The Windmill Family Restaurant - Pikeville, Kentucky

The holiday season is already over.  Can you believe that?  Can you believe we just blew through Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the New Year in one big massive blur?  The insanity is over just as quickly as it began, and now everyone is back into the rhythm of life...right?  Hopefully each of you had a great holiday season.  I know I did.

There's always that weird in-between time, though.  That odd 5 day period between Christmas and New Years that seems to just be there for no good reason.  It simply exists, and that's about it.  Rarely does anyone do anything during this nearly week-long stretch of days, and I'm no exception.  It's just something I use as an excuse to be lazy and waste time between opening presents and watching the ball drop.  Thankfully during this time, I got a call from an old friend who had just recently moved to Pikeville due to a new employment opportunity.  He invited me over to check out his new apartment, catch lunch with another mutual friend of ours, and just hang out and catch up.  Dude time, if you will.  Sounds splendid.  So, I hopped into my car and made the trek to Pikeville. 

Once I arrived and did the status quo tour of his new place, our other friend arrived as well, and offered to drive us all to lunch.  Where exactly, I wasn't sure.  I just know it was well past lunch time, I'd skipped breakfast, and we were all hungry enough to harvest roadkill if necessary.  So, we all piled into his car, and we headed back out onto 23 toward the direction I'd just came.  He said we were going to a local favorite, so of course my eyes lit up. 


A few minutes later, we arrived at our destination.  We were on top of a hill, behind some trees.  There was no way to see this place from the main road, or any other road.  Talk about mystique.  I've done this enough though, to know that the farther out of the way, the better the food.  I was excited.

"X" marks the spot. 

 

My company and I entered the restaurant, and were immediately told by a waitress to go ahead and have a seat.  It wasn't all that busy, I think there were 3 other tables of people enjoying themselves, so we had our pick of where we wished to sit. 

Just a quick look.

A closer look.  I've always liked the use of lattice, whether indoors or out.

A different angle.

Big, awesome, cozy corner tables!

We chose the middle.  It just seemed to call out to us. 

We sat down, and a nice lady immediately came over to give us some menus, and to take our drink orders.  I always feel a bit of anxiety when I come to a place I've never been.  I never know what to order because most of the time it all sounds amazing.

The cure for anxiety.

"A good meal at the top of the hill".  Brilliant!

Welp never mind, my anxiety is back.

Look at those prices!  Not bad at all!

There's no way I'm going to be able to pick something from this menu.  It's just not going to happen.

If it wasn't already obvious, I'm going to be in for something good.  This is an old school family style diner with home cooking, burgers, various sandwiches, and all kinds of amazing sounding stuff.  How do you narrow something like this down??  You don't.  You just read over everything, over and over again, and eventually point to something, praying that you made the right choice.  That was certainly my method this time around.  Actually that's my method most of the time, but whatever. 

Our orders were taken, and that gave us time to chat a little and get caught up.  That's always a good thing.  Being at such a hectic stage of our lives and just simply now being older, we have a lot more to talk about these days.  It was nice.  After about 15 minutes, our food made its way to our table.

And oh my dear lord.

After my eyes finally adjusted and my brain finally comprehended what was going on, I just kind of smiled.  This was the special of the day.  Noodles with roast beef and gravy, with homestyle mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, and a side of cornbread.  And no I couldn't fit it all into one shot.

Ahh, here we go.  Steamy, cheesy goodness.

Sweet crumbly, buttery cornbread....how I love you.

I wasted no time.  I dug in, and let me tell you, I savored every moment.  This was a top notch meal.  Very hearty and filling.  The noodles were al dente, the mashed potatoes were from scratch with just the right amount of brown gravy, and the roast beef....wow.  Fresh from the oven, nice and seasoned, moist and flavorful.  Very good texture as well.  Very savory. 

Try to find the right words.  You wont.  You CAN'T.

We all three gleefully ate until we couldn't.  What they had looked amazing as well, one being chicken and rice with salad and soup beans, and the other being country fried steak with white gravy and a baked potato and fried cinnamon apples.  Home cooked has now taken on a whole new meaning, even in the eyes of three country boys.

Dessert seemed laughably out of the question, but the more we each thought about it, the more tempting it became.  You know how that goes.  While I didn't think I could handle it, another thought he could, so he ordered up a piece of hot fudge cake. 

Booyah.

Of course I took a bite.  A big bite.  It was good.  Nothing life changing, but still held its own.  Hot fudge cake seems to be one of those things that is always pretty standard almost anywhere you go.  Run of the mill, but good.






Time for the nitty gritty!





Food Quality:
As I stated before, this place is a very down to Earth family diner.  The food is made to order with a wide variety and daily specials.  I almost went for what they call "The Coal Miner's Breakfast", but passed at the last moment in lieu of the special.  While the breakfast sounded great, I didn't regret my decision for a single moment.  My food was fresh, hot, and plenty of it.  The mashed potatoes were homemade with the right amount of brown gravy, and the mac and cheese was firm and flavorful with nice thick cheese.  The roast beef and noodles were amazing.  The noodles were cooked al dente, and the roast beef itself was thick and savory with great texture.  There was also a lot of it, so you didn't run out with a half plate full of noodles still remaining.  I only had a bite of my friend's hot fudge cake, but it was really good.  Not great, but definitely worth ordering if I go back.  It was cakey and fudgey, and that's about all you can hope for with hot fudge cake.
Overall food quality score: 4/5





Ambiance:
The restaurant isn't very big, but it's nice and open with plenty of room between tables and booths.  There was classic music from the 60s playing over the stereo, which added a lot to the experience.  The temperature was on point.  The lighting was very nice as well.  They still had their Christmas decorations up, which I got a kick out of.  Considering how fast it all seemed to fly by this year, it was great to get to feel a little more holiday spirit before the year ended.  There were also a couple of nice landscape paintings donning the walls,  The 'old school family diner' feel is something that you can't just pull out of thin air.  It just simply has to be there.  It has to be authentic, and this place does it very well.
Overall ambiance score: 3.5/5





Cleanliness:
I'll be upfront with this.  This place does allow smoking.  It really doesn't bother me and I don't pay it much attention regardless of where I am.  I know some do have opinions about it, so I just wanted to go ahead and throw that factoid in there.  It does have that musty/smokey smell to it. Again, it doesn't bother me at all, but for various reasons, it did need to be addressed.  It's also an older building, so it has that classic/vintage look to it.  "Old" in no way equals "dirty", and that's a mistake a lot of reviews seem to make.  As far as I could tell, The Windmill Restaurant was clean, the tables were all wiped down, the chairs were in good shape, the floors were clean and free from stains.  I didn't have a chance to visit the restrooms, so I can't comment on those.  Overall, I had no issue. 
Overall cleanliness score: 3.5/5





Service:
Our waitress was very nice and attentive.  There was a couple of times she forgot what we needed and came back to ask.  That's common and it happens to the best of us.  She also seemed a tad nervous, so I'm not sure if she had just stared, or if she was just filling in for someone.  Either was possible.  Nevertheless, she was very nice and attentive.  We were well taken care of, and I feel she did a good job. 
Overall service score: 3.5/5




My experience at the Windmill Family Restaurant was very good, all in all.  Mom n' pop places are always a treat, and this place was a local and mom n' pop as it honestly gets.  It was unapologetically genuine and thoroughly 'Eastern Kentucky', and by golly, that's all I wanted.  Good food, good service, good friends, good conversation, and just a chance to get out of the house for a little while.  I couldn't have asked for more.  Happy new year, and thanks for reading!






Oh by the way, we went to Bob Amos Park afterward.  I'd never been, and I can now say it's well worth the extra few minutes to get there.  Check out that view!

The Moose Cafe & Farmers Market - Greensboro, North Carolina

Made a buddy in Greensboro.

Sometimes, you just have to go outside of your geographic comfort zone, and see what the rest of the world has to offer.  In this case, this tried and true UK fan proudly strutted into enemy territory only a mere days after Duke had won the NCAA championship.  The end result of this is far less climactic than you're probably imagining.  I arrived in Greensboro late Friday night to see an old college friend of mine for the first time in many years, and to FINALLY meet his wife, and daughter, who would be celebrating her first birthday the very next day.  I was overdue for a visit, in other words.  So, there were no pitchforks and angry mobs meeting me at the state line, no 'boos' or 'hisses' as I went through the Triad, and no flaming wads of toilet paper being hurled at my car at any point during my excursion.  North Carolina is actually a beautiful state with a lot of culture and history, and the people there are as nice and welcoming as they are here.  It's a 'home away from home' without a doubt.

I pretty much said hello and crashed when I arrived Friday night.  We got up the next morning, and partied at Barber Park in south Greensboro like any mid-30s crew possibly could for a little girl's first birthday party.  We were lucky the cops weren't called as we ate rainbow unicorn cake.  We wrapped up the day just enjoying each others company, and I went to bed, still exhausted from the trip the night before.  I was awakened the next morning by a loud knock on the bedroom door, followed by a stern "breakfast time!  Get up!!".  I knew right then I was probably in for a treat.

We loaded up the cars (there were actually 9 of us staying there this weekend), and we headed out to what I gathered was probably the best place in the area to get Breakfast; The Moose Cafe.  After a 15 minute journey through some beautiful neighborhoods, we arrived.  I was immediately impressed upon pulling into the parking lot. 

If you squint really hard and believe, you can see the Greensboro Farmer's Market.

The Moose Cafe and the Farmers Market are owned by the same people, and are on the same property.  That means this is a "farm to table" restaurant.  They grow, raise, and harvest their own foods.  That's as fresh as it gets.  I've not even walked through the front doors of this place yet, and I'm already excited.

The front of the restaurant.  Sorry for the vehicles in the way.

Right side of the restaurant.  I couldn't fit it all in one shot no matter how hard I tried.

Small garden and picnic area in front of the main entrance.

Indeed!

We walked in, and clearly seen that the restaurant was packed.  There was a waiting list, and our greeter told us it would be roughly 15 minutes before a group our size could be sat.  Luckily, we were seated in 10.  Our server not only greeted us with a smile and a welcome, but she brought out a basket full of free biscuits....you read that right, at The Moose Cafe, you get complimentary homemade buttermilk biscuits, as well as fresh house recipe Apple Butter. 

Such riches and rewards are only documented in the Bible.

Yes, it was just as good as it looks.  Hot, fresh, and amazing.  The in house apple butter was crisp and sweet, and complimented it perfectly.  I feel I should remind everyone that I haven't even placed my order yet, and haven't paid the least bit of attention to anything else around me.  Once I scarfed this bad boy down, I gave a quick and easy assessment of the cleanliness and ambiance of this place.  For a reminder of how I do this, please refer back to my very first review here. 

Cleanliness:
The Moose Cafe is clearly a place that not only takes pride in its community, but that pride carries over to how well maintained it is.  This place was crazy busy, and the floors were still virtually spotless.  The only thing I could see in the way of clutter was a table where a small child was sitting, and there were crumbs and a straw wrapper underneath.  Our tables and silverware were neat and clean as well.  Everything appeared to be organized, and tidy.  The men's room was out of soap, but that was possibly due to being slammed during brunch hours.  It happens.  Everything else was great.  I saw no posted health department score, but they may not be required to do so in another state.  I didn't really look for one, either.  Very clean, well maintained establishment.
Overall Cleanliness Score:   4.5/5


Ambiance:
In addition to being clean and organized, this place really rocks it in the ambiance department.  The temperature was perfect, and there was country music playing very lightly in the background.  The walls were white, and the waiting area had a small gift shop with locally made products, so you could browse while you wait!  The restaurant itself is divided into two different sections.  As I've said in past reviews, this don't give an awkward feel at all.  This place is big enough that it doesn't feel cramped in the slightest, even with the level of business that was going on at the time.

The 'Right Wing', where we were sitting.

The 'Left Wing', where EVERYONE ELSE was sitting.  Notice the painted mason jars and moose antlers?  Very cool.

Left side of the left wing.  As I said, packed house.

Overall Ambiance Score: 5/5

Only moments later, our server took our orders.  I kept perusing the menu, because at a place like this, it's almost impossible to make a decision.  You KNOW with a farmers market merely feet away, anything that you order is going to be amazing (hopefully).  I would be very, very disappointed at this point if it wasn't.  But, after a couple minutes frantically deciding what I wanted, I eventually settled on what they call "The Biltmore Breakfast".  I'm was assuming this dish was named after The Biltmore Estate, located in Ashville, NC, home to the original Moose Cafe.  (Read more about The Biltmore Estate here.)  It consisted of 3eggs cooked your way, hashbrown casserole, 2 pieces of fresh country ham, 2 pieces of sausage, 2 pieces of bacon, and a "Mo+ose Cake".  The thoughts going through my mind as I ordered this were all over the place.  I was getting hungry too, so thoughts of "how many years is this going to take off my life" were replaced with thoughts similar to "hell with it, I'll worry about that later.  Also, what's a moose cake??"  In only a matter of 8-10 minutes, many of these questions were answered.

OH...MY...........

I don't even know where to begin.  Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?  How do you even start to eat something like this?  Where do you take your first bite?  How do you possibly give an analysis of such a thing??  And that monstrosity on the right?  Is it as big as it looks in the picture?!

Yes.

Food Quality and Service:
After about 5 minutes of sitting and staring, I finally figured out it was easiest to just start with the eggs.  I'm not sure why, so just trust me.  They were fantastic.  I almost always prefer scrambled, and these were light, fluffy, and flavorful.  They were the perfect level of done.  All too often I come across eggs that are either dried out and over done, or underdone to the point that Jesco White would strongly disapprove.  The Hashbrown Casserole was very tasty, with a strong cheese flavor that really complimented the potatoes.  It was moist and flavorful.  The bacon was nice and crisp, and both the ham and sausage were nice and flavorful.  There was just the right amount of sage in the sausage, and the texture was really nice with both.  They were firm enough that your fork had some resistance, but soft enough that it cut right through.  All the items on this plate complimented each other very well, and as I feel the need to point out again, everything is fresh from the market.  This entire meal was also only $8.99!  It was incredible, and I was able to easily finish it....I'm lying, I was only halfway done.  I still had the aptly named Moose Cake to devour.  It was just sitting there, glaring and mocking me.

You win this round.

Overall Food Quality & Service Score: 5/5



In the end, it was great to get away from the grind for a couple of says and see some old friends.  I'll admit, I made a few new ones as well.  The Greensboro area of NC has a lot to offer, and The Moose Cafe is definitely a not-so-hidden gem in the midst of an already great place.  If you're ever down that way, give it a try.  It may not be a carbon copy of how mamaw did it, but then again, who does it as well as mamaw did?  No one, but The Moose Cafe is probably as close as you could possibly come.  I hope to return someday, and possibly try lunch or dinner, where I'm sure the fried chicken, among other things on their website, is as good as home.  Their motto is  "any closer, and we'd be in a field".  I believe it.  The Moose Cafe is excellent from the inside out, and I award it an aggregate total of:

4.5 Mooses*!!

That wraps up this edition of The Hillbilly Stomp.  Thanks for reading!






*I'm well aware that "mooses" is grammatically incorrect. 

Fatboy's Pizza & Grill!

Martin, Kentucky

Welcome back, everyone!  I meant to assemble this review a couple weeks ago, but life interrupted my progress.  It happens, and I'm happy to bring you yet another restaurant review from right here in good ole Eastern Kentucky.  How did I end up in Martin, you may ask?  Why, to meet an old College friend at St. Joseph Hospital and pick up some Nintendo games she was nice enough to give me.  Why else??

You thought I was kidding, didn't you...

As awesome as it was to see an old friend and indulge in some nostalgicy goodness, she was running late for work, it was getting late in general, and it was still ridiculously cold.  So needless to say, our visit was cut short.  But, all was not lost.  It was getting to be supper time, and of course my wondering eyes noticed a sign on the way in.  I asked my friend if she had ever eaten there, with it being so close to her workplace.  She smiled and replied with a confident "yes", so I figured I would stop in, quell my hunger, and give the place a good dose of Hillbilly Stomp.  If you read my last review, then you seen how I rate my experiences.  I wont bother repeating the process, and I will review this establishment the same way.  If you want to see a detailed rundown of the process, head on back to my last review. 

It was around 7 p.m. when I arrived, and as soon as I walked through the door, I was immediately impressed with what I was seeing.  This place was spotless, and the smell of the food was nearly intoxicating.  I knew I was already going to be in for a treat.  I looked around before I proceeded any further, just to try to take everything in.

It looked a lot like this, only not blurry. 

As you can (kind of) see, this place is well maintained.  I was greeted by a lady by the name of Lisa who was acting as both bartender and server at that moment.  She was very nice and attentive right off the bat, and that's a wonderful way to start things off.  As always, I ordered my obligatory Mountain Dew, and began to peruse the menu, looking at everything they had to offer.

It looked something like this, only not blurry.

After several minutes of going back and forth, trying to choose between all the amazing sandwiches, pizzas, hot dogs, salads, burgers, fried chicken, and house specials that they offer, I finally came to a difficult decision.  I got the Mushroom and Swiss Burger with a side of Beer Battered Fries.  In the moments after I ordered, I looked around at what the other customers had ordered, and what people who were stopping in to pick up had ordered, and I started second guessing myself.  Everything that passed by me looked incredible, especially the pizza.  I remained strong, and stuck to my guns. 

Because the food is made to order, I knew it was going to take a few minutes for it to get done, so I decided to kill some time by looking around, checking out some of the decorations and what not.  This place was obviously named after the Harley Davidson Fatboy Motorcycle, because the decor was heavily decked out in Harley gear and memorabilia.  Even their restaurant logo itself is reminiscent of the classic and familiar Harley logo.  Very cool.  I then proceeded to my right, to check out the other section of the restaurant.  Yes, there's another section that we haven't even visited yet!  So, I make my way over in that direction, when I then spotted....the movie rental rack.

I bet you thought I was kidding AGAIN, didn't you...

I was kind of stunned.  In a good way.  How many places do you see renting movies these days, much less a restaurant doing so?  Quirky and awesome, I say.  Whether or not anyone actually rents them is a question that's still up in the air, but hey, even if no one does, how great is this regardless?  So, after I spent a few seconds musing over memories of video rental past (and admittedly scanning through their selections), I made my way over to the other section of the restaurant.  Again, it was obviously clean and well maintained.  The management of this place knows what they're doing, and how to run this type of business.  Check it out:

The second dining area.  Through the opening on the right is where we just came from.

The bar area, I really dig the lights!

A smaller corner stage area, and from what I understand, there's some mighty fine local talent that's played on that very spot.

I love the lighting and ambiance of this place, you just need to visit to see for yourself.

And, what tour could be complete without a visit to the restroom.  You can tell a lot about an establishment by how well their Johns are maintained.  The finger of judgement is often and rightfully over-critical when it comes to this sort of thing.

Men's room, right side wall.  There are no words.

Cleanliness:  As I've already stated, this place is very clean.  I actually tried looking for dirt, and honestly couldn't find any.  The tables and chairs were all wiped down, the center caddys were all stocked, the floors sparkled, and the men's room was virtually spotless and completely stocked.  The areas I could see behind the front bar (where I sat to eat) and what I could see of the kitchen area were very clean as well.  They deserve a medal.
Overall Cleanliness Score:  5/5





Ambiance:  The decor was very stylish with a combination of modern Americana and Harley Davidson memorabilia.  The was a huge concentration on the color red, which I thought looked great.  Red is an impact color, and it makes things easier to remember.  The lighting was nice, not too bright, not too dim.  Even though the restaurant was divided into two separate areas, it worked really well.  It didn't feel all that awkward or cramped, and seemed to have good air flow throughout.  The radio was playing what sounded to be 90s-2000s radio hits lightly in the background, as two large TVs were playing ESPN in the other area.  Very nice all around!
Overall Ambiance Score:  4.5/5







I received my food, hot and fresh, in about 10-11 minutes, with a bill of around 9 bucks.  I was too busy being impressed by everything else that I honestly lost track of the time.  The server brought it out to me promptly, along with a pop refill.  What I witnessed in front of me was, well.....

Perfection?

Heaven on a plate?

A MASTERPIECE WORTHY OF INFINITE PRAISE?!?!

I would have no problem referring to it as any of the above.  All kidding aside, it was one of the best burgers I've ever had.  It was Angus beef, cooked well done, hand-pattied, lightly seasoned with salt and pepper, and as you can see, garnished with sauteed mushrooms, crispy bacon, grilled vidalia onions, and a cheese sauce that was amazing beyond description.  It was like a mixture of swiss, provolone, and white Mexican dipping cheese.  The burger was definitely large enough, as I could barely finish it, even as hungry as I was.  The fries were really good, just standard beer battered fries.  You can find them in most grocery store freezer aisles, and these were nice and flavorful with a crispy outside "shell" of flavor.  My Mt. Dew was very good and flavorful as well.  I considered dessert for about a millisecond, but decided against it as I feared my stomach exploding. 
The service was really good.  The server was very attentive, and could answer any questions immediately I had about the food.  She was very nice, and we chatted a little bit as I enjoyed my meal, and as she continued to clean and prepare to-go orders for incoming customers.  She was great, and according to her, had only been there a little over a week.  I couldn't tell at all. 

Overall Food Quality Score:  4.5/5

Overall Service Quality Score:  5/5






Fatboy's Pizza & Grill is a gem of an eatery, and it's located right in Martin over in Floyd County, Kentucky.  It was clean, well set up, well managed, with a friendly attentive staff, and outstanding food.  When you have the power to turn ordinary into extraordinary, then you've got a good thing going.  If you're over that way, do yourself a favor and drive the extra 35 seconds past the standard, stock fast food places and give this local business a spin.  You'll definitely not regret it.  I'll be returning soon, and I may give their pizza a try, or possibly one of their specials.  They have a Facebook page right here, so be sure to look them up! 

I give Fatboy's Pizza & Grill an aggregate total of:

4.5 Harley Boots!!!

Thanks for reading!  Check back soon for another review from "The Hillbilly Stomp"!