One of my new favorite places (and apparently, one of EVERYONE’S favorites) in Jax is French Pantry. Yelp, Urbanspoon, Chowhound, even coworkers were telling me I HAD to get out to French Pantry–followed by a run-down of the rules. First, they’re only open from 11-2 M-F. There is ALWAYS a line, so plan accordingly (French Pantry lunches are “extended” lunches). Dine-in if you can for some of their fresh bread. The warehouse-like building can be difficult to identify (though usually, the line gives it away). And finally, dessert is a must.

French Pantry

French Pantry apparently supplies much of the fresh baked bread to restaurants in town. You can also pick up small items like loaves of bread, packages of rolls, or boxes of cookies from their display cart after your lunch. I’ve visited a handful of times now and always end up ordering one of their famed bruschettas, which are not your typical tomato/basil/olive oil-topped bread rounds. These are topped with a cheese and protein and served over salad:
Read the rest of this entry »

I was recently excited to hear that Jax would be getting a new (and apparently already well-known) cupcakery. Sweet! by Good Golly Miss Holly features Hollis Wilder’s famous cupcakes, which made her a 2-time winner of Food Network’s Cupcake Wars. The original shop has been operating in Orlando for 3 years, but about a month ago Jacksonville got its very own store in the Town Center.

Sweet!

I went in on my own during their soft open to try some mini cupcakes (LOVE that they have minis…feels less sinful), while Mario decided to dispense himself a cup of frozen yogurt, which Sweet! also sells (yeah, yogurt is the new hotness in Jax, too):
Read the rest of this entry »

I feel like there should be an instrumental track of Curtis Mayfield’s “Pusherman” playing behind all my cupcakery posts. I have stumbled upon a new-to-me cupcakery, and they may just be my new favorite pusher(wo)men: Lenox Cupcakes.

Vanilla Caramel Cupcake

I don’t visit Phipps Plaza often, but I recently had a Nordstrom gift card burning a hole in my wallet and decided to peruse the rest of the mall while I was there. I had heard of Lenox Cupcakes before, but kind of put them in my “bourgie” pile with many other things Buckhead. Well, I now know that bourgie cupcakes might just be the best cupcakes.

Read the rest of this entry »

I had a random number generator pick the people who get to try the yummy new Banana Pudding Milkshake from Chick-fil-A, and the winners are:

Tonya
Lyn W.
Jenee (Facebook entry)
D’nae (Facebook entry)

Check your inboxes for an email from me, I’ll even be springing for the postage for you

Thanks everyone for entering…I’ve got to check out some of these great banana puddings y’all mentioned!

Here’s a little something to brighten up this rainy day (at least in Atlanta): I’m giving away coupons to try Chick-fil-A’s new banana pudding milkshake for FREE!

Free Milkshakes!

The milkshake is made with fresh bananas, real Nilla® wafers, a splash of vanilla, and is hand-spun with Chick-fil-A’s popular “home-style” Icedream® and topped with light whipped cream and a maraschino cherry. Woody Faulk, Chick-fil-A’s vice president of brand development, says “Our new Banana Pudding Milkshake is like drinking your grandmother’s recipe through a straw.” I’ve tried it, and I have to agree! Chick-fil-A’s PR folks were kind enough to send over some coupons for me to share with my readers, and since even I don’t think I can ingest this many milkshakes, I’m giving 2 coupons each to 4 people so you and a friend (or just you, I won’t judge) can try it for yourself.

All you have to do is comment here, and let me know who makes the best banana pudding you’ve ever had. You can get an extra entry by commenting on First Bite’s Facebook page. The contest ends at midnight on March 12, and I’ll announce the winners on Sunday, March 13.

*Update* The coupons can be used for any flavor Chick-fil-A milkshake if you don’t like banana pudding…but I think you should try it anyway

If you follow this blog or me on Twitter, you know that I love cupcakes. I actively seek out cupcakeries. Upon request, I can list my top three favorite cupcakes in the Atlanta area (and probably in BR/NOLA too). So it’s always a huge bummer when I come across cupcakes that just doesn’t appeal to me. Such was the case when I visited Gigi’s cupcakes.

Gigi's

Gigi’s is a cupcake chain which originated in Nashville, TN. After checking out their amazing looking cupcake selection online, I visited the Buckhead location to try one out. On the first visit, Mario picked up a candied sweet potato (pictured) and I had a tiramisu.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you are a reader of any other ATL food blogs, undoubtedly you’ve seen posts recently about Chay J’s New Orleans Candies. This leads me to believe one thing: this woman (owner/confectioner Channon Powell) knows her marketing. And if a few food blogs aren’t enough for you, her treats have also been featured on BET’s The Mo’Nique Show. I had the chance to try some of Ms. Powell’s creations when she hand-delivered them to campus for me to try (where she was subsequently fawned over by a strange foreign student who was–to say the least–impressed by her 6′ height…but that’s another story ) Ms. Powell dropped off some “Creole Crunch” popcorn and “Creole Pretzels.” I was too busy munching to get any pictures of my treats, but these photos from chayjs.com should give you the basic idea:

Creole Crunch

Creole Pretzels

Mmm. My hands-down favorite was the popcorn, the sweet coating on which somehow made it feel like it was melting in my mouth. For those who love a good sweet/salty combo, the creole pretzels are the way to go. Since these were mounded together by their caramel-y coating, they took a little more mandibular force to crunch into, which was a bit of a turn-off after my meltaway popcorn. But don’t get me wrong–I still finished the bag! You can order Chay J’s treats for delivery all over the country, and can even get personal delivery in Metro Atlanta with a minimum purchase.

Because I enjoyed Chay J’s New Orleans Candies so much, and in celebration of my new-ish Facebook page, I’ll be having….a GIVEAWAY!!!
Read the rest of this entry »

Last week I picked up a large bag of cherries at the farmers’ market. As much as I love to just stand over the sink and spit pits as I eat, I have managed to hold off on demolishing the bag (read: I only eat every third cherry while I’m pitting them) long enough to make this simple, delicious dessert.

Balsamic Cherries over Ice Cream

This is an adaptation of a healthy dessert idea from Ellie Krieger. Unfortunately, it does not include ice cream in its original form. To practice portion control, I use the small party cups of vanilla ice cream I used to eat at birthdays. The balsamic cherries lend a slightly sweet and tart topping, and making them is a snap.
Read the rest of this entry »

I was back in Charlotte last weekend and Mario and I got a chance to meet up with some of my high school buddies that are new to the area. I’ve been debating on whether or not to do some name-dropping in this post, but I think I’m gonna go ahead and drop away One of my besties just moved to Charlotte to be with her longtime boyfriend and my old friend, recently acquired Bobcats player Tyrus Thomas. They requested a soul/Southern food spot, and after some debate, Mario and I decided to meet them at Boudreaux’s Louisiana Kitchen in NoDa. Obviously Boudreaux’s is not the name of this post, and that’s because I didn’t feel motivated to write a full post after our disappointing meal. The crawfish and spinach dip appetizer was the highlight. I had an oyster po’boy that was unseasoned and borderline gross. There was one interesting point on the menu–their selection of hurricanes. We couldn’t decide whether it was in poor taste or kind of funny/clever that they named their different hurricane concoctions after actual hurricanes. The Hurricane Katrina was made up of spirits from locations that followed the course of the hurricane. Hmm…

Anyway, toward the end of the meal, my friends asked if we had heard of Amelie’s French Bakery, also in the NoDa area. When we said no, they both insited we go right away. Tyrus, usually a pretty goofy guy, got extremely serious when he started to describe a fruit tart they serve. “Jessica. Ok they have this graham cracker crust. And then this custard that is really, really good. Then on top are these perfectly sliced strawberries and berries and stuff, gracefully arranged and topped with this apple jam….ok we have to go right now.” And so we did:

Amelie's French Bakery

Quickie post…not much to say besides: the strawberry cheesecake popsicle was fab and GO GET SOME NOW!!

King of Pops @ the Irwin Street Market

Strawberry Cheesecake Pop

I stopped into the Irwin St. Market (The King of Pops’ current home base) for my fix, but owner Steven Carse also has a roving cart (currently on the corner of North Ave. and N. Highland). Check out his interview on Scoutmob for more details on the King and what sparked the idea, and follow @thekingofpops on Twitter or check the Facebook page for daily menu updates!

And get some more lowdown from FoodieBuddha!