Chattanooga. Nooga. Gig City. Chat-town. Maybe you have heard of all the nicknames, or maybe your knowledge of this growing tech hub of the south is limited to the famous choo-choo. Whatever camp you fall in, you know now that Chat-town loves their food. Like big brother Nashville to the north, the Chattanooga food scene is rooted in the ways of the South but is also keenly aware of the adventurous palates of 21st century American diners. The Cheap Eats ...

Omaha. I just didn’t see it coming. Sure, a catch phrase like “Omahappening” puts you in a positive mood. Maybe you’re thinking that Cornhusker pride serves up some hearty Midwestern fare that starts with all day tailgates and ends with a serious steakhouse scene. Well that’s part of it. And so is hip neighborhoods, a thriving music scene and a quiet storm of Farm to Table cuisine. I came to Omaha thinking it would be all about the beef but ...

So how do you say it? I went with version one, the one with the drawl, and it earned me more than a few nods of approval. Invoking that drawl also reminds you that Louisville is a little bit Southern. As Baltimore straddles a line on the cultural map of the East Coast and the South, so does Louisville, with the South and the Midwest. This city might surprise you with a diverse set of famous former residents like Hunter ...

If Grand Rapids was the gentle small town reminder of my Midwestern roots and why this part of the country is just so darn livable, Indianapolis was that pause and a “huh” you drop when you step into a city in “fly over country” and are taken back by a sprawling, diverse urban landscape. Gentrification ain’t just a real estate buzz word in Brooklyn, San Francisco or Silver Lake(LA), it is happening wherever it can. Case in point: Goose The Market. ...

That smile on my face(along with the best carnitas torta I have ever had) serves as an instant reminder on how happy I would be to return to Grand Rapids, Michigan. Now this is no slight against the other cities we have visited in Cheap Eats, from the no brainers like beautiful Bozeman and Jackson Hole to towns I would love to catch my beloved St. Louis Cardinals play(I’m looking at you Pittsburgh). Its just that to be frank: Grand ...

I had a lot of fun opening this episode with “Cheap Eats is bringing the pepper to Salt Lake City!!” but it turns out the SLC dining scene had the heat turned up well before I arrived. Over and over, folks pointed to the 2002 Winter Olympics as a tipping point. The loosening of liquor licensing gave restaurants a boost in biz which meant diners and restauranteurs could try new things. Like many cities in Season 2 of Cheap Eats, we ...

As it turns out, nature in Jackson Hole Wyoming is no laughing matter. Despite my numerous Rocky and Bullwinkle and garden-variety moose jokes, even I, was and remain still, blown away by what I and my iPhone saw in Jackson Hole. And that’s saying something because I am probably the most un mountain man to pass through these parts. Last night at a New Year’s party, I was asked if I went camping. It was probably one of the most ...

The natural beauty of Montana can transform the most novice photographer into a wannabe Ansel Adams. I might have a ways to go before I enter the realm of that iconic photographer but I will say that there was no shortage of scenic shots in my Bozeman roll, that’s for sure. Natural beauty was, is and will always be the draw to Bozeman. That being said, everybody likes to eat and our current food renaissance is finding its ways to ...

Welcome to the New South. And in the spirit of the new, let’s get accustomed to calling it the RVA, cuz that’s how the locals do. Oh, you think this is some last second ploy from the tourism board? Then do this: type “RVA Richmond” into Google and you will get hit with all kinds of the “new Richmond”. I’m talking links to Richmond groups associated with strings like reddit, LGBTQ and TEDx. That sound new enough for you? When it ...

Baltimore. You have heard of it. The City that gave us the Star Spangled Banner, Edgar Allen Poe, and The Wire. Truth be told my perceptions of Charm City came almost entirely from watching hours and hours of David Simon’s epic series. An urban center in decline, the subsequent flight to the County suburbs, and finally the overall size and demographics of Baltimore, reminded me of my hometown of St. Louis. And I guess that’s what always made me hold an ...