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The Flying Pig has landed.
And this is one sweet pig.
Flying Pig is a new barbecue restaurant in Mansfield. The specialty is pulled pork, like you'd find in Oklahoma and Arkansas restaurants, and the tender meat and sauce are Southern sweet.
The Pig also serves sliced brisket like every other Texas barbecue shack around. But even that is sweeter, particularly with the unusual side dishes.
The jalapeño creamed corn is like Texas-meets-the-South, more like a side dish from a prime steakhouse. And no pintos here -- Flying Pig has sweet baked beans.
Everything comes with the Pig's sweet-hot pickles.
Right now, I'd stick with the pulled pork and sliced beef. The owners promise more menu items soon.
The Pig is in a former sports grill at 2300 Matlock Road on the corner at Country Club Drive; 817-225-0760, www.flyingpigpitbbq.com.
Cowtown Diner wants another chance.
So if you'll go there on a Monday night in June, dinner is free.
There are some rules. You have to book a reservation. And you have to order a specialty drink or wine. So that free dinner will cost you about $8.
But you still get a choice of three dinners -- smothered chicken, spaghetti or smoked-chicken-mac-and-cheese -- free.
Cowtown Diner is chef Scott Jones' new contemporary cafe. It has made a lot of friends at breakfast, but downtown dinner is slow on weeknights.
The deal begins June 7. Call 817-332-9555; 305 Main St., www.thecowtowndiner.com.
Three off-the-beaten-path restaurants that are small in size, big in flavor:
El Pollo Palenque on Hemphill Street in south Fort Worth might be the best undiscovered surprise in town.
The rotisserie chicken falls off the bone. The beans are strikingly different from the refrieds at other restaurants. And the red and green salsas and fresh tortillas alone are enough to it make it worth a stop.
The lunch specials include a combination fajitas platter for $6.95. (This is real seasoned skirt steak, not the cuts substituted at Tex-Mex restaurants.)
El Pollo Palenque is open daily, 9 a.m.-10 p.m.; 4117 Hemphill St., 817-921-1489.
Las Pericas is a tiny cafe by a motel on Northside Drive. But the flavors are big, particularly if you add the house-made green salsa.
Las Pericas is particularly known for carne guisada (spicy beef stew).
It's only open for breakfast and lunch, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays; 915 E. Northside Drive, 817-332-5997.
Tino's Mexican Restaurant on the South Freeway is another motel coffee shop full of surprises.
Tino's serves the same menu and specials as the Adame family's local Chuy 's restaurants. That means big breakfast platters and $5 lunches.
Tino's is open 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, 7 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays; 4201 South Freeway, 817-920-9945.
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