Traveling across country has been more of hassle then an adventure for me. So when my mother and I decided to stop for a comfortable and casual meal, we hit our favorite spot in New Bern Middle Street. I have visited this street many times before but never had the chance to dine at Baker’s Kitchen; A trendy little place with a home-style ambiance, loaded with delicious pies in spinning display along with local digital art hanging on the walls. I felt as if I was dining at home with family instead of strangers.
A place once run by an Amish Family who seem to be out of sync with the locals, is now reborn with warmth, trend, nostalgia, and New Bern culture with the Bengals family; a handsome group of folks I might add. Faith our waitress, a bubbly and sweet local greeted us with the southern manners we Californias yearn for in the days of rude and obnoxious behavior. My mother ordered a House Favorite Chef Salad and I order a cup of Loaded Potato Soup. The ticket was up in a matter of a few minutes after we had order, a must if you want to run a place during the lunch hour. I can’t tell you how many times I have sat in a restaurant and wasted my entire lunch hour waiting for my food.
The food was delicious, however there are a few things I would like to point out. The House Favorite Large Chef Salad should omitted the Large part out of it name, for it is too long of a title. It was a delightful salad with baby mixed greens, hand sliced ham, perfect boiled eggs, tomatoes, cheddar cheese, croutons, onions and cucumbers, but it lacked the bacon bits that were mentioned in its description. Also, fresh ground pepper would have add that extra touch goodness, if the Bengals would invest in one. Overall, it was fantastic. The Loaded Potato Soup had a good sweet creamy base with red waxed potatoes and rosemary, again fresh black pepper would have been a nice addition; however, fresh rosemary would have really brought out the flavor along with adding some vibrant color in the color palette of the soup. The bread that was served on our table reminded me of a Carson favorite King’s Hawaiian Bread, a sweet, moist, soft bread version of a Portuguese Keeper Bread.
I would highly recommend this place for anyone interested in the arts, comfort style food, or someone who is just a plain foodie addict. The prices are fairly reasonable for a trendy hot spot, and you can also buy an art piece from the local artist. So if you do decided to trump down Middle Street in New Bern, North Carolina, tell them Claudina sent you with an ambition for good southern cooking, with a twist of course.
