I’m not sure where our passion for breakfast comes from. Perhaps it is the fond memory of being on the farm in North Alabama where our Grandmother would make buttermilk biscuits almost everyday. If it wasn’t breakfast it certainly was fancy dinners where her biscuits would be served. Left over biscuit dough would often be used to make homemade fruit pies, usually apples from the orchard.
Our grandfather would eat biscuits the same way every time. He was would place butter to the side of the plate and then pour Karo syrup onto the butter. Using a butter knife he would mix the syrup and butter together before spreading over the hot biscuits. Personally I prefer blackberry jam, again coming from the farm… berries picked on site.
So our quest for breakfast in Richmond seems to always center around a common theme, freshness. Although it would be our preference to find a local restaurant that uses local ingredients, even better if those were natural and/or organic, we just want fresh clean food. And most of the restaurants we’ve eaten at here in the River City don’t understand the concept.
To understand the concept, hop in the car and cruise down to Charlotte. It’s worth the five hour drive on a Saturday for an overnight stay so you can drop by Zada Jane’s for breakfast. Just the sight of the web site gives me goose bumps. ZJ’s serves fresh hot food with excellent style and taste. Better yet, ingredients come from local and regional farms. Meats are hormone free and natural. The eggs are from free-range layers. And yes, only stone ground grits will grace your table.
“Hear this former capital of a rebellious state,” we real southerners like real grits! And please don’t refer me to McLean’s. Those are about the worst grits I’ve eaten in my 39 years. I’m still trying to work back up the gumption to go back to write a review (I want to remain impartial, you see).
Now I did hit the Fat Goat yesterday. It has promise as the online chatter makes reference to local ingredients and such. A future brunch visit (they aren’t open on weekends until after 10am) is on the calendar.
In the meantime if you come across our humble blog and you have a recommendation, please drop us a line (comment below or contact us).
Good morning and enjoy your breakfast.
Zada Janes looks awesome. The Michael T’s Amaretto French Toast especially. What I didn’t like about it that using local farmers is supposed to decrease the cost of the food all around; and ZJ charges more for it. Drawback for me. Too bad you can’t find a finer breakfast establishment; 5 hours is too far to drive every Sunday.