eat2winraleigh » American

The Pit Review

eat2winraleigh — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 18:01:47 +0000

I haven’t posted in awhile, but after eating at this restaurant a couple nights ago with great friends I knew I had to post about The Pit. The Pit is located in downtown Raleigh on East Davie Street in an old looking building. Once you step in side, you are greeted by the distinct, strong aroma of barbecuing meats. The decor is upscale, with white lights decorating the dining room and bar area. The pit master, Ed Mitchell, has been on the Food Network and has many other accolades. The menu is mostly typical bbq fare, with brisket, ribs, pulled pork and chicken. Great drink menu with different Bourbon choices along with a unique beer selection.

The Raleigh-ite – The appetizers we ordered were out of this world and I would definitely recommend them: Mini PBLTs (Pimento cheese, bacon, lettuce and tomato biscuits) and Barbecue fries. I ordered the double plate with Carolina Ribs, Eastern Style Pork, creamed corn and broccoli and cauliflower casserole. The Carolina Ribs were delicious (although definitely fattier than typical baby back ribs) and the creamed corn was probably the best I’ve ever had. However, the broccoli and cauliflower casserole lacked flavor, and the Eastern style pork was a little too spicy for me. We ordered the Banana Pudding and Apple Pie for dessert. The Banana Pudding was insane (bananas, pudding and marshmallow) , and while I didn’t try the Apple Pie the rest of the table raved about it.

Barbecue Fries

Mini PBLTs

We ordered: 1 20 oz beer, 1 10 oz beer, 1 Triple Meat plate, 1 Double Meat Plate, 1 Dessert , 1 Appetizer. Total : $76

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The Loop Pizza Grill Review

eat2winraleigh — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 04:51:31 +0000

The Loop is located in Cary off Kildaire Farm road in the Kildaire Plaza shopping center and in Chapel Hill off Franklin street in the East Gate shopping center.

The New Yorker – Great variety of salads. Great portions. I didn’t like the chicken noodle soup at all–nothing special, tasted like it was out of a can.

The Raleigh-ite – Good casual place to go for a good salad and a decent sandwich. I like The Loop for dinner when I want to eat lighter. I like the Gorgonzola walnut salad, but it is kind of strange to me that it has sun dried tomatoes in it. The next time I order it, I’m going to ask for it without them, I think the fresh tomatoes taste better. The tomato soup is delicious; it’s very thick.

Do over? Will eat at the Loop again to try more of the menu. Want to try the pizza.

10/2/2009- We ate here for lunch and ordered: 1 Gorgonzola walnut salad, 1 Crispy Chicken salad, 1 Cup Tomato Bisque, 1 Cup Homestyle Chicken Noodle soup, 2 drinks. Total: $28.76

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Ted’s Montana Grill Review

eat2winraleigh — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 16:50:34 +0000

The New Yorker- Cool sports-bar-like atmosphere. Big stuffed bison head on one wall. The menu at Ted’s Montana Grill has a couple appetizers, a list of burgers that you can have beef or bison, and a couple cuts of steak that you can have beef or bison. The bison is more expensive but worth a try. The steak was good, had a nice intense flavor and was well cooked. Great baby asparagus.

The Raleigh-ite- Nice restaurant atmosphere, big booths. We had the crab cake appetizer, which was excellent. The crab cake has little breading, mostly crab with guacamole and coleslaw on the side. I ordered the blue cheese bison burger; it is huge! It had so much flavor. I’m not much of a burger eater, but this one is excellent. For dessert we had a chocolate chip cookie with vanilla ice cream. The cookie was perfectly cooked–simple but good dessert.

Do over? We will be back to Ted’s Montana Grill when we are near Triangle Town center and want a good burger/steak.

9/3/2009- We ordered: 1 Diet Coke, 1 glass Riesling, 1 St. Phillips crabcake appetizer, 2 wedge salads, 1 Blue Creek bison burger, 1 bison Delmonico ribeye, 1 chocolate chip cookie with icecream dessert. Total : $75.07

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Cameron Bar & Grill

eat2winraleigh — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 02:32:59 +0000

Cameron Bar & Grill is located in the Cameron Village shopping center in Raleigh.

The New Yorker- We ordered the grilled shrimp cocktail–light coleslaw with 5 grilled shrimp on a skewer. Perfect app, great seasoning on the shrimp. I ordered Chicken Parmesan with linguine and red sauce. The chicken was lightly breaded, not too fried, good flavor. Good portion for lunch–1 breast of chicken, if it was a dinner portion it would have been a little small.

The Raleigh-ite- We ate at Cameron Bar & Grill for lunch today. Great outdoor seating– very comfortable, nice outdoor furniture. Clean, simple but comfortable look to the inside. Upscale-ish menu. I ordered the Caprese salad. It was 3 tomatoes with mozzerella, balsamic vinigrette and a side of greens. It was a perfect, light lunch (if I was more hungry, this would have been too small). The balsamic has some interesting seasoning and was very good on the tomatoes.

Do over ? Definitely be back.

8/19/2009 – We ordered: 1 grilled shrimp cocktail, 1 caprese salad, 1 chicken parmigiana, 1 diet coke. Total : $29.47

9/29/2009- We ordered: 2 glasses of Merlot, 1 hlf lb shrimp appetizer, 1 cup vegetable soup, 1 caprese salad, 1 caesar side salad, 1 80z filet. Total: $62.26 ( We had a restaurant.com $25 off coupon so the total with the coupon was $37.26)

Cameron Bar and Grill 8oz filet

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Vinnie’s Steakhouse

eat2winraleigh — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 15:34:17 +0000

Vinnie’s Steakhouse is located on Six forks road in north Raleigh across from Celebration at Six forks shopping center.

The New Yorker – Oysters very tasty. Salad- nice portion; we had them chopped. Steak was very flavorful & “prime” meat. Right price for the “prime” ribeye. Best steak I’ve had in Raleigh so far, if you like “prime” beef. (Prime is highest grade of meat.)

The Raleigh-ite – When we walked in we were not just greeted but welcomed by a VERY friendly hostess. We were lead to a private table for 2 in the back and as soon as we were seated a man brought us a deviled egg. This steakhouse makes you feel very well taken care of. Our waiter as excellent; he knew so much about the menu and was very doting the entire meal. I had a great filet cooked exactly how I ordered it. The house salad was excellent with a GREAT blue cheese dressing (light with chunks of blue cheese on top). The sides we ordered, asparagus and twice baked potato, were kinda mediocre compared to the rest of the meal. The twice baked potato had baken but minimal amounts of cheese. The creme brulee was excellent–just the right consistency with fruit on top.

Do over? Definitely be back. We crave the steak.

8/15/2009- We ordered: 1 glass of Moscato, 2 Bud Lights, 1 Oysters Rockefeller, 2 House Salads (chopped), 1 6 oz filet, 1 20 0z dry aged prime Delmonico ribeye, asparagus with hollandaise, twice baked potato, 1 coffee, 1 creme brulee. Total : $135.28

Vinnie's Steakhouse Prime Delmonico Ribeye

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Red Hot & Blue Restaurant Review

eat2winraleigh — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 21:47:57 +0000

Red Hot & Blue is located on Hillsborough Street in Raleigh, near North Carolina State University.

The New Yorker – I ate the 5 meat treat. All the meats were good, but the pork was probably the best. The ribs–meat fell off the bone, but was slightly fatty. Sweet potato fries were delicious. A little pricy for lunch–should have lunch specials.

The Raleigh-ite – Pleasant, spacious atmosphere for a bbq place. Large menu. I had pulled pork sandwich which was delicious- pulled pork with cole slaw served on a bun. Potato salad was horrible– no flavor, completely bland. Kinda expensive for what it is.

Do over? Will go again , but no rush.

8/13/09- We ordered 1 5 meat treat, house salad, 1 pulled pork sandwich, 1 diet coke. Total : $28.87

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Lilly’s Pizza

eat2winraleigh — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 00:46:26 +0000

Lilly’s pizza is located on Glenwood Ave at the Five Points intersection.

The New Yorker – Good pie. I had pepperoni & sausage. Good bread, thin crust. Tasty. Not NY pizza but in their own style its pretty good- good pizza joint. Authentic sauce– some secret ingredient, something sweet.

The Raleigh-ite – I get Gorgonzola & tomatoes on my pizza and its phenomenal. They have a 2 slice deal + soda for lunch –$6 . The slices are huge so its a pretty good deal. Very good hole-in-the-wall- y place for lunch.

Do over? Definitely be back for lunch. Can’t place why but I crave the pizza at Lilly’s.

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Mo Joe’s Burger Joint Review

eat2winraleigh — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:18:03 +0000

Mo Joe’s is located on Glenwood Avenue at the intersection of Glenwood and Peace Street. Small parking lot in the back. There are tables inside, covered tables outside as well as some tables uncovered.

The New Yorker- A nice fresh burger–not a frozen patty. If you are looking for a good burger and fries, definitely hit this place up.

The Raleigh-ite – Great lunch place, or casual place to hang out outside. Patio right on Glenwood.We went for lunch today, and I ordered the blue cheese chicken burger and it was excellent–great flavor! Fries are pretty salty, onion rings have fairly thick breading but come with a flavorful dipping sauce.

Do over? Love this place for a burger lunch.

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Mellow Mushroom

eat2winraleigh — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 01:04:02 +0000

Mellow Mushroom is located on Peace Street at the intersection of Peace Street and Glenwood Avenue in downtown Raleigh.

The New Yorker – One of the best pizza places I’ve been to since I’ve been down here. We had meatball & pepperoni pizza. Thin, crisp, crust. Mmm. Great place for lunch. Outside seating.

The Raleigh-ite – One of my favorite places to go for lunch during the Summer–they have a great outdoor patio right on Glenwood. I love the Hawaiian pizza here–something about the little bit of sweetness in the crust makes the pineapple on pizza a great combo. Summer nights–great place for margaritas.

Do over? When in the mood for pizza or to sit outside and drink margaritas- definitely will be back.

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Bentley’s Restaurant Review

eat2winraleigh — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 15:53:52 +0000

Bentley’s is located in the Crossroads shopping center in Cary. Classy, quiet dining area along with a bar area.

The New Yorker – Tasty appetizer–stuffed banana peppers. Basic restaurant. Nothing impressive, but an OK meal.

The Raleigh-ite – I think if Bentley’s was a little less expensive I would want to go there more. Its not a meal that you say “wow” after, but if you are looking to have a decent piece of fish with veggies and maybe a salad it can meet this goal. I had the Lemongrass Ahi Tuna, and the tuna was OK and the risotto was decent. The risotto had little peas and carrots in it which I thought was odd for a nice restaurant. Last time I was there I had the seabass which I wasn’t lovin. The lobster & artichoke dip is delicious.

Do over? Wouldn’t go out of our way to eat at Bentley’s but wouldn’t turn it down either. If Bentley’s was more than a 5 minute drive from us, we probably wouldn’t make the effort.

7/11/09: We ordered 1 glass of Riesling, 1 Diet Coke, 1 Banana Peppers App, 1 Iceberg Wedge, 1 Mahi Mahi Special, 1 Lemongrass Tuna, 1 Coffee. Total: $69.26

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