Food Falls, Scarf Dakota

Argus Leader RibFest: Where EVERYONE is a champion

You couldn’t find a more feel-good, everyone’s a winner event than the Argus Leader RibFest if you were surrounded by third-grade soccer leagues. It seems every participant is a champion, every rib/rub/sauce a ribbon-winner, even if it’s participatory.

But that doesn’t mean some vendors aren’t better than others, and one better than the rest.

In this case, I’m throwing my support behind Willingham’s World Champion Bar-B-Que. If you go to the ALRF, this is the place to wait in line.

Two reasons:

1. Their ribs are the best of the bunch. Don’t be fooled by the goopy, glistening offerings from the majority of vendors; the Willingham’s Memphis Dry Rub is where it’s at. Balanced, spicy, tangy and smoky, these ribs were far and away my favorite of the bunch.

2. They also have the best beans. Meaty, smoky and oddly refreshing between rib tastings, these were better than the more aesthetic dishes from competitors.

This is important information.

RibFest, while a hugely-popular gathering of humanity, is expensive. Plates of BBQ, beers (or other beverages) and entry fees will field a cost comparable with some of our city’s finest dining.

That’s not to say it is not worth it, just best to choose wisely.

Choose Willingham’s, and you won’t be disappointed. (Saucy alternative: Porky ‘N’ Beans)

Food Truck update: Look’s Market

Look’s Market’s new food truck will be serving up food next Friday, June 8, down at the Grand Opening Celebration for Phase One of the River Greenway project.

More on this later, but I’m super stoked to see what Executive Chef Farzad Farrokhi, formerly Head Chef at Grille 26, and his team come up with.

Ventures east and west: Who knew Cherry Creek and TC’s had same menu?

Embarrassingly, I was probably the last person in the city to know this, but I JUST found out TC’s Referee and Cherry Creek Grill were owned by same folks. One could guess this by the matching menus save a cherry logo for specials at the Grill, and a little referee at TC’s.

I found this out this week as I’ve been trying to push the geographical boundaries over which I can claim gluttonous dominion. Or, as I prefer to look at it, trying to get outside the city’s core and eat new things!

I’d been to TC’s many times before. I dig the atmosphere there. It’s fairly open, usually noisy (but in the good, “This is my neighborhood restaurant/bar” sort of way), serves some good wings and tall beers. Plus, its just not nice to make your friends that live on the westside ALWAYS come into town to hang out, right?

I went with one of the specials, the “Big Bam Boom Veggie Sandwich” because it sounded good: breaded portobells, greens, tomatoes, onions, cheese on rye with “Big Bang Boom” sauce (a creamy horseradish and other mixture). When the server asked what I’d like for a side, I think I threw her by saying “Golden wings.”

Yes, I ordered a side of wings with my veggie sandwich. But I like them!

The sandwich was good, as was the “BBB” sauce, I just would have liked more of it; The sandwich was a little dry.

A couple days later, we shot over to Cherry Creek on the eastside. I’d never been there before, but by that point I knew they were the same owner as TC’s. I did not expect, however, the exact same menu. Sorta bummed, I ordered the Cajun Chicken Linguini, which came highly recommended on Foursquare.

The food was pretty good, super rich. Not nearly as spicy as I would like for a Cajun dish, but family dining places like this always tone down the seasoning to appeal to a broader palate. I didn’t finish my plate, but if that came in a half order for lunch, I could dig it again.

The scene, however, was not great. High divisions between booths/tables create a cubical dining experience. Much less friendly than TC’s. Also, the place was freezing. I am 100% certain my Grandma Myers would have bolted after 45 seconds. COLD.

Of the two, I’m clearly in the TC’s camp. And since the food is exactly the same, I’m probably one-and-done with Cherry Creek.

Where else should I go north, south, east and west? What am I missing? What’s your favorite spot?

Wiener Wagons, Rib Shacks, Curb Bellys and more: Sioux Falls gets into food truck craze

Ordering your eats from a brick and mortar restaurant is so dated. Or so one would think with Sioux Falls’ explosion of food options on four wheels.

It used to be you’d have to wait for some downtown festival for the specialty trucks to come out. No more. Sioux Falls is now, or will be soon, (motor)home to at least 8 food trucks. Here’s my running list:

The Rib Shack - Up on North Cliff Ave., I’ve heard nothing but good things about this place, though I’ve never been.

The Skipping Stone Pizza - Saturdays at the Falls Park Farmers Market. DELICIOUS.

Curb Belly - Had a good beef and smoked blue cheese sandwich and tater tot dish. Move around a lot. Locations usually put on Facebook. (Currently closed for repairs) Haven’t been there since the two guys running it split in to two trucks, Curb Belly and…

Curb Side Diamond - Anyone have a review for me?

The Wiener Wagon (pictured above) - A good, all-beef hotdog, chips and a drink for $6. Decent. In the Advanced Auto Parts parking lot on Minnesota Avenue M-F, downtown on weekend nights. And the owner is planning a second wagon for out at Marion and 12th.

Two more full-blown trucks are rumored to be starting up very soon, but have not been officially announced yet.

As with most outdoor activities, these places being open is subject to weather. Am I missing any? I’m sure I am; help me complete the list!

Massive heartburn, but they have ping pong: The Bogey’s Story

Right now I have a near debilitating case of heartburn from my lunch at Bogey’s Bar and Grill on the westside. I ordered the steak sandwich special with a bowl of their cheeseburger soup. The cheese soup base was quite tasty, and the diced pickles on top were crisp. It tasted like a cheeseburger, and a good one indeed. The steak sandwich was only okay, and I only ate half of it. A bit overcooked for my liking, but as I was leaving saw another man get his delivered and the waiter mentioned it was “under,” just how he liked it. So there’s that.

The menu did have a solid set of sandwiches and burgers that claimed the patties are made fresh daily. Can’t turn on Bogey’s too soon.

But, MAN! Is that soup coming back to hurt me. I mean, it actually hurts. Yikes.

It was all worth it, however, because I discovered Bogey’s has a ping pong table in the middle of the bar. That warrants a return trip with my friends familiar with the art of table tennis for beers and fun. I love ping pong!

I think I’ll be sticking to fries or a salad if I order food though. Maybe a burger.

Bros is consistently good, and they’ve got great beer too

I hadn’t been to Bros. Brasserie Americano in months, and was feeling sad about it. It was time to rectify this, and my wife’s recently-accepted new job was the perfect excuse to have a nice meal out, so we met downtown last Friday night for dinner and drinks.

Bros. is one of my favorite places in town for a date-worthy dinner. There are a lot of nice “fine dining” choices in Sioux Falls (Parker’s, Wild Sage, K, Minerva’s, Foley’s, Crawford’s, Grille 26 to name the majority) but I’ve long been drawn to the laid back feeling at Bros. The dinning room is split into two spaces, both of which are very open and on the louder end of acceptable. The staff wear t-shirts, and the kitchen is open, visible to diners. And with the large windows looking out onto Phillips Avenue, it’s welcoming, rather than the sometimes stuffy feel fine dining can come with.

That said, it’s the food, and the beer selection, that keeps me coming back. Friday, I had the American Raised Rosé Veal Chop w/ prosciutto and pine nuts (pictured above). Wow. That was a delicious piece of meat. In the past, I’ve tried everything from the pork belly, to duck tacos and handmade ravioli. All good; this place is consistent.

And with rotating taps with breweries like Grand Teton, Odell, New Belgium and Brau Brothers, it’s a great place for beer lovers.

Have you been to Bros.? What did you have? What was your experience?

Hidden in plain sight: JZ Bar and Grill

Walking to a bus stop with a friend one day after work, he pointed to the building I knew only to house the adult novelty shop ‘Studio One,’ and said he wanted to go there sometime. I shot him an odd look before on second examination I saw there were beer signs in windows and some signage up. It was JZ Bar and Grill. Or JZ Coffee Bar and Grill, depending on which sign you were looking at. I made note.

So earlier this week, when a chance for adventure struck, I ventured over with some friends after dinner to check it out.

The place was empty, long, narrow and odd. A dart board, regular-definition women’s tennis playing on a huge hi-def screen, beer advertisements covering the florescent ceiling lights, a few tables and then a large kitchen/coffee area to the right and a small Eastern European delicatessen in the back.

It was clear this was my kind of place.

The man behind the counter, Jess, was very nice and we all had some bottled beer as we walked around the grocery. Jess said the bar had been open for nearly seven years, but had just added the grocery months ago. Meats, boxed crackers, snacks and desserts abound.

Wanting to try something off the menu, we ordered a cheese pie (pictured above). Similar to a Greek spanakopita but without the spinach, I enjoyed this late-night snack, and I’d order it again. They also have a meat pie, which I’m told by my friend Terry is very good.

So if you’re into checking out oddly-located Eastern European digs, give it a go. Anyone else been there before?

National Eat What You Want Day

Today, May 11, is National Eat What You Want Day! Not really a big deal to me, since that’s pretty much my M.O. every day, but I never pass up a reason to celebrate either!

Neither should you. Let loose today and just eat whatever you want. It’s what our forefathers wanted when they declared this most-important of holidays. To eat a salad today would be un-American. Unless you WANT to eat a salad, in which case I applaud and weep for you.

Here at the Argus Leader, we’re starting with Daylight Donuts. Boom. Thanks JPK!

I love the Diner’s seasonal menu

It’s great when restaurants, venture away from the normal menu and offer up seasonal specialties. A few places in town do this, and one of my favorite’s is the Phillips Avenue Diner. Each month they have four to five specials, including a signature shake!

I tried the Sweet and Spicy Chicken Burger today, and it was okay. More sweet than spicy for my taste, and I think I’d like that chicken breast fried instead of grilled in this instance. BUT they also are serving up one of my favorite all-time dishes: Huevos Rancheros. I’m definitely heading back before the month is over to try that.

The diner has also added sweet potato fries to their menu, and these I can recommend. So often sweet potato fries are a bit soggy and limp. These were not, and had a nice coarse salt on them (you can see it in the photo!).

What is your favorite seasonal menu in town?