Checkmate Cafe and Cherries

Today mi madre, mi tia, y mis primos came to my hood for a lovely lunch.  We hung outside on my backporch enjoying the beautiful weather.  Per my request, my madre brought a double batch of her awesome homemade tunafish made with a teeny tiny bit of mayo, diced sweet pickles and celery.  She left out the onions this time.  For a surprise bonus, my aunt made her delish macaroni salad.  Score! 

To start off our feast, we munched on some snacks which included Cedars' original hummus and Syrian bread, blue cheese spread (freaking delicious) from Rochie's with wheat thins.  My cuz made her fantastic salsa.  She added diced baby tomatoes, cilantro, onions, etc. and mixed it all together to create awesomeness.  We chowed on that with some Tostitos corn chips. 

I suggested that we order some delivery for our lunch from Checkmate Cafe on South Street in Rozzie.  The hubs and I order from Checkmate on a regular so I was pretty sure everyone would be content with their food choices.  And I was correcto!  One of my cousins had a small spinach and cheese calzone which she loved.  The other cuz had one of the gourmet subs called the chicken broccoli alfredo (exactly what is sounds like), which he dogged.  My aunt had the Checkmate chicken grecco on my suggestion.  It is a wrap filled with chicken, feta, Greek dressing, lettuce, and tomatoes.  It is the bomb.  My madre enjoyed her 'can't find a name for it''  I call it the Thanksgiving sangie.  It is fresh cut turkey with cranberry sauce, stuffing, and gravy.  She raved about it.  All the subs were toasted which made them that much better.  I inhaled half of one of my own concoctions, chicken cutlet with American cheese, pickles, and hots.  MMM!!  We also shared some crispy wing dings.  They were excellent. 

Everyone was very happy with their lunches.  The portions are fairly large.  Most of us had a portion left over to snack on later.  Checkmate's prices are reasonable and their staff is friendly over the phone and in person.  You can get take-out, delivery, or eat in their dining area.  We have eaten pretty much everything on their extensive menu.  Their Greek pizza is the BEST around.  I crave it once a week but try to hold off from ordering that frequently.  I highly recommend Checkmate Cafe and I give them a rating of a B. 

We had our fill but you all know, there is always room for something sweet.  For dessert, I served a peach coffee cake from Rochie's which, in my opinion, was a little cheap on the peaches.  I was a bit annoyed because I love me some peaches and I was really looking forward to trying something new.  Fail!  My cousin brought some Italian cookies which was very nice of her.  And the cherries I picked up yesterday at Rochie's were so fresh, juicy, and sweet.  I guess they made up for the crappy cake and are for sure, more healthy.  My family and I had a good old time hanging out, laughing, catching up and of course, eating!