Stretch L.'s Profile

After reading Bryan W.'s review of Hendersonville's Binion Roadhouse I decided to give the place a try.  I give it 3/5 stars.  To wit:

I hesitated a bit because I thought Binion's was part of a national or regional chain, but I was pleasantly surprised to learn that despite the outside appearance, which has just too much of the quintessential "roadhouse" appearance to look authentic, the joint is locally owned.  Considering both the size of the place in relation to the size of the town of Hendersonville and the restaurant's proximity to Interstate 26, the fact that it's locally owned says a lot.

Salted, dry roasted peanuts greet visitors just inside the front door.  As a solo diner on a Monday night I was seated promptly and at a four-seater booth that conveniently allowed me to type this review right at the table.

My waiter, Kevin T., was with me lickety-split.  When I asked if there was a beer or wine list, Ole Kev just slowly tapped his temple and, in the finest Nawf Cahlinah drawl, said, "Right here."

My first disappointment of the evening came when Kevin then recited a litany of the old, tired, corporate brews of which I grew tired years ago - Bud, Bud Light, Michelob, Michelob Lite, etc., etc., ad infinitum.  Even my query about possibly quaffing something as exotic as a Blue Ribbon or a Rolling Rock (!) was met with a definitive, if friendly, "negatory."

For lack of a better option I settled on the YeungLing draft and proceeded toward the menu's main attraction, a big steak.  The "Top Trail Boss" house special ("10 oz top sirloin with a great whiskey sauce, mushrooms & crispy fried onions") sounded a bit too far removed from a down-to-earth, unadorned, regular-guy steak than I can countenance, so I went with the 14oz Rib Eye, and ordered it grilled just to the rare side of medium, as is my wont.

Kev tempted me with Binion's "homemade blue cheese dressing" for my salad, and with said salad brought some dinner rolls and incredibly tasty (and, sadly for me, probably cholesterol laden) honey butter.  The blue cheese dressing was good, but, for my taste, could've benefited from a bit less dressing and a bit more blue cheese.

The star of this show, the Rib Eye, was presented to me pronto quick along with a baked tater side, and this is where my otherwise definitively four star review starts to slip down a bit.

I hope that it's my lack of recent experience in the wide, wide world of steak that engenders the following critique, and I will definitely reserve judgement on Binion's steaks until a future visit, but, with that said...

The steak was definitely tasty.  It was cooked, for the most part, just as I'd ordered it - medium, but on the rare side of medium.  Yet around the edges it was definitely rare, not medium rare.  And I can tolerate rare.  In fact, I enjoy rare, at times.  But if I ordered on-the-rare-side-of-medium then shouldn't the entire steak be cooked that way?  I think so.

The other and really greater disappointment with the steak was the fat.  Again, I don't eat steak every day, or every week or even every month, so perhaps my Rib Eye's muscle to fat ratio would seem unremarkable amongst beef connoisseurs. But for me there was just too much fat around the edges and it detracted from my experience of the otherwise wonderful steak.

The meat was tender and had just the right amount of added seasoning and flame-broiled taste.  The portion was just right - not too big and not too small for a hungry appetite.  And, complimented by the palate pleasing baked potato, Mr. Rib Eye was just what Dr. Stretch ordered.

So.  I give Binion's Roadhouse 3/5 stars losing that fourth star for want of my choice of beer and a bit less fat around the edges.  I plan a return visit in about a week, and next time, I'll likely order the same steak, but will possibly ask that the fat be trimmed before cooking.  We'll see where that leaves us.

Thanks again, Bryan W., for turning me onto Binion's.  Any man who's a friend of Sutton's Drug Store in Chapel Hill is a friend of mine.

See my tip.

If your idea of a great Chinese food experience is PF Chang's, then this place probably isn't for you.  It sits next door to one of those Farm Stores Express dairy drive thru's, is about the same size, and shares about the same ambiance.  

But if you're looking for delicioso Chinese take out (I understand that they deliver, too), that's fast, not greasy, generously portioned, and not heart-stoppingly expensive, then Confucio Express is the cat's meow.

For my inaugural visit last night I called ahead for General Tso's Chicken.  I found the place with little difficulty and was pleasantly surprised by how clean and efficient the operation seemed to be.  The folks at the counter were super nice, and even introduced me to a bit of Colombian music using the mysterious instrument they had sitting on the counter - no extra charge for the floor show.

The bill was $14.00, a bit steep for my takee-outee pocketbook, but I withheld judgement on the place until I got back to my crib.  Once there I turned on "Family Guy," popped a PBR tall boy and opened up the bag.  And I knew I'd gotten plenty of food for the price I paid.  

The chicken was perfectly breaded and cooked; the sides of broccoli and white rice were steamed to perfection.  As a professional photographer (http://VeryStretchy.com) the golden chicken and bright green broccoli inspired me to make visual art from this culinary art, but alas, somehow a plastic fork ended up in my hand before a camera.

The meal was perfectly packaged for take-out, and required no accoutrements other than those in the bag.  Hell, I didn't even need a table.

If I'd not been absolutely famished and sans-refrigerator I'd have been perfectly satiated with half the meal for dinner and half saved for another full meal the next day.  Instead I savored every bite right down to the last grain of rice, finished up my PBR, watched the credits roll at the end of the only series on tee-vee worth watching, and drifted off into sleepyland.

If they could only knock a few dollars off the price I'd give Confucio Express five stars, but I reckon Miami is as Miami does.