My first bite of alligator: Jethros Fine Grub

Jethro’s Fine Grub

3420 Dunbar Street, Vancouver, Canada

It’s not everyday that I get to eat alligator-and deep fried too! So when I heard that fried alligator nuggets were on the menu at Jethro’s Fine Grub, I had to taste them. Initially, I was worried that the nuggets would be dry and tough, after all, alligators aren’t exactly the fattiest animals; they don’t even actually seem that meaty either. But I was pleasantly surprised. The meat inside the nuggets was tender, it’s actually grayish in colour, and more like turkey or duck confit in texture. Some parts of the meat was a little stringy, other bits that weren’t as deeply fried was shockingly moist and quite flavouful. The batter was superb, crunchy, well-seasoned and not too oily. I will definitely order these nuggets again since I am addicted to them already.

My two favourite breakfast foods are buttermilk pancakes and Kellogg’s frosted flakes. It never occurred to me to combine the two, but Jethro’s Fine Grub has cooked up the greatest breakfast: two huge, fluffy buttermilk pancakes with frosted flakes and strawberries baked right in and served with fresh whipped cream and a generous sprinkle of powdered sugar.

One of my major pet peeves is skinny pancakes, you know the ones, those flimsy flapjacks served at MacDonald’s, the skinny saucers that come frozen and ready to pop in the toaster along with Eggo waffles and Pop Tarts, or even the IHOP short stack that literally needs to be stacked 5 pancakes high to absorb a decent amount of butter and syrup. Skinny pancakes are not a problem at Jethro’s. Their pancakes are nice and thick, and hefty enough to contain a substantial serving of frosted flakes cereal (there’s your daily serving of 7 essential nutrients) and fresh strawberries (daily fruit serving covered too). The frosted flakes also hold their own in the pancake, adding a sweet, crunchy texture balanced by the moist but tart sweetness of the strawberries. The two pancakes were so gigantic that the edge of the pancakes spilled over the edge of the plate. But yet another advantage that thick pancakes have over skinny flapjacks is that they stay warmer for longer. We spent nearly an hour nibbling away at these two monstrous pancakes and their centers were still warm at the end, and the frosted flakes inside were still crispy.

I have heard that Jethro’s is famous for both their pancakes and french toast. I look forward to ordering the chocolate chip banana bread french toast at my next visit. And maybe even the biscuits with gravy.