Danny’s BBQ & Smokehouse (and Buck’s Sports Lounge)
1747 Ellice Ave
204-779-7041
reserve@dannyandbucks.com
Twitter: @DannyandBucks
June, 2013
Celebrities often attach their names to businesses to add star power and notoriety and this holds true for sports icons, especially local heroes. Think Elway’s in Denver or Marino’s in Miami and you instantly attach the hero to the location. Our first visit to Green Bay found us uncaring where we went to dine; the name alone drew us to Brett Favre’s Steakhouse. That’s the kind of power a sports name can have.
The name can pull you through the doors but then it’s up to the food and experience to keep you returning. That’s the winning combo that Danny’s BBQ & Smokehouse, and Buck’s Sports Lounge hopes to emulate. In Winnipeg, the name Danny alone has some pull, stemming from Danny’s Whole Hog, the catering business. The sports influence comes from Buck Pierce, the starting quarterback for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Is his name big enough to draw an international crowd? Hardly, but it is a local name. Not being a CFL fan at all, I still know who he is and I end up at his lounge/restaurant. Now it’s up to Danny to keep me coming with his food.
When I first heard of Danny’s Whole Hog, I immediately thought of pulled pork. A few years ago, it was impossible to find genuine barbecued (slow smoked) meat in Winnipeg. Lovey’s introduced the cooking method to our city and Famous Dave’s has since brought it to prominence. Today, you can find it in abundance at the annual Winnipeg BBQ & Blues Festival(shameless self-promotion: check out our team kiosk at Pit Monsters – mention that you’re a reader/follower and I’ll give you free samples!).
For a long time, I was intrigued by Danny’s Whole Hog because I craved smoked, pulled pork. I don’t know why (perhaps because it's in the restaurant's name) but I always associated Danny’s with authentic, smoked “Q”; today, I find the pork without smoke flavour at all. Don’t get me wrong, it has good flavour, just not smoked. The pulled pork sandwich includes meat that’s tenderly shredded, fallen off the bone but if you’re expecting Kansas style pork, you’ll be disappointed.
My first bite of the baby back ribs had me hopeful that Danny cooks his ribs through the slow smoking process; strangely, my first bite is the only bite to experience smoke. I suspect the ribs are either boiled or roasted and finished in the smoker. Our server raved about the ribs, insisting that they’re “fall-off-the-bones” but sadly, I had to cut quite hard with a steak knife to separate meat from bone. Especially since the ribs are not very meaty, this task is quite challenging. The true carnivore would be okay but I firmly believe that main courses should include a bit of each of category from the food guide—some vegetable to go with this all meat course would add texture, contrast and colour.
Most meals come with sides, but even here, there isn’t a lot of vegetable variety. The passable baked beans again would taste better with a smoky edge, or even a bit of sugar or molasses. These are some of the most un-sweet beans that I’ve ever encountered, so if you’re a sweet beans fan, move on.
The dirty rice has good depth and flavour, including nice texture from scraping the bottom of the pot. A lot of people might object but I love the crunchy rice that you get from the scrapings.
I hoped that the chicken wings might come slow smoked, but I find disappointment again. Wings make the perfect smoking subject; the high fat content keeps them moist and the high skin-to-meat ratio ensures great flavour. Have I stressed enough yet that I’m disappointed at the absence of smoked foods? Anyway, these wings come deep fried with any of the house barbecue sauces. The wings have nice crispness but they’re a little overdone and dry.
Coming off the grill, the steak sandwich tastes surprisingly tender, coming from the flank cut. Even though the cut is quite thin, it’s cooked well and not overdone. I like the crunch from the onion rings accompaniment.
They serve good food here—just don’t expect smoked and you won’t be disappointed. I hope the name recognition is enough to keep the customers coming. I’m certain they expected a certain football crowd but since the departure of the stadium from the area, the popularity could take a hit. Here’s the flip side to having a sports celebrity attachment—people may associate the location to a sweaty sports bar with grubby food and peanuts on the floor (think Chris Walby’s restaurant fiasco). That’s not here. Danny’s has a nice, elegant-looking dining room and lounge. This would be a nice place to bring a first date—well, if you can get rid of the connotation of “whole hog.”
*** /5
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