Maid-Rite Diner in Wilson, NC

Time for another road trip meal along I-95. It was time to have dinner and I found myself getting off an exit in Wilson, NC. I bypassed all of the normal big chains that I'd heard of here and decided on a restaurant in a strip mall called Maid-Rite Diner.

Apparently Maid-Rite is a chain with locations mostly in the midwest. I apparently came across the one and only location in North Carolina.

I tried their turkey sandwich, served on a ciabatta bun with lettuce, tomato, and mayo. I was surprised to see actual turkey on the sandwich rather than standard deli meat. This was a good and bad thing at the same time. It showed that Maid-Rite was using better meat than other places that serve processed deli meat, but the turkey on this sandwich was served cold. There's something about turkey like this that rubs me the wrong way if it's chilled. If it seems like real meat, I want it warm. Beside this fact, the sandwich was good enough. Fries and a drink were also included with the meal. The sandwich from Maid-Rite was better than a sandwich from the surrounding fast food places, but wasn't outstanding enough to seek out again on a future road trip.

Finnigan's Wake Irish Pub in Winston-Salem, NC

I took a detour along one of my road trips and ended up in Winston-Salem, NC for a festival. It was my first time exploring the city, and I ate while there. The restaurant I chose was an Irish pub called Finnigan's Wake. I had the fried cod sandwich. The fish was Guinness battered and fried, topped with lettuce, tomato, and sauce. I found the fried fish to be soggy rather than crispy. Not good to get soggy fried fish on a $9.00 sandwich. Mashed potatoes and a pickle were served on the side, both of which I liked.

This was my one and only food experience in Winston-Salem and I wasn't too impressed. Finnigan's Wake was on the expensive side (my sandwich was one of the cheapest items on the menu) and nobody I was with was happy with their food. Hopefully the other restaurants in Winston-Salem are better!

Waffle House in Asheville, NC

On the return drive on my road trip to Baltimore, we took the scenic route back and ended up staying in Asheville, NC for the night. The next morning, we had breakfast at a restaurant chain that I haven't been to in a very long time.

 

Waffle House seems to have the reputation of having scary food. When people call the place Awful House, that doesn't exactly make other people want to eat there. Regardless, I figured I might as well give them another try. I had the Fiesta Omelet, filled with ham, cheese, onions, tomatoes, and jalapeno peppers. Hashed browns and a biscuit were served on the side. The meal was actually above my expectations. The omelet was tasty, the biscuit was moist, and the hash browns were salty and good.

Waffle House really wasn't as bad as everyone says...

Summit Coffee in Davidson, NC

One last snack in Downtown Davidson came from a place called Summit Coffee. Didn't try any hot beverages, but instead had a chocolate croissant. Definitely a yummy pastry...

Bellacino's Pizza & Grinders in Davidson, NC

I was up at Davidson College for an event that included pizza from Bellacino's Pizza & Grinders. Apparently Bellacino's is a pizza chain up in other parts of the country, but it was completely new to me.

They cut their round pizzas into square slices, which just seems strange and anti-intuitive to me. I tried three different types of pie. One was called Pride, which had a little of everything on it. I also tried the veggie pizza, as well as a slice of normal pepperoni. As far as chain pizza goes, this was pretty good. I would definitely rank Bellacino's Pizza far above Pizza Hut/Papa John's/Dominos, although there was no comparison between this and a good NY style pie.

Egg at Davidson Cafe in Davidson, NC

Another meal in Davidson, NC was at the Egg at Davidson Cafe. We were told that apparently this place has really good breakfasts, but I decided to get lunch here instead. I ordered a blackened fish sandwich with a side of macaroni salad.

The sandwich was alright, but I personally would have preferred more toppings on it. Served with nothing but fish, tarter sauce, and bread, the sandwich was a little on the boring side. Lettuce and tomato at the least would have been nice. The macaroni salad was really tasty though with a strong peppery flavor.

Should have gotten some sort of breakfast...

The Soda Shop in Davidson, NC

I spent a weekend up in Davidson, NC. For breakfast one morning, I picked up takeout from a place called The Soda Shop. Located in Downtown Davidson, just across from Davidson College, this restaurant had somewhat of a 50's diner look.

I ordered an egg & cheese breakfast sandwich on a biscuit with a side of home fries. When I opened my food, I was actually a little surprised to see the eggs were on a tiny two-inch diameter biscuit. The cheese was also nowhere to be found on the sandwich. The home fries were good and the orange slice was a nice touch.

The food tasted okay, but when the cheese is missing from an egg & cheese sandwich, that's a big issue. Really though, I wasn't in Davidson for the food. I got takeout here to go across the street and help set the world record for most people paddle balling at once. When you're having fun like that, who cares if a restaurant leaves cheese off a sandwich...

Flying Melon Cafe in Ocracoke, NC

Here's another post from the Watch Me Eat archives of previously unpublished food adventures. In this particular post, I'm going to expand from the food a bit and add some travel photos as well. Memories are fallible, but I will do my best to keep these posts as accurate as possible. Mistakes in the details may happen though. Feel free to correct!

In June of 2007, I was traveling back towards Florida from a more northern state and took a side trip through North Carolina's Outer Banks. Ocracoke is the southernmost island in the chain of barrier islands accessible by car. It is on Ocracoke that you must catch a ferry to return to the mainland. While waiting for this ferry, I did some sightseeing around the island, including seeing wild horses (in captivity?), ancient graveyards, and the Ocracoke Lighthouse.


After the quick exploration of the island, it was time to eat before catching the ferry. We settled on a place called the Flying Melon Cafe.

I remember I ordered the fish of the day. I can't remember what type of fish that was. I'm pretty sure it wasn't a fish commonly seen in restaurants, I'm thinking it possibly was scrod. The fish was served very simply, served over rice, with a side of zucchini. From what I remember, I had no complaints about the meal!

After dinner, we boarded the ferry at dusk and took the long voyage back to the mainland in the dark...

Ralph's Barbecue...

Continuing yesterday's trip up I-95, today I ate lunch at Ralph's Barbecue in Weldon, North Carolina. It was a buffet, filled with mostly older people, giving the place somewhat of a retirement home look. The food was tasty enough though and had some unique items on the buffet. Some hush puppies were placed on the table to start...

From the buffet, I started out by trying a plate of pulled pork with a vinegar based barbecue sauce, cabbage, black-eyed-peas, salad, and a roll. The pulled pork was the best thing on this plate...

I tried a second plate of cole slaw, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, beans, and a bit more pork...

I ate a plate of banana pudding, a slice of a beet, and some pickled watermelon rinds for dessert. I have never heard of pickled watermelon rinds before, but they are a very interesting food. They are sweet, but also have a tart vinegar taste. They are translucent and look like jello, but are much more solid. They were very interesting. They tasted good too...