Dougie J’s Café
The Riz – French Toast stuffed with Nutella and Whipped Cream
Big G’s Blueberry Pancakes (1 cake)
Pink Diablo – Batter Dipped Peanut Butter, Bacon, and Banana on White Bread rolled in Frosted Flakes
The Bubba – Steamed Pastrami on Marble Rye with Cole Slaw, Swiss, Dougie Sauce
Fried Chicken and Biscuit with housemade white gravy (1/2 order)
Blueberry Coffee Cake
The Bad Influence – Bacon, Pretzel Toffee from Whoa!, Cranberry, Chocolate Chips
Owned and operated by Suni Chabrow with a menu crafted by her longtime friend and business partner, a former bodybuilder and attorney downtown, Dougie J’s Café is Sin City’s only Patriotic dining locale and with a portion of the proceeds benefitting the Memorial Foundation of Suni’s fallen hero son it is undoubtedly the sort of space that everyone would love to see succeed, the potential no doubt there but a few tweaks necessary before the food will truly ‘wow.’
Patriotically decorated without pandering to the “USA, USA” crowd it was after contacting Suni directly about the restaurant’s concept and the possibility of ordering a few ‘half-portions’ to better assess the menu that I arrived at for Saturday lunch and with both Ms. Chabrow and the menu’s creator present throughout my hour-long stay it can only be said that the whimsical cuisine and story of the space was interesting and inspiring, respectively, while both were thoroughly explained.
Largely opting to indulge in breakfast, while allowing the Chef liberty with portion sizes and price, it was with a full order of The Riz that the meal began and featuring well-saturated brioche from Bon Bread at its base the French Toast sandwiching Nutella and Whip was decidedly sweet, a pitcher of artificial maple syrup thankfully unnecessary both here and in the follow-up blueberry pancake that was fluffy and well aerated, more than suitable for sopping up butter as well as blueberry reduction though the berries within the batter were somewhat disappointing and bland.
Chatting with the proprietors as I ate, stories including Soni’s decision to pursue a lifelong passion for making English Toffee striking a chord about the value of following one’s dreams, it was next that a whole order of the Pink Diablo arrived and drawing on concepts other restaurants would just as happily attributed to Elvis both the portion and flavor was plethoric, though much of the nuance was lost due to far too much peanut butter, a half portion more than enough to satisfy my curiosity though I did indeed pay for a whole.
Next sent out a half “Bubba,” a dish I neither desired nor requested but was happy to try given the staff’s glowing reviews, suffice it to say that between the watery pastrami and substantial amount of slaw little of the $6.50 I was charged for the gift was worth it, the ‘Dougie Sauce’ a lone exception with a whole lot of heat packed into the Russian-Style cream.
Back to items I’d inquired about, it was to a haphazard ‘torn’ half biscuit alongside fried chicken with thick country gravy that I was treated next and with the bird pounded flat and nearly flavorless while the biscuit large but no better than Bisquick suffice it to say this was a major miss, a fact made all the more humorous when the man behind the menu idly poked fun at the food at Hash-House-a-Go-Go before also admitting the lazy-man ingredient was used in Dougie J’s signature blueberry coffee cake – a dish still well worth ordering given the substantial use of cinnamon and delicate, buttery crumb.
Unable to make me an Apple Fritter, one of the items I’d specifically requested and one that Suni couldn’t stop raving about even after telling me the restaurant had failed to procure apples on that day, it was with a single “Bad Influence” cookie that my meal ended and served hot and gooey from the oven with bits of Suni’s Whoa! Foods Toffee filling the batter alongside bittersweet cranberries anyone in the area, which means anyone in DTLV or East Fremont, should consider stopping in to grab one…or perhaps a dozen as it may just be the best cookie on Las Vegas Boulevard right now.
THREE STARS: Originally served a bill with a pre-tip of just under $75 – whole stacks of pancakes, full sandwiches, and a full order of chicken and biscuits rang up along with what I’d actually ordered…and the Bubba which I had not…but later adjusted to a tally of $62 inclusive of tax and tip, the prices at Dougie J’s are unfortunately far out of line to the quality of product used or served and while I’m happy to donate to a great cause like The Douglas J. Green Foundation I’d have sooner done so on a voluntary basis rather than be upcharged for many of the things I tasted, though there are undoubtedly some gems on the menu to be found.
RECOMMENDED: The Bad Influence, The Riz, Blueberry Coffee Cake
AVOID: The Bubba, Chicken and Biscuit
TIP: Located on a corner with plenty of parking just south of the more happening parts of Fremont and DTLV and open at 8am with seating for 42, those looking to check out Dougie J’s are well advised to also look into Suni’s Whoa! Foods Toffee, both the peanut butter and pretzel offered as samples during my stay found to be melt-in-the-mouth excellent and offered throughout the valley with some of the proceeds also going to the charity bearing her son’s name.
http://www.dougiejscafe.com/
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor