We Talk Beef with Andy Harris of Grand Ole BBQ

San Diego Magazine's Happy Half Hour

Welcome back! We hit the jackpot this week on Happy Half Hour as we tape from our sponsor, Sycuan Casino Resort, specifically in the restaurant Bull & Bourbon. Marcel, the sous chef of the steakhouse, hopped on to tell us about the 75 internationally-sourced rare bourbons that complement the steaks and seafood. This week was all about barbecue, and our special guest, Andy Harris, knows just about everything there is to know. He’s the owner of Grand Ole BBQ & Asado in North Park, and he recently opened a second location in Flinn Springs, which is near our recording location by El Cajon. Andy's BBQ joint is this year's Critic's Pick for Best of the Best Casual Restaurant in our annual Best Restaurants list, and was recently featured on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" on the Food Network. Andy shared how he switched from working in the music industry to becoming a BBQ expert, and he gave a shout out to Himalayan Cuisine in La Mesa for his Two People, $50. As for our hosts, the veggie burger at Station Tavern and Chiko in Encinitas were this week’s standouts. Things were looking real sweet in Hot Plates this week as we welcomed a new Donut Bar location in Chula Vista. Pacific Beach got a new Argentinian Cafe on Garnet Avenue: Yerba Mate Bar & Empanadas, and Breakfast Republic continues its city-wide domination of the breakfast/brunch scene with the opening of its 9th location, this latest one in Mission Valley. Last but not least, family-owned restaurant Bahn Thai is expanding to Hillcrest. We’re talking about Del Taco as far as Hot Topics go. The fast-food company started selling tacos with Beyond Meat in April, and they just revealed they've already sold two million fake-meat tacos. It's the best-selling new product in the company's history. Thanks for listening, and we’d love to hear from you! Call us at 619-744-0535 and leave a message. Or if you’re too shy to call, you can email [e-mail]. You can give us your recommendations for Two People, $50, tell us about any news happening in San Diego’s culinary world, or let us know who you’d like to hear featured as a guest on the podcast.