Chow Down Atlanta

If you love steamed pork buns as much as I do, then you will go crazy over Miso’s new sliders or Bun. My favorite? The simmered pork belly, of course. The pork is braised in this delicious sauce. It is so tender. The cilantro makes it more Asian than it already is. Oh, soooooo good.

But that’s not it. All the buns are great. The crispy duck, the hamburger (which is actually a meatloaf), the hotdog, and the tonkatsu are all great. You have to try them all.

One last thing… the Pork Kimchi is insane. It’s got this tender pork stir-fried with spicy kimchi in all its glorious grease. Talk about foodgasm. I ate it with plain buns. Oh. My.

More reviews here.

Miso Izakaya
619 Edgewood Ave SE
Atlanta, GA 30312
(678) 701-0128

Technorati Tags: Japanese, izakaya, downtown

The best burger with a kick is the Apache burger and you can only find it here. The patty is juicy and tasty. Joined in a pillow-soft bun by spicy friends: house roasted green chiles, grilled onions, and pepper jack cheese. It’s not really spicy but there’s a considerable heat to it. Happy burger.

All the other burgers are good, too. Except for the turkey burgers which tasted like steamed fake meat (sorry, @tonetoatlanta). Meh. Fries are good. Onion rings have too much batter. Sweet potato kettle chips are good.

More reviews here.

Grindhouse Killer Burgers
209 Edgewood Ave
Atlanta, GA 30303
(404) 522-3444

Technorati Tags: burgers, Downtown

One word: Pork. Three words: Braised Pork Belly. Enough said.

Available during lunch only. Braised for 6 hours and they only make one pot daily. Comes plated with perfectly steamed Jasmine rice and a fried egg. I ate it 3 days in a row two weeks ago. It was greasy, fatty, tender, delicious. It is deadly. And all for $4.99.

Next best thing: Fried Chicken. Double-fried. Crunchy. Tasty.

Third best thing: hot pots. I’ve been waiting for this joint to open.  I even sent Sean when he was home during his winter break to check it out one day but they hadn’t open yet at the time.  The hot pots are just like from her older sister on BuHi. And same owner.  But it’s nicer here.  And bigger. They have lunch meals, not just hot pots.  It gets ridiculously busy during lunch.  Go now!

P.S. Get the spicy broth.

Mini Hot Pot 2
2174 Pleasant Hill Rd., Suite 101
Duluth, GA 30096
678-417-8888

Technorati Tags: hot pot, Duluth, soups

They stayed crispy the entire lunch hour. They weren’t greasy. They were salted perfectly. They were the best. Comes with a choice of dipping sauces like these: garlic aoli, bacon & tarragon mayonnaise, cucumber-dill yogurt, and more.

Everything else takes a backseat.  Including my friend’s amazing squash soup and this:

More chatter here.

Leon’s Full Service
131 E. Ponce de Leon Avenue
Decatur, GA 30030
(404) 687-0500

I took the pork fat drippings and drizzled it over my rice. OMG.

I eat Korean all the time. There was one week in May last year that I ate it 7 times in a week. Crazy. I’ve been here many times. But the other night was the best Korean dinner I’ve had this year. We demolished everything in front of us. The boneless galbi and pork belly rule here. And the delicate chawanmushi is to-die-for. (What happened to the pictures, FB?)

Oh and I almost forgot… I became a Korean last year. Thanks, Gene.

More here and here.

Open later for dinner on weekdays than weekends. (Does that make sense to you?)

Cafe Todahmgol
2442 Pleasant Hill Rd, Suite 3B,
Duluth, GA 30096
770-813-8202
Mon-Sat: 5PM-2AM
Sunday: 5PM-12Midnight

My first taste of Chef Steven Hartman’s food was during a wine conclave. There was a lot of swooning that happened then (of course, mainly from me, although the other guys around me did so, too, with the dessert). I wanted to find out if that gastrorgasmic experience was only a fluke. So I went back one weekend.

We did my usual stealth-dining-tactic (especially because I knew they would recognize me) — reservations never under my name, corner table, back turned to the public, paid in full… the worst part: no pictures. Okay, except for two crappy ones taken with my iPhone. But here’s one that I swiped from Steven’s blog:

photo courtesy of Steven Hartman

Here’s what happened:

Cauliflower + White Chocolate Soup Chocolate is tops in my book. This one was so creamy but with just the right amount of richness. You can taste the white chocolate in the background. The taste of cauliflower stood out but not enough to be offensive. The crumbled almonds gave an explosion of texture in the mouth. Swoon Factor: 10

Lamb Sweet Breads Tender pieces. Not gamey at all. Apples and watermelons were not too sweet as to mask the taste of everything.

Berkshire Pork Shank The entire Twitterverse heard me moan. The pork melted in my mouth. Most everyone pairs pork with apples. Lame. Steven’s use of huckleberries gave an interesting note of sweetness to cut through the rich meat. I got giddy as they popped in my mouth. The rice grits and brussels sprout leaves tied everything together. Moan and Swoon Factor: 10+

Beef Confit I honestly don’t remember much. I know it was really good as well, but I was pre-occupied with my dish.

Apple & Whiskey Fried Pie This isn’t your momma’s apple pie. The crust was soft and flaky. It wasn’t cloyingly sweet. It was delicious. But I wasn’t really paying attention at this point because…

Butternut Squash Cup Custard This had me in ecstasy. And I don’t even really like desserts. But this. This was happiness in a jar. You have to go taste for yourself. Moan and Swoon Factor: off the charts!!!

Verdict: best non-Ethnic meal ever. Chef Steven is a genius. Go now!!!

Le Vigne at Monteluce Winery
501 Hightower Church Rd
Dahlonega, GA 30533
(706) 867-4060
Twitter: @hogballs @montelucewine @MVineyards

P.S. Happy 3rd Birthday to me!

I am so humbled and honored by all your love and support. All of you, and all your words mean so much to me. THANK YOU. Food is my crack passion and I get a natural high just by the sheer idea of it. (You can just imagine the swooning and moaning that happen when I encounter good stuff.) This past two weeks of not writing about food has actually been fun and liberating. Don’t get me wrong, though, I’m still eating (a whole lot of great meals) and taking pictures of my food like any other day. Wanna know how many food pictures I have on my iPhone alone? How about 1,515? And that’s only from the last 2 months and not including my other cameras!

So I’ve been thinking really hard about all this blogging thing. A good friend asked me the other day, “Why do you have CDA, anyway?” Why? Because without CDA, it’s like talking to myself. No fun. If a tree splashes into the ocean and no one is around to see/hear it, did it really splash? (Sorry, the forest thing has been taken so I had to think of something original.) I talk and think incessantly about food and if people do not see, hear, or taste what I’m talking about, then it’s just like talking to myself. Which brings me to the writing thing…

The first program I ever wrote for school was Hello World. The class was CSC 2010. I was 15 which is like 85 in today’s techie terms. I heard 1st Graders are already coding these days, and in object-oriented languages, too!

int main(){
printf(”hello, world. i love food”);
return 0;
}

I was so giddy when I saw the output on the screen. It’s the same feeling I got when my first blog post appeared on GeoCities in 96. Same exact feeling when this blog was created. Chow Down Atlanta’s birthday is next week. During dinner the other night, my sister and I looked at each other and we both blurted out, “Let’s kill this 3-year old!!!” I know, you had to be there.

Major props to the great friends who took the time to knock some sense into my stubborn head: you guys know who you are. A huge thanks to all my fantastic readers and the awesome people who don’t tire of reading CDA and was nice enough to comment (and offer solutions): BBQGeek, k, aaron, MVineyards, helen, FnS, Amy, Sean M, Carrie, Dee, my homie Troy, Andrew P, Martin, pointedview, Benjamin M, Tanline, Tina, and my boy Eli. You guys all rock!!!

Oh, I forgot I had I point… no untimely death for now. But a new approach down the road. Stay tuned. And follow me on Twitter to see what I’ve been eating: @chowdownATL

Last but not least… a piece of me to you. It’s about time, no?

Love you guys,
~C.

I’m sure you’ve noticed that I’ve been lazy about writing posts these days. I have, like, a dozen or so drafts but no focus nor determination to finish even just one. I think I’ve done everything there is to do with this blog. I’ve become great friends with some really good people. I’ve gained so many eating buddies. I’ve met so many cool people. I’ve had the best meals these past two months. Should I throw in the towel or take a break? Perhaps I just need a new approach…

This expires in 4 days. Any takers?

www.ChowDownAtlanta.com

~C.

I’ve been staring at my computer for weeks now. You see, I have this project for school that I just can’t get started to work for some reason. Blogging is taking a back seat for now even though I’ve been eating, eating, eating (most days having two lunches and two dinners). So, in true Blissful fashion, allow me to share with you some of the guilty pleasures I’ve been stuffing my face with this past week…

Sublime Doughnuts Dearest Kamal, thank you so much for spotting me $20 when your debit card reader was down and my sister had absolutely no cash with her.  And to think we hadn’t even met. You’re the best.  Love, Chloe.

Godiva Chocolates This is what $xxx buys you (thanks, Mom, I did not eat them all in one sitting as promised; it took two.)

Ramen From Haru Ichiban, Yakitori Jinbei, and Blue Fin Sushi. Because Tonkotsu ramen does wonders for the body and soul.

Krystal Burgers Part of my nightly munchies. Best consumed after 1AM. Off-the-grill: no pickles, no mustard. With cheese. Extra crispy fries. And Diet Coke.

Waffle House The best waffle $2.65 can buy.

NM Cafe  Sandwiches and Salads are what I call “girl-food” — no offense to anyone (my salad/sandwich-eating sister loves girl-food), but they’re just not my thing. Why? Because I get crazy hungry 20 minutes later.

Cupcakes The cupcake/doughnut fairy recently gave me cupcakes from the Cupcake Factory.  They were delicious. Thank you, Mr. Fairy. Love ya, even though you get on my nerves all the freaking time.

Walking distance from school,  the Sweet Auburn Bakery also has great cupcakes.  And great cheesecakes. Quick, save me, my sister’s sweet tooth is dangerously about to rub off on me…

Japanese snacks Childhood favorites.  For when my frequent hypoglycemia kicks in.

Korean Cheetos  A new find.  I love the black one.  Your American brothers, Jalapeño Cheetos and Flaming Hot, welcome you.

Desserts from The Shed at Glenwood The sheep’s milk yogurt with dates and honey is like breakfast on crack.  And the moist pumpkin roll? To die for.

Kozmo Where good Poutines happen.

Shoya Go with a big group. Of guys.  More fun.  And you get to try out more dishes.

Dim Sum at Royal China and East Pearl are a Sunday family tradition.  But Royal China rules because nothing beats having a Cantonese chef. We’ve been eating there since we were small. East Pearl isn’t so good because there are more misses than hits. The spicy beef short ribs, however, is amazing.

Korean I’ve been saying I wish I were Korean. My good friend JZP said to me (referring to how we love everything Korean), “God knows we’ve both tried to become Korean.  But at the end of the day, we both know we’re not, no matter how much we tried.”  I’m hoping hanging out with Sean or Gene will make me Korean by association, if anything else.

Pizza My pizza partner-in-crime is starting to slow down. Need to find another pizza buddy. Interested?  Big appetite a must.

Asian Tea Bubble tea, warm Milk Taro tea with tapioca pearls and our newest obsession: fresh-squeezed Yuzu tea (both hot or cold) that Broderick and I recently discovered.

Farmer Cheese Blinchiki Great for breakfast. $1.25 each at the European section of BHFM. I get them by the dozen.

Chocolate Croissants From the No. 1 Hongkong Bakery. Only $1 each. Only 10 made daily. Order 24 hours in advance or go in the morning. Chocolate and bread. Best love-team ever. (Well, second to bread and butter.)

Wetzel’s Pretzels Yeasty, buttery, soft pretzels.  It’s a current addiction.

Okay, that’s all for now. Back to the staring thing…

So I’m late in the game, I know. But here’s what went down anyway. Last Saturday, I circled Hwy 52 for 30 minutes trekked up to Dahlonega to join my homies Eat It Atlanta, Savory Exposure, and Foodie Buddha on a food/wine conclave hosted by Montaluce Winery. In the interest of full disclosure, Montaluce provided a delectable 5-course luncheon plus wine pairings and wine tastings to us bloggers at no charge.

my stash

I’m such a lightweight when in comes to alcohol (I hardly ever drink) that I think I was drunk (and beet red) after 5 sips of wine (you can ask Jimmy– he was making fun of me!) But I found something that I really liked and bought 3 bottles for my dad — 2 risatas and a viognier — smooth, and a tad sweet.

I really had such a great time and met so many nice people. And I can’t wait to go back. Shout out to the nice people:

@montalucewine
@hogballs
@winetonite
@biskuitATL
@EatBuHi
@BlackTieBBQ
@frenchtart
@leoghann
@hoplessfoodie
@suburbanwino

More pictures here.

[Side note: I was supposed to go to Conyers in the evening for a birthday party but all the eating and wine followed by a big Shoya dinner did me in. To Dylan: Happy, happy birthday. Sorry to miss your party.]

Montaluce Winery & Estates
501 Hightower Church Road
Dahlonega, GA 30533
Phone: 706.867.4060
Fax: 706.482.0120
Email: info@montaluce.com