LongLeaf Swine Foodie Review
LongLeaf Swine is a local, Raleigh, NC barbecue restaurant and bar. You can find out more about their restaurant at their website. This spot has been on my list for some years, and my wife and I finally made it there for lunch on a nice sunny Friday afternoon.
Let’s get into it.
What we ordered
Brisket Melt Sandwich with fries ($18)
Spare Ribs tray with pimento mac-n-cheese ($17)
Curried Tri-tip Soup special ($5)
Drinks (I can’t remember the exact cocktail my wife had)
I didn’t snap the brisket sandwich, my apologies :(
The Review
Curried Tri-tip Soup special ($5)
My wife ordered it because it was $5. I don’t have much to say about the soup to be honest. It was flavorful and would probably taste better on a cold day. It didn’t move me too much; however, the tri-tip will melt in your mouth. I rate this a 7.0 out of 10. My wife took it to-go and she ate the leftovers two days later. She added both tangy and sweet barbecue sauce before we left. With that, she rates this a 8.2 out of 10 and this is two days later.
Brisket Melt Sandwich with fries ($18)
The Brisket Melt Sandwich was a well crafted sandwich. You got about 2-3 slices of brisket. The toppings and condiments didn’t crowd the sandwich. I rate this sandwich a 7.7 out of 10. While it was a good sandwich, my biggest issue with the sandwich was the “horsey” sauce didn’t shine through. I felt that was the lacking component. Some bites had the sauce and those were realllll-y good bites which is why I deducted as many points as I did. The sauce distribution could take this sandwich into mid 9s range easy.
The fries were great. I thoroughly enjoyed the crisp and the malt vinegar aioli. I rate the fries 9.0 out of 10. I wanted more of the aioli, there wasn’t enough to dip.
Spare Ribs tray with pimento mac-n-cheese ($17)
My wife said the ribs were good. The portion was smaller than other barbecue restaurants (you get 3 small to medium-sized ribs). She rates the ribs 7.4 out of 10. She liked the spice blend the most on the ribs. She said the ribs pair well with the sweet and tangy barbecue sauces.
I didn’t try the ribs but I did try the pimento mac-n-cheese. My wife wasn’t a fan of the jalapeno flavor. I thought this was your standard “STEPH CURRY FROM DEEP…BANG!” to quote sports commentator Mike Breen. I rate this 9.4 out of 10. My only negative was the fried saltine topping — it was unnecessary. This was an unexpected highlight on a Friday.
Final Thoughts
For a random pick on a Friday afternoon when you’re hungry, they didn’t disappoint. The service was nice. The food came out pretty quick. They do week-day kitchen specials. Friday was “Fish Fry Friday” (FFF). We all love an FFF. So I’ll be back to try that.
My overall rating is 8.5 out of 10. I definitely recommend you try them out.
Would definitely return to try other menu options!