The summer break has meant a little more time for eating out and exploring more restaurants in and around Gainesville. We also got over to Tampa for a day last weekend. On with the latest updates.
- The Top: Believe it or not, we've lived in Gainesville for about a year now and haven't been to The Top. Pretty bad, huh? Thanks to encouragement from Lynn and Tim, we
had our first meal at The
Top last week. I now understand why The Top's sweet potato fries have a cult following - simply
delicious. Lynn also turned us onto the corn fritters, which even topped the sweet potato fries. Traci and I both went with burgers. I was warned in advance about the hipster servers at The Top and had the opportunity to experience their indifference first hand (I think I was very nice in requesting a correction to my order, but I digress). Overall, though, it was a good experience (I particularly like the funky vibe of the place) and will likely try The Top again for drinks, dinner or a combo of the two.
- Pei Wei Asian Diner: Anyone who has read this blog for a while knows that I focus most of my efforts on supporting independent, local restaurants rather than chains when I can help it. This isn't to say that there aren't some quality chains out there (Chipotle comes to mind). Last weekend, before
heading back to Gainesville, we had an early dinner at a Pei Wei in Tampa. Pei Wei shares the same owner as P.F. Chang's. Traci's sister in Texas had raved about Pei Wei. The set-up is fast-casual style (order up at a counter and the server brings out your order). The look and feel of the place is similar to a P.F. Chang's. The menu is an interesting selection of salads, noodle bowls and rice bowls. Traci ordered blazing noodles with chicken and I ordered the Pei Wei pad thai with chicken. We both liked our choices and the servings were big enough to have food to take home. The bill came to under twenty bucks for the two of us. Not bad. I can see why Pei Wei is a hit.
- Mac's Drive Thru: Again, thanks to encouragement from Lynn, we tried another long-time Gainesville restaurant for the first time today for lunch. I also still have a list I printed out from Gainesville.com nearly a year ago of "best restaurants" in town which has Mac's on it. Mac's was
everything that Sandwich Inn wasn't - great greasy burgers and fries (and I mean this in the best way) and solid service at a good price. I now understand firsthand why this old double drive-thru always has long lines around lunch time. For nostalgia, I still don't think you can't beat sitting down at the counter and having a burger at Louis' Lunch. In terms of taste, my favorite burger in town right now is from New Deal. Of course, Mac's and Louis' are more in the neighborhood "diner and dives" category, while New Deal is decidedly a cafe. Copper Monkey also does a quality burger.
That's all for now. As always,
drop me a line about the Gainesville food scene and beyond.
