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“Wildwood”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Barbecue	Flatiron	Moderate	Good

cue. I like pulled pork that’s tender and moist and rich with smoke, and I like to sauce it myself. I also like it served hot. Wildwood got two of three. It was moist and tender and has some smoke, but it was cold both times on two separate occasions. “Is this supposed to be cold?” Joachim asked, wondering if Northerners did it differently. “No, it’s not,” I asked, making a mental note of the meat’s temperature. But the pork was not the only item that was cold. The crusty cheddar mac ($6.95) was also not even close to hot. In fact, the mac wasn’t crusty either (a few scant cold breadcrumbs were sprinkled over the top), and on top of that, I’d be surprised if any cheddar was involved in that recipe. It was almost chalky in texture and tasted as though powered cheese was somehow involved in the recipe. This mac was a mess. Recipe do over, please.

Indeed, Wildwood suffers from inconsistencies. Sometimes the food is hot, sometimes it’s not. One night the Texas smoked brisket was terrific—fatty and smoky—and on another it was dry and cold, and even the addition of barbecue sauce could not really help it out. (And I must say the barbecue sauces are both way too sweet. They need more heat and tang.)

But other sides fared better than that sad mac. Creamed spinach was fine (though not as well-seasoned as the spectacular creamed spinach at Primehouse), and the onion rings were wrapped in a greaseless and crunchy golden beer batter ($6.95). My favorite of the sides was the kettle-cooked burnt ends and bacon-cooked baked beans, a tangy, smoky, meaty mix of beans and beef that was almost thick like chili ($6.95). Speaking of chili, there are two on the menu and both are excellent, served in adorable little cast iron bowls with handles like small baskets. While the Jailhouse Chili ($8.25) is rampant with beef, smoke and spice, the other is Vegetarian ($9) and is stocked up with beans, peppers, and smoked tofu. Topped with cornbread croutons it really does this usually ho-hum vegetarian option proud.

The Texas Hutto Wedge ($9.50), a decidedly non-vegetarian salad, is smothered with blue cheese dressing (the plate is a blue cheese lake), and showered with candied pecans and bits of bacon. With all that blue cheese and bacon, it’s probably just as caloric as Big Lou’s Barbecue Burger, which, as its name implies, is smothered in barbecue sauce, and serv ... [more, click below]

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Posted: May 9, 2008

Other restaurants in Flatiron :
+ Suenos   + Amuse-- Closed   + Dos Caminos   + Lucy-- Closed   + Gramercy Taver   + Veritas   + Fleur De Sel   + Bolo -- CLosed   + City Bakery   + Shake Shack   + Kalustyan's Cafe   + Devi   + BLT Fish   + Sugarcane   + BLT Prime   + Barca 18-- CLOSED   + Beppe   + Barbounia   + Boqueria   + Eleven Madison   + Lonesome Dove-- CLOSED   + Hill Country   + Olana   + Wildwood   + Primehouse   + Allegretti   + Bar Breton   + Aldea   + SD26 by Bao Ong   + ABC Kitchen   + Ciano   + The NoMad   

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