6/26/12 Grapevine, TX. Bone Daddy's, the Hooter's of BBQ is sort of a combination of Chili's and a bar at Panama City, FL. I'm referring to the scenery of both, the food however is suprisingly good. Not that it's going to hold its own to a real BBQ joint with smoke in the dining area and surley employees, but for a big-menu chain it's good. Good enough to be the best BBQ in Grapevine (sorry Bartley's), Bone Daddy's knows it's strengths and weaknesses.
I ordered the 2 meat plate, traditional brisket and sausage w/ beans and potato salad. Even playing field so far. The brisket is served with sauce already laid on like a blanket and the potato salad came straight from an ice cream scoop. The brisket could have probably managed without the sauce, but I didn't get the chance to try. Easy B+. The sausage was thin sliced, with some charring on the edges, sort of like when I cook sausage in a skillet on the stove top, hmmm. Who cares, it's good. The beans looked awful, like they were only minutes from being liberated from a can of ketchup, but surprise, they tasted much better than they looked. I thought it was a little odd that no pickles, onions, or bread showed up, but I'm sure they'd appear if requested.
The idea here is that it's a chain, and these chains have business models that have profits in mind. It's a bit different than your traditional BBQ restaraunt, but hey, originality always scores points in my book. The waitstaff puts forth the effort so you have a good time, the BBQ is above average, and compared to most other BBQ chains, it's great (Rudy's still has better chain BBQ). Solid B+ for Bone Daddy's. Probably should try the ribs next time..... and maybe a burger. Just kidding. Smoke up!
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Lil' Piggy's Bar-B-Q
5/7/12 Coronado, CA This is by far the best location for a BBQ joint ever. Right on the bay in Coronado Island (locals call it Nado), Lil' Piggy's is smack dab in the middle of tourist trap shops, but you just can't beat the relaxed ocean breeze and 100 different beers from around the world.
This is one of those oddball places where the external factors & intangibles can make up for misfires with the meat. Thing is, the meat is very good. The place is called Lil' Piggy's so I made sure to get both the baby back ribs and pulled pork. The baby backs were tender and delicious. The pulled pork was just a bit tough, but the optional habanero sauce made it interesting. Grade A so far. I chose potato salad and corn fritters for the sides. Give the tato salad a miss, it's less than special. DO get the corn fritters with the honey butter. Take your time picking out a beer as they have a big menu (might not have every beer you see though). The grand finale is... get ready... bread pudding!? Yes, leave the nanner pudding in TX and step outside the box with some delicious bread pudding for dessert.
It's California, it's really good food, it's a beer adventure, it's fantastic corn fritters, it's got mac n' cheese for the discerning palate of a 3 year old, it's a helpful & friendly staff, it's steps from the beach, it's absolutely the best of so many worlds. If you're looking for holy land of BBQ like Smitty's or some of the other gold standard BBQ joints, Lil' Piggy's won't hold it's own, but for them to resist every reason to cheapen up and serve tourist trap food and actually serve great food, they're getting an easy A. Get your pork on, 'Nado style...
This is one of those oddball places where the external factors & intangibles can make up for misfires with the meat. Thing is, the meat is very good. The place is called Lil' Piggy's so I made sure to get both the baby back ribs and pulled pork. The baby backs were tender and delicious. The pulled pork was just a bit tough, but the optional habanero sauce made it interesting. Grade A so far. I chose potato salad and corn fritters for the sides. Give the tato salad a miss, it's less than special. DO get the corn fritters with the honey butter. Take your time picking out a beer as they have a big menu (might not have every beer you see though). The grand finale is... get ready... bread pudding!? Yes, leave the nanner pudding in TX and step outside the box with some delicious bread pudding for dessert.
It's California, it's really good food, it's a beer adventure, it's fantastic corn fritters, it's got mac n' cheese for the discerning palate of a 3 year old, it's a helpful & friendly staff, it's steps from the beach, it's absolutely the best of so many worlds. If you're looking for holy land of BBQ like Smitty's or some of the other gold standard BBQ joints, Lil' Piggy's won't hold it's own, but for them to resist every reason to cheapen up and serve tourist trap food and actually serve great food, they're getting an easy A. Get your pork on, 'Nado style...
Monday, March 26, 2012
Hard Eight BBQ
3/25/12 Coppell, TX So it's been awhile but the banana pudding is still off the charts awesome. Now for the not so obvious. They took the big jalapinos out of the beans. Not a deal breaker, but not cool. Now they're just ordinary. Yeah, and the spare ribs aren't good.
Get the brisket. It has a real smoke flavor to it. Real tender this last time too. Make your own chopped brisket sandwich with the mountain of bread you requested. Sausage is ok, not great. So here's the deal: Get the brisket, something experimental like a bacon wrapped something, banana pudding and a sweet tea. The beans aren't as good as they used to be, but they're free and that's cool. Might consider bringing your own sauce though. It's loaded with sugar and I think it's designed for folks that just don't like BBQ but want to go because their families dragged them there. Hard 8 is good, don't get me wrong, but you have to know what you're doing. The homemade sides look great, but there's too much meat here to deal to them. Try the pork chop sometime. It's as big as Barry Bonds' head!
Get the brisket. It has a real smoke flavor to it. Real tender this last time too. Make your own chopped brisket sandwich with the mountain of bread you requested. Sausage is ok, not great. So here's the deal: Get the brisket, something experimental like a bacon wrapped something, banana pudding and a sweet tea. The beans aren't as good as they used to be, but they're free and that's cool. Might consider bringing your own sauce though. It's loaded with sugar and I think it's designed for folks that just don't like BBQ but want to go because their families dragged them there. Hard 8 is good, don't get me wrong, but you have to know what you're doing. The homemade sides look great, but there's too much meat here to deal to them. Try the pork chop sometime. It's as big as Barry Bonds' head!
Monday, February 6, 2012
Woodshed Smokehouse
2/4/12 Ft. Worth, TX So this place just opened up near the TCU campus in Ft. Worth right on the Trinity River. It's a hip place, right on the bike trail which would be a great stop after a long ride. I mean why not, right? Get all that spandex and helmet on and then stop for a rack of ribs. Sounds far fetched, but that's exactly what some folks were doing! Woodshed Smokehouse is not your typical BBQ joint. It's a full throttle, gourmet, BBQ experiment (experience? ok both). Just go to the website to see the menu as I would likely misspell half the items on there. I got the Bahn Mi, which is apparently pork with a coke and Makers Mark marinade. The pork was very tender, but way too fatty for my taste. Once I pushed the gobs of fat off to side, I threw the pork in some corn tortillas and had what resembles tacos. I'd definitely get it again, but next time I gotta go traditional and just get some ribs. You can get all sorts of unique BBQ here including beef ribs and smoked fish. It's pricey, $50 for two people, but you get hip points PLUS tasty food and you just can't buy that. Oh wait, the $50, right. Anyway, variety is the name of the game here so think outside the smoker. It's double awesome if the weather is nice because you can sit outside next to the river. Oh, you can also follow the pitmaster... er I mean chef, on Twitter and he will tell you the animal of the day that is being smoked (again, go to the website to find the Twit info).
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Soulman's Bar-B-Que
1/28/12 Dallas, TX So I gave blood. Yeah, I'm a fkn' saint. Believe it or not, this fact is very relevant to this review. It happend to be near Soulman's BBQ so I stopped by to check it out. Very helpful and informative dude behind the counter recommended ribs. There's a pig wearing sunglasses on the sign out front, so of course I'm getting the ribs. I order a to-go plate with some St. Louis style ribs, then spicy beans, and some spicy cabbage/onion thing on the side. You get your self-serve onions and pickles, of course, but you can also get self-serve pico, fresh jalapinos, banana peppers, etc. Way cool. They're into spicy here.
Anyway, I take the BBQ back to my vehicle and get on my way. As I get on the freeway I start wondering if I'm light-headed from giving away half the blood in my body, or if I was just hungry. Seemed counter productive to drive down the freeway only to pass out and wreck, especially before even trying the ribs sitting in the passenger seat. So, I figure the responsible thing to do is chow down on a rib, just to clear my head. The next thing I know, I'm taking down these ribs one after the other. It was a little messy, and it was sometimes hard staying in my lane, but it's not like I was texting or using the cell phone or anything irresponsible. It must have been quite a sight for the folks behind me though, what with bones flying out of my window and all. Don't get all preachy to me about littering. People and animals have been leaving bones all over the earth for like hundreds or millions of years. At 70 mph they probably ended up in the grassy right-of-way anyway. And don't get all preachy about distracted driving either. The blood I just gave will probably save the life of someone who got in a wreck anyway, so I am more or less getting a free pass in causing at least a few. But I digress...
The ribs were good. They had a nice thick smoke ring and were tender enough to pull the bone right out! A little greasy (I prefer a "louder" bark hehe), but most everything here seemed a little greasy. That's just how they roll, and it's perfectly ok. The beans had chunks of sausage and japs in there and were very good. The greasy spicy cabbage thing was not bad, if you're into cabbage that is. It's atypical to see this side at a BBQ joint, so I definitely give them points for creativity. All in all, Soulman's gets a B++. Sometimes you want BBQ that's a little different from the norm, and Soulman's comes through with flying rib bones, er, that is to say "flying colors". Until next time, pedal to the metal!
Anyway, I take the BBQ back to my vehicle and get on my way. As I get on the freeway I start wondering if I'm light-headed from giving away half the blood in my body, or if I was just hungry. Seemed counter productive to drive down the freeway only to pass out and wreck, especially before even trying the ribs sitting in the passenger seat. So, I figure the responsible thing to do is chow down on a rib, just to clear my head. The next thing I know, I'm taking down these ribs one after the other. It was a little messy, and it was sometimes hard staying in my lane, but it's not like I was texting or using the cell phone or anything irresponsible. It must have been quite a sight for the folks behind me though, what with bones flying out of my window and all. Don't get all preachy to me about littering. People and animals have been leaving bones all over the earth for like hundreds or millions of years. At 70 mph they probably ended up in the grassy right-of-way anyway. And don't get all preachy about distracted driving either. The blood I just gave will probably save the life of someone who got in a wreck anyway, so I am more or less getting a free pass in causing at least a few. But I digress...
The ribs were good. They had a nice thick smoke ring and were tender enough to pull the bone right out! A little greasy (I prefer a "louder" bark hehe), but most everything here seemed a little greasy. That's just how they roll, and it's perfectly ok. The beans had chunks of sausage and japs in there and were very good. The greasy spicy cabbage thing was not bad, if you're into cabbage that is. It's atypical to see this side at a BBQ joint, so I definitely give them points for creativity. All in all, Soulman's gets a B++. Sometimes you want BBQ that's a little different from the norm, and Soulman's comes through with flying rib bones, er, that is to say "flying colors". Until next time, pedal to the metal!
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