Thumb's Up Diner: Hefty Plates and Long Waits

With a seemingly unlimited selection of brunch purveyors in our city, it still shocks me that I have to endure long lines for seating and service at many of my favorite establishments. I am not known for possessing endless patience, therefore it surprises me even more that I am willing to brave these supreme waits, even for the tastiest of treats. And yet, there I was this morning, boldly challenging my stomach to prove its moral fortitude by calmly waiting for my weekly eggs of choice. The good news was, there was a bench. And not just an ordinary bench, it was a bench in the shade. A bench in the shade may very will be the holy grail of waiting areas, and somehow my companions were able to snatch it early. The bad news was that we sat on our lovely bench for AN HOUR. Now, some of you may be scoffing at our wait time as something barely worth whining at. Well, you are on crack if you think that I can wait that long for anything. Normally, my companion(s) and I try to arrive at our brunch destinations around 11 am, therefore beating the bulk of the church/hangover crowds. When we arrived at Highland Bakery at 11, we only waited 15-20 minutes. Now THAT is worth waking up for. But I digress, as unfortunately we weren't able to meet until noon today and therefore had to bear our hunger for an inordinate amount of time. When finally our names were called, it was as though the hostess was suddenly accompanied by heavenly flutes and triumphant trumpets and I half expected to be carried in on a litter and rose petals thrown in the air. Instead, we got a surly waitress who clearly was too busy to care about and supposed discomfort we might have felt.

The decor was boho diner, with art on the walls and cozy vinyl booths for nostalgia. The menu was similar: homestyle "spuds", traditional omelets, and yummy cheese grits were present, though so too were tofu and veggie scrambles, veggie sausage, and a vast array of vegetables to put in your omelets or scrambles. To be perfectly honest I didn't even bother looking at the lunch flap of the menu, but I'm sure there were veg options there as well. Basically, everything sounded good, and the decision-making process was quite drawn out for all of us. One reason for that is that in addition to wonderful menu selections, you also have the option to "build your own breakfast" from basically everything they offer. They don't like substitutions, and make this clear on the menu, so perhaps this is an effort to avoid those kinds of situations.

Let me say first that the portions here are HUGE. This isn't just American portion huge, this is American diner portion huge. So be forewarned, you could probably split your entree with an entire village in south Texas. Susannah's choice was made before she even saw the menu, and it was a good one: pancakes. Huge and fluffy, they even came with their own individual bottle of maple syrup. The cheese grits she ordered on the side were quite good, though I must say I don't remember them that well because I was so overwhelmed by how good everything else was. Leigh ordered what I was sorely tempted to get, and what I find I often get: the breakfast burrito. Thumb's Up's version may be one of the best incarnations I've seen of this particular entree, mainly because they somehow managed to be both filling and surprisingly light. The spectacular guacamole that was heaped on top helped to achieve the taste by imposing a heavenly bit of garden to the protein package of deliciousness. I will get it eventually. Oh, and did I mention that the dish came with TWO burritos?? Seriously, call El Paso before you go, they will help you eat it. My particular brand of gluttony this morning was referred to as "The Heap", and came elegantly pilled in its own skillet. The bottom layer was the amazing "spuds", which aren't fried like homefries but cooked until soft with onions that got sort of fried along the way. Two tasty eggs and some veggie sausage topped off my heap, with a whole wheat biscuit teetering off the edge of my skillet. The biscuit was ok, but don't waste your time. Everything else on the plate is worth eating well before, and by the time you look at the biscuit again you realize that you are so full you'll need a wheelbarrow to carry you out. I'd say get the toast instead, at least you could make a sort of sandwich out of your heap. All of this was topped off by some exquisite brew of coffee that they make specially there. Susannah's orange juice was actually fresh squeezed. And you want to know the best of it? All of us ate and drank this much for under $10. Next time I wake up early, this is my spot. And don't even think about taking my bench.

Would I Go Back: Tomorrow.

Other Vegetarian Options: The tofu scrambles, veggie sausage, vegetable omelets...your options are basically unlimited. With the make your own breakfast option, you can choose whatever you're craving. Again, I didn't bother looking at the lunch menu, and neither did anyone at the tables close to us. One guy got a "cream cheese plate", which was eggs scrambled with cream cheese and sage and a grilled bagel. That looked really good if you don't want a huge portion.

Website: www.thumbsupdiner.com

IMPORTANT: THEY ONLY TAKE CASH!!!

TAP, or Really? That's all I get??

While I've often felt excluded by restaurants with meat-heavy menus, I've never felt that I'd actually been punished until I patronized TAP a few evenings ago. When our waiter described some of the vegetarian offerings, he spoke slowly in the way that many people speak to children or the mentally infirm.

"Yeeees we have lots of great saaaaalads..." Oooh a salad, lucky me! Oh wait, I forgot that I was hungry and was a rabbit in my previous life, not this one. So waiterman, what else is there?

"Ohhhh weellll we have a speciaaaaal veggie plate prepared by our chefs every eeeeevening with the daily vegetable ravioli" (ed. note: on the menu this "special ravioli" normally resides underneath a pork chop which retails $18). Now, I have been to TAP twice. The first time I went, I fell hook, line, and sinker for this supposed "veggie plate." It's special! It's homemade! It's veggie! It's...only THREE ravioli??? And it's TWELVE DOLLARS???? WHAT??? This was my reaction upon getting the bill on my first visit, because my lovely waitress didn't inform me that the ravioli were $4 a piece. And that two ravioli equaled a pork entree. I should have realized that I'd been punk'd, and that they don't have any "veggie plates." I just thought it was weird that I paid more than my friends who got heaping platefuls of food. I was a dupe.

However, once bitten, twice shy so I did not order that catastrophe again. Nor did I order the rabbit fodder, which was fortunate as the waiter informed Susannah that "cobb salad" was really a euphemism for a few leaves of lettuce. I instead chose to order two of the small plates (the only two non-salad veg ones), as there were no entrees to speak of unless I really wanted to meet Ashton again. The last time I'd ordered the tomini cheese and tomato jam plate and loved it, so I ordered that again. To supplement that, I also ordered a hummus plate. When the food arrived, as Susannah was pondering how she was going to eat all of her gigantic burger and heaping mound of shoestring fries, I looked down and contemplated my little cheese plate. I was at first bemused, and then so angry I had to take a deep breath. What was on my plate that horrified me so? NOTHING. I kid you not when I say that there was a little hunk of cheese, a shotglass-worth of tomato jam, and a slice of bread cut into two half-pieces. The picture was taken after one bite of bread and cheese. I could just picture the chefs in the kitchen saying "HA! PUNK'D AGAIN! Hahahaha!" They'd even forgotten my hummus plate, which I had to ask for after the monumental task of finishing my slice of white bread. When it arrived, I once again felt insulted when I discovered that while they had provided me with an ample dish of hummus, I had only paper-thin fried pitas or whatever that crumbled when you tried to dip them into the hummus. And of course were stale. Not even the hummus was good, as it was over sweet and yet still bland. I think at this point I grew so despondent that my hunger vanished and I could only look at the plates on our table with viciousness in my heart.

Now, here's the funny thing. I've read review after review saying that this place was great and that almost everything was good. And in fact, everything my meat-eating friends got they enjoyed immensely. This, my friends, is the very reason why this blog exists in the first place. If you are an anorexic vegetarian or are suffering from a stomach flu, then I suppose you won't have such a hard time there. You can go with my friends, as they would go back in a heartbeat to sample the delicious fare. I, however, won't be joining you.

Would I Go Back: Uh, HELLLL NO! Perhaps if we were just going for drinks I would consider it, as they have 20 beers on TAP (get it? hahaha hilarious). Also, they have a really nice outdoor patio area which can be quite pleasant in nice weather, though gets a little loud as it overlooks scenic Peachtree Street. The catch is that half the people working there seem to have no idea that they actually showed up for work that day and have responsibilities. In our case, the outdoor hostesses (two!) abandoned their post for nearly 20 minutes even though a table had opened up and we were next on the list. We had to go inside and ask the indoor hostess to seat us. I think I should get paid for that since the outdoor waitresses were getting paid for alternately disappearing and chatting up middle aged drunk guys.

Other Vegetarian Options: HAHAHAHAHHAHAH that's a good one.

Atmosphere: Again, the outdoor patio is quite nice if you can barter your way into a table. The inside looked cool, but it was cold and dark and loud. Also the bathrooms are up two flights of stairs (yes, at a place with 20 beers on tap they decided to make people scale dangerous heights to pee, SMART), and all the way in the back corner behind the kitchen. Seriously. You may as well just find a bush. Also they aren't adequately marked as both I and the man I walked in on went into the wrong restrooms (he told me this on the way out).

Website: http://www.tapat1180.com

Highland Bakery: Brunch Edition

There is nothing so sensational, so satisfying, and yet so elusive as a perfect cup of coffee at brunch. To many, this would seem a given. Brunch, one would assume, should come complete with the kind of coffee that goes down so smooth that one doesn't mind drinking after noon. That when you close your eyes, it evokes balmy tropical breezes from its native clime. mmm...

Unfortunately, I've only experienced coffee that good at two brunch facilitators in town: East Atlanta's superb Radial Cafe and today's pick, Highland Bakery.

First and foremost, the place is slammed on Sundays. Go prepared to wait half and hour, and even after that our waiter was still pretty slow. He was very congenial, but clearly overbooked. This was probably good though, because I'd already blown through my second cup of coffee before we'd even been seated 10 minutes (thankfully the coffee urns are made available for those waiting in line, though this could turn into a problem for those of us with low caffeine thresholds).

While in line for our cups of joe, we wandered over to the little muffinarium where the mini muffins were corralled. This proved fateful, as we could not get over how cute and tasty-looking they were and promptly ordered them as our "breakfast starter." I'm not even going to get started on how fat America is getting when we need appetizers for breakfast, that's another blog. I will say that some of the muffins were positively scrumptious (the honey wheat/maybe cranberry/really plain one was our favorite, though the banana nut and bran/carrot were close seconds) and would be perfect for high tea. I'd eat the blueberry muffin with coffee though, as it tastes exactly like a blueberry donut, which is either awesome or a little gross.

Next came my entree, and I must say I had a devil of a time choosing from the expansive menu since everything sounded good. I highly recommend just going to the website and reading through the menu if you are in the mood for some food porn. Anyway, I ultimately chose an egg and cheese breakfast sandwich and a cup of fruit because I thought it might be lighter and I knew we were getting our "starter." Now, I must admit, I thought I was ordering my sandwich on rosemary and garlic ciabatta bread, however this was not the case and apparently I dun't reed so gud . It was just regular bread with rosemary and garlic, and it was a little boring. The cheese was melted well, but there was a large amount of egg, so I would have liked a touch more cheese. I would try it again, but with a different bread. I had been recommended the jalapeno focaccia, and I should have taken the suggestion. What's done is done, but I certainly was envious of Susannah's open-faced breakfast BLT. Now, clearly I'm ignoring the bacon here, but the rest of it looked pretty good. Best of all, it came with some of the best (non-grandmother) grits I've ever had. They were simply seasoned, but the taste and texture came together perfectly into an understated elegance. My side was also quite good, as the fruit was both ripe and varied. We also split a biscuit (which of course we were too full to eat more than a few bites of) and it was buttery and flaky and good. My only recommendation would be to have better jellies/preserves, because all we were offered was the little packets that you get at Cracker Barrel. I'm sure there is a person locally that would sell them some homemade stuff and then could sell it in the bakery. It cheapened the experience of the biscuit to be paired with such inferiority.

Overall the sides probably bowled me over more than the main dishes, but I would be more than willing to try every other vegetarian thing on the menu (which was most everything) in pursuit of entree excellence. Yes, it looked that good.

Would I Go Back: Yes. The coffee alone was worth it, but the delectable little muffins and baked goods are worth the drive as well. I can't wait to go back and try everything else!

Other Vegetarian Options: Er, just about everything was vegetarian. When I go next time I will either go for the Burrito de Huevos, Cowboy Benedict (black bean quesadillas with egg and hollandaise on top), or the Ricotta Pancakes, or the...you get it. Read the menu!
Atmosphere: The inside looked a little cramped and was a touch hot, but I went during the heat wave which thankfully has abated. We ate outside which was pleasant and not as loud. If we had been inside, however, we could have checked out the baked good offerings a little more closely and probably would have gone home with something. So, toss up.

Website: http://www.highlandbakery.com/

The Fickle Pickle

It is a well-known axiom in the South that the best food in the world is always prepared by our grandmothers. There is nothing so sweet, so succulent, so sinfully good as whatever your grandmother has just cooked or baked. With this caveat in mind, I still think I would have disliked the fried tomato sandwich at the Fickle Pickle in Roswell Square.

I entered the quaint little deli-restaurant with such high hopes: it had a relaxed but cute atmosphere, sophisticated fare, and it wasn't a chain. They even had a few vegetarian sandwiches! (Though no entrees, I'm afraid.) After I'd ordered I couldn't wait for my meal to arrive. First came the appetizers, fried cajun pickles and hot potato chips. The pickles were very good and well cooked, and quite a surprise for a seasoned fried food addict. Usually fried vegetables have a hint of sweetness, but this was all-sour. Sinful, but worth trying. The chips were pretty good, but the pickles were better. We got the half orders of each, which was far too much for two people. A half order could probably serve 3-4 people.

Next came the main event: my fried green tomato sandwich. I love fgt sandwiches, and the description sounded so enticing: "Fried Green Tomatoes with Pepper Jack Cheese, Tomato Jam, Onion, Arugula & Basil Mayo on Sourdough." Unfortunately, however, the sandwich did not hold up to the hype. The sourdough was boring, and quickly became soggy due to the mayo on one side and the "tomato jam" (aka soggy tomato chunks) on the other. The cheese was very tasty, but it was a weird semi-warm temperature and texture when it came time to eat it. They really should have just gone ahead and melted it. But the real sin, the horrible affliction of the sandwich, was the tomato.

Now, when my grandmother fried vegetables, it was ALWAYS in a cornmeal batter. The vegetable was soft and moist (but never mushy), and you could very easily take a nice big bite with or without the aid of a fork. So perhaps this is why I don't understand why restaurants cook (or rather don't cook) fried green tomatoes the way that they do. My issue is this: the tomatoes are way too hard. I'm aware that green tomatoes don't naturally have a lot of give. However, they also don't naturally taste like anything, so you have to fry them to make them good. I don't really see the need to respect the integrity of the vegetable if you wouldn't eat it raw. Thus, it baffles me to see these lightly-battered, barely cooked concoctions they dare call fried.

Now, in the context of a sandwich, perhaps you want them to be a little more sturdy. Alright, I can deal with that. I still think, however, that no fried green tomato should ever require a knife to cut through it. Between the toughness of the tomato, the hard crust of the sourdough and the sogginess of the rest of the sandwich, the texture was basically a trainwreck. Eventually I decided to lose one slice of bread and make it more of an open-faced sandwich (or an over-large crostini), but the bread was hardly up to the task. I would say a thicker bread, such as a wheat bread, lightly toasted, would have righted a lot of wrongs, and probably given me a better overall impression of the sandwich.

I've seen comments left on other websites by people who say that they enjoyed the sandwich, so perhaps it was an off night. Personally, I would order something else.

Would I Go Back?: Actually, yes I think I would. I'm a sucker for a cute place with a gourmet appetite, so I think I would be willing to give it a second chance with another dish.

Other Veg Options I Did Not Order: A roasted vegetable sandwich. Really, that's it. Gotta love the suburbs. Even the gourmet salads have meat, though the staff did seem friendly and probably would leave it off for you. There was also a pimiento cheese and ham sandwich I was eying (minus the ham of course). The dinner menu is touted as their specialty, but there is nothing vegetarian on it. You can order off the lunch menu at night, but I would say skip it for dinner if you want something substantial.

The fried cajun pickles were a tasty appetizer, as well as the hot potato chips. One warning on the fried pickles: they come with a remoulade sauce which some chefs can make with anchovies. I didn't know this at the time, so I would suggest asking, but otherwise they are good enough to skip the sauce entirely.

Atmosphere: Now, this is where the place really shines. The building is a refurbished old house an easy walk from historic Roswell Square, and it has a spacious patio out back that seemed relatively bug-free. Fair warning, they do have live music on Tuesday nights. The night we went, there was a little jazz band composed of high school band geeks clearly struggling through their adolescence.

Website and menu: http://www.ficklepicklecafe.com

Consider The Vegetarian

We all have that friend. You know, the one who loves to eat out and try new restaurants but who has that bewildering (and sometimes irritating) dietary limitation. No matter which kind of establishment you choose, whether upscale or casual, ethnic or domestic, chain or independent, one question must invariably be answered: IS THERE ANYTHING VEGETARIAN?

The short answer is YES. Unfailingly, there will be an ever-abundant supply of small garden salads and potato side dishes to sate one's hunger. But for the discerning vegetarian, the wilted lettuce and starch buffet holds all the appeal of prison gruel.

Therefore, I claim that we are through with your spaghetti with marinara sauce and we have eaten our last grilled cheese. We are stepping out of the side-item menu and glaring pointedly at our missing second courses. We are the GastroVegetarians, and we are hungry. Like that other up-and-coming foodie trend known as the GastroPub, we believe in adding a gourmet touch to our everyday eating lives. And yes, that means we would like entrees, please.

This blog is devoted to searching the city for exquisitely prepared plates that will tempt the delicate pallets of GastroVegetarians everywhere. We intend not to focus on exclusively vegetarian restaurants, as those tend to frighten away some of our meat-loving dining companions.

We here at Howdy Foodie believe that veggies and meat-eaters can sit side by side at a table of brotherhood and eat in abundance.