Prime Rib French Dip at Cle Elum, WA Swiftwater Winery Awarded 2 of 5 DeliciScore™ on 18th of February, 2017 by Eater Brian A. - Skip this one

Active Orderer French dip Situation

I was sitting at home minding my own business when I got a Facebook Messenger message from my friend Brian, simply the picture below (a French dip line item on a menu) and the statement, "I am debating skipping the aioli".  Our conversation and review follows.

Brian

 I am debating skipping the aioli

I jump into action and provide some coaching

Eric

Do skip it.

Or get it on the side at least.

Do not allow them to ****ing ruin your sandwich.

Not OK.

Where this is?

Had mayo  on this one:

The French Dip Sandwich at West Seattle, WA's Shadowland Restaurant Awarded a 3 of 5 DeliciScore™ (Good) on this 14th day of January, 2017

The world's foremost expert on dipped sandwiches and jus.

frenchdips.appsjack.com

It was a creammeal.

"And back to this "creaminess" issue: you can see I had mayo on my finger; the problems had already started. "

Brian
I got the aioli.
You can't properly rate their offering if you alter it from the suggested form.

Eric

[expletive]

[expletive #2]

Rate it zero and walk away.

You're doomed.

His brother, Matt, joins in

Matt 

Mark it zero smokey

Jealous

Eric 

Looks good. Where?

Do Canadians have French Dips?

[Matt is going to Canada]

Brian 

Eric

Relieved you didn't get sweet potato fries.

[joking about my lack of joy for sweet potato fries and his love for them]

Brian

I axed. Sweet potato fries were not an option

Brian's Meal Arrives

Brian

Eric

Take a "money shot" (dipped in hand close up. Jus-stained.

Thank God.

Nicely toasted. Meat is well.

Brian shares a money shot 

Brian

Eric

Good. Cheddar?

Caramelized units, too. Cheese crispy or chewy?

Brian's Review

Brian

I would suggest that if you ever come here, you order something different.

Eric

Ha ha

What was wrong with it?

Brian 

Wow. Nosy

Eric

I have a need to know.

Brian 
The aioli was sub par. Not enough candied onions
Jus was bland
No option for sweet potato French fries.

Eric 

i see.

it was terrible.

Insufficient onion amount.

Bland jus.  Was the jus hot or thick?

Sweet potato fry failure.

sad!

very sad!

Brian 
Thin jus
You can't get 5 stars on the Ashbach CompuScore if you don't offer sweet potato fries.

Eric

thin is bad.

I see.

Narrows the field a great deal.  Sad!

It's wrong to associate sweet potato fries with French dip sandwiches.

Brian 
I'm not
It's not.
That would be like saying it's wrong to associate the sandwich with the jus

Eric

Hmmmm

wow

tying these three things together is wrong.

it's not okay.

the french dip sandwich is standalone and the sides don't really matter if the sandwich quality is high.  The pickle should suffice!!!

Brian
Jus is irrelevant to scoring

Eric

WHAT?!!!?!?!?!?!?

How could it be?  That is a very silly idea.

Brian
Come on

Conclusion

Friends don't let friends order French dip sandwiches pre-slathered with aoili.  It isn't okay and should be avoided.

3.5 of 5 DeliciScore™ (Good) Awarded to The LODGE Sports Grille for their Prime Rib Dip Sandwich in Mill Creek, WA on this 10th day of December, 2016 - Brian eats and reviews a mid-grade, oniony delight.

Introduction

My friend Brian from Guemes eats a French dip now and again. Today was one of those special days and he was nice enough to share his experience with me via Facebook Messenger.  He included pictures and all.

Review

Brian's review follows.  Here is an embellished version of his tasting notes and score for your information:

• Fry temperature bad. He reported that is sweet potato fries, which he often gets and I believe must prefer over normal French fries, came out luke (temperature, not Skywalker, inbred!).
• Bread good.  He reported that the bread was good and toasted lightly.
• Meat quantity bad.  There was a reported lack of meat.  And I quote, "Not enough meat."
• Jus good but lacking in portion.  He gave me feedback suggesting that the jus was good and "reasonably tasty".  He told me that he was forced to ration jus, which he said was, "Not good."
• Onions a disappointment.  The sandwich contained "sauteed onions", which he reported as "merely cooked" and not carmelized, which I could understand how this might upset him.
• A 3.5 of 5 overall.  Not bad!  In all, he scored the sandwich a 3.5 of 5, which isn't too bad.  Good for you, Brian.  Keep on dipping!

Photography

Here are Brian's photographic pictures with my captions added for your entertainment pleasure:

Here we see the LODGE menu.  Not sure why they need to capitalize all letters in LODGE.  Perhaps they are yelling?  You will also note that Brian has a very prolific phone-shadow in his photo which is not preferred for a news organization as fine as French Dip Reviews.  

The plated unit with what is apparently a side of ranch and ketchup.  Indulging in sauces, I see.  Dark jus.  Good portion on the sandwich.

Looks like tasty provolone cheese and visible (lightly toasted) buttered bread.  The bread crust is shiny, which is nice effect.  One time I shaved using the reflection in bread.

Yes, these sauteed onions are indeed fairly al dente rather than very far gone.  The don't NEED to be caremelized but of course caramelization adds a lot of delicious flavor.  Brian also made a comment about the meat being well and not rare at all, which was a disapointment.

We can tell at this point that we are devoid of meat, which is a major buzzkill.

This is Brian's demonstration of the lack of cooking on the onions.  We can also tell that his jus-tank is quite low for as much sandwich he had left, which must have been a quite sad and lonely feeling.

Bon Appetito!