This review also appeared in the Florida Times-Union

It is generally hard to get me to go try a new barbecue restaurant. Barbecue is very subjective (let’s not even get into the Texas vs. Kansas City vs. Memphis vs. Carolinas battle) and can even vary from day to day at a particular restaurant. To try and mitigate these factors, I made a few visits to new restaurant 4 Bones Barbecue and convinced some coworkers to accompany me to lunch to get a range of opinions. For the most part, they were positive.

Upon our arrival to the strip mall on the corner of Beach Boulevard and San Pablo Road (anchored by Hobby Lobby), we noticed a long line inside (due to lunch counter-style ordering), which included a group of police officers — a good sign — and a tantalizing smoky aroma wafting around outside.

Ordering is a la carte: pick your meat and amount (¼ pound to 1 pound); bread type (two slices of Texas toast, which we found delightfully buttery, or two cornbread muffins, which were a little dry; the breads are included in the price) and then add as many or as few sides as you’d like for $2.49 each. I liked this better than the typical barbecue “meal” of meat with two sides included, as I will eat whatever starches are placed in front of me, but can easily limit myself to ordering just one. “What a silly complaint, just order the vegetable,” you say? For this reviewer, if it comes down to mac and cheese vs. green beans, the Jolly Green Giant will lose every time.

I went with the brisket cheese steak ($9.99: brisket, roasted onions and bell peppers, provolone) from the “Specialty Sandwiches” section of the menu, and chose corn nuggets as my side. Pick brisket as your a la carte meat (starting at $4.99) and 4 Bones allows you to select the cut: lean, fatty, or a mix. I thought the brisket might have been sliced too thick (making the fatty cuts a little too fatty) and only average-tasting but, honestly, I have yet to find really great brisket in Jacksonville (any one have any suggestions on this?).

Brisket Cheese Steak

Brisket + Texas Toast

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I’ve been bouncing around town lately for food events, which is always a lot of fun. Here are two I had the opportunity to attend recently, A Taste of THE PLAYERS at TPC Sawgrass, and the Meet the Farmers Dinner at the Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island:

A Taste of THE PLAYERS 

Healthy Options

One of Jacksonville’s premier events, THE PLAYERS Championship golf tournament is held at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra. This year’s event starts next week, May 9, and runs through May 12.  This was my first visit to TPC Sawgrass, and I was awed by how gorgeous the course was.  Organizers have been working to make the event feel more accessible for all attendees, and new food options open to all ticket holders are part of the plan. Gluten-free, vegetarian, and low calorie items such as the BLT with turkey bacon (gluten free), Avocado Power lunch (gluten free), and Chick’n Salad (made with chickpeas) will be available at THE PLAYERS Cafe.  The BLT was the standout of this group (I loved the raspberry mustard with the crisp turkey bacon), but we also enjoyed the grilled steak sandwich and the 2013 “signature item,” Mayport Shrimp & Grits with Fried Green Tomato:
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I’m mildly obsessed with macarons. No, not macaroons, the coconut cookies. The French macaron, a sandwich cookie made with almond flour, sugar, and egg whites. These cookies have a delicate outer shell that conceals a denser, slightly chewy center. They also serve as the vehicle for various delicious fillings. Macarons are tough to make properly (trust me, I’ve tried), so I’m always excited to find a bakery that does them well. Enter Bon Ami Confections in St. Augustine.

Bon Ami Confections

At our late afternoon stop-in time, much of Bon Ami’s treat supply–which includes a rotating supply cookies, brownies, and flavored marshmallows–was already depleted. Sign of a good product, I’d say. I got one of each of the remaining macaron flavors: key lime, lemon, rose, white chocolate, lavender, pistachio, and dark chocolate cocount:

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I have been eagerly anticipating the rollout of The Happy Grilled Cheese truck since seeing whispers about it and a menu leak on Twitter. Not just regular grilled cheese sandwiches (delicious on their own merit) but a creative variety of them?? I was so there. And so I was, on opening day:

The Happy Grilled Cheese Truck

The truck features a rotating variety of it’s grilled cheeses, and on this day the offerings ranged from plain to with bacon to with LOTS of bacon. I chose the latter, obviously, Porky the Melt (American cheese, cheddar, bacon, ham, pulled pork, caramelized onion, and tomato):

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Also check out my review of Tres Leches for the Florida Times-Union!

We’ve been stuck in a bit of a dining rut lately, which is not necessarily a bad place to be. It’s a good rut, filled with a lot of our favorites–Picasso’s (new menu!), Nippers, Gumbo Ya-Ya’s, even a couple trips to French Pantry–so no complaints! I recently took a jaunt away from the Southside for lunch to Tres Leches’ recently relocated (from Springfield) bakery in Riverside. I’ve tried their namesake cake at the Riverside Arts Market on a number of occasions (which I reviewed here for the Florida Times-Union!), but had yet to try their lunch menu.

As the name implies, the menu is mainly Spanish-inspired with other Euro influences (for instance, French omelette on baguette). I tried the Bocadillo Manolo (Jamon Serrano, Manchego Cheese, fresh chopped marinated tomatoes on baguette):

Bocadillo Manolo

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Also check out my review of Maple Street Biscuit Company for the Florida Times-Union!

There can’t be many foods more perfect than a biscuit sandwich. Especially when what lies between those two biscuit halves is fried chicken. Maple Street Biscuit Company in San Marco has been putting out some pretty delicious biscuit sandwiches (with and without chicken) since opening a few short months ago. My first visit was on opening day, when I split a Loaded Goat (all natural fried chicken breast, and fried goat cheese medallion), Sticky Maple (all natural fried chicken breast, pecan wood smoked bacon all topped with Bissell Family Farm real maple syrup), grits, and mac and cheese with Folio Weekly’s Bite Club writer Caron:

Loaded Goat + Mac & Cheese

Sticky Maple + grits

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Easily the most-anticipated restaurant opening this year, Black Sheep Restaurant in Riverside (5 Points if you’re being technical) had a lot of hype to live up to–and seems to be doing a great job. A sort-of reincarnation of Downtown’s Chew (some menu items have been retained) and newest addition to owner Jonathan Insetta’s Black Sheep Restaurant Group (which includes Orsay), Black Sheep’s focus is on food that is sophisticated but still seasonal and locally-sourced. However, I think one of the biggest draws is the fancy new building that houses the restaurant and their just-opened rooftop bar.

I’ve visited three times now, and beyond a few minor gripes have thoroughly enjoyed it. I will say though, that Mario has not been particularly impressed with his meals thus far–and I can understand why. So your ordering preferences can have a big impact on your experience, as with any place. I’ll start with our last–and I think best–visit, where I had the Braised Beef Shortribs (creamy leek and rosemary soubise, wild mushroom and blue cheese bread pudding) and Mario had the Marinated Flatiron Steak (smokey onion-tomato timbale, fingerling potatoes, chimichurri)

Braised Beef Shortrib

Wild Mushroom and Blue Cheese Bread Pudding

Flatiron Steak

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*Update* – Gift card winners have been randomly chosen! Congratulations Livivua, Tina, Tabitha, Mary, and Steph! Thanks everyone for entering!

I wrote about Firehouse Subs way back in my blog’s infancy, when I was a poor college student eating mostly sandwiches, burgers, and pizza….oh wait. Apparently only times have changed! I’m saying that to prove that Firehouse has long been one of my favorite sandwich chains, and that was not influenced by the free food I was treated to at their recent Friends of Firehouse dinner. At this event, Firehouse Founders Chris and Robin Sorensen spoke with us about how their business got started and some of the successes and hurdles along the way.

The Sorensons

We also tasted four of their most popular sandwiches: the Hook & Ladder, Italian, New York Steamer, and Smokehouse Beef & Cheddar Brisket.

Sandwiches

My favorite–the Smokehouse Beef & Cheddar Brisket. I had never tried it before (self-proclaimed barbecue aficionado Robin Sorensen perfectly voiced my concern: “If there’s not a smoker in there, I’m not trying it”) but WOW. Specially-sourced choice beef brisket is topped with cheddar, Sweet Baby Ray’s barbecue sauce and mayo. I know, sounds too simple (or crazy–particularly the mayo part). Tastes amazing!
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I have come to realize that I eat food out of a truck about once a week now. Just doing my part to support the local economy–and not to worry, brick-and-mortars, I usually make a point to “eat local” at least once over the weekend too. One of my favorite trucks, Mother Fletcher’s, specializes in filet mignon sandwiches…that’s right, one of the best parts of the cow now comes with cheese (and maybe a few other things) and is portable. This will be a short post, because I can never bring myself to change my order here. I always get the Black and Bleu, blackened filet mignon with bleu cheese and savory sauce:

Black and Bleu

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If I haven’t mentioned it before, I was born and reared (“Chickens are raised, children are reared!” -HS English teacher) in Louisiana (I have definitely mentioned this before). Also if I haven’t mentioned it before, I regard most “New Orleans style” or “Cajun” restaurants outside Louisiana with a wary eye (I mention this every chance I get). So even giving Gumbo YaYa’s a chance was kind of a big deal for me. I was convinced after taking a look at their menu, which looked pretty legit. Not that we don’t serve up a plethora of dishes smothered in butter and cream-based sauces in Louisiana, but that is really not the majority–or the best–of what we have to offer. The hole-in-the-wall type spots serving up overstuffed po’boys and fried seafood plates–now that’s where it’s at. And luckily, the menu at Gumbo YaYa’s doesn’t just look legit, it tastes that way too. Let’s start with the gumbo:

Chicken & Sausage Gumbo

Seafood Gumbo

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