We are at the turning point where muggy weather turns to blistering summer heat. For those dreary days we all turn to food that makes us gain weight so we can complain about something else besides the weather. Southern food does the trick for me, heavy, deep and full of love.

Despite my previous post on my awful experience at Blue Moon due to smokers being smokers, I went back (sat in the back), and tried to get a real Southern breakfast. I tried the sausage gravy and biscuits. It was flipping amazing. The biscuits were delicious, and the gravy was a delicate balance of grease, sausage and flour….oh nothing better on a Saturday morning than this. This is another example of a simple dish done well.

Another cville hotspot for this southern belle is the Omni Hotel’s breakfast buffet at the Point Restaurant. It would be a crime to discover they don’t offer it anymore, but if they still do, try their biscuits and gravy at the buffet. Thor wrote about his experience there awhile ago, and after trying the gravy myself (which has a nice selection of sautéed mushrooms), I have to agree. Where else can we get this decadent dish in cville, and how unique is it? So far we have mushrooms and sausage…mmmm….sausage…. (insert tartare jokes here, dam you all!);)

Photo courtesy of Daxiang Stef on Flickr.

Popularity: 22% [?]

If you are looking for the vegetarian deal of the century, then Eppie’s on the downtown mall is the place to be. Their menu offering is pretty meat heavy except for the side’s section, which allows you the choice of a veggie only platter in 3 or 4 choice combos with a generous piece of corn bread.

I opted for mac n’ cheese, collard greens and coleslaw. For around 6 bucks I received an impressive amount of food that I couldn’t even finish. Everything on the plate was good quality. Not to say there isn’t any room for improvement like making the collard greens in a more modern manner or using a different cheese on the mac n’cheese, but the value per vegetable was really good. They had a wide variety of sides on the menu which I will definitely go back for. For a southern food lunch, it was light and left me happy…happy to know even with western fare this vegetarian craze can be satiated!

I also noted one of the kitchen staff came outside to offer a bowl of water for one of the customers that had their dog with them. I found that to be a terrific gesture. Talk about southern hospitality!

Images most graciously linked from Flikr

Popularity: 33% [?]