Really. What is so special about sausages? It's a tube of mystery meat that is usually stuffed inside a bun of some sort. Hardly something to get really excited about. However, much like many other basic foods like the sandwich and burger, the modest meat in tube is gaining recognition. Okay, lemme clarify one thing first. A sausage does not necessarily equal a wiener. Especially at Falconetti's, if one dares to refer to their house-made sausages as wieners, the patrons might be offended. Mijune and I were on a mission tonight - to find out what the fuss is about these sausages. In fact, Mijune wanted a lot of sausage... Um... For me, I guess this was a sausage fest that could not be avoided. For the record, we were partially comped for this meal.
We were presented with a few of their most popular sausages to start. Fortunately or unfortunately, we began with the Polish sausage. You see, this was the best one we had hands down. Either that can be seen as a great start or something that ruined us for anything else. The beef sausage itself was very meaty and lean. Despite being lean, it was juicy and tender. Tasting quite mild, it went well with the sauerkraut, onions and grainy mustard. The bun was served toasted and warm. It was soft while still being able to stand up to the ingredients. Sure, it's a sausage in a bun; but it was a very good sausage in a bun. For no other reason that we just were curious, we wanted to try the Asian Thai Chicken. With familiar flavours and a chunky chicken sausage, this was a very predictable offering. It was a harmonious blend of coconut, curry, lime & ginger with asian veggies, sesame oil & hoisin. Nothing wrong with it at all and in fact it was quite good. But we're Asian and well, it tastes Asian.
As for the Chaurice, Mijune really didn't care for it. A combination of Cajun style chorizo with diced tomatoes, red onion, house & hot sauce, the whole thing left our tongues stinging. I personally didn't dislike it; although it was mostly a one-note flavour. For us, we weren't huge fans; but those who like it hot may love it, so it's all up to personal tastes. Besides, I liked the texture of the sausage itself. It was moist and only a little bit greasy and really spicy. What we should have done was try the Hot Italian first as our mouths were on fire. So we ate the rest of it later and got a true sense of the combination of Parmesan, tomatoes, onions and house sauce. This was our second favourite after the Polish. The sausage was a bit chunky with plenty of texture and only a moderate amount of spice. I loved the addition of shredded Parmesan since it added a salty/pungent flavour that complimented the spice. As if that wasn't enough sausage, Mijune indicated she'd like to sample the Honey Brat. Yes, she likes her sausages with lots of sauce... Comprised of somewhat caramelized onions and a honey mustard sauce, this was predictably sweet. However, it wasn't as sweet as one might think. We didn't get a whole lot of honey mustard flavour, which to me was not necessarily a bad thing. That would probably overwhelm the brat. Instead, the savouriness of the brat could stand out against the sweet ingredients. With that being said, this would worked even better if the onions were caramelized a bit more to give some extra smokiness and rich flavour.
At this point, I was so full, I was going to burst. But not Mijune. She asked for more sausage! Er... Yet it wasn't meat in a bun. Rather, try sausage in a Quesadilla. We selected the Polish sausage as the meat in this dish. Normally, for us, a quesadilla is a quesadilla. Not really all that exciting. This one was not an ordinary quesadilla. Filled with 2 cheeses, onions, sausage and then grilled and pan-fried, this was a messy, flavourful concoction. The house-made tomatillo sauce was the necessary tang that helped cut through the richness of the ingredients. We really liked this dish. So how did the sausages fare? Very well. We could definitely taste the quality and care that went into making these sausages. Good flavour and texture. Of course there are some that worked better than others; but that is always the case and due to personal preferences. These are definitely not your run-of-the-mill sausages. They are higher-class will you, just like the gourmet burgers and sandwiches that are all the craze. In fact, one could buy these gourmet sausages from the soon-to-be open meat shop next door.
The Good:
- Very good house-made sausages
- Reasonably-priced
- Funky ambiance
The Bad:
- When the live band is playing, it's really loud (but if you like that, then it's a good!)
- Didn't try the other items, so the jury is still out on that
Falconetti's
Posted by
Sherman Chan
on Sunday, March 6, 2011
Labels:
Bar,
Hot Dogs,
International,
Late Night,
Vancouver
4 comments:
Nice post Sherman! Your post is mine in a nutshell lol... good times! Good sausages... I can't believe my post is dirtier than yours... you're supposed to be king of dirty jokes!!
...The other food is weak...
I have tried this place twice and service was always an issue, very inexperienced. Also, I was not comfortable with the atmosphere. Probably is me, but I thought I was in downtown Palermo, Sicily, in the 1930’s (I had no bullet proof vest..., but my imagination is not modest). But again, as you said, if you enjoy loud music and a reasonable sausage, maybe this place is not as ghastly as I thing it is.
Mijune, Sherman has passed the torch to you! :P
I'm honoured... *chuckle*
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