Smokin Betty's

Article first published as Restaurant Review (Philadelphia): Smokin Betty's on Blogcritics.

I took a trip to Philadelphia for a wedding and was extremely excited to stop by Smokin Betty's for their famous Turduken Burger. I took the train into center city and walked the few blocks from the market to the restaurant. Upon my arrival I noticed how nice the interior of the restaurant looked. For a comfort food place it looked rustic but upscale. The wait staff was very polite though my waiter did take a while to come talk to me for the first time. I was also excited by the large craft beer selection and quickly ordered a nice Blonde Ale. A few minutes later I ordered my turduken burger with a side of sweet potato fries.

After about ten minutes my glorious burger arrived and I just took a few seconds to look at it lovingly. Maybe you should do the same:

Who needs a pickle, really?

After staring at the burger for a bit I cut it in half and dug right in. So for those who do not know, a turduken is a turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a chicken filled with stuffing, so a turduken burger has all the meats cooked together and the rest of Thanksgiving as toppings. I will say that I have not eaten many turkey burgers in my day, usually I am beef all the way, but I would imagine that this patty tasted very similar to a normal turkey burger. I would say that the difference would be a richer flavor because of the duck fat but if I hadn't known I would have just thought it was a traditional turkey burger. Did this make a difference? Absolutely not! The burger patty was full of flavor and dripped juices right down my arm.

Now, as you can see by the picture there is much more to this burger than a patty. This burger was a Thanksgiving meal on a bun. A fluffy and flavorful bun, just like the rolls you normally get on the big day. Beneath the patty was a layer of stuffing and gravy topped with melted cheese. Generally I find stuffing pretty dry and boring but add gravy and cheese to it and you've got a party! Now I know a new stuffing recipe to try out. On top of the patty was a wonderful cranberry chutney. Adding the tang and sweetness to cut through all the rich flavorings of the dish. Truly a perfect addition to the burger and definitely not what you get from the can. Last but certainly not least, fried sweet potato chips, adding the final delicious crunch to the meal. Take a look at the burger from the inside, but first you might want to grab a bib to catch the drool.

AJ Bombers can take some advice about buns from this place

There is only one word to describe this burger...epic. I kept cutting it down to make it last longer because I didn't want it to end. So many flavors dancing around on my palette and all in harmony. It really was Thanksgiving in each and every bite! The most prominent flavor was the cranberry chutney so if you don't like cranberries you may not like this dish but then again you may love it. All in all a really well designed entree and one that I would go back to again and again over some of my favorite beef burgers.

You probably are thinking, what about the fries. Well no need to worry, they were also pretty great. I have never eaten thick cut sweet potato fries but I was not disappointed. These fries were crunchy on the outside but soft on the inside like potato wedges. Not too greasy but with just enough to add the needed flavor. A really great side dish to a Thanksgiving burger. I will say though that every time I get sweet potato fries I am hoping for a dipping sauce. A brown sugar and cinnamon aioli to be specific, but I never seem to get it. I just can't get behind dipping them in ketchup.

Next time you are in Philly, check out Smokin Betty's, get the Turduken burger, and plan to be full for a long time. Probably not the best idea right before a wedding but I toughed it out.

Overall Review: 8/10

Check out Smokin Betty's here

The Harp Inn

Article first published as Restaurant Review (Costa Mesa, CA): The Harp Inn on Blogcritics.

I have frequented The Harp Inn for a few years but have never written a review of it until now. The Rutgers Club of Southern California hangs out at The Harp during college football season because they order the television package that gets all our games. On any given Saturday in fall you will find 15-25 Alumni of Rutgers yelling, eating, drinking, and reminiscing on how cold it was in New Jersey during football season and how happy they are to live in California.

The Harp is a traditional Irish pub with all sorts of corned beef dishes including some wonderful corned beef and cabbage. They also have a wide variety of beers and Irish whiskeys. The atmosphere is extremely friendly and they have a large number of faithful patrons who end up hanging out while we are watching football.

Every time I come here I think about ordering something different but it never fails that I order the exact same thing, the Irish nachos. I figure I only come here between 6-8 times a year so why order anything besides what I think is the best thing on the menu. How can you go wrong with potatoes topped with cheese, corned beef, and green onions? You really can't.

The nachos come out piping hot sitting on a double plate with the cheese melted and bubbly and the potatoes perfectly cooked. On the side comes a container of salsa and a container of sour cream. With no hesitation I add both to the nachos and dig on in.

On each forkful I try to get a combination of potato, cheese, corned beef, and the toppings to create the symphony of flavors that I crave from Sunday to Friday. Each item adds a unique quality to the dish and in unison work so well together. The potatoes are fork tender and add some texture while the cheese is stringy and rich. The corned beef adds the salty and fatty notes that cut through the richness of the cheese and the green onions add a little bite to the forkful.

Delicious shredded corned beef makes all the difference

Now you may think that the salsa and sour cream are unnecessary but you would think wrong! What are nachos, tortilla or potato, without salsa and sour cream? Incomplete. The salsa adds not only your serving of vegetables but the slight heat that is missing without it. The sour cream adds a much needed tang in addition to the creaminess that ties the whole forkful together. Those Irish nachos make me want to drive the forty-five minutes from Riverside every week but I might die of heart failure if I do so I am happy that football season is only a few months long and that I don't like to pay for gas.

Next time you are in Costa Mesa and need a drink and some Irish grub stop by the Harp Inn. Even if you don't need a drink or if you hate sports you can still sit outside on their patio and eat to your hearts content. You can also order the mozzarella sticks if the nachos aren't enough and they are some of the best mozzarella sticks I've ever had. Perfectly fried, crispy, and not greasy at all. Check them out and have a great time at the Harp!

Overall Review: 7/10

Check out The Harp Inn online

Stack'D Burger Bar

Article first published as Restaurant Review (Milwaukee, WI): Stack'd Burger Bar on Blogcritics.

Just take a first look at this!

Last week I talked about the first burger I ate in Milwaukee, the "Food War" champ. Well later that night I ate my second burger in Milwaukee and one of the best burgers I've eaten in a long long time. Take a quick look to the left and you will see the ridiculous and amazing Hangover Stack.

We came here for a rehearsal dinner prior to my friend's wedding so I cannot talk much about service and ambiance as we were in a back room and somewhat distracted. I also arrived after the appetizers were mostly consumed so you will get my unadulterated discussion about this one dish.

As you can see by the picture this is one tall burger. It starts with a 1/2 pound burger made up of Tallgrass beef cooked to order which is my first area of discussion. Remember last time when I went off  on AJ Bombers about the up charge for good meat and the lack of temperature discussions? Also, when I reamed Slaw Dogs for their crappy hot dogs? Well, Stack'd was the exact opposite of both places and it was glorious! Start with a great foundation cooked well and the topping are just that, toppings. No matter how great the bacon, you can never hide crappy beef and Stack'd appears to understand.

Top it with some aged Wisconsin cheddar and thick cut bacon and you've got yourself a burger! But wait that is just the beginning. Next they add fried onions, lettuce, and tomato and an egg supposedly fried to your liking. Lastly they let you pick from your choice of bun and with server consultation I settled on the pretzel bun. She really twisted my arm. They top it all off with two fried pickles and then I took Virginia's and added them to the middle of my burger, why not! Inconspicuously laid next to the burger were some of the most wonderfully fried onion rings. Hot and crispy and not greasy in the least.

Juicy and delicious!

 I excitedly cut my burger in half so I could 1. get a picture and 2. figure out how to eat it and was both pleased and disappointed at the same time. The burger looked gorgeous, perfectly cooked to my mid-rare expectations, juicy and inviting. The toppings were well done, the lettuce crisp, and the tomatoes fresh. The one issue was the egg. This was the first time I ever ordered and egg on a burger and asked for it over medium. Over medium means creamy, not runny and not solid. Creamy, so it gets all over the rest of the burger but not the plate. Sadly my egg was overcooked and you can see it plainly in the picture where it is solidly stuck right in the middle of the burger. Sad times, maybe next time I will ask for over easy to make sure I get some savory egg flavor soaked into the meat and the bun.

On first bite you could tell that this was a serious burger at a serious burger restaurant. The meat was so juicy and perfectly cooked. It was without a doubt top shelf meat because regardless of the six different toppings the beef sang through. On the other hand, the toppings were awesome. The cheese was gooey and had a bite to it; the bacon was crispy and full of flavor. The fried onions strings and added fried pickles brought that greasy note to the party and the fresh vegetables cut through all the savory notes to make it all manageable. Without the lettuce and tomato there would be no way I could have finished the burger but I did! The egg was good and added some of the creamy element to the burger but I really wished it was cooked less. It just did not make the impact I thought it would. Now the pretzel bun...awesome! Nice and chewy and a little sweet it pulled the whole burger together.

All in all this was a great burger, one of the best I've had. I would have given it a solid 10 if not for the egg issue. I also could complain about the fact that I didn't get my mini Tabasco bottle but I could have just asked if I really wanted it so I will take the blame for that one. This is a great place and next time I am in Milwaukee I will come back to see the main part of the restaurant. I will add also that they have over 100 varieties of local beers and both a gluten free and vegan menu. No wonder Renee and Gavin love it so much!

Overall Review: 8/10

Check out Stack'd online

AJ Bombers

When Virginia and I went to Milwaukee a few weeks ago to celebrate the marriage of our friends Renee and Gavin, I decided to check out this Food Wars champion. We flew overnight and arrived at out hotel at around 10:30 and instead of nap or do my Insanity workout I decided to stroll the two blocks over to AJ Bombers to try their famous cheeseburger. I got there at 11am when they opened and was the first patron in the place. I sat at the bar to have a chat with the bartender and took a look around. This was a pretty interesting place with some fun features that I will go into in a bit. The bartender suggested the peanut butter burger and the fried cheese curds (which I should have ordered, they are like mozzarella sticks on overdrive), but I chose to be traditional and order the Milwaukee burger and the Poutine.


So AJ Bombers is not only known for their cheeseburgers, they are also known for their peanuts. You can come into this place, get a bowl of peanuts, and toss all the used shells on the floor. My problem was that I did not know about the shell disposal program and since I was the first person there the floors were still clean. I was so confused that I ended up putting the peanuts shells in my pocket. I know, you're laughing at me but I didn't know any better. Once I saw the servers tossing shells on the floor I realized my foolishness and tossed away. The fun thing about these peanuts is the way they serve them. If you don't sit at the bar you literally get bombed. They have these tracks installed on the ceiling with mini bombs attached. The bartender fills up the bomb with peanuts and wings it down the track at your table. The bomb slams into a bullseye above your table and the peanuts fall down a shoot into a metal container on your table. What an inventive and fun way to be served your bar nuts! I really wish I had thought to take a picture because this was really cool and added something different.

My food came out and it definitely looked like bar food, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. The Milwaukee Burger is their famous cheeseburger with Wisconsin Colby, bacon, and a pile of raw white onions.

I'm gonna need a breath mint after this!

This was a flat burger, yes a little in taste, but actually flat like the Earth pre-Galileo. This made me nervous because flat burgers often equal dry and overcooked burgers and now that I think about it, the bartender definitely did not ask me how I wanted the burger cooked. I said to myself "This burger won the food war, let's give it a chance". I picked it up and dug in. Not bad, it had some flavor and the cheese was delicious but it was definitely too cooked for my liking. I'm a mid rare kind of guy so mid to well is not my cup of tea. It tastes too much like shoe leather to me and I usually save that for Bella. Yes, Bella is my dog. The onions were good and added a freshness to the heavy cheese and bacon. The one thing I really did not like was the bun. I'm not sure what it was or if it was intentional but the bun was chewy. By chewy I really mean stale but maybe that is just the type of bun they work with. I'm not sure but it was just odd and not my favorite thing in this meal. All in all the burger was OK but if it was the best burger in Milwaukee I was in for a rough ride (Spoiler alert: It wasn't even the best burger of the day, tune in next week for that review)

My side order of fries was the Wisconsin specialty called poutine. Sounds delicious doesn't it? Well just like the idea of eating cheese curds makes Virginia queasy, I think the poutine would bring the same reaction. This dish is fries topped with some melted cheese curds and gravy. Super healthy and light on the calories count I'm sure.

Mmmm cheese curds

I admit, this was pretty good and fun to eat. I nice take on cheese fries and gravy though poutine rolls off the tongue much easier. The fries were crispy and had some good seasoning to them that held up to the toppings. The cheese was creamy and delicious, making me sad that I did not just get the fried curds as the bartender suggested. That'll teach me to ignore the restaurant employees! The only issue I had here was the gravy. It was passable but I couldn't get past the feeling that it was not homemade. Sometimes you just taste something and swear you've had it before in the dining hall and if you feel that way it's got to be from a box because you know they don't make fresh gravy in the dining hall. Ever.

All in all this was a fun place but not really a place I would come to if I didn't plan on getting hammered and full of peanuts. I think that I could spend some time there on a Saturday watching college football because, when you're drunk, everything greasy and cheesy tastes wonderful and throwing peanut shells on the floor is tons of fun but if I got a call to go somewhere else I'd be gone. Check it out and see if the peanut butter burger is a good as they claim.

Note: One thing I noticed is that you can pay $3.50 to upgrade your beef to %100 grass fed organic. That annoys me, you as basically telling me that your basic meat is crap so I should give you more money to get good food. Just serve the good meat all the time and factor it into the price. This was I don't have to upgrade to good food, I just get it all the time.

Overall Review: 5/10

Check out AJ Bombers Online

Mario's Place

For Virginia's birthday we took a trip over to Mario's place for some fancy Italian food. We have been to Mario's once before but that was before I wrote about the things I ate. Out of all the restaurants in Riverside this place is by far one of the best and probably rivals some of the Italian food on the east coast. I know right? From a New Jersey kid that is a lot to say about a Riverside restaurant so I was hoping it would not disappoint this time around.

I really enjoy the ambiance of this place, upscale but relaxed, where you can dress up and feel right or show up in jeans and fit in just the same. We choose to dress up when coming here because there are so few places in Riverside where you can suit up and not look out of place. They also lower the lighting as the night goes on creating an intimate atmosphere that is just right for a place with this kind of food. I only wish it didn't cost over $100 to eat there every time but I guess sometimes you get what you pay for. 

For my first course I ordered the crispy squash blossoms. I have seen those on some of the food network shows and figured now was a good a time as any to order them.

mmmm goat cheese

 These blossoms were almost tempura fried with such a light batter you could see the flower right through it. Filled with creamy goat cheese that oozed out when you cut them and resting atop a tomato basil sauce these blossoms were delicious. I was expecting them to be a bit greasy but they were crisp and light and a wonderful start to the meal. 

Next I was prepared to order the wild boar ragu but was drawn away by the description of their pasta special. What was it you ask? Parpadelle with duck ragu, kalamata olives, and shaved Parmesan cheese. I had never heard of a duck pasta and I do love duck so I had to go for it.   

Duck Ragu and Parpadelle Pasta

Wow, remember the short ribs at Buddakan and the reaction I had to that? This was very similar. The ragu had an immense amount of flavor and the duck meat just melted into it to create a thick coating on the pasta. And the pasta, just a tiny bit al dente and the perfect vessel for the ragu. Even the addition of kalamata olives was brilliant. They added the saltiness that the dish needed but since they were halved you could choose when to eat them instead of having them completely incorporated. I could eat some pasta, mix in the duck, take an olive half and add in the Parmesan just for a cheesy bite. It was only a moderately sized portion but it was so rich that I was full halfway through, but let's be honest, I finished the whole thing. It was just that good. Too bad it was a special because I would eat that every time if I could. What an amazing entree.

For dessert I ordered the chocolate raspberry purse which was pretty good just not the best thing I ate that night. The purse was chocolate sponge cake, melted chocolate, and raspberries wrapped in phyllo dough with some raspberry sorbet on the side. It was also a nice addition to crisp up a few pieces of phyllo and lay them on top of the purse. Don't get me wrong it was a good dessert and the sorbet was deliciously tart and tangy but for me the sponge cake to melted chocolate ratio was off. I was really hoping for the chocolate to ooze out when I cut into it like a volcano cake but the chocolate had mostly soaked into the sponge and didn't really ooze much at all. All in all it was a little on the dry side but a nice ending to a great meal.

Ooze damn you ooze!

I would definitely go back to Mario's Place and would recommend that you check it out. It really is a gem hanging out in the sea of sad excuses for Italian food in Riverside. 

Overall Review: 8/10

Gourmet Pizza Shoppe

 

Virginia and I decided to take a ride up to Redlands and visit The Gourmet Pizza Shoppe. Though I have been here before, this time I am going to write about it. The Gourmet Pizza Shoppe is a pretty unassuming place that looks like the inside belongs outside. It is kind of strange with one wall looking like the front of a building from a TV set. What it lacks for décor is surly makes up for in food. It is really hard to find decent pizza in the Inland Empire so this restaurant with unique and inventive pizza options is a breath of fresh air.

This time around I ordered the Brando which is cream cheese, pesto sauce, pepperoni, sausage, cashews, angel hair pasta, green onions & mozzarella cheese. I know you’re thinking “Cashews, angel hair pasta, and pizza, no way”! That is exactly what I was thinking in addition to being a little nervous about the lack of tomato sauce. Past history has shown that I have a hard time with non-traditional pizzas but I was up for the challenge. Below you will see the pizza in all its might. 

Check out that cheese and pasta on the edges!

The cheese was perfectly cooked to a crispy finish and the crust looked nice and crunchy. At first bite I completely understood the addition of the angel hair pasta. Though it was pre-cooked, the edges were crunchy because it baked in the pizza oven. This was such an interesting texture to go along with the other toppings. The entire combination was interesting with the cream cheese and the pesto contrasting and the crunchiness of the cheese, crust, and pasta. The meat was completely necessary because it added that wonderful savory element with the fattiness that bound the whole pizza together.

The last piece of the pie that I need to talk about is the addition of cashews. When you look at their menu you will notice that cashews pop up on a lot of their pizzas so they must know something that we all don’t. On this pizza, the cashews were a little strange but I find it odd to say that if I ordered the Brando again I would leave them on. Somehow some way, the cashews worked and they may have been the best part of the entire pizza. Salty and a little sweet cashews belong on this pizza..crazy. The only thing I would change would be to crush up the cashews a bit so they distributed more across the pizza but besides that this pizza was ingenious. I will find it hard to order something else the next time we go.

Next onto dessert and yes, they do make dessert pizzas! Virginia made the decision and chose to order the Sarah’s Surprise. This wonderful dessert pizza included vanilla cream cheese whip, graham crackers, chocolate chips, brown sugar, melted butter & jack cheese. Though there was an unfortunate lack of cashews on this pizza (I kid) it was not only the best dessert pizza I ever had it was one of the best desserts I have ever had. Never has dessert made me forget about dinner so quickly but wow this pizza was amazing! Take a look.

Sarah's Surprise in all of its graham cracker glory

Crispy and sweet with cooked graham crackers added to gooey melted chocolate AND hand held. Not only all of that but it was piping hot right out of the oven so it was reminiscent of a s’more right out of the campfire. I was just sad that we only ordered a seven inch pie because I could have eaten three of them by myself. The best part was that they added cheese to the pie. It really added something special to the dish and gave it the last kick that pushed it over the top to something you could truly call gourmet.

I would definitely recommend Gourmet Pizza to my friends and have many times. I only wish that it was closer to Riverside so I could go once a week! Go there and try the Brando and the Sarah’s Surprise or the Kiss and the Apple Annie or the Malibu Madness and the Einstein’s Glue; you really can’t go wrong.

Overall Review 9/10

The White Rabbit Truck

At the food truck festival last week my fifth and final truck was the White Rabbit Truck. I was wondering to myself "Why does this name sound familiar". Well, when I got home and looked I realized that it happened to be a list item brought to you by Outrageous Food on the Food Network. The list item was the burrito and I am a little sad that I did not get it but, oh well, next time. Take a look at the menu below, pretty simple but pretty awesome.

I had a conversation with the nice girl at the register and she told me that her favorite was the Pork Sisig. With that recommendation I ordered the three sisig tacos but to my delight she told me that I could mix and match. Oh glory day! So, not only did I get the Pork Sisig (Below left), I ordered the Pork Tocino (Below center) and the Chicken Adobo (Below right). Though I am sad that I did not try the burrito I now get to talk about three of the items on this menu.

Let's start with the Pork Sisig. This was fried pork belly mixed with jalapenos and onions topped with a red cabbage slaw. The pork belly took on this beautiful red color and mixed so well with the jalapenos. A little spicy and full of huge flavor. The cabbage was crunchy and cold which mixed well with the richness of the pork belly. Truly a great taco but oddly not my favorite.

The second taco I tried was the chicken adobo because I wanted to break up the pork. Honestly, I was not expecting much from a chicken taco but boy was I wrong. The chicken was soft and super juicy which surprised me and it was both sweet and savory at the same time. Mmmm to adobo sauce! Just like the last taco the slaw added a cool crunch that really completed the ensemble. I was really pleased with this chicken and would eat that one again but, it too, was not my favorite.

The winner beyond a shadow of a doubt was the Pork Tacino which was cured pork, fried and wrapped in a taco all by itself. This was a truly bold presentation but if you read my other posts I believe that if you use high quality meat and cook it in an amazing way you really don't need anything else added to it. With this pork the White Rabbit Truck did just that. It was perfectly fried and super crispy and I got a burst of fried pork flavor with each individual bite. I was content just eating the pork with my fingers, even the taco shell took away from the pork itself. I really think that if they added anything to the dish it would have ruined it so I commend them with leaving it unaided. I even regretted adding siracha, but I guess I have to live with that. By far the best of the three and without a doubt the best thing I ate all day.

In my book the White Rabbit truck was definitely a winner and I am glad I got to taste three of their meat selections; each great in its own way with the Tacino edging out the pack. Next time I am in LA I will track it down and try the burrito and I suggest you do the same. For a food truck with to real ambiance to judge I give this a top rating and would not hesitate to recommend it to others. One cool thing to note is that they have a restaurant too so you can order quick from a truck or sit down and have a meal. Either way, I bet you will not be disappointed.

Overall Rating 10/10