Thursday, November 01, 2007
Lunch by the pound!
Larry Bly
Larry Bly has plenty on his plate these days. He's got two TV shows on Cox Cable Roanoke. Click ahead for details and showtimes.
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If anyone can make it in the tiny space at the corner of Jefferson and Campbell (formerly the Rabbit Patch), it would be Alex Choice, the current owner/operator of City Corner Fresh Foods. Or is it the City Corner Salad Bar? Or that Noodles & Salads Place? He seems to have signage issues.
Anyway, Alex is responsible for most of the Thai restaurants that have opened in the past few years in the Roanoke Valley, having started the first one downtown on Salem Avenue, near the City Market, which eventually became Tong's Thai. Then another in Vinton, which he sold to a family who operates a Thai restaurant there.
Alex is an interesting guy. For one thing, his last name isn't, or wasn't Choice. He was urged to shorten his real last name while in the military, probably because it wouldn't fit on a name tag. So, Chaichittananond became Choice. And I can't say that I blame him. He's an innovator and sharp thinker. He decided to take the small space downtown and make it a to-go restaurant. After getting over numerous hurdles with the city over the grill and fan system, he opened a few weeks ago. The half dozen or so times I've been there, business has been brisk.
For years in this column I've joked that many in Southwest Virginia judge a restaurant by how many pounds of food you get for $5. Now, Alex has brought it to fruition. For $4.99 a pound plus tax, you may choose from a 22-item salad bar, featuring six dressings. Or you can choose 8-12 fresh entrees prepared daily by Mrs. Chaichittananond, who's name is Anna. The secret to the freshness is very simple: she prepares small amounts of each entree and replenishes them frequently. Anna, by the way, is a great cook.
When they ran the restaurant in Vinton, there was everything imaginable on the menu: Thai, Japanese, Chinese, American, you name it. I tried a little bit of everything over the course of a year and there was virtually nothing she couldn't do well. So it's good to have her back again, believe me.
Alex runs the front of the house, Anna the kitchen. But the place is so small that they can still keep a close eye on each other during the work day.
The concept is simple. You come through the door, pick up your fancy plastic utensils and "to go" Styrofoam container, then choose either from the salad bar or from the hot food bar. Mix it or match it. Whatever you get it starts at $4.99 a pound and goes up from there, incrementally. Alex weighs out your final selection at the cash register and you're on your way.
If you'd like to eat on premises, there are eight bar stools at the window counter.
The salad bar is pretty much the same from day to day, but the hot entrees vary daily. On one recent cold afternoon there was grilled pork, steamed chicken, something called "stuffed eggs" (eggs stuffed with cooked chicken -- making one REALLY wonder about that "which came first" theory), sesame chicken, fried rice, and green curry chicken. There's also a fresh fruit bar.
Yet another day found the hot entrees to include spicy tofu, mushroom curry with chicken, beef broccoli, pud Thai, and Lo Mein. Most entrees are of "to order" quality -- fresh, flavorful, often exceptional. A real "find" one day was a steamed chicken with Grand Marnier.
Food by the pound has been a staple in Kroger food stores for years, of course. Many of my friends save time and money with Kroger's fresh food bar. But bringing the concept into a restaurant is something out of the ordinary. It's also probably wise in this case, considering City Corner Fresh Foods' small space.
As of this writing. it's lunch only, from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on Saturdays. That's wise, as the only way this can be a sit-down dinner spot would be street-dining during the warm months, if it's even allowed on Jefferson. For that, Alex will have to go back to the city for a few more go-rounds, no doubt. I'm sure he's up for the challenge. Don't even get him started!!
CITY CORNER FRESH FOODS
Corner Jefferson and Campbell
Roanoke
(540) 344-7006
