Some Good To-Go and Curbside Eats in the Triangle
It’s Friday, I’ve got a meal brewing on the stove, a glass of spicy shiraz, and I’m happy. I’ve done a lot of "curbside" and good old-fashioned walk-in-the-door takeout in the Triangle — Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill — over the last few months. Here are my picks for better than the rest take-out, worth-your-money curbside, and nicest (and worst) packaging out the door food–(If it’s all about the presentation, shouldn’t that count with food prepared to-go? the $$ you shell out are no different….)
Better-than-the-Rest Take-out: My experience has been that the best food you’ll get for takeout will not be at your middle of the road restaurants–nowhere you have parking spaces that are reserved for "Curbside." The best the take-out I’ve had recently has come from Five-Star in downtown Raleigh (however, I really recommend you eat in–Five Star is one of my faves, and will transport you to a higher plane (imagine glazed walls, ambient music, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon playing on the flat screen mounted high on a wall) ; Jujube in Chapel Hill, another Asian-fusion restaurant (again, funky atmosphere if you like the food and want to dine in at some point), my recommendation, try the sweet potato fritters and ask for sides of all the sauces; and La Russa’s in Chapel Hill the food was killer; some of the best Italian I’ve had and I hail from the northeast where Italian food reigns supreme– spaghetti with marinara and sweet Italian sausage, order of garlic bread and traditional lasagna, plus two 20 oz sodas– I think the final tab was about $44, but this was after delivery service Tarheel Takeout was compensated (their standard fee of $5 plus a tip for the lowly driver). You’ll pay about the same for these stellar eats as you would for what I call suburban food outlets which fall into my next category…
Worth-Your-Money Curbside: Chili’s and Outback are relatively consistent. Where I’ve noticed you’ll see obvious differences between eating in and take-out is scrimping on ingredients and garnishes– ie, toppings for salads like nuts and cheese and berries–you know the stuff you really wanted on the salad. And one of the best deals I get with Outback is the Seared Ahi Tuna, (a decent price for about 8 big slices and always very good). I’ve used Ruby Tuesdays curbside or whatever they call it and I was surprisingly unimpressed, food just seemed much lesser in quality than the same I’ve enjoyed in the restaurant: two soups with strange pastry/croutons(?) sunk in the middle, and an order of "sliders." Not sure I’ll do that again, first impressions are big.
Nicest packaging out-the-door food: Polystyrene is unattractive and most of the chain restaurants use it. Again, presentation is everything. For me anything edible that comes in the Asian inspired takeout boxes is head and shoulders instantly better than the stuff in polystyrene. Five Star, Jujube that I mentioned above both package their take-out in these origami-inspired containers and they stack much better in the frig as well as being all around friendlier to the environment. Worst packaging/presentation: Ruby Tuesdays. I mentioned above that I’d only ordered their "curbside" take-out once, but I wanted soup and an order of their supposedly "signature" sliders (mini cheeseburgers). The soup came out sloshing around in flat polystyrene, no bowl and when I got home and opened it there was this odd phyllo pastry that had been placed in the middle of the mess. Maybe it was some otherworld crouton, but I think it was a lame attempt to keep the soup from spilling out the sides of this completely inappropriate container. yuck and unappetizing, to be nice about it. Had that soup been served to anyone in the restaurant they would have sent it back.
Sometimes it’s just better to eat in or cook it yourself. Try my Friday food blog recommendation when you want to get your eat on.
