Super Chix

I was in Richardson, TX for work one day and decided to head to the newish CityLine development to see what they had to offer.  Several restaurants now occupy this new area, but I decided to have lunch at Super Chix.  Several food bloggers and foodies have posted reviews and pictures of this restaurant on social media lately, so I thought I would see what all the buzz was about.

The restaurant offers chicken sandwiches and chicken tenders.  I couldn't decided between the two, so I ordered both.  For my sandwich, I ordered the Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich, which was marinated in spices and tossed in their Nashville Sauce.  It was spicy, but not overly spicy and was served with a few thick-cut kosher pickles.  The sandwich was definitely in the upper tier of fried chicken sandwiches.

Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich

The chicken tenders were  crispy and had great flavor.  Patrons can choose between 4 different sauces and I chose the Mississippi Come Back Sauce, which tasted a lot like Thousand Island dressing.  If I had a do-over, I would have chosen the Alabama White Sauce.  I ordered the fries for a side and had them tossed in Rosemary Black Pepper seasoning.  As great as the chicken was, the fries were absolutely incredible and the portion was huge!

Chicken Tenders and Rosemary Black Pepper Fries

I was too full to try the frozen custard, which I hear is spectacular, but I did enjoy a grapefruit soda that was very refreshing.  This place is a little pricier than most fast food chicken joints, but the quality is better too.  If this place was closer to my home, I would certainly eat here often.  Next time I am in Richardson, I definitely plan a return trip!

Super Chix
http://superchix.com
Livin the Good Life Rating=4

Julia Pearl Southern Cuisine

For the last few months, Julia Pearl Southern Cuisine has been on my "must try" list.  Being fond of all things Southern, and especially Southern food, I had high hopes for this restaurant.  I had also read favorable reviews, which sang the praise of this place.

Cornbread

We had reservations and were immediately seated and given complimentary cornbread.  The cornbread was pretty basic and nothing special, but I was hungry and we dug in.  I inquired about what soup of the day was and was told that they didn't have a soup on this particular day, but didn't give a reason as to why this was the case.  With no soup to choose from, we settled on the Black-Eyed Pea Hummus.  The hummus was okay, but the dish has a very high hummus to bread ratio and we quickly ran out of bread.

Black-eyed Pea Hummus

For my entree, I ordered the Oven Roasted Lemon Pepper Redfish. The fish was quite good and was served with a terrific sweet corn succotash and hush puppies.  Although the hush puppies were rather bland, the rest of the dish was very good and I would not hesitate to order it again.

Oven Roasted Lemon Pepper Redfish

My wife ordered the highly acclaimed Fried Chicken and attempted to order a side of Collard Greens.  Our waiter said he wasn't sure if they had any collard greens left and recommended she order a second side in case they were out of collards.  She ordered the Bacon Cheddar Cheese Grits as a back-up.  When her meal arrived, it arrived with the grits, which leads me to assume that they were out of collards.  The chicken had a tasty batter, but it was cold and dry.  The grits were fantastic, but couldn't compensate for the disappointing chicken.

Fried Chicken

Bacon Cheddar Cheese Grits

For dessert, we shared the Julia's Chocolate Cake.  The cake itself was dry and not great by any means, but it was served with a coffee ice cream that was commendable.  If I had a mulligan, I would have ordered the Lemon Cake or the Peach Cobbler.

Julia's Chocolate Cake

I arrived at this restaurant with expectations that it would be of the quality of Sissy's Southern Kitchen in Dallas, but it was anything but.  The food was disappointing overall and I was put off by the fact that neither the soup of the day or the collard greens were available on this night, despite the fact it wasn't even 7 p.m.  The noise level was moderate and the wait staff check on us regularly, but I am not sure if I would be willing to give this place a second chance.

http://juliapearlsoutherncuisine.com
Livin the Good Life Rating = 2

Preacher's Kitchen and The Hub

Two Short Reviews From My Family Vacation to Seaside, Florida.

While on a jog one morning, I ran (and I use this term loosely) past a new restaurant called Preacher's Kitchen that served burgers.   Later on that morning, my wife and daughters decided to have a girls day, which left me to my on devices for lunch.  Since I was flying solo, I decided to ride one of our rented bicycles to the restaurant and try out their burgers.

Cheeseburger with Applewood Smoked Bacon and Fried Egg

I ordered a burger with cheese, applewood smoked bacon, and a fried egg.  The burger was very good and I particularly liked the thick slices of applewood smoked bacon and the sweet bun.  The burger was juicy enough, but was only about 3/4 the size of the bun.  The fries were golden brown and seasoned lightly with seasoned salt.  Overall, the burger and fries combination was the best I have tried in the Seaside, Florida area.

Preacher's Kitchen
Livin the Good Life Rating=3

On yet another morning jog along 30A, I happened upon a new place called The Hub.  Jogging doesn't do me much good if I keep finding new places to eat, but I thought it might be a fun place to hang out and take the family.  That night, my family rode our tandem bikes to The Hub and decided to eat dinner and listen to some live music.  

The Hub has three different restaurants.  Mile Marker 15 serves tacos and also has a full bar, Red's Chicken Shack serves fried chicken, and Crave Burgers serves, you guessed it, burgers.  They also have an ice cream stand and a cart that serves cotton candy and shaved ice.

Outdoor Patio/Concert Area

My family sampled the burgers from Crave and the chicken strips from Red's Chicken House.  The burger was okay, but nothing to write home about.  The chicken strips were good, but weren't served with gravy or any dipping sauce.  The wedge fries served with them were not good at all.  The kids enjoyed ice cream and they shaved ice.  Although I was not impressed with the food, it was still a fun place for us to go hang out with the kids and enjoy some outdoor entertainment.

The Hub
http://www.hub30a.com
Livin the Good Life Rating=2

Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken

Fried chicken can be a marvelous meal when it is done right.  Having heard good things about Gus's Wold Famous Fried Chicken, I knew I had to try it out this year since it was only two blocks from my conference in Austin.  One publication even lists this restaurant as one of the 21 Best Fried Chicken Restaurants in America.  While this small chain has several locations, Austin is currently the only Texas city that has a Gus's.

A co-worker and I arrived early for lunch and I was surprised to find that the only seats available for us were at the bar.  Since there was not another option, we snatched those up and placed our order.  I had the Three Piece White Plate with beans and fries, while my coworker ordered the Chicken Tender Plate.   My chicken was juicy and had a slightly spicy batter.  While not the best chicken I have ever tried, Gus's was certainly better than average.  My co-worker enjoyed the chicken strips too, but we both thought our sides were fairly pedestrian.

Three Piece White Meat Plate with Fries and Beans

We both ordered a piece of pie before leaving.  He had the Pecan Pie and I had the Chocolate Chess Pie.  His pie was good, but I thought mine was exceptional.   By the time we left, there was a line thirty deep waiting to be seated.  Luckily, the friendly staff at Gus's does a good job of getting food out quickly and most patrons are in and out in less than thirty minutes.  Overall the food was pretty good, but I don't think it lived up to the hype I read in several reviews of this place.

Chocolate Chess Pie and Pecan Pie

Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken
http://gusfriedchicken.com/
Livin the Good Life Rating=3