THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 15, 1995 TAG: 9510170464
SECTION: FLAVOR PAGE: F1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Restaurant review
SOURCE: BY BROWN H. CARPENTER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
FRANKIE'S PLACE for Ribs has used a simple, tasty formula to quietly grow into a four-restaurant, locally owned chain: Grilled tender baby-back ribs are amply basted with a pungent, spicy, ketchup-based barbecue sauce.
Go with a big appetite but leave home your hunger for ``haute cuisine,'' culinary trends or ``lite'' dishes. Be prepared to get down and messy gnawing on rib bones.
Maybe you should take a bib, too.
Frankie's has served ribs in the Virginia Beach resort area and in Kempsville for several years. Owner Frank Bauman recently opened restaurants on Shore Drive in Virginia Beach and at Great Bridge in Chesapeake.
Four of us recently dined one Saturday evening at the Shore Drive restaurant in Lynnhaven Beach Square.
The dining area was full but not packed. We were seated quickly and split half an onion loaf as an appetizer. Frankie's legendary ``loaf'' is a huge mound of fried onion rings.
Because we also left at home our calorie-counters, we dug in. But we couldn't finish more than half of these tasty, crispy snacks ($2.95 for a half-loaf and $4.95 for a whole).
Although Frankie's offers a 14-ounce New York strip steak ($14.95) and grilled tuna (regular or Cajun-style, $8.95), barbecued ribs and chicken are the restaurant's foundation, so we sampled the latter.
If you like to share, this is a good place to order several entrees and try a bit of everything. The large rack of baby-back pork ribs ($12.95) was easily divided among four.
The beef ribs also come in two sizes: four ribs ($9.75) and six ribs ($12.95).
Barbecued chicken ($7.95) is a half-bird of pieces easily apportioned. The barbecue platter ($6.95) is a generous serving of pulled pork barbecue.
All this sharing allows diners to compare pork and beef ribs. They are slathered with thick, piquant-sweet sauce, as is the chicken.
The pork had a tender texture that provided a succulent vehicle for the sauce. The flavor of the chewier beef came through distinctly, blending nicely with the sauce.
The chicken was tender and juicy; the pulled pork barbecue zesty and plentiful, seasoned with the same signature sauce.
Side dishes were the comfort foods that usually accompany barbecue: coleslaw, french fries, baked potato, baked beans, succotash, apple sauce and salad. Diners may choose two with each entree.
Our meals included slaw, fries, baked potato and beans. All were good, the fresh, crunchy slaw especially so.
We were too full for dessert but dutifully ordered a chocolate mousse tart ($3.25) and cheesecake ($2.95). Both were lightly textured and not too sweet - good meal-enders.
This little chain is kid-friendly. Several tot meals are 99 cents each; one is $2.95. But why not order a rack of back ribs and divide it among the small fry? They'll have a good time chewing on the bones, and you can hose the kids down when you get home. MEMO: Reviews of chain restaurants with stores in Hampton Roads are based on a
single, unannounced visit by a party of two or three, unless otherwise
noted. The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star pay for the reviewer's
meal and those of the guests. ILLUSTRATION: ROY A. BAHLS COLOR PHOTOS
NEAR LEFT: Frankie's Place for Ribs on Shore Drive. FAR LEFT:
King-sized Baby Back Pork Ribs in Barbecue Sauce ($12.95)
Graphic
CHAIN REACTION
Frankie's Place For Ribs, 2947 Shore Drive (Lynnhaven Beach
Square), Virginia Beach. 481-9350.
Hours: from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday; from 4:30 to 10 p.m.
Monday through Thursday; from 4:30 to 10:30 p.m. Friday and
Saturday.
Prices: Entrees range from $6.95 for a barbecue platter to $14.95
for a New York strip-steak dinner. Baby-back ribs come in two sizes,
for $10.95 or $12.95. Beef ribs, $9.75 or $12.95.
Reservations: accepted.
Smoking: limited to about 25 percent of the dining space.
Owned by: Frank Bauman, with four locations in Hampton Roads.
by CNB