Big Daddy’s BBQ & Sweet Shack brings Texas-style ‘cue to Salem

Food truck Big Daddy’s BBQ & Sweet Shack announced it will open a permanent location at 602 West Fourth Street in Salem by early July. Owner Brent Bowles started the food truck in 2023 with a menu of North Carolina- and South Carolina-style barbecue staples. In anticipation of opening a brick-and-mortar and to differentiate the restaurant from other area barbecue eateries, Bowles switched his focus to Texas-style barbecue. This means using a homemade Texas-style rub for proteins like pork and brisket, using primarily oak wood, and altering some techniques, like spritzing the brisket with a Texas-style vinegar, which gets heat from black pepper and a savory depth from the addition of beef drippings. He’s also added “hot guts,” a Texas-style smoked sausage (frequently Kielbasa, as it is here), in original and jalapeño-cheddar flavors ($19 per pound).

Texas-style also means that you can order meat by the pound and customize platters (called meat plates here) with your desired quantity of pulled pork ($22 per pound), pork ribs ($22 per pound) or brisket ($32 per pound). Can’t decide? Go for the Texas Trinity, which features brisket, Texas-style pork ribs and sausage, plus sides such as mac and cheese, baked beans, coleslaw or potato salad ($28 for a one-person platter with two sides; $50 for a two-person platter with four sides). The Salem restaurant will have a full bar with beer, wine and liquors, highlighting a selection of bourbon. As for the sweets part of the name equation, you’ll find top-notch ice cream from Tillamook Creamery, available in a cup or cone ($4 for a single, $6 for a double), in a cookie skillet ($6 for a single) or sandwiched between your choice of cookies ($6 for a single).

Birdogs Food Truck rolls out South Carolina Bird Dog sandwiches this summer

“It’s not a chicken sandwich and it’s not a hot dog, it’s a birddog. It’s kind of a combination of the two, a chicken tender inside a hot dog bun and it’s usually served with honey mustard,” says Stan Myshkovskiy of his food truck’s namesake and signature menu item. Myshkovskiy grew up eating this regional delicacy in South Carolina, where he also frequently ate breakfast bird dogs, which also incorporate bacon and eggs.

Myshkovskiy was inspired to launch Birdogs since it was a dish he missed eating, but also because he saw opportunities in the existing dining landscape. “We saw kind of a need for food trucks in the Roanoke area through our page,” he says. (Myshkovskiy also runs social media account Hello Roanoke with his wife, Genya Kalinina, but says that Birdogs will be a separate entity). “We can tell there are food trucks constantly cancelling; there’s not quite enough of them to go around for all the demand that exists, so that was one of the reasons I felt comfortable going into this.” He also noticed a void in grab-and-go breakfast options, which he hopes Birdogs can also help fill.

Myshkovskiy plans to offer both original and breakfast bird dog sandwiches, as well as variations including a vegetarian option and possibly one featuring locally made hot sauce. A basic bird dog will cost $6, and combo meals, which include one or two bird dogs plus a side (like hand-cut fries) and a drink, will range from $10 to $15. For information on schedules, events and menu updates, follow Birdogs on Instagram and Facebook. 

Absolutely Delicious Bar and Grill serves up value eats in Vinton FarmBurguesa space

Absolutely Delicious Bar and Grill, which took over the former FarmBurguesa space at 303 S Pollard St in Vinton, has steadily expanded its American comfort food menu since it opened last December. “I try to keep things on the menu within a reasonable price but I do prioritize quality here,” says Justin Thacker, who runs the restaurant with his mother, Theresa Thacker. They started with a simple menu of smashburgers, featuring a 4.5-ounce patty, cheese and toppings on a toasted brioche bun ($6.50 for a single; $12.50 for a double), beef hot dogs ($3.75, with choice of toppings including chili, coleslaw, ketchup, mustard or relish) and Jesse Jones, a regional chicken-pork hotdog with a signature red hue ($3, with toppings).

From there, the Thackers expanded to sandwiches, including BLTs ($6.50), patty melts, which features a patty on Texas toast piled with bacon, grilled onions and pickles ($8) and steak-and-cheese, with red peppers, onions and mushrooms on a six-inch hoagie ($12). Thacker also highlighted budget-friendly eats like the chicken strip basket, which comes with four strips, an ample side of French fries, choice of sauce and a drink for ($8.99; Thacker notes that it comes to $10.01 after tax) and the signature Big Mama, a thick-cut slice of fried baloney topped with bacon, egg, cheese and choice of toppings on a toasted brioche bun ($13.50). This fall, the pair plan to expand Absolutely Delicious’ seating with an outdoor patio and to install an indoor-outdoor dive bar.

Kind Baking Co. now open at new Wasena location

Kind Baking Co. is officially open at its new address, 1116 Main St. SW in Roanoke. The shop is stocked with many of its signature baked goods, such as scones ($7), biscuits ($5.50) and chocolate chip cookies ($4.50), plus additional desserts in the cold case, such as tiramisu ($8) and Basque cheesecake ($6.50), and a salad crafted with produce from local farms such as Garden Variety Harvest and Thornfield Farm and housemade dressings ($8-$10; salad changes weekly). You’ll also find a retail assortment which includes locally made pottery, kitchen ingredients and entertaining staples such as napkins and vintage glassware. Owner Bryn McDaniel is also currently taking custom orders for cakes and desserts, corporate gifting and wholesale accounts, as well as booking weddings for the 2025-2026 season. 

First Impressions: Burritos Paso Del Norte

I’ve been patiently waiting for Burritos Paso Del Norte (2901 Franklin Rd SW, Roanoke) to announce a grand opening, but was happy to catch the food truck open on one of their soft opening days.

Burritos Paso Del Norte, helmed by Maria Luisa Gonzalez and her business partner Maira Matias, offers a menu of burritos ($7.99), tacos ($11.99), machetes ($14.99), huaraches ($12.99) and tamales ($2.99 each). It’s parked in the same lot as Brew Initiative Coffee; Nils Olsson, who owns the coffee truck and leases the space in the lot to Burritos Paso Del Norte, is an Arizona native and pronounced Gonzalez’s cooking as some of the most authentic he’s had in years. He tipped me off to the machetes, a type of quesadilla I’d never encountered before, named for its blade-like shape. It was a solid recommendation; the dish features a sturdy homemade corn tortilla with a pleasant nutty taste brought out by a nice toasted on the griddle and filled with your choice of protein and mozzarella. It’s served with an irresistible creamy green sauce, which gets its zesty brightness from a mix of jalapeño, cilantro and zucchini, as well as chopped raw onions and cilantro for topping. I enjoyed a mix of carne asada (steak) and chorizo (Mexican sausage), but I’ll be back to have it with barbacoa, a melting blend of braised beef tongue and cheek. (It wasn’t available the day I dined, but when I asked Gonzalez about the different protein options, her eyes lit up when she told me that the barbacoa is really good).

Gonzalez also pointed out the tamales, which are excellent; standard offerings include pork with red salsa or chicken with green salsa, but don’t sleep on the rojas con queso if that’s on special. A tender parcel of masa studded with roasted poblano peppers, tomatoes and cheese is wrapped neatly in the corn husk in which it was steamed. It feels a little like opening a present, a gift that keeps giving, each bite yielding a savory-spicy flavor hit.

I was so distracted by all of the recommendations that I ran out of stomach real estate to try the burrito (in my defense, it was my second lunch). But given how the other dishes shine, I’m banking on the burrito, either bistec a la Mexicana (beef steak with jalapeños, onion and tomato) or asado de puerco (pork with red salsa) rolled in a homemade flour tortilla, to deliver too. Check Burritos Paso Del Norte’s Facebook page for schedules, grand opening date announcements and menu updates.

Ask Layla: Where to Eat

“Where can I find the best pupusas in town? Bonus points for solid tamales!” – Dana C., Roanoke

Pupusas, which are thick, flat cakes made with masa (a cornmeal dough) and stuffed with cheese and other fillings, are a dish that I don’t eat often enough, despite there being a number of places to get them in Roanoke. Since I’m an extra credit kind of gal, I recommend Super Amanecer II (1398 Towne Square Blvd NW, Roanoke) where you can get a solid plate of pupusas and a tasty tamal or two.

Pupusas come three to an order ($11.50) or you can order them a la carte ($3.99 each). Whether stuffed with cheese, beans and cheese (my server’s favorite, and mine, too), pork and cheese, mixta (cheese, beans and pork), or zucchini, the pupusas arrive hot off the griddle, amply blistered with cheetah-esque spots and boasting an impressive cheese pull. They’re flanked by sidecars of salsa de tomate (a warm tomato salsa) and what I recognized as curtido, a tangy cabbage-carrot slaw with a slight kick, but which I learned also goes by the name of ensalada de repollo. Cut or rip off a piece of pupusa and doctor-up each bite with a medley of tang and crunch.

On the tamales front, you’ll find tamales steamed in banana leaves and stuffed with beef, pork or chicken, the latter of which features tender masa stuffed with ample chunks of chicken and batons of carrot and potato, like chicken soup in tamal form. You’ll also find elote tamales, listed under the breakfast section of the menu, which can be ordered regular or fried ($10.99). The elote tamal I sampled was tasty, lightly sweet, with a drier texture than the protein-based ones. You can also purchase tamales from the grocery store side of Super Amanecer II, where you can pluck them, warm and unwrapped, from the steam trays by the register. While you’re here, peruse the aisles for spices, hot sauces and snacks to stock your cupboards too.

Pupusas are the national dish of El Salvador, so I’m interested in visiting Pupuseria Salvadorena Las Delicias next. Here, the pupusas are made from a combination of corn and rice flour and come stuffed with a variety of “cheese-with” combos. I’ve got my eye on loroco, an edible flower bud that’s a common pupusa filling. I haven’t yet tried Hondoruan pupusas yet, which can be found at Rincon Catracho, where they offer cheese pupusas, or those at El Paraiso Honduran (current menu offerings include cheese or cheese with chicharron), but I can’t wait to investigate and report back.