Yelp! I hate somebody. Yelp! Almost everybody. Yelp! Won’t you please hate me!

—all due respect to John, Paul, George, and Ringo

Why I don’t like Yelp: Reasons number 2,343 and 2,344.

Yelpers walk into restaurants and introduce themselves as Yelpers, demand special attention, and become customers from hell. If they don’t get it, they murder the restaurant online. Usually you can flush out the grandiose writers by their pompous style. I’d hate to be a restaurateur and deal with these types.

Restaurateurs rating competitors on Yelp. Yesterday Maple and Motor’s Jack Perkins “exposed” Dace Street, the son of Gene Street who has been around the business (Snookies) for a few decades. On M&M’s Facebook page Perkins writes: “Check out what Dace Street is willing to do” and links to Street’s Yelp profile page.  Street is out in the open: he boldly posts his picture on the page which also contains ten reviews. He gives 5 Stars to the Street-family-owned Liberty Burger and one to Maple and Motor.

It’s all bollocks. This is all starting to make Harvey Gough look like a softie. Hi Harvey, I’ll take a number 2 and melt the cheese!

UPDATE: I just received this note from Dace Street: “Some one is screwing with me. I took down the yelp profile that was associated with me. Good grief! I never took any pot-shots at M&M or anyone else.”

48-Hr Cracked Pepper Brisket Sandwich at Off-Site Kitchen

Few restaurants have received as much pre-opening buzz as Nick Badovinus‘ highly anticipated Off-Site Kitchen.  As a fan of his work at the Neighborhood Services ventures, I’m not ashamed to admit that I was as giddy as a school girl every time a shred of news regarding its opening surfaced. Naturally, when Off-Site Kitchen did open, 98% of the blogosphere rushed to see what kind of magic Badovinus and crew had been brewing up for all those months, and appropriately, nearly every food writer got right to work gushing about it all over the internet. And honestly, it deserved every bit of praise that has been thrown at it.

Now that some of the early chatter has started to simmer down a bit, it seems only appropriate to express my love for the humble, working-man’s menu at Off-Site Kitchen, particularly through praise of one of my favorite items on the menu board, the 48-hr cracked pepper brisket sandwich. It took a few visits to be able to mentally pry myself away from their excessively delicious burgers, but when I was finally able to take the plunge into non-burger territory, my efforts were so handsomely rewarded, I no longer fear to stray.

The brisket sandwich’s core is, of course, a bed of tender, fatty brisket, slow cooked for 48 hours, dripping seductively with rendered fat and meat juice, and flavored subtly with spicy cracked pepper. The chopped beef is stuffed inside a soft white roll, along with melted Swiss cheese and caramelized onions. Shredded lettuce, tomato and a cherry pepper mayo provide the finishing touches on this exquisitely constructed sandwich.  The cheese envelops the hot beef and onions, providing a creamy richness to the salty brisket. The tomato and cherry pepper mayo provide a surprisingly tangy sweetness that counters the cheese and beef perfectly. While eating one, it takes everything I have not to run away and hide in some remote cave, gently cradling this sandwich in my arms, rocking back and forth, calling it “my precious.” It’s magical.

Double Burger with Cheese and Bacon at Off-Site Kitchen

If you haven’t visited Off-Site Kitchen yet, what the %&$# are you waiting for? It’s humble, understated location and surrounding industrial sprawl only emphasize that Badovinus has truly created a diamond in the rough. It is also telling, and speaks to Nick’s character and concern for his restaurant’s success, that every time I have eaten at OSK, Nick, himself, is in the kitchen, slinging burgers and dropping fries (which, by the way, are my favorite fries in the city) into hot oil with the rest of the crew.  He knows how to cook for the working man, because the dude IS one. My hat’s off to you, sir, and all of your fine crew.

The best fries in Dallas? In my opinion, yes.

]]> http://sidedish.dmagazine.com/2012/04/11/eat-this-now-48-hr-cracked-pepper-brisket-sandwich-at-off-site-kitchen-in-dallas/feed/ 5 http://sidedish.dmagazine.com/2012/04/09/burger-house-in-rockwall-closes/ http://sidedish.dmagazine.com/2012/04/09/burger-house-in-rockwall-closes/#comments Mon, 09 Apr 2012 17:06:34 +0000 Nancy Nichols http://sidedish.dmagazine.com/?p=39201 This news comes from a reader, BLP, who sends a link to Burger House’s Facebook page.

Hello all, it is with great sadness that we announce the closing of our Franchise location in Rockwall . Thank you to all our wonderful customers in that area. We are currently looking for a new location in the area that would be a better fit. Sorry and thanks again.

Liberty burger (photo by Kevin Hunter Marple)

I know, I know, I know. I’ve been harping on you guys about voting for the Dallas’ best Food and Drinks for the past two weeks. I’m sure you’re tired of hearing me talk about it. Do me a favor and go vote right now because it’s the last day that our survey will be open. It’s Friday anyways, and we know you need a relaxing brain exercise to transition you into the weekend.

Tell us whose burger you most adore. Is it Jack Perkins’ fatty half-pounders or John Tesar’s Farmer burger with a fried duck egg and white Vermont cheese? Maybe you’re a sucker for Stackhouse’s double-loaded burger? Then vote here today. I promise I’ll stop bugging you about it starting…. now.

I lived in California for 11 years so perhaps I am experiencing the reverse-home-town-food-nostalgia syndrome that affects older people because when I returned from vacation last week, I drove straight to In-N-Out and devoured a DDAS (double-double animal style) like a rabid coyote. EVERYBODY knows you order the fries crispy at INO. Everybody but Andrew.

Anywhoo, where do you go when you re-enter your life in Dallas?

In-N-Out Burger, Pinole, California

I got sick of the long lines at the Frisco’s In-N-Out Burger location. It has become the only fast food place where I lose weight because of the time I spent queuing. I decided it would be quicker to fly to California, the ancestral home of In-N-Out, and eat at one in the land where residents consider it another fast food chain, not a place to worship an animal-style burger like a bunch of dazed zombies.

This is my new branch of In-N-Out. It is at the Pinole exit of I-80 (ICBM coordinates: 37.9894758, -122.3098301). For my In-N-Out induction I ordered a “double-double  animal-style” ($3.25) along with fries animal style ($3.30) and a chocolate shake ($1.99). Let’s go through each:

First, the shake.  Just like a McDonald’s shake. Clearly, INO does not see the shake as a menu game changer and just provides a smaller (and cheaper) version of the competition’s that is “good ‘enuf”. Grade: Average.

Next, the fries. Same as McDonald’s. Shoe string dimensions and flaccid. When will restaurants learn that there is only one way to cook fries, and that is three times? No taste on their own. Animal style is what makes them different. The onions borrow the synergy with potatoes of a pommes lyonnaise and the sauce on animal style creates a messiness that makes sure that bestiality has never tasted so good. Grade: On their own. Average. Animal style: Inspired.

Double-Double Animal Style. Kevin Marple may have spent a week in a cheap motel where he was the only guest without a criminal record to get great pictures. I only had a minute to get this one.

Finally, the meat of the matter, the burger. The bun is a POB (plain old bun) improved by the toasting. The meat has more flavor and umami than the grey pucks that dominate too many chain burgers. The ‘everything’ on it is the usual salad ingredients (lettuce, onions, tomato). The cheese is the same god-awful yellow pus you get at every other fast food chain. INO packages the burger in a snug-fitting paper bag from which the bun and meat pop out as if to say “eat me.” In the case of the double-double, the arrangement has a Georgia O’Keefe level of suggestiveness – which must be why the State of California requires they put a calorie count on the menu. Animal style defies INO’s neat packaging and makes the whole thing a mess, and a delicious one at that. Grade: Above average. Animal Style: Above Above Average.

The service was unbelievably friendly and gushy. When I arrived (no line at the counter) the teenage girls serving seemed genuinely pleased to see me. As I waited for my order they reassured me it was coming and a passing manager said: “good morning sir.”

Going back to the historic 2010 Dallas Burger Tour allows me to put INO in a Dallas context. None of the participating restaurants in that tour need have any worries of INO stealing their market. They are in a different league (especially Restaurant Ava and The Grape). Fast food chains, on the other hand, had better watch out. INO may prove to be a strong competitor.

Double loaded burger and sweet potato fries at Stackhouse. Photography by Kevin Marple.

Here is what we think. Let us know your thoughts.

Stackhouse Randy Kienast is a successful home builder. One of his best friends is Ben Spies, a world-class MotoGP rider. You’d think the twosome would be happy to spend their spare time knocking back a few beers and talking about guy stuff like crashing a motorcycle at 190 mph (which Spies has done) or installing a new shower pan. But that would be too easy. So Kienast found a rickety one-story house built in 1925, and together they turned it into Stackhouse, a gourmet-ish burger bar on Gaston, near Baylor Hospital. Thankfully they had the sense to hire someone who knows something about cooking meat, James Rose, the former chef at Bob’s Steak & Chop House on Lemmon Avenue.

Oh, there is so much more…

Slow-cooked pork covered with caramelized onions and peppers.

Nick Badovinus and chef Dan Riley have been hunkered down for over a year developing the menu and creating all kinds of delicious roasted meats for Off-Site Kitchen. Today he is finally opening the doors!

Now, hold your horses. The dining room is tiny. Off-Site Kitchen is basically a take-out restaurant with a few stools inside and some picnic tables outside. Here are some pictures of what you can expect. The food, inspired by “what line cooks eat,” is basically simple sandwiches and breakfast burritos made from quality roasted meats. Roll the Badovinus quote of the year:

“It’s light industrial food,” he said. “It’s the kind of food you want to eat before you go solder something.”

Off-Site Kitchen will be open for lunch only from 10:30AM until 3PM for the next two weeks. Then the breakfast menu will kick in and they will begin serving at 7AM and will remain open until 7PM. “After we hit our stride, we’ll start rolling out the meat-by-the-pound program,” Badovinus said. “I’m so excited. This place is a real man cave.”

The original date for OSK’s opening was February 14, 2011. After Badovinus missed his mark, he decided to workshop the place and open on Valentine’s Day this year. “You see how many financial sacrifices I made to pay for my original vision,” Badovinus said. “I mean I’ve got a wheelbarrow of pork rinds down here. Who doesn’t love that?”

Badovinus was only half-joking about the Valentine’s Day opening. He and chef Dan Riley have used the Off-Site Kitchen space to tweak the menus of Badovinus’ other restaurants (Neighborhood Services, Neighborhood Services Tavern, and Neighborhood Services Bar & Grill). They also use the huge kitchen as a commissary for the other restaurants. The receive, portion, and distribute all of the meat and seafood at Off-Site Kitchen.

SOLDER, EAT, REPORT. No call-in orders. Plan to show up and wait.

[Also, Neighborhood Services Bar & Grill in Preston Royal will open for lunch in two weeks.]

The menu and photos are below.

Wheelbarrow of pork rinds.

Cherry cola pie.

Green chile cheeseburger.

First customer.

Poutine from the Greenhouse Tavern, Cleveland OH (photo from Columbus Underground @ www.columbusunderground.com)

A couple of weeks ago I gushed about my love for the burgers at Kenny’s Burger Joint.  One of our Sidedishers, “Kirk,” commented that they offered “the closest facsimile of poutine in the DFW area.”  When I heard this, it was not long until I found my way back to sample the Kenny’s version.  As you likely know, “poutine” is a classic Canadian dish, traditionally composed of crispy French fries, cheese curds, and a brown gravy.  The most successful variations of poutine are able to serve the fries thick and crisp, the cheese curd soft but not so completely melted that they lose all their texture, and the gravy incorporated into each bite, but not so much as to turn the whole thing into a soup or make the fries overly soggy.  However, this dish is incredibly hard to find in Dallas.  I don’t understand why this is so.  Perhaps it’s our distance from our neighbors to the North? Perhaps there are not enough Canadians here in the Lone Star State?  It really is a travesty.

Kenny's version of "poutine"

Kenny’s version was tasty but had some flaws compared to the more traditional Canadian versions. It was very heavy on the gravy, which left the otherwise exceptional fries a bit too soggy.  The melted Jarlsberg cheese was rather scant and lacked the textural chew that comes from a good cheese curd.  One of the more memorable American variations can be found at the Greenhouse Tavern in Cleveland, OH which serves duck fat fries, mozzarella curd and veal gravy.  However, there seems to be nothing like this in the Dallas area.

What gives, Dallas restauranteurs?  This is a dish I think Dallas would truly embrace.  Even a poutine food truck could work.  Anyone know where this delectable dish may be found in Big D?

When do you know that you have started to become a little too familiar with a restaurant? Well, if you pull into Kenny’s Burger Joint and your kid starts cheering, “Yay! Uncle Kenny.”  And no, I’m not related to Kenny Bowers…and my kid hardly even recognizes his grandparents.  Perhaps this familiarity could be seen as a problem in a city that offers so many burger options, but to be honest, its easy to get underwhelmed by the consistent stream of the newly minted burger joints.  Seems like there are about 2 new openings a week, la-dee-frickin-da. These days, I can count on one hand the number of places I will actually patronize to in order to obtain a truly exceptional burger.  Kenny’s has been doing things right since the beginning.

Kenny will tell you that he originally got such excellent feedback from his “Sterling Silver Burger” at Kenny’s Wood Fired Grill, that it was only natural to create a burger-centric restaurant.  And we are all blessed because of it.  Sure, it’s a bit of a pain for many to trek out to Frisco, but when quality and consistency intersect, the results can be something so enticing that nearly anyone can bust out of the north-of-635 bubble.

The first time I ever bit into a burger created by The Burger Meister himself, I knew it was the beginning of a long and fruitful relationship.  Not only has Kenny made me a happier person, he has made me insanely popular with my new friends who seem to always want recommendations for burgers.  Kenny’s has been one of my obvious recommendations for years.

What makes Kenny’s burgers special? Many things, I suppose, but that man just does the basics right.  The Sterling Silver brand beef is always incredibly juicy, like, army-of-napkins-to-clean-up-with juicy. Everything is fired over a wood-burning grill fueled by nothing but sweet Hickory.  The buns, a lovely Ciabatta, baked fresh daily by the local folks at La Spiga bakery, are soft, airy, but sufficiently sturdy to withstand said juices from creating a floppy, soggy mess.  My personal favorite, the Black & Blue, adds the expected bleu cheese and dressing, but also blends their beef with a touch of Cajun spices.  The finished product is a brilliant piece of work.  But honestly, it’s pretty hard to screw up an order at this place.

With most burgers in the $6-8 range, the KBJ truly is a gem among burgers joints.  I’ve paid triple that for far inferior burgers.  So buckle down and make the journey up to Frisco, it’s a lot less intimidating than you think.  I’ll even hold your hand as you cross the street if it helps.

Photo by Elizabeth Lavin.

Once a month writer Moira Muldoon walks into a bar and lives to write about it. This month she explores Goodfriend Beer Garden in East Dallas.

A couple of guys in their late 30s chatted with me over a tree stump stool at Goodfriend Beer Garden and Burger House, the new East Dallas pub. They live down the road, were hanging out. My friend Susan arrived, ignored the big TV, and slid onto the couch next to me. Her hair and coat smelled crisp like winter. The guys left, and we stretched out our legs a bit.

Susan murmured something about how she’d forgotten that people go out at 9 on a Thursday night. Though she was once a hipster and still has the style to show for it, she now has a year-old daughter and a lot more Thursday nights at home. She lives down the road from Goodfriend, so the trip to the bar was easy, and, in fact, she and her family are big fans of Good 2 Go Taco next door.

Follow her here.

No Guns: Dallas cowpokes at Shooters are armed with tacos. (Or is that a iPhone?)

Shooters, home of “street and gourmet tacos, burgers, wings, salads, and other standard pub fare to go along with those delicious tacos,” opened on Saturday night. It’s located at AT&T Plaza in Victory Park directly across from the main entrance of the American Airlines Center. The two brains behind the business are Kenichi’s general partner Joshua Babb and Kenichi chef Bodhi Durant. Babb promises the “lowest prices in Victory Park ironically brought to you by the people who have the highest prices in Victory Park-ie, Kenichi.”  Yow. Zah. That’s the kind of balls-to-the-walls spirit I like to see in Victory Park. Bring it on dudes.

Onion rings at Liberty burger.

The gourmet burger trend in Dallas just keeps on rolling. Liberty Burger, a sleek new spot at Forest Ln. and Inwood Rd., is a burger joint with an eco ethos. “Without quality, there is no value” is their motto. They offer burgers made of all-natural chuck, brisket, and tenderloin meat; grass-fed bison without antibiotics, stimulants, or hormones; and an interesting veggie burger made with vegetables, chickpeas, grains, and seeds. Bread is custom, purveyors are mostly local, and the packaging is compostable. There is a huge live oak tree by the self-service menu. You have to hug it before they take your order.

Jump for photos and more words.

The brain behind the burgers is Mariel Street, daughter of veteran restaurateur Gene Street. Ms. Street has created an order-at-the-counter-and-seat-yourself concept and added a touch of table service. If your soft drink runs dry, someone is likely to come by and refill it for you. Ditto for your wine glass. Yes, they serve beer, wine, a few spirits, and frozen margaritas.

Airy buns and thin meat patties.

Melted cheese creates soggy bun.

Sweet potato fries have a crunchy coating.

One inch of rich chocolate filling covered with almost four inches of soft meringue.

I sampled two burgers: the Chillerno($6.50), a beef burger with queso blanco, roasted poblano pepper, and barbecue sauce. The flavors were great but the queso blanco  melted to liquid and the bottom bun was soggy. There was maybe a tablespoon of sauce on it. My friend’s Wild West($7)—beef patty, cheddar, applewood-smoked bacon (somebody get a new wood for smoking bacon), pickles, onions, and barbecue sauce–was way overcooked.

The onion rings are, like someone I know, world-class and cheap: $4 for a nice platter of thick cut sweet onions in a crunchy heavily peppered batter (ask to have them cooked crisp). A side of freshly sliced sweet potato fries ($2.50) are, like another person I know, thick and salty in a good way. I found the personal meringue pie to be more meringue than chocolate filling, but lots of folks like it that way. I will go back to sample the caramel and sea salt custard shake. Or maybe the Nutella and graham cracker version.

The place was packed by 6:30PM. The crowd was a mix of families (kiddos in pjs!), older couples, twenty somethings, and nice looking geezers. I lied about the tree in the restaurant.

Off-Site Kitchen: These goodies will be available for consumption by "the end of this year."

Well folks, it has been a year since Nick Badovinus leased the former Danny’s Chicken spot at Wycliff and Irving Blvd. for Off-Site Kitchen, a mostly take-out spot featuring “light industrial food” inspired by “what line cooks eat.” Basically the menu is simple sandwiches, breakfast burritos, quality roasted meats by the pound.

Badovinus went silent for a long time. In September I dropped by Off-Site Kitchen to see WTF was up. Badovinus is a tough dude to find when he doesn’t want to be found. But there he was, deep in R&D, curing sausage, flipping burgers, trying out different meat combinations for sandwiches.

This morning, I called Badovinus for an update. As Badovinus talked about the opening date, menu, and concept, I enjoyed listening to him spin off on how the dynamic of opening this restaurant changed as it came to life. It’s almost trite to say that many entrepreneurs start with a grand design and find that once their plan goes from paper to brick and mortar, some details have to change. However, one thing I’ve learned over the years is this: those who allow the on-the-fly changes to overwhelm their original vision rarely succeed. Staying the course can be the difference between success and failure. And what Badovinus has already discovered about his little soon-to-open Off-Site Kitchen is unique and could prove to be a model for others.

Jump for it.

OSK Jalapeño cheddar sausage.

NN: I haven’t touched base with you since September when you said you were putting the finishing touches on Off-Site Kitchen. What’s going on?

NB: Man, we are having a blast. We’ve been down here for two months making and hanging sausages, hot links, chorizo, jalapeno cheese sausage. We’re going crazy with three immersion circulators doing 36-hour sous vide pork loin ribs in a hoisin-base glaze which we finish off on the grill at NHS. We’ve ended up using this place a lot more than I originally thought I would.

NN: You mean you are using more like a commissary for your three restaurants?

NB: Well, we started OSK not only as a restaurant but as a butchering plant, if you will, for all of the meat and fish for all three of our restaurants. You know, like we’re becoming our own producer. Our fish order hits DFW, then our back door, and we’ve got it butchered, portioned, cryovaced and on crushed ice within two hours. We’ve got control over our product.

NN: So once you got going, the energy shifted. Would that be fair to say?

NB: You know the hardest part of growing a business is there are certain things that you love to do that you can’t do any more. Like when the fish or meat comes. I love that. I don’t get to see that as much with three places. Every day at OSK is like Christmas morning and I get to open the stuff up and see it. Now it all comes to one place.

NN: Has that encouraged you to do more? Like make more than what you originally planned?

Dan "The Marzipan Diesel" Riley & hanging sausage! Photo by Nick Badovinus.

NB: We’re producing a lot more at OSK. What used to take “Fillet” [butcher Jose Martin] 50 hours a week, now gets done in 30 hours. So, we say “hey what else can we make?” This place has become kind of a clubhouse for the staff. They pop in and we all hang out and sorta jam on new stuff. It’s created a real sense of family. Hey, Fillet and I go all the way back to Nick and Sam’s. We wanted to do our own sausage and now we’ve got time to make more. Like I said we are having a ball with those immersion circulators. We’re buying cuts of meat that are a bitch to cook like Waygu rib ends and fingers (the meat between the bones), softening them, pounding them out and chicken-frying them. They’re on the menu at all NHS. Now we’re on to pepperoni.

NN: Well, it’s cool to have a culinary clubhouse but are you going to make Off-Site Kitchen a restaurant?

NB: Yeah, I’ve got to get that done by the end of the year. For tax purposes if nothing else.