Shrub Steppe Smokehouse and Brewery

So remember on Sunday I mentioned a delightful thing we did with our date night? Yes, we decided to plug in a random restaurant we'd never been to before, one that was a local favorite listed on our map app, and test it out for the hell of it! And we did not regret it. Not one bit. No. The only mild thing we came across was the pain we were in when we left because we literally could not stop eating the food.

Okay, ready to hear about it?

 I present to you...

Shrub Steppe Smokehouse and Brewery

photo courtesy of their facebook page

So I'm not going to lie, upon first broaching this restaurant, the trip there as well as the outside of it was a little...daunting. The trip there was indeed off the beaten path, and you had to take a small series of highways in order to reach it. Luckily we had our trusty phone GPS at our disposal. But even then, our signal was lost once or twice along the small trek. And when we pulled into the parking lot, it was dark, and this place was tucked in at the beginning of several buildings. The inside seemed lit well enough, but everything outside was a bit dark. But we decided, we've come this far, let's take a chance.

We were greeted by this smiling face.

photo courtesy of their facebook page

I wanted to get a pic of her myself, but I have just started blogging again and am not really that comfortable being that girl walking up to strangers with the line "Oh hey I have a blog". So I couldn't quite make it. But not for lack of her friendliness. She was absolutely bright and welcoming, and made us feel right at home in the cozy atmosphere. When we were there, there was a woman playing cards with a young child, and a couple of other tables of nice warm looking people. So the husband and I knew we were in a place we'd be comfortable in. We took a seat and immediately got down to some business. 

my amazing order. 50/50 brisket and pulled pork. Jesus.

So, upon ordering our drinks, which I watched our waitress draft quite nicely, and were equally tasty. My husband got one of the local drafts, while I had a guest draft that was a wicked cider. Very very good on both parts. Our waitress then got our orders, which we were both going to have a side of mac and cheese. But then...It got great.

She leans forwards in a conspiratory manner, and asks us if we'd like to try what they call Fat. Kid. Candy. Oh yes. You read that right. Fat Kid Candy. It was their mac and cheese half and half with their smokehouse chili. My husband and I gave each other one longing look before both pouncing on that. And let me tell you, it was so worth it. SO GOOD! We both ended up eating our side before we even touched our sandwich. There were several options of sauce to go with our meat as well, though they hardly needed anything. It was just...honestly heaven. We both stuffed ourselves way past our good nature and just couldn't stop. 

We were both so pleased with the service as well as the food that we have vowed to ourselves we will try this at least once a month. Going out randomly and picking a new restaurant we've never tried to see if we can replicate such an amazing experience. [I have my doubts just based on how good this place was, but hey, I've been wrong before]

So, if you're in the Richland area, I highly suggest going to see the Shrub Steppe folks. You won't regret it. And if they don't offer it, ask for the Fat Kid Candy.