Carolina Ale House–Wait Awhile?

I recently checked out the Carolina Ale House in Fayetteville, NC as a favor to a friend.  She wanted my opinion and so I made a trip down there with two other girlfriends.  Umm…well, it sucked.  But, I have to give props to their Buffalo Chicken Zingers, which one of my friends ordered as her meal; she let me taste it–very tender and the sauce was superb.

I ordered their Blackened London Broil and I have to say, “eh.”  I also had the French Onion soup and it was okay.  And, my other friend ordered Asian Ahi Tuna, and it was also and “eh.”  She had wanted the Greek salad with her meal but was told by the waitress it wasn’t included; she can only get your standard salad with your choice of dressing.  We all thought that was odd since they had the Greek Farmer salad in their salad menu.  Now as I write this and being a former waitress I would have said, “Yes, you may have the Greek salad but, it would be such and such extra.”  But, I didn’t think of it at the time.  I was just feeling kind of awkward for her saying that and didn’t want to “rock the boat.”

Our waitress seemed awkward and inexperienced.  I felt sorry for her, as I was once an inexperienced waitress.  The whole dining experience was not impressive, but the company was great since I was with old friends that I haven’t seen in a while:).  And, I didn’t have an ale.  I wasn’t in the mood since we ate there at 3 pm in the afternoon on a Friday; I like to drink my beer at night, like wearing my sunglasses at night–just kidding;).

The restaurant has been known to have a 2 hour wait on Friday and Saturday nights so that is why we opted to go in the afternoon.  Since, this is a fairly new restaurant in town, I’ll say they may need to get their act together before getting into the groove of things.  Maybe I’ll go back in about 3-5 months and give another review.  Also, I’ll make a point to have a beer if I decide to go back there.  I think I’ll try their Carolina Pale Ale, which is the native beer.  2 stars for the Carolina Ale House.  If you’re not dying to try out that new restaurant in town and can wait–please wait.  I should have.

website: http://www.carolinaalehouse.com/home.html

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Beer, Classic Rock and Sports–Oh My!

If you are a beer connoisseur, along with fine food–you’ll love the Yard House.  This is a chain that has locations in: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Texas and Nevada.  I hope they build one here in North Cackalacky particularly in the Raleigh–Durham area.

I went to the one in the Victoria Gardens outdoor mall in Rancho Cucamonga, CA.  There are every imaginable beers on draft and it’s quite an impressive display at the bar.  I never used to drink beer (my husband coaxed me into trying Miller Lite one time–not bad at all), I’m more of a mixed, fruity, and girly drink (occasionally, a glass of wine) type of gal and I still am.  But, I am expanding my taste bud horizons when it come to spirits.  My favorite beers so far are Blue Moon and Hefeweizen; I’m willing to try any beers now to find my faves.

I ended up eating there twice while I was visiting family/friends in SoCal.  I had ordered the “House Hefe” a couple of times I’ve been there and it is excellent.  I had ordered the Classic Sliders and the Fish and Chips; I was not disappointed at all.  The next time I go there I will order something that is more refined; I was on a budget the last two times I had eaten there.  Whenever I visit any restaurant a second, third, etc., I like to order different dishes.  The two times that I had eaten there , we had dined outdoors.  It was a little chilly since it was December, but they had heaters outside which made it quite a pleasant experience.

The waitstaff and service was excellent.   There are flat screen TVs to enjoy your favorite sports, good classic rock music playing in the background–if dining indoors; and the ambiance is modern, hip and metro.   My hubby swore he saw Lady GaGa’s twin checking him out at the bar–keep dreaming honey!  Obviously, I give it 5 stars.:), minus the Lady GaGa reference;)

Website: http://www.yardhouse.com/default.asp

My cuz, sis and I by the bar, waiting for our table..

Me and sis at the Yard House, the second time around...I'm holding the "House Hefe" which I highly recommend:)

Hubby and I doing our paparazzi pose at the Yard House...

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Hello, it’s a Cynful World!

If this was a TV show, I would say an introduction and welcome you.  At the end of my spiel, I would end it with, “It’s a Cynful world, go out there and eat it!”   Allow me to start with my name, which is Cynthia; I am also known as Cyn, Cyndi, and Cyndi-Lou (my father-in-law only calls me that).  This blog is devoted to my rave and not so rave reviews of food, drink, restaurants, recipes, etc.  We all love to eat and I want to share my enthusiasm and passion to the consumption of fine food and drink.

I have an eclectic taste when it comes to food and my blog will definitely be just that, eclectic. I do have a small background in food, I have worked in two country clubs in a 5 year span as a banquet captain/server.  I have also served in a Japanese restaurant before that.  My husband is a chef in the Army and I always ask for his advice; I love to learn about the proper ways of the culinary world and still continue to learn. I also love to experiment and cook new dishes at home, in which I use my family/friends as guinea pigs.

I am also a military wife, and I’ve traveled to different parts of the United States mostly the Southern part, I hope to make it more towards the North someday–but, I have made it to New York a couple of times.  My reviews will be limited within the U.S.,  mostly Southern, East and West coast cuisines at this time but, someday I hope to expand my horizons.  And, since we have international influences because of the many cultures that reside within our great nation–you can expect reviews of ethnic restaurants and dishes, as well.

With my reviews, I anticipate to write a personal story for each; which, I think would make it more interesting.  If you have ever read articles on food, they can be boring as hell!  So without further ado, welcome to a Cynful World, go out there and eat it! Eat your heart out Rachael Ray!

I'm the cute one on the left and my beautiful lil' sis on the right at Knott's Berry Farm in SoCal. I was consuming a cinnamon bear which was perfect and not stale, very pleasant to chew. The taste was not overbearing with cinnamon.;)

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