2 Edgewood Drive

Butler, Georgia 31006-5743

(478) 862-2445

Georgia Fried Chicken Sign

Traveling west of Fort Valley, Georgia on the way to Columbus I saw the sign for Georgia Fried Chicken. Just the thought of some good homestyle fried chicken for lunch peaked my interest. As I drove around the building looking for the proper entrance and parking lot I finally found the door and the parking lot. Walking up I could see the outdoor patio seating for up to 50 or so people. I walk past the copper rooster into the restaurant and walk to the counter, not knowing that I was to find a seat. The two waitresses that were on the clock on this day were kind but not gonna go out of their way to be too helpful.

Dining Room

In the middle of the dining room is where I decide to take a seat. My server (actually who I thought was my server) asks me about what I would like to drink. My first thoughts were to get a Diet Coke but opted for the water as to the fact that I did not want to spend two dollars for a drink. After sitting there for a while I was then approached by another server who had even less desire to be there than the other one. She was there specifically to take my order and I was glad to see the fried chicken on the special. Along with the option of pork chops and various veggies that included mac n cheese, coleslaw, and beans. My order was the fried chicken white meat, squash, and the broccoli cheese and rice casserole.

Menu

For the next few moments I sat there and listened to local hunters as they talked about each of their adventures. When you pull into the lot there is a large sign letting you know that HUNTERS ARE WELCOME. Since I am not a hunter I was oblivious to some of the terminology that was being used. Luckily my food came soon. However, after really thinking about it, I do not think I was that lucky after all. The chicken was o.k. but really greasy, I mean really greasy. My squash was, well, it was bad, I mean really bad. If you want an onions with a little bit of squash casserole then this is the place for you. The broccoli casserole was very good though. The waitress had asked me if I wanted the cornbread or the biscuit. So, I asked her which one is better, her suggestion was the biscuit. When I touched the biscuit it split perfectly in the middle. Thus letting me know that they were not homemade but either straight from a can or frozen. Not letting this deter me I decided to eat the biscuit anyway. In the long run I wish I hadn’t. I ate as much of it as I could and left over half of it on the plate.

Chicken Dinner

The servers never came back to my table and never offered to refill my water or a box for my leftovers to go. The other tables there were being served and had food that was not on the special, and those plates looked very good. Stuffed potatoes with BBQ and the burgers which were all about 7 bucks looked very good. If I lived in the area I would hope that the other items are better than the item that is featured in the company’s name of Georgia Fried Chicken. They do offer a kids menu with all items in the 4 dollar range. As I went to leave I asked for a take out menu and they actually looked lost, it was kind of funny. They do have drive thru, but I challenge you to try either the potato or a burger instead of the chicken.

Review by Pie, email:  pie@piesplate.com

1312 Newcastle Street

Brunswick, Georgia 31520

(912) 267-5630

Jim's Store Front

On a trip to visit family we decided to take a detour to see the city known as Historic Brunswick, Georgia.  On this journey we find almost no places to grab breakfast in the downtown area. Near the end of the downtown area is a little place called Jim’s Corner Cafe Dessert Bar. The building is very old, I am guessing from the early 1900’s. You really do get the feel of stepping back in time as you grab your table in the cafe. Seating is limited in this charming cafe, with only a few tables and chairs, and no booths. Lighting is a little bit dimmer than that of most places but it is a historic building and not so dark that it is an inconvenience.

Jim's Dining Room

The gentleman that was waiting on tables this morning was very nice and quick to help us. He gave us the menus and it did not take us long to decide on the omelets. When it comes to the breakfast items they are a little bit limited on the choices but not so much that you can’t find something. The omelets are priced as most places are in the $6 to $7 range or you can choose a cheese omelet for just over $5. What I was looking for was the Ham and Cheese omelet with biscuits. In my quick response I ask the young man if they have a side of gravy so I can make me a plate of biscuit and gravy too. He checks with the kitchen and they can do it, yay me!

Pie's Breakfast

While waiting for the food I am soaking in the atmosphere of what was either an old drugstore or maybe a grocery store. The place was pretty well filled with customers and when I asked the waiter if Jim was a real person he said yes that he had been in the back of the dining room for the first few minutes that we were there. Just a few moments later our food arrived and quite possibly the fluffiest omelets I have ever seen. They were almost like a piece of culinary art. Not to forget the biscuits were huge! A few minutes later the waiter brought me a side of gravy to pour over my biscuits. This was a perfect breakfast with a cook that knows what to do in the kitchen. As a matter of fact I cannot rave on the omelet or the biscuits and gravy any more than to say it was fantastic. If not for Jim’s Corner Cafe Dessert Bar being over an hour away and also the smell of the paper mill in Brunswick we would make this place a regular stop. Apparently this is a regular stop for those who go to the resort areas of St Simons or Jeckyll Island.

Rhonette's Breakfast

Upon receiving our bill we were offered drinks to go, which we decided not to get. The bill however was a bit of a shock to me, due to the fact that they did not give me a side of gravy. Instead I was charged for a full order of biscuits and gravy. It is one of those things that I look at and say, that meal was fantastic I just won’t order the gravy next time. If you find yourself in Brunswick then swing through the downtown area for a meal. They are closed on Mondays but offer breakfast and lunch all the other days of the week. With a menu that offers burgers, sandwiches, soups, and pastas that all range from $6 to no more than $9 you have you pick of what has proved to me a great meal.

Front of Jim's Menu

Review by Pie, email: pie@piesplate.com

Aspen’s Mountain Grill

5700 Hwy 354

Pine Mountain,GA 31822

(706) 663-2001

Aspen's Mountain Grill

One of the friendliest little towns that I have experienced, (in recent memory) is the small village of Pine Mountain, Georgia. While driving through I had the need for a good clean room and a meal. So, I put down my passenger window and asked a gentleman walking up to a local art gallery a couple of questions. First question was if he was either from the area or at least familiar with the town. He said yes…we are off to a good start. The next question was for a room for the night, maybe a bed and breakfast or something that is not a chain. When traveling I am trying to help the ‘little man’ if I can. This nice man started telling me the best options for me to stay and oh by the way, he wanted to make sure that he introduced himself to me and shake my hand so as not to be speaking to a stranger. We ought not talk to strangers ya know. After he directs me to the inn that I decide upon, he asks me if I am hungry. In his words ‘Have ya had a meal tonight?’, If not the place you should go to is just down the street on the corner named Aspen’s Mountain Grill. He also lets me know of the gallery opening as other events and things to do, but I am ready for a meal and a bed.

Cozy Fire

After I go and check into the country style motel a couple of miles out of town I make the drive back to Aspen’s Mountain Grill which is very close to the entrance to Callaway Gardens. This brings much tourism to the area, yet Pine Mountain is not a typical tourist town. There are no souvenir traps, Ripley’s, or trolley rides, just a good country town. As soon as I walk up the steps and into Aspen’s Mountain Grill I am greeted by a sweet young Georgia girl with the southern drawl that is slowly disappearing from the south. She grabs a menu and sits me next to the fireplace which is warm, inviting, and comforting for this rather cold December night. With the flames warming my back I look over the diverse menu. The menu is not too extensive but if you can’t find something to eat at Aspen’s Mountain Gill, I question your pickiness. With appetizers covering everything from chili, nachos, onion rings, sweet potato fries and the item I decided to try in the strange sounding but good collard greens, smoked turkey, and cream cheese dip. This is a creative item that Aspen’s Mountain Grill claims as their own. It is served in a large side dish with thick chunks of turkey, strips of collard greens, and cream cheese melted over it. Using the freshly made wonton chips to eat this I realize that this is the strangest combo but really good. For only $6.95 I was already impressed.

The rest of the menu will take you from salads that have either chicken, steak, or even lobster. All of the salads are over eight bucks each but look fantastic. Fearing that this could be a very expensive place I looked on into the menu and saw burgers and flat breads in the seven dollar range. This particular night I was more interested in a main course item or as the menu says Aspen’s Mountain Specialties. Under Aspen’s Specialties the options include steak tips, rib eye, pork chops, chicken fingers, trout, and the meal that peaked my interest is the seared shrimp and white cheddar grits. My meal was one of the more expensive items on the menu but with the range of items from $9.95 to $18.95 on the specialties menu, you do have a good list of options to satisfy most any palate. 

Shrimp Grits Meal

My server let me know that she was going to put my main order in just a little bit later so I was not sitting there with both my appetizer and my meal at the same time. This is a gift that few servers understand. So Nicole gets bonus points for that. It was almost the exact same time that I was finished with my last bite of the creative and flavorful dip that my meal was ready. If you have been to the low country of South Carolina then eating shrimp and grits is nothing new to you. However, this was a different dish than the shrimp and grits that you find in SC. According to the menu at Aspen’s the meal is served in a Cajun cream sauce. To me Cajun means a little bit of kick. Sort of a spice or something, but not in this meal. The shrimp and grits in S.C. feature a Tasso sauce that is fantastic but the Cajun sauce here does not match up. Now that I have totally degraded the meal I must let you know that it was good. I would recommend it to anyone and would order it again the next time I am there. It was just not what I expected from the description on the menu. My sides that I ordered were an extra side of the white cheddar grits and the sautéed mushrooms. The mushrooms were great and I actually put them in my shrimp and grits bowl. The side of grits I ate separately and did enjoy them very much with some salt and butter.

Store Front Window

Nicole was very good and kept my water filled and checked on me regularly. But, even though she was sweet and kind and attentive and all the wonderful things you look for in a server. There is an issue that I need to point out. After I had placed my order I overheard another server telling the table near me of the special of the night. I was not given this info or told about the homemade soup that was available. Also I decided to order a hot chocolate to go for my dessert. Nicole forgot to tell me that there was the option for desserts as well. Don’t get me wrong, she was great and knows how to wait on tables but there are a few things to tweak. All of the servers there were sweet and went out of their way to help everyone, even when a family that was ignoring the fact that the toddler that they had under the table was screaming and making things uncomfortable for everyone in there. One of the servers saw this as her way to make things better and went to pick up the little one. The family said ‘oh just let her carry on cause she does that’. This server knew that something had to be done, thank you oh random waitress. I do look forward to the next time that I am in the Pine Mountain, Georgia area and will stop into Aspen’s Mountain Grill again.

Review by Pie, email:  pie@piesplate.com

3881 US Highway 17
Richmond Hill, GA 31324-3365
(912) 756-3535 

Southern Image

Savannah Georgia is a wonderful city with many great options for the foodie in all of us. However, if you are traveling and looking to make a ‘quick stop’ for lunch or dinner; well that is almost impossible to do in this town. First of all the accessibility to the historic district of Savannah is still 10 to 20 minutes from the interstate (depending on your location). If the historic district is your plan you now have parking and usually a wait for certain places. (I have heard of people waiting up to 2 hours for one of Paula Deen’s places). Let me say this about that. P.D.’s places are great and every foodie should try it at some point. But let’s look outside of the tourist area for this review. You find yourself traveling on I-95 just south of the main exits for Savannah. To be exact, let us go to Richmond Hill Georgia at exit 87. This will put you on US 17 and surround you in truck stops, fast food drive thrus, and cheap motels. But tucked away in this community is one of my favorite buffets in the South. 

Dining Room

The Southern Image has been a location that I have personally visited for a few years. They have been opened in Richmond Hill for over a decade (so I have been told). These guys offer a fantastic southern buffet that will rival P.D.’s any day. That’s right, I said that. With all due respect to Paula Dean, The Southern Image is worth the stop. You will avoid the traffic, parking, and the hour plus wait on a sidewalk. 

Front Porch

On the afternoon that I stopped in at The Southern Image I was seeking the buffet. They do offer other items on an actual menu as well. The menu is geared towards the sandwiches, salads, and kid’s items. Knowing that I was more interested in the buffet I just barely glanced at the menu. The buffet was full of food even though it was nearing the close of the restaurant for the afternoon. The options were the standards for a southern buffet. Mac n cheese, corn, mashed potatoes, fried okra, green beans, onion pie, fried chicken, fried pork chops, sweet and sour meatballs and baked chicken. There was a weak salad bar available as well. The salad bar was some mixed greens, coleslaw, pasta salad, macaroni salad and various dressings.  

When I got back to my table my server(s) had brought me an unsweet tea and cornbread. I was off to the side of the dining area in a room that can be closed off for meetings. There was a fireplace and empty tables. Sitting in here did not bother me at all. The room was clean and I was near the buffet. The servers kept my drink filled and chatted about their day in a nearby ‘make shift’ work station. They were very nice to me and the other customers there. With that said, they were also very open to talk to each other about how they were not wanting to stay there one more minute than they had to. It was quite obvious that they did not really want to be at a job that would be paying them for their services (at least on this day). 

Pie's Buffet Choices

The kitchen staff kept the hot bar filled with the items that were featured for the day. The buffet was as good as it has always been. Except the onion pie was something that I will regret ever trying. It was something that I did not know what I was eating and was just way too strong for my liking. Maybe it is an acquired taste. The other items were that exact nourishment I was looking for. There is something that the staff does in the preparation of the fried chicken that makes it taste exactly like my grandmothers. With every bite of the chicken I am taken back to a summer day in the 70’s in Waldo, Florida. Now my disappointment in the food was not only with the onion pie. In a southern style restaurant there is no need for the sweet and sour meatballs. They just were not that good. Stick with what you know, and if you are a southern style restaurant….then leave the meatballs to another place.  As I was enjoying the food on my plate I was thinking about my girlfriend, Rhonette. For those of you that have read her profile, you know that she has gluten allergies. Well this brought to mind the question ‘What is there at The Southern Image Restaurant that she could have?’ Almost nothing from the buffet, the salad bar, or any of the desserts. Most of the items on the buffet were either fried or made with crackers. The salads were mostly pasta based. And all of the desserts were made with nilla wafers in them or were cakes. Even the chocolate and banana puddings were made with wafers crushed in them. No puddings were made without them. There could have been maybe some jello there, but no. Now as I had mentioned before, that I did not look at the menu (too much). My thoughts are along the lines of the fact that there could have been more options on the salad bar, buffet and definitely the desserts that would be more gluten free friendly. 

Southern Image

After I paid my bill I spoke with the waitress for just a few minutes. She informed me that they did not have a take out menu and that they change the buffet items daily. So I grabbed one of the business cards that they had available. Then I stepped outside to take a phone call. As I stood there I could see the rocking chairs and the wooden swing on the front porch area. Finishing my call I decided to sit in my car. While sitting there an elderly lady pulled into a parking spot. The one waitress that was very anxious to leave there stepped out and turned the sign from OPEN to CLOSE. By my dashboard clock the lady still had over 10 minutes. Some may say that it is rude to be last customer in a restaurant. Some may say that you should not even try to enter in the last 15 minutes. Whatever your beliefs are, I believe it is extremely rude to turn the closed sign around in front of a customer with 10 minutes left in the day. 

The bottom line on The Southern Image is, good food. The staff could use some coaching in what is deemed ‘SERVICE INDUSTRY’. The preparers and management should have more options for the gluten free community. I do recommend and will be back at The Southern Image.  They also have a website at www.southernimagecatering.com.  The hours (according to the sign, apparently very strict) Monday 11:00 am until 2:00 pm/Tuesday – Sunday 11:00 am until 9:00 pm

 Review by Pie, email:  pie@piesplate.com

700 Historical 441 Highway

Suite A

Cornelia, GA 30351 

As I was driving through a familiar area of the east Georgia mountains, I found myself remembering a tasty little pizza place which I visited a few years ago one cold night.  Memories of good pizza, sports on the t.v., a friendly bartender and your local, everyday customers that were “lets hang out” kind of guys went through my mind.  I remembered that there were pictures of all the local high school football, softball, baseball and any other sport you can name were hanging on the wall.

These memories drove me once again to Johnny’s New York Style Pizza in Cornelia, Georgia. It is a little place with indoor seating for the non-smokers and outdoor seating for those who want to light up. It seems there is full service in and out. It was almost 1 pm when I pulled in amongst the local patrons. Judging by the full parking lot, I may have a wait. Upon walking inside…I realized I didn’t. There is a couple at the bar, a few local business people having a power lunch and a family of a grandmother, a blonde kid and a one legged woman. (I’m not trying to be funny, just stating the facts). Just for the idea of the place, and to people watch, I grab a table near the back of the room. (Always sit near the rear exit in Italian restaurants according to movies) 

Candice or Charlotte, or someone with a name that begins with a C, greets me with a smile and a menu. She offers me a beer, which is one of the draft specials, but since I don’t like beer too much, I got a Diet Coke.  The Diet Coke just so happens to be included with the lunch special! Lunch specials at Johnny’s start at $4.99. My choice was $5.99 for a 2 topping calzone with a drink. Man, remembering the pizza I had last time made me excited to try the calzone.  C said the calzone was made with both mozzarella AND ricotta. The other options I was considering for the lunch special were pizza: 2 slices and a drink for $4.99 or the spaghetti that the one legged woman was eating…it looked good. I decided that I was really craving the calzone and stuck with that. 

About 5 minutes passed and out came my wonderful looking food. I was sad to see that it was a little bit smaller than other calzones I’ve enjoyed elsewhere, but hey, it was on special.  It was heavily, and I mean HEAVILY dusted with grated parmesan cheese. My fillings, which they called toppings, were fresh mushrooms and ham. Both of the toppings/fillings were hard to find due to the overabundance of dough. And I do mean a lot and lot of dough. I know Italians from New York and they would have taken great offense to this excuse for a calzone. It tasted o.k. but certainly did little justice to Italian food and calzone lovers. 

When my waitress C, who was very kind and sweet, came back to ask how things were, I nodded and just let her think the food was good.  I did not respond either way. But I did ask a few questions about the place.  Come to find out, they have been there for a few years. They apparently are part of a small chain that is in the Southeast, this is the only location that I was aware of. Also the owner and inventor of Johnny’s New York Style Pizza is from Georgia. I guess the word ’style’ makes up for it not being authentic Italian. Now, like I said…in the past I ate pizza here that was good, and I plan to go back for the pizza…but definitely not for the calzone. 

To find Johnny’s New York Style Pizza in Cornelia, Georgia, you need to know that it is on US 441 Business. When you are in Cornelia heading north towards Demorest (Piedmont College). Johnny’s is on the right before you get to the US 441 bypass.  If you do go, I hope you have the same experience I did on my first visit where I had the pizza, not this one where I had the calzone.

Review by Pie, email:  pie@piesplate.com