Succotash, 15 E. 3rd Street

Succotash is at the top of our list of favorites in the City Market. Beth is the owner, chef, interior designer and caterer extraordinaire. The food is always amazing. Brunch on Saturday or Sunday is wonderful, huge pancakes, french toast, omelets, salads, smoked salmon, wraps and really great Cafe du Monde chicory coffee. Only if you have been to New Orleans for Beignets and Cafe Au Laits do you know what I mean. Beth serves it rich and dark and we love it.

I've also used Succotash catering, both for personal and professional use. She always brings so much food, no one leaves hungry and the presentation is gorgeous with a lot of color and freshness. The best in recent memory was the BYO Cobb Salad. We started with her famous lima bean hummus and bread, followed by tomato bisque. The Cobb included mixed greens, roasted chicken, bacon, crumbled blue cheese, huge green olives, hard boiled egg, tomatoes and homemade buttermilk or balsamic vinaigrette dressings. For dessert, fresh chocolate chip cookies and her peanut butter brownies that are worth a trip to Succotash on their own.

And because we can't get enough of Succotash, our favorite treat is the Wednesday night dinner. They are only open one night a week, and on Wednesday's they serve a dinner that they choose. It usually includes soup, salad, an appetizer option (lima bean hummus, smoked salmon crostini), the main course and dessert. For $12 per person. No joke. And you can walk two doors down to the Wine Cellar and pick up a bottle of wine to go with dinner.

Last night was beautiful, so we picked up a bottle of Layer Cake Shiraz, which was huge, jammy, slap-you-in-the-face wine. Or, as my husband and I like to joke when wine tasting, "that is grapey."

If you don't take my word for it, here is a link to an online discussion of this killer vino: http://terroir.winelibrary.com/2006/12/09/holy-crap-well-at-least-theyre-honest/

The special was roasted chicken, roasted asparagus (so fresh), mashed potatoes and gravy. Trust me, this woman can cook. She is amazing. Dessert was her 7 layer citrus cake with ice cream and a strawberry. It just doesn't get any better.