Snoots, Slingers & Saints

buffetbuster


battra-
Since you seem qualified as a slinger expert.....  What makes a slinger great?  And which place or places make the best?  I would love to know for future exploration.

I'm going to link many posts in this thread so if nothing else you can see the photos:

Well...for me...here are a few things I demand personally:

1) Chopped onions the size of quarters!  The Buttery little bitty onion shavings.  See in here:
http://battra13.blogspot.com/2009/11/part-7-of-continuing-series-st-louiss.html 
The onions were completely bland.  I tasted nothing of onions on this one.  Now, had they put the proper onions, oh my god, it'd have been a 8 of 10.

2) Use a good helping of cheese on top.  Like Chris's Pancake House did.  It's all about the portions of the add on pieces if you ask me.
http://battra13.blogspot.com/2009/08/st-louiss-perfect-slinger-part-4-chriss.html

When you look at this one: you can see LARGE onion pieces, and a large portion of shredded cheese on top.  Now it doesn't have to have shredded cheese, American is just fine as well, but don't skimp!

3) The Chili.  Riverside Cafe has what would have been the best were the onions there.
http://battra13.blogspot.com/2009/10/part-6-of-continuing-series-st-louiss.html
I have since met the owner, after she invited me down for karaoke night there.  So that place was like the epitomy of the 13 blog!!!  Bar and Slinger in one place...and $1.50 Schlitz beers...I was in heaven there.  She tells me now that she tells everybody to either ask or just put onions on it.  They use the original slinger chili on theirs and it makes a big difference.

4) Hamburger patties, not sausage patties.  Eat Rite, City Diner, The 12th Street Diner, Billie's Diner, all use sausage patties.  The sausage patties aren't right.  Use big honkin' burger patties.  Tastes better every time, and after I mash it up, there's beef, hashbrowns, etc in every bite.

5) Hashbrowns: Have kick ass hashbrowns.  Not cheap ones. 

6) Don't mess with a proven system.  Billie's Diner, 12th Street Diner, and The Majestic Cafe (though I shouldn't mention them) all changed the formula.  No hashbrowns on any of them...yuck. 

7) Jalapenos improve anything!  Courtesy Diner adds jalapenos for a fee.
http://battra13.blogspot.com/2009/05/st-louiss-perfect-slinger-part-3.html
Made them awesome...but the hasbrowns were a bit iffy!  (I also had to pay for the cheese too.)

Really...there's no one thing that makes them great.  The better the ingredients, the better the slinger.  Though, one thing I have noticed is that if you go to a diner, and they use burger patties, the burgers taste better.  I was told that the grill keeps in some of the flavor, so it's still in the burgers....dunno about all that...but I have noticed really tasty burgers in the diners.

My next stop is at a new place in Lafayette Square.  I never reveal the name of the location, as I am beginning to get a bit of a reputation around St. Louis and my reviews are getting back to the owners.  Also, a lot of restaurant and bar owners read the st. louis food forum I post on....so....yeah.  I'm easy to spot if you know what to look for...a duder with a BlackBerry taking pictures of his food (or drink) and your establishment..lol.

(Also, thank you all from roadfood.com who've made their way to the 13 Blog, but don't be ashamed to comment, follow or any other linky silly stuff I put up!  I love feedback of all kinds.)

Battra, I'm impressed, both by your Roadfood knowledge and your choice of user name. If I were to "go Toho" for my online name, however, it would have to be "Uchu Daikaiju Dogora".   Welcome to Roadfood.

Thank you. Thank you. Uchu Daikaiju Dogora....man..that seems so familiar, but I can't place it anymore...that's not Jet Jaguar's JPN name is it?

I've been battra online since literally 1999.  When I signed up on Phantasy Star Online through my Sega Dreamcast.  So, if you see Battra...it's likely me.

I love slingers. :)  Always have new ones to try.  I recently discovered two BARS that sell them...lol....so I have more places to go, and more beans to eat!

I'm trying to convince my FIL to pay for a diner run this Sunday.

"Uchu Daikaiju Dogora" is the Toho film that AIP released directly to American television as "Dogora the Space Monster" in 1964 ( frequently misspelled as "Dagora". ) If you haven't seen it, Dogora is an enormous coal-devouring, flying jellyfish from outer space that butts heads with a gang of diamond thieves; it's a weird but fun little film. No roadfood, though.

Just an FYI...new slinger post:
http://battra13.blogspot.com/2010/01/part-11-of-continuing-series-st-louiss.html

Battra is a slinger legend on our St. Louis area food boards. Glad to see ya on here friend.

Very few people other than OT Hodge himself have such dedication to the heart attack inducing combination that I love so very much.

:)

Next outting is on Superbowl Sunday!

We  are facing some family obligations over in Rolla, MO next weekend. The travel schedule will put us in St Louis (with a bunch of our family along with us) Friday evening. We hope to re-visit OConnell's, and Ted Drewes, as well as get there when Gooey Louies is still open. We will be staying at the Days Inn on Lindburg near I-44. I figure my Sons will check out the cuties in the restaurant who passed by Poverty Pete's stool at the bar on our last trip.

If Gooey Louies is closed when we get there, then maybe a stop on Sunday as we pass thru earlier in the day will be in order.

We are familiar with many of the RF stops in the Rolla area. I'll report back next week on where we stopped.

Mayor Al-
I have the feeling that these aren't happy family obligations over in Rolla, but it sounds like you are going to make the best of it.  Safe travels and enjoy the good eats!  Oh, and if you make it to A Slice of Pie in Rolla, think of me!

Cliff
Think Elderly Aunt...the last of my mother's generation, in a nursing home in Rolla. We want to see her before it is too late. I printed a dozen photos of her with my Mom in her HS and early married life and we will take them with us to focus the conversations on the good old days . While she is quite frail health-wise, her mind is still pretty sharp. It will be a good visit, the down-side is that she isn't expected to last much longer so it will probably be our last one with her.

I have heard mixed reviews on the 'Slice of Pie', based mainly on a rise in prices beyond the norm...but we'll take a look while we are there. I am not a fan of Johnny's BBQ, the main Que stop in Rolla. We have tried it several times and have been disappointed more often than  we should have been.
 
PS- Pete and I saw GOOEY LOUIE'S on our way to Ted Drewes on our last trip. The website looks great and the prices seem reasonable. I have heard others say they wanted to stop here, but no reports from someone who has actually done it.  Anyone out there care to report back for us???
 
www.gooeylouiecake.com/

ANOTHER VISIT TO ST LOUIS (and beyond)-



OK Here's the update on our St Louis Stops this weekend. We made a one night visit to be able to spend Saturday morning with an elderly relative who is in an assisted-living center in Rolla, MO (about 100 miles the other side of St Louis from us). We stayed Friday night in St Louis and ate our meals there as well.  Here's the schedule.

Friday, we got into town about 8PM and stopped at O'Connell's Pub for dinner.
  The place was crowded, but we didn't have to wait long for a table.
As usual we were treated like relatives, and they had the "Throne" ready for the Mayor's visit!!



Being in a busy saloon was a new experience for my grandson, but he seemed to enjoy his Burger. They do make a very good Burger!!  Janet and I had some great Gumbo and shared the Fish & Chips Special and a Roast Beef Sandwich on a "dipped" roll.




Next day we returned to O'Connell's for the Rib Tips they offer as a Saturday Special. They were OK, but not the best BBQ I have ever had.




Then it was off to Ted Drewes for some great Custard. Here Janet holds her "Cardinal Sin" Sundae with my Praline Fudge/Butterscotch Sundae. Chris was enjoying his Cookie Dough Concrete too much to stop for the photos.



Then, before heading to the Arch on our way home, we stopped up the street from Ted Drewes, at GOOEY LOUIE'S Bakery for some Gooey Cakes to take with us.


Chocolate Raspberry was our favorite...after trying three flavors.


But we finally selected one of those and a Chocolate Turtle to ke with us.


We also bought a few Gooey Cookies for snacks...They didn't make it 50 miles across the river that evening !!!

We arrived safely back in Hoosierland Saturday evening, feeling very good about our visit with our family member, and having had the opportunity to share some good roadfood experiences with my grandson.
 

Final words on the Gooey Cakes-
  They are baked in an 8 inch square pan...about 'Brownie' Thickness. We bought three to take home. I have to report that the two Jan and I kept are now gone (Sunday 10 PM) the one that went home with my grandson is being slowly devoured by someone with less of a sweet-tooth than his Grandparents !

The Gooey Louie mascot is pretty adorable, as is your grandson!  And the onion rings don't look bad either!

Mayor Al-
Thanks for the photos from Gooey Louie.  Have you been to Park Avenue Coffee for their gooey butter cakes?  If so, which was better?  This gives me yet another reason to visit St. Louis soon.
 
As for the photo of you in your throne at O'Connell's, the only thing you were missing was your pope hat!
 
It sure seems you had fun with the family on your weekend, but no doggie photos?

mayor al

 
Being in a busy saloon was a new experience for my grandson, but he seemed to enjoy his Burger. They do make a very good Burger!!  Janet and I had some great Gumbo and shared the Fish & Chips Special and a Roast Beef Sandwich on a "dipped" roll.

 

That gumbo looks mighty good...was it fairly spicy or more on the mild side?
 
Brad

Brad,
  The Gumbo had a very light pepper bite to it. Not really 'Cajun' by a long shot. Instead of a bunch of sausage it was more a Shrimp and Fish chunk recipe. I tend to enjoy the milder versions, so this was perfect for my tastes.

I still vote the Roast Beef Sandwich recorded several times on this thread as the best menu item on any of these trips! Even at 9PM at night the beef was fresh sliced, hot and full of flavor.

BB,
My D-I-L (Chris's Mom) makes a "Lemon Gooey Bar" using the same basic recipe as the 'Original Gooey Cake'. Her's has a strip of sweet/tart Lemon goo on the bottom. I like it better than either of the two flavors we took home from Gooey Louies. Those two were good, but I dream of the Lemon (home-made) version !!!

No dogs this time. They stayed home to guard the house. Since it was just a 24 round-trip we felt they could be alone that long. They were not happy about it, and let us know that they should have been with us.

One other note. I promise to take my DSLR into the restaurants with me from now on. I am really not satisfied with the sharpness of the 'food photos' taken on the point-n-shoot. It does fine outdoors, or in well lighted situations inside, but in the semi-dark of the Oconnells saloon and other inside close-ups, It doesn't do what the SLR will do in macro-focus !!

buffetbuster

[id=quote size=1 font="arial, helvetica"]quote: Originally posted by wanderingjew



One thing though.....Grits and Biscuits??!!! In St. Louis???!!!

I was thinking along the same lines when I went into Mary Lou's in Carbondale, IL. When the waitress suggested the biscuits and gravy, I immediately fluffed it off. But when I saw everyone else was eating it and I remembered a recent thread here on Roadfood saying that southern Illinois has more in common with the south than it does Chicago, I changed my mind.

Now, I recently ate at a place called Schmucker's in Toledo where the reviewer recommended the biscuits and gravy. I just couldn't see me ordering that there.

With a name like Schmuckers, it's gotta be good!