Wednesday, August 20, 2003

Take a trip to the moon it's not too far away

A lone coyote howling in the desert, surrounded by cacti lifting their arms, perhaps in praise of the food. He's got something to howl about.

He's on the mural at Desert Moon in Fayetteville. Nearby several ladies sit by the window drinking cool beverages. Across from the mural, a gathering of five women and a few children help themselves to some more chips and salsa.

This is "The Moon," as Desert Moon general manager Lee Coleman says. The Moon is the place to find three choices of fresh made salsa at the free chip bar. It's the place to find fabulous house guacamole, and made-from-scratch chocolate chip cookies.

What you won't find, said Coleman, are frozen vegetables or a microwave in the kitchen.

All the customers surveyed on a recent afternoon said, "It's fresh." And Coleman has to agree, "We choose fresh ingredients for our salsas, toss our salads, hand roll our burritos and make our guacomole fresh every day. We offer our guests a choice of open fire grilled steak, chicken, shrimp and fire roasted vegetables with any of our entrees."

He emphasized that the self-serve free chips are organic and baked, not fried. In fact, nothing is fried in the Desert Moon kitchen.

Coleman is a bit of a food poet. "The flavors of our food derive from the fusion of the cultures and ingredients that characterize the American Southwest," he said.

Owner Charlie Moser states his opinion of the food a little more basically. "I first had to try all of the food on the menu in order to buy into it. I liked everything. You have to believe in a product to sell it." Now, Moser eats at the Desert Moon six days a week.

When Coleman shared that his favorite dish was the Texas BBQ Chicken Pizza, Moser added that it's even good the next day out of the refrigerator. He often takes home food for his wife, son and 11-year-old daughter, who painted the howling coyote on the wall. Other than the BBQ Pizza, Moser says they enjoy leftover Chicken Quesadillas and Tacos in their school lunches.

Moser's favorite is the Mesa Enchiladas. "It comes with black beans, rice and a three pepper cream sauce which is spicy, but not too spicy. We have had people at catered events use it like guacamole or salsaon everything."

When this Fayetteville location opened in April, it was the first Desert Moon in Georgia. Moser hopes to add two more locations in the next few years in Fayette and Coweta counties. A small chain, with only about twenty other locations, mostly in the Northeastern states, Moser saw great opportunity in the fresh fast-food fare that Desert Moon offers.

Customer Michelle McMonigle couldn't agree more. She and her four-year-old son Dawson, both of Fayetteville, stopped in on her day off from her job at Delta Airlines.

"This is a really nice alternative to fast food," she said. "He [her son] ate through two containers of the black bean salsa, and he doesn't normally eat salsa. He has truly enjoyed it. There was no prompting to finish his plate."

Other than Dawson's enjoyment of his food, McMonigle was pleased with the selection. "They have a very nice kid's menu, and you don't find that often in a sit-down restaurant."

The menu suits the palates and pockets of adult customers, as well. Newnan doctor Fred Gilbert and his wife Ann are regulars. "We've been trying a new dish every time we come in. But they keep coming up with new dishes," said Dr. Gilbert. "Today we had the Shrimp Creole Rice Bowl. It's excellent. I like the prices. You get real value here."

"It takes us 45 minutes to get here and it's worth the drive," added Mrs. Gilbert. "We like to drive over in the evenings and go over to Barnes and Noble or to a movie."

Located across from Fayette Pavilion, in the same plaza that houses Barnes and Noble, The Moon is convenient for many book lovers. It's open Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. And on Friday and Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Catering, corporate parties, called "Nite at the Moon," and answered questions can be had by calling 770-716-6090.

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