Sitting Fat and Happy: A Trip to Fat Cow

by Drew Broussard

After a crazy weekend including preview dinners for the James Beard House and viewing parties for Deep Fried America, team Bite and Booze decided that it was high time to for a "treat yo self" lunch filled with one of our favorite foods: burgers!

Following a little bit of deliberation, we decided that we would take our hungry stomachs over to Fat Cow on Highland Road in order to indulge on our beefy cravings. When I walked into Fat Cow, I couldn’t help but be impressed by their huge selection of burgers and burger styles. First off, you can choose a beef, chicken, mushroom, or salmon patty to be the base of your burger. Secondly, the sheer amount of specialty toppings and combinations you can top off your burger with is deliciously staggering. All in all, there are hundreds of flavor combinations that you could come up with.

Fat Cow on Highland Road.

While a good sandwich is the fundamental pillar for a burger joint, it always helps to be supported by some tasty side items. So, for the sake of food research, we got an order of parmesan duck fat fries, onion straws, and a “Banana Stand,” shake (Arrested Development, anyone?) to go with our meals.

Onion Straws go great on or with your burger!

When we got our food, we wasted little time enjoying our burgers’ juicy goodness. My Baja Burger was topped with pepper jack, salsa, avocado, banana peppers, lettuce and a smoked poblano pepper sour cream. The toppings were light and fresh enough to be perfect compliments to the patty. The acidity from the peppers really stood out, and my mouth was never scorched thanks to the sour cream spread. It's a great summertime burger.

Baja Burger is the perfect summertime grub.

Jay’s Wentworth burger took on a completely different flavor profile. His patty was topped with ham, brie, apples and a red onion marmalade. Those are some bold flavors to put on a burger, but the risk seemed to pay off. The melted brie and the sweetness of the apple made this burger so unique that you’d be hard pressed to find something similar to it in the area.

The Wentworth Burger will take you from the Mississippi to the Seine.

Chuck P., our Product Czar and Saucer of Sales, enjoyed the 120 Burger. This sandwich was strong with flavors, as it had gruyere, bacon, caramelized onions and a horseradish mayonnaise. Chuck seemed to really dig the mayo because it packed a punch! Combining that flavor with the gruyere helped transport this burger to the specialty category.

The 120 Burger brings it with Horseradish Mayo.

While all of these sandwiches have been pretty adventurous in the toppings department, Fat Cow still delivered with a classic burger staple. Chef Aimee Tortorich got a Smoke Stack Burger that she said nailed all of the key components. It had a good barbecue sauce, succulent bacon and crispy fried onions that did a great job of adding texture.

And while we all chowed down on the greasy goodness that was in front of us, Blair, our Chief Confusion Coordinator, took the lighter route as she enjoyed the Catahoula Cobb salad with grilled salmon on top. This is a bleu cheese-lovers dream, having both crumbles and a vinaigrette with bleu mixed in. Blair made note of how well the salmon was cooked, and that all of the flavors really complimented each other.

The Catahoula Cobb with Grilled Salmon is a bleu cheese lover's dream.

And of course we didn't forget about those sides! Fat Cow’s renowned duck fat and Parmesan fries did not disappoint. They were cheesy, savory, and just crispy enough. These guys were truly some top-notch fries. I'm getting hungry again just thinking about them. The onion straws were a great side as well. I found them incredibly addicting, as they were so thinly cut that you could keep on eating away at them. They were also a great little additional topping to my burger. The Banana Stand shake was another hit. While I didn't have much room left to sample a milkshake, Jay took the sacrifice and said that it was a solid summer dessert. It's hard to go wrong with a chocolate, cream and banana trifecta.

Parmesan Duck Fat Fries, need we say more?

It didn't take long for the fries became sparse, the sips turned slurps and we were reaching the end of our lunchtime burger-fest. After a few moments of silent digestion reflection, we all came away incredibly satisfied.

Regardless of toppings, we all commended the beef patty we had on our burgers. It was very juicy and had a steak like flavor that isn't present in your average burger. We also gave a nod to the bun, which we found to be slightly sweet and buttery enough to keep the sandwich from ever drying out. It might take about a week before I feel the rumbling pangs of hunger in my stomach, but I know that it won’t be long before I return to Fat Cow.

One more for good measure!

Live Oak Grill in Sugar Land, TX

Some good home cooking from a laid back joint is just what you need sometimes.  Nothing fancy.  No white table clothes.  No pretentious foodies barking about cooking sous vide or using molecular gastronomy (though I am a fan of those things).  Nah.  More like come on in darlin',  sit in a booth, and eat some Texas-sized deliciousness out of a deep fryer!  

My buddy Chad and I recently ate at the Live Oak Grill in Sugar Land, TX.  A lot of Sugar Land is overrun with massive suburbanization and the streets are lined with retail dining chains.  I remember growing up there and thinking that a lunch at TGIFridays was a good meal.  Oops.  Fortunately if you know where to look, even the cookie-cutter Houston suburbs have some good finds.  Live Oak Grill looks like it is in a house with a huge Texas flag painted on the roof.  Okay, maybe that's not so cool.  I mean, is that really necessary?  Well, maybe.  There's something interesting about Texas.  No matter what, they make no mistake about boasting that they are, indeed, Texan.  I feel a similar pride in Louisiana, but we haven't learned how to express it like they do in Texas.  The lone star that is hangs from walls and car mirrors is special.  It makes me vomit in my mouth sometimes, but it is special. 

Live Oak Grill in Sugar Land, TX

Chad's wife Ashley works at Live Oak Grill.  That's really why we were there.  Well, that and because they wanted me to eat there.  Naturally, since there was food involved, I obliged. I'm always willing take suggestions and dine at places that are new to me.

While the beer selection didn't lean towards too much craft stuff, they did have some good regional and local brews out of Texas like Shiner and Saint Arnold.  Can't argue with that.  I started my meal with some huge, delicious onion rings.  The massive Vidalias were cut thick, breaded, and fried... just like any good onion ring should be.  And they were indeed very tasty.  Soft, flavorful onion inside a crispy fried coating... yes!

Then came the main course: a gigantic chicken fried steak absolutely smothered in white gravy with a side of macaroni and cheese.  The steak came out with a crunchy exterior and full of flavor on the inside.  It had been pounded out and properly tenderized, that's for sure.  The gravy was a bit excessive, but also contained enough pepper to make it a delicious accompaniment to the juicy fried steak.  The mac and cheese lacked a little inspiration, but the basic noodles and cheese sauce still hit the spot.

For dessert, Ashley brought out a couple brownies with scoops of Blue Bell's homemade vanilla ice cream.  I love a good chocolate-vanilla, hot-cold combination!  Delicious!

All in all, Live Oak Grill is definitely the kind of place I enjoy dining at when I travel.  It is authentic, local down home cooking.  It is the kind of place with character and a soul.  I like that.  And I like a good chicken fried steak every now and then too!

Gulfport's Blow Fly Inn

A short time ago on a drive back from Birmingham with Jeremy Wells, author of the blog Faire Les Courses, I received an invite from Andy, of EatJXN anonymity, to meet him in Gulfport, MS for dinner.  Not being one to pass up a meal with a stranger and a chat about food blogging, Jeremy and I happily met Andy at Gulfport's famous Blow Fly Inn.  

Roasted Red Pepper Piminto Cheeseburger at the Blow Fly Inn

I'll get to the burger, which easily proved to be the highlight of the meal, in a few.  But first, a little tidbit about the restaurant.  The Blow Fly Inn is one of the more historic restaurants around Gulfport, Mississippi.  It got started around 40 years ago, but in 2005 it was completely wiped off the face of the earth by Hurricane Katrina.  Now rebuilt and better than ever, the restaurant gladly serves up Gulf food for the locals and travelers alike.  You can arrive at the Blow Fly Inn by car or boat, which is always enjoyable.

Our meal began with crab claws, onion rings, and a cup of gumbo.  The claws were rather meaty and nicely fried.  They weren't anything too special since I can get fried and sauteed crab all over the place in Baton Rouge, but they were still worthy of the name Gulf seafood.  The onion rings were plentiful and delicious.  The batter had some tasty seasoning and they dipped well in both ketchup and ranch.  I figured we were close enough to Louisiana that the gumbo would be worth a try.  While it may have been worth trying, I don't know that it was worth a whole lot more than that.  It had a typical restaurant texture and flavor which never blows me away.  Oh well... I still had a burger to enjoy!

The roasted red pepper pimento cheeseburger easily took home the prize for best thing I ate.  The pimento cheese added a unique flavor, but the beef itself really set the burger apart.  The half pound homemade patty sat tall on the bun.  Inside it had a pink medium rare color and plenty of beefy, juicy, goodness.  

I've seen some mixed reviews on the Blow Fish Inn as a whole.  My experience was above average for sure, though I'd have a hard time recommending anything that looks like a Cajun dish.  Do yourself a favor and make the short drive to Louisiana if that's what you want!  Still, there are some good things on the menu, a good story, and water access.  Enjoy!

The Blow Fly Inn at night

 

Bob's Burgers (Fatburger) in Las Vegas, NV

Thanks a Brunch Burger at Bob's Burgers (Fatburger) in Las Vegas, NV

I have to applaud the creativity of the marketing team responsible for this one.  As a campaign to promote the new animated TV show "Bob's Burgers" on Fox, they've temporarily renamed the old-school burger joint Fatburger as Bob's Burgers.  I happened to be Las Vegas this past weekend and decided that I ought to stop in and check it out!  I actually ate at Bob's Burgers on the day of its premier episode!  If you don't know what I'm talking about, you can watch a teaser clip here:

Fatburger in Las Vegas is temporarily Bob's Burgers

Bob's Burgers (AKA Fatburger) is an classic burger stand with some pretty decent burgers.  I ordered the "Thanks a Brunch Burger" which came with a fried egg and bacon in addition to all the other traditional toppings.  Naturally, I ordered mine without pickles.  I also opted for the homemade onion rings instead of the steak fries or thin-cut fries.  I'm pretty sure that decisions worked out for the best because the onion rings were mighty tasty.

Homemade Onion Rings with the Thanks a Brunch Burger

The burger itself was a little over 5 oz of beef (their medium sized burger).  It didn't have the lick-your-fingers kind of juiciness that I really enjoy, but the fried egg and bacon made up for the semi-dryness of the ground beef.  There's something about putting a fried egg on a burger, or any other sandwich for that matter, that really appeals to me these days.  Maybe it's just a fad... but I'm loving it (global fast food giant marketing slogan's pun intended).

Fatburger... I mean Bob's Burgers... sits right on The Strip for a cheaper meal option when you've had your fill of prime rib buffets.  While the burger, onion rings, and a drink still ran me over $10, I thought it to be worthy of that price, considering the location.

So the marketing plan got me in the door, and it made me want to watch the show.  The burger and onion rings were deemed worthy enough for me to write a post about them.  Now we just have to hope that Bob's Burgers is actually an entertaining addition to Fox's Animation Domination!

A Journey Across the River!!

While at the Baton Rouge Culinary Classic, Eusebio and I spoke to an older couple that RAVED about a place in Port Allen called the River Queen.  They talked about how great of an old-school, classic, greasy, shady burger joint it is and suggested that we make the trip.  For the next week or so I did a little research on food that is worth crossing the river for and decided that Eusebio and I needed to visit the River Queen Drive Inn and Pic-a-Pak Fried Chicken in Port Allen for lunch one day. 

We journied across the Mighty Mississippi and took the first exit off the bridge that leads directly into the hub of Port Allen.  Very quickly we came across Pic-a-Pak Fried Chicken, so we stopped on in for a tasting.

Four Piece Dark Combo at Pic-a-Pak Fried Chicken in Port Allen, La

Both being fans of delicious dark meat (on chickens, no fowl comments please!), we ordered a four piece dark combo that came with a couple small sides.  We chose the baked beans and potato salad which were both rather ordinary.  On the other hand, the fried chicken was worth noting.  Crispy and flavorful on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside, this freshly fried chicken was fantastic.  I'm a big fan of fried chicken and love going to Popeye's whenever I feel like shaving a few more days off of my life.  Popeye's is definitely the only national fried chicken chain that I will eat at.  It can often be difficult to find a good fried chicken (and I don't mean chicken tender) at local establishments, but Pic-a-Pak does it right!  It was not spicy (which is what I love about Popeyes, if you get the mild I lose respect for you), but for what it lacked in spice it made up for in freshness and flavor.

We left Pic-a-Pak and went a block down the road to the River Queen Drive Inn.  Yes, it is supposed to be spelled with two "n"s.  I guess the second one fell off much like the second "e" in queen.  It was a wonderful establishment with an outdoor walk-up ordering window, outdoor seating, and a small indoor area with video poker machines.  The River Queen really seemed like a glorified concession stand, and we found out quickly that that is exactly what it is.

The River Queen Drive Inn in Port Allen, La

I haven't been more disappointed in something since I started this blog other than possibly when I was fed red beans out of a can.  I think the expectations were built up so high and then our baloon popped but the boy wasn't hiding in a box in the attic.  Basically, we were expecting fresh, hand-made, half pound or larger, greasy, juicy burgers.  What we got was a previously frozen flat-top fried 6 oz piece of cheap ground beef.  :(  There is my sad face.  Really, I could have gone to Sonic and gotten almost the same thing.  It is not like the burger was bad, it just was so far below what I was anticipating that I felt cheated.  If you want a burger in the Baton Rouge area, please, go to Roul's, Cory's, Downtown Seafood, Riverside Patty, or one of several other joints.  Do not cross the river to go to the River Queen Drive Inn.  But, if you happen to be across the river, you might as well stop at Pic-A-Pak Fried Chicken!

Bacon Cheeseburger at the River Queen Drive Inn

All in all the trip over the river was a success.  We capped the lunch off with some peach cobbler at the River Queen which was the best thing we ate along with the onion rings.  The curly Q fries were typical.  We learned something about Port Allen on that day.  Pic-a-Pak=good, River Queen=bad.  It was certainly worth crossing the bridge to find out.