Destin, Florida
During my occasional travels, I
try to sample BBQ at those near and far away places outside the Quest area. I
just really, really like that stuff ...
Loud Music. A sweaty shirt from the Beach Boy’s Brian Wilson. A golden
record from The Who. Keith Moon’s nasal hair. Obnoxious T-Shirts for sale.
Music videos from the 1980s on TV.
Hard Rock Café.
Well, I certainly never expected this famous franchise ending up on the
list of BBQ places, but it is there now, and rightfully so.
The menu has five BBQ themed sandwiches on it these days, which is
reason enough to swing by and try it out.
I opted for the South Carolina Sandwich, which is a bun with some
pulled pork on it and “Tangy
homemade South Carolina
style mustard Bar-B Que sauce with crispy slaw and crispy cayenne onions.”
It is hard to tell how good or bad the pulled pork is, because the
sandwich arrives smothered in the above mentioned BBQ sauce. Every whiff of
smoked pork flavor that might exist is effectively blanketed by the sauce.
Which is, by itself, not too bad at all.
Tangy and a bit spicy, with a nice full mustard aroma – I had much
worse.
The combination of tender and lean meat, the mustard sauce, and with
the onions and the slaw, makes this a very tasty sandwich, indeed. Not
necessarily your typical BBQ sandwich from the shack down the country road, but
a totally acceptable creation for a middle-of-the-road chain restaurant like
the Hard Rock Café.
The sides, BBQ beans, mayonnaisy cole slaw with raisins, and French
fries, were totally middle-of-the-road, or in other words: bland and
unassuming. The contrast to the flavorful sandwich could not be bigger. But at
least I got an additional cup with the mustard sauce to dip the fries in with
the plate.
So, would I return? Definitely – I just love that music from the 1980s.
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