Tonight, some co-workers and I ventured to the way-upper-west-side and had dinner at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que.
Full rack of ribs, double side of fries, and cornbread
We started off with some very good spicy chicken wings. I’m not sure where they get their chicken from, but they were some of the largest, meatiest chicken wings I’ve ever had. I’m thinking whoever raises their chickens is working with Barry Bonds’ “trainer”.
I got a half-rack of baby back ribs (with mac-n-cheese and fries on the side), and they were quite good. They make them with dry-rub and were nice and tender, but not too tender. They pulled away from the bone easily, but didn’t fall off without some help. They had a nice variety of bar-b-que sauces on the table and the mac-n-cheese was very well made…nice and crusty with some sort of spice on top (maybe cayenne?).
The atmosphere is exactly what I want in a ribs place. Lots of unfinished wood, hubcaps and old posters/advertisements on the wall, The Rolling Stones playing on the stereo, and wooden tables with hand-carved names in them. The place was fairly crowded for a Wednesday night at 7pm, but it wasn’t crazy, and the service was pretty good.
There is one minor downside to it…it’s located at 131st Street and Riverside. It’s not ridiculously out of the way, but there are places that are just as good that are a lot more convenient for people that live in mid-town Manhattan or the outer boroughs.
I left stuffed. And isn’t that exactly what you want from a bar-b-que joint?
Rating: 8/10
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The picture shows what looks like cornbread. A menu I found says they do cornbread. How was the cornbread?
Also, what about desert and drink?
And although obviously written for a New York fan base, to those of us who aren’t from New York, one has to Google a bit to find out it’s 5.5 miles from your house to the restaurant. Again, thanks to Google it’s 14 minutes by car (taxi?) or an average 48.6 minutes by public transit
And what about the price -v- value? According the menu I found, chicken wings for 2 (divided by 2 because you’re 1 – you can pawn the other half onto a mate) plus the 1/2 baby back ribs with cornbread and 2 sides only comes to $20.92. Seems too cheap to be real. There’s got to be drinks plus tip. Gotta becareful what one Google’s…..
So, roughly two hours travel at I.T. billing rates of $70/hour. That’s $140. Plus the meal, say another $40. Meal time of 2 hours but that’s pleasure so it’s free. All told, you were out 4 hours at a cost of $180.00.
Wow!
mmm… your post makes me want to visit New York again. So many good places to eat! The last time I was there, my friends and I had some amazing pizza in Little Italy. I don’t remember the name of the place exactly but I think it was Lombardi’s? …or maybe that was the place where we picked up our dessert to bring back to the hotel. It was late summer and there was a street festival in Little Italy where they were selling fried Oreos! I was both apalled and intrigued but didn’t end up trying any because my friends wouldn’t let me stop to get some.
Jeff: You analyzed things pretty well there (thank you). The cornbread was quite good, actually. It was moist and tasty, which is something rare in restaurant cornbread. No dessert was had because we were stuffed from the main course. Each of us had a beer (nice beer menu, btw) or iced tea along with the meal. All told, for wings appetizer, drinks, main course, and tip, we walked out of their for $30 each, which is more than reasonable for that kind of meal.
Laiya: Lombardi’s is THE pizza joint in Little Italy (or what’s left of it). How could someone pass up a fried Oreo? It’s something you have to try once, and it’s not like you can get one in your average restaurant.
Saw an article on-line today @ http://www.time.com/time/travel/cityguide/article/0,31489,1843404_1843415_1845540,00.html
Although the article mentions Lombardi’s and Totonnos, the focus of the story is on Grimaldi’s. So which is the best?
As for me, I live too far away to try any of them but based on their web sites, I’d have to vote for Totonnos. Grimaldi’s don’t have a menu, Lombardi’s menu doesn’t mention pepperoni as a topping (the only topping I ever eat) so based on my eating preferences, it’s Totonnos.
And it’s strange that none of them allow you to contact them by email.
But then again, what would you want them to do. Make great pizza or answer emails…..