Willie’s Restaurant – 2014 Update

Laurie and I are lucky that Willie’s Restaurant is a little over an hour’s drive from our house… If it were close to us, our doctor would be screaming at us and we would be back up into the plus size clothing once again! 

Nevertheless, every once in a while we make the trip to Seymour Tennessee to indulge our appetite for Italian pasta dishes…

We usually take someone with us when we go over to Willie’s… This time we took our friends George and Lynn.  It had been a long time since we’d gone out to eat with them and although we usually accompany them to ‘fine dining’ establishments, this time it was off to experience some ‘fine’ Italian pasta dishes in a very casual setting…

Willie’s started out with a small restaurant in Seymour that served a variety of food…American basics, Italian pasta, pizza and even ice cream.  He was very successful at the original location so he’s moved to a much bigger location while remaining in Seymour. (He did open another location in Sevierville Tennessee but it’s now closed…)  

The expansive Seymour location is in a former BBQ restaurant…with the log walls providing an incongruous setting for Italian dining.  Willie himself was originally from Queens, a borough of New York City.  FYI…This is truly a family restaurant, no alcohol served or allowed…

I took this photo from Willie’s Restaurant website… This is Willie at work tossing pizza dough!

In our opinion, the key to Willie’s success has been consistently good food at very reasonable prices… It is our understanding that at one time he worked for the owner of Classico Italiano restaurant which is located in Loudon Tennessee.  If that’s true, the student’s offerings have definitely surpassed the teacher’s as regards quality…while maintaining significantly lower pricing.

At Willie’s old location in Seymour, a salad was included with your dinner but they were basic and they were brought to the table in a chilled bowl with your dressing on the side.  In his newer and larger location, dinner comes with an expanded salad bar…with the same pricing as before!

I always intend to stray from my favorite items on Willie’s menu…perhaps even stray from the many Italian pasta specialties.  However, we just don’t get over to Seymour enough and once again I went with my favorite…the Shrimp Fra-Diavlo (extra spicy). ($8.99 - with the salad bar!)

Lynn ordered the Chicken Scampi with Broccoli in a lemon butter sauce. ($8.99) She enjoyed her dinner, cleaning her plate down to the last bit of food.  Both George and Lynn thought that the pricing was very good, especially when one considers the quality and quantity delivered.  I didn’t take a photo of George’s meal because I’d taken one and posted it before…but now I can’t remember what he’d ordered…senior moment!

Laurie stunned me by trying something different…actually straying from her normal entrée…the Maine Lobster Ravioli ($10.99), which she loves!  This was a new item on the menu, Steak Fettuccini. ($10.99) While it wasn’t the most appealing dish to look at, Laurie said that it was very good and…yes, she would order it again!

One of these days, I will try something other than my favorite pasta entrees at Willie’s.  In all honesty it will probably be just a different pasta offering but why not!?  We haven’t found better pasta anywhere in the Knoxville metropolitan area…

Willie’s Restaurant in Seymour is located at 10321 Chapman Highway (US Hwy. 441).  Phone: 865-773-0170.  Website: http://www.willies-restaurant.com/.

That’s my Willie’s Restaurant update for 2014… Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

More ‘Homemade’ Pizzas

Frustrated with our lack of really good pizza in our area and simultaneously looking for something a bit different for dinner, we’ve continued to experiment at home with different ‘pizza’ crusts and combinations of ingredients…

We’re not into making our own pizza crusts so we’ve been shopping around for different commercially available alternatives… The larger crust on the left is a pre-packaged hunk of garlic naan that we bought at Food Lion. (I don’t remember the brand name) The other 2 crusts are also from Food Lion.  They are ‘Mama Mary’s Thin and Crispy’ and they come 3 in a pack.

All of the crusts were lightly brushed with olive oil.  The garlic naan was covered with pesto, pepperoni, crushed red peppers, shredded Italian blend cheeses and shredded parmesan. The pizza at the top was covered with slices of Havarti cheese, crushed red peppers, Italian seasonings and slices of leftover Italian sausage.  The pizza on the right was brushed with a commercial Pizza sauce, crushed red peppers were added and then it was layered with lots of leftover bacon…

These are the finished products of our labor… They were all good but the garlic naan pizza with pesto sauce was the favorite.  The pizza with the Italian sausage at the top was good but I did learn that the cheese belongs on top of the meat!  As you can see, the meat tended to slough off the pizza as the cheese underneath melted… The ‘bacon’ pizza was good as well.  You might have noticed that we added shredded cheddar cheese to this version before we put it in the oven.

Eight minutes in the oven wasn’t long enough to ‘brown’ the top of the pizzas or to crisp up the crusts.  Cooking time was about 12 minutes at 325 degrees.  Prep time took much longer than cooking time… These pizzas were as good or better than any we've found in local restaurants... They were individual pizzas but we still had leftovers…and I do like cold pizza!

We recently bought a different pizza crust from Fresh Market.  It’s an Old World Flatbread Rustic Crust…Crispy Italian Thin Crust.  We’ll see how this crust measures up vs. the garlic naan and Mama Mary’s in the not too distant future.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Critters and Fungus…

I thought that it was time to take a break from the food related blog!  When we’re not traveling or exploring East Tennessee, restaurants and food related topics end up as my primary blog post materials.  However, once in a while I end up with a scattering of miscellaneous photos.  Consequently I put together this posting…

Laurie took this photo of a couple of cute little miniature horses that live just a couple of miles from our house… They’re about the size of a large dog!

Of course, when it comes to critters, we live in J.D.’s house!  He is the most demanding cat we’ve ever had… He tells us when he wants me to come out of the bedroom in the morning or he wants a lap, also when he wants to be brushed and when it’s time to go to bed. 

He also lets us know when he wants to go out on the screened in porch!  As you can see he has a ‘really tough life’!  When he relaxes or naps, he is really out of it… By the way, when he wants something, he hollers at us until we deliver!

Laurie really likes turtles!  She has rescued 5 of them from the middle of various roads and highways so far this year.  She found this box turtle working his way through the moss in the side yard next to our house.

We were really startled at this sight…3 baby raccoons feeding in broad daylight alongside the street about 2 blocks from our house! (The 3^rd one is behind a couple of plants just to the right of the baby on the right side of the tree)

Raccoons can be pests when they grow up but they are really cute at this age.  Earlier this year we had to modify a bird feeder after it was raided by a full grown raccoon… Another time J.D. let us know that a big one was on our deck one evening and we chased him/her off.  

This fungus/mushroom was growing in the mulch along one side of our driveway… It is one of the weirder mushrooms we’ve ever seen.  It kind of popped up and then collapsed and was gone the next day! Laurie thinks it's called a Phallaceae Stinkhorn. Smells like a dead animal they say but we didn't smell anything. Yippee!
                               

I’ve spent a bit of time this year fishing down on Big Dude and Bev’s dock in a cove on Tellico Lake.  With the warmer summer weather, fishing slowed down a bit and this nice looking catfish was the only decent size fish that I caught on a recent morning… He was fun to catch and he fought just like a bass!

"What?!  Who, me?!  No, I’m not eating your Hydrangeas!  Nor did I devour most of the hostas in your back yard… After all, I’m just a sweet innocent little doe."  We don’t worry too much about whatever the deer eat in our yard.  Actually the skunks cause more damage to the garden as they root around for grubs…

Enough critters for now… Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

A Casual Feast on the Lake!

As Laurie’s sister and her brother-in-laws visit neared its end, all of us had one more very pleasant and satisfying experience…dinner on Tellico Lake…Big Dude and Beverly’s party dock to be specific.  Check out Big Dude's blogsite at: http://bigdudesramblings.blogspot.com. 

Their dock sits way up in a cove that only has one other rarely used dock in operation.  It’s a peaceful location surrounded with lots of trees…and it’s my favorite fishing hole too!

Bill…a police officer from the St. Louis MO area…has his back to Laurie’s smart phone/camera.  Bonnie is next on the left, then me, Big Dude (aka Larry) and Bev.

Larry and Bev have 3 dogs and a cat…if anyone can really ‘have’ a cat.  So there is Sweetie, Coco, Miss Kitty and this is Bodie.  Bodie joined the family as their granddaughter Madison’s pet… Bodie loves laps!

Bill and Bonnie really like chilling out on Bev and Larry’s dock!  Bill loves to fish so we went fishing 3 times on the dock during their visit… We didn’t catch much, but no matter what, it beats working!

I do take some of the pictures, (this one featuring Laurie and Bill), using a digital camera rather than a ‘smartphone’. 

  

I don’t have a smartphone and I’m very content with my old fashioned flip phone.  Last year I logged cell phone usage of only 22 minutes!  It’s a big change from my retail days when I had to be in constant communication with my staff and management…

On to the food!  We were started out with sweet hush puppies and honey as an appetizer.  Then we went for the gusto!  ‘Regular’ and delicious hush puppies and fried pan fish…or as they call them in these parts…fried ‘brim’.  I don’t believe that we left any of the fried fish behind!  I loved fried ‘panfish’ and these were great!!

‘Brim’ is a term used to describe several species of fish…including bluegill, sunfish, warmouth and pumpkinseed.  It’s also loosely used to describe any small ‘panfish’ and even some saltwater species.  Brim and bream are sometimes used interchangeably. 

I forgot to take photos of the ‘side’ dishes until it was almost too late.  This was what was left of some very yummy coleslaw…

Another fuzzy photo by Big Daddy Dave…pole or long beans cooked at length with ham hocks and some spices.  I had 3 helpings and Laurie was inspired to cook this side dish at home! Delicious!

Madison, Bev and Larry’s 16 year old granddaughter came down to visit with us for a bit… She’s pretty, smart and funny too!  Bodie found another lap... Bev’s sister Pat joined us for dinner as well but I didn’t get a printable photo of her…Sorry Pat!

As the evening approached and the shadows lengthened the time for our departure neared.  Thanks to Larry and Bev’s wonderful hospitality, Bonnie and Bill’s last night in East Tennessee was a pleasant and laid back experience indeed!

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Produce in Loudon Tennessee…

The other day Laurie and I were driving through Loudon Tennessee…not on US 11 but on Grove Street…and I spotted a new establishment that had set up shop in a previously empty building.  We decided to stop and check it out!

This is the Jiffy Park Produce store…a business that had been recently started up by a local couple.  During our first visit, we just bought a couple of tomatoes but we noted that they had some mighty fine looking peaches for sale…and Laurie would need several peaches for a dessert she was making for a party in a week or so.  We were assured that they’d still have some great peaches on hand when we needed them.

So, about a week later we stopped by to pick up the peaches and, as you can see, we picked up a few other items as well.  We bought half of a humongous cantaloupe, some zucchini and yellow squash, a jar each of pickled watermelon rinds and pickled beets (the owner canned the pickled beets herself)…as well as a 2 lb. package of Amish Roll Butter. (We love this butter over all others!)

The following day I cut up the cantaloupe into bite sized chunks, we each took a fork and we demolished 2/3 of this big serving bowl of fruit… This was hands down the best cantaloupe we’d ever eaten.  It was perfectly ripe and sweet to the pallet!

The produce and products are top notch, the price is right and the people at Jiffy Park Produce are very nice too… If you’re in the area, stop by and see what they have to offer!  Jiffy Park Produce is located at 911 Grove Street in Loudon Tennessee.  Phone: 865-408-2901 or 865-388-9807. 

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Knoxville’s Downtown Grill and Brewery

When Laurie’s sister Bonnie and her husband Bill came to visit us, we went to the Knoxville Farmer’s Market in Market Square and explored the possibilities, made a couple of purchases and, after a while, we decided to grab a bite to eat in a local restaurant…

This is the Downtown Grill and Brewery.  It’s located in the old W.W. Woodruff Furniture Store, a building that dates back to 1905.  Captain W. W. Woodruff, (Union Army), established W.W. Woodruff and Company on Knoxville’s “Old Baseball Grounds” ca. 1865.  It was one of the Knoxville’s longest continuously operating businesses finally closing in 1992…

This brings me to “the Curse of the White Mule”.  This ‘curse’ was localized to the block in which the store was built and it goes back to the mid-nineteenth century.  A Gypsy Circus came to town.  The story is that the side-show’s prize display–a white mule–died unexpectedly while visiting Knoxville.  The gypsies blamed the local folk for the death of their valuable side-show freak, and in revenge, they cursed the area and departed town in a huff.

No big deal…right?  The problem is that when curses seem to come true, they become urban legends in their own right!  During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, this area of downtown Knoxville had a series of uncanny fires break out, with the one in 1897 consuming most of this block.  In 1904, a dynamite explosion ripped off much of the façade of the ‘new’ Woodruff Building, which was rebuilt again in 1905.  Dozens were injured in the blast!  Since then, other happenings have occurred which some say are also due to the Curse of the White Mule. 

You can actually purchase a poster depicting the Legend of the White Mule!  Go to: https://www.etsy.com/listing/56975033/legend-of-the-white-mule-hand-printed.

Bonnie, Bill and Laurie posed for me at the Downtown Grill and Brewery.  Bill is about as well known for smiling in photos as I am!  The story about the White Mule goes that ‘libations will stave off the curse’.  The Woodruff Brewing Company…located in the restaurant…actually produces White Mule ale in honor of the legend…or is it just in case the curse is real?

Bill ordered a ‘flight’ of Woodruff Brewing Company beers…and he thought that they were quite good.  The selection included White Mule Ale, Woodruff IPA, New World Porter, Downtown Nut Brown Ale, State Street Stout, Downtown Blonde Ale and an Alt.  This was a bit too adventurous for me…as I usually stick to Miller Lite when I’m drinking beer…

Sorry for the glare in the photo…but I wanted to show a photo of the square bar in the middle of the restaurant’s 1^st level...(or is that a spirit haunting this building?)

The restaurant has 2 levels for dining as well as a party and game area in the back of the 2^nd level.  Diners can opt to be seated on the 2^nd level looking down on the bar and the giant ‘brewhouse’ or vat where the Woodruff Brewing Company makes its product. 

Bill started out with a House Salad… ($2.99) He loves salad!  It looked pretty good but I ‘saved myself’ for more serious eating…

The ladies ordered the Homemade Guacamole Dip with onions, cheese, tomatoes and a large portion of hot tortilla chips. ($6.95) They both love guacamole and they were very content with this heap of goodness!

We also ordered Soft Pretzels. ($6.95) This consisted of 2 large soft pretzels sprinkled with salt.  It was served with a side of their signature pale beer cheese for dipping.  The pretzels were nice but I prefer a cheese dip with a bit more bite or a deeper cheese flavor.

Our final food adventure for this snack type lunch was this 12 inch Cheese Pizza with the addition of spinach, Italian sausage and pepperoni. ($9.95) It was a very good pizza indeed!

The Woodruff Building became a restaurant in the early 1990’s.  The Woodruff Brewing Company was established in 2006.  The brew master was actually checking out his latest batch of beer or ale while we were dining.  This gleaming 15-barrel Bohemian brewhouse is located in the restaurant’s 1^st floor dining room.

Our waitress took this photo of our group after our late lunch.  (Starting at the left… Bonnie, Bill, me and Laurie). Following a bit of beer, some good food, a nice visit to Knoxville’s Farmer’s Market and a little touring around town, we were ready to head home.

Laurie and I will have to return to Downtown Grill and Brewery for dinner some night in the not too distant future…and provide a true review of this establishment’s other appetizers and a couple of dinner entrees.  

Downtown Grill and Brewery and the Woodruff Brewing Company are located near Market Square in downtown Knoxville at 424 Gay Street.  Phone: 865-633-8111.  They are open for business 7 days a week.  Website: http://www.downtownbrewery.com/.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave 

Knoxville’s Downtown Farmer’s Market

Despite having lived in East Tennessee…and within 45 minutes of downtown Knoxville, until recently we’d never gone downtown to check out the Farmer’s Market that is set up in Market Square on Saturday’s all summer long… Part of our excuse is that in general we don’t like crowds.  With Laurie’s sister Bonnie and her husband Bill visiting us, we were incentivized to check out this local event and attraction…

It was a Saturday morning when we visited the Farmer’s Market.  Right away, two things were obvious… First, this is a really big outdoor market!  Secondly, with thousands of folks in attendance, it is definitely a very popular place on Saturdays!

The Market Square Farmers’ Market is located in the heart of downtown Knoxville and it is celebrating its 10th season this year.  Everything at the Market is grown or made by the vendor in the East Tennessee region. Products vary by the seasons and include produce, eggs, honey, herbs, free-range meat, bread, baked goods, salsas, coffee, and artisan crafts.

Market Square is surrounded by old repurposed buildings…and some of them are architecturally interesting.  Restaurants and drinking establishments abound!  These include: Tupelo Honey Café; Trio; Blue Coast Burrito Grille and Margarita Loft; Café 4; Cocoa Moon; Latitude 35; Oodles Uncorked; The Tomato Head, and; Soccer Taco.

Many of the vendors at the Market are not produce or food vendors.  Products being sold include such items as soaps, candles, jewelry, crafts, clothing, pottery, furniture, flowers and plants, photos, coffee, dog treats and art work.

 

Busy place isn’t it!  Knoxville’s Market Square was conceived in 1853 as a clever real-estate scheme by two young investors who expected to get rich off the idea.  It became Knoxville’s most public spot, a marketplace familiar to every man, woman, and child in the area.  By the 1860s, it was the busiest place in a burgeoning city, a place to shop, work, play, eat, drink, and live.

We had no trouble spending a relaxing couple of hours touring the Farmer’s Market and checking out the products being offered… With the old buildings and the shade provided by the old trees, the atmosphere was easy going, despite the size of the crowd.

This is one of the many food trucks and food vendors… Mister Canteen has a bit of a Navy theme to it.  This is partly because the operator’s father and both grandfathers served in the U.S. Navy.  Many of the food items offered, such as ‘Egg Banjo’, are named after meals served on navy ships.  During World War II, one of their grandfathers served as a baker on the USS Vulcan AR-5.  Apparently everyone on the ship loved and looked forward to the weekly "Donut Day".  Each sailor was allowed two donuts, but apparently that didn't stop the men from fighting over them.  Consequently, Mister Canteen features donuts as their key dessert item…

I had to include a picture of Mister Canteen’s menu board.  It has serious character!  I was intrigued with the Indian Fry Bread Tacos…especially the part about the ingredients including ‘Riverplains Farm Mulefoot Hog’!  For 2 reasons I had to skip this treat… First, my favorite food vendor was just down the way and secondly, we were planning to go out for lunch after a while…

For more about Mister Canteen go to: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mister-Canteen/480897121980922?sk=timeline.

All of the food trucks and food vendors were lined up along one of the streets that run off one end of the Farmer’s Market.  Some of the many food trucks included in this group are: Bulls BBQ; Hoof; Savory and Sweet; Three Bears Coffee Company and; the Tootsie Truck.  As you can see, this side street was very popular with the shoppers!

This is my favorite food vendor!  Good Golly Tamale doesn’t even operate a truck or trailer… Their product is prepared in a local restaurant and then delivered via a bicycle food ‘cart’.  Our absolute favorite is the Thai Chicken Tamale, we each had one), but Laurie and I both also like the Black Bean and Cheese Tamale!

For more about Good Golly Tamale, you can go to https://www.facebook.com/goodgollytamaleknoxville.

Bill tried a milk shake from the Cruze Farm Milk Bar… It was very good but it took a long time for them to get it ready for him.  As you can see, they offer more than just dairy products.  Check out their Facebook site at https://www.facebook.com/CruzeFarm.

There were a few guys scattered around Market Square trying to earn a few dollars by playing music.  One ‘musician’ could just barely blow his horn…and he certainly couldn’t produce any music.  On the other hand, the gentleman in this photo…and his saxophone…could produce a melody for sure!

This little collage will give you an idea of the wide variety of produce, baked goods and flowers available at the Market.  As far as food goes, there were also vendors selling fresh sweet corn, coffee, mushrooms, fruit, herbs, meat/poultry, hot sauce, honey, jerky of various types, jams/jellies, tea, cider/apple pies and fried pies, jerky, hot sauces…you name it!  

To learn more about the Knoxville Farmer’s Market, including a list of vendors as well as an interactive map of the vendors and their products, you can just go to http://marketsquarefarmersmarket.org/.  The Farmer’s Market’s hours are: Wednesday from 11am. to 2pm. and Saturday from 9am. to 2pm.  The Market operates until November 22^nd of this year…

Of course, I liked watching the people wandering through the Farmer’s Market.  Even more to my liking was the fact that so many people had brought their critters with them…mostly dogs…but also a pet pig on a leash.  There were some other critters playing in the splash fountain in Market Square…and they seemed to be having the best time of all!

I’m ending this little tour with a photo of the “Scruffy City Hall and Brewery”, a new spot on Market Square for food, libations and entertainment… Initial public comments have been very positive and this business may well end up earning its own blog in the not too distant future.  The same company also owns “Preservation Pub”, “Knoxville Uncorked” and “Earth to Old City”, all on the Square.  If anyone checks this place out before we do, please let me know what you thought!  Check our Scruffy City Hall at http://scruffycityhall.com/.

Over the years, Market Square has developed into a venue that accommodates events ranging from concerts to political rallies.  Over the years, the Square has been a popular gathering place for artists, street musicians, war veterans, and activists.  Market Square was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.  

Knoxville's Market Square has been mentioned in the works of James Agee, Cormac McCarthy, David Madden, and Richard Yancey.  It has hosted performers ranging from Duke Ellington to Steve Winwood as well as politicians and activists.  Speeches have been made on the Square by such folks as Frances Willard, Booker T. Washington, William Jennings Bryan, Edward Ward Carmack, and Ronald Reagan. 

Just click on any of the photographs in order to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by and visiting Knoxville’s Market Square and its Farmer’s Market!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave