Hog Wild

4950 S 108th St.
402.991.4227
Sun-Sat: 11 am - 8 pm
http://www.hogwildpitbbq.com/

As I was in the process of eating/writing my review for Brazen Head, I came across this post on /r/Omaha, which is the unofficial official Omaha page on reddit. For the shortened version, someone who goes by CrayolaHead accidentally walked in during the soft open for Hog Wild, and unintentionally got a free meal that he quite enjoyed. So, I mentioned I would review it the next chance I had. That time is now.

First things first: this is the first chain I'll be reviewing. These guys are based out of Kansas, and this location is the first, from what I can tell, outside of their state. They are so new here that, at the time of this posting, their website doesn't even list Omaha as one of their locations. Also, this is the first drive through I'll be reviewing. Honestly, I've always thought a drive though BBQ place would work. It takes so long to cook the meat that you have to have it prepared to start the day anyway, all you would have to do is pack it and toss it out the window. Well, they beat me to it. Damn. Finally, regarding BBQ in Omaha: not that long ago I'd have said Omaha was sorely needing good local BBQ joints, at least ones without "Dave" in the name. Obviously, others have seen that opening as well, because there's been a small flurry of them opening up recently, including a food truck called "402 BBQ" that has garnered quite a bit of good ink. This can only lead to good things in the future.

Like most BBQ places, you walk up to a counter and place your order and pay. After that you wait a minute or two by the pop machine as they put your meal together, then they call your number and you go find a place to eat. The dining area is actually fairly large compared to some BBQ places, is brightly lit, has country playing all the time (its easy enough to ignore if you're like me and hate the stuff), and the walls are covered in picnic table tablecloth-style wall paper and photos of cows and pigs.

(Warning: incoming digression.) Regarding the music: maybe it's because I associate Kansas City with BBQ, but am I the only one who thinks BB King goes best with a rack of ribs? Regarding the pictures on the wall: its a bit disconcerting looking a pig square in the face when chowing down on some pork shoulder. And on a slightly related note, what is the fascination of having a happy pig as your mascot of a BBQ joint? Its a little macabre, is it not? Hog Wild is no exception here. (End of digression, thank you for your patience.)

I stopped by twice, as usual. Both times on a Wednesday at around 5-5:30 pm. The first day I ordered the three meat combo. I chose ribs, brisket, and the hot links, with cole slaw and potato salad as sides.

The tray is heavy and coated on top with a kind of rubber coating. You can easily see where I put the bread on it. Actually I can't get over the trays. They are really high quality. Like, seriously. I didn't know they made them like that.

These ribs were legit.

The spare ribs were awesome. I could easily pull them apart with my hands, which is good as the silverware I was given was of the plastic variety. They were amazingly tender, but they still held on to the bone. They were brushed with a sweet and mild BBQ sauce that paired very nicely with the strong smokey and salty flavors the meat held. Excellent stuff, this.

I was expecting slices of brisket, but I guess pulled will do as well.

The brisket was...okay. I can't complain about the technique in smoking it, for certain. It was very tender and moist, just like a good brisket should be, But the flavor was overwhelmingly of roast beef with a little BBQ sauce. Yeah, when I go out for BBQ, I don't expect pot roast.

I find it kind of odd they slice it for you like this. Not that I was offended, which is how the next sentence will sound: I felt like a six-year-old being served like that. 

Finally I dove into the hot links. When you bite into them, there's a good snap to the outside, and the sausage itself was very tender. They are doused in their spicy BBQ sauce (the "hot" in "hot links" I guess), which took me a little by surprise. It was good spicy, I just wasn't expecting it. By the way, its never been adequately explained to me: what kind of sausage is it when you order sausage at a BBQ place?

The sides were standard fare. The slaw was a generic cole slaw. The potato salad was no different than what you'd find at Hy-Vee, so good, but nothing spectacular. Each meal is served with two slices of Texas Toast from Rotella's buttered and grilled. I know its Rotella's because they have a sign saying as much at the register.

All told, between the meal, the drink, and taxes, my total came to $15.23.

The next week I stopped by I wasn't as hungry so I got the two meat combo. This time I ordered the pulled pork and ham; as sides, I got the mac and cheese and corn.

Its a beautiful thing.

I was really excited about this pulled pork, and the coloration of the meat was especially enticing.

I'm sorry to say the pulled pork suffered the same kind of fate the brisket did. Again, just like the brisket, the technique isn't what wrong: it was super tender and juicy. But all I tasted was roast pork. There was no smokey-ness to it. I didn't sense any BBQ rub bark that is a hallmark of good BBQ and I had to pour a ton of sauce on top to make it taste right. Maybe that's what they're going for, but I hope not.

Now I kinda regret not moving the front piece to get a good view of what the ham actually looked like.

The ham was excellent. Smokey, well brined, tender, salty, delicious. Get the ham. Like seriously, get the ham.

The mac and cheese was basically the same stuff you'll find at KFC, which I kinda like actually. At least a step up from Kraft. The corn was buttered and warmed canned corn. I was honestly expecting a half cob like you'd find at Long John Silver's and was kinda disappointed I was served canned. There are better choices on the menu, so stay away from the corn.

With the meal, drink and taxes, my total came to $12.48.

It just occurred to me that I've gone this far in a review of a BBQ restaurant and I haven't really talked about the BBQ sauce. Hog Wild offers two kinds: a mild and a hot. They are essentially the same sauce, but one is spicier than the other. They're not world beaters, but they are still very, very good. On the sweet side, thick, smokey, tomato, and vinegar. Excellent stuff, here.

I think these guys will have some staying power in the long run, but they need to improve a few things. They're in an accessible part of town with a lot of businesses around that should be tired of burgers and Valentino's by now, so they'll do just fine. Give these guys a shot. You don't even have to get out of your car to do so.

Brazen Head

319 N 78th St
402.393.3731
www.brazenheadpub.com
M-W: 11-1pm
Th-Sat: 11-2pm
Sun: 12-1pm

Brazen Head has always kind of been an odd place for me. It was a popular hangout for my college buddies, but when we were there, we were always the youngest in the crowd. Which is not to say they cater to those over 60, certainly not, but I also kind of felt out of place a little.

Anyway, I quite like the place. They've done a very good job giving it an authentic pub feel: wood floors with tile inlays, heavy wood tables and chairs, comfortable and cushy booths, lots of Irish and English beers on tap, and nice and low mood lighting. The fist day I visited I stopped by with ten minutes left in happy hour, so it was busy but not crowded, and loud with large groups hobnobbing after work.

That day I ordered the happy hour spinach artichoke dip, and the County Cork Boxty, which came with either soup or salad. I chose the soup as it was chilly that day.

I only found out the dip had that red tint to it after I took the picture; it was so dark in the restaurant otherwise you'd never know.

The spinach artichoke dip was spectacular. Creamy, hot, full of flavor. I wish they didn't put chips in it when they served it, though, as it made the part of the chip that was in the dip soggy and soft. I'm, well, not sure what else to say about it, really. It was really, very good. By the way, since I got the happy hour version, I got a smaller version of the real size, which is also served in a bread bowl. I'll have to bring someone with me next time to tackle that one. 

Cheese soup is a cure-all in cold weather. Why are we not studying this fact?

The soup came out quickly. It was smooth, creamy, and a little bitter in a good way. The paper lace doily on the plate was pretty, easily missed, and completely unnecessary. I love that touch. Get the soup here.

If you don't enlarge this, you'll think I took an okay picture. So, um, please don't enlarge this.

Finally the boxty came out. "What's a boxty?" you may ask. Basically, take a potato pancake, put some stuff on top, fold it over, and pour a sauce on top. Done. Irish comfort food. The one I ordered, the County Cork, is filled with crab meat, asparagus, and Havarti cheese.

Go ahead and enlarge this one, I did well here. 

I loved this. Sweet crab meat, still-crunchy asparagus, both of which swimming in melted, velvety Havarti is already an awesome combination, but put that into a dense, fresh potato pancake and cover it with their cream sauce and you've got a winner. This is serious comfort food.

With my happy hour beer, food, and tax and tip, my total came to about $25.

I visited a week later, this time with plenty of time in happy hour. I was so early the place was pretty dead. By the time I left, however, it was starting to pick up. This day I ordered a plate of the happy hour Irish Nachos and the fish and chips.

I'm not sure what made these nachos "Irish." Maybe because the cheese was only cheddar, and nothing Mexican? I don't know, your guess is as good as mine.

I'm not sure what compelled me to order a Tex-Mex dish at an Irish pub, but I did and here we are. They were surprisingly delicious, however. Don't let the picture fool you, that is not the nacho cheese you find at the stadium, that is actually very melty cheddar cheese on top. When I pulled a nacho up, the cheese stretched and broke like the real deal. The beef was well spiced, there were enough jalapenos, and it included other nacho plate staples. A definite good little plate of nachos. Again, I ordered the happy hour version. The normal version is apparently bigger. I couldn't come close to finishing this, so the real one must be gigantic. As a side note, I'm not sure what would be on a plate of Irish nachos to make them truly "Irish." Maybe potatoes, cabbage, or mince meat. Ew. I'm glad they stayed away from that.

The waffle fries were very, very welcome.

So I went from "Irish" nachos to something a little more traditional on that side of the pond: fish and chips. I got three generous cod fillets on a bed of waffle fries. I was served with a tangy and very thick tartar sauce that would not surprise me was made in house. Unlike the last time I had fish and chips, at Sean O'Casey's, these fillets were fried correctly and not over done. The thick batter soaked up all the malt vinegar I cared to put on, and somehow still stayed a little crispy. The fish was flaky, tender, and perfectly done.

As for the fries, they were very well done. I know that french fries are one of those things that people can have very particular ideas about. Now if you were to ask me what type of fry I like, it's a very close race between shoestring and waffle. I think the best fries in town can be found at Broncos, so it should be easy to figure out that I like my fries a little limp. But I can completely understand why people would like a nice, crispy french fry. If you are in that boat, then get your fries here. They're crazy good.

The only thing I disliked about this dish was how it was served. I had a very hard time cutting and stabbing the fish with my fork because the fillets were over the fries. I could have used another plate.

Again, on this day, I could not finish my plate. Lots of food here. It would be very easy to have to waddle out the door.

All told, with the two bottles of  Dr. McGillicuddy's root beer, the food, and tip and taxes, my bill came to about $30.

Garden Cafe

11040 Oak St.
402.393.0252
M-Sun: 6 am - 8 pm
http://gardencaferockbrook.com/

This is the first place I've reviewed that I've been to before. Well, sort of. Back in the 90's, there was another Garden Cafe in Millard, right off of 144th and Q. While I was in grade school, my mom and I used to go there about once every 3-5 weeks. I came to love the Acapulco potato casserole, and my mom would (almost) always order the French Dip. And whenever we left, we'd bring home a loaf of monkey bread or cinnamon bread (which, at the time, I wasn't really a big fan of). After a short conversation with my mother, we decided it's been about 15 years since that location shut down, and we never went to the Rockbrook Village location afterwards, which I always thought was a little odd, as 108th and Center isn't exactly too far out of the way, especially with the Interstate right there.

Anyway, I was kind of excited for a little bit of nostalgia when I decided upon the Garden Cafe, especially after doing some research (read: Googling their name) and finding they still serve the Acapulco potato casserole. As it was cold for a late March Wednesday (in the 50s), a home-y casserole sounded even better,

It was fairly early when I arrived, before 5:30. so there wasn't much activity going on. The inside of the restaurant is very bright, in contrast to my last review, and is supposed to bring to mind a backyard family get together/outdoor cafe. There's a gazebo in a corner, the half walls that separate the booths that run down the middle are reminiscent of a wood fence, the doors to the supply rooms look like the doors to a garden shed, etc. Just as I remember it, but laid out differently. It felt like 1998 again, in the best of ways.

The first day, I ordered the Acapulco Potato Casserole (of course!) and a cup of the soup of the day, a Cheese Tortellini soup.

I actually kind of love the cup it was served in.

My server just told me the name of the soup, so I had no idea if it was a creamy soup or like, I dunno, an Italian Wedding soup or something. When he brought it out, I quickly found out it was essentially a tomato bisque with cheese tortellini. It was creamy, cheesy, and the chunks of tomato floating throughout added a good mount of body. I loved this soup.

I'm not sure why it looks so small in this picture, it was much bigger than this.

Perhaps because I had the nostalgia goggles on, I seem to remember the Acapulco being a lot better than what I was served, because quite honestly it doesn't look any different than what I remember. Maybe its because I didn't have salsa. Not sure.

Now, if you can't tell by the picture, this is essentially a plate of nachos, but with slices of potato instead of tortilla chips. They dowse the potatoes with their chili, melt some cheese on top of that, add a dollop of sour cream, and garnish with tomatoes and olives.

It wasn't bad by any stretch. In fact, it was decently good. But I should have asked for some salsa, and I was definitely blinded by nostalgia.

With the soup, casserole, the iced tea I ordered, and tip and tax, it all came to about $18.

The next time I visited was the following Tuesday, and like any good Omaha spring, the temperature wildly swung to the upper 80s. It was a little later this time when I arrived, about 6:30. This time around I ordered the spinach artichoke dip and the Garden Fantasy omelet with added bacon, because I'm an adult and I can mix things like that.

Don't be put off by how green it is, it was delicious.

The dip came out with five slices of freshly toasted and buttered thick cut baguette bread (if I said "Texas toast-style baguette" would I piss off both Texans and the French? Because that sounds like fun, actually). I'll be honest, what came in the bowl looked a little off-putting. It was very green, and it just didn't have the stereotypical look of spinach artichoke dip that I'm used to. I had very few good expectations for it. I was very wrong.

I'm not sure what about the dip that I liked so much. It doesn't have the cheesiness that I'm accustomed to, Although creamy, it wasn't near as smooth as I normally like it. There was just something about it that worked. Also, the big, visible chunks of artichoke were very nice.

This is a blog of firsts for me. The omelet is also the first breakfast item I've reviewed.

The Garden Fantasy omelet is, unsurprisingly chock full of veggies. Here's how the menu describes it; "This omelet is filled with fresh steamed seasonal vegetables, onions, fresh tomatoes, mushrooms and artichoke hearts, then topped with monterey (sic) jack cheese and hollandaise sauce." I had them add bacon to it as well.

The eggs were probably the fluffiest I've had since the last time I went to KC and had a Waffle House omelet. I loved all the veggies inside the thing, as well. I certainly did not regret adding the bacon, which put it over the top. This was a Top 5 omelet.

With the dip, omelet (bacon was extra), pop, and tax and tip, my bill came to about $20.

I should add that both days I took home a sample of a pastry, and I didn't take a picture of either one, because why would I? I'm only going to talk about them on my blog.

The lemon bar was probably a little too sweet for my taste, but the zebra brownie was as good as I remember it.

Costa El Sol

4456 S 84th St
402.596.1978
M-Sun: 9:30 am - 9 pm
http://costaelsol.com/ (Warning: music will play.)

The hole-in-the-wall. That legendary phrase that usually means amazing, authentic, and without frills. I think Costa El Sol fits that description fairly well.

When I first decided upon this place I had an image in my mind of a Mexican restaurant like, I dunno, Romeo's but with actual Mexican food. What I got was very different. I visited the first time on a very cold and blustery February Wednesday, at about 5:30. There were a few people in a few of the booths, and I was definitely the only white person there. I sat at a very small table facing the only TV in the room, which was playing Univision on mute. There was R&B, sung in Spanish, being played loudly over the speakers, which was eventually turned down a little bit, and was made a little more bearable, The walls were brightly pained, each in their own color. Its a very good thing they had bright colors on the walls, because with as dark in the restaurant as it was, anything else would have turned the room into a dungeon. At some point through the meal, I realized that although the room was carpeted, I was sitting at a table on tile. Then when I looked up, I saw track lighting that wasn't turned on and a small disco ball almost directly above me. I was sitting on a dance floor. They must have dances every once in a while.

So to sum up: I was the only white guy there, I don't speak a lick of Spanish and there's Mexican TV and R&B playing, I'm on a dance floor, and I don't like to dance. I'm pretty out of my element. Then I look at the menu. This place isn't just a Mexican joint, these guys do Salvadoran as well. In fact, the menu is mostly Salvadoran. I've never had Salvadoran. Okay, I'm really out of my element.

Well, where to start? What the hell is pupusa? "Stuffed tortilla?" How do you stuff a tortilla? Isn't that a quesadilla? You can get them at $2 a piece, so why are they not on the appetizers section? Hmm, Lots of soups. On a day like that day was, soup might have been a good idea, but at nearly $11 each, they must eat like a meal, and I wanted something other than soup only. (By the way, I didn't get one either day, but if you've been looking for Cow's Feet Soup, these guys have it.) What the hell do I do?

That day I settled on a pork and cheese pupusa, and a carne asada plate with rice, lettuce, cheese, and avocado.

Also, before I start to get too into the review, I should mention this: there is only one thing I dislike about doing this blog, and it's taking pictures of my food. I always feel like, well, "that guy" when I do, and I especially hated doing it here, because I already stuck out among the clientele. So for the first few pictures from the first day, I took pictures without flash which means they'll be kinda dark, as there wasn't much light to begin with. I had to bite the bullet for the steak, though, because the first few pics came back looking like a black blob. The second day I was seated near a window, so there was plenty of light. This is a long way of saying "Sorry the picture suck."

I'm sure I've seen that bowl the salsa came in before. There must be a local place that sells these to the area Mexican restaurants.

Both days I was given a small bowl of chips and salsa. The chips were always warm and unsalted, and of the flour variety. I would not be surprised if the chips were made there. The salsa tasted fresh as well, but it wasn't anything to write home about. Fairly standard fare here.

The cheese oozed out. This can only be a good thing. Also, huh, so that's how you stuff a tortilla.

Next came my pupusa. At first, I was just given what you see above, so I looked at it, put together a plan of attack, and dove right in. Then my server came back with something you're supposed to put on top.

OH GOD I DID IT WRONG. FORGIVE MY GRINGO-NESS.

The cup was filled on one side with, well, cole slaw, and the other with a red sauce. I'm not sure, but I think it might have been more of the salsa. So I dumped the contents on top.

It was good plain, and amazing with the topping. The cheese, which was a white Mexican cheese (actually, now that I think about probably Salvadoran cheese) of some ilk, was creamy and chewy, and the pork that was mixed in was tender, moist, and very well seasoned. The cheese and pork mixed together to create a creamy, porky slurry. The slaw offered a fresh, cool crunch and the sauce brought a bright, slightly spicy note. Where have pupusas been all my life?

Does this picture actually tell you anything?

Ah, flash. Much better. Good amount of char on this baby.

                             

Next came the steak. The menu never stated what cut of steak I was getting, so I'll assume it's a sirloin. The steak was tender and very juicy, which kind of surprised me because they were cut so thin, about an inch thick, and they were irregular in shape. I say "they" because I got two chunks of beef. The rice was not the "Spanish rice" I was expecting, but a slightly seasoned white rice with a small amount of peas and corn mixed in. The lettuce, or "salad," was shredded iceberg with tomatoes, radish and cucumber. I was served about a half an avocado's worth of avocado meat, and a large chunk of, again, unidentified white cheese.

A little on the cheese: it was a solid, crumbly dry cheese. It reminded me of feta, but dryer and less intense in flavor. I broke off small chunks and ate it with other parts of my meal.

I was also served two tortillas, the likes of which I've never seen. Very obviously they were made there, because they were the thickest, chewiest tortilla I've been served, perhaps a quarter inch thick. They didn't really made for good impromptu tacos, as all I really tasted was the tortilla itself, but was excellent for sopping up juices and the like on my plate.

Not really knowing how to tackle something like this, I ended up cutting the steak into small chunks and placing a bit of steak on some tortilla I ripped off with one or two of the other things on the plate. So a bit of steak with rice and avocado, or with cheese and radish, or rice and cheese, or cheese and avocado, etc. Everything I combined was amazing. This meal was the real deal.

With an iced tea, tip and taxes, it all came to about $19.

The next time I visited was the next Tuesday. It was a earlier in the day, about 2:30 when I walked in. There was just one other group there, two men. I think they were on break from one of the area businesses. This day I ordered another pupusa, the taco and enchilada combo plate, and an horchata.

This was the whitest I've ever seen horchata. I was kinda worried it would be a little flavorless. I was very wrong. Good stuff.

Horchata, for the uninitiated, is a sweet, cold drink that in Mexico is usually made with rice, cinnamon and some other spices. Very good stuff on a hot summer day. A little research shows Salvadoran horchata is made with something called morro seeds, and not rice. From my previous experience, it would not surprise me if this is a Salvadoran version, because this tasted a little different than what I am used to. Certainly not in a bad way. This was very good.

Those beans look crazy good because they are crazy good.

Oddly, my main course came first. You get a choice of what kind of meat you want in your taco and your enchilada. I chose a cheek for my taco, and carne asada for my enchilada. The taco was small and very, very crunchy. The only other time I had ordered cheek meat was at a hole-in-the-wall Mexican joint in Grand Island, some 10-12 years ago, and it left me with a very good impression. I was excited to try it again, and it didn't disappoint. Cheek meat is among the most tender part of the pig, and a little greasy, but in the best way possible. The taco was excellent. The enchilada, on the other hand, was a little lacking. The meat was just as good as I had the other day, but it was just wrapped in a tortilla and covered with a little bit of red "enchilada sauce." The sauce was okay, but with everything else the menu offeres, just stay away from the enchies.

It came with the same rice as before. Very good stuff. The beans were porky and runny. I'm sure there's better beans in Omaha, but I haven't come across them yet.

Hmm, separate bowls this time...

This time the pupusa I ordered was with cheese and loroco. Again, a little research shows loroco is a flower that is native to El Salvador, and its flower buds are a traditional ingredient in many dishes, including pupusas. The best description I found was they offer a "green flavor", and as undescriptive as that is, it's probably the most accurate.

See those green bits on the left? That's loroco.

The cheese was even chewier without the pork juices like the last one had, and I could barely taste the loroco. Although it was still very good, I'll stick with the pork ones.

With taxes and tip, Tuesday's order came to $12.60.

I came away very, very impressed by what Costa El Sol offers. Score another point for the holes-in-the-walls.

Ray's Original Buffalo Wings

5424 S 36th St (inside the Lemon Drop Bar)
402.884.5300
M-T: Closed
W-Sat: 11 am - 9 pm
Sunday: 12 pm - 7 pm
www.rayswings.com

All through January I had been hearing a radio commercial for the re-opening of this joint, a place that the commercial exclaimed was an Omaha favorite. I'd never heard of Ray's until these annoying commercials (I've heard this style of commercial before for another company, where the story is told through an inner monologue that repeats what the outer monologue says, but in a "funny" voice; it must be a stock "script" one of the local media companies has for commercials they produce; if you are a business owner looking to advertise, please avoid this style. All that said, it worked on me - I walked into the joint) and with the claims they made there, I decided to give it a shot.

I did a little research and found that they were, in fact, a pretty popular place in the 1990s, somewhere around the 96th and Q area (OWH, 11/6/14) but was closed because life and all that entails happened to the owners. Now they're back up and running in a quintessential South Omaha Neighborhood bar.

The set up there is not your usual one: you place, pay, and later pick up your order at a counter that is at the end of a short hallway behind the bar. I put in to-go orders two different days for lunch because the Lemon Drop Bar is quite literally only 3 blocks away from work; a quick jaunt through St. Mary's cemetery (to avoid Q Street) and I was there. The bar itself is rather small, with a pool table right in front of the front door, a well adorned bar (liquor-wise) but with only four beers on tap. It was quiet, but this was a particularly late lunch. This place definitely caters to locals, but this being South Omaha, you don;t have to be a local to be welcomed in. I was treated like a regular by (who I'm assuming was) Ray himself.

The first day I ordered 18 traditional medium wings (way too much, even for me) and the second day I ordered the fried mushrooms and The Big Mike Jr. burger (again, still too much, even for me).

Big and meaty stuff, here.

I picked the medium spicy wing sauce so I could get a good bearing on where they stand on the heat scale in general. I can, in fact, handle super spicy foods, but I usually opt for less spice because I don't like spicy for the sake of spicy. In other words, if all I taste is heat, then what's the point? I want the spice to contribute, not dominate. The medium sauce did just that, and the wings were big and meaty as well, which helped me stomach the $1/per that they charge. I also very much appreciate that they fry their wings naked, that is, not battered or coated like a certain bawdy chain that semi-recently left Omaha. There were but two regrets: I was only afforded one cup of dressing (for 18 wings?) and the wings themselves just weren't quite crispy. I'll chalk that last complaint to being doused in sauce and being served takeout. All in all, they were very, very good wings, and in an area of town that is in serious need of them.

A classic bar food I have a hard time passing up.

That next Sunday I was filling in for someone at the bakery making the bread, so I had plenty of time while it rose to test Ray's again. Fried mushrooms are one of those classics that will always order if I see it, which if you remember from a past review also includes Spinach Artichoke Dip. Fair warning: you'll see plenty of both of these classics being reviewed here; think of them as common barometers by with to measure different places. Ray's fried mushrooms are solidly good. They had a thick, crunchy shell outside that nicely held inside all the mushroomy juices which render out while being cooked. The shell was seasoned well enough to taste like something, but not enough to overtake the mushroom. Again, though, just one cup of ranch to dip them in. By the time I was finished here, I was almost full, but since I had a burger to taste as well, I soldiered on. These are definitely enough to share.

Kinda wish I grabbed a plate to put this on so you could see it better. It looked much more appetizing in person.

I ordered the Big Mike Jr. Burger as my main meal. Since the description for this says, essentially, "half the size of the regular," here's what the regular, The Big Mike Burger, reads like on the menu: 

2-8oz Burger patties, 2 slices of Pepper Jack Cheese, 4 slices of Jalapeno Bacon all topped with Sautéed Jalapenos, Lettuce, Tomato, Onion and homemade Sriracha Aioli

A half pound burger is plenty enough for me. When I put the two halves together, I was presented with this:

Sans the dollar bill; that's for scale. I wish I got a buck for every burger I put together.

If I learned anything about Ray's, its that you won't walk away hungry, but you might waddle away asking why you look those last five bites.

This burger packs a lot of powerful flavors, and very surprisingly, they all played very well with each other. The bacon was crispy, the burger was well seasoned, the cheese melted well, and all the spicy elements certainly let you know they were there, but didn't overwhelm the entire thing. This is a solid burger, and I'd love to meet the one who can polish off a regular Big Mike Burger.

All in all, Ray's is legit bar food. The wings are excellent. but you should not eschew the rest of the menu. They are a little expensive (with taxes and all, it was over $20 for 18 wings, and my burger and mushrooms came to just under $18 - remember, this was without a drink for either ticket), but you will walk away with an excellent, excellent meal.

Union Pizzeria & Sports Bar

3636 N 156th Street, Omaha, NE 68116

402.614.2755

Sun.-Th: 11am-10pm

F-Sat: 11am-11pm

http://www.unionsportsbar.com/

If you read my previous post, you'll see that I wanted to visit I Don't Care, but found out they went out of business then found out too late that they reopened. Well, I visited I Don't Care and found out they're a straight bar now, and they no longer serve food. Nearby, however, was a sports bar I've eyed for a while, so I took the opportunity to visit.

Union is a fine mix of DJ's Dugout and Mama's Pizza in atmosphere and food. There is a small arcade-like area to the right as soon as you walk in, and a dart board in the room proper to the left of the bar. The walls are surprisingly barren of sports memorabilia, save for a Doug McDermott jersey, a Creighton Bluejays neon sign, and a few CWS posters; but the TVs were plentiful, and even on this January Wednesday, it was still fairly busy. I was joined by my mother this time, and she was pretty happy with the atmosphere. She particularly liked the volume levels of the TVs: not too loud that you have to yell to talk to your tablemates, but loud enough to follow the action of the game.

We each ordered a salad, we got the fried ravioli as an appetizer, and my mother got the Chicken Parmesan Sandwich and I got a personal sized The Mobster pizza. All told, with drinks and tip, we were in the $40 range

Ugh. 100% iceberg.

When the salads appeared, we were greeted with a vegetable-rich bowl with iceberg lettuce. Well, at least the veggies looked and tasted fresh. The tomatoes were actually good, too. My mother loved the fact that the bowls were ice cold. I dunno, the salad was small but okay. At least my ranch wasn't Hidden Valley and my mom's Italian wasn't Kraft.

Fried pasta? Fried pasta!

Our basket of fried ravioli came next. We got a mix of beef raviolis and cheese raviolis. The breading was crisp and well cooked, and they didn't feel or taste greasy. I first bit into a beef one, and I was inundated with a stream of hot, erm, fluids that briefly burned my tongue. This happens to me all too often on these types of things, and I never remember to cut them in half first. My suggestion: cut them in half first. The beef ones were fine, though the meat was unremarkable. The cheese ones weren't what I had in mind when I ordered them. I thought they would be more ricotta filled than anything, but these were much more gooey than that, like a mozzarella mix of some kind. They were better than the beef ones, in my opinion.The marinara certainly wasn't the worst I've had, but they won't be winning any awards with it either. The good thing about it was it wasn't awash in basil, which seems to be a problem around these parts. Basically, it was passable, which was good, because we were about to be served a lot more of it.

Gooey sandwiches are the best sandwiches.

I didn't have any of the Chicken Parmesan sandwich, so I'll tell you what my mom told me: Really juicy, and well seasoned. It was pretty thick, however, like it hadn't been pounded flat enough or at all, which made for difficult eating. The marinara was the same as what we got with the ravioli.

The Mobster: think Meat Lover's pizza, but with all Italian meats.

Just by looking at it, my entrée brought me back to my Book It! days and Pizza Hut's personal pan pizzas, which was both good and bad; good nostalgic memories, but what did that portend about the pizza itself? After one bite, I can say not a damn thing, because this was pretty good stuff. The Mobster's toppings include, according to the menu: pepperoni, prosciutto, salami, Italian sausage, and provolone cheese. And my, my, my, was there plenty of all of those.

Seriously, look at that pile of meat!

Don't let the height of the pie fool you; there is proportionally very little crust, and what crust there is isn't bogged down by grease or undercooked. It was solid and crispy to the last slice. The marinara was, in my estimation, the same as the ravioli's which actually worked well with all the spicy meats that was included here.

All in all, Union is a good little sports bar that caters to families. I can see myself visiting again in the future for some pretty legit pizza and a brew. Now, maybe if Creighton basketball could put together a good game for once this year...

Sean O'Casey's Pub

2523 S 140th Avenue, Omaha, NE, 68144
402.593.1746
M-Sat: 11am-close

Closed Sundays
http://www.seanocaseyspub.com/

I was driving through Omaha looking for a bar or pub to chow down on for this review because the place I wanted to visit, one I spied a few days earlier on about 150th and Maple called (and I am dead serious) I Don't Care, was closed for good. (Author's note: while doing a little further research, I found out the location I found is, in fact, open, but the previous location, about 108th and Maple, closed about 2012-2013, and this is the one that is reported throughout the internet. Guess I know where I'll be going soon!)

While driving east on West Center I noticed an Irish pub tucked into the same spot where Prima 140 used to be, a place I regret never trying before they shuttered. "Well," I thought, "if its as good as Brazenhead, then I'm in for a treat!" As I pulled into the parking lot, I was greeted by this:

Yes, I took this while leaving the lot, not as I was entering it, as the preceding sentence states. Sorry for the incongruity, but I didn't think about a taking a picture until I was sitting in the restaurant.

Again, this place is making it all too easy. If you think so highly of one of your menu items you're willing to put a "garage sale"-type sign in your front lawn proclaiming it to be the best, then I guess I have to try it.

The pub was split into two sections, a bar to the right and the restaurant area to the left. When I entered there on that Thursday at about 5:30, there was a large group of people having a good time at their table. At first I thought it was a family get together, but there weren't any children, so I thought that it was a business meeting of some kind. (I found out later from my server, who gave it up without prompting, it was a group of nurses.) There were two other groups of two sitting and talking at their table. The room is dark, with old whiskey barrels scattered throughout, and the walls were full of Guinness, Jameson, and other Irish drink advertisements. A large screen with SportsCenter projected on it dominated the northeast corner of the restaurant. Throughout the dinner classic rock like Led Zeppelin, The Doors, and Eric Clapton played loud enough to understand the lyrics but not to overpower any conversation you might have. I could get used to this kind of place.

This day I ordered the Three Cheese Spinach and Artichoke Dip, the Chili, and, of course, the Reuben.

I love me some Spinach Artichoke dip. If I see any variation of it on a menu, I'll probably order it. You'll see it a lot on the blog throughout time.

The dip was served piping hot with toasted French bread. For some reason, I was expecting the bread to be baked to the point of being a cracker, but I was pleasantly surprised to find out it was still soft, though definitely toasted. I'm not sure about the parsley that was sprinkled over everything on the plate, but whatever. There was a thick layer of cheese on top of the dip (I'm assuming containing at least two of the three cheeses). Once I broke through that, the dip was heavy on the cream cheese (the third?), and light on the spinach and artichoke. Maybe it was too hot to taste anything else, but the cream cheese dominated everything else inside. I don't know, maybe it needed a little more of everything. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't terrible by any means. I've certainly had worse, but I've definitely had better.

It was kinda cold outside, and I'd been craving chili for some time. When is arrived, it was very welcome.

Chili can cause fistfights between friends, or so I've heard. I have opinions on what makes a good chili (the best ones don't have beans; beans are filler that only serve to stretch the stuff for more people, and I think it can ruin the texture of the rest of the chili. Come at me, bro!). But I also understand that I'm not the only one who likes chili and other people have different thoughts, no matter how wrong they are. Plus, I love chili, so I'll give pretty much any chili at least one shot. I'll pass on that shot the next time I visit Sean O'Casey's. It had large chunks of ground beef, usually a good thing, but here they weren't seasoned well, or not at all. Also, it was thin. Chili shouldn't be thin. This chili had a broth, and that's kinda weird in my book. The broth was, however, surprising spicy. Not enough to knock you out of your chair, but in a "Really? Something spicy in an Irish pub?" kind of way. And what I'm about to say may make you laugh, but Sean O'Casey's scored big points with me with proper soup crackers instead of a package of saltines I would need to crush into the chili. Very good there.

Oooo, gooey.

When my server came with my Reuben, I got a little more than excited. I love me a Reuben. And Omahans like me don't take their Reubens lightly, this being the birthplace of the venerable sandwich. So I was interested to see the liberties taken with it (and chefs out there, take notes: take liberties with the classics!) Two things of note here: it is served club style, with three slices of bread, and the corned beef is in tender chunks, not slices. Do you see that chunk of meat that fell off just in front of the sandwich half on the left? As soon as I took that picture, I ate that piece to test it out. And it was amazing. Salty and tender, the rendered fat and connective tissue made the chunk melt in my mouth. I haven't had corned beef that good in years. But here's the thing, and this is something thought I'd never find myself saying: there was too much of it in the sandwich. Or, conversely, there wasn't enough of the other ingredients. I could kind of tell there was some Swiss cheese, but the Thousand Island dressing and sauerkraut, usually two things that are quite capable of standing up to other flavors, were completely drowned out by the beef. Also, the double decker-style made the already-difficult-to-eat sandwich even more messy and uncontrollable. I can definitely see why some people would like this sandwich, but I'll keep looking for Omaha's best.

The tab, including tip and a pop, came to just over $25. The service was kind of slow, but there was just one poor server helping the entire room, and that big group of nurses seemed a bit demanding. I figured it would be much better the next time I visited.

That next time was on a Tuesday, at about the same time as the last. And sure enough, the service was much better. This time I ordered the pub classic Fish and Chips and a cup of beer cheese soup.

Again with the soup crackers. Good stuff. And again with the parsley. Weird.

The soup was good. Not ground breaking, but certainly not inedible by any means. I was hit a bit by the bitter taste of the soup. I'm not sure if it was the cheese or the beer, but it was slightly bitter. Also, is it weird to think the shredded cheese on top was a bit much for cheese soup? Because I think it was a bit much. Maybe bacon pieces if you want dress it up? Just a thought.

This picture was washed out a little bit by the flash, but I needed it in that dark room. The fish was a much better looking brown when it arrived.

I was given two fairly large fillets of cod. The first was sadly tough and over done. I could tell there was an area where the oil and gotten through the batter and started to fry the fish directly. Cod should not be leathery. But the second fillet was much better, with the meat soft, flaky, and not overcome with grease. The batter was good, though not the star of this show. I would give that crown to the tarter sauce. I'm not entirely sure, but I would not be surprised if this was made in house. The sauce was not overly sour with too much pickle, and the addition of dill was a very nice touch. The chips were thick steak fries that were very lightly salted, which means I was overcome with potato with each bite. A lot of malt vinegar and ketchup helped. 

With the pint of beer I had (on Tuesdays, all draughts are $3, including Guinness) and tip, my tab came to just over $21.

Overall, I'll be searching for better Irish pubs in town, though I may show up again on a Thursday, where the special is Corned Beef and Cabbage. That may be the diamond here.