BBBBQ Review

Who cares about the citizens of the Fort enough to subject his body (and that of his friends) to heart disease, obesity and awesomeness? I do. In the name of truth and honor, I have reviewed the BBBBQ in the great Fort so that you, my loyal reader (yes, thats singular) may know exactly where to eat when the fat bomb is craving ignition.

If you'll recall, I set out to try the numerous BBBBQ places throughout a 100 mile swath in order to provide you with the greatest places for BBBBQ. This will no doubt cause many to be upset, but it will cause many others to be relieved. Now you don't have to bother eating bad BBBBQ. I am going to announce the top three, and then I will comment on the remaining. In order to protect the hard working families that run many of our places, I will not disparage a place by crowning them as "last" place. There's also a "Best Place for a Friday Afternoon" and "The Place you must go on Saturday". I made these up as I was typing.

Myself, two lawyer friends, and sometimes my wife and I attempted to eat BBBBQ across the Fort and rated them on the following characteristics: sliced beef sandwich, ribs, beans, one cold side, cobbler (if its cheap), beer availability, overall cost, ambiance and overall intangibles. We missed out on a few of these, but seriously...what did you do for us? So we're even now.

Here it is:

Second runner-up:

Tie. Yep. It's a tie between Railhead and Angelo's. Is it a cop out? No, here's why:

Angelos: The other reviewer's favorite place of these two. Had one of the best BBBBQ sliced sandwich. Has the history and ambiance and is affordable. However, it has beans that taste similar to what the styrofoam it comes in tastes like. The potato salad tastes comparable to the beans. This is never a good quality. Plus you have to ask for BBBBQ sauce. I want that stuff on the table. It stayed in the top three because of its sandwich, beer and history.

Railhead: This was my favorite of these three. The sandwich meat was a bit drier than Angelos, but the sauce, fries, cold beer and patio kept Railhead in the top three. A cold beer with ice crystal foam is pretty helpful on a hot Texas summer day. Plus, this place has some great ambiance. The ribs got a good score here as well. I would say the beans and potato salad are good here, but don't mess with that, get the fries. Overall, this is the place I would be most likely to go but I'm not sure my reviewers would agree.

Railhead -

Angelo's -

First Runner Up:

Wilson't BBBBQ - 5633 Lovell Ave, just south of the Camp Bowie and Horne intersection. One of the best all around meals with great potato salad, beans and wonderfully flavored and tender meats. The ribs weren't that good and the brisket was sliced a bit thick, but the juicy-ness and flavor of the brisket made up for it. You will smell like BBBBQ when you leave. I think they cook it in the back of the building without a vent. Whatever...if every breath after lunch tastes like BBBBQ, thats fine with me. It almost makes you want to jog just so you can breath more BBBBQ. But lets be honest...who jogs and eats BBBBQ? Commies. Thats who. When you order a sliced BBBBQ sandwich here, you're given a plate of BBBBQ and two slices of white bread. They lose a few points because of a lack of bun, but they made up for it with the odd stares from the lady taking orders (thinking we were lost) and the deliciousness. I don't think they serve beer, but you can probably get some next door.



First Place BBBBQ in the Fort:

I'm going to preface this with this statement: I rarely feel scared in the Fort, but waiting for my friends before eating here, had my wondering how fast my truck could get out of the parking lot.

Mom's at 1509 Evans Ave.

This was recommended by a reader and was the unanimous favorite. The brisket, ribs, beans, and potato salad were all tops. I don't think they serve beer, but food was cheap. Also, ambiance scores are high because of how scared we were. We were forced to give high ambiance scores. Along with all the greatness, the BBBBQ sauce was one of the favorites with a nice vinegary flavor.

Ok, so thats the top three. I want to thank my reviewers for their help and perseverance. We ate at more BBBBQ places in the last few weeks than I care to think about. We're all plumper and happier for it though. Immediately below are our honorable mentions. Below that is a general review of a few of the other places we ate at but is by no means a comprehensive list of every BBBBQ place in the Fort. I have separated these portions because the reviews below contain more of my personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of my fellow reviewers.

Best Place For a Friday Afternoon award goes to Railhead. With the patio shaded by trees, the big center bar just waiting to serve you an ice cold beer .... And the fries... Does it get any better? The beer is notorious for its ice coldiness and the patio is famous among its patrons. There is a friday club called the "FARTS". Or something like that. Its old guys that decided to make hats to commemorate a restaurant. I have already submitted an application for admittance.

The Place You Must Go On Saturday Award goes to Hard Eight. This award was limited to places within 100 miles and Hard Eight falls into the category, by being in Stephenville at Hwy 67 and Hwy 281. Tacky interior, great beans, country music and great BBBBQ that you order outside from a giant pit then they weigh inside. The sweet tea is delicious and doesn't give you a headache from over sweetness (I'm from Texas, not Georgia). I would also recommend getting a turkey sandwich with the jalepeno bread. Delish. Thats a word you should not say here. You will be taken out back.

General Reviews:

Baileys - downtown on Taylor. If you could eat smell, you'd be getting a good deal. The BBBBQ is fine but not really worth a special trip.

Feedstore - Southlake - White Chapel - The brisket was a bit grity to me, but the sides were decent and the sauce was good. I like to go in and pretend like I'm really rich and then look down on all everybody else. Then I eat my BBBBQ with a specially designed silver fork and talk about Jeeves.

Hard Eight Coppell - You know how you felt about the first Kincaids to open outside of the Grocery Store? Yeah...its the same thing.

Jasper's - Plano - Upscale BBBBQ. I know, I know. But I have to give it some props (because thats what lawyers do). The meat is tender and the flavor is good. But its in Plano so...you know...yeah. Forget I put this on here.

Sonny Bryan's - Great sauce, original BBBBQ place over in Dallas is worth a trip because it satisfies the hole in the wall criteria. The consistently good BBBBQ in a dirty place makes you almost forget you're in that other city.

Cousins - McCart, south of I-20. I was skeptical when I found out that it was in a strip center. Skepticism founded. The brisket was good, but this tasted like every catered BBBBQ meal I had ever had. Not really my style, but it seems popular. Plus, bottled Big Red is pretty cool.

Longoria's - The BBBBQ is loved by many and has good flavor but the real key here is the brisket sausage. I don't know how it works but its awesome.

I know there are more places in the Fort, but do you need more? I gave you the top three...

Please give me your thoughts on the state of BBBBQ in the Fort.

Esperanza's Bakery

Have you been down to Italebamexobesirishgrill Town portion of Fort Worth yet? Thats right, we have our own little neighborhood melting pot. Its also sort of a restaurant row for hole in the walls and an area that drips with Southside Cool.

Lets break down the district's name of Italebamexobesirishgrill Town: Ital = Italian at Joe's and part of Chadra Mezza; Leba = Lebanese at Chadra Mezza; Mex = Mexican at Esparanza's and Mexican Inn; Obes = Obesity at Massey's Chicken Fried Steaks and fried squash; Irish = Finn MacCool's Pub and whisky fighting hall; Grill - ONG.

Most of these places have been discussed in previous posts, but the newcomes is up today. Esparanza's (spanish for Massey's) opened up recently, in the spot between Joe's and ONG. If I'm not mistaken, this used to be the Chinese Super Buffet or whatever it was. Speaking of, Italebamexobesirishgrill Town could use a Chinese restaurant to round out the name. We'll work chop suey in there somehow.

Esparanza's is a Bakery, but with a mexican restaurant on the side. Or vice versa. I didn't go into the bakery but I was there for lunch so an enchilada croissant wasn't what I was looking for. They serve breakfast and lunch during the week, then on the weekends they all go to Joe T's to help with the weekend rush. I have no idea if that's true.

The breakfast looks delicious, according to the drool on the menu. The lunch is delicious, according to the drool on my suit. My dad and I went here recently for lunch and even had quasi valet parking (a guy stole my truck - no not really) when the host came out and pointed us to available parking and helped others work their way out of the narrow lot. The place was pretty full at lunch and it took a little while to get our food, but we were in and out in less than an hour, so no complaints there.

I ordered the chili relleno lunch special and I have to start off by saying I'm not a chili relleno fan. I never order them (except at la playa maya that one time) and I'm not sure why I ordered this one. But it was great. It came with shredded beef, a nice crispy coating, and a delicious red sauce that covered the plate. It also came with rice and beans. A very novel idea for a mexican joint.

My dad had the Cuatro, which is spanish for, an enchilada, taco and tamale (and maybe something else). He loved it. He's a tex-mex snob like myself and has spent a great deal of his life in tex-mex restaurants across the state, checking out the best and worst there is to offer in cuatros. I'm saying this because I know after the Benito's review your confidence in me is shaken. Your shaken confidence is misplaced though. I brought in reserves to prove it.

I would highly recommend going to Esparanza's. It's all part of the same Joe T's, Lanny's Alta Cocina (now serving lunch) family that runs Sundance Square (did I get that right?). So you know its Fort Worthy - that works two ways.

I forget the address, but its in the heart of Italebamexobesirishgrill Town on Park Place. We seriously need a new name for this portion of the city. Southside is too broad, next to ONG is to specific, at Eighth Avenue and Park Place is too boring. I'll put the Humorous Term Team to work on this.

Oh yeah, unlike its big brother Joe, Esparanza takes different forms of payment. How unique.

And they serve chips.

Patio Update

I have added a "patio" tag for those restaurants with enjoyable outdoor spaces. With the exception of the hurricane without rain we've experienced these last few weeks, patio dining can be enjoyable.

Not included in my reviews, but deserving patio mention are: Railhead, Flying Fish, Blue Mesa, Razoo's, Ocean Rock, Mambo's, and Nona Tata. Note that a recommendation on a patio is not a recommendation on the restaurant. Just the outdoor seating option.

The BBBBQ review will be coming up sometime next week and the Texas Road Trip Review will be up the following week. I know you can't wait...

Pop's Safari

If Marlin Perkins blew up, this would be the resulting scene. Or so I would imagine - I'm too young to actually know. Pop's is a Cigar Bar with an African theme, about six tables and a patio. Pop specializes in wine, beer, and cigars. They also serve food.

Remember back when I asked about this place? The information I received was that the food was nothing special but the ambiance made up for it. I will whole heartedly agree.

This place feels like what I imagine old Fort Worth was like, but without the boots. Nobody was wearing boots the night I was there, but that doesn't disqualify them from being a Fort Worth restaurant (although Chef Love would possibly disagree - Again, I don't know him so please don't tell him I'm putting words in his mouth. One more restraining order and I can't even live in Tarrant County).

My favorite parts were definitely the beer (and the knowledge of my waitress), the crab cakes, the tuna, and the Max's Salad!!!!OMG!!!AWESOME!!!!

My less favorite parts were the ribeye and the hamburger.

The crab cakes have an Asian flavor and are superb. I imagine this is what Thai crab catchers eat all day long. If you know any, ask them for me. The tuna was also delicious. I guess the Trinity is finally allowing the marine life to really flourish. All Fort Worth restaurants get their seafood from the river right? Isn't that why Papadeaux is on the river?

Another thing I had was this old school Fort Worth salad known as the Max's Salad. It comes from a restaurant (Max's) that is no longer open due to Chesapeake. The current Pop's chef made these at the restaurant for thirty seven years before rowing immigrants across the Amazon. He's back, and making this salad that is best described as a caesar salad, without the tang, but with sesame seeds. Apparently this is what everybody who has lived in Fort Worth for a long time craves. It was good but I wouldn't kill somebody for this salad. To be fair, there are no salads I would kill somebody for - unless it was a defensive kill to keep the salad away. But you have to get it when you're rolling with the old time Fort style.

I've also got to give props (thats what us ghetto bloggers do...give props) to the waitress on her excellent beer recommendations. I said, "I want a beer" and she complied. And it was a good beer and she even made recommendations on other beers. This Coor's Light stuff is delicious. Anybody know where I can get it? Maybe Central Market. Just kidding.

On the negative side - the ribeye was unspectacular and the burger was a bit dry. The ribeye was cooked exactly to order but the flavor was lacking. The burger had great taste but was overcooked. I'm thinking they got the cooking instructions messed up. Either way, I'll still go for five dollar burgers on monday night. That, with a good beer in a cigar bar sounds like what I would do if I were 80 and pissed at the world. I just need a fedora. And thats every young guy's goal right?

Don't we all kind of want to be a crotchety old man so we can get away with yelling at that stupid lady at the gas station between Belknap and Weatherford with the sonic that doesn't open the doors when you're standing there at 7:15 a.m., just trying to get a newspaper, but, "she's not ready to open yet"? Wow, I am a crotchety old man.

Anyways, go to Pop's and practice the art of getting angry at young people, enjoy a smoke, some wine or beer, and some Thai crab catcher food.

Pop's is at 2929 Morton's, just south of all the construction on 7th.

A Letter to Benitos

Instead of my usual post regarding a restaurant, I will be submitting this letter to Benitos (not physically - stamps are expensive).

Dear Benito,

I was recently a diner at your establishment and I wanted to recount and discuss my experience. I believe some constructive criticism could be useful in making your restaurant everything we all dream of.

You, as the neighborhood Mexican restaurant on Magnolia has a purpose, nay, a duty to the people of the near southside in Fort Worth. A duty to be the best it can be, to provide Mexican food to the people, and to serve chips without charging for them. Benito, this duty is yours and yours alone. Unless you fail, in which case another Mexican restaurant will join your area and attempt to out duty you.

Remembering the concept from my childhood - that disappointment hurt worse than any harsh words, I have decided to avoid the harsh words. But I am disappointed. Not because you failed miserably, but because I believe you did not live up to my expectations.

I have two fundamental complaints, but cry not, for I have four compliments. I will start with the complaints, so that you can get mad at me and let your anger prevent you from absorbing the compliments.

First, don't charge for chips. It's like charging for the greasy fingers you have after eating at Carshon's. You just expect the chips at a Mexican restaurant. And when you bring out a delicious bowl of pico and salsa (see below) without chips, you're just a dirty tease. You don't want a reputation as a tease do you? Also, if you're going to charge for chips, they shouldn't be soggy. I used to work in a Mexican restaurant and I know this can happen inadvertently, but if you're going to make me (well, my friend) pay for chips, you should inspect them for crispiness, and you should probably gold plate them and feed them to us. Or just don't charge.

Secondly, if you're going to put a sauce on enchiladas that looks like cat diarrhea (see the Tacos Palenque review) it should have flavor. I'm not saying the sauce tasted bad, I'm saying it had no taste. I guess it was a good thing that it didn't taste as good as it looked. I know this may sound crude, but I want to help because this is a place that I entered with high hopes. The enchiladas weren't bad, they were just...meh.

Ok, let the hurt subside. I know it aches your heart. But hold your head up high Benito. there were many positive aspects of our dining experience.

First, as I mentioned above, the pico was wonderful. It was full of chunky bites of everything, with a perfect combination of flavors. I bet its great with chips... But seriously, the pico is Legen...wait for it...dary. This is easily the best pico I've had in Fort Worth.

Second, the salsa was also amazing. It had a wonderful spice that was hot enough for spice lovers to enjoy. Wonderful flavor and the color of it was very appealing. These first two compliments may be why I was so disappointed with the lack of free chips...you tease.

Third, the beans and rice were perfect. There are probably better beans and rice around, but they certainly fill the bill here and are great. They were warm and nicely flavored. Definitely an important aspect to get right. Good job on that Benito.

Fourth, the location, ambiance, decor, and overall neighborhoody feel was perfect. This is the type of restaurant I would like to call my regular Mexican restaurant. Except for the chips. And the sauce on the enchiladas. Fort Worth could use a dozen more restaurants with your feel, all across the city and with different types of food. The ambiance is great, the service was terrific and the attitude just felt right. A patio would be cool, but lets not get ahead of ourselves - free chips should be the priority.

So, as I have stated, your restaurant has been on my list of places I must eat at and I really enjoyed most of the experience. But to be honest, we both know you can do better. And the chips thing really bothered me. And so did the sauce. But those are small things that can be easily fixed.

I will come back for sure. But we'll have to start over. We'll have to rebuild the trust I falsely assumed we had. I will order beef enchiladas with queso or chili sauce and I will still complain about the lack of chips. But I will be back. With enough time, we can heal.

I know this stings, and I imagine you wont be posting my letter up in your restaurant, but lets make limonada out of these limes and use this little experience as a building tool to make Benito's all it can be. I look forward to seeing you soon...although I will understand if the feeling is not mutual.

Love,
FortWorthHoleInTheWall

Spicy Peanuts Continued

Thanks for the Vending Nut Company recommendation. I went there today and picked up some spicy peanuts and some dark chocolate covered almonds. They look delicious.

Just a note, this place is off of Montgomery and the entrance is around the back. I figured it would be a dead store with one half asleep cashier. Wrong. The place was popping with people in the back doing things to peanuts that I cannot explain. Yeah, not like that.

Its also fairly affordable. If you like to snack on roasted or raw almonds, they're cheaper here than at the grocery store, by about 40%. My pound of spicy peanuts was $2.10. Not bad for a snack that will probably last for a month or so.

-FortWorthHoleInTheWall

Spicy Peanuts

Does anybody know where I can get some spicy peanuts? Please don't tell me "the grocery store". I've been there and all I've found are the Emerald's version. I'd like something a little more local/homegrown/nonchainy. You knew that though... Didn't you?

I'm just talking about the peanuts with a bit of chili spice on them.

Thanks,
FortWorthHoleInTheWall

Roy Pope Grocery Store

Need groceries AND lunch? There's only one place in the world that offers both... Well, the only place that offers both and serves as a small local neighborhood grocery store on less than two acres of land (maybe less than one) and served me lunch.


The Roy Pope GS is Just north of Camp Bowie on Merrick Street. The website says its gourmet and its not just a gimmick.


Based on the recommendations of numerous people, and my discovery that Edmondson's Fried Chicken appears to be closed (maybe Edmondson is hunting the famed Yucatan Chicken with Richard), I went to lunch at the Grocery Store. I know, I know "Fort Worth Hole in The Wall guy, you can get lunch at any grocery store." That's true. But none of those places fall into the charter of this blog.


The grocery store is very small and very crowded in a pleasing way. There are lots of gourmet items everywhere and a deli/butcher/lunch food counter. By counter I don't mean that you can eat there so don't go here expecting to sit around and munch. This is a place you get your food to go - it is a grocery store after all...


The neat thing is, that while you're deciding what to eat from the hot food section, you can peruse the fruit/veggie section and pick up a little freshness for your lunch. You can actually make your lunch healthy, for a reasonable price. Now, of course, nobody opts to do this on purpose, so skip the fresh stuff and head straight to the lunch line.


The day I was there, they had Fried chicken, chopped BBQ, meatloaf, some sort of steak, and lots of other entrees. They also had scalloped potatoes, green beans, turnip greens, mashed potatoes and some other stuff. I went with fried chicken, scalloped potatoes, green beans, wheat bread, and a complimentary tasting of the chopped beef.


The fried chicken wasn't your normal fried chicken with the tight fried batter. The batter was loose and crusty and airy and flaky and delicious. I think I got three pieces of white meat and it was a teensy bit dry but still had wonderful flavor. The green beans were just as you would hope - flavorful, warm, juicy. The scalloped potatoes were much better than I expected. They had a little bit of texture to them but were soft, creamy, and cheesy.

Seriously, if that description didn't make you hungry, either you're reading this as you finish your eighth trip trough the line at Golden Corral or you hate food.



I think this place has a lot of promise if you are working in the yard one day and need a break for lunch but don't really want to sit down somewhere, or if you just need a bite and you have to be somewhere. The service was quick and friendly. The food was fresh and delicious. And you didn't support a chain.

If I lived in the area near Roy Pope, (his Grocery Store, not his house) I would probably go here a lot. The store seems to have a wide variety of items (though maybe not a wide variety of options for each item), sells beer and wine, and has easy access.

I'm a fan now. My work allows me to take lunch breaks, but sometimes a quick lunch is all I need/want. This will fit the bill. I know its just a grocery store lunch, but it gets extra points for being a small local grocery store. Plus, it was good.

The BBBBQ was also very nice but chopped beef isn't part of the contest. They'll get mentioned though. By very nice I mean that I would order a chopped beef sandwich without regret. I just thought of a brilliant plan for a saturday lunch - chopped beef sandwiches, some side, and beer. Brilliant. I should open a restaurant.

The BBBBQ Review period is wrapping up so if you have any last minute recommendations please get them in. I think we'll make the final trip next week so send them in soon.

Standout in BBBBQ Off

I wont be releasing the results today, but I've found a clear front-runner in the BBBBQ review. Surprisingly, its at one of my all time favorite restaurants and I never even knew it. As a BBBBQ connoisseur I have started to notice the tender smoked meats wherever I go. It turns out that almost every great restaurant has BBBBQ and if they don't, from now on, I'm leaving.

Well, as I said, my wife and I were at our favorite little downtown hole when I found that suculent hunk of cow on the menu. Not literally. Literally there was salsa and sticky on the menu. But under all of that, you could see the option for pure joy.

I had one order of pure joy.

I've had a lot of BBBBQ in the past few weeks and in my life and this set the standard. Thats the great thing about hole in the walls - you just never know what you're going to get. One day you may be ordering the turkey combo, southwestern eggrolls, or the skillet of queso and then BAM pure joy is spotted. I'm just so glad I perused the last few pages of the menu because some little places have so much variety.

Anyways, the BBBBQ review should be up in the next couple weeks and the big Texas Road Trip Review will be coming out shortly. I konw this doesn't comply with my charter, but this is going to be something special. Also, I'll be reviewing the Roy Pope Grocery store (which I ate at recently). Get excited!!

I'm so hungry right now...I really want some more of those delicious baby back ribs...