Dining a la Carteret
Floyd's 1921
by Sherley Buckland
What a
wonderful dining experience I had this week.
After a prosperous but long weekend of tall ships, I was ready to shift
my focus back to something I thoroughly enjoy—food!
I
thrive on the close bonds that develop between friends and family when they
sit down and enjoy a fabulous meal together. During that shared moment, you
get to check your cares at the door, relax and let the conversation flow.
Floyd
and Shana Olmstead have spent the past two years perfecting the environment
for such an encounter to take place. Floyd’s
1921 Restaurant and Bar, located at 4th and Bridges streets in
Complete
with its own garden and tractor, the Southern plantation-style home was
transformed by Floyd and Shana into a very comfortable and welcoming dining
showcase.
Open
for lunch and dinner, Floyd’s 1921 has three downstairs dining rooms, a bar
area and two private dining rooms upstairs.
They can accommodate any size or type of party.
The
restaurant can be completely full and the flow remains uninterrupted and
quiet. For example,
Floyd’s 1921 has 25 bridge groups that meet on a monthly basis.
They come in, play bridge, eat lunch and keep playing bridge, all
without impeding the normal lunch traffic.
All
things at Floyd’s 1921 Restaurant and Bar are meant to be comfortable—the
food, the atmosphere and the people. You
immediately feel welcome when you walk through the door.
Shana’s
lively personality and attentive hospitality make you feel right at home.
Floyd has an amazingly gentle, creative and thoughtful spirit, which
reflects in everything he prepares. They
have surrounded themselves with an awesome staff that shares their vision and
helps them succeed every day.
It has
been said that the proof is in the pudding. Here is your proof:
First
to arrive at the table was the shrimp Napoleon and the fried green tomato and
mozzarella stack.
Napoleon
is a term used in cooking that means small and rectangular, more commonly used
in dessert items. There were
rectangle shaped grit cakes in the shrimp Napoleon, but there was nothing
small here. The shrimp are sautéed
in a Tasso ham gravy and tossed with roasted red peppers, tomato and
scallions, then stacked on flash fried grit cakes.
Tasso
ham is Cajun; the ham is covered in Creole seasonings and smoke cured.
The Tasso ham really livens up this version of shrimp and grits, and
need I repeat my excitement over roasted red peppers?
The
fried green tomato and mozzarella stack is very light and fresh tasting; the
green tomatoes are tender and delicious. Accented with delicately fried shrimp
and drizzled in basil oil, this is a taste of true Southern comfort.
Following
the appetizers were two entrée salads. Yes,
big enough to have as your entrée, the salads are also available in smaller
versions on the lunch menu.
The
fried oyster mango salad is heavenly. Fresh
spinach is tossed with roasted red peppers, feta cheese, mango dressing and
walnuts, and then topped with lightly fried oysters.
Yum, yum, yum!
Roasted
red peppers are delicious with feta cheese and spinach salad.
If you’ve never tried oysters before, this is the way to try them
first. You taste a clean, fresh
oyster that is not overcooked, and complements the rest of the salad
perfectly.
The
chicken and pear salad is beautiful. Grilled chicken and pears are sliced thin
and top mixed greens, Gorgonzola cheese, red onions and toasted walnuts, all
finished with balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
When
the plates are set before you, you think, “Wow, what a great idea,” then
you eat them and think, “Wow, what
a really great
idea. Thanks for thinking of that!”
The
entrees arrived at the table next. The pan seared mahi and scallops, with
steamed asparagus over Yukon gold mashed potatoes with a yellow corn and leek
cream sauce, is a regular chef’s feature when mahi is available.
The
mahi is a fork tender, pure, delicate, white deep-sea fish.
The
Floyd’s
signature dish, the High Cotton crab cakes served over creamed spinach, would
make any crab cake connoisseur very happy.
Handmade crab cakes are all crab meat, no breading.
The crabmeat flakes apart when you touch the crab cakes with your fork.
Floyd even sneaks roasted red peppers in each crab cake giving it his own
special twist.
The
last entrée to sample before dessert was a trio of grilled lamb chops over
beet risotto with steamed asparagus in a roasted garlic cream sauce.
Definitely
the entrée to order over and over again, the grilled lamb chops are tender
and lightly seasoned. It was so
good I was tempted to gnaw the bones like an ear of corn to make sure I
didn’t miss a morsel of goodness.
Don’t
be alarmed—I resisted temptation, kept the bones on my plate and my manners
intact. The beet risotto is off
the hook—rich, creamy and full of flavor.
Keep
in mind that risotto takes hours to prepare correctly, thus, good risotto
should be greatly appreciated. The
lightly steamed asparagus is crisp and flavorful, providing a nice green
balance to this outstanding dinner.
As if
there could be any room left, dessert came next. How does a butter pecan ice
cream sandwich sound?
Butter
pecan ice cream layered between homemade pound cake and drizzled with
chocolate sauce is absolute Southern satisfaction!
If I hadn’t been so full, I would have eaten the whole thing.
Let me
make one small suggestion. Order coffee with dessert; it is that good.
If a butter pecan ice cream sandwich doesn’t tempt you, I’m sure
the chocolate Bailey’s Irish Cream cake will. Chocolate cake is topped with
chocolate Bailey’s Irish Cream mousse and chocolate ganache, garnished with
raspberry puree. Oh, heavenly
chocolate delight.
In
addition to all this wonderful food, Floyd’s 1921 has a concise regional
wine list and beer selection which Shana has meticulously built.
Shana
selected a 2005 South African Chardonnay-Semillon for our review.
The Boschendal Le Pavillion is very soft with oaky tannins, a crisp
finish, and was a perfect complement to everything we sampled, from the
appetizers to dessert.
At
Floyd’s 1921 Restaurant and Bar in
Quick
Bites
Location:
Phone: (252) 727-1921
Hours: Monday: lunch only; Tuesday though
Saturday: lunch and dinner; Sunday: brunch from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.,
including a low country boil.
Payment Options: Cash, MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover.
7/14/06
See the previously reviewed restaurants on the Restaurant Archive page
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