with lowfat Garlicky Basil Buttermilk Ranch Dip (for chasing the vampires away!)
It’s Halloween and FINALLY the last day of October. I am breathing a sigh of relief because I took a challenge to blog about connections through food every day in October. I did it! Perhaps I didn’t do as well talking about connections every day as I would have liked to, but I actually blogged every single day this month. I have made a lot of new friends this month and we’ve shared a lot of recipes, jokes, stories, ideas, and thoughts about food. I feel very close to all my foodie friends.
It was a good month, but honestly I think I cooked a little TOO much. Not all the food that I made got eaten. I had a few recipe failures that I didn’t share, so I had to make something new to blog about. I don’t like to waste food.
In order to make my goal, I started making food, photographing it, and waiting to blog about it until I needed a post on my blog. I discovered I don’t like to blog about something long after I’ve made and eaten it. I want to blog about it in the moment, share it right then. I still have a few things to post that I prepared and photographed, but didn’t get posted yet. I promise you I will post them because they are really good.
But from now on, I am not going to pressure myself to blog every single day.
Here’s a Halloween appetizer you could really enjoy anytime of year. I know they don’t look very scary, but watch out. They definitely have a BITE to them. And the garlicky dip will help fend off vampires.
Blue Devil Bacon Jalapeno Poppers (Baked!)
- About 15 jalapenos
- 1 egg + 1 egg white (you can also use eggbeaters or all egg whites)
Cheesy filling:
- 5 oz. light cream cheese
- 1 – 2 T. blue cheese crumbles
- 1/3 c. chopped onion
- 1/3 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 1 – 2 T. bacon crumbles
Breading: (Note: This is way more breading than you will need for your jalapenos. Use the rest to bread other vegies you have laying around–or cut the breading in half.
- 1 c. bread crumbs (whole grain bread is fine! I used crumbs from my dad’s whole wheat yogurt bread)
- 1 c. cheese cracker crumbs (I recommend using healthy, lowfat, whole grain crackers and whirring them in your handi chopper or food processor till finely ground)
- 1 t. Red Robin Seasoning
- 1/2 t. onion powder
- 1/2 t. garlic powder
Directions:
- You probably want to make the dip first so it has time for the flavors to blend. So scroll down to the end of this post to whip up the dip.
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a baking pan with cooking spray.
- Cut jalapenos in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds and membrane. You may want to wear gloves to protect your hands, eyes and other body parts from the spicy jalapeno juice.
- Combine cheesy filling ingredients in a bowl until well mixed.
- Using a spoon or knife, fill the halved jalapenos with the cheesy filling.
- In a separate bowl, combine breading ingredients until well mixed.
- In another bowl, whisk the eggs & egg white until frothy.
- Dip each cheese-filled jalapeno half in the egg, then set it in the breading and cover. I found it worked best when I used my left hand ONLY in the egg bowl and my right hand ONLY to coat the jalapeno with breading.
- As you finish them, set each jalapeno on a cooking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. When you’ve finished breading all the jalapenos, spray them with cooking spray.
- Bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes, until golden. The cheese might ooze out in some cases, that’s quite all right!
- Dip and enjoy! (These can be made ahead of time, kept in the fridge until serving time, then re-heated briefly in a 350 degree oven.)
Garlicky Basil Buttermilk Ranch Dip (to scare the Vampires away)
Inspired by Mother Thyme and Alice Q. Foodie
- 1/3 c. light mayonnaise
- 1/3 c. buttermilk
- 1/4 c. greek yogurt
- 2 big fresh cloves of garlic
- A handful of fresh basil leaves
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- Several fresh parsley leaves or ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- A few fresh dill twigs or ½ teaspoon dried dill weed
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground pepper
Whir all the ingredients in a handy chopper or food processor until smooth. Adjust seasonings to taste.
This recipe was shared at Recipe of the Week: Superbowl Snacks, Fit & Fabulous Fridays: Superbowl Edition, Katherine Martinelli’s Game Day Bloghop, Manic Monday (SuperBowl Edition), The Superbowl & Chili Cookoff, Tuesday’s Table and Recipe of the Week: Hot & Spicy Recipes.
I’ve long wanted to compile a list of the restaurants that I’ve loved in 20 years of traveling around writing about sports, but the timing never seemed right. When the bosses at The Athletic decided to celebrate food and drink this summer, I volunteered. This finally would make me write down the list and catalogue everything that made each place special.
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The original idea was that we’d provide you with a guide to help you find your next great meal as you traveled the country. Then the COVID-19 pandemic happened, and we all stopped traveling. Worse, the shutdown associated with the virus has decimated the restaurant industry. Dedicated chefs and servers have lost their jobs. Owners have seen their savings shrink toward zero. Restaurants have shuttered — some temporarily, some permanently. Across the country, the people who feed us are fighting for economic survival. This list is 300 restaurants long. It would have been closer to 400 a few months ago.
So perhaps we need to look at this list differently for now. Perhaps we need to find the places near us and make sure we grab a takeout meal every once in a while to help our neighbors get through what we hope is only a temporary downturn. Then, when we do get moving again, all these places will still be open so new visitors can discover them for themselves.
My plan for this state-by-state list and the accompanying interactive map is to make it a living document. Every time I eat a great meal at a place I’ve never been before, I’ll add it to the list. (So feel free to let me know where I need to try next.) I’ve personally eaten at all the places listed. If there are gaps — my sincere apologies, Philadelphia, Boston, Memphis and San Francisco — blame my bosses through the years for not sending me to those places enough. Trust me, I intend to fill those gaps. So if you see some seriously in-depth Temple and Cal coverage from me in the next year, you’ll know exactly why.
On to The List …
Alabama
Cuisine: Farm to Table
Address: 210 East Glenn Avenue, Auburn, Ala.
You’re ordering: Start with orders of pimento cheese and chicken-fried bacon. For the main course, go for the red snapper. And ask if they’ll ever make the softshell crab-in-Nashville-hot-chicken-style as an appetizer again.
Cuisine: Breakfast
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Address: 4133 White Oak Drive, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: A bacon, egg and cheese biscuit (with Conecuh bacon). Also order a couple of extra biscuits with sorghum, because you can’t have enough biscuits.
Cuisine: Bar
Address: 201 41st Street South, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: Vanillaphant Porter Ale. And maybe some Spring Street Saison. And if you get hungry, you can walk to Saw’s Soul Kitchen, Post Office Pies or MELT.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1211 Martin Luther King Boulevard, Northport, Ala.
You’re ordering: A slab of the best ribs in America. Don’t be fooled by the billboards advertising the more famous place in Tuscaloosa. The locals have been trying to keep this place their secret for years. But those ribs are just too perfect.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 405 23rd Avenue, Tuscaloosa, Ala.
You’re ordering: A bacon burger. There are no gimmicky ingredients — only a perfect bacon cheeseburger served alongside hand-cut fries. If you’re thirsty, add a Loretta Lemonade (Maker’s Mark, orange liqueur, fresh lemon juice).
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1715 6th Avenue Southeast, Decatur, Ala.
You’re ordering: Pork, chicken or ribs. But add some turkey to whatever you choose. It’s tough to find great smoked turkey, but if you’re here, you’ve found it.
Cuisine: Thai
Address: 3219 Lorna Road, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: You might assume a 20-ounce Coke and some beef jerky because this space clearly used to be a gas station. But order some wings to start and then choose between Pad Thai and Pad Kee Mao. Whichever one you pick, make it a beef, chicken and shrimp combo.
Cuisine: Italian
Address: 2240 Highland Avenue, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: The menu has shrunk during the quarantine, but you can still pick up lobster and shrimp bucatini or a fried oyster sandwich to go.
Cuisine: Barbecue
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Address: 1977 East Samford Avenue, Auburn, Ala.
You’re ordering: They’re currently transitioning into a full-service concept, but when they reopen, they’ll still be serving moist brisket and juicy ribs. Hopefully they’ll still offer brisket tacos, which are common in Texas but remain a delicacy east of the Mississippi River.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 128 Columbus Parkway, Opelika, Ala.
You’re ordering: A “regular” pulled pork sandwich will run you $5.55, but that thing is a monster. Add some Brunswick stew and smoked mac and cheese and you might still be too full to eat dinner hours later.
Cuisine: Seafood
Address: 508 Greensboro Avenue, Tuscaloosa, Ala.
You’re ordering: Whatever fish is fresh that day, grilled over hickory with crawfish cream. Then order a pineapple jalapeño margarita and hang at the bar while soaking up the scene.
Cuisine: Southern-Mex
Address: 3569 Pelham Parkway, Pelham, Ala.
You’re ordering: The plan is for this tamale spot, which started in Birmingham, to reopen in Pelham in July 2020. When it does, get the Crawdaddy (tamales smothered with housemade crawfish étouffée) and some Delta catfish tacos.
Cuisine: American
Address: 167 Dauphin Street, Mobile, Ala.
You’re ordering: The New South Brussels Sprouts — with giant chunks of bacon among the sprouts — is a great start. After that, order the shrimp and grits or the grilled rack of lamb.
Cuisine: Seafood
Address: 1530 Battleship Parkway, Spanish Fort, Ala.
You’re ordering: The turtle soup with sherry to start. Then it’s barbecue shrimp or grilled fish as you watch the sun set over Mobile Bay.
Cuisine: Italian/Seafood
Address: 1709 Main Street, Daphne, Ala.
You’re ordering: Something that came out of the (very) nearby Gulf of Mexico. If the chalkboard menu includes triggerfish or amberjack, order immediately. But don’t forget the Crawfish Penne.
Cuisine: Gastropub
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Address: 124 Tichenor Avenue, Auburn, Ala.
You’re ordering: Mama Sue’s pepper jelly to start. After you’ve dunked crackers in pepper jelly and cream cheese, order a Big Fat Ribeye and wash it down with a Tin Cup (Tincup whiskey, fresh lime juice, ginger-cilantro simple syrup, Fentiman’s ginger beer, chile and lime bitters).
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1041 Perry Hill Road, Montgomery, Ala.
You’re ordering: Ribs. Get a half slab or a full slab. If they have turnip greens as a side, buy as much as you can. Otherwise, enjoy your ribs and black-eyed peas.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 5401 Cottage Hill Road, Mobile, Ala.
You’re ordering: One of the planet’s best pulled pork sandwiches on a sweet bun. The juicy, bark-covered pork requires no enhancement whatsoever. Still, you’ll be tempted to add something. In addition to the usual selection of sauces, Meat Boss essentially offers the topping list of a build-your-own-burger restaurant. I had never thought of putting jalapeño jelly on a pulled pork sandwich until I saw the jelly on the menu. I went for it, and I inhaled the first sandwich so quickly that I had to order a second. By all means get that sandwich, but if you’re still hungry, Meat Boss is on the very short list of barbecue joints that make excellent baby back ribs. Baby backs require careful cooking because of their lower fat content, and Meat Boss cooks them very carefully.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 4105 4th Avenue South, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: The 3 Amigos. That’s ham, sliced chorizo, an over-easy egg, monterey and habañero jack cheeses on Texas toast.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 209 41st Street South, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: The Swine, which loads tomato sauce, sausage, slab Bacon, pepperoni, aged mozzarella and basil on a bubbly crust basked in a wood-fired oven.
Cuisine: American
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Address: 72 South Royal Street, Mobile, Ala.
You’re ordering: The Steak Sandwich Scam, with grilled beef tenderloin, sautéed mushrooms, sautéed onions, Havarti and spinach. And if you’re there in late January, you could see half of the front office personnel in the NFL comparing notes on Senior Bowl prospects.
Cuisine: Diner
Address: 2913 18th Street South, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: The trash can with a lid. That’s hashbrowns, onions, peppers, tomatoes, cheese and spicy sausage covered with two eggs. And ask Wayne to throw in some biscuits to sop up everything.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1008 Oxmoor Road, Homewood, Ala.
You’re ordering: The Saw’s Sampler: It’s chicken (with Alabama white sauce), ribs and pulled pork with two sides. Get greens and green beans.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 215 41st Street South, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: The pork and greens — which is pulled pork and collard greens over some of the creamiest grits you’ve ever eaten. Get a side of smoked wings for everyone to share.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 725 29th Street South, Birmingham, Ala.
You’re ordering: The Soul Pie sounds insane. It has turnip greens, black-eyed peas, Conecuh sausage, grilled red onions, bacon, pepper jack & cheddar cheese. Just eat it. It’s basically dinner at my grandmama’s house on a pizza.
Arizona
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 2814 North 16th Street No. 1205, Phoenix, Ariz.
You’re ordering: A Sergio El Suave (añejo tequila, pineapple and lime juices, agave nectar, cilantro and candied jalapeño) to start. For your main course, get the Cochinita Pibil (pork slow roasted overnight wrapped in a banana leaf). Dessert is churros filled with goat’s milk caramel.
Cuisine: Bar
Address: 1641 S Stapley Drive, Mesa, Ariz.
You’re ordering: Beer, of course. The taps rotate constantly, but if they have it, try the Morning Sex (milk stout) or the Peach Lolli (a Belgian strong golden ale aged over peaches). Drink these with Meat Candy (sriracha bacon) and carne asada poutine.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 4400 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, Ariz.
You’re ordering: The huevos con masa with chipotle cornbread and chorizo. Or maybe just some jalapeño biscuits and gravy. Or maybe cinnamon challah french toast. They’ll make sure the coffee keeps coming, too.
Cuisine: Deli
Address: 4550 East Cactus Road, Phoenix, Ariz.
You’re ordering: The Original Jewish Sliders, which pack brisket, potato pancakes and jack cheese into mini Challah rolls. Then, to make them somehow more perfect, this Phoenix-area mini-chain includes a side of brown gravy for dipping. One order is a meal unto itself, but if you’re in a group, you can split an order of sliders and have a corned beef and pastrami on rye or a Monte Cristo for your entree.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 202 East University Drive, Tempe, Ariz.
You’re ordering: The Great Big One (the half-pound burger) with jalapeño jack and bacon. Add some Chuckbox potatoes and feel the grease surge through your veins.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 8338 North 7th Street, Phoenix, Ariz.
You’re ordering: As many green corn chicken tamales as they’ll sell you.
Cuisine: Hot dogs
Address: 2480 N Oracle Rd, Tucson, Ariz.
You’re ordering: Sonoran dogs. That’s a bacon-wrapped hot dog stuffed into a pocket-shaped bun and loaded with onions and jalapeños and various condiments. Under normal circumstances at El Guero Canelo, you can choose which peppers you’d like from a stocked pepper and salsa bar. In the current takeout-only environment, you’ll need to know what you want when you order. Here’s a tip: Choose jalapeño sauce and have them add a few cucumbers and jalapeños. The cukes will keep you cool while the peppers heat you up.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 8901 North 7th Street, Phoenix, Ariz.
You’re ordering: The best barbecue west of the Rockies. Order brisket, pork ribs and (if it’s Friday or Saturday) beef short ribs.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 623 East Adams Street, Phoenix, Ariz.
You’re ordering: The Sonny Boy, which features salami, olives and fresh mozzarella. If you find yourself at the Camelback Road location, also try the pappardelle bolognese.
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 1923 East McDowell Road, Phoenix, Ariz.
You’re ordering: Al pastor, tongue and tripe tacos. Also, order the Taco Chiwas (beef, ham, jalapeño, Anaheim chiles, Asadero cheese) and the Desherbrada Verde (green shredded beef) gordita.
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 546 East Osborn Road, Phoenix, Ariz.
You’re ordering: Carnitas, chicken tinga and molida lamb tacos in a converted church that was erected in 1893.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 7119 East Shea Boulevard, Scottsdale, Ariz.
You’re ordering: A meat lovers skillet with chicken-fried steak, bacon, sausage, ham & sausage gravy topped with two eggs over hash browns. Or get the Going South omelette with chorizo and green chiles. This mini-chain is stationed throughout the Valley Of The Sun, and it’s a great place to turn a one-hour breakfast meeting into a four-hour breakfast meeting.
Arkansas
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 4127 West Wedington Drive, Fayetteville, Ark.
You’re ordering: Catfish and the world’s best hush puppies. And maybe someone gets a steak, because they do those shockingly well. And for dessert, a fried chocolate pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 15 West Walnut Street, DeValls Bluff, Ark.
You’re ordering: Pork sandwiches. And pick up some bottles of sauce. Those who know me know I only consider barbecue sauce useful for covering mistakes. They don’t make mistakes at Craig’s, but we all make them at home. And Craig’s sauce — which tastes like a cross between tomato-based sauce and Pickapeppa — covers them beautifully.
Cuisine: Gastropub
Address: 318 Campbell Avenue, Fayetteville, Ark.
You’re ordering: Theo’s closed in March and has yet to reopen. Hopefully it will, because it would be a shame if we couldn’t get that thick, juicy sous vide pork chop with bacon marmalade and bourbon sauce.
California
Cuisine: Diner
Address: 10801 West Pico Boulevard, Los Angeles, Calif.
You’re ordering: A burger that hasn’t changed much since the 1940s. Get the Steakburger, add a patty and request melted Tillamook cheddar. It’ll come off the grill gooey and greasy, and you’ll have to move fast before all that liquid soaks through the paper wrapper and into the bun. But after that first bite, that burger won’t last long. Then you’ll be on to the apple pie a la mode.
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Address: 9100 Trask Avenue, Garden Grove, Calif.
You’re ordering: Ribeye rolls (steak, pickled veggies, cucumber and mint rolled in rice paper) to start. Then follow that with Bun Cha Ha Noi (pork in lime chile fish sauce).
Cuisine: Ice cream
Address: 8588 Washington Boulevard, Culver City, Calif.
You’re ordering: An ice cream sandwich with salted caramel ice cream bulging from between two snickerdoodle cookies. Or maybe two scoops of Aunt Gladys Yellow Cake Batter ice cream. The good news is CoolHaus also ships and is supplying stores with its creations.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 16582 Gothard Street, Huntington Beach, Calif.
You’re ordering: Victor’s Meatball with an Attitude. It’s mini meatballs in a spicier-than-you-think sauce on a hoagie. Get a side of Deli’s Chunky Chili Mac (chorizo chili over mac and cheese) on the side. Bring a wheelbarrow to get rolled out.
Cuisine: Somalian
Address: 5330 Terner Way, San Jose, Calif.
You’re ordering: The Sports Plate. I’m not sure which sport the name references, but it might involve Joey Chestnut. This two-meat dish is supposed to feed two but could feed four. Get the beef suqaar and roasted goat cutlet and get a rice/spaghetti combo. Then order a side of chapati to sop everything up. While you’re there, go to the back and fill up your cup with a cinnamon-cardamom-and-they’re-keeping-the-rest-a-secret tea that will make everything a little brighter.
Cuisine: Diner
Address: 1138 Highland Avenue, Manhattan Beach, Calif.
You’re ordering: If you’re there for breakfast or lunch, get the honey fried chicken and biscuits. If you’re there later, choose a grilled four-cheese dip and add bacon. They’re open all night.
Cuisine: Korean/Tacos
Address: 3434 Overland Avenue, Los Angeles, Calif.
You’re ordering: Short rib tacos — as many as they’ll give you. They started serving at the Overland Avenue location on June 23, but you might find a truck closer to you. Check the website or Kogi BBQ’s social media feeds to learn where in Los Angeles and Orange counties the trucks are today. Then track down the nearest one. You’ll want to eat about 50 of those tacos.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 2811 Story Road, San Jose, Calif.
You’re ordering: The carne asada torta. And you probably won’t be able to leave without buying flan or some conchas (sweet bread rolls).
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1618 Mission Street, Santa Cruz, Calif.
You’re ordering: Ribs, pulled pork or tri-tip. Then you can marvel at finding good barbecue so close to the Pacific.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 135 North Highway 101, Solana Beach, Calif.
You’re ordering: This San Diego-area institution — with multiple locations — is probably more famous for its beer than its pizza. So have some Big Redd Imperial Red Ale or a Pretty Bird IPA. Then settle in for a Meet Extreme Meat (pepperoni, meatballs, Canadian bacon, salami and sausage) on beer crust.
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 1514 North Gower Street, Los Angeles, Calif.
You’re ordering: Chicken and waffles, naturally. Specifically, you’re getting Herb’s Special, which comes with a breast, a thigh, a leg, a wing and two waffles. Other than peanut butter and jelly, there is no more perfect combo than fried chicken and waffles. That combo freaked everyone out when Roscoe’s opened in 1975, but now restaurants across the country have copied the formula. In a town that chases trends like no other, Roscoe’s has built an institution serving basics done right. And because people will always crave chicken and always crave waffles, there will always be a Roscoe’s.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 6362 East Santa Ana Canyon Road, Anaheim Hills, Calif.
You’re ordering: A burger made with 50 percent ground beef and 50 percent ground bacon. It’s as amazing as it sounds, and Slater’s now has spots all over Southern California.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 601 South Central Avenue, Los Angeles, Calif.
You’re ordering: This place is temporarily closed, but once it reopens, go get some choriqueso, some al pastor tacos, some molé enchiladas and wash them down with spicy cucumber margaritas.
District of Columbia
Cuisine: Hot dogs
Address: 1213 U Street NW, Washington D.C.
You’re ordering: Chili half-smokes. What’s a half-smoke? It’s not a hot dog. It’s spicier, and the meat is ground differently. This particular cased meat is native to the DMV area, and Ben’s has been serving half-smokes topped with tangy chili, mustard and onions on steamed buns since 1958. Left unchecked, I probably could eat 10. Or maybe 15.
Cuisine: Farm to table
Address: 1924 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington
You’re ordering: They make fantastic chicken and waffles here, but do consider the beer can chicken. Or just keep ordering Glazed Bacon Lollis. This is an appetizer that essentially amounts to lollipops made of liquid sugar-covered bacon. It might be the most perfect bacon delivery system ever created, and you should feel no shame whatsoever if you decide to get multiple orders and make that your meal.
Florida
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1600 West Fairbanks Avenue, Winter Park, Fla.
You’re ordering: A beef rib (if you’re really hungry), brisket (if you’re semi-hungry) or tri-tip and chimichurri (if you’re trying to keep it a little leaner). For your sides, pick the bacon-wrapped jalapeños, green beans and a grit cake. Yes, 4 Rivers has expanded from its original humble home down Fairbanks Avenue from this newish flagship and tried to take over the Sunshine State one city at a time, but chain barbecue is only bad if the barbecue actually tastes bad. This 407-born chain still makes the best barbecue in Florida and is one of the few places outside Texas where you should feel confident ordering brisket.
Cuisine: Seafood
Address: 1740 Scenic Highway 98, Destin, Fla.
You’re ordering: Chargrilled amberjack, but only after you have a bowl of gumbo. Then sip a cold beer and watch the waves roll in off the Gulf of Mexico.
Cuisine: American
Address: 401 East Tennessee Street, Tallahassee, Fla.
You’re ordering: The Seminole Chop, a hunk of bone-in pork loin covered in a roasted red pepper medley atop a bed of cheddar grits. This place also has a brussels sprouts appetizer that features a bunch of the usual sprout accompaniments (bacon, parmesan, almonds) with a combo of honey and Buffalo sauce. Though it sounds like a bit much, the sweet and spicy play nicely with the savory.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1224 Kings Avenue, Jacksonville, Fla.
You’re ordering: The beef rib, which is as tender as juicy as the ones the old Texas places serve. The pork ribs and pulled pork are excellent, too. You’ll also want some Bearded Poutine, which covers fries with burnt ends and sauce, cheese curds and pimento cheese.
Cuisine: Steak
Address: 1208 S Howard Avenue, Tampa, Fla.
You’re ordering: A 100-day dry-aged Delmonico because when you go to Bern’s, you pull out the stops. A trip to Bern’s is about the experience as much as it is the steak. With any luck, you can still get a (socially distant) tour of the wine cellar and kitchen. The latter location is home to one of the more precise culinary operations in America. When you make your reservation, make sure you also make a reservation for the dessert room, also known as the most romantic date spot in Florida. The King Midas carrot cake is legendary, but the macadamia nut sundae never disappoints.
Cuisine: Seafood
Address: 325 North Bronough Street, Tallahassee, Fla.
You’re ordering: Oysters and … burgers? Yes. You’re ordering both. The oysters come fresh from nearby Apalachicola, and they won’t make fun of you when you order them baked with parmesan and jalapeño. (Because they taste good that way. Raw oysters feel and taste like snot.) The burger, meanwhile, is one of the best in Florida. Go ahead and order the 20-oz. with cheddar, bacon and mushrooms. Your friends will marvel at the pictures, and you’ll shock yourself when you inhale it.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 13005 SW 1st Road No. 101, Newberry, Fla.
You’re ordering: If you’re very hungry, order the Sicilian carne combo. Thick rectangles of airy dough hold pepperoni, sweet fennel sausage and Genoa salami. Not so hungry? Order the thin-crust Scampi pizza (garlic butter, mozzarella, parmesan, Fontina, shrimp, roasted shallots and parsley). This location is closer to Gainesville, but the original in Micanopy (where they filmed Doc Hollywood!) is also great.
Cuisine: Steakhouse
Address: 4444 West Cypress Street, Tampa, Fla.
You’re ordering: My favorite steak on the planet, which is odd because I’m a ribeye guy and this is a filet. More specifically, it’s the Fabulous Filet, a 20-ounce center-cut monster that you can cut with a fork after it comes sizzling off the wood grill. You go to Bern’s (also on this list) for the experience, but you go to Charley’s for the steak. And the good news is you can also get that same steak at Charley’s in Orlando. So why did I pick the Tampa location? It’s a better room, and it’s also the place we loaded up before my bachelor party in 2001.
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 12921 SW 1st Road Suite 103, Newberry, Fla.
You’re ordering: Al pastor tacos with tender pork and tangy pineapple. The shrimp tacos go great with the tomatillo/jalapeño salsa that is the better of two excellent homemade spicy salsa options. To be safe, just get two orders of chips and get the spicy green and the spicy red. You’ll dream about the green stuff.
Cuisine: Latin
Address: 2117 East 7th Avenue, Tampa, Fla.
You’re ordering: A pitcher of mojitos — mixed tableside — before you get down to the business of ordering. You’ll need to try the 1905 Salad. The garlic dressing is the world’s best salad garnish, and you would be forgiven if you ordered the bigger version with turkey and made that your meal. But if you do that, you’ll be missing out on lush paella with clams, mussels, shrimp, squid, chicken and pork baked with La Bomba Spanish rice, vegetables and spices.
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 2300 NW 2nd Avenue, Miami, Fla.
You’re ordering: Cochinita pibil (slow roasted pork shoulder, achiote, habanero pickled onions) and Alambre (seared angus steak, smoked bacon, chicharron de queso) tacos. Don’t forget some street corn, which Coyo Taco serves still on the cob.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 2616 South MacDill Avenue, Tampa, Fla.
You’re ordering: The Double D. It’s two six-ounce brisket-and-short rib patties served with Swiss and American cheeses between two glazed doughnuts. Hell yes, it’s stunt food. It’s also delicious. (And of course they’ll let you add bacon.) And if that’s not unhealthy enough, you also can order gooey, sweet monkey bread. (And of course they’ll let you add bacon.)
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3307 South Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa Fla.
You’re ordering: The Pirate Shipwreck, a magnificent sandwich that stuffs Cuban bread with pulled pork, smoked turkey, pork belly bacon and coleslaw. Pair it with a side of fried jalapeño mac and cheese.
Cuisine: Venezuelan
Address: 3090 South Jog Road, Greenacres, Fla.
You’re ordering: Too much. At least you are if you’re me. I always overdo it with arepas because I always remember them being smaller than they are, and I never account for how filling the cheese usually is. Get the Junquito (fried arepa, fried pork, guayanes cheese and avocado) and La Vemex (pork skin in a green hot sauce, black beans and cheese). That’s more than enough, but you’ll probably order La Colombiana (cheese, chorizo and avocado) anyway.
Cuisine: Doughnuts
Address: 6745 US Highway 98, Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.
You’re ordering: The chocolate glazed, peanut butter-filled raised doughnuts that will make you pass over red velvet cake doughnuts, devil’s food doughnuts and (maybe) Key Lime glazed doughnuts. I probably should tell you to order an omelet or corned beef hash — because the place also does great breakfast — but I honestly think you should just use those calories on more doughnuts.
Cuisine: Sushi
Address: 201 SE 2nd Avenue No. 104, Gainesville, Fla.
You’re ordering: They’ll still make the Dragonfly roll (a spicy creation wrapped in fish instead of rice) if you ask. Also try the Mango Tango roll and the big eye tuna tataki.
Cuisine: American
Address: 723 East Broward Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
You’re ordering: The best beef-a-roni you’ve ever tasted. Many of us ate the Chef Boyardee version from the can as kids. Now imagine that dish elevated with fresh, tender pasta and a house-braised short rib ragout. It’s nostalgia adjusted for adult expectations, and it’s ultra-satisfying. Get a side of fried brussels sprouts and a vanilla old fashioned if you need to feel like a grown-up again.
Cuisine: Sandwiches (and cake)
Address: 16606 Sheridan Street, Pembroke Pines, Fla.
You’re ordering: Make sure you secure a slice (or eight) of carrot cake first. Then worry about the rest of your order. This is truly magnificent carrot cake made by Liz Benavides, who eschews nuts and raisins — which typically are important components of carrot cake — and yet produces an end result that is better than any other carrot cake you’ve ever tasted. Liz also makes the meatballs for the meatball parm, and she insists on using a more expensive lean beef over the objections of husband/co-owner Aldo because Liz has an all-killer, no-filler philosophy that shines through in her cooking.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3116 Land O’ Lakes Boulevard, Land O’ Lakes , Fla.
You’re ordering: Chicken and/or ribs. Back in 2002, the high school sports staff of the Pasco County bureau of The Tampa Tribune used to hold meetings at Hungry Harry’s on Friday (which remains an all-you-can-eat rib day) before splitting up to cover high school football games. We also would hold meetings there Monday (which was all-you-can-eat chicken day before Harry’s made every day all-you-can-eat chicken day) to plan coverage for the new week. Harry’s is still smoking, and while the price has gone up a few bucks to $10.99 for AUCE chicken and $12.99 for AUCE chicken and ribs, it’s still one of the best deals on the planet.
Cuisine: Jamaican
Address: 1241 East Fowler Avenue, Tampa, Fla.
You’re ordering: Oxtail. It’s the tail of a steer cooked in a stew with carrots, butter beans and brown gravy. The result is a savory melange. You’ll need two orders of coco bread for proper dipping.
Cuisine: Seafood
Address: 11 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, Fla.
You’re ordering: Stone crab claws, of course. It’s as much about the ritual as it is the sweet, sweet claw meat. But it doesn’t have to be all surf and no turf. Even if you’re picking up to go, Joe’s offers half a fried chicken for $8.95. It has stayed on the menu because the owners wanted to be a place that normal people could always afford, but the fried chicken also happens to be pretty great.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2808 Gandy Boulevard, Tampa, Fla.
You’re ordering: The grande rib dinner with parsley potatoes and green beans. Then eat outside on the porch and let the spicy-sweet rub tickle your tastebuds while the breeze whistles through the live oaks.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 2512 North 15th Street, Tampa, Fla.
You’re ordering: A Cubano (mojo marinated pork, smoked ham, Genoa salami, Swiss cheese, pickle mojo marinated pork, smoked ham, Genoa salami, Swiss cheese, pickle on Cuban bread) from the place that has been baking Cuban bread since 1915 and makes it better than anyone.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 1495 SE 17th Street D, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
You’re ordering: The monster (ham, turkey, roast beef, your choice of cheese), which feels much bigger than the average footlong sandwich elsewhere. Get it with oil and hot peppers, and enjoy the show as your sandwich makers slice your meat and then toss it down the counter with an accuracy that will make you wonder why Manny Diaz isn’t looking for QBs at the various locations of this South Florida mini-chain.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 9848 US 98, Miramar Beach, Fla.
You’re ordering: The best tri-tip east of California and pulled pork with Eastern North Carolina vinegar sauce. There is also a Lillie’s Q in Chicago. That one was founded by chef Charlie McKenna. Charlie’s dad Quito runs the location by the side of the road in the Redneck Riviera, and that’s where he shows off all the skills he learned in various parts of the country during a long career in the Air Force.
Cuisine: American
Address: 705 South Woodward Avenue No. 101, Tallahassee, Fla.
You’re ordering: The MadSo Burger, which packs fried avocado, maple-pepper bacon, aged cheddar, whiskey caramelized onion and a thick patty inside a brioche bun. After that, finish with a Cast Iron Cookie, a giant baked-to-order chocolate chip cookie with vanilla ice cream riding on top.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2201 NW 119th Street, Miami, Fla.
You’re ordering: Owner Jack Homes calls them All-Pro ribs, and he’s not wrong. They’re always tender and juicy, and depending on which way the wind is blowing, you can smell the smokers from about a mile away. These ribs have fed a lot of college football coaches in town scouring Miami’s talent-rich high schools for the next generation of stars.
Cuisine: Latin
Address: 114 SW 34th Street, Gainesville, Fla.
You’re ordering: Start with a pabellón arepa (shredded beef, black beans, aged fried sweet plantains and cheese). Next, get the pan con lechón (marinated pork sandwich) with sides of sweet plantains and moro rice.
Cuisine: Grilled cheese
Address: 7418 Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, Fla.
You’re ordering: The Mackin Melt (creamy gouda mac and cheese with house-cured bacon on sourdough bread) or the Patty Melt (prime chuck and brisket six-ounce patty with chorizo pimento cheese and house-cured bacon on sourdough bread). Or really just about anything.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 106 NE Highway 441 A, Micanopy, Fla.
You’re ordering: Ribs and/or a jumbo pork sandwich on Texas toast. Choose macaroni and cheese and collard greens for your sides, and finish it all off with banana pudding.
Cuisine: Eclectic
Address: 3670 Barrancas Avenue, Pensacola, Fla.
You’re ordering: A BLT on Langos, a Hungarian fried bread that makes a sandwich feel a little more like dessert. But maybe you want the meatloaf sandwich instead — except that comes on a hoagie roll. Here’s the trick: They’ll put the meatloaf sandwich on Langos. DO IT. You know you want to.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 4281 East County Highway 30A, Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.
You’re ordering: A pork belly biscuit with bourbon molasses mustard and fig jam. Then add a side of brown sugar bacon. Then order a biscuit with sausage gravy. The coffee is outstanding as well, so you might down a few cups while you decide whether to order yet another biscuit sandwich.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 67 North Bumby Avenue, Orlando, Fla.
You’re ordering: Mama Ling Ling’s Thanksgiving. Yes, they put Thanksgiving on a sandwich. This beauty has turkey, gouda, stuffing, ginger cranberry chutney, mashed potatoes and cream cheese on it and come with a side of gravy for dipping. You’ll wonder why you’ve been wasting time with a plate the next time your family convenes for Thanksgiving. Pom Pom’s also will serve you a pressed PB&J with peanut butter, strawberry jelly, marshmallow fluff and banana. Elvis would be proud.
Cuisine: Ramen
Address: 100 NE 2nd Street, Boca Raton, Fla.
You’re ordering: Five-spiced duck ramen (duck, bean sprouts, bok choy, garlic oil and micro cilantro) is smooth, silky, sweet and spicy. It satisfies completely. But if you need a little more, grab a couple of pork belly buns.
Cuisine: Seafood
Address: 70 Hotz Avenue, Grayton Beach, Fla.
You’re ordering: My death row meal — grilled grouper over a blackened grit cake. It’s not on the regular menu, but it’s often the special. For dessert, Key lime pie a la mode. This gem burned down in February 2019, but it’s on pace to reopen in July. I can’t wait. It’s about as close to heaven as we can get on Earth.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 2057 SW 8th Street, Miami, Fla.
You’re ordering: The basic Cubano (pork, spiced ham, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard) is excellent here, but on my next visit I have to try the Elena Ruthless, which packs turkey, applewood smoked bacon, cream cheese and guava marmalade on media noche (sweet) bread.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 1800 NE 23rd Avenue, Gainesville, Fla.
You’re ordering: Call ahead and make sure they have deep dish shells. The thin crust is good, but the deep dish is transcendent. When you get there, get your order in. It’s going to be a little while, but it’ll be worth it. Start with the salad, which comes covered in perhaps the most addictive vinaigrette ever concocted. The salad — a refreshing mix of lettuce, apples and slivered almonds — will tide you over during the hour it takes to cook your pizza. Pepperoni, meatball and mushroom seems to be the magic combination on the deep dish, a massive, buttery edifice that doesn’t look anything like those Chicago chains have trained us to expect from deep dish. Between the thick, golden crust and the spicy sauce, only the biggest eaters will be able to handle more than two slices. But don’t worry. It makes great leftovers.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 5866 14th Street West, Bradenton, Fla.
You’re ordering: The Holy Grail burger on a pretzel roll. The Holy Grail is a double patty topped with thick-cut bacon and two scoops of mac and cheese. Hell, throw an egg in there just because you can. And while you’re waiting, munch on some Just Good Ol’ Balls. Those are tater tot balls stuffed with cheddar and jalapeños before they’re deep-fried.
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 1712 Beach Boulevard, Jacksonville Beach, Fla.
You’re ordering: The $10 Taco (which costs $4.99, so get two) featuring filet mignon. Also get the Carne Royale, which mixes carne asada with brie and grape salsa for a flavor profile you never expected you’d love in a taco. Throw in a couple pork verde tacos with fresh tomatillo salsa. Then it’s just a matter of choosing your tequila delivery system. I recommend the Tequila Old Fashioned (El Jimador Tequila Añejo, grapefruit bitters and aromatic bitters, agave nectar, muddled orange and cherry).
Cuisine: Puerto Rican
Address: 3160 Vineland Road No. 2, Kissimmee, Fla.
You’re ordering: Mofongo. So what’s mofongo? It’s mashed green plantains with garlic and butter. But I’d suggest ordering yours platano maduro and verde (with mashed ripe and green plantains). Get the fried pork chunks or the skirt steak mixed in. Also, prepare to have leftovers.
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Address: 11798 East Colonial Drive
You’re ordering: Nuoc-Nom wings. Massive whole wings (flapper and drum) get coated in fish sauce glaze and topped with fried garlic and cilantro. This place also makes an excellent pork banh mi, but it’s tough to keep from just ordering more wings.
Cuisine: American
Address: 3434 Bahia Vista Street, Sarasota, Fla.
You’re ordering: Fried chicken, then pie. It’s a little jarring to see a genuine Amish neighborhood dropped into an area full of strip malls and car dealerships, and the Amish residents have adapted to life in Florida. For example, they don’t use horses and buggies. A popular mode of transportation is a giant tricycle. These folks also have no qualms about using a fryer, because they fry up some spectacular chicken. Get the half-chicken meal with mashed potatoes and baked apples. After you’ve let that chicken settle, you’ll need to choose your pie. It won’t be easy. Just go with your gut. The Dutch Apple Crumb and Baked Peach are excellent.
Georgia
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 1093 Hemphill Avenue NW, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: The Diavola, with sopressata, pepperonata and fresh mozzarella. Antico’s ovens, which were imported from Italy, get hotter than the blazes of hell. That produces a bubbly crust that is crispy on the outside but pillowy soft inside. That pie is quite spicy, so if you brought a friend, you might also order a Capricciosa (a white pie with mushrooms, artichokes, prosciutto and fresh mozzarella) to mellow out the vibe.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 725 Ponce De Leon Avenue NE, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: Ribs and some pulled pork to put between slices of cracklin’ cornbread. Pitmaster Bryan Furman opened the first B’s in Savannah, Ga., and expanded to Atlanta’s Riverside neighborhood in 2016. He was making some of the best barbecue in the country when his store burned down in March 2019. Undaunted, Furman reopened inside a Kroger supermarket near Ponce City Market, but he still plans to open a new standalone store back in Riverside. The good news is that even though the menu is pared down at the Kroger location, B’s is still serving hash and rice, the king of barbecue sides that you’ve probably never eaten unless you’re from South Carolina or Georgia.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1361 Clairmont Road, Decatur, Ga.
You’re ordering: Pulled pork, chicken and ribs. They’re all expertly cooked, and you won’t go wrong with any of them. Try the pickled beets for one side. For the other, black-eyed peas with rosemary and bacon.
Cuisine: Jamaican
Address: 686 Peachtree Industrial Blvd. No. 200, Suwanee, Ga.
You’re ordering: Escoveitched snapper with rice and peas and cabbage. And maybe an order of Calypso butter beans. And probably some jerk chicken for the road.
Cuisine: Eclectic
Address: 600 Ponce De Leon Avenue NE, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: Jerk chicken. Or pasta. This is the choice diners face when they enter Eats. And though these seem like two incongruous blocks upon which to build a restaurant, Eats has been satisfying diners for almost 30 years. When I interned at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 1999, I ate there at least twice a week. Sometimes I had jerk chicken. Sometimes I had spaghetti. I always left happy. There was no decline in quality on subsequent visits in the years since, though I definitely gravitate more to the jerk chicken. Eats is closed at the moment because of the pandemic. Hopefully, that jerk chicken-or-pasta choice will return soon.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1811 Piedmont Avenue NE, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: Ribs, chicken and Brunswick stew. Other places have popped up and received more acclaim, but Fat Matt’s keeps pumping out tender, juicy ribs with a side of white bread and a blues soundtrack. Fat Matt’s Brunswick stew, a much thicker version than you’ll find anywhere else, is one of the all-time great barbecue sides.
Cuisine: American
Address: 1073 South Milledge Avenue, Athens, Ga.
You’re ordering: Start with the medjool dates with celery and parmesan or maybe the pimento cheese with bacon marmalade. (Or both!) Then get the pork porterhouse with peaches and redeye gravy.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1238 DeKalb Avenue NE, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: Brisket with a side of brisket chili. Fox Bros. was one of the first places in the non-Texas South to get brisket right, and the people of Atlanta seem eternally grateful. But don’t stop there. Fox Bros. also makes exquisite ribs. Meanwhile, the chicken fried ribs appetizer — yes, they fry ribs — is decadent, depraved and utterly delicious.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2243 Akers Mill Road SE, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: The spicy Korean pulled pork sandwich. Chef Jiyeon Lee was a pop star in her native Korea. (Yes, really.) But for nearly a decade, she’s been a barbecue star. That sandwich, which comes bursting with pork brushed with a spicy-sweet sauce, fuses two cooking styles beautifully. But Heirloom Market also makes scrumptious ribs that require no sauce. For a side, try the Korean sweet potatoes. They’re cut in rounds, fried and tossed in a soy-ginger sauce.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 968 Memorial Drive SE, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: The Comfy Chicken Biscuit. The menu is rather extensive, but if this was the only item on it, this place would still do a booming business. The CCB — a biscuit served open-faced with fried chicken and covered in pork sausage gravy — is the ultimate mood booster. You can’t have a bad day after eating one. It’s just science.
Cuisine: Jamaican
Address: 111 Martin Luther King Drive SW, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: Jerk chicken or curry goat. The chicken comes with fried ripe plantains for the ultimate spicy-sweet mix. Don’t be afraid to order the goat, though. It’s tender and savory, and you’ll seek it out whenever you eat Jamaican food afterward.
Cuisine: Jamaican
Address: 1583 South Lumpkin Street, Athens, Ga
You’re ordering: Kelly Codling has been serving a lot of outstanding jerk chicken with rice and peas out the window since the pandemic began, and I hope everyone in Athens stops by to make sure he stays busy until the rest of us can get there. And if you want a little hope, just listen to the man himself. Meanwhile, I need to make sure my next trip to Athens comes on a day when Kelly is making oxtails.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 198 Carroll Street SE, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: A beautifully greasy burger in a basket with some delicious fries. They keep it simple at this grill/grocery/convenience store in the Cabbagetown neighborhood, but sometimes a burger basket is all you need.
Cuisine: Breakfast/Brunch
Address: 197 Oak Street, Athens, Ga.
You’re ordering: So much food. I’m not normally a brunch person, but that concept was invented for a place like Mama’s Boy because you’re going to eat more than two meals’ worth of food while you’re there. As soon as you see the football-sized cinnamon rolls, you’re going to order one. And you can’t leave without having the hash, which features pulled pork and two poached eggs over fried potatoes and sprinkled with vinegar barbecue sauce. That comes with a biscuit, but you probably still ordered biscuits and sausage-thyme gravy anyway.
Cuisine: Chinese
Address: 3940 Buford Highway B103, Duluth, Ga.
You’re ordering: Dong-po pork. It’s a block of pork belly braised in a dark rice wine sauce that adds spice and sweetness to a meat that already has savory covered. Let that sauce seep into a little rice, and then get a forkful of the pork, the sauce and the rice. Few bites can compare. But since this is a Sichuan restaurant, you shouldn’t leave without trying something that makes your tongue and lips tingle. So get a beef hot pot as well.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 675 Ponce De Leon Avenue NE No. 136, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: Wings, which may sound odd at a Mexican restaurant. But these — in the Ponce City Market iteration of a place that started in Charleston, S.C. — are some of the best wings in the country. Charcoal-grilled wings come out smoky and juicy and then get tossed into a brown paper bag with Valentina hot sauce. They’re lighter than their deep-fried brethren, which should leave you room for tacos or a burrito. The achiote pork burrito with green salsa, cilantro, hoppin’ john and queso de Oaxaca should do the trick.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 2355 Cumberland Parkway SE No. 80, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: Challah! Everyone’s favorite lumpy, bumpy egg bread is the star here. In the Scrumptious Challah Egg and Cheese Souffle, cheddar, Swiss and eggs get baked into challah, which is so sturdy that it neither burns nor gets broken down by the oils coming off the cheese and eggs. Instead, it provides the ideal foundation. Order the small, because then you also can order the small — read: not the size of your head — version of the challah French toast casserole. Once again, challah’s sturdiness shines through as it soaks up egg wash, syrup and caramel sauce. I typically shy away from French toast because of an aversion to drenched bread. But thanks to the challah, this French toast achieves the perfect level of moisture.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 675 Pulaski Street No. 100, Athens, Ga
You’re ordering: Pulled pork and ribs if you’re just craving good barbecue. But if you want to get a little more exotic, order the Redneck Reuben (house-made bacon, collard greens, pimento cheese and ranch on Texas Toast) with a side of pork green chile stew.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2020 Demere Road, St. Simon’s Island, Ga.
You’re ordering: A BarbeCuban and Brunswick stew. The sandwich replaces mojo pork with pulled pork to go alongside the Swiss cheese, pickle and mustard. The stew — a mix of brisket, pork, chicken, turkey, tomatoes and butterbeans simmered in chicken broth — is one of the best in the country. After that satisfying lunch, you may as well add a slab of Southern Soul’s juicy ribs to take home for dinner.
Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Address: 99 Krog Street NE, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: If you ask nicely (and are willing to pay a small upcharge), they’ll include crispy chunks of pork belly with your steak and chicken on America’s most luxurious mixed fajita plate. Do this. And eat while drinking blood orange margaritas (El Jimador Reposado, Solerno Blood Orange, Ancho Reyes, lime, orange).
Cuisine: American
Address: 820 Ralph McGill Boulevard Northeast, Atlanta, Ga.
You’re ordering: Start with fried ribs or confit turkey wings. Then choose between scallops over gouda grits or flounder with watermelon curry and lime vinaigrette.
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 1016 East Broad Street, Athens, Ga.
You’re ordering: Moist, juicy fried chicken from the place that inspired REM to name an album Automatic For The People. Make sure to get mac and cheese on the side.
Cuisine: Bar
Address: 351 North Hull Street, Athens, Ga.
You’re ordering: A chicken and waffle club with a fried chicken breast and bacon stuffed between two waffles. At the moment, they’re taking dine-in reservations. Should you be lucky enough to get one, you can sip a few Tango Whiskey Foxtrots, which pack whiskey, lemon, maraschino liqueur and ginger ale into a glass rimmed with Tang powder. The astronauts took that powder to the moon, and that drink will take you to the moon.
Idaho
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 501 South Main Street, Moscow, Idaho
You’re ordering: Cinnamon roll pancakes. It’s everything you love about a cinnamon roll — except as a pancake. You’re also going to want a hunk of huckleberry/zucchini bread.
Illinois
Cuisine: Wings
Address: 1104 West Granville Avenue, Chicago, Ill.
You’re ordering: Wings with Dak sauce, a soy-ginger concoction that will make you lick every finger that touched a wing to ensure that you consumed it all. Remember, these are full wings, so order half as many as you normally would. On second thought, order the usual amount. They’re at least twice as good as the wings you normally eat.
Cuisine: Bar food
Address: 1028 West Diversey Parkway, Chicago, Ill.
You’re ordering: Bacon, silly. Sure, the bacon thing is a gimmick. But as gimmicks go, bacon is tough to beat. The Bacon Board is a great start. It comes with Irish bacon, jowl bacon, cracked pepper bacon and Danish bacon. The fried bacon appetizer combined with the Bacon Board makes for a satisfying all-bacon meal. The truly foolish can try to eat the Bacon Bomb — a five-pound mix of meats wrapped in bacon — and fries in 45 minutes to win a T-shirt and a place on the wall. Or you could bring four friends, split the $80 cost and be able to walk the next day. Or you can just get a slice of the Bomb on a sandwich.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 2207 North Clybourn Avenue, Chicago, Ill.
You’re ordering: A thick, buttery crusted behemoth that seems to share a common ancestor but has evolved differently than other Chicago deep dish places. Pequod’s doesn’t use the space between the top of the pie and the top of the crust as a deep sauce reservoir the way Geno’s East and Giordano’s do. The sauce goes under the cheese just like it does in most other parts of the country, but you still get that beautiful golden crust. At Pequod’s the crust caramelizes near the top, adding another layer of flavor.
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Address: 444 Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Ill.
You’re ordering: Right now, the staff is making what it calls an “Italian feast” available only for pickup or delivery. Hopefully, when things move a little closer to normal, you’ll be able to get the crispy pig ears appetizer again. (Yes, it’s a pig’s ear. Like the other parts of the pig’s body, it’s delicious.) Ditto for the pork belly plus tenderloin with the ginger glaze.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3800 North Pulaski Road, Chicago, Ill.
You’re ordering: Spare ribs and brisket. And make sure to read the barbecue manifesto published by the owners that essentially explains to Chicagoans accustomed to babyback ribs why bigger, meatier spare ribs taste better cooked low and slow than their beloved babybacks. Meanwhile, the brisket can compete with the best places in Texas. That manifesto also includes this quote about people who drown meat in sauce, which tells you that Smoque is a quality barbecue joint: “They try to breathe new life into dry, tasteless meat by dousing it with an overpowering BBQ sauce — a shameful practice that we like to call artificial resaucitation. … Well, we won’t do it. No sir.” Bless them for that.
Cuisine: Soup
Address: 2943 North Broadway, Chicago, Ill.
You’re ordering: Something to warm your bones and your soul. Back in 2011, I did a show on the Big Ten Network that required me to spend a day or two a week in Chicago. As the city’s beautiful summer turned to fall, I wasn’t quite prepared for how the wind would come whipping off Lake Michigan and race through the canyons created by all those skyscrapers. On a day when the gusts cut right through me, I took shelter from the cold in Soupbox. They make 12 fresh, from-scratch soups every day. There are staples like chicken noodle or vegetable and more exotic options like lobster bisque. But on that day, what I needed was the tomato soup with a grilled cheese on fresh-baked sourdough to dip in the bowl. It’s rare that the universe provides exactly what you need when you need it, but it did that day. And Soupbox got a lot of repeat business because of it.
Indiana
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 28 West Georgia Street, Indianapolis, Ind.
You’re ordering: Assuming this St. Elmo sister restaurant comes back from the pandemic (fingers crossed), get the Homecoming (a huge patty topped with gouda and thick-cut, root beer-glazed bacon. Or if you’re feeling fancy, order the Prime Degree, which features a patty made with dry-aged beef from St. Elmo. You get a choice between fries and tater tots here, and I don’t understand why more high-end burger places don’t offer that choice. For your beverage, try a GPA Killer (Deep Eddy Peach, Ancho Reyes Chile, lime).
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 236 South Michigan Street, South Bend, Ind.
You’re ordering: The Golden Domer, a 20-ounce monster of a burger that will make you see Touchdown Jesus. (OK, he’s only two miles away. You can just drive and see him.) C.J.’s will put pretty much anything you want on a burger, but here’s a suggestion: Cheddar, thick-cut bacon, grilled mushrooms, jalapeños and a fried egg.
Cuisine: American
Address: 115½ Colfax Avenue, South Bend, Ind.
You’re ordering: The dining room at the more laid-back upstairs cousin to the downstairs LaSalle Grill remains closed, but the plan is to re-open in July. With any luck, the frequently rotating menu — which embraces theme nights or goes prix fixe to offer courses that pair with new beers on tap — will come back stronger than ever. And hopefully they’ll bring back the bacon steaks that I had the first time I visited.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 1428 East Third Street, Bloomington, Ind.
You’re ordering: The Divine Swine, which comes topped with pepperoni, sausage, Hoosier ham and bacon. Get the deep dish version. It’s a rectangular pie — similar to a Sicilian crust — with a dollop of sauce atop each square slice.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 390 East High Street, Mooresville, Ind.
You’re ordering: Some ribs because everyone needs protein, but you’re spending most of your time on deep fried biscuits. Yes, you read that correctly. These biscuits would be the offspring if a Krispy Kreme doughnut (sans glaze) had a torrid affair with a Cracker Barrel biscuit. They’re beautiful and golden and flaky and perfect. Squealers also has an outpost in Indianapolis. So you don’t have to drive all the way out to Mooresville, but it is a pleasant drive and the original Squealers is one of those barbecue joints you can smell before you see. Pull a Bugs Bunny and float in on the aroma. Then attack those biscuits.
Cuisine: Steakhouse
Address: 127 Illinois Street, Indianapolis, Ind.
You’re ordering: The shrimp cocktail to start. It’s jumbo shrimp swimming in cocktail sauce containing enough horseradish to power a small town. Your sinuses will be clear for your perfectly cooked bone-in ribeye. You’ll note that I included the names of two places here. St. Elmo is the more famous restaurant. Harry and Izzy’s is next door and shares a kitchen. So you get the same food without the three-hour wait (and with a little livelier vibe).
Iowa
Cuisine: Diner
Address: 214 North Linn Street, Iowa City, Iowa
You’re ordering: When they re-open, which is hopefully soon, you’re ordering an omelet with gravy on it. Wait, you didn’t know people put gravy on omelets? Neither did I until my first visit to Hamburg Inn No. 2. Now I always want to know if I can get gravy on my omelet. And even if you’re there for breakfast, it’s never too early to get a pie shake. What’s a pie shake? You choose a piece of pie and they throw it in the blender with some milk and ice cream and — boom — you have a shake.
Kansas
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 111 South 4th Street, Manhattan, Kan.
You’re ordering: Management calls The Grant (a half-order of biscuits with gravy and bacon) “The Perfect Breakfast,” but the bananas foster pancakes — with dark rum-banana-pecan sauce — might just be a little more perfect.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3002 West 47th Avenue, Kansas City, Kan.
You’re ordering: The Z-Man sandwich, which loads brisket, provolone and two onion rings into a Kaiser roll. But don’t stop there. Get a rib and burnt end dinner from the place that helped pull Kansas City out of the dump-a-bunch-of-sauce-on-it doldrums.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 227 Blue Earth Place No. 111, Manhattan, Kan.
You’re ordering: A butter flight. Yes, four kinds of butter with your choice of fresh-baked bread. Here’s a sample flight: Chai, honey, tomato basil, fresh herb. Enjoy that with a perfect latté and maybe a cinnamon roll.
Cuisine: Doughnuts
Address: 704 North Manhattan Avenue, Manhattan, Kan.
You’re ordering: You have to get the K-Stater (purple glaze and purple sprinkles), but once you’ve paid homage to the hometown university, go wild. They have a funnel cake doughnut. They have a red velvet cake doughnut with a dollop of icing and red sprinkles on top. They have a maple bacon bar that features maple icing studded with chopped bacon atop a raised doughnut in bar form.
Kentucky
Cuisine: American
Address: 1053 Goss Avenue, Louisville, Ky.
You’re ordering: Kentucky poutine. The place is under new management and has gone in a decidedly barbecue direction after beginning its life serving bar food, but fortunately this dish stayed on the menu. Of all the localized poutine dishes I’ve tried, this is the best. Instead of brown gravy over fries, this substitutes the milk-and-sausage gravy you’d usually find on biscuits in the south. Combine that with excellent house-cut fries and shredded smoked gouda, and you’ll be happy enough to keep ordering beer.
Cuisine: American
Address: 921 Swan Street, Louisville, Ky.
You’re ordering: An elk burger on a pretzel bun and Grippo fries cooked in duck fat. What are Grippo fries? They’re dusted with the seasoning from Grippo’s barbecue flavored potato chips. After they’re cooked in duck fat. Quack. Quack.
Cuisine: Wings/Pickles
Address: 102 Bauer Avenue, Louisville, Ky.
You’re ordering: Wings and pickles. This is a barbecue place, but you’re going to be too full to order any traditional barbecue. Start with the best fried pickles on the planet. Most places throw some dill pickles in the deep fryer and call it a day. Momma’s serves Mucho Macho Fried Hot Pickles, which use a spicy batter on sweet pickles with devastating (for your waistline) results. Then load up on the wings, which come coated in a sweet and spicy rub that makes sauce unnecessary.
Louisiana
Cuisine: Eclectic
Address: 600 Poland Avenue, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: The menu rotates constantly, so you’ll have to see what’s available when you arrive. But you start by finding your bottle of wine inside the store. Then you walk out into the coolest backyard party you’ve ever seen. Hours later, the bottles will be empty and you’ll be smiling.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 900 N Carrollton Avenue, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: They make great barbecue here, but you came for the best chicken sandwich in America. They used to only make it on Tuesday, but during the pandemic they began making it daily. There’s no telling how long that will continue. But trust me, you need to find a way to eat this deep-fried thigh in a sweet and spicy sauce. You’ll forget all about those two fast food places duking it out for chicken sandwich supremacy.
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 2309 North Causeway Boulevard, Metairie, La.
You’re ordering: It feels as if Ron will make you anything you want, but start with the Ultimate Gumbo. That’s filé gumbo with chicken, shrimp, crab, sausage, crawfish, okra and tomato topped with fried catfish and oysters. It’s so filling, but it’s also so satisfying that you won’t stop until the bowl is dry. If you want to lighten things up on your next visit — which probably will come the next day or the next meal — then opt for the bronzed drum.
Cuisine: Deli
Address: 2921 Government Street, Baton Rouge, La.
You’re ordering: Pork nachos (pulled pork with queso, coleslaw, jalapeño and barbecue sauce over house-made potato chips) to start. Then you’re having a grilled sausage sandwich with barbecue mustard and pepper jack on a brioche bun.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 930 Tchoupitoulas Street Suite A, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: The pork belly sandwich with mint and cucumber on white bread. The mint and cucumber provide a cool counterbalance to the heft of the pork belly. Of course, you’re going to wreck that balance with pancetta mac and cheese. But that’s OK. You’re probably coming back the next day for a different sandwich. Maybe the Buckboard Bacon Melt (bacon and cheese with collard greens on white bread) or Butcher’s version of a Muffaletta. They’re all great.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 470 North Alexander Avenue, Port Allen, La.
You’re ordering: Chicken and turkey, two high-degree-of-difficulty barbecue meats that Cou-Yon’s does incredibly well. That’s some low-calorie eating for a barbecue joint, but you’ll make up for it with a big side of Cajun rice dressing (dirty rice) and some pulled pork waffle fries.
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 3145 Government Street, Baton Rouge, La.
You’re ordering: Pie for dinner and for dessert. For dinner, get the crawfish hand pie (crawfish, corn and sausage fried in a handmade crust and served with cajun cream) or the seafood pot pie (crawfish, shrimp and crab in a roasted red pepper cream and baked inside a flaky crust). For dessert? A turtle pie or s’mores pie. Or maybe one of several rotating creations that change daily.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 5655 Government Street, Baton Rouge, La.
You’re ordering: Rectangular pizza (because they were originally made on cookie sheets) cut into square slices in an old pink building that might fall down while you’re eating. This is one of the few places where your very own personal meat lover’s mix might include shrimp — and it should.
Cuisine: Creole
Address: 200 Julia Street, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: They’ve scaled back the menu in the age of COVID-19, but hopefully they’ll be able to bring back what made the place great: The blackened prime rib for two, which I always ate for one. It was a massive, glorious hunk of meat that never failed to satisfy. The good news at the moment is they’re still serving the duck wings appetizer, which you might consider making a duck wings entree.
Cuisine: Seafood
Address: 1833 Pierre Avenue, Shreveport, La.
You’re ordering: This Shreveport institution just re-opened, and you’re having a Shrimp Buster. What’s a shrimp buster? It’s basically a deconstructed shrimp po’boy. Shrimp are butterflied and fried and served atop toasted French bread. They’ve been making them since 1945, and they still satisfy every time.
Cuisine: Cajun/Creole
Address: 8324 Oak Street, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: One of everything if possible. Some places only do a few things well. At Jacques-Imo’s, you’ll regret every dish you don’t try. You have to eat the shrimp and alligator sausage cheesecake (which isn’t really cheesecake). You simply must have the paneéd rabbit. You need to taste the short ribs. You can’t miss the blackened redfish. It’s a paralyzing set of options where there are no wrong answers.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 701 Mazant Street, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: Ribs that prove New Orleans is a barbecue town. (Let’s be honest. New Orleans is an everything town.) If you can get a burnt end sandwich, go for it. This place also answers the eternal question, which was posed by Chris Rock in “I’m Gonna Git You Sucka”: “How much for one rib?” Currently, it’s $4.
Cuisine: Steakhouse
Address: 2111 St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: Start with the barbecue shrimp or the sizzling crab cake. For the entree, of course you’re going with the cowboy ribeye. Try to save room for bread pudding for dessert if you can.
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Address: 5100 Freret Street, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: You may not even get to the entrees because it’s too tempting to fill up on pork belly steamed buns and the crispy, juicy sticky wings that are rolled in a honey-pepper batter before they get dropped in the fryer. If you can handle an entree, get lemongrass chicken over vermicelli. But save room for a dessert of Pandan waffle with green tea ice cream.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 14241 Airline Highway Suite 105, Baton Rouge, La.
You’re ordering: Brisket and ribs with a side of dirty rice. But don’t just stop with the barbecue. Pimanyoli’s also sells amazing Delta-style tamales. They’re available Wednesday through Sunday, and they sell out frequently.
Cuisine: Italian
Address: 18811 Highland Road, Baton Rouge, La.
You’re ordering: A place run by a former LSU football player of Italian descent (Ruffin Rodrigue) is going to have a diverse menu, and Ruffino’s runs the gamut. You can start with braised pork cheeks with bacon jam and then move on to a traditional Italian dish like veal parmesan. Or choose a Louisiana favorite like Pork Tchoupitoulas (a center-cut pork chop covered in barbecued shrimp). If you’re lucky, you might be there on a night when they have a 64-ounce bone-in ribeye special. That was the case on my first visit a few years ago, and someone snapped a photo before I attacked that glorious hunk of beef. And yes, I finished it and ate dessert.
Cuisine: Diner
Address: 125 Kings Highway, Shreveport, La.
You’re ordering: They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, but you’re here for some icebox pie. Get chocolate, strawberry or banana (or peach if it’s in season). In fact, maybe just have pie for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Cuisine: Gastropub
Address: 625 Chartres Street, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: The pan-roasted pork shoulder served over creamy grits with bacon braised greens and mustard jus. The rest of the menu is heavenly, but this dish seems to get better every time. So I find myself ordering it every time.
Cuisine: American
Address: 845 North Carrollton Avenue, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: The smoky, juicy lamb neck with black-eyed pea salad or the massive double-cut pork chop with dirty rice and cane syrup gastrique. The first time I attempted that pork chop I couldn’t finish, but that’s probably because I filled up on meats from the charcuterie board or crispy turkey necks.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 739 Jackson Avenue, New Orleans, La.
You’re ordering: A fried bologna sandwich. This is not the bologna your mom packed in your lunch. It’s Leighann Smith’s thick-sliced bologna from Piece Of Meat, the butcher shop that has a formidable restaurant in its own right. That bologna gets combined with hot English mustard, potato chips, shredded lettuce and American cheese on white bread (after you ask to hold the mayo). Those flavors combine to form a sandwich that has few peers. One that comes close, however, is the Pork and Peppers, which combines pork shoulder slow-cooked with habaneros and oranges, crispy pig ear, shredded lettuce, onions, and citrus mayo served open-face on roti bread with a side of habanero vinegar. I hold the mayo on that, too. But I don’t hold back when it hits the table.
Massachusetts
Cuisine: Australian
Address: 256 Marginal Street Building 16, East Boston, Mass.
You’re ordering: A braised lamb shank hand pie. The Australians have it figured out. Cook savory meat into a flaky crust, but make it small enough to be eaten like a burger. This one starts with spiced lamb shanks braised until they fall off the bone. Then that gets blended with carrots, green beans and peas and coated in lamb gravy before it gets backed into a homemade crust. Come to think of it, you do have two hands …
Maryland
Cuisine: Uyghur
Address: 6504 America Boulevard Suite 105A, Hyattsville, Md.
You’re ordering: Big plate chicken. Owner Gairatjan Rozi came to the U.S. from the central Asian region of Turkestan. At Marco and Polo, he’s bringing Uyghur cooking to the people of the D.C. suburbs. And those are some lucky people indeed. Big plate chicken is a chicken and potato stew served over flat noodles and known in China as Da Pan Ji. It’s basically the ultimate comfort food. The sweet, spicy, savory stew coats the chicken and potatoes and then soaks into each noodle. Every bite tastes like a warm hug — which must offer special comfort when home is thousands of miles across the globe.
Michigan
Cuisine: Meat
Address: 1643 South State Street, Ann Arbor, Mich.
You’re ordering: This paradise of smoked and cured meats just down the street from The Big House should be reopening soon, and when it does, you’re getting a jalapeño and cheddar bratwurst and a basket of chili-cheese tater tots. When you’re done, grab some house-made beef jerky for the road. Hopefully they’re making the Quatro Crazy, which combines habanero, ghost pepper, jalapeño, red chili, scotch bonnet and Asian chile sauce.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 2006 W Willow Street, Lansing, Mich.
You’re ordering: Some garlic sticks while you wait for your deep-dish Meat Special (pepperoni, ham, sausage, bacon, ground beef). The pie will be massive. It will look like someone inserted a hose into a standard pizza and blew it up to five times its normal height. You will savor every bite.
Cuisine: Fried
Address: 120 West Main Street, Potterville, Mich.
You’re ordering: Something deep-fried. They’ll pretty much deep-fry anything. When I asked them to deep fry a double-bacon cheeseburger, they had only deep fried a single-bacon cheeseburger. But they dropped that double in the fryer anyway, and it came out gleaming and golden. The end result was a sumptuous burger encased in what tasted like a doughnut without the glaze. Next time, I’m asking them to drop a triple in the fryer.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 1329 S University Avenue, Ann Arbor, Mich.
You’re ordering: Any sandwich with honeycup mustard. One example? Madonna’s Top Hit, which loads smoked turkey, Canadian cabot cheddar, that oh-so-sharp mustard, lettuce, cucumber, vinegar & oregano on grilled challah.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1224 Turner Road, Lansing, Mich.
You’re ordering: The Boss Logg, an 18-layer monstrosity that includes pork, brisket, two burger patties, bacon, a sunny-side-up egg and multiple layers of fries, gravy, cheddar, American and pepper jack cheese. You can try to eat all that — and an order of mac and cheese — to win a free meal. Don’t. Share the Logg with a friend or two and think of it as incredibly impressive sampler platter. Then order some of the divine smoked-then-flash-fried wings.
Cuisine: Coffee
Address: 117 East Liberty Street, Ann Arbor, Mich.
You’re ordering: A honey vanilla latte. Every college town needs a great coffeehouse serving locally roasted beans, and Ann Arbor has one of the best. The downtown location remains limited, but the Rosewood location is open for takeout. So you can get that latte and a pork burrito.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2138 Michigan Avenue, Detroit, Mich.
You’re ordering: The original Slow’s in Corktown is scheduled to reopen in July, but Slows To Go in the Midtown neighborhood is open now. Get the smoked Amish chicken or the Hot Mess, which is a mix of pulled pork, pork belly and sausage.
Cuisine: Farm to Table
Address: 27790 Novi Road, Novi, Mich.
You’re ordering: A restaurant inside a hotel that sits in a suburban mall parking lot has no business being this good, but Toasted Oak never disappoints. The menu changes frequently, but at the moment the go-to appetizer is the yellow beets with strawberry verjus, mint oil, and birch pollen. For your entree, go for the braised short rib infused with herbs and chile oil.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 18 S Main Street, Clarkston, Mich.
You’re ordering: Spare ribs that pull off the bone with an oh-so-gentle tug (because smoked ribs aren’t supposed to fall off the bone). You’re also getting smoked wings. And all the meats are excellent, but the one thing you must make sure you order is the macaroni and cheese. This mix of cheddar, parmesan and Pinconning cheese with bechamel was developed at sister restaurant Clarkston Union. It is, without question, the best mac and cheese in America. After eating it, I found the recipe on the Web and have cooked it for every family gathering since.
Cuisine: Deli
Address: 422 Detroit Street, Ann Arbor, Mich.
You’re ordering: A Rick’s 50/50 Mix, which features thick slices of corned beef and pastrami on rye. If that isn’t your deli usual, don’t worry. They have that, too. But the meat and the bread are probably better than your usual deli. If you go in the summer, get the jalapeño peaches. No matter when you go, get a Magic Brownie.
Minnesota
Cuisine: American
Address: 1121 Hennepin Avenue, Minneapolis, Minn.
You’re ordering: When the Minneapolis location reopens July 7 — the Charleston, S.C. location is already open — you want the long bone rib that gets salt and sugar cured and smoked for 14 hours. The Tabasco-molasses glaze completes the bombardment of every taste bud. But first, have a grilled Caesar salad and a banana bread old fashioned (cinnamon- and banana-infused Stranahan’s Single Malt Whiskey, aztek chocolate bitters, walnut bitters, Demerara syrup). Have another one of those old fashioneds for dessert.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 80 S 9th Street, Minneapolis, Minn.
You’re ordering: A caramel pecan roll and lemon-ricotta hotcakes. The first is a half-pound cinnamon roll topped with roasted, salted pecans and caramel sauce. The second is a stack of moist, mostly sweet, ever-so-slightly sour pancakes that are too good even for syrup.
Cuisine: American
Address: 301 N Washington Avenue, Minneapolis, Minn.
You’re ordering: The full order of grilled cajun pork chops. You’ll get two 13-ounce chops that were rubbed with spices and slow-cooked over a hickory fire. There are $100 steaks that don’t come close to these chops.
Missouri
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 110 S 9th Street, Columbia, Mo.
You’re ordering: Perfect greasy flat-top burgers. Once you eat the first, you’ll start wondering how many you can put away. Ten? Twenty? A hundred? It’s probably less than that, but you’ll want to try to find out.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 225 S 9th Street, Columbia, Mo.
You’re ordering: A meat lover’s at a place where they truly love meat. They’ll load up your pie with pepperoni, Canadian bacon, ground beef, Italian sausage and American Bacon. When the bar reopens, you can eat that pizza and raise a pint in the quintessential campus-adjacent pizza-and-beer joint.
Mississippi
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 118 Courthouse Square, Oxford Miss.
You’re ordering: When they re-open — which the proprietors insist will be soon, following some repair work — go for lunch. Get the chicken and dumplings with turnip greens, butter beans and jalapeño cornbread. Then go the next day for lunch and get country-fried steak with cornbread dressing and broccoli rice casserole.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 719 N Lamar Boulevard, Oxford, Miss.
You’re ordering: The early-rising corner of the John Currence empire will feed you Big Bad Bacon, which is everyone’s favorite meat cut thick and coated with a brown sugar rub and Tabasco pepper mash. This alone would make for a satisfying meal, but Currence also delivers plump biscuits and two kinds of gravy to the table. The more intriguing of the two is tomato gravy, which sounds odd right up until the moment you find yourself licking the bottom of the bowl to make sure you didn’t miss any.
Cuisine: American
Address: 152 Courthouse Square, Oxford, Miss.
You’re ordering: Shrimp and grits with cheese grits, sauteed shrimp, garlic, mushrooms, scallions, white wine, lemon juice and bacon. But only after some Coca-Cola glazed rib tips with crushed peanuts and chopped chiles. Chef John Currence has built an empire in Oxford, and this is the flagship.
Cuisine: Diner
Address: 3000 Hardy Street, Hattiesburg, Miss.
You’re ordering: If it’s lunch, chicken fried steak and three veggies. This is a quintessential meat-and-three, and you’re cheating yourself if you only order one or two sides. Get the black-eyed peas, the butterbeans and the turnip greens. If you’re there for breakfast — or pretty much any other time — order the Dirty Bird. This is an open-faced biscuit sandwich cradling four chicken tenders and a scoop of cream gravy. Add Buffalo sauce and scrambled eggs to make it a more-than-filling meal.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 103 MS 12, Starkville, Miss.
You’re ordering: A pulled pork sandwich. And possibly another pulled pork sandwich. Or maybe a pulled pork dinner during which you load your pork onto your toast. They also sell pork skins and snouts. I got the snout a few years ago. Remember, every part of the animal is delicious.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3139 N State Street, Jackson, Miss.
You’re ordering: Pork belly corn dogs. Yes, you read that correctly. Proto-bacon smoked and then dipped in savory corn batter, fried and impaled on a stick. Dip it in the beer mustard or don’t. You’ll be amazed either way. We’ll eventually get to an entree, but you also need to get the pork rinds and pimento cheese. Since you ate all that to start, maybe you should split a Pitmaster Sampler (get ribs, pork and chicken) with a friend.
Cuisine: American
Address: 100 E Main Street, Starkville, Miss.
You’re ordering: At dinner, you’re ordering a duck burger with bacon and Mississippi red pepper jelly. At lunch, get blackened Delta catfish (with crawfish sauce) with purple hull peas and butter beans and a hunk of Vardaman sweet potato cornbread for the low, low price of $11.
Cuisine: Coffeeshop
Address: 605 MS-12, Starkville, Miss.
You’re ordering: You’re getting blueberry cobbler coffee with a chocolate-covered coffee bean nestled in the spout of your lid. Then you’re driving back and buying five pounds of blueberry cobbler coffee to brew at home.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 621 University Drive, Starkville, Miss.
You’re ordering: Pork rind nachos. The pork rinds are covered with pulled pork, Rotel cheese sauce, sour cream, smoked corn pico de gallo, green onions and barbecue sauce to elevate your favorite gas station snack into Appetizer Heaven. Get some pork belly tacos afterward. Or just have more pork rind nachos.
North Carolina
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 214 North College Street, Charlotte, N.C.
You’re ordering: Fried chicken. Or fried catfish. Or blackened pork chops. I once got assigned to cover an NCAA Tournament regional in Charlotte and wound up eating at Mert’s four days in a row. The only thing that stayed the same each day was the slice of red velvet cake at the end of the meal.
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 2908 Oak Lake Blvd No. 206, Charlotte, N.C.
You’re ordering: Smothered pork chops with black-eyed peas and macaroni and cheese. Unless it’s Friday. Then get the jerk chicken wings. And finish with banana pudding.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 328 W Davie Street, Raleigh, N.C.
You’re ordering: Chopped pork that came from a whole hog smoked out back. The Pit looks far too nice to pull off whole hog barbecue, but it does it with aplomb. That pork gets picked, chopped and tossed in a spicy vinegar sauce that tickles the sinuses while the grease from the pork hits all your savory centers. This is the nod to the people of the Eastern part of the state. The ribs, which are not pulled off the whole hog, are also excellent. That’s a nod to the folks in the western part of the state. In the capital, you have to try to satisfy everyone.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 4618 Lee Street, Ayden, N.C.
You’re ordering: Pork chopped on a cutting board that takes so many strokes from the cleaver that it has a divot worn into the middle. The song generated by that cleaver tearing through pork and hitting the board would rival a John Bonham solo. They smoke whole hogs at Skylight Inn, which is one of the nation’s iconic barbecue joints and perhaps the finest example of the Eastern North Carolina style. The pork gets tossed in spicy vinegar sauce and served with cornbread discs made with pig lard. Put that pork between two of those discs and you’ll taste heaven.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 159 East Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, N.C.
You’re ordering: A patty melt with Swiss cheese and grilled mushrooms on rye. Wash it down with a two-scoop Oreo shake and then take in some of the North Carolina hoops history surrounding you.
Nebraska
Cuisine: Steakhouse
Address: 2121 S 73rd Street, Omaha, Neb.
You’re ordering: A ribeye coated in whiskey and then cooked perfectly. This place is old school — pre-pandemic, it still had a salad bar — and some of the locals will tell you it’s a tourist trap. I don’t care. That steak gets dipped in whiskey for 15 minutes and then thrown on the grill, and it tastes like something John Wayne would have eaten. A few years ago on Black Friday, I finished covering an Iowa-Nebraska game in Lincoln and realized that if I floored it back to Omaha, I could reach The Drover 15 minutes before closing time. That particular portion of Interstate 80 flew by, and I ended the night with a whiskey ribeye. No matter what had happened before that, that meal made it a perfect day.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 126 North 14th Street, Lincoln, Neb.
You’re ordering: The 1809 Burger, with pickled apples, gouda and chopped bacon. It sounds odd and tastes amazing. You’re also getting parmesan truffle fries. And because you haven’t downed enough calories, you’re getting a Bananarama shake. That’s banana pudding, vanilla ice cream and vanilla wafers. Yes, they may have to roll you out of the building.
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 301 N 8th St., Lincoln, Neb.
You’re ordering: A burger with a sense of humor. Leadbelly is only open for takeout at the moment, and the menu is a little smaller. But they’re still serving some doozies like The Royal Mountie, which is essentially a poutine burger. It includes candied bacon, crispy fried potatoes, white cheddar curds, red wine gravy and brown sugar butter served on a brioche bun. Hopefully, a return to in-person dining will bring back an old favorite like The Full Leaded Jacket, which began its life as a joke that paid homage to the very Nebraskan combination of chili and cinnamon rolls. (No, really. It’s a beloved school lunch in the state.) The FLJ was a chili-and-cinnamon roll burger that sounded horrific but tasted divine. That’s how a joke turned into a big seller in the restaurant’s early days.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 101 SW 14th Place, Lincoln, Neb.
You’re ordering: Burnt ends, if you can get there early enough. If you get shut out, you’ll just have to settle for moist, tender brisket and juicy ribs. Poor baby.
New York
Cuisine: Venezuelan
Address: 1000 8th Avenue, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: When this gem in the Columbus Circle-59th Street subway station re-opens, you’re getting the La Negra, with asado negro, sweet plantains and guyanes cheese. That’s probably enough to fill you up, but it’s difficult to order just one arepa. So you’ll get the Zulia with coconut lamb.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 83 Baxter Street, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: This place has become an oasis for New Yorkers serving jury duty nearby. It also might make a great first meal for someone sprung from The Tombs, which are officially known as the Manhattan Detention Complex. The Breakroom Burger (with crispy pork belly, tempura onion ring, sunny side egg, jalapeños, lettuce, tomato and American cheese) certainly tastes like freedom.
Cuisine: Italian
Address: 1382 1st Avenue, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Campagnola has not gone takeout-only, and it’s easy to understand why. To get the full experience, you need to be able to sit in a dining room that has hosted stars of the field, stage and screen and let the staff take care of you. This is the type of Italian restaurant where your server will discourage you from looking at the menu. Instead, you just trust. And out come the prosciutto and melon. Then the carpaccio. Then the spaghetti puttanesca. Then the gnocchi with pesto. Then the sausage and peppers. And it just keeps going … so I hope it can come back soon.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 5-48 49th Ave, Long Island City, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Mole de Piaxtla. This mole is made with dry peppers, almonds, raisins, plantains, sesame seeds and chocolate and then ladled over chicken and rice. Dishes like this one earned Casa Enrique a Michelin star from 2015-17. The tongue tacos and margaritas didn’t hurt, either.
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 101 Maiden Lane, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Maybe the best roast chicken available since Kenny Rogers Roasters went out of business stateside. The birds are plump and juicy with crispy skin, and the sides are always fresh. Get a half chicken meal with roasted broccoli and charred sweet potatoes.
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 1123 Broadway, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: When they re-open, you’ll be having New York’s best fried chicken. You’ll want a breast and wing meal (and maybe throw a thigh in there for good measure). You’ll want cheesy fried mashed potatoes and a biscuit on the side. When (if?) you finish that, you’ll need to decide on a miniature pie. Why? Because miniature pies are much cuter than slices. Get the whiskey buttermilk or the bourbon pecan.
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 509 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Some pickled things to start. Get the hot sour cukes and the sweet and spicy carrots. Now that you’re warmed up, dive into a sausage-gravy-smothered chicken biscuit with a side of cheese grits. Hopefully you left a little space for fried Oreos.
Cuisine: Deli
Address: 205 E Houston Street, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: The three-meat platter. It comes with huge slices of pastrami, corned beef and brisket. They’ll also give you enough rye to turn that into sandwiches. There’s probably enough there for three people, but you’re not going to want to share.
Cuisine: Steakhouse
Address: 72 West 36th Street, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: The mutton chop. Yes. Even now. In what would have been considered the ultimate takeout/delivery power move pre-pandemic, you now can get the thick, smoky two-pound monster handed to you in a bag either outside of New York’s oldest steakhouse or at a location of your choosing within the delivery area. Of course, if you’re going to spend all that money — the chop is $62 — you probably want to wait until you can get the full experience. That said, when you realize the ultra-thick bacon is also available for delivery, you might just decide to treat yourself.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 575 Henry Street, Brooklyn, N.Y.
You’re ordering: A large with pepperoni and fresh basil. You don’t need anything else — except maybe a second pizza. The crust will come out so perfect that you’ll wonder how you inhaled the first one so fast.
Cuisine: Meatballs
Address: 798 9th Avenue, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Mini Buffalo balls to start. Meatballs tossed in Frank’s Red Hot are your gateway drug for this mini-chain with locations throughout the city. Next, you’ll be ordering heritage pork meatballs in spicy meat sauce. And then you’ll probably throw some classic meatballs into an OG NYC Hero with tomato sauce and mozzarella on white. For dessert, build your own ice cream sandwich. Wedge some vanilla bean ice cream between two double chocolate chunk cookies.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 349 East 12th Street, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: The soppressata super picante, a spicy pie with salami, mozzarella, oregano and fresh chiles. The wood-burning ovens produce a beautiful, bubbly crust that makes for an excellent canvas. If you’re in a group, everyone should choose a pie and you should share slices. The Meatball (with meatballs and fresh basil), the Brussels Sprout (with sprouts and smoked pancetta on a white pie) and the Prosciutto Di Parma (another white pie) are excellent choices.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 248 Mulberry Street, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: A chicken parm hero. Or maybe a meatball parm hero. Or maybe both. This place isn’t fancy, but it knows what it does really well. And that’s fried chicken or meatballs beneath melted cheese and marinara on a sesame roll. Parm doesn’t bother to do much else and is better off for it.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 110 Franklin Street, Brooklyn, N.Y.
You’re ordering: The Hellboy, a pepperoni pie with Mike’s Hot Honey. Mike places special emphasis on the “Hot” in his honey, hence the pizza’s devilish name. And now you can also get the Hellboy Squared, an upside-down Sicilian version with a sesame seed bottom.
Cuisine: Pizza
Address: 27 Prince Street A, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Forget the flat pizzas. You want the spicy spring pie, a Sicilian-depth pie that features fra diavolo sauce and spicy pepperonis that curl into cups which hold precious grease that marinates the rest of your slice each time you take a bite.
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 197 1st Avenue, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Mac and cheese in a cast-iron skillet, of course. Now you just have to choose the specific variety. Do you order the Alpine with gruyere and slab bacon? Do you order the Cheeseburger with cheddar and ground beef? Or do you choose the Mediterranean with goat cheese, sauteed spinach, kalamata olives and roasted garlic? It’s a trick question. No matter what you picked, you chose correctly.
Cuisine: Thai
Address: 7 Spring Street, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Heavenly pig ears to start. (And they are.) Order plenty of roti (soft flatbread) and sticky rice, because you’ll need both for dipping into the lemongrass-infused broth after you finish the garlic and soy-marinated frog legs over glass noodles. For the main course, pick the jaan bangsaen, which includes yellowtail collar, giant head-on shrimp and octopus fresh off the charcoal grill. And don’t forget an order of the velvety crab fried rice for the table.
Cuisine: Chinese
Address: 37 W 43rd Street, New York, N.Y.
You’re ordering: Spicy cumin lamb hand-ripped noodles. This place started in Queens and has proliferated throughout New York City. (I chose one in Midtown Manhattan for this list, but they’re all over Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.) It’s easy to understand why they’ve been so successful. A plate of those ferociously spicy lamb noodles is several degrees better than a lot of dishes in the city that cost five times as much. Unfortunately, all the stores are closed at the moment. Hopefully they’ll be back soon. In the meantime, X’ian Famous Foods is selling coveted chili oil packs and offering meal kits for delivery that allow customers to pull noodles at home.
Ohio
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 59 Spruce Street, Columbus, Ohio
You’re ordering: Two thighs, and get them Holy. That’s the hottest temperature available at Hot Chicken Takeover, which was one of the first places to bring hot chicken out of Nashville. They say if a food can thrive in Columbus — which feels like America’s test market — it can thrive anywhere. So it’s no surprise that now hot chicken is everywhere. But they do it really well here. You just have to dial up the heat a little more, because hot here tastes like medium at OG hot chicken restaurant Prince’s in Nashville. You want it to burn. Heck, you want the bread soaking up the juices underneath the chicken to burn. Get some mac and cheese on the side. You’ll need it to quell the blaze in your mouth.
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 1200 Broadway Street, Cincinnati, Ohio
You’re ordering: The Whiskey Bacon Burger, with a brisket-blend patty, cheddar, bacon, whiskey barbecue sauce and apple slaw on a challah bun. You’ll also want some Queen City fries. These are fries covered in cinnamon-infused Cincinnati chili and shredded smoked cheddar. This proves my theory that the problem with Skyline Chili and Gold Star Chili isn’t the concept. It’s the chili that those two particular chains produce. Put Nation’s Cincinnati chili on any starch, and it’s marvelous.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 747 N High Street, Columbus, Ohio
You’re ordering: A breakfast biscuit, no matter what time of day it is. Philco is currently closed, but hopefully it will be back with that beautiful biscuit packed with chorizo, goat cheese, shallot preserves and a fried egg. It’s especially good if it’s late enough in the day to acceptably order the Philco Float (Watershed vodka, vanilla bean ice cream, Henry Weinhard’s root beer).
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 183 Thurman Avenue, Columbus, Ohio
You’re ordering: The Thurmanator. From bottom to top: bun, mayo, lettuce, tomato, pickle, banana peppers, 12-ounce burger, bacon, cheddar, another 12-ounce burger, sautéed onions & mushrooms, ham, mozzarella, American cheese, bun. I held the mayo and the tomato, but I was still quite proud when I tamed that monster. You’ll need to be very hungry, because The Thurman Cafe’s hand-cut fries are simply too good to leave on the plate.
Oklahoma
Cuisine: Pie
Address: 4145 US-77, Davis, Okla.
You’re ordering: Fried hand pies, silly. The hardest part will be choosing which one. You’re probably driving from Dallas to Oklahoma City or vice versa. The question is how full do you want to be when you arrive? You’re getting peach. Now, do you want a second? And should it be chocolate or peanut butter chocolate?
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 324 N Robinson Avenue, Oklahoma City, Okla.
You’re ordering: A scrambled egg sandwich with double-smoked pastrami. Unless, of course, they bring back the bacon and monterrey jack strata. That is a very technical name for what essentially is bacon and cheesecake. They have fun with their specials at Kitchen No. 324, so be open-minded. Recent specials that look great include a shredded pork tostada stack and a country breakfast bowl with poached eggs, cheese, grits, bacon and potatoes.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 702 N Porter Avenue, Norman, Okla.
You’re ordering: Chicken and steak fajitas. I can’t explain why they taste better than most of the fajitas in America. They just do. What you won’t be ordering is queso, because it’s going to be placed on your table — free of charge — next to a bowl of fresh salsa as soon as you sit down. One of the more odd culinary quirks is the fact that queso comes free in most Mexican restaurants within 30 miles of Oklahoma City and costs extra pretty much everywhere else. At Tarahumara’s, they make sure that queso bowl never runs dry. Maybe that’s the secret.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 101 Main Street, Noble, Okla.
You’re ordering: Biscuits the size of your head. Pancakes the size of manhole covers. Omelets the size of, well, plates. It’s all huge here, but that doesn’t affect the quality. It just means even the biggest eaters can handle one or two of those giant biscuits in a pool of gravy.
Oregon
Cuisine: Deli
Address: 790 Blair Boulevard, Eugene, Ore.
You’re ordering: They’re offering a limited takeout-only menu, but you can still get the wonderfully marbled pastrami-spiced brisket on their Reuben. You also can grab some of Falling Sky Brewing’s Daywalker Irish Red. When they’re able to fully reopen, attack the chili glazed chicken drumsticks. Also, have a pint of something more specialized like the Smoked Eternal Bow wee heavy Scotch ale.
Cuisine: Charcuterie
Address: 107 SE Washington Street, Portland, Ore.
You’re ordering: Pork rillettes, which are little patties of chopped shoulder meat cooked in pork fat with thyme and ginger. If you’re dining in, you can get a roast pork belly sandwich or an Italian hero loaded with house-made capicola, mortadella and salami cotto. But you don’t even need to be in Portland to get the pork rillettes. They’ll ship them to you.
Cuisine: Argentinian
Address: 2225 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Portland, Ore.
You’re ordering: They’ll be open for online orders and pick-up starting July 6. They haven’t released the menu, but if you’re lucky it will include the Asado Argentino. That’s a dinner for two that includes grilled short rib, house-made chorizo and morcilla Sausages, skirt steak, sweetbreads, fried potatoes and chimichurri.
Cuisine: Thai
Address: 3226 SE Division Street, Portland, Ore.
You’re ordering: When they reopen, you’re buying as many fish sauce wings as you can. The pandemic has been cruel to Pok Pok, which had to close most of its satellite locations and offshoots permanently. If you live in Portland and want to taste the magic, Pok Pok is currently selling at-home kits to make those glorious wings. But they’re best when cooked by the experts, so hopefully they’ll be back to selling America’s best wings soon.
Cuisine: Chinese
Address: 8230 SE Harrison Street #345, Portland, Ore.
You’re ordering: Taiwanese popcorn chicken, da pan chicken or thin-sliced beef — for now. They’re takeout only at the moment, and that makes it tough to run a place where the fun part is choosing your skewers of meat from the cooler in the back and then bringing them to the cooks. There may need to be some permanent procedural changes once things return to something approximating normal, but with any luck the pork belly skewers will be back.
Cuisine: Bar
Address: 1214 Kincaid Street, Eugene, Ore.
You’re ordering: The best part of Rennie’s was always the patio, and that’s what allows it to be open now. Grab a Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA and a bison burger and enjoy some fresh air at one of America’s truly great campus-adjacent bars.
Pennsylvania
Cuisine: American
Address: 2255 N Atherton Street, State College, Pa.
You’re ordering: The B21 Chislic Poutine to start. It features steak fries, flash fried steak, marrow gravy, cheddar curds, bacon and black garlic aioli. Then move on to a prime rib sandwich. You can also take home a bottle of the distillery’s White Tail Pennsylvania bourbon.
Cuisine: Ice cream
Address: Rodney A. Erickson Food Science Building, 119, University Park, Pa.
You’re ordering: Ice cream grilled stickies (cinnamon bun flavored ice cream with sticky bun dough pieces and a cinnamon streusel swirl). Or maybe espresso fudge pie. Or maybe Keeney Beany Chocolate (chocolate ice cream with chocolate chips and vanilla bean). At Penn State’s on-campus ice cream shop, you can have as much as you want without the slightest pang of guilt because you’re helping future dairy scientists learn.
Cuisine: Argentinian Steakhouse
Address: 146 6th Street, Pittsburgh, Pa.
You’re ordering: Whatever steak they’re making. At the moment, they’re only offering takeout only and a smaller menu. So you’ll have to go with the juicy medium rare flank steak with chimichurri. But if they get back to full operation, you want the Asado Platter, a magnificent tray that allows you to avoid a Steak Sophie’s Choice. You get flank steak, ribeye, strip, filet mignon and sirloin. A few friends can share, plucking pieces off and eating them plain or stacking them on toasted bread. Or you can do what I did on my first visit and just eat everything on the platter.
Cuisine: Bar food
Address: 140 Andrew Drive, Pittsburgh, Pa.
You’re ordering: Either wild boar bacon or candied bacon. You probably should opt for the boar bacon, which is thick and juicy and comes out sizzling. Why boar first? Because next up is a Blast Pig Burgher. A massive patty gets draped with candied bacon and topped with candied jalapeño, carmelized onions and a hunk of fried zucchini. Drink your dessert, but you’re not done making choices. You’re having a smoked old fashioned, but you have to pick the whiskey and the wood. You know the whiskey you want, but you’ll have to decide between cherry, mesquite, apple, hickory, maple or pecan wood.
South Carolina
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 1922 Savannah Hwy, Charleston, S.C.
You’re ordering: The chicken sandwich — elevated. Get the Boxcar with pimiento cheese, peach slaw and house-made pickles. Or get the Chicken “Not So Waffle” Bacon Jam, Maple Syrup, Pimiento Cheese and Tomato. And make sure to get the house-cut sweet potato fries on the side.
Cuisine: Deli
Address: 109 Wall Street, Clemson, S.C.
You’re ordering: The St. Stephen, a hot sandwich featuring turkey, bacon, provolone and honey mustard on a croissant. Or maybe you want something bigger. Then you’ll have the Italian Stallion, a cold sub with mortadella, capicola, pepperoni and salami and topped with vinaigrette, provolone and marinated onions. Don’t forget a chocolate chip cookie for the road.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2734 Hemingway Hwy No. 5420, Hemingway, S.C.
You’re ordering: Pulled pork, of course. Rodney Scott is one of the South’s most celebrated pitmasters. He has since opened a newer, fancier outpost in Charleston. But this shack 50 miles inland from Myrtle Beach is where it all started. It essentially requires its own lumber operation to keep the pits hot and cooking whole hogs, which then get sold by the pound as pulled pork and sprinkled with a fiery vinegar-pepper sauce that is a cousin to the vinegar sauce across the state line in North Carolina but tastes nothing like the mustard-based stuff a few hours away in Columbia. Make sure to grab a bag of skins with your meat. You’ll never look at gas station pork rinds the same way again once you’ve had the real thing.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 6630 Clemson Boulevard, Pendleton, S.C.
You’re ordering: Sliced brisket, ribs and pulled pork. Yes, I did just recommend brisket in South Carolina. Not many places can pull it off, but the Smokin’ Pig does. On the side, add jalapeño cheese grits and Brunswick stew. They’re only open Thursday through Saturday, and if Clemson is playing at home that weekend, you’d better get there when they open the doors.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 819 Harden Street, Columbia, S.C.
You’re ordering: The Wookie. I know that’s not how George Lucas spelled it, but George Lucas never offered you a tower of a sandwich with double pulled pork, three different cheeses, double bacon and grilled onions between three slices of bread. Or you could get the D’Jango, a pulled pork sandwich topped pepper jack cheese, applewood bacon, grilled onions, roasted red peppers and jalapeños and served on Texas Toast with hot barbecue sauce.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1427 Eutaw Rd, Holly Hill, S.C.
You’re ordering: Take-out, for now. The pandemic may force more permanent changes at Sweatman’s, where every Friday and Saturday diners could plunk down their money and head to a buffet filled with the pieces of whole hogs that had smoked the previous night. Pulled pork, ribs and skins sat alongside hash and rice. And as long as you didn’t get greedy and take too many skins or ribs, you could head back as often as you wanted. But that may have to change going forward. The pork will still be smoky and full of bits of crispy skin even if it isn’t served on a buffet. The hash and rice will still be barbecue’s greatest accompaniment. They’ll still have the little cups of banana pudding in the fridge behind the counter. This can be solved.
Tennessee
Cuisine: Gastropub
Address: 16 Frazier Avenue, Chattanooga, Tenn.
You’re ordering: The Big Katz. Pastrami gets marinated for 36 hours before it is smoked and sliced into thick hunks. Then it joins house-made sauerkraut on fresh swirl rye. Beast + Barrel offers Thousand Island dressing on the sandwich, but I opted to skip it. The tangy, salty pastrami and the crisp kraut don’t need to be covered. They need to be free.
Cuisine: Pie
Address: 5400 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, Tenn.
You’re ordering: The I-40, a pecan pie with chocolate chips and toasted coconut in a shortbread crust. Or the Key Lime with the graham cracker crust. Or the chewy chocolate chip.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3621 Sutherland Avenue, Knoxville, Tenn.
You’re ordering: The Dead End Mac Attack. It’s pulled pork, barbecue sauce, caramelized onions and pimento macaroni and cheese wedged between two straining slices of sourdough. It’s a sandwich that packs its own side dish.
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 505 US-70, Mason, Tenn.
You’re ordering: Gus’s has locations all over the country now, but you’re getting your chicken from the place where it all started in a tiny town 40 miles northwest of Memphis. The chicken from the original Gus’s is the best fried chicken on Earth. It’s spicier than you expect, but you didn’t know you wanted it that spicy. The skin has just enough crunch before it gives way to the tender, juicy meat beneath. When I visited Mason in 2014, the man working the counter at Gus’s apologized. They couldn’t fill smaller orders at that moment. If I wanted chicken, I’d have to order an eight-piece. I couldn’t help but smile. I took it to go and started driving toward Oxford, Miss. That chicken didn’t make it to the state line.
Cuisine: Farm-To-Table
Address: 37 Rutledge Street, Nashville, Tenn.
You’re ordering: Southern staples cooked perfectly. Husk started in Charleston, S.C., and its Nashville outpost has continued to follow founder Sean Brock’s mandate that only Southern ingredients will be served. The cuisine in the main dining room ranges from a fried chicken dinner for $17 to beef from nearby Bear Creek Farm for $36. In the bar and for takeout, Husk serves a double cheeseburger on a benne-seed bun that might be the best thing on a very, very deep menu.
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 5814 Nolensville Pike No. 110, Nashville, Tenn.
You’re ordering: Hot chicken, which blessedly finally caught on outside of Middle Tennessee. For decades, this blazing delicacy remained a regional treat. But now that this superior method of scorching poultry delivery has gone mainstream, it isn’t getting confused with Buffalo wings anymore. Prince’s invented the genre, and the origin story is a doozy. Legend has it that James Thornton Prince wasn’t the most faithful partner, and one day a girlfriend exacted her revenge by emptying a hot pepper bottle into the chicken she was frying for his breakfast. Is that true? Who knows? But we do know the resulting dish is a delicious assault on the senses. In 2017, I survived an XXX Hot leg quarter at Prince’s. If you’d like to do more savoring than surviving, choose Medium or Hot. But challenge yourself a little.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 2413 Elliston Place, Nashville, Tenn.
You’re ordering: Items that used to be secrets that everyone knew about all along. Like the more famous secret menu at In-N-Out Burger — which people who never even go to the west coast seem to have memorized — the two most famous items at Rotier’s weren’t always prominently advertised. But now the burger on French bread is right there on the menu on the Web site, and the page also touts how diners have loved Rotier’s shakes for decades. The secrets may be out, but that doesn’t make the formerly secret items any less delicious.
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 611 Wedgewood Avenue, Nashville, Tenn.
You’re ordering: The most underappreciated part of the chicken that the real ones know is the best part of the chicken. Get Thighs In A Pile, which is thigh meat smoked, chopped and enhanced with your choice of toppings. The owners suggest mozzarella and pineapple, but may I suggest pepper jack and mushrooms? They also serve wings here, and you’d be remiss if you didn’t try some with Nashville hot chicken dry rub.
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 35 Market Square, Knoxville, Tenn.
You’re ordering: My favorite burger in America. The Big Nasty doubles up on everything — two half-pound patties, two slices of cheddar, two orders of Benton’s Bacon and double crispy onions. As an edifice, it’s an engineering marvel. As a meal, it’s even better. The juicy beef, the oozing melted cheese and the thick, hearty bacon marry perfectly with each bite. Get fries and a S’Mores shake. If you need more dessert, choose from more than 50 varieties of bourbon.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3725 Maryville Pike, Knoxville, Tenn.
You’re ordering: A rack of ribs dusted with Sweet P’s sweet, spicy Soul Rub. They have a variety of sauces on hand, but you won’t need them. They’d only take away from the rub.
Texas
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 104 N Oak Street, Roanoke, Texas
You’re ordering: Family-style chicken fried golden brown with mashed potatoes and buttermilk biscuits. You may have to argue with your dining companions for the chicken over the country fried steak. Stand your ground. The chicken is worth it.
Cuisine: Italian
Address: 604 S Alamo Street, San Antonio, Texas
You’re ordering: Fun Italian food in a converted firehouse. Start with three-cheese beef and pork meatballs. Then move on to the decadent lasagne with pork ragu, a mini skyscraper of pasta and pork that could be one happy diner’s meal or could start a fork fight between diners trying to share and wishing they could get the last morsel. Of course, hurt feelings can always be smoothed over with parmesan herb lamb chops.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 2809 Broadway Street, Houston, Texas
You’re ordering: Gorditas, because everything Taco Bell taught you about them is a lie. The gorditas served at this long lunch counter located behind a wall in a Mexican grocery store are the real thing. Thick masa tortillas are split open and stuffed with meat shaved off rotating spits. The al pastor (pineapple-marinated pork) and cheese is one of the best dishes I’ve ever eaten, and it’s certainly the best thing I ever ate that cost $3.50. One is enough to fill a normal person, which makes this one of the best food values in America. I do not have the appetite of a normal person, so I’m also getting a carne asada and cheese.
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 1107 Roosevelt Avenue, San Antonio, Texas
You’re ordering: A pound or two of the juicy, tender carnitas that chef/owner Alex Paredes has cooked in months-old lard. Paredes will then load you up with a stack of fresh-made blue corn tortillas and homemade salsa. You’ll then build your own tacos and thank your lucky stars you found this miracle of a restaurant. Lonjas translates colloquially to “love handles” or “muffin top,” and a meal at Carnitas Lonja certainly will help build your own personal lonjas.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 13628 Gamma Road, Dallas, Texas
You’re ordering: Some of the best pork ribs you’ll ever eat and a massive beef rib. Those pork ribs have a huge meaty cap at the top that produces one perfect bite on each bone. The beef rib, meanwhile, can be shredded and shared with several friends. Social distancing probably will give you more room to peruse the photo gallery of great Texas pitmasters at the front of the store. You probably will have to wait, though. On my first visit, Emmitt Smith walked to the front of the line, where his order was waiting for him. Are you Emmitt Smith? Did you rush for 18,355 yards in the NFL? No? Then wait with the rest of us.
Cuisine: Dessert
Address: 105 N. College Street, West, Texas
You’re ordering: Kolaches at any time of the day or night. Many a driver on Interstate 35 has been lured by the siren call of the Czech Stop. Sweet filling in tender, flaky pastry dough tastes so much better at 2 a.m. And of course they’ll warm it up for you. Get the apricot and the cream cheese. Then, because you might want something savory instead, get the jalapeño and sausage.
Cuisine: Pies
Address: 2708 Main St #110, Dallas, Texas
You’re ordering: Something to top off the barbecue you just ate at nearby Lockhart Smokehouse. The Drunken Nut is a fine choice; it’s a bourbon pecan pie that goes light on the pecans — thereby avoiding the bitterness that can come from an overabundance of that powerful nut. The Smooth Operator (French silk chocolate with a pretzel crust) is another excellent option. But don’t forget the fruit. The Lord Of The Pies (deep dish apple with cinnamon streusel) says SUCKS TO YOUR DIET.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1701 S. Texas Avenue, Bryan, Texas
You’re ordering: Brisket, if you can. This place opens at 11 a.m., and when they’re out, they’re out. I’ve arrived at 1:30 p.m. to find the door locked and the chairs atop the tables. (The race is really intense on Rib Tip Tuesdays.) But when you are lucky enough to get some thick slices of moist brisket, savor it. You truly beat the rush.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 900 E 11th Street, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: The best brisket in America. Is it worth waiting four-and-a-half hours in line? That depends on how well you manage your time and how important it is to have the absolute best and not something that is 93 percent as good and requires a much shorter wait. If you bring friends and beer, that wait can fly by. If you’ve got some work to finish, that works, too. I once wrote a long feature about then-Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty while waiting in the Franklin line. Now, remember not to waste your opportunity when you do get to the front. You waited all that time. Make the most of it. Get enough brisket to eat now for lunch and eat later for dinner. Get enough ribs to provide meals for future days.
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 108 Poplar Street, College Station, Texas
You’re ordering: To the detriment of college students everywhere, my pleas for a federal law that requires a Fuego to be erected within one mile of any public university with more than 10,000 students have been callously ignored. Fortunately, Fuego has opened next to Baylor in Waco and Texas State in San Marcos. But the students at Texas A&M still have it the best. The original Fuego is open 24/6 (closed Mondays). It’s only available for takeout and delivery at the moment, but let’s unpack that briefly. Aggies can still get all of Fuego’s magical taco creations at 4 a.m. if they want. The Dr. Pepper Cowboy (brisket, grilled onions, Dr. Pepper barbecue sauce, chipotle creamed corn and jack cheese), the Loco Pollo (flame-cooked rotisserie chicken, bacon, frijoles and roasted poblano queso) and the Dodge City Mac and Cheese (mac and cheese, pulled pork, barbecue sauce, grilled onions) are available pretty much any time of the day or night (except on Mondays). Anyone feel like joining my lobbying effort?
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 801 S Riverfront Boulevard, Dallas, Texas
You’re ordering: Tacos and a car wash? Some places have a few gas pumps out front and claim to be operating out of a gas station, but this place lives the life. Get the al pastor or the barbacoa and ask them to add grilled jalapeños. And don’t skimp on the undercarriage wash.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2803 Franklin Avenue, Waco, Texas
You’re ordering: Brisket, spare ribs and garlic sausage. And don’t forget the collard greens (with pork belly) and green chile mac and cheese on the side. For years, Waco suffered through a lack of decent barbecue options. Guess Family Barbecue changed all that.
Cuisine: Sports bar
Address: 2616 Olive Street, Dallas, Texas
You’re ordering: I hope a place like Happiest Hour will survive the pandemic, but it may be a while before a sports bar on this kind of epic scale can thrive. But let’s hope that at some point we can gather together again. If we do, maybe we’ll wind up at Happiest Hour like I did on the first Friday of the 2018 NCAA Tournament. I had short rib tacos as a bunch of us sportswriters watched the games and ordered drinks. Then, after UMBC became the first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1 seed, we’d had so many drinks that we decided to pool our money and pay $175 for the Hail Mary, a bottle of Stolichnaya upside down in a fishbowl surrounded by Red Bull cans of varying flavors and a bunch of gummy bears. Was this something we would have ordered (or enjoyed) sober? Hell no. Did we enjoy it anyway (at least the parts we remember)? Of course. I can’t wait for the day when we’re allowed to be that stupid again.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 8532 N HWY 6, Woodway, Texas
You’re ordering: Guess Family Barbecue started the barbecue revolution in metro Waco, and Helberg continued it. Aside from excellent brisket, Helberg mixes it up with pesto-stuffed turkey and thick, hearty smoked pork steaks. They also serve pork belly burnt ends on Thursdays and giant beef ribs on Saturdays.
Cuisine: American
Address: 2002 Manor Road, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: Jerk chicken or jerk ribs. Jamaica meets central Texas in the best way at Hoover’s, which also serves more standard barbecue and meat-and-three fare. I have a tough time ordering anything but the jerk chicken with sides of black-eyed peas and mustard greens, but they also make decadent meatloaf and a gut-busting country fried steak. After that, it’s just a matter of deciding whether you want apple, peach, blackberry, or cherry cobbler with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2503 W Pioneer Parkway, Pantego, Texas
You’re ordering: The Jambo Texan. It’s sliced brisket, chopped brisket, sliced bologna, pulled pork, sausage, and two ribs crammed between two slices of Texas toast. Yes, I finished it. And so can you. (Or maybe you can’t. But then you have leftovers.)
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 3310-A E 29th Street, Bryan, Texas
You’re ordering: The carne guisada plate. They’ll give you tortillas to make your own tacos, and you’ll savor filling them up with that rich, tender beef. Afterward, grab a cream cheese empanada for a sweet exclamation point.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 2300 E Cesar Chavez Street, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: I’m a sucker for a lot of things, but two near the top of the list are punny restaurant names — hi, Seattle’s Pho Shizzle! — and breakfast tacos. Juan In A Million might be the best of the first and is pretty damn close to being the best at the second. You won’t regret the Don Juan El Taco Grande (potato, egg, bacon and cheese in a hot tortilla).
Cuisine: Fusion
Address: 2713 E 2nd Street, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: When they get their patio prepared for a grand re-opening that will allow for in-person dining, get the Texas ramen (beef broth, brisket, ajitama, bamboo, scallion, nori, pickled mustard greens, mung sprouts). But before that, try the chili cheese takoyaki, which is essentially a Frito Pie with octopus as the main ingredient. If you want to go a little lighter, the smoked fish collar and the blistered shishito peppers will satisfy without the post-meal bloat.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3613 E Broadway Street, Pearland, Texas
You’re ordering: Moist brisket and plump pork ribs. Killen’s does the basics perfectly, and sometimes they like to experiment. On my first visit, they had wagyu brisket. That was probably too rich even for me, and it made me appreciate even more the skill required to make standard brisket as well as they do at Killen’s.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 619 N Colorado Street, Lockhart, Texas
You’re ordering: Nothing with sauce. I delight in arguing with barbecue-sauce lovers that their beloved condiment merely exists to cover cooking mistakes. Kreuz went from 1900 to 2018 without offering sauce. “Nothing to hide,” a sign proudly proclaimed. A second location in Bryan and the demands of cash-paying barbecue tourists forced the owners to finally relent on sauce (and forks), but just because it’s there doesn’t mean you need it. The brisket at Kreuz is cooked hotter and faster than the Austin places, but it’s still great. But the true highlight is the jalapeño cheese sausage. This stuff is so good that other great barbecue places order it to sell to their customers.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2027 E Cesar Chavez Street, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: The Texas Trinity with one substitution. You’re getting the brisket and the pork ribs, but swap out sausage for turkey. La Barbecue’s brisket is up there with the best in the state, but it absolutely makes the best turkey in Texas.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 13531 Montfort Drive #127, Dallas, Texas
You’re ordering: A pambazo. Your bread is dipped in guajillo pepper salsa and then stuffed with chorizo, potatoes, lettuce, cheese and Mexican cream. Then it’s grilled. Then you eat it and dream about it for weeks afterward.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1124 E 11th Street, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: Former Texas defensive back Cedric Griffin co-owns this barbecue business that has unlocked the secret to smoking babyback ribs. At most places, I’d steer you clear of babybacks because their lower fat content makes them difficult to smoke. But go ahead and order them at J. Leonardi’s, because they come out soft, tender and juicy.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 121 Pickle Road, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: Something that isn’t in the Texas Trinity. Sure, they smoke Lone Star State staples like brisket here, but the mission of Leroy and Lewis is to encourage diners to get out of their low-and-slow comfort zone. The menu changes frequently, and the fun part is trying whatever they’re experimenting with this week. Try the beef cheeks or the barbacoa. If they’re smoking burgers the day you come, order one of those. They’ve currently got pork hash and rice on the menu as a side. That’s the first time I’ve seen that South Carolina-bred dish in Texas.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 400 W Davis Street, Dallas, Texas
You’re ordering: The brisket and the pork ribs are outstanding, but you might want to wait until the weekend. That way, you can have that brisket and those ribs, but you can also eat some smoked prime rib. Not all cuts do well when smoked low and slow, but prime rib’s high fat content makes it a perfect candidate. Imagine the prime rib you’d have in some pricy white tablecloth place. Now imagine it for half the price and smoked in a pit seasoned by thousands of pounds of meat before it. Of course you know which one you want.
Cuisine: Fusion
Address: 2115 S Lamar Boulevard, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: The most addictive chip-and-dip dish in America. Wonton chips come with Thai green salsa and peanut sambal. No matter how hard you try and no matter how many other delicious dishes you order — and there are plenty from which to choose — you won’t be able to stop dunking chips. When you finally reach the end, you’ll seriously consider ordering more chips no matter what else is on the table. But do try to branch out a little. The char siew pork belly is a good place to start.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 206 W 2nd Street, Taylor, Texas
You’re ordering: A beef rib that looks like the thing Fred Flintstone orders during the closing credits. Louie Mueller is one of the nation’s great old-school barbecue joints, and that massive, tender, silky beef rib is one of the nation’s great delicacies.
Cuisine: Tacos
Address: 404 Jane Street #400, College Station, Texas
You’re ordering: Any of the tacos that feature chile oil. The best of these are the chile pork and the jerk chicken. And if you ask nicely, they’ll probably still make you the chile oil-and-cilantro fries that used to be on the menu.
Cuisine: Comfort food
Address: 2132 S. Valley Mills Drive, Waco, Texas
You’re ordering: Feel free to label me bougie for recommending the restaurant launched by Chip and Joanna Gaines of “Fixer Upper” fame. But guess what? I go where my tastebuds lead. And they led me to buttermilk biscuits with strawberry butter. A few orders of that and a few orders of thick slabs of brown sugar and peppered bacon will have you ready to put up a new backsplash when you return home.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 919 W Northwest Highway, Grapevine, Texas
You’re ordering: The name of the place came from its original iteration as a catering business, but a more accurate name might be Meat U Anytime. This smokehouse in the shadow of DFW airport opens at 6 a.m. to sling brisket tacos — and plain brisket by the pound if you want it — and then expands the meat offerings as lunch draws near. Feel free to add ribs, pulled pork and pit ham to your order as the sun climbs higher in the sky.
Cuisine: Pie
Address: 110 N Oak Street, Roanoke, Texas
You’re ordering: Assuming you didn’t overindulge down the street at Babe’s Chicken Dinner House, you should have room for a slice of Mexican hot chocolate pie. And since that pie is made with spicy chocolate, you’re going to need a scoop of Blue Bell vanilla ice cream to cool you down. Or you could order a lemon bar (but still get the ice cream).
Cuisine: Tacos/doughnuts
Address: 3307 Fredericksburg Road, San Antonio, Texas
You’re ordering: Breakfast tacos, then doughnuts. No, really. One side of the store sells tacos stuffed with eggs, bacon and a sausage. The other side of the store sells doughnuts. Why no one else thought to put the two ultimate hangover food groups together is beyond me.
Cuisine: Fusion
Address: 5520 Burnet Road #100, Austin, Texas
You’re ordering: Charred brussels sprouts with bacon jam and bahn mi tacos. The traditional bahn mi (pork belly, pickled carrots and cilantro) always lent itself to the taco format, so this is a logical (and tasty) move. For dessert, you’re getting the Asian Movie Night. That’s popcorn ice cream with caramel and rice puffs. The entire time, you’re drinking Margarita De Peached (habanero infused tequila, thai basil, Cointreau, lime juice). It simultaneously heats you up and cools you down, and isn’t that what we’re all really looking for?
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 2702 Main Street, Dallas, Texas
You’re ordering: You and at least one friend are ordering The Trough, which will get you brisket, pulled pork, sausage, pork ribs, a giant, juicy beef rib along with your choice of sides. It’ll cost you $69, but you’ll get to laugh at all the suckers waiting in the regular line while you breeze through the nice bulk order line.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 1504 Airline Drive, Houston, Texas
You’re ordering: Brisket, candy-paint ribs and duck sausage jambalaya. I suspend my feelings about sauce for these ribs, which get sauced near the end of the cook to create a candied glaze that tastes like a cross between dessert and lunch. The jambalaya is velvety smooth and supremely satisfying. You may also be ordering smoked wings. Owner (and Texas Longhorns superfan) Grant Pinkerton added them to the menu when the restaurant was takeout-only, and they were such a runaway success that he said he’d need to keep making them.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 516 Main Street, Lexington, Texas
You’re ordering: An alternative to waiting in the Franklin Barbecue line that will give you something as tasty with a better story to tell. If it’s Saturday — and only Saturday — leave Austin around 7 a.m. and drive about 50 miles east to Lexington. You’ll be among the first in line when Snow’s opens at 8 a.m. When you get there, you’ll understand why Texas Monthly once named Snow’s the best barbecue in Texas (and, in the minds of the punisher, the best on Earth). Pitmaster Miss Tootsie Tomanetz is still smoking plump, juicy briskets and tender pork ribs at 85 years young while working during the week for the local school district. When the employees working the counter ask if you want fatty or lean brisket, choose the fatty and then marvel as the knife goes into another of Miss Tootsie’s masterpieces. Get some to eat there for a breakfast soundtracked by the cows mooing in their pens a few hundred yards away. Then get more to take with you for lunch and dinner.
Cuisine: Fried bacon
Address: 9687 FM 60, Snook, Texas
You’re ordering: Chicken-fried bacon with a side of cream gravy. There isn’t much more to say than that. Just read it again. Chicken-fried. Bacon. With. A. Side. Of. Cream. Gravy.
Cuisine: Mexican
Address: 2211 Avenue Q, Lubbock, Texas
You’re ordering: Chilaquiles (tortilla strips stewed with red sauce, tomatoes and onions and then mixed with cheese) and steak for breakfast. It’s an incredible way to start the day. And maybe you come back for fajitas later.
Cuisine: American
Address: 4830 Almeda Road, Houston, Texas
You’re ordering: The dish that rendered me a drooling mess. They serve stuffed turkey legs here. I’d never thought to stuff anything into a turkey leg, but I’m eternally grateful the husband-and-wife team of Lynn and Nakia Price did. Their best offering is the leg stuffed with shrimp and dirty rice and then covered in alfredo sauce. When I took those first few bites of turkey, shrimp and rice covered in that savory sauce, I loved it so much that I pretty much blacked out. It took a minute to realize that stuffed leg had left me slack-jawed. I regained my composure and finished the leg, but I’m always willing to go into another turkey leg blackout.
Utah
Cuisine: Southwestern
Address: 368 Main Street, Park City, Utah
You’re ordering: The elk London broil. Slices of rare peppercorn-and-sesame crusted elk lay atop a bed of corn jalapeño mashed potatoes with asparagus and green chile bernaise. Instead of getting an appetizer, just save room to get the churros and cinnamon ice cream along with the spicy Mexican chocolate fondue. You’re going to want both, so don’t make yourself choose.
Cuisine: Chicken
Address: 660 S State Street, Salt Lake City, Utah
You’re ordering: Exactly what the name says. It’s chicken fried with curry, and it’s stupendous. Once you taste it, you’ll wonder why there isn’t a place like this in every town in America. The flavors marry so beautifully. With rice, pita and curry vegetables on the side, it’s a very simple meal. And sometimes simple is best.
Cuisine: Sandwiches
Address: 232 E 800 S, Salt Lake City, Utah
You’re ordering: A sub containing meatballs in volcanically spicy sauce. When that devilish marinara hits your lips, you’re going to wonder if this is too hot for a meatball sub. By the time you’re done, you’ll wonder why all meatball subs don’t taste like that one.
Virginia
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 102 14th Street NW, Charlottesville, Va.
You’re ordering: The Double Trouble, which stacks up two patties with American and cheddar cheese, avocado, lettuce, tomato and a fried egg. But you may need to wait until you get there to see what the B.O.M.B. is. B.O.M.B. stands for Burger of the Month (Burger?), and they get creative. In March, the B.O.M.B. was a bacon cheeseburger topped with truffle mac and cheese.
Washington
Cuisine: Beer
Address: 12535 Lake City Way NE, Seattle, Wash.
You’re ordering: They’re still shut down because of the pandemic, but hopefully they’ll be back soon serving glorious barrel-aged beers. This is a sister location to Elliott Bay Brewing Company’s brewpubs, and it focuses on some of my favorite beers — the ones that get tastier and more potent after resting for a little while in a barrel originally used for liquor or wine. Last year, Brother Barrel released Big Pun, a Flanders-style red that was aged in bourbon barrels before it was moved to red wine puncheons. Another beer they released last year was a Belgian tripel called Tripel In Still Water that was aged in apple and peach brandy barrels.
Cuisine: American
Address: 125 SE Spring Street, Pullman, Wash.
You’re ordering: The Foundry Burger, with cheddar and bourbon bacon jam on a ciabatta bun. The menu remains limited as the restaurant returns from the shutdown, but they’re still serving the Cask and Iron, which features rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, spiced maple syrup and bitters in a smoked glass.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Address: 3924 Airport Way S, Seattle, Wash.
You’re ordering: Billionaire beef bacon, which is beef belly cured and smoked just like its pig cousin. Except Bessie’s bacon is a lot thicker and meatier than Wilbur’s. The pork ribs at Jack’s are fantastic as well, but you might want to just see how much beef bacon it takes to make a meal.
Cuisine: Dessert
Address: 1908 Pike Place, Seattle, Wash.
You’re ordering: A laugh at all the people lined up trying to get into the original Starbucks, which is … a Starbucks. Meanwhile, you’re enjoying an apple cinnamon roll or a cream cheese vatrushka from this delightful Russian bakery.
Cuisine: Sushi
Address: 515 S Main Street, Seattle, Wash.
You’re ordering: Pre-pandemic, I would have told you to call (and pray they answered the phone to take your reservation) or to try to find the place — which is not well marked — and wait until a seat opened at the sushi bar. Then I would have suggested you put your meal in the capable hands of the young man with the very sharp knife. But now they’re only doing takeout, so you’ll have to pick your own sushi. Make sure to get a Marine Roll (scallop, spicy sauce, mayo, flying fish roe and avocado topped with seared salmon, sea salt and lemon). Also try the White Kabuto roll (salmon skin, pickled burdock root, bonito flakes and radish sprout topped with white fish, shiso leaf, plum paste and ponzu sauce). If you have someone squeamish about sushi, get them a pork belly donburi and then goad them into trying the sushi, which they’ll probably love.
Wisconsin
Cuisine: Burgers
Address: 317 N Frances Street, Madison, Wis.
You’re ordering: This Madison institution is takeout-only at the moment, but it’s still serving its most popular burgers. That includes the Heart Throb, a thick patty topped with pepper jack cheese, bacon and buffalo sauce. You can also still get an order of fried cheese curds to go and make your heart throb just a little more.
Cuisine: Breakfast
Address: 1511 Monroe Street, Madison, Wis.
You’re ordering: When they reopen July 3, you’re ordering a Scrambler (fried potatoes, scrambled eggs, your choice of meat and your choice of cheese). Choose bacon and cheddar. It will cover most of a plate. You will try to reach the bottom, but you may never see it. You’ll still probably want a chocolate shake. Afterward, the only thing you’ll want to order is a nap.
Cuisine: Russian
Address: 414 W Gilman Street, Madison, Wis.
You’re ordering: Delicious Russian dumplings. You can get just beef inside your tender, pillowy dumplings, or you can get a beef-and-potato mix. Get an order of each. Get both with the works (butter, yellow curry, sweet chili sauce, cilantro, and sour cream). This may sound like an odd combination, but the butter and curry make the dumplings even more savory than they already were, while the chili heats it up and the cilantro cools it down. They’re takeout-only at the moment at Paul’s, so you’ll have to bring it home and provide your own beer. But I have faith you will.
Cuisine: Sausages
Address: 603 State Street #1015, Madison, Wis.
You’re ordering: Whether this is the best bratwurst in Madison is a matter of debate, but this is a truly wonderful place to drink a beer, eat a brat and watch a game. Or at least it was back when we had games to watch. Fortunately, the patio is open. And State Street is offering the Tourist Special, which is a pretty solid Wisconsin starter kit. It’s a red brat with a side of white cheddar cheese curds and a pint of New Glarus Spotted Cow. And if you like the brat, they’ll ship more to your house.
West Virginia
Cuisine: Italian
Address: 735 Chestnut Ridge Road, Morgantown, W.Va.
You’re ordering: A sublime meatball beneath a bowling alley. Indeed, while strikes and spares get rolled overhead — league night or not — you’ll be mashing up a giant mozzarella-stuffed meatball nestled in a pool of meat sauce atop a bed of pasta. There are fancier dishes, including a crusted lamb chop and a bone-in ribeye, but that meatball is all you’ll need to knock over all 10 pins in your stomach.
(Top illustration: The Athletic)
