Chap's Pit Beef - Duff Goldman was right!

 One simmering-hot Tuesday evening a couple of weeks ago, we had a hankering for some pit beef and barbeque. And while our gut instinct usually directs us up York Road to Andy Nelson’s, we decided that we should mix it up a little and see how the other local favorite compares. And so we made the hike across town to Chap’s Pit Beef.

Located off of Pulaski Highway on the east edge of the city, Chap’s physical environment offers a unique contrast to that of its Cockeysville competitor. The joint operates out a small shack-like building located in the parking lot of a gentleman’s club, and across the street from an adult video store. Perhaps its modest digs is how it can keep its prices so low – but we’ll get to that in a bit.

When we arrived at about 6:00 p.m. we were pleasantly surprised to find a short line to order, and plenty of indoor seating. Don’t get me wrong, the dining area is not huge; but it was more than adequate at the time of our visit. The one thing that caught us off guard was the menu – there was a lot more on it than we were expecting! I was planning on getting the sandwich that Duff Goldman and Guy Fieri ate on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives – the one with several types of meat on it – but when we reviewed the menu it became apparent that there were a whole bunch of sandwiches with several types of meat on them. Pretty much, anything you dream up with their ingredients, they had.



As a result of my aforementioned confusion, I went with a rare pit beef sandwich, at the low price of $6.25. We also ordered a medium pit beef sandwich, and a barbeque pork sandwich ($6.70). The beef sandwiches were stuffed with generous portions of beef on a kaiser roll. The beef was very juice and was cooked to perfect doneness for both sandwiches. The barbeque pork sandwich involved pieces of pulled pork simmered in their house barbeque sauce and generously portioned within the kaiser roll. The pork was very tender, and the sauce was very sweet and well received by the group. The most significant way this sandwich differed from the famous Andy Nelson’s version, is that the sauce was already cooked into the meat. While this seems to be, based on my experience, the way barbeque is usually prepared in the south, Andy Nelson’s allows one to dress it with the sauce of his or her choosing, allowing for ultimate customization. So, which of the restaurant’s sandwich one would enjoy more is completely dependent on how much decision-making one feels like making at the time.

To supplement our sandwiches, we got large sides of macaroni and cheese ($1.75), baked beans ($2.55), and cheese fries ($4.50). The cheese fries were delicious, though there was nothing profound about them. Just a generous portion of fresh cut fries topped with a whole lot of cheese sauce. The macaroni and cheese was very cheesy, and was enjoyed by all. The most unique side was the baked beans, which were sweet and had a nice background flavor of the green peppers that were cooked into them.

Though there is no table service at Chap’s, we found the staff behind the counter to be friendly, hospitable, and quick. This was exceptionally noteable given the establishment’s low prices, and, well, the more rugged nature of this particular business district.

Overall, we really enjoyed our experience at Chap’s. Admittedly, being such strong fans of Andy Nelson’s, we were a bit skeptical; but we were proven wrong. We definitely plan to go back. On the other hand, Shawn had a similar meal at chain restaurant Famous Dave’s a few days prior, and he said after this meal, he definitely won’t go back there!

Chap’s Pit Beef

5801 Pulaski Highway

Baltimore, MD 21205

410-483-2379
http://www.chapspitbeef.com/

5-Star Rating

Food: ****

Service: ****

Ambiance: **

Price: $ ($5-10)

WTF happened to the WTF

About a month ago my wife and I were slipped into one of our go-to watering holes, The Waterfront Hotel to grab a drink and a bite to eat. I was craving the buffalo chicken wrap; she was craving their homemade potato chips. To our surprise, we weren’t able to order either.

Apparently, WTF had changed owners recently, and the new proprietor(s) wished to shake things up a bit, by bringing in an almost entirely new staff, significantly modifying the interior, and rolling out a totally new menu. The old Waterfront Hotel that my friends and I had discovered within weeks of our 21st birthdays, and been in love with ever since, was no more.

After a month or so of grieving, Team Bob Ganoosh decided pay a visit to the new WTF with an open mind and a healthy appetite.

The menu required us to study it in great detail, as none of the traditional items – including those kettle chips or the buffalo chicken wrap – were offered. The new menu has a Tex-Mex meets Low Country theme, and included items such as Frogmore stew, an assortment of tacos, the Cuban sandwich. Pork belly also held a significant presence on the menu.

As an appetizer we ordered the crab queso fundito, which essentially was a traditional Mexican queso dip with crab meat inside. As far as queso dips are concerned, this was one of the better ones we have had. Of course, adding crab meat to a dish never hurts. However, the price point of $14 makes it a bit more expensive than the average nacho dip, and pricier than I prefer for an appetizer.

For our entrees, we ordered the WTF burger, a beef burger topped with mango barbeque pork belly and jalapeño flavored bacon; the pork belly Cuban, a traditional Cuban sandwich; and the black bean burger.

The WTF burger included a healthy portion of beef cooked to perfect doneness – we ordered it rare, and got exactly what we ordered. I have never really seen a burger from a restaurant cooked rare or medium rare – they are usually over-done for safety reasons – but these guys got it right. The pork belly was extremely flavorful and very tender.

The pork belly Cuban is dish in which the pork belly really shines, though. The well-stuffed sandwich is filled with ham, pork belly, and variety of fixins, and was proclaimed by our waiter to be the “best thing on the menu, hands down”. And frankly I must agree, which really speaks to the quality of this sandwich, as I am generally not a fan of pork, at all.

The black bean burger was obviously made in house from freshly-ground black beans and hand formed. The quality of the burger patty was excellent, though we found the spices to be a little bit overwhelming, and the guacamole to be a little bit too plentiful. For someone who likes a bite to their bean burger, this would be perfect; but for us, it was a little bit overpowering.

All in all, we really did enjoy the food we had; however, we are still having a hard time thinking of WTF as a Tex-Mex joint. We also didn’t care for the new look on the first floor, which much more industrial in nature. They also installed high-end sound equipment for live entertainment, which may make the place more marketable as a music venue, but also takes away the “small dark bar where the bartender knows your name and there’s a guy playing the guitar in the corner” quality that we have loved for so long.

And while the service was good, we miss the handful of folks who have worked there for a few years now.

In the end, the only things that have remained the same about this place are the name and the shell of the building (and I guess, the upper floors). And while we definitely do not dislike the new WTF or discourage anyone from going there, it will never be the same as the bar we stumbled into six years ago. RIP, WTF.

Hogs Really Do Taste Better BBQ'ed! - Andy Nelson's BBQ

Shawn and I made a visit to this quaint little BBQ house in Old Cockeysville, already having a pretty good idea of what our review was going to say. We have both been here many times, and it happens to be the venue of choice for company-wide lunches provided by my employer. So this particular visit was more or less a technicality, spawned by a strong craving for some great barbecue (plus, I owed Shawn some money).

The restaurant consists of a small old house on York Road, which you probably wouldn't even see if it wasn't for the large pig on the roof. There is also a large shed-like building that they converted into an additional seating area, which would help in a large-party situation. This is not a fast-food restaurant per se, but all ordering is done at the counter and there is no table service. A cosy casual environment. We looked at the various pieces of paraphernalia on the wall while waiting for our food, and learned that Andy Nelson (the restaurant's founder) was once a member of the Baltimore Colts.

The menu is simple but offers everything you would want from such a restaurant: pulled pork, pulled turkey, pit beef, and beef barbecue. And of course the usual sides: corn bread, potato salad, collard greens, etc. You can get just a sandwich for somewhere around $7, or a platter with 2 sides for under $10. We both went for the platters: I got the pulled pork with corn bread and potato salad; Shawn got pulled turkey with cornbread and greens.

I'll just cut to the chase and say, as we expected, we loved everything. Both the pork and the turkey were unbelievably moist. The turkey was well-seasoned, the pork was more mildly seasoned, but most likely under the presumption that it will be topped with one of their signature sauces. Shawn enjoyed his greens, and we both loved the cornbread (they were generous with the portion, too). I loved the potato salad - I'm not really capable of resisting it - but I will warn that it is strongly spiced. It is possibly the most unique potato salad I have ever eaten.

We got there about a half hour before they closed, and ended up closing the place down. As such, there was plenty of seating. I have never actually been in the restaurant at lunchtime, but I would suspect that lunchtime on a Friday would be a bit busier, so I suspect that a large party would have a little more challenge then. I would make a similar prediction for dinner, but adding that their not-s0-late closing time (8pm during the week and maybe 9pm on the weekends) would make it difficult for a dinner-night with a big group.

So overall, the Bob Ganoosh team gives Andy Nelson's (aka "Pigman") our golden seal of approval! However, we would recommend them as more of a casual lunch or a quasi-quick dinner, than a big group get-together. If I worked in Hunt Valley, I'd eat there every day (and generally, I don't even like pork)!

Andy Nelson's Barbecue

11007 York Road

Cockeysville, MD 21030

410-527-1226

http://www.andynelsonsbbq.com/

JD's Smokehouse - The "Andy Nelson's" of Canton Bars

---UPDATE:  This restaurant has permanently closed ---

Shawn and I decided to venture out into Baltimore's lame-ass Mardi Gras scene the other night, and the best part of the evening ended up having nothing to do with masks or beads. The highlight of our evening was our dinner!

This dinner was at JD's Smokehouse on the Canton Square. We wandered into this corner rowhouse bar pretty randomly, having never been there and not knowing what to expect (we may have been in there once, for about 30 seconds on a Friday night). There was a decent crowd in there, but we managed to find a table immediately. We learned (and were not surprised, based on the name) that the menu focused had a southern "smoke-house" theme, anchored by Brisket and Pulled Pork Sandwhiches. The menu also hosted some traditional items, such as burgers and quesadilas (the latter of which was on special that night, and is every Tuesday, for $5 - but we forgot to order one).

The Brisket and Pork Sandwhiches are available in many variations, from plain and traditional to containing various fixin's and cheeses. I got the "Texas Dip" which was an emulation of a traditional french dip sandwich - containing shaved beef, carmelized onions, mushrooms, and swiss cheese. I don't remember the name of Shawn's - might have been the Brisket Panini - but it consisted of shaved beef, onions (he requested carmelized onions), mushrooms, cheddar and BBQ sauce. Both came with a huge portion of seasoned fries (similar to the seasoning on curly fries), cole slaw, 2 hush puppies, and a pickle - all for $8.95.

Well, needless to say, Shawn and I both loved our meals! They bring the sandwhiches out with 6 different sauces, including sweet BBQ, Tiger (Horsey), and peach vidalia onion (which was very interesting) - all holstered in a Natty Boh 6-pack case. The meat was flavorful and juicy, the sandwhiches were decent sized, and the portion of sides they came with were astounding for the price. We both filled up and could barely fit any beer in us afterwards. The hush puppies were a little on the dry and crunchy side, but that was the least of our concerns.

The service was also great. It seemed to be all seat-yourself bar-style seating, but the server (Katie) arrived quickly after our arrival. She was very attentive and was quick to refil our beers. The wait for the food was reasonable.

So, all in all, Shawn and I left there giving the place two "thumbs up." We plan to visit again - perhaps on Monday night, when they offer a Brisket Sandwhich and a pint of beer for $10. We also want to try the quesadilas. If anyone has tried either, please feel free to leave your comments!

JD's Smokehouse

3000 O'Donnell Street (Canton Square)

Baltimore, MD 21224

410-675-4029

http://www.jdssmokehouse.com/