After a while all of the runners began to trickle out of the party area. Doug asked what my plans were as he and his family were heading to
Voss' BAR-B-Q in Yorkville, NY for lunch. Well, he didn't have to ask ME twice!!
The sign for the menu has been updated since last my trip here in Sept. 2010 and the prices have gone up a little bit, maybe 10 to 15 cents per sandwich.
Doug and Marisa with their family enjoying their burgers, dogs and bar-b-q sandwiches.
A great idea!
Love this sign and love these hot dogs!
This trip to Voss' was brought to you by the letter "F". Each customer is given one of these magnetic refrigerator letters which is called out through the window when their order is ready. My apologies for the blurry pic. The best of four that I took.
I started out with one of my favorites, a Mexi Dog (with chili, cheese and onions). For me, there is a real harmony and sense of balance to this. The split-top bun is buttered and griddled which adds flavor and a nice crispness but also serves to shore up the bun under the weight and moisture of wet toppings. The dog is griddled until darkly browned and has a nice snap to it. I love the flavor of these dogs but I regret that I do not know the composition (all beef, pork, etc...). The onions are minced so as to not have a crunch that gets in the way but has a presence and their juice does seep a bit into the mix, distributing a nice flavor to the rest of the dog. I am guessing that the cheese is American and is diced into tiny cubes that melt a wee bit and provide a subtle creaminess that offsets the spicy chili.
And finally, the chili! Yes, this really is the yardstick for me when it comes to chilis/meat sauces for hot dogs. I really wish I would take notes when I eat this because right now I can't for the life of me pinpoint the aromas and flavors that are in this, but I crave it whenever I go home. I would say ground beef, crushed red pepper flakes and a mixture of spices and other ingredients where no one flavor seems to dominate but haunts me all the same. Does that make any sense or am I just crazy?
The crinkle-cut fries here are not fresh cut but tasty, crispy and soft inside and are most definitely elevated when dragged through their bar-b-q sauce or chili.
Beef bar-b-q sandwich with extra sauce.
Pork bar-b-q sandwich with extra sauce. In the almost 20 years I have been coming here I am not sure if I had ever tried either one of these, so hooked on the turkey and ham was I. Part of that was having grown up on hot ham and hot ham bbq sandwiches and being unable or unwilling to deviate from that taste of my childhood. Taking the plunge was so worth it. Very moist and flavorful and of curse that extra sauce had a slow, soft burn that made my lips tingle ever so slightly and it dissipated before I got back into my car. The turkey and ham are still my favorites and probably always shall be, but these two are most definitely worthy of many repeat tastings.
Doug & Marisa had to drive back to the city on this day but were both pretty tired so I offered that they come back to my mom's house to take a nap before getting on the road. We said our goodbyes to their family but before heading to Rome we stopped at Holland Farms Bakery & Deli (again, for me!). Mom and sis were putting together a post race backyard barbecue so I thought I'd pick up dessert.
Chocolate Cream Pie! Cliff, I didn't let you down, man! With a very light, chocolatey filling, barely sweet whipped cream toping and a flaky, slightly buttery crust this was definitely a winner. They did offer coconut cream, banana cream, blueberry and a list of other appealing pies but I this one on the brain.
I will not reveal here how many slices of this I consumed nor the number of hours it took me to do so out of sheer embarrassment! I will say that the whole time period played out somewhat like that "Twilight Zone" episode where the man went to a casino with his wife and kept hearing the slot machine calling his name and beckoning him and I'll leave it at that!
Doug & Marisa picked up some half moons as a thank you gift to Mom & Harold for putting them up for the night.
A half dozen of my personal favorite, Chocolate half moons. Love that brownie like texture and that light whipped frosting.
And a new one to me...
Carrot Cake half moons. No raisins in this one and I didn't really get any carrot texture of flavor but it was delicious nonetheless, especially the cream cheese frosting.
Monday July 11th, 2011 - Mom had to work today so my friend Norma offered to drop me at the train station. I had planned to hit a couple of Roadfood places for Chicken Riggies and some Utica Greens but I was pretty tired from the race so I slept in. As it turned out, my train was delayed by almost an hour so we popped over to
PaPa Rick's Snack Shack in Rome, NY to pick up a few items to tuck into at the train station. This place is run by a former fireman and his dad, a retired fireman works the window sometimes as well. I had seen this place back in 2008 and was intrigued by their Fully Involved Fish Fry, Firehouse Chili and Infernos (I think it's like a DQ Blizzard) and vowed to return.
They have plenty of picnic table seating and also offer live entertainment with a tent behind the building.
We had though about coming here for dinner on Friday but chose Nicky Doodles instead as there was a band playing here and we had forgotten to bring portable chairs with us. Maybe next time!
They do offer that Binghamton, NY specialty, speidies as a special but I am really eyeballing that Scalloped Potatoes & Ham special!!
As you can see in the next few shots, the firefighter theme runs through this place.
I've always loved this sign and often reminds me of the Superdawg mascots in Chicago.
My Ham BBQ sandwich. This was really good and reminded me of the ones I used to eat at the long gone Pie Stand in Rome. All it would need is some relish mixed in with the bbq sauce. I've seen this floral type cut on ham before but can't remember where. The ham had some spice to it, the sauce was sweet and slightly spicy and the roll was very fresh and I like that they toasted it. They sure didn't skimp on the amount of ham.
Homemade baked beans with bacon. Loved the soft yet not mushy texture of these and the bacon added and nice porky component. My only complaint would be that they were a bit too sweet for my taste. To much brown sugar perhaps. Didn't stop me from polishing them off though.
A cup of their Firehouse Chili. I wanted to like this, I really did but I am so very picky about my chili. I think this was perfectly executed but just not the kind that I like. The predominant flavor was tomato and I was was hoping for something with a kick that had a bold flavor of chiles in it.
Not exactly Wall Drug but on a hot day nothing refreshes quite like a cup of ice water!
I believe this is an idea whose time has come! Unfortunately I had to pass on dessert on this day.
I couldn't agree more!
I was perusing the Boilermaker website and when I saw this t-shirt I just had to have it. While I wasn't born and bred in Utica, NY I do consider myself an honorary Utican have attended college there, worked in some of it roughest neighborhoods after college and have since reconnected to it through Roadfooding and the Boilermaker Race.
Three of these are food (and drink) related and every one of them made me laugh. If you're not sure what they mean, just let me know.
I had such a wonderful weekend spending quality time with my family and friends and being able to participate in something that is so special to me and to the community at large. I hope to make this an annual tradition for many years to come. Hopefully next year I'll make some more time to suss out places to get great Utica style greens, Chicken Riggies and maybe even a hot ham bbq sandwich and tomato pie smackdown.
Til then...
"Eating is an adventure, enjoy the ride!" - billyboy, 2011
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