The Godfather and his team of web-demons have been hard at work on this for a while, and it's worth every bit of the effort. Carnivores, I give you the brand new ManBQue website. Go poke around, and be sure to check in with the blog occasionally for new recipes and drivel. And if you're in Chicago, go to one of their events!

In other news, I've been "unfollowed" on Blogger for the very first time. I offended you! I really offended you!

Friday night, Mr. FvF and I finally got to get away and have a nice dinner alone, which meant we got to pick the spot. Since we'd driven there, we could hop in the car and head out of the hotel territory, where there were plenty of other dining options. I'd read a lot on Urban Spoon about Mac's Speed Shop BBQ and wanted to check it out. Luckily, it was just under two miles from the Westin.

Mac's has a nice ambiance, similar to Tank's or Fricker's, for those of you familiar with those two Dayton joints. It's billed as a biker hangout, but not a biker bar, per se. The decorum matched right up with their namesake - from light fixtures made from old wheel stock to an entire bike suspended from the ceiling, and you'll find everything from a Ducati to custom choppers in the front parking lot.

So, let's get down to business - the food! The service was fast AND friendly - two things that aren't typically mutually exclusive. The know how to cater to their kind of crowd, staffing a good handful of young, good looking girls wearing little but booty-cutters, black tank tops and tattoos. Our server was on it and got our drink order right after we were seated and had it to the table in just enough time for us to have decided what we wanted. We ordered the "Little bit of everything," which was around $20 and came with pulled pork, ribs, brisket and smoked turkey. Basically, they had five meats to choose from, and we picked everything but beer can chicken. The food came out a LOT faster than we had expected, but you'll never hear me complain about that.

None of the meat was heavily sauced, which is exactly the way I like it. They has their own, house-made sauces available on the table. There was the standard red, then the more mustard/vinegar style gold sauce. Strangely enough, they were both very thin, much more like a mop sauce than an actual, textbook BBQ sauce - but I'd be lying if I said they weren't both very good and accompanied their cooking style really well. Unfortunately, I was a little bummed when it came to the taste factor. Now, let's keep in mind: a.) we're in North Carolina, largely considered one of the greatest BBQ states in the US; b.) we're a bit off the beaten path, at a non-chain variety eatery; and c.) this place was voted Charlotte's best barbecue by the state's own BBQ Association (why don't we have one of those, by the way?).

I don't want to give the impression that it wasn't good, but by my standards, BBQ in North Carolina should be a lot better. The meat could have been more tender, and I detected little to no smoke flavor in anything. The pulled pork was a bit dry for my taste. I got a couple good pieces of bark, but not one single piece with a nice juicy bit of fat on it. Seems like it may have been all pork loin, and I think you almost have to add shoulder to the mix to get the right amount of moisture in there.

The sides were good, but not for me. I ordered cole slaw (of course), but I didn't like the style. Not enough mayo, too much vinegar - but this may just be NC's style of slaw. Mr. FvF really liked his baked beans, but they tasted like a well-doctored version of canned to me. I could be very, very wrong there, and if the cook or owner ever read this - please correct me if I am. Don't take it that badly, though - there's nothing wrong with canned baked beans.

But, the service made up for what little the food lacked, and they did a pretty killer job with dessert. We weren't completely stuffed and were craving something sweet, but I'm not easily sold on standard dessert fare. However, our adorable waitress did a good job selling us on how great they were. We ordered the apple bread pudding, which came with vanilla ice cream, both components drizzled in warm caramel. Top notch! Bread pudding isn't hard to totally screw up, but it's hard to get it dead on. This wasn't as good as Christopher's, maybe on par with the Bourbon bread pudding at Parmisano's at the Dayton Marriott (and they've won awards for theirs, too).
Our bill for the giant sampler (which came with two sides and toast), one whiskey, one beer and one dessert came to around $34. Not shabby at all, especially considering the price gouging that was going on elsewhere near uptown.

On our last day in Charlotte, I met up with my friend Andy from United States of Geekdom to catch up and have lunch. I figured we'd hit the Sandwich Club again and I'd try something different - but alas, at noon on a Saturday, those assholes were closed. I realize that because of their location, they probably cater to the uptown business crowd, but they could have done Gangbusters business that day just opening for three hours.

This left us with few options, aside from Fuel Pizza, which had been raking in the dough (HA!) since late Wednesday night when the HeroesCon crowd rolled in. I was apprehensive because of the impending carb-fail, but they actually had a pretty varied menu for a small pizza joint, including wings (boneless, too), salads, apps and sides. The only problem is, perhaps because they were so busy, the gal taking orders at the counter practically bit your head off and moved on to the next in line if you didn't spit out your order within five seconds. So, I ended up getting pizza anyway because she scared the shit out of me. I ordered a combo of a side salad, soft drink and BBQ chicken pizza. Again, I wish I hadn't been so rushed because I really think I would have opted for something else, but it was the only thing I could read the sign on. The prices were pretty fair for the area, too - about $6.85 for my combo.

Not surprisingly, I forgot to snap a photo before digging in, but the consensus was that my pizza was dry and not impressive, and the pepperoni slices that Andy got were just greasy enough and pretty delicious. I really should have tried a bite of his, since he was acting like Karen Carpenter and picking away at his slice. My salad was just a salad, nothing to write home about. Some chopped iceberg, a few tomato bits and a tiny bit of shredded carrots.

It was a very hurried lunch, so I almost feel guilty giving them a sub-par rating, but given that they knew this rush was coming (the Con is held right across the street every year), they could have beefed up on their service to render the one girl working counter a bit less bitey.

After being holed up in the hotel room for the better part of the day, I met Mr. FvF for lunch. Again, the cute little park across from the convention center left little dining options that were even relatively affordable. Apparently Charlotte seems to think they're Chicago with the prices they're charging. Did I mention that Thursday night I paid $17 for a drink? Yeah, and beers were $8.

The rub is, he was on a tight schedule, so we had to go some place within walking distance. The only thing other than pizza was a little joint called Sandwich Club. They had a pretty good variety available, and the prices were fair enough. Most specialty sandwiches were $6.50, while the more standard fare was $5.50 - all chips, drinks, etc were a la carte. They had a good variety of sides and bread options, as well.

The food was fine. Not spectacular, but not bad. My chicken salad was decent, but wasn't sweet enough and just not flavorful enough in general. The Mister's chicken cordon blue was admittedly much better than my choice, but they definitely used the frozen chicken patties along the lines if what you might get at BK or Wendy's.













While I'm glad it was there (and open), it was just very mediocre and I don't have much to add about it.

Once we stood in line amongst hundreds of clamoring nerds trying to check into the Westin for HeroesCon Thursday night, we cleaned ourselves up and met with a few of Mr. FvF's co-workers for dinner. Uptown Charlotte must have suffered some brutal financial blows since last year's con, because a lot of the restaurants everyone remembered were gone. Right across the street was a pizza place called Fuel (which I'll get to in another post), and the only other place we could find was called Mason's uptown. Based on their specials board, the prices didn't seem too hateful - and more importantly, they had a bar.

It felt like a good escape from the swampy heat when we walked it, but once we got seated it suddenly got very warm again. I found it pretty strange that the place was damn near empty and immediately wondered if we'd made a huge mistake. Our server, who was sweet - but appeared completely out to lunch, came over to take our drink order, but quickly informed us that there were no drink specials, no meal specials (really? then what's with the board?), and they were out of burgers and ribs. WTF. Not only did burgers make up nearly 1/4 of the menu, but they were the most reasonably priced. There were a lot of wraps, pizza, and other sandwiches, but as usual - not a lot of options for carb haters who don't eat seafood. Two of the fellas ordered fish and chips, another got a Caesar salad (meal sized), and I opted for the Bull Bites, which were billed as "tender tips of fillet seasoned and grilled to a perfect medium." This was on the appetizers menu and didn't mention coming with anything else, so I also ordered a side Caesar salad.

I should also mention that I ordered a Maker's Mark and diet, which they were also out of. I ordered another drink, which the bartender brought over to me and apologized for the shortage. About halfway through our meal, our server brought me a diet Pepsi - the same diet Pepsi that should have been in my Maker's that they were out of. Ugh.

Sometime before I reached retirement age, our food finally arrived, and I was more than a little chaffed to see what I had paid $10 for.
In case you can't tell from the photo, that would be two skewers, no longer than 5" each, with maybe 6 oz of very overcooked steak between the two of them. Oh, and let's not forget the two cold onion rings and Horseradish sauce. A minimal amount of time and effort could have gone into the plating and prep of this to make it less than a total failure, but we quickly learned why their give-a-shitter seemed to be broken.

When the server brought us our outrageous bill, she made mention that this was their last night open, and we were their last customers. While I still assume that the food and service was no better on a night that they weren't closing the doors, I suppose I can't blame them for not really giving a rip.

On almost any major chain restaurant menu, you can find some variation on Fiesta Chicken. Even if they're culinary dullards, it's still usually pretty good, because it seems really hard to screw up. I made some earlier last week, and it's now in my top five "tasty as they are fast" dinners. Here's what you'll need (as usual, this recipe is for two people - double up as needed)...

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
house seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic powder)
5 tbsp ranch dressing
1 cup salsa
2 cloves crushed/minced garlic
1/2 C shredded Monterrey-Jack cheese

Warm a Dutch oven over mid-high heat and lube it up with either oil or cooking spray. Season the chicken on both sides with house seasoning and sear it for about 5 minutes on each side until it gets a nice golden brown to it. In a bowl, mix together the dressing, salsa and garlic and pour them into the pan over the chicken. Cover and cook for about 10-15 more minutes (no need to turn). Add the shredded cheese directly over the chicken breasts, then cover for 1-2 minutes so the cheese gets delightfully melty.

There's virtually no prep for this and you could serve it a few different ways. We ate it just as it was, with a mix of corn and peppers and some red potatoes I cut into wedges and seasoned in an attempt to replicate Taco Bell's Fiesta Potatoes. You could also easily chop or shred it once it's cooked and make it into a taco or burrito, or garnish it with cilantro and tortilla strips if you're feeling fancy.

I know I go on and on about my beloved Dot's Market for their butcher shop, but there's another reason to love it even more that I've never thought of mentioning.

By Wednesday night, we were fresh out of groceries and saw no reason to buy more since we were heading to HeroesCon in Charlotte over the weekend. Didn't feel much like going out to dinner either, because we'd be eating in restaurants for the next several days. Well, that sounds like a perfectly good excuse to get broasted chicken from Dot's.

We went in and pulled a number, but they normally let you cut in line if you stand by the chicken, because your order won't take long. We got two of their dinner specials, which includes three pieces of chicken (breast, wing and thigh or breast, leg and thigh), cole slaw, a King's Hawaiian roll and three big potato wedges. Remember back when I mentioned Old Hickory (on N. Main) had changed their broasted potatoes by ordering them already wedged and coated, and that they were one of my new favorite indulgences? Well, Dot's has the same potatoes now.

The chicken is tops. Broasted has always been my favorite (aside from Ma FvF's fried chicken), and it's not easy to come by now that Chicken Louie's is "temporarily" closed. The breading is crispy and perfectly seasoned, and it's never greasy.

Considering this is leaps and bounds better than the mass-produced, greasy mess you can get from KFC, Lee's, etc - you'd probably expect to pay a fine price for that kind of quality. Not at Dot's you won't. $4.49 for a 3 piece meal, two sides and a roll.

Of course, you can also get Dot's chicken by the truckload (call ahead, too!) for things like picnics, family reunions and the like. So, the next time you're not up for cooking dinner, or you need to feed an entire football team, remember that there's more than just KFC. And don't forget about the Bull Pen, the restaurant inside Dot's. Yes, that's how awesome this little mom & pop grocer is. They have their own little greasy spoon right around the corner from the beer cooler, serving up gems like the often-craved meatloaf they sell in the butcher shop, country fried steaks, and pork chops.

Need less to say, this gets 5 out of 5 sporks!