Podcast Contents
Talkin' about life after the pandemic years & after receiving a James Beard Award with Molly and Chef Meherwan Irani, from the Chai Pani Restaurant Group. They were very candid and forthcoming about the struggles they’ve faced, costs & rewards along the way.
00:00 - 12:15 INTRO: All Day Darling, Sweets & Seats, Rankin Vault Reviews
12:25 - 42:10 INTERVIEW: Molly & Meherwan Irani from Chai Pani Group
42:20 - 52:20 OUTRO: Breaking News & Rhubarb Review
ALL DAY DARLING: I went to All Day Darling Cafe the other day with my friend Lucho from Asheville Multicultural, and I had a ***really*** tasty breakfast sandwich with egg, cheddar, herb mayo & bacon on a very delicious soft roll. I loved it!
I also got an excellent fruit danish. Lucho & I both enjoyed our meal very much, thank you, All Day Darling! High recommends.
SWEETS & SEATS: I went back to Sweets and Seats Cafe last week, and got a variety of delicious treats to go with my cappuccino! I got the French cheesecake, the chocolate hazelnut dacquoise, and the humble-looking-yet-insanely-tasty caramel cream puff. I really like this place and will be seen there regularly in the future, I’m sure.
PS - A dacquoise is a dessert made with meringue and buttercream. The meringue is crunchy on the edges, and chewy towards the center. The whole thing is dreamy.
ASHEVILLE FOOD TOURS LUNCH JUNKET TO RANKIN VAULT LOUNGE: Paddy & I went on an Asheville Food Tours lunch junket to the Rankin Vault Lounge the other day, where he got a slider and I got a cheesesteak with tots.
It was pretty funny when they brought out our food and put the comically small burger in front of the big guy, and a giant-ass cheesesteak in front of the little guy! 😂
I shared my cheesesteak, and my tots, with Paddy of course. The cheesesteak was frickin’ awesome. Meaty, melty, cheesy, flavorful AF. I enjoyed it very much! The tots were superb. Thanks, Vault!
THIS JUST IN: From the folks at The Radical…
“Hi Stu. Hope you’re having a great week so far! I’m excited to reach out about Chef Jacob Sessoms’ upcoming three food & beverage concepts inside the new Asheville hotel The Radical, opening in October in the heart of the River Arts District. The hotel will include restaurant Golden Hour AVL, a coffee bar and cocktail lounge called Afterglow, and a scenic rooftop bar called The Roof. All are set to open alongside The Radical in October.”
You can read the full press release with descriptions of the cafe, bar & restaurant on Facebook.
RHUBARB: Dawn and I sat at the bar at Rhubarb last week and had a great meal! We initially went in just to try the pimento cheese hush puppies, which were exactly as awesome as I thought they would be.
Then we decided to order the goat cheese burrata (with Duke's Mayonnaise!) and a plate of wood oven cooked flounder with bacon fat-roasted taters & dill aioli to share. Both were super delish! The flounder was tender and flakey, and flavorful.
The kitchen also sent out two amazing dishes, the "eggplant" smother," with crispy okra chips, eggplant, cherry tomatoes & lavash, and an off-menu dish of fresh local peaches, tomatoes & onions.
Everything was outstanding, and I can’t wait to go back! The cornmeal-country ham spoonbread pancake is calling my name! 🤪
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Episode 123: Queen Molly & King Midas