Roadfood_ Revised Edition - Jane Stern [165]
To complement its first-class pretzel repertoire, Gus’ offers cups of Dijon mustard and melted Cheddar cheese, plus servings of Ted Drewes ice cream. The proper method of dining is to dip one’s pretzel, bite by bite, in the little cups, swilling a mug of beer on the side. The only problem is finding a place to do this. Gus’ has no tables or counter; business is all take-out, for eating at home, in the car, or on the sidewalk. Frozen cooked pretzels are available, as are bags of “Bake UR Owns.”
Hodak’s Restaurant & Bar
2100 Gravois Rd.
314–776–7292
St. Louis, MO
LD | $
Boasting that it has been “St. Louis’ premier stop for chicken lovers since 1962,” Hodak’s started as a corner bar, but the proprietor’s wife used to bring in fried chicken for the customers, and the customers liked it so much that it became part of the bar’s attraction. Relocated to its current location, remodeled and renovated many times over the years and now under new management, it is still a good place to drink as well as to have a nice family supper.
The single-digit-priced chicken platter includes four pieces, each encased in a thin, crunchy crust that shores in very juicy meat; on the side come crinkle-cut French fries and coleslaw, and for forty cents extra you can get hot barbecue sauce for dipping. Hodak’s also has a broad menu of steaks, roast beef, ribs, and seafood as well as such appetizers as seasoned wings, chicken strips, and, of course, toasted ravioli.
Jess and Jim’s
517 E. 135th St.
816–941–9499
Kansas City (Martin City), MO
LD | $$$
Jess and Jim’s, a Kansas City landmark that opened in 1938, is all about beef. This is apparent even from a distance when you spot the huge statue of a bull atop the roof of the restaurant. Steaks arrive from the kitchen exuberantly sputtering, crusty from an iron griddle. The top-of-the-line KC Playboy Strip is two inches thick, and unlike the super-tender bacon-wrapped fillets, it demands some serious chewing. Not that it is tough, but neither is it a cut of meat for milquetoasts. Dense and intense, this is steak-lover’s steak, which is not to say that the T-bones and porterhouses are anything less than excellent.
On the side of regal meat, excellent potatoes are essential. There are cottage fries, French fries, and immense bakers available, of course, with sour cream, bacon, and shredded cheese as condiments. The sleeper on the menu here is fried chicken. It’s a reminder that as much as it is a beef lode, Kansas City is a serious fried chicken town.
Note: On weekends especially, this place gets very crowded. Call-ahead seating is available, and strongly advised.
LC’s Barbeque
5800 Blue Pky.
816–923–4484
Kansas City, MO
LD | $$
A sandwich at LC’s is quite ridiculous. You get a heap of sauce-sopped meat piled onto a puny slice of white bread and topped with another slice. The bread underneath has disintegrated before it arrives at your table, so this sandwich cannot be lifted by hand from its Styrofoam tray. You either use plastic utensils or pick at it by hand. (All tables are outfitted with rolls of paper towels.)
Beef, ham, turkey, pork, sausage, and ribs are all pit-cooked, and among the “specialty meats” listed on the menu is burnt ends. These are crisp, chewy, extra-luscious nuggets of meat cut from the outside edges of smoked brisket. Many pieces are laced with an obscenely delicious amount of fat; there are chewy pieces and crunchy pieces, and while the ends might be dry all by themselves, LC’s excellent sauce makes them sing.
LC’s is a no-frills barbecue parlor with a tile floor and acoustical tile ceiling. There is a TV in one corner of the room and a few dusty game-animal trophies on the wall. The tables are, of course,