The question I'm most often asked when I bump into readers around town is one that always leaves me in a pickle. "So, Food Guy, what are your favorite restaurants in Charleston?"
It's a difficult question, for many reasons.
I can blurt out my Nos. 1 and 2 right away (more on that in a minute) but ranking restaurants after that gets a little tricky. There are a handful of others all lumped near the top, with each one capable of edging out the others on any given night.
Some go on stronger runs for a while, then fade back a little. Some offer flashes of occasional brilliance, but does that make them better than others offering less-inspired (yet still strong) food more consistently?
So as for my top restaurants in town, well, it's tough. But I can confidently say the lineup would include Noah's Eclectic Bistro, South Hills Market & Café, Bridge Road Bistro, The Chop House and Su Tei.
Then you've got places like The Block, Ichiban, Mi Cocina de Amor and Paterno's (sometimes) right up there. And Black Sheep Burrito for weekend brunch.
When confronted, it's usually a lot easier to talk about some of my favorite dishes around town instead.
Asking folks if they've tried the amazing such-and-such at this place or the delicious something-or-other at that place often steers the conversation away from pinning me down to a specific ranking.
Still, people love lists.
"I always enjoy your reviews of local spots, so keep exploring and informing," reader Linzy Gardner recently wrote. "At some point, you have to compile a 'Top Ten' list - the 10 dishes you have to try and cross off your bucket list. Publish it or just send it to me and I promise I'll be ordering all of them!"
OK, Linzy, here ya' go!
This is by no means a definitive list. There are hundreds of restaurants offering thousands of menu items in the Kanawha Valley - far too much to cover even with my big appetite. But here's a list of the 10 dishes (in no particular order) I'm obsessed with right now:
n The addictive yellow curry at Su-Tei in Kanawha City - or Panang curry at Thai Valley Kitchen for my friends in Putnam County.
n Smoked duck eggs Benedict on Black Sheep's brunch menu.
n The spinach, grape and Gorgonzola salad at Pies & Pints, with the popular same-flavored pizza right there with it.
n Crazy-good carne secca at Mi Cocina de Amor, with a frosty house-made margarita to wash it down.
n Any steak (or the pepper and coriander-crusted tuna) at The Chop House, with a dusty Ketel One martini spiked with blue cheese-stuffed olives.
n Shanghai-style tuna from Tidewater Grill, sesame steamed and served with sticky rice, sautéed spinach and ginger soy sauce.
n The Burrito Glory at Cozumel at Ashton Place, with its unique combination of spinach, chickpeas and other veggies.
n Chicken Cacciatore from Fazio's, but ONLY if it's the longtime recipe they once used - not the "new" (yet not improved) version I had on my last visit.
n Housemade egg rolls with braised bacon, greens and apricot dipping sauce from South Hills Market. Followed by either the 48-hour short ribs with griddled polenta, ratatouille, gremolata and veal jus; roasted grouper with lobster and shiitake risotto, bok choy and lemon grass beurre blanc; seafood risotto with lobster, shrimp, scallops, sun dried tomatoes and artichokes or pan-seared trout with potato cake, morel cream and compressed leeks. (Yes, I totally stuffed the ballot on this one.)
n And anything off the ever-changing menu at Noah's.
In a funny coincidence, just a few days after receiving Linzy's message I actually met her in person. At Noah's.
I had just walked in to meet friends for dinner when I heard someone say, "Aren't you the Food Guy?" We shared a good laugh over the chance encounter, and then rejoined our respective parties for what is consistently the best food in Charleston.
I've been to Noah's twice in the past two weeks - once for a chef's tasting, once ordering off the menu - enjoying appetizers like a crispy pork belly "BLT" with green tomato, baby greens and ridiculously good tomato jam; a watermelon salad with arugula, feta cheese, Kalamata olives, red onion and balsamic glaze; and a grilled Romaine salad with peppercorn dressing, grape tomato and shaved Parmesan.
Entrees have included a prosciutto and sage-wrapped sea scallop and shrimp saltimbocca with Parmesan polenta cake, sautéed greens and tomato broth, plus a grilled rib eye with roasted new potatoes, grilled corn and tomato salad with horseradish cream.
An easy No. 1 for me, followed closely by South Hills Market in the No. 2 spot.
What are your favorite restaurants and dishes in the Kanawha Valley? I'd love to add them to my bucket list!
n n n
After last week's Food Guy "introduction" to new readers, Elaine Anderson from Charleston sent in the nicest message sharing some insight into her own love of cooking.
"I enjoy your food column very much. I'm also a cook and not a chef. I am a retired teacher who always wanted to be a better-than-average cook. I believe this desire came from my grandmother and great-grandmother, who were excellent," she said.
She went on to mention she has two sons who are very good cooks - one the primary cook at his house, the other a Culinary Institute of America alumnus who now teaches at Le Cordon Bleu of Atlanta.
"So, food will win out if it is a passion," she said. "I can tell that you love it, too."
Thanks, Elaine. And with so many good cooks in your family, I bet holiday gatherings are a sumptuous affair.
Steven Keith writes a weekly food column for the Charleston Gazette-Mail. He can be reached at 304-380-6096 or by email at dailymailfoodguy@aol.com. You can also follow him on Facebook and Pinterest as "DailyMail FoodGuy," on Twitter as "DMFoodGuy" and read his blog at http://blogs.charleston dailymail.com/foodguy.