UNCLE BERTO's BURRITOS

Uncle Berto's Burritos, 100 Batesville Rd,
Simpsonville, SC

Uncle Berto's is tucked into a side of a strip mall and on first glance appears to be a chain, but is actually a local restaurant run by very friendly folks. We visited two times and have pleased with everything we ordered with one exception.

On our first visit we both had quesadillas, my wife had chicken and I had chorizo. Both were very tasty. You are also served complimentary chips with bean dip, plus there's a salsa bar.

On our second trip, I had a California burrito with chorizo and my wife ordered a tostada with beef and a taco with pastor (seasoned pork). Although I preferred my previous order of chorizo quesadilla, everything this trip was also very good with one exception: the taco was soggy.  Overall, I can recommend Uncle Berto's for anyone looking for something other than your usual order by the number Mexican restaurant. As a side note, on both our visits a lot of Hispanics were eating here, so I guess that says something for the authenticity of Uncle Bertos'

B&B BAR-B-Q

B&B Bar-B-Q, 3020 Walhalla Highway, Six Mile, SC

UPDATE: B&B BAR-B-QUE is CLOSED

B&B Bar-B-Q is located 6 miles past the Pickens Flea Market going toward Walhalla. We've passed by the place many times and talked about the parking lot always being full. Figuring it must be good, we finally stopped and ate there last Wednesday. With all the cars in the dirt parking area, it looked like it would be really crowded inside, but it turned out, just like the TARDIS, to be bigger on the inside. 

They not only have BBQ, but also hamburgers, hot dogs and other diner type sandwiches. We both got BBQ plates, although I will have to say the neighboring table's cheeseburgers looked mighty good. You get two sides with your plates and we chose baked beans, potato salad, slaw, and Brunswick stew (only available on Wednesday and sometimes on Thursday, if they didn't sell it all on Wednesday). You choose your sauce and they sauce the BBQ in the kitchen. I'm not too fond of this method, since I want to taste the meat, not the sauce, but decided to go with the flow and we both chose the tangy mustard. Turned out the sandwich was pretty good served that way and the meat would definitely need sauce, since without any sauce, it didn't seem to have much smoke taste. The sides were all excellent, with in my opinion, the Brunswick stew being the standout. 

I inquired about whether the chocolate cake on the counter was homemade and it turned out one of the two waitresses had made it. I think everyone working there was somehow related. The cake was a great finish to the meal. 

Would I go to B&B Bar-B-Q again? Yes definitely, but I think I would just order the Brunswick stew and maybe some sides, since the BBQ itself was the least interesting item I ate there. Even if you don't want to eat, you can always play some Ms. Pac-Man on the well worn machine they have.

The FARMER'S TABLE

The Farmer's Table, 401 E. Kennedy St,
Spartanburg, SC 

The Farmer's Table is located in an office park, which in years past was an actual farmer's market. This is one of the strangest places I have ever found a restaurant, but boy, was it worth finding.  Over the past few weeks, we had already made our rounds of our favorite Spartanburg restaurants (Holmes Hot Dogs, Bubba's BBQ & Bash, and Wade's Restaurant), so we decided to seek out some place we hadn't eaten before in Sparkle City and ran across The Farmer's Table while doing some Google research. 

Above are views from our table looking outside and from our table toward the front of the restaurant. Before I get to the food, let me say a word about our waiter, Jason. Either we got lucky or all the waitstaff here is really good, something that will have to be decided on future visits. Regardless, Jason was top notch, knowing how to be personable, unobtrusive, and attentive all at the same time.  Now on to our meal.

My wife chose the Smooth Cajun – Boars Head Salsalito turkey, Split Creek Farms goat cheese, guacamole, lettuce, tomato, sriracha mayo & fried onion strings on Great Harvest Bread Company popeye loaf with a side of house made broccoli salad (a side equal in taste to the sandwich). Both items were so good and so tasty that I almost wish this is what I had ordered, until I tried my own meal.

I ordered Shrimp & Grits – house made chicken Andouille sausage, peppers, red onions, tomatoes, Farmer’s Table Signature spice blend & shrimp served over Charleston style cheese grits with a side of house made red skin potato salad. I rarely order shrimp and grits finding it to be sort of a blah dish, but seeing the ingredients in this version, I thought I would give it a try, and it turned out to be anything but blah. A perfect blending of flavors with the potato salad a perfect accompaniment, adding a cooling element to the spiciness of the Andouille.

The Farmer's Table has an extensive menu of lunch and breakfast items. I can only assume everything will be great, since our first two random selections were so good. We'll definitely be going back and adding The Farmer's Table to our rotation of Spartanburg restaurants. 

Updated visit on 4/23/2015. My wife once again ordered the Smooth Cajun with a side of broccoli salad, I tried the HBLT - Boars Head maple ham, 3 strips of apple wood smoked bacon, romaine lettuce, 2 fried green tomatoes and house made shallot aioli on grilled wheat bread. Another good sandwich, although not as good as my wife's Smooth Cajun or as good as the shrimp and grits I had last time; however, I'm already planning what to get on my next visit in a couple of weeks, that's how much I like The Farmer's Table. 

VELO FELLOW

The Velo Fellow, 1 Augusta St, Greenville, SC 

While I will have a couple of negative things to say about Velo Fellow in this review, I'm saying up top that I had a fun time going there and would definitely go back.

We arrived a a little after 2pm on a weekday, so the lunch crowd (I'm assuming there was a lunch crowd) had already cleared out and went back to work. Being mostly retired, we usually eat lunch later than most folks. The hipster (handlebar mustache was the dead giveaway) bartender asked us about beverages and when I asked him what type of ales they had on draft, he sorta sneered and said "lots". When he listed them there was a pale ale and I ordered that one (I must remember to include the word "pale" next time to avoid being looked down as some type of beer commoner...LOL). My wife, on the advice of the bartender, ordered the above Hefe Weissbier, which she liked so much, she's carrying a photo of it around on her phone. 

For our meal, we both ordered the fish and chips, which is supposedly their most famous menu item. For my taste, the fish was way over battered and over fried (might be authentic, but not for my taste); however, my wife thought it was great. The chips (sliced lightly fried potatoes), I really liked, although the wife said she would like them fried a little more.  She would order the dish again, I would order something different. A little pricey for lunch (42.00 pre tip, of course half of that was 4 beers).  My final verdict, I am looking forward to another visit to the Velo Fellow, and will write the word "pale" on my hand, so I will be able to remember to include it when ordering a beer, I just don't think I could stand being looked down on by a hipster twice in my life...LOL!

ANOTHER COLLECTION

I didn't mean to start another collection...I swear I didn't...but if 3 makes a collection, I have already passed that point, mostly due to thrift stores. My first find was the above LP - Making Love - that I found at a Miracle Hill Thrift Store.

Next I found the sealed soundtrack to The Devil In Miss Jones at a Goodwill Thrift Store. 

The next LP, Lessons in Love,  was scored at another thrift shop, but I can't remember which one, but this made 3 and started the collection. 

My fourth find was at an estate sale instead of a thrift shop and is titled Erotica, The Rhythms of Love, which turned out to be bongos with some moaning and groaning in the background.

And finally (so far), I found The Way To Become The Sensuous Woman at another Goodwill Thrift Store.

So, that's my unintended collection so far of erotica LPs, but who knows what oddball vinyl record I'll turn up in another thrift or estate sale to add to my unintended collection. 

Update: Found the below at Salvation Army in Greer, SC
Another Update: Found a second copy of the below LP, approximately 2 miles up the road at the Goodwill in Greer, SC.

The CLOCK on CONGAREE

A year or so ago, the Wade Hampton Clock Restaurant was on the verge of closing due to a raise in rent. A panic went up among all their long term customers and the landlord made a deal with the owners instead of becoming one of the most hated men in Greenville. We went more frequently, since we realized how an institution we grew up with could become "Ain't Dere No Mo". During this renewal the older co- owner, George, decided to retire and he sold out to the younger co-owner, John. Unfortunately, this gradually caused a slip in the quality of the food - dry chili on the hot dogs, hard onion rings, under cooked french fries, and reports of super thin hamburgers. Regretfully, we just stopped going, even though John is a nice guy, the food was no longer up to what it used to be. 

Well, the grease is back, because George came out of retirement and opened another Clock on Congaree (just behind Haywood Mall). Finally, all the old favorites: hot dogs, chili cheeseburgers, 1/2 and 1/2 (onion rings and fries) are being served once again with the taste we remember.  How good was it.....well,as soon as I walked out the door, I was thinking about how soon I would be back! I guess the only drawback is the sweet tea is just barely sweet, but then that's the way The Clock has always served it. 

Just like the old Saturday Night Live skit...this Clock....like the Chicago restaurant spoofed in that skit, has "NO COKE, PEPSI!" 

MAD CUBAN CAFE

Mad Cuban Cafe
699 Fairview Rd # C, Simpsonville, SC 29680

Mad Cuban Cafe is tucked away in a strip mall just off Fairview Rd in Simpsonville.  We saw their roadside sign on our way back from Southern Catch. Since I'm always looking for a good empanada, we thought we would give them a try. 

We ordered two empanadas (a Cuban stuffed with ham, pork, Swiss cheese and a Carne), plus we split a Croquetta Preparada Cuban sandwich which had pork, ham, Swiss cheese, smashed croquettes (breaded deep fried minced ham balls), mustard and pickles. My wife really liked the Cuban empanada, and I really liked the Carne (ground beef), both were excellent. The sandwich, on the other hand, even with all those ingredients was pretty bland, if it hadn't been for the mustard and pickles, it would have been fairly tasteless. We also split an excellent tres leches for dessert. The staff were friendly, greeting everyone on arrival and thanking everyone on departure, which is always nice to see a restaurant appreciate their patrons. Would we return? Well, if we were already in Simpsonville and wanted empanadas (and some of that great tres leches), the answer would be be yes, but I wouldn't make a special trip to eat there.