We’ve always been fans of Desi Vega, but it is only recently that we have become fanatical fans of the steakhouse. After a few crazy good lunches that are no more expensive than places much less good, we wish we could go more often.
Then he came to the North Shore in a place that was unlike his usual places. We weren’t fans of this location because of the vibe, but the food remained excellent. This was a licensing agreement. The same licensing agreement turned up again when Desi Vega’s Smokehouse Tavern arrived in Mandeville, and we were again huge fans. That place didn’t make it two years, and it was replaced by another Desi Vega’s Steakhouse, a place we have yet to visit. This same licensing agreement turned up again with a sidebar operation that is more casual called Desi Vega’s Burgers on Harrison Avenue in Lakeview.
We hadn’t been to the burger place for many years. The original is tucked into Elmwood on Hickory for about seven years now. It is definitely more casual, but with the same quality of food. I’d rather have a Desi Vega burger at the steakhouse, so there was no need to return. There was lots else on the menu, but wings and fries, etc. were not a strong enough draw.
I have often said that the process of us winding up at restaurants has become more interesting than the restaurant. We had another one of those winding road experiences the other evening, winding up at Desi Vega’s Burgers on the way back to the North Shore. It had been on my mind since a caller to The Food Show, who is now getting out more because of the show, called to report on it. That inspired another listener to visit, and his report kept it in the forefront of my consciousness.
The first thing I noticed about it was its resemblance to the occupant once removed. When Lakeview Harbor, which had operated in that space successfully for decades was bounced to make way for 3B’s, a hamburger concept the building’s owners had floated at another property, a big renovation took place. Call the look a glamorous sports bar. 3B’s was just not very good, and it was expensive to boot, so it was replaced by another concept called Redbird, which is a fried chicken concept along the lines of Willie Mae’s. It started in Covington, where it remains, but the one in Lakeview also closed, making way for Desi Vega’s.
It still looks like 3B’s to me, except for a row of banquettes and a neon logo on one wall that I associate with Desi’s. The menu contains all the usual suspects: burgers, chicken wings, fries, a few salads, and a few hot dogs. One of the things I think the owners of the building got better than anyone else was their potato skins, when they were offered as a Happy Hour item at Andy’s Bistro, a place I wish they would reboot. It was this fond memory that caused me to go for the potato skins here. We also got the two slider combo, which came with their housecut fries, and the hotdog, which we built ourselves combining the four ingredients available for the builders: chili, cheese, relish, and onions. Amidst all the sports bar food I felt compelled to order a salad, so I chose the Cobb, and we got a shake for the road.
The potato skins were ridiculous. They were deep-fried steak fries covered in cheese and a little bacon, served with sour cream. This was a far cry from my potato skin memory of skins, with a small layer of potato, but mostly filled with cheese and bacon. Much different. There was a potato thing on the menu that I maybe should have tried, which was a loaded baked potato ball breaded and deep-fried. That sound too unhealthy, but who am I kidding? It would have fit right in on this table.
The hot dog was an all-beef hot dog grilled nicely, sticking out of both ends of the bun. The chili was fine but unexceptional, and all the other ingredients we compiled in our Build-your-own program made it a tasty bite.
The sliders were Desi Vega’s quality beef but otherwise ordinary. I wish the accompanying fries were not limp. I imagine out of the frier they would have been better. If a place is going to the trouble to do fresh cut fries, for which I applaud them, having the fries sit around seems self-defeating. They were also a little thick for my taste, but points again for the effort. This is the same thing a caller said about the fries. When he complained to the server he was awarded a nice pile of them. We didn’t need to eat any more.
The salad may have been the most disappointing thing of all. It was a Cobb, which is not often seen with its classic traits, i.e, lines of delicious ingredients that you toss yourself. A classic Cobb includes grilled chicken, but more often than not I see that as an add-on now, as it was here. This was just a basic salad already tossed with bacon bits and copious nuggets of Blue Cheese. The hard boiled eggs came as two halves of two eggs, so four pieces.
There wasn’t anything wrong with the salad. The Ranch dressing was fine, with plenty of Bleu cheese, the greens were fresh, there were eggs and lots of bacon bits and I believe some avocado, but collectively it was just as ordinary as ordinary can be. Ordinary is the word for it all. There wasn’t anything on the table that was bad. It was first-quality ingredients, which is even more frustrating when these get relegated to ordinary in the finished product.
Shakes are a trademark of Desi Vega’s casual places. The Smokehouse Tavern had shakes as the sole dessert menu. It was undeniably good.
We drove away with Tom gushing in approval over his vanilla shake. But I couldn’t help feeling sorry again for Lakeview Harbor, whose regulars have to travel farther to have a better burger and sides.
