Friday, June 21, 2013

PICK...er...Lulu's Cafe!

...or, how I learned to keep it simple, turkey. Oh my god, guys, look at this. Just look at it.



What do you mean you don't care? Okay, whatever, maybe it doesn't look like much through the electric viewing box but if you're ever going to trust one thing I say, it is this - these are the best fried pickles there are. In Myrtle Beach? Good. Go to Lulu's Cafe on Ocean Boulevard and 19th Avenue North right now and eat these things (Warning: You will have to pay for them afterward. Don't be surprised. This ain't Star Trek.)

You're not in Myrtle Beach? You're not in SOUTH CAROLINA?! What is wrong with you man? Look, there are planes, dude. There's no excuse anymore. WE HAVE AN AIRPORT.

Lulu's Cafe
1903 North Ocean Boulevard
Myrtle Beach, SC 29577
(843)712-1890

Monday, June 10, 2013

Loco Gecko!

"Heed all advice given by coconut monkey cups." - a real sentence

Lunch has always been my favorite meal of the day. Bring on the fat jokes, suckers - the journey has been delicious, fun, and totally worth it. Since I started this blog which has forced me out to new places to eat, lunch is now like...approximately 25% more radical than it ever has been. THINGS ARE LOOKING UP.

The latest lunch adventure? Loco Gecko in Myrtle Beach. Baller or Not Baller? Well, I guess you'll have to read past the jump to find out, lazy-bones.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

River City Cafe

So River City Cafe is one of those places that inevitably gets brought up in this area whenever anyone decides to enter the minefield that is asking the question, "Who has the best burgers on the beach?" Now, the reason I happen to like when this type of question pops up is that I get to take mental notes of all the places I should need to go to...you know...to discover the TRUTH.

It was with great anticipation then that my girlfriend and I decided to visit the River City Cafe located on 21st Avenue North (there are a handful of locations up and down the beach - don't be a caveman, use Google Maps or something for the others!) to get to the bottom of some burger business (and, subsequently, our plates). Read on after the jump to see what we found out, alright?

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

The Bowery

The Anti-Photographer Strikes

Damn, alright, so my girlfriend and I spun the wheel of random today and landed on The Bowery for our lunch destination. Before I get down to grease tacks I should note that, like a bunch of other bar establishments in Myrtle Beach, The Bowery is attached to/has its food services handled by a place called Duffy's Bar & Grill.

Say hello, Duffy's!


Hello!
Also, and this is less "important" and more "what is going on", but the classic-country-southern-rock band Alabama was the house band for The Bowery for something like 8 years in the '70's.

Oh, oh, oh! Also...

Monday, May 20, 2013

Jimmyz Original Hibachi...PLUS BONUS STAR TREK DESSERT, DUDES

Guys, remember the Habibi's review where I neglected to get photos because I'm bad at this? I still don't have an excuse for the same thing happening AGAIN this time other than to say:

1. I had the most unfortunate hangover during my dining experience
2. I just watched the new Star Trek movie and I'm a big dork and kept talking about that
3. I am still a terrible food and restaurant critic
Bonus Reason: It's Bike Week in Myrtle Beach and motorcycles are like, loud and distracting or something.

Anyway, coming home from the movies Friday, my girlfriend and I decided to stop at Jimmyz Original Hibachi to treat our tastebuds to a style that hasn't been featured yet on Eating Myrtle Beach: Asian(ish) food! It will be the first of many, I assure you. Personally, I can't wait to gag on some too-hot curry in the name of culinary exploration.


Friday, May 17, 2013

Habibi's Cafe & Market

It's kind of easy to get tired of routine, even something as intensely comforting as a lunch routine. I've probably spent too much of my time scouring the internet for local lunch choices that don't immediately make themselves obvious as an option when you're plucking things off the top of your head that you might want to eat.

Enter Habibi's Cafe & Market. Habibi's is a Lebanese joint right around the corner from where I work and I figured something with a Mediterranean/Middle-Eastern flavor would be a welcome departure from the norm. A departure it totally was.

Let's jump into some Falafel and Gyros, shall we?

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Nacho Hippo

Valhalla

"High-class nachos" seems like a phrase one might come up with lying in a stupor on the floor of a dirty dorm room floor as they steel themselves to "enjoy" the results of throwing a bunch of stale corn chips on a plate and microwaving it with a few slices of american cheese on top.

Speaking of inscrutable phrases associated with the word "nacho", I haven't yet taken the time to find an explicit explanation of where, why, and how Nacho Hippo, a wonder of an establishment nestled within the Market Common "upscale urban center", got its name. After sampling the fruits within, I came to the almost too obvious conclusion that it has to do with serving sizes. We'll get to that.


Monday, May 13, 2013

The Shack

SKIM LIZARD (?)

I have a love-hate relationship with breakfast. On the one hand, traditional breakfast food as a concept is pretty out of this world. Waffles, pancakes, biscuits, bacon, sausage, bagels, scrapple*, pork roll*, french toast, eggs, syrup, AAAAGGGGGHHHHH!

*New Jersey roots, represent!

Okay, okay. We're alright now. Where was I? Oh right, love-hate. Here's the thing - during the work week I normally skip breakfast and it's a rare thing on the weekend where I'm up early enough to go a place with strict breakfast menu times IN time to actually break my fast properly. There is little else worse in this world than getting up early if you don't specifically have to. This is a real opinion you (I) have that can be filed away under First World Problems.

On my way to Basil's Pizza for my first review, I passed The Shack. It looked like a funky little place to get some food and the parking lot was slammed. A lighted sign out front heartily demanded I EAT HERE so I made a mental note to do just that as soon as I could. Such wanton brazenness should be applauded and rewarded. How did that work out? Sadly, the experience was hit or miss.


Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Guest Post! Founders Dinner Beer Review!

Roommate Joe - neat freak, aspiring (and excellent) home brewer, INCREDIBLY accommodating. Joe got pretty excited about the opportunity to review some beers to the point where he took things way more professionally than I did and actually took tasting notes all night. What a guy! What follows is his review in order of consumption and course-pairing.

"The Founders Dinner beerlist turned out to be a (almost) vertical tasting, and while I wholly believe this was unintentional, I enjoyed the experience more than I thought I would given that I've had 3 out of 4 of them individually in the past.

Unfortunately the representative they sent worked for a distributor -not the brewery- so we were very limited on the amount and kinds of information we were able to get from him."

Mellow Mushroom's Founders Brewery Beer Dinner

Fun fact: Mellow Mushroom is basically my favorite place in the world. 

With over 120 locations nationwide, it's a bit more chainy than I'd like to make a habit of getting into on this site, but each singular visit tends to be so remarkable that I can't help but talk about the place as a public service to any tourists in the area who have no idea what's going on at this place.

On the surface, the Myrtle Beach Mellow Mushroom is a pizza place. Digging a little deeper reveals it's so much more. Since opening in 2008, this Mellocation (oh my god did you just see what I did?) has been a huge regional proponent of furthering the craft beer cause. With over 40 taps and countless more varieties in bottles, there's something for every taste here from the mundane (Miller, Bud, Coors) to the eclectic and electric (Dogfish Head, Westbrook, Lagunitas).

What's this got to do with food? I'm thrilled you asked! Let me help you with that!

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Basil's Pizza

Okay, admittedly, Basil's Pizza is NOT in Myrtle Beach but instead resides in its northern neighbor North Myrtle Beach. I don't want to say this will be a trend, but if I'm out of town and have an opportunity to dig into something I can write about, I'm not going to look that gift horse in the mouth. More likely, I'll just end up shoveling a calzone into my OWN mouth which is what happened in this particular case.

Full disclosure - I actually live closer to North Myrtle Beach than I do Myrtle Beach. That being said, I didn't have any earthly clue Basil's existed until feeling hungry and adventurous at work, I did a simple search for pizza and lo and behold one of the highest rated pizza joints in the area is one that hadn't even been on my radar - Basil's. At the time, this simply wouldn't do: Basil's Pizza is located a good 30 minutes from where I work. Never one to forget a potentially pretty slice, I stowed my find away in the dark recesses of my brain until I could get a better opportunity to pounce.

I didn't have to wait long. Over the weekend I convinced my girlfriend, roommate, and my roommate's girlfriend to journey with me to Basil's to see (eat) what we could see (eat). The location is great - smack dab at the end of Sea Mountain Highway, Basil's first noticeable feature is an outdoor roofed-over patio with a view of the ocean. For ambiance, you can do worse in a pizza joint.

We'll eat after the jump, I promise.