Hey, there, I'm Guy Fieri, and we're rolling out,
looking for America's greatest diners, drive-ins and dives.
[Guy] This trip, all the magic is done here. Things are gettin' funky...
Come on down and try 'em tonight, folks.
In Flavortown.
Got me digging into this thing for a while.
We've got not your everyday Mexican in Anchorage, Alaska.
Crazy.
A meatless flavor bomb in Laramie, Wyoming.
That's delicious.
Along with a loaded twist on nachos.
Those are legit.
And a poppin' burger that's seriously slammin'.
Shut the front door, back door... Shut the barn door.
That's all right here, right now,
on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
So, I'm here in Laramie, Wyoming,
home of University of Wyoming.
[all] Cowgirls!
In a town like this,
you'd expect to find some really good watering holes
with some bar food, but I'm looking for elevated bar food,
and a joint that's serving u something called Barnchos.
This is Born In A Barn.
[Guy] Chili cheese wra-ap in the window!
There's burgers-and-wing joints all over the place,
but this place has some standards.
[man] Sauce with blackberry wings...
What makes these guys so special?
It's the people that work here, Clayton and Jesse.
[Guy] That'd be Clayton Scho and Jesse Reece,
who went from co-workers to co-owners
when they opened this spot, along with their buddy, Trent Brome.
We actually worked out at the Cathedral Home for Children.
Jesse was the culinary arts teacher out there, and I was a case manager.
How did you get in the mix?
I've got a construction company here in town.
I came in every day--
Oh, you haven't paid your bar tab?
-Pretty much, yeah. -[Guy] You're working it off now.
What kind of food are we doing, Chef?
Burgers and wings, man.
Got a Popper burger.
The Popper burger is topped with cream cheese that has jalapenos,
and it has a raspberry sauce
It's perfect amount of sweet and spicy,
which is right up my alley.
-All the magic is done here? -Right here.
[Guy] How many people work in this spot?
-[Jesse] We can fit three in at the most. -[Guy whistles]
Just like a bowling ball.
So...
The Popper burger.
[Jesse] We're starting off with our raspberry pepper jelly,
good old corn syrup...
-It's not just for breakfast anymore. -No.
[Jesse] Raspberry jam.
Crushed red pepper flake and our granulated garlic.
So you got sweet, you got tangy and you got spicy,
three of my favorite names.
[Jesse] Now we're gonna soa our jalapenos.
Buttermilk kinda helps mellow 'em out a bit.
[Guy] And how long are we letting this down for?
-Least 24 hours. -Got it.
-[Guy] What are we gonna dredge and fry these in? -Straight flour.
And all you have are these two fryers?
Yep, and we cook all of our sauces on the flat top.
-Oh, you don't have burners? -We got zero burners.
I know a guy that does construction,
I just met him outside.
How about we get a little bit bigger hood and we drop in some burners?
[Guy] What do we season the burger with?
[Jesse] Salt, pepper, Old Bay,
onion powder, granulated garlic.
Got some cream cheese ready to go.
That's what holds the jalapenos on that.
Raspberry pepper jelly.
[Jesse] There is the Popper burger.
[Guy] I love how you cooked the burger,
really nice caramelization on that.
I love the double patty.
[Guy] Not too much cream cheese.
Little kiss of the sweetness from the pepper jelly.
Nice heat out of the jalapeno.
Look at how that bun is just staying together enough
to work as a vessel
but is not competing with the burger.
-Well done, my friend. -Thanks.
All right, ladies, I've got the Popper.
The Popper burger's one of those things that I crave.
The raspberry pepper sauce, it kinda just evens out
the heat of the peppers and blends really well with the cheese.
They're just delicious, that's what I can say.
Smoked wings, Carolina sauce for you.
The atmosphere, the service, is wonderful.
The bar's really fun.
Whether you're wanting to party a little bit on game day,
or just looking for a meal.
The food is, like, amazing, like the nachos.
Barnchos up.
I love the Barnchos, that's my go-to, usually.
You have those crispy pub chips that come fresh out of the fryer,
then you get that smoked por in with the queso.
That's an appetizer for our whole family, everybody enjoys it.
-What are we making first? -Just the basic rub for our pork shoulders.
Salt in first, pepper, brown sugar.
The emphasis on the "brown".
Paprika, onion batter, granulated garlic.
-Dry rub it? -Let's go to the smoker.
[Guy] 225, and we smoke 18 hours.
[Jesse] Shred it up.
-All right, what are we making? -This is our house-made queso.
[Jesse] Heavy cream.
Emphasis on the "heavy".
[Jesse] Easy-melt cheese.
Pepper Jack, little Swiss.
[Guy] And that's it.
[Jesse] Now we're gonna make our barbecue sauce.
[stammers] Good old molasses.
-Guh-guh-guh-guh-guh... -Good old molasses.
[Jesse] Honey, brown sugar,
yellow mustard.
Apple cider vinegar.
-Worcester. -Worcester sauce.
-[Jesse] Dark rum. -[Guy] Yes.
Black pepper, dark chili powder.
Kitchen sink is next.
Clove.
Allspice, liquid smoke.
[Jesse] That base cooks down, then we add that ketchup.
-That's our sweet and smoky barbecue, right there. -Okay.
-We're gonna do our hot buffalo. -Again on the flat top.
[Jesse] Two pounds butter in there, cayenne,
-ghost chili powder. -[Guy whistles]
Celery salt, paprika, crushed red pepper, hot sauce.
Once you're cooked that, we'll mix 'em together
for the sauce for the Barnchos.
[Guy] All right, let's talk about these.
[crunches loudly]
Those are some of the crunchiest potato chips
I've ever had in my life.
How many rinses do they get?
Three, and our brine is ice-cold water,
white distilled vinegar and kosher salt.
Let that rest at least 24 hours,
then we'll fry 'em.
A little seasoning, toss,
that's our base.
Now we're gonna build our Barnchos,
our shredded pork, bacon, hot queso.
I gotta get every chip a little of our pork,
little bit of bacon on top.
Cheese, diced red onion,
little jalapeno, the spicy barbecue.
That's a Barncho.
[crunches loudly]
Dude, the barbecue sauce is awesome.
The cheese sauce, delicious, not too much.
Good smoke on the pork.
Love the big chunks of bacon.
I thought that I was going to find a hole in this.
I can't even make a hole in this.
Got me digging into this thing for a while.
Those are legit.
Shut the front door, back door... Shut the barn door.
Cheese and Barnchos.
The queso's delicious,
and that spicy barbecue sauc adds a little bit of kick in there.
They're not stingy with the meat, so you're always gonna get a good portion.
I don't know that I could finish that with three friends.
I don't think that I could, either. Do you want some?
I'm just coming out of my food coma from when I had 'em.
[man] Chicken Mary Contrary ready for pick-up.
Their chicken, the fries, everything, like, this is the best place,
and I am really happy to be here,
and I'm so proud of the guys who make all the food, and it's really cool.
The best interview of the year on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
It is the spot in there, made barn on.
[Guy] With something as simple as a burger
or the Barnchos, if you're gonna do it,
you gotta do it right from the very beginning elements, and you're doing it.
When you get a real kitchen,
this guy's gonna be dangerous, watch out for Chef Jess.
[Guy] Up next,
we're sticking to Laramie..
Just had to freshen up.
To hit a righteous vegetarian spot...
Where has this been all my life?
Turning lentils into loaf..
I get mental for the lentil.
And putting a bomb spin on a banh mi.
Really delicious.
Ever since I've been doing Triple-D,
people have been telling me places I gotta go to.
Gotta do more Thai joints, gotta do more Mexican places
gotta do more pizza joints, more barbecue.
Well, you know what people have been asking for a lot lately? Vegetarian.
I'm here in Laramie, Wyoming,
and if you know about me, about my family, about my sister Morgan,
we love vegetarian food, and this is Sweet Melissa.
Place filling up, get ready to be slammed.
[woman] It doesn't really matter if you're vegetarian or not,
everyone is just very into Sweet Melissa's.
Buffalo cauliflower wings.
Melissa is fabulous at changing cauliflower
or mushroom or black bean into something that just is unique.
[Guy] And for over two decades,
Melissa Murphy and her husba Mark Zieres have turned surviving into thriving
with their restaurant, bar and food truck.
We just thought, "Probably won't make it, but let's give it a try."
You went from "I hope we make it" to 22 years? Congratulations.
-Are you vegetarian? -Yeah.
-Both of you? -No.
I respect the diet, and I eat it at home.
-Right. -And here.
Selling two lentil loaves for table six.
The lentil loaf's amazing, if you didn't know,
you would've thought it was meat loaf.
Doused in ketchup, just like growing up.
It comes with mashed potatoes
and a mushroom gravy. It's delicious.
What's the first dish we're gonna make?
A lentil version of a meat loaf.
-Do you understand that I get mental for the lentil? -Excellent.
The first thing were gonna do is mash some potatoes.
We precooked some Yukon Gold.
Some salt and pepper, almond milk and melted vegan butter.
[Guy] What's our next step?
The mushroom gravy that goes on top of the mashed potatoes,
olive oil and then onions, cremini mushrooms,
black pepper, tamari...
You can have it today, but it's also good tomorrow.
[Melissa] Water that used when we boiled the potatoes.
Thickens it up. You also get the flavor. Ta-da.
[Melissa] Cornstarch slurry.
-It'll tighten up. -Let this cook for about 30 minutes.
Next, we make the meat loaf?
-Yep. -Okay.
[Melissa] Olive oil, onions, potatoes,
minced celery and carrots.
Little garlic powder,
black pepper, sea salt, fresh red chilies,
soaked lentils and our veggie stock.
-[Melissa] It takes about an hour or so for it to cook. -[Guy] Okay.
We're going to do the next step for our lentil loaf.
The lentil mixture we just cooked,
little bit of Tabasco, poultry seasoning, tamari, crackers,
cheddar cheese.
[Guy] That is a fair amount of egg.
-That's how it works out for us. -Okay.
[Melissa] It's going into a loaf pan.
-Ta-da. -Yeah.
-Add a little spray. -Yeah.
Just had to freshen up.
[Melissa] Bake it 350, about an hour and 15 minutes.
-We're gonna slam it outta here. -Okay.
Slice a few slices, crisp it on both sides,
-steam it just a little bit. -Okay.
Mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy.
Top it with some of this tangy tomato sauce.
[Guy] And what's in that tomato sauce?
Ketchup, brown sugar, Tabasco and mustard.
Stick this up in the salamander, just to heat up that sauce.
All right.
[Guy] This, right here, is, like, the most tender, moist meat loaf
you could find, I mean, it's got great texture, it's got great chew.
Love the little bit of crust that you've put on it.
The vegan mashed potatoes
and this mushroom gravy,
what I like is how creamy you're able to get 'em
without the dairy.
And the kicker to the whole thing
is the ketchup brown sugar mustard Tabasco sauce. Really delicious.
Mashed potatoes and gravy going down for the lentil loaf.
I'm a meat eater, and I don't feel like I'm missing that meat at all.
On top of that, she has great mashed potatoes,
it's just to die for.
[man] Seitan gyro going to the plate.
It's the best comfort food restaurant.
-Are you vegetarian? -No.
-[man] No. -No.
Selling the black bean Hula burger.
-It's a really good restaurant-- -Just ha--
Just happens to serve... [whispers] Yeah.
-Vegetarian food. -You trying to take over the show?
Seitan banh mi sandwich, table three.
Today, I had the seitan bon mi sandwich, which was phenomenal.
They actually make all their seitan in-house, which is delicious.
-What are we gonna do next? -Seitan,
which is sort of a meat substitute made out of wheat.
[Melissa] We're gonna use vegetable stock,
lemon juice, tamari, chopped garlic.
Put it on the stove just to get it warm,
and our dry ingredients are vital wheat gluten.
[Guy] The gluten to make this loaf
-that we're gonna cook and slice... -Yeah.
And then it takes on any flavor you wanna give it, basically.
-Nutritional yeast. -My fave.
[Melissa] Poultry seasoning and onion powder.
-So, as soon as that's warm-- -Yeah.
-[Guy] You stir it in? -Knead it, let it sit there
at least 30 minutes, tie it up with the twine,
then we cook it in veggie stock, water,
dried thyme, bay leaves, tamari.
Cook for about 20 minutes, before we add the seitan.
Cook for about two hours.
-[Guy] Let it cool. -[Melissa] Slice it.
-Next step? -The banh mi sauce.
Veggie stock.
-This is like the home of veggie stock. -Yeah, and the home of tamari.
[Melissa] Sesame oil, minced green onions,
-fresh ginger... -A lot of it.
-[Melissa] Garlic, fresh red chilies. -[Guy] Good start.
-I'll have that on anything. -Yeah.
We're ready to make the pickled vegetables
-to go on the banh mi. -Got it.
Rice wine vinegar, water, sea salt, sugar.
Get a little heat on that, let that all dissolve.
We got onion, carrots, daikon radish,
-jalapeno. -Jalapeno!
-[Guy] Some cucumbers. -[Melissa] The pickling brine we just made.
-And let that set for how long? -Couple of hours, at least.
[Melissa] Butter the bread, put it on the flat top,
put down a little bit of olive oil,
and heat up our seitan.
Once that gets a little bit of crisp on it,
-throw some banh mi sauce on it. -Okay.
-Awesome. -Take a little veggies,
cilantro, vegan Sriracha mayo.
We got black beans and coconut rice, and she's ready to go.
Well, you got a good roll, airy and light in the middle,
so it's not a big, heavy bread sandwich.
The seitan is delicious, and it takes on the flavor really well.
I love the pickled veg, and I'm so glad you have the jalapeno in there,
because it's given it a little bit of that spice.
but in the vegan mayo, it's what you've gotta do.
You need to have fat in here.
But where has this been all my life?
Coconut, white rice and beans?
[Melissa] Yeah, yeah.
That's delicious.
Add in the banh mi sauce to the seitan.
The banh mi sandwich was very delicious,
with the different types of textures and flavors.
Sweet and spicy at the same time.
The seitan is really, really, really good here.
-[man] Sweet potato breather going in the window. -I love to eat here.
The flavor is really what brings us back.
All big flavor-profile items,
and I think you executed them really well. Excellent job.
[Guy] Coming up, a modern Mexican spot,
all the way up in Anchorage
Might be a new technique, I mean, we're in Alaska.
Throwin' in some dynamite duck.
Nice touch.
And off-the-chain chorizo.
You're stepping outside of the comfort zone.
Well done.
[man] Shall we try that one more time?
No, you can pick up the Thursday shift. Can you drive a stick-shift?
-I can, I-- -Seriously, I got a big schedule ahead of me.
-You could just handle it. -I can try it.
Now, when I think of Alaska,
I think of the great outdoor I think great seafood,
I think of the fact that it really gets cold her
but I wouldn't say that I think about Mexican food.
Well, unless you're in downtown Anchorage,
where, I hear, there's a joint that's knockin' out the Mexican food.
This is Tequila 61.
Salmon, three minutes out.
[man] It's not the typical,
sort of, taqueria Mexican food, it is elevated.
Pork chop up.
-[Guy] How do you describe the place? -New age.
So, Mexican, but with a little attitude,
-a little new spin? -A twist, yeah.
[Guy] Importing these new, legit flavors to Anchorage
has been a passion project for owner Jim Letts.
Well, there's restaurants like this in the heart of Mexico, so I want to bring that here.
[Guy] But he didn't have to go far
to get chef Matt Orchard cooking on the concept.
He actually worked here,
and then he put in the application for executive, which was shocking,
we didn't know his capabilities, he kinda hid it from us.
Duck tacos, table 12, runners.
[man] I'd never had a duck taco before,
and my wife said I should try 'em and, you know,
-"I don't like duck taco, come on." -Exactly.
-Just give me some corn salad. -But one bite changed my mind.
The richness and the freshness is just incredible.
-What's today's menu? -Today, we're gonna do the duck confit.
-[Guy] Okay. -[Matt] Some salt, thyme.
-And the... -Leg quarters.
-[Guy] Quarters of the ducks. -[Matt] Let it sit for about 12 to 24 hours.
So, now we got the duck rinsed.
[Guy] Into the duck fat.
[Matt] We'll throw it in the oven
and let that bad boy go for about three hours.
-What's up next? -The Macha sauce
-and the blueberry Macha sauce. -Okay.
[Matt] Oil. Gonna roast off some garlic.
-Do we want heat on that, Chef? -Yes, we do.
-Good call, I was just seeing if you were paying attention. -Yeah, no, I'm here.
I've just never seen this get roasted without the burner on.
-[laughs] -Might be a new technique, I mean, we're in Alaska.
[Matt] Gonna toast some peanuts, add some sesame seeds.
let those get a little toasty.
So, now I'm gonna get my oil in there.
[Guy] Peanuts and sesame seeds,
Chile de Arbol and the pasilla.
[Matt] Salt.
When this settles nice and smooth,
save some of that for reheating, and then we'll add the blueberries,
and that'll be a finishing sauce.
[Guy] Pull the duck out, let it cool, shred it,
-reheat it with the Macha sauce. -Yep.
We're making the guacamole now,
-[Guy] Okay. -[Matt] so we mashed up our avocados,
onion powder, garlic powder, pepper, the salt.
What are we doing over here, Chef?
We're gonna blend up seasoning here.
Some lemon juice, jalapeno, cilantro, salt and pepper.
That, along with the pico de gallo.
[Matt] We have one more thing, the red pickled onions.
-[Guy] How are we doing those? -[Matt] We're gonna take some vinegar, some water,
-oregano, some bay leaf, boil that up. -[Guy] Regular pickle.
-Time to plate. -[Matt] Some duck on there.
-That's a lot. -The blueberry sauce,
fresh guac, pickled onions, cilantro. Duck confit tacos.
Well done.
[timer ticking]
-Funny joke I missed? -Yeah.
Go on, tell me, I like a good joke.
Uh, I've just been nervous all day.
-And I just made it worse, right? -Yeah, yeah, thanks.
It's when he doesn't say anything, he takes a few bites, "Ha ha."
[Guy] So, I tell people that what is on the menu
and the way it's prepared by the chef.
That's how you should eat it.
If you changed anything on this,
you'd be getting a taco,
-some type of meat. -Yeah.
A little bit of heat, some tortilla,
but you get the richness of the duck,
a little bit of the heat from that Chile de Arbol
and that pasilla sauce that you made with the roasted garlic.
[Guy] Then you get the kiss of the sweet from the blueberry,
and that, right there, creates this great juxt of the sweet and the heat,
then you cool off with some of the guac,
and then, just when you think that you have the whole party,
you get the sting from the onion.
It's a dynamite taco.
-Well done, Chef. -Thank you.
-I'm actually gonna take one more bite. -[Matt chuckles]
Duck tacos.
It's a little saltiness, but the duck is fantastic.
They're great. I love the blueberry salsa,
-I love the Chile de Arbol. -Which you can't say every day,
-"That I love blueberry salsa." -You can't.
Got two tequilas for you guys.
Why do we call it Tequila 61?
Anchorage, where we're located, latitude 61.
[woman] Just having a good cocktail with your tacos,
and you eat them with your chorizo empanadas,
you can't go wrong with it.
Chorizo empanadas.
[man] These aren't normal empanadas.
The chorizo is an amazing bounty of flavor.
[woman] It just melts in your mouth,
it's so delicious.
[Guy] We'll make empanadas next.
-All right. -See you in a bit.
Welcome back. Triple-D, hangin' out
in Anchorage, Alaska. We're at Tequila 61.
I think Tequila 61 is really unique,
because the flavor profiles and just the ingredients they use,
and they really try and infu Alaskan ingredients
and do something totally different.
She's never been on TV.
Probably a local broadcaster, part of the anchor desk.
Chorizo empanadas.
[man] I love the empanadas.
I lived in Argentina for a few years.
-And you think they're hitting it? -Absolutely.
[man] Crispy, light crust,
smooth potato in there, nice chorizo,
and dipping sauces are the best.
Now we're on the empanadas.
[Matt] We're gonna get some butter and garlic going.
Tell me the story on the chorizo, here.
-Spanish pork chorizo. -Okay. Is it cased?
No, it's like a chub, like a hamburger, almost.
-Like a chub. -[laughs]
-Is that a real culinary term? -I don't think so, I just made it up. [laughs]
[Matt] We're gonna add some heavy cream to that.
We boil off some potatoes, put some cream in there,
-mash these up. -Okay.
[Matt] Salt, black pepper,
-Oaxaca cheese-- -How much?
[Matt] About half of it.
-That should do it. -Here we go.
Come on down and try 'em tonight, folks, they're extra cheesy.
[Matt] The chorizo...
Comes in as a chub.
-[laughs] -It's an Alaskan culinary term you wouldn't know.
-[Guy] And how much cilantro? -Let's do the whole thing.
Livin' on the edge.
Now the empanada dough?
Flour, salt, couple of eggs thrown in there,
-brown butter. -Nice touch.
[Guy] Let this mix for about ten minutes.
-Correct. -Bring it out, let it rest?
-[Matt] Yep. -[Guy] Okay.
And then start building some empanadas.
[Matt] Flour on the flat top here.
That's not a flat top, Chef, that's just a table.
-It's a cold flat top. -[laughs]
[Matt] We'll go and punch 'em out, wet 'em all down,
get my stuffing, and we'll roll it over.
And do we have a cool little crimp and fold we do?
[Matt] We just do it by hand with the fork.
That's forkin' crazy.
[Guy] Get 'em in the fryer,
and while we're doing that, we're gonna make the...
-The avocado empanada sauce. -Hit it.
Lemon juice, garlic goin' in.
-Cilantro. -Serrano chili, salt.
All right. Avocados, heavy cream, get the sour cream in there.
And then your concoction.
[Matt] Whip it up.
-Oh, I'll take that to go. -Yeah.
-I'll see you, Chef. -Fried, golden empanadas.
We got our avocado empanada sauce, and we got a chipotle aioli.
I love that you go...
to all that effort to make that dough.
Nice and light and flaky, good amount of cheese,
and creaminess 'cause of that potato.
The guac sauce is spot-on,
and this chipotle aioli got a nice little bit of heat.
-Well done, my friend. -Thank you.
-Well done. -Thank you very much.
[calling] Chorizo empanadas.
I love the empanadas, the potatoes and the meat inside of it.
It has a nice little spice to it.
[woman] The avocado dipping sauce is light,
I think it really, kind of, cuts through the richness of the empanada really well.
[Matt calling] I got a chicken, I got a goat cheese ball.
This brings something fresh to Anchorage.
Yeah, it's delicious.
We are as far away from Mexico as I've probably ever been
and had Mexican food.
You're stepping outside of the comfort zone,
and I think that when peopl come up to Anchorage,
they should definitely stop and give it a shot.
-I appreciate you, thank you. -Watch out for this guy.
So, that's it for this road trip,
but don't you worry, there's funky joints all over this country,
and I'll be looking for you next time on...
Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives
You know who that guy looks like?
He's my dad, and he played for U-Dub for three years,
and he's, like, the best dad,
and he teaches me football, and it's really cool.
[all laughing]
You are the best hype man out of the group.