American Style Restaurants

[Spudz27]

OMG it tastes so good, now I know why americans have watery gravy on a sandwich, never understood it till now lol.

[blueoval]

you bastard, that looks amazing

[Spudz27]

took 4 hours of cooking lol. I would change the recipe slightly as it is too spicy for the kids, so had to choose their peices wisely, but I have to stay away from it, I think I have eaten enough lol. The piece of meat was $20 from local butcher, who showed it to me, asked which part I wanted and trimmed most of the fat off for me. It was supposed to be served with mash and peas and corn, I still had those, but I took two small roll's, filled with meat and dunked in the pan juices, like the yanks do, which until I did it thought was weird, but, ahhhhhhhhhh twas heaven. Now I know I can get it and cook it, I will do it once a month.

[blueoval]

Legendary bloke. Looks like a perfect winter dish. I gotta give this a go on my weber bbq.

[NickyN]

Originally Posted by Spudz27

OMG it tastes so good, now I know why americans have watery gravy on a sandwich, never understood it till now lol.

image

I guess it does look like watery gravy, we just call it au jus. Prime rib is served with au jus and horseradish.

Is there an Arby's there? No beef hamburgers, instead, they serve theirs with thinly sliced, freshly carved roast beef in the bun. The French dip is when you dip the roast beef sandwich in the au jus. I don't care for soggy bread so I've never had it but if you saw the looks on my friends' faces you'd think they went to heaven.

http://www.arbys.com/food.html

[NickyN]

Originally Posted by lilmattie

Not sure if it was an American restaurant but there's a great place called Ribs'n'Rumps in the Olympic Park in Sydney. It's around the corner from the Novatel where I stayed last year.

They have a meal challenge where you have to eat all on your plate.

The plate consists of fries, baked veggies and your choice of steak+ribs in beef, pork or lamb (I think). So just to be clear - that was 1kg of steak + 1kg of ribs = 2kg of meat.

I was 2 short ribs off finishing it all before I had to stop. I thought it was a good effort.

I had a continental buffet breakfast of fruit and pastries the next morning, lol.

How would you have been recognized if you finished the challenge?

Yes that was tremendous effort!

[chevypower]

They have au jus in Australia, but they don't do French Dips. French Dips are best done with Swiss cheese. They need pies and sausage rolls in America and more American barbecue in Australia. Some of the other weird cravings I have had here in the States: Tiny Teddies, Arnott's Teddy Bear biscuits, Minties, Twisties, Chomps, Cadbury Flake, Cola Bottles, those puffs that you get from Coles that come in Chicken and Cheese (I don't even know the name of them). Fortunately you can buy Tim Tams and Bundy Ginger Beer here now.

[NickyN]

I know! I can't find meat pies anywhere here. :(

And yes yes YES, Tim Tams are delicious, I love them! Someone special in AU I know introduced Tim Tams to me and imagine my surprise when I started seeing them here in shops and grocery stores! I'm happy I know where to find them here.

I haven't tried baking with them yet but I munch on them, there's so many yummy varieties and special ones too!

[Spudz27]

Au jus, is it something special? Or just the pan juices? Because my recipe said the pan juices were to be used to serve on the meat, I just dipped my roll in and although I hate soggy bread, it was pretty good. We had the rest 2 days later, wrapped in foil and heated at 230c for 30mins (had been in fridge 2 days) and when I got it out, I tried to cut it, but just ended up pulling it and shredding it with my tongs. It was so good lol.

[Yellow_Festiva]

'Jus'.... I bloody hate that word......

First it was only found in French fine dining... now the bloody pub on the corner has it on their menu...

I can get bangers and mash with jus... oh, look at me talking all prim and proper like.....

[chevypower]

I don't know what's supposed to be fancy about au jus, it is just broth. I call it au jus because that's what everyone else calls it. If it had another name, I would probably call it that.

[RedHotGT]

May I suggest HOOTERS.

Now - I know that most of you will think we're talking about a 'tittybar' here, but it's nothing like that - and I must say I was very surprised and pleased with my Hooters experience.

I went to the one on the Gold Coast (Mermaid Beach I believe) on a Tuesday night for my birthday. Took my 2 kids, and the wife. It was excellent. Somehow by chance, Tuesday was 'kids eat free' so the tightwad in me was very happy with that.

They had a huge selection of 'carnage' to order. Ribs, Steaks, Burgers, Chicken Wings, basically all Americana style which was great. Everything was very good, and I'm a pretty harsh critic on food most of the time. Granted it wasn't all that expensive (compared to other 'fine dining' experiences) but it wasn't supposed to be 5 star anyway.

They had EVERY single sport channel you can think of on plasma TVs mounted on the wall/ceiling. And of course they had a couple of glamours serving in those small orange shorts and Hooters T-Shirts.

It was fantastic, I would definately go there again, and bring the family. Was not what I expected, and I thought it would be a laugh to go to Hooters. Instead, it was very fun, enjoyable, entertaining, and affordable.

If there was one in Melbourne, it would be a winner.
Maybe I should look into the franchise?

[Yellow_Festiva]

Went to the hooters in Sydney. Quite liked the experience. I think they had a LCD screen on each table scrolling through the waitress profiles?? Or something like that...

Fine for a bunch of guys, would prob not take the family there if they were young. Food was good though

[Miss_XR6]

Hooters in Sydney is good. As yellow Festive said not for the young young children but fine for a bunch of friends get together ect

The food is good comparable to outback steakhouse ect

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by chevypower

I don't know what's supposed to be fancy about au jus, it is just broth. I call it au jus because that's what everyone else calls it. If it had another name, I would probably call it that.

I get that... but the way the word has been over used in the past 5 years it will soon find it's way on a McDonalds menu.....

Perhaps it's just me... I don't like overcomplicating simple situations....

Few months ago I went to ikea and asked where the table legs are, the guy replied, in a nicely scripted way that 'the solution I seek can be located in level X, adjacent to the XXXX'....

My solution??? I thought I was looking for table legs??? Yeah, he is technically correct but meh... would have much prefered "Yeah mate, the legs are on level X next to the XXXX'....

Anyway... moving along...

[The Yeti]

I'm not a huge fan of the American style restaurants, and this morning while in Hong Kong when my old boss suggested we go to a steak house for lunch I wasn't overly enthusiastic.

Any how we went to this place called Ruth's Chris steak house o my freaken god it was good

http://www.ruthschris.com/

I don't know how true it is but apparently they have their own farms where all the beef comes from so they can garrante the quality

It wasn't cheep but man it was gooooooooooood

[NickyN]

Oooooh, Ruth's Chris is my ultimate FAV steak restaurant! You havent had steak until you have one at Ruth's Chris!

Ruth's Chris is known for their aged beef which is then custom sliced to your order. It's an upscale, elegant and romantic atmosphere where the staff are attentive and pretty much are there to make you happy. The unbelievably marbled, juicy steaks arrive at your table sizzling with fresh butter melting on top. Everything from appetizers, salads and desserts are top notch and sinfully delicious! I love the creme brulee with fresh berries for dessert! They also have private dining rooms for special occasions. Ruth's Chris is at the top of the list of my family's favorite restaurants and we've celebrated lots of special events there.

But, have to give kudos to Morton's Steakhouse too!

[NickyN]

Originally Posted by The Yeti

I'm not a huge fan of the American style restaurants, and this morning while in Hong Kong when my old boss suggested we go to a steak house for lunch I wasn't overly enthusiastic.

Any how we went to this place called Ruth's Chris steak house o my freaken god it was good

http://www.ruthschris.com/

I don't know how true it is but apparently they have their own farms where all the beef comes from so they can garrante the quality

It wasn't cheep but man it was gooooooooooood

Your last sentence is an understatement!!! You will pay a lot but it's worth it.

[Stugots]

Wow, I didn't know about the Killa Burger joint and a couple are very local to me.

Cheesecake Factory could possibly work here in the right economic environment. The US with it's more lax employment/industrial relations policies, food subsidies and lower overheads can afford to stock and staff these places. It's probably too big a risk in the Australian capital cities to run a Denny's chain or the like.

On my roadtrip through the US last year I was disappointed with the quality of the food in most places. It was like they sacraficed flavour for portion size. In n' Out burger was excellent though. Fresh & simple.

One thing that surprised me was the mexican food, even in the scummy chains like Pollo Loco, the food was bloody good. Mexican restaurants should be able to do well here but they bomb from crap quality and overcharging.

[Feathers]

Mmm Denny's.

There was one right next door to our hotel in Hawaii, so that's where we had breakfast most mornings.
I'd love a recipe for the banana and pecan pancakes. YUMMY!!

[Stugots]

Originally Posted by Feathers

Mmm Denny's.

There was one right next door to our hotel in Hawaii, so that's where we had breakfast most mornings.
I'd love a recipe for the banana and pecan pancakes. YUMMY!!

If you get it, please share. Was it the Denny's near the outrigger in Waikiki? The Grand Slamwich at Denny's Waikiki was the first meal I had when I got to Hawaii. I loved the wait staff there, mostly elderly but very friendly. Coffee tasted like dishwater though.

You've started to stir my memories of Hawaii. Ono Cheese steak, Kalua Pig, Leonard's Bakery...

[Spudz27]

Blueoval stay tuned to this thread lol. I made another brisket, but trimmed too uch fat before cooking, even though you cut off the fat before eating, you need it too cook lol.

Next week is texan BBQ pulled pork sandwhich. I am getting closer and closer to not having to go to the states and pig out. I already create my own burgers, hotdogs and pizza.

[Feathers]

Originally Posted by Stugots

If you get it, please share. Was it the Denny's near the outrigger in Waikiki? The Grand Slamwich at Denny's Waikiki was the first meal I had when I got to Hawaii. I loved the wait staff there, mostly elderly but very friendly. Coffee tasted like dishwater though.

You've started to stir my memories of Hawaii. Ono Cheese steak, Kalua Pig, Leonard's Bakery...

It's the one right next to the International Marketplace. In the same building as the Miramar Hotel on Kuhio Ave. Next door to Fatty's Chinese.
The wait staff were older, though there were 2-3 in their mid 20's, but all of them were lovely.
If I find a recipe, I'll be sure to post it in the Chef's Corner thread.

[NickyN]

Originally Posted by Spudz27

Blueoval stay tuned to this thread lol. I made another brisket, but trimmed too uch fat before cooking, even though you cut off the fat before eating, you need it too cook lol.

Next week is texan BBQ pulled pork sandwhich. I am getting closer and closer to not having to go to the states and pig out. I already create my own burgers, hotdogs and pizza.

Are you going to use BBQ sauce on the pulled pork sandwich?
What kind of bread.....grilled?

In the South, cole slaw is used in the sandwiches. Got a good recipe for cole slaw?

[Spudz27]

Yeah bbq sauce is part of the recipe, along with chilli, wochteshire sauce, sugar etc. Was just going to have it straight on a toasted turkish bread for something a little different. I am not a fan of cabbage, so coleslaw is not gonna happen, unless I use iceberg lettuce in place of cabbage.

It is a recipe I found on the net whilst looking for what cut of pork is usually used. It is done in the slow cooker for 6hrs high or 12hrs low. Makes it easy because there is like 10mins of prep and then I can just sit and forget for the day lol.

[NickyN]

Is this the dry rub recipe you wrote about on page 4? I'd love to get the recipe and try it myself in a slow cooker.

Shredded iceberg should be as good as cole slaw. Let us know how it turns out!

[TC200six]

Originally Posted by Feathers

Mmm Denny's.

There was one right next door to our hotel in Hawaii, so that's where we had breakfast most mornings.
I'd love a recipe for the banana and pecan pancakes. YUMMY!!

Now that place is good, I went to a couple of them the last time I was over there. I can't think of any restaurant chain here (near where I live at least) that comes close to Danny's, surely not Sizzler and Hog's Breath.

[Spudz27]

Nah this is a different mix of spices and has chopped onion and garlic in with it.

So
1cup of bbq sauce
1/2cup of apple cider vinegar
1/2cup chicken stock
1 Tbsp Woschteshire sauce
1 Tbsp of prepared mustard (i guess from a bottle not powded)
1 Tbpsn Chilli powder (will be half in mine as I have kids)
1/4cup brown sugar
1 large onion chopped
2 garlic cloves crushed
1 1/2 Teaspoons dried thyme
1 tspn oil

Put the oil on bottom of slow cooker and place the 1.8kg (4 pound) Pork shoulder in, then add all other ingredients and stir well to combine. Put on lid and cook on high for 5-6hrs or low 10-12 or until meat falls away. Remove, use tongs to pull meat and add back to the juices and stir well. Serve on a roll.

The brisket dry rub is

1Tbspn onion powder
1 Tbspn garlic powder
2 tspn salt
1 Tbsp sugar
2 tspn mustard powder
2 Tbpsn chilli powder
1 Tbsp ground black pepper
1 crushed bay leaf
1 1/2 cups beef stock

Mix all dry ingredients together I omitted a bit of chilli powder and it was still spicy, but in a nice way.

Take a 1.8kg brisket and rub both sides with the mix.
Put in roasting pan and cook uncovered on 200c for an hour
Remove from oven, add beef stock and enough water to make 1/2inch of liquid in pan. Cover tight with alfoil and bake in oven at 170c for 3hrs or when meat is tender.
Let stand for 10 mins, remove from pan and remove fat before serving (the fat was lovely but lol) serve with pan juices
I did 150c for 4 hours and it just fell apart. I served mine in a roll which I dunked in the juices.

[Feathers]

Originally Posted by TC200six

Now that place is good, I went to a couple of them the last time I was over there. I can't think of any restaurant chain here (near where I live at least) that comes close to Danny's, surely not Sizzler and Hog's Breath.

The only place that has a breakfast, lunch and dinner menu, and some outlets open 24/7 is McDonalds, but their "food" doesn't even come close to Denny's.

[TC200six]

[Feathers]The only place that has a breakfast, lunch and dinner menu, and some outlets open 24/7 is McDonalds, but their "food" doesn't even come close to Denny's.[/QUOTE]

True that. It's rather questionable if you could even call what Mcdonald's sells as food compared to Denny's.