Lowcountry Produce Market & Cafe

302 Carteret Strewet
Beaufort, SC 29902
(843) 322-1900
Website

In Beaufort, South Carolina it's much like you imagine sleepy southern towns. Everyone is friendly, the pace of life is SLOW, and the food is simple yet produced with the care of a family member trying to comfort their kin.

Lowcountry Produce Market is a beautiful setting for a Southern market and lunch spot. Housed in an old post office, the subway tile interior is accented by large pillars, and huge floor to ceiling shelves.

The food was straight out of Southern Living. I started with the pickles and pimento cheese plate. The green beans were bright, snappy, and had the balance that so many restaurants get wrong. The pickles were just as good, though had a sweet bite to them that contrasted perfectly. However the hands down star of the show was the pimento cheese. My god, this was the best I have eaten. And I have eaten quite a bit of pimento cheese.

The loosely shredded cheese was accented by the sweetness of pimentos, had a perfect temperature and consistency, but there was an X factor, I just couldn't put my finger on. It turns out, there are some spicy banana peppers mixed in (and what I imagine was a bit of their brine), which creates a flavor explosion – the likes of which I have not tasted in this form. Form being cheese ball, obviously.

Everything about this dish was perfect.

My sandwich was a mixed shrimp and oyster po' boy, served with tarter sauce and house made chips.

The cornmeal batter on this was divine. Heavily seasoned, the crunchy shell stuck perfectly to the tender fried seafood. I could have eaten this all day. My only gripe was the tarter sauce had no place near this ocean bounty in hotdog form. A smokey chili aioli or something more appropriate would have sent this over the top.

The chips were fried to perfection as well, and had a skillful amount of sea salt sprinkled on top. A coastal Southern lunch if I have ever had one. I wish I was able to eat this way on a weekly basis.

1st Ward Sandwich

100 Morris Street
Philadelphia, PA 19148
(215) 551-8000
Website

Only 4 years after I moved out of Pennsport, the neighborhood starts to look more appealing. Don't get me wrong, I prefer the old school Philly neighborhoods before gentrification, but there's something to be said for that stretch of time in-between when the mix of old and new struggle to find balance. The 1st Ward is one of those newcomers who has all the appeal of an up-and-coming neighborhood joint and so I went in with high hopes.

The decor is pretty basic, but it's tastefully bright and welcoming for being on Front Street right under 95. They have a clean presentation style and serve the sandwiches on cutting boards. Everything seems pretty good so far. Their menu is small, think of a pseudo-Paesano's style set of options, but fresher; well, not fresher but maybe healthier?

I went with the fried oyster po'boy and my friend tried the schnitzel. I was somewhat surprised to see my po'boy come out on an Italian seeded roll. I understand the 'fusion' they're going for here, but I think maybe this was taking it too far.

It comes served with "fried Chesapeake Bay's, spicy mayo and lettuce-tomato slaw." This sounds good but the execution definitely fell short. The slaw wasn't a slaw at all, it was more of a large-chop which made it sort of difficult to eat. The oysters were small, sort of heavy on the breading, but the flavor was there. Actually, for looking so wet, the whole thing was kind of dry and literally had no resemblance to a po'boy (and believe me, I've eaten my way around New Orleans enough to know the truth).

I mean, just call it an Oyster sandwich.

My buddy's schnitzel boasts, "thinly pounded pork loin, greens, fried egg, grain mustard on a butter roll." First off, there was no butter roll in sight. It was the same long seeded Italian roll. Which is fine, but again, let's just call it like it is. Another very dry sandwich. Weakly seasoned all around. Meh. I don't need to say more.

But hey, the fries were awesome. I asked if they had any aoili sauces for dipping and the cook said, "you mean like mayonnaise?" and I sadly replied, "I guess." She proceeded to spoon mayo out of the jar into a little cup for me. What about that spicy mayo that was on my oyster sandwich? Throw me a bone here people. Maybe they've worked out the kinks, but I don't expect I'll ever go back to find out.

Mahony's Po Boy Shop

3454 Magazine Street
New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 899-3374
Website

In a place overflowing with cheesesteaks po'boys, it's hard to stand out among the crowd. One way to do so is to offer a twist on the traditional. Mahony's is one of those places.

Located on the hip and affluent Magazine Street, on the southwest side of town, this place packs a blue collar charm mixed with some interesting variations on tradition.

Part bar, part restaurant, you will find a no-frills interior, with well positioned TV's to watch the game. Whatever game that may be.

The three standouts here are the "peacemaker," the fried chicken livers and slaw, and the root beer glazed Chisesi's ham and cheese. The peacemaker was so named because blues musicians, being men after my own heart, used to be out until all hours of the morning. So they would bring home one of these to appease their significant other. A splendid idea.

Oh, and the super thin onion rings. Hot damn these were addictive.

The beef and cheese fries didn't hurt either. My God I am fat.

We had a couple of people eating together, so they graciously brought out a sampler.

The "peacemaker" contained fried oysters, bacon, and cheddar cheese. Indulgent and delicious.

The fried chicken livers and slaw had . . . chicken livers and slaw.

However the grand champion of them all was undoubtedly the root beer ham. My lord. The glaze on the ham was sweet and deep, and the ham thinly sliced, tender, with just the right amount of salt.

This was such a unique combo, and would be my #1 go-to order for my next trip to Mahony's. Which should be in a couple months. I can't wait.

Frady's One Stop

3231 Dauphine Street
New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 949-9688

The blessing and the curse with New Orleans is that there is a great place to eat on nearly every block. Frady's is a neighborhood staple of the Bywater (or Bi-wuder for us Philadelphian's) and has been a corner store of some kind since 1871. Its current iteration (as Frady's One Stop) has been in operation since 1968. There is a reason this place has stuck around so long...

It serves as a neighborhood meeting spot, and many people pass through, some for a pack of smokes, some for a chat with Frady himself. and some for the INSANE po' boys that are cranked out.

I had the opportunity to speak with Frady at length while my food was prepared. He was incredibly nice, offering up the history of the building and his store, and we even got to nerd out on the Civil War, a particularly favorite subject of mine (and his). He made this damned Yankee feel right at home.

Frady's son and daughter (twins!) do the cooking here, and my word, do they ever do it right. The kitchen is open to the store, giving you a bird's eye view into where the magic happens.

Frady will offer some critiques, and an off-the-wall question/remark when he feels it's appropriate. I love this place beyond belief.

Although it was (by all accounts) still breakfast, I needed to try the oyster po' boy, the roast beef with debris, and a good old fashioned fried egg sandwich to round it all out. I was originally intending to walk somewhere to eat with a view, but I was so hungry/fat that I made it a block before settling on a picturesque wall outside of a factory, next to a chain link fence.

Fried egg, cheese, bacon, tomato, mayo on wheat toast to begin. This came at the recommendation of Frady's son – I gave him free reign on its construction – and there is no better combination in the history of breakfast than these items. Oh, wait, some hot sauce. Yes indeed.

This was about the best breakfast sandwich I have ever eaten in my life. Perfectly runny yolk, creamy mayo, buttered toast, crunchy salty bacon, and some acidity from the tomato and hot sauce combined for the ultimate breakfast experience.

The fully dressed, fried oyster po' boy was served on a perfect Leidenheimer roll which is synonymous with po' boy, it is literally THE only roll that should carry a po' boy. Airy in the middle, with just enough crispiness on the outside to keep it all together, there is no other way.

My $8.50 half was MORE than enough to feed one person.

I absolutely love that they shred the iceberg here. It makes sense, and adds to a coleslaw-like effect with the mayo and hot sauce mix. The fried oysters were delicious, and had a well seasoned breading, housing a briny jewel underneath.

The heavy hitter of this party, however, was undoubtedly the roast beef. My god, this is an amazing sandwich.

The debris was the stuff dreams are made of. Rich, deep, and velvety, I wish this was served in a fountain. And that I was free to slurp it at will, and little pieces of beef could be picked off of the ledge around the fountain, with bites of roll if you so desired. It's that good.

The thinly sliced beef was a thing of beauty, and I deem this one of the top five things I ate in 2013. Two others were also in New Orleans (details coming soon).

If you happen to find yourself in this neighborhood, you would be doing yourself a huge disservice to not stop here and eat. Just be sure to tell Frady I sent you.

Domilise's Po Boy & Bar

5240 Annunciation St.
New Orleans, LA 70115‎
(504) 899-9126

Ding, ding, ding. The bout is over. The champion has risen from the ashes like a deep fried Phoenix, or dragon, I suppose, if you are into the "Of Fire and Ice" series. Domilise's is what I was told is THE place to go for a po'boy. My god, I would have eaten there my whole trip, if I would have realized just how incredible it was.

This place had it all, from the decor, to the atmosphere, to the beer, and of course, sandwiches. I took a long walk one day, casually strolling down Magazine Street and drinking a tall can of domestic beer, which is legal, truly enjoying myself. The only thing I had to do was eat at Domilise's, so it was an "all about me" day. Which, if you know me, you may just call "a day."

A Bud in its chilled chalice and a bag of Vodoo Zapp's were heaven on earth while I waited.

I went with a half and half shrimp and oyster. Unreal. The Leidenheimer roll was perfection, the hot sauce was slightly smoky and BBQ-esque, and the seafood was fried to a crispy & seasoned bliss. This was one of the top five sandwiches I have ever eaten, of any kind. It probably is in the top three. I can't remember something better. Non cheesesteak and hoagie, it is the best I've had. Definitively.

Salty pickles, cool shredded lettuce, a crunchy yet soft roll, and love make for a sandwich that would be suitable to be served in heaven. And I will change my wicked ways as soon as I find out the menu.