600!

Having finally found The Smoking Swine food truck and getting to my 599th Triple D visit, I was ready to get to my 600th Triple D visit!  Guy visited a few places in DC that I had been saving so that I could do my 600th at one of them and invite friend to help me celebrate.

There was one place that I had really wanted to visit as soon as I saw their Triple D episode.  "The Carving Room Kitchen and Bar" is in NW Washington DC at the corner of 4th and Massachusetts Avenue and I sent an email asking if they would be interested in hosting a group of about 15 for my 600th on a Saturday night.  A few days later they responded and said that they would love to host my 600th visit.  As the day approached I had planned to drive into DC and park on the street near the restaurant but as the day approached there were reports of rallies or protests in the city so I decided to meet with some friends in the Tyson's area and take the Metro to the Judiciary Square Metro stop, which is only about a 4 or 5 minute walk to the restaurant.

The Carving Room is a medium sized restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating.  The owners Rachel and Oded set up a special table for us and put up balloons around the table and also had special gold balloon sped into the number 600, a really nice surprise.  They greeted us as we entered the restaurant and made all of us feel at home.

The entrance to The Carving Room on 4th Street in DC

The "Guy Ate Here" pan in the open kitchen area of the restaurant

I was so flattered that my friends came to help me celebrate this milestone visit.  Dave, Sue, Barry, Nancy, Trish, Stephanie, Amy are special friends that have become great friends that I see throughout the year and they are very special to me.  Phil is a friend that I haven't seen since high school and have been wanting to do a Triple D visit with.  One of my Triple D Facebook friends, whom I have never met in person before came from New Jersey to help celebrate, I was flattered that Sebastian and Karen came, this was Seb's 390th Triple D visit.

Sebastian and Karen came from New Jersey to help celebrate

The Carving Room specializes in all types of meats everything is made in house, On their episode they made their famous Cigar appetizers and also featured some of their cured meat sandwiches and fresh cut hamburgers.  All of us at the table decided to get a couple of orders of the Cigar appetizers, which are cigar shaped spring rolls stuffed with all types of the meats they cure on site.  Each order had six cigars, 2 stuffed with Chorizo with a salsa dipping sauce, 2 stuffed with Corned Beef with a Russian Dressing dipping sauce and 2 Classic that were filled with Moroccan ground beef with a Lemon Yogurt dipping sauce. All were delicious and the Chorizo had a nice spice bite.  

The Carving Room's Cigar Combination Appetizer

All of us then ordered from the restaurants huge choice of sandwiches with at least a dozen sides to choose from.  I chose the Roast Lamb on Ciabatta with Bacon-Cheese fries on the side and a pickeled veggie garnish.  Everyone tried something different and it all looked delicious! My sandwich was great!  It had pickled cucumbers, pickled onions and a lemon yogurt sauce, which didn't overpower the sandwich but enhanced it.  The huge portion of fries were excellent!  Everyone just raved about their meal.

My meal at The Carving Room

One of the other sandwiches

Another of the great sandwiches at The Carving Room

As we were finishing Oded and Rachel came over to see how we enjoyed everything and I got both of them along with our server Alicia to sign my Triple D book.   I was also able to get one of the other restaurant diners to take pictures of our group.

Amy, Stephanie and me

Sebastian and I

Our group, a special group!

From Left to right - Nancy, Trish, Stephanie, Phil, me, Amy, Barry, Sue, Karen and Sebastian

Just before we left Oded and Rachel presented me with a T-shirt from The Carving Room and a beautiful carving board labeled "Bill's 600th Triple D visit at The Carving Room Kitchen and Bar".

What a great surprise, it's a gift that I will always treasure!

The Carving Board given to me by The Carving Room Kitchen and Bar to commemorate my 600th Triple D visit

I love the board!

Me and Rachel and Oded, the owners of The Carving Room Kitchen and Bar

As I left I was just so happy with the warm and wonderful service that Rachel, Oded and the staff gave to me and my wonderful friends.  As we left I was asked by more than a few what number 601 will be? I don't know but there will be more!  This has been a wonderful journey, I have met so many great people, some of whom have become friends and also been able to reconnect with old friends along the way, all I can say is that I am truly blessed! 

One more before the big 600

I left Louisville with my count at 598 and I started to plan for my 600th Triple D visit but still had one left before I could complete the plans.  Guy had recently visited several places in the DC area and one in Baltimore that I had yet to get to.  One of the places is a food truck that services the Baltimore area and had been a bit elusive. I saw their schedule so I planned to try and find the elusive truck.

"The Smoking Swine" is one of the most popular and successful food trucks in the Baltimore area and they were planning to participate in a twice monthly event in the town of Odenton, Maryland called "Food Truck Thursday", sponsored by the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company.  About a dozen food trucks gather in the parking lot of the firehouse to create a huge outdoor restaurant .  There are all types of food options offered including Cajun, Italian, Vegan, sandwiches, crepes, seafood and of course Barbecue, which is what The Smoking Swine specializes in.  Not only were they participating but Famous Jimmy's Seafood, another Triple D restaurant had their food truck at the event.

I arrived shortly after the trucks opened which were parked in a big square with The Smoking Swine at the top of the square.  The Fire Company sold the beverages and had tables set up both outside and up inside their large meeting hall.

Food Truck Thursday in Odenton, Maryland

Sponsored by the Odenton Volunteer Fire Department

One of their trucks

I walked around the trucks and then headed directly to The Smoking Swine truck   I looked over their menu which was pretty big considering they work out of a relatively small space and I decided to try the Pulled Pork Sandwich and the Meaty Beans, pretty much a classic barbecue meal.  I immediately recognized the owner who was taking the orders.  I asked him to sign my book and he was excited to do so and thanked me for coming by.  By the time he finished signing my order was ready and I took it inside the hall to enjoy.

The Smoking Swine food truck, Baltimore's finest food truck

I love their symbol!

The sandwich was loaded with pork and topped with a slightly spicy home made barbecue sauce on a Martin's Potato roll, my favorite roll!.  The beans were a basic baked beans but had a lot of barbecue pork and beef meat chunks stirred it and was awesome!  I met some older ladies who have volunteered at the fire company for many years, they told me about all the events they host and were very proud of the company's annual Bull Roast and Crab Feast.  They told me that the huge hall would soon be full, Food Truck Thursday is very popular!  As they left to go get their dinner, Drew came by and we talked for a few minutes about his business and he seemed to take delight in the fact that his truck had been a bit elusive for me.  He then gave me one of his bumper stickers and told me that I would agree with the message.

The Smoking Swine meal - Pulled Pork Sandwich and Meaty Beans

Pulled Pork with Sauce n a Marin's Potto Roll

Very Meaty Beans

The Smoking Swine bumper sticker that explains exactly my search for this elusive truck

After finishing I knew hat I needed to try something else, with over a dozen trucks it was a "no brainer".  I decided to try a 5 ounce Crab Cake from "Jimmy's Famous Seafood" the other Triple D truck at the event.  I had visited Jimmy's restaurant a few years back but had never tried their Crab Cake, which many have raved about.  The Crab Cake was broiled and  came with a large portion of thick cut fries and some crackers to accompany the cake.  I loved that it was served in a  Jimmy's logo box.  I can understand how many have raved abut the Crab Cake, it was probably the best I have ever had!  There was little or no cake, it was loaded with lump and claw crab mea, sweet and delicious!  Baltimore is famous for their Crab Cakes and many are great, Guy has visited a number of places on Triple D but I think that I now have a new favorite Crab Cake!

Jimmy's Famous Seafood truck

The truck menu

Love their Logo Box

All Crab, Crab Cake!  The best!

As I headed out I remembered my time living in Odenton.  In 1985 I moved to Odenton and lived there for about a year while I was working for Piedmont Airlines at Baltimore Washington International Airport which is about 10 miles north of Odenton.

Since I was in the are I decided to head into Baltimore to visit the Horseshoe Casino just inside the city.  The casino is the home to Guy's Restaurant "Guy Fieri's Baltimore Kitchen and Bar".   The place is on the first floor of the multi level casino and is open and airy.  I was seated by my server and the service throughout was very attentive.  The menu has items that any Guy fan would recognize with references to all things Guy.  They also have some items that are Baltimore centered.

Guy Fieri's Baltimore Kitchen and Bar

I was seated at a table in the corner of the restaurant and had a good view of the semi-open kitchen.  The décor is all Guy with a lot of items and nick knacks that are show related.  Each table was set with cloth napkins with the Guy skeleton logo.  I decided to try two items, the Crab Fondue and the Old Bay Chicken Wings, both Baltimore centered items.  The fondue came out with a huge portion of cheese fondue loaded with real shredded crabmeat and two large Pretzel rolls for dipping, they called them loaves and they almost right!  The 8 wings were dry rubbed with a butter Old Bay seasoning along with a Bleu Cheese Wasabi dipping sauce.  The fondue was delicious and every bite had a huge about of sweet Blue Crab meat.  The wings were unreal, I love the Old Bay seasoning and the dipping sauce had just a hint of the Wasabi making it a perfect dip for the wings.  

Guy's Open Kitchen

One of the hard working kitchen staff

Guy's Skelton logo on the cloth napkins

Guy's paper napkin

The menu

Crab Fondue

Old Bay Wings with Bleu Cheese Wasabi dipping sauce

As I headed out I passed Guy's second place in the food court area of the casino.  "Guy's Bar-B-Cue Joint'  a fast service place that features his brand of barbecue and sauces.  I was much too full to try anything, oh well I guess that means another visit!

I left Baltimore with my Triple D count at 599 and looking forward to getting to number 600!

Visiting Louisville on the way to 600

As the summer moved on, I was getting close to my 600th Triple D visit and I started to look for places to go that I could either drive to or get on a flight noting that the summer travel season usually means full and over sold flights.  Guy had recently visited a number of places in the Norfolk, VA area and that was where I was focusing my attention since Norfolk is about a 5 hour drive (or 16 depending on traffic!)

I really didn't want to drive so I decided to look to other places and happened upon Louisville, Kentucky where there are 6 places that Guy visited over the last coupe of years and I decided to see if the Blue Grass State city would work and it did!

In the weeks prior to going to Louisville I was able to take a couple of day trips to get to a few more places including "Miss Shirley's Café" in the Inner Harbor area of Baltimore and "Alewife Pub" near Baltimore's historic Lexington Market, as well as a true Drive-in in Knoxville, Tennessee called "The Pizza Palace".

Miss Shirley's Café in Baltimore

Alewife Pub in Baltimore

Pizza Palace Drive-in in Knoxville, TN

I took the only nonstop between Dulles and Louisville, which left about 5p and after a quick 75 minute flight I arrived about 20 minutes early and headed off for my 3 night visit in Louisville.  After getting the car and checking into the hotel I headed out for my first stop.  "Momma's Mustard, Pickles, & BBQ",  a small place with a unique name and great menu. Momma's is in a small neighborhood and reminded me of a neighbor restaurant.  There are a few small dining areas with the bar in the middle.  I was seated at a table in the back dining area.  I think they must have a big repeat crowd as my server was a bit surprised that I didn't know the menu.  He told me that they make they're own mustard, dry rubs for all their foods and have exceptional barbecue and wings.

Momma's Mustard, Pickles and BBQ in Louisville, KY

I had a hard time making a decision as much of the menu looked awesome.  With the aide of my server I chose the Fried Pickles and what they claimed are the World's Best Wings, which are served Memphis Dry Rub style.  As I waited I noticed the "Guy Ate Here" Stencil on the wall at the end of the bar and in the same area was a tribute to Bob Ross, if you're not sure who Bob Ross is, he is the late PBS star who starred on the series "The Joy of Painting".  He has the huge hair and talks in a very soothing voice, I love watching the show because I am always amazed how he creates such masterpiece paintings.

Momma's "Guy Ate Here" stencil

Momma's Tribute to "The Joy of Painting" star Bob Ross

The pickles came out before the wings and they were served with a side of Ranch, at first bite I realized they were by far the best Fried Pickles I have ever eaten!  They had a bit of a spice bite. Momma's uses the sweeter Bread and Butter Pickles, and had an amazing flavor.  The wings arrived and were excellent some of the best I have ever had.  They were rubbed with a salty, not too spicy rub and the wings were big and meaty!  When I talked to the server about it he told me that not only was he not surprised by my reaction but that's the reason he loves working there so much, the food sells itself and he loves seeing the diners enjoy Momma's cooking! What a wonderful attitude!  This place is a must if you visit Louisville!  Before leaving I was able to get the manager to sign my book and we chatted a little bit about my travels and the show.

Momma's Bar area

THE best Fried Pickles I have ever had

Excellent Dry Rub Wings

My Momma's meal

I left and headed back to the hotel after a long day of work and travel.  My second day started and I planned to go to 3 places and also do some sightseeing.  I headed out to my first stop in the Highland Park area of Louisville.  "Gralehaus" is a breakfast and lunch place.  They also rent rooms for overnight stays and have a separate dinner restaurant in this cozy neighborhood setting.  As you enter you take a menu and give the greeter your order and take a seat at a table or the bar which is where I sat as it was like sitting at a chefs table where I could watch all the food being prepared. 

Gralehaus café in the Highland Park area of Louisville 

Gralehaus dining area

I ordered the Duck and Oyster Mushroom Crepe.  As I waited for my meal I enjoyed watching the single chef making the food.  She was pretty intense in getting the many orders done, but was extremely efficient!

Chef preparing my crepe

Crepe in final stages

Preparing omelets in the back area of the kichen

Thick grilled bread

Some of the finished meals

I was a bit apprehensive about my order because it had egg, but the crepe was very good which chunks of duck meat, Oyster mushrooms and goat cheese, micro greens and a small swirl of hot sauce.  The savory crepe was just right it was a very good meal.

My Gralehaus Duck and Oyster Mushroom crepe

I headed out and decided to take in some of the sights of Louisville.  Before I left a friend had suggested I check out a place in the downtown area and even though I wasn't interested in that place I noticed it was down the street from the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory.  I took a 40 minute tour of the place where most Major and Minor League players get their bats made.  It was totally fascinating, the precision that goes into making a bat is unreal!  They also had a lot of interactive displays and movies.  They also had an area of Lego built stadiums and the Milwaukee Brewers' Miller Park Lego replica had a roof that opened and closed!

A big bat at the entrance

A replica or early bat making for Louisville Slugger

Try a bat area, pick your favorite team or player, I tried a Mickey Mantle bat

Info on the bat I tried

Honus Wagner display

Babe Ruth at the bat!

Lego Miller Park in Milwaukee with the roof open

Roof starting to close

Closing

Closed!

Lego Wrigley Field from Chicago

Lego version of Cincinnati's Great America Ballpark

Old Comiskey Field form Chicago in Lego bricks

After fishing up the tour and museum I headed to my next Triple D stop.  "The Table" is in the Portland area of Louisville.  I was told that in the growth of the city, if not for a 19th Century flood, might be the main city in the area.  It is now one of the poorer areas of Louisville, but the area is making a comeback.  "The Table" is a very unique place, open only 4 hours a day and dedicated to feeding anyone that desires a meal.  They give you their mission statement along with the menu.  One thing is that the pricing is suggestive, pay what you can, if you can't pay fully then pay what you can and they employ volunteers to help serve.  The place was packed during my visit!  It is in an industrial area of Portland.

The Table in the Portland area of Louisville, KY

Inside the rustic dining room

I was seated at a communal table and decided to try the Meatloaf sliders that were topped with cheese, pickles and sweet pepper jelly on the side.  As I waited for my meal I talked with my two servers and they were very excited to sign my book and they even posed with me at their "Guy Ate Here" wall stencil.  The sliders were really good, served on small Brioche buns.  I wasn't sure if I'd like the pepper jelly but it was really good and small amounts would enhance the sliders taste.

My slider meal at The Table

My two servers, very nice and great servers

I headed back to the hotel to relax for a few hours before heading out to my next Triple D stop.  My last stop of the day in the Frankfort Avenue area of the city.  "The Irish Rover" claims to be "Louisville's Irish Pub" and was the cities first Irish pub.  As you enter the Irish Cottage style house, you enter the Dublin style pub/bar area. The dining areas are designed as different Irish cottage rooms.  There are family pictures and portraits on the walls as well and travel posters and Irish drink signs.  It reminded me of Kitty Hoynes, a Triple D place in Syracuse, NY.  I was seated in one of the cottage rooms.  I was really impressed with the menu, very authentic Irish fare and some of the items had the origin of the items and the pub in Ireland that developed them.  

The Irish Rover in the Frankfort Avenue area of Louisville. "Louisville's Irish Pub"

The wall décor in The Irish Rover's Cottage room where I dined

Beers and Ales on tap at the Irish Rover

The menu looked so good that I decided to try a starter and a main meal item.  I chose a starter called Bleu Cheesecake and the Crab Bake as my main meal, off the Irish Rover's summer menu.  The starter came with a side of Vinaigrette dressing and Irish soda bread, I was also given a basket of Irish Soda and Sourdough bread.  The starter was excellent, and incredibly looked like real Cheesecake on a savory cracker crust.  Then the main meal came out, the Crab bake was presented in a crock, the generous portion of Crabmeat was mixed with Rose Marie sauce, a mayonnaise based sauce and baked with a breadcrumb topping with a side salad of micro greens.  The Crab was really sweet, crab is probably my favorite seafood.  

Irish bread basket

Bleu Cheesecake Starter

Irish Crab Bake

Crock of Crab goodness!

The manager came over to sign my book and we talked about the history of the restaurant and the owners.  She also complimented me on pronouncing the name of the city correctly, most visitors to city say Lou-E-ville, but it should be pronounced as Loo-ah-ville.  I headed out after a great first full day in Louisville and had some fun plans for my second day.

I love to travel and love trying  all of these great restaurants, but the highlight of this trip was planned for my second day.  I booked a tour of Churchill Downs, home of the World's Most Famous horse race, the Kentucky Derby.  I decided to take the "Around the Track Golf Cart Tour" a 4 hour tour of the track which included visiting the back side of the track and the barns, watching the morning workouts, visiting the club and box seating areas including Millionaire's Row, the Jockey's room, lunch in the café, where the barn workers eat and admission to the Kentucky Derby Museum.  Although a bit pricy, I highly recommend taking this tour, you are immersed in all things Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Derby.  The 4 hour tour was very personal as there were just 4 of us including the guide.  The museum featured an awesome 360 movie called "The Greatest Race" that surrounds you with the sights and sounds of Derby Day from early dawn to the winners circle.

Statue to the great Barbaro at Gate 1

Churchill Downs famous Twin Spires

Paddock area

Winner's Circle used only for the Kentucky Derby

Winner's Circle used for all other races

Crystal replica of Churchill Downs on Derby Day in the Millionaire's Row Club area

Starter's Gate

Backside barn area for Fires Stables

Up close with the "athletes"

On track workouts

Back side Quarter Pole

Washing the horses

Waiting to start their workout

Shoeing the horse

A real art form performed by the Farrier 

Worn Horseshoe

The Finish Line

In the Jockey's Silks Room

Museum tribute to the Great Secretariat

Ron Turcotte's Secretariat silks

Finish Line replica in the Museum 

Museum starting gate display

After a great visit to Churchill Downs I headed out to try my next Triple D place.  It took about 15 minutes to drive back into the downtown area.  "Grind Burger Kitchen" is in an industrial area of the city and the building looks like a southwestern adobe.  As you enter you are greeted by a staff member and given a menu and then order and pay.  I took a seat at the bar and looked over the menu.  The place is kind of sparse with some interesting comic themed art work. They feature sandwiches and local micro brews.  I decided to try the Cuban sandwich that was featured on the show.  While waiting the manager came over and signed my book and we talked a little about my travels.

Grind Burger Kitchen in Louisville, KY

The Grind food truck

Grind's bar area

The Cuban sandwich was served with a choice of a side and I chose the blackened Brussels Sprouts.  The sandwich had a great twist from the usual Cuban.  Normally Cuban sandwiches have Ham, Pork, pickles pressed on a crispy sub style roll.  Grind's had Pork Belly in place of pork and that is a much better version of pork.  You always hear "Everything is better with bacon" but I say "Everything is better with belly, Pork belly that is!".  The sandwich was pressed perfectly and was scalding hot, but tasted great!  The sprouts had a real spice bite.

My Grind Burger Kitchen meal - Cuban Sandwich and Brussel Sprouts

Cuban sandwich with Pork Belly

After finishing I headed back to the hotel to relax before heading out to my final Louisville place.  

My last stop was in an older neighborhood of Louisville.  "The Seafood Lady" is a popular take-out place with a self seating dining area.  You enter and order your meal.  The pace is pretty Spartan and has a number of big TVs to watch while you wait.  They have a sign telling you it could take up to 30 minutes for you order to be ready.  The place was packed!

The Seafood Lady in Louisville, KY

Guy was here!

Cool wall decorations in the dining area

 

I ordered the Half Combo which consisted of two huge Snow Crab Claws, 10 Cajun Shrimp, 2 Cajun Corn cobs, and a Cajun hard boiled egg.  This was a HALF ORDER!  After ordering the manager signed my book and was amazed at the number of places I have been to and thanked me for coming in.  I waited for about 30 minutes or my order and while waiting the manager came through the dining area offering samples of their Teriyaki shrimp and fried gator bites, both were very good.  The meal was great!  Meaty crab legs and huge shrimp.  The egg was really good, but the corn was extremely spicy, as many know I am not a spice person.

Samples of Gator Bites on the top and Teriyaki Shrimp

Half Combo order - Snow Crab Legs, Shrimp, Corn and Egg

Spicy Cajun Corn

Cajun Hard Boiled Egg

The meal was excellent and very messy, but sometimes messy is good!  I washed up and talked with some of the staff who were all very nice and accommodating.  Heading out I had been able to visit all of the Louisville places and was not disappointed.  As I headed home my Triple D count stands at 598 and I can no start planning 600!