Roamin' with Roman
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Restaurant Roamin’ with Roman: Elemental
Beginning as a bread baker at Chattanooga’s former—locally owned and sourced—Greenlife Grocery, Charlie Loomis soon rose to the rank of executive chef, carrying his position through its Whole Foods buyout. Loomis has since moved on, opening up Elemental a few weeks ago within mere walking distance of his former stomping grounds. Read the rest of … Continue reading
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After their successful ventures with Taco Mamacita and Urban Stack Burger Lounge, local restaurateurs Mike and Taylor Monen set their sights on Neapolitan pizza, opening Community Pie next to Miller Plaza last month. The Monens have sourced many of their ingredients locally, while importing necessities from Italy, in a merging of farming communities. Read the rest of my review at Nooga.com!
With the Chattanooga fine-dining mecca of St. John’s Restaurant and Meeting Place already under his belt, Chef Daniel Lindley embarked on a new culinary quest in 2009. Tying the fresh pasta laces of Europe’s boot peninsula to the abundant thread of local resources around the Southeast Tennessee Valley, would Alleia succeed in capturing a rustic … Continue reading
Chattanooga Street was once the main route from LaFayette, Ga., to Chattanooga, creating a bustling economic center along the strip of road through the heart of LaFayette. Built in the early ’30s, the Mars Theater anchored this strip, along with the train depot for the main rail line to Chattanooga across the street. After the … Continue reading
Although many fried chicken places refer to their chicken as “famous,” Champy’s Famous Fried Chicken can actually back it up. After a chicken tattoo ad at the Lookouts Stadium was published by TMZ and went viral and then being visited by HLN’s “Making It in America,” the restaurant has gained some national attention in addition to all the word-of-mouth publicity it receives. Owners … Continue reading
About 460 million years ago, a dramatic range of volcanoes rose up from the Earth’s crust from Georgia to Canada, building higher and higher toward the heavens through violent clashes of heat and stone. Earth had given birth to the Appalachian Mountains. In more recent news, Chattanooga’s more than 100-year-old Stone Fort Inn gave birth … Continue reading
After 43 years in business, the employees of Red Bank’s Southern Restaurant hung up their aprons and retired their spatulas for—seemingly—the last time in October. However, a month later, former server Kim Hankins decided to take the reins and revitalize the establishment. I wanted to see what it was like now and if it still held the same Southern … Continue reading
The end of the Mayan long count was quickly approaching, but rather than prepping for impending doom, I decided to take The Apocalypse head-on. However, there were no polar shifts or judgmental horsemen because this Apocalypse is actually an Italian/Greek restaurant in Fort Oglethorpe, Ga.—in Greek, the word “apocalypse” simply refers to a revelation of something hidden, rather than just its widespread end times connotation. Read … Continue reading
Tony and Lisa Davis opened up the Purple Daisy Picnic Café in ’05 at the base of Lookout Mountain, converting an old service station to serve traditional barbecue and picnic fare with their own quirky spin. Sitting adjacent to the Incline Railway in St. Elmo, this has been a popular spot for locals and tourists alike, … Continue reading
Residing in the former foyer of the Grand Hotel across from the Chattanooga Choo-Choo, The English Rose Tearoom—sharing the historic building with several apartments—has boasted an authentic British experience since 1997. Last Saturday, I roamed through the Mainx24 celebration of Chattanooga’s Southside and headed a couple of blocks from Main Street, wondering if I would feel … Continue reading
Native Guatemalan Erwin Ovalle opened Ovalle’s Mexican Café a few months ago in St. Elmo, fulfilling a dream of opening his own traditional Mexican bakery and café. After spending time in Mexico during college, he fell in love with its rich street food scene and decided to bring those flavors to Chattanooga. Last Thursday, I had … Continue reading
Although I’d say many longtime Chattanoogans are familiar with Bea’s Restaurant, its location is a bit out of the way for tourists. So, if you haven’t been, is it really worth it? Is all the good buzz swarming around Bea’s down-home Southern cooking legit? The original queen bee of Bea’s, Beatrice Steele, founded the restaurant … Continue reading
In 2010, Urban Stack Burger Lounge inhabited Chattanooga’s old Southern Railway Baggage Building down on the Southside, with owners Mike and Taylor Monen looking to remodel this building with LEED-certified criteria. I inhabited Urban Stack for lunch last Saturday. Read the rest of my review at Nooga.com!
Nestled on East Main Street in Chattanooga’s historical Southside district, the family-run Bluegrass Grill has been serving up breakfast and lunch since October ’07. Retired orthodox minister Jonas Worsham’s culinary journey has spanned more than 40 years, culminating in the opening of this restaurant. Last Friday, I roamed into the Bluegrass Grill, not only looking for a flavor journey … Continue reading
Chugging forward with a full head of steam, our restaurant roamin’ journey is going slightly touristy this time with a stop at the Chattanooga Choo-Choo. You see, there’s this Glenn Miller song you may have heard, and many people throughout the world have heard it too, which has marked the Choo-Choo as a main identity … Continue reading
Bread: an ancient foodstuff with immense importance to the rise of humanity throughout history—not only in sustenance but also in many cultural, religious and political ways. There is also a fine art to bread making, and in 2002, John and Angela Sweet opened Niedlov’s Breadworks on Main Street to bring their traditional artisan breads to … Continue reading
Last week, I found myself roamin’ to Cleveland. I had heard that the Bald Headed Bistro was an extravagantly unique dining experience with some game meats on the menu, so I decided to see if this bistro was on top of its game. Read the rest of my review at Nooga.com!
Last Thursday, I thought I was going to be roamin’ to Hixson, but instead I found myself in New York. Oh, wait. Yeah, it was Hixson. My bad. Although New York City and Hixson don’t have much in common, at all, New York natives Kurt and Erik Cilen decided to bring a slice of the … Continue reading
