JOHNSON'S BBQ SHACK IS SMOKIN' GOOD!

Lining up for some tasty 'Que in Hamilton Town Center

My place of employment has recently opened a new location at the Hamilton Town Center in Noblesville.  Previous to this, I had never visited this shopping destination.  I'm really not a mall person, be it inside or outside, but this place is very nice and kind of entertaining when I think of it as a little "pretend" city!  The dining options here are limited to national chains, with a couple of exceptions which I'll review later.  A few weeks ago there was a Holiday Festival on a BEAUTIFUL Saturday afternoon.  As we were setting up out little promotional table out in the street, I was thrilled to see some food trucks pulling in.  I made the rounds and saw some interesting choices, but as the wind shifted my nose stood attention as the intoxicating aroma of BBQ smoke grabbed me by the nape of my neck and pointed me towards a Harley Orange trailer with a giant smoker protruding out the back end of it!  There were some stick-on black vinyl stickers on the side announcing some of their specialties.  And a fold out dry mark sandwich board announcing what was on the menu that day.  This mobile wonder is Johnson's Bar-B-Que Shack.  Owned and operated by two brothers and their lovely wives, this relative newcomer to the Indy Food Truck Scene is a very welcome addition.  Well over an hour before the official start of the festival, there was a line forming at Johnson's.  I was super curious how this BBQ would stack up against some of my favorites, so I jumped in line and, shortly there after, placed my order with Johnson brother #1.  Pulled pork is my litmus test for BBQ.  Their sandwich, with a choice of two sides, was $8.  A few minutes later the other brother that had been manning the smoking beast came out and handed my more than generously proportioned meal.  A small table was set up with a nice assortment of sauces, many of them homemade, but before adding any sauce I took a bite and was hoping for something special.  WOW, I was not disappointed.  Perfectly smokey, moist, and amazingly tender, with just the right amount of fat for that extra flavor kick but not greasy.  The sounds of ecstasy spewing from my vocal chords while my mouth was full and still chewing must have been very entertaining as my two co-workers watched with wonder and curiosity what all the fuss was about.  I explained how fantastic this sandwich was, having not even sauced it yet, and they soon hopped in line to verity my experience.  Not only did they agree, but while we were sitting there, savoring our meal,  I saw several people make an extra trip back to the truck to express their complete satisfaction.  Checking out their website, it appears as if Johnson's BB Shack is a regular at the First Friday Food Truck Festival an it looks like they do a substantial catering business as well.  It is that time of year when a kick ass smoked turkey or duck would be a great addition to the holiday spread!  ENJOY!

CAFETERIA WAR...MCL VS. GRAY BROTHERS.

 This is kind of a strange story, but the end result is an ongoing battle for cafeteria bragging rights in central Indiana.  Wow, do people have opinions about this, and I'm ready to join in.  It starts on a stormy night, no really, and none of us expected the night to end up this way.  OK, a bit of drama, sorry.  Myself and three friends had intended to go to a summer festival.  We got there and we had the dates wrong, so now the decision had to be made...where are we going to eat now.  Somehow the discussion got around to macaroni and cheese.  I tossed out that The Legend in Irvington had the best I have ever had.  Then Gray Brothers in Mooresville got some heavy promotion from the front seat.  When I revealed that I had never been there, the car just started off and 45 minutes or so later we were there.  We get there and there is a line out the door.  We wait and wait and wait, the line isn't moving much at all.  Once inside the building, yet more waiting, with wooden queues wondering back and forth like at Kings Island.  These appear to be as old as the building itself.  Watching people sit their diapered kids on them and slide them along wasn't helping my appetite.  I couldn't wait to get to the hand sanitizer.  While caught in this time warp I wondered to myself how this place was going to stack up to MCL.  My pal G. took out the smart phone and did some checking on Yelp and UrbanSpoon.   Lots of praise for Gray's mostly, and ups and downs for MCL.  As I'm reading them, I'm asking myself if these people had been to an MCL in the last 15 years, or have they ever even been there at all.  If this line ever gets to the food, I can't wait to give it a try.  FINALLY...the light at the end of the tunnel.  Salads start off the gauntlet.  Gray's:  mostly small bowls of pre-made offerings, and some jello as well.  I almost always get a tossed salad and I passed.  MCL:  Several salad nice choices that are pre-made (Cobb etc.) as well as two custom salad selections with a real person there to customize it with croutons, cheese etc.  Next up ENTREES:  I knew I had to get Fried Chicken, not just because everyone said it is good, but because I've had it countless times at MCL.  I got a three piece selection and some mac and cheese to go with it.  Looking at the other veggie sides, they all screamed CANNED.  MCL always seems to have one or two fresh veggies, either broccoli, green beans or corn on the cob in season.  The rest of them are also probably canned as well, but the fresh options are very welcome.  I finished off with some iced tea.  At the checkout there was no sticker shock.  It kills me when I mention MCL, the first thing people gripe about is the cost.  First off, this isn't the $3.99 Chinese buffet or Golden Corral.  Prices are clearly marked, and, DUH, if you order one of everything it's gonna rack up.  Same at Grays.  I didn't notice, but I'm sure Grays has specials. At MCL it's called a Mayfield plate with an entree and sides for a special price.  So if you're watching the $, check for the specials.  Once we got seated it was dig in time. It was two chicken vs. two fish at our table.  My first two chicken pieces were great, but my third piece had been sitting there for ever.  I am sure that if I would have mentioned it to any of the many servers walking around they would have gladly replaced it, so that' no biggie.  The mac and cheese was fine, nothing to brag about, a little soupy for my taste, but OK.  Even the M&C front seat braggers said it was a bit sub par.  I was offered a taste of the fish after neither of my friends seemed too thrilled about it.  Once again, it was OK.  What was fantastic was the potato side dish that G. had.  WOW....cheesey potato heaven.  I could have made a meal just out of that. The tea was fine, and was kept filled the entire evening.  But, if you haven't had it before, MCL uses an IRANI tea that is so clean and crisp, you'll wonder why you ever put sugar in your iced tea.  I didn't get a dessert, but sampled a couple of options.  Both were very good and obviously made in house.   I'm not a big dessert person, but I would say that Gray's would win by a slight margin. The cinnamon rolls at MCL are fantastic and only .99.  The VERDICT:  In my opinion MCL wins hands down.  If I lived out Mooresville way and had a group of people to try and satisfy, and they wanted to stand in a line for OK food, MAYBE.  The service at Gray Brothers was non stop, pleasant and thorough.  MCL isn't staffed as heavy in the dining room, but I cannot ever remember feeling ignored.  Dont hesitate to leave your comments.

 

PINK SLIME INVADES THAI RESTAURANT IN TERRE HAUTE

EXOTIC THAI
1295 S. 3RD STREET
TERRE HAUTE, IN 47802
812-232-8898

The ONLY reason I am writing this is so that some other poor souls don't fall into the,  "I wonder if that Thai place is any good?" trap.
The place is called Exotic Thai and it is in Terre Haute, Indiana.
I have relatives there and have driven by it many times wondering what it was like. When I checked on line earlier in the year there were mostly very positive reviews on Yelp and UrbanSpoon. So when my usual haunt (Sushi Umi Grill) wasn’t open for lunch, myself and a couple of friends decided to give it a try. YUK, YUK and Gag! Lunch specials come with a soup, kind of a mild chicken broth with some onion in it, that was OK. When I say OK I'm being very kind.  They also come with a small salad with a kind of thick sweet dressing that was also OK as well.  For my entree I got spicy basil noodles, A.K.A. drunken noodles or Pud Kee Mau elsewhere. These were very different, with egg noodles instead of rice noodles. It was pretty bland to say the least. But lets get to the best part, THE PINK PAD THAI! It looked like a slimy pile of vomit deposited on the plate by someone that had downed a bottle of Pepto Bismol after eating some noodles and a little bit of chicken. Despite my visual revulsion I tasted it and, WOW, it was just sickly sweet with no other apparent flavor other than nasty! It got sent back and they still tried to charge us for it, but they eventually took it off the bill. By the way it was ordered with tofu not chicken anyway!  After the fact, I did some more searching for what Jamie Oliver has now coined as Pink Slime, and found my digust for this place is not alone!

GREAT STEAKS AND MORE IN TERRE HAUTE AT J. FORD'S

J. FORD'S BLACK ANGUS
502 SOUTH THIRD STREET
TERRE HAUTE, IN 47807
812-235-5549

What is it about Terre Haute?  Every time I mention that 60 minute or so trip out west on I-70 to someone they get that "look" on their face.  I remember driving there to visit friends that had gone off to Indiana State University many years ago, remembering the "smell", and not the other fun times that were had.  Well thank you EPA, it doesn't reek anymore, and the place actually has some bright spots.  Get out of the city and there are lots of nice little lakes, and a couple of great golf courses.  They are re-vitalizing the downtown area with some new shops and restaurants and they have a world class Children's Museum.  Head north on 41 at I-70 a few blocks and you'll find J. Fords Black Angus, a fine dining oasis sitting smack dab in between two motor lodges and across the street from THE WORST THAI RESTAURANT that I have ever had the displeasure of visiting.  J Ford's, on the other hand, is a "worth the drive" dining destination experience.  Chef/Owner Jeff Ford was previously the head chef at the Country Club of Terre Haute and took the top prize in a competition against 11 other top country club chefs.  Jeff and his wife Kelly opened J. Ford's in 2007.   We had a reservation for a group of six, dining out to celebrate my niece's amazing dance performance on a weekend night and the place was packed.  We had a short wait and were seated in the main dining room.  There also is a private dining room for groups/special events that had some festivities going on.  The atmosphere is appropriately dark and has a 50's/60's sophisticated lounge vibe to it.  Sinatra and some of his fellow crooners provided some background music via the ceiling speakers.  It was probably just our location, but Frank and company could have been turned down a few db's to allow for more comfortable conversation.  I'm sure that if we would have asked they would have done so.  J. Fords offers a full service bar with a nice beer and wine selection as well.  The menu offers just the right number of appetizers, soups/salads and entrees to choose from, it would be nice to see a blow away creative vegetarian entree on the regular menu.  A nice size chalk board lists the evenings special offerings.  We started off with a smoked salmon "pizza" appetizer with a horseradish sauce that was out of this world.  Dinner salads were crisp and just the right size to prepare our pallets for the main courses.  My Mother enjoyed her Airline Chicken Breast with wings attached, ready for take off.  My niece devoured her tempura battered fish that was one of the specials.  My Brother chose the enormous bone in Cowboy Ribeye which was delivered perfectly medium rare as ordered.  J. Ford's beef comes fresh from Chicago's Stockyards, which also provides their fine products to lots of great Midwest restaurants including Indy's own St. Elmo.  How crazy is this, I'm in a Black Angus restaurant and I ordered seafood.  Not usually a good move, but when my Brother saw that the Sea Bass was one of specials offered he insisted I get it, plus he promised to share his steak.  WOW.  It was expertly cooked and served with a super flavorful sauce that complimented, but didn't overpower the fish.  The service was professional and attentive without being clingy.  Now let's get to the bottom line, so to speak.  The pricing is upper deck with entrees in the $24 to $42 range.  Considering the top notch service, atmosphere and superior quality of all the ingredients, that is money well spent.  A great place for a business dinner, date night or a special evening with friends and family.  Next time I will get the Pork Belly, which I couldn't take my eyes off of at a neighboring diners table.