Restaurant Review: Prasek's Smokehouse

Dry ass brisket, premade potato salad, watery coleslaw mush

Prasek's (Sealy location) has many wonderful food items, but their smoked brisket isn't one of them. We had it once before, (a couple of years ago), and it was just as dry then as the second try recently. 

What didn't help? The "bbq" sauce. It tasted like cocktail sauce. Yes! Really! Looked like ketchup, tasted like cocktail sauce. I really wanted some boiled shrimp after I tasted it. 

I don't recall if they have shrimp on the menu, but I hope so, because at least that would be a good reason that we ended up with this stuff...by mistake. If not then they have a LOT of work to do on their bbq sauce. 

Seems to be a trend these days that no matter where you go, the BBQ sauce sucks. What happened to that wonderful, "old timey" sauce that is in its own food group? I would have expected Prasek's to have BBQ sauce like that. 

In case y'all missed the memo, Prasek's: Cocktail sauce & brisket is not a good combo. SMH

Okay...so...on to the side orders. Pre-made potato salad. Very sad. Also, I wanted beans but ended up with coleslaw. That would have been okay except the coleslaw was mush. Really, really watery too. It had an essence of mayo, but just looking at it, you couldn't see that it was there. Because it was so damn watery! Ugh! 

I finished the meal, but I was not a happy camper. Didn't touch that cocktail sauce after the first taste though. Everyone else who had bbq didn't eat their sauce either. 

Let's do better, Prasek's! Unfortunately, you get the mango forks for the brisket; the pre-made potato salad; the watery, mushy coleslaw; and the freakin cocktail sauce! smh

I have no complaints about anything else I have purchased there, though. They have a fabulous selection of food, whether you want something that's ready-to-eat or want fresh meats to prepare at home. 

Restaurant Review: WTH, Chuy's?

It looks promising, doesn't it? 
But it was a broken promise.

We had high hopes, because Chuy's used to be pretty good. It saddens me that this location seems to have gone down the tubes. I have to preface this with the fact that they were not busy when we went over there after the lunch hour on a Saturday. So throw that excuse out the window. 

The first issue was with tea. First of all, it was weak AF, but that was the least of it. Most places have sweet tea that's entirely too sweet, so I always get unsweetened and sweeten my own. 

Maybe I am not remembering correctly, but I could have sworn that Chuy's kept sugar & other sweeteners on each table. That wasn't the case here, so I asked for sugar packets on the side. The server that delivered the drinks didn't have them (I guess our server forgot to mention it), so I asked her for sugar packets. 

She brings me pink packets of generic sweet & low. Ummm....no. I'm sure the expression on my face must have resembled Bruce Willis's face in the 5th Element when Baby Ray threw him the billiard halls instead of the gun. 

Our original server visited next, so I asked him for some sugar packets. He brought me 3 each of every sweetener. So I had sugar, and pink, blue, and yellow sweetener packets. The next time he came by,  I just asked him to bring me more white packets. Apparently, if you need sweetener here, you must ask for the color you like. There should be a warning on the front door.

I'm still a little puzzled about that. I could understand one person not knowing sugar from faux sugar, but two on the same day at the same restaurant? Are the servers informed about sweeteners and the differences or does Chuy's just assume everyone knows what's what? Why didn't they know? Very strange. 

Next...the food. Well...the pico de Gallo was nice & fresh. The jalapeno dip wasn't as good as it used to be. Everyone remarked that it tasted like ranch dressing. I thought it used to be a little thicker too. We also had some queso which, while not spectacular, was at least passable. The refried beans & rice were good.

BUT...

Entrees...oh boy...still so disappointed about these...

I ordered chicken enchiladas with boom-boom sauce. The boom-boom sauce was so weak, it wasn't even one boom. I'd say it was about 1/4 of a boom. No good, spicy OOMPH, and the aftertaste was like Campbell's vegetable soup. 

And the chicken...omg. Slices & chunks instead of shredded, and ohhhh sooooooo pale. So, so pale. No caramelization at all. Poached? Boiled? Steamed? I don't know, but the chicken was bland AF, and the "boom-boom sauce" did not help much. No Big Bada Boom here...the fuse fizzled out on that bomb.

Just look how pale that chicken is!
Poach that bitch with some spices next time, FPS!

For comparison, I'll tell you what the previous experiences with this dish were like: So good, you could have just gobbled the whole thing down lickety-split and then ordered another. It used to be packed with flavor, not this poor rendition that was heavy on the bouillon in the boom-boom sauce and the tortillas stuffed with chicken chunks poached as pale as tourist legs on a sunny beach. 

I wasn't the only one with issues. 

Cheese enchiladas served cold, like revenge. 

Fajita Platter Flop: OMG! Just look at the picture. Real grill lines or painted? Dry AF. Does this look appetizing? HELL no. 

Maybe rename them "Faux-jitas"?

 Tacos al Carbon: Dry, dry, dry. Stiff tortillas. And get a load of those bell peppers and onions! Just like the ones on the fajita platter, no caramelization at all. Frankly, caramelized onions & bells are absolutely required for fajitas! 

He gave up and just ate the meat.

So I am here to ask, and rightfully so: What the HELL, Chuy's? What happened to the reliable Chuy's? What was this nonsense? It wasn't even worth the calories! If I'm going to consume that many calories, the food needs to have some FLAVOR! 

Taco Bell would have been a better choice. It's terribly sad to have to say such a thing, but it's true. 

This happened at the location in Katy. I hope these problems aren't company wide. But there were so many! It wasn't just one thing that was bad. That would be a different story. Either something changed with the company, or this location does not adhere to company standards. 

Fix it! You are an embarrassment to Austin, Texas at this point! 

It pains me to have to do this, but you get the mango forks for that fiasco. Fix it! Bring back the good Chuy's and usher the imposter out of the door!

Kitchen Tip: Serve the Perfect Avocado

 

The photo above was taken at the absolute peak of this avocado's flavor. I am convinced that many who loathe avocado have not had the pleasure of consuming an avocado at its peak. If they had, they would adore avocado and seek it out regularly. 

Nutty, buttery, and just at the right texture: not too firm but not too soft. Easy to peel, no avocado stuck to the skin, and no skin adhering to the avocado (as it sometimes does. The inside of the skin will stick & you have to scrape it off to get to the green goodness. Well, you can leave it on, but I wouldn't recommend it.) I'll take a picture the next time it happens and add it to this blog entry. 

No blemishes on this beauty though - none inside or outside. Just avocado perfection. 

I finally learned my lesson about these some years back. When you shop for them, you will either find them completely unripe and hard as a rock, or mush. Sometimes you get lucky and find an "in between," but even then there's no guarantee it will be acceptable. 

So never mind the "in between," unless you have a grocery store you know you can trust. Buy them when they are completely unripe, and allow them to ripen at home. One or two days on the counter, then when they start to get slightly soft (just barely yielding to finger pressure), pop them in the fridge to finish. 

If you are planning to make guacamole or some other dish for a party, you have to plan ahead so they are at their peak, or at least near it. It is worth the extra effort though. Absolutely. 

Here in South Central Texas, they will ripen in 2-3 days; sometimes 3-4, depending on the time of year. Once you do some personal testing, you will find your own "sweet spot." 

I found out about "The Avocado Guy" in New York City a few months ago. He gets it! So much so that he has turned it into a business. Every city should have an avocado guy like this. Lucky, lucky, lucky! 

Here is his story. Video is almost 11 minutes, and worth the watch for sure!

The Avocado Guy

Product Review: Mindy Lu's Pies

 

I have seen these around from time to time, but I was always hesitant to try them because I was afraid they were too sweet. 

Finally took the plunge, and guess what? They are not too sweet. They are just right. 

If you are addicted to sugary snacks, pass these up and leave them for the rest of us. You are looking for the pies that have filling that is cloyingly sweet, and are also drenched with a sugary coating. 

Mindy Lu's pies have just the right amount of sweetener, and the crust on these pocket pies is tender and flaky. 

Blueberry

I heard they are even better if you pop them in a toaster oven, but I never get that far. I have to consume immediately. 

Are they healthy? No. But they are fine for a treat once in a while. If you don't mind consuming about 340 calories or so in one sitting, you can always eat more. 😆

The calorie count varies slightly per pie. My last one was blueberry, and those are 340 calories each. 

These are so much better than the ones that seemed so popular many years ago. The crust was a lot harder and thicker on the pies in Long Ago Land, and they were far too sweet, as mentioned above. 

Give these a try if you stumble across them. If you're in Arlington Texas, you can go directly to Mindy Lu's pies and place an order. They also have online ordering, but it is suspended for the moment until the weather gets cooler here. Otherwise, you may find them in select grocery stores & gas station convenience stores.

Link: Mindy Lu's Pies

Divine Deviled Eggs - The Secret Ingredient

 

Secret or not so secret. For all I know, many do this already. But if you don't, please check it out, because this version is a really good one. This is not my opinion only though. These were field-tested.  😆

I was actually looking for something neutral to use because we were getting low on mayo, and also because I get tired of running out of filling before all of the eggs are filled to a reasonable capacity. Not a problem with this recipe. There was plenty of filling with a little left over after overloading the egg halves. Say....YEAH!!!!! That's what I'm talkin' about! 

Non-traditional format for recipe posting because as I was typing it out, I just typed out exactly what I did and in what order. So that is how I am posting it here:

Boil 12 eggs in your usual way. (My way is to start them in cold water, set timer for 20 minutes, turn them off when they reach a rolling boil, then pull them when the timer goes off.)

This yielded 12 yolks & 3 white halves that didn't make the cut. Mashed them finely with a potato masher. (Actually, it would probably be considered a bean masher because of the smaller holes. Or heck... just use a fork. That would work too. lol)

The rest of these are approximate:

2 Tbsps mayo (Duke's)

1/4 cup cottage cheese

1 1/2 Tbsps dill relish

3 dashes of Tabasco (garlic flavored)

Pinch of cayenne

1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp finely grated red (purple) onion (I used a tiny garlic grater. You really just need the juice, no chunks necessary. It is for enhancement only. You won't even be able to tell it is there, but your tastebuds will appreciate it.)

1 - 1/2 tsps Grey Poupon 

S&P to your taste ( I used Kosher salt)

I used the masher to mash & mix everything together thoroughly.

Paprika for garnish optional, but it does contribute to the flavor, so DOOOOOO IIIIIIIIIT.....lmao

Adjust S&P if necessary

Sprinkle S&P on the halves before filling. 

The filling was light & fluffy and had a great flavor. I had to make another batch immediately because the first one went to a birthday party.  

So...In this order: 

yolks & whites (mash well)

then mash in:

cottage cheese

mayo

mustard

W sauce

tabasco

onion

S&P

cayenne

Mash well, then add relish & mix & mash that in too. 

Load the halves with a spoon, pastry bag, or just use a Ziplock or similar... (load it, cut a corner off to make a makeshift pastry bag. It does make things easier.)

Any questions, just ask! 

Also, share your favorite version here too! There are so many great variations out there!