Old West Café

Old West Café

600 W. Northwest Highway

Price Range:  $ $ $ $ $

It’s Sunday and you know what that means. Of course you don’t! This is only my third entry! You don’t know me! Sunday means it’s the one day that I will give in to Jay’s desires for an ungodly huge breakfast well past appropriate breakfast time. What better place to go than Old West Café? We have been here maybe a half dozen times and have never been disappointed. This is one of those places that are only open from 6am-2pm and if you go on Sunday morning, you’re going to have to fight the church crowd. Today Jay slept pretty late and by the time we got out there it was 1:30pm. We felt like jerks showing up that close to closing time but it was the first time we’ve ever been seated within minutes of checking in. Most Sundays we show up around noon and there wait is long because there are at least 2 groups of sixteen ahead of you along with dozens of families and couples. 

We get to our table and order coffee and ice water and start looking over the menu. We’re not hardcore coffee drinkers so we don’t really know much about different types, but what we do know is that we love the kind they serve here. We’ve asked in the past and they use Cain’s coffee which of course isn’t sold in stores.

Before this became Old West Café in the last 2 years, it was either a Dickey’s or a Bartley’s BBQ. I say Dickey’s but Jay says Bartley’s. Either way, it’s not there anymore. The décor of this place is that of your typical home-style small restaurant. Lots of ironworks on the wall in shape of Texas stars and such, and little signs made out of pieces of wood that say things like “If Papa ain’t happy, nobody cares” and the like. If you get a big enough booth or table you might find a little compartment in the table top holding checker pieces so you can play on the board that’s painted on the table while you wait. As for the menu, it has all of your basic breakfast fare from pancakes and omelets to biscuits and gravy. They also have a lunch menu with all kinds of salads and sandwiches. 

As for our meal, I usually order the Cowpoke which consists of 1 pancake, 1 egg, and 2 pieces of bacon, sausage or ham, but today I ordered a la carte because I wasn’t feeling like eggs or breakfast meats. What I really wanted was their new lemon pancake and some hash browns. When the weather gets warmer I like lemony foods and this is the best damn pancake ever. I can only eat one as they are absolutely massive. I like to take a big whiff of it when it first comes out because the lemon smell just makes me think happy thoughts. It’s pretty sweet so it doesn’t require too much syrup and the slight saltiness of my perfectly cooked hash browns counterbalance nicely. I also love how it's slightly crispy on the outside and perfectly fluffy on the inside. For the record, if you’re not into lemon, their regular pancakes are also delicious; probably the best pancakes I’ve ever had. You can also choose from other flavors such as chocolate chip, banana nut, and a new coconut pancake with pineapple syrup. Since I ordered a la carte, my food was priced at $2.49 for my pancake and $1.99 for the hash brown. 

Jay usually goes all out with his breakfast. The last time we ate here his meal came out on 3 plates and I’ll be damned if he didn’t finish every bite. Today he was a bit more modest and got The Rancher ($8.99) which consisted of 3 eggs, 3 bacon, sausage or ham and choice of 2 sides. He went with 3 eggs over easy, 3 strips of bacon, skillet potatoes and biscuits. Jay’s only comment was that the skillet potatoes weren’t your traditional type. They were more like little seasoned fries that were done in a deep fryer instead of in an actual skillet. I didn’t see any left on his plate so it must have been okay. The biscuits are also HUGE and in our past experiences are good with jelly or smothered in gravy. 

As I’ve said, we love this place. Since it opened just within the last year or so, I no longer have much use for places like IHOP, unless I want to eat after 2pm. Once you can get seated, the staff is friendly and attentive, the prices are good and the food is excellent. 

If we were to rate this restaurant with bears waiting for breakfast, it would our first (and rare!!!) 5 out of 5!! This is not something that will happen often. 

Cliff's Star Grill

Cliff's Star Grill

1900 S Main St # 100 

Price range: $ $ $ $ $

Last night Jay and I decided to have dinner at Cliff’s Star Grill inside of Stacy’s Furniture. We’d been here before but it was several years ago when meeting up with Ryan and Julie, a couple of friends we hadn’t seen in a while, and interestingly haven’t really seen since (aside from the blur that was Julie’s bachelorette party).  

This place is interesting as it is right in the entrance to this giant furniture store. It’s quiet though, dimly lit and actually kind of intimate. We also went at about 8pm when the store was closing so there wasn’t anyone coming or going to cause distraction. That’s not to say our night was not without distraction as we were by far the youngest people there and the couple at the table next to us were talking loudly to their server about following the Kardashians on twitter. Guh.  Most of the people there came across as regulars who were on a first-name basis with the staff. Even Rick Stacy himself came through after the store closed and chatted with several customers. 

Before I start talking about our meals, I’d like to note that their online menu is either not up to date, or is possibly a shortened version of what you’ll get when you’re actually there. Neither our appetizer nor my entrée are listed on the online menu. 

We started off with some spinach artichoke dip ($6.99) that came with a side of salsa and super thick tortilla chips. The chips were almost like pita chips and came out unsalted so they were a little bland. The salsa was of undetermined origin in that we couldn’t tell if was made in house or came prepackaged, but Jay seemed to like it, especially when coupled with some of the spinach artichoke dip. The dip was outstanding. I love a good spinach artichoke dip and it’s hard to find places that don’t cover them with onions. This was simple with a couple of diced tomatoes and a sprinkling of parmesan cheese on top. It was piping hot and creamy with a smooth flavor. 

For my entrée I ordered Jaxon’s Goat Cheese Pasta ($9.99) which consisted of penne pasta tossed with grilled chicken, sundried tomatoes, spinach and a creamy goat cheese sauce. As with any pasta I order, I had them throw some mushrooms in, too. It also came with a piece of toasted bread with butter on it. I am the type of person who will try a lot of new and interesting foods just to say that I’ve tried it. I should have probably been a little more familiar with the flavor of goat cheese before getting a large pasta dish smothered in it. I was not prepared for the decadent texture and overwhelming tanginess. I’m sure a meal like this is wasted on an average person like me.

Jay ordered the Swiss Mushroom Burger ($8.99) which came with sautéed mushroom and melted Swiss on the burger and lettuce, pickle, tomato and onions on the side. He had a choice of home-style fries, onion rings or seasonal fruit for his side and went with the fries.  Who eats fruit with a burger? When asked to critique his food for the purpose of my blog, his response was “meh” so I guess it wasn’t anything to write home about. 

If we were to rate this restaurant with cats in recliners, we would give it 3 out of 5 for decent atmosphere and prices, but also two unfinished entrees. 

My first pot roast!

So to kick off my first public food blog, I have decided to start in the comfort of my own kitchen. I demanded a Crock Pot for Christmas from my boyfriend, Jay, for sole purpose of making a pot roast and he came through! It even came with the Lil’ Dipper warmer which will be used for queso and spinach dip, which I will probably feature in future blogs. 

Earlier this week I ran to Kroger and picked up about 2.5lbs of chuck roast which was on sale for $2.99/lb, along with some fresh vegetables (celery, sliced baby bella mushrooms, red potatoes, a yellow onion, garlic and baby carrots). 

Today’s recipe was made with the help of my first special guest, Jen, who showed up around noon. We each apparently had rough nights and needed to catch up over some strong coffee before getting started. About an hour later we finally got down to business laying out ingredients and starting the prep work of washing and chopping veggies and trimming the meat. We used about 6 chopped celery stalks, the whole bag of mushrooms, maybe 10 quartered potatoes, an entire bag of baby carrots (plus some I already had and needed to use), 6 or 7 sliced cloves of garlic, and half of a sliced yellow onion.  

Jen showed me where the meat needed to be trimmed of some fat, then proceeded to cut small slices into the meat and poke slivers of garlic down inside. We then coated the meat in flour, salt and pepper and seared in a large cast iron skillet on high heat with just enough olive oil to coat the bottom. 

Once all sides were nice and browned, we transferred the meat to the Crock Pot and turned it up to high heat. Then we dumped all of the veggies around and on top of the meat, poured in about a cup and a half of water, and put the lid on it. Now it was time for the waiting game. . . 

After about 5 hours I couldn’t stand my stomach rumbling anymore and the aroma hanging around the house was irresistible. I pulled the chunk of meat out, scooped out all the veggies, and whisked some roux (1/2 cup of water with about 4Tbsp of flour dissolved in it) into the remaining liquid in the pot. Once it had thickened up, I poured it over the top of the meat and veggies and plated it with some bread. The meat just fell apart with a tug of a fork and was very tender. Jay enjoyed it very much but our only complaint was that it needed a little salt. So when I put everything back into the pot to cool and put in the refrigerator, I put a few shakes of salt in. I can’t wait to make sandwiches with the leftovers! 

I hope you enjoyed my first blog! Thanks for reading and I hope to update weekly! Today’s recipe is below:

Crock Pot Roast

·         2-3lbs Chuck or rump roast

·         10 Red or new potatoes, quartered

·         ½  Yellow onion, diced

·         6 Cloves of garlic, thinly sliced

·         1 Small bag of baby carrots

·         1 Container of sliced baby bella mushrooms

·         6 Celery stalks, chopped

·         1-2 Cups of flour, divided. Enough to evenly coat meat and 4 Tbsp for roux.

·         Salt and pepper to taste

·         2 Cups water, divided. 1 ½ Cups go into pot at beginning of cooking, ½ cup for roux

·         Extra Virgin Olive Oil, just enough to coat the bottom of a large skillet.

Trim fat from meat if necessary, then poke several small holes throughout meat and poke a sliver of garlic inside each hole. Next, coat the meat evenly with flour. Place meat in hot skillet and brown each side, about a minute each. Turn Crock Pot on High and place browned meat inside. Surround and cover with vegetables. Pour about 1 ½ cups of water over the contents of the pot. Add salt and pepper if desired. Cover and cook on high for 5-6 hours. 

To make gravy, remove meat and vegetables and set aside, do not turn off heat on pot. Add 4 Tbsp of flour to ½ cup of water in a small bowl and stir until there are no lumps. This is your roux. Whisk roux into the liquid in the Crock Pot until it reaches desired thickness. Pour over meat and vegetables. Serve with buttered bread.