homestyle ronnies: what you wish you knew
I went to my first meat raffle last night. It was well worth the effort of getting to northeast. Shaw’s is my now favorite dive in the cities (sorry Lyle’s, what you have you done for me lately?). It’s at University and 15th. It’s not just spending a dollar for the one-in-thirty chance of taking home any number of meats or gift certificates. Let me briefly describe to you the setting.
There’s Silverstrike, bristol board darts, live music, cheap food, and the best juke box in the city on a lot of counts. Mondays are jam nights where people just come in with their instruments. Tuesdays are T-bone steak nights where you get a sixteen ounce steak, a baked potato, and a salad for $12. Wednesday is taco night (more on those later) with karaoke. Thursday night has a barbecue rib special. Saturday the P.B.R. talls are a buck seventy-five. Their happy hour, which I think goes ’til seven, is half priced appetizers and a dollar off all drinks. If it weren’t so far north it’d be there twice a week. Everything you could ask for and a meat raffle? C’mon…
Random occurrences to date (meaning three visits) at Shaw’s: J.B. playing silverstrike with the owner, one of the servers (Joann), and some locals for money; watching a sweet owner and buddies band (the shawshank redemption); giving Joann an aluminum dish of grilled vegetables; bowling a 56 on silverstrike; sharing a spirit that Joann gave Ben; Joann saying we tipped too much when we came back later the same day (never happens); and getting a free pitcher courtesy Joann (she’s on the list a lot; she’s a character). It’s like Cheers, but live and much, much better.
But anyway, this post is meant to highlight the two happy nuggets of amazing I consumed last night. For taco wednesdays, you’re given the choice between three hard-shell, two soft-shell, or two homestyle tacos. I (which ended up being a horrible, horrible mistake) had a few chicken strips before the tacos. I was way off in my assumption of their size.
Joann (it could be Joanne, apologies if I’m incorrect) made the recommendation of homestyle with the cheese on the meat (this was later found out to be nicknamed “Ronnie style”). She went through what homestyle meant because we’d never heard of it (oh, right, like you have). A tortilla gets stabbed with a toothpick so it holds the shape of a hard-shell, and deep fried. Then it’s loaded with hamburger, shredded cheese, lettuce, tomato, and onion; sour cream is extra. The two of them come in about $3.25 before sour cream and tax.
When they arrived my eyes lit up. All golden brown and crispy and meaty and cheesy. The best way I can describe it is to say that if Jesus were to cook at a Mexican restaurant, he’d make homestyle ronnies (and he’d be way more popular). It was like biting into Jessica Biel’s hotness. Her sweet, meaty, artery-clogging, heart-stopping hotness. The second one was just as good, if not better. I may have been in a hazy shock while consuming the first.
And the best part about Wednesday nights at Shaw’s? The meat raffle is on its last legs about seven (at least all the good stuff is taken anyway). That means, even with the tacos and a couple pitchers, a visit to the Shouthouse is well within reason. Of course, if a night of meat raffle, silverstrike, homestyle ronnies, $1 high lifes, and Josie were to happen, my face would melt. Also, the sun would go red dwarf and you’d be attacked by a bear. Yes, you. I’m going to pencil that in as how I want to die. Dying during sex with Jessica Alba just has too much guilt associated with it. She’d be devastated.
Anthony Says: