Chuckwagon BBQ (Madison, Al)

Alabama meets Texas

You sometimes have to wonder what possesses people to do the things they do. I mean, what would posses a person to open a Texas BBQ joint in Madison Alabama. Right in the heart of North Alabama BBQ country. Especially given that people from one BBQ region DO NOT, as a rule, like BBQ from another region. But....there it is, Chuck Wagon BBQ not 10 minutes from the legend, Big Bob Gibson's. It's a recipe, no pun intended, for disaster.

But what if I told you that at lunch time, you can't get near this place. That lineups start before the doors open. That ya, it's that good.

Owner Mike Holley, a genuine transplanted Texan is churning out what could very well be the best Texas Q East of the Pecos. Using recipes handed down from his Grandfather, George Washington Gray he's found enough room in the BBQ saturated landscape of Madison and Limestone Counties. While he toiled in the oil fields of Texas for many years, Mike had cooking in his blood. His Great Grandfather was a chuck wagon cook on the Goodnight-Loving Trail.

Located just off I-565 Chuckwagon BBQ is a sight to behold. An honest to goodness joint. Decked out in weathered barn board with a bright red roof and big BBQ spelled out it's a stand out. Smoke stacks and catering pits pop up like mushrooms in a damp forest.

Inside it mirrors the outside with more barn board and is decorated with many things Texas. You enter around back and go through the outdoor dining area. Food is served to you cafeteria style from a large serving station inside and the cramped main dining room seems to accommodate many more than you'd think.

So let's get a look at what's got Alabamians betraying their roots shall we??
 

The Beans were much better but seemed to be lacking something. It seemed to be an acid of some sort. I added a bit of BBQ sauce and that seemed to brighten things up a bit. So I added more. I found that there was a level that was perfect and one that was too much. So easy does it.
I quite liked the Tater Salad. Nothing special about it, it’s just good old solid tuber goodness. Nothing wrong with that.
 

A 2 Meat combo of Brisket and Sausage is a nice match. Smoked pork sausage and Texas style brisket are as ubiquitous in Texas as cows it seems. While both were terrific, they both lacked that great smoked flavour that I love. Otherwise, the sausage was incredibly tasty and perfectly cooked. When smoking sausage the casing can become rather rubbery and downright unappetizing. This wasn't the case here. The brisket also hit all the appropriate buttons but the smokey one as I mentioned. The meat was fork tender, juicy and great tasting. Gven that these are the two house specialties, they’d better be good.

They do actually do pork products as well. This horrible photo is of ribs. Given that we showed up 5 minutes before close and I got the last order of ribs they were needless to say, not very photogenic. Not to worry, the taste was pretty much everything you’d want. As you can tell by the pink in the meat, the smoke flavour was spot on.

For dessert there are some options but Mrs. Sippi was all over the Fried Pies. The apple was terrific but the peach was just slightly better.

So there you have it folks, terrific Texas BBQ in the Heart of Dixie.

You can find Chuck Wagon BBQ at 8982 Madison Blvd. in Madison, Al.

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You can also find them on facebook.


Well that's all for now folks, see ya next time in the food court.

New Market BBQ (New Market, Al)

Follow the Smell of Hickory

Kelly and Libby Webb were born to cook. Kelly grew up at his fathers side, tending the smoker for family gatherings. Libby meanwhile was in the kitchen cooking for the large family in which she was raised. These skills meshed perfectly when the couple, since met and married, took over New Market BBQ in, conveniently enough, New Market, Alabama.


Opened in 1995 by Virginia and Darrell Day, the business would find a “For Sale” sign in the window a little over a decade later.
It had been Kelly’s dream to own his own BBQ joint and when a co-worker of his at Boeing (yes the airplane people) informed him of it’s availability, the couple pounced. Leaving the corporate world would be more than just a change of jobs. It would be a radical change of life for the couple as the restaurant came with a house (where they now live) and property as well.
While Day stayed in the picture to make for a smooth transition, as the years passed, so too has the torch. NMBBQ is now completely a Webb operation. The business has stabilized and the menu has been shored up. Q standards like ribs and shoulder are bolstered by specials such as BBQ spaghetti (‘sketti). They’ve also augmented the main part of the meal with the reward for clearing your plate, dessert. All prepared on site in either the pit by Kelly or the kitchen by Libby.

NMBBQ sits at the edge of this tiny little town less than a half hour drive from Huntsville. It is that kind of town that qualifies for “Blink and you’ll miss it” status. As such, there’s just not the traffic to be a full time venture so their hours are confined to the weekend. Even with it’s proximity to the “Big” city.

The restaurant itself is a quaint little place. It has most of the trappings of a BBQ joint. Piles of hickory, obligatory pig picture, smell of wood smoke and pig fat, etc. Most of it’s footprint is dedicated to food prep. One area houses the smokers and another the kitchen. There’s a small area for expediting orders and a very nice screened in porch with about a dozen or so chairs facing outward.
There’s also a nice picnic pavilion (pictured above) across the parking lot.

So let’s get a look at what Kelly and Libby are serving.
For sides we have BBQ Beans and Tater Salad. Both are solid if unspectacular. The beans were of the doctored up canned variety with bits of smoked pork. As I've mentioned before, many competition teams do this and there is nothing wrong. So long as their good. These are. The Potato Salad is your typical mayo based style and all in all, about what you'd expect and more over, what you want.

As far as Brisket Sandwiches go, this is one of the best I've had. Brisket is not a beginners cut. It takes time and is quite easy to dry out. So to find a place that knows how to make good brisket is great. NMBBQ does it right. I ordered it sandwich style and it was excellent plain. No sauce or slaw required. It was as juicy as brisket will be, smoky, meaty and with just the right amount of the salty rub. One of the best things I had here.

Not to be out done by the brisket is the Turkey Breast. Again, not an easy cut for novices as it too is easy to dry out. Again not so here. This is moist and as flavourful a piece of breast meat I've had. Nicely smoked and served up in slices. No need for the White Sauce on this and in fact, it detracted. It's not that the sauce wasn't good, it was fine, it's just that it covered up the subtle turkey flavour.

The ribs, served dry, are pretty much perfect. Smoky, meaty, juicy and the right amount of chew. They yielded the bone when tugged on just as they should be. I can’t say these are the best ribs I’ve had however they were more than satisfactory.

There are a few options for dessert but I couldn't resist the Peanut Butter Pie. Peanut butter flake (like what's in a Crispy Crunch) topped with custard and meringue, crumble. It's baked into a standard pie shell and is absolutely fantastic. I hemmed and hawed about but in the end, I made a great choice.

So there you have it folks, one of the best examples of North/Central Alabama BBQ in a quiet little historic town.

You can find New Market BBQ at 5601 Winchester Rd, New Market, Al.

You can also find them on the web, facebook and Twitter.

Well that's all for now folks, see ya later in the food court.

Kickin' it Old Shul

They say, “Necessity is the mother of invention.” For Zane Caplansky, truer words may never have been spoken. Not a fan of what he considered sub par deli in Toronto he would pester friends to smuggle the good stuff back from Montreal. Not a long term solution Zane taught himself the centuries old art of curing meat and began making his own goodies. At first it was to satisfy his own palate. Eventually, at the behest of his friends, he opened a little spot in the Monarch Tavern. To say he was a hit doesn’t begin to scratch the surface. Eventually he’d outgrow the hotel and open his own place. I’d love to say that it was a run away smash hit but that doesn’t tell the story. Simply put, the review are mixed.

There has, perhaps, never been a restaurant that stirs up more passion than Caplansky's Deli in Toronto. For the most part, no one LIKES this place. They either love it or hate it with a heat of a thousand white hot suns. It's just about that simple. I have to admit, I do love the place. I’m not alone either. He’s got fans at the New York Times, Maxim and Gourmet Magazines and both John Catucci of You Gotta Eat Here and Guy Fieri and the Triple D gang have paid visits. He’s also featured in the David Sax book, Save the Deli.

Sitting just north of Toronto’s Kensington Market neighbourhood Caplansky’s is a beautiful place. Decked out in blue and white the corner unit reminds me of a circa 1940’s milk carton. The small patio is abuzz on summer nights and the whole restaurant nicely complements the trendy neighbourhood.

Inside is just as nice. A mismatch of tables and chairs complement the old school feel inside. The pressed tin ceiling was preserved and art deco lighting brighten the place. The large windows allow plenty of light during the day. It just has a nice warm yet utilitarian feel inside. In front where you wait to be seated you’ll find the “Trophy case.” Displaying the many dessert options available. Mid dining room there’s a counter where the meat is sliced and wares are sold. Always on patrol is Zane himself. Ebbing and flowing between the dining room to great guests and the kitchen in back.

So let’s get a look at what’s coming out of that kitchen. All sandwiches are served on near by Silverstein's bread and come with a Putter’s pickle.

They have a caddy on the table with your typical ketchup and mustard. They also have 4 of their (made in) house mustard varietals. All come in your standard mustard squeeze bottle.
Mild and Delicious: Yes it is.
Hot and Horseradish: This is really nice although I think a hint more horseradish would improve it. That said, it may make it too much like the next one.
Super, Extra-Hot Mustard: Wow!! This is not for beginners. Perhaps not quite to the level of Keens but in the same ballpark. It's everything you want from a hot deli mustard.
Honey Mustard: I really don't care for this one. I don't like the balance between honey and mustard. It's pretty much honey with some mustard. Not nearly enough to balance out the sweetness. I'd like more mustard than honey.

Being a Jewish deli you absolutely can’t have pork products. But, but bacon!!! Well don’t you worry, Zane is curing and smoking his own. From cow. Beef Bacon is really interesting. It’s got just about all the attributes of regular bacon but lacks the bold, assertiveness. I described it to my wife as “gentle bacon.” It’s just more subtle and delicate in flavour.

An often soup du jour is Bean with Bacon. More like a thick stew actually at first glance it looks like chili. Loaded with tomato gravy and beans with some meat. Just remove the cumin (an other chili seasonings) and you have this dish. It's very nice and homey and tasted great on a cold winter day. 

I'm somewhat torn with the Smoked Meat Poutine. Fries covered with cheese curd, topped with smoked meat simmered in gravy. Did I enjoy this dish?? Sure I did. It was tasty. Do I think I could've loved it?? I think so. First and foremost I don't like matchstick fries. Much like with pasta, the chunkier the sauce, the bigger the noodle needs to be. So a heftier fry would work better for me. Also, my favourite way to eat poutine is to let the cheese curds melt. Ya, the fries get a bit soggy but I like the trade off. The gravy here wasn't hot enough to melt the curds. It wasn't cold though, so don't misunderstand. And I just plain prefer regular poutine best.
For those that it matters to, the cheese curds had some squeak to them. For those who don't understand, poutine freaks rank curd squeak as one of the most important parts of the dish. Much like hot dog nuts are all about the snap of natural casings.

A recommendation by one of the wait staff is a combination of Pickled Tongue and Smoked Meat sandwich. First of all it's not like Montreal Smoked Meat. It's not supposed to be either. Caplansky's is doing their own style which I thoroughly enjoyed. Hand sliced it was so tender it pretty much fell apart. As did the tongue. This was a terrific sandwich. It came on that same basic rye and I added a good dose of the SEH mustard. It was smoky, beefy and rich. It was fantastic.

The Bingo is a Friday sandwich of the day. Slices of fried salami on an onion bun with slivered red onion and cheddar cheese. It came dressed with the honey mustard. Again, as with the other sandwiches, I added the SEH mustard and it knocked it out of the park. The griddling of the salami really gets the oils going and helps carry the flavour. I'd have liked to see more cheese but that's just a fine tuning detail.

Definitely my favourite sandwich is the Meatloaf. It comes on Ciabatta and you can get cheddar. Which I did. The meatloaf has smoked meat in it and is as good a meatloaf as you’ll find. The bold tomato flavour of the sauce is a great complement. My big concern is the bun would be too chewy and the guts would squish out the back. Not so, the tender bun is perfect and tasty to boot. I added a couple pieces of the cow bacon on half of it and while it was somewhat lost, the crunchiness added was nice.

The dessert (trophy) case is full of homemade goodies for your sweet tooth. I've had 3 options now and they've all been great.
Lemon Square: Rather like a square of Lemon Meringue Pie withouth the meringue. The crust is a bit like short bread which was fine. The curd was sturdy with a nice, but not puckeringly so, tartness that I loved.
Apple Crisp Pie: Among my favourite apple pies I’ve had. Bold with cinnamon just the way I like it.
Chocolate Cake: Let me just put it this way. If you love chocolate cake, you’ll love this.
Pecan Pie: It looks great in the case. A perfect looking pecan pie under a swirl of chocolate butter cream. It tastes great but sadly, when it’s heated that icing melts. I also found the chocolate distracts from the pie. It was good though I’d rather have the pie unadorned.

So there you have it folks. Fine old school deli served in a nice place.

You can find Caplansky’s at 356 College St. in Toronto, Ontario.

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You can also find them on the web, facebook and Twitter.


Well that’s all for now folks, see you next time in the food court.

Revenge is a Dish best Served Cold

Thornton Prince of Nashville, Tennessee was a noted womanizer. Back in the 40’s and 50’s he was known to stay out all hours of the night philandering. After one particular night out gallivanting around town he returned home to his girlfriend. Fed up, she figured she’d fix his little red wagon. She whipped up a breakfast consisting of his favourite dish, fried chicken. There was however a little surprise. She’d laced it with cayenne pepper. Unfortunately the joke ended up on her. Prince loved it so much he tinkered with it and started selling it in his restaurant. A local legend was born. Everyone has now heard of Prince Thornton and no one knows his girlfriend’s name.
While there is no way to verify this anecdote the simple fact is, it’s way too good a story and as far as I’m concerned, can now be considered the genesis of Nashville Hot Chicken. A subsection of fried chicken. Though they say the current incarnation only dates back to the 70’s, Thornton's idea of incinerating peoples mouths with fried chicken still remains.

There are no less than a half dozen places that serve only hot chicken and a number of others who have it as a menu option. Of course, every restaurant will make it a bit different but the basics are pretty much the same. As you can well imagine, recipes are guarded like state secrets. A couple things you can be sure of are that the chicken is marinated in a molten liquid and finished with a fiery paste. It’s served on white bread and topped with pickles. The word is that Prince’s puts cayenne in just about every step of the process. From the dredges right down to the cooking oil. The specimens at Prince’s are fried up in a cast iron skillet.

Stories of this fiery chicken are the stuff of legend. "Some guy came in here once and ordered the extra hot chicken. He said it filled him up, cleared his sinuses, and killed his Athlete's Foot." Another story sees one man not showing up for work for 2 days after consuming the Extra Hot version. Supposedly there's no shortage of people who, um, bite off more than they can chew as it were and have to make a mad dash outside to, shall we say, divest themselves of their meal. I read that one customer brings a half gallon of chocolate milk with him. Ya, it's freakin' hot.

Prince’s is located in a strip mall about a mile off I 65 in the Brooklyn Heights neighbourhood. Their hours are mostly geared towards the late night, after the bars close crowd. Word is, it can get pretty crazy by the time they wind things down around 4am. Thornton himself is long gone but his great niece, Andre Prince Jefferies now runs it. Soon, it’ll be passed along to her daughter.

There’s seating for about two dozen and a number of chairs for those who are taking away to wait. You go up to the window behind the Cake Lady and place your order. Then you wait. And wait. It’s so busy they just crank it out piece after piece after piece. Every piece of chicken they serve is fresh cooked. Mostly because it’s all they can do to keep up with demand.
When I first started this little blog I began searching for places to visit. Prince’s immediately turned up and went to the top of the list. Sadly, it took me almost 4 years to finally make it. Well, let me tell ya, I’m sorry I didn’t make it sooner. It was well worth the wait. Let’s have a look.

There are a few different sides from which to choose. Mrs. Sippi decided she wanted beans. Pretty much your standard pork and beans done very nicely. We can’t decide if they were doctored, canned beans or made from scratch. I asked and just got a smile. Whatever their pedigree, they were very good. The gravy was a little thinner than usual and a little sweeter.

The chicken comes in 4 different heat levels. Mild, Medium, Hot and Extra Hot. It also comes in quarters, halves or whole. We ordered 3 hind quarters in the mild, medium and hot heat levels. Each comes pinned, with some pickles, to some white bread by a tooth pick. The pickles were quite good and I didn’t bother with the bread. (cw from bottom right: mild, medium, hot)
The chicken is rather salty but definitely in a good way. The heat isn’t just in that crispy coating but all the way through. If you could eat the bones I’m sure you’d find them spicy too. Honestly, this stuff really isn’t for the timid. It’s all about fire so caveat emptor.
What most wing places would parade out as medium, Prince’s calls mild. Easily hot enough to discourage those not into the spicy stuff. At this level the saltiness in the spice blend really stood out. All in all, really good but this chicken was too mild.
The hot was absolutely Blazing. While I’ve eaten hotter things, this was close. Way hotter than what you might expect. At this heat level I found the spicing and chicken flavour were overpowered by the heat. This chicken was too hot.
The medium was the perfect balance of heat, spice and chicken. This chicken was juuuuust right.

I suggest making sure there’s room for dessert. The Cake Lady (Irene. That’s her daughter in the picture) makes several varieties and if the two samples we had were any indication, they’re all good. The thing is, I dove into a piece of cake and by the time I surfaced the raging inferno in my mouth was gone. The cake had put the fire out. So let’s have a look at what we had.
The Cream Cheese Chess Square is basically a chess pie made into a sheet cake and cut into squares. The cream cheese added a bit of flavour and some structure. It wasn’t as custardy as the Chess Pie I make but it was mighty tasty.
The Mississippi Mud Cake was phenomenal. A nice chocolate, almost brownie like, cake topped with fluff and covered in a rich chocolate icing. There were a few pecans on top that I let Mrs. Sippi have. Being a chocoholic I absolutely loved it.

Well there you have it folks. The dish that put Nashville on the fired chicken map.

You can find Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack at 123 Ewing Dr in Nashville, Tn.

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You can also find them on facebook.



Well that’s all for now folks, see ya next time in the food court. Now where’s that Alka-Seltzer?? 

Davwud

Champy’s Famous Fried Chicken (Chattanooga, Tn)

“Saving the World, One Chicken Leg at a Time”

Life on the road was getting pretty tough for Seth Champion. With his wife, Crissy, living in Savannah, Georgia they managed 3 Lenny’s Sub Shops. All the while Seth travelled and advised franchisees. They’d had enough. Chasing a Lenny’s franchise opportunity of their own, they pulled up stakes and set up shop in Chattanooga. Their business got off to a good start and before long, were approached with an offer. Too good to pass up, they sold and decided it was time to venture out on their own. They knew with Seth's business background and old family recipes they were sure to succeed.

In 2009, Seth and Crissy opened Champy's Famous Fried Chicken. To say it’s been a big hit is an understatement. We arrived for dinner the night before Thanksgiving and found the place was almost full to overflowing. Their bar and grill has quickly become a staple in community and has gained plenty of notoriety nationally and as you can tell by this Canadian knowing about it, internationally. Some claim it's the best fried chicken in the nation. While that's a pretty big claim there's certainly good reason. As you'll soon read. Such a demand has also meant expansion. They've now opened 3 other stores. All in Alabama.

The moment Seth and Crissy saw what would become Champy’s Chattanooga location they knew they'd found the place. It sits, very conveniently, directly across the street from UTC.
It’s outward appearance is that of a seaside bar. Inside it has all the trappings of a dive bar. Memorabilia and other paraphernalia adorn the walls as to cover old paint and cracked plaster. In this case, old album covers and dollar bills are among the more notable items. They've tried to capture the feel of the Mississippi Delta that's near and dear to them. Mix together Delta Blues, 40 oz. beers and great food, you've surely got a recipe for success.
As an added bonus for the males in the house, the wait staff are female, young and cute. They’re also very good. Helpful with the menu and given that everything is cooked to order (and fried chicken taking extra time), very expedient.

As we all know, it can be difficult at the best times to live up to a reputation. Well I’m hear to tell ya, Champy’s is “All that.” So let’s have a look shall we??

At the table where the ketchup and sundry items are you’ll find a bottle of their home made hot sauce. Called Mississippi Sweet Heat it’s somewhat your typical hot sauce in that it’s peppery and vinegary. This also has a bit of a sweetness component. It’s actually not all that hot, sweet or vinegary but walks a nice, fine, balancing act. It played nicely on the Fried Dill Pickles. I never used it on anything else but in hind sight, I’m sure it was be a nice addition to the beans. A little acidity in beans is nice.

A really nice way to start off, especially if you’re a group, is the Smoked Sausage Plate. Cajun smoked sausage is accompanied by cheese cubes, pickles, pickled peppers and dusted with seasoning. The sausage is fantastic. Garlicky and smokey and just fantastic. I can’t say it any other way. The cheese is really nice and where the pickled peppers juice got on it, even better. The pickles are really nice but nothing spectacular. Just solid. Nothing wrong with that. The pickled peppers aren’t all that hot. Hot enough if you don’t enjoy but not something the grizzled old vets would consider hot.

The Hot Wings are another nice side. I’m starting to realize that I’m just not a huge fan of smoked chicken wings. Which these are. I think the combination of smoke and wing sauce doesn’t work. The best I’ve had are my own and I do more of a BBQ sauce on them. I think that works better. The night I had them there was no shortage of people ordering. A few baseball teams came by after their games and several people ordered and enjoyed. I would order them again but they aren’t my favourite thing on the menu is all.


I totally get Deep Fried Dill Pickles. They’re pickles which are good. They’re deep fried which is also good. So the two should work. I’ve just never loved them. Not so with these ones. Cut into spear shapes they’re far and away the best I’ve had. The crunch of the breading was exceptional and the Ranch Dressing was a perfect complement.

As you can well imagine, growing up in Canada means that my exposure to Delta Tamales was nil. I didn’t even know there was such an animal. Delta Tamales, or Hot Tamales as they’re called “Down Yonder” are very similar to the Latin varietal but are made of cornmeal not masa. They also seem to be smaller and are usually but not always, covered in a thin tomato sauce or gravy.
These particular specimens are filled with ground beef and nicely seasoned. Definitely with cumin but there are certainly other flavours along for the ride. I loved them. Mrs. Sippi thought they were very good but not excellent. Growing up just above the Delta, she’s far more familiar with them.

Last but more certainly not least the Fried Chicken. IT. IS. AWESOME. Oh my, this, simply, is what God intended when he invented Fried Chicken. Crispy, juicy, “chickeny”, herby and, what put this over the top, slightly spicy. Not sure where it’s coming from but that little bit of bite really gives it personality. By “bite” I don’t mean a lot of heat either. This is not Nashville Hot Chicken or anything close to it. Just enough to bloom your taste buds and give it some character. Not so much as to turn off those not into hot stuff.
I really liked the slaw that accompanied it. It had a good cabbage taste and had a little something, something which I think, was apple. All in all, one of the better tasting slaws I’ve had.
The beans were fantastic. Kind of your standard pork and beans but a little smokier and as you can see they have kidney beans in them as well. They add just a bit of earthiness that I totally enjoyed.

When in season they do Crawfish Boils. Pretty much exactly the same as a Low Country Boil or Frogmore Stew, it’s mud bugs (crawfish) cooked in a fiery, heavily seasoned broth with Cajun Sausage, Corn and Potatoes. As an added attraction they add Mushrooms. The whole thing is just poured out onto a plate and you dive right in. This particular incarnation hit all the right notes and had a strong hint of all spice. Not something I’ve seen but being a Canadian, this was not something with which I grew up. Mrs. Sippi has had this plenty and declared Champy’s version simply the best. Be fore warned though, if you do not like spicy stuff, you will not be able to handle this. By the time we finished, our mouths were on fire.

If you have room for dessert there a couple options for you. Mississippi Mud and Key Lime Pies. The Ms Mud was good and came from a bakery in Nashville. I must admit it didn’t really excite me but a chocolate based pie for a chocoholic is always acceptable. The Key Lime (shown) is made in house and is quite good. I have a bit of a hard time judging this for two reasons. It’s got a bit of a delicate taste and having it on the heels of the power packed crawfish my tastebuds were probably worn out. As well, I made one for my mom just the week before and, as usual, I prefer what I make at home. Make no mistake though, this is some good stuff.


So there you go fried chicken aficionados, some of the best bird this side of Neptune.

You can find Champy’s at 526 East M L King Boulevard, Chattanooga, Tn.

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You can also find them on the web, facebook and Twitter.


Well that's all for now folks. We'll see ya next time in the food court.
Davwud