Salt. It’s a substance that inherently makes other substances taste better. Sow. It’s lady pig that, well, tastes good regardless. Combine the two and you have Salty Sow, a gastropub in Phoenix looking to bring some very gastropubby fare, drawing upon all sorts of classic American food, to the desert.

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So we began with a taste of the south. Namely in the form of Stone Ground White Corn Cheese Grits. The cheese was cheddar and it was some of the strongest I’ve ever tasted in grits – in the best of ways. Moreover, these grits were not runny, but also not dried out. So, again, delicious.

Then there were the Green Chile Pork Stew Nachos special, which was there regular green chile pork stew on top of nacho chips along with all the expected nacho toppings. Once again, the Salty Sow nailed it with a great ratio of toppings to chips, plus the stew was packed with flavor and a punch of spice.

Finally, for my main course I went with the French Dip-Roasted Rare on the recommendation of my waiter over the burger. When it arrived it was undoubtedly rare, but surprisingly small. I’ve come to expect such sandwiches on a baguette at the minimum, but this was on a small brioche bun. Regardless, it was packed with plenty of meat. The au jus was perfect, as was the horseradish sauce. The only thing I really could have asked for was to have the meat distributed over a larger bun like, you know, a normal french dip. And I only say that because it can be tough to bite through rare meat like this, and also because the brioche bun just didn’t feel right with a sandwich like this.

I should also mention that the sandwich came with a side of fries, which at the Salty Sow, means Duck Fat Fries. They were undoubtedly some great fries, but they did not go overboard with the duck fat itself. If you’re not into duck fat this is a great thing, but if you really dig the stuff, you may have been disappointed. As for me, since they were just a side I had no complaints, but if I had ordered them as an appetizer I would have cared more about the lack of quack.

And because our waiter was awesome and loved our table so much he treated us to dessert. And no, he had no idea I was such an important food blogger. Best of all, he picked the Bananas Foster Beignets, which are what we probably would have picked if we were going for our own. Essentially, this was slices of banana fried in a doughnut-esque batter, topped with syrup and honey, with ice cream. So, yeah, it was a fantastic way to end the meal.

Salty Sow did an amazing job with all of the non-entree food, but I can’t help but think that the french dip could have tweaked a few things to take it to the next level. Regardless, it’s a place I wouldn’t hesitate to return to.

Sometimes when I go to a restaurant I get pretty torn on what to order. In times like these I lean on the professionals (aka waitstaff) to help me out. Such was the case at the Olde Blind Dog Irish Pub in Brookhaven, a suburb of Atlanta. The pub serves much of what you would expect from pub food, and I love that stuff so much that I’m inclined to eat it all up.

When the waiter recommended the spicy fried chicken I was all about it. It came with mashed potatoes and steamed veggies, but I subbed the veggies out for onion strings and the result was something beautiful.

As for the actual taste, I found the whole getup to be just okay. Certainly they did not mess up the onion strings or mashed potatoes, but the fried chicken just wasn’t anything special. There was nothing bad about it, but there wasn’t anything that screamed “good” either.

Alas, perhaps it is not always best to trust the experts. I’d go back again, but would hope for something more than just okay.

A short time ago, Jimmy’s Famous American Tavern opened up a location in Santa Monica. On it’s own, this can be seen as a good thing, but an even better thing is that I was invited out to check the place out and give it a review. I happily accepted and set off for the place where the land meets the sea (well almost, Jimmy’s is a few blocks inland).

The meal began with some of the sexiest meatballs the world has every seen. They are called Buffalo BBQ Beef Meatballs, which meant that they were a combination of sweet and spicy, plus they were nice and juicy. They were served with a honey garlic ranch and despite the fact that the thin-sliced peppers on top came as a surprise, I enjoyed the hell out of these. We also got the Spicy Ahi Poke, which was good for raw fish and I’m sure those who like poke would have liked this, but it just isn’t my thing and I don’t see a future where it is.

Next came the Whiskey Shrimp, which was apparently cooked with Bourbon (so maybe bourbon shrimp would have been a better name), shallots, Cajun spices and dijon. The shrimp itself tasted pretty fresh (and I should have hoped so considering our proximity to the ocean), but the sauce was really the best part of the appetizer, as I probably could have dipped asparagus in there and made it taste good. Once again there were some unfortunate random tomatoes on top, but I slapped these aside.

When it came to the main course, I probably would have normally ordered a burger, but the waitress highly recommended the fried chicken. Like an obedient unvegan I listened. I can safely say the recommendation was not a mistake (although I still long to know what that burger might have tasted like). The fried chicken was definitely geared more toward the Santa Monica crowd then, say, a Louisiana crowd as it consisted of thin-sliced chicken breast instead of something dark and/or bony. Nonetheless, it was super juicy and the batter was flavorful, if not quite at my preferred level of crispiness.

We finished things off with the Bananageddon, which seems an appropriate name to end all things forever. This monster was a combination of bananas, pastry cream (which is apparently a thing), pecan blondie crumbles, butter pecan ice cream, candied pecans, whipped cream, caramel and white chocolate. It was all at once overwhelming and manageable. And by manageable I mean this would have been enough for an entire meal, but alas i had already basically eaten my weight in food.

I can safely say that I didn’t leave Jimmy’s Famous American Tavern hungry, but more importantly I left fulfilled. Overall, the menu vibe is like a Southern Upscale bar and it suited me just perfectly. Hopefully it will suit Santa Monica just as well.

When it came time to grab dinner with a buddy in Atlanta, I was given a few choices. While the others will remain nameless, South City Kitchen stood out to me. Having existed for more than 20 years and cooking up a modern take on classic Southern food, I figured this was the place for me.

Now, apparently it may be a sin to leave Atlanta without having some sort of take on pimento cheese. Thus, we ordered the pimento cheese dip, which came with a few things for dipping. The best of these was the crackers and the worst was everything else because they were celery and pickles. Luckily, the crackers were plenty.

As for my main course, I just had to have the Springer Mountain Farms Fried Chicken. I couldn’t tell you what the significance of Springer Mountain Farms is, but I was eager for their chicken. It also came with some mashed potatoes and collard greens that I swapped out for a sweet potato and parsnip dish. The fried chicken itself was the star, as it should be. The batter was a little bit on the peppery side for me, but I can respect that others are into that. Most importantly, it was super crispy while the chicken itself was moist and tender.

While I’m generally more of a fan of the old school hole-in-the-wall places, I couldn’t help but be happy with South City Kitchen and the somewhat fancied up fried chicken.

Somehow it took me nearly a year of working in Pasadena to discover Braise and Crumble just down the street from my office. It’s truly shocking because after discovering the place one day, I was back just a couple days later to get in on it again. Because of that, you actually get to see how two meals unfolded at this place.

The first time, I went with the Oink and Moo Sandwich. This was named for the sounds that the meats made before they were meat and were living, breathing animals. The pork was pulled and the beef was short rib. It was also topped with jalapeno puree, mayo, tomates and lettuce. I had no need for the latter two ingredients, but the others were just fine. The result was magical, with both meats popping with flavor and the jalapeno puree adding a nice little kick.

Yet, I had to get back to try the fried chicken. Instead of a sandwich, on my second visit I went for the Hunka Hunka Fried Chicken Love. It’s essentially a basket of three pieces of boneless fried chicken (dark, white or mixed), a biscuit and a side. I chose the mixed and gorgonzola potato salad for my side. The fried chicken turned out even better than the Oink and Moo. And that goes for both the white and the dark meat. Each piece was juicy, flaky and flavorful. Really, what else could you ask for than that? I suppose you could ask for a biscuit and potato salad, but these really were just sidekicks to the chicken.

After downing three animals in two trips to Braise and Crumble, I was happy to have found a little gem in Pasadena. In fact, it might just be my new go-to lunch spot.

New Orleans is, without a doubt, a city that defies the rest of the United States. From the French influence to the third world-esque devastation of Hurricane Katrina to the fact that women are willing to take their tops off for beads (okay maybe that one’s not so different), it is unquestionably a unique city. Yet, as a first time visitor with a meat blog, I was far more interested in the culinary aspects of NOLA than anything else, beginning with The Ruby Slipper Cafe.

Based on the line out the door when we arrived for brunch, The Ruby Slipper on Magazine Street seemed to be almost as famous as its namesake, but we braved the wait by grabbing a drink down the street and then took our seats. The menu was full-on Southern fare meets France, which I guess is to be expected in New Orleans. And in a rare twist, the wife and I split two dishes.

The first was the Corned Beef Bennie (pictured way up north), which is just a cutesy way to say Corned Beef Benedict. This started with a buttermilk biscuit base, topped with corned beef hash, horseradish cream, poached eggs and hollandaise. It was every bit as delicious as that sounds and the worst thing I can say about it is how sad I was to have to split it.

The second dish was the “Bacon & Egg” Sliders (their quotation marks, not mine), which was two mini burgers, each topped with their own stuff. The wife took the burger topped with a fried egg, roasted red pepper coulis (which I can only assume is terrible), pickled red onion and further pickled green tomato. I cannot speak for this mini burger, but like the coulis, I can only assume bad things. My half, however, was topped with pig-candy bacon and cheddar. Simple and effective. Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed the salty and sweet, all I could think about was eating more of that bennie.

The Ruby Slipper Cafe was a good first foray into the cuisine of NOLA and I definitely felt much better-prepared to take on the rest of the town after a hearty brunch such as this.

From the people that brought you Bar Bill in East Aurora, comes 189 Public House literally right next door (with the address of 189 Main Street). This Southern-influenced jazzy gastropub is a far cry from its neighbor, which might be ill-advised considering the perpetually long lines for tables at Bar Bill. On the other hand, it’s perfectly positioned to pick off those who don’t want to wait so long and want something a little bit different.

As for me, I ordered something far different. I went with the Giant Meatball Sandwich. This was topped with marinara and mozzarella and served on a bun with a choice of sides. Diverging from my normal path of fries, I picked corn on the cob for no reason other than the fact that I really never see corn on the cob as an option.

The corn on the cob was a good choice, however, the rest of the meal could have used a little work. For starters, a bun was a bad choice for these meatballs, as there was essentially no good way to eat them. A baguette or hoagie probably would have worked better, but instead i had to work to cut apart the balls into chunks that wouldn’t squeeze out of the bun with each bite. Secondly, the balls could have been a bit juicier. They weren’t dry, per se, but a little more moisture would have gone a long way. Nonetheless, they were quite flavorful and the marinara sauce was pretty nice as well.

While my Giant Meatball Sandwich could have used a few tweaks, it was still pretty acceptable. Nonetheless, I was left thinking a Bar Bill sequel would have been a much better use of the space than 189.

Pittsburgh is quite a unique place. So unique, in fact, that when I arrived I was given a crash course in how to speak Pittsburghese. I’ll spare the details, aside from the fact that Pittsburgh has its own version of “y’all.” That word is “yinz” and people who speak in Pittsburghese are referred to as “Yinzers.” With that in mind, you can now rest easy knowing that the BBQ you are about to read about is a play on “yinz” and not some obscure Civil War battle. And now, onto the BBQ.

YinzBurgh BBQ sits in a nondescript building in Bloomfield with only two tables for seating and an open kitchen that takes up the vast majority of the space. If it isn’t immediately apparent upon entry that the owner of the place loves his BBQ, it takes very little time to learn, as he is standing behind the counter taking orders. But before that, he makes sure to ask if you have ever been before. If not he busts out all five of his custom sauces to taste because he feels the sauce is the most essential aspect of ordering. It’s certainly hard to disagree (and I would later learn that I would have been perfectly happy even without sauce). The options are Signature Red (tomato-based available in hot and mild), Honey Gold (mustard-based available in hot and mild) and a Carolina Vinegar as well. After a fantastic conversation about the qualities of each, I chose the Hot Honey.

I asked what went well with that sauce and was a little upset when he said “everything.” I hoped that the sauce would narrow down the options, but I also figured if he said it went well with everything he would be speaking the truth. So I went with a Brisket Sandwich and a side of Mac and Cheese. The sandwich was every bit as delicious as I had expected from such a place. It had been cooked to such a perfect tenderness that it was almost like butter in my mouth. Certainly, I could have eaten this without a sauce and it would have been enough (dayenu), but the sauce put it over to top in greatness.

Then there was the mac, which made for a tasty side, but was otherwise pretty typical. It had a nice hint of pepper to it to give it some flavor boost, which was good, but not enough to take it to the same level of greatness of the brisket and sauces.

Nonetheless, there was nothing disappointing about the mac and cheese and the brisket really was great. I can’t wait to get back and see what other meaty delights YinzBurgh BBQ has in store for me.

Post & Beam sits in a strange area that isn’t quite Baldwin Hills and it isn’t quite West Adams. Because of that, I couldn’t really decide if it was sketchy or classy, and the neighborhood around the restaurant didn’t make that picture any cleared. Post & Beam itself, however, was definitely on the classy end. With modern architecture, interior design and nice menu, it truly seemed like a great place to grab some dinner. And while the menu was certainly on the upscale side, it had sides like corn bread and fried okra to reflect that it was still deeply in touch with its neighborhood.

I opted for the Angus Beef Sirloin Steak, which was not only priced well at $24 if it had been a la carte, but was even better because it and all other entrees came with a choice of two sides. I chose their Summer Corn and Black Eyed Peas. The steak was definitely awesome. I had ordered it cooked medium rare and it had been executed perfectly. It came with a little bit of sauce, which added some nice flavor, but just the steak alone had been well-seasoned and was great.

Somehow, I ended up with collard greens on top of the two sides I had chosen. I passed those infidels off to someone else, and fortunately they didn’t kill my buzz. The corn was perfectly grilled with a dusting of spices and bit of a spicy aioli-type of sauce. The peas (really beans) came with smoked bacon and fried okra. I know okra is a vegetable, but this stuff had been so deep fried that it was like those perfect onion rings that barely contain onion. I had been afraid, but they worked out for me and were a great addition to the black-eyed peas and bacon.

I liked that Post & Beam managed to straddle the upscale and Southern styles to make some pretty delicious cuisine. For the money, it’s a great value and at the end of the day it should definitely be commended for that even if the meal didn’t completely blow my mind.

A couple years ago, the Michigan Alumni Association started gathering at South in Santa Monica. This struck me as strange, because Michigan is about as north as a state can get. Yet, any place willing to host the legions of Michigan football fans was a winner in my mind. Plus, it didn’t hurt to have Abita on tap. But in these years, I had not attempted their food until the past weekend. I heard some bad things, but sometimes you just have to eat.

South offers a brunch menu for us early risers and I found myself ordering their Fried Chicken and Biscuits for $11. Eventually, they arrived and looked delicious, if not small. You see, the menu had described the dish as coming with gravy and waffle fries, but I found that there were only three waffle fries included and they were completed covered in gravy. No, covered isn’t the right word…let’s go with drowning.

Nonetheless, I went with it and started eating. I quickly found the waffle fries to be soggy, the biscuits to be hard and the gravy to be relatively tasteless. The only redeeming factor was the fried chicken, which was good, but truly nothing amazing. I don’t get it, Southern food isn’t hard to make taste good. Sure, like all cuisines, it takes skill and effort. I’m not trying to downplay Southern food, but realistically a dish like chicken and biscuits should be relatively simple. I’m no Southerner, so maybe for some it offers a degree of home comfort, but for a Northerner looking for tasty Southern food, South is a disappointment.

But as long as they host my football games, I’ll be coming back. I’ll just do my best to eat before, as to not be tempted by the poorly-executed Southern menu.