One restaurant that has piqued my interest over the past few months is Clarence’s Smokehouse at the Dish. Everything about it, from its name to its tasty wares has drawn my interest since it set up shop earlier this year at 601 S. Saginaw Road in Midland, the former site of Belle’s Bakery and U.S. Coney and Cone.
I have very fond memories of visiting the old U.S. Coney and Cone, often bicycling there with my parents for a mid-summer treat. As this was before Great Lakes Ice Cream and Dairy Queen arrived in that part of town, it was a great way to spend a warm evening. While my dad favored either pineapple or raspberry Dole Whip twisted with vanilla ice cream, I preferred the chocolate soft serve with rainbow sprinkles; I can still remember the intense chocolate flavor to this day.
Now with summer just around the corner (I have designated the annual Summer Art Fair as my own unofficial start of the season), I decided it was time to return to the Saginaw Road restaurant and try a seasonal favorite: barbecue chicken sandwich. With a rumbling stomach and a hankering for some adventure, I made my way to Clarence’s Smokehouse.
The restaurant offers a selection of grilled and smoked delicacies including hot dogs and sausages, burgers, pork and chicken, in addition to appetizers of deviled eggs and sides of baked beans and coleslaw. And don’t get me started on their desserts, including Dole Whip and ice cream – I’ll be back another day to have just dessert. I had to take a couple of minutes standing outside of the service window to properly make up my mind. In the end, I decided to go the safe, standard route with a barbecue chicken sandwich and a side of potato salad. A few people were lined up behind me and there was only one table available, so I decided to take my meal back home, it was a short drive, so no problem for me.
The aroma of smoked meat tantalized me during the brief wait for my food and all through the drive back. I have a theory that barbecue joints use their outdoor smokers to draw people in the same way that ice cream shops use waffle cone makers to get minds thinking about their tasty wares. When I opened the clamshell container, I was ready to dig in.
The sandwich was chock-full of pulled chicken and topped with lettuce and mayo, with a handful of chicken pieces spilling over. I pecked at the spare pieces to start and fell in love with the tender, smoky meat. The restaurant staff also included a small cup of barbecue sauce, which nicely balanced a vinegar base with more smoky essence and a hint of spice and sweetness. Technically, the sandwich was full of flavor already, and the mayo provided some nice moisture, so the sauce wasn’t necessary. However, I tend to use barbecue sauce the way other people use ketchup, so on it went.
Most times when I order a barbecue sandwich from any restaurant, it is too big, too cumbersome to handle without a knife and fork. This time, everything stayed together very well, apart from the spare chicken piece or two. Paired with the potato salad, which was creamy and tangy with its mix of red-skinned potatoes and chopped celery, it made for a delicious meal.
The staff at Clarence’s Smokehouse were friendly and accommodating. The woman who took my order was very patient as I mulled over the choices, and she explained the differences between different meals. When I went to pick up the food, a gentleman explained the meaning behind the restaurant’s name, how it got its start as a food truck and served food at Dow Diamond. “At the dish” combines the term for a culinary utensil with baseball slang for “pitch.”
I hope that Clarence’s Smokehouse continues to grow, gain traction and become another beloved favorite lunch spot for residents. I look forward to how the summer plays out for this new restaurant. Cheers!
Editor's note: Out to Lunch with Tori will appear each Thursday in the Midland Daily News. Victoria (Tori) Ritter can be reached at vritter@mdn.net
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June 03, 2021 at 04:08PM
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Out to Lunch with Tori: Clarence's Smokehouse at the Dish - Midland Daily News
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