By The Gastronomes

Last month, long time restauranteur Ralph Davis decided to open a new restaurant at 220 N. Lee Street with his son Matt. Ralph has had a long history in Old Town which I will not go into here, but you can Google Ralph Davis Alexandria, Va. and read the article I wrote in 2017. This is a new chapter and it begins with Matt.

It seemed that the timing was right. As Ralph was getting bored with retirement, Matt indicated his desire to open his own restaurant. What better mentor than Ralph Davis. They settled on the property at 220 North Lee Street. This location had been home to successful restaurants in the past. When I came to Old Town in 1977 it was Cafe Biarritz and had a grand piano in the back room. Later the location was home to the popular Ecco Cafe, then Overwood’s and finally Myron Mixon’s BBQ. While not located on King Street, the block and a half walk to 220 N. Lee Street is a breeze.

The name of the new restaurant does not tell the whole story. While Myron Mixon is an American Celebrity chef and competitor on the competitive barbecue circuit, his legacy is not the only one at Mystic BBQ and Grill. Over the years of working at and then owning several Old Town restaurants, Ralph developed his own special recipes that are also featured at The Mystic. In fact, the choices of their BBQ plates and their Creole influenced dishes makes for a unique dining experience. This is a restaurant you can visit four nights a week and have four different dining experiences.

The physical layout of the restaurant is pretty straight forward. There are three distinct dining areas all located on different sides of the bar area. The medium sized bar anchors the main room with several tables and high tops scattered about. The décor is very contemporary and open and rock and roll images adorn the walls. Mystic is named in memory of Ralph’s wife and her love of music and is a play on the Van Morrison’s lyrics – “We were born before the wind, also younger that the sun. Ere the bonnie boat was won as we sailed into the Mystic.” You will hear this era of music as well as other familiar tunes as you dine.

We were very happy to see a familiar face behind the bar on our visit. Kat Warren (formerly at the popular RT’s Restaurant on Mount Vernon Ave) is now holding court at Mystic. I know she is a familiar face to many of our readers as well. So…if you’ve been missing her, now you know where to find her. The bar is well stocked and there are some very fun choices of the ever popular “craft” cocktails ie. Gator Bites and Mystic Hurricanes and the prerequisite “craft” beers and seltzers. Happy Hour is served from 3 – 7 pm Monday through Friday with both food and beverage specials – $3 off apps, $2 off rail drinks and draft beer and $8 glasses of wine!

The choices of the BBQ Plates and seafood and shellfish delights make for interesting ordering. You can go one way or the other, or like I did, combine the two. On our recent visit I ordered the “Mystic” Fried Oysters. They were lightly battered with secret “mystic” stuff and fried to a very light, tasty crust. The tomato-onion salad & horseradish sauce nicely compliments the oysters. Next up, I went all out and ordered the “Mystic” Baby Back ribs off of the BBQ Plates menu – you have your choice of said ribs or a ½ pound of Texas Brisket or Carolina Pulled Pork (both available on the sandwich menu as well). The ribs came lathered in a hearty dark barbeque sauce which was fantastic. The ribs were slightly seared while the meat was generous and cooked just right. While the ribs are a meal in itself, you have a choice of two sides (fries, coleslaw, mac and cheese, collard greens, Creole white beans w/Tasso ham and cornbread w/honey butter). I opted for the collards and the beans and they were both excellent choices.

My dining partner isn’t a fan of pretty much fried anything except potatoes and chicken, so she opted for the Smoked Chicken Wings with white BBQ sauce as a starter. These wings are different from the norm and really, really tasty and tender. Even harder to describe is the Alabama BBQ sauce. It has a really good jacked up Ranch kind of taste and pairs perfectly with the smokiness of the wings. Next up for her was the Jumbo Lump Crab Cake Sandwich. And that is exactly what it is – a jumbo cake with jumbo lump crab and pretty much just enough secret ingredients to hold it together. Served on a soft bun with lettuce, tomato and a Florida mustard sauce (we are sure you could substitute cocktail or tartar but give this sauce a whirl first) it comes accompanied with a side. She chose the coleslaw.

There are 25 items on the menu and I will highlight a few here. The other starters are Brisket Mac & Cheese, Popcorn Shrimp & Calamari and Fried Green Tomatoes. Is your mouth starting to water?

Other sandwiches include Wood-Grilled Cheeseburger, Citrus-Chile Grilled Chicken and a Shrimp Po’Boy.

The Mains are from Davis’s wheel house…Black Pepper Mussels, Shrimp & Grits, Creole Bouillabaisse, Delta Catfish, Shrimp & Crawfish Etouffee (Yum) and Wood-Grilled Steak Frites. (Check out their complete menu on line).

There is something else about their menu that is rare in Old Town. The most expensive item is $28. Their Crab Cake sandwich is $26 and is worth every nickel.

There are many choices to dine in Old Town Alexandria and Mystic BBQ & Grill fits right in with a unique menu that is off the beaten track. Getting away from all of the hullabaloo on lower King Street is very appealing to us so take a three-minute walk up North Lee Street and treat yourself to something special. You will go back!

Mystic BBQ & Grill

220 North Lee Street

Old Town

703-565-9808

Mysticbbqandgrill.com