Chow Down Atlanta

Sorry for the lack of posts — I get lazy and uninspired after coming back from a vacation.  Lately, I’ve just been uploading mobile pictures of food on my FB and flickr accounts.  Follow me there.  Or on Twitter.  For now.

I have an obsession with bread and bakeries. Some people smoke; I eat bread. I spend at least $50 on bread (specifically bread loaves, baguettes, and croissants) every single week. My favorite bakeries are Star Provisions, H & F Bread Co., and the numerous Vietnamese and Korean bakeries peppering our city. Last weekend, I’ve discovered a new bakery to add to my weekly haunt.

Swiss Alpine Bakery is a true French bakery and cafe. It is owned and operated by a French couple — grandma tends the front of the house, and grandpa bakes in the back. They have an array of freshly baked pastries, croissants, baguettes, tarts, eclairs, tiramisu, cakes, and petit fours. The chocolate croissants are fabulous — buttery and flaky. The baguettes are just perfect.

They offer homemade sandwiches, salads, and soups for lunch. I had the chicken salad on baguette and the French onion soup. The chicken salad had chunks of chicken and apples to give a sweet crunch. It was really a good sandwich with the freshest lettuce and tomato slices.

The French onion soup was neither spectacular nor ho-hum. It had lots of onion slices and the broth was very flavorful. It just lacked the oomph I was looking for. Nevertheless, it was still good.

Pastries range from $3-4, croissants are about $2, baguettes are $2.10 apiece, tarts are $3.75 and $4, the sandwiches are $6.95, soups are $4.95, and salads are also $6.95.

Insider tip:
Located in the Ellard Village shopping plaza on the corner of Holcomb Bridge and Barnwell.

The scoop:
Swiss Alpine Bakery
8400 Holcomb Bridge Rd
Alpharetta, GA 30022
(770) 643-1100

Technorati Tags: bakeries, French baker, French bakery, sandwich, soups, salads, Alpharetta

I’m currently in San Francisco for a much deserved R&R. I’ve been here since yesterday and will stay the entire week. I have a couple of posts that will be published automatically and I plan (not promise) to hopefully publish a post or two while I’m here. I will, however, upload pictures to my Flickr account so do make sure you check it out.

I’m not really big on buffets. There are only three places I (and my family) ever go to where buffet is the norm: Fogo, and the brunch at the Ritz and the Renaissance Waverly hotels. But my mom is a big hot pot fan and Grand Buffet has been the place we’ve been going to for many years. It is also one of the oldest places to offer it.

Grand Buffet is a Chinese super buffet. The have tons of food including king crab legs, whole steamed fish, sushi, and fresh oysters aside from the usual Chinese fare. But we only go here for the hot pot alone. Sadly, the atmosphere became unbearable as years went by. Serving utensils are greasy, the floors are wet and slimy, the smell is dank, the carpets are moldy, and the tables are sticky. Just thinking about it grosses me out. So we stopped going all together.

But last Friday, my mom insisted we give it another try. We were doing the no-meat-on-Fridays during Lent and seafood hot pot seemed like a good idea. I wanted to go to Mini Hot Pot but my mom wanted all the fixings that were only available at Grand Buffet. Besides, she contended, we were going to cook our own food anyway so we know it’ll be clean. It’s hard to argue with her so we let her win.

Well, what a surprise — the place was immaculate! The floors were scrubbed clean and spotless, the serving utensils were all clean, and the food were neatly and nicely placed in their steam trays. I was literally astounded. The food has also tripled in quantity: there were lobsters in ginger/scallion sauce, barbecue duck, crawfish, frogs legs, Chinese barbecue, and even dimsum! We didn’t touch any of the buffet items so I can’t comment on the food. But the hot pot items have expanded: fresh shrimp, blue crabs, Manila clams, crawfish, giant clams, mussels, fish, oysters; assorted tofu, dumplings, and fish cakes, plus various green leafy veggies, and several kinds of mushrooms. You can really go overboard with your hot pot fixings here.

A welcome surprise — the place is spotless, the quantity and quality of food have improved, and service is outstanding. I’d put this place back on my rotation for hot pot. Incidentally, the place is under new management. I’ve seen this place get a score as low as 70 on their health inspection. This visit, they’re at 92.

Insider tip:
Located off Shackleford Rd. next to Home Depot and Oriental Pearl.
Buffet: $12.95 (daily)
Hot Pot: $14.95 (available during dinner on Friday, Saturday, Sunday)

The scoop:
Grand Buffet
1825 Liddell Ln
Duluth, GA 30096
(770) 279-0606

Technorati Tags: buffet, seafood, hot pot, Duluth, Gwinnett, Chinese super buffet, sushi, dimsum

The Vietnamese stall inside Super H Mart in Johns Creek closed two months ago. A new European stall has opened in its place. My curiosity got piqued when I saw gulasch on the menu board. I mean, gulasch in a food court? I’m so there. But what really won me over was the picture of the bread dumplings next to the gulasch. When I was in Prague last year, I ate bread dumplings 3-4 times a day. The entire week! Bread, in an form, is my absolute weakness.

So I ordered a couple of things — the gulasch and the frikadellen. I should have known it wasn’t gonna be authentic after I found out that the Korean grandmother hostess was none other than the cook. She is the nicest, sweetest grandmother, though, and fed me like a starving granddaughther who hadn’t eaten in days. She also kept pushing food at me from the kitchen, just like a real grandma.

The gulasch, as expected, tasted more Korean than Czechoslovakian. It was really Korean stew, if anything else. It did taste bold and flavorful, and the meat pieces were very tender. Unfortunately, the bread dumplings are only for photography purposes as I learned they’ll never have it available. She gave me steamed rice instead (although I could have very well gotten fried rice).

The frikadellen (German meat patties) were as delicious as the German version — meaty with spinach, carrots, and a bit of cilantro (for that Korean touch). All meals come with a side of salad (and soup if requested; she gave me both).

This is a good place to eat homecooked European meals with a touch of Korean. Meals start at $5.95 and portions are huge. Other menu items include pasta bolognese, schnitzel, Asian noodles, fried rice, fish, chicken tenders. Where else can you order gulasch (or any European dish) with fried rice?

Insider tip:
Located inside Super H Mart in Johns Creek (141/Peachtree Parkway)

The scoop:
O My Food
10820 Abbotts Bridge Rd
Johns Creek 30097
(678) 474-0315

Technorati Tags: Super H Mart, Johns Creek, Italian, Chinese, German, Eastern European, Korean