I was reminded last week of where this particular journey began.  A lot of ground has been covered since that day and where we stand today, so I thought it was time to share. Spill the beans. Drop the tea, as the kids like to say.  Don’t mind if I do.

Last September, I was asked to be a judge at the annual Taste of Pooler event at the Mighty 8th Museum.  I had served in that capacity before, so it wasn’t necessarily a ‘big deal’ on my radar. It’s a lot of fun. It’s A LOT of food.  I was looking forward to participating and being paired with whomever was also asked to be a judge.

Come ‘game day’, I walk into the hall at the Mighty 8th, beautifully decorated as it always is for this great event and surveyed the scene.  Full house?  Check. It always is. A couple of dozen food vendors? Check. There always are. This year though, there was something different.

For starters, I was told that on this particular night I was going to be the only judge.  I could feel my waistline getting larger by the second.  It was a tall order. Over 20 different bites to choose from.  Some vendors offered multiple bites. For example, someone doing desserts might offer thing different kinds of cakes or sweets.  It’s a lot, but it’s what the job calls for.

I’m taking the time to share all of this because my “journey through Pooler” that night came with a very interesting observation on my part attached. As I made my way passed one vendor, two vendors, three… I noticed that not a single one of them represented a ‘chain’ restaurant.  You know, corporate owned franchises.

Every single bite I had that night was locally owned and operated. Frankly, I was a bit surprised.

Why was that a big deal?  C’mon now. Let’s not ignore the 600 pound gorilla in the room.   Everyone knows that Pooler is home to practically every single chain restaurant there is to have. Give us your tired, your poor, your hungry and your Ruby Tuesdays.  You’ll find it in Pooler.   I mean, fair enough. It’s the fastest growing section of Chatham County and development is reflecting that.  Not just food either, but that’s someone else’s job to discuss. We are over here in the eats department.

A few years back when we were putting Restaurant Week together, we attempted to get some eateries in Pooler involved.  The only one really that fit the bill was Chazito’s Puerto Rican cuisine.  Everything else was a chain.   If you know anything about what we’ve done here at Eat It and Like It the last 13 years plus is, we’ve sidestepped corporate eateries. There has always been an ‘eat local’ mantra.

A month or so removed from that great evening at “Taste,” a chance phone conversation with an old friend stirred up some residual excitement for what is happening on Pooler’s food scene. 

Courtney Rawlins is the President and CEO of the Pooler Chamber of Commerce.  I’ve known her for over a decade. I know her well enough to know that since she took over at The Chamber, she has been lighting Western Chatham County on fire (figuratively speaking of course).  The focus, the energy, the passion is unlike anything lil’ ol’ Pooler has seen before. She has a vision, she has a plan, she has a team to help her execute it.  I’m honored to say Eat It and Like It has been a part of it since the beginning of the year.  How so?

Eat It and Like It and The Pooler Chamber of Commerce have entered a partnership agreement to create Pooler’s first ever digital dining guide.  Poolereats.com features anything and everything there is to eat within Pooler city limits.  Every cracker, every calorie, every bite.

The website went live on July 10th. You can see it here.

Poolereats will be different than what we do at eatitandlikeit.com in that it will include chain restaurants. It doesn’t matter where headquarters is.  It also won’t be limited to what we think is the best in town. If it’s edible in Pooler, it will be a listing at poolereats.com. There will be podcast support, social media, the whole nine.  You get the idea.  So go ahead and follow us now.  Facebook and Instagram.  Pooler Eats.

There will be more on this down the road. Of that, I am certain. We are just ringing the bell now to introduce you to what should be a major hub of traffic in Pooler-without even getting into your car. Big Bon Bodgea, Noble Roots, Crown and Anchor Pub, El Mezcal Mexican Restaurant, Phat Girlz Soul Food are just the beginning.  Lots of eating and liking to do.

Before I let you go, one final observation in putting this website together. You don’t need me to tell you about the influx of Asian eateries in the area. The massive market that opened a couple of months ago at Abercorn and Derenne is enough to remind us of the impact of the Hyundai Manufacturing Plant going up right now in Bryan County.

What I didn’t realize until we began to dig in to this project was just how many new Korean and/or Asian eateries have come on the scene, particularly in Pooler. It was a seemingly never ending list. My guess would be between 2 and 3 dozen. Yes, dozen. Some a little better appointed than others. But they are here nonetheless. Bewon Korean BBQ and Wild Ginger are tops on my list to visit. We will share that and more with you going forward….at poolereats.com

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