Events
Café 290 Fried green tomatoes at a Manor café By Dale Rice American-Statesman Restaurant Critic Thursday, October 2, 2003 They may be an old Southern staple, but good fried green tomatoes are hard to come by. Few places offer them; even fewer fry them well. Café 290 in Manor stands apart from that trifling tomato group. Sliced thick, lightly battered and fried golden, the cafe's tomatoes ($4.75) feature a firm texture and thin crust -- perfect for dipping in the accompanying ranch dressing. Beyond tomatoes, there are other good reasons to stop by 290. The chicken fried chicken ($8.75), pounded thin and fried with a moderately heavy crust, was served with cream gravy, freshly baked yeast rolls and corn muffins, with a choice of two sides that included well-cooked green beans with bacon. The thin pork chops ($9.50) were tender and well-seasoned, served with a big mound of mashed potatoes and nonoily fried okra. From the Wednesday lunch buffet, the chicken fried steak ($5.95 with rolls and two sides) had the same attributes as the fried chicken. Another special on the buffet, the hearty and flavorful chicken pot pie ($5.95) was made with potatoes, corn and other vegetables in cream gravy under a lattice crust. Vegetables that day included carrots (big chunks of fresh ones) and zucchini cooked with tomatoes. For dessert, the German chocolate cake ($2.95), made by one of the waitresses, and the homemade coconut custard pie ($2.95), with the coconut almost forming a top crust on the custard, were real treats. They finish a meal as keenly as the tomatoes start it. You may contact Dale Rice at drice@statesman.com or 445-3859. | ||||
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