Lulu's vs. Tarrant's vs. deLux

Saturday night, we went out to dinner at Tarrant's with some out of town friends (whom we directed to Lulu's for brunch earlier that day). The next morning, we went to brunch at deLux. Naturally, I have stories to share, but the competition aspect to this post was just a ruse to rope in readers (sorry). I guess I could point out that these three places started in the same general era (nowish), and so they are competing for legitimacy in a sense. Personally, I'm not completely in love with any of the three (having mostly superficial experiences thus far). Maybe that's indicative of my general disposition: the past rocks, the future is exciting, but right now... meh. Anywho, stay tuned for an aimless meandering of culinary wandering lostness.

Lulu's

When Karen's old high school buddy, called wanting to know where to meet her dad for brunch, I racked my brain and came up empty. Brunch is not an option on Saturdays at my favorite spots, but I recalled being tempted by Lulu's one Saturday at the 17th Street Farmers Market. When our guests got to our house, they reported a successful meal. She described the menu as mostly savory (she likes sweet breakfast food) and he thought his huevos rancheros were too beany (believing that meat eating makes one a man). Since I have to try the huevos everywhere I go, Lulu's just got bumped up in my queue (would they really tamper with the Millie's recipe?).

Tarrant's

Later that day, the four of us piled in a car with Jasper and headed down to 1 W. Broad for our first Tarrants experience. The staff surveyed the two dining rooms for the best place to stash a carseat-bound baby and we wound up in one of their bigger booths. Due to the heat, we all requested a steady flow of ice water.

And now the menu: on the way in I noticed fancy sounding specials on the sidewalk chalkboard. The prices ranged from $18-25, which threw me for a loop, as I recalled seeing fish tacos for under $10 on that same board during Broad Appetit. Whatever. I'm supposed to keep my cheapskate tendencies under wraps when we've got company. Of course, disparity probably stems from the price difference between lunch and dinner (an explanation that I'm not completely satisfied with).

At the table, we were collectively paralyzed by the array of choices. There must have been 25-30 sandwiches and wraps, at least a dozen starters, a dozen salads, and a dozen entrees. What would Gorden Ramsey say? If you've seen Kitchen Nightmares then you're used to seeing him wind up to his "pare down your menu ultimatim" (delivered abusively for the American audience and with tact for the Brits). Tarrant's piles on even more options with two paper menu inserts. Another 12-20 entree and appetizer specials as well as a listing of pizzas, calzones, and hot subs from the Tarrantinos eatery in the back. With each expansion to the side or the back, it seems that another page was added to the menu. I could hear Gordon spraying the owner with spittle demanding to know "who are you? Is this a sandwich shop, a pizzeria, or is it fine dining? You don't know, do you? For Christs sake, man, you're completely lost aren't you?" And so on, as Gordon plays up the emergency situation as his belittling critique comes to the rescue.

There's no emergency here. Tarrant's is a hit and people are going there with specific parts of the menu in mind (or maybe a little of each). And, I'm not Gordon Ramsey (but, I did find the dizzying choices to be off-putting). No, Jasper's the real high maintenance diner (now 9 weeks old). By the time we were ready to order, he was refusing his bottle and having a meltdown in Karen's arms. Other customers were forced to take notice. But, I impressed everyone around by grabbing the carseat and swinging it by the handle, rocking Jasper into a peaceful slumber. It was quite a bicep workout, but I kept it up for 10 minutes while seated and dangling the carseat in constant motion outside the booth. And I don't think I impeded any server's path in the process.

Tarrant's (seriously, this time)

The food... a white pizza with spinach and grilled chicken, two cesar salads (one with mid-rare grilled tuna), a polenta in seafood cream sauce starter, and I had the tilapia reuben. Honestly, I don't really have much to say about the food. They brought plate after plate of greasy garlic knots (delicious, but kind of a meal spoiler - I know, learn restraint - and they would have been better if a little crustier). The pizza was a hit, as I've blogged before, but our guests questioned the spinach topping saying it was previously frozen (not a biggie in my book, especially compared to the pointless chicken topping).

The two Caesars irked me, cuz I can't stand redundancy on the table. Not the restaurant's fault (although the salads were too croûton-y and none of us could figure the need for loads of kalamata olives with pits in the middle of it all - which I picked off of the two plates). My reuben was tasty, but I think I'll blog on it in a separate post about alterna-reubens I've had in Richmond (Table 9, Ipanema, and Harrison St). That polenta was flavorful, but the sauce was too rich for more than two consecutive bites, and the seafood pieces were small enough to be kind of irrelevent.

Would I go back to Tarrant's? Personally, only for an orthodox pizza. But I'm sure more patient customers have discovered the other strengths of the kitchen, but I'm not ambitious enough to expend that many visits working through the menu. Am I raining on the parade? Maybe I should qualify this whole thing by saying that I am glad to see this relatively accessible downtown business.

deLux('s)

The next day, Sunday, we wound up at deLux (sans guests, but with baby). We braved the heat in search of coffee, but stayed for the A/C and brunch food. Again, not much to say about the food here. The place is very stylish and not too fancy. My huevos rancheros seemed a little steep at $10, but they included sausage (which I requested they omit and they obliged). Karen asked for cheddar and tomatoes in her "two eggs any style" and they didn't bat an eyelash. Homefries came with each and I'm pretty sure they were frozen with factory-applied seasoning crust. Don't you love that shit? These are a pet peeve of mine, mostly because I hate to be temped to cheat with processed carbs. I guess it could be worse...

Since we didn't quite know where we were going when we crossed the sketchy footbridge from Byrd Park, over the expressway to Strawberry Street, deLux was basically an oasis for us. They were open before 10am, and we were sipping coffee within seconds of sitting down. The real treat for me was featured on the check. A dollar was deducted from the price of my huevos, because I asked them to hold the sausage. It is so seldom that vegetarians are given this kind of consideration. Instead, there's often an element of punitive treatment for causing trouble with our special requests (so many plates just seem to represent the kitchen's misconception that vegetarians don't like to eat). Also, the price of Karen's eggs wasn't hiked up for the cheese and tomatoes.

The financial impact of these billing nuances is minimal, but the gesture will surely bring me back, especially since it's within walking distance. Would I ever order the huevos there again? Probably not. It was a forgettable dish that scarcely resembled the classic namesake. Millies and Kuba Kuba are good bets for huevos rancheros, but so is Taqueria del Sol. I can't wait to find out about the "beany" version at Lulu's.

White Pizza vs. Red @ Tarrantino's

After Broad Appetit, we were still fantasizing about the food we didn't get around to trying, particularly the pizza slices from Tarrantino's. You'd think we were on withdrawal from a good NY slice (cuz, we are). As soon as I got home from work, I volunteered to pick up a pie so we could spend the evening chilling out with dinner on the couch.

A brief glance at the paper menu we picked up on Sunday had us torn: White or red? Hmmmm... Why not both? Although I love to economize (and order in bulk: the largest possible cheese pizza and eat the rest for breakfast and lunch), being fickle means we pay more for variety. Nonetheless, we got complete satisfaction; and maybe a little gluttony. (Tarrant's phone number: 225-0035, location 1 W. Broad St. at Foushee)

Karen's plate.

First off, I'll spare you a description of the pizzeria, cuz I touched on it in my previous post and another blogger beat me to the punch (although I had this piece conceived, photographed, and partially written before Brie hit "submit"). The two pizzas in their little boxes filled my car with the most amazing smell. I almost crashed from the intoxicating aroma. If I'd been breathalyzed for pizzaholicness, I'd have blown a 2.3 from the contact high alone. The white variety is the "bianca" by the way.

My plate, with my favorite beer and my only Penzey's purchase:
a shaker for crushed red pepper.

These red and a white pizzas are essentially the same. Bread topped with cheese and the difference being a layer of X in between. In this case it was a non-stingy portion of tangy marinara on the red and a garlic ricotta combo mingling together on the white. We were really glad that we ordered both varieties, because that one layer makes these two experiences very different. The red sauce will bring you back, without a doubt. And that white delivers a garlickiness that will make you swoon. As you can see, I put the hot peppers on half of my slices, and left the others as the control group. The results were predictable: I like spicy food.

So, let's talk about the commonalities: crust and cheese.

By ordering small pies, I screwed myself. You can't expect thin and crispy crust if you don't order a size that's big enough to get stretched out. So, both were slightly doughy, but not doughy like pizza from a place that shouldn't be serving pizza (most everywhere in the Fan), but doughy like small pizzas tend to be. Regardless, the bottom was scalded in just the right way and the rim was perfectly chewy. Baking soda and yeast were evident in each bite. I'd say that a New Yorker would think twice before complaining about this crust (and then boast about home anyways, cuz that's how they defend against Richmond's charm). The cheese was stringy on the red and firm on the white; in both cases above par, but not as notable as the other elements (no biggie, here).

All in all, my hunch is that the best way to enjoy Tarrantino's is to dine in with enough people to split a large pie (although carry-out is ready in 15 minutes). That way, you'll get the true crust experience, piping hot, and you can enjoy the classically rigid pizzeria booth with parm and pepper shakers at the ready. However, before ordering, ask if they sell pizza by the slice. They don't, yet. But, it's only a matter of time as passers by will be drawn in by the heavenly garlic smell. That is, if Richmond can muster enough downtown activity to warrant having pizzas pre-made and ready. Time will tell.

After overeating...