Jessica S.
Yelp
My husband's been on the hunt for - as he calls it - "good brisket and sausage". Now, I freely admit I have no idea what his criteria for "good brisket and sausage" might be, but I've learned not to question his cravings. He does research, gets himself all excited about a new spot, and then off we go.
We've seen Bull's a few times over the years, but never stopped in (its building butts up against a venue we often visited in the before times). We've been twice now in the last few weeks, and I think my opinion of the place has shifted.
They've never been what I'd call "busy" on our visits; on both visits the dining room was completely empty, and on the first the outdoor patio had a few groups hanging out enjoying the sunshine. On our second visit, one of the girls working the counter came in and told the other girl that she was so bored she ended up sweeping along the sidewalk all the way down the block.
At any rate, the food was decent, though I do believe my husband enjoyed it more. I don't know that he got the "good brisket" he's so desperate to find, but we both agree that the sausage is a winner.
On our first visit, we each went with the Bull's Duo sandwich sampler ($9.95) with the smoked pulled pork, smoked beef brisket, andouille sausage and BBQ chicken. For sides, we got a small order of the mac n' cheese ($4.95) and the hush puppies (also $4.95). Two fountain drinks rounded us out.
For the second visit, I got a full sausage sandwich and the hubs got the full brisket sandwich. For sides we went with the Bull's Fries.
Going back to our first visit, with the sampler sandwiches: the sausage was the clear winner. It had a satisfying snap to the skin, a slight spiciness and nice smokey flavor. We added a mix of the restaurant's sauces (sharing a small sandwich results in mixed flavors, no matter how careful we try to be!), which added to the flavor.
My next favorite sandwich was the BBQ chicken, which was chopped into slightly-larger-than-bite-sized pieces and basted in one of the restaurant's sauces. The chicken was juicy and flavorful, and paired well with the bread.
After that, I'd say the brisket and pulled pork tied in my book. They were both meaty and juicy, though the brisket was less lean than the pork, of course. My husband did rate the brisket higher than the chicken and pork.
I was not impressed by the sides, unfortunately. The mac was dry, but cheesy. It had some kind of crumbled cracker on top - not sure if it was something like a Cheez-It, but it just made a mess. If there was a bit more of a sauce to the mac, it would have been so much more palatable. We diverged on the hush puppies, too; the hubs loved (like, LOVED) them, and I found them to be too dense and dry, even with the ranch dipping sauce. The Bull's Fries were equally uninspired, kind of soggy and plain.
I'm sure my husband would disagree with my rating on this place, but I'm only swayed by the sausage. Maybe I'll try something different - the gumbo is intriguing and I'll never say no to salmon - but I won't be the one suggesting this as a meal stop.