Ask a foodie: Al's Place: Home cooking that's the pride of McBride

My daughter and I drove to McBride, Missouri, this weekend, just a few miles past Perryville. We had never been there before, and I didn't get much to see of the small town. We saw a huge factory and a truck stop. We took a hard right turn down a county road, drove over the railroad tracks twice and made it to Al's Place.

It is no stretch to say Al's Place is special. It opened in 1947, in the same building it is in now. Before that, it was a tavern. When we asked a waitress who Al was, she told us Al was the owner's father. He ran the place then and his daughter runs it now.

The building is full of dark, aged wood and is absolutely dominated by a huge carved bar. The bar is about 10 feet tall and at least 30 to 40 feet long. The entire thing is capped with hand carvings, thick rich crown molding and inset with mirrors helping the place look deeper than it is. I adored that bar, and it had me wishing I had a mansion to put it in. I don't, but it would fit right in.

There are daily specials served at Al's. We went on a Saturday, and the special for that day was one or two pork chops or fried chicken, with a huge array of sides. The prices were incredibly reasonable and more than fair for the amount and quality of food received.

I ordered the pork chop with broccoli salad and sliced tomatoes. I had to order the sliced tomatoes because they were fresh, vine-ripened, Missouri-sun-kissed, straight-out-of-the-garden tomatoes, ripe and juicy and unlike anything you can buy any other time of year. A fresh tomato really does taste like a different fruit than a store-bought one that has traveled a long time to get to the store.

Ripe garden fresh tomato stuffed with chicken salad from Al's Place.Submitted by Rebecca LaClair

The pork chop was lightly battered and fried, and it was thick and juicy. The flavor was meaty and well balanced with the breading and it took me back to childhood, when the last good pork chop I'd had was cooked by my mom. Delicious.

My daughter ordered the fried chicken. She got two pieces, and they let her pick if she wanted light or dark meat or a mix. She picked a mix and got a huge leg and enormous breast piece. The fried chicken made our order take longer, because pieces that big take a bit to fry, but the wait wasn't really that long and the chicken was worth it. She had to wait for it to cool a bit to really chow down and commented on how juicy it was.

Of course we had to try the home-cooked desserts and got a bowl of blackberry cobbler with ice cream and a slice of coconut crème pie. The coconut crème pie was a towering masterpiece of custard and meringue, all made in-house and a specialty of the place.

It is here I have to record a conversation I overheard the owner of the place have with another customer, obviously a regular. She asked him if he would like a slice of her famous pie today, and he replied with, "No, not today because..." Before he could trail off, she cut in with, "Because why?" And then they smiled at each other and she moved off. My daughter and I found the whole exchange hilarious and a little bit comforting. Al's place is familiar and a safe haven to its regulars, and it's such places -- welcoming and reliable, with happy people and good food -- I can really get behind.

Before we left, I ordered a seasonal special to go. It was a tomato, one of those fresh wonders, stuffed with chicken salad, served with a dressing over a bed of lettuce. It was amazing even after sitting in my refrigerator -- all sunshine and freshness. The chicken salad was simple and pure, and the presentation was beautiful.

A towering slice of coconut pie made with love at Al's Place.Submitted by Rebecca LaClair

Bring cash because I believe that's all they will accept.

Al's Place's special Aug. 29 is fried rabbit, and you'd better believe I'll be there to try their version of it. Fried rabbit is delicious, and if you haven't tried it yet, I encourage you to give it a go.

Good, down-home country cooking with a smile and some gentle humor is what Al's Place is serving up, and they serve it well.