The Great American Hero: It's a Good Idea!

       Last Friday, I had a good idea.  After gathering water samples at a few sites in Dallas, I met my co-worker/friend Jessica at around eleven in the morning so we could work together on five sites near the airport, Love Field.  The good idea hit me as we were preparing to gather the sample at our first site: we were near a sandwich shop I'd always wanted to try, The Great American Hero, and I suggested to Jessica that we hit it for lunch.  She agreed and we were only five sample sites away from the fruition of my good idea.

       The Great American Hero has been in Dallas since 1974.  It's had a shop at 4001 Lemon Avenue for as long as I can remember.  Over the years, I've driven by hundreds of times and thought to stop, but never did, because it always looked too busy.  I'm usually driving by at around the lunch hour and their front parking lot, which is small, is invariably full.  Also, their drive-thru lane almost always has a line of cars to the street at lunch hour.  Anybody who knows me knows I'm not a fan of crowds, and so the apparent busy-ness of The Great American Hero kept me away.  Until last Friday.

       I'm less inclined to be intimidated by crowds if I'm with somebody, and with Jessica agreeing to give it a try, I was determined to finally dine at The Great American Hero.  In my mind, I imagined she and I wedged in a long, stifling line of people that would move so slowly that it would take forty-five minutes for me to order and another thirty minutes to get my sandwich.  I figured I could handle it if Jessica was with me, and after we finished our samples, we got into our trucks and headed over there.

       I'd already gotten it into my head that I was going to park on a side street instead of trying to get into the parking lot.  When I took a left on Throckmorton Street next to The Great American Hero, I realized that I'd been mistaken about their parking lot situation.  They have ample parking behind the shop and out of view from Lemmon Avenue.  I still parked on the street---I'm paranoid about maneuvering my truck in parking lots, but all of that available parking was an encouraging sign.

       When Jessica and I entered The Great American Hero, I realized that my preconception about the busy-ness of the shop was also wrong.  The line was relatively short, and there were plenty of places for us to sit.  The shop was busy, but the efficiency of the employees was a marvel to behold.  I immediately got in line behind two other guys, scanned the overhead menu, and within a few minutes was being expertly and politely guided through my sandwich order.  Within a mere few minutes more I was seated at a counter, enjoying my sandwich, chips, and large iced-tea---all of which cost me ten dollars and some change.

       I chose the Hero's Club, a hot sandwich with baked ham, turkey breast, cream cheese, black olives, and provolone, and I got it on wheat bread.  In the ordering process, the sandwich-maker referred me to a question on the menu which simply asked "Everything?"  "Everything" included fresh shredded lettuce, onions, tomatoes, a blend of canola oil and olive oil, red wine vinegar, spices, and oregano.  I'm always a fan of "everything" when it comes to a sandwich, so that's what I wanted.  And when referred to a second question that had to do with mayo or mustard, I chose spicy mustard.

       Jessica took a little more time looking over the menu than I did before getting in line.  She eventually chose a cold hero with lean roast beef, provolone, and "everything" on marble rye bread.  To drink, she ordered a Coke.  And, because The Great American Hero offers first -time customers a free bowl of fruit, her hesitance to get into line before reading the menu marked her as a first-timer and scored her some nice fruit.

       I took a menu home with me and showed it to my wife, Jessica.  On Sunday, she had to go in to work for a few hours and on her way home she picked up a hero for us to share.  We'd carefully perused the menu before she left for work, and agreed to try the sandwich named after the shop, The Great American Hero.  It came with genoa salami, baked ham, bologna, and provolone, and we had it with "everything" on French Bread.  Oh, and we also had them throw on some jalapenos.  

       The sandwiches were delicious, just as I suspected.  And I'd have experienced their charms many years earlier if not for my unfounded preconceptions about The Great American Hero.  There's a lesson for me in this experience, and now I've got to find and try all of the other places I've skipped for fear of noon-time crowds.

       The Great American Hero is a cool place to eat!  I recommend that you give it a try!

The Albertsons Deli Counter: Hot Wings for a Snack or a Meal!

In the early nineties, when I was reluctant to play my Nat King Cole CD in our workshop on the Coast Guard Cutter Boutwell, my future brother-in-law, Shawn, encouraged me by saying "Good music is good music."  Wise words, indeed, and over the years I've found that they apply to more than just music.  For instance, good food is good food, and I've found good food in many likely as well as unlikely places.  For instance, the deli counter in the Albertsons grocery store at 9540 Garland Road in Dallas has excellent hot wings.

I discovered the hot wings at Albertsons during the few months that I worked at the Starbucks located across the street---both sides of the street, including the Albertsons and Starbucks, are part of  the Casa Linda Shopping Center.  Whenever my shift was long enough, I was given thirty minutes for lunch, and though there were a few fast food options in the near vicinity,  it didn't take long for me to establish the deli counter at Albertsons as my destination of choice for lunch.  In fact, after my first taste, it was a sure bet that I'd be hastily chowing-down on a sack of their hot-wings while I watched the minutes tick away on my lunch break.

The wings are soaked in a spicy marinade and fried to a crispy perfection.  I'm not sure what the marinade is, but I can definitely say that it's not a buffalo sauce.  Buffalo sauce would be boring.  These wings have a spicy heat that is definitely not boring.  Whatever the secret, they are delicious and once I've started eating them, my hands and mouth become an embarrassing blur until they are gone.

From time to time, Jessica and I will stop by Albertsons to grab some hot wings for a snack.  More often than not, we'll just eat them in the parking lot---they taste best when they're almost too hot to hold, but sometimes we'll grab a bucket of wings, potato wedges, and cole slaw to take home.  When I eat them at home, though they are already plenty spicy, I'll sprinkle a little Texas Pete hot sauce on the wings to create an incredible taste experience.

On her way home from work last Friday, Jessica stopped by Albertsons and picked up two pounds of hot wings and a pound of potato wedges for the bargain price of only $9.99.  It was a great deal and an even better dinner.

The hot wings at the Albertsons deli counter in the Casa Linda Shopping Center are very tasty! I recommend you give them a try!

Doe Belly's: Perfect Catfish in Forney, Texas!

Saturday night, as a Knight of Columbus, I had to work the seven o'clock to clean-up shift at the beverage table at the pot-luck dinner at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Dallas.  My family wanted to come along, and so, to simplify things, we decided to hit the four o'clock Mass before heading over to the pot-luck to grab a bite to eat.  As a result of this, we did not have to get up early for Mass on Sunday morning.  We slept in, and when we were all finally up and moving around, we were hungry.  It was a bit late to cook a big breakfast, and so Jessica and I agreed that we needed to take the family out for lunch.  After a bit of thought concerning the merits of which place appealed to us, was close enough, and was open at eleven o'clock, we came to the happy conclusion that the only answer was Doe Belly's.

Located at 300 W. Broad Street in Forney, Texas, Doe Belly's has been our go-to catfish restaurant since seconds after taking our first bite of their delicious fried catfish.

I'm not a fan of greasy catfish and I'm especially not fond of muddy catfish.  Doe-Belly's catfish has none of these unpleasant traits.  Their catfish is fried in a spicy cornmeal batter to perfection!  I'm not sure how they do it, but the catfish comes out firm enough that I can eat it with my hands.  As I eat it, it doesn't fall apart---even when I dip it into their tartar or cocktail sauce.  I've eaten at lots of catfish places in my lifetime, and I can't recall ever encountering a catfish that didn't require a fork at some point in the meal.

On Sunday, we showed up right after eleven and were the first in the door.  Immediately, like people who don't need to look over the menu, we went to the counter and ordered a regular two-piece catfish and  four shrimp combo for me and a two-piece catfish combo for Jessica.  The combos each come with a big handful of fries and two hush puppies, giving us plenty of food to feed the boys as well.

For drinks, the boys had children's cups filled with Doe Belly's Punch, a sweet punch spiked with fruit.  Jessica filled her cup with half punch and half un-sweet tea.  I wish I'd thought of that, but instead just drank sweetened tea.  Still, it was no terrible loss.  The iced tea is very good.

When we finally got our food and sat outside on the patio, the first thing both Jessica and I did was to grab the bottle of hot sauce and douse our catfish.  I'm not sure what brand of hot sauce Doe Belly's uses, but it's got just the right kick to compliment their catfish and shrimp.  The hot sauce, combined with the ketchup, tartar and cocktail sauce, gives Doe Belly's a solid A+ in the condiment department as far as I'm concerned.

By the time we left, I was definitely full and happy.  That went for the boys and Jessica as well, though I think the boys were more full of Doe Belly's Punch than food.  We count ourselves fortunate that we have such a great local catfish joint within a few miles of our house.

Doe Belly's is a cool place to eat!  I recommend that you give it a try!

Jimmy's Food Store: The Italian Beef Sandwich is sooooo Good!

Last Thursday, I spent the early part of the day collecting water samples from cities north of Dallas, while my friend Matt's job for the day was to collect water samples from Lake Fork, which is east of Dallas.  We knew that we'd be converging back in Dallas at about the same time, so we agreed to meet for lunch at Jimmy's Food Store, home of the finest Italian deli in Dallas.

James "Jimmy" DiCarlo, who founded Jimmy's Food Store at the corner of Bryan Street and Fitzhugh Avenue with his father in 1966, passed from this world on August 4th at the age of 92.  Matt and I, upon hearing of this news, decided at once to honor his memory by stopping by for a sandwich as soon as we could.  It took us a little longer than we expected, but on Thursday, at one o'clock in the afternoon, the stars aligned and we stood before the deli sandwich counter and ordered our lunch.

I ordered the Italian Beef sandwich.  To be honest, every sandwich on the menu looks delicious, but the Italian Beef may be the only sandwich I'll ever order at Jimmy's for the foreseeable future.  Yes, it's that good.  I tried it on my first visit in September of 2011 and was immediately hooked.  Still, the little voice inside of me that urges variety had me try the Philly Roast Pork on my next visit.  And, though the Philly Roast Pork, featuring mounds of porketta, gravy, broccoli, rabe, and provolone on a 6-inch bun was delicious, it just couldn't be as good as the Italian Beef.

The Italian Beef at Jimmy's is a towering monument to the art of sandwich making.  It's a 6-inch bun loaded with hot sliced beef, gravy, provolone, and pepper giardiniera.  When the  guy behind the counter called my name and handed it to me, it felt like it weighed five pounds.  I quickly found a bag of chips and a bottle of iced tea and headed for the register.  The tab was a little over $9.00 and I gladly handed over the cash, eagerly anticipating my first flavorful bite.

Grabbing  a handful of napkins from a stack on the counter by the front window, I found an empty nearby table, and got down to business.

The first bite did not disappoint.  The sandwich is dipped in a light gravy, and so the bread  is slightly wet at the top and almost soggy at the bottom.  I didn't let this deter me in the least----that's what the napkins are for.  The beef is perfectly tasty and the giardiniera---carrots, red bell peppers, hot peppers, and celery all swimming in olive oil---packs just the right amount of spicy heat.   My mouth is watering as I type this and I think that's about the best testimonial I can give for this delicious sandwich.

Matt, who'd tried the Italian Beef on his previous visit, ordered an Italian Sausage sandwich, which can be ordered with mild or hot sausage---Matt  took the mild---and comes with marinara, mozzarella, sweet peppers and onion on a 6-inch bun.  It looked good and Matt was cool enough to slice off a bit of the sausage for me to sample---it was very good, with a nice flavor and texture.  Though Matt enjoyed his sandwich, he couldn't help but look upon my Italian Beef sandwich wistfully and wish that he hadn't listened to his own inner voice urging variety.

I'm probably being a bit dramatic when I write that I'll never try another sandwich other than the Italian Beef at Jimmy's----I am, if nothing else, prone to drama.  They have a sandwich called the Italian Stallion, featuring mortadella, capicola, sopressata, pepperoni, provolone, porketta, coppa, mozzarella, and prosciutto that I'd be a fool not to try at some point.  Also, there's a Cuban sandwich that looks good with roast pork, ham, swiss, pickles and something called mojo sauce on a 6-inch bun.  Maybe I'll try these sandwiches at some point.  Or maybe I'll convince whoever I'm with to try them so I can have a taste while continuing to order my beloved Italian Beef sandwich.

Jimmy's Food Store is a cool place to eat.  I recommend that you give it a try!

UPDATE 8/23/13
I had the day off today!  We're a family that likes to get out early, so we headed out at about 0830 to Starbucks at Casa Linda Plaza for coffee and chocolate milk, then went to a park at White Rock Lake so the boys could play.  After that, we went to Target to do a little shopping.  And then, it was lunchtime and we decided to go to Jimmy's to give Jessica a chance to try the Italian Beef sandwich and to give me a chance to try the Italian Stallion.

The Italian Stallion sandwich was as awesome as I expected!  The mortadella, capicola, sopressata, pepperoni, provolone, porketta, coppa, mozzarella, and prosciutto combine to make a very delicious taste experience.  I had the six-inch and it was plenty.  To drink, I had a Dublin Lemonade Soda---made with pure cane sugar!

Judging by the yummy-sounds coming from Jessica as she ate, she enjoyed her Italian Beef sandwich.  And she had the Dublin Orange Cream Soda---she gave me a drink and it was very sweet and creamy, just the way an orange cream soda should taste.

Once again, I can't help but strongly recommend that you give Jimmy's Food Store a try!