Bare Bones BBQ

Ain't nothin like some good barbeque.

Bare Bones BBQ is located in the old Waffle House restaurant near the airport in Moline (2401 69th Ave). I can't even tell you the last time I had good barbeque. Probably when we visited North Carolina in 2009. Good BBQ in the QC is scarce as a hens teeth, but I spotted this place during an airport pick-up and immediately notified Richie of the grand discovery.


Once again, he took his new partner in crime, Bateman, to the restaurant to check it out, but luckily I scored some takeout.


Richie was fixin to put some brisket and beans in his bread basket.


So tender and rich, the brisket was *almost* melt-in-your-mouth.


Beans were sweet and adorned with small pieces of brisket. Because who doesn't want meat with your meat? Sauce is sweet and spicy, but not too hot. It's always served on the side.


I reckon he inhaled this feast in nearabout 2 shakes of a lamb's tail.


Bean porn


Cornbread...the bane of my existence, the reason for his. Richie declared it hunky dorey fluffy.


Bateman inspecting his cornbread specimen


Ain't bringin a doggy bag home tonight.
Luckily, my pork sandwich takeout arrived unscathed, and though I wasn't fixin on eating it all, it was gone in a snap. Pork was juicy and the perfect complement to the sweet sauce. Their buns ain't no Wonder Bread, they were very soft and flavorful.

I can't find much of a web presence for Bare Bones, but be sure y'all skedaddle over to Moline for some quality Southern barbeque.

Hall of Fame Pizza & Wings

We are all quite familiar with the almighty Buffalo Wild Wings who dominate the wing market here in the Quad-Cities. They offer a great variety of sauces and a large menu. However, service can be slow, especially during those crucial game days, so we found somewhere new and decided to give it a shot.

On December 1st, Hall of Fame Pizza and Wings opened a carryout/delivery location in Park View, IA. They also have a full service restaurant with buffet in DeWitt.

It was a Tuesday like any other Tuesday when Richie and Bateman decided to play through all 3 Halo games. Their marathon of gaming called for some sustenance, so they went to Park View to fuel up with wings. (Much better than GU)

Like every other restaurant that exists in a small town, the menu is filled with items with campy names based on a sports theme. I was so disappointed that I missed out on the "Game of Pickle" appetizer, 6 deep fried pickle wedges served with honey mustard sauce, that I made Richie order one a couple days later. I'd put honey mustard on ice cream if it were socially acceptable.
So the pizza menu is pretty much on par with what you'd get just about anywhere else. The specialty pizzas aren't all that special, but they do have one with bratwurst and sauerkraut. They also make calzones, salads, and wraps.

The boys needed fuel for about 8 hours of non-stop nerding out, so they were all about the wings that day. Taking a cue from BWWs, Hall of Fame offers varying flavors and levels of heat for their wings. Richie chose 4 different types, The Heater, Asian Sensation, Hot Barbecue, and Kickin' Honey Mustard.





The wings were bigger and juicier than BWWs, as they are obviously not cranked out in mass production and plunked under a heat lamp. "They were crispy on the outside with a good amount of flavor and heat," says Richie Young, wing connoisseur.

I can't speak of the wings because of my aversion to anything slightly spicy, but I can pronounce the pickles to be perfectly pleasing. One large pickle was sliced into six wedges, breaded, spiced, and fried. The honey mustard was a suitable sweet complement.

While the marathon of gaming lasted well into the wee hours of night, the wings did not. All that was left of the carnage was a full buffalo skeleton, a heap of napkins and 5 empty Dew cans.

Though we have yet to try the pizza, I would say that a visit to the Hall of Fame is in order for all wing nuts.

Van's Pizza

Van's Pizza, Pub, and Grill is a relatively new place in town. It's located in the old Pat McGuire's at 3333 Harrison Street. McGuire's was a well loved Irish bar and grill that had been operating since 1986. The business was sold in 2009, but the offer to keep the name was available to the new owners. Because they already owned an Irish pub across town, they didn't want to open a second in Davenport. So they chose to open a pizza place. Just what Davenport needs, more pizza. This begs the question, can you have too many pizzerias in one town? Well, yes, you can.

However, Van's isn't JUST a pizza place. They kept the bar and have quite a selection of beers for the party boys from Palmer. They also tacked on the 'grill' so they can still serve burgers, appetizers, and other typically blah bar staples.

Suffice it to say, I'd really like a new concept to come to the Quad-Cities.

Exterior was slightly remodeled. Inside, the Irish paraphernalia is gone and replaced with generic bar shit. The menu looks suspiciously similar to the Jersey Grille.

Though I was pessimistic about the quality of pizza coming from this run-of-the-mill pub, it was surprisingly delicious.

The garlic cheese bread was properly garlic-y, blanketed with stringy cheese and spices. They serve it with ranch, marinara, and that green thing. It'll set you back 4.99.

Not wanting a traditional pie, we split a personal sized Iowa Farmhand's pizza.


I was most pleased that the sauce was actually ketchup and mustard mixed together. Makes for a burger-like taste and satiates my sweet tooth. The toppings were loaded on, a bit precariously, I might add. Some pieces were loaded with onion, others with pickles. Also sprinkled on were big chunks of pork tenderloin- this is an Iowa pizza after all. The crust was a good consistency, thin and slightly chewy.
The price wasn't as nice, $8.99, but if you're eating out, I suppose that's on par. A plain cheese is only $4.99 and a one-topping is $5.99.

I would probably make a return visit to try another specialty pizza. However, until the rest of the menu gets some originality, I'll pass on that.

P.S. The cold leftovers were fantastic.