ChileChef's Profile
Best Burger in Bay Area?
I agree with this statement after my sticker shock at Joe's; three burgers, one large fries/rings combo, two shakes $80?? It was tasty, and no complaints about quality but Hodads in San Diego does an equally fantastic job for a third of the price!
Looking for the Elusive Baboon
I found one place; a chain called Hot Licks. They have a store in Long Beach. That was the best I could do. If anyone knows of another place, let me know. Thanks.
Looking for the Elusive Baboon
Hi Chow Hounds,
Does anyone know where there is a hot sauce shop in the LA area? I am specifically looking for one that carries the Baboon Ass Brand Habanero Hot Sauce. I heard of one in the farmers market area; or something like that. I am from San Jose and know little about Southern CA. Any help would be appreciated!
The Smoke Pit is Great KY Barbecue!
When traveling in Kentucky you will be faced with many food choices. Some of those choices will inevitably be barbecue. The most well known places seem to be located in Owensboro and until recently the little town of Campbellsville had none.
Pat Blevins took care of that problem when he built “The Smoke Pit” BBQ Restaurant for his Son. I took some time to speak with Pat about his philosophy on BBQ. Simple seems to be the key to his success and let me tell you it certainly seems to be working on his wonderful food.
We sampled his ribs, a full rack of baby back pork ribs. They were served with a rub of spices and no sauce on the ribs. There is a selection of about five or six excellent sauces that were available to choose from. We also sampled the sliced pork shoulder. This reminded me of smoked pork steak, they were sliced thin and had a nice smoke on them. The sliced pork was seasoned simply with salt and pepper; they were excellent for dipping in the homemade sauces.
Like the meats the sides were prepared with the same philosophy, simple, homemade and delicious. The potato salad was made with redskins and was creamy and slightly sweet; the coleslaw was finely chopped and creamy. I added some black pepper to mine.
Another item we sampled was the Kentucky Burgoo Stew. This is a regional dish that I have not seen anywhere other than Kentucky. The Smoke Pits’ Burgoo was fantastic, full of chicken, pork, and beef pieces; and loaded with potato, corn, lima bean and okra. You can get either crackers or crouton to go with your Burgoo. Get the croutons, they are made of their homemade yeast rolls and are perfectly seasoned, buttery and delicious. They are a perfect accompaniment to the Burgoo Stew.
Tomorrow we are off to Owensboro, but today in Campbellsville we ate some of the best Barbecue in Kentucky. Stop in and say hi to Pat ‘n ‘em at the Smoke Pit Barbeque Restaurant.
The Smoke Pit
1800 New Lebanon Rd
Campbellsville, KY 42718
270-789-6686
RoJo Caliente
RoJo's Gourmet Food
www.rojosgourmet.com
Moonlite BBQ in Owensboro, KY, BBQ Mutton
When traveling in Kentucky you will be faced with many food choices. Some of those choices will inevitably be barbecue. The most well known places seem to be located in Owensboro and until recently the little town of Campbellsville had none.
Pat Blevins took care of that problem when he built “The Smoke Pit” BBQ Restaurant for his Son. I took some time to speak with Pat about his philosophy on BBQ. Simple seems to be the key to his success and let me tell you it certainly seems to be working on his wonderful food.
We sampled his ribs, a full rack of baby back pork ribs. They were served with a rub of spices and no sauce on the ribs. There is a selection of about five or six excellent sauces that were available to choose from. We also sampled the sliced pork shoulder. This reminded me of smoked pork steak, they were sliced thin and had a nice smoke on them. The sliced pork was seasoned simply with salt and pepper; they were excellent for dipping in the homemade sauces.
Like the meats the sides were prepared with the same philosophy, simple, homemade and delicious. The potato salad was made with redskins and was creamy and slightly sweet; the coleslaw was finely chopped and creamy. I added some black pepper to mine.
Another item we sampled was the Kentucky Burgoo Stew. This is a regional dish that I have not seen anywhere other than Kentucky. The Smoke Pits’ Burgoo was fantastic, full of chicken, pork, and beef pieces; and loaded with potato, corn, lima bean and okra. You can get either crackers or crouton to go with your Burgoo. Get the croutons, they are made of their homemade yeast rolls and are perfectly seasoned, buttery and delicious. They are a perfect accompaniment to the Burgoo Stew.
Tomorrow we are off to Owensboro, but today in Campbellsville we ate some of the best Barbecue in Kentucky. Stop in and say hi to Pat ‘n ‘em at the Smoke Pit Barbeque Restaurant.
The Smoke Pit
1800 New Lebanon Rd
Campbellsville, KY 42718
270-789-6686
RoJo Caliente
RoJo's Gourmet Foods
www.rojosgourmet.com
loveless cafe
Here is an updated opinion on the Loveless.... AWESOME!
We just recently passed through Nashville and made it a point to eat at Neely's BBQ. The next morning we drove 30 mile out of our way to get to the Loveless Cafe. I had the pit smoked pork and eggs. They were great! Home fries were just ok but the hashbrown casserole was much better. The star of this whole meal was definately the biscuits and freshly made preserves. These were definately the best biscuits I have ever tasted. IMO it was worth the 30 mile detour.
RoJo Caliente
RoJo's Gourmet Food
www.rojosgourmet.com
Best Coffee/Coffee Shop In SD
I live in the San Jose area and travel to San Diego on business every month. When I get there one og the first things I do is go to "The Living Room" in La Jolla. They have a large selection of the milky frufru coffee drinks that I avoid. They also make great brewed coffee and espresso. Nice selection of pastry and light fare. The ambiance is pretty cool and you can sit out on the patio and people watch.
ChileChef
www.rojosgourmet.com
Visions in the Gaslamp SD - A report
When we first arrived at Visions we were a little confused. I think this may be the general consensus with this venue. It seems they may be a little confused as to who they are trying to be as well. It’s kind of a fine dining, sushi/sports bar. The street view is floor to ceiling windows, the tops have large plasma monitors blaring an ad for their sushi bar/club.
Upon entering you are confronted with a vast open design. We were greeted immediately by the maitre’d. A dozen flat panel televisions playing that night football game surround the bar. The restaurant surrounds the bar area and is simply appointed with banquette tables. We felt comfortable in our casual attire.
Once we were seated, our sever was quick to appear. She was friendly and attentive to our needs. She did however let my friends iced tea run out once during the meal. Luckily there was plenty of chilled water at the table as the restaurant has frosted bottles of still water that they bring. I found the wine list to be sufficient.
We ordered the crab cake appetizer to enjoy while we looked over the menu. It was excellent. Two panko crusted cakes were placed on a salad of cucumbers and marinated red onion and topped with a few microgreens. The whole show was centered on a rustic plate that was perfectly sauced with a ginger garlic aioli.
I ordered the organic green salad. It was perfectly dressed with light vinaigrette and topped with toasted pignolia and fresh strawberry slices. My friend enjoyed the roasted corn and crab bisque. Lighter than expected it was a nice surprise. While cream was used in this soup it was not reminiscent of the heavy classic bisques. The flavors were complex and layered, featuring the sweet crab and slightly smoky roasted corn.
Main courses arrived perfectly timed. The blue cheese crusted filet cooked to a perfect medium rare was served with a wine reduction and accompanied by tender yet crisp asparagus and a fantastic potato gallette. The mixed grille was a trio of three meats also perfectly prepared. The chicken breast was tender and juicy and was served with a beurre blanc, a medium rare flat iron steak was served with a rich red wine reduction and the prawns were served atop purple mashed potatoes. The purple potatoes were extremely delicious served skin on and had layered flavors of butter and vanilla. The mixed grille was served with broccolini.
For dessert I selected the chocolate-chile bread pudding. While the texture and flavor of this dessert were outstanding the centre of the bread pudding was quite cold. I would have like to have it warmed through. It was however one of the finest desserts I have enjoyed. The crème brule was nicely topped with fresh berries and featured a perfectly browned crust. Unfortunately, the texture of the custard itself was a little grainy. Dessert was enjoyed with an excellent dark roasted coffee.
Overall Visions was an extremely enjoyable dining experience. With a glass of wine the meal for two was under $110, in my opinion a bargain.
