To me a wing is a fried and crispy piece of a chicken covered in a tasty/spicy sauce which used to be considered a throw away/useful only for stock. However, in the last two decades it has become a booming business which has spawned many restaurants and bars to copy the unbridled success of Buffalo Wild Wings. While I have tried many wings across many of these very different outlets trying to make it in the genre, I have never been to any place quite like :D-Spot in Maplewood, MN.
D-Spot is tucked away in an unassuming strip mall next to a McDonald’s and sandwiched between an Asian restaurant and a tiny Carbone’s Pizza which anchors the shopping center. While the Carbone’s and the Asian restaurant were empty when we arrived at dinner time on Saturday night, :D-Spot’s very small dining area was crowded with sticky-handed patrons smiling as they chowed down on what can definitely be considered to be the world’s craziest wing menu created by an absolutely mad food scientist. With a counter order format and 10 or so tables, :D-Spot appears to be setup mainly for takeout and delivery but many people were still opting to dine in rather than take the obvious alternatives.
The menu is packed with well over 60 (yes; that’s six, zero) different kinds of wings, most of which you have never thought of and many more which I will put money on that you would never believe goes with a chicken wing. It’s broken into three categories: spicy, savory, comfort and sweet and there are 15-20 different types of wings in each. All sauces are made from scratch and to order. Here are some examples:
- Spicy: Spicy BBQ (chili, honey, BBQ sauce), Incredible Hulk (green coconut curry), and Toxic Avenger (green coconut curry, Italian salsa verde, schiracha (sic))
Savory: Italiano (mint, parsley, basil, garlic, capers, anchovy, crush red pepper), M.P.G. (fondue style potato and gravy), and iberian (chorizo, smoked paprika)
Comfort: Lalapalooza (lavender, peppercorn, mustard vinegar), Cacciatore (tomato, rosemary, garlic), and MN Wild (wild rice, cranberries, beer maple syrup).
Sweet: Mound of Joy (seasoned coconut milk, dark chocolate, crushed almonds), Chicken & Waffles (maple brown sugar, creme anglaise, cinnamon and powder sugar, finished with an optional berry sauce), and Frenchy (caramelized onions with a sweetened balsamic reduction).
At the counter we met the very friendly, absolutely crazy, and extremely passionate owner, Darin. He immediately began rattling off suggestions for wings we should try even though I knew before I walked in the door what I wanted. While one of his suggestions, the Black Widow (also noted as a “best bet” by The Heavy Table), was already on my list we didn’t follow any of his other suggestions. Instead we placed an order for 12 El Loco (“ridiculously HOT. For the extremist only!”), 6 Black Widow (soy glaze, cracked fennel, jerk rub), and 6 Blue Moon (blue cheese cream). After a discussion on the hot wings he offers as well as the other places I’ve eaten wings including Girvan which he said he has tried, we were offered a glimpse of new items to come including one of the newest searing hot peppers (either the Naga Viper (1.3m Scoville) or the Trinidad Scorpion (1.46m)) and a sausage and cracked fennel wing. Along with that he told us he’d be throwing in an order of his new, not yet on the menu, “Fruity Pebbles” wings to help cool down the heat of the “El Loco”.
We sat down and watched the Vikings suck in their first preseason game with another washed up and overpaid guy at QB while we waited for our wings to arrive. There were several others around us finishing up and several more crowded around outside staring at the menu taped to the window. Of those inside several went up to the counter and noted their profound love for D-Spot’s wings and two asked questions about what each little bit of spice was on their wings.
Eventually our wings were delivered to the table in plastic boats lined with checkered paper. For such fancy wing sauces, the presentation was quite mundane. Aside from the El Loco, the wings were sized nicely and lightly sauced. None of them put off a significant smell and even the El Loco were surprisingly tame when I stuck my nose right up to them.
I tried Josh’s Blue Moon wings first. We were both surprised at how little bleu cheese flavor there was. In fact, I couldn’t taste any at all and might as well have been eating a plain chicken wing dipped in tasteless paste. Josh agreed that there was little bleu cheese flavor but noted he could taste it on his wing. Josh is like me in that he prefers punch and pungent bleu cheeses and this one missed that mark.
Next up was the much hailed Black Widow wings. Syrupy and sticky, this sauce was dominated by the soy glaze. While I’m more of a traditional wing fan, I can certainly appreciate interesting flavors and ones that play well together. While there was nothing wrong with this wing in the least, the soy flavor just didn’t do much for me and the fleeting hint of pepper I kept chasing in the background wasn’t enough to make me give it the high marks that the Heavy Table did. However, if you’re into Asian flavors this one may be great for you.
Finally I grabbed one of the El Locos and stuck one under my nose. Usually with wings made with the ghost pepper, my nose at least clears when I do something similar. Many times it starts running and my eyes start to water. However, I couldn’t smell much of anything with the El Loco wings. The sauce itself was dark, chunky and had noticeable pieces of peppers as well as some unknown vegetable stewed in. The wings themselves were peppery and flavorful but not hot enough to carry the warning on the menu. Honestly, if you’re going to use ghost peppers, let them be hot enough that I break a sweat and get the chili high. Otherwise you’re just wasting your time and money in my opinion.
Then I was left with the Fruity Pebbles wings. Looking at the menu before we arrived I just could not wrap my head around on the sweet side of it and especially not the idea of dessert on a wing. However, being that the owner was so very proud to present these free of charge, I felt I had to give them a try. The wings were a dark pinkish color and syrupy–similar to the Black Widow. The first bite was odd. Not because it tasted bad, but because it didn’t. I had it in my mind that there was no way a chicken wing named after a cereal could taste good but it worked. But not only did it work but, no kidding here, it tasted just like Fruity Pebbles and not in a “well, sorta” type of way but in a really, actually, seriously tastes like Fruity Pebbles sort of way. But I figured I was just burned out from the El Loco so I packaged up the remaining wings and brought them home. Sunday morning I woke up and for the first time had leftover wings which were more like a breakfast food…and they worked even better. Yes folks, chicken wings for breakfast and if I hadn’t told you it was a wing you wouldn’t have been the wiser.
Overall I was surprised by :D-Spot. While I think they miss the mark in many ways with their hottest wings, I think they definitely have something very unique and quite interesting going in that strip mall in Maplewood. With new flavors constantly being worked out and dozens more for me to try as well as an enthusiastic and overly friendly owner putting himself out there to his customers, I see absolutely no reason why I wouldn’t return and I suggest you at least give it a try once. Who knows, maybe you too will shock yourself and find yourself falling in love with flavor combinations no one would have ever thought worked with what was once considered a throw-away piece of the chicken.
Have you ever eaten at :D-Spot in Maplewood? If so what did you think? Even if you haven’t, just looking at their menu may give you some really interesting thoughts on what they’re trying to do. What flavor combinations sound best to you? Would you try dessert on a wing? Whatever you have to say about :D-Spot Wings in Maplewood go ahead and comment on as I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Address:
D-Spot
705 Century Ave N
Maplewood, MN 55119
Phone:
651-730-7768
Hours:
Monday – Saturday: 11 AM to 10 PM
See all the pictures from :D-Spot in Maplewood, MN on Flickr here.
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August 15th, 2011 at 10:23 am
I drove by the other day when visiting my parents, maybe next time I’m on that side of town I will have to give it a try. Other than the Carbone’s & the Asian place, I didn’t realize the stip mall had any other restaurants.
August 15th, 2011 at 10:28 am
Someone needs to say this.
That may be the worst names for a restaurant ever. The only thing more horrible than the name of the place is the antiseptic looking facade of the space. It looks more like a dentist office than a restaurant.
Their website is great, and the menu looks creative as hell, and it may be thriving in spite of how it looks. I wonder how many people drive by that every day and not notice that they sell food.
August 15th, 2011 at 11:07 am
@ Lefty – I mentioned I drove by above but I neglected to mention that I didn’t realize it was a new restaurant. If I were going to open a new restaurant on the Maplewood/Oakdale border this certainly wouldn’t be a spot I would pick.
Perhaps with the right marketing to the 3M lunch crowd they will thrive.
August 15th, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Lefty, I drive by that mall every single day. Never knew they were even there. That strip mall creeps me out.
August 15th, 2011 at 2:34 pm
I’ll have to add this one to my list. But now that you mentioned Girvan, I think it’s time for another pilgrimage to take the Challenge of the Ghosts
August 15th, 2011 at 8:34 pm
I’ve never had wings, but I’m intrigued by the sweet ones. Big fan of Fruity Pebbles, so it sounds like that would be a good place to start if I were planning to give them a go.
August 15th, 2011 at 9:27 pm
They are trying too hard to be clever with that name, and the signing doesn’t really clarify things. But at least they are trying to do something different, so they deserve credit for not being just another sandwich shop/cafe/whatever and actually doing something nobody else around here is doing. If I’m ever up there, I’ll probably give it a go.
August 16th, 2011 at 4:28 am
[...] event next week [PDF of flyer], Tao Natural Foods joins our Atlas of Ethical Eating, and Bill Roehl visits :D-Spot Wings in Maplewood (read our review here). » Bikes, Bites, Vines, Victuals and Morning Roundup [...]
August 16th, 2011 at 8:29 am
Congrats to dsw (#3 above) for posting comment #100!
August 22nd, 2011 at 1:01 pm
My girlfriend and I have been there twice. We’re checking wings off of the list as we go. I’ll admit that I’m not blown away by the name of the place, and the presentation is a little “lacking”, but that’s not why we went there.
The sheer creativeness of the flavors and the passion of the owner blow me away. We’ve tried a few of the suggestions, and made a few of our own choices. The ginger wings were fantastic. Full of flavor and super sticky. The Kitchen Sink were a little different, but had good flavor. I wasn’t too blown away by the Black Widow wings (with the name, I expected them to be spicier). The Incredible Hulks weren’t that incredible. My girlfriend tried the ones with horseradish, and said she liked them. (I don’t remember the name. I hate that root.) But the ones that blew me away were the Snackers wings. A dessert in every sense of the word, and very tasty, despite having ingredients that just shouldn’t be on a chicken wing.
And both times we’ve been there, despite order orders of 6 wings, we always seem to get a few more than 6. Totally unexpected, and TOTALLY appreciated.
October 12th, 2011 at 6:41 pm
Name schmame; presentation- who cares! Eat at :D Spot and I GUARANTEE you’ll go back many MANY more times! Bathala’s Bliss is food of the Gods! Toxic Avenger is AMAZING! War Machine, Country Fried, Iron Man, Widow Maker, Kamikaze, Ben Grimm, 666 Mark of The Beast, Dragon’s Breath … too many DELICIOUS flavors to list. Quit making excuses about why you haven’t been to :D Spot yet and go there! What are you waiting for??? Don’t knock it if you haven’t tried it.
October 13th, 2011 at 10:14 am
Jz asks: “What are you waiting for???”
Personally, I was waiting for a rounding endorsement! With lots of exclamation points!! From someone with only 1 comment on this board (because clearly they like what I like, and I can trust their opinion, right???). Also, the massive amounts of hyperbole and tremendous lack of details in their post will not deter me!! I am SO going to check this place out. Right NOW. I cannot WAIT!!!
October 13th, 2011 at 10:46 am
Same buy posted on at least two other sites (Yelp, etc). Same shit, 1st/only post on both. Classic shill.
This guy’s relationship with this place will be pretty easy for Bill to sniff out. I’m guessing very close friend of Darin Koch (owner) or his wife.
October 13th, 2011 at 10:59 am
Oh, fun.
October 13th, 2011 at 11:00 am
Nope.
October 15th, 2011 at 12:28 am
Ok, look; either you’ll go to :D Spot and try it out for yourself, or you’ll just keep talking about why you won’t/can’t go, or you’ll criticize something that you know absolutely nothing about, other than what you’ve read and/or heard. But, it’s a complete waste of time for me to go into details about :D Spot, Darin, the food, the clientele, etc .. the story at the top of this page says it all. It’s well written, very descriptive, and the writer was obviously pleased with the food, service, and the people working there. Ultimately, the only thing that will sell you on :D Spot IS :D Spot.
And here’s the incentive, I’ve got Darin’s blesssing so it’s legit:
Go to :D Spot, tell them Jimzilla sent you, and get $2.00 off any order over $10.00.
You’re right, I am a friend of Darins’, but I was a customer first; the food and the hospitality brought me back. So now I’m doing what good friends do, I’m helping in any way I can. Everybody wants friends like that, very few people actually HAVE friends like that.
Maybe you’ll like :D Spot, maybe you won’t. But you’ll never know until you’ve tried it. I don’t just like Darin’s food, I love it .. that’s why I’m telling all of you!
October 15th, 2011 at 7:46 am
Is he paying you or giving you free food in exchange for this marketing?
October 18th, 2011 at 1:30 pm
No pay, just the satisfaction of seeing someone succeed .. paying it forward
October 18th, 2011 at 1:56 pm
I think Jimzilla is on the up and up. Kinda crazy, but for real.
There are a few places that you all know I frequent and talk up here all the time that I have no relationship with other than being a customer. I feel the same way in that it is good to see someone that I think does good things succeed.
Jimzilla’s mistake was probably the way he posted (non specific hyperbole) and then did it on a bunch of places in a similar manner. That is a bit over the top in my opinion. Also, his original post did nothing to make me want to eat there, so there is that as well.
October 18th, 2011 at 2:59 pm
I was sitting in the McD’s drive through yesterday, turned to my left and bam. There was :D spot. Never knew it was so close to home.
October 18th, 2011 at 8:40 pm
Crazy, over the top .. I can relate to that! I’ve been involved with the music biz (metal genre specifically) for many years, did some time on a local radio show called the Root Of All Evil (R.I.P. Earl) had my own column in 2 different metal mags; you do whatever you can to get peoples’ attention. And again, if all of you read Bill’s article before posting your comments, then I shouldnt NEED to say anything to make you want to go there- his words alone should have been enough. It was descriptive, well written and he obviously was inspired enough to write a review. And if you read this part:
“Whatever you have to say about :D-Spot Wings in Maplewood go ahead and comment on as I’d love to hear your thoughts”
Then I did exactly as the writer asked, I commented. I clearly agreed with what Bill had to say, for the most part, and I commented in my own words. It’s up to you, the reader, to decide if you also agree (or disagree) with Bill, then post your own comments.
I also liked what Lefty had to say:
“There are a few places that you all know I frequent and talk up here all the time that I have no relationship with other than being a customer. I feel the same way in that it is good to see someone that I think does good things succeed.”
If I’m passionate about something, and if it also involves someone I know, then you can be sure that I’m gonna have my say. Just like when DM said “that strip mall creeps me out”, DM was sharinghis/her thoughts. Maybe DM had a bad experience at a strip mall? I dunno.
And anyway, it’s just an opinion, so ease up a notch. Or, maybe you should just brush your teeth and go to bed. I promise it’ll be all better in the morning.
October 18th, 2011 at 9:05 pm
And for the record, I’ve never been paid for any of the hype that I do in the name of others. Not on the radio, not in the mags I wrote for, not even for the band I sang in. (personally handed out 1000 flyers for every show we did while I was frontman, talked to each person that I handed a flyer to) Just being able to voice my own opinion is pay enough.
October 19th, 2011 at 8:15 am
Jimzilla,
You need to develop a baseline before you come to a website like this to tell people what is good food. Maybe Taco Bell is also your go to place for mexican and Applebees (which Bill eats at all the time) your place for fine dining.
The fact that you have 5 posts to date, all on the same thread and all saying the same thing gives nobody a reason to try this place out, and for sure gives me no reason to go out of my way to try it.
I am sure your Death Metal fans can learn something about what you say since you probably have given multiple opinions about that topic, but nobody here knows you from Jack. Maybe if you stick around, comment on other posts honestly and be interesting, your comments about this place might earn some credence.
For me, this is still a dumpy storefront with a bad name and a huge menu that is probably a big hit with pot smokers. I still don’t see why I would bring my family in for dinner.
October 19th, 2011 at 8:18 am
I’m sure any menu is a huge hit with pot smokers. That said, if your family members are big fans of many different wing flavors then I would guess it would be worth it to bring them there, otherwise you’re probably right.
October 19th, 2011 at 8:39 am
My family loves the wings at Runyon’s. I don’t get the impression from your review that any of these wings (in spite of the huge variety) comes close to bringing the pleasure derived from eating the classic buffalo wings on First and Washington.
*still need to try Girvan
October 19th, 2011 at 8:46 am
D-Spot is not a place you go for the very best in traditional Buffalo wings in Minnesota–that would be Runyon’s. This is a place you go if you like to see a different and a more Avant-garde play on the traditional wing.
Girvan is also not a traditional Buffalo wing by any means. They’re meaty and flavorful and loaded with ghost-based sauce. If you’re looking for crispy, vinegary and dipped in bleu cheese, you’re going to be disappointed.
October 19th, 2011 at 8:55 am
Understood. Point being that you reference the quality of the meat and then the sauce, not the other way around. I don’t get the impression from your original review that the actual chicken is anything to write home about.
If a place can mask the flavor of chicken enough to make it taste like Fruity Pebbles, I just don’t see my way to give it a go.
October 19th, 2011 at 8:59 am
lefty, I don’t particularly remember any wing joint having memorable tasting chicken. Hell, I don’t know of many places at all which serve memorable tasting chicken (there are some exceptions–like those serving organic/local chicken done up right) so I’m not sure what you’re trying to get at there.
For me a wing place is based in its sauces, wing size and amount of meat. If I mention anything else it’s for the benefit of others or to get me more traffic from Google searches on common keywords ;-)
October 19th, 2011 at 9:42 am
I appreciate your enthusiasm jimzilla and welcome to Lazy Lightning. Sounds like you are a passionate person…I’d love to have you stick around here.
From somebody who has, I’m guessing, 10,000+ posts on various online restaurant and food sites, I’d like to offer an honest suggestion (and lefty has alluded to the premise).
If you really love a place and want people to try it, just skip the promotion-speak and hyperbole (like post #11). You would persuade 100 times more people by giving specifics, being transparent about your friendship with the owner, and not trying to sound like a breathless radio ad. Maybe it works on 10 year-olds to get them thinking the monster trucks at the METroDOME DOME DOME are the greatest spectacle the world has ever seen, but it’s a pretty ass-annoying way to talk about chicken wings. (BTW, they are just chicken wings…nobody really cares that you’ve “been to a lot of places in my life, in many states, and in a few different countries, but :D Spot is like nothing else I’ve ever had.” Just how many wing joints are there in Mexico or Zimbabwe or wherever you’ve traveled?)
Specifically to the friends bit…99.9% of the time, even if the friendship developed simply because you’re a repeat customer, you are going to get special treatment because you are a friend. That’s why it’s important to disclose the friendship. You may not be getting paid, etc. for shilling about the place, but the owner will generally want to “return the favor” for you taking the time to post all around the internet. The experience I get there quite possibly won’t be the same as a friend or family member.
I’m sure you didn’t need a schoolmarmish lesson on how to post on the internet. But hopefully this explains why your recommendation was met with conclusion jumping, cynical responses and skepticism, including my own.
Anyway, Darin has legitimate credentials as a chef and he has some pretty unique recipes. If you had said that and articulated how good the “Incredible Hulk” wings are/how unusual and surprisingly awesome a great green curry sauce is on a wing…well, I may have crossed town for lunch there that very day.
October 19th, 2011 at 10:38 am
For what my 2 cents is worth, the name of the place sucks. Bad.
But, because Bill recommended it, because I like wings, and because Jimzilla is getting me $2 bucks off, I will give it a try as soon as I can get to that side of town.
October 19th, 2011 at 5:51 pm
Somebody once told me “you can never win on the internet”, (in regards to this sort of forum) and they were right. I’ve also discovered that people see/hear what they want to. That said, I’ll comment on a few things:
Metal genre specifically doesn’t mean death metal specifically. Black Sabbath, Dio, Ozzy, Kiss, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Motley Crue, Motorhead and Twisted Sister are metal bands, they are NOT death metal bands. Do I like death metal? Yes I do. But that’s only a very small sub-genre in the metal catagory.
TYPING IN CAPS- (yes, it’s annoying) beacuse I’m on a work computer, using an on-screen, touch keyboard- I don’t have the option to underline or use italics.
Only commenting about :D Spot- it’s 1/2 a block away from home, an 4.5 miles from 1 of my 2 jobs. I work 7 days a wk because I’m going to Hawaii for 10 days, I want to ensure that I have enough money to do all the things we have planned. So It’s convenient for me to go to :D Spot for burgers, chicken sandwiches, fries and wings 1-2 times a wk. Maybe someday I’ll try other places and comment on them, but not until after my trip.
Not all metalheads are potheads, I hate that stereotype, I care even less for recreational drug users and drunks.
When I said “:D Spot is like nothing else I’ve ever had”, where in that sentence did I say wing joint?
Finally, as far as wether or not to bring a family to :DSpot- they don’t serve alcoholic drinks, have a kids menu, a section on the menu that says Sweet Flavors, and every time I’ve been there, the big screen TV wasn’t on some crappy sporting event channel. In fact, I’ve seen it on Cartoon Network at least 3 times. Oh, they have cookies, too. A dozen for 2 bucks!
But some you will pick and choose what you want to read here, offer negative feedback and ignore the rest. So really, the only reason I’m still doing this is because it amuses ME.
October 19th, 2011 at 6:48 pm
Ok, I’ve decided that I will no longer torment the masses here at Lazy Lightning, this will be the last time I comment on :D Spot.
Today, my co-workers and I odered $93.00 worth of food, here’s some of the highlights:
Luci Ann- 2 1/4lb patties with American cheese. So good that it’s good as is.
Emma James- 2 1/4 patties, fried egg, pancetta, and harissa aioli- even better with cheese! Better than Red Robin, IMO.
War Machine- Iron Man (equal parts sweet and spicy) and jerk (cinnamon, cayenne, nutmeg, thyme and chili powder) combine. A favorite with my co-workers!
Bathala’s Bliss- Ginger, honey, thai chili peppers, coconut milk, peanut butter, lime juice and cilantro. My favorite, and I’m the guy who named it! (Google Bathala if you don’t know who that is)
Bill, if you think Darin missed the mark with El Loco, try 666. Made with Trinadad Scorpion peppers and a jerk rub, it’s really damn hot, but incredibly flavorful! And he’s got a new flavor called What Would Jesus Do? These peppers don’t even have a name yet, but they’re rated at 2 million scovilles … dang. (need to sign a waiver)
I also really like Toxic Avenger- made with sriracha, italian salsa verde and green coconut curry .. delicious!
There, I’m done. :D
October 20th, 2011 at 6:46 am
Ding! Ding! Ding! We have perspective.
October 20th, 2011 at 8:37 am
Do they have Red Robins in many states, and in a few different countries?
So happy we can provide amusement. Remember that it works both ways.
Other question for you (and this is a serious question) — does Darin hand-form the burgers from never-frozen beef? Also, are the buns daily sourced or just the Sysco/store-bought stuff.
Given his attention to detail/skills with the wing sauces, the burgers sound tempting. But I don’t usually bother with places that serve frozen crap.
October 20th, 2011 at 1:39 pm
Fresh ground beef, hand formed, fresh buns that are toasted on grill just before burger is done. Gotta try the fries, seasoned and served wih harissa aioli dipping sauce. (amazing)
Never eaten at Red Robin here in MN, but have several times in Denver and CO Springs .. wise ass.
October 20th, 2011 at 1:41 pm
JZ,
Being that you posted to the site again after saying you wouldn’t, does that make you a liar?
October 20th, 2011 at 1:48 pm
I wouldn’t be surprised if the beef from the Red Robins in Colorado and the Red Robins in Minnesota came from the same cow.
For a burger place, those are about the worst fucking burgers available at any price.
Jimzilla the liar should not be trusted when talking about food.
October 20th, 2011 at 2:39 pm
Hey! MSPD had a question, it would have been rude to ignore it. And as long as I was answering that, I felt compelled to comment about Red Robin as well.
Red Robin is pretty spendy, so is Smash Burger. Tried them once, about a year ago, never went back. Nothing worth mentioning past those few words.
Gotta run, pants are on fire!
October 20th, 2011 at 2:54 pm
I don’t think Red Robin is horrible. There are a lot of way worse candidates.
Thanks for the extra info jimzilla. And wise ass? You don’t sound like you’re feeling the amusement.
October 20th, 2011 at 2:57 pm
Congrats to lefty on becoming the fifth person to reach the 1000 comment milestone.
Chad was first:
http://www.lazylightning.org/apple-valley-plans-to-spend-77600-on-website#comment-54488
MSPD was second:
http://www.lazylightning.org/favorite-sandwich-poll#comment-67076
Mrs. Marcos was third:
http://www.lazylightning.org/moser-roth-chili-infused-dark-chocolate#comment-105562
Mikeh was fourth:
http://www.lazylightning.org/minnesota-state-fair-coupon-book-deals#comment-112926
It took lefty 1 year, 1 month, 18 days, 2 hours, 28 minutes and 22 seconds to reach 1000 comments. You can find his first comment here: http://www.lazylightning.org/st-paul-pioneer-press-ignores-do-not-call-list#comment-63099
This will be the only time I’ll ever say this so live it up: Yay lefty!
October 20th, 2011 at 3:18 pm
I’m feelin’ it! Hard to express feelings/emotions/expressions by typing words. This is a poor medium for displaying the human psyche.
October 20th, 2011 at 3:41 pm
Cool. I hope you stick around. We’re pretty serious about food on here, including a wide-range of opinions (generally respectful).
It took all of us about the same amount of time to realize lefty wasn’t a complete and utter dick. (Now he’s just somewhat of a dick)
Ha ha….Congrats lefty.
October 20th, 2011 at 3:51 pm
I am being honest when I say Red Robin is the lowest of the low on the list in my brain. I can’t think of another candidate. I was forced to go to the Plymouth one a few months ago with a dumb co-worker who wanted to go there for his birthday. It was the worst meal in my recent memory.
I don’t even want to know what candidates are on your list MSPD. Even the A&B burger over by Pineda and the Tea House is better than Red Robin.
Hey, how come I didn’t win a gift card? That’s the only reason I stuck around you cheap bastard.
October 20th, 2011 at 3:55 pm
Stopped at the top 3. And blame The Wife. That and Google’s ever-dropping revenue.
October 20th, 2011 at 3:59 pm
A likely story. I was sure there was going to be big bucks from Dominick’s coming my way! :)
Oh, and thanks for nothing The Wife!
October 20th, 2011 at 4:51 pm
Inside baseball is so entertaining…
October 20th, 2011 at 5:02 pm
He’d just give you a gift certificate to a place that closed three days ago anyway.
Lefty, smashburger sucks 1,000x worse than Red Robin. The burgers at places like Chili’s, Applebees, etc. The “famed” Jucy Lucy places (5-8 and Matt’s bar) both put out a terrible excuse for a burger. People used to rave about Hovie’s in Eagan which is worse than Red Robin. That’s just off the top of my head.
I’m not saying it’s great but I’d sure as hell rather go there with my kids than any of the above-mentioned places, Perkins, Denny’s, Baker’s Square or whatever other food source is reasonably close to the AV Red Robin (which is literally across the street from my kids’ school).
October 20th, 2011 at 5:08 pm
Granted I’m not at RR all day but the only trucks I ever see out back of that place are from Sysco.
October 20th, 2011 at 5:24 pm
Oh no! Say it ain’t so. Planning to try a Jucy Lucy at Matt’s this weekend for the first time.
October 20th, 2011 at 11:08 pm
Anyone ever been to Burger Jones? This sounds good, makes my arteries clog just thinking about it:
White Trash Burger
chicken-fried bacon, fried cheese curds and plenty of Velveeta.
MMMM … Vitamin G
October 20th, 2011 at 11:12 pm
JZ, yup and it was the most expensive review I’ve done so far this year (for burgers!): http://www.lazylightning.org/burger-jones-burnsville-mn
Not only that but it really wasn’t all that great and one of their employees astroturfed my site.
October 21st, 2011 at 10:08 am
Closet Carnivore, here’s a photo of the Jucy Lucy from Matt’s:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/15291493@N00/6078359645/in/photostream/
Charred patty, 1/3 more bun than burger, boring-ass store-bought bun, and Kraft-style American cheese. Sure, sometimes that tastes good I suppose, but it’s stupid to go out of your way for it, and even more stupid to send out-of-towners all the way down there pretending to direct them to some kind of “legendary” burger. I see this happen all too often on restaurant boards.
My definition of a great burger is the Nookie Supreme (I know you can relate) which is why I HATE the Jucy Lucy at Matt’s and everything it stands for.
Nice troll job Bill. I needed a laugh.
October 21st, 2011 at 10:11 am
1. Yeah it sucks but it has spawned the genre of equally shitty Ju(i)cy Lucys around town. They’re all exactly as pictured above and taste just about the same. I don’t hype it up but if people want to eat what I consider to be the “original” shitty MN burger that’s where I send them.
2. It wasn’t a troll. I was being serious. The AVTS is right there and I see the Sysco truck out back frequently.
October 21st, 2011 at 10:23 am
Thanks, MSPD!
My sister and her boyfriend are coming into town and he’s an avid Man v. Food watcher (we’re also going to try the meter long brats at Gasthof zur Gemutlichkeit). I think we’ll probably still give the Jucy Lucy a go just to say we’ve done it.
Other planned stops for the 3 day visit include The Nook, Victor’s 1959 Cafe, Mickey’s Diner, and brunch at al Vento. I may not need to eat for a week after they leave.
October 21st, 2011 at 12:36 pm
The food at Mickey’s Diner also sucks, FWIW. Total waste of money, albeit in a novel location.
Anyway, sounds like a nice time. Enjoy the weekend.
October 21st, 2011 at 12:42 pm
I find the Pecan Waffle to be divine. I have one every year for my birthday going on 6-7 years now. The time before last they were out of waffle mix, so they made me a special pecan pancake. Yummy breakfast and sweet to me – that’s a winner in my book.
But yeah, I’d admit the location is a big part of the draw as well.
October 21st, 2011 at 12:47 pm
So Bill, is Sysco the epitome of bad food? I’ve seen you mention it from time to time in mostly negative connotations.
I’m just curious and I am not in the food service business (and would not call myself a “foodie” by any stretch of the imagination either!).
October 21st, 2011 at 1:00 pm
It all depends on how it’s used. Sysco itself is just a delivery company. However they provide restaurants with plenty of options which permit “chefs” to be cheap and lazy.
So let’s say you have cheese curds on your menu. Raw cheese curds themselves probably can be ordered from Sysco, dropped in a batter (homemade or purchased separately from Sysco premade), and fried before serving.
The right way to do this, because it takes nearly no time at all, would be to make them from scratch–even if sourced from Sysco. Unfortunately Sysco also provides frozen, pre-made, cheese curds which you take out of the plastic bag and throw into the fryer before serving. You probably save a couple of cents and a minutes by choosing this option.
Now, which one do you think tastes better and has a bit of a different touch between restaurants? Nothing better than sitting down at yet another restaurant and seeing the identically sized nuggets which you’ve seen 100x before. In a culture which prides itself on being unique and different individually we sure do love to eat what we know and are comfortable with.
So Sysco is generally hated on by me not for being a delivery company but because coupled with the shitty restaurant experience provided by the many restaurants that use them (I personally hate going to Red Robin even for the free burger on our birthday that my wife loves) they are serving exactly the same items as all of the other places–all sourced by Sysco’s premade options.
/rant
October 21st, 2011 at 1:15 pm
OK so maybe you can answer this (or anyone else with knowledge of the situation): Is it true that there are maybe one or two distributors that restaurants can source cheese from and therefore the price is artificially high?
Reason I ask is back in the 80′s I worked for a guy who owned a pizza place (I fixed his arcade games for his other business) and he said that he could only buy mozzarella cheese from like one place, he compared this to the mafia way of doing business back in the day.
Just wondering if that still holds true today.
Is this common with other staples (meat, beverages, etc.)?
October 21st, 2011 at 1:23 pm
nurd52,
Could be that the pizza place was a franchise, in which franchisees are required to purchase the same brand and quality as every other franchise in the system.
There are lots of places to buy cheese for a restaurant.
October 21st, 2011 at 1:27 pm
Every single day I’m reminded I need to get my Ms. Pacman machine back into working order :(
October 21st, 2011 at 1:41 pm
Lefty: No it was a lone wolf pizza joint. I thought that franchiser exclusive vendor contracts were voided by a series of lawsuits in the 80′s brought by disgruntled franchisees who were driven out of business in part because of such practices.
Bill, What’s wrong with Ms Pacman?
October 21st, 2011 at 1:43 pm
Monitor is shot but it’s an original so it’s all bare wires. I don’t really have the $400 for a new one nor the skills to get it hooked up even if I did. I really need to save up the money for a year or so and just get it done.
October 21st, 2011 at 1:53 pm
nurd, you can get cheese from all kinds of places. Hell, Mozza Mia in Minneapolis is a pizza restaurant and mozzarella bar. http://www.mozzamia.com You can make your own mozzarella. Did he run an operation that required him to use a certain brand?
Re: the “Sysco truck backing up to the restaurant” trap which I was hoping to avoid. I don’t disagree with Bill’s explanation entirely, but he and others often just cavalierly throw out the “I see a Sysco truck there” thing with no explanation to get people riled up and sucker them into agreeing that a place isn’t good without independent thought. (See also the Burger Jones post with a photo of the Sysco truck and zero explanation). Interestingly, we had another subversive bit of messaging today with the “Certified Black Angus Beef” comment from the Hurricane Grill & Wings guy. Don’t buy into this kind of hype…it has nothing to do with the actual end result/quality of the restaurant.
I challenge anyone to find a restaurant that doesn’t use Sysco or another industrial food/equipment provider in MSP in one way shape or form. The folks that run virtually all of Bill’s favorite restaurants and food trucks get stuff from Sysco or similar, even if it’s just napkins, condiments, large quantities of cooking oils, or whatever they need.
***By the way, you know that Akuashi beef they sell at Kowalski’s for a gazillion dollars per pound? Arguably the finest beef in the U.S.? Yep…Sysco carries it.***
Even the two places that I can think of that are the hardest-core sustainable/local restaurants (Heartland in St. Paul and Angry Trout in Grand Marais) I am SURE have to get some stuff in bulk even if it’s just to-go containers or whatnot. But if they come off a Sysco truck, someone will wait for the delivery and snap a photo pretending it has some definitive connection to the quality of the place.
I forget if I mentioned it here before, but in the interest of full disclosure (as well as maybe lending credibility…who knows) I spent several months working in Sysco’s warehouse as a summer temp job. I saw what foods went where. It was almost 20 years ago for what it’s worth.
October 21st, 2011 at 1:56 pm
I certainly didn’t want to confuse anyone into seriously believing that I think a restaurant is bad simply because they source anything (even raw ingredients) from Sysco. Bad restaurants exist due to poor execution and thus my single example of cheese curds and how that one item can be seen at so many local restaurants (chain and non-chain alike) that I’ve stopped even bothering to order them.
October 21st, 2011 at 1:57 pm
nurd52,
Not sure what to tell you then. I have a hard time believing that there was only one place to buy mozzarella cheese in the 80s. There must be a lot more to the story if he was disgruntled with it.
Franchisees are not required to buy things from a specific vendor, to your point, but they do have to buy the same products. Exaggerating my point, a McDonald’s owner could not just decide to start selling krinkle cut fries because he likes them better. He is required to buy whatever brand (I assume McDonald’s brand) is approved. Who he buys from cannot be forced upon him for the reasons you stated.
Not sure how they get around the price fixing stuff with entities like Coke, for example since that one is clearly mandated. I never wondered about that until just now.
A restaurant owner (lone wolf type) can purchase food from about any place that is legally allowed to sell to him. Small farms, cheese shops, etc up to including distributors. I hope that helps a little.
October 21st, 2011 at 2:40 pm
Bill: Where can you get a new monitor for a 20+ year old arcade game? Is this the stand-up arcade or the cocktail table model?
Lefty: Things must have changed since the 80′s or the guy was overreacting to the realities of the pizza biz in general. He didn’t have much capital in the place anyway as this was during the 80-82 recession period and you could buy a lot of these places with a little bit of cash and your signature and then he would leverage their remaining credit to the hilt – no he wasn’t in the mafia – but he sure acted that way (big type A personality which, reflecting back is probably what you need if you’re in the trenches).
MSPD: Thanks for the background info.
October 21st, 2011 at 2:50 pm
It’s been a couple of years since I looked and everyone is probably out of the unused ones. It’s a cocktail.
October 21st, 2011 at 3:00 pm
Re: the arcade games — I’d start with a call to Summit Amusement on University Ave in St. Paul. http://www.summitamusement.com
They’ve been around for decades.
October 21st, 2011 at 3:40 pm
Re: Summit Amusement – +1 I’ve met the owner, he’s a straight shooter. He’s got several warehouses full of stuff.
October 25th, 2011 at 1:57 pm
I bet these guys might have some for sale, or a few leads:
http://www.awevending.com/
Awe Vending & Amusements – 476 S Snelling Ave, St Paul, MN 55105
(651) 698-5591
January 25th, 2012 at 7:31 am
[...] 3. Palace’s Pizza 4. The Wienery 5. Vellee Deli 6. Wolves Den 7. Blackbird 8. Hola Arepa 9. D-Spot Wings 10. Origami 11. Shorty and Wags Chicken Wings 12. Marla’s Caribbean Cuisine 13. Andale [...]
January 27th, 2012 at 7:05 am
(via The Heavy Table) D-Spot is opening a second location in St. Paul: http://www.twincities.com/restaurants/ci_19818129
January 27th, 2012 at 7:37 am
I’d definitely be interested in trying his take on Pizza rolls, but that seems like a long way to go for take-out, assuming the delivery zone doesn’t include Minneapolis.
January 27th, 2012 at 10:01 am
They’re making the pizza rolls up in the Maplewood place.
January 27th, 2012 at 10:48 am
Nice. Thanks! I missed that. Will put it on my list.
March 14th, 2012 at 9:03 pm
After weeks of planning we are VERY proud, excited, and happy to announce that on Thursday, March 15th we will be launching our new store! Stay tuned for the online menu that will feature 48 new wing flavors and over 100 billion pizza roll combinations! Thanks to all our fans for waiting patiently. We wanted to take the time to ensure that your experience will be memorable :D
We look forward to cooking for you at either of our locations.
- Darin, Joe, Todd & The :Dcrew
March 14th, 2012 at 9:17 pm
Mon-Sat 4p-4a
Sun 12p-12a
1993 Burns Ave
St. Paul MN 55106
(651) 738-8300
Take out and delivery
March 15th, 2012 at 8:17 am
I thought Jimzilla was just a good customer. What the fuck?
March 15th, 2012 at 9:13 am
Color me confused as well.
March 15th, 2012 at 9:18 am
Unless he opened one of the other two locations and became an owner?
March 15th, 2012 at 9:22 am
Perhaps he will stop back in and explain for our benefit.
March 15th, 2012 at 9:31 am
Do a lot of people order wings at 3:00am? Those are some odd hours for that location.
Wouldn’t you want to capture the lunch trade as well?
March 15th, 2012 at 9:38 am
Could be, but his post makes him sound like the owner of both. I am:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPKc3Q2in4I
March 21st, 2012 at 3:26 am
Sorry for the confusion, I forgot to mention I cut/copied/pasted from the :D Spot facebook profile, including a direct quote from Darin, himself. Once again I was using a work P.C with an on-screen keyboard .. gets frustrating after a while and then I just want to hurry up and be done. Alas, I won’t be able to access this forum (or any, for that matter) from either workplace anymore. Never could at the state job, and now the other job has new work station computers, complete with a firewall blocking all internet access.
Anyway, here’s the url for :D Spot’s facebook page. I do not have one myself, but some facebook info is available to the general public.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/D-Spot/135564069852819
March 21st, 2012 at 3:58 am
Hopefully this will remove all suspicion: have a look at Darin’s pic’s on his facebook page:
(bald guy)
http://www.facebook.com/pages/D-Spot/135564069852819
then have a look at what I sort of look like, I say sort of because I don’t think I have any pics online since I cut my hair and shaved my face clean:
(I’m on the far right in the Root of All Evil T-shirt)
http://a3.ec-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/109/f0788f659ba13b73601813de6331f582/l.jpg
And then you’ll see that Jimzilla and Darin Koch are 2 totally different ppl! Or you could just go to :D Spot and ask Darin himself .. heh heh heh.
And
March 21st, 2012 at 8:19 am
Or you could be Darin who posted a random picture of a bunch of people and said “I am the guy on the right”.
Real credible.
March 21st, 2012 at 11:18 am
Thanks for the clarification jimzilla.
March 21st, 2012 at 11:55 am
Lefty .. really?
March 21st, 2012 at 12:00 pm
Whoever you are. Get a new shirt.
March 21st, 2012 at 12:10 pm
One new shirt, coming right up!
March 21st, 2012 at 1:18 pm
I think you should have stuck with the old shirt.
March 21st, 2012 at 1:45 pm
More verification that I should start a shirt-counseling business. Just think what a gift this would be to the world.
March 21st, 2012 at 1:54 pm
Voluminous Back Hair Alert!
March 21st, 2012 at 1:55 pm
lefty, you’re just jealous because you don’t have much hair.