Skip to main content

Breakfast at Interstate Bar-B-Que

On the way back from Miami, I had to get up early and fly through Memphis to get back to Atlanta.  I consoled myself in my pre-dawn travel by reminding myself that the effort would pay off if Interstate Bar-B-Que was in operation.  As I got off the plane in Memphis, I walked into an invisible cloud with the unmistakable fragrance of BBQ.  My heart leapt, I turned the corner, and there it was---the happy neon pig.
Interstate is widely considered one of the top BBQ places in the country.  Airport food has certainly improved over the years, but it is still rare to have a truly great restaurant inside an airport.  Interstate is a welcome stop for all sorts of travelers.

They have some breakfast items but they offer their full BBQ menu all day (I'm not entirely sure when they open, but I was there about 9 AM).  I wanted something fast and simple so I ordered a pulled pork sandwich and a tea. I then rushed over to my plane.

I got to the plane just in time to start boarding, so I was able to settle down quickly with my treat.  I heard one passenger say "smells good, doesn't it?".  The sandwich came with some cole slaw but no fork.  I was a little worried about spilling it if I put the slaw on the sandwich so I just ate the sandwich straight.  BBQ is comfort food and this pig certainly made me happy even if he wasn't smiling at the end.  The pork was tender and very porky without being overly strong like some cuts of pork can be.  Interstate has mastered the art of saucing a sandwich---all of the meat was touched with sauce but not enough was left to drip.  The stewardess very nicely took my trash away and my stomach was very happy as we rolled down the runway.

Interstate Bar B Q on Urbanspoon

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Eating Around Georgia Tech: Ecco

Our Texas Instruments colleague Cathy Wicks was gracious enough to host several of us at Ecco tonight. This is one of those restaurants that has been on my list for a long time. Even though it is within easy walking distance of Georgia Tech, I hadn't made it there until tonight. The menu is a combination of Italian, Spanish, and French that make use of some local Georgia ingredients. The combination of those three countries is sometimes a little forced, although the georgia ingredients (fruit, cheese) were all great and perfectly appropriate. We started out with a meat and cheese board. This actually reverses the French tradition, where cheese usually follows the main course. Everything was excellent. The Georgia cheese was a big hit, as was the French cow/goat cheese. I thought the sauscisson was very subtle and very good. The waitress said that the roast pork pasta was their signature dish, so I had to try it. It had traditional broad pasta (fresh, of course) ...

DCA: Cava Mezze Grill

Cava is a DC area chain with light Mediterranean food. Saibal encouraged me to try lunch at their airport location and I was very happy with the experience. I ordered falafel on SuperSalad with assorted other toppings. The falafel was tasty. The SuperSalad was light, flavorful, and very easy to eat. Overall, a healthy and enjoyable lunch, something you can't always say about airport eating.

Pressure Cooker Candied Ginger

I made candied ginger a few years ago. It's not something I would do every day but I had a lot of fun doing it. I recently acquired a pressure cooker and it inspired an interesting idea to me: why not make candied ginger in the pressure cooker? It should be very soft and flavorful. Here is the result. I peeled two large ginger roots, cut them into small cubes, and put them in the pressure cooker with heavily sugared water. The traditional method first boils the ginger in plain water to soften it and then again in sugar water to candy it. The resulting candy was very tender but still with the characteristic ginger texture. It was also sweet without being overpowering. The traditional method leaves a lot of sugar crystallized around the ginger. The pressure cooker gives a much more subtle result. The ginger stays moist even after it cools but you can dry it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. That inspired me to dip it in chocolate. While I was in the b...