Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Froth Eats At Calico Jack's
I had some tome to kill before last night's Pirates game (a disappointing 6-2 loss where former Pirate Josh Fogg looked like Bob Gibson), so I decided to check out Calico Jack's Cantina, hard by the ballpark. This eatery/bar is owned by the same company that owns the awful McFadden's, so I wasn't sure what to expect.
The place wasn't terribly busy, and the decor isn't anything eye catching, but the service was fast and friendly. They started me out with chips and salsa, which is typical for such a place. The salsa had quite a bit of cilantro in it, boarding on the overkill region where it starts tasting like soap, and unfortunatly, the chips were a bit stale.
I started off with a bowl of the roasted chicken and cheese tortilla soup, and this is a meal unto inself. There must have been two cups of soup in the freakin' tureen the waitress brought out, way too much for me to finish and still have room for the entree, so I only had about a cup's worth. It was very good, but again, maybe a bit too much cilantro for most people.
My entree was the chipolte BBQ chicken breasts. For $15 dollars I got two grilled chiken breasts over rice and veggies slathered with the BBQ sauce. The BBQ sauce wasn't bad, but I really couldn't taste any chipolte in it. The chicken was a bit overdone, and looked like it had been cooked in an industrial sized George Forman grill.
Overall, it wasn't that bad, you get a heck of a lot of food for your money, and while it wasn't great, it wasn't bad either. The service was quite good. My soup, entree, and two beers came to just under $25.00. I was also pleased to see they have a very extensive tequila list, although my favorite, Chinaco Anejo was missing, so I did not partake.
Overall, I give the place a C+, not bad for meeting friends before or after a baseball or football game, but I wouldn't go out of my to eat here either. So, of the places I've been to that have sprung up between PNC Park and Hienz Field, I rate the Bettis Grille a B+, Calico Jack's a C+ and McFadden's an F. Still have to try the Hyde Park Steakhouse, that one just might be next.
The place wasn't terribly busy, and the decor isn't anything eye catching, but the service was fast and friendly. They started me out with chips and salsa, which is typical for such a place. The salsa had quite a bit of cilantro in it, boarding on the overkill region where it starts tasting like soap, and unfortunatly, the chips were a bit stale.
I started off with a bowl of the roasted chicken and cheese tortilla soup, and this is a meal unto inself. There must have been two cups of soup in the freakin' tureen the waitress brought out, way too much for me to finish and still have room for the entree, so I only had about a cup's worth. It was very good, but again, maybe a bit too much cilantro for most people.
My entree was the chipolte BBQ chicken breasts. For $15 dollars I got two grilled chiken breasts over rice and veggies slathered with the BBQ sauce. The BBQ sauce wasn't bad, but I really couldn't taste any chipolte in it. The chicken was a bit overdone, and looked like it had been cooked in an industrial sized George Forman grill.
Overall, it wasn't that bad, you get a heck of a lot of food for your money, and while it wasn't great, it wasn't bad either. The service was quite good. My soup, entree, and two beers came to just under $25.00. I was also pleased to see they have a very extensive tequila list, although my favorite, Chinaco Anejo was missing, so I did not partake.
Overall, I give the place a C+, not bad for meeting friends before or after a baseball or football game, but I wouldn't go out of my to eat here either. So, of the places I've been to that have sprung up between PNC Park and Hienz Field, I rate the Bettis Grille a B+, Calico Jack's a C+ and McFadden's an F. Still have to try the Hyde Park Steakhouse, that one just might be next.
Labels: food, froth eats, north shore, restaurants, reviews
