bru's wiffle

santa monica, ca

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best dish: "dwight's special" - fried chicken and waffle. don't get distracted by the rest of the menu, just get two pieces of boneless fried chicken on a crispy waffle. the waffle is nice and crunchy - even when dipped in maple syrup. chicken is pretty good (not as juicy as chicken on the bone, but easier to eat with the waffle). i prefer white meat because it matches better with the thick breading. the dish comes with 3 sauces for the chicken - creamy ranch, hot sauce, and a vinegary chickeny sauce (this last one is my favorite). i've heard that the original roscoe's might be better, but this is an excellent option in santa monica.

addendum

yountville, ca

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if you go to napa valley and stay on the napa side (as opposed to the sonoma side), plan your wine tastings around your fried chicken lunch at addendum. be smart. schedule only one winery before lunch so that you're not too drunk. order your addendum meal online in advance so you can skip the line. scope out the picnic tables so you can swoop in just as someone else is leaving. because addendum has the BEST FRIED CHICKEN I HAVE EVER EATEN. oh yes, i typed it. i know. it's bold. a very risky and controversial statement. it will probably lead to arguments. fights. black eyes. maybe even the end of some friendships. but it's done. and it's the truth. addendum's fried chicken has the perfect crispiness. perfect juiciness. and just enough saltiness to bring out that magical chickeny goodness. eaten outside on a picnic table near the french laundry garden - it's simply perfect. thank you thomas keller. thank you.

cypress grill

austin, tx

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y+a+n finally arrived in austin, so we all went out for dinner. after all of the doughnuts, we decided to move onto something with a little more substance. still deep-fried, though, it is texas after all. jinny and kurt are excellent tour guides - we simply select a cuisine and they find us a restaurant with great food and atmosphere. at cypress grill i ordered the fried oysters, served with fries. pretty solid food.

clinton st baking co

new york, ny

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jenny, a native new yorker, is an encyclopedia of amazing places to eat in nyc. she chose clinton st baking co for dinner, which i had heard of, but have never gone to because while they are famous for their brunch, they are infamous for absurdly long lines. and i hate waiting in lines, especially when i'm hungry. jenny's brilliant idea, however, was to go for dinner when the restaurant is much calmer and easier to get into. clinton st baking co is known for its blueberry pancakes. despite the fact that it was dinnertime, everyone was ordering pancakes and the scent of baked blueberries filled the air.

derek had another brilliant idea - ordering a plate of blueberry pancakes to share as an appetizer so we could still order actual dinner entrees. the menu is full of southern specialties - i ordered the burger which was just okay (onion overkill). derek's fried chicken was pretty good. the pancakes, however? amazing - possibly the best pancakes i've ever had. the blueberries were sweet and delicious. the pancakes somehow had a perfectly crisp exterior with a perfectly light and fluffy interior. rich and buttery, there was no need to add the warm maple butter on the side. i now understand why their brunch lines are ridiculous.

vidalia

washington, dc

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another rec from our guidebook was also described as serving southern food. given that georgia brown's wasn't that great, we decided to give vidalia a try. it's located in foggy bottom, which is a bit of a hike from downtown, but dc is pretty easy to navigate. plus, its fun to say foggy bottom. fortunately we were semi-dressed up because vidalia turned out to be quite a fancy restaurant. the yellow-beige decor looks like it was designed in the early 90s, but the food more than made up for it.

dinner started with amazing cornbread and rolls. my favorite dish was my appetizer - perfectly cooked asparagus topped with orange slices, salmon roe, and a light dressing. it was delicious! it was salty, sweet, and refreshing all at once. it was a remarkable dish, unlike anything i've ever had before. the rest of the meal was also excellent - i had yummy shrimp and grits. for dessert, the georgia pecan pie. so good. this is how fancy southern food should taste!

georgia brown's

washington, dc

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our guidebook explained that bill clinton came here to get his soul food fix. so we had to try it. derek and i love soul food. i think it's pretty typical for asian-americans to love soul food. i find that chinese food and southern soul food cooking have a lot in common. for example, when i was ordering my shrimp and grits, the waiter initially asked me if i wanted the heads on. then without waiting for me to answer, he said "yeah, you want it with the heads on." of course. i'm chinese.

my shrimp and grits were pretty tasty but i still preferred the version i had at the redhead. georgia brown's version had too much sauce and it drowned out my grits. my favorites dishes were the appetizers - deviled eggs and fried oysters (pictured). delicious, but the little decorative extras were unnecessary. turns out georgia brown's is fancified soul food. tastes good, but not worth the extra price. overall, not a huge fan. sorry bill.

the redhead

new york, ny

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tonight jenny, r.g. and i managed to escape from our respective offices for a night of good fun, great food, and strong drinks. the redhead is famous for receiving a rave review from frank bruni, his last as a ny times food critic. so we were worried about the wait when we showed up to the tiny restaurant at 8 pm on a thursday night (thursday being the new friday). the hostess said it was a 30-45 minute wait, but it didn't seem that long. it was just enough time for me to finish a redhead fizz (absolut mandarin, elderflower cordial, fresh lemon juice) and start on a revival (beefeater gin, white lillet, triple sec, fresh lemon juice). by the way, i recommend the fizz if you want something light & refreshing and the revival if you want a real drink.

properly liquored up, the girls and i sat down at the corner table (nice) for our meal. which was amazing. even the little dinner roll and soft butter they serve were delicious. i highly recommend starting with the mushroom flatbread and definitely add the sausage if you're a meateater. the consensus at the table was that the best entree was the shrimp with andouille sausage and grits. everyone in the restaurant was ordering the fried chicken, so we tried that too. good, but lacked flavor. the trout was good for a "lighter" entree. no need for dessert - they give complimentary chocolate espresso cookies at the end of the meal. this place definitely deserves the praise that it has received and i look forward to returning.

5/13/2010: updated with better photo of the mushroom flatbread.