The Big Green House

Monday, July 21, 2003

 

Quest for ribs

We chose to avoid all the peoples at the Bite. I saw the huge line of cars on the freeway yesterday, all trying to get off at the Seattle Center exit. Given that it was hot & humid all weekend� yeah, we made the right choice.

So what did we do? Well, Saturday was devoted to hydrology, on a very small scale. We installed a new drip watering system at Science Manor, on the hillside in the back yard. We had to finesse it a little, but it works just fine now. After that, we tried out the new pressure washer on the old-growth moss on the front sidewalk � it now looks like we poured new cement.

Fascinating, no? Wait, it gets better.

Sunday was all about barbecue. Jones Barbecue, specifically. I�ve been hearing nothing but good things about them for so long now that it all reached a sort of critical mass in my head. I woke up acting like some pig-eating zombie, chanting �MUST�HAVE�BARBECUE� at random intervals and drooling much more than usual. Through sheer repetition, I was able to convince Science Girl that she, too, must have barbecue. She refused to drool, though, even a little.

So we set out for Columbia City, our stomachs a-rumble in anticipation of the spicy meaty treats soon to be headed their way. What we failed to take into account was the fact that Jones� summer hours, on Sundays, anyway, are 3 PM to 10 PM. We didn�t realize this until we pulled up at the restaurant at 2:30. Oops.

Well, no matter. I knew that they�d recently opened a second spot, in a mall in Bellevue. Back in the car, up I-5, over the 520 bridge and into the scary suburban hell that is the Eastside. We eventually found parking at the mall, wedged in between two mammoth SUVs. After ten minutes spent trying to navigate our way out of the hideous Crate & Barrel store we entered by mistake, we finally got out into the mall proper � only to discover that we were at the wrong mall.

Well, shit.

Fortunately, SG had her cell phone with her; she called the Columbia City shop while I silently berated myself for jumping to the wrong conclusion as to which mall to go to. Armed with directions to the right place, we set off across town, nearly aflame with hunger by this point.

I was going to say, �To make a long story short�, but I see that that ship has already sailed. At any rate, we picked up the ribs, brought them home, and feasted like nobody�s business. The meat was falling off the bone, and while the sauce was thinner than I�m used to it sure was tasty just the same. And it only took us three hours to pick it up!

Hey, while we�re talking about going a long way for a good meal, I�d like to take this opportunity to give the folks at Chapter and Moon, in Fort Bragg, a little shout out. We ate there while on vacation, and I�d have to say that it was the best meal we had on the entire trip, bar none. I�d link to them but they don�t seem to have any sort of web presence. Should you ever find yourself in Fort Bragg (the one in California, that is; should you wind up at the one in North Carolina, you�re on your own), head down to Noyo harbor & look for Chapter and Moon. Yummy yummy yummy. I can personally recommend the applewood-smoked pork, and the taste I had of SG�s meatloaf wasn�t too shabby either. Nice people running it, too.

bmarkey 7/21/2003 10:35:00 PM