Last Wednesday, most of the Executive Board from PRSSA went to Casa Mia to celebrate two birthdays, our friends Leslie and Kelli.

We originally went because of an e-newsletter I received from Casa Mia about a “15 for 15″ deal where you could taste 15 wines for $15. Seeing that as a good enough incentive, we headed over in the cold to check it out.

We ended up just ordering tapas like usual, but it was fun seeing everyone tasting the wines “over yonder” by the bar. There were some finger foods up there, but we decided (1) because it was a school night and (2) we were ligitimately hungry for more than just wine, we should eat something of substance.

Here’s something for ya: It took all of us about 20 minutes to find a parking spot. What was it about that Wednesday night that made it IMPOSSIBLE to park? In all of our years at UGA, we’ve always been able to find a spot. A couple of us snuck into some lots illegally (oops), and some of us parked out in the sketchy areas. Either way, we all made it, but I decided to share that rare experience.

Since it was a birthday party of sorts, we decided to start off with drinks. Kaitlyn got one of Casa Mia’s famous margaritas; Aaron and Kelli got Sangria, and the rest of us went with the vino. They all tasted great especially with the plantains that were brought at the beginning.

Alright, let me see if I can remember what everyone ordered:

Lauren and Kelli split a quesadilla and some fried calamari. Both were on special that night, and they seemed to be a hit! One complaint was the quesadilla was about as big as your hand, aka small. The pieces were probably about three bites worth, and we all agreed that wasn’t big enough to be on special. If you’re paying for something that’s on special, it needs to be a little bigger. But that’s just our opinion.

If you’ve ever eaten calamari, you probably know the wide array of textures and tastes that can come from it. However, the calamari they ordered that night was fantastic. It wasn’t rubbery, and the breading on it was very unique. It was almost Southern style we thought. Like fried chicken, you could peel off the breading if you want, so it was very light. Some calamari has the breading just glued to it, and I think that contributes to the rubberiness.

Kaitlyn ordered the Cuban sandwich with a side of mashers. She was starving, and there defintely wasn’t anything left on her plate. Kaitlyn will tell you she’s a proud member of the clean plate club (as are a lot of us), and her Cuban looked fabulous. It was a great size, and, if you weren’t that hungry, you could probably save one half of it for the next day. I also had a little fork full of her mashed potatoes, and they were yummy, too. They weren’t buttery, Southern mashers; they were flavorful and light.

I got the Latin sushi roll which was fabulous. It was a plantain stuffed with either chicken, steak, fish, or veggies (I chose chicken), and it’s drizzled with an avocado sauce. I had gotten this once before when my dad was in town, and I couldn’t help but get it again. I hope you can see from the picture how fun it is. They even serve it on a sushi plate. When you bite into the pieces, you can taste the plantain, and it has a very soft texture. It’s not very banana-y, even though you might think so. The chicken and the citrus flavors mixed in are a perfect complement to the plantain, and it all tastes better once you dunk it in some of the homemade guacamole.

I also ordered a side of Yucca. I can’t come to Casa Mia without having it, and it totally made my day. I’ve described Yucca in some of my earlier posts, but it’s like a thick, healthier, better French fry. They also bring it with some kind of pink sauce (no doubt mayonnaise based, dangit), but a little bit of that stuff goes a long way.

Leslie ordered a side of fritatas. I can’t exactly tell you what those are, so she’ll have to comment on them and tell you how they were.

Jenny ordered grilled shrimp with a side of veggies. They came on a skewer, and they looked pretty good! I could tell they had definitely been put on the grill, and they smelled great! Her side of veggies were all eaten. If you’re hesitant about ordering fresh veggies from here, don’t fret. They’re well cooked and very flavorful.

Aaron ordered the black beans with a side of veggies and…I think there was something else. He’ll have to comment on how it was. Aaron is our only vegan, and I think he was pretty satisfied with his meal. He didn’t get much on his plate, so next time he’ll have to order something extra. I do think he loved his side of veggies, though. Everyone raves about the sides of veggies.

Anna ordered…(coming soon…I’ve texted her, and I’ll fill it in later)

It can’t be a birthday party without some cake. I snuck away to the waitress while people were taking bathroom breaks to set up the surprise. They brought both girls a piece of chocolate cake (they know better than to give a girl a birthday cake that’s not chocolate.), and it was delish. Leslie and Kelli both shared, and that made everyone happy.

I think we were there for about 2 1/2 hours. What do we have to lose? We’re all seniors and heck, what’s one less hour of studying, right? Of course we all know this is completely false because all of us are super-insano Type A personalities, so I’m sure all of us were thinking in the back of our minds “Crap, I have a lot to do when I get home.”

Oh well. If it wasn’t for nights like these, I think we’d all go crazy.

So, here’s to good food, tapas, friends, and chocolate cake.

In the midst of my posting madness this week, I almost forgot to write about my lunch on Saturday at Peppino’s with the Arch Society.

We had to work both graduation ceremonies on Saturday, and apparently it’s tradition to venture to Pepppino’s for lunch in between the two.

In case you don’t know about Peppino’s, here’s some info:

Location: Follow South Milledge all the way until it dead ends into Whitehall Road.  Peppino’s is directly on your left.

Phone Number: 706-613-1616

Best meal: Whenever you’re in the mood for Italian.

Open and Close: Not sure, but I’ll come back to it.

Group friendly: Yes.

T.W., our Arch advisor, went ahead and ordered a couple of pizzas for all of us to split.  I think the assortment included cheese, pepperoni, veggie, sausage and maybe one other.

I had 1 1/2 pieces of the veggie, and it was really good.  The pizza was mostly vegetables, onions, green peppers, and tomatoes, and there wasn’t that much cheese on top.  The plethora (yes, I said plethora) of vegetables made the crust a little soggy, but I was willing to make the sacrifice.

The pizzas came out in a timely manner, and, as far I I could tell, other people in the restaurant got their food pretty quickly, too.

I took a peek at the menu, and the prices were very reasonable.  Peppino’s has subs, pizza, calzones, pasta and salad, so there’s definitely something there for everyone.

You need to go to Peppino’s hungry because their pieces are HUGE!  I’m pretty sure we worked up an appetite after working the undergraduate ceremony, so it was well deserved.

All of us sat at two long tables they had set up for us, and it was perfect.  I also noticed they have a pasta and salad bar up front, so that might be a fun choice for next time.

Peppino’s definitely seems like a place where the locals go, and its location gets you out of the hustle-bustle that is downtown.  Try it!

In case you didn’t know, today is Earth Day! I will first give my sincere props to Dr. Sallot’s PR Campaigns class that organized the Earth Day Fair today at the Tate Center.

The UGA Go Green Alliance had tables with a petition for a sustainability officer, energy efficient light bulbs, bird feeder making, face painting and so much more! I went by around 11 a.m., and there were hundreds of students milling around.

Since we are all thinking about sustainability and how to go green, I’m going to suggest some tips for going green when you eat.

• First, walk to the restaurant where you’re eating. For students, downtown is just a stone’s throw away, and there’s really no excuse for not walking.
• Think about sitting outside. Air conditioning costs here in Georgia are sky high, and the less people inside, the less the AC has to keep cranking.
• Don’t get it to-go. Do you realize how much trash is created by Styrofoam plates, to-go boxes, plastic silverware, paper napkins and everything else? Think about how many times you’ve gotten something to-go and then threw it in the trash. Using real silverware and real plates is so much better for the environment.
• Eat where you know the ingredients are fresh and local. Farm 255 is the perfect example. Transporting food and supplies with trucks, vans and airplanes takes so much gas and energy. Farm 255 gets all of their food from local Athens farms which definitely creates minimal transportation costs.

I’ve gone through my brain as much as possible, and this is all I can list. If you have any more suggestions, we would all love to hear them. What about experience you’ve had at a “green” restaurant? Do some locations in Athens strike you as environmentally friendly?

Pitch in. Help the community. Recycle. Use good light bulbs. Make a bird feeder. Go green!

After months of waiting and many comments saying, “I don’t really like Five Star Day. Clocked is my favorite!!” Dr. Sweetser and I finally made it to Clocked.

If you want either a good sandwich or some rockin’ tater tots, Clocked is the place to go.

Here’s some basic info:

Location: 259 Washington St., right beside the 40 Watt

Phone Number: (706) 548-9175

No Web site and no reservations.

Price: Pretty cheap and reasonable- maybe $7 for lunch.

Best Meal: Lunch. It’s more fun to chat around then.

Open and Close:

Group friendly: It’s kind of small, so I wouldn’t suggest going with a big group.

Let’s get “strate” to the food. After all, that’s what Dr. Sweetser and I had been waiting on for forever!

I decided to order the Friendship Grilled Cheese- two pieces of sourdough bread with cheddar, onions, bell peppers and mushrooms grilled in the middle to perfection. Dr. Sweetser decided she’d order the Allison Turkey Sandwich and their oh-so-famous tater tots. I think it had turkey, cheese, a fried egg and something else squeezed in between two pieces of sourdough. Hopefully she’ll make a comment on this post, and she can give you more detail.

It was such a pretty day to walk to (and from!) lunch. While we were patiently waiting on our sandwiches amidst retro rooster napkin holders and other 60s-esque furniture, we talked about Dawg Food, her summer plans, her classes for next semester, my family and other fun things girls talk about.

When our sandwiches came, they were steamin’ hot, and the cheese was perfectly melted. The top of my mouth took a second to get used to the hard crust on the sourdough, but it gave in eventually.

At the end of our meal, after the check, our waitress brought us some Dubble Bubble Bubble Gum. I’ll let you watch the video so you can see what happened next.

Click here to view the embedded video.

After pancakes on Saturday, Dad and I decided to go for brunch after church to the Bluebird Cafe.

I’ve posted about it before, and I think my favorite part is still their biscuits. I’ve never had anything like them! Huge, whole wheat, thick…you can’t get much better.

I wanted quiche on Sunday morning, but the chefs were in the process of making them when we came. I don’t know why they didn’t make them before 10 o’clock on Sunday morning, but it wasn’t my decision.

So, I settled for a Greek egg white omelette. It was pretty good! I knew it had Feta cheese, but I wasn’t expecting it to have Feta and Monterrey Jack. It was a little too cheesy for me, so I picked some of it out. Otherwise, the black olives, tomatoes and pesto made a nice combo!

Dad decided to go with the veggie omelette (sans onions and garlic), and he ate all of his. He decided it needed a little ketchup, and I don’t blame him. I love ketchup with eggs.

Here’s one thing I don’t understand, though. The Bluebird Cafe is vegan and vegetarian friendly, yet they use Smucker’s jam and apple butter that contain high fructose corn syrup. One of my favorite parts of the Bluebird Cafe was their apple butter, but now that experience is bittersweet. I know that vegans and vegetarians don’t boycott high fructose corn syrup, but it seems to me that they would know how bad it is for you. I just thought that was interesting.

Again, the service was a little spotty, but I think it was better than the last time. They just don’t have their wits about them when it’s gameday.

I saw my friend, Victoria, there with her mom, and she told me today she wasn’t very impressed with her meal. “Well, I only got granola and fruit, but it still wasn’t that good. My mom and my friend got the French toast pancakes, and they loved them. I guess I’ll just have to get something different next time.”

This goes to show, ladies and gentlemen, that you can go back to a restaurant another time and order something different. If you think the restaurant has potential, try it again! It seems to be that way with me with Bluebird.

This past weekend, my Dad came to Athens for the Father-Daughter Weekend with my sorority. I was actually in charge of planning it, and I wanted the whole weekend to be an optimal opportunity for Dads to visit with their daughters and their friends. So, everything we did tried to imitate something you “do” with your dad!

Hence, The Grill. When I think of my Dad, I think about pancakes. They were a tradition every Saturday morning of my childhood, and I thought many girls shared the same memory.

If you don’t know about The Grill, you should. It is a tradition for many Athens visitors to stop in, and Athens locals and students love it as well.

Here’s the basic info:

Location: On College Avenue, on the block between Broad Street and Clayton Street. You can’t miss it.

Phone Number: 706-543-4770

Web site: No

Reservations: No, but they’ll work with you if you want to have a pancake breakfast!

Price: Very cheap and reasonable. We paid $5 each for two humongo pancakes, a meat, coffee and OJ.

Best Meal: Any meal when you feel like eating greasy, wonderful food.

Open and close: Open 24-hours!

Group friendly: I’d say so.

When I called The Grill to initially set up the pancake breakfast, their manager, Jeff Wineberg, was really excited to plan it. No one has ever done something like this with them before, so it was comforting that we were both newbies.

To the food: after most of the Dads and daughters got to The Grill, our two servers took our orders. I sat at a booth with my Dad, my roommate Amber and her Dad. We gave our waitress three orders of blueberry pancakes (me, Dad and Mr. Davis), and Amber decided to go for the kill and ordered chocolate chip ones.

While we were waiting, we drank coffee and chatted about the weekend so far. The people at The Grill were so chill that it was nice to have them to bring in the day. After 10-to-12 minutes or so, our yummy breakfast came.

I have small hands, but my two pancakes were about as wide as one of them stretched out- maybe about eight inches in diameter. If this sentence meant nothing to you, here it is a little plainer. They were HUGE! The blueberries were nice and juicy, and the bacon was crispy.

In case you didn’t know The Grill makes their own fresh squeezed OJ. I didn’t have any, but Mr. Davis said it was great.

Until Saturday, I had never been to The Grill for breakfast. I think it’s going to become somewhat of a tradition. The pancakes were too good not to have again!

So friends, visitors, UGA-ers and other wonderful readers, go to The Grill for some super-awesome pancakes and bacon (or sausage). You won’t be disappointed!

To see more pictures, click here.

One of my readers asked if there was any place in Athens that served vegan carrot cake.  Immediately, my mind went to The Grit.

So, I called them right up (706-543-6592) and asked if they had any.

“Um, yeah.  In fact, we have some right now!”–straight from the horse’s mouth.

I also asked if they had it every week or intermittently, and he said he usually sees it in the case at least once a week.  So there you go!  You can eat yummy vegan carrot cake at The Grit.  Its location is extremely convenient, and the atmosphere is chill.  At night, it’s even candlelit!

Other restaurants that offer vegan options are the Bluebird Cafe, Mellow Mushroom, Barberito’s, Farm 255, The Globe, Transmetropolitan, Bombay Cafe and even the UGA Dining Halls!

I got a lot of this information from GoVeg.com, so you can check it out, too.

Hope this helps, readers.  As always, e-mail me at katherine@dawg-food.com, or post a comment with a question or suggestion.  Thanks for the input!

For all you Carolina style barbeque fans, I’ve found a local haven for you.

Jot ‘Em Down Barbeque is the place to go!

Located on Whitehall Road (Drive down South Milledge Avenue until it dead ends, turn left, and go about a mile. It’s on your left.), Jot ‘Em Down pretty much looks like a sketchy shack.

I won’t lie. I’ve passed by it many times, and I’ve gotten a weird impression. However, thanks to my good friend and former roommate, Erin Gentry, I have truly learned not to judge a book (or shack) by its cover (or roof).

When you walk in the door, you’re not really sure what it is inside. A grocery store? A kitchen? A restaurant? I think it’s pretty much all three.

You’ll find a shelf covered with cans of SPAM, Vienna Sausages, Moon Pies, cheese crackers and Lays Potato Chips, as well as a refrigerated case with sauce, banana pudding and pecan pie.

Along the walls, you’ll also see many old country decorations from road signs to overalls to a picnic basket. Pretty eclectic, huh?

Erin decided to order the pulled pork plate that came with two sides ($7.50). She picked slaw and Brunswick stew. I decided to go with the pork sandwich plate complete with baked beans and Brunswick stew ($6.50). We both paid with debit cards, so they take all kinds of payment.

Our order was brought out right away to our table, and we dug in. I’ve never seen a table set up like this before. Everything you needed was on there: a pitcher of tea, seven different sauces, lemons, wet naps, ketchup and napkins. I didn’t need to get up for anything!

All of the sauces are vinegar based. They even have a homemade mustard sauce that was fantastic. Some of the names of the sauces included Cherokee Indian and Carolina. That’s all I can remember, but they were all great! Some hotter than others, obviously.

My baked beans were great. Slow cooked and delicious. I wasn’t a big fan of the Brunswick stew, and I’m not sure why. It just didn’t tickle my fancy tonight. I tried some of Erin’s slaw, and I was pleasantly surprised! There was a definite vinegar taste, but I mostly noticed the extreme amounts of dill used in the recipe. It was great! So much better than Chick-Fil-A’s.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The nice checked, retro tablecloths were a great combination with the rustic decor. On top of that, the people who work there are young and eclectic- kind of like the employees at Jittery Joe’s! I was really surprised by this. I guess I thought I’d see Mamaw and Papaw back behind the counter. Our servers, Courtney and Diana (not sure if I spelled it right), were extremely hospitable, though!

All in all, Erin and I had a great time to catch up and eat some good Carolina BBQ. You should go to Jot ‘Em Down and decide for yourself!

To look at the pictures I took, click here. It won’t let me do a slideshow anymore.