260 North Street, Burlington, 658-8800
I liked the old O.N.E. Pepper Grill. Previous owner Sam Lai clearly put his soul into creating the Chinese/Mexican fusion menu, and even built his own tables and chairs.
Others didn’t feel the same way I did, apparently, and now the folks from T.J.’s Dawg House in Williston have taken over the space, though they retained the name. The new owners replaced the fusion menu with something hard to find in Vermont: a varied bill of fare based around sausages, mostly Vienna Beef hot dogs.
The breezy, beach feel created by the indoor wooden deck that spans one side of the restaurant is now matched by the presence of a gigantic Vienna Beef umbrella over one of the tables. This is where I chose to sit.
The other customers, mostly college age, all gravitated to the bar, where there are a few seats and a small menu of local beers. This is also where all customers order, though a man I believe was T.J. himself brought my food to the table. Prices were so low, I felt slightly embarrassed. It also gave me incentive to order a lot.
We started with a garden salad so large two people could not come close to finishing it. The unevenly chopped romaine lettuce was covered with mushrooms, diced tomatoes, shredded carrots, chunks of grilled red peppers, and funny little confetti-like pieces of orange cheese.
The menu said that all dressings were homemade, so we ordered two. The balsamic vinaigrette tasted more of maple and olive oil than vinegar. T.J. admitted that the mayo-thick ranch was not yet his own, dill-filled version, which is apparently soon to come.
Another growing pain associated with a new restaurant: The kitchen staff hadn’t noticed they were out of slider buns. Instead of three very small burgers, T.J. asked for our blessing to make two sort of small ones.
That was more than fine. Each patty was juicy and greasy in exactly the right way. The lightly charred meat reminded me of the best snack-bar burgers. I should have ordered two plates.
Then came the dogs. We ordered the Beantown, a quarter-pound beef dog smothered with baked beans and melted cheddar. Instead, we were presented with a Chicago dog (right). “It’s what I do best,” said T.J. Despite the fact that he had reversed our order with another table’s, he let us keep it, along with the onion rings we had ordered sharing its plate. I’m not a fan of the Chicago dog myself. The pickle-on-pickle action seems like pregnant-lady food to me.
The rings reminded me of the ones generally only found at the fair. As with those, the beer batter was tasty but the onions were nearly raw.
I was much happier when our Beantown came. The beans were only mildly sweet, with a tantalizing touch of cumin. The dog itself was juicy, garlicky and wonderfully salty.
I also enjoyed the fat, mighty bratwurst (right). Boiled in beer, the light-colored sausage’s flavor paired delectably with mild sauerkraut and a liberal slathering of tangy, spicy horseradish mustard. Like the other dogs, this came on a thick, nicely toasted bun.
After all that food, plus a Diet Coke, the final bill before tip was an even $20. I am not kidding. Even a snack bar would be stunned at the amount we ate for that price. Next time I’m craving a giant hot dog meal and want to spend about what I would for a bag of chips anywhere else, I know where to go.
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Wow does that food look terrible. T-minus 3 months until it changes hands again or changes names again. Alice, you are running out of worthwhile places to review. If I was a tourist looking for hot new places to eat, and I read that review, I would drive to the next town. Come on, help our local food economy, don’t ruin it!
Actually, Sammy, I think the ONE Pepper Grill is awesome, especially for those of us who live in the Old North End. Perhaps you’d choose to take your money elsewhere, but it’s important to keep in mind that not everyone shares your opinions. Alice, when I went to ONE Pepper about a month ago, they had 26 craft beers available, and the co-owner (not T.J.) said we could expect over 30 in the near future. A variety of brews that large, at $4 a pop, plus insanely cheap, totally edible and — some might argue — delicious food is welcome in my neighborhood any day.
Really tired of postings akin to Sammy’s. Alice eats may not be for everyone. If you are among those who quibble over every ingredient and method, then you probably cook a lot at home and know a lot about food. When you do go out, you probably make an event out of it and it is a real culinary experience. So, you probably shouldn’t be reading a blog about value dining if it is going to cause you to get upset at the author.I have driven by the O.N.E. so many times and wondered about it. Now I know more. I’m not a big hot dog fan, but my Dad loves ’em, so now I have a place I can take him. He’ll love it and we’ll have a great time. Alice does the research that my wallet and schedule can’t afford. Thanks Alice.
I frequented the Dawg house in Williston alot last year and loved the hot dawgs…. I am glad T.J came to a full year round place indoors when the winter cold bites i can bite into a hot dawg OR a juicy burger :-)… Not only is it good food its decent price and if you havent noticed the menu has a thing called a “Fat Darryl” is i believe over a 1 pound hamburger O.o… Remember folks its still new so the kinks are being worked out as with all new places but i am def looking forward to many happy meals at both the Dawg house and def the One Pepper Grill
Nice write-up, not very flattering pictures. Leaving the pictures out might have done the restaurant better justice.ONE Pepper is a cool place. It’s cheap, it’s simple (dogs or burgers – both exceptional and not McD’s quality) and the staff is friendly. Alice, you downplayed the onion rings which is a shame. I normally don’t eat them, but they are so good at ONE Pepper that I will throw them down like nobody’s business.Also missing from the this write-up was context. Sam Lai still has a stake ONE Pepper v2.0. The former manager, George “Max” Saltis gave it a good run, but burned out. Take all the pressures of running a restaurant then watch your apartment burn down and witness your roommate – who is also your main cook – die in the fire. That’s exactly what happened to Max (see Winooski fire news from last August).T.J. and Toby (Toby is more of the hands-on guy at ONE Pepper) are making a go of it and I hope they do well.
My favorite part about ONE Pepper Grill = fried pickles. Delicious. And I HATE pickles!
I love this place. Living in the ONE is a bit like a restaurant and nightlife desert, especially at night. I appreciate having a friendly, super cheap place really close to home. I have run into people I know there with almost every visit. Good luck to Toby and TJ!!