Chef's

Chef's is located at 553 E. 6th. St Panama , Florida.  

For those of us who are natives, this is the old Jimmy's Drive Inn.  Once a bastion of burgers, fried chicken, and french fries is now the home of the most innovative chef in Bay County.  
Lindsey Nordness has turned a casual lunch into a taste bud adventure.  Her Lemon, Chicken, & Orzo soup is a bowl of love.  It is warm, lemony, rich, and  satisfying.  It recently hit the spot on a rainy afternoon.  The Thai Coconut Curry soup is equally interesting.  Thai chili oil and coconut milk come together for a spicy (not hot) explosion of flavor.  A single thin sliced mushroom floats on top.  The menu has recently changed to herald in spring and summer which is a novel idea for the Panama City food scene.  The new roasted beet salad combines mixed greens, roasted red and yellow beets, dressed with a honey balsamic dressing.  The sweet candied pecans contrast the tart dressing, genius.  No longer on the menu the meatball sandwich was made with chicken meatballs and painted with pesto, served on a warm hoagie bun.  The O.G. burger hearkens back to to the drive in roots of Jimmy's.  One of the top burgers in town.  

Two items on the dinner menu are a must try.  The beer braised short ribs over creamy grits and Lindsey's interpretation of Chicken and Waffles.  The short ribs are braised in Oyster City Brewing "Hooter Brown Tupelo Honey Ale".  This rich, beefy, and unctuous, mixture is served over stone ground grits.  People it don't get any better than this.  The chicken and waffles uses pulled chicken, a sweet potato waffle, served on wilted collard greens, and dressed with Alabama White BBQ sauce.  Hot damn ya'll, yo grandma never cooked like this.

If you haven't tried Chef's, please do.  You will not be disappointed.  If you have please continue to support this restaurant with your patronage.  Bay County deserves this place and this Chef.  http://www.chefsinpanamacity.com/



Chef's gets 5 stars.

Good job Mellow Mushroom

As they say "The squeaky wheel gets the grease", so is true in the restaurant business.  If you get bad service or are treated badly, you love to tell everyone.  I want to report a good experience I recently had.

Saturday night I didnt feel like cooking so we went to Mellow Mushroom for pizza.  We have been there several times and know what we want.  My wife and I ordered draught beer and the server said they were having trouble with the tap because they had recently changed the CO2 tank and the line had not been bleed.  I watched as the bar teander tried several times to pull the draught on several beers. We waited for about 15 minutes before the beer was delivered to the table.  The server was very attentive but our salad was taking a loog time.  Finally the salad and pizza arrived at the same time.  Don't you hate when that happens?  We had not been given cutlery so we sat there staring at our food unable to eat.  I spoke to the server and finally recieved the implements.

Sensing my frustration the server sent the manager over and we were told we would recieve the local's discount of 10%, the military discount (I'm not military) of 25%, and the salad was taken from the bill.

Thanks Mellow Mushroom for taking a bad situation and making it good.

Andy's Flour Power Cafe & Bakery

Friday I had breakfast at Andy's Flour Power Cafe & Bakery (http://andysflourpower.com/).  It's hard to describe this place in one word.  It's fresh, quirky, delicious, colorful, comfortable, and artistic.  The first thing that hits you  when you walk in is the smell of bread, biscuits, and pastries baking.  If the smells don't get you, your eyes are treated to the colorful, quirky interior.  But let's talk food.  It is a cafe after all.

Andy's is open for breakfast and lunch with a great menu of items to choose from.  They also have a display case with the fresh baked Danishes, muffins, turnovers, and such if you want to grab and go.  I bought muffins to the ladies in the office and they were met with smiles and moans of approval.  The weekday menu (http://andysflourpower.com/menu/weekday-menu/) and the weekend menu (http://andysflourpower.com/menu/weekend-menu/) includes traditional and nontraditional items.  Included is a breakfast skillet full of potatoes, ham, onions, peppers, eggs, and cheese.  Come hungry for this one.  For the vegetarian there is a vegetable frittata with it is a baked omelet, with squash, zucchini, asparagus, peppers, and cheese.  You can also add spinach, mushrooms, and caramelized onions.  The croissant breakfast sandwich is made on a fresh baked roll that is flaky and light.  You don't have to be a vegetarian to enjoy this great egg bake.  Traditional French toast, biscuits and gravy, omelets, Belgian waffles, eggs, bacon, and ham, round out the menu.  There is something for everyone for breakfast at Andy's Flour Power.

This morning my southern boy flared up and I had the biscuits and sausage gravy with two scrambled eggs.  The coffee was hot and comforting, the biscuits, as good as, Grand Ma's, the gravy was creamy and full of sausage.  The eggs were fluffy and perfectly cooked.

Also remember to check out the specials board.  They do wonderful Eggs Benedict too.

The lunch menu offers fresh salads, and sandwiches with a good array of sides.  I have tried the Reuben and the Cuban, both stands up to the traditional expectation of these sandwiches.

What stands out to me about Andy's Flour Power is the service. I watch owner John Certo greet people like they were family.  A gentleman who visits  once a year from Italy was recognized and escorted to a table.  The wait staff is attentive, quick to serve, and friendly.  Know that this place can get crazy busy at the drop of a hat, but don't let that stop you from visiting this gem.  If you haven't been to Andy's Four Power, I suggest you make a trip to Thomas Drive and enjoy the experience.

Andy's get 4 stars.

Gumbo Class

Recently I taught a gumbo class at Bill and Hannelore Holland's "Somethings Cooking" http://www.somethinscookin.com/ restaurant and gourmet shop.  It felt good to get back in front of a group of people doing what I love to do.   While living in New Orleans, I briefly taught, part time, at The New Orleans School of Cooking  http://www.neworleansschoolofcooking.com/ in the French Quarter.  After moving back to Panama City I longed for the opportunity to get back to cooking and teaching.  Life gets in the way and things change, but recently I went to lunch at Somethings Cooking so I asked Hannelore if she wanted me to teach a gumbo class.  She said "Let me get my calendar".  My sister and the Holland's daughter have been friends since forever.  My sister calls me Bubba, so the Hollands call me Bubba too.  The class covered a Creole File' Gumbo with okra, tomatoes, and no roux.  I also prepared a Cajun chicken and Andouille sausage Gumbo with a dark rich roux.  

I opened the class with my Redneck Pate' better known as Pimento Cheese served on toast point.  I  also served my Heywood's Jalapeno Cornbread with the gumbos. Thanks to my sommelier Bill Holland for choosing two great wines to pair with the meal. The response has been awesome.  We had such a overwhelming response we have scheduled another Gumbo class on Saturday, September 6th at 10:30.  I am doing a class called Classic New Orleans desserts on Thursday, October 16th at 2:30. which will include Bananas Foster, Bread Pudding with two sauces, and Pecan Pralines.  On Saturday, November 15th. at 10:30, to get you ready for the holiday season, I'll be doing a class on brining your turkey, which will include two dressings, a traditional southern, sage sausage, cornbread dressing, and a Cajun shrimp and eggplant dressing.  I will also serve my cranberry/apple/pecan Chutney.  Call Somethings Cookin to make your reservations now.  A special thanks to my sous chef and wife Lori for assisting.

Remember the 4F's of life.  Faith, Family, Friends, and Food.  See ya soon.

Miss Myra's Pit Bar-B-Q

Recently my wife and family attended the wedding of my cousin Laura in Trussville, Alabama.  Since the panhandle of Florida is not known for great BBQ joints, I decided to ask some of my friends on a BBQ forum where I should go.  Miss Myra's popped up and sounded great.  We arrived Friday afternoon shortly followed by my two sons Josh and Andrew, and the grand children.  We decided to try Miss Myra's.  For those of you who are not BBQ aficionados Alabama is know for White BBQ sauce.  It is a sauce made of Mayonnaise, Apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, and black pepper.  It was made famous by a place in Decatur, Alabama called Big Bob Gibson's.  It is usually used on smoked chicken, but my wife loves it on pulled pork.  We arrived about 6:00 Birmingham time and the out side looked like a BBQ joint should.  A large metal sign with the Coca-Cola emblem and the words Miss Myra's pit Bar-B-Q greeted us, as well as, hickory smoke filling the air.

  Miss Myra's is a pit style BBQ.  That means the meat is cooked over a pit of smoldering wood instead of an offset smoker where the fire is in a chamber away from the meat.  Pit BBQ is like grilling over direct coals except the pit places the meat several feet above the fire.  In pit BBQ the pit master must attend the meat often as hot and cold areas may appear.  As the meat cooks the fat drips on the fire and adds a flavor offset smokers can't equal.  I like the both, but pit BBQ is very southern.

When you first enter Miss Myra's you can smell the BBQ which is a good thing, and the place is decorated by several porcine (pig) figurines, everywhere.  In front of you is a large counter and a refrigerated case with homemade pies in it.  If you don't like BBQ, go for the pies.  There was a lady sitting on a stool and as soon as I approached she asked what I wanted as if I was a regular. 

The menu was simple, several meat plates or combo meat plates with two sides.  Meat choices are Chicken, Pork, Beef, and ribs.  The ribs are Saint Louis spares of course.  There is also a smokes sausage plate.  The sides are Potato Salad, Baked Beans, Slaw, Green Beans, Deviled Eggs, or chips.  I ordered the ribs with deviled eggs and baked beans.  My wife ordered the pulled pork with potato salad and deviled eggs. 

The ribs were just like I like them.  My feeling is if you eat ribs, you want a slight tug from the meat.  If you want fall off the bone eat the pulled pork.  I first tried the ribs sans the sauce.  The ribs had a great smoke ring and flavor.  There was no rub applied.  I felt a little more salt could have been used.  The wife enjoyed the pulled pork with the white sauce as did everyone else.  The sides were good, but not spectacular.  I make a better deviled egg.  My one complaint about BBQ joints is they don't spent as much time developing the side as the do the BBQ.  Why is that??? I tried a slice of chocolate chess pie and my wife tried the pecan pie.  Both were excellent as expected.

My hats off the Eric the pit master and the staff at Miss Myra's.  Overall Miss Myra's was a hit.  If in Birmingham again, I'll definitely try Miss Myra's again.

Five stars for Miss Myra's

Pasta Grill

Last night we joined friends for dinner at The Pasta Grill restaurant on Front Beach Road in Panama City Beach. I have had a desire for some Italian food and it has been a while since I have visited The Pasta Grill. Seven years ago when I moved back, I took my mother and wife to the Pasta Grill. One of my favorite Italian dishes is Shrimp Fradiavilo. Sauteed shrimp in a spicy tomato sauce made from crushed tomatoes and served over linguine.  Our first visit was fine.  The service was good and the food held it's own.  Unfortunately last night was a disaster.

The only good thing last night was they have 16oz. draught beer for $1.00.  Our waiter came to get our drink orders and flew through the specials so fast I couldn't understand him or remember what he said.  We started with two appetizers, the Bruschetta Gorgonzola and the Calamari Puttanesca.  The Bruschetta was toasted with melted Gorgonzola and strips of red peppers on top.  I love blue cheese and Gorgonzola is one of my favorites.  The bruschetta had no taste of the briny, sharp, strong flavor that blue cheese,  particularly Gorgonzola is noted for.  It could have been Provolone as far as the flavor it had.  The Calamari Puttanesca was surprisingly good.  Large rings of Calamari in a light tomato, caper, and olive stew.  I know that Puttanesca normally has anchovy in it but this didn't seem like it had any.  All in all the Calamari were tender which can be a problem when cooking them.

I ordered the Shrimp Fradiavalo and my wife ordered the grilled Grouper with mashed potatoes and asparagus.  Our friends ordered a pizza and a Greek salad.  Our entrees came with our choice of two salads, a Caesar or a house salad.  We both ordered the Caesar salad.  The Caesar salads were fresh but the dressing missed the salty, flavor of anchovy that traditional Caesar dressing has.  It was bland at best.  Our friends large Greek salad looked good and they both enjoyed it. 

The entrees didn't help our expectations either.  The Fradiovolo looked good at presentation, but after my first bite it went down hill.  Mind you I like spicy food.  30 years in New Orleans has taught me to appreciate the sutle spiciness and heat, the use of peppers can bring to a dish.  This was overwhelming.  My forehead was sweating.  The shrimp were small and they had the tails still on them.  This made eating the dish difficult.  I had to remove the tail shells before I could fill my fork with shrimp and pasta.  If the pepper had been toned done and the shell removed, this dish would have been acceptable.  My wife's grilled Grouper had no seasoning and was bland to the taste buds.  The fillet sat on top off mashed potatoes that looked boxed and had the flavor of boxed as well.  On top of the grouper was a sprinkling of something sliced in a small matchstick and was white which added no color to the white fish and white mashed potatoes.  It tasted like turnip roots or parsnips.  Again this added nothing to the dish.  Our friends pizza looking overly cheesy.  Pizza has to have a balance of ingredients and cheese.  After eating at Joe Mamas last weekend, I won't be trying the pizza.

For my money if you want Italian in Panama City, go to Ferruci's. It is much better.  When we arrived the front room was full of patrons, but being the off season, I knew they were Snowbirds and they are like Mikey.  The'll eat anything.

No stars here.

Joe Mamas Pizza

As many of you know I love pizza.  Really good pizza.  Recently the wood fired pizza restaurant in Panama City closed and I have been longing for that unique flavor wood fired gives pizza.  Well I have found the place.  Joe Mamas in downtown Port St. Joe really hits the spot.  Recently my wife and I took the one hour drive to Port St. Joe to try it out.  Saturdays are a hecktic day for me, so I look forward to some down time.  The drive to Port St. Joe gave me time to unwind, listen to some music, and spend time with the wife.  Joe Mamas is located on Ried Ave. which is downtown Port St. Joe.  When we arrived I noticed this place looked great, not the pizza dive some may believe.  This place is modern and upscale in decor.  The staff is friendly and attentive.

The menu offers six craft beers on tap and something called a Beer Flight allows you to choose four beers that are served in 4 oz. glasses so you can sample several at one time.  I chose four from light pale to dark, from citrusy to dark and roasted.  As for pizza we tried two.  The first was a pepperoni, Italian sausage, olive trio, and onion.  They offer onion raw or caramelized.  Nice twist.  The other pizza was an Artichoke, Cappicola ham, freash garlic, and basil.  All in all the pizza was great.  Crispy, thin crust with toasted edges, fresh ingredients, and artfully made with just the right amount of ingredients.  The thing for me with pizza is that every bite should be different.  Back in my college days the more ingrediants the better.  We used to order a kitchen sink, thant's right Da Kithchen Sink, loaded with everything.  I have out grown that desire.  My only complaint of Joe Mamas is the freash basil.  Those leaves were huge and almost covered the entire pizza.  It was hard to eat.  A shifinade of basil would have been better.

I highly recommend Joe Mamas.  I will return and soon.

I give Joe Mamas four stars.