PJ's Bar-B-QSA

Summer just screams BBQ. It's been a lazy summer and sadly our own smoker has been on hiatus. Lucky for us, PJ's Bar-B-QSA has satisfied our need for smoked everything this summer season. For ages we drove past without a second thought, even though TC Paris' Chef Paul always told us how delicious PJ's pulled pork was. On Memorial Day, we drove up to Saratoga in hopes of getting into a certain crawfish boil but hours-long lines led us to BBQ instead. We're kicking ourselves for not stopping by any sooner!

Get ready to take your tastebuds on a BBQ tour! The Q-S-A Road Trip platter was the perfect way to sample from every BBQ region: New York chicken, Texas brisket, North Carolina pork, Virginia sausage, and Memphis ribs. The pulled pork was as good as Chef Paul described it. We got ours with vinegar; the sharp tang cut the fattiness of the pork yet you could still taste the wonderful smoked flavor. Chunks of fatty brisket was moist and crusted with a succulent bark. The ribs weren't quite falling off the bone but still tasted good and the sausage had a great snap and char from the grill. The only slightly disappointing bite was the Cornell smoked chicken, a tad dry but good flavors reminiscent of Brook's BBQ. 

On a return visit we braved the slop bucket: a hot mess of bbq beans, curly fries, a swap of mac salad for the coleslaw, our choice of vinegared pulled pork, all topped with melted cheddar. Hello fat tooth! It shouldn't taste this good but it certainly hit the spot. Think of it as Upstate's own version of a garbage plate. Wash it all down with a can of Crystal Beach, PJ's unique beverage concoction of loganberry juice. It tastes like a cross between a blackberry and red raspberry and very addicting!

Equally as addicting are these wings. Smoked to perfection and fried to a delectable crispiness. Each bite showcases the smoked flavor and they're a great vehicle for sampling PJ's range of bbq sauces. Our favorites are the original hickory and tangy Carolina sauce.

Be sure to save room for dessert! You're going to want a loganberry sundae with a scoop of extra creamy vanilla custard, or be a glutton and get both a sundae and a loganberry milkshake. 

Texas de Brazil

Eversince the demise of Carmen's Brazilian Grill, we've been hankering for churrasco-style BBQ. J and I have even contemplated having swords of meat at our wedding, no lie. We've since taken another approach on catering for our upcoming nuptials but the lure of all-you-can-eat meat was ignited again with the opening of Texas de Brazil.

Yes it's a chain, and yes it's in Crossgates Mall but the experience was surprisingly pleasant. It's unique and there's nothing like it around here. At $42.99 per person, it's more of a special occasion treat for us but it's AYCE meat plus side salads and appetizers. Stop by before 7pm and treat yourself to a $5 Happy Hour Caipirinha. Say it with me---ky-pee-ree-nyah. It's a deliciously addicting and refreshing cocktail made with lime and Brazilian cachaca, a sugar cane spirit. 

You can easily make a meal out of the salad bar but all you can eat is about balance right? You'll find a full spread of sides and salads: various charcuterie, marinated artichokes, olives, cheeses, and vegetables and even poached salmon and spicy crab sushi rolls. Why sushi? I have no idea.

Friday Night Cookouts at The Cheese Traveler

There's no shame in admitting that we ate at The Cheese Traveler twice this week. Not only did we stop for grilled cheese sandwiches but the prospects of a Friday Night Cookout was too tempting to pass. Even during a torrential downpour on the kickoff night. Upon our arrival, despite being greeted by sunny skies and the smokey smell of a hot grill ready to go, grey clouds quickly turned into raindrops but that didn't stop the shop from grilling, even in the rain. 

With all the ingredients for delicious grilled cheeses at hand, The Cheese Traveler had no problem transforming them into the makings of a pretty unique summer cookout menu. That means quality products like fresh, never frozen Tilldale Farm ground beef burgers served on Bonfiglio & Bread rolls, with farm-fresh produce of your choice. But it wouldn't be The Cheese Traveler without optional toppings like Shelburn Cheddar or Colton-Basset Stilton and even kimchi from Mingle next door and French pate. But with lamb bacon as another option, how could we say no?! This lamb bacon changed my outlook on lamb. I was always turned off by its gaminess, but these fatty morsels are just life-changing especially in a grilled cheese or on a burger. The gaminess of the lamb bacon adds a unique layer of flavor to the burger. I chose to have my burger with just bacon and found it needed just a touch of salt. But J got the lamb bacon with havarti and the cheese really does make a difference in complementing the bacon and adding what was missing from my burger. Nonetheless, both of our burgers were plenty juicy and cooked to a perfect medium rare on a charcoal grill. We can't tell you how much we admire the charcoal grill; it just adds so much more flavor. 

Last Sunday's Ribs

I'm in a weird mood today, so read at your own risk.

Cooking is like making music:  It's a temporal art form, in that every performance can only ever exist that one time you experience it.  In a way, this is a depressing thought.  We will never taste a meal made a hundred, a thousand years ago.  All we have are firsthand accounts and our own best approximations of what that meal should have tasted like, based on ancient crumbling recipes and served with steroid enhanced meat and genetically engineered crops.  We can never taste that first performance of the sandwich, or stew, or seared scallop.

On the other hand, this is part of what makes food truly special:  Every time you sit down to a meal, you are experiencing the only exact version of that meal that will ever exist.  I believe that this property can be how the enjoyment of great food is such a unifying experience for everyone.  The knowledge that, together, you are experiencing something that never existed before and will never exist again can make anyone smile at least a little.

The other day, I made pork ribs on a charcoal grill.  They weren't perfect; it was my first attempt at making ribs over coal.  Certainly I should have left them on a bit longer to render the fat some more, and I probably should have included brown sugar in the spice rub.  Nevertheless, I thought they were well smoked, tasty, and beautiful.  I made R take a profile shot of them, just because it was the first time I had ever seen a pink ring on something I made.

That first time you make something, when you're still focused on all the things you managed to do successfully rather than what you need to improve on, is an impossible feeling to capture or describe.  Now, I could probably go out right now and cook a rack twice as tasty and  pretty, but no matter what I do they will never be last Sunday's ribs. -J

Brunswick BBQ & Brew

I want my baby back, baby back, baby back, ribs. Don't go to Chili's for authentic BBQ. Seriously. J and I have been making fun of BBQ sauce ever since watching an episode of Restaurant Impossible where a Southern BBQ joint was using bottled BBQ sauce with a dash of allspice and squeeze of bottled lemon juice for tang. We've been on the hunt for good BBQ ever since and have found bliss at Brunswick BBQ & Brew in Brunswick, NY. It's our go to place when the meat cravings set in and we're happy to make the trek from Albany.

Tucked in what seems to be the middle of nowhere, this place is hands down one of the best authentic BBQ joints in the Capital Region. Step out of the car and you are greeted by the sweet smell of smoked meat in the air. Ahhh, makes you salivate. It's hard to pick one menu item but a good starter is the BBQ Appetizer Sampler. You get a bit of everything: bbq wings, ribs, and piggly wigglys aka pulled pork sliders. All the meats are smoked to perfection and the depth of flavor can only be achieved by properly smoking low and slow and not just quick grilling meat. You can see that classic pink ring on the meat that they always talk about on the BBQ tv specials.  

J's go to platter is the tender and juicy beef brisket. You get an array of sides with the plates. Our favorites are the baked beans and sweet potato fries. But J's favorite staple is the corn bread with honey butter. The butter is like crack. Fluffy cornbread is the perfect vehicle for this sweet and salty buttah. He would eat a tub of honey butter if he could, but I'd like my fiance not to die of a heart attack. 

Brunswick BBQ isn't just about the meat but the pizza as well! They have a brick oven pizza that makes for the most perfect charred crust. The dough is crispy yet has a good chew to it and one of the best slices is the Brunswick BBQ Signature pizza with homemade, sweet Kansas City Sauce, cheddar cheese, and that yummy smoky pulled pork. The Margherita Pizza is just as good too, especially with prosciutto.  

Make a point to stop on by Brunswick BBQ, it's also a great pit stop to or from Grafton State Park or The Peace Pagoda. You will find blissful peace in this BBQ joint as soon as you taste it! -R

The New World Bistro Bar

Now that J got a new job that frees up weekends, we can go back to Sunday Brunch. It's one of our favorite culinary adventures and we always go back to our go to favorite brunch spot: The New World Bistro Bar. As Food Network fans, we love the fact that owner Ric Orlando is a Chopped Champion.  But NWBB is also one of few places where we've consistently been blessed with excellent service and delicious food. 

NWBB prides itself in utilizing local, seasonal foods but also incorporates global flavors that give that unique twist that we love, especially Asian flavors.  We love New World so much we're considering using their catering for our wedding. Perfect for blending my Asian family's palette with J's Irish American family's taste. 

With each season comes a different menu and sometimes that means favorites like the Korean BBQ pork belly burrito doesn't stick around for long. However, it gives way to reincarnated dishes like the Korean Steak and Eggs. This delicious bowl of Creekstone all natural prime beef skewers, kim chee stew, Korean BBQ and local pea shoots with poached eggs captured those flavors that we were craving. 

One of our favorite brunch items that is a regular on the menu is the hash trio. Why have one hash when you can have it three ways? This is J's go to plate (minus the veggie hash since he is anti-mushroom). The hash tasting comes with the Mystic clam has, quintessential corned beef hash, and veggie hash. I don't mind the veggie hash which comes with roasted eggplant, squash, potatoes, mushroom and peppers. It's a nice light bite to the richer versions of the clam and corned beef hash. The Mystic clam is rich and briny with chopped quahogs and creamy with the bernaise sauce. As for the corned beef hash, you can't go wrong with the classics;it's one of the best in this area. Canned corned beef and hash is an embarrasement compared to NWBB's corned beef.  Other delicious brunch items to consider are the salmon eggs benedict and huevos traditionales with chorizo. One of these days I'll get around to trying the sweeter side of brunch, but I love the savory stuff! -R

Maine Luau Lobster Pound & BBQ Pit

If there's one thing we've learned from this Maine vacation, is to take chances. One thing about going to Bar Harbor the weekend before Memorial Day Weekend is that most places aren't open yet! Plus while it was 80 degrees in Albany, it was about 55 degrees and rainy all week in Maine. We were pretty disappointed to see so many places still boarded up, including the winery and lobster pound that was next to our cottage. Bummer. At least we got a good rate out of our stay and places weren't clogged with tourists! By the time dinner time rolled around, we were determined to get our fill of more lobsters. An ad in our handy dandy cottage visitors guide led us astray to a restaurant that wasn't open for the season yet. Clearly this was becoming trend on our Maine trip (i.e. Duckfat to Eventide experience), because on a whim we decided to visit a lobster pound that was Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives worthy. Talk about not judging a book by its cover...