Feasting Raptors Feast Review: Eskamoe's

Alright, time for review 1 from the wonderful Amy, half of the Feasting Raptor team! Today, after a long morning of work (longer for Ellen than for me, I'll admit), Ellen and I met to try Eskamoe's, a newer fast food restaurant in Daphne, AL. I'll admit to being curious about Eskamoe's for a while. They claim to serve custard and other things, the other things being hot dogs. Ellen had gone before with her mother and tried the custard, but we were eager to get the whole Eskamoe's experience.

Okay, so today (Thursday, March 10), Ellen and I met up around 1:30 pm for a late lunch after work. We walked in and I immediately noticed the atmosphere. It had a sort of old diner/soda fountain feel, with the metal tables and a bar with tall, red stools. On the wall was a huge menu written in what seemed to be different color dry erase markers. It definitely had a fun feel to it. Most of the board was full of different custard and shaved ice options, with a tiny part devoted to the hot dog portion of the meal. There weren't many options to put on the hot dogs. Mostly the basics: cheese, chili, relish, ketchup, mustard, etc. Ellen and I both got the 'Double Dare' something or other, which meant we got 2 hot dogs with 2 toppings for $5. The price was definitely acceptable. And the taste was even more so. Ellen and I both love chili cheese dogs, so the choice of toppings was obvious. And boy were those hot dogs tasty. The chili was the perfect consistency for chili dogs. It was a meat only chili, which Ellen and I both preferred, and it was a bit runny, which is how chili on hot dogs should be. It soaked into the bun and amplified the taste of the hot dog itself. Oh, and it wasn't too salty, which is important with chili. A picture of my wonderful hot dog experience is seen below.

After our tasty chili cheese dogs, Ellen and I went for the custard. Luckily, I had a buy one get one free coupon, so our total ticket for custard ended up being about $4.50. Now, this might seem expensive, but for custard this is definitely affordable, especially considering that Ellen and I each got 'The Volcano', which is a tasty treat with custard surrounded by chocolate chip cookies and covered with hot fudge and whipped cream. It was very delicious. I could have used a bit more hot fudge on mine, but other than that, it was perfect. I will mention that Ellen got vanilla custard with her Volcano, while I got chocolate custard. Ellen wasn't as much of a fan of mine. She thought the chocolate custard made the dessert too rich. However, I disagree. I love rich dessert, so I was in heaven. If you like your desserts with a bit more chocolate, I would suggest the substitution. If not, stick with the vanilla. Or not. There were a ton more flavors of custard that would have been tasty. Below is a picture of the ever so dramatic Volcano.

Would we recommend it?

I believe I speak for Ellen as well when I say that I would definitely recommend this place. If you don't like hot dogs, then I probably wouldn't go for lunch, but the custard is definitely worth making the trip. And if you do like hot dogs, they have pretty good ones. Granted, I prefer my hot dogs grilled, but that's just a personal preference and it doesn't take away from the fact that their hot dogs tasted good, were hot, and had the perfect toppings. It's a relatively inexpensive place to do lunch, and the food actually tastes good, which is always a plus. As far as the custard goes, I am definitely going back to try all the different flavors. There were plenty, so it might take awhile, but I believe it to be a worthwhile endeavor. And if you like custard (which I generally find to have a smoother texture than ice cream, and also a better taste), then you definitely need to check this place out. Of course, if you are looking for something more than simple, good food, then this is not the place for you. The decor isn't fancy and the food is served in paper trays, but it tastes good and it definitely hit the spot that was craving a good old-fashioned hot dog.

Would we get this again?

Yes, I believe that I would get both the hot dogs and the custard again. The hot dogs were good, and sometimes I'm just in the mood for a good chili dog. And as previously stated, I am definitely going to try some of the different flavors of custard. I'm not sure if I would get the Volcano again. They have lots of options, and the brownie sundae definitely caught my eye for next time. But it was certainly delicious and something that I could see myself eating again.

Final Rating

Feasting Raptors gives Eskamoe's 4 Raptor Claws out of 5.

"The raptors consumed all of their kill with enjoyment, but decided that this particular meal was only for days when the craving for something simple and hearty overpowered them."

Feasting Raptors Feast Review: IHOP Chicken and Waffles

It's our first official food post! It's on IHOP's latest food promotion, Chicken and Waffles. Amy and I decided we needed to start somewhere, even if ,it was a chain restaurant. So after seeing it advertised on IHOP's Pancake Day for Charity (where we ate delicious free short-stacks), this is where we start.

We went together on Saturday, March 5th, to our local IHOP in the town over. It was packed, but that's really no surprise. As we have plenty of Waffle Houses here, we have only one IHOP in our metropolitan area. Amy put our party name in and we waited rather briefly. We got to see a woman bitch about how it was too hot and humid in the restaurant, while Amy and I thought it was rather cold after sitting awhile at our table.

We both put in our order for Chicken and Waffles with water to drink.  Needless to say, because of the busy atmosphere, it took a while for our food to appear. We sat, talked, and sipped our waters. Our waitress was rather nice. Finally, we received our bounty.

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Input from the future mother of raptors...

Hello, all! As Ellen so eloquently stated, I am the other half of Feasting Raptors and the inspiration for the wonderful title. My abnormally long second toes have been a long standing joke between us, one that has spread to all of our friends and family. And let me just say that one day, when my raptor children are feasting on your flesh, I shall be the one laughing.

Okay, on to the blog. Yes, we love food. Food is delicious, in all its forms (except raw vegetables, bleh). And considering our penchant for trying every new restaurant or recipe, we have eaten a lot of it. This blog is to catalog all of the food that we consume, and considering how often we eat together, you can expect updates a few times a week. I hope that we can inspire you all to try new restaurants and the delicious food that you see on our blog. And hopefully you will enjoy it as much as we do!

Now, Ellen is definitely more of a writer than I am, so you can expect her posts to have more of a flow. Mine will be more raw, but since I am a passionate foodie, hopefully just as awesome. So, yeah, sit back and enjoy the ride, because we sure will. I am hoping to make our first entry about Chicken and Waffles, because that is a combo that must be tried at our earliest convenience. I am very excited. Love you all!!

Amy

A new blog....and here we go!

This is a new blog created by my best friend and I to explore our ridiculous love of food. We both are excited to see how this goes.

The title comes from the fact that I like to pretend Amy's genes will spawn a line of Velociraptors due to the length of her second toe on both feet. I'm sure she will go into that sooner or later on here. However, let's get to the main point: we are best friends of nine years who love to try new foods, new food places, and overall, love to eat. I don't mean snack when I say eat either. One of us is a Southerner, born and bred, the other is a Southern transplant. We love food.

We have both stated that we could probably diet with much more ease if we didn't love food so much. I personally love flavors. I spend my days watching (and torturing myself with) food shows on the Travel Channel and Food Network. I like cooking with spices to avoid too much salt; I like different cooking techniques and want to try new things. Food, besides preservation, is one of my loves. I just wish I was a better cook.

So, this blog will officially record our new food outings both together and apart. Some posts will be by me, others will be by Amy, but I can guarantee it will only future good, tasty food.

Here's to some good eats,
Ellen