[table for two]

Reel Good Eatin’:
The lunch bunch savors a delicious meal downtown

By: Emily Rea

Driving along the cobblestone streets of downtown Wilmington on a breezy yet sunny afternoon, windows down and the smell of summer in the air, I turned to our graphic designer, Sue, in the passenger seat of my gas-guzzling SUV and quipped, “I bet when encore was located downtown you guys only did Lunch Bunches down here.”

“Actually, we did,” she laughed, her mind floating back to yesteryear when the magazine was sent to press from the building that now houses the Soapbox (the last year of which was the year prior to me joining the staff). “It was so great because we could just walk everywhere...”

Her words drifted off as I turned onto Dock Street along the side of the Reel Café, where folks roamed about the streets doing just that, enjoying the scenic riverfront district as they took a leisurely stroll.
“I wish we could eat lunch down here every day,” I mused as I shifted gears to park and leaned heavily on my steering wheel, peering beneath the driver’s side visor at all the happy pedestrians. “At least I got a good parking spot.”

Indeed, with great luck we found ourselves directly in front of the Dock Street entrance to the Reel, where John, Lani, Kris and Kris’ daughter, Brooke, sat waiting for us in the sun. “Nice!” Kris said, nodding to my spot, as we all turned to walk in together.

The Reel Café has been a favorite establishment of mine for ages, the nightclub side to its existence holding many a college-era story or two—or half dozen. It’s one of those cozily familiar eateries that make me proud of the unique community in which I live, as the Reel encapsulates much of what I love about Wilmington: a casual atmosphere, smiling faces, delicious food and a great view. This particular day we were relegated to the bottom floor for lunch, although my mind’s eye could easily foresee the dance party that would take over the second floor later in the evening and the lounging cocktail-drinkers who would sit at the rooftop bar ‘til the wee hours of the morning.

“Where would you guys like to sit?” Our server piped up, jarring my daydreams and giving us a choice of all the top spots in the house. Deciding upon a long table near the windows overlooking the outdoor patio, we settled in with growling bellies and high expectations.
“I really hope we get to have hummus today,” I remarked while perusing the menu. “The last time I was here, I’m pretty sure I skipped the pita bread altogether and just ate the hummus with my fork.”

“Yeah, they have the best hummus in town,” John returned matter-of-factly. “Actually, the entire menu has changed. I love their food.”
“I remember when this place first opened—it was really the hottest place around,” Kris commented, a sheepish smile on her face as late-night memories of her own were obviously flooding her mind.

“I am literally here all the time,” John replied, speaking for himself and his newlywed wife who live quite nearby on South Second Street. (In fact, the Reel played host to their rehearsal dinner just last week.)

As our waitress gathered drink orders and made genial conversation, we all decided that rather than trying to choose one meal apiece on our own, we’d let the cooks serve us family-style in order to get a sampling of all their best dishes. (We will absolutely admit to being selfish gluttons when it comes to a Lunch Bunch—ask any one of us.)
After briefly catching up on all the latest television drama—during which John was decidedly the gender underdog and at one point had to intervene by exclaiming, “So! Anyone catch that Celtics game last night? It was really a blow-out!”—our appetizers arrived quite timely and in generous proportions. Someone must have been smiling down on me as the hummus was placed down at my end of the table. They were followed by crab dip in the center, gigantic fried oinion rings, and a heap of steaming mussels. Lani’s mouth gaped wide open at the sight of the mussels. “These smell delicious!” she exclaimed, feasting her eyes on what was soon to become her favorite part of the entire meal.

Sharing nicely in spite of ourselves, the appetizers were devoured as quickly as they had arrived. “I thought I loved their hummus, but I cannot stop eating this crab dip!” I said, mesmerized by the tender texture and savory flavor of the spread that mysteriously kept finding its way onto my plate.

“These are seriously the best mussels I’ve ever had,” Lani declared, her one-track mind still focused on the dish she’d started with. (This was a high compliment coming from a Hawaii-native who’s lived at the beach her entire life, including since making the move to North Carolina.) John and Kris enthusiastically agreed.

We could have never prepared for the parade of entrées that followed, lining the entire length of our table and smelling fabulous. A Reuben, an Italian, a Club, spaghetti and meatballs, and tuna taunted our every last taste bud, putting a twinkle back in our eyes and calling for our bellies to make room. The side items looked just as fabulous and ranged from egg salad to pasta salad to steamed veggies.

“We soak our Reuben in Guiness for eight straight hours,” the waiter announced, sitting the lavish sandwich down at my end of the table between John and me—we stared each other down for the first bite.
Gorging ourselves beyond stuffed—even through one bite apiece of a fabulous apple pie with vanilla ice cream—I was ready to set up my laptop on the riverwalk for good, just so I could walk to the Reel for lunch every day. Instead, I’ll just have continue making it one of my favorite hangouts on the other side of town: for the ambience and, most of all, the unbeatable new menu.