Welcome back to Savannah Flavors, our weekly newsletter bringing you the latest delicious details from Savannah’s culinary scene every Thursday.

Here is what’s on the menu today:

• Coffee that supports a cause on Skidaway Island ☕️

• Savannah’s best slice of pizza 🍕🤌🏼

• Summertime watermelon cucumber salad 🥗

• Been There. Ate That. Das Box. 🥡 🍣

• What’s your hot take on these food debates?? 🧐

THE MAIN DISH

Overflow Coffee sets up Shoppe in Skidaway Community Church’s parking lot ⛪️ ☕️

Even those unfamiliar with bible books by name probably know most of Psalm 23. The six verses, beginning with “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want,” are among the most widely repeated and memorized the world over and are David’s song of gratitude for God’s eternal care.

In the New American Standard Bible, the fifth verse reads, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.”

These are the literal words that inspired the creation of Overflow Coffee and the immaculate construction of the not-so-tiny tiny house that is tucked back in the picturesque parking lot of Skidaway Community Church (SCC).

Though the structure itself was built by May of 2022, the ‘shoppe’ opened for business just this past February, and SCC held a celebratory grand opening event on April 6 to herald the “Skidaway Island haven for lovers of coffee, gelato, and artisan sweets.”

The true story of Overflow Coffee is not the what but the why, a modern-day parable of serving others, one cup at a time.

CHEF’S CRAVINGS

Finches Sandwiches & Sundries - Rebecca Gawley & Jamie Pleta 🌭🌺🐺

Each week, I ask the folks behind the phenomenal food at our favorite places around Savannah these same simple questions:

When you are not in your restaurant kitchen, where do you go out to eat and what do you order?

Now squarely in Year Four, Finches Sandwiches & Sundries is already a Thunderbolt institution, the beloved al fresco resto that we all wished was just down the block from our houses. This week’s Chefs’ Cravings come courtesy of co-owner-operators Rebecca Gawley and Jamie Pleta, whose Old Bay tots may be the city’s sneaky best side and whose Millennials Toast boasts the most mammoth mound of avocado 🥑

RG: Jamie’s the number one diner in Savannah. She is a professional diner.

JP: I feel like I can say the classics. I love Brochu’s and Cotton & Rye, but one of my absolute favorite top-secret spots is The Steakhouse [on Whitemarsh Island].

RG: I knew you were going to say that!

JP: I went last Saturday and got a rack of lamb. We got a filet. Their prime rib on Fridays is to die for 🥩 It’s family-owned, so I respect it even more. That’s exactly what we do: we go to The Steakhouse and we go to Lulu’s after 🍰 It’s the classic: you get the steak, you get the vegetable, you get to pick the starch, you get the side salad.

RG: The most recent place I’ve been is Brochu’s, and if I am going out, that’s pretty much where I’m going to go. I’m obsessed with their chicken sandwich, rightfully so. I get there right at five o’clock and sit outside. I have a one-year-old. It’s called Brochu’s Family Tradition, and as the night went on, the entire patio was little ones, babies, and families. For being a place that’s so desirable to do a date night out, at the same time, it’s totally flexible for bringing your whole family. I never go there without bringing people. It’s probably my favorite food in Savannah right now.

JP: And you’re going to walk in and see 10 of your friends. 

RG: Everybody’s loving on them right now.

JP: It’s hard not to.

RG: A big shout-out to Kyle [Jacovino] at Vittoria at Starland Yard. We both go to Starland very frequently. That pizza is…🍕

JP: It’s the best in town. 

RG: And Kyle is also one of our neighbors here in Thunderbolt.

JP: If I’m out on Tybee, I go to Bubba Gumbo’s or Sea Wolf. At Bubba Gumbo’s, I get either the fried shrimp or the smashburger, which is a weird choice because it’s a seafood restaurant, but it’s so good 🍔 Besties with the owner at Sea Wolf, so everytime I go there, I get the VIP service. I like the classics. You can’t go wrong with a hot dog, and I don’t really get anything else.

RG: If we’re going to bring food home, Bobo Seafood. I love the peel-and-eat shrimp 🍤

JP: I’ve never had it. I don’t know where that is.

RG: It’s on Montgomery. It’s a fun treat. You get so much food for such an affordable price. 

And for a special occasion?

JP: You love FARM in Bluffton.

RG: We do really like FARM.

JP: I always have a good time at Husk. I love to sit at the bar. It’s beautiful. 

RG: I think I’d still do Brochu’s no matter what these days. We also do a lot of quick jaunts closer to the Charleston area, and we just did The Obstinate Daughter (Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina). We really enjoyed the service and the atmosphere. That was a destination we definitely did just to get out of town.

JP: This is a silly thing I just did this past week. I spent the night on Hilton Head, and I did a sunset hibachi cruise 🛳

RG: I love that! Do something different. Also, you love Miyabi! You love Miyabi!

JP: I do love Miyabi. Every single one of my friend’s birthdays, we go for hibachi. 

RG: We’re definitely not too highbrow!

-Neil Gabbey

TRIED, TASTED, TRUE

Watermelon Cucumber Salad 🍉🌤

THE STORY BEHIND THE RECIPE

I needed a dish to serve alongside a summer mixed grill and corn on the cob. I wanted something light on the palate and easy on the effort so that the only pot on the stove was the boiling water for the corn.

I did not want to heat up the kitchen making ratatouille, and we had just enjoyed a simple salad starring bright yellow tomatoes from Davis Produce 🧺 chèvre, and thyme from my garden lightly dressed with a red wine vinaigrette.

Quickly considering the season’s bounty, I realized that it had been almost a year since I had last made a Thai-ish watermelon cucumber salad that has been a summer standard for more than 20 years.

Other than my mother, all credit to my early education as a home chef goes squarely to Jamie Oliver and EatingWell magazine. The Naked Chef had burst onto the televised culinary scene not long after we renovated our little bungalow’s kitchen back in Baltimore, and a few years prior, I bought The EatingWell Rush Hour Cookbook and thereafter subscribed to its monthly mag.

All these years later, I confess that I can no longer find the issue in which this recipe first appeared, and annual worldwidewebternet searches have repeatedly yielded every watermelon-based salad but. While I have no doubt that feta and red onions also pair nicely with the other ingredients, I am too partial to the prototype to attempt another recipe.

Food nerds know that cucumbers are a fruit by botanical bylaws, so pairing them with melon makes perfect palatable sense, especially when summer temps beg for a cold picnicky salad. 

Thanks to rice wine vinegar, cilantro, and peanuts, the dish leans toward Thai flavors, but the true tastiness is a result of the salad’s simplicity: two featured fruits, one herb, rice wine vinegar, sugar, and peanuts. Even though the only wet ingredient is the vinegar, the liquid released by the watermelon further dresses the entire dish.

There is no reason to peel and deseed the cucumbers, but I do because I like how tender the peel-less pieces become after a mild maceration. How you slice both those and the watermelon is up to you. I use a small melon baller, which makes quick work and forkable bite-sized bits. 

An hour before I lit my chimney starter, I tossed together this salad and let it sit on the kitchen counter until dinner was served. Little bowlfuls of bright pink and pale green flecked with cilantro and peanuts both looked and tasted great next to dry-rubbed chicken thighs and Roger Wood Lumber Jack smoked sausages.

By the way, if you have yet to try that local company’s amazing products, go to the store now, buy a box or two, and fire up your grill. 

While you are there, buy a small seedless watermelon and a couple cukes.

-Neil Gabbey

THE RECIPE

HARD GOODS 

• 1 small (5- to 6-pound) seedless watermelon 🍉

• 2 medium cucumbers (any variety) 🥒

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• ¼ to ½ cup cilantro, rough-chopped 🌱

• ¼ cup dry-roasted unsalted peanuts, rough-chopped 🥜

• Kosher or sea salt (to taste)

WET GOODS

• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

DO THIS

1. In a large salad bowl, whisk the sugar and the rice wine vinegar to dissolve

2. Add the rough-chopped cilantro and peanuts to the bowl and stir to combine

3. Peel and deseed (optional) the cucumbers and chop into ¼-inch pieces

4. Add the cucumber pieces to the bowl and stir to combine

5. Using a melon baller (optional), scoop the flesh from the watermelon or section it and then chop into ½-inch chunks

6. Add the watermelon pieces to the bowl and stir to combine

7. Season lightly with salt (optional)

8. Let the salad sit at room temperature for at least an hour before serving

9. Refrigerate any leftovers but bring it back to room temperature before finishing it the next day

BEEN THERE. ATE THAT.

Das Box 🥡🥢

Executive Chef Nicholas Chambliss had me at fried rice, and since Das Box opened last October, my wife and I have returned several times so that I can devour his sneakily superlative version of an Asian standard. 

We had not been back to the East Broad Street gastrobar in a few months, so another serving of fried rice ($12) plus my wife’s usual order of fried tofu skewers ($14) would be a perfect way to begin a sultry summer weekend.

Because the heat of the day had not given way, we did not ride our bikes up Broad, though as we sat in “our” booth, another couple biked up and walked in. Not yet six o’clock, we were one of three couples in the dining area, which is exactly why we dine out early.

Without question, Das Box should be too hip for us. Our 50-something characters painted into this scene are incongruous: the black-painted cinder block interior, the Japanese posters of American movies, the chromium-hard metal music.

Despite our not fitting the bill, we and all are totally welcome here thanks to the friendly staff and accessible menu. This is a cool and casual date-night out.

After we placed our order, adding a side of waffle chips ($4), Pentagram mercifully gave way to The Strokes.

The fried rice price has risen two bucks since Das Box first opened, but the portion remains well worth it, a pile of burnished next-day rice loaded with crisp fresh veg that needs no protein. The gourmet preparation is oily and unctuous, highlighted by bright edamame and slivers of carrot and red cabbage, all slathered in house-made yum yum sauce. 

I still have no idea what “umami” actually means, but I have a feeling that this is it.

This time, my wife went without one of the side sauces, which is a $1.50 upcharge, and found the ‘naked’ tofu plenty tasty. The crisp coating around the melt-in-the-mouth cubes was nicely salty, and the tossed-and-dressed salad base made each mouthful moist.

You cannot go wrong with any of Chambliss’s scratch sauces, but the Thai chili is our favorite. 

The waffle chips once again tasted great and offered crunchy between-bites breaks, but this latest bowl was more shards than full chips. Looking back, I should have paced myself with the rice and then scattered the chip bits over it.

Regular readers of BTAT know that I do not do well with spicy food, but this time, I even ate all of the Fresno chili slices as I tined up every last grain of rice.

One of these days, I will come in with an empty stomach and order Das Box’s much-heralded wings to go with what is one of my favorite dishes in town.

-Neil Gabbey