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October 7th, 2009
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Archive for the ‘Sandwich’ Category
Dixie’s BBQ/Porter Automotive
September 20th, 2007
I finally met “The Man” at Dixie’s. Even though the name of this place is Dixie’s BBQ/Porter Automotive, I’m fairly certain that no one is going to bring their car in for a tune up any time soon. Upon rolling in the parking lot I exclaimed, “Holy Cow.” Only it wasn’t “cow” it was the other thing. I knew that Dixie’s was not the typical restaurant but I was shocked to see the converted garage turned Seattle BBQ legend.
There are a couple of things to keep in mind when dining at Dixie’s. First, the staff knows that their food is good and that’s why the menu is so small. Second, ask for anything that isn’t on the menu (hung up on the wall) and you’ll probably be made fun of for not reading said menu.Although there are tables inside, it’s the outdoor seating that is packed on a sunny day. I parked myself on an empty concrete table and bench and began to check out my 520 Special (pulled pork with a hot link) and pasta salad. Before I began to eat I wondered if I would be disappointed. For years I’ve heard about Dixie’s and “The Man.” I worried that it wouldn’t stand up to its deeply entrenched, Eastside reputation. 
All sandwiches are served overflowing on Hoagie rolls. I recommend grabbing a fork and eating some of the meat before attempting to pick up the enormous sandwich. As for the BBQ sauce it was good but not the best I’ve had; very tomato based, but pleasantly sweet. The pork, I must say, was fantastic. It was very tender and tasty, and although it took in some of the BBQ sauce it still had its own unique flavoring. The hot link was also a tad disappointing. I was expecting a hot link of sausage, but this reminded me more of a routine baseball stadium hotdog. I also liked the pasta salad as a side dish. It was very creamy with chunks of cheddar cheese. Although I didn’t try it myself, I heard fellow lunch goers raving about the corn bread. 
What about “The Man”? I can safely and happily say that I didn’t try this legendary concoction during this visit. I have tried it a couple of times before, thanks to some “friends” who brought it home. I can honestly say it’s the spiciest hot sauce I’ve ever tried. I love hot sauces but I didn’t appreciate that “The Man” almost brought me to tears.
What I liked most about Dixie’s was the portions. I’ve been eating at a few BBQ restaurants lately and have been really bummed out by the size of the sandwiches. This is BBQ after all…isn’t it supposed to be messy and big? Despite some people’s belief that Dixie’s is the best BBQ joint on the planet, I will have to say it is very good, but what makes it fun and quite different is its natural quirkiness and individuality. And for me, that’s a good enough reason to stop by now and again to get some filling and reliable BBQ.
There are a couple of things to keep in mind when dining at Dixie’s. First, the staff knows that their food is good and that’s why the menu is so small. Second, ask for anything that isn’t on the menu (hung up on the wall) and you’ll probably be made fun of for not reading said menu.Although there are tables inside, it’s the outdoor seating that is packed on a sunny day. I parked myself on an empty concrete table and bench and began to check out my 520 Special (pulled pork with a hot link) and pasta salad. Before I began to eat I wondered if I would be disappointed. For years I’ve heard about Dixie’s and “The Man.” I worried that it wouldn’t stand up to its deeply entrenched, Eastside reputation. All sandwiches are served overflowing on Hoagie rolls. I recommend grabbing a fork and eating some of the meat before attempting to pick up the enormous sandwich. As for the BBQ sauce it was good but not the best I’ve had; very tomato based, but pleasantly sweet. The pork, I must say, was fantastic. It was very tender and tasty, and although it took in some of the BBQ sauce it still had its own unique flavoring. The hot link was also a tad disappointing. I was expecting a hot link of sausage, but this reminded me more of a routine baseball stadium hotdog. I also liked the pasta salad as a side dish. It was very creamy with chunks of cheddar cheese. Although I didn’t try it myself, I heard fellow lunch goers raving about the corn bread. What about “The Man”? I can safely and happily say that I didn’t try this legendary concoction during this visit. I have tried it a couple of times before, thanks to some “friends” who brought it home. I can honestly say it’s the spiciest hot sauce I’ve ever tried. I love hot sauces but I didn’t appreciate that “The Man” almost brought me to tears.What I liked most about Dixie’s was the portions. I’ve been eating at a few BBQ restaurants lately and have been really bummed out by the size of the sandwiches. This is BBQ after all…isn’t it supposed to be messy and big? Despite some people’s belief that Dixie’s is the best BBQ joint on the planet, I will have to say it is very good, but what makes it fun and quite different is its natural quirkiness and individuality. And for me, that’s a good enough reason to stop by now and again to get some filling and reliable BBQ.
Eastlake Bar and Grill (seattle foodster)
May 29th, 2008
Formerly Sam’s Steakhouse, Eastlake Bar and Grill is one of three lakeside restaurants owned by brothers John and James Schmidt. Although each of their three bar and grill restaurants serve similar food and offer up amazing views I believe that it is their Eastlake location that might be the most popular. Although it wasn’t their original (opened in 2004) the Eastlake location offers panoramic views of South Lake Union.
I recently went to Eastlake on one of the first nice Seattle sunny days of the year. Knowing how fickle Seattle weather can be, my girlfriend and I took full advantage of the restaurant’s large outdoor deck facing the water. The deck was packed and although our server graced us with her presence ten minutes later than what would be normal for most restaurants after you’ve been seated, we decided to brush it off.
The Eastlake Bar and Grill offers the Sunset Dinner which is comprised of a soup or salad, one of twelve entrees and a dessert for $12.95. Knowing that hot soup was the one thing I did not want I started with a Caesar Salad. I know that Caesar’s aren’t that complicated to make but I’m starting to realize that I’m sort of a Caesar Salad connoisseur. It was recently brought to my attention by a friend that I eat approximately five Caesars a week, never changing to a different salad choice. Knowing this, you can understand why I was pleased that the Caesar at Eastlake was fresh and crisp and not drowning in dressing.
My girlfriend chose Alaskan Cod and Chips as her entrée. Although we remarked about how cute the crinkle-cut fries were we both noticed that her fried fish tasted sort of soapy. Yet another example of why I stay clear of fish and chips. I decided to try the Blackened Fish Tacos. Although the item title was “taco” and the description said that it was “two flour tortillas” I was still surprised when a Blackened Fish Burrito was served. The fresh slaw and tilapia fish looked refreshing so I figured it would be a waste of time to talk about the dissimilarities between taco and burrito. For as large and heavy as the fish tacos looked they were surprisingly light. The tilapia had a good seasoning to it and the slaw and mango salsa had a cooling effect on this hot day.
For desert I kept it simple; ice cream sundae for me and my girlfriend went with key lime pie. I don’t like key lime pie very much and I found their version too creamy for my taste. My ice cream was served in what I can only describe as a melted state of being. I’m pretty sure this occurred because the weather was hot or perhaps because the ice cream bowl was served on top of a steaming hot plate.
I think the food at Eastlake Bar and Grill is more in the category of upscale bar food as opposed to high end grilled cuisine. While the food was pretty solid there were definitely some aspects that could have easily been fixed. Despite any of these negatives I know that come the next sunny Seattle day I’m going to consider sitting on the outside deck at this restaurant… I just won’t order the ice cream
Frontier Room
November 27th, 2007
The Frontier Room is a bit of an oddity when it comes to BBQ restaurants. Sure, it sells some tasty high-end BBQ fixings but it also functions as a hip Bell Town bar. If the sight of seeing young Seattle yuppie hipsters at a BBQ joint disturbs you, I share your sentiment. A few co-workers and myself decided to go down to the Frontier Room to see if this fancy BBQ favorite could stand up to the greasy napkin, rolled-up-sleeves style restaurants.
Yours truly chose the Beef Brisket Sandwich, served with Snappy Coleslaw and a side of Hush Puppies. The first thing I noticed about my Beef Brisket Sandwich was that it was not covered in a lot of BBQ sauce. I’ve become a bit more educated in the world of BBQ and have learned that many times a pepper and vinegar sauce is used in lieu of the BBQ sauce most people are used to. I took the liberty of dashing some of the pepper and vinegar sauce from the table on to my sandwich.
I was pleasantly surprised by the tart flavor of the sauce which complimented the brisket. Also, the bread was nice and thick so there was no sauce dripping through. This must be part of the reason you can dress so nicely at the Frontier Room and not leave with stains on your shirt. My disappointment centered on the size of the sandwich. Perhaps due to the large plate it was served on, this thing looked kind of puny and was not filling enough for me.
The Hush Puppies, on the other hand, did fill me up. You may know Hush Puppies as Corn Fitters or simply as deep fried corn bread. They’re served along side a ranch-like sauce and a regular order should be shared with others. The outside of the Hush Puppies were a golden brown with a crispy crust. The inside was a soft corn filing with red and green peppers with little bits of corn.
I was very impressed that such a trendy bar could serve good BBQ. When you enter the Frontier Room you get the sense that they might have been more concerned about making the restaurant trendy as opposed to concentrating on the flavor of the food. However, the kitchen offers a well-rounded and diverse selection of BBQ. Also worth mentioning is the Beef Brisket Specialty, Frontier Mac’n Cheese, Bacon-Wrapped Prawns and the Frontier Room Gumbo.
Longhorn BBQ Outpost (platinum palate)
July 22nd, 2007
Technorati Tags: platinum palate, Seattle, Pioneer Square, BBQ, American, Sandwich, Southern
Hole in the wall barbecue establishments are one of the staples of the American lunch crowds. True barbecue restaurants have a unique personality all to themselves that add to the flavor of the meal in more ways than one. Personal preference often plays a big part in the choosing of one’s favorite BBQ joint too so it may take a lot of hunting to find that one establishment that meets fills your stomach, satisfies your palette and of course doesn’t stress your pocket book.
The Longhorn Barbecue Outpost in Pioneer Square is a Texas style barbecue pit that boasts “The Northwest’s BEST Texas Southern Pit Style Barbecue.” While that may be a bit of an overstatement, it was a pretty tasty meal. The indoor slow-cooker pumps its smoky goodness out a vent onto 1st Avenue that makes this place hard to miss. Incidentally once you have past by the vent, stood in line, and sat down to eat there you won’t be hard to miss either as the scent sort of sticks with you.
Some might disagree with me, but there is a holy trinity that goes into great BBQ; quality of the meat, flavor of the sauce, and perfection of the technique. The Longhorn Outpost uses a sweeter, deeper barbecues sauce that is typical of Texas style. It does not have the vinegar content that you see in the Carolina style sauces or the overt smokiness of more southern style sauces.
The best part of Longhorn’s menu is the combination plates. They allow you to try different meats and sides and there is no way you will leave hungry. I went with the Maverick Plate which consists of smoked brisket, smoked turkey and two sides. In Texas “Que” you have to get baked beans and cornbread (in my humble opinion) but the potato salad, coleslaw, and other sides are great too.
My only complaints about this tasty lunch destination was that I usually like thicker brisket than they serve (Longhorns is a little too thin slices for my taste) and I would have liked a tangier sauce (nothing a little splash of Tabasco can’t handle). Other than that, this place is great and I would highly recommend it to anyone searching to fill that need for amazing slow-cooked flavor.
Pig Iron Bar-B-Q (seattle foodster)
July 22nd, 2007
If you’re driving down 1st Avenue in downtown Seattle and continue south you’ll eventually run into the Pig Iron Bar-B-Q. Sure, it feels like you’re almost at SeaTac airport but you’re actually in Georgetown. You’ll be lucky to find a seat at this hot lunch spot. They have quite a reputation for BBQ, and the fact that they’re one of the few eating establishments among a plethora of warehouses doesn’t hurt.
When you enter this BBQ joint, you get the sense from the waitress that she wants you to hurry up and order. While this might seem rude to some Northwestern types, I would urge you not to get offended because as soon as she takes your order she’ll be walking back with your food.
The menu is short and to the point as is the service. You’ve got a handful of sandwich choices, handful of platter choices and a bunch of sides to choose from. I was in a carb free mood so I chose the Certified Angus Choice Beef Brisket. My platter came with two sides and I ordered the coleslaw and cornbread dressing because they sounded appetizing.
Surprisingly, my food was served very neatly on a metal platter, with my sides placed securely in metal cups. The brisket was shorter than I expected but there were about four or five long slices. A neat thing the Pig Iron does is they don’t drench your meal in BBQ sauce. Instead, they offer three types of sauce which are located conveniently on your table. You can choose from Original BBQ Sauce, Chipotle BBQ Sauce and Mustard BBQ sauce. The mustard was by far my favorite.
The brisket was a little drier than I thought it should be, however it was still quite tender and the smoky flavor was exceptional. The coleslaw was pretty standard although it, too, was tasty. I wasn’t sure what I was getting into with the cornbread dressing simply because I had never heard of it before. If you’re not sure what it is either than just think of cornbread stuffing or broken up pieces of cornbread. This was also pretty good except that it sort of broke down into tiny pieces that were hard to scoop up on your fork.
Overall I didn’t find many things to complain about at Pig Iron. While I wasn’t knocked off my feet, I was very happy with what I had there. Just keep in mind that they are pretty much off the beaten path in terms of mainstream Seattle, so be prepared to travel somewhat on your quest for barbeque.
Technorati Tags: seattle, seattle foodster, southern, georgetown, sandwich, bbQ
Virginia Inn (seattle foodster)
June 20th, 2007
If ever you find yourself hungry when in the Pike Place Market and can’t bear the crowds then allow me to suggest the Virginia Inn. Located on 1st Avenue and Virginia, odds are you’ve passed it a few times. The interior is consistent with a simple tavern-like atmosphere; long saloon style bar backed up by a row of small circle tables. The menu is just as simple, a daily quiche followed by a few sandwich and salad choices.
On this particular occasion, I sampled the daily quiche, walnuts with blue cheese served with a side house salad, the Jambon sandwich, and the Muffuletta sandwich. All sandwiches come with a side of chips, probably Tim’s Cascade I assume, unless you ask otherwise.
The size of the walnut and blue cheese quiche was surprisingly large. This daily quiche was fresh tasting although I wasn’t too pleased with the walnuts in there. I honestly wouldn’t order this quiche again because I’m just not a huge fan of walnuts and blue cheese, but if that’s your thing then go for it.
My two favorite sandwiches from the Virginia Inn happen to be the Jambon and the Muffuletta so I was really psyched that I got to try them both again. The Jambon consists of Italian Ham and Gruyere cheese served in between crusty French bread, its flavor enhanced by a buttery spread used on the bread.
My favorite of my favorites is the Muffuletta sandwich. Perhaps because it was created by a Sicilian I love it even more, or perhaps it’s the punch of flavor this sandwich gives you when you bite into the olive spread. The artistry in making this sandwich is to take crunchy French bread cut lengthways, spread on the Muffuletta, which is a flavorful olive mixture, and then layer on cured Italian meats. Top the sandwich off with some provolone and you’re ready for a delicious meal.
Besides the Muffuletta sandwich, the best characteristic of the Virginia Inn is the relaxed atmosphere of the place. Whether you’re going for dinner or just a couple of beers you’ll find that the servers aren’t rushing you out the door. As an added attraction, as the weather gets warmer you have the opportunity to sit outside and do some people watching.
Technorati Tags: Sandwich, French, Bar, American, Seattle Foodster
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