EAGLES RIB COOK-OFF & CAR SHOW

 

Once a year the local Eagles Club has a rib cook-off and car show. The club is located nearby and the public is invited. Ms. Goofy and I like to attend and leave our judges badges at home. This contest brings out some of the best local backyard cooks in the neighborhood. This is a local gathering that is just plain fun. It is more of the event than an actual contest.

I went and checked out some of the competitors. I asked the gentle-man if he had any bbq secrets. His reply was; I have been drinking all day. That worked for him, I guess. The mood was festive. There was a band playing in the dinning area. It is a little ironic or we are just too old but it was too loud for us and we went to the bar area to eat our meal.

I did find the home made sweets table. This was one fancy display. I tried several of the offerings and was happy. I was not so happy about my brisket plate. The brisket was so tough that I should of brought a sawzall reciprocating saw to cut. The sides were decent. This was the only low point of this fun event. We hope to return next year. I probably will stay away from the brisket.

PENINSULA ITALIAN AMERICAN SOCIAL CLUB

 

We received a hot tip of a Italian American Social Club that served lunch to the public. Normaly eating here is for members only and this was an oppurtunity to sample their food offerings. This club is located in San Mateo which is an hour away if you are lucky. (traffic). We were semi-lucky and hit light traffic in the congested Bay Area freeways. I did find a metered parking spot two doors down. Parking karma was with us today.

This was a Thurdsay afternoon at 12:30pm. The place was packed. The hostess (snooty) asked us if we had reservations. We did not. She rather abruptly said we would have to wait. After a few moments a waitress came to our rescue and informed us we could sit in the outdoor back dinning area. It was a pleasant afternoon and the back area was very nice. There were all ready some people dinning and it puzzled me why the hostess did not give us this option. Our waitress was very nice and made up for our dismal start.

The menu was fairly small and had some traditional Italian faire. Ms. Goofy ordered the Osso Buco, and I a grilled pork chop. We had salads and split an order of ravioli. 

The raviolis were just what the doctored ordered. It came with a little bowl of parmesan cheese. I did forget to mention we were served little tiny freshly baked rolls. They were small but big on flavor. Ms. Goofy swooned on her Osso Buco. It was tender fall of the bone yummy. It came with a decadent mushroom rissotto. My grilled pork chop was served with a red wine sauce and melody of vegetables. I did not sing along with the melody but I did knaw on the bone of my fantastic chop. The waitress asked us if we wanted dessert. She describe a spumoni chocolate covered ice cream treat which we/I could not resist.

This was a fantastic lunch. The Peninsula Italian American Social Club is a step back in time with a lot of our favorite old time Italian dishes. The only hiccup we had was a not so pleasant greeting by the hostess. Once we had bypassed her the rest of the meal and waitstaff was stellar. I reccomend sitting in the outside back dinning area. It is a lot quiter and very pleasant. Sadly, I do not think we will be returning for the only reason of logistics. A fact of life, living in the Bay Area is traffic. This restaurant is an hour away if you are traffic lucky. We have options that are closer. 

SUMMER Q

It has been a relativly mild summer here in the Bay Area. The thermometer has been stuck in the high 70's and we get a refreshing cool breeze in the evening. The fog is our natural air conditioner. We do get possibly 10 days or so when it heats up to the 90's. Everybody complains at this time. When it does get hot we like to cook outdoors. Who am I kidding we cook outdoors in the dead of winter. I just wanted to show you a wonderful pizza made with from scratch dough and sauce made from home grown tomatoes. The other grilled/baked item is bacon topped meatloaf. What summertime fun!

 

DIRATO'S GARDEN

I have recently discovered Dirato’s Grotto a local hot sauce maker. He sells his sauces at the Sunday Martinez Farmers Market. I love supporting local hot sauce producers and purchased a couple of his creations. I sampled and bought the garlic habanero sauce. It is a fairly mild habanero fueled vehicle to deliver garlic to your taste buds. If you love garlic, this one is a winner. I also tried (and failed) to sample the Scorpion sauce. Let’s just say it is very, very, very hot. Someday when the fire subsides I will tell you what I think. I did buy it. I am not that much of a wimp. I love to support local hot sauce makers.

 

MOOSE RIBS

 

A local Moose Lodge had a bbq contest and they needed some help judging ribs & chicken. I threw on my cape and flew to the rescue. This lodge is located in Castro Valley. The contest was held in their parking lot and thankfully we judged in a very cool air conditioned lodge.

The ribs and chicken were provided by the lodge for the competitors to cook. They prepared some entries for the judges and the remainder was sold as samples to Moose members. These members voted for a People's Choice award. This was a great time and fun was had by all.

These backyard warriors competed for a very nice cutting board trophy. I saw a lot of lip-smackin Moose members enjoying the day. Yours truly also had a belly full. I tried but nobody would teach me the secret Moose handshake.

 

 

SONOMA COUNTY FAIR

We have returned to the Santa Rosa County fair. We have not been since pre-covid times and only complained about beers being 6 dollars then. (Now 15 dollars). The Santa Rosa fair has the best floral displays and has a yearly theme.  This year was the circus. I found the judging area for the desserts. They did not need my help.  We love the county fair.

 

TOMMY'S BBQ COMPANY

 

There is a new sheriff in town. Tommy's bbq has finally opened in Hercules California. They have graduated from pop-ups to a real brick and mortar establishment. We are happy because it is one town over from ours. We have been there twice and wanted to share a couple of images and thoughts.

We will cut to the chase and start from the end. We like Tommy's. There are some hit and misses and it is not competition bbq. We do not expect competition. This is a clean, modern and friendly restaurant. The proportions are very generous. The side dishes are decent. We plan to return.

Pictured above is the pulled pork that Ms. Goofy ordered. This was a miss. It was a huge serving but it just had an off unidentifiable flavor. It had a lot of smoke but just had a wang dang weird flavor. This had us scratching our heads. Ms. Goofy did love the mac & cheese and ordered a double order on her second visit.

My favorite was the brisket. It was moist, smokey and tender. Judging brisket all the time you learn to appreciate a well cooked brisket and this is an award winner. I had a cheese/jalapeno sausage that was cheesy good. The ribs are decent and were enjoyed. Tommy's offers a hot & mild bbq sauce that we always ask for it on the side. The hot will not punish you and is my favorite. If you get a chance, give Tommy's a try.