Arkansas Classic Black Angus Forced to Seek New Home.

The longstanding burger and steak joint that has served Little Rock since 1960 is looking a new place to move after the new owners of the building decide to have the eatery move out.

Black Angus May Be Little Rock's Most Overlooked Classic Burger Joint.

Through three locations over 56 years, Black Angus has served up charcoal burgers and hot dinners to its customers. And yet somehow, it's so often overlooked when it comes time to eat.

One Last Hurrah for 1620.

I heard the news today, ho-boy, about a classic place that made the grade. And though the news is rather sad, I've been this place before. Nobody is really sure why 1620 has to go...

The Garden Sandwich is an Iconic Arkansas Dish.

One of Arkansas's best sandwiches has no meat - that's right, no meat at all! Learn the history of The Garden and the man behind this famous Little Rock treat.

Comfort Food Haven: Dave & Ray's Downtown Diner.

Back in my TV days, BJ Sams would sometimes go fetch breakfast after the show. And when he was fetching it for me, he'd usually come back with a box of cheese omelet, biscuits and cream gravy, just for me. That box would come from Dave and Ray's Downtown Diner.

There's been a restaurant in that spot on Capitol Avenue for decades... though apparently at one point it housed a car dealership. It's been owned by several different people -- the ones that own it now have owned it for eight years, and they're still serving up one of the best understated and affordable lunches in the downtown area.

I've been a fan for a long time, but somehow or another I'd never taken Grav there, so one surprisingly bright February afternoon we headed over to grab a quick lunch. We walk in, and Grav just has no idea what to do -- a real fish-or-cut-bait moment of whether to choose something off the menu or get it at the buffet. However, others coming through the door had no hesitation, and he soon found himself loading up a plate's worth of pork butt on a bun, fried chicken and home fries.

Me? I walked in hungry and when I was asked if I wanted one of the big burgers from the back, I was all about that.

Grav filled his plate, I passed over a $20 and sat down with my iced tea, and I caught him up on my day as he ate. He commented on the nice spicy slug of heat in the barbecue sauce for the oven-roasted pork butt, but when he turned to the chicken he was absolutely silent except for the sound of teeth pulling meat off bones.

Dave and Ray's fried chicken is masterfully simple -- thin battered, nicely salt-and-pepper marinated fresh chicken that was just juicy enough. They serve fried chicken every day, but you never see it on anyone's top list of chicken places -- not even mine. That's something I really need to remedy.

So, out comes my burger, brought by the proprietress right to the table with onion rings (chips or fries are also options) and vegetation on the side. This big bunned burger was about a third of an inch thick, pepper-dusted and topped with grilled onions.

Of course, it was cooked through, so no pink (I hadn't requested it) and it was adhered to its sesame seed-studded top with American cheese, but it was substantial. I tossed on the shredded lettuce, pickles and tomato slice for the entire experience, took a bite and felt the satisfaction of a delicious afternoon decision made.

Our lunch wasn't long -- we were in the place about thirty minutes, including a heated discussion over snow geese, dogs and golf courses -- but it was good and Grav went back for seconds on that fried chicken -- one leg of which was as long as a turkey leg. Sometimes lunch doesn't have to be fancy -- tasty and filling will do the trick, and when you're looking for that comfort food ideal, Dave and Ray's tackles it perfectly.

You'll find Dave and Ray's Downtown Diner at 824 W Capitol in downtown Little Rock. Call (501) 372-8816 -- or better yet, check out the Facebook page.

Shogun, Arkansas's Oldest Japanese Steakhouse, Still Captivates.

This restaurant closed in 2017.

Arkansas’s oldest Japanese steakhouse opened its doors in 1982. Today Shogun has a lot of clones here and there, but it’s still doing a steady job of serving consistently good food and delighting diners.

Pieday: Raspberry Cream Cheese at Trio's.

I’ve been taking recommendations for places where I should go to experience the best pies in the state. And when the boss tells you to try a pie, you go try a pie, right?

The suggestion was the Raspberry Cream Cheese Pie over at Trio’s.

Date night at Bruno's Little Italy in Little Rock.

I’m not sure why, but when romance is in the air it usually involves Italian food in the belly. I wholly contribute this to seeing Lady and the Tramp as a child; there are many cuisines out there that are just as romantic.

Still, finding ourselves with a rare child-free date night, the hubster and I found ourselves on the doorstep of Bruno’s Little Italy for dinner Saturday night. Well, it is one of the best places to soak up some Sinatra-and-Co. music-laden air, as well as some thick red meaty sauce with white bread.

We were seated in the window at our request, just as the sun was preparing to set over Bowman Curve. The windows were polarized behind the curtains, leaving a light glow echoed by the small flickering candles on each table.

On each of those tables was a bottle of wine, a candle and various shakers. The walls were green with posters here and there; tables were topped with red and white checkered tablecloths. Our section was vacant when we arrived, the perfect little corner to enjoy a quiet meal together.
Bread was delivered to the table for us to consume while we were debating over what to order. Like most Arkansas-based Italian restaurants, butter was served with the bread, a small crusty loaf that could be cut with a knife.

We started off our meal with the Toasted Ravioli ala Lauren Weintraub ($7.95). These hand-made raviolis are a bit irregular, but they are stuffed with a blend of ricotta, parmesan and I believe provolone cheese with a little spinach and Italian spices. These pockets of joy are very crisp on the outside but firm and packed with cheese inside. They’re served up with your choice of the house marinara or meat sauce — both are excellent, very mature of flavor. It was about the best thing I’d eaten all month.

Our entrees were equally appetizing. Paul went for the Ravioli Sorrento ($14.95), more cheese stuffed ravioli under a choice of marinara, meat or mushroom sauce covered in mozzarella and baked. Paul went for the meat sauce. The raviolis in the dish were much larger than the ones in the appetizer — one seemed to be nearly four inches square, all irregular in the way only handmade pasta can truly be. Baked, the raviolis achieved their classic texture.

I chose the Vegetable Manicotti ($14.95), a melange of all sorts of vegetables wrapped in pasta sheets and baked. I asked my server about the sauces, and though my husband thought it was a little odd I had my manicotti baked with meat sauce. I’m not vegetarian but I love vegetables, and our waitress told us lots of people ordered the dish that way.

The manicotti came to the table in a bubbling stew of hot meat sauce. Underneath, I found small cut vegetables tucked in with the cheeses in the manicotti rolls themselves, lots of broccoli and zucchini and peppers along with spinach and squash and eggplant. I found myself reaching for the bread to sop up the generous sauce, thought I didn’t think to grab some Parmesan until I was about done. It was hot, it was filling, and I didn’t feel guilty about it. Better than a V8.

We had a little time before we needed to head off to the movies, so we decided to split a dessert. I gave Paul no choice — though I knew he would want something chocolate-y, it had been a long time since I’d had Zabaglione ($6.50). I wanted that warm sweet creamy beverage, and Bruno‘s really delivered. The careful balance of sugar, cream, eggs and amaretto is heated and served with ladyfingers. It’s rich — I’ll give you that. It’s decadent. If I had two of these by myself I wouldn’t be safe to drive. I want another right now.

But I digress.

We don’t eat out quite so extravagantly on a regular basis, and it’s rare these days to get a date night where we can enjoy a good Italian meal. For what we were looking for, we got a nice romantic meal and a spectacular dessert in an hour and a half and made it to the movie on time. Can’t beat that.

Those toasted raviolis and the zabaglione were so good, I’ve declared them the best thing I ate in the month of October. No joke.

Want to experience it? You have to wait til dinner. Bruno’s Little Italy is only open 5-10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The menu and more on the website, or you can call (501) 224-4700.

UPDATE: Bruno's Little Italy has moved downtown to 310 Main Street. Check out the new website or call (501) 372-7866.