Who'd a thunk?

When I think of Greenville Tech, I think of learning a trade like plumber or electrician or auto mechanic or nurse. I think of a technical college that provides a wealth of talent for the manufacturing facilities we so covet in our area. This past week, I was enlightened to a new dimension of Greenville Tech. First, I knew there were multiple campuses, but I was not aware of the fairly new Northwest campus. It is in the Northwest area of the county, in the Berea area. It is in an area not frequented in my world. Quite frankly and sadly, I felt lost getting there. It's just not a familiar area for me. Somewhere out White Horse Rd. take a left through a beautiful entranceway, drive down a long and spectacular tree lined drive and come upon a magnificent campus. Wow. I had no idea. In the midst of an apparently very low economic part of town is this resort like campus. On this campus houses a major I have never associated with Greenville Tech. Food. There are approx 400 culinary students learning to be world class chefs in a state of the art facility. Who'd a thunk? On this occasion, I was invited to participate in one of the many "meals" prepared by the students. Apparently, every third week or so, the college puts on an eating event to allow the students to showcase their talents. It is not open to the public, but it is open to anyone invited. In my case, someone who knew someone who knew someone asked me. This day it was a general buffet lunch. Sometimes it is a themed lunch or dinner. Upcoming events include an Italian night, German night, etc. The cost for this lunch was $8, all inclusive. It included tax, dessert and drink. No tipping allowed. Just the way I like it. I walked in and the first thing that struck me was the unbelieveable ice sculpture. Turns out, ice sculpting is part of the curriculum. The many students in attendance were dressed in full white chef outfits along with chef hats. Their jackets were custome embroidered with their names. Impressive. The tables were dressed with linens, silver and glass. It was first class event. There was food everywhere. It reminded me of a spectacular Sunday brunch at a five star resort. I, of course, tried everything. Some things multiple times. Of those items I tried at least twice were...carved pork loin with mango and peach chutney, curried chicken with honey coconut glaze and lemon rice, poached egg with prosciutto on herb focaccia with basil mustard hollandaise, vegetables with goat cheese and lemon flavored turkey breast, spinach pear frisee sald with curried hazelnuts and there was much, much more. The desserts I enjoyed many times over included scotch scones with clotted cream, fresh fruit filled crepes and fresh baked danishes and muffins drizzled with flavored butter. Yes, I was a very bad Eating Man this day and I'm sure my boyish Eating Man figure will be penalized severely. But what the heck, I'm ready for the next one. TEM

Pizza. Setting the Story Straight

Pizza. Most people don't know good from bad. It's sad but true. So many folk around these parts just don't know. It's not their fault. It just is what it is. First, let's dismiss the chains. All of them but one. The new Dominos thin crust is palpable in a pinch. A good deal at $8 for a large cheese. The new recipe is actually ok, but just ok. It's a desperation eat at best. The rest aren't worth any amount of money. Now with that said, I would receommend any of the chains above any frozen pizza. I place frozen pizza on par with dog food. Now on to real pizza, at least the best we have in these parts  (Greenville, SC). By pizza, I mean New York style pizza. Thin crust. The kind you fold over to eat. None of this Chicago thick pizza. All crust and no taste. It's like eating bread with a little sauce. Not for me. With that said, the goal is to find real  NYC pizza. Like Rays or any other thousands in the big city. Unfortunately, we can only get close. Just close. My top five are  5) Bertolos   4) Barleys    3) Titos   2) Morrettis   1) Tony's (the one on Haywood rd next to TJ Maxx...the other Tonys around town are not affiliated and are not in my top 10). At Tony's, get the 20" cheese for $14. You'll need an SUV for transport. Cheese pizza is the bellweather. Use cheese pizza to compare. It's the purest form of pizza and doesn't have all the toppings that mask the core taste. There are other pizzas around that are ok, but a notch behind my top 5. In my second five would be Happy Pie, Acropolis, The Olive Tree, Mellow Mushroom and Illeanos. There are those who like brick oven pizza. I don't. For those who do, I think Trio has an ok brick oven pizza and as does Whole Foods. My suggestion...save up and take a trip to NYC. TEM