So you haven't attended a NC Competition Dining Series Event? You're so missing out...what are you waiting for?!

Final Fire- Round 2-November 21, 2013
Flights Restaurant-Raleigh, NC vs. Noble's Grille, Winston-Salem, NC

Course #1 Dish:  Bacon Confit, Crispy Farro, Wild Mushroom, 64° Egg Yolk, Pecan Puree, Candied Pecans

Critique:  For the record-all is well when bacon is involved.  Sweetly thought this dish was bland, but The Hotness approved simply because of the bacon confit.  The candied pecans provided a lovely sweet tasty counter-balance against the saltiness of the bacon.

Weighted Score:  21.09 (Noble’s Grille)







Course #2 Dish:  Quail & Waffles, Pecan Fried Quail, Cornbread Waffle, Chipotle Sweet Potato, Honey Butter, Apple Ginger Honey, Candied Pecans

Critique:  Great play on the classic chicken and waffles!  The Hotness loved the crunchy crispiness of the pecan fried quail.  Sweetly complained that the quail was fried “too hard” but still was delicious, not to mention, the sweet potato puree with cornbread waffles with honey butter gave this dish the edge it needed. The Hotness secretly has a thing for waffles and fried foods.

Weighted Score: 20.18 (Flights)





Course #3 Dish:  Flounder, Citrus Ravioli, Pecan Sausage, Pecan Smoked Fennel, Tarragon Emulsion

Critique:  One of our favorite dishes of the night!  The flounder and citrus ravioli left Sweetly truly speechless.  She kept repeating “Citrus me up, baby!”  After the first bite, The Hotness wanted to be “citrused up” too…whatever that means.  This homerun dish made everyone at our table sing Kumbaya.  Tis absolutely worthy of a 4 out of 4 Hottie score!

Weighted Score:  23.32 (Noble’s Grille)



Course #4 Dish:  Pepsi® & Mystery Brewing Smoked Rye Stout Braised Pork Belly, Asian Pecan Glaze, Sweet Potato & Pecan Grits, Leese-Fitch Chardonnay Creamed Collards

Critique:  Porkbelly!  Not sure why we’re fans of everything pork, but we can’t help ourselves.  We are pork fans!  No need to hide Wilbur or Babe though.  This dish gets points for its creativity using pecans in the grits and sweet potatoes.  The chardonnay creamed collards were quite rich and flavorful, making for a heavy dish.

Weighted Score:  21.24 (Flights)




Course #5 Dish:  Toasted Pecan Caramel, Vanilla Cake, Spiced Diplomat, White Chocolate Pecan

Critique:  Awesome! Heaven on earth!  Fantastic!  There aren’t enough adjectives to describe the marvelous creation of this dessert.  We have never heard of “spiced diplomat” before, but after the first bite, we were both smiling and screaming, “Spice me up, baby!”  Simply wonderful.

Weighted Score:  21.60 (Noble’s Grille)






Course #6 Dish:  Apple Pie with Pecan Streusel, Eggnog Ice Cream, Maker’s Mark Chocolate Sauce, Spicy Pecan Syrup

Critique:  Eggnog ice cream and Maker’s Mark chocolate sauce…say what?!  The flavor of the ice cream was quite unique in very, very good way.  The apple pie with pecans was a delectable compliment to the ice cream and the texture was perfect.  No complaints at all, it was a fine plate to finish off the night.  

Weighted Score:  21.38 (Flights)




Both chefs did an outstanding and phenomenal job representing their restaurant.  Noble's Grill won this round!  Final Weighted Average Scores- 20.93 (Flights) and 21.99 (Noble's Grille)  Although we didn’t know which chefs prepared what dish when voting, we later found out that based on our favorites- Sweetly was #TeamNoblesGrille and The Hotness was #TeamFlights.  Professional judges scores count 70% and diner scores count 30% of the weighted scores.   We can’t wait until the 2014 Competition Dining Series arrives!  Visit www.competitiondining.com to find out more information!  Thank you Jimmy Crippen for bringing this event to North Carolina! +Competition Dining Series