A few weeks ago Mel and I went over to Harmony Brewing in East Town. We had heard that they made a mean pizza, so of course we had to try it out.
We started off with some of their bread sticks. To be blunt, they were really good. They start out like many other bread sticks you would find at any number of restaurants, flat bread topped with cheese. But then they add a balsamic glaze, drizzled on top. It is just the right amount, where there is a nice acidic bite that cuts through the heaviness of the butter and cheese on top of the bread. So you get this great butter and cheese flavor accented by a bright burst of acid. On top of that is a little bit of oregano that adds a little herbaciousness to the bread sticks. It is really an interesting idea that I am surprised more places haven't done.
We ordered the crispy pig pizza. It comes with prosciutto, pepperoni, ham, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil. There were generous portions of each meat on the pizza. They definitely do not skimp on it. The cheese has a great creaminess and elasticity. It is very mild and allows the other toppings to shine. The basil balances everything else out. Because of course basil, tomato, and mozzarella go together like peanut butter and jelly. The crust was good as well. I would have liked it to be done just a little bit more. One side started to get this great, browned, almost charred edge. After being in Italy, I am convinced that every great pizza should be almost burnt on the edges and underneath. It adds a lot more flavor to the crust, especially if it is wood fired. As it was, only half of the pizza started getting this. The other half was fairly dough colored. That is not to say the dough wasn't any good. It was. I personally would have liked it a little bit darker. Overall though it is a really good pizza. Up there with the best GR has to offer.
I recommend giving this place a try, especially for the pizzas.
Monday, June 2, 2014
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Dewey and Wintzell
Last on my round up (finally) are the seafood joints of Wintzell's and Dewey Destin's, two of my favorite places to eat anywhere. Wintzell's started out in downtown Mobile in the 1930's, but has now franchised out into other areas like Saraland, Spanish Fort, Huntsville, and even Pittsburgh. Dewey Destin's is in Destin, FL and is basically a little shack on the water. It too has branched out into two locations, though both are very close to each other in Destin.
First up is Wintzell's. The one we went to is the first "new" location in west Mobile, off Airport. I don't remember when this one opened, but it has been there for a while. I would guess at least 15 years. I make it a point to go there every time I visit Mobile. We started by ordering a basket of fried pickles. I am of the opinion that no place can fry pickles (let alone many other things) like the South can. I don't know why, but all the fried pickles that I have had anywhere else just don't taste as good. Once again, these are good fried pickles. The coating was crispy and well seasoned, the pickles still juicy and flavorful. It came with ranch dressing to dip them in. I don't know if it was house made, but it passed my ranch aficionado wife's approval.
Brent and I ordered a dozen oysters on the half shell to split. I love fresh, raw oysters. I know they weird some people out, but I find them tasty. They also always taste a little different depending on the time of year, the salinity of the water when caught, and other environmental factors. They can range from sweet to briny to minerally in taste. The ones we had were on the salty/briny side, my favorite. Winzell's is known as an oyster house, and as such they get their oysters in fresh everyday and you can tasted that it is so. They send the oysters out with crackers, horseradish, and lemon wedges and there is ketchup and hot sauce at the table. I like they give the options because some people like to eat their oysters with the different toppings and/or on crackers. I personally like to add some toppings, but my favorite is just nude out of the shell.
Brent and I split the J.O. Platter. We chose the fried one because why not. Fried seafood is delicious. But there is a broiled option as well. The platter comes with fish, scallops, stuffed crab, oysters, and shrimp and we chose cheesy grits for the side. A quick aside about the grits; they were cooked well and very cheesy. The seafood was fried perfectly. It wasn't greasy. It was crispy on the outside yet the seafood was perfectly done on the inside. It is quite a feat to achieve, as most seafood when overcooked turns tough and rubbery or simply falls apart. The shrimp and scallops were sweet and perfectly cooked right in the sweet spot between "not quite done yet" and "turned into rubber." The oysters kept their silky texture. The fish was flaky and moist. The stuffed crab was sweet and savory. The hush puppies were also perfectly fried. I can't express enough how hard it is to fry seafood perfectly. And to have a huge platter like this come out with everything the way it should be is impressive. I have been to higher end, "upscale" restaurants that have had trouble with having all the seafood come out perfectly done.
The service was good overall, although there was a point where our waitress didn't come back for a while. But she was very polite, apologized, and explained the situation (If I remember correctly someone didn't show up for their shift or something like that). Really and truly, there is no place like the south for service and hospitality.
As mentioned Dewey Destin's is in Destin, FL. The one we went to is the little shack on the water known as the Crab Island location. This place knows its seafood.
I started off with a cup of gumbo. A little warning, this gumbo is on the spicy side. But I love it that way. The flavors are so deep and together. It really has a great seafood flavor to the base. The Gumbo is loaded with shrimp and crab. It also has okra, rice, onion, bell pepper, and celery. They make one of the best gumbos in my opinion.
Brent ordered the stuffed shrimp. The basket contains huge shrimp, cased in fresh crab meat, which is then wrapped in bacon, and then deep fried until crispy. I will let that sink in for a minute.... If that does not sound epic for seafood, I don't know what is. The fact that it all cooks well, and nothing is over or under done is amazing. It is so over the top. But so good at the same time. The crispy, salty bacon is the perfect foil to the sweeter crab and shrimp.
We finished with a slice of home made key lime pie. It was a good slice of pie that was perfectly balanced between sweet and tart. It had a great lime flavor that was natural and not artificial. The crust was graham cracker and was the perfect base for this. The texture was spot on, being silky smooth. It was a great end to a great meal and great time.
The people there were incredibly friendly and treated us like we were regulars they have known for years. And it is hard to beat the view too
First up is Wintzell's. The one we went to is the first "new" location in west Mobile, off Airport. I don't remember when this one opened, but it has been there for a while. I would guess at least 15 years. I make it a point to go there every time I visit Mobile. We started by ordering a basket of fried pickles. I am of the opinion that no place can fry pickles (let alone many other things) like the South can. I don't know why, but all the fried pickles that I have had anywhere else just don't taste as good. Once again, these are good fried pickles. The coating was crispy and well seasoned, the pickles still juicy and flavorful. It came with ranch dressing to dip them in. I don't know if it was house made, but it passed my ranch aficionado wife's approval.
Brent and I ordered a dozen oysters on the half shell to split. I love fresh, raw oysters. I know they weird some people out, but I find them tasty. They also always taste a little different depending on the time of year, the salinity of the water when caught, and other environmental factors. They can range from sweet to briny to minerally in taste. The ones we had were on the salty/briny side, my favorite. Winzell's is known as an oyster house, and as such they get their oysters in fresh everyday and you can tasted that it is so. They send the oysters out with crackers, horseradish, and lemon wedges and there is ketchup and hot sauce at the table. I like they give the options because some people like to eat their oysters with the different toppings and/or on crackers. I personally like to add some toppings, but my favorite is just nude out of the shell.
Brent and I split the J.O. Platter. We chose the fried one because why not. Fried seafood is delicious. But there is a broiled option as well. The platter comes with fish, scallops, stuffed crab, oysters, and shrimp and we chose cheesy grits for the side. A quick aside about the grits; they were cooked well and very cheesy. The seafood was fried perfectly. It wasn't greasy. It was crispy on the outside yet the seafood was perfectly done on the inside. It is quite a feat to achieve, as most seafood when overcooked turns tough and rubbery or simply falls apart. The shrimp and scallops were sweet and perfectly cooked right in the sweet spot between "not quite done yet" and "turned into rubber." The oysters kept their silky texture. The fish was flaky and moist. The stuffed crab was sweet and savory. The hush puppies were also perfectly fried. I can't express enough how hard it is to fry seafood perfectly. And to have a huge platter like this come out with everything the way it should be is impressive. I have been to higher end, "upscale" restaurants that have had trouble with having all the seafood come out perfectly done.
The service was good overall, although there was a point where our waitress didn't come back for a while. But she was very polite, apologized, and explained the situation (If I remember correctly someone didn't show up for their shift or something like that). Really and truly, there is no place like the south for service and hospitality.
As mentioned Dewey Destin's is in Destin, FL. The one we went to is the little shack on the water known as the Crab Island location. This place knows its seafood.
I started off with a cup of gumbo. A little warning, this gumbo is on the spicy side. But I love it that way. The flavors are so deep and together. It really has a great seafood flavor to the base. The Gumbo is loaded with shrimp and crab. It also has okra, rice, onion, bell pepper, and celery. They make one of the best gumbos in my opinion.
I got the crab claw basket. It was loaded with crab claws, perfectly fried. The crab was incredibly sweet. The batter is a little bit on the lighter side, but doesn't lack for flavor. It also comes with fries and hush puppies, and I chose some cole slaw as a side.
Mel got their cheeseburger and added bacon to it. The burger was cooked nicely and was loaded with tomato, pickles, onion, and lettuce. It was a tasty little burger. You would generally think being a seafood shack the burger would be and afterthought. But it wasn't. It was good enough to be on any restaurant menu. It came with fries. (I apologize for the the tilted picture. For some reason every time I upload it, even if it is the right way, it posts sideways.)
Brent ordered the stuffed shrimp. The basket contains huge shrimp, cased in fresh crab meat, which is then wrapped in bacon, and then deep fried until crispy. I will let that sink in for a minute.... If that does not sound epic for seafood, I don't know what is. The fact that it all cooks well, and nothing is over or under done is amazing. It is so over the top. But so good at the same time. The crispy, salty bacon is the perfect foil to the sweeter crab and shrimp.
The people there were incredibly friendly and treated us like we were regulars they have known for years. And it is hard to beat the view too
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| View from the table |
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| A pod of dolphin not too far off the dock |
Thursday, April 24, 2014
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.
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.
Monday, April 21, 2014
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
Friday, April 11, 2014
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.
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.
Sunday, March 23, 2014
The Mobile roundup
At the beginning of March, Mel and I went down south to visit my brother in Mobile, AL. Since we were on vacation, we decided to splurge a little and eat out a number of days. Over the next week I will be doing in depth reviews of some of the restaurants (with pictures), but for now I wanted to give a short overall summery of our experiences. Also I will be doing another review of a local GR eatery. It is exciting for me to be able to do this again, as it has been a few months since Mel and I have been able to eat out.
Seafood
Wintzells: This is one of my favorite places to go get seafood when visiting Mobile and Destin. Great gumbo, fresh oysters, perfectly fried fish, and a good selection of non-seafood items. Also have great fired dill pickles.
Dewy Destin's: The place to visit for seafood when in Destin, Fl. Fresh seafood brought in on the boats. The restaurant is literally right on the water, boats can dock up to it. Prices are decent, but they have gone up quite a bit compared to what it used to be. But the product is worth it.
BBQ
Brick Pit BBQ: Seriously good BBQ. Easily in my top two BBQ places I have ever been to.
Saucy Q BBQ: We went based on reviews we read online. They were wrong. I'll leave it at that for now.
Other:
Jason's Deli: We got the Muffaletta sandwich. It lived up to the reputation of the New Orleans classic. Also they make a pretty good pot of Gumbo
Zaxby's: Similar to a Chik-Fil-A but offer a little bit larger selection of sandwiches.
As I said, I will be doing more in depth reviews of these over the next week. Also I will be doing on on Bagger Dave's (apparently I never posted it), and a revisit to Electric Cheetah. Welcome back everyone.
Seafood
Wintzells: This is one of my favorite places to go get seafood when visiting Mobile and Destin. Great gumbo, fresh oysters, perfectly fried fish, and a good selection of non-seafood items. Also have great fired dill pickles.
Dewy Destin's: The place to visit for seafood when in Destin, Fl. Fresh seafood brought in on the boats. The restaurant is literally right on the water, boats can dock up to it. Prices are decent, but they have gone up quite a bit compared to what it used to be. But the product is worth it.
BBQ
Brick Pit BBQ: Seriously good BBQ. Easily in my top two BBQ places I have ever been to.
Saucy Q BBQ: We went based on reviews we read online. They were wrong. I'll leave it at that for now.
Other:
Jason's Deli: We got the Muffaletta sandwich. It lived up to the reputation of the New Orleans classic. Also they make a pretty good pot of Gumbo
Zaxby's: Similar to a Chik-Fil-A but offer a little bit larger selection of sandwiches.
As I said, I will be doing more in depth reviews of these over the next week. Also I will be doing on on Bagger Dave's (apparently I never posted it), and a revisit to Electric Cheetah. Welcome back everyone.
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Good bye 2013, Here is some Oxtail for you
Hey all! I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I've been at this now for about a year and half. It doesn't seem like it. So without any further ado, the last posting of 2013.
Yesterday I made an oxtail dish for Mel. We were at Byron Meats, a butcher shop in Byron Center, MI, where she spotted some oxtails and wanted to get some. So I prepared them last night. I got a large pot out and heated it over high heat. I added some olive oil to the pot, seasoned all sides of the oxtail with salt and pepper, and browned all sides of the oxtail. Some beef broth was added so it covered about 1/2 way up the oxtails, the lid put on, and the oxtails braised for about 3 hours. With 15 min. to go I chopped up some onion, garlic, and grated a carrot. I saute'd them over medium high heat in olive oil until the onions started getting some color. I added about 2/3 cup of cream and a couple ladles of the braising liquid to the skillet to make a sauce and let it reduce for about 10 min. In the mean time I took the oxtails out to cool and shred the meat off the bone, and added fettuccine to salted boiling water and cooked it for one minute less than what was on the box because it will finish cooking in the sauce. To put it all together I put the meat in the sauce followed by the pasta and tossed everything together well. If the sauce is a little too thick at this point you can add a little more braising liquid or pasta water to the pan. Serve as is. It is time consuming in the fact it takes so long for the oxtail to cook, but you can basically set it over low heat and forget about it for a few hours. It is also an incredibly easy dish with tons of flavor and it makes a wonderful winter meal.
Finally, I would like to thank all my readers for taking time to read my blog. I really appreciate that you take time out of your day to read what I write.
Yesterday I made an oxtail dish for Mel. We were at Byron Meats, a butcher shop in Byron Center, MI, where she spotted some oxtails and wanted to get some. So I prepared them last night. I got a large pot out and heated it over high heat. I added some olive oil to the pot, seasoned all sides of the oxtail with salt and pepper, and browned all sides of the oxtail. Some beef broth was added so it covered about 1/2 way up the oxtails, the lid put on, and the oxtails braised for about 3 hours. With 15 min. to go I chopped up some onion, garlic, and grated a carrot. I saute'd them over medium high heat in olive oil until the onions started getting some color. I added about 2/3 cup of cream and a couple ladles of the braising liquid to the skillet to make a sauce and let it reduce for about 10 min. In the mean time I took the oxtails out to cool and shred the meat off the bone, and added fettuccine to salted boiling water and cooked it for one minute less than what was on the box because it will finish cooking in the sauce. To put it all together I put the meat in the sauce followed by the pasta and tossed everything together well. If the sauce is a little too thick at this point you can add a little more braising liquid or pasta water to the pan. Serve as is. It is time consuming in the fact it takes so long for the oxtail to cook, but you can basically set it over low heat and forget about it for a few hours. It is also an incredibly easy dish with tons of flavor and it makes a wonderful winter meal.
Finally, I would like to thank all my readers for taking time to read my blog. I really appreciate that you take time out of your day to read what I write.
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