ROSIE’S BBQ AND GRILLERY – PART II

ROSIE’S BBQ AND GRILLERY – PART II

 

“Ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what’s for lunch.”
― Orson Welles

8930 Corbin Ave

 
Northridge CA 91324 

 
(818) 349 3055

https://rosiesbbq.com/

Mon: 11:00am - 9:00pm
Tue:   11:00am - 9:00pm
Wed: 11:00am - 9:00pm
Thu:   11:00am - 9:00pm
Fri:     11:00am - 9:30pm
Sat:    11:00am - 9:30pm
Sun:   11:00am - 9:00pm 

I got there at 10:30 before they were open.  I could smell the smoked meat outside.  One of the servers saw me outside, opened the door, and told me they were not ready yet.  Since it was a hot day she even offered me a glass of water while I was waiting. By the time they were ready to sell the meat there was a line out the door which was a good sign.  The scale and cutting board were set up on the bar. The prices (actually by the half pound) were posted behind the bar.  You don’t have to order a specific weight, the meat is sliced in front of you, you tell him where to stop, weighed and you pay for whatever it weighs.  Apparently, he got a good deal on beef ribs because he mentioned that they were lower than the usual price.

Beef Rib

The ribs were large and meaty with a good bark on them.  They had been smoked over white oak.  The rub seemed to be a basic, Texas style, rub heavy in the salt and cracked pepper.  I got one rib and that was more than enough for two people. The flavor was not timid at all and simply said “BEEF”! This was very different from the ribs we had in the restaurant a few days earlier.  While not absolutely the best beef rib we’ve had it’s up there.

Pulled Pork

Looking at the pieces of pork we could see that the pork shoulder had a good smoke ring and bark on it before it was pulled apart.  This very different from the pork we had at our visit in 2013.  It had a definite flavor and you could tell that you were eating pork.  I did make a pulled pork sandwich with it and the complementary pickled red onions and dill pickles that came with my order and enjoyed it thoroughly. 

Baby Back Ribs

Again, these were very different from what we had in 2013.   They were tender, meaty and flavorful.  Unlike before, the flavor was definitely not bland.  We have had better but not by much.

Brisket

He threw the brisket on the cutting board it quivered, just like brisket I have seen in Texas.  I had him cut from the lean end and the slices were still fork tender.  It had a good smoke ring and great flavor.  I can say without reservation, this is not my mother’s brisket.  (That’s a complement.  If my mother were still with us even she would agree.)

Arguments over which barbecue technique is “better” or “more authentic” aside the meat at the new Rosie’s location is much better and the service is very friendly.  The Smoked Meat Saturday absolutely establishes a barbeque style that is well appreciated as evidenced by the line out the door on Saturday morning.  However, the sides we had still needed some rethinking. 

If you just come to buy the meat we rate it a 9 however, for the whole experience, we rate it an 8.

ROSIE’S BBQ AND GRILLERY

ROSIE’S BBQ AND GRILLERY

This is a re-review.  Previous post was in April 2013.

“Ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what’s for lunch.”
― Orson Welles

8930 Corbin Ave
 

Northridge CA 91324
 

(818) 349 3055

https://rosiesbbq.com/

Mon: 11:00am - 9:00pm
Tue:   11:00am - 9:00pm
Wed: 11:00am - 9:00pm
Thu:   11:00am - 9:00pm
Fri:     11:00am - 9:30pm
Sat:    11:00am - 9:30pm

Sun:   11:00am - 9:00pm 

Delivery available

This is an interesting post to write since it will be, for the most part, very different from my last one in 2013.

Rosies moved from a nearby location, on Tampa Avenue, where they had been for something like 40 years, to their current location on Corbin Avenue.  The new location was, I believe, built for another barbeque operation that never moved in.   As we drove up we noticed a large banner on the side of the building announcing “Smoked Meat Saturday”.  (We’ll get to that.) 

When you walk in you are face to face with the takeout bar with the takeout menu on the walls.  Since this was our first visit to this location our first impression, looking through the doors as we approached, was that they had moved to an order at the bar and deliver to the table operation.  When we entered we realized that it was the takeout bar we were facing.  To the left is the bar area and the entrance to the dining room(s) on the right.  The new location has just been remodeled, or at least repainted, which gave it a rather sterile, super clean construction zone look in the dining room.  I was assured that there were further decorations to be hung on the walls after the repainting.

 

We came in late, about 8:15 on a Tuesday night.  The place wasn’t packed and we were seated promptly.  Our server took our drink order and brought some Garlic Parmesan rolls for us to munch on while we were perusing the menus.  The water and iced tea arrived in Ball jars and the setups were real metal flatware in real cloth napkins which gave us good feelings.

There are lots of things on the menu besides meat from the grill but that’s what we came for.  Sharon wasn’t all that hungry so she just ordered Beef Ribs with Ranch Style Pork & Beans, and Homemade Mac and Cheese for sides.  I ordered an appetizer of Tri Tip Chili and a Rosie’s Best Combo which is ¼ Chicken, 4oz Tri Tip, and a Sausage Link with Peanut Coleslaw and Maria’s Potato Salad as sides.  Our orders arrived promptly and were hot. And, there was nothing smoked on those plates.  All of it was done on a char grill. (Be patient, this is not a negative.)

Now this brings up an interesting point (argument?), what is barbeque?  I’ve been accused of being a barbeque snob, but I have “smoked” brisket in my Sunbeam Grillmaster™ 3000 by putting smoke chips in a tray over the active burner, placing the meat over the inactive one and stuffing the vent on the active side with foil to force the smoke and heat over the meat.  No one I served it to questioned that it was barbeque.  So is it barbeque if it’s not done over wood?  I’m not going to settle that one here.  (Google barbeque.)  I’ll just say there are many methods, and any of them can make good meat when used properly.

Garlic Parmesan Rolls

A commercial dinner roll dipped in butter and sprinkled with parmesan cheese and herbs.  Simple but oddly satisfying while reading the menu.

Tri-Tip Chili

The chili came as a generous appetizer serving with side servings of sour cream, chopped onions, shredded cheddar cheese, and an undistinguished but acceptable commercial corn muffin.  If you are expecting a lift your head off, spicy Southwestern chili, this isn’t it, but if you want a rich, flavorful chili, with nice chunks of tri-tip in it, you have come to the right place.  It was not loaded with green pepper and onions so even Sharon could enjoy it.  

Well, that was my last review of it.  This night the tri-tip was a little sparse and evidently someone thought it wasn’t hot enough. Sharon would not have liked this serving.  The last time we were at Rosie’s I would have been quite happy to make a meal of the chili.  This one was a decent appetizer.  On the other hand, I’ve worked in food service and anyone can have a bad night in the kitchen.  I’ll try it again.

Ranch Style Pork and Beans

Well, side order beans.  We both dissected the serving and could find no sign of any pork.  It tasted like Campbell’s™ out of the can.  It was an edible side order but we were expecting more.

Homemade Mac & Cheese

Now, this was a definite improvement over last time.  The pasta was al dente and the cheese sauce had a very good cheddar flavor.  Sharon likes a mac and cheese stirred together and I like it baked.  She really liked this one and I agreed.

Peanut Coleslaw

I didn’t like it last time and it was worse this time.  This was an amorphous, oily mess.  If I was annoyed with it last time I really hated it this time.  In my opinion this needs rethinking.

Maria’s Potato Salad

I have a thing about potato salad that is overly blended, mushy.  This did not have many distinct chunks of potato and the whole mix was a bit bland.  It was acceptable after I added salt and pepper.

Beef Ribs

These were generous, meaty, nearly fall-off-the-bone tender, and quite flavorful.  They were so meaty that one was enough for Sharon.  We took the other home and I had it, microwaved, for lunch the next day.  One of the signs of good meat is that it makes a good leftover.  The most important part was that unlike many servings of beef ribs done this way the flavor said “Beef!” 

Tri-Tip

This tri-tip is as good as grilled tri-tip gets.  It was fork tender, not sliced too thinly, and very flavorful.  Tri-tip is a special treat for me and I can be very critical of its preparation.  I found this serving very enjoyable, so much so that none of it made it home as a leftover.

Chicken

Someone in the kitchen knows how to grill a chicken.  It was tender, not dry, and most importantly done through.  It was an improvement over the last time but showed no sign of smoke.  Decent grilled chicken.

Sausage Link

My first impression was that it was a bratwurst with barbeque sauce on it.  It is definitely not a hot link.  While it has a nice pop to it when you cut it and it is not mealy, it’s not until after you have swallowed it and the slight bite hits your mouth that you realize it’s not simply a bratwurst.

The experience with the meats that night would have been enough to move Rosie’s up a couple of points on our arbitrary scale, but we can’t leave well enough alone.  I asked our server about the “Smoked Meat Saturday” and she told us that the owner comes in on Friday night and smokes meat.  He starts selling it, Texas style, by the pound at 11:00 on Saturday morning and he sells out very quickly.  So, we decided to come by at 11:00 on Saturday morning and find out what it was all about.   

To Be Continued

SOME BARBEQUE IN ANTIGUA

“Life is too short to eat food that doesn't taste good.”
― Alana Chernila

SOME BARBEQUE IN ANTIGUA

NELSON’S DOCKYARD (and Other Delights)

Nelson’s Dockyard is in English Harbour, Antigua.  The naval dockyard was once the home of the British fleet during the Napoleonic Wars, and served as the headquarters of Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson from 1784 to 1787.  It has been restored and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Nelson’s Dockyard is also an operating marina and has hotels, shops and restaurants.  It is open daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The cost of admission is $8 USD and includes a guided tour as well as entry to all sites including Shirley Heights and Dow's Hill. Tours do not run on Sundays.  

http://nationalparksantigua.com/visiting/nelsons-dockyard/

So, Sharon and I were spending a couple of weeks in Antigua to attend a couple graduations of nieces of our “adopted” daughter, and island girl, and to enjoy some much needed vacation.  We did not stay at one of the all inclusive resorts on the island but rented a villa in Saint Phillip’s Parish on the northeast side of the island.  We had been there before and this time, decided to do some wandering of the country by ourselves.  

We wanted to visit English Harbour and Nelson’s Dockyard and, maybe, lunch there.  Choosing a day when there were no cruise ships in port (Trust me, you don’t want to visit any tourist attraction in Antigua on a day when the cruise ships are in.) we drove there.  It is all the way on the south side of the island from where we were staying.  Driving there in our rented Honda Fit was something of an adventure in itself.  Antigua is a former British colony so you drive on the left and the roads are about in the same condition as back roads in Louisiana.  Think of a go cart race with two way traffic where a few of the go carts are larger and have the names Mack or Peterbuilt on them.

After touring the dockyard, visiting the Dockyard Museum, and marveling at the detail of the tech inspection for the boats of the 2019 Optimist Club World Championship Dinghy Race that was in process there, we were now ready for lunch.  We chose the outdoor barbeque next to the Copper & Lumber Store Hotel.  This barbeque operates for lunch from 10 AM to 2:30 PM.  It also seems to supply the barbeque portion of the menu to the restaurant in the hotel.  The menu is on a chalk board, somewhat limited, with all items the same price, $37 EC (that’s $10 US).

Sharon chose the Pork Ribs and although there were a couple of Chicken selections I ordered a Cheeseburger.    Everything comes with Coleslaw and French Fries.  My choice was not that strange because most of the barbeque you find in Antigua is chicken.  I had been eating barbequed chicken for a week and a half and was suffering from “chicken fatigue”.  (Well, there were a couple of fish and curry dishes in there too, along with a lunch of Jamaican jerked beef pasties, but mostly chicken for dinner.) Don’t get me wrong, I found nothing but good barbequed chicken in Antigua!  I even barbequed some myself at the villa and that was good also.  (I marinated it with lime juice, spices and some local rum, not to toot my own horn.)

The pork ribs were meaty, well smoked and fall-off-the-bone tender.  They were served with a slightly sweet, not too spicy, sauce that is one of the better barbeque sauces we have sampled.  I asked one of the women working the outdoor kitchen to make the fries crispy and she made them just the way my wife likes them.  Sharon was well pleased.

The cheeseburger was as good as you can get here but was made with Swiss, not American cheese.  Since Sharon is not a coleslaw fan I ended up with both servings.  This was what I call a competent coleslaw, but with an interesting dressing.  I really couldn’t identify the spices in it.  Although it was somewhat pinkish in color it was quite tasty.

Everyplace you go in Antigua from roadside stands to the restaurants in the resorts you will find barbequed chicken.  This is not surprising since the whole island is only 108 square miles and cattle, although you will see some, take up a lot of room so, most of the beef and pork is imported.  The chickens are local, a point reinforced by waking up every morning to roosters crowing if you are not staying in one of the resorts.  The other thing that isn’t surprising is that all the barbeque, whatever the meat, found there is good.  They ought to know how to do it since barbequing, as we know it, was invented by the natives in the Caribbean and taken to the rest of the world by the Spanish and the English buccaneers.  If you get to the island, enjoy!