In case you can’t tell, I’m on a constant search to find the world’s best chicken salad.

Of course, it is totally a matter of opinion, but that’s about the best I can do.  It’s your job to comment on my posts and tell me what you think!

With all that, I drove through Chick-Fil-A last night to grab a quick bite before going to the first PRSSA meeting of the year. A college student’s mind works in mysterious ways.  I got a coupon in the mail last week for a free CFA chicken salad sandwich (with purchase of a Diet Dr. Pepper), and I had been thinking about the right moment to use it.  Wednesdays are always cRaZy, so I decided the coupon would fit nicely in my agenda.

I was really hesitant about eating Chick-Fil-A’s chicken salad for a couple of reasons.  First, most chicken salads are so incredibly fatty and “mayonaisey” that you might as well throw it in the trash and eat a can of Duke’s.  Second, some are really, really salty.  I like salty foods, but I have a limit.  With fast food, of course most items are full of sodium, but some of them don’t hide it very well.

When I drove up to the drive-in at the Beechwood CFA, I could only hope for the best.  I ordered the sandwich, substituted a water for the DDP, and got a side garden salad with fat free honey mustard.  Grand total?  $2.13.  A dream come true (Although, I was “that girl” who had to pay $2.13 with my debit card because I didn’t have cash.  Oh well.).

Once safely inside Sanford 213 for our meeting, I was able to eat my supper.  To my surprise, it was absolutely fabulous!  The chicken was diced in small pieces, and I could see bits of hardboiled egg and celery in there- yummy AND protein-rich!  I also found solace in knowing the entire sandwich is only 7 points on Weight Watchers.  Most chicken salads are so much higher than that.

I have to say, if I had had a pepper shaker with me last night, I would have used it.  I like peppery chicken salad, and I think it could have used a little.

Overall grade for fast food chicken salad? A-

You should try it.  The wheat bread was also yummy, and my side salad was the perfect complement to the sandwich.

More posts to come, so stay tuned!

Today I got to go to Five Points Deli for lunch! I was meeting my friend, Kelly, and we decided this would be a wonderful way to wrap up our semester.

In case you haven’t heard of Five Points Deli, here’s some basic information:
Location: On South Lumpkin Street, right through the Five Points light
Phizzle Nizzle: 706-546-8915
Web site: www.fivepointsdeli.com
Reservations: No
Price: plan on spending at least $7 for a basic sandwich. It’s more if you add chips and a drink.
Best meal: definitely lunch
Open and close: Monday-Friday, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.; at their Epps Bridge location, they’re open until 8 p.m.
Group friendly: kind of; it will take a while to get your food, but they have enough space to accomodate.

Today’s special was a rotisserie chicken sandwich with cheese and mayo on whole wheat bread. That’s what struck Kelly’s fancy. I was feeling the veggie sandwich, and it was the best veggie sandwich I’ve ever had. Being suckers for toasted sandwiches, we both asked for ours to be put under the grill. They actually forgot to toast mine, so I had to take it back. Easily fixed, though!

My veggie sandwich was so fun. Hummus, banana peppers, green peppers, red peppers, cucumbers, carrots, lettuce and tomato were squeezed in between two pieces of whole wheat bread. I think provolone came in the original recipe, but I asked for it to be left off. Cheese and hummus didn’t sound appealing to me.

In addition to my sandwich, I asked for a fruit cup. I think I like Five Star Day’s fruit cup better; the one from Five Points Deli had the fruit juice in the bottom of the cup, and I don’t really like the juice. Maybe I should ask them to scoop it with a slotted spoon next time.

Kelly’s sandwich was good, too. She said it was a great combo of flavors. FPD is famous for their rotisserie chicken, and I think putting it on a sandwich was a great idea. She also had a bag of Zapp’s Jalapeno potato chips.

You can see we clearly enjoyed our meal- members of the clean plate club, we are!

Since it was so warm today, there were a lot of people sitting outside on their patio. We opted for the inside seating, but it was fun to people watch.

I have some other favorites from FPD I thought I’d list: seafood salad, black eyed pea salad, the supreme chicken salad (not the regular, it’s too plain) and the cracked sunflower seed bread. It’s good on any sandwich!

So, whether you’re already planning for tailgate season, or you’re looking for a fun lunch outing, FVP is a tried and true favorite. I haven’t been to the Epps Bridge location, but I’ve heard it’s nice!

This week, I went to the infamous Marti’s at Midday over on Prince Avenue.

I had been there a couple of times before with my Mom, and we loved it. Here are the basics:

• Location: on Prince Avenue, away from downtown; pass Milledge Avenue on your left, go past the McDonald’s on your right, and it’s about another half mile on your right in a little house
• Phone number: 706-543-3541
• Web site: martisatmidday.com
• Reservations: nope
• Price: a little expensive, but the portions are HUGE
• Best meal: definitely lunch
• Open and Close: Monday-Friday; breakfast 8-10:30 a.m.; lunch 11:30-3:30 p.m.
• Group friendly: kind of, just expect to wait a really long time

My friend Mary and I went for lunch around noon, and we definitely were there during their busiest time. Even though the restaurant is in this cute little house, there’s not that much seating. They have two rooms inside, and there’s a porch outside.

You order from the counter, they give you a card for your order, and then you wait.

Mary ordered the salad plate which gave her a little scoop of pimento cheese, a scoop of their famous chicken salad and a deviled egg. It’s all placed on top of fresh romaine lettuce, and they give you pita chips to go with it. Yum!

I ordered the spinach and tart apple salad, but it ended up being romaine and tart apple salad. They ran out of spinach, but it still tasted fine. I also asked for NO blue cheese, but they put it on there anyway. The complete salad had red onions, blue cheese, candied walnuts, crisp Granny Smith apples, turkey bacon and a great dressing on the side.

Oh man, I almost forgot to mention the awesome mint unsweet tea I ordered, too. I love a good glass of tea, and this one hit the spot.

I wish our service experience was as good as the food. The two of us had to wait a good 20 minutes for our simple salads. Here is my advice: if you’re going to eat at Marti’s, call ahead and pick it up.

They really do have an amazing, Southern, delicious menu, but they need to stick to the cooking, I think.

Marti’s has many dedicated followers, but I think most of them call in their orders.