NEWS/FOOD LEILA R AM ELLA- R ADER
FOOD/REVIEWS On one plate then the other ... BW sends two critics to one restaurant.
JEFFREY’S NEXT DOOR There’s nothing scary about a bacon mary.
PIPER PUB TAKES TOP SPOT IN BLOODY MARY CONTEST
BW CARD ADDS NEW MEMBERS In BW Card news, Kana Girl’s Hawaiian BBQ is now accepting the BW Card. If you haven’t trekked out to Meridian for a plate lunch, let us recommend the manapua—the only place in town you can get it. Stan’s Charbroiled Hot Dogs on Vista Avenue is also new to the BW Card lineup. And though you cannot use your BW Card directly at Smoky Mountain Pizza or Bull’s Head Station, you can log on to your BW Card account and buy discounted gift certificates to both restaurants. Card members pay only $35 for a $50 gift certificate to Bull’s Head Station and $75 for a $100 gift certificate to Smoky Mountain Pizza. —Rachael Daigle
36 | SEPTEMBER 1–7, 2010 | BOISEweekly
GLENN LANDBERG
On Aug. 28, Boise Weekly, with the help of celebrity judges Erica Fabian and Jaime Gamblin from FameFifteen, former BW overlord Bingo Barnes, the sassy Minerva Jayne, Doug Flanders and V99.1’s Josh from the Morning V, crowned a best bloody mary champion. Quinn’s Bar and Restaurant and Piper Pub and Grill faced off early Saturday morning at BW’s first-ever Big LeBoise after being selected from among 15 competing bars and restaurants by BW readers. The challenge was to shake up Magic Valley 44 North and Bakon Vodka into two bloody marys that would best impress the panel of judges. Quinn’s Bakon marys won applause from the judges for the strip of crispy bacon, but ultimately, the spicier Piper Pub version, garnished with avocado and bacon-wrapped asparagus, won over the judges when the vote tally was complete. In the Magic Valley 44 North category, again judges cooed over part of the salad in the Quinn’s bloody mary—everyone loves a pickle, apparently—but it was the Piper Pub’s just-right spice and salad of bleu cheese olives, pickled asparagus and celery that won over the judges. Congrats to Piper Pub and Grill, and thanks to the bartenders from Quinn’s and Piper Pub. And, of course, thanks to our panel of judges who had to suffer through four bloody marys first thing in the morning ... oh, the hard life of a celebrity.
Like the girl next door, Jeffrey’s Next Door possesses the same unpretenEven if you’ve been to Jeffrey’s before and aren’t scared off by the tious charm, although you wouldn’t know it from the exterior. In fact, if scruffy building that includes what used to be one of the city’s most you’re not looking for it, you aren’t likely to find it. Sandwiched between rough-and-tumble biker bars, a barbershop and a popular laundroa dimly lit bar and a coin-op laundry, Jeffrey’s is the surprisingly yummy mat, you have to be committed to get in the door. filling between two slices of stale bread. First, you’ll have to fight the lingering happy hour crowd for a After a noon sweat session, my workout buddy and I set out in search of parking spot in one of the poorest designed lots in town. Then you a late lunch. Bordering on hypoglycemia, we inattentively entered the neigh- have to count your faded, dented blue metal doors correctly lest you boring Broadway Bar and had to grope our way to the back, where—until end up in the Broadway Bar (Jeffrey’s is behind door no. 2). The last week when it was walled in—a swinging push-door acted as a portal most difficult challenge may be actually getting the door open on to another universe. The darkened pool hall gave way to a bright 10-tabled an early summer evening. As you palm the shiny metal doorknob, diner, where background music was made up of Sinatra and big-band tunes. which has been baking in the dry Idaho heat all afternoon, you’re I knew immedigoing to wince. ately that chef/owner Get inside, Joshua Jeffrey shares though, and it’s my philosophy that hole-in-the-wall it’s far better to do a meets diner meets few things well than bistro. Linens, fresh do many things only flowers and candles so-so. Sixty seconds top tables. Water was enough time to glasses each have a thoroughly scour the slice of cucumber menu. By then, our and are refilled from affable waitress had a heavy, shiny metal already offered us pitcher beaded with beverages. sweat. Bread is served My chef salad burrowed beneath ($6.50) was rife with a linen napkin and slender strips of tursided by a ramekin of key and ham, a smatherb-infused rice oil tering of shredded with a kiss of citrus. cheddar, and chopped Lunch is slightly hard-boiled egg. more casual in With sliced cucumber approach, though and tomato hugging neither the food nor the rim of the bowl, the service reflect that the ingredient ratio change in attitude. was perfect—each On several visits the JEFFREY’S NEXT DOOR member of the ensemble was well-represented and none waitstaff was prompt and courteous, and lunch and din1716 Broadway Ave., were outshone by an aggressive pile of bacon or bleu ner portions of entrees were similar in price and size. 208-336-3334 cheese crumbles. Even my picky request, “Hold the Thinking back to Lim’s, the lackluster Chinese Tues.-Fri. 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.; Tues.-Thurs. 5 p.m.-9 p.m.; olives, dressing on the side,” was remembered. restaurant that preceded Jeffrey’s, it’s difficult not to be Fri.-Sat. 5 p.m.-10 p.m.; My pal gripped her teriyaki chicken sandwich ($7) enthusiastic about the food based simply on the degree Sun. 9 a.m.-1 p.m. as if it were trying to escape. The pillowy focaccia roll of improvement. But owner Joshua Jeffrey’s grub earns BW Card Member looked homemade, and seared pineapple added both the enthusiasm. The simple stuff is well executed: thick sweetness and tang. The skins were still on her thick-cut chunks of halibut came thinly battered atop a pile of fries, most of which I ate. They had emerged from the handcut fries, run-of-the-mill mac salad was made over kitchen still scalding, so she left them unguarded to my vulturistic tendenwith diced peppers and spices, a nacho app is nicely starter size, and cies as she tackled her sandwich. Our only gripe with the fries was that a a moderately thick rib eye was perfectly cross-hatched on the outfew were greasy and too limp (but this didn’t stop me from eating them). side and a perfect medium rare on the inside. The more complicated On a different visit, my husband and I were greeted by the same waitress fare holds its own as well: Pork chops were tender. A special of and a hand-written sign, advertising several intriguing desserts, includprawns and thinly pounded chicken breast was slicked with a light ing Mountain Dew pound cake ($3.75). I ordered dessert first but asked butter sauce so as to complement rather than overwhelm. for it to go (savored later as an afternoon snack, it tasted like something That’s not to say there weren’t a few misses. The salsa, tartar and the girl next door would have made: sweet and simple). I was more than cocktail sauces could all use the same attention lavished on other satisfied with a generous slab of grilled salmon ($9.50), which arrived details. Sides of white rice smack far too much of the buttered Minleaning against a cylinder of buttery arborio rice. Sauteed summer squash ute variety. Strawberry shortcake, with a dull, jammy strawberry colored the rest of the plate, but left me once again looking longingly at my spread and too-thick, too-gummy Chantilly cream, was a complete partner’s dish. He chose the pepper jack cheeseburger ($6.50), along with fuggedaboutit—although dessert itself was not. Jeffrey will do a buttermilk onion rings (50 cents extra) that were crisp enough to defy grav- half ’n’ half option if you can’t decide between two desserts, and I’d ity, unlike the fries. I felt lucky to eat most of those, too. highly recommend both the orange dream cake with vanilla cream As we hauled our happy bellies out the door, a disembodied voice from frosting and the double chocolate pound cake. the kitchen echoed our waitress’s “Thank you!” Maybe Joshua Jeffrey himAn experience at Jeffrey’s isn’t easily summed up, but when the self? No doubt, the man had delivered on his written promise of “gourmet bill arrives, the relatively tiny total might be all the “summing up” dining, everyday prices.” you need to return. —Sarah Barber wanted to be the girl next door but lacked neighbors.
—Rachael Daigle likes to sum things up in one word. WWW. B O I S E WE E KLY. C O M