Thad Forester

My wife and I have a favorite place to eat in Florence, AL called Ricatoni’s.  We love the location in downtown and the service is always good. 
There are only a few items I’ve had off the menu, but here are the pros:

-fresh bread with herbs and olive oil
-pizzas cooked in wood-burning oven
-chicken fingers (tenders) with fries and honey mustard sauce

I know it’s crazy, but my favorite item on the menu  is the chicken tenders.  I think they are the old Court Street recipe.  Rozlynn thinks I’m crazy for ordering these at an Italian restaurant, but they are worth it.  She usually gets a pizza.

She once ordered the shrimp pizza and was not impressed.  The shrimp did not taste good and they were extremely small–like from a can.  No worries, they didn’t charge us for it. 

Ricatoni’s is where we eat most every time we are in Florence.  Thanks to Derek for introducing us to it several years ago.  We were once caught on the news eating there and I had a huge mouth full of food–it was on the air that night. 
One day I’ll venture out and order something different.  Make sure you don’t stuff yourself on the bread first. 

For some reason I’ve never eaten at Jim ‘N Nick’s until this past weekend, and glad I finally did. 
The good:
1. they serve cheese biscuits with honey butter
2. they have regular and spicy sauce on the table
3. they have homemade lemonade and onion rings

I got the pulled pork sandwich with potato salad and Rozlynn got the ribs and onion rings.  Both meats were very tender and good.  The regular sauce has a kick to it. 

Their ribs aren’t as good as Dreamland’s, but still very good.  This is another restaurant I recommend anytime.  And even if you don’t like the bbq, the lemonade and biscuits are great.  If you live in the southeast or Colorado, go find Jim ‘N Nick’s.

Anyone that knows me and Mark, knows that we love Chick-fil-A.  And now Rozlynn has become a fan.  Here are the reasons we love it:

1. The service is fantastic.  All Chick-fil-A’s have a very effective screening process for hiring.  I’m convince no matter which location you’re at, the service will be very good.  They even walk around offering refills.   
2. The food is consistent.  I don’t have to worry about my sandwich or milkshake tasting different based on who makes it.  They have their cooking and preparing down and it’s always good.
3. It’s one of the most healthy fast food restaurants.  The chicken and fries are cooked in peanut oil.  And their salads are very good–offering low fat dressings.  And they have diet Lemonade, which I always get.  They are also one of the few places that offers caffeine-free Diet Coke from the fountain.  I always feel a little better by getting my sandwich on wheat buns too.  This does not include their shakes.  They are extremely good, but nothing healthy about them.  Regardless, each meal should be finished off with their shake or a small ice cream cone. 
4. The stores are always clean. 

Our friend Mike, has had the Chik-fil-A hat trick many times.  This is where he eats breakfast, lunch, and dinner there.  I’ve only done 2 of the 3 in one day, but I wouldn’t be opposed to making it all 3 if ours was more convenient to us thoughout the day. 

If you have not taken note of how much better the eating experience is at Chik-fil-A, pay attention.  Rozlynn and I have made it a regular eating spot for us now.  The new one in Northport is always busy, as with most of them.  They prove that a business can be closed on Sunday’s and still be very profitable. 

We read about Moe’s coming to town a few months ago and looked forward to trying it out.  I appreciated the story of the guys taking their bbq skills out to Colorado and living for several years, and now bringing it back to Alabama.  The location downtown seems good and we really liked the atmosphere–plenty of flat screen tv’s, outside seating, band, yada, yada. 

The ribs are very tender and good.  The pulled pork is the same.  It’s the first restaurant I’ve seen gatorade with the fountain drinks–good idea. 

Their slaw is vinegar based, but also sweet.  It was okay, and the banana pudding was good.  They serve cornbread with their ribs and it is good.  Their venegar-based sauce has a kick–not as strong as Dreamland or Full Moon. 

Overall, I still say the Pigg Shack has the best pulled pork, and Dreamland’s ribs are better.  But Moe’s is still good and I’d never complain about eating there.  Their banana pudding is probably 3rd or 4th best in town–behind Dreamland, Pigg Shack, and Southland.  It’s still a fun place to eat and I can imagine it being packed on game days with the large open doors and location downtown.  It’s worth visiting.   And I admire the owners for taking what they love and are good at, and opening so many stores in several states.  I wish them much success in Tuscaloosa and all their locations. 

I became a fan of hot wings when I started school in Tuscaloosa back in ‘98.  I tried several places and decided my favorite wings were at Wing Zone and Baumhower’s Wings. 
Rozlynn, on the other hand, had only heard of this wing craze since living here.  I finally took her to Wings a few weeks ago and she loved it.  It reminder her of her first time eating at the original Dreamland.  I like them because they are crispy (possibly double-fried??) and their sauce is very good. 

We got a sampler plate with the buffalo flavors and honey mustard flavors.  Turns out we should have gotten all buffalo flavor–Roz demolished them.  She specifically liked the hot sauce taste paired with the ranch dipping sauce.  The service was very good too.  And we got chips and salsa as an appetizer, which was a good bang for your buck. 

I’ve always liked Baumhower’s Wing’s and appreciated their variety on the menu.  And their hot wings are probably the best in town.  It is a sports-theme restaurant with a good southern flair. 

  www.baumhowers.com

Location is great–not in a great part of town (which I love).  It is clean, but most importantly the meat and sauce are good. 

I had the burnt ends, with potato salad and cornbread.  All were very good.  The ribs are not as good as Dreamland, but okay.  Ironically, our server has a grandmother from Bessemer, AL, and he loves Pat’s much more than Bob Sykes BBQ. 
When I visit again, I will probably get the burnt ends because I loved them.  The only other thing I needed was banana pudding.   
They have two different sauces on the table to pick from–sweet and spicy.  I found the spicy to be the best, but both were good. 

We enjoyed the atmosphere and I plan to visit again.  They also have a band for lunch and dinner.  Check out their web site  http://patsbbq.com/ .  Has to be the best bbq in Utah.  
Thanks to Steve for introducing us to Pat’s. 

Ate here for the second time last week in Hoover.  Rozlynn and I loved it.  We started off with Ranch Rings, which are nothing more than onion rings with extra good ranch dipping sauce.  They also serve bread as an appetizer. 
For my entree I got the Aspen Sirloin and it had great flavor.  The mashed potatoes were very good too. 
Rozlynn got the Durango Burger and it was very good as well.  It is one of our favorite places to eat in Birmingham, with a cool Rocky Mountain feel. 

Check it out:  www.firebirdsrestaurants.com

This is a new place in Tuscaloosa that I like for dessert.  It has a great concept–choose between many different flavors of yogurt and all the topings you’d want, get as much as you want and pay by the ounce.  All the cups are the same size. 

The toppings bar has all kinds of cereals, candy, peanut butter, etc.  If it matters, most of the yogurt is fat free or low fat (remind you of Seinfeld??). 

I’m told the owner got this concept while visiting somewhere in California.  He thought about opening a franchise of that brand, but instead decided to open his own yogurt place and skip the franchising part.  Not sure if this is true, but it really doesn’t matter anyway.

It was packed on the Monday night we ate there.  Overall, much better than TCBY, and a  little cheaper than Cold Stone and Marble Slab (but not quite as good).  Web site below:

http://www.yogurtmountain.com/about.html

This is a relatively new bbq joint in Tuscaloosa.  I was introduced to it by Chris Sprayberry and have now proclaimed it the best bbq in Tuscaloosa, besides Big Bad Wolves, of course.  Mark says the same thing.  Rozlynn still says the original Dreamland is the best, which is legitimate argument.

Location:  Just off Hwy 69 in the Hillcrest area
Setting:    No inside, either drive-thru, take out, or sit on the picnic tables outside. 
They are very friendly and offer somewhat slow service, but only because the food is fresh.  I recommend call-ahead.   

I like their pork plate, and you get two sides with it.  They have a broccoli salad that is good, and not found at many places.  Their onion rings are also good.  Their banana pudding is probably the best in town–yes, better than Dreamland and 15th Street Diner.
Their briskit and ribs are also good and tender. 

Stop by, you will be pleased.  Mark and I are going tonight for a little pre-Thanksgiving and Turkey Bowl meal.