Pecan Lodge-Deep Ellum

I do not usually have multiple blog posts about the same restaurant, but I decided to make an exception for Pecan Lodge.   The restaurant was recently forced out of it's location in the Farmers Market and had re-opened this past Friday in Deep Ellum.  My first visit to Pecan lodge was blogged about in 2013.  In that blog post, I declared that Pecan Lodge was the best barbecue in Dallas.  Texas Monthly later agreed with me and voted it the #2 ranked barbecue joint in Texas behind Franklin Barbecue in Austin.  Pecan Lodge has also been praised by several other publications and featured on more than a few TV shows, so pitmaster/owner Justin Fourton continues to be one of the busiest guys in the barbecue business.

By 11:00 a.m. the line was getting long

My brother and I arrived at the Deep Ellum location at 10:15 a.m. on Saturday and we were surprised that there were only thirty or so people in line.  By the time the restaurant opened at 11:00 a.m., the line was easily over 150 people and snaked around the block.  Once again, I felt like we timed our arrival just right.  When the restaurant opened, the line moved fairly quickly and we were able to order by 11:20.  

Pecan Lodge Bar and Dining Area

The new restaurant features ample dining space and a bar that serves local craft beer.  It also has an outdoor patio area with additional space for patrons to dine.  Although I am usually nostalgic about original restaurant locations, I immediately saw that the move from the Farmers Market to Deep Ellum was a good one.

The Menu

On this visit, I ordered brisket, pork ribs, jalapeño and cheddar sausage, and the daily special of burnt ends.  Since I needed something to offset the massive amounts of meat, I ordered some fried okra because it had been fantastic on a previous visit.  The slow-cooked brisket was excellent and just as good as it had been on my previous visits.  My slices were smoked to perfection and the fatty slices almost melted in my mouth.  The house made sausage was also delicious, but plays second fiddle to many of the other meats.

Burnt ends are my favorite barbecue item and I order them every time I see that someone has them on the menu.  I have had some great burnt ends in my life, but the ones at Pecan Lodge are out-of-this-world amazing.  When I looked back and tried to remember all the great burnt ends I have sampled, I honestly can't remember any that I have had that were as good as the ones I tried on this visit to Pecan Lodge.

Amazing Burnt Ends, Jalapeño and Cheddar Sausage Link, and Fried Okra

During my previous visits to Pecan Lodge, they had ran out of pork ribs prior to my arrival at the counter.  I was pleased that I finally got to sample the pork ribs and I was was blown away with this menu item as well.  They had an excellent smoky flavor, easily pulled off the bone, and even had an excellent bark on them.  

Considering the fact that this was only the second day that Pecan Lodge was open at this new location, Justin Fourton deserves kudos for the consistency and quality of the meat.  There is little doubt in my mind that the new location in Deep Ellum will be an even bigger attraction than the previous location.  One of my best friends got hitched a couple of weeks after this visit and we took him to Pecan Lodge for his last meal as a free man (picture below of what the four of us shared).  This place keeps getting better with every visit and is peerless in the DFW area.

Meal we had two weeks after this first visit-Burnt Ends, Sausage, Pork Ribs, Beef Ribs, Brisket, Okra, Mac n' Cheese, and Cole Slaw

Pecan Lodge

http://www.pecanlodge.com

Livin the good Life Rating =5

AllGood Cafe

When it comes to comfort food and Southern cuisine, it is hard to beat a great chicken-fried steak.  I am constantly on the lookout for a good CFS.  This Fall, D Magazine published it's list of five restaurants that had The Best Chicken-Fried Steak in Dallas.  I had sampled the chicken-fried steaks at three of the five restaurants on the list, but I had never had the chicken fried steak at the AllGood Cafe.  My wife was also interested in giving this place a try, so we mad a family trip to Deep Ellum to eat at the AllGood Cafe.

Origami hanging from the ceiling

Our family arrived at a perfect time for a late breakfast or early lunch.  The restaurant was very busy, but they had one booth available and we took it.  After being seated for ten minutes, we finally had a waiter arrive and take our drink orders.  While he was there, we also requested a high chair for our toddler.  After a five minute wait, our drinks arrived without the high chair.  I reminded our waiter that we still needed a high chair and he finally brought us one.  

My girls as we patiently await a high chair to arrive

We went ahead an ordered while the waiter was at out booth.  I ordered the chicken-fried steak with mashed potatoes and black eyed peas. My wife was in the mood for breakfast and she ordered the breakfast #2, which was two scrambled eggs, bacon, and pancakes.  We also ordered chicken strips for my oldest daughter and some pancakes for the toddler.  The place smelled delicious, so we had high hopes for the food and waited patiently for it to arrive.

CFS, Mashed Potatoes, and Black-eyed Peas

Luckily, our food arrived much faster than our drinks and high chair did.  My chicken fried steak was delicious and had a crunchy batter that was not soggy even with the gravy on it.  The steak was a little on the small side, but it had outstanding flavor.  The mashed potatoes were nothing special, but the black-eyed peas had some small chopped peppers mixed in that gave it a nice kick.  My wife said her breakfast was pretty basic and wasn't overly impressed with anything except the bacon.  

Breakfast #2

Once our waiter delivered our food, we did not have anyone come to the table again for over thirty minutes.  We had actually been finished with our meal for over twenty minutes before my wife finally just went to the kitchen area counter and said we were ready to pay.  The waiter she spoke to (not our waiter) apologized and said they were short staffed that morning.  I am not sure if that was the case, because every table around us had waiters stop by frequently.  The only difference between us and the other tables, was the fact that we had children.   The service at the AllGood Cafe was the worst I have had in close to a decade.  I really thought the food was pretty decent, but I cannot recommend this place due to the poor service that we received.

AllGood Cafe
http://www.allgoodcafe.com/index.php
Livin the Good Life Rating =1