Dinosaur Bar-B-Q

Valentine's Day. It comes and goes and usually for me, despite the anticipation, planning and excitement, ends up being a regular day, like most of my New Year's Eves (though not this year's after a drunken buffoon tried to jump me and then my wallet was stolen-that was enough excitement to get me through the year).

This doesn't mean I don't melt for flowers, chocolates, and the color red, which I do. I guess it just means I'm fortunate enough to have a lot of love in my life every day of the year, and nothing seems immensely special about February 14th in particular, other than the fact I go haywire for hearts. Maybe I just miss the good ol' days of getting twenty-five cent Valentines from my elementary school classmates. J.P., if you're reading this, I still have that broach you stole from your mom and gave to me in pre-school. You set the bar pretty high...

That being said, I was not the least bit disappointed when Swimster told me he made reservations for Thursday the 16th at a new place on the island. I could not wait, and since he would be taking out a loan for us to eat at said new place, I decided Valentine's Day lunch would be my pick (it was supposed to be my tab too, but Swimster somehow got to it first and I still feel guilty about it). I would have suggested going for dinner but Swimster had some studying to do, and I could go home and visit my dad, who was eagerly awaiting my mom's arrival the next day. Not bad! I got to spend Valentine's Day with two of the three men in my life, and this big fellow [insert good name here].



Without further ado, the surprise lunch for Swimster on Valentine's Day was Dinosaur Bar-B-Q. Swimster is a meat-eater. If he was a dinosaur he would have been a T-Rex. There isn't a whole lot he won't put in his mouth. That goes for me as well (in high school my parents called me the bottomless pit). I figured nothing would make him happier than a filling, casual lunch barbecue-style. And judging from Swimster's response, "No way dude!!! Is this where we're eating?" when he noticed the sign, I think my idea was a winner.



Since I don't take pictures that often, I decided to let the pictures speak for themselves this time. I think you'll get the gist. This lunch was a meat-lover's dream, and I can't wait to recruit friends to eat, drink and B-"Q"-merry with me at Dino. Walking into Dino, I temporarily escaped the snow-banked New York City streets and found refuge in what felt like the heart of Q-land.



First I tried the original fried green tomatoes. The crispy patties were sprinkled with Pecorino Romano cheese and served with a cayenne buttermilk ranch dressing. I enjoyed every bite of the soft gooey tomatas wrapped in their crispy casing. If I see these on a menu, my heart usually skips a beat. And they did when I tried them at Dino.



Swimster tried the drunken spicy shrimp boil, or peel and eat shrimp cooked in beer, old bay, cayenne, herbs and spices and served with habanero cocktail sauce. He got the 1/4 pound solo serving...thank goodness. I think he was a little scared at first to dig in, then our friendly server came to the rescue with a big bucket of handwipes. The coast was clear (and shortly, so was his plate).

For my main meal I tried the big ass pork plate of pork shoulder, smoked low and slow the ol' timey way: hand pulled and piled high, according to the menu. With the entrees at Dino you get two sides. Mine, as you can see, were mac and cheese and fries. I promise the corn bread was not nearly as huge as it looks in this photo. The "big ass" plate was big and filled with good things, but the pork was by far the highlight. I loved the thick tender shreds of pork and the sauce that was lightly mixed in, leaving enough room for you to add your own sauces (of which there was plenty on our table). Somehow I had the self-control to save some for a doggie bag (why is it doggie bag, I feel it should be a piggie bag). And I made everyone at work the next day extremely jealous.



I could have guessed what Swimster was going to get-the sampler extreme which had 1/2 a chicken, a 1/2 rack of ribs, and Texas beef brisket, not to mention the two sides he got with it: mac and cheese and bar-b-q fried rice. I went in for the brisket first, and it was soft and a little chewy and full of flavor. I'll admit, I'm not a rib chick, and was not too enthusiastic to try one. But after watching the meat gracefully fall off the bone into Swimster's mouth, I gave in. I have since converted to a rib chick.



In addition to the incredible meal choices you have, Dino has a great selection of beer to go with it. I almost fell out of my chair when I saw Blue Moon on the back of the menu. Blue Moon is probably my all-time favorite beer in the world. Yes, I know it's not Heineken or Budweiser, but that's not my thing. I love my wheat beers. Swimster agreed, it was a Blue Moon kind of day and what the heck, we went with a whole pitcher. It's not often we get to spend time with each other (and drink:) in the middle of the day.



What was that about Valentine's Day just being a regular day? Lunch at Dinosaur Bar-B-Q was no regular lunch. I think it will become a tradition. Anyone wanna sign up for next year's February 14th trip to barbecue in Harlem, USA? If you live upstate, you can go to their Syracuse location or their Rochester location.

Mona's directions: It gets a little bit tricky here-do not be fooled into taking the express 2,3 to 125th. If you do, you will be getting off north of Morningside Heights (trust me you do not want this, Swimster and I did this once late at night and I thought we were going to make the front page of the Post the next day in some horrific headline). Take the 1 to 125th St., get off and walk west on 125th St. (not North on Broadway). Take a right on 12th Avenue and Dino is directly on your right hand side. Someone seems to have miscounted the streets because it goes from 125th to 131st. Well, not really, but the roads are a little crooked and you can't say I didn't warn ya'.

646 W. 131st St.
212-694-1777

See you again soon Dino!