is not for amateurs. The plethora of barbecue joints, milkshake shacks, and southern-inspired dining establishments would make all non-professionals faint. Thankfully, my travel companions consider themselves experienced professional eaters, and our skills were definitely put to the test on our short jaunt around North Carolina. Our first stop in Raleigh was The Pit to try Ed Mitchell's famous piggies. Mr. Mitchell was seen kicking Bobby Flay's butt in the most horribly conceptualized show in history, Throwdown! with Bobby Flay. The Pit had a nice selection of beers to go along with their barbecues. Three of us shared two of the lunch plates, which come with hush puppies, a biscuit and two sides. First up was the chopped barbecue with fried okra and mac and cheese. I would have preferred the chopped pork on a nice fluffy roll but it was still amazingly moist and flavorful on its own. The mac and cheese was uninspiring, but the hush puppies and fried okra were as all fried things should be: delicious and not greasy.
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| Chopped barbecue plate with mac and cheese and fried okra |
Next, we had a half rack of Carolina spare ribs with baked beans and collard greens. The ribs were so tender that I just had to stick my fork into the meat to pull some off. Both of these side dishes were also extremely delicious. The greens was slightly spicy and cooked to the right consistency. The baked beans were interesting because a variety of beans were used for the dish.
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| Carolina spare ribs with collard greens and baked beans |
I made a stop in the bathroom after our meal and came back to find this beautiful banana pudding on our table. Apparently, while I was gone, our waiter, who, by the way, was excellent the entire time, had come back and uttered these six simple words, "Do you want some banana pudding?" And it tasted as pretty as it looks although the meringue was ridiculously sweet for my taste. Other than that, the bananas and crust were all mingled together in a yummy partnership.
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| Banana pudding |
Immediately following lunch, we decided to eat some more. This time our destination was Locopops to get some hand-crafted gourmet popsicles. I ordered the mighty mojito which was limey and refreshing in the North Carolina heat. Their prices were a little higher than I expected at $2.16 for the "kid size." But that certainly didn't stop me from having another pop when I spotted a location in Chapel Hill a few days later. The mango chile has a hint a spice to complement a ton of sweetness.
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| The ever changing menu board |
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| Mighty mojito locopop |
328 W. Davie Street
Raleigh, NC
1908 Hillsborough Street
Raleigh, NC
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