Broadway Oyster Bar

So, another food review. Hopefully more tech stuff will be posted. I have some updates to the computer that make a good candidate for more blog posts.

This time, the place we went to is called the Broadway Oyster Bar located on South Broadway and Gratiot Street in downtown Saint Louis. The style and motif was Cajun / Creole, with the restaurant having an “on the bayou” feel. In Memphis, a comparable restaurant would be the Bayou Bar and Grill located on Madison Avenue.

The food was excellent although a bit more pricey than some others. On the menu, there are both cooked and uncooked clams, and a wide variety of seafood, including swordfish, catfish, crawfish, and shrimp. My favorite dish had to be the crawfish enchiladas, which is what I selected based on other people’s reviews. The charbroiled oysters had to be my second favorite with a subtle smoky taste that wasn’t too overpowering.

House salad with French onion soup, Jambalaya rice, crawfish enchiladas, and a smorgasbord of cooked clams to choose from 

The decor, like the cuisine, looks very similar to Bayou Bar and Grill in Memphis. On a day with nice weather, I would recommend sitting outside on the patio. On some nights, a live band is usually scheduled to perform.

Mardi Gras memorabilia and other shenanigans covered the walls and ceiling. (Notice the Beale Street sign representative of Memphis)

I would definitely recommend this place for seafood and Cajun lovers. It’s pretty easy to get too as long as the traffic is not too bad in the afternoon and also if there isn’t a Cardinals home game scheduled (Busch Stadium is only about a block away).

July 23, 2015 by greg26752 Leave a comment

Scott Joplin House / Pappy’s Smokehouse

Well, I’m in Saint Louis taking a week of vacation and decided to visit my folks and go sightseeing around the city. I’ll probably plan a bigger vacation going off by myself or with a couple others next summer when I have a bit more saved up.

Our trip today consisted of going to the Scott Joplin House on the corner of Delmar and Beaumont. Scott Joplin spent a short time in this house during his time in Saint Louis. The visit consisted of a short tour including a 15 minute documentary and also a chance to play a couple pieces of Scott Joplin’s music on a player piano. We were also given the opportunity of going on a self-guided tour of the place while we waited for the tour to start on the hour.

Playing “The Entertainer” by Scott Joplin on a classic player piano

The experience was pretty neat. I loved the sound of the player piano. It was almost good enough that from the other room you would think a person was playing, except for subtle variations in tempo when being played.

Up next, for lunch we went to try Pappy’s Smokehouse near the intersection of Olive and North Compton. We expected not to many people to be there at around 1:45pm, but the line wrapped around the inside and out the door! Luckily, the staff there managed the crowd very well, but it still took us around an hour to finally order our food and sit at a table.

As usual, I tried the beef brisket to compare to Memphis style BBQ. We also tried a half-rack of ribs and burnt ends. Overall, the food was OK and didn’t really stand out to me. I guess the quality of Memphis BBQ is partially to blame. The sauces were fairly standard, although the Hoodoo sauce I liked the best. The original sauce was probably their worst one. Anyways, I would probably rank the place ~4 on the Memphis list. It was very comparable to One and Only BBQ in my opinion.

Pappy’s Smokehouse Beef Brisket Combo with a side of potato salad and baked beans

Anyways, a good time was had nonetheless and we went down to the Delmar Loop afterwards to walk around. We bought a couple records at Vintage Vinyl then went home.

July 21, 2015 by greg26752 Leave a comment

Top 5 – Memphis BBQ

So, after living in Memphis for almost seven months now, I guess it’s time to give a shot at what I think are the best BBQ places in town.

Here is a list of my Top 5 Memphis BBQ restaurants:

1. Central BBQ – This place is almost always crowded with limited seating. The last time we went there though one of the employees was managing people going in and out of the seating area, and seats would open up rather quick. The BBQ there is top notch, especially the ribs and the beef brisket sandwich. I also like their chips which are heavily seasoned with spices and salt.

2. Corky’s BBQ – Went here a couple of days ago and the amount of food they give you is a lot for the price. A $7.99 Pork Sandwich lunch special was a bit more than I could finish. The BBQ sauce was mild, but complemented the sandwich very well. The seating area here is also limited. I’ll bet this place fills up Friday nights and the weekend. Also check out their half-size Onion Ring Loaf:

Oh boy, half of an onion ring loaf at Corkys. Good but not too good for you. I’m not really one of those people who takes food pics of everything, but I thought this was unique.

3. Germantown Commissary – Went here during the last time my family was in town. Loved their spicier BBQ sauce. Mom ordered a burger here and it was OK. This is probably one of the best BBQ places outside of the 240 loop.

4. One and Only BBQ – This is probably tied with Germantown Commissary, as I had a hard time choosing which was better. The lunch special is just enough to make you full but not too full.

5. Rum Boogie Cafe – Although not officially a BBQ place, this is one of your best bets for BBQ on Beale Street. The brisket sandwich (my benchmark if you haven’t noticed by now) was pretty decent. The gumbo was also good. The location on Beale Street makes for nice people watching.

Others I have tried:
-Tom’s BBQ, Supposedly they have the best rib tips in town according to The Food Network, but when we tried them they were pretty dry. It may have been an off day for them as it was Memorial Day when we went down there. I have yet to try Interstate BBQ, Tops BBQ, and BBQ Shop. Stay tuned for an update in a couple months!

July 6, 2015 by greg26752 1 Comment