The Eat Spot

The Eat Spot
34 North Front StreetWilmington, NC 28401
(910) 763 5366
Lunch and Dinner
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And hey! Here's Liz Biro's review!

The Eat Spot is fairly new to downtown. It's on the corner of Front and Princess unfortunately slap dab in the middle of the street construction going on right now. (Look at that. Now I'll have to come back and edit this when they're finished.) It IS open, though, so don't let the fencing and rubble deter you from going on in!

It's a long, open welcoming space, casual with bar and lots of warm wood. I thoughtlessly opted to eat upstairs, not registering the fact that our poor waitress would have to run up and down the stairs multiple times to take care of us. (I did apologize when I finally realized that.) We were there on a slow night, so we could easily have sat downstairs, I just wanted to see what it looked like up there. It's a nice, cozy space, and I would favor that spot again, frankly.

The menu, like the food, is simple. And I like that about the place. It knows what it is - it's a step above bar food, but doesn't try to stretch into the realm of fine dining. There was a good selection of inexpensive wine and beer, plus a basic bar. There was a "bar food" section for nibbles. The salads are classic - greek, caesar, garden, etc. to which you can add chicken or seafood. But the salad dressings available are a notch more interesting than ranch and balsamic vinaigrette. A toasted black pepper ranch was listed, as well as a mustard-horseradish dressing that Phillip ordered on his green salad. The greens were fresh and clean, with a nice blend of lettuce types. I had my doubts about the dressing when he ordered it ("pungent", I figured), but it turned out not to be as sharp as I thought. It still packed a lot of flavor, but was a smooth mix of brown seeded mustard with just a touch of horseradish.

The sandwich options all looked good. Again, fairly solid standards, but a good assortment of them. BBQ chicken, crab cake, a reuben (which I will be trying at some point), a pub buger, fish tacos in corn tortillas, and a chicken pita wrap were included in an extensive list.

Since we went for dinner, we weren't really looking much at the sandwiches. There were a handful of basic plates that all looked plain, but good. Phillip ordered the pork chops with caramelized sweet potatoes, apples, and wilted spinach. I ordered the chicken with roasted potatoes and also had the wilted spinach. To be perfectly honest, I was a little poopy about the dinner I ordered, until I got it. The Fourth Grader in me was having an inner tantrum about not getting a burger with the "fried cheese grits" (I'd be interested to see those) or the PBR-battered onion rings. We were already eating a late dinner, though, and I did NOT need that meal sitting in my stomach that close to bedtime to just creep on down to my butt and thighs while I slept. We waited for our dinners, and I sulked, just sure that I was going to get some dried-out, sad little grilled chicken breast with a spoonful of pitiful little potatoes and some slimy spinach. Thank goodnes was I wrong, or I'd have sulked all the way home.

In one of the Michael Ruhlman books I just read about the Culinary Institute of America, one of the instructors makes the point that if you can't properly cook a chicken breast, you pretty much can't cook. The Eat Spot can properly cook a chicken breast. It arrived at the table moist, hot, and sauced lightly in a good, but not too heavy pan gravy. The potatoes were roasted perfectly - nice and tender with a crispy edge. And the spinach, which usually disappoints me because it's cooked too close to slimy, was flavored with garlic and wilted just enough to have a little crunch. Phillip's pork chops were fast-grilled and served over sweet potatoes that had a little glaze, but not so much that they were icky sweet. The apple was done just as well - a little bite to them, not mushy like applesauce.  My only complaint about it is that it was all just a little underseasoned, but as anyone in my family will tell you, I like my salt.

It wasn't lofty food. Just plain-Jane pub fare done well and reasonably priced. It's the kind of meal you can go out to eat and say "Hmmm.... I probably could have cooked this at home, but not any better than this, and I didn't HAVE to cook it or clean up after it, and it didn't set me back much more than a trip to the grocery would have." It's going to be another downtown spot we'll frequent on nights when we don't want fussy, we just want to eat something wholesome and close by.

Catch Market Street Location

Catch Modern Seafood
6623 Market Street
Wilmington NC
910.799.3847
Lunch: Mon-Sat 11-3pm /Dinner: Mon & Tues... 5:30-10pm, Wed-CLOSED (3/10), Thurs-Sat 5:30-10pm, Closed on Sundays. 6623 Market Street #799-3847

Update: 4/29/10:
Catch gets a nod from well-respected cookbook author Jean Anderson.

We have been waiting for this a long time, people. Catch is by far my favorite lunch place downtown, and Keith Rhodes has been working on opening the Market Street location for dinner for quite a while. So when he announced its opening, I couldn't make reservations fast enough.

My husband and I went with his parents. There was a reasonable crowd, given the crappy weather - it had been pouring rain off and on all day, and that tends to keep people at home. The new place looks great. I know that Keith and his friends and family did most of the work themselves, and they can definitely pat themselves on the back. It's lovely. Not overdone at all. Sparse and elegant, and they scored those GORGEOUS light fixtures from Tayste downtown that closed a couple of years ago. They look like clear glass grape clusters and I love them. They up the level of decor significantly.

Before I get to the food, I'm just going to mention that the service was great, but they're still getting their chops. There was a little bit of confusion with service - it seemed like there was a little bit of "Where's the ____????" going on with the staff, but they were pleasant and cheerful, and all very excited about the opening, so who cares about a couple of minor hiccups? Everyone who works there seems to be invested in the success of the restaurant, which is so nice to see. And the food was worth it, at any rate.

The wine list was balanced, without offering too much or too little, and the prices were pretty standard. Phillip and I ordered apps and a salad and a main course, which we normally don't do, but I wanted to try a large variety of Keith's food and we were also starving. Plus, we shared, of course.

I ordered one of the appetizer specials - a crostini with crab, and it was perfect. One of my common complaints about crostini is that the bread is too toasted and just tears up your mouth without providing much flavor. Not Keith's. The bread was a thinly sliced baguette, lightly toasted so that it was crisp, but not hard, and chewy in the middle. It was topped with a crab salad that was mostly fresh, delicous crab, and not a lot of goop. Phillip ordered the pork lettuce wraps - generous portions of barbecued pork, wrapped in soft butter lettuce.

They all ordered the sweet potato salad for their salad course, which I would suspect is Keith's most popular salad. If you haven't had it at his downtown location, try it here. It's wonderful. Chunks of roasted sweet potatoes on fresh greens with dried cranberries that aren't too tart. I had a salad with shitake mushrooms and an asian dressing that was tasty, but kind of wished I'd had the sweet potato one instead.

For mains, Phillip had the tuna, which was seared rare, thinly sliced over buckwheat noodles and wilted spinach. The noodles and spinach were dressed in a mildly sweet/tangy sauce, but nothing to overpower the flavor of the tuna. My mother-in-law had the walnut tempura shrimp, served over ribbons of cooked zucchini - oh MAN, that shrimp was good! Crispy, sweet, full of flavor, and perfectly done inside and fresh.  My father-in-law ordered the catfish, which was cooked in a pretty hot spice rub and supposed to be served over grits, but Keith ran out of grits and asked if he could serve it with the truffled mac and cheese instead. Since my father-in-law dislikes grits anyway, that was fine by him. He did think the catfish was a little too hot for his tastes, and after a bite, I agreed - for me. If you like spicy, you'll love it. It was just a little too much for us. I ordered the duck, which was served with Keith's barbecue sauce and the truffled mac and cheese. FINALLY a decent barbecue sauce in Eastern NC! You'll have to excuse us all - this family is from Memphis and the nearby area, and the sauce there is not just seasoned vinegar. We're trying to learn to like it, but it's such a nice surprise to be served real Memphis sauce, whether Keith realizes that's what he's making or not. The mac and cheese was mild and creamy and a perfect foil to the tangy sauce on the duck.

One of the things I've always loved about Catch is the portion size. You can order like a pig (like P. and I did) but not have to eat like one. The amount of food is reasonable, and you leave feeling satisfied, but not stuffed.

We're all so happy for Keith that he's launched his dinner location, and will definitely be back. For now, his downtown location is closed, but his plan is to put it back online with a new menu sometime this summer, so stay tuned!

San Juan Cafe

San Juan Cafe
3314 Wrightsville Ave
Wilmington, NC 28403
Business: (910) 798-9940


San Juan Cafe has taken over the spot Nagila occupied for several years. They haven't changed much about the decor, but obviously the menu is completely different.
 
My first trip was for lunch. I had the black bean toastadas and a side of beans and rice. The black beans were mashed and spicy and placed on top of some really good corn tortillas, then topped with chopped green beans and sour cream. It made for interesting texture and the flavors went together well. The beans for the beans and rice were brothy, using red beans and chunks of potato. Good, but a little under-seasoned.
 
The next visit was with my husband for dinner. We both ordered a cup of the soup of the day, which was an artichoke and chickpea. Again, unfortunately a little under-seasoned, but a couple of shots of salt helped bring the flavors out nicely. Lots of chunks of artichoke and chickpeas floating in broth - it was good. Not great, but good.
 
My husband ordered a spinach and portabello mushroom and artichoke salad. He enjoyed it a lot. I got a little house salad that was just fine.
 
For the main, Phillip ordered the chicken and I ordered the pork. I know, I should have asked for a menu. They don't seem to have one online and I can't remember what the dishes were called. Mine was a pork chop, well-seasoned and fast-grilled - perfect. It came with a side of steamed then mashed and crisped plantains that was new to me and tasty. It was a pretty hefty serving, so P. helped me with it. His chicken came with a small piece of roasted sweet potato. (He said his only comment would be that he'd have liked a little less chicken and slightly more sweet potato, but that's quibbling - the chicken was well-seasoned with a rub and perfectly cooked.)
 
Just good, simple food with a few interesting twists thrown in. Overall, I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5, probably. We'll definitely go back. Service was great and the overall atmosphere was cheerful and pleasant.

Wilmington Top Chef competition - A Taste of Wilmington

I've attended this event for two years - the first year to support our friend Marc. He and his wife Sara, as you know, have Marc's on Market. Marc won the first year, and was up against some excellent competition with Keith Rhodes (who is regionally renowned) and James Bain, who used to own one of the best restaurants in town. (Before he had babies and decided he actually wanted to see them once in a while.) And we attended last year to help them serve dessert at their booth (a dessert whose base recipe came from yours truly!), while Marc judged. He wasn't eligible for competition last year.

And as this year's voting kicks off, he apparently isn't eligible this year, either, despite being told that he was only out for one year. They changed the rules this year and made it three years ineligibility for prior winners. I don't fundamentally have an issue with this, but I have some criticism of the way this event is being set up.

First of all, in a town this size, I think it's incumbent upon the organization to state very clearly on the voting page that prior winners are not eligible to compete for three years. This is buried somewhere in the contest rules, that ordinary consumers are not going to read. Memories are short, and the absence of the past two years' (and soon to be three) winners from the nomination list is bad publicity for those restaurants. The voters are just as likely to assume that the restaurant has gone downhill as make any other assumption, and I think by not stating that somewhere obvious, they are doing the past winners a tremendous disservice.

Second, the voting procedure itself unfortunately renders the nomination process utterly meaningless. There is no check on voting, so it's extremely easy to stuff the ballot box. You can vote as many times as you like. So instead of being reflective of a true customer following, we wind up with nominees who are simply good at getting their existing base to vote early and vote often. I'm happy for these places that they have an uber-loyal following, but restaurants with an older clientele, who aren't especially internet-savvy or even internet-interested will vote once, and only once, and think their vote counts. When in reality, for their vote to count, they probably need to submit it a hundred times. There should be a simple registration process in place to prevent (as much as possible) this multiple-vote per person problem, and make the finalist list meaningful.

The Top Chef nomination and narrowing process aside, I do think this event is worth attending. Each year, more restaurants are participating. They provide food samples, you get to meet the chefs, try local wines, and it's been a great way for me to discover new restaurants I didn't know about. The exposure factor is terrific. And the competition is fun to watch.

I hope this event continues to grow, but I do hope it grows with integrity. However, for it to do so, there needs to be a layer of sophistication added to the process that is currently lacking.