Have you Hurd... Columbus Craft Beer Week 2016 is in the rear-view mirror...

Apologies from your Dining Scout for not getting this post out before the end of Columbus Craft Beer Week, but I was out of town for the front half of the week.  It is an annual ritual adored by carnivores everywhere, and thoroughly scorned by cows.  It may be a sign of my age, but I thought in years past the participating restaurants would offer a special beer week themed burger to pair with the brews they were offering.  This year, the approach seemed a bit different.  Rather than concocting a new limited time offering, they offered a favorable price ($6) on a burger already on their regular menu and also offered a selected craft beer to accompany said burger for only $4.  So all around Columbus you could have a great burger and a great beer for only ten bucks.  Although chances are you would have some fries or onion rings with the burger and also have a second or maybe even a third beer.  You might even say to yourself "well I am only in for ten bucks on round one, so why not?"  Well played, craft beer week marketers... Well played.

Given my late start, I didn't have time to try all the burgers offered this year, but did hit one of my favorite haunts (The B Spot) and tried a new one (Hudson 29 - New Albany).  At the B Spot, the Lola Burger was offered for only $6 and while this was a solid entry...  I was enticed to try the Smasher Special at full price.  Could've been the long hiatus since my last visit or could have been jet lag.  Either way, the Smasher Special was the bomb.  Plus my wife was paying, so price didn't matter. -wink, smile-  I was so wiped out from just getting off a long flight, I don't even remember exactly what was on the burger.  Just know that it was fabulous. Hurry in to The B Spot if you want to unravel the mystery, as the Smasher Special will reset on October 1 (maybe sooner if they run out of ingredients, so don't delay).

Once I had fully regained my composure sometime over the weekend, my wife and I took my parents out for dinner to show our appreciation for all the dog-sitting they do for us.  They recently moved into the area and I picked a Craft Beer Week establishment in their new neighborhood - Hudson 29 in New Albany.  The Hudson 29 double burger with American cheese, shredded lettuce, tomato, onion, sweet pickle, and mayo on a grilled bun was delicious.  Although I couldn't really taste the sweet pickle much.  A mild disappointment, as I am a huge fan of sweet pickle on a burger and very few places offer that.  Juicy and flavorful perfection otherwise.  Normally the burger would be priced at $16 and include fries, but since it was priced at only $6 for the Craft Beer Week promotion, a side had to be ordered separately and I opted for the Colcannon Potatoes (mashed potatoes with cabbage and horseradish).  I had never tried these before and they didn't disappoint.  Will definitely order them again in the future.  Even with price of the side added to the $6 Hudson 29 burger, it was still a substantial discount over the regular price.  I am sure you know what that means.  Cocktails and dessert are duly authorized!  I tried the Blood Orange Margarita.  Those who know me well should not be shocked that I skipped the brew even during Craft Beer Week.  Others will eventually learn I am not a beer drinker.  I thoroughly enjoyed the margarita.  The novelty at Hudson 29 is that the cocktails are prepared and bottled prior to serving and they bring the bottle to you at the table, open it, and pour the first half over ice for you.  Yummy.

My wife and I thought we might be getting a victory lap, since Hudson 29 also had strawberry shortcake as their summer dessert feature.  The waitress described it as a brown butter cake.  It was similar in flavor, but not in texture to my favorite style of shortcake.  It was topped with a house made strawberry sauce and fresh whipped cream.  It was good, but I have to give the edge to Ted's Montana Grill on the shortcake.  Just a personal preference, I guess.  My parents opted for the warm Texas sheet cake served with Graeter's vanilla bean ice cream.  It was a slice of cake the size of Texas and they were kind enough to share it.  Don't tell anyone I said this, but I was wishing I had ordered the Texas sheet cake too.  Maybe next time I will.  :-)  As good as it was, I am pretty sure there will be a next time.

In closing, I should mention what I noticed was all the food related details.  Which my parents may have noticed too.  What really got them talking was the quiet and elegant atmosphere.  Worked out great, since my Mom and I both have a hard time following conversation in noisy environments.  My Dad... Well...  He noticed the solid... black... walnut... table...  Only someone who knows woodcraft would recognize that in a dimly lit restaurant.  Somebody at Hudson 29 is clearly paying attention to all the details.   Based on our first visit, it is a near certainty that we will be back soon.  Just remember that if you want to take the measure of their shortcake in the meantime, you only have a few days left. -big smile-

Your Dining Scout and Shade Tree Chef,
Michael Hurd - aka Big Mike

Hudson 29 - New Albany
260 Market Street Suite D
http://www.hudson29.com/Locations-Menus/New-Albany/Menus

No, that is not ice cream.  It is house-made
fresh whipped cream.  It tastes better than it looks.

The Texas sheet cake after it has been
shared with our entire party.   Still a healthy
(as in BIG) slice of cake, huh?

This was a blood orange margarita.  Every sip
was delightful and refreshing.  No off-premises
liquor license, so for now enjoy on site only.

Have you Hurd... I smoked, but I didn't inhale...

Yes, I know I wasn't the first one to use that line.  So many years later, it still elicits a chuckle from just about everyone I know.  Sometimes you have to go for the cheap laugh early.  Tonight is one of those nights.  Just trying to catch up on a couple of posts before I doze off.  One on the Dining Scout side of the house and this one for the Shade Tree Chef.

A few weeks back, I once again enjoyed what has become an annual tradition.  I don't know how many years ago Dr. Rhykerd first came up with the notion of a Purdue Trap and Skeet Alumni Reunion, but it was a winning idea from the start.  I get excited contemplating the menu every year.  Trying not to be too repetitive, but still making sure I rustle up grub that is appealing both to my contemporaries and the current team members.  College students today are quite a bit different than we were at that age.  They have experienced a broader range of flavors than we may have at that same period of our lives.  I am not even sure if 200 varieties of beer were available back then, much less would one of us have come close to tasting all of them.  Nowadays it is not an uncommon occurrence to have tasted that many different kinds of beer by the end of your college years, perhaps considerably more.  Their palates may be a bit more refined as a result.  Who am I kidding?!?!?  This crew may have tasted a lot of things and are in some ways demanding, but  they actually pretty easy to please.  It just makes me feel good to think they are not.  That I am somehow up to the purported challenge.  I'm no iron chef.  Just a guy who loves to cook for anyone that will let me.

It is great to go back to campus and spend time with my fellow team members and hear what is going on in their lives lately.  We break (and miss) some clays.  We take some time to teach others way younger than all of us how to love our sport too.  And we show our support for Purdue Trap and Skeet.  Doing our part to ensure the program continues for the foreseeable future.

Ron trims the brisket and cuts
the flat from the point.
Thought it would fit into
the smoker better that way.

The totally cool thing about this year's event was that it coincided with my brother-in-law Ron passing down his Bradley electric smoker to me.  Now that he has a Green Egg, the Bradley was just collecting dust in his garage.  Ron and my sister Stephanie visited Labor Day weekend and there was a perfect window of opportunity for Ron to provide some instruction on proper use of the smoker.  I took full advantage of his expertise and we smoked two lovely pieces of USDA prime whole beef brisket with a combination of apple and hickory.  Based on the rave reviews from both young and old, I will count the shakedown cruise as a rousing success.  Looking forward to building on this early success with a second solo smoke sometime later next week.  Hopefully, Costco can hook me up with some sweet briskets again.  And I will remember the lessons Ron shared.  If not, I guess he will just have to come back for another visit.  I enjoy hanging out with him, so that would be good either way.

The flats and points are ready
soak in that wonderful smoke
flavor.  

I know the right amount of heat,
pressure, and time can turn coal into
diamonds...  But the right amount of
smoke and heat without pressure
can turn USDA prime beef into
this culinary gem. Please don't lick
your screen when women and children
are present.

In the meantime, smoke 'em if you got 'em.

Your Dining Scout and Shade Tree Chef,
Michael Hurd, aka Big Mike

Have you Hurd... What Happens when The Mouth of the South Meets Big Sky Country?

I am not sure I can say I am a huge fan of everything about Ted Turner, aka The Mouth of the South.  However, I am at least of fan of his foray into the restaurant scene.  Ted's Montana Grill has been around the Columbus area for quite a while, but only recently opened a location in the Easton area.  In the earlier years of Ted's existence here in Columbus, my wife and I frequented the restaurant near the Polaris Fashion Place mall.  It wasn't too far from home and the traffic & parking (at the time) didn't seem quite as bad as Sawmill Road or the Arena District.  When that location closed, Ted's sort of fell off our radar. Unless we were looking for a place to eat before a trip down to Nationwide Arena for hockey or a concert, it was safe to say we would never even think about eating there.  It was not because we didn't enjoy the food, service, and atmosphere.  There was just not a convenient location for us.  With the opening in Easton, they are definitely back in the game.

I am not sure if being close to Costco was part of the appeal when Ted's was scoping out real estate for a new restaurant, but I think it was genius.  As many times as we visit Costco in a month, I am pretty sure our number of visits to Ted's will be steadily growing.  There is a lot to like about this particular one too.  The dining room is a bit more open than the others around Columbus.  Even when the dining room is somewhat busy, it still feels like a nice quiet place for dinner.  With my steadily worsening hearing, that is a BIG PLUS.  Just ask my wife.  Anywhere we can go that she doesn't have to repeat everything that she says and the service staff too is an oasis of peace and harmony.  Parking is convenient and it is on the fringes of the other craziness at Easton, not too far from the freeway.  Isn't that what you call a win, win, win???

Two pieces of shortcake
+ two scoops of vanilla bean Haagen Dazs
 + fresh strawberries and whipped cream
= PURE DECADENCE

This is our second visit since they have opened and I am sure there will be more soon.  I'll be sure to share updates as I methodically work my way around the menu.  I feel like they have made some changes recently.  There were a few items on there I hadn't seen before.  The reason we made this trip was to take advantage of an offering on their summer dessert menu. STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE!!!  I am not talking about that crappy spongecake you get at most (if not all) of the ice cream parlors in town that they simply call shortcake.  I am not naming names, but you know who you are.   -dark scowl-  I AM talking about a real honest-to-goodness rich and buttery sweet drop biscuit of shortcake.   Served in a tower configuration with Haagen Dazs vanilla bean ice cream, fresh strawberries, and fresh whipped cream.  When we visited earlier in the summer, by the time we heard about the dessert feature we had already eaten too much and had to pass.  It was not an understatement to say it nearly killed me to leave without having any.  Thankfully, we made it back in time.  It was just like I dreamed it would be.  If we had been alone in the restaurant, I would have licked the plate clean.  Those that know me well, know I really would too.  -chortle- Since the menu doesn't turn over until the end of this month, you can still head over to Ted's yourself and share some with your sweetest.  If I happen to be there with my sweetest when you visit, just don't ask me to cut you in.  I am happy to share with my wife, but that is where I draw the line.  At least when it comes to strawberry shortcake.  -sly grin-

In case you were wondering, yes, we did enjoy some entrees before dessert.  I opted for the Montana Breakfast beef burger (minus the bun) with salt & pepper onion rings.   My wife decided to go for the gusto and ordered the George's Cadillac bison burger.  I think Ted has her snowed.  -wink, wink- She really likes the bison.  It is only slightly more than the beef, so either way it will not break the bank.  Might as well get what you want, right?   Doesn't seem to matter whether it is beef or bison the burgers are juicy, flavorful, and cooked to perfection.  The enhancements are always spot on.  Cheese was melted to an ooey-gooey deliciousness and the extra meats were hot and a little crispy. YUM!  I thought the spicy tomato relish was a nice touch for the Montana Breakfast burger too. The onion rings are cut fresh, dredged, and flash fried.  You can definitely tell, because the slices are a bit irregular...  the breading is nice and crispy... and the onions have just a little bit of crunch left too.  No way you could get them that perfect if they were prepared in a factory, frozen, and shipped...  She really enjoyed the fresh cut fries too.
 

George's Cadillac bison burger
and fresh-cut fries.  Not sure who
George is or why this resembles
his Cadillac, but who cares what
 you call it when it's this good.

Not sure if folks really eat this
for breakfast in Montana, but since
I am not sure "ranch" dressing
has anything to do with real
ranching I am totally ok with Ted's
calling it Montana Breakfast.

I should also mention the staff at Ted's were super friendly and engaging.  The manager, C.J. stopped by to chat us up for a bit before our dessert arrived too.  One last thing I will do before I wrap is give a shout out for what Ted's calls the "House Sours."  They are fresh cucumber slices that are soaked in a proprietary brine just long enough to turn them into a yummy starter before the meal.  They aren't in the brine long enough to be called pickles, so give them a nibble even if you don't like cucumbers or pickles.  Chances are you will like these.  It only gets better from there.  If you remember, tell them that Big Mike sent you and he will be back for more shortcake soon. Don't want them to run out before I return.   -smile as big as the sky in Montana-

Your Dining Scout and Shade Tree Chef,
Michael Hurd, aka Big Mike

Ted's Montana Grill
4169 Worth Avenue (Easton Gateway)
https://www.tedsmontanagrill.com/tmg069.html