Jimmy Mac's Roadhouse

Off of Rainier Ave S in Renton (just south of Seattle) sits a very laid-back BBQ family restaurant called Jimmy Mac's Roadhouse. You can tell just from the look of the outside and front that this type of place would have a very chill and/or "interesting" atmosphere. I guess the part of the sign that says "Peanuts on the floor" gave me that impression.

When you first walk into the restaurant and look to your left, you'll see this huge barrel of peanuts. Yup, peanuts. You're told to grab a bowl and help yourself to as much as you'd like. The greeters/servers are very friendly and would seat you promptly.

When you arrive at your table, your server will serve you up some fresh, hot, delicious rolls with whipped butter (I just started salivating). Those rolls were crazy good (I ate about 5 before my meal). While chowing down on the rolls, I took a look at the "busy" menu with so many choices and couldn't help but think to myself that I couldn't go into a "roadhouse" restaurant and not order some sort of meat dish. It was either between the baby-back ribs or steak, so I ended up getting the 16oz prime rib, end cut. The end cut has the nice crust with all the spices on it.

For an appetizer I tried their foot of onion rings with 3 different dipping sauces, bbq, honey-mustard, and peppercorn dressing. I think with the fresh rolls, the onion rings, and the peanuts were pretty filling on their own. And, by the way, you're encouraged to throw the peanut shells right on the ground. There are even signs that say you'll get charged if you leave the shells on the table!

The waitress was very attentive and did a nice job checking up for any drink refills, even during that very busy hour. I pretty much kept loading up on rolls and ice water.

The food came about 15-20 minutes after the order (they were really busy), which isn't that bad of a wait considering it was for a nice, thick, well-cooked steak. Check out the crust on the prime rib. It was basically one huge chunk of meat with awesome seasoning. It was served with a salad, a fully-fixed baked potato, and sides of au jus and sour cream. You're salivating, aren't you? It was so juicy, tender, and delicious. I could have probably downed 2 of these!

OK, now for my 5-doughnut rating system:

• Service, 3 doughnuts= Very friendly and attentive service. There were only a couple of times I waited just a little while longer to get something, but for the most part the service was pretty good.


• Atmosphere/Location, 2.5 doughnuts= The atmosphere was pretty chill and "country". There were a ton of neon signs and tv's all around the place (showing sports), along with a small bar near the front entrance. The restaurant was located in a busy plaza area near a Wal-Mart and can be easily spotted from the main road.


• Food Presentation, 2 doughnuts= Not much you can do with this type of dish. They just threw on a nice piece of meat with a baked potato. It did still look good though.


• Taste, 3.5 doughnuts= The food was great. The steak was superb, along with the fully-fixed baked potato, the rolls, and onion rings. The prime rib was definitely mouth-watering and had some really tasty seasoning embedded into the meat.


• Cost/Value, 2 doughnuts= For dinner, the prices were pretty high for the food. Don't get me wrong, the food was good, but the pricetag was a little up there. Maybe lunch is a little cheaper.


• Originality, 3 doughnuts= The peanuts on the floor idea has been done at other places I've been to, but it's still sort of unique. You don't find too many places that allow that type of messy behavior, which adds a slight fun factor.


• Overall, 3 doughnuts= I definitely liked the food and atmosphere at this place. I'll go again just to try their crabcakes.

Check out their website over at http://www.jimmymacsroadhouse.com/. And as always.....Om Nom Nom Nom!

-NMOS

Click on the Foodista link below for a recipe for BBQ prime rib: