Thanksgiving Duck (Bailey’s Range)

It’s November and one of my favorite holidays is on the horizon.  Thanksgiving is a holiday that was built for foodies as we get together with family, load our plates, and veg out together.  My family doesn’t get too creative with the spread and it’s usually just your run of the mill turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie.  So, to get my foodie fix, I have to venture out a little and see what type of fare some of the local eateries are offering up around this time of the season.  I was pleased to see, when doing a little burger research, that Bailey’s Range had a TG inspired burger named the Thanksgiving Duck.  Here’s what I thought:

Since the research had already been done, I walked into Range confident on what I was going to order without needing a menu.  However, being a curious guy, I picked up the two sided menu and flipped it over to give it glance.  Realizing that I was quite hungry and a burger alone might not do the trick, I decided on some fried pickles to start with.  This turned out to be one of the best and worst decisions I have ever made in my life.  They make the pickles in house and as the molten hot fried pickles were placed in front of me, you could smell how fresh these were and a waft of dill tickled my nostrils.  They were covered in a thick layer of golden beer batter and made a nice crunch when bitten it to.  They were quite possibly the best fried pickle that I have ever consumed.  The bad part of this decision was now in play.  With my proximity to Range, I knew I was going to find myself back again for the gluttonous dish.

the onions cooked in pumpkin ale were the highlight of this burger

I finished off my pickles just in time for the main event.  My burger choice, Thanksgiving Duck, was presented to me.  A perfectly grilled fresh ground duck patty lay on a golden bun.  It was topped with onions cooked in pumpkin ale and a plum bbq sauce.  LTO lay at the side with another pickle which I was glad to see.  I readied my Thanksgiving inspired burger, leaving the LTO on the side with the idea that this is how Dave Bailey intended me to enjoy his creation, and sampled my first bite.  The first thing that hit my tongue was the pumpkin spice that had been infused into the onions.  It was complemented by the sweet plum bbq sauce and finished with the rich flavor of duck.    I gobbled it up (see what I did there) realizing that this was probably one of my favorite burgers ever.  The flavor lingered in my mouth, making me crave another one.  Ridding myself of this feeling, I sank my teeth into the remaining pickle to cleanse my palate of the delicious duck burger.

Getting that craving yet for Thanksgiving dinner?  Well, you have options, and at Range you can quench that thirst with their aptly named duck burger.  While you’re there, don’t forget about those fried pickles and tell me they aren’t the best.  Don’t want to take my advice?  Well then FORK U and wait until the 22nd to get your TG fix.

The Shack (Midtown)

If you’re planning on opening up a restaurant on a college campus, walking that fine line between good food at a great price can be quite difficult.  Typically, you’ll see your mix of pubs and grills each with their own unique spin on burgers, wings, and fries.  These grilled and fried dishes are served in a basket or a boring plate with little to no presentation.  Let’s face it.  These are college students and not refined foodies that you’re trying to impress.  Buy it frozen to save a few bucks and keep the food cost at a reasonable rate as most coeds are living on a tight budget.  So, I have to admit, when few friends and I dragged our half hungover asses over to Saint Louis University’s campus on a Sunday, I was quite surprised that what I was walking into was a campus eatery.

Midtown’s newest addition occupies the old Laclede’s.  Unlike its former occupant, this place is clean and pristine and not covered in grime from the night before.  We sat down at a table made out of an old door with light metal stools surrounding the waist high surface.  A waitress promptly made her way to our table and gave us the spiel on the specials of the day.  It was Sunday Funday and $15 buckets of Bud products and $1 off appetizers were the choices of the day.  Plenty of inexpensive items lined the menu and we chose some appetizers to begin with.  An order of onion rings, chicken wings, hot and spicy boardwalk fries, and fried pickles and peppers were relayed to our server.

Our appetizers made their way in a timely fashion to our table.  A smorgasbord of starting dish were strewn about waiting to be devoured.  Just at first glance, they all looked great.  Presented on small metal trays and shallow pails lined with tissues, they beckoned us to dig in.  I started off by picking out a jalapeno pepper out of the fried pile of pickles as I was craving a little spice.  The breading was light and crisp and the jalapeno was cut thick enough that it wasn’t drowned in the fried coating.  Next, I snagged a few of the hot and spicy boardwalk fries.  Each fresh cut fried potato dripped with buffalo sauce as bits of bleu cheese and green onion clung to each fry.  It was a great balance of spice cooled off by creamy bleu cheese.  Finally, I tried the wings and the onion rings each quite good and freshly prepared.  By the time we had finished all of the appetizers, 2 pitchers of beer had been polished off and I was still a little hungry.

Our server cleared off our table and I turned on the food blogger switch, impressed so far with the beginning bites.  I asked her to put in an order for me, telling her that I wanted whatever the chef or owner would want people to know about.  She came back and informed me that I was soon to be presented with a pastrami shack-wich and some ham and eggs boardwalk fries.  My specialized meal was delivered by the manager who gave me the rundown on the food which lay before me.  The pastrami is brined and smoked out at their restaurant in the county.  Intrigued by this, I had to dig into the cured beef deli meat first.  I cut the shack-wich in half exposing the layers of tomato, fries, coleslaw, andprovelone cheese all stuffed on top of the pastrami in between two slices of freshly baked french bread.  My first bite was filled with the smoky, salty flavor of the thinly sliced pastrami.  Hints of creamy slaw and fresh tomato complemented the meat well, and the bread was a little tangy and very tasty.

The green egg ‘n ham boardwalk fries were up next.  These fries looked amazing as they were coated in creamed spinach, covered in chopped ham, and topped with an over-easy fried egg.  My friends, who are not exactly foodies, turned their nose up at the dish at first.  I took the first bite, and it was delicious as I broke the yolk of the egg, allowing it to coat the fry mixing with the ham and creamed spinach.  I must have made it look great, and one by one they each took turns trying out the fries.  The manager came back around to check up on us, with a few of my friends thanking him for choosing these fries out as they would have never thought to order them without the nudge.

Needless to say, I will be heading back to The Shack.  I had been on the search for new Sunday hangout, and due to the fact there’s still quite a few things on the menu left to try, I won’t be getting burned out anytime soon.  For those of you who can’t make it on Sundays, make it up the the Shack on Mondays for $1 burger night from 6-9pm or Tuesdays as they dish out $1 tacos.  The Shack is sure to be a favorite among SLU students and I don’t imagine it will fade anytime soon.