St. Louis County Missouri – Historic Homes and Places (#1)

It’s time to take a break from food/restaurant reviews!  While we were visiting Laurie’s family in the St. Louis area, Laurie’s sister Bonnie and her husband Bill indulged this blogger…driving around to several historic homes and other sites.

The David Keith House, ca. 1855, is located at 116 North Woodlawn Street in Kirkwood Missouri.  This Italianate style home with some Greek revival elements was innovative for its time.  It is the oldest known home in the area to use the distinctive siding and quoin system which emulated stone work.

Note: I had to look up the definition of a quoin.  They are blocks at the corner of a wall that either provide actual strength for the wall or to provide a feature creating an impression of permanence and strength.  The latter is true in this case. 

The Egbert W. Halsey Cottage is located at 126 East Washington Street in Kirkwood.  This one-story frame cottage in the Folk Victorian style is now owned by the YMCA and it’s used for offices.  The cottage was built ca. 1864.  It sits on land purchased by Egbert Halsey in 1863.  He was a real estate developer who also built the first school in Kirkwood.  The cottage is significant in that it’s associated with the ‘working class’ in Kirkwood.  There are relatively few surviving homes in this area that served the working class.

  

In this posting I focused on Kirkwood Missouri, a western suburb of St. Louis.  Kirkwood was founded in 1853.  The city is named after James P. Kirkwood, builder of the Union Pacific Railroad through the town.  It was the first planned suburb located west of the Mississippi River.

This is the Olive Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church at 309 South Harrison.  Formerly known as the Evangelische Friedens Gemneinde Lutheran Congregation, the church was built in 1896.  The Evangelische Gemeinde Lutheran congregation had broken away from the Concordia Lutheran Church in Kirkwood, so they built their own church.  There was a reconciliation in the 1920s and their former church was put up for sale.

The Olive Chapel of the African Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in Kirkwood in 1853, making it the second oldest church for this denomination west of the Mississippi.  The Olive Chapel purchased this church in 1923.  Significantly, this site was the location of Kirkwood’s first public education class for black students. 

The two and a half story John P. and Dora Blake House at 549 North Taylor Street is a virtually unchanged example of a high-style Craftsman design.  This handsome home, which was built ca. 1922, is situated on its original 1.25 acre lot.

Plans for a new community close to St. Louis were initiated following the St. Louis Fire and cholera outbreak that occurred in 1849.  At that time, cholera killed 10% of the residents in downtown St. Louis.  Kirkwood, a planned railroad community, was the first suburban municipality built outside St. Louis City boundaries. 

This frame Italianate style home located at 549 East Argonne in Kirkwood is called the Lizzie McLagan House.  It was built ca. 1863 for Lizzie McLagan.  She owned 40 acres and by 1878, the land had been subdivided.  Note the distinctively tall floor to ceiling windows.  The house is sheathed with wide shiplap wood siding with appropriate quoins at the corners to provide the impression that the home was built with stone.

In 1879, the house was purchased by Charles Black, who published the Clayton Argus Newspaper.  From 1972 until 1992, the building was owned by the Kirkwood Historical Society.  They used it as a museum and it was called “The History House”.  In 1922, the house once again became a private residence.

The George W. and Virginia Fishbach House is located at 440 East Argonne Street.  This large Greek Revival Style home was built in 1867 and the exterior looks much as it did back in the 1860s.  At that time, it occupied the entire city block.

George Fishbach came to St. Louis to practice law.  Instead he became a newspaper reporter and editor.  By 1872 he owned the Missouri Democrat Newspaper.  He sold it in 1875 to the owners of the Globe who then merged the two papers into the St. Louis Globe-Democrat.  That paper continued in operation until 1986. 

This is the Romanzo N. Bayley House at 419 East Argonne Street.  This very early Italianate style home was constructed on a 20 acre lot back in 1858.  It now occupies about 1.25 acres.  A 2-story carriage house that dates back to at least the late 1890s is situated behind the house.  Most of the homes during this era were clad in beveled wood siding but this home was built using clapboard.

Here’s a bit of Kirkwood Missouri’s history to close out this posting.  In 1850, H. W. Leffingwell and R. S. Elliot bought land 14 miles from downtown St. Louis.  At the same time, James P. Kirkwood was laying out a route for the Pacific Railroad.  Coincidence…I think not!  In any case, when the railroad reached the community in 1853, the developers sold lots for the Kirkwood Association.  The original town plat included quarter section blocks and industrial development was prohibited. 

A Richardson Romanesque style railway station was built in Kirkwood in 1893.  That station, which is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places has become a symbol of the town and it’s currently an active Amtrak stop.   For a number of photos and to learn more about this active railroad depot, you can check out my previous posting at https://bigdaddydavesbitsandpieces.blogspot.com/search/label/St.%20Louis?updated-max=2015-06-22T06:01:00-04:00&max-results=20&start=17&by-date=false.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Family Visit – St. Louis Missouri

This edition for my blog will be short and sweet… It’s all about our brief April visit with Laurie’s family in the St. Louis area.  It was our 39^th wedding anniversary trip…and no trip to St. Louis would be complete without breaking bread with a few family members.

This is Laurie’s middle sister Karole with her husband Bob.  Bob is retired from the grocery business but Karole continues to work part time.  They have 3 sons…Chris, Marc and Bryan.  With Bob, Karole spends quite a bit of their spare time with their granddaughters Abby, Regan and Cate.

Laurie took this nice photo of Karole and Bonnie.  Bonnie and her husband Bill are our frequent visitors and traveling partners.  Laurie’s younger sister Bonnie is retired and while Bill is retired from police work in general, he still works as a 'civilian supervisor' over a multi-community jail.   Their son Kyle and their daughter Kasey have 6 children between them, (Collin and Keaton with Kyle and Melissa, and Delaney, Avery,Charlie Kate and Elliot Jane with Kasey and Kevin.  They keep their grandparents very busy!   

Johnny and his wife Rose joined us for lunch.  Johnny is the sister’s first cousin.  Both of them are semi retired but Rose keeps extra busy looking out for Johnny’s mother Lois who lives in a retirement village.  Aunt Lois and Doris (Glenda, Karole, Laurie and Bonnie’s mother) are both sisters who married the two Templeton brothers.  There are a heck of a lot of double first cousins in the family!  

Time now for a short food break...

As usual, we met at The Local House Restaurant and Bar in Arnold Missouri.   What the heck…we had to eat and I like to comment on our food experiences. 

This was Laurie’s Fried Pickle Burger. ($10.49) This excellent burger creation was topped with cheddar cheese, bacon crumbles and fried pickle chips, then topped with chipotle ranch dressing!  The house made potato chips were great too... Yum!

I was trying to behave 'a little' so I started with a house salad and then followed it up with an order of 12 chicken wings. ($10.99) I asked for the wings served up as the ‘trashed butter and garlic’ version.  I just didn’t care for them…not enough pizzazz!  But, as they say, ‘different strokes (or wings) for different folks’. 

As usual, the folks at The Local House were friendly and welcoming… The Local House Restaurant and Bar is located at 3946 Jeffco Boulevard in Arnold Missouri.  Phone: 636-467-9900.  Their website is at: http://localhousearnold.com/index.html.

Of course the main attraction any time we visit St. Louis is Laurie’s Aunt Lois!  On this occasion Laurie, Bonnie, Bill and I visited with her in the facility’s coffee café. 

Aunt Lois is now 104 years old and she recently whipped pneumonia!  She dreamed that she’d gone to heaven and they told her she had to go back…they weren’t ready for her yet.  So she woke up after not eating for about 10 days and announced that she wanted to get dressed and go down to the dining room for dinner!  She loves family visits and she’s one heck of a SkipBo and Bingo player!

 

That’s all for now… Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Dinner before the Theatre in St. Louis Missouri

Since our plan was to attend the musical Hamilton at St. Louis’s Fox Theatre and since we knew that parking and crowds would definitely be a challenge, we opted to eat early.  We parked near the theatre and we left plenty of time for a leisurely dinner.

This is Vito’s Sicilian Pizzeria and Ristorante.  It’s located close to the Fox Theatre and even more important from a business point of view, Vito’s is adjacent to the campus of St. Louis University.

This is the bar and part of the dining area in Vito’s.  All in all it’s a comfortable environment.  I’m sure that the bar does a great business Monday – Friday from 3 PM to 6 PM during happy hour.  They offer $2.00 pints of beer, $3.00 ‘well’ cocktails and $5.00 glasses of wine.

The dining area was cozy and warm.  Molly, who was our server, was efficient.  She handled all of our needs and perhaps unusual requests without hesitation and she was very knowledgeable as regarded the varied items on the menu…

We’ve eaten in many, many Italian restaurants but for some reason I’d never convinced myself to try the Arancini. ($8.00) I decided that the time had come!  Arancini are risotto balls stuffed with Bolognese sauce, peas and mozzarella.  Then they are coated with bread crumbs and fried.

By the time I remembered my camera, only one arancini ‘ball’ was left on the plate.  Everyone wanted to try it because they’d never had it either.  I’m glad I tried it and while it was nice…I thought it lacked authority from a ‘flavor’ point of view.  I’m sure that it was a very competent order of arancini (3) but it didn’t tip the scales as one of my favorite appetizers.

We were also partly through this order of Calamari Fritti before I took a photo… ($10.00) This order of flash fried calamari with marinara and lemon aioli was very nice.  The calamari was tender and the breading wasn’t too heavy. 

Bill ordered a Caprese Salad…with tomato, mozzarella, basil and a balsamic glaze. ($7.00) He was happy.  If the cheese and tomato are a good quality, this is a nice start to any Italian meal. 

The ladies weren’t particularly hungry.  They decided to split a Panzanella Salad. ($8.00) The photo shows a half salad…tasty and more than enough for our wives.  The salad consisted of mixed greens, red onion, tomato, olives, cucumber, mozzarella cheese, croutons and a white balsamic vinaigrette. 

Laurie and Bonnie continued their dining trend…splitting an order of Lobster Ravioli between them. ($22.00) The photo shows Laurie’s half order.  This was a special on the menu for the evening.  The ladies did enjoy their meals…the ravioli was very good. 

For his entrée, Bill ordered a Shrimp and Pasta special.  I can’t tell you the cost as it was removed from our bill.  It was supposed to come with shrimp, asparagus and pasta in a cream sauce.  It actually came to the table with green beans in the place of the asparagus.  The kitchen had failed to tell the wait staff that they were out of asparagus and they just gambled and substituted the green beans...

It was not a professional move by the kitchen, that’s for sure.  Bill wasn’t happy but our waitress didn’t hesitate to remove it from the bill… She didn’t have to be asked either.  Kudos to Molly!  

Laurie took this photo of Bonnie and Bill at Vito's.  It was pretty nice so I decided to publish it!  Dinner and the theater were all part of Bonnie's birthday celebration...and our anniversary too!

For my entrée, I ordered the Beef Tortellini. ($18.00) The tortellini came with cream sauce, prosciutto and peas.  While it wasn’t distinctive, it was pretty good and very filling.

It must be hard to operate a successful Italian Restaurant in St. Louis.  The area has a plethora of top notch Italian eateries many of which we’ve dined at over the years.  While Vito’s was OK…other than Bill’s entrée…from our perspective, it just didn’t stand out in the competitive St. Louis market.

Vito’s Sicilian Pizzeria and Ristorante is located at 3515 Lindell Boulevard in St. Louis Missouri.  Phone: 314-534-8486.  Website: http://vitosstl.com/.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them… Sorry about the partially consumed items!

Thanks for stopping by for a visit…

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

A Night at the Theatre in St. Louis Missouri!

Now you might think that it’s a long drive to go all the way from East Tennessee to St. Louis Missouri to see a play…and you are right!  However, for her birthday Laurie’s sister Bonnie wanted tickets to see the musical play Hamilton and the timing also tied into our 39^th wedding anniversary and 40 years since the day we met!

The Fox Theatre was built in 1929 by movie pioneer William Fox as a showcase for his company, the Fox Film Corporation.  This former movie palace is located in the arts district of Midtown St. Louis, just one block north of St. Louis University.  As you read on, remember this peaceful scene in front of the theatre...

The Fabulous Fox, as it’s sometimes called, was restored in 1982 at a cost of more than $3,000,000.  It cost $6,000,000 to build back in 1929.  That’s about $84,000,000 in today’s dollars!  In today’s dollars, the restoration in 1982 cost about $7,500,000.

It was one of a group of five spectacular Fox Theatres built by the Fox Film Corporation in the late 1920s.  The other examples were built in Brooklyn, Atlanta, Detroit and San Francisco.

What a mob scene!  Given the need for security in this era and the potential significance of this soft ‘target’, all handbags had to be inspected by security personnel as we entered the building.  The lines of theater goers stacked up on the sidewalk in both directions with people cutting in at the middle.  Theatre staff worked to keep people out of the street and St. Louis Police handled traffic control.

This is a view of the lobby ceiling after we cleared through security.  The lighting and my camera didn’t do it justice… It was over the top spectacular!

The Fox Theatre features an eclectic blend of Asian decorative designs and motifs that have been referred to as Siamese Byzantine.

In 1929, reporters described the Fox Theatre as “awe-inspiringly fashioned after Hindu Mosques of Old India, bewildering in their richness and dazzling in their appointments.  William Fox’s wife decorated the interior with furnishings, paintings and sculptures that she purchased on her overseas trips.

Taking into account the crowds outside, the previous photo showing the inside of the main floor and then adding in the expansive balcony shown in this photo…the question arises…just how big is the Fox Theatre?  When it was first opened, it was the second largest theatre in the USA, with a seating capacity of 5,060 patrons!  In today’s format, it seats 4,426 theatre goers…

This photo obviously shows the stage at the Fox Theatre.  Interestingly, other than a few hand held movable props, the entire performance of Hamilton was effectively presented with no changes in the scenery as shown in this photo.

Here are Laurie, Bonnie and Bill in our seats before the show.  I really appreciated the aisle seat!  There was a 15 minute intermission but with a crowd of this size, I’d suggest that the ladies drink as little liquid as possible prior to the show.  The line to both the men’s and ladies restrooms went on forever!

So…how did we enjoy Hamilton?  Both Laurie and Bonnie loved it!  Laurie had read a lot of history related to this era in US history and that helped a lot.   The performance was imaginative, clever and energetic!  There were some funny bits built into the rap that had everyone laughing.  As for my opinion beyond the comments offered above, I just don’t ‘get’ or like hip hop or rap music… Call me old fashioned or just out of touch.

The best news of all was “Happy Wives, Happy Lives”!

 

The Fox Theatre is listed in the United States National Register of Historic Places.  It’s located at 527 North Grand Boulevard in St. Louis Missouri.  The theatre’s website can be found at www.fabulousfox.com.     

The impressive St. Francis Xavier College Church is about a block away from the Fox Theatre so I had to take a photo...

 

In 1836, the local bishop gave the Jesuits permission to create a parish for their newly founded college.  It was the first English-speaking parish in the city and initially it primarily served the growing Irish population in the city.

 

Construction on that church commenced in April of 1840.  However as the city moved west, the University decided to move as well.  Plans for this church were drawn up and construction on this ‘new’ structure began in June of 1884. 

The final addition to the College Church were its stained-glass windows.  They were designed, made and installed by Emil Frei, Jr. from 1929 – 1938 and they are considered to be among the finest stained glass windows in the USA. 

This is DuBourg Hall, also part of the St. Louis University.  Construction this amazing structure began in 1888.  DuBourg Hall now serves as St. Louis University’s Administration Building.

FYI, Saint Louis University is a private Roman Catholic 4-year research university with its expansive St. Louis campus as well as another in Madrid, Spain.  The university was founded in 1818 by the Most Reverend Louis Guillaume Valentin DuBourg.  It is the oldest US University west of the Mississippi River.  Today St. Louis University has about 14,000 students. 

Note: Despite the obvious architectural differences, both the “College Church” aka. St. Francis Xavier College Church and DuBourg Hall were designed by the same person, Thomas Warying Walsh. (1826 – 1890) They are situated side by side on the campus…

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Driving to St. Louis – Lunch Along the Way

With Laurie’s immediate family living in the St. Louis Missouri area and our son living in Omaha Nebraska, our car is pretty much on automatic along I-40, I-24, I-57 and I-64 to St. Louis.  Because it’s a about a 500 mile drive from our home to St. Louis, we rarely stray from the Interstate Highway System…

The good news is that this time we were making the drive in the early spring and it was a sunny day.  Laurie snapped this photo of a bright field of mustard plants in bloom as we cruised through southern Illinois.

The first documented use of mustard was in the Middle East ca. 3000 BC.  I was surprised to learn that radish and turnip plants are related to wild mustard plants.  The top 5 mustard producing countries are Pakistan, India, Canada, Nepal and Myanmar.  The USA ranks ninth with about 18,365 tons harvested per year.

While still in southern Illinois, Laurie also spotted and took this photo of a field of red clover in full bloom.  Red clover is native to Europe, western Asia and northwest Africa but it is now grown around the world.  It’s widely grown as a fodder crop and it’s highly valued for its ability to fix nitrogen in the soil, thereby increasing the soil’s fertility. 

   

FYI…Red clover is the National Flower of Denmark and the State Flower of Vermont.

Let's back up a little and talk about our lunch along the road to St. Louis!  As I’ve mentioned before, we invariably stop at a Waffle House at least once anytime we’re on a trip in the southern USA.  The company has over 2,100 locations in 25 states.  This particular restaurant is located in Paducah Kentucky.

What do we like about Waffle House?  First of all, we like their food.  Secondly, most of their employees are very friendly.  Third, we don’t care much for the fast food chains.  Fourth, the price is right.  Fifth, they have table service.  Sixth…and not necessarily last…these restaurants are microcosm of the USA, with the customers and employees providing plenty of visual and social entertainment. (We especially love watching a great grill chef at work at any Waffle House when they’re really busy!)

It was past lunch time but we both wanted breakfast.  Laurie ordered 2 eggs over easy with bacon, toast and crispy hash brown potatoes.  As usual, the hash browns were just about perfect as were the eggs.  We’d been drinking coffee all the way from East Tennessee to Paducah so we just had water with lemon…

I changed it up a little…substituting sausage patties for the bacon and adding sausage gravy to my crispy hash browns.  Yum!

 

For the uninitiated, there are a plethora of options for those hash brown potatoes.  You can get a regular order, a large order or a triple order!  You can have them plain or with grilled onions, cheese, chunked ham, grilled tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, fried mushrooms, Bert’s chili, the country sausage gravy, combinations of the above…or…you can go “ALL THE WAY”!  Where are the Rolaids!?

As usual, we were happy Waffle House diners!  One of these days, we’ll have to try one of their waffles…given their name, it’s a bit weird that we haven’t yet.  With tip, the bill came in at $17.42.  This location is at 3522 Clarks River Road in Paducah Kentucky.  Phone: 270-442-0133.  Company website: https://wafflehouse.com/. 

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

A Casual Dinner at Buddy’s bar-b-q

We’ve lived here in East Tennessee for almost 9 years…and although Buddy’s bar-b-q is a well-known multi-location local restaurant chain here in East Tennessee, we’d never gotten around to eating there.

Laurie, with a local ladies’ golf group, had enjoyed a nice luncheon that had been catered by Buddy’s bar-b-q but I usually shy away from chain BBQ restaurants in favor of stand-alone locations that, in my mind at least, are more focused on their product…

I decided to try the Buddy’s bar-b-q location just off of US Hwy. 321/Lamar Alexander Parkway in Maryville Tennessee. (FYI…Maryville is pronounced locally as ‘Marville’)

FYI, there are 14 Buddy’s bar-b-q restaurants scattered in and around the greater Knoxville area… Franchises are also available.

Like many restaurants of its genre, Buddy’s bar-b-q is a counter service operation.  You place your order after reviewing the menu on the wall and they call you when your food is ready.

In 1966, Buddy Smothers had invested in his wife’s skills by helping her become the owner of her first restaurant, the Pixie Drive Inn in Seymour Tennessee.  Business was great but a desire for barbeque that they liked led to Buddy quitting his job and joining his wife LaMuriel in opening the first Buddy’s Bar-b-q restaurant. 

The dining area at the Maryville Buddy’s bar-b-q is open and bright.  It was quite well maintained as well.

Buddy’s bar-b-q is still a family operation with immediate family members and in-laws from the second and third generations managing the company.

Laurie decided to try a variety of Buddy’s offerings so she ordered the Combo with pork, chicken and ribs. ($9.99) It is served with hush puppies or on a bun and your choice of 2 sides: corn, baked beans, green beans, French fries, or coleslaw.  Her medium Lemonade drink was $1.99.

Laurie asked to substitute potato salad and pickles for her sides…no problem.  She liked the pulled pork and she really enjoyed the potato salad and pickles,  as well as the hush puppies.  The ribs were very good!  The chicken was the only negative… It was a BBQ breast and it was quite dry…overcooked.  I can support that opinion as I ended up finishing it for her.

All I was really interested in were the ribs.  I don’t really care for smoked fowl and I’m kind of burned out on pulled pork.  So I ordered a pound of Buddy’s pork ribs ($11.49) accompanied by a side of coleslaw. ($1.49)

I thought that the coleslaw was quite bland…but I did like the ribs!  They were very nice…cooked to the point where you still had to ‘work them’ a little.  We don’t really like ‘falling off the bone’ ribs.  The seasoning was right too.  Buddy’s barbeque sauces were OK but I prefer a little more ‘tang’ or ‘bite’ in my sauce.  I approximated what I prefer by mixing some hot sauce with Buddy’s spicy BBQ sauce.

To summarize, while Buddy’s bar-b-q isn’t the best restaurant barbeque we’ve ever had, it’s better than any of the other barbeque restaurants that we’ve sampled here in East Tennessee.  We’re still looking for premier area barbeque…but we will come back for more of Buddy’s ribs and pulled pork!

The Maryville Tennessee Buddy’s bar-b-q location is just off US Hwy. 321 at 2020 Bridgeway Drive.  Phone: 865-984-4475.  To view their full menu and to check out their catering operation, you can visit the company’s website at http://buddysbarbq.com/.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by to see what we had for dinner!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Big Kahuna – Wings and More!

A couple of years ago, Laurie and I had eaten at Big Kahuna Wings and it hadn’t worked out so well… Laurie focused on the big wings that we’d ordered and that was such a negative for her, it took quite a while to convince her to go back and give Big Kahuna another chance.

Big Kahuna Wings is located in west Knox County on Kingston Pike, (US Hwy. 11), just a short distance from the Loudon-Knox county line.  This restaurant opened in 2014…

BKW is owned and operated by Matt Beeler.  However, the company was founded in the early 1960s with his family’s ‘secret’ seasoning recipe for chicken wings.  The seasoning is now successful stand-alone brand.

There is a small bar area in the restaurant but they only serve beer. 

Over the years, Matt experimented with the family’s special seasoning on various menu items.  These included steaks, burgers, pork, fish and vegetables. 

Today, Big Kahuna’s on-line store offers 6 different spice mixtures to its customers.  The choices are: Original Gourmet Brand; Fire Seasoning; BBQ Rub; Steak Rub; Cajun Rub, and; Seafood Rub.  All are priced at $5.59.  To check out these spice offerings, you can just go to https://www.bigkahunawings.com/shop/.

Big Kahuna Wings Restaurant is not a large place.  It is cozy and family friendly.  Customers are not overwhelmed by big screen TVs and plethora of sporting events coming at them from all directions.  The place was packed shortly after we arrived...

2018 marks the 6^th year for the annual Big Kahuna Wing Festival.  The event will be held in Knoxville’s World’s Fair Park on Saturday, June 16^th from Noon until 8 PM.  Last year over 8,000 people attended this event.  Forty teams with 100 sauces competed for the honors.  This year, the theme is “Buffalo Wing” in honor of the first wings served up at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo New York back in 1964.  To learn more about the Big Kahuna Wing Festival, a charitable event, just go to https://www.bkwfestival.com.

We did order a beer to go with our Big Kahuna Wing Appetizer.  Sorry about the photo but we started eating before I remembered to take a picture!  Instead of the “Famous Big Kahuna Wings” that we’d ordered during our previous visit, we ordered the smallest order, 5 of the Traditional Wings. ($6.99)

The difference between the traditional and famous BKWs is size…or really how the wings are served.  The famous wings are served with all 3 pieces of the wing attached whereas our traditional wings were served in 2 different pieces… We both agreed…these were excellent wings!

FYI…If you like a variety of flavors/sauces with your wings, Big Kahuna offers 18 or 19 choices!  If you prefer boneless wings, they are also available.

I’d remembered a pretty good burger experience on our previous visit, so on this occasion Laurie ordered the Boursin Burger. ($10.99) This Angus Beef burger is seasoned with BKW’s Original Gourmet spice blend, then topped with homemade Boursin cheese, baby arugula and sautéed tomatoes.  It was a very satisfying hamburger!

There are a number of appetizers on the menu at Big Kahuna Wings.  The most prominent item listed is the Kahuna Pig Fries. ($8, 49) This consists of Kahuna fries topped with hickory-smoked pulled pork, crispy bacon, shredded cheddar cheese and fresh chives served with garlic sour cream.

For my burger, I selected the Jalapeno Bacon-Cheddar Burger. ($10.99) My burger was topped with a homemade cheddar cream cheese blend, applewood bacon, lettuce, mayonnaise, tomatoes and fresh jalapeno slices.  It was a very nice burger but I was a little disappointed with the fact that all of the ‘heat’ had been removed from the jalapeno peppers.  What’s the point in putting them on a burger?  Without a little heat, they don’t add much to the sandwich…

Big Kahuna offers chicken and pulled pork sandwiches and wraps as well as the burgers.  For sides, they have the BKW Chips which we had (excellent!), potato salad, kale slaw, French fries and baked bean sopresa…

We definitely enjoyed our meal and we will return for more wings and probably the burgers as well!  The Big Kahuna Wing restaurant is located at 12828 Kingston Pike (US Hwy. 11) in Farragut Tennessee.  They are open from 11 AM until 9:30 PM Monday – Thursday and from 11 AM until 10:30 PM Friday and Saturday.  They are closed on Sunday.  Phone: 865-288-7891.  Website: https://www.bigkahunawings.com/.  

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave