Vidalia for Lunch

With a couple of valued clients, I recently visited Vidalia, a place where I have always enjoyed the food but not always the ambiance so much. In fact the last I was there for dinner with our good dining buddies David & Ra'ed, for dinner on a Saturday night, when the food was delicious but the place was so empty and quiet that it was frankly, a bit depressing and very much detracted from our enjoyment. Not the restaurant's fault, really, I'm sure they would have preferred lots more people there, but not ours either.

I'm sorry to say that lunch, which previously I had noticed was a more popular meal, was more of the same story. We had a really delicious although not "fancy" lunch. My guests both had Reuben sandwiches which they seemed to enjoy heartily. I took advantage of a $24 three course special, which had a few options. I chose the pozole, not a traditional pozole but a small portion of a kind of deconstructed dish with hearty and savory broth accompanied by some plump hominy kernels (hence the pozole, I guess) and some bacony, piggy pieces. Really a nice starter. I then followed up with a Cuban sandwich (I must admit I am a sucker for Cuban sandwiches) which was huge, greasy, rich, filling, and altogether satisfying. Compared to a classical Cuban sandwich it was a little light on the pickles (which I think provide an important foil for the richness) and used roasted pork belly instead of ham just for a little more decadence. It was almost more than I could eat (well, I was with clients so I was trying to be polite). And to top everything off there was a choice of pecan pie or lemon chess pie. Fortunately my clients were willing to help out with the pie, which was excellent, not as treacly-sweet as pecan pie can be....if they hadn't they'd probably have had to cart me out in a wheelbarrow. What a wonderful value for $24.

Service was typically professional. Well, it was easy, I think there were only four other tables occupied in the room. Worked for us because we were discussing private business, but it can't be good for the restaurant. I'm afraid if this trend continues Vidalia is not long for this world, which would be a shame because the food there is really delicious and I think it deserves a wider following.