Belle's Bites

By: Laura Giovanelli | Winston-Salem Journal
Published: September 10, 2009

Cimarron

3260 S. Stratford Road, Clemmons.

Phone: 712-4689. $$-$$$. S/NS. ABC.

You might not give this stucco building along Stratford Road a second look, but stop in sometime. A refreshing alternative to the casual chains, Cimarron is family-friendly and comfortable, like going over to a friend's house for ribeyes.

Bleu Restaurant & Bar

3425 Frontis St.

Phone: 760-2026. $$$. NS. ABC.

Bleu is a creative restaurant amid the heavy traffic and big-box anonymity of Hanes Mall Boulevard. The menu's big, but there are gems that show the kitchen's not getting lost in it. Classics are simple, straightforward and unforgettable.

Liberty Oak

100-D W. Washington St., Greensboro

Phone: 273-7057. $$-$$$. ABC. S/NS.

I wish there were a Liberty Oak in Winston-Salem. It's a dream of a restaurant, with soulful blue-plate specials and creative comfort food. I love the duck-liver pate with apricot chutney, the salad Nicoise and scallops seared in curry oil.

Oriental Cafe

612 Hanes Mall Blvd. (Pavilions Shopping Center)

Phone: 774-9098. $$. ABC. Smoking only in bar.

Can it be that a strip-mall restaurant can really do Thai, Chinese and Japanese? So far, yes, and well. Terrific sushi and Mai Tais, those cheesy Polynesian cocktails served in green ceramic glasses shaped like bamboo.

Sweet Potatoes

529 N. Trade St.

Phone: 727-4844. $$. ABC. NS (except at bar).

Sultry Southern cooking in downtown's Arts District. Jazz, lazy ceiling fans, fried okra and green tomatoes, and sweet potato everything.

The Loop Pizza Grill

Thruway Shopping Center, Stratford Road.

Phone: 703-9882. $$. BW. NS.

Come as you are to eat creative pizzas, enormous salads, burgers and great milkshakes. Family-friendly. Takeout available.

River Birch Lodge

3324 Robinhood Road.

Phone: 768-1111. $$$. ABC. NS.

Mountain-lodge cuisine comes to suburbia. Venison, cedar-planked salmon, trout ... and brie and huckleberry jam baked in phyllo dough. Also serves Sunday brunch.

Putter's Patio and Grill

3005 Bonhurst Drive.

Phone: 724-9990. $$$. ABC. S.

Scruffy atmosphere, scrumptious steaks, no pretension. Try the golf balls (small fried potatoes).

Burke Street Pizza

1140 Burke St.

Phone: 721-0011. $. Beer only. NS.

Come here for cheese steaks, spinach and feta pizza, and highly addictive garlic knots.

Camel City Cafe & Wine Bar

401 W. Fourth St.

Phone: 734-1797. $$$. ABC. S/NS.

New Southern doesn't mean green-bean casserole. Try the pulled barbecue, duck crepes and braised beef ribs.