Biscuit Love

October 07, 2021  /  frank mesina

Nashville is home to The Grand Ole Opry, bachelorette parties, countless country bars, and now my favorite food critic. With my son now attending school here and my first visit to the Music City, we decided to end our eight-year hiatus of finding and reviewing the best breakfasts a city can offer.

Biscuit Love is a local and tourist favorite for a reason, marrying “Nashville Hot Chicken” with their savory, signature biscuits. Sounds simple, eh? With wait times sky-rocketing beyond two hours, we hesitated to succumb to so much hype-filled insanity. Luckily, it took us only an hour in line to decide for ourselves.

BISCUIT LOVE, Gulch, Nashville, TN

BITE-SIZED REVIEW:

  • “Bonuts”: Fried biscuit dough tossed in sugar, topped with Lemon Mascarpone, served over Blueberry Compote. Should really end the review here, but as a starter, it’s a great opening act.

  • Chronic Bacon: The biscuit takes center stage at this spot, but this sweet and spicy thick-cut bacon, the bacon Hank!, is the hidden, crystalized gem, of the menu. Fatty, crispy, and magnificently chewy.

  • Buttermilk biscuits: Reminiscent of a croissant, this star of the show is deceptively light despite the dense layers and buttery bite.

  • Princess: Nashville style spicy boneless “Hot Chicken” thigh, on a buttermilk biscuit, pickles mustard, and honey.

  • East Nasty Buttermilk Biscuit: topped with fried boneless chicken thigh, aged cheddar, sausage gravy. Pretty traditional country fried chicken.

  • Ambiance: Sundresses and boots. Ethan approved.

RATING: 4.6 out of 5 stars

1 Comment
tags / #donuts, #fried chicken, #bacon, #nashville

'Share' Worthy: Blackberry Bliss Cakes

December 29, 2013  /  frank mesina

Maybe it was the bitter cold outside, the challenge of finding available parking or driving out 45 minutes for breakfast in the first place that had my son and I grateful to be sandwiched between shivering patrons in the restaurant's tiny vestibule that doubled (half the tiny) as their bakery, waiting to be seated. 

Once settled, it was easy for my son to spot an instant favorite on the menu along with a sweet side that we blissfully shared.

m. henry: Andersonville, Edgewater Chicago

BITE-SIZED REVIEW:

  • Simple Grilled Cheese Sandwich: A modest sandwich that deserved a better adjective. Son felt 'Majestic' sounded better, especially after adding two slices of  Applewood smoked bacon for a crunchier, buck seventy-five.

  • Blackberry Bliss Cakes: Son's favorite part? Mascarpone. He felt the berries were a bit sour, but admitted he doesn't like fruit with his pancakes. Me, on the other hand took the term 'share', loosely.

  • Jorge's Black Bean Cakes & Huevos Borrachos (drunken eggs): Homemade black bean cakes served with masa tortillas, chorizo, scrambled eggs and adobo sauce. Wasn't sure what ingredient made the eggs 'drunken' but the overall dish still had plenty of authentic Mexican flavors to keep track of.

RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

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tags / #mhenry, #drunkeneggs, #grilledcheese, #blackberry, #andersonville

Nine Year Old Breakfasts

December 03, 2012  /  frank mesina

In 2011, Chicago Magazine printed the top 75 breakfasts in the Chicagoland area. My nine year old son and I decided to try a few of them out. After each meal, my son started to rate and offer bite-sized reviews of the food he ordered and snapped a few pics along the way. A simple, but satisfying way to spend weekend mornings exploring our city in search of the best chicken waffles, crepes and hot chocolate.

It's a big list and we're far from done, but judging by the size of those marshmallows it's no wonder we chose the following for our first trip:

MINDY'S HOT CHOCOLATE, Chicago

BITE SIZED REVIEW:

  • Best hot chocolate ever with powdered sugar on house made marshmallows

  • Pumpernickel cheddar melt and soup tasted great even for tomato soup haters

  • The warm donuts with house made raspberry jelly were the best. Not enough (6)

  • Noodle pudding tasted too much like regular bread. Not very good actually

RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

POSTSCRIPT PICS

After breakfast, I asked my son if he'd like to take more pictures outside of the restaurant. He was up for it, so I asked him to photograph anything he saw that was interesting or had any letters or numbers on it. I told him I'd pay for the coolest ones. He jumped at the chance. So, here are the top six pics that cost this J. Jonah Jameson six, well-deserved bucks:

...

 
 
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tags / #hotchocolate, #donuts, #marshmallows

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