cuts. They also offer a Cheese and Beer Pairing with 4 cheeses paired with complimentary 4-ounce beers.

If you want to learn more about craft beers, check out Growlers Pourhouse Beer Ed Classes held the first Tuesday of each month.

Growlers Pour House

3120 North Davidson

Charlotte, NC 28205

Monday-Friday 5pm-2am

Saturday noon-2am

Sunday noon-2am

Other NoDa Businesses

Boudreauxs

NoDa Brewing Company

Heist Brewery

Filed Under: Restaurants Tagged With: Charlotte bars, Charlotte Restaurants, craft beer, Growlers Pour House, NoDa Neighborhood

Places to Eat: Cowfish

April 17, 2013 By Christin M Leave a Comment

When it comes to restaurants in Charlotte with innovative fun food, The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar takes the cake. This extraordinarily popular Southpark restaurant where a 90 minutes wait for a table is nothing, serves up burgers, sushi, burgers in sushi form, and sushi in burger form. It’s one crazy place. You may think it sounds a little gimmicky, but the food really works and it’s truly a food lovers paradise. Recently my son was given the choice of any restaurant in Charlotte for his birthday dinner. And you guessed it, he chose The Cowfish. My boy knows his food!

The menu reads like an encyclopedia, page after page of delicious temptations. There’s much more to choose from than burgers and sushi – wonderful appetizers, tantalizing salads, hand spun milkshakes, and sandwiches. You might want to study the menu at home to lessen your ordering anxiety. Even better, designate different people in your party to order off of different parts of the menu so you can sample a wide variety of things. Yeah, I like to be bossy like that.

Just in the burger category, there are approximately 16 specialty burgers to choose from, each one sounding better than the last.

But I’m getting ahead of myself because at The Cowfish you will not want to skip the appetizers. There are some excellent choices and the portion sizes are very sharable.

Birthday Boy

Coconut Martini (NOT for the birthday boy)

The Crab Rangoon Dip ($10) is always a favorite with wonton crisps and sweet chili sauce. The dramatic display of Coconut Battered Onion Rings with horseradish aioli and sweet chili sauce, gorgeously piled high on a plate will cause more than a few eyes to open wide in eager anticipation.

Other good choices are the Blackened Ahi Tuna Nachos, Crinkle Cut Fried Pickles, and Sweet and Spicy Thai Cucumbers (also available as a side).

The decisions don’t get any easier when it comes to sides. Choices include sweet potato fries, house seasoned fries, bacon coleslaw, sweet and spicy Thai cucumbers, grilled vegetables, crispy onion straws, edamame, and fried pickles.

The Deliverance Roll

No trip to The Cowfish should be considered complete without trying their signature Burgushi. The Deliverance Roll ($14) consists of tender pulled pork, tangy BBQ sauce, and tempura onion strings rolled with seaweed and rice, tempura battered and flash fried, then topped with bacon coleslaw.

If that doesn’t suit your fancy, try The Taste Explosion Roll ($14) with ground beef, applewood bacon, fresh jalapenos and spicy cream sauce inside a sushi roll coated with tempura flakes. Topped with marinated roma tomato and pepper jack cheese blend and drizzled with cashew cilantro pesto. If that doesn’t wake your taste buds up, nothing will.

Blackened Tuna Roll

If traditional sushi is your thing, there are more than 60 rolls to choose from or you can build your own.

Ok, so you’re beginning to see why selecting 1 or 2 things from the The Cowfish menu will be one of the hardest decisions of your week.

Sushi is best eaten in large quatities.

Luckily The Cowfish offers a Bento Box, which is an excellent way a sample a variety of things when you don’t feel like pigging out and ordering enough food for 4 people.

Because, be warned- Portions are LARGE, as you can see from the pictures.

Reuben Kulakofsky Burger

From the burger menu, you can’t go wrong with Porky’s Revenge ($12), a beef burger topped with pulled pork, smoked gouda cheese, crispy onion strings, bacon coleslaw, and tangy BBQ sauce.

Also a crowd pleaser is the Stringin the Blues Burger ($12), a beef burger dusted with blackening seasoning, topped with blue cheese crumbles, crispy onion strings, and homemade gorgonzola sauce.

Stringin the Blues Burger

Pastrami lovers may not be able to resist the Reuben Kulakofsky Burger which consists of a beef burger topped with pastrami, sauerkraut, swiss cheese, and a sweet chili 1000 island dressing.

Burgers are made from a half-pound of Meyer Natural Angus Beef (100% vegetarian fed and hormone and antibiotic free). Yes, that’s a lot of meat.

Porky’s Revenge

The Cowfish tends to attract a young, professional crowd, but it is also a great place for a family outing due to their fabulous kids menu. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches rolled and cut to look like sushi? Awesome!

They’ve recently changed their reservation policies and no longer take reservations after 6pm. To make a reservation between 11am and 6pm, you must call at least a day in advance.

Grilled Salmon Salad with Sesame encrusted Goat Cheese and Cashews

A creative menu, fresh foods artistically presented, large portions, and a fun environment. What’s not to like about the Cowfish? (Except the wait for a table.)

The Cowfish

704-365-1922

4310 Sharon Rd (near Crate & Barrel)

Charlotte, NC 28211

Filed Under: Restaurants Tagged With: burgers, Charlotte Restaurants, places to eat, Southpark Mall, Southpark Restaurants, sushi, The Cowfish

Grand Opening at TCBY this Saturday

April 11, 2013 By Christin M Leave a Comment

TCBY has already become a part of the Baxter community with their soft opening last weekend, but this weekend they will make it official with a Grand Opening Day on April 13. And it’s not a second too early. With scorching temperatures arriving in Fort Mill this week, a cup of frozen yogurt is a good way to beat the heat.

To celebrate their Grand Opening, TCBY will be giving away free cups of yogurt all day Saturday. Store hours are 11am-11pm. You’ll want to be early because the first 100 customers get gift cards with a value between $1 and $20.

TCBY is located on Market St in Baxter Village next to Cloud 9 Martini Bar, in the space that was formerly Sayago’s. Another new business, Akahana Asian Bistro, will be opening soon just next door.

TCBY serves a variety of frozen yogurts including nonfat, no sugar added, and non-dairy options. This is the second yogurt store to open in Fort Mill in the last month with sweetFrog opening a few weeks ago across from Lowes.

Be sure to Like the Baxter TCBY on Facebook so you’ll know about future promotions.

TCBY-Baxter

940 Market St

Fort Mill, SC 29708

Filed Under: Restaurants Tagged With: Baxter, businesses in Baxter, Fort Mill restaurants, frozen yogurt, TCBY

Bagel Boat in Lake Wylie

April 4, 2013 By Christin M Leave a Comment

York County has had two new bagel stores open in the past six months. With the number of transplants who have moved to the area from the Northeast, demand for quality bagels has really grown. Last November, Big Apple Bagels opened in Tega Cay and the Bagel Boat set up shop in Lake Wylie in the former Bank of America near the Buster Boyd Bridge, just down from Lake Wylie Pizza. It is surely a welcome addition to nearby residents as there really is a dearth of restaurant establishments on that stretch of Highway 49, especially considering how many new homes have been built in the area.

Bagel Boat has to be one of the strangest business conversions I’ve ever seen. Probably because they’ve done so little to convert it. The inside kind of has a beachy feel (I guess that’s why they call it The Bagel BOAT) and they left most of the original walls up from when the building was a bank. If you want to eat your bagel in privacy, you can sit at a table that’s been placed in what was obviously someone’s office. Another room has been turned into a kid’s play area.

Bagel Boat claims to have authentic New York Style Kosher Bagels and they also sell coffee, smoothies, and frozen yogurt. The bagels come from Davidovich Bakery and are handmade in Woodside, NY. You’ll find a variety of bagels including Everything, Blueberry, Onion, and Poppy Seed.

For breakfast you can choose from a medley of cream cheeses to go with your bagel or have it turned into a breakfast sandwich with egg and sausage. If you want a bagel sandwich for lunch, you only have three choices: chicken salad, egg salad, or tuna salad. Oh, and Buffalo Chicken Salad which the lady at the counter graciously let me sample. They do not make these salads in-house, but rather get them from the supplier they get their cream cheese from.

I tried a chocolate chip bagel and it was a little bit of a let down. But I’m pretty sure chocolate chip bagels don’t qualify as Authentic New York Style Kosher Bagels anyway. The onion bagel was much better, very chewy, the way a good bagel should be.

As a bonus- they have sweet potato chips.

While the overall atmosphere and business model of The Bagel Boat seems a little odd, they have delicious bagels, exceptional service AND they are a locally owned small business. That gets them 2 thumbs up from us!

Store hours are seasonal and they have a drive through if you want to grab a quick coffee and bagel on the way to work.

The Bagel Boat

4090 Charlotte Highway

Lake Wylie, SC 29710

803-831-5995

Filed Under: Restaurants Tagged With: bagels, Lake Wylie, places to eat, restaurants

Erin’s Restaurant is a Local Treasure

March 27, 2013 By Christin M 2 Comments

My husband and I had one of our best dining experiences in recent years last weekend in Rock Hill of all places. We had an absolutely fabulous meal at Erin’s Restaurant in Old Town Rock Hill. Erin’s Restaurant opened at 129 Caldwell St about 6 months ago. Previously it shared restaurant space with Kinch’s. But it was Owner/Chef’s Erin Mcmanus’s dream to have her own space.

Erin’s Restaurant is a community-supported restaurant and donations from members of the community helped make this new space a reality. You can see some of their names painted on the backs of chairs in the dining area.

Entry to the restaurant is from the side door. The interior space is decorated with local artwork on the walls. An eclectic mixture of lights hang from the ceiling, many of them vintage looking. The seating is a mixture of tables and wooden chairs and booths which run down one side.

Erin’s Restaurant bills itself as “Fresh-Local-Organic. The way food should be.” Erin personally scouts out the freshest, local ingredients and has formed relationships with many area farmers. On Erin’s website, you can view a list of farmers from which the restaurant sources its produce as well as a description of what they grow and links to their websites.

One of Erin’s major goals in operating a restaurant is to educate and to “encourage an awareness of where foods come from, and how they are grown and prepared.” The menu at Erin’s Restaurant changes frequently. On the website, you’ll find only a sample menu. You have two choices as far as ordering food. You can order a la carte off the menu or choose the Chef’s Choice Menu served family style. Call ahead if you desire the Chef’s Choice. They like to have a 2 hour notice.

Strawberry Salad

We went with the Chef’s Choice option and were blown away by the quality and quantity of food. I seriously think we ate enough for the entire week. Chef’s Choice typically consists of 2 meats, a selection of salads and/or soups, side dishes, and 2 desserts plus coffee or tea. The cost I believe is around $25. We were offered a container to take home our leftovers (I had dibs on them for lunch the next day). The food is mainly down-home southern cooking. That and the fact that it is served on mismatched old china, will make you feel like you’ve gone back in time, dining at your grandmother’s house. That is, if your grandmother had popped a few amphetamines and spent a whole day turning an entire garden into a table full of home-cooked culinary delights.

Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Fresh Basil

We were served 4 salads, all so good we couldn’t pick a favorite. They consisted of a tomato-mozzarella salad, a cucumber salad with a spicy Asian-twist, an apple -goat cheese salad with cashews (or maybe it was feta?), and a strawberry salad with crunchy ramen noodle thingies on top. We were also served bread with olive oil and balsamic. I could have stopped eating right then, but we were only getting warmed up.

Next we were served the main course. I think I counted 2 meats and 7 sides. The meats consisted of a rich beef dish braised in wine and served on mashed potatoes and a chicken dish served with a fresh tarragon sauce. Among the sides were pineapple casserole, mac and cheese, collard greens, black-eyed peas, hoppin john, roasted vegetables, and mashed sweet potatoes.

The amount of food served and the exceptional service made us feel like royalty. Truly, I’ve never experienced anything like it

For dessert we were served a pumpkin cake with fresh rosemary from Erin’s garden and a chocolate sheet cake with frosting. Loved the combo of pumpkin and rosemary! And of course we finished every bite of our dessert.

The real treat at Erin’s Restaurant isn’t the food, it’s Erin. Don’t get me wrong, the food is fabulous. But part of the reason the food is fabulous is because it’s so evident that it’s prepared with passion and love. During our meal, Erin came out of the kitchen and spoke to every table. She is completely endearing and delightfully told us where each one of the foods was sourced from. I would have had to taken notes to remember it all. This is a second career for Erin and she’s enjoying every second of it. She even claims that she enjoys her days at work more than her days off.

A big thank you to Erin and her fabulous staff for making our evening feel so personal and special! What a wonderful and inspiring example of someone living their passion!

Erin’s Restaurant

www.erinsrockhill.com

Lunch Monday-Friday 11-2:30

Dinner Tuesday-Thursday 5-9

Dinner Friday-Saturday 5-10

Sunday Brunch 10-2

Reservations: 803-493-9428

129 Caldwell St in Rock Hill

Filed Under: Restaurants Tagged With: Erin's Restaurant, old town rock hill, places to eat, Rock Hill Restaurants

Restaurants Offering Easter Brunch in Fort Mill Area

March 23, 2013 By Christin M 1 Comment

It’s hard to believe Easter is just a week away. Hopefully the weather will have improved so that everyone can wear their Easter clothes and hunt for eggs without freezing to death. If you’re like me, and you don’t feel like putting an Easter ham in the oven before scurrying off to Church, many area restaurants will be serving Easter Brunch. Make your reservations soon if you wish to dine at one. Below are a few suggestions.

FISH MARKET

www.fishmarketbarandgrill.com/

990 Market St in Baxter Village

803-547-4024

The Fish Market is well-known for their buffet which they offer every Sunday and they are a very popular destination for Easter Brunch, Mother’s Day Brunch, as well as Father’s Day. The atmosphere at the Fish Market has a slightly formal and reserved feel, making it the perfect place to dine in Fort Mill when you are decked out in your Sunday best. You’ll find a variety of foods on the buffet: she crab soup, fresh salads, carving station, breakfast choices, shrimp and grits, desserts, and more.

PASSION 8 BISTRO

www.passion8bistro.com

3415 S Carolina Hwy 51, Fort Mill SC

803-802-7455

This off the beaten path restaurant in Fort Mill has a small, intimate, romantic, setting and is known for serving first-rate food. They specialize in locally sourced food and have excellent service. Not as family friendly as some of the other choices. Easter Brunch is $38 per person. Children 8 and under are free. Serving brunch from 11am-3pm. Call for reservations.

CASUAL WATER AT TEGA CAY

www.casualwateratttc.com/

15083 Molokai Dr, Tega Cay SC

803-548-3500

This restaurant has beautiful views of the Tega Cay Golf Course and is family friendly. Easter Brunch will be served buffet style for $21.95 per person, $8.95 for kids 6 to 12, free for ages 5 and under. Buffet will include omelet and carving stations, breakfast items, fried chicken, pasta, casseroles, dessert bar, and more. Seatings at 11 am, 12:30, and 2. Call for reservations.

BALLANTYNE HOTEL

www.theballantynehotel.com

10000 Ballantyne Commons Parkway, Charlotte NC 28277

704-248-4100

If you really want to spurge, treat yourself and your family to a buffet at the luxurious Ballantyne Hotel. Included on the buffet will be salads, seasonal entrees, breakfast items, carving station, and desserts. Live entertainment. Brunch served from 11am-3pm. Brunch is $65 per adult and $32 for children age 5-12. Complimentary for children 4 and under. Prices do not include tax and gratuity. There will be an appearance by the Easter Bunny and Easter Egg Hunts at 11:30am, 1pm, and 2:30pm. Reserve a spot for the egg hunt when you make reservations.

CAJUN QUEEN

www.cajunqueen.net

1800 East 7th St, Charlotte NC

704-377-9017

Laissez les bons temps rouler! Celebrate Easter cajun style at this ever popular restaurant located in the historic Elizabeth Neighborhood of Charlotte. They will be serving their regular Brunch menu featuring Eggs Benedict served multiple ways, omelets, and shrimp and grits.

e2 emeril’s eatery

e2emerils.com

135 Levine Avenue of the Arts, Charlotte NC

704-414-4787

Yet another way to celebrate Easter New Orleans Style. Emeril Lagasse opened this restaurant last year in Uptown Charlotte. They will be serving an extensive brunch menu from 10am-3pm including Bananas Foster Pancakes, Andouille Crawfish Omelet, and Grilled NY Strip. Call for reservations.

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