Went to Maple Block once and have been to Holy Cow 2-3 times? My impression is that MB has significantly higher quality ingredients, but they charge you for it (although I don’t understand how they served @PorkyBelly that brisket and considered it fatty).
I didn’t interact w/ the staff at MB enough to get much of a sense for them, and I thought the ambiance was quite nice. Holy Cow has a more “down home” vibe that also extends to the food.
For my $, Holy Cow is good enough at a lower price point (so it’s my overall choice btw the two, esp since the Brentwood/SaMo location is WAY closer to me).
Whaaat! I was a little surprised you ordered the lean. I’ve seen others mention the dryness of the brisket. I guess we got lucky. We were there right at opening time.
Maybe people should start saying something. We had been discussing how the best BBQ Places can have an off day. But like @bulavinaka stated, Maple Block should be able to back-up their rep and the price that goes with it.
Edit: I looked at your picture. It does look a little dry. Maybe they mixed up your order. But still, even lean shouldn’t be dry. If they’re counting on people using the sauce to combat dryness they shouldn’t. The best BBQ shouldn’t need any sauce.
Ahhh okay. I’ve never been to HC and can only attest to our takeout experience at MB (husband brought it home). For the most part we thoroughly enjoyed it. You’re correct though, they are a little pricey. The baby backs at HC have that color I like. And as @Bookwich pointed out, they have more menu options like that fried chix sandwich .
Them’s fighting words (and I’m a pacifist).
The large SPARE RIBS at Maple Block are - to me - phenomenal, and are the reason I go, with some regularity, to MB. HC doesn’t even have spare ribs, just the far less toothsome baby backs. I have not been to HC, but the reviews (posted, and from friends) have been very average for HC and mostly way above average for MB.
SAPP COFFEE SHOP
Stopped by for a breakfast of Jade noodles with pork wontons added in. Really delicious. And that Thai Iced Tea is tops. TOPS!
LANGER’S
How I’ve missed thee. Lord on high it’s so good. What a place.
DOMA KITCHEN
After seeing @bulavinaka’s post, this fit the bill of the task I had been given to find “a restaurant that has food in between breakfast and lunch that isn’t too brunchy.” Overall, everything was solid. We were disappointed not to be able to try the dumplings (only available for dinner), but luckily the food was good enough to warrant a trip back. Note: service/food is a bit slow as they’re still in the soft opening phase of their new Marina Del Rey location.
Yep… my husband loved the spare ribs at MB. He probably favors the toothsome thing too. Me? I like a more sweet, tender, fatty rib like the baby backs. But I don’t count, since I’m not eating much of any of it these days.
Yeah was there Sunday. I thought it was good, just wished the meat flavor came through more. I got more mayo/aioli flavor than meat. The chili flavor was great.
The last time i went i got this and it was glorious, both the flat and point of the brisket was so juicy, tender and fatty, i didn’t even need a knife.
[quote=“PorkyBelly, post:253, topic:4358”]
juicy, tender and fatty, i didn’t even need a knife.
[/quote]Yep… that’s what we got. BBQ inconsistency seems to be a theme on FTC lately.
I like baby backs better and if you haven’t been, you’ve got no dog in this fight. As far as reviews: In food as in life, follow your heart, not your friends.
I’m actually interested to hear what you think. I think we had a conversation (and maybe @mhlee added to it) about the ribs at HC vs. MB a few months ago?
The 1-2 ribs I had aat MB were fantastic in taste except… there was so little meat! A few bites and I was done, despite the gigantic size (mainly bone). I actually think the ribs at HC don’t taste as good (and the diff in taste/quality is sizeable), but there’s much more meat (despite the rib itself being like half the size). There is something wonderfully feral about eating ribs (IMHO), and no chew to my ribs = me being unhappy.
[quote=“paranoidgarliclover, post:258, topic:4358”]
I had aat MB were fantastic in taste except… there was so little meat!
[/quote]Mind you, I’m just a spectator on their ribs. But now that u mention it, the ribs
did seem big on bone, not meat.
[quote=“paranoidgarliclover, post:258, topic:4358”]
And the sauces at HC are WAY better.
[/quote]Good to know. Their baby backs looked to have good color. That has a lot to do with coating. Sauce is my thing! I rarely find restaurant BBQ sauces satisfying. As a result I normally go commando. So the meat has to be good.
.
