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By TYLER RALEY | Staff Writer

Walking out the door of the Shelby County Reporter office on a Friday afternoon in June 2024, my coworkers and I knew exactly what our plans were to wrap up the work week. We were heading to a restaurant in Shelby County that had then just opened up, something we had been planning to do the entire week.

The day had been stressful, filled with an internet outage that limited our proofing abilities of papers much like this one, but we managed to get through the day and ultimately find ourselves at a restaurant in Alabaster that we had high hopes for—Nawlins Style Po’boys.

Personally, my excitement for what was to come was difficult to contain, and I think the same could be said for my colleagues. I got what was called the River Walk Po’boy, which was a po’boy with fried shrimp, fish, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and a remoulade sauce. Just as I expected, its explosion of flavors and seasoning made for a wonderful sensation on my taste buds, which is just what I needed after a long day.

However, I was not always open to trying things like this. When I was a child and even to some extent when I was a younger teenager, my selection was fairly picky. I would find myself ordering the same things at restaurants no matter where I went, not wanting to branch out and try anything I was unfamiliar with.

Eventually, as time went on, I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried to new things at places around Shelby County. Now, while I still am not a fan of every food on the planet, I am way more open to trying new places I have never been to.

Qdoba Mexican Eats just announced its plans to set up in locations in Alabaster and along U.S. Highway 280. I have never been to Qdoba, and quite honestly had hardly ever heard of it until the news broke. However, I have been to Chipotle and Moe’s Southwest Grill, Qdoba’s main competitors, and had a good experience.

Having the knowledge that both Chipotle and Moe’s are a similar style to Qdoba makes me excited for what’s to come should locations enter the Shelby County area. While I am familiar with the culinary genre that I will be getting, it is still a new experience, as every establishment brings something different to the table.

Years ago, I never would have dreamed of trying a po’boy or burrito bowl or anything that might bring a lot of flavors to me because I did not want to risk not liking something. I wanted to stay basic and stick to the bare bones of cuisine.

Like all people though, I’ve developed, and so have my tastes. I’ve tried new restaurants that have come to the county, tried new things and formulated solid opinions on different foods.

Now though, as new places continue to come in and out of the area, take the next step if you are afraid to try new things. Like me, you may never know what you will find in the flavors of Shelby County.