For our first meal in Cherokee, we chose Paul's Family Restaurant which is Indian owned and boasts of the "Best Burgers in Town."
As with most of our dining experiences in new locations, we say to each other, "Let's go into this with a good attitude!" So in we went.
We waited for a few minutes until the server could seat us. I was impressed with the Native American art that was hanging near our table. These are the seven clans of Cherokee Society.
We started with Fried Green Tomatoes. Our order included six nicely battered green tomatoes with a cornmeal coating and a cup of ranch dressing. They needed a little salt, but were served piping hot. It would have been nice to have had individual plates to be able to cut the tomatoes into bite-sized pieces, but our server disappeared before we could request them. We did the best we could slicing and dicing on the serving plate.
Sweet Harold apparently missed the memo that we are NOT in the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland. Now y'all remember that trip and how many times he ordered fish and chips. So here we are in Cherokee, North Carolina with frog legs, rabbit, elk, buffalo, pheasant, on the menu. Yes, he ordered fish and chips. Now here's where things sorta went sideways. The server mentioned when he ordered that the fish and chips came with slaw and was that alright with him. He, of course, answered in the affirmative.
Hmmm, no slaw here. When he finally got the server's attention to ask about his slaw, she responded, "Oh, we're out of slaw. Do you want a salad?" He told her yes and this was HUGE salad was delivered to the table.
So, I think he was happy they were out of slaw. But would she ever have mentioned the option of a salad if he hadn't asked for the slaw? We'll file that one under "Mysteries of the unknown."
Believe it or not, he thinks their version of fish and chips might have made his Top 10 List from our trip to Ireland. So there's that.
I wasn't going to miss an opportunity for a buffalo burger. When I questioned if I could have it on the Indian Fry Bread she answered in the affirmative. She asked if I wanted cheese, and WITHOUT LOOKING AT THE MENU, I answered yes. I noticed much later while going over our bill that the slice of American cheese added $1.50 and the fry bread "bun" added $3.50 to my burger total. But, I really wanted to try that fry bread.
The buffalo burger patty was delicious. The fry bread, while being amazing, probably used up my carb allotment for the remainder of the week.
I asked for some ketchup. Our server merely picked up a bottle from a nearby table of diners (who were still eating!) and put it on the table. I had to go to another (empty) table to find the mustard bottle. Maybe they only have one bottle of each for the entire restaurant? Another question to be filed under "Mysteries of the Unknown."
While we were waiting on our table, we saw a dessert carousel with a variety of cakes, pies, and cheesecakes. We did notice that their prices for a slice of these was a little more than we were willing to spend for our dessert today. However, on the white board where the specials were listed, we noticed a "Brownie Sundae" for 50 cents. When our server asked if we wanted dessert, I questioned her about the Brownie Sundae. She demonstrated with her hands about a 2-inch square and told us it was a brownie about that size with ice cream. I said, "Well, for 50 cents, I'll try one." She laughed and said, "Oh, it's $4.50.....someone wiped the '4' off the board." You can't make this up, y'all. I declined to pay $4.50 for a 2-inch brownie even if it did have ice cream.
So to recap: We spent more for this lunch that we had planned, BUT I did enjoy my Buffalo Burger on Indian Fry Bread. Sweet Harold was happy with this fish and chips and the large salad with a pleasant substitute for the missing slaw.
Service was, how shall I put this, relaxed at best. But it's just one meal and we have a great story.
I hate it when something gets left off my plate. Especially at the price of dining out now a days.
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