Audience Statement
Located in Norfolk on the Old Dominion University campus. The Handsome Biscuit is a hip new restaurant. The restaurant attracts a younger audience with its retro look. The common ages of people spotted there ranges from those around 18 to those in their 30s. The primary audience is, however, is ODU students. The new location gives the restaurant a new audience to appeal to. The audience they are trying to appeal most to now is the Old Dominion University students, and that is exactly who I am writing this for.
Beauteous Biscuits
Can a food be considered handsome? The answer, yes! At the Handsome Biscuit that is. This new spin on a homemade classic is exciting and fun. Located in the Norfolk area on the Old Dominion campus, 4200 Monarch Way, the Handsome Biscuit is fairly new to the area. They are currently still in their inaugural hours. which are from 8am-3pm/ Wednesday-Sunday. As for their food. It is like nothing I’ve ever had before. Sweet, tangy, but salty and savory at the same time.
When I went to the Handsome Biscuit I was joined by my friend and roommate Vonyea. As soon as you walk in there is an old, wooden, vintage desk used as the counter where you order. To the left and behind the desk is an open kitchen, where I could see the cooks making the meals. As I continued to look around I saw that there were wooden counter tops that line the windows. Tables of different sizes are stationed throughout the rest of the restaurant. In the back there was an open brick wall painted over with gray paint.
Their menu is very different from most things I’ve seen before. All their sandwiches are made with sweet potato biscuits. The sandwiches themselves range from simple yet delicious to strange, complex, and incredible. The prices of the sandwiches range from $3-$7. I had a sandwich that is called the Stevie($6.50). The Stevie consists of fried chicken, their house pickles, whole grain mustard, and wildflower honey. It sounds like a strange combination. However, the flavors worked incredibly well together. The honey mixed with the chicken reminds me of a southern classic, chicken and waffles. Sweet but salty, the perfect mix. The pickles helped add to the salty flavor. The sweet potato biscuit added to the sweet flavor and tied everything together. As for Vonyea she had a sandwich called the Shorty($3.65). This is one of the more basic sandwiches they offer. The sandwich is one egg topped with cheddar cheese in between two sweet potato biscuits. It reminded me of a breakfast sandwich. Not the kind you find at a Mcdonald’s but the kind your mom or dad makes at home on the weekends. The classic combination was very welcoming. Giving me a feeling of comfort and home.
To complement their sandwiches they offer a number of sides and what they call “add-ons” which are extra toppings. Each side seems that it could go with any sandwich but there are some sandwiches that each side compliments more than others. I had the Apple Coleslaw($2.50), which contained apples, red and green cabbage, carrots, and celery seed dressing. It was sweet and tangy just like my sandwich. The perfect combo. My friend, Vonyea, got the Hash Brown Krisp($3.75), which is potatoes, eggs, and melted onions all mixed together. It was the perfect combination to make her meal a comforting breakfast, at lunch time. The add-ons range from your basic slices of bacon($1.25) to caviar($2).
If you’re not in the mood for a sandwich then they also sell their sweet potato biscuits plain($1.50), with butter and jam($$2.50), and with meat($5). They also make their own hot sauce that is for sale $9.05 for a 16 oz bottle. You might be thinking that I forgot about drinks but no they have a variety of drinks. From coffee, to soda, to orange juice they have it all ($1-$2.25). However, if you go to get a fountain soda don’t expect your basic coke or pepsi. They have flavors that are similar but unique. All of which taste very good.
Along with all the other delicious food they offer at the Handsome Biscuit they also serve desserts. The Biscuit Pudding ($3.75) is my personal favorite. It is very rich and the honey and molasses makes it so sweet. The perfect end to a perfect meal.
Now on to the overall experience. As soon as we walked in we were greeted and taken care of immediately. They guy taking orders at the desk, Brian, was very friendly and nice. Brian started by asking us if we had ever been there before. When we said no he went on to tell us the special of the day and what their favored menu items were. After we ordered he told us where the drinks and utensils were. The food came out quickly. We were only sitting and waiting for about 10 minutes before it came out. When it came out it was hot and fresh. After we had been eating for a while a few other employees came over and asked how we were doing and if there was anything they could do. I especially liked this because even though the restaurant doesn’t have actual servers the employees still care about making sure you have the best experience possible.
Overall the experience was the best I have had at a restaurant in awhile. The food was the best I’ve had since being here at ODU. The only downside right now is their strange hours, but they are working on expanding their hours soon (since they just opened). I definitely see myself coming back to the Handsome Biscuit. It’s a little piece home 194 miles away from home.
Reflection:
In my food review I would revise the order in which I spoke of my experiences. I now would move the overall experience, talking about the service and aesthetic of the restaurant, to the beginning of the review. This way when reading at the end you would actually have a better remembrance of the review on the food itself. I would also put more description into my audience statement. I feel this would give the reader better sense of who it is directed to so that they would know if it is informational to them. Aside from that there are only little grammatical changes I would fix.