Bandana’s Bar-B-Q
Several locations in the MidWest US
2336 Missouri Boulevard (Location visited)
Jefferson City, MO
Last week, when I wrote about “local” dishes, I mentioned about St Louis style pizza. Today’s post is about the other “local” specialty, in this case, barbecue. I won’t delve into the hundred of different forms, variations and what not. Rather, I will take what I was served and go from there. However, there goes the question: since it is supposed to be a “local” specialty, which restaurant? Since I had only one shot, I had to choose “carefully”… Ha! I was driving around without really a clue of where to go (but somehow I knew I was going in the “correct” direction), when I ended up in Bandana’s BBQ.
Hardee’s
Multiple locations in the world
3601 Country Club Drive (Location visited)
Jefferson City, MO
When I was around 12 or 13 years old, a Hardee’s opened in Panama. Of course, like any new restaurant, it created some hype and a lot of people flocked there in the first couple of weeks. I was able to tag along with a neighbour, since he was taking his family there, and I still remember their burgers loaded with some “strange”, crunchy ingredient in it. That ingredient is bacon. While I am used to eating pork rind (not to mention the crispy skin of a Chinese roast pork), it would be my first time eating bacon. I won’t say I really liked it (too heavy) but that left me an impression. Unfortunately, the Hardee’s did not last, as their burgers were priced higher than MickeyD’s and, after a while, their hype faded. Fast forward not long ago. While in the US, I was looking for something quick to eat when I recalled seeing a Hardee’s nearby and that gave me a chance to remember those memories…
A friend of mine sent me this video clip not long ago. Before you watch it, two warnings: It is in Spanish and, similar to TV warnings, “this video contains coarse, adult language…”
Now, a hacked, quick, best-effort-not-necessarily-accurate translation (excluding the last 30 or so seconds).
Husband: By any chance, do you understand what is written in the menu?
Wife: I was going to ask the same. It was written in a way may be they don’t even understand.
Husband: And how easy it would be if they call it by their name!
Wife: Wait, I will call the waiter for more details. Waiter!
Waiter: Yes, how can I help.
Husband: We are looking at the menu and we were hoping you could help us with some of the dishes. What is Chicken with potatoes?
Waiter: Is a piece of roasted fowl garnished with young sprouting spuds.
Wife: Ah, yes. Wait, what about this: Noodle soup?
Waiter: It is a garden vegetable broth served with savoury pasta.
Husband: One more.
Waiter: But I have to look after the other tables.
Husband: Only the dessert. It is just that I don’t understand anything and it is full of technicalities. What it is, I am not sure how it is read – flan?
Waiter: A soft egg custard, infused with vanilla scent over a bed of caramel. Now if you allow me.
Wife: One more, one more. What are morsels of squid.
Needless to say, things start to break down afterwards, with references to things/parts I won’t make reference to, *cough**cough*, hehehehe.
But, the joke about the menu, I think is quite accurate. When I go to restaurants and see the menu, specially that of “fancy” places, sometimes I can’t myself wonder why it can’t be simpler! Quite often, you have the dish name followed by the list of almost all ingredients, which makes me wonder, if it is actually needed. Regardless, I would rather let the cook surprise me and/or play the “guess the ingredient” game. Then again, I might be mistaken as I might want to oversimplify things… You be the judge!
On night two of my stay in Jefferson City, I was not really in mood to drive around. That was partially because of the weather condition: though not rainy, it was windy and chilly. So, instead, I was hoping for restaurants nearby, with the caveat it couldn’t be a chain or in the mall. Once again, I took a suggestion from my clients: Domenico’s.
I was planning to put this on Saturday but let’s say I couldn’t wait! Yesterday, I was on my way back to the SkyTrain station but decided to take a small detour. I was rewarded by this decision!
Arris Pizza
5 Locations in Missouri, plus a location in Oklahoma
115 W High Street (Location visited)
Jefferson City, MO
Since I have been travelling “a lot” in the last six months (compared to the last 5 or so years), every time I stop at a new city, I ask the locals for something unique of the region. When I was in Baltimore, I went for crab cakes; in Merrillville, due to its proximity to Chicago, deep dish pizza; in Philadelphia, cheese steak; and so on.
When I was in Jefferson City, I asked my usual question and, at first, they were bewildered. In a way, they couldn’t think of something “local”. And I won’t blame them, some places with such a massive influx of people, it becomes a melting pot and no cuisine becomes “dominant”. And I can easily relate that, since there is no such thing as a “local” dish in Vancouver. Oddly, when I asked for a restaurant location (at that point “anything works”), I was able to find one of the regional “specialties”. And that is the subject of today’s post, Arris’ Pizza
Sbarro
Several locations around the world
3600 Country Club Drive (Location visited)
Jefferson City, MO
On my first day in Jefferson City (my final destination after my crazy trip and overlay through Denver), I faced the same old dilemma. Where to go for lunch? The problem with my work location is that, aside from being in the middle of nowhere (not literally but close), anything nearby required driving. In fact, my second day there, I was taken out out to a Mexican restaurant (which won’t be blogged because I did not bring my camera, not to mention it would be odd trying to explain why I was taking pictures of the food) and, just to get there, a 10 or so minutes drive in highway was required.
Anyway, target #1 was a nearby mall, which was next to the hotel I was staying at. For some odd reason, this mall, Capital Mall, barely had anything in the food court. Hungry, running out of time, I settled on the first thing that was not available locally – Sbarro.
Restaurant Menu
by KimHo on March 29, 2009 · 3 comments under: Comments,Random
A friend of mine sent me this video clip not long ago. Before you watch it, two warnings: It is in Spanish and, similar to TV warnings, “this video contains coarse, adult language…”
Now, a hacked, quick, best-effort-not-necessarily-accurate translation (excluding the last 30 or so seconds).
Husband: By any chance, do you understand what is written in the menu?
Wife: I was going to ask the same. It was written in a way may be they don’t even understand.
Husband: And how easy it would be if they call it by their name!
Wife: Wait, I will call the waiter for more details. Waiter!
Waiter: Yes, how can I help.
Husband: We are looking at the menu and we were hoping you could help us with some of the dishes. What is Chicken with potatoes?
Waiter: Is a piece of roasted fowl garnished with young sprouting spuds.
Wife: Ah, yes. Wait, what about this: Noodle soup?
Waiter: It is a garden vegetable broth served with savoury pasta.
Husband: One more.
Waiter: But I have to look after the other tables.
Husband: Only the dessert. It is just that I don’t understand anything and it is full of technicalities. What it is, I am not sure how it is read – flan?
Waiter: A soft egg custard, infused with vanilla scent over a bed of caramel. Now if you allow me.
Wife: One more, one more. What are morsels of squid.
Needless to say, things start to break down afterwards, with references to things/parts I won’t make reference to, *cough**cough*, hehehehe.
But, the joke about the menu, I think is quite accurate. When I go to restaurants and see the menu, specially that of “fancy” places, sometimes I can’t myself wonder why it can’t be simpler! Quite often, you have the dish name followed by the list of almost all ingredients, which makes me wonder, if it is actually needed. Regardless, I would rather let the cook surprise me and/or play the “guess the ingredient” game. Then again, I might be mistaken as I might want to oversimplify things… You be the judge!
Tagged as: Random