Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Gateway BBQ Tour

I was helping a friend drive a U-Haul from Washington, DC to Santa Fe, so  we decided to have some fun and turn it into a "Gateway BBQ Tour." Since we were driving through Va, Tn, Ar, Ok and Tx, it seemed like a winner -- and it was. However, we discovered that the most important criterion for finding good BBQ is not how many stars or favorable reviews it gets on Yelp or Urbanspoon or whatever, but that it be open!

Our first target was Smoky's Hickory BBQ in Mason, Va., which got great reviews and seemed like a great BBQ shack. We held out for a late lunch, got off the Interstate and found the shack. Smokey's, it was obvious, had gone out of business some time ago. First lesson, call ahead.

So we had an early dinner at Archer's in Knoxville, Tn -- sampling both the Memphis-style baby backs and the pulled pork sandwiches (we were hungry, what can I say). They were excellent. We stopped there because a potential target in Nashville, Hog Heaven, told us when we called that they would close by 9 and we didn't think we could make it by then.

The next day was Sunday, and it turns out the most BBQ joints, at least in Tn, are closed on Sunday. Our first choice, Mac's BBQ in Jackson, Tn, was closed, and B.E. Scott in Lexington, which Andrea and I had visited in our previous trip along I-40 was also closed. We ended up at Brooksie's Barn in Jackson, which had a good pulled pork sandwich but a bizarre ambiance and a location right next to the megachurch Love & Truth. Jackson, in fact, was a depressing array of chain stores and restaurants.

We hustled to Fayetteville to make it to Sassy's Red House before they closed at 9. The rack of spareribs was good enough, but not great, though the ambiance of the festive outdoor deck made it a pleasant stop.

In Amarillo, we headed for Doug Henk's BBQ, after reading that he had won a vote as the best BBQ in the city. When we got there, we found it had become Crazy Larry's. Larry, who did seem a bit crazy, greeted us warmly and just informed us they had changed their name. The brisket was good, though I'm sure Austin has much better to offer.

When we finally got to Santa Fe, Harry's Roadhouse did have some juicy St. Louis style ribs on the menu, but I decided the BBQ tour was over and opted instead for a New Mexico blue corn turkey enchilada, which was scrumptious. The margaritas helped.

It was clear in Mason that the fast food franchises which dotted the road from the Interstate had most likely driven Smokey's out of business. In general, it seems that the shacks, at least those accessible to cross-country drivers are fast disappearing. In Oklahoma City, for instance, the front desk personnel at our Hampton Inn steered us away from Earl's Rib Palace, a Bricktown eatery that got fairly good review in Yelp, and recommended the Cajun place across the street. One of them said there were really good BBQ places in OKC, but got very vague when we asked where they were, making me think he was worried that it would not be advisable for us to go those neighborhoods. In any case, we were not going to tool around OKC in a U-Haul truck.

Memphis, itself, btw, was fully booked between the May in Memphis festival and the NBA playoffs, so we didn't even attempt a stop there. My conclusions: BBQ is alive and well enough but shrinking; Yelp can help but is not totally reliable; in the end, serendipity is your best friend.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Atlanta eating

We only had time to go to four restaurants in Atlanta, but they were all great.

The big splurge was The Spence with Top Chef winner Richard Blais. He really can cook and every dish we had at the table was top quality and very tasty. Though this is small plates, the plates aren't too small as a rule (though the desserts were bizarrely small). The baby kale Caesar was very ample, and we split it. I ordered one of the dishes set apart as a full entree -- rolled pork belly with baked chickpeas. We got a couple of orders of the signature fried Brussels sprouts for the table, and the fried three times French fries -- both excellent. The moderately priced Coteaux de Languedoc was a great pairing for most of the meal.

The overall ambiance of the place was good, though it was very loud as people tried to talk over the background music. Service was mostly good, though our waiter was a bit erratic in his attention. There was an open kitchen and though I've never cared one or the other about this I have to admit that watching a pimply-faced kid with a ponytail and arms covered with tattoos flipping a saute pan doesn't do much to enhance my enjoyment of the meal. Blais himself, dressed in a white T-shirt with an apron (but thankfully no tattoos), made the rounds of the tables, including ours, and that made many people very happy. As to my dish -- the pork belly came out lukewarm so I sent it back and it tasted much better when it was hot. The baked chickpeas were actually just a chickpea version of Boston baked beans -- not the happiest taste innovation of the night. But honestly, overall, I enjoyed the restaurant.

My pleasure was more unalloyed with our brunch at Gladys Knight's Signature Chicken and Waffles -- four jumbo chicken wings served hot and juicy with a waffle and all the trimmings (butter and maple syrup). That will hold you for the better part of the day. That evening we went to Fritti's, an upscale pizzeria in Inman Park and it was very pleasant. We would have tried the nearby Barcelona tapas bar but it was fully booked due to Mother's Day. For lunch after the graduation ceremony, we went to the Highland Bakery, where I passed on the signature peanut butter French toast but had a truly delicious chicken fried steak Benedict, which was pretty much as the name would indicate -- sinful and satisfying.

Monday, May 06, 2013

Pasta with asparagus, ricotta and lemon

This recipe from Elizabeth Minchilli calls for wild asparagus but I didn't even look for that. To my surprise, however, I was able to get the unusual pasta, sagne e pezzi from Rustichella d'Abruzzo, that she uses in the recipe. It must be something they are promoting, because Minchilli acknowledged it was a freebee from the producer (mine, btw, was NOT free) and it was prominently displayed in Cornucopia.

The recipe is fine with thin regular asparagus though I think it might be better shifting the proportions to get the taste balance right with the milder farmed vegetable -- either more asparagus or less pasta. The asparagus tips get cut up into 1-inch segments while the woody ends are boiled for 40 min in a big pot of salted water that will be used for cooking the pasta. Prep the ricotta by peeling the zest off a lemon, chopping it up as mixing it with the cheese to sit while you do the rest. Saute 1 chopped onion in olive oil for 15 min. then add the asparagus tips and a scoop of the pasta water and cook about 10 min until tender (not mushy). Drain the asparagus water, reserving the broth and throwing away the stems. Return the broth to a boil, add the pasta and cook according to instructions. When the pasta is almost finished, take a scoop of the water and add it to the ricotta mixture, stirring to make it smooth and creamy. Drain the pasta (reserving water again) and put it into pan with the asparagus tips. Toss with 2 Tbl butter, then add ricotta mixture and juice of 1 lemon and toss again, adding some pasta water if it is too dry.

The dish has a great lemony flavor. Minchilli says she doesn't serve parmesan with it because it might overpower the asparagus. I would be tempted to sprinkle some cheese over it, though, especially with the farm asparagus. The sagne e pezzi is a heavy, nutritious pasta and makes the dish a satisfying main course.

Thursday, May 02, 2013

Wildwood Kitchen

We like Robert Wiedmaier's Brasserie Beck and Marcel's so wanted to try this new restaurant where he abandons the butter and cream and starch of his Franco-Belgian cuisine in favor of the oil and vegetables of Mediterranean cooking.

It is a relatively small place located improbably in the Wildwood strip mall on Old Georgetown Rd. The decor is pleasant and cozy and you could forget where you were if you weren't, as we were, sitting right at the window with a view of the parking lot.

The food, however, was quite good -- high quality, perfectly prepared and very tasty. We started off with drinks to celebrate Andrea's new car. I had the gin-based Corpse Reviver #2 and Andrea had the Wildwood's New Fashioned. Both were refreshing, generous drinks that commanded correspondingly generous prices ($15).

Bread was an oven-toasted, olive oil-flavored Italian style white served with a tuna rillettes that was a great way to whet your appetite. We split the asparagus salad, which both white and green asparagus with frisee and radish, all very fresh and refreshing. I had the pan-seared sea bream with ratatouille and Andrea had the salmon with quinoa and fennel and we were both very happy. The dishes were indeed light and Mediterranean.

Decor, like the food, was a sort of Italian-Spanish fusion, very pleasant, which made you yearn, however, for an outdoor patio, real trees and balmy sea air instead of Montgomery County 'burbs.