Now that we've been doing this WacoFork thing for almost two years, I'm pleased to say I've learned a few things about our local restaurant scene.
One of the more rewarding tidbits: perhaps my favorite burger in town comes from the unlikely source of Sironia Cafe.
I was spending the morning chilling at Dichotomy with my friends Carole Kiphen and Brett Jameson when it occurred to me that this is a pretty good town if you dig coffee shops.
We have quantity and quality and the people that run them like to host events. Dichotomy, for example, is hosting its monthly Thursday Night Throwdown (TNT) when will attempt to out-do one another with their latte art. This has become a popular event among baristas and spectators.
For months now, I've been hearing that Firehouse Subs wants to come to Waco, but until last week I didn't have any concrete information to dispense.
Now I have a little. Firehouse is seeking/negotiating for a location in Waco, according to sources in the sandwich chain's communication and guest services departments.
Terrance Ganaway is one of four running backs on the St. Louis Rams depth chart, he was a vital member of the Baylor Bears' 2011 Alamo Bowl champion football team, and his newest team is the sandwich-making crew at the downtown Jimmy John's.
I was driving around, running Friday-afternoon errands and listening to the Dallas sports radio greatness of The Hardline when the guys on that show were talking about this story. I dropped what I was doing and rushed over to Jimmy John's in order to confirm this, which I was able to do with the manager on duty.
As we roll into what promises to be a wonderful weekend, I have a thought on the goings on in Waco and how you might be able to augment your weekend scene.
Consider this an extension of our "How 'bout" series.
[ UPTDATE (10:30 a.m., Friday): Had conversations with Rusty Fenton and David Weaver of The Rusty Taco this morning. Both said the taco chain is definitely trying to get to Waco but hasn't settled on a location yet. I'm confident there will be more news on this coming in the next couple of weeks. ]
We're hearing rumblings of a third restaurant going into the new shopping center anchored by Aldi on Valley Mills Drive. The WacoFork wire brought me this one last week as my friend Tanner Freeman had a connection at Kelly Realtors, where the owners of the new restaurant dropped off some menus.
Let me begin this blog by identifying the items in the photo, which was taken at Louisiana Catfish & Chicken on Tuesday.
Front and center are alligator tail nuggets, behind them to the left are hush puppies, which were maybe the best hush puppies I've ever tasted, and back right are catfish tails. This was the lunch my friend Kaley Eggers and I enjoyed, dining in at LC&C.
It's Presidents Day, which led me to an unusual realization: no one is universally popular.
Perhaps the most popular president in history, and certainly the most popular historical president at the moment, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. So that's what popularity will get you sometimes. In fact, according ranker.com, Lincoln is the most popular president and JFK is No. 8. Lesson: you can win over some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time, but if you win over too many people, you might also want to consider living in a bullet-proof-glass bubble.
Downtown continues to up its game. To that end, pretty soon one Franklin building will include door-to-door-to-door nightlife options.
I spoke with True Love owner Jacqulyn Blair, whom I bumped into in Austin on Thursday night, and she told me they're set to relocate in the space formerly occupied by Nelson's. So that building will include Barnett's Pub, Al Miraj Mediterranean Grill and Hookah Bar and True Love.
Happy Valentine's Day to everyone with big plans today. We hope you'll check out our Valentine's playbook blog to help make/augment your agenda.
As for me, it's Thursday, but not just any Thursday. I've been looking forward to Feb. 14 for a while because my friends in the band Bobby Jealousy are having an album release party in Austin this evening. So I'll be headed down there for that. And that's not just me bragging about having cool plans for tonight. There's a Waco tie-in.
