Jason's Deli and Zaxby's

(Pictures to come soon)
This time I will be doing a short write up on two chains, Jason's Deli and Zaxby's as I try to get these done. My backlog is growing as I continue to work three jobs... not enough time in a day!

Jason's Deli is a soup and sandwich chain with a ton of restaurants across the country. We stopped by because Brent said they had a good muffeletta sandwich. And he was right. It was pretty good. Now is it going to be as good as the ones you can order in the Big Easy? Well, of course the answer is no. Those are magical concoctions. But it is good, and is huge. A half sandwich is the size of a normal sandwich at most other places. It is loaded with olives and ham. It was good and better than I expected. The price for what we got was good too. The gumbo was decent too. It had a little kick to it, but overall had good flavor. Definitely better than any I have had up here. I definitely recommend it for a place to grab a quick bite. Also, free ice cream!

Zaxby's can be though of as a little more upscaled Chick-Fil-A. Chicken is their thing, and they do their thing well. Mel and I both got grilled chicken on our sandwich, so I don't know how Zaxby's fried chicken sandwiches compare with Chick-Fil-A's classic fried chicken sandwich. But I have to say ours were tasty and the size of the chicken breast was large. I ordered a cajun spiced sandwich and it had a little bit of a kick, but was balanced over all. I liked going there as a change from Chick-Fil-A. I don't know if I would say one is better than the other, but they both have their places next to each other.

Whew, two more down, only two to go from Mobile. Then I can get back to the local backlog.

Saucy-Q

Entry two for Mobile eateries is Saucy-Q BBQ. I'll just say that we didn't have a great experience. Brent had a game that night. So Mel and I went to the game, and after all three of us drove down Government Street to go to Saucy-Q. So we looked on the website to see when they close. The website said they closed at 9. We arrived a little after 8. We originally were going to dine in. But we were informed we would only have 20 min. to eat before we got kicked out and the restaurant closed for the night. We looked at each other all with the same, "you can't be serious" look. I have never heard of a restaurant telling people ordering food before they closed that they only had so much time before they got kicked out. If someone was in well past close just sitting there, I can understand telling them to leave. But not when you arrive almost an hour before close. So we all ordered the ribs, because the chicken was out. So we got our food to go and ate it at Brent's place. It was, fairly pedestrian. The ribs were ok. Nothing great though. I would compare them to what you can get at Famous Dave's.  Maybe even a little worse. I don't know. They were that unremarkable. There was some smoke flavor. They were somewhat tender. The sauce was pretty standard fare. So to recap, horrible customer service, coupled with mediocre bbq equals no endorsement from me. If you want BBQ, especially if it's pulled pork, go to the Brick Pit. Skip Saucy-Q

The BrickPit

For the belated first entry in the Mobile eatery series, I am writing on Brick Pit BBQ. This place is located in a little house off of Old Shell Road near the University of South Alabama. If it wasn't for the sign and for Google Maps, it would have been easy to miss. It is set off the road a little bit with some beautiful old oak trees out front. Add to the fact it was dark and raining, you can see how it might be hard to miss on first pass. The one clue was the delicious smell of smoke in the air. Inside are a bunch of tables with walls covered in the names of past visitors as well as decorations of Alabama and (unfortunately) Auburn football.

First things before I get to the food, the staff was so friendly, welcoming, and inviting. We found a table as it was a sit on your own. We were immediately greeted and asked if it was our first time there. We said it was, and he immediately walked around from behind the counter and stand next to us and show us the menu. He treated us like we were regulars, asked if we wanted anything to drink, and had it on the table before we finished deciding what we wanted to order. We felt at home.

We all ordered the pulled pork. This pork is smoked for 30 hours and it tastes like it, in a good way. The meat had this beautiful smokey, crispy exterior that you get little bites of in the dish. When you order, they ask if you want the normal sauce or the hotter sauce. Mel got the normal, I got the spicy. Both perfectly complimented the meat. The regular was a little sweet with a good vinegar taste that is traditional to the south. The spicy still had that as well, but with more heat. However it didn't take away from the pork. The meat was incredibly juicy and had a beautiful smoke ring. The sides were awesome as well. The beans must be smoked in the smoker with the pork as they have this wonderful smokey flavor that compliments the beans without being overpowering. The coleslaw and the potato salad we of similar high quality. I have been to a few great BBQ joints, this is by far the best pulled pork I have ever eaten anywhere.

With the incredibly warming and welcoming staff, and the amazing pulled pork, I highly recommend Brick Pit BBQ. If you are ever in Mobile you need to go there.