I have mixed feelings about Scaldoni’s. The food is good; the portions are small. The service was okay—a little slow. It was a good thing we weren’t in a rush. Karyn and I had gift cards to go to Scaldoni’s and we gratefully took advantage to eat at one of St. George’s fine dining establishments. Our server Dave was super nice—recommending all the right dishes, saying all the right things, very accommodating. The atmosphere is one of quiet elegance: dimmed lighting, linen napkins, soft music. The menu is catered to a Mediterranean feel, with Greek and Italian dishes in abundance. I ordered a small dinner salad and the seafood pasta. The salad was amazing! Very fresh greens, great mix, great color. It came with a light vinaigrette. The main dish…this pasta was the lightest pasta I’ve ever tasted! It was a creamy white, not Alfredo. It was a hefty portion, and I took most of it home. The best part of the evening is when the busboys came along to clear your plates and also scraped the crumbs off the table with a little scraper. I know; it’s the little things. The atmosphere was what I would call a quiet elegance. The music understated. The food good—not outstanding, just good. I think Scaldoni’s is a little overpriced, and may be just a tad overrated. I give it a 7.
Scaldoni’s. I too have mixed feelings about our trip to the ‘fanciest place to eat in St. George.’ We’ve eaten there twice, and both experiences were… interesting. I have a confession. I have not had a lot of experience with gourmet restaurants. I’m more of a let’s eat at that random hole in the wall place… but I think if I had the money and means to eat at another gourmet restaurant, I would. The only reason we ended up going to Scaldoni's is because we were given 2 $50 gift certificates to go. Sadly, after the first time we used one and a half of them, and the rest of it for half of our bill the second time. I guess it was worth it... Let me tell you about the first experience. When we first came in, we were greeted by the hostess, and seated promptly. We did have to make a reservation beforehand, but it wasn’t much of a hassle. I was impressed by the quality of service. I could tell that all of the servers had a lot of experience, and I’m always happy when my server has experience in the waiting trade. :) The waiter took our order, and I decided on the surf and turf. It was pretty good. Chilean sea bass with filet mignon. I was surprised that it wasn’t hot when I got it. I like my food to be served NOT COLD… but it was alright. The service was superb, and they had little scraper things to clean our table off. Another plus was that they almost expected you to stay after the meal and chat, which we did. :) My second experience wasn't any better than the first. We were invited to their 'Special Open House Tasting' because they moved locations. I hate to insuniate pre-meditated calumny... However, I'm not afraid to say that I believed the meal for this 'Special Open House Tasting' was going to be free. I wasn't the only one either. Everyone that showed up thought that it was a free meal. It didn't help that they didn't print any prices on the 'Special Tasting Menu" they supplied us with. ANYWAYS, the food was alright, not really memorable... as evidence of me not being able to recall what I ate that night. AND I was more than a little miffed that we had to pay for it. Good thing I brought my wallet, or we would have been SOL. :S Anyway, putting that aside, overall, I would rate Scaldoni’s a 6. The food was good... a solid 8 in my book, and the service was a 10, but it was SUPER over priced (in my opinion) and my food was cold. I also was really surprised they charged everyone at that tasting. Scaldoni's... good, but I will probably never eat there again.
Where else can you go for the best pancakes in the world? Sure, there’s your standard Denny’s, Village Inn, and IHOP. But do any of those places give you your own little bottle of syrup? I say. Nay, nay.
Karyn and I are going out of the norm on this critique and doing a breakfast, not dinner or lunch. Although, if you’d like breakfast for lunch or dinner, I’m sure Cracker Barrel can accommodate. :) I was first introduced to Cracker Barrel by my dear friend Travis—who had a hankering for some grits and biscuits and gravy. And seeing as Cracker Barrel was a Southern restaurant, we patronized it. My fondness for this restaurant has not waned.
I always get pancakes. I love them! It’s such a great food that can be eaten at any time of the day! Ask Karyn. I’d prefer pancakes over a steak! But like I mentioned, this time I actually ate pancakes for breakfast! The pancakes at Cracker Barrel are what some of the old-timers (aka our grandparents) may call griddle cakes or hot cakes. They have this awesome griddle taste, cooked to a slow perfection that has just a bit of crispiness on the outside. And when it comes with its own bottle of syrup, what more could you ask for? And the portions are huge! The breakfast meal that I usually get comes with three delicious pancakes, eggs, sausage and bacon. If that’s not home cookin’, I don’t know what is!
Before you first enter the Cracker Barrel, you’re welcomed with a bunch of rocking chairs. What says comfort more than rocking chairs? The inside I could describe as nothing more than rustic charm. With old-fashioned farm tools, posters, advertisements, and memorabilia, it speaks of the South. And in the little souvenir shop, there’s everything from Paula Dean dishes, to John Deere tractor toys, to old-fashioned sodas and candies. It’s the perfect blast from the past! And don’t forget that each dining table is equipped with that little peg game. You know the one…it’s triangle shaped and has about 15 pegs. You’re supposed to take a peg and hop over the next one. The object is to only have one left. Yeah…can’t do it. Karyn had beginner’s luck and was a freakin’ genius! Plus, if you’re feeling kind of dumb like I do when I play that game, there’s always a gigantic sized game of checkers to be played at a designated table.
All around I give Cracker Barrel a 9! Good food, good service, great atmosphere. Just make sure you’re in the mood for some southern style cooking!
Cracker Barrel. What can I say about the CB??? If you're in to the 'old reliable' way of making food, CB is the place to go for Good Country Cookin'!!!
I have to admit to all of you that I am NOT a breakfast person. I could never get the hang of it. Am I supposed to eat a big breakfast? Is breakfast REALLY the most important meal of the day? What's with pancakes? (They don't taste like cake to me!) These questions and more beg an answer I cannot give.
However, planning an event with people who love breakfast will always result in what is called the 'breakfast meeting' which is how we found ourselves at the Cracker Barrel.
Rustic and quaint, the Cracker Barrel welcomes patrons with a warm hug of old time candy and drinks, old fashioned games, and seasonal decor ranging from cookware to clothing. You can find things at Cracker Barrel that were previously though to be lost in time, like maple candy from Vermont and Necco! :) However, beyond the land of reminiscence, is taste bud heaven.
Like I said before, I don't really like breakfast. But, I will totally eat breakfast at the Cracker barrel. My mom raised me on rice and eggs. It wasn't until I moved to the mainland that I was introduced to grits. I LOVE GRITS!!! Sweet or savory, grits are truly the chameleon of the breakfast world. Another champion of the Cracker Barrel Breakfast is the BACON. None of your namby pamby microwaved bacon here. Thick luscious slabs of bacon, cured and smoked to perfection... I'm drooling just thinking about it. :) Oh, and did I forget to mention biscuits and gravy??? I really don't like country gravy, but the country gravy at Cracker Barrel is different... Lighter, tastier... Maybe I just haven't had a GOOD country gravy, but I LOVE CB's. :)
My favorite part of our visit was the "jump all but one" peg game. I got it down to one peg my first time, and have gotten it probably 4 times since then. I even bought one for my desk that I play with when I have a hard time getting the juices flowing... :)
Overall, I rate the Cracker Barrel a 9. Great service... great food, and a great place to eat!!! :)
Scaldoni’s. I too have mixed feelings about our trip to the ‘fanciest place to eat in St. George.’ We’ve eaten there twice, and both experiences were… interesting. I have a confession. I have not had a lot of experience with gourmet restaurants. I’m more of a let’s eat at that random hole in the wall place… but I think if I had the money and means to eat at another gourmet restaurant, I would. The only reason we ended up going to Scaldoni's is because we were given 2 $50 gift certificates to go. Sadly, after the first time we used one and a half of them, and the rest of it for half of our bill the second time. I guess it was worth it... Let me tell you about the first experience. When we first came in, we were greeted by the hostess, and seated promptly. We did have to make a reservation beforehand, but it wasn’t much of a hassle. I was impressed by the quality of service. I could tell that all of the servers had a lot of experience, and I’m always happy when my server has experience in the waiting trade. :) The waiter took our order, and I decided on the surf and turf. It was pretty good. Chilean sea bass with filet mignon. I was surprised that it wasn’t hot when I got it. I like my food to be served NOT COLD… but it was alright. The service was superb, and they had little scraper things to clean our table off. Another plus was that they almost expected you to stay after the meal and chat, which we did. :) My second experience wasn't any better than the first. We were invited to their 'Special Open House Tasting' because they moved locations. I hate to insuniate pre-meditated calumny... However, I'm not afraid to say that I believed the meal for this 'Special Open House Tasting' was going to be free. I wasn't the only one either. Everyone that showed up thought that it was a free meal. It didn't help that they didn't print any prices on the 'Special Tasting Menu" they supplied us with. ANYWAYS, the food was alright, not really memorable... as evidence of me not being able to recall what I ate that night. AND I was more than a little miffed that we had to pay for it. Good thing I brought my wallet, or we would have been SOL. :S Anyway, putting that aside, overall, I would rate Scaldoni’s a 6. The food was good... a solid 8 in my book, and the service was a 10, but it was SUPER over priced (in my opinion) and my food was cold. I also was really surprised they charged everyone at that tasting. Scaldoni's... good, but I will probably never eat there again.
