Tom's BBQ - Country Club

1140 S Country Club Dr
Mesa, AZ 85210

This review applies only to this location. Two of the Tom's BBQ places are owned by the father, and two are owned by the son. This location is owned by the son.

Companion and I arrived for lunch. Companion ordered the chicken sandwich, jalapeno mac and cheese, a brownie, and a drink.

I ordered a burnt end sandwich, cole slaw, and a drink.

Our first problem was that unlike the fathers locations the sons do not accept Amex. One would expect that in a chain using the same name the same rules would apply. We found a table and in due course our food arrived.

Companion's chicken was overcooked and dry. Some of it was left behind as being unpalatable. Next was the mac and cheese. Unfortunately, it too was way overcooked with the noodles being just mush. It was taken home in the hopes that refrigerating it might firm it up and at least allow it to be deep fried. The brownie was the highlight of the meal, being a nice portion of cake with an excellent chocolate flavor and texture.

My burnt ends lived up to their name and were truly burnt. Having eaten burnt ends in many places before, I was familiar with what they were supposed to be, and the burnt refers to being seasoned and cooked twice. They are not usually dry and/or actually burnt. I ended up covering them in BBQ sauce so that I could get them down. The cole slaw was excellent and seemed to be the same recipe used in the other stores.

The restaurant was reasonably clean and the restrooms (which are quite unusual) were properly stocked and reasonably clean.

I was fairly disappointed on this occasion as I have eaten at other Tom's and never  had food like this.

Two stars for a reasonably clean experience and a great brownie.

Tom's BBQ - Baseline Road

115 E Baseline Rd
Tempe, AZ 85283

This review applies only to this location. Two of the Tom's BBQ places are owned by the father, and two are owned by the son. This location is owned by the father.

Companion and I have dined at this location a number of times, and we usually order the same thing each time.

Companion orders the chicken sandwich, jalapeno mac and cheese, a brownie and a drink.

I usually order rib tips, cole slaw, and a drink. We have never been disappointed.

Companion's chicken was moist, and filled the entire bun. The Mac and Cheese had perfectly cooked al dente noodles with loads of cheese on them. The brownie was moist and perfectly chewy and chocolatey.

I order my rib tips without sauce as I prefer to taste the meat with just a little sauce in the background, and they always perfectly oblige my wishes. Their cole slaw is hard to beat; creamy and crunchy with excellent flavor.

Staff is always friendly and most helpful. They take all credit cards including Amex.

At the risk of sounding prejudiced, this is my go to place for BBQ, and I do eat there fairly regularly. It is clean and relatively quiet. At holiday time you can have them smoke your turkey for you at a very reasonable price. 

My only wish is that they would have smoked lamb. I once had a sandwich of it and thought I went to heaven, but that was some time ago.

4 stars for cleanliness, good food, nice sized portions, and wonderful customer service.

Tampopo Ramen

3223 S. McClintock Drive

Tempe

Companion and I had lunch at this new restaurant. Having lived in Tokyo for a while, I am more than slightly familiar with ramen shops. Good tasting, filling, steaming hot bowls of wonderful noodles with all sorts of accompaniments, being loudly slurped down by satisfied customers.

Tampopo has one of 10 imported noodle machines in the U.S. and one can immediately tell the difference between their noodles and everyone else’s. The noodles have a definite toothy character to them and a distinct flavor that is exactly like one is back in Tokyo. This was the start of a wonderful bowl.

We started off with two appetizers. First was Takoyaki – small batter balls with a bit of octopus in the center, covered in what appeared to be unagi sauce along with bonito flakes on top. The only thing missing was a bit of Japanese mayonnaise which is usually found on Takoyaki served in Japan. Second was a Hirata Bun which is a steamed bun filled with pork, a few veggies, and mayo. Unfortunately the mayo had been mixed with what I think was a large amount of Togarashi spice and was all but inedible for both of us. This was very un-Japanese.

Next was the ramen bowls. Companion ordered the standard Tonkatsu ramen which comes with a slice of roast pork, a medium soft boiled egg, black wood fungus, bean sprouts, scallions, and sesame seeds.

Companion loved the ramen, and found the egg to be perfectly cooked to a soft but not runny stage. There was so much food in the bowl that companion could not finish it.

For myself, I ordered the same dish but made with the rich broth which is more concentrated than the regular. I also ordered Kakuni (braised pork belly) which is served on a separate plate as well as Kae-Dama which is an extra portion of noodles. The idea is that you finish the items in your bowl but save most of the broth. Then you add the Kae-Dama portion of noodles to it and you have a second bowl of ramen though minus the extra ingredients.

In honesty, I could have done without the Kae-Dama as my eyes were bigger than my stomach and I ended up not finishing my bowl. About the only thing missing from the establishment that you get in Japan is the loud slurping of the soup.

We also tried the Japanese cream melon soda. It was delicious and should not be missed.

The restaurant was spotlessly clean. For those who might think that this is just a fad, it is worth noting that most of the customers were of oriental origin and really seemed to enjoy the food.

Service was quick and excellent with our waiter providing commentary when needed.

This is one restaurant that will be getting a lot more of my personal business as it brought back memories and flavors from living in Japan. Highly recommended

4 stars for cleanliness, service, and quality and quantity of food