Blair Street Brew & BBQ opened last month in the space that housed the first location of Full of Bull and prior to that, Pizza Extreme. It had hoped to open on March 5, but as anyone in the restaurant industry knows, setbacks are inevitable.
Was the food worth the wait? Let’s start with the ribs. They’re described as fall-off the bone with a special dry rub and finished with a signature barbecue sauce. Sadly, the ribs were the exact opposite. I received a terrible cut with barely any meat, and such a paltry rack should never be served in a restaurant. The meat was really tough, the rub was far too salty and the sauce wasn’t discernible.
I ordered the ribs through the multi-item Badger Feast ($19.95), which was missing the rotisserie chicken. The ham and bacon were flavorful, the pulled pork was tender if not tasteless and the beef brisket was melt-in-your-mouth outstanding. If I ever came back, I would order the Beef Brisket Blockbuster ($8.95), which is beef brisket, bacon and crispy onion strings served on Texas toast.
The accompanying sides were a mixed bag. The coleslaw was dry, the potato salad was straight out of a container, the baked beans were surprisingly tasty despite looking like refried beans and the corn bread had no firmness (it broke apart too easily) but was still enjoyable.
At least the 10-piece Hot Wings ($7.95) were a delight, as the homemade Buffalo-like sauce had just the right amount of heat. I also liked the Bucky Bites ($3.50), which are flash-fried soft pretzels that look hard as rocks but are actually quite soft. It comes with nacho cheese dipping sauce.
A server told me it would still be a few months until Blair Street Brew & BBQ actually brews its own beer. It does serve other beer and some hard alcohol.
If you dine-in, there is a small parking lot and a few arcade games for kids. Otherwise, the restaurant, which is open every day, does deliver.
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I was so pleasantly surprised by my first meal at 
If you want to go carb free, you can order any sub as a salad with iceberg lettuce or spinach. In retrospect, I should have ordered a chicken dish, such as Chicken Pesto, but instead I ordered the Grinder (salami, pepperoni and capicola). It was okay, but the entire time I was eating it I kept thinking, this would be better as an Italian sub.
Both offer lunch and dinner during the day. Dragon I is a sister restaurant to Nam’s Noodle and offers mainly Vietnamese dishes, while Osaka House serves Japanese primarily through carryout and delivery, since its capacity is only 19.
From singing we go to dancing at Osaka House. The entrance to the bar is on Gilman Street, not State Street, which sort of gives you the feeling you’re going to a secret club. I’ve heard it called the “sake lounge,” but the manager told me it really has no name.
