Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Emeril's 20th Anniversary Cookbook!


Emeril's 20th Anniversary Cookbook!

It's an exclusive collection of many of the best-loved recipes from Emeril's, from Barbecued Shrimp to Banana Cream Pie to Sazaracs - there's something for everyone in there...and best of all, it's FREE!
Download the Emeril's 20th Anniversary Cookbook Here

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Big Apple BBQ Glen Cove NY

A couple of reviews that were posted to one of my old posts about the new joint Big Apple BBQ that opened in Glen Cove NY. I have yet to make it over there.
Blogger Dr. Delight said...
At 9:10 PM the waiter brought my salad, and my wife's onion soup. The salad was suppose to be an iceberg wedge--who knew this could be screwed up in New York? The presentation of the salad was unacceptable, and inexcusable, my wedge was cut in half and on the left side of a dinner plate, two large chunks of uncut unedible onion were in the middle, and two unripe slices of tomato on the right, and white straight from the bottle or can "blue cheese" type dressing was poored over it. There was no bacon. THis was really bad. My wife's onion soup was cold, and had too much bread in it, and the cheese was of sub par quality. Our dinner sides were served while we were eating our soup and salad, at 9:15PM. Our two dinner entrees and second sald was served at 9:25PM. The timing was a total miss, but this can be expected on an opening night, and that is why restarants usually have a soft opening, to work out the kinks and get feedback from friends and family. This is Restaurant Management 101, and noone here took that course. We ordered sweet potatoe fries and creamed spinach. The presentation of the Spinach was simple, but effective, it was in a crock plate. The presentation of the Sweet potatoe fries was fine. Both presentations could use more razzle dazzle, for this market...as far as eating the sides, the sweet potatoe fries were undercooked and soggie, and the spinach had no flavor.. it was like water soup with green color. The two entrees were yet even worse.. Presentation was UNACCEPTABLE, even for domestic pets, let alone human beings. My mother-inlaws shredded pork looked like cat food on a plate, and my brisket and short rib were plopped on a plate with no thought at all.. As for flavor, it may have been exceptional for a lunch truck, but for a North Shore, Glen Cove, Restaurant.. The bbq food HAD no FLAVOR, was over cooked to the point that it was leather like in texture, and made me yearn for alka seltzer. The shredded cat food on a plate (shredded pork) was bland. Our waiter was very polite, and appologized for the delay, kept our beverages filled, and under these circumstances kept us from leaving. Also, in all restaurants it is standard protocol to train your waiters and serving staff by showing them the food and feeding it to them, so they can describe it to customers... It was evident that none of the staff had tryed the food prior to this.. and this is managements fault. Our busboy came to our table with the bus box and cleared, while we were still sitting there, and asked for our help. All of these errors are indicative of poor management. This place needs a real host, executive chef or consultant to advise on presentation... This was a failure, becuase these new restauranteurs failed in training and preparing their kitchen staff, and serving staff. For had they trained and rehearsed, this would have never happened to the public at large. Reutation is everything in this town. Unless, these people get some help real quick, I expect them to be back at the lunch truck in no less than three weeks. BTW... Management should have known better than to feed the local police and fire department on opening night before working the kinks out... They were on line ahead of us, at the 24 Hour CVS buying Alka Seltzer...
April 2, 2010 5:36 PM
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Anonymous Anonymous said...
I went to the Big Apple BBQ with my fiance and my son tonight for dinner. We were so pleased with the staff and the way we were greeted from the nminute we walked in the door. The decor was refreshing and suitable to the restaurant theme. The food was incredible. We ordered the French Onion Soup with the pulled pork, which we couldn't get enough of. We also had the hamburger with sweet potato fries and the pulled pork sandwich. The hamburger was juicy and flavorful, I liked the way that the hamburger was seasoned so delictably. The pulled pork sandwhich was mouth-watering. The ribs that we also ordered were amazing, the meat was seasoned so well and juicy the meat fell off the bones. We ordered dessert for our son, he had the ice-cream cookie sandwich. He ate the whole thing. Of course, we both had to try it. The homemade warm chocolate chip cookies and the vanilla ice-cream was a perfect combination. The service was great! We were pleased with all of the staff. Our waiter was very attentive and kind. The management was also GREAT! It has been some time now that I have been to a restaurant where the chef and the management comes over to my table to ask me how we were enjoying the food. They were all interested in what we had to say about the food and the place itself. I can't wait to go back. It is a great place to bring your family and have a great meal and a great time. GOOD LUCK!!!
April 4, 2010 10:05 PM
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Anonymous NEWYORK5STAR said...
Being a true "southerner", from Atlanta, and having business travelled the US for more than 20 years, I know about BBQ. There all all types of BBQ depending on the region of the country you are in, vinegar taste, sweet taste, spicy, Pork, Beef you name it.... One thing this new restaurant has in common with all the others accross the US, NOTHING, If I were them, I would be ashamed to advertise myself as a BBQ restaurant. My wife and I went on Saturday nite at 7:15pm, were told by the hostess that there would be a 30-40 min wait. OK, Sat night no resevation, I'm willing to wait. We sit in the bar enjoying a cocktail and I count 12 tables empty. There are about 15 people at the TINY bar and sitting on the fireplace hearth and they are all waiting for tables. Bartender was fast and the drink was good. We were seated 10 min later and looked over the LIMITED (4 entree) menu and as our waiter, very disinterested, says that they are having a a larger menu in 4 weeks when they offically open in MAY. OK , I order an iceberg wedge, the "Big Apple Tour", 4 different types of meats and my wife oders the ribs. A couple of min later the waiter is back, and says...We don't have the "Big Apple Tour", we are OUT of sausage and brisket, I said: "since it's not even eight o'clock yet and you don't have 2 of 4 entree choices, what will all the people waiting get"? No Answer, I ordered the pulled pork. The salad came, 1/4 head of lettuse, two onion slices, two tomato slices, RANCH dressing and NO bacon that was advertised on the menu. 1/4 hour later I got cooked bacon on a plate, after salad was consumed and plate had beeen removed, but I enjoyed the bacon. Dinner came, pork was on a plate with onion rings. Pulled pork on a scale of 1-10 was a 2. Wife got her ribs, we could not tell what they were by looking at them. Meat was so over cooked it fell of the bones while they were plating into a big pile. Sweet potato fries were underdone but tasty. I had a side order of mac&cheese since another side dish, gumbo, was not available as well. Children wouldn't eat the mac&chesse it was so bad. Wife said ribs on a scale of 1-10 was a 1. Dinner cost $58 for two. ADVICE TO PITMASTER... Your directly across the street from a SUPER STOP & SHOP grocery store, go buy some sausage and brisket, put your sauce on it...no one will know, cornbread (staple of ANY BBQ restaurant), 2-3 types of BBQ sauce, put in jars on the tables and you will be good to go until the restaurant critics get to your place. We won't be back, ever.
April 5, 2010 2:39 PM
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Blogger John said...
My wife and I visited Big Apple BBQ on April 2, (their second day in business) and were forced to wait for an hour because the place was so busy. We finally got a seat at one of their booths, which was nicely decorated with a country flair. Our waiter brought out the menus and offered us a choice of beverages. One thing you must try is the homemade fruit compote that they offer in mixed berry or apple peach flavor. My wife and I had two glasses of each, they were great. We ordered an appetizer of their BBQ wings and found them to be very tender, smokey and seasoned just right. Next, we had the garden salad which although was saturated with dressing, looked very presentable and the vegetables were fresh. Being a person who has tasted various BBQ in many places, I was eager to try the Gumbo, and let me tell you, it was probably one of the best Gumbo's I have ever had. It was spiced just right, not overpowering and it was loaded with sausage. My wife ordered the Sliced Brisket and the Pulled Pork on a platter with Spicy Carrot Salad and Sweet Potato fries. The brisket was tender and juicy and the pulled pork was accented with smokey flavor that was combined with their BBQ sauce, turned out to be utterly delicious. The spicy carrot salad is something new and refreshing, when I asked what was in it, the waiter said that it was a secret recipe that the owners developed in Europe. Like I said before, being a true BBQ fan, I had to order the Monster Ribs. The ribs they use are big tender ribs that when cooked correctly, they have to fall off the bone, leaving the bone soft and the Ribs juicy with flavor. Poppa Ricks Big Apple BBQ is definitely a place that I will bring my friends and co-workers to. The big screen TV adds a modern flair and allows you just relax and enjoy the great food and atmosphere, not to mention the sporting events and the concerts that they feature. I don't know about the other reviewers but I had great BBQ and I know great BBQ when I taste it. That is why Big Apple BBQ definitely hit the Bulls Eye.. Way to go guys!
April 12, 2010 10:22 PM
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