It takes a village to review French dips

I got this cute message from my wife over Messenger just a few minutes ago:

Jessica's first French dip review is in the works.

Feel free to ping me / us if you want to join our reviewing team.  Just take pics, write up your notes and send it over.

4 of 5 DeliciScore™ (Great) Awarded to Wedgwood Broiler for their Prime Rib Dip Sandwich in Seattle, WA on this 17th day of October, 2015 - Thanks, Tim! Solid choice.

I went to a party on a Saturday night about a month ago now for my good friend Greg's 40th birthday party.  It was a great and fun night, keg and all.  Yes, there was some drinking involved.  While there, I ran into and struck up a conversation with my old buddy Tim S.  Tim and I go way back and have had some fun times together at previous parties thrown by Greg.  It was a lot of fun talking to and joking around with Tim.  I was talking to him about my French dip reviewing and he asked me if I'd been to the Wedgwood Broiler (WB) yet for their French dip.  He is a super big fan of the place and it sounds like he has a ton of history there.  Since I hadn't been there before, in Tim's eyes this was very bad and I needed to go immediately.  I felt it requisite to visit WB soon thereafter and give their French dip a full review.  I went the next day.  The review of this legendary Prime Rib Dip follows.

I talked Jessica into running up to WB, which is about 20 minutes from our house.  We pulled up on a nice, sunny, early Fall day about two hours before the Seahawks game started.  

Here's the WB from the parking lot.  Nothing too fancy, pretty funky, but I was pumped.

I entered first while Jessica walked the dog and got settled into the bar, which was mostly empty.

Here's a picture of the bar from my seat.  It was super dark in there and really felt cave-like.  But nice.  It had a real 70's vibe to it, which I found comforting and nice.

I ordered a bloody mary (two, actually).  They were good and spicy, traditional.  Nothing too fancy, save the dill bean which was tasty.

Drink in hand, I began poring through the menu and spotted the *section* with French dips on it.  Not just the traditional, classic French dip, but also a Prime Rib dip (which is what I ordered) and a burger dip.  I really am fond of burger dips.  It might be true that I prefer the traditional roast beef French dip least of all of its brothers.

The place has an old, funky 70's throwback feel but it feels very welcoming.  The service was good and the waitresses were very nice.  The bar was cozy and cave-like.  The bloody mary was very strong and served in a low glass.  

I was impressed when I ordered the Prime Rib Dip: you get to choose how fine you want your prime rib sliced and are asked if you want dressing on the side of the salad or tossed in.

The Prime rib dip arrived.  As we can see above, we got it with the side salad and the jus is extremely dark, which wound up being an absolute coup.  The sandwich itself was average-sized but good.  It came with a plastic cup of good (Beaver I believe) creamy horseradish.  Just from the picture above, we can tell that this is not, per se, a gourmet French dip but it is a good one.

Here's a closer shot of the sandwich itself.  You can tell that it has standard bread and a good amount of beef.  The beef was nice and supple.

So I dove into the sandwich (first sans jus, then later with the jus).  The jus was very (midnight) dark and it was really good.  It wasn't too salty and had a deep, satisfying flavor.  Because of its value and usability, it scores a 5 of 5.

The sandwich itself was small and "classic" but that's fine.  They don't have to be over the top to be great.  As for the beef, it was good, soft and tasty but did not have an overly distinct beef flavor.  There was also a little fat in there but I don't mind.  That must means it is authentic prime rib.

The creamy, spicy Beaver horseradish on the side was a hit with me this day and gave you that big nasal hit that is so fun.

This meal also came with a salad that had very cold lettuce, which was a major plus.  Tim had told me to get bacon bits on the salad and I forgot, which resulted in cheeze-its and salami, which is their default.  It was a simple salad and there was evidence of other herbs on the simple salad, making it fancier than "just iceberg".

Here's the salad, which was quite good.  Cold lettuce goes a long way in my book.  I score it a 4 for its creativity and value.

Beirut no no no was playing on the radio.  I got my French dip comfort food fix on a Sunday and two Bloody Mary's to straighten out my mood and outlook.

So circling back to the party at Greg's, I am greatful that I was introduced to Wedgwood Broiler from Tim and others.  Tim takes this place seriously and I verified that their three French dip varieties and their Prime Rib Dip in particular are solid units.  The place is cool, old, swanky and comfortable and I felt at home.

Bread: 3 of 5
Meat: 4 of 5
Non-Meat Toppings: 4 of 5
Sandwich: 4 of 5
Au Jus: 5 of 5
Salad: 4 of 5
Overall Meal: 4 of 5

5 of 5 DeliciScore™ (From Heaven) Awarded to Mr. Beef for their Wet French Dip Sandwich in Chicago, IL on this 14th day of July, 2012 - Mr. Beef in Chicago!

I'd heard about Mr. Beef through Rich Albrecht, a former boss and all around great guy.  I found myself passing through Chicago while on vacation this summer and knew that I had to go to Mr. Beef.  My co-travelers (Jessica and her parents) were good sports and didn't mind having a sandwich.

It was a hot and sunny day and we were on our way to the airport.  Here goes!

Here it is from the outside.  Nothing special but Chicago's a  really cool city.  It was about 90 degrees in the city that day and we were impressed by all of the available and usable waterfront.  (not in front of Mr. Beef but in general).  It's in the heart of Chicago downtown.

A view of the city from in front of Mr. Beef.

The fine guy making my sandwich.  Their menu is impressive yet simple and the place is pretty funny and classic.

Sarcasm gets points for me.  The place is not impressive,  very humble but very famous.

Here's their "Elegant Dining Room" which is really just a long shared table with the Blues Brothers at the far end.  They have video games behind me in the same room.  It makes it feel very fun.  It wasn't very busy there that day but we didn't mind.  The place still felt clean enough and nice.

Here's the video games looking the other way.  It's a really long table.

By default, they make their sandwiches "wet", which means pre-dipped.  I didn't mind.  They also have the option for Sweet, Spicy, or both.  This refers to the peppers that they add to the top of it.  I went with Sweet & Hot because I'm just like that.

Here's what you're working with.  It has really good beef.  The bread is not so sloppy that it's a problem and the peppers are really good.  Overall, it's a great sandwich.

Here it is in its raw form.  You see the green peppers.  It also has celery and carrots on it, which makes it fun.  The size is pretty good.

They have a ton of signed celebrity art on the wall and the place is clearly famous.  Note Andrew Dice Clay.  (I don't mean this sarcastically, but he's the only one I recognize from this smaller pic.)

Sign of Mr. Beef.

The Review

• Bread.  4 of 5.  The bread's good.  Nothing wrong with it.  It absorbs the juice well and didn't get overly sloppy since it was pre-dipped.
• Meat.  4 of 5.  Nothing wrong here.  Good meat.
• Non-Meat Toppings.  5 of 5.  The sweet and hot peppers were really good.  They made the sandwich.  I especially enjoyed the celery and carrot in there!
• Juice.  4 of 5.  Nothing wrong here.  I liked this as a 'wet' sandwich.  It was good.
• Overall sandwich.  5 of 5.  Best wet dip I've had so far.  The peppers made it fun.  It's not gourmet, it's just good!
• Overall Location and Experience.  5 of 5.  This was a really neat place.  A very classic French dip.  

I now own a stuffed animal: Mr. French Dip

2011-09-22_21-11-30_958, a photo by ejveal on Flickr.

My sweet friend Nancy gave me a blue, stuffed hippo chef with a big that says Mr. French Dip.  He says only one thing, "MMM!!".

Fun. Thanks, Nancy!