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Throwback Bites
UNCLE ERNIE’S CLASSIC SAMMIES, AND A TRIP TO NC FOR BBQ
By Hillary Brown food@flagpole.com
RETRO: Entire classes of UGA students have
come and gone since Ernie Battinelli had a
restaurant, although if they’re on the foot
ball team, they’ve probably had his catering.
If you were around in Athens in the mid-
1990s, though, the food at Uncle Ernie’s
Pub ’n’ Grub (235 W. Washington St., 706-
850-8990) is like Proust’s mad-
eleines. One bite of the potato i
salad, and you’ll experience a host s
of memories, a glimpse of your g
former self. That is not to say it is m
the best potato salad in town, but i|j
it is perhaps the most evocative.
Uncle Ernie’s isn’t actually
run by Ernie Battinelli, although
he’s on hand to serve as a guiding
influence to his son Daniel, who
is the owner of the restaurant.
Unlike the original Clayton Street
Deli—the first Battinelli joint
in Athens—Uncle Ernie’s has a
full bar. It also has more TVs per
square foot than probably any
other restaurant in Athens, which
means a lot of sports, which
means it is a thoroughly dudely
restaurant. If you are a woman
who is conscious of such things
and you glance around, you will
feel quite outnumbered.
The sandwiches that make up
the majority of the menu are just
as much a trip back in time, which
does not mean that they’re dated.
Rather, they are classics. The
ordering system is surprisingly
complex, with a large, laminated, two-sided
menu that has tons of options but also
small slips of paper with which to complete
your order, so that you may customize your
sandwich thoroughly. The big menu doesn’t
give you all the choices (types of bread,
spreads, sandwich fixins), so you need the
little one, too, and the waiter will collect a
slip from each patron at the table. If you’re
getting a salad, you can use one to specify
your dressing and any special instructions.
There are loads of bread choices—honey
wheat, pumpernickel, marble rye, sour
dough, different kinds of rolls, croissants,
tortillas flavored or unflavored and even
gluten-free, which wasn’t an option back
in the day—but they all still tend to arrive
untoasted, which means the enormous
sandwiches often fall apart. No matter. You
can eat your massive egg salad sammich
with a fork if you need to.
You might think you want to put the
most ingredients possible on a sandwich,
but the simpler choices, egg salad included,
tend to be a little more successful. Take, for
example, the meatball sub, which does not
need lettuce, tomato, et al. and is better for
it. These are fundamentally New York deli
sandwiches, which means that a bunch of
meat is the centerpiece, as in the Barrister,
a combo of pastrami and corned beef that
resides in the “specialty sandwiches” sec
tion of the menu, alongside Scholar, MBA,
Undergrad, PhD and “Italian Sub.”
Uncle Ernie’s also has burgers (Not bad!
Feel free to add a fried egg on top), Nathan’s
hot dogs, quesadillas, a bunch of wraps,
liverwurst, chicken parm, a black bean
burger, an eggplant sandwich and a number
of giant salads, many of which also feature
sliced meats. Sides include fries (regular,
crinkle-cut, sweet potato), tots, onion
rings, the aforementioned potato salad and
more. Wings are available in the evenings.
The kitchen is not generally speedy, but the
atmosphere is pleasant. Uncle Ernie’s is
open 11 a.m.-ll p.m. daily.
ROAD TRIP: Is four hours too far to drive for
just barbecue? Lexington, NC, is famous
far and wide for Lexington Barbecue
(100 Smokehouse Lane, 336-249-9814),
which is absolutely worth a trip. Known
as Honeymonk or The Monk to locals, the
place is big and right off the highway. It
doesn’t traffic in sawdust on the floor or
cutesy pig signs. What it does have is vin
tage high chairs, three-cent bubble gum by
the cash register, Cheerwine and excellent
barbecue.
Lexington/Piedmont-style rather than
Eastern North Carolina-style, the ’cue
features a sauce that includes
ketchup and a ton of pepper,
with just the tiniest kiss of sweet
alongside pure vinegar and cay
enne. I am not a sauce person.
I bought a bottle of this sauce.
The meat (pork, of course) comes
sliced or chopped, either more
finely or less finely, depending
on what you order. If you get
the coarse-chopped, you’ll have
l-to-2-inch hunks. The slaw
incorporates the sauce, which
means it’s red, not mayonnaisey,
and although Lexington Barbecue
will bring you rolls if you want
them, you are advised to get
the hush puppies as your bread,
because they are excellent.
There’s also fried fish, fried
shrimp, hamburger steak, fried
chicken, burgers, hot dogs, sand
wiches with smoked turkey or
pork skins, kids meals and vari
ous kinds of pie. I’m sure much of
it is good, too. For being a storied
type of place, the prices are darn
good, going up no higher than
$11.70 for a “plate,” which comes
with fries, slaw and bread, as
opposed to a “tray,” which doesn’t include
fries but sometimes includes more meat
than a plate, depending. It is absolutely
worth a side trip if you’re in the area and is
open 10 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Monday through
Saturday, closed Sundays and the week of
July 4. ©
PULASKI
HEIGHTS
FALL
PATIO
BY0B
NEED WE SAY MORE?
706.583.9600
THE LEATHERS BLDG.
675 PULASKI ST, STE.100
SUN-TUES 11am-9pm
WED-SAT Ham-IOpm
OR WHEN THE MEAT RUNS OUT
Friendly Staff
Experienced Tattoo
Artists
Professional Piercings
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New Jewelry
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706-850-3330
159 W. CLAYTON ST.
ACROSS FROM THE GEORGIA THEATRE
3 GREAT LOCATIONS
EASTSIDE
2230 BARNETT SHOALS RD.
NEAR VET SCHOOL CAMPUS
DOWNTOWN
247 E. BROAD ST.
ACROSS FROM THE ARCH
MILLEDGE
B70 N. MILLEDGE AVE.
THE ORIGINAL!
VOTED
FAUORITE
MEAL FOR
A DEAL
9 YEARS RUNNING!
>s /
18 FLAGPOLE.COM | SEPTEMBER 25, 2019