Coyote Sam's

Coyote Sam's Bar and Grille
5424 Old Jacksonville Highway
Tyler, TX 75703
(903) 509-4222
http://www.coyotesamsbarandgrille.com/


 
This is a place just off Old Jacksonville south of loop 323. My wife and I have always driven by and wanted to give it a try, but never had an occasion. Our close friends wanted to go out, so we finally had an occasion to give it a try.

The spread: First of all, I love the exterior of the restaurant. It has a unique architecture and I love the stone exterior. The heavy wooden front doors open into a nice greeting room that has various animal heads on the walls. In fact the entire restaurant is decorated with taxidermy items and antique guns on the walls, with some very nice old Winchesters. I would have loved to spend more time looking at the various rifles. It definitely isn't for everyone, but the decor really worked for me. The menu consisted of the standard bar appetizers: nachos, jalapeno poppers, onion rings, with a little twist of venison chili covered nachos. The entrees consists of the standard BBQ items: ribs, brisket, sausage, ham, pulled pork. They also have several grill items available: lots of steaks, fish and burgers/sandwiches. The menu was a little odd for me, because usually good barbeque doesn't come from a place that also serves other things. My wife had the chicken avocado sandwich, I had the Kobe beef burger and my son had the kids rib plate. The service was pretty good, although when I asked the server whether the Kobe beef burger was real Kobe beef, she said "YES!", but when I followed with, "So it's flown in from Japan", she looked befuddled and said "I don't know." Small complaint, but if you are going to call something Kobe, it better BE Kobe.

The Verdict: The most surprising moment was when the waitress arrived with my son's kid's rib plate (3.99), there were six HUGE ribs and a big ole bowl of beans - this is one of the best deals in town. Although I know my burger wasn't Kobe beef (maybe Wagyu) and it was cooked medium well to my specifications and is the best burger I have had in Tyler. The bun was fresh and perfectly sized, the vegetable fresh and crisp, wow it was good food. Also a surprise were the baked beans, they had huge chunks of brisket (or pulled pork?) and they were the best baked beans I have ever had. My wife enjoyed her chicken sandwich, although she complained there was too much chicken (good complaint if you asked me). I did try my son's ribs and they were a bit of a disappointment. They were cooked well and finished over the grille for a nice crust and good flavor. There wasn't enough smoke for me, I didn't detect any smoke lines at all. Again, I failed to ask my friends' impression, but I know they are fans of Coyote Sam's.

Edible Tyler Roses: 4 of 5. The Grill items were spot on, the BBQ is average.

Jalapeno Tree

Jalapeno Tree
420 W Southwest Loop 323
Tyler, TX 75701-9404
(903) 509-0600
http://www.jalapenotree.com/



Went out to eat here one evening with some good friends of mine. We back all our children and braved the freezing temperature and snow to get some Mexican food. It is just to the west of Broadway/I-69 and loop 323. This is a chain that has locations throughout east and south-east Texas.

The spread: I have to give them credit on their menu. It looks great and has cute names for all the meals. They have the standard Tex-mex fair: fajitas, tacos, enchiladas, tamales, nachos, etc. There really wasn't anything on the menu that really set them apart as a Tex-mex restaurant. The restaurant was also festively decorated.

The verdict: We had a good time, but then we always do with our close friends. Everything I had was either average or above average and the prices weren't too steep. I had the "James Dean" special a beef enchilada, a cheese enchilada and taco. The rice and beans were great. I didn't ask what my friends thought of the food, but I think the general feeling was it was money well spent. We had a new server in training and other than a few hiccups, the service was above average. One of my kids decided to throw a wrench into the whole operation, so I didn't get to spend the whole meal at the table. The restaurant is very kid friendly.

Edible Tyler Roses: 3 of 5; solid Tex-mex for reasonable prices.