Category: Food Critic

ultimate destroyer BBQ sandwich

I really enjoy watching Man v. Food on the Travel Channel.  Adam Richman is great as a host, and he can eat a mountain of food, but the food itself is even more impressive.  One episode I saw was about Kansas City, and I wish I had seen this before I went to KC a while back!

The challenge in this episode was a BBQ sandwich called Papa Bob’s Ultimate Destroyer.  It was huge, but also a little unusual.  It’s built on a 12″ hoagie bun, and the bottom layer of meat is a half pound of pulled pork, then a half pound of hickory smoked sliced pork.  All that is covered in BBQ sauce, then another layer of bread is added.  Next is a half pound of hickory-smoked ham and a half pound of hickory smoked turkey breast.  Then more sauce and more bread.  But wait, there’s more!  Next is 3 half pound hickory smoked hamburgers*, topped with sauce and more bread.  In case that’s not enough, there’s a half pound of brisket and a half pound of BBQ sausage, with, you guessed it, more sauce and the top of the hoagie bun.

It would be difficult to eat just the sandwich, with all that meat and bread.  But the challenge also includes 1 1/2 pounds of fries.  I would welcome some fries, because they go well with BBQ’d meat, but that’s a lot of starch in an eating challenge.  It’s probably part of the reason why no one has ever defeated the Ultimate Destroyer.  All together, the plate of food weighs 6 pounds.  If you don’t eat it, it costs $48.

I glanced at the release form, and it explains the sandwich and has the usual legal fine print.  I like how the small print starts out: “I AM FULLY AWARE THAT I AM ABOUT TO ATTEMPT TO EAT AN UNHEALTHY AND POSSIBLY DANGEROUS AMOUNT OF BAR-B-QUED MEAT AND SIDE DISHES.”  Dangerous indeed…

There are some other funny tidbits in the rules:
– No bathroom breaks; just sit there and eat & eat & eat & eat.
– Must keep all food down at least 5 (five) minutes after your last bite. If you launch it, you gotta clean it!! (floors, tables, chairs, parking lot, employees, customers, etc.)
– A Papa Bob’s Up-Chuck bucket will be provided at your table (just in case).
– Papa Bob’s is not responsible for anything mentally or physically that arises from eating the “Ultimate Destroyer”.

I think I’ll pass on that one.  Maybe if they have a smaller version…

* I’ve never heard of a smoked hamburger, but it sounds intriguing.  When Adam got to that part, he said it was tasty but a little dry, so he had to add sauce.  I’m thinking some cheese and Miracle Whip would help with it.  And of course, you might as well add bacon.  🙂  I’ve gotta get me a smoker someday…

review of Wimpy’s in Conway, AR

Today the Buffet o’ Blog staff visited a new restaurant in town called Wimpy’s.  As you might expect from the name, they specialize in burgers.  And let me say, they specialize not only in selling burgers but in making truly delicious burgers.  We all agreed that the burgers tasted most excellent.  If you’re looking for healthy burgers, this may not be the place, because the burgers were greasy, but they were also one of the juiciest burgers I’ve ever had.  I think it’s one of the top 3 burgers in town, and arguably the best (at least based on my first visit).

The french fries are also excellent.  They are battered, so they are somewhat crunchy (and perhaps even less healthy than normal), but they were just right to me.  They also have sweet potato fries, if that’s your thing.  We have yet to try the onion rings and milkshakes, but that will have to be on the next visit.  They also have other menu items, but it would be hard to order something other than a burger because they’re so good.

The sweet tea was sweeter than average for a restaurant, but we all agreed it was just right.  More points for that!

The only drawback we had was the smallness of the bacon.  It costs 70 cents to add bacon to your burger, and it took a search to find it on my burger.  You shouldn’t have to search for bacon on a burger!  There were 2 small strips, but it looked like one piece cut in half on mine.  It still added to the flavor, of course, but only to half of the burger.  I think two whole pieces of bacon (for 4 strips when cut in half) is a minimum, at least when I make burgers at home.  I realize many other restaurants skimp on bacon, too, so it’s not just them.  But I still had to mention it for this to be a fair and balanced review.

Also, it costs more than a typical fast-food burger joint, but the food is also much better than a typical fast-food place, so it’s not outrageous.  I definitely plan to go back.

review of David’s Burgers in Conway, AR

A while back the Buffet o’ Blog staff visited a fairly new restaurant in town called David’s Burger.  We make it a point to visit new restaurants of interest, and a place that specializes in burgers is definitely an interest!  They even have stacks of fresh ground beef on display when you go in.  They definitely emphasize that their meat is fresh.

All this place sells is burgers and fries, so that’s what we got.  They initially forgot to put bacon on our burgers, but that was easily remedied, and they brought out 4 pieces of bacon for each burger, which is the right amount.  The burgers were delicious — juicy / greasy, with the cheese melting, and plenty of meat.  I wasn’t too crazy about the fries, but some people like them, so your results may vary.

On a subsequent visit with different guests, one member of my party forgot to order cheese.  I informed the staff and they brought us a slice to put on.  But this was no ordinary slice of cheese — it had been dipped in the grease, so it was already half melted.  That’s a tasty way to melt the cheese, though not healthy at all.

Overall, we recommend it.

a trip to Baconalia

The Buffet o’ Blog staff (with some very special guests) visited Denny’s last week to research their Baconalia promotion.  The food was good — I had a bacon chipotle chicken dish, which was tasty, and the bacon dish featuring 6 strips of bacon (3 types) also received good review.  Another guy tried the bacon meatloaf, but said it didn’t have enough bacon and wasn’t a hit.  The most unusual thing on the special bacon menu was a bacon sundae with vanilla ice cream and maple syrup (which no one tested, sadly).  Another trip may be warranted for further research, as I have since read that the Maple Bacon Sundae is the best new item, and I am curious to try it.

Denny’s even printed special menus that look like giant strips of bacon, which is awesome.  I asked the waitress if we could get bacon that large, but unfortunately they were not pictured actual size.  I realize there may be logistical reasons why not, but this is America, so why can’t we supersize our bacon?!?  🙂

More restaurants should use bacon to promote their food as well as using more bacon in their food.  Imagine the increased business if they advertised that all dishes come with 50% more bacon!  Or if you could add bacon to anything.  I think we’re on to something here…