Revisiting Old Favorites in North Carolina : Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen, Fiesta Grill & Locopops

Even though, I tried several new places when in North Carolina, I had to go back to some of my old favorites.
For breakfast, I went to the Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen, home of some of the best biscuits I've ever had. I got the biscuit with egg and fried pork tenderloin.
While I think the chicken might be a little better, the pork was still good.

I also returned to the Fiesta Grill for simply great Mexican food. The last time, it was the weekend so I had to have the menudo. This time, I tried a longaniza (sausage) taco, and their chicken mole. It was basically a half chicken smothered in a delicious, slightly sweet mole sauce. While I think their corn tortillas could be a little more fresh, Fiesta Grill is pretty great.

Last but certainly not least, I had to return to Locopops. This time, I ended up eating 2 different kinds.
I tried one paletas de agua, the cucumber chile. It was really nice with a pleasant kick from the chiles mixed in. Click on the pic above to see them,
I also tried a paleta de crema, the chocolate pretzel, which had chunks of pretzel in the popscicle. Yummy.

Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen
1305 E. Franklin
Chapel Hill, NC
919-933-1324

Fiesta Grill
3307 Nc Highway 54 W
Chapel Hill, NC 27516
(919) 928-9002

Locopops
128 E. Franklin St.
Chapel Hill, NC

Brunch at Crook's Corner, Chapel Hill, NC

We had Sunday brunch at Chapel Hill's well known Southern cuisine restaurant Crook's Corner.
I got their signature dish, the shrimp and grits. It was cooked with mushrooms, bacon, and scallions and the grits were cheese grits. It was a nice simple delicious dish.

Kelly got the feathered eggs, which was like a light egg frittata baked with spinach and goat cheese.

Late Night at Milltown, Carrboro, NC

One late evening, we went to Milltown, a bar in Carrboro that specializes in a large selection of Belgian beers.
We also sampled some of their menu, which included bar favorites like mussels and Belgian frites with frite sauce.
One standout included pretzels from the Guglhupf Bakery of Durham, NC.
Since they had poutine listed on the menu, I had to try it. It was an interesting, Southern take on the Quebecois classic- they used a white sauce with shredded cheddar instead of cheese curds. Not as good but interesting.

307 E Main Street
Carrboro, NC 27510
(919) 968-2460

Only Burger, NC

Last week, I was attending the concerts for the 20th anniversary of Merge Records at Carrboro's Cat's Cradle. After the shows let out, a food truck from Only Burger was parked in the parking lot.

I ordered a single cheeseburger with fries, and it was pretty good. The burger was fresh and made to order, and the fries were fresh, crisp and nicely sprinkled with black pepper.
The guy with the trucker hat in the picture is Kurt Wagner from the band Lambchop, who would play one of the best sets of the concert series the following night.

Allen & Son Barbeque, Chapel Hill, NC

I went to Allen and Son BBQ in Chapel Hill, NC to sample to local version of barbeque pork.
I order the barbeque plate which came with a pile of pulled pork with sides of hush puppies and cole slaw.
The pork was incredible- tender, juicy and fully of porky goodness. The sauce was a vinegar based spicy sauce that went perfectly with the pig meat. It should be noted that their hush puppies were fantastic. Kelly told me they might have been the best she ever had. They were light and sweet to eat.
For dessert, we split a slice of peanut butter pie with homemade ice cream.
I'm glad Allen & Son is nowhere near where I live because I would have to return at least every other day there. It was so good.

6203 Millhouse Rd
Chapel Hill, NC 27516-8101
(919) 942-7576‎

Sandwhich in Chapel Hill, NC

While visiting Kelly in Chapel Hill, NC, she took me to Sandwhich, a lunch place that specializes in amazing sandwiches which also rely on local ingredients.
On the first day we went, I got the day's special, a banh mi with roast lamb and pate. It was great. The bread had a crispy crust, and the fresh ingredients were just delicious.
Kelly's favorite sandwich was the Avocado sandwich with tomato, greens, onion, and garlic mayo. One nice thing about her sandwich was that it was toasted lightly on the inside faces of the bread so as to prevent sogginess from the ingredients.
Sandwhich also make their own potato chips as well as fries- both of which were tasty.
We went a second time, and that time, I got the Morgada sardine sandwich which was also outstanding.


Courtyard of Chapel Hill
West Franklin at Roberson St. (behind Penang)
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
(919)929-2114

Fiesta Grill, Chapel Hill, NC

In 2007, Gourmet magazine had a profile of the Mexican and Latin American restaurant scene in the Raleigh-Durham triangle of North Carolina. When I was visiting this past weekend, I went to a place mentioned in that article, Fiesta Grill along a highway in Chapel Hill.
I started with a carnitas taco with a corn tortilla. I would have liked the tortilla to have been a little fresher, but the carnitas was delicious. They gave a generous portion that was very flavorful.
Since it was Sunday, I got a bowl of menudo to sample with the meal. The tripe was delicious, and the soup was savory- not spicy though. I added a little hot sauce to give it the kick I like.
My favorite item was the pork tamal. It was smothered in a brown sauce and cheese. The tamal was moist and delicious.
Kelly got the vegetable quesadilla which was impressive- the tortilla must have been 18 inches in diameter and it was packed with squash, peppers, mushrooms and cheese.

Fiesta Grill
3307 Nc Highway 54 W
Chapel Hill, NC 27516
(919) 928-9002

Acme Food & Beverage in Carrboro, NC

I went with Kelly to Acme Restaurant in Carrboro, NC this past weekend. It's a restaurant that serves local food with nice Southern flavors.
We started by sharing a soup of curried apple topped with crème fraîche. The flavor reminded us of autumn - it was warm, sweet, and spicy.

The menu has a nice selection of small and large plates that you can mix and match as appetizers or entrees. Kelly got the spaghetti squash with roast beets, goat cheese, corn, and arugula pesto.
My dish was the pecan crusted fried chicken smothered with a wild mushroom gravy and served with Yukon mashed potatoes and butter beans. Both dishes were delicious and the ingredients were really fresh.
To drink, I had a Foothills Rainbow Trout ESB from Winston-Salem, NC- it was nice.

For dessert, we shared a twin crusted apple pie with vanilla ice cream- also outstanding.
Acme has a real neighborhood feel to it and definitely worth trying out again.

Acme Food & Beverage Co.
110 East Main Street Carrboro, NC 27510
(919) 929-ACME

Brunch at Elmo's Diner, Carrboro, NC

Had brunch at Elmo's Diner in Carrboro, a really good local diner that stays open until 11 pm most nights. I ordered the special of pumpkin pancakes with apple butter & whipped cream. It tasted like pumpkin pie!

200 N. Greensboro St.
Carr Mill Mall
Carrboro, NC 27510
(919) 929-2909

Comida Mexicana Taco Truck, Carrboro, NC

In the town of Carrboro, there are two taco trucks, one by Fitch Lumber, the other by Cliff's Meat Market.
I went to the one by Cliff's at 11pm Sunday night and grabbed a lengua taco. I am used to homemade corn tortillas, but for two bucks, the taco was good, nicely filled with delicious beef tongue.

100 West Main Street
Carboro, NC 27510

Mama Dip's Country Cooking Restaurant, Chapel Hill, NC

We went to Mama Dip's Country Cooking Restaurant in Chapel Hill for dinner Saturday evening.
It was my only chance to get Carolina style BBQ on this trip because most places were closed on Sunday.
We started with an order of hush puppies. They were really good- nicely fried, light, and flavorful.

I ordered the plate of NC BBQ ribs and fried chicken. The ribs were sweet and vinegary, and the pork was nice and tender. The fried chicken was delicious- the skin was really nicely seasoned.
My sides were okra & tomatoes and collard greens with bacon.

I tried my friend Kelly's plate of side items. She got the mac & cheese which was really good, but the best item by far was the yams. They were lightly sweetened, and not heavily candied.

We also ordered a side of fried green tomatoes with our dinners. They were also very good.



408 W. Rosemary Street
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
(919) 942-5837

Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen, Chapel Hill, NC

One morning, we went to the Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen, a small drive through just off the highway for breakfast. This inconspicuous location served simply perfecy buttermilk biscuits that were large, light, fluffy, and delicious.
I ordered the fried chicken biscuit, which was nicely fried and crunchy on the outside, but the meat still took second place to the spectacular biscuit.
Here is a slightly snooty take on the place from public radio. (Realplayer media)
1305 E. Franklin
Chapel Hill, NC
919-933-1324

Locopops, Chapel Hill NC

In Chapel Hill, North Carolina, I visited the amazing Locopops, a local chain of gourmet Mexican popsicles called paletas that had a writeup in Food & Wine last year.
They specialize in two kinds of popsicles, paletas de aqua made with water/juice and paletas de crema made with milk. They use local organically grown ingredients in many of the flavors.
When I went one day, we tried two of the aqua flavors: pomegranate tangerine & mango hibiscus. Both were really good, but I definitely favored the mango hibiscus which was a great flavor combination.

I was compelled to try more Locopops, so on the following day, I went back, and this time, I went for a crema flavor, chocolate curry coconut. Again, the flavor combination was delicious.
There were numerous other interesting flavors available when we went: apricot chipotle, mojito, thin mint, pineapple basil, and Mexican chocolate. But alas, no time to try them all on this trip.
What can I say, "I'm loco for Locopops".