Mastering Pork Ribs- Man Card Tutorial

Hello and you will not believe this I was in line with some nice meaty pork ribs, and the guy in front says " I can never seem to cook those, how do you do it, I always burn them".. WTF!!! Dude, never confess that you burned the ribs, and don't burn the ribs. so this is for those who it is a mystery on killer pork ribs..

NO parboiling, if you dont know what that is google it, its cheating and lame.

rub your ribs down, don't sauce them, and stick them in a cooker with indirect heat using apple wood with average temp 250 - 300 and smoking. 

after a while your ribs will start to take on some color and start to get some dry patches,

 flip the ribs over to juice up, once you get past this stage you will start to see more dry patches on the meat side, now is the time to get out some sauce and lightly coat the ribs and let them soak the sauce in to the dryness, after a couple times they will start to glaze up and look like this 

by now your cooker should have cooled down some (approx 200f) and you just let them rest low and slow and watch..

watch the meat and the tips begin to caramelize, while the rib bone protrudes through the glazed rib meat.

you will know when its done! you don't want to be able to grab the bone and pull it out dry, too done!

   

and there you go.. A Must when your pulling out your Man Card throwing down for this weekend BBQ!.. 

Until Then, Grill that shit up!

Its Grillin and Hog Roastin Season!

Boooya and Who Dat? Boys and girls, time for some outdoor summer party fun! and I mean BBQ and Hog Roasting Time.

Local fresh produce, and free range animals make for superb Eatin! and I plan on cooking as many as I can while drinking awesome home brewed IPA.

It just isn't a party without hog roastin pig pik'in served up Cuban style in a La Caja China. If you have never experienced this sensation you need too! 

it takes 4 hours to cook a 100 pound pig to perfection. injected with Mojo Sauce and your attacking that pig like a pack of wolves.

Lets not forget about the Pirate Steak! an all time favorite of mine. this layers of steak, cheese, mushrooms, onions, roasted peppers all wrapped in bacon, grilled over charcoal, basted in its own bacon fat! then chopped up and served on a hoagie roll..

There is no limit to what to do this season, so go out and grill up something fantastic!.. this is just a small sample of my grillin activities, which seem to be on a daily basis.. 

Until Next Time.. put the heat to the meat and it will be sweet

Andrae's Kitchen Rockin the Burgers

OOOOHH yes, you know there are some killer burgers in this town, and one that stacks up is at our local gas station of all places, now you don't have to chase down the mobile kitchen or go to a wine event to get these killer burgers from Andrae's kitchen (located in the farmers CO-OP). once you walk in your greeted with a building length menu of Gourmet Food items

 

and their counter is full of to go items like wraps and sandwiches. (one of my favorite is the Reuben wrap) Then, you do a double take when you read the menu, oh yes, real food like Gyros, and of course the Burger. these guys make everything fresh right there grilled or what ever. they start out like this right in front of you on a open flame grill (a must for perfection on flavor), this burger is built on the grill not setting in a pile o grease 

so it starts out like that, sizzling away as they get ready for the next step

  

Flame seared and flipped ready for toppings to start flying in making a perfect marriage of grilled onions and burger, but hey lets rock this thing I say and here it comes,

Grilled Onions Topped with Good BACON!

Click on these pictures for full effect

 Its a Cheese Trampoline ready to encase the goodness as it melts over it all

holding in the flavor of the AK Burger made right in front of you at the gas station from Andrae's Kitchen

And here it is!

the Killer Bacon Cheese AK Burger.. 

there is plenty of other good stuff there

they're not just cranking out burgers, Everybody here are trained, no joke these aren't fry cooks they are Chefs, something you would not expect for this location. Andrae himself packs a pretty good resume of accolades in the Chef world. 

They have a drive up window for some to go espresso or what ever they can fit out that window.  You want Truck stop food.. well I wouldn't call it that, but they do have truck parking, fuel and a public restroom.

so you need to go into Andrae's Kitchen at the CO-OP Gas Station inside the full blown convenience store and say " Im Hungry!" and order a burger or many other fresh made items on the menu. Andrae's Kitchen Caters fine dining events, wine dinners, give them a call if your looking for the real deal to make your event dinner a success..   

Follow this link for Menu and information on Andrea's Kitchen

Bang for your Buck at Tommy's Dutch Lunch

Dang put the hurt to me, hell yea, I grew up just up the road a few miles from this place and have seen it evolve, but yet stay the same, yes Tommys Dutch Lunch rocks for breakfast, they have a different special every day, you can see them cook your food and it includes coffee!

Tommy's atmosphere reminds me of going into the pastime when it was open, its that good and I will tell you folks yes thats a slice of ham with french toast and coffee, Bam! service is fast food is not greasy or oily like the reputation of an old Diner from back in the day like Tommy's.

MMM MMM GOOD! and I haven't drowned it in Syrup yet, im a tellin you, I made ham sandwiches out of that bad Oscar with that frenchie toast.  SHEEEEEIT that was good.

Now this was Yesterdays Breakfast special 2 Eggs, Toast and Potatoes with green peppers and onions grilled with them, and you dont leave hungry

As you can see those spuds go "all the way to the edge" and is one dose of complex carbohydrates. the portions at Tommy's definitely give you something to push with if you get what I mean..

Located at 1203 W Pine St  Walla Walla, WA 99362 (509) 527-0600 

From the squeak of the front door to the sounds of the grill and clinking coffee cups Tommy's serves it up home style for sure,  and Watch your Step when you leave!

Until Next time, Lets talk about it!...

Hey, Thats a Clean Home!

so, lets talk about it.. time to wake up the eat and drink review blog. where we eat and drink and review
today its all about getting your home fixed after smoke and water damage disaster, Visit Clean Home Restoration at www.cleanhomeww.com
24 hour Emergency Dispatch, they deal with the insurance company, and they also do carpet and blind cleaning..  now, Back to the food and drink.. I know I have been slacking on the review and its time to pick it back up, we have some new places to eat and drink, so I can have something different for a change.. I will be hitting the streets soon so fire me up if you see me out...

Andrae's Kitchen - A Run for the Money

 Walla Walla has been voted the friendliest town, and now its time for Walla Walla's Andrae's Kitchen to be voted America's Favorite Food Truck.  The Food truck receiving the most votes through September 12 will be named Americas Favorite Food Truck!

Follow this link to vote for Andrae's Kitchen  

I have had the opportunity to stuff my face with one of Andrae's Killer burgers, I totally got busy with it and was not disappointing at all..

Andrae's Kitchen travels all around Walla Walla, If it is an event to be at, you can find them there, from baseball games to wine tasting. when ever you see him set up and you looking for some good food while wine tasting or just the daily grind, do your self a favor and get some of the good stuff from this Kitchen.

you can check out Andrae's Food Blog Here

Remember to give all 10 votes and vote every day!

Thank You

Joseph Harrison - "Jody"

webmaster@wallawalla.com

Captian Brought home the Crabs.. Deadliest Catch of Tasty Critters, from Alaska

Folks this was probably the best crab dinner I have ever been to, Hosted by F/V Seabrooke's Captain Scott Campbell at Three Rivers Winery.  I'm  talking those big dogs you break in half that poke you if your stupid? and a log of crab meat falls out the size of a burrito, yea thats the stuff. Well we stuffed our pie holes with crab and drank wine till the crabs came home..

the food was outstanding by Chef Judith Henderson. the music was live Irish music by The Rogues at the end of the patio.. The Captain brought some of his toys along for show and shine and they were some fine iron worthy of the Seabrooke name

The wine flowed with the sound of laughter and cheer as we partied into the night on the spacious deck at Three Rivers Winery, we watched the full moon come up big and bold with plenty of stories new and old..


 I had the chance to sit down with Chef Judith Henderson for a bit and talk about her travels and food. She makes the best stuff out of berries and things you wouldnt imagine that go together. she has a cook book available at Three rivers if you want to check it out..

as you can see there was Salmon and King Crab Legs available tray after tray , I went back a few times and the salsa was super killer I must say!..




Everybody received a complementary drinking glass from the Captain with the Seabrooke logo on it.

we all completed our night by getting taxi cab rides home and having a great time. It seems to me that these events out on the deck and green at Three Rivers Winery aren't ones to miss!
Thanks for such a wonderful event!




 Until next time, get your Crab On!

Sear On Fellow Meat Mongers..

Oh boy, if you weren't at Three Rivers Winery lastnight you lost money! Gary Winston and the Real Deal played out on the deck while Paul Freeman from the Grill brought out his portable de-lish meat making kitchen.

 Some people pair wine and food, well Three Rivers Winery paired Wine, Food and Music. It was perfect weather and while the real deal was throwing down some killer tunes on the deck the grill was loaded with killer Steak, Home made breads, and coleslaw.. and this isnt KFC slaw.. this, like the band was the real deal! 

 

Why anybody would want to go and sit inside in a stuffy building when they can enjoy themselves from the outdoor deck at Three Rivers Winery, overlooking their 3 hole golf course with the Blue Mountains in the distant background

This Party was off the hook so make sure you check the outdoor music scene that Three Rivers Winery has to offer and plan a stay.

After awhile, I could of sworn Jimi Hendrix was playing that guitar as the national anthem broke out into a purple haze.. Gary you ROCK! and the Real Deal, is the Real Deal!!

Until Next time - Party On!

Straight from the field!

the Walla Walla Farmers Market is up and running on the weekends and the produce is as fresh as its going to get. so get down town to the farmers Market this weekend and "Get fresh at the Farmers Market. you can learn more by visiting their website at http://www.gowallawallafarmersmarket.com 
go check the website out for times and location and we will see you there..

A New Year of Walla Walla Food and Wine.

Its a new year in Walla Walla and that means new vintages of local wines. Wines to our local chefs are like a new canvas to the painter. something new and something fresh with inspiration from the Walla Walla Valley. Looking forward the the Balloon Stampede and all of its festivities this year. sure to be a good year for eating and drinking!.  I will try to keep new reviews constant this year as I will be expanding my website and bringing it into the future..
until then Salute'

Make No Mis-Steak About it, Cross Roads Steak House is Mooooovin on up

I was Kickin it around town earlier this week remembering the days of going to the Pastime eating great food in that part of down town, old brick buildings, just something about it, so when I found out that Cross Roads Steak House was up and running in the Dacres Building with a lounge on one side, I had to go check it out..

they had basically just opened up this week without announcement so they could work the bugs out, but by today the word was out, happy hour drink and food specials was what I was looking for,so I grabbed an Ice Harbor IPA and had the Steak Bites. before my order arrived I thought "I wonder if it is going to be some cat terd looking crinkle steak like some places serve" and when it showed up, I instantly became totally stoked on what I was looking at, actual steak cut into nice bite size battered and fried to perfection served with basically house sauce, these tender bits of wonderful morsels of steak were very tasty and I wish I had a plate of them right now .. 

Now just look at those, you know you wish you had some right now. no knife needed, very tender, not a grease puff either. The Kitchen is set up for pumping out the food, steak house style

We also ordered a Cowboy Cobb Salad and it was not disappointing at all.

we sat in the bar area since it was happy hour and thats where people were gathering to have a good time, I saw new and old faces and they all were smiling

Cross Roads Steak House offers a Private Dining Area for special events and parties

very spacious open dining area with plenty of room 

I am really glad to see this restaurant move to a location that is more of their type of business, the old location was holding them back and wouldn't allow them to reach full potential and didn't feel like a steak house it felt like a cafeteria at a golf course.

 

If your favorite animal is steak, then this is the pet store! 

and on that note I will be Mooooovin on.. cheers - jody

Hey Cujini , Bada Bing!

So Im getting ready to fire up my brick pizza oven and Im thinking, I need some of the best ingredients available for my pizza's today, so there is only one choice and thats Cujini Import Italian Foods on 960 Wallula Ave, Walla Walla WA. This isnt just a cheese tray store, it is full service Italian food you can take home ready to eat! take it home, and make your own, they have all sorts of Authentic dishes frozen for you to cook yourself. 

They have Panini's, Ravioli, Carbanara, Rigatoni, Seafood Linguini, Lasagna, just about everyting you could imagine. they serve wine from Italy and Walla Walla. They make their own salami and import others.

The selection of cheeses are plenty, they will slice up how ever much you want right there at the deli counter

The food is hand made from old family recipes right there, if you want they will make you a cheese plate and you can sit out back and drink some wine on the covered patio while enjoying great conversation with your friends.. most of all are the meatballs they make, grab a bag, some pasta and sauce and you have the best dinner at home and your friends will be impressed.

Needless to say they hooked me up with some Pizza dough,
sauce and good toppings for my pizza's today.
 Until Next time, Salute' 

Lunch Craving abolished by Sweet Basil Pizzeria

You know how it is, when you just have a craving for a certain pizza, one you have had before and nothing else will do? Well...I'm talking about the Potato Pizza at Sweet Basil Pizzeria. Hand tossed right in yo face! These guys make

fresh made pizza dough daily, and the freshest ingredients possible in their salads and pizza's. this is not a greasy pizza, it is a thin crust style that has a very nice crunch to it. with toppings that are good for you.

There is parking on the street on first or behind the building and you can come in the back door and when you do, one of the best smells hits you in the face and that is fresh pizza in  the oven. you can buy it by the slice or by the pie, they have Great Beer on tap by Ice Harbor Brewing and they even sport their own signature beer "Basil Brew" plenty to choose from but I knew what I already wanted and that was the Potato N Cheese pizza with green onions all over it, had to have it, and it was the bomb. potato's are garden fresh thin sliced Yukon golds and red's. Now look at that.you just don't know unless you have one..

Sweet Basil Pizzeria is Located on

 5 South 1st Avenue,
Walla Walla, WA 99362-1903 

(509) 529-1950

They are right down town across from 

the coffee perk. they have Calzones 

and salads also..

See what others says about Sweet Basil Pizzeria 

You can check out their website for more information..

I give this place my seal of approval for places to go and eat in Walla Walla!

Family Atmosphere and Kid friendly. Until Next time ..Cheers - Jody