Wednesday, December 25, 2019

French Dip Review: Bastion Brewing Company, Anacortes, WA

Their menu and FD.  I got the one with brisket.  I was a bit spooked by the term "BBQ au jus" which I would later come to fine was indeed just BBQ sauce, which was a major disappointment and slight.  No one messes with baby... I mean E's jus.
 
This looked like quite a sandwich.  I didn't order this one.  This is not the French dip.


So I sat at the bar.  I was there because my brother likes this place and I was getting him a little something something for Christmas.


This was the Hazy Pale, which was quite good; 4 of 5.  I liked it.  The bartender was friendly and did a good job.  There were quite a few patrons in the place.  It seemed like a popular local haunt.  Many restaurants have been in this place over the years, by the golf course.  I hope they will last a long time. 
Brewery making stuff.  These seats would fill up more throughout my stay.


I had to walk over to another room to order my food, which surprised me a bit.  The food service was really slow.

Their menu and story.

You can see by this time I've ordered a second beer and my food got served. The barkeep selected a Winter Ale that he thought might pair well with my French dip.  At first glance I realized that the sandwich was quite small.  I wasn't impressed. The bread was "too white" for my tastes as well.  Getting a large cup of BBQ sauce for dipping is also not so much a delight.  There were orange skewers in use, which I enjoyed but otherwise I was skeptical of what I was about to receive.


There is it.  Not a ton of meat.  And the bread, like I said, was too white. And it's just not too large of a half-sand. 


A close-up of the BBQ sauce "jus".  zzzzzzzzzzzzz 



The baked beans I got as a side dish.  Their flavor was "sweet", which I didn't enjoy.  The quality seemed reasonably high but I didn't so much love the flavor.  Not bad, just not what I wanted. 
A view of the 'burnt ends' on the sandwich.  The sandwich alone was meh.  Not too tasty.  Lower bread slice too hard.


Another view of the sandwich while being eaten.  Some fat in the brisket, which was fine.  Just not overly tasty.



The "Money Shot" but it's just with BBQ sauce. :(

Another view of the sandwich.  Maybe the bread was too dense?

So I didn't love that sandwich.  The place was fine and the beers were good.  I headed to my family home on the big island of G...


Where one might literally believe that the ferry is called NO SMOKING.  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all.  Thanks Bastion Brewing for my first visit.  I won't be getting the French Dip again any time soon.  It's not a proper FD.  Please change the jus and bread.

Raw Notes.
Beer
.Hazy Pale. 4. Quite good.
. Jolly Pig Winter Ale. 4. Also quite good. Spiced.
Food
. Baked beans. 
.. Flavor. 2. Too sweet.
. French dip. 2. Expense, hard, small, lackluster beef, not real jus.
..Size. 2. Small.
..Bread. 3. Too hard and crunchy, homemade but plain.
 .. Sandwich alone. 3. Fine. Small, too crunchy. Dry.
...Skewers. 4. Orange skewers.
..Jus. 2. Not jus.
.. Meat. 3. Not notable.
... Flavor. 2. Fine 
..Non-Meat Toppings. There were none.
. Baked beans. 
Location. 3. Whatever.
Service
.Speed. 2. Very slow.
. Ordering. 2. Odd. Had to go order separately then they delivered to the bar.

Summary: The "crouton bread" and the au jus because it was not au jus did not save the too-crunchy bread. For me it was just an overwhelming BBQ sauce forward taste and nothing like a French dip sandwich, really. And the beef did not play a prominent role.


Coming Soon: Better display of review summaries.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Burger Dip Review - Web Locker, Bellingham, WA

Was in Bellingham the day after Thanksgiving with my brother and his boys.  This is Ari playing at a new playground near the waterfront.

The Web Locker is down by LFS.  I'd never been.  There was a young woman working the cash register and a young fellow running the grill.  They seemed happy and fine.  You can't order the burgers a la carte: they necessarily come with fries which is a bummer.  Everyone liked their burgers; I got a burger dip because that's how I roll.  Always be on brand.






















Tasting Notes


  • Sandwich alone is a 4.  Pretty good.  Cheese is tasty and creamy, melted.  Perhaps not Velveeta but seemed like government-grade cheez. Size of sanwich was large.  Looked a little greasy/buttery, which wasn't a bad thing.  Cut on bias, which was nice.
  • Toppings 4.  Onions raw good.  Added some crunchiness/crispiness.  4.
  • Jus 2.  Was not hot and not flavorful either.  Big bummer.  Basically added nothing to an already lubricated sandwich.
  • Meat 4.  Lots of burger.
  • Overall 3.  Good size and creamy processed cheese make this burger dip work.  They need to fix their jus, though!

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Matt Eats the French Dip at Claim Jumper in Lynnwood, WA (Alderwood)



Matt says, "3/5. A bit sloppy."

Other possible observations from Eric:

A) buttered toasted bread
B) some pepper flakes in jus could be tasty
C) some peppery beef, could be chewy
D) lots of cheese, if it's the good kind it could be beneficial
E) poor distribution of toppings and protein.

Sunday, November 17, 2019

French Dip Review: Canyon Village Market - General Store, South Rim Grand Canyon

Lovely place.







Very sad side salad.








Looks like a lot of roast beef.  And it is quite a bit indeed.  But was dry and not too appealing.






Setting the Stage

I was taking a trip to the Grand Canyon.  It was grand indeed.  I was hungry and it was lunch time and I found a market while there.  I decided to indulge in the French dip.  I was disappointed in the sandwich and its accompanying salad but it's pretty much always fun to find, order and review (and eat) a French dip.

Detailed Tasting Notes

Listed mozzarella but girl said they don't add it
Provolone only
One cook. Made service slow.
Watched him spray on butter. That could be a good thing.
Looks like it's going to be a lot of bread

Summary

Bread - looks dry. Plain. French. 2. A bit too soggy.
Meat - 2. Dry. Not much. Inconsistent amount between halves.
Non-Meat - 2. Added nothing.
Jus - pretty good and hot, 3. Not enough. Some visible fat.
Overall - 2. Dry bread, meat.

Salad. Very sad. Wilted. Ugly diced tomatoes. Italian.

Conclusions

Go to the Grand Canyon to be amazed and impressed.  Order this French dip if you have nothing else you can order.