As our kids raced around the patio at Surrey Center’s Bodega Ultima, my friend Melisa and I settled into our patio chairs, took a deep breath—and relaxed.
Bodega Ultima isn’t the first place I’d think of for a kid-friendly lunch. But a quick scan of the menu during our hike at Reed Creek Nature Park found, surprisingly, a lot of options for them and us. Open for breakfast and lunch, Bodega’s lunch menu features mostly sandwiches—but enough variety to please anyone. There’s a burger, beef or portabella; pulled pork or hot honey butter chicken; cold seafood salad or fried red fish; turkey (plus ham) on a croissant or on a reuben; plus a Cuban or a Indian-inspired “trashcan wrap” with tandoori chicken on naan bread. There are also a couple of “share” plates, platters of falafel, hummus or pimento cheese with pita and fixings, or two salads that can be topped with your choice of protein.
Once we arrived and settled in on the patio, Melisa pointed out that breakfast was still available, too, which expanded the options quite a bit. There are breakfast sandwiches loaded with cheese, egg and varieties of pork, plus fixings; a biscuit with house-smoked chicken dipped in spicy honey butter; loaded toasts and bagels; and more.
My daughter immediately knew she wanted the pulled pork sandwich, with papas (fries). I chose the shrimp salad—a treat I don’t often get to order as it’s not something widely available—with a scoop of potato salad. (I also mentally made a note to try the trashcan wrap next time!)
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Even after our long walk, the kids briefly ran out some energy—and thankfully the waitress had thoughtfully tucked us in the back corner near the fountain—before settling down to play with some rocks found in the shrubbery or to ask us for pennies to toss in the fountain. Meanwhile, we caught up, and the food arrived soon before the kids got too hungry.
I love that the staff put my daughter’s BBQ sauce on the side just in case, and she immediately dove into the fries after I added a dollop of ketchup and took away the little cup of cole slaw, which I added to my plate. When I looked over again later, she was happily deconstructing her sandwich, eating bites of the tender, smoky-sweet shredded pork and then the top half of the buttered and grilled bun, dipping every bite into the sauce.
The shrimp salad felt fancy since I usually order a meal my daughter and I can share. This was 100% an adult’s meal—a flaky and buttery croissant topped with pale green shredded lettuce, sweet tomato and a generous scoop of the pale pink, sweet and slightly tangy shrimp salad (I removed the strip of bacon since I just wanted the pure shrimp salad). The potato salad included chunks of both white and sweet potato in a light dressing that needed a touch of salt, but ended up being perfect paired with the slightly salty crisp cole slaw.
With our full bellies, it was time for a nap—but only for the littlest one. The other kids were still raring to go. But Bodega Ultima made for a lovely respite.
Make Your Reservation
Bodega Ultima
353 Highland Ave.
www.bodegaultima.com
Cost: $8 to $12
Danielle Wong Moores is a local freelance writer who’ll never turn down a shrimp cocktail, sushi or cheese dip. Her greatest food influences are her mom and writers MFK Fisher and Amanda Hesser. Her Dine and Dish column runs the second and fourth Fridays in The Augusta Press.
