Regular Joe's Guide

Latest visit: Jun 2024 First visit: Apr 2018 Founded: 2013 ---10/22/25 Seems that every year I'm hosting someone new at The Public House. This time it's Dr. Boom, and we talked the record business for three hours non-stop. This time I was able to order the Nashville Hot chicken sandwich (see below), and it's an excellent rendition. Spicy and crispy. And the fries were hot and tasty as well. Dr. Boom ordered the same thing and nodded his approval.  I'm rarely in this part of town during the lunch hour, but I do like to get over here at least once a year. Worth noting that the restaurant was relatively packed on a boring Wednesday afternoon. A good sign, even if their prices aren't cheap. Lots of splurging going on, including from the local police. ---6/14/24 Like with yesterday, I wrapped up an estate sale and it was time for lunch. On this day, however, I was in the Broadmoor area down south. Same thing - I want a hamburger. And look what popped up? Yaay, I haven...

106 W Main St, Aberdeen, NC 28315 This was one of the places I would have gone back to again after my first visit, but my preference for walking to watering holes precluded the 15 mile round-trip jaunt for a bite and a brown spirits beverage. For starters, this place has a nice wall of booze, with emphasis on bourbon and rye plus a fair selection of others like single-malt Scotch and Irish. I opted for a departure from my norm, a cocktail: a Sazerac. Have enjoyed the whisky of the same name distilled at Buffalo Trace on a few occasions, but the mixed drink with cognac, bitters and a bit of absinthe was a newfound pleasure. Let's just say I'm going to try this one again. And while I came in hankering for something healthy like a salad, the lass behind the bar steered me to a chicken sandwich that was quite delish. Would have liked to have tried their pulled pork, but that was too much for this occasion. Toughest part was decision on a second beverage, but managed to find an old ...

Looks like Rude Dante had a couple of more in the drawer. Take it away Rude! --- 70 Market Square, Pinehurst, NC 28374 Went here on a Sunday night when a number of restaurants were down. My expectations on either sushi or Thai cuisine in NC are not all that high, but was pleasantly surprised by what I found. Good choices for sushi or sashimi. For starters, I opted for a couple pieces each of yellow-tail and tuna sashimi washed down by a couple cold Japanese beers (like every place I've been since COVID, only small bottles). For dinner I asked my server, a classic somewhat older woman of uncertain East Asian descent (would guess Chinese, but never good at this game) for recommendations. She suggested the Pad Kee Mao, which I ordered with shrimp. In hindsight, I never specified a spice level. It came out with a nice flavor and spice level, good shrimp, various veggies, wide noodles and a nice brown pepper sauce. Initially I thought I would take half home with me, but it was so good I...

This is another favorite! Went here with friends from Denver who moved to the area 4 years prior to RD's visit. Jeff & Kathy downplayed the place as just a local diner / cafe, but we had nothing but positive reviews from this trip. Was (as usual) torn between 3 choices on the menu, all fried chicken-related: fried chicken sandwich, buffalo chicken salad and chick parm. Opted for the sandwich - as recommended by Jeff; it was damn good (others went for blackened catfish, chicken parm, and trout - all looked amazing!) Nice selection of beer & wine - including local options - and an all-round very nice meal, great service and a desire to return next time in the area! - Rude Dante

170 Riverplace, Greenville, SC 29601 Strongly recommended by locals, we had a great dinner here on our one night in town. Mediterranean themed with lots of interesting sides (cous cous, tabbouleh, etc). I opted for the pork tenderloin on rec of waitress - quite nice, good portion but not overwhelming, all in all a charming dinner. For a return visit it may have been worth waiting for outdoor seating but cannot say for sure. - Rude Dante

1185 Lilly's Bridge Rd, Mt Gilead, NC 27306 A place picked as a compromise between groups who were staying in 2 different locations to support plants 'in the middle of nowhere' in North Carolina. Since all the decent restaurants around Troy / Biscoe close before we even get off work, we drove even further out of our way to this establishment. For my part, I had a solid meal after quizzing the waitress. She strongly recommended the blackened Mahi Mahi, and it did not disappoint. Good sides as well: asparagus and a side salad. And the place is on the water on an inlet off of Lake Tillery / Pee Dee River. Would have preferred to NOT have a drive close to an hour in the dark after dinner, but if that is the only knock on this place, it's pretty good. - Rude Dante

23 S Fayetteville St, Asheboro, NC 27203 With some qualifications, this is probably my favorite place in the whole area I worked. Amazing food, details (and a picture of the menu below) to follow. And it's cheap: $11-12 for dinner, $3.75 for dessert. One of my colleagues described the fried chicken as something like, "I imagine the chickens are raised swimming in a pool of buttermilk from birth before being slaughtered & prepared fresh in the back of the restaurant". While I suspect this is not a factual or verifiable report, the chicken IS damn good! For starters, no liquor license: lemonade or tea for all. Dinners come with 2 sides and either biscuit or cornbread. Note: for a large table (we had 7), just randomly order sides and eat what you get (pretty much the same approach as ordering specific items). I had fried chicken (of course!) with collards and pinto beans. We ordered a few extra pieces of chicken for the table (which I ate) and a 'smoked pork chop...

304 E Main St, Abermarle, NC 28001 A quick stop as I drove from Greenville, SC toward my destination plant in Biscoe, NC. Was disappointed to find no likely breakfast joints on a Sunday morning drive along likely terrain for biscuits and gravy. Instead, I stopped here and sat at the bar. Barkeep steered me towards the burgers, and I followed. It was a good burger, and was made even better by the option of fried okra as a side (welcome back to the South!) But I suspect there are some more interesting options (kinda was hoping she would steer me towards the Nashville hot chicken sandwich). For another time... - Rude Dante

90 Cherokee Rd #1c, Pinehurst, NC 28374 My expectations of finding a mom-and-pop Italian joint are generally low when it comes to touristy places like Pinehurst. Lisi was a pleasant surprise - even if because it was the only place open that I could get into on a Monday night (surprisingly, they are open every day except Sunday - dinner only). As is my want, I asked the waitress for a recommendation among 3 items on the menu. We only got as far as the first, "Tortellini e Gamberetti". She replied, "That's my favorite" - and I'll not remember what the other 2 items were. Even though we are a ways from the coast, shrimp is still pretty good in most of NC. Sauce was tasty but not very spicy (something I quickly corrected with some crushed reds). A glass of chianti, some tasty bread & butter, all in all a pretty good meal - anywhere one might find it. I almost went back the next night, but I had another place on my list to visit. - Rude Dante

40 Chinquapin Rd, Pinehurst, NC 28374 This is a place that I really want to love. But sometimes service gets in the way of what should be a really great joint. The place is named for Bob Drum, a sports journalist from Pittsburgh area largely credited with discovering (if not inventing) Arnold Palmer as a teen golfer. (Note to Editor: this would be the kind of place I would want to call 'Pops' to background). Came here twice - not because it was so good, rather because other places had inconsistent and sketchy hours of operation (see note below on Dugan's). It is also a place largely populated by white males who just finished a round of golf (see notes on the Deuce entry). But all that aside... Drum & Quill has decent food, slow service, and appears to be too crowded for its staff to handle. As a guy who likes to sit at the bar, order a local beer and something simple to eat, I consider myself a pretty easy customer. My orders were: a couple tacos (as recommended by the ...

In the clubhouse overlooking 18th green of course #2. Ate here twice, once on recon mission for golf, the other after a round on Pinehurst #1. We'll paint the good, the bad and the ugly. For the good, the food and drinks are really quite good, and the prices, while high, are not outrageous (specialty cocktails $16, wine $10-15 / glass, beer a bit less, appetizers $10-15, salads and sandwiches $15-25). Again, high, not outrageous. And the view of a final hole of a course that hosts a Major probably once every 5-10 years is also cool. Lots of history. The bad & even ugly - seen through the eyes of my colleague who is in a mixed-race marriage: one of the most white male dominated scenes one might find in the world. While there are also a few white women, this is clearly a place that men come for a guys' weekend away. So - there's that. But back to the food / drinks. I opted for cocktails: a Manhattan, a French 75 (recommendation from a friend), and a couple beers. Split ta...

OK - good news - Rude Dante is on the board for 2022! And he has delighted us with tales of his recent venture to the great state of North Carolina, a region not covered prior in the RJG. There's also a side trip to Greenville, South Carolina. Incidentally the RJG's Official Grandma (Dad's side) lived in Greenville until 1974 (RIP 1988), so I went a few times as a little tyke, remembering very well our last visit in 1972. Here's his brief summary, and then we'll add the entries: --- After about 2 weeks hanging out and dining in and around the Sand Hill region of North Carolina. (Was working in either Biscoe or Troy, sleeping in Olmsted Village / Pinehurst area). These will be a cluster of Pinehurst village and nearby locations, followed by some outliers. Pinehurst is truly a golf mecca, with 9 full-length courses of 18 holes each plus a variety of additional features like Thistle Du (purportedly the first miniature golf course in the US) and the Cradle (a short 9-ho...

Latest visit: Apr 2022 First visit: Oct 2009 For the first couple of years that we had the summer townhome in Denver, we would stop in at the Oasis on our way back home from our annual visits to New Mexico. But we didn't go in 2011, and then Raton became nothing more to us than a landmark town before crossing the pass to Colorado (or vice versa). On this trip, we'd originally planned to go to Horsemen's Haven for our final Santa Fe visit, but we weren't really that hungry and just wanted to "get on the road" back home. So by the time we did get to Raton we were starving. "Remember that Place...?" Well sure - the Oasis. It's only been here since 1954, so it'll probably last long beyond us as well. And the Motel is still functioning with apparently refurbished rooms. There was a time when restaurants like Oasis were the only place little RJG got to eat at. My Pop loved these kind of places. He'd smoke the whole time, putting down the cigare...

Latest visit: Apr 2022 First visit: Oct 2018 As noted before, we got shut out at Thai Spice for Thai New Year. We had intended to go back there this night when we remembered Thai Cuisine II. The difference? The latter serves beer and wine. It's dinner time and that's what we want! So this is our second visit, both since we moved back to Colorado. Mrs. RJG had the red curry, which has more of a coconut base than she's used to but she still stated it was excellent. I had my usual Thai Basil with ground chicken and a fried egg. And it's a menu item! No having to ask for special consideration. I only went with hot because we'd been eating super spicy all week, but I could definitely have gone to Thai Hot. They have the usual disclaimers and warnings about such things, but my palate is ready (in fact, on our first visit, I did have Thai Hot and my note says it was "very hot"). The dish overall is very delicious and craveable. Better - unfortunately - than anyth...

First visit: Apr 2022 While hopelessly looking for parking the other night at Fire & Hops, we stumbled upon Lino and decided we should try it the next night (and they have their own parking spaces). We were burning out on New Mexican fare (hard to imagine, but true), so Italian sounded like a great diversion. Further research demonstrated they also have a brewery as well. Well now, that makes it a slam dunk - we're trying it! Apparently they've been there 12 years, so I have no idea how we missed it until now. We had one of those special nights you don't forget. Everything went right on this particular evening. Having stuffed ourselves at Valentina's in the late morning, we weren't particularly starving when we arrived around 5 in the afternoon. Because we arrived early we were seated in isolation by the to-go entrance, which also houses a bar area (they have two such areas). Which allowed us time to relax and enjoy our beers. As mentioned, they brew their own u...

Last visit: Mar 2025 (State 528 @ Meadowlark) First visit: May 1994 (ABQ: Menaul @ Rhode Island) Locations: 70 locations in New Mexico; 3 in Tucson, AZ; 2 in El Paso, TX. Same as last visit. We happened to be in Rio Rancho around lunch time and Mrs. RJG was craving a green chile cheeseburger. What's the closest Blake's then? This one. All came out as expected though it did seem like they skimped a bit on the chiles (see to the right). It still tasted great. ---11/18/24 review And we celebrate the 30th year of the RJG visiting Blake's, with our first lunch in Albuquerque. Not that we always go here, and we missed out last year as well. Lately Mrs. RJG has been in the mood for New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburgers, and since that's the specialty of the house, we ordered two of them. Out came two giant double cheeseburgers, large fries and a large drink. Uh-oh, Mrs. RJG isn't going to go for this! After keeping my head down for some moments enjoying the heck out of mine...

Latest visit: Mar 2025 First visit: Apr 2022 We started our day at the ABQ flea market. After walking around that event for a couple of hours, we'd built up an appetite. Our schedule was to stop at Valentina's in Santa Fe, before making the long journey home. This mirrors what we did last year, though this time it was planned. We ordered exactly what we did last time, and it was absolutely delicious (you must go here). The only thing we noticed was the salsa didn't have quite the same flavor, though it certainly was just as spicy. But chiles can do that to you. They can be random, so that's OK with us. I forgot to photo the meal unfortunately. Valentina's remains in the rotation, so I'll try to get that captured on the next visit. ---11/18/24 update I forgot to mention this on the Perea's update: We found a new trail in Albuquerque too. Out east in the mountains, the Embudo Trail which "funnels" (haha) into the Cibola National Forest. We run straig...

Closed: Aug 2024 First visit: Apr 2022 Back for our 3rd brewpub dinner in a row. This time trying the relatively new Hidden Mountain Brewing. But is it new? Not really. In these very pages you will find a glowing review for a one Blue Corn Brewing, a long time Santa Fe favorite of the RJG. For whatever reason, the owners decided a "reimagining" of the brand with a focus on BBQ. Well I suspect that idea never took hold, as this looks and feels to us like the traditional brewpub that Blue Corn was! Besides, Blue Corn was a great name with a great brand, so it's their mistake to move away from it. For dinner, I used to adore Blue Corn's much featured Carne Adovada, but even they ditched that for no good reason (what is wrong with these folks? They keep getting rid of what works!). This time we decided to stick with pub fare, and so we agreed to split a green chile hamburger and a... yep you guessed it... a Cuban sandwich. Regular fries and slaw are the only side options,...

Latest visit: Apr 2022 First visit: Sep 2006 This is only the second time for us to visit Tortilla Flats. You can probably guess that since it's been 16 years since we last went, our first encounter wasn't pleasant. There were a few reasons for that, including the fact that the RJG hadn't yet fully understood the New Mexican palate. We also went on a Sunday morning, there weren't as many options back then, so the place was jam packed. According to my notes, it took forever to get our food (after a long wait just to get a table), the enchiladas were lukewarm, the green chile was bland and the posole was no bueno. As you can see, we probably didn't focus on the right items to order. And we never went back. But the restaurant is still there and is as popular as ever, so we should give it another try on a regular weekday. Glad we did. No wait on this visit with prompt service (and the meals were at the proper hot temperature). This time I had a smothered burrito (ham an...

First visit: Apr 2022 The original plan was to go to Thai Spice (in these very pages), but they were closed for Thai New Year (who knew?). Then we had another place we wanted to try called Craft Republic. We took a seat at a table in the bar. No one there to wait on us. Finally some 10 minutes later she came by and dropped off the menus. Craft beer? I guess Michelob and Budweiser now are considered craft. Sure, they had some New Mexico beers - all the same ones we can get in Colorado Springs. Jeez. We waited a few more minutes for the gal to return (she did not) and then decided to hang it up and leave. I'm sure the food would have disappointed as well. As we always say: Things happen for a reason. Because that lead us to Starr Brothers Brewing. By this time I was dying for a craft beer, but we also wanted to eat dinner. Starr Brothers advertises that they provide a top notch kitchen in addition to their beers. And it was close by to where we were on the north side, so let's gi...

Latest visit: Sep 2025 (Austin Bluffs @ N. Academy) First visit: 1997 (Denver - as Z-Teca) ---9/10/25 (Austin Bluffs) It's been three plus years since I last stepped foot in a Qdoba, and the below review explains why. I'm sometimes in the Austin Bluffs area at lunch time, so I thought I'd try this location. Perhaps they've improved again, or this store would prove to be better. Wishful thinking. Same result, higher prices. I just cannot understand the concept of making food blander. Most assuredly it's not a winning strategy? Well this pretty much drives the nail in the coffin. Unless someone insists we go here, or it's the only option while I'm starving, I cannot see Qdoba being part of my future any longer. Qdoba current has 5 locations in Colorado Springs with one "temporarily closed" (usually that means it's permanent). It appears they fixed their website because we now know they have 845 locations worldwide (827 in the US). Colorado has 91...

First visit: Apr 2022 (Colorado Springs) It was time to celebrate Mrs. RJG & I's 25th wedding anniversary! We usually don't fuss about such things, but 25 is a milestone that we didn't want to pass up. Hard to imagine we were only on our 11th anniversary when we started this blog. The original plan was to go all out to a place downtown called Famous Steakhouse, but Mrs. RJG hasn't had much luck at places like that - primarily because she likes a well done steak. And they don't like to make well done steaks! She had noticed this east side restaurant some time ago while running errands, and it had been recommended to her, so why not celebrate here instead? Much more casual - I would categorize Chop & Rib House as a high end Outback or Saltgrass. We ordered a reasonably priced bottle of Cabernet (a decent wine too - it wasn't a table wine substitute). Mrs. ordered the ribeye with a "loaded" baked potato, side of spinach, and a house salad. They co...

Latest visit: Feb 2023 (Colorado Springs - Galley) First visit: 1996 (Denver, CO) The only thing keeping me from adding Chipotle to the mega-chain roundup is that I have history with the chain going back to the beginning. My issue with mega-chains is they tend to be wildly inconsistent. And my issue with Chipotle is it tends to be wildly inconsistent. Just depends on who is the franchise manager, or the store manager. Many times they just "leave the kids in charge", and then it's a crapshoot. On this visit, I got the latter. Was it terrible? Nope. Was it great? Nope. They did the needful. They could care one cent that I was a paying customer. I might as well have been at the high school cafeteria as far as customer service goes. And that goes for the food too. Mostly pre-prepared. On this visit it was clear the beans needed to be refreshed as but one example. When they folded my burrito, they included the aluminum foil in that fold, so I had to unfold it, creating a slopp...