weekend dreams burgers and grills lunch review

i posted a photo on instagram last night.  it was not food related at all, and somewhat randomly, it was liked by a place called weekend dreams burgers and grill.  this intrigued me, so i checked their profile, and then looked them up on yelp.  the photos of food looked pretty good, the reviews were positive, so i decided to check them out for lunch.

in fresno, they are the located in one of those weird, where is that spots.  west ashlan.  you look at the address, it doesn't help.  you check the map, and get a general idea, but still aren't sure.  which side of 99 is it on?  to answer that, it is west of 99.  it is in an unassuming little strip mall.

on to the food.  when i saw they had a pastrami burger on the menu, i knew i would be ordering that.  i'm a sucker for a pastrami burger i also saw they had chicken wings, so i thought i may give them a try.  the wings come in regular, spicy, and i think teriyaki.

the prices are pretty consistent with other local burger spots.  their menu is pretty big, with a lot of variety.  honestly, if they didn't have some items that are no brainers for me, i might have had trouble figuring out what to get.

the pastrami burger was very good.  the bun is pretty standard, and it comes with mayo, mustard, lettuce, tomato and onion.  i had mine without the onion and tomato.  i thought the burger was nicely cooked, the pastrami was good.  together it all worked well.

when i was ordering, i had to choose between the regular and spicy wings.  the counter person told me the spicy was pretty hot, but she also said she is kinda wimpy with regards to spiciness.  i figured i would give the spicy a try.  yep, they were spicy.  nose running spicy.  and while they may be more than some people can handle, i thought they were good.  the spiciness was there, but it also had a good hot wing flavor that was more than just 'oh crap, that's spicy.'

overall, i had a good experience at weekend dreams.  i would definitely go back, and i hope that as fresno grows around that area they check this spot out.

West Coast Fish N Chips

I ate here years ago, and had a rather average experience and didn't post a review.  Went back today and had very nice experience.  The facility is clean, smells nice, and the staff was very friendly.

I ordered the 2 piece fish + 4 prawns, which comes with 1 side.  For my side, I went with the fried okra.  I had a side order of pickle fries.  After an appropriate time for a chip shop, my food came out and I was pretty sure I may have ordered a bit much.  Everything tasted great - fish & prawns had a nice breading on them, not too thick, and it didn't pull away when you started to eat it either.  The fish fillets were a good size, too.  The breading on the okra was a little different, and it was also well prepared. Not super greasy, which sometimes fried okra can be.  I think my favorite part of the meal was the pickle fries.  I've had pickle chips before, and enjoyed them, so I figured this would be about the same.  These were pickle spears that were sliced down a bit to fry size.  They weren't as thin as like a shoestring fry, with a little more thickness.  The breading was similar to the fish.  Tasted great.  Still had some snap to them, and weren't all floppy like a sliced pickle can be.

My only drawback to the meal was the plastic fork.  If I was getting my order to go, fine, give me a plastic fork because I may need it, or I may have a better fork where I'm headed.  But if I'm eating there, give me a real fork.  Really, this fork struggled to cut the breaded fish - that's good on the fish, bad on the fork.

Overall, very good experience.  I'm stuffed from my meals, and I'm writing this like 2 hours later.  I'll definitely go back.

lunch review - todd's cookhouse bar-b-que

i was out & about, looking for lunch in all the wrong places. and then it hit me that a new bbq place had opened in clovis. i loves the bbq so i drove over a few streets to get some.

like many local bbq places, they have a order at the counter system, with the menu on some large boards & hand held menus - worked fine, and they had enough counter help to keep it moving along. their staff was friendly and it took about 10 minutes after ordering to get my food.

i ordered the 2 item combo - brisket & sausage. it comes with 2 sides + bread. with a soda & tax it was just over $18. not terrible price, but a little more than some other local places.

the brisket was very tender, and that made me quite happy. it had a good flavor.  but what really did stand out to me was the tenderness - a lot of places fail at this. i could easily cut it with my plastic cutlery.

the sausage had a nice casing, and still had a good snap to it when i bit down. now, i have to admit that the sausage also confused me a bit. yes, it is clearly labelled as sausage, but in my head i figured it would still be a hot link or something spicy. nope, just a sausage. tasted good, but nothing special.

onto some other details: sauce - they have their own sauce, i think they call it's todd's memphis sauce or something like that. it's a sweet sauce, that has a slight kick to it. good, and they put a little on the meat itself and give you some on the side. i'm pretty sure that all of their meats are cooked without it, or with very little. i'm fine with it that idea, because a lot of times bbq places will hide their meat in too much sauce.  but what really stood out to me was what was missing from both the brisket & the sausage - any smokiness. now, i don't need or want to be overwhelmed by fake smoke flavoring, or for it to taste like i'm eating a campfire, but really, there was nothing about these meats to tell me that this meat was actually barbecued. and i also didn't see any smokers or grills outside (i could've missed it, or they could prep off site).  for example, the brisket, which was super tender, really lacked any sense it being barbecued, any smell or taste of being slow cooked on any sort of wood.

final bits - the sides. i had the hush puppies & the onion rings. both were good, and complemented the meal well enough. they had several others, and these sides probably are a little better suited to some of their other meals, but i liked them.

give it like 3/5 stars

• 1414 Clovis Ave
  Clovis, CA 93612

stak shak lunch review

a few weeks back, i'm not exactly sure when, i saw that a couple of new places had opened up along my drive to and from work.  one, a taco stand that used to be open years ago had new life breathed into it.  the other, a strange little building that i never really noticed until the new sign went up and lights were on.  this oddly shaped place: the stak shak.

today, i had the chance to drop in on the stak shak for some lunch.  they have a decent sized menu that is centered around the idea of sandwiches, hot dogs and more.  they have both hot and cold sandwiches, a variety of dogs, and some special offers as well.  the interior of the restaurant is pleasant, and has a "home-y" feel to it.

since it was my first time, and i knew i'd be writing about the meal, i wanted to try a few things.  i also hoped they had pastrami since i love pastrami, and it's something i've had all over and can compare.  they did have pastrami, which i ordered. you can get it on a variety of breads, and i went with sourdough.  i also love hot dogs, and so i ordered the western dog as well.  they have several drink options, some bottle, some not.  i went basic and had a bottled root beer.

i ate the dog first. the western dog comes with bbq sauce, shredded cheese and onions.  i should have ordered without the onions, as they're not a favorite of mine, but i was able to knock them off fairly easy and enjoy the dog.  the bbq sauce was a sweet bbq, and worked well with the cheese & dog.  the dog itself was an average dog, but fine.  the whole thing comes with a pickle side.  i liked the dog, and my only beef with it was the price.  all the dogs cost $5.50, which is a little more than they're worth in my opinion.

after devouring my dog, i went to the pastrami.  first, it's a cold pastrami sandwich, which i figured when i saw the menu.  i prefer hot pastrami to cold, but whatever. i chose the sourdough, which was a pretty good, thicker slices of sourdough.  they use a spicy mustard that i really loved.  it's one of those mustards that has the little seed balls in it. great flavor, really worked with the sandwich.  the meat itself was decent, lunch meat style pastrami with a fine flavor.  the lettuce was shredded, and i prefer leaf.  the pastrami sandwich costs $6.

overall, i thought the place was fine. the service was nice, and rather quick in filling orders.  the restaurant was comfortable to be in, and they do have free wifi.  i thought the food was good, not great, and it seems a little pricey, but not exorbitant.  for those that are inclined, you can all or fax in orders in advance.

stak shak
1950 e. divisadero
fresno, 93701
p:559.497.5101
f:550.497.5102
m-f, 7a -3p

downtown hofbrau

i had heard that a new restaurant had opened downtown, and that it was a hofbrau. in my mind, i had memories of the old fresno hofbrau dancing about. rich sandwiches, beers, and such. this new space isn't quite that, and that's all right.

when you come in the door, you see the menu on the wall, as well as a sign board with daily specials. it looks like a pretty good menu, with classic choices. also, i thought the prices were pretty decent. i generally try to snap photos like this discreetly. i was trying, but one of the chefs saw me and asked why i was taking pictures. i explained that i liked reviewing restaurants and photos always help, especially of the menu. it was pretty cool because they chatted me up a bit about how i'd heard about the place, and introduced me to the member of their staff handling their web presence.

i ordered the pastrami hot plate. it comes with a good amount of pastrami & two sides. i got the baked beans and the stuffing. let me tell you about the food. the pastrami - i think i've finally found a place to get a good, solid pastrami sandwich. i liked the pastrami, served here on it's on. it had a good flavor & texture, and wasn't too salty. and, it had just the right amount of fat to it. i was able to easily slice it, and enjoyed the meal. the baked beans - these were great. seriously, i was blown away by these baked beans. great flavor. not too saucy. bits of bacon mixed in here and there. i actually think that i would go back and try other menu items just because of how much i liked the beans. the stuffing - these were not the business. in fact, i thought they were pretty bad. it had a very pasty texture and the flavor was just weird. i choose to get them with the turkey gravy (they also have beef gravy) and even that couldn't save the stuffing. i rarely don't finish sides unless i'm feeling stuffed. i was getting full, but there was no way i was finishing that stuffing. overall, i had a good experience and liked most of the food. i'll go back and try more menu items and some different sides. the person in front of me ordered mashed potatoes, and they looked pretty good.

a view of the restaurant.

lunch review: watts family grill

good, solid bbq restaurant. i went there and ordered the watt's riot to go with some friends before one of the nfl games. i was happy that they were able to accommodate on the spot, and the guys behind us ordered the same without any problem.

the ribs were decent, but i've had a little better lately. the pork was amazing and tender. the chicken was decent, tri tip was good. what really stood out to me was the baked beans. they were great. almost like a chili bean.

the watts riot is a big meal, that they say serves 4. i think with all the sides and meat you could easily serve 5 or 6. i'm a big boy, and the guys with me are pretty big eaters as well and we had left overs.

good place, and it's pretty close to my neighborhood so i'll be back to try some of their combos or their chicken & waffles.

1448 N Blackstone Ave
Fresno, CA 93703
(559) 268-6800

smokin them bones

i'll say right off the bat that this is probably a 5 star place, but i'm going 4 stars because i've only been there once and i want to give it another try to really confirm that 5th star. but, really, this is a five star place in my opinion.

i had heard about a new bbq spot in town and wanted to try it out, and since i had some free time today i thought i'd go find it. and really, you've got to find it. to track down the location i googled 'smokin them bones fresno' and the only worthwhile hit was something on twitter - fortunately someone i know so i knew that the directions were legit - on mckinley east of first. and, that's just where it is, on mckinley, just past the shopping center with popeyes & carl's jr, on the right if you're headed east. there is a small, 8 or so car lot + street parking.



i came in and it was just me and the staff, but by the time i was finished with lunch the place had several customers. the staff had a friendly report with all the customers, and two guys came in and had tracked the chef down from another bbq spot he had been at. the service was very quick and the restaurant was nice and clean.

i surveyed the the menu and of course decided to get ribs. originally i ordered the rib dinner, but switched to the rib sandwich - 2 ribs on bread + 1 side. for my side i ordered the cajun friend rice. the rice was my first surprise. when my order came up it looked lovely, and the rice was very tasty. it had rice, sausage, squash, onion and maybe a few other little things. very good tasting.



the ribs had a light sauce coating but were very good. the meat was super tender and easily came off the bone. honestly, i want to go back and order a whole rack or more. very good.

i noticed that they make (& i think sell) their own sauces - bbq & hot sauce. i hadn't used the hot sauce with my meal, so i put some on my fork just to taste - another nice thing. not too hot, good smokey spice flavor.

overall, great experience, and i'll definitely go back.

open mon-sat 10 a.m.- 7 p.m.
3298 e. mckinley, fresno, 93703
559.237.1700

parsley cafe

if you read enough of my reviews you'll see i like: 1) local business; 2) downtown business; 3) fulton mall. knowing these things, it pains me somewhat to write a poor review of one of those things.

i rode my bike downtown to pick up some grizzlies tickets for tonight's game and figured i'd grab some lunch as well before heading home. i was riding down the mall and saw the parsley cafe. i remember it from my trips to milano's pizza (r.i.p.) and thought i'd grab lunch. they had a cheeseburger lunch special for $4.75, which is a nice price.

the cheeseburger - nothing special basic store bought patty, basic cheese, basic bun. the lettuce was nice. it's not that the burger was bad, it just wasn't anything.

the fries - frozen fries fresh outta the fryer. basic shoestrings.

what really bugged me about the experience - watery ketchup. seriously, i shook up the squeeze ketchup bottle and went to put some on my burger. water comes flying out first. this wasn't just the separated water that goes into the ketchup when you shake it. extra water. so, i put some watery ketchup on my burger and shook it up more before putting some on my plate for the fries. still watery. and, it was so watered down that it was flavorless. really bummed me out.

hey, it was cheap and quick, and just okay.

Parsley Garden Cafe

1237 Fulton Mall
Fresno, CA 93721
(559) 485-8995
Fax: (559) 485-8995

rudy jr.'s chicken man

about a year ago someone told me about the goodness that is chicken man. it wasn't far from my house, but i'd never heard of it. so, i filed that recommendation away in my head for future use. yesterday, i finally made it over.

honestly, this place is tucked away between streets. it's unassuming location and building might fool you into thinking that the food might not be so good. you'd be wrong to think that. their food was amazing. and, the quality of food is why a odd location and building don't hurt the business. seriously, it's that good.

i went with two friends who had eaten their before, one who had been eating there for quite a long time. they both had the sourdough burger with cheese. the burger looked great, and comes on slices of sourdough bread. they also both ordered a piece of chicken on the side. myself, i decided to order some jalapeno poppers and the four piece chicken. the poppers were awesome. these weren't some store bought, frozen poppers. these were fresh, made right then in the restaurant poppers. and a bunch of them. when the chicken arrived, the waitress let me know that they threw in an extra piece. who does that? super nice. and wow, the flavor on the chicken was great. yeah, it's fried chicken, but it wasn't overly greasy. i mean, there's grease because it's fried, but it wasn't gross.

none of us finished our lunch, but we all took home our food for a tasty meal for later. me, i took home three pieces of chicken that heated up for a nice lunch today. i'll definitely go back and try more of the menu - like the burgers & ribs.

lunch review - cosmopolitan tavern

i had long heard stories about the great food at the cosmo. i'd never been there, but always thought i'd give it a try. after seeing a picture of the cheddar burger on a local website i figured that it was time to get myself down there. my wife was off work, and so we were able to enjoy a nice lunch date.

upon entering i was a little unsure if we should seat ourselves and waiter for a server or what, but then i saw two cash registers where people were ordering their lunches.

i had a cup of the italian wedding soup, which was the daily special. it had a nice flavor, and the meatballs in it were great. the soup was a tad salty, but maybe that's just to my taste.


for my main i ordered the cheddar burger. after all, it's what got me down there. i also had some fries and a drink. honestly, the burger was great. it had a very good flavor and the lettuce on the burger was fresh and crisp - a great touch often neglected. the fries were decent, but i was pretty full from the burger and soup that the fries were a bit of an afterthought.



my wife ordered the tomato and basil sandwich, which she really enjoyed. actually, there were almost too many fresh tomato slices on it, and she took off a few just to make the sandwich a little more manageable for her. she ate half, and took the other half home for later. she also had the sweet potato fries which were good (i had a few myself).






overall, a very nice experience. people tell me that it's super busy between 11:45-12:30, so be warned that you may have to wait a short bit to get seated or for food. it's worth it though.

cosmopolitan tavern
1546 Fresno St
Fresno, CA 93706
(559) 264-5110

old school lunch

so, i was thinking about hitting up one of the many new restaurants downtown, but in the interest of the bank account, i decided to make something at home for lunch. the other day, while grocery shopping, i saw a bit of a throwback item and decided that i would pick up some to have at lunch occasionally. i'm eating lunch like a little kid in the cafeteria:



that's right, fish sticks. properly eaten with ketchup. yum. these particular sticks are made by van de kamps, who have a really nice website. seriously, check out their website. the sticks themselves are alright, with maybe a little too much breading and not quite enough fish, but still decent.

fortunately, the box of 44 sticks was like $3, so i pretty much had lunch for about $1 today. and, i've got another meal or two out of the box.

lunch review rancho grande

so, i have occasionally driven by this nice looking mexican restaurant over the last few years. the building is relatively new, in an older neighborhood. today, i was thinking of checking out someplace new, and thought, "why not hit up that restaurant on butler?" i didn't know the name, but that didn't really matter.

the building doesn't look that big from the outside, but inside the easily have seating for 44 people. and, they also have outside seating. the menu is pretty big, and there seems to have a fair amount of variety for a mexican restuarant. there are daily specials, and they did have some seafood dishes on the menu.

i perused the menu and the hostess brought me some chips and salsa. the chips seem homemade, and the salsa had a nice, low heat to it despite being pretty watery. throughout my time, the service was very quick and friendly.

i figured that for my first time at this restaurant i'd order some asada tacos (2 of them) and a carnitas taco. they come with cilantro, cabbage and onions on them, and i had them hold the onions. i was actually surprised how quickly my order came up for a small, seemingly family run restaurant.

i'll be honest, the asada tacos weren't great (sorry mike oz). they seemed really greasy, and i don't mind a greasy taco. i squeezed some lemon on my second one and it really perked up the taste.

the carnitas, on the other hand, was fabulous. very moist and tasty. didn't need any lemon. i did put a different salsa on all the tacos that came out in a small container with the taco plate. it was veeeeeeeery good. i actually ate the rest of my chips (as many as i could) with that salsa instead of the original one.

when it was all said and done, the meal cost me $3.21. that's right, $3.21! 3 tacos, plenty of chips and salsa, under $4. shoot, after tipping i was out of there for $5. of course, i only had a water so if i had a soda, beer, or whatever it would have been slightly higher.

i gave 3 stars because it was my first time there and i'd like to try more of the menu. if i was just going off the asada i'd go 2 stars, but the carnitas, salsa and service have me @ 3. if i can go back and try more stuff maybe i'll adjust my rating.

3599 E Butler
Fresno, CA 93702
(559) 457-0964

lunch review hero's sports lounge and pizza

as long as this place is open, i think will be enjoying major sporting events at this place. and, i think i'll be going here before or after (or both) fresno grizzlies and fuego games.

the food here is super nice. the decor is even better. honestly, tv's galore, great sports memorabilia, and that upstairs is super cool. i can't wait to see a band play there.

my buddy and i both had calazone's for lunch, and they were both great. i had the italian stalion and he had the classic something or other. my wife had thai chicken salad.

let me rave about the thai chicken salad i didn't have: the spinach looked hella fresh. really. crisp, fresh spinach. wait, i thought this was a sports themed pizza place? they have a fresh spinach salad with an excellent thai dressing. holy crap. and, they have like 5 other legit looking salads on the menu, and i imagine they're as good.

both our calazones were really good as well. the presentation was nice, and the flavors were excellent.

the only drawback is that it may be a bit pricey and slow for the average downtown worker for lunch. but, if you're going to dinner or don't have to quickly be back to your job after lunch this is definitely a place to go.

lunch review - smoke bros southern bbq

i always love it when friends call me with questions like, "do you have time to try out a new bbq place?" yes. yes, i do.

my friend met one of the owners yesterday at local watering hole, and the owner told him about the bbq. they've had their restaurant open about two weeks, but have had a converted coffee drive up that's been open for around four months. both are in an interesting location. the same corner contains an indian restaurant, an italian place, an armenian deli that claims to serve mexican, american, halal, and has goat & lamb meat. it's a diverse spot, and smoke bros' two locations fit in nicely.

since i was trying out the food, i felt alright ordering more than i would normally eat. shoot, if the bbq's good there is no reason why i wouldn't enjoy eating leftovers later in the day. both my friend and i ordered the 4 meat combo plate. it comes with a side and corn bread. we also ordered sodas. oh yeah, to start it all off we got the smoked wings starter. they' re weren't too smokey, but the seasoning on them was very good. they smoke the meat and then fry them up a touch to heat them. the chicken wings were very good quality meat, and there were 10 pcs for the $6.99 price, which seems like a good value to me.

for my 4 meats i had:
-st louis ribs - these were grrrrrreat. the meat literally fell off the bone. no b.s. the sauce was sweet, but not overly sugary.
-texas brisket - decent. the meat was tender, but it was a little too heavy on the sauce. the brisket comes pulled.
-smoked tri tip - so, this was some of the best tri tip i've had in a while, and this is a cut of meat i make on a somewhat regular basis. i should stop because i can't even come close to this. so very tender and moist. of the meats i had, it seemed like the tri tip had the best sauce (flavor & amount).
-bbq pulled turkey - i went out on a limb on this one, mainly for variety. it was worth it. the turkey was good, and i could definitely get with this on a sandwich.
-as for my sides, the bbq beans were good, with a mild kick and ground beef. i think you could have turned up the spice a few notches.

my buddy prefers his meats without sauce (you know atkin's fans). his 4 meat combo was:
-smoked chicken - amazing. still juicy, which can be difficult to maintain without any sauce on the outside.
- st louis ribs- tender. i tried a bite of his ribs that didn't have sauce. the smoke flavor came through in a better way that was a little lost without the sauce. i think they were a little better this way.
-brisket - without sauce the brisket was a little dry. and, being pulled the flavor is a little irregular. some parts were very good, others just okay.
-andouille sausage - this was offered hot or mild, and he went hot. it wasn't too hot for him, but it might be to hot for others. shoot, i was just looking @ it, the amount of pepper flakes in it and it looked hotter than i would want. but he enjoyed it. we wondered if they were homemade sausage or perhaps from a smaller, local distributor. they had a slightly irregular look which made us think that, but it didn't affect the taste at all.

honestly, i ate about half to 2/3 of my food. it was all worth eating, but in the future i'd get a smaller plate. without a second thought i would recommend the ribs and tri tip. if you like bbq, you have to eat here.

3069 w. ashlan (southwest corner of ashlan & marks)
fresno, ca 93722
(559) 224-2020
fresno@smokebros.com

*cross posted here, fresno famous & yelp

lunch review of taqueria gaudalajara

i had seen that a new taqueria had opened on the fulton mall, just a few doors down from cafe corazon. i'm always up for mexican food, so i knew that i would visit sometime. today was the day.

mike and i came in the door, and my first thought was, "it's kinda dirty in there. maybe real dirty." yep, it was dirty. tables weren't wiped down, floor was a little sticky. and, i leaned against a wall and even it was dirty. the tables hadn't been bussed recently, and i actually had to clear a table so we could sit down.

the lady working the counter was helpful, and she was doing her best to manage, but she wasn't very proficient in english which made ordering a bit difficult. it doesn't bother me that she wasn't good @ the language, and honestly, most of the clientele probably speak spanish. it just made ordering tougher on my, and probably her.

we ordered our food, and noticed that they had a little serve yourself tortilla chip set up. so, we got a basket and some salsa. the chips were fine, but they'd been just sitting under a warmer so nothing special. the salsa was weak. and by weak, i mean it was super watery. they did have a strong oniony taste, which wasn't good in my opinion.

the restaurant is a converted smorgasbord, and so there is a big area in the back of the restaurant where the buffet was. as currently set up, the place seats 32 or so.
mike's asada plate came out first. he didn't want his grilled green onion, so i ate it. it was so flavorful. honestly, i was thrilled with how nicely this grilled onion tasted, and it made me anticipate my meal to come. sadly, this was the last good thing i ate. my friend said the asada was okay, and i tried a small piece. the grilled taste was decent, but there wasn't much spice to it. the plate came with rice & beans, but i'll tell you about those in a second.

my chile verde plate come out shortly after my friends. it looked nice. the taste? mediocre at best. honestly, the chile verde was moist, which is good, but the meat and sauce lacked flavor. i think i need to go in search of good chile verde, because the last two places i tried for it were a let down. the refried beans sucked. how do you make beans taste watery? they managed. the rice was cold, mushy and bland. just like most of the meal.

the final bad: store bought corn tortillas.

taqueria guadalajara
1139 fulton mall

lunch review charlotte's bakery

so, today i needed to pay bills. i'm somewhat old school on this, and pay many by mail. but, i was out of stamps. this means a stroll to the post office. hmm, i double up my trip, and also eat some lunch. but what is near both my house and the post office? enter charlotte's bakery.

charlotte's isn't your traditional bakery. sure, they do cookies and cakes, but what they specialize in is fresh bread. that bread makes the perfect sandwiches. you will probably want to call ahead and order lunch because otherwise, you may have to wait in line. also, they don't open until like 10:30, so you can't stop by and get a cup of coffee and a bagel on your way to work.

today, i went with their soup and sandwich deal. i went with the half sandwich, but you can get a whole one. but, hey, you're getting 16 oz of soup so settle down there.

the soups vary, and today's was tomato. this ain't your grandma's can of campbell's . this is fresh tomato, made with locally grown vegetables. the soup is almost meaty, although it's vegetarian. you know how tomato soup can be water? not this soup. it's pulpy-ish, and very flavorful. there are bits of celery, carrots and more veggie goodiness in this soup.

the sandwich, pastrami. they serve both hot and cold pastrami sandwiches, but only the cold ones are in the soup deal. i went with the wheat sourdough (white, tomato basil were the other choices). mayo, mustard, swiss, lettuce, tomato combine with the thin sliced pastrami to delight your taste buds. my only complaint, the mustard is just some plain old yellow variety. give me some spicy brown!

finally, the bread there is great, and relatively inexpensive for sourdough. seriously, i've stopped buying sourdough at the store, which is a staple in our house. i just buy bread here.

big ced's famous bbq & cafe corazon - what a saturday!

check out my reviews of big ced's famous bbq and cafe corazon. (i yelped 'em as well.)

lunch review ribs & tips

okay, so i was looking for something different and new, but still on the edges of my neighborhood. i thought i had seen a place that was south of me, towards downtown. so, i went in search of. and i found it: ribs & tips. i almost feel bad about reviewing another place that's some sort of bbq...then again, i love bbq so i don't feel bad at all.

as i pulled up, the bbq outside was smoking away and it smelled nice. i came into the restaurant, which used to be some sort of chinese/thai buffet. it's a big space, with 10 or so booths and seats at least 40. it wasn't too busy, and it seemed that all the staff was in the back working. it took a moment to get helped. but after that things went smoothly. while i waited for service, one of the other customers told me how good the tri tip was. he wasn't sure if it was their marinade or what, but he said he really liked it. on his way out, he told another first time customer that they'll be back.

so, i perused the menu, and actually ordered the most expensive thing on the menu, the big sampler plate. i figured why not try all the meats o the menu and really get a good idea of their food. the sampler plate comes with chicken, ribs, and tri tip, along with 2 sides and bread. for my sides, i picked the potato salad and the ranch beans. i ordered @ 12:19 and my food was up by 12:26.

i started with the tri tip. wow. holy cow. this was good stuff. so flavorful. it was a tiny bit dry, and this made it just a little tough, but outside of that it was delicious.

the chicken, well, i'm not sure what piece i had. it looked like part of a breast & thigh. but the flavor was good. the sauce on it was a tangy, spicy sauce. good stuff.

the ribs were good and smoky. i'm glad i saved them for last to try, they were worth it. they were worth cleaning the bones as well as licking my fingers.

i appreciate that they had 3 different flavors of sauce & seasoning on the meats. or, at least they all didn't taste the same on each meat. because really, the sauce shouldn't be the same.

as for the sides, the roll was just a store bought type (i think) but it was good for soppin'. the potato salad was sorta bland, but not bad. the beans...now these were good. spicy, but not too hot, i ate them all.

for some, there may be some turnoffs to the restaurant. it's not a "classy" joint. it's not in the best neighborhood. but honestly, i've been to world famous (presidents & celebs eating there) bbq joints in kansas city that were in bad 'hoods. this place is totally manageable for everyone. others might be turned off by plastic silverware. i wasn't. and, most of their customers seemed to be to go orders. but, if this place stays open, it'll be a great bbq joint, right next to all the new downtown housing.

one final word, the website has an old address & phone # for them. and, yelp has an old address. not sure why, but they've been @ this locale since july 07.

ribs & tips
575 divisadero (at h street, next to the lampost)
222-4204

their hours are also sketchy. on the window they have 10am-2pm painted, their to go menu says 10-6 M-F. their website, i think, says something different.

go to my yelp review (which is exactly the same here & on fres fam because it's cross posted) and see pictures of the menu & food.