The Moxie's Beef Dip ... High Hopes

The title says it all. We were hungry and ready for a quality beef dip. Moxie's on Kingsway Avenue is close to work and we wanted to be impressed. The service was excellent and our large group was accomodated quickly without a reservation.

The description of the beef dip on the menu is as follows: shaved beef, sautéed mushrooms and swiss cheese served on a baguette, with au jus for dipping. How could we not be impressed when the description of mushrooms comes with a French accent?  " l'amener!"  (That's French for "bring it on!"

The beef dips arrived quickly and our mouths were watering.  Lots of different sides were ordered - salads, fries and soups - and the presentations were good and appetizing. The first few bites were everything that we had anticipated, but remember, we were all pretty hungry.

The au jus bowl size was perfect. Points for that. And then we started to break it down. We are getting good at this so we ask lots of questions. Tastes great, but then "oh, the bread gets kind of soggy and mushy when it's dipped"; and "oh, the beef kind of tastes like it is processed rather than freshly sliced"; and "oh, the au jus tastes pretty artificial". The fries and the salads were okay, but the soups were described as being a bit salty and not that hot.

Now that we have had a few beef dips we are becoming more discerning. We all wanted to like this dip ... but sadly the more we ate, the more we became, well  ... meh.  Not to say we all didn't finish them because we were hungry. They weren't bad ... but really they weren't really that good. Our advice, when at Moxie's "skip the dip."

Two and half dips out of five on the Dip-O-Metre ... Meh

The Crown and Tower in St. Albert

Had a great beef deep at the Crown and Tower in St. Albert. It's located in a strip mall and you may not give it a second thought, but you should. It's a nice little pub with a real diverse crowd. Young, old and a pretty good little beef dip. The bread is good, the roast beef is good and the au jus is good. Plus you can get a side of mash potatoes and gravy. No colour on the plate; just brown. Yummm ... brown food. Just posting this I'm drooling. Au jus and gravy. Thank you beef dip god! 

This is two scoops of real mash potatoes and gravy. Uummm... gravy

Are you drooling too?  The bread stays together when dipping and the roast beef is easy to bite through. The dipping bowl is excellent and if you run out there is always the gravy...ummmm gravy.

A great little beef dip that gets a four out of five dips on the dip-o-metre.

Eureka!!!

Eureka is used as an exclamation to celebrate a discovery. It comes from the Ancient Greek meaning "I have found it". And that's what we felt like when we experienced the beef dip at Hudsons Tap House on 104 Avenue. To begin with, the service was amazing. The staff couldn't have been nicer or more accomodating. As a large group we felt very welcomed and felt we had found a place where we could have spent the entire afternoon.

First off, there are choices! You can choose between beef dip sliders or regular dip sandwiches off the menu. Wow, who would have thought there would be options for a beef dip. The offering of beef dip sliders is quite simply brilliant. Our drinks were delivered quickly and so were our meals. The bread was perfect. The crust was hard and the bread inside was soft. There were sliders were served in three rolls which were all stuffed with roast beef. Horseradish mayo was an option. Sides consisted of salads, fries and soup.

And the beef ... well it was incredible. It was not sliced, but rather tender pieces of mouth watering morsels of the most delicious roast beef. It literally melted in your mouth. The au jus was generous and of course the small rolls made it very easy to dip. Again, what a brilliant idea. Bravo. Not only did the dip taste great, it was also a great way to experience a beef deep.

Some of our beef dip samplers also order the regular beef dip and they agreed, these beef dips were the best so far ... and maybe the best ever. It is also worthy to note that for once the au jus shlumpa did run out of au jus and Andy Ray Vaughn, the fry expert, reports the fries were excellent. We also had a beef dip virgin with us who experienced the mighty dip for the first time. And she loved it!

The only complaint, Hudson's doesn't have Interact. Remember to bring cash or a credit card.

Five on the Dip-Oh-Meter. Well done Hudsons!

Smokin' Hot Au Jus at Original Joe's

Sunday at the Buena Vista - July 11, 2010

It could have been the Buena Vista draft beer, but this may have been the best dip I've had in a long time. Located at the corner of Hyde and Beach in San Francisco, the Buena Vista takes credit for inventing the Irish coffee. I don't like coffee, but I really like this place and their beer. They have a bartender who has worked there for 47 years.




Stayed put to make friends and watch the soccer game.



Around 4 p.m. I ordered the French beef dip. Wow, this was no mistake. These folks know how to serve the dip in all its simplicity. The bread was incredible. The crust was hard and stayed that way when dipped; the roast beef was sliced,perfectly; the portion was very generous; and the au jus was served in a wide mouthed bowl. It was perfect.

When dipped, the breaded softened enough to allow the first bite to explode in my mouth. Yum. Exactly what is suppose to happen when you dip. Again the au jus was not spectacular, but it did the job. It flavoured and softened the bread only enough to enhance the taste of the sandwich.

Trust me, this was a great dip. Again, they don't put a lot of effort into au jus, but they serve it so that the sandwich can be dipped. And the coleslaw, again, was amazing. Check it out if you go to San Francisco. You will not be disappointed.

Here is their website: http://thebuenavista.com/

On the Road in San Francisco - July 9, 2010

I had no plans to have a beef dip while on vacation, but there it was on the menu ... French Dip and I couldn't resist. Remember that beef dips were invented in the U.S. I was at Lori's Cafe for breakfast, but it was almost noon. Bacon and eggs or a beef dip. How could I resist? And I wasn't disappointed. Beef dip on a French bread, au jus and coleslaw. Heaven!

Americans just know how to do it. The plate arrived with a sandwich cut in half and generous serving of tender roast beef. I ordered coleslaw as my side and the au jus came in a cup that was big enough to accommodate the sandwich being dipped. Very simple and very pure.


The first bite was a surprise. The crust of the bread was hard, but when dipped the bread inside broke down and became a little gummy. It was actually a little weird. But the more I dipped and became accustomed to the breakdown in the bread, the better it tasted. The beef was excellent, moist and tender. The au jus was more of a broth, but that worked just fine. Not too salty and very tasty.



I'm not going to rate this dip, but it was very, very good.

Beef Dip at Original Joe's

Well our anticipation was high. A large group of us headed for lunch to partake in the Original Joe's beef dip. It had been recommended and we were all looking forward to it.

First impression, the service was not great. It may have been because we were a large group ... and we get that. But the server was really detached from us and did not even acknowledge we waited over 45 minutes for our food. A little "I'll check on your order" or "we want to make sure that everyone gets their food at the same time" would have been nice. But she basically avoided us. A little word of advice, if you don't like being a server, quit.

The sandwich came with onions and mushrooms, with cheese as an option and there were lots of choices for sides: fries, sweet potatoe fries, slaw, pasta salad, fresh or grilled vegetables, soup. Their were no end to the choices.

Once we received our food the presentation was amazing and the au jus was served steaming. As dippers we were all hopeful. First impressions were that the size of the bowl containing the au jus was incredible. Bravo, plenty of room to dip away. However we were all concerned when we picked up the sandwich.

The roll was basically a fresh hot dog bun. We totally knew that it would disintegrate when dipped ... and we were right .. it ended up as a floating (er ...sorry about this) bread turd. The worst possible thing to happen. Not only that, a few of the buns were cut on both sides. This makes it impossible for the sandwich to stay together.

We found the roast beef to be rather bland, and the au jus seemed to be prepared from a beef Oxo cube and was much too salty. As for the sides, thumbs up for the regular and sweet potato fries and the dill dip. The mango pasta salad was sadly missing mangos. The roasted vegetables were good, but not balanced between plates and the coleslaw was rated high. Finally, the company was great, the food was okay and and the service was poor.

And once again, someone ran out of au jus ... unbelievable. It's not like au jus costs a lot of money people! Come on.

Two dips out of five on the Dip-O-Meter.

And so the search continues. According to ARV, Hudson's has mini beef dips. Bring it on!