First things first; I'm a guilt ridden carnivore. I believe deep down that meat really is murder and you can't deny the environmental impact that eating meat has on our planet. Alas, other than a brief stint as a herbivore in my early 20's I have never been able to commit to a full life of no meat. One day perhaps I will have the determination and fortitude and much needed cooking skills; but until then I try to make any meat eating event a good one, lest these poor quadrupeds die in vain of a tasteless dish. It was with high expectations that I ventured to Pig Floyd's, the newest restaurant to enter the Mills/50 district. Some foodie friends had gone to the media preview and had only palate-pleasing praise. We arrived around 6 PM on their opening day, and the restaurant was half full, with both indoor and outdoor seating, but there was a decent line forming to order. It's set up as what would appear to be a fast causal establishment, with your order taken at the counter, a number distributed, and you grab a seat and wait.I knew from the first few minutes in line, this was not going to be a seamless experience since only one register was ringing, and I could see the panicked faces of the workers who were completely exposed in this beautiful open kitchen. The POS system was giving them problems so each order was taking time getting put in. You know it's bad when there are I.T. professionals milling about.

We ordered the pulled pork platter and the the pork belly tacos and began our wait. The restaurant started to fill with the line forming out the door and as we waited and critiqued the design and the usage of the small space as only non-restaurant owning people can. The contained chaos continued, but it wasn't until I noticed a man that had been sitting at the bar from the moment we walked in get his food that I knew this might take even longer than previously thought. He had been there for at least 20 minutes since we had walked in and was just NOW getting served. That's when I knew, either those pigs were being slaughtered freshly off of Virginia Drive, or their kitchen was really backed up.

Forty minutes passed when the kitchen realized our order never actually made it to the line, and when it finally came out it was not complete. As irritating as it was, I couldn't really be mad. Once you've worked in a restaurant you have an everlasting empathy for situations that are out of your hands. POS issues on any day can throw everything out of whack, but on your opening day, that's a really kick in the snout. This is what smart phones were invented for right? Time to surf the web and tell each other work stories. The wait staff was very apologetic and accommodating, which was appreciated since in times of distress it's easy to have staff become irritated and apathetic and none of them displayed any of these traits. Our food arrived and the worry about the wait went out the window. My pork belly tacos were packed with flavor. It was topped with asian Dragon Sauce, Citrus Peanut Slaw and accompanied with a side of grilled corn on the cob with chili, lime, and Cotija Cheese. Tacos are purchased singularly and two was the perfect amount. All I can say is Tako Cheena better watch out, because these tacos were amazingly good with an excellent price point to sweeten the deal.

My companion had the pulled pork platter with the same side of corn and fresh grilled veggies. Another dish packed with flavor that didn't even need sauce. They spared no plate space with the a heaping portion of meat.

We split one dessert, the Black & Tan which was like a brownie mixed with pudding and whip cream in what else, but the all too popular mason jar. Dark chocolate brown bites, chocolate chip cookie chunks and cookies & cream pudding. It was rich and smooth and the perfect sweet cap to the meal.

Kinks are to be expected on an opening day, and despite the chaos, the food quality apparently didn't suffer, which means the kitchen has their act together and can keep quality consistent even when under pressure. After talking briefly with a delightful girl at the table next to me, she raved about her ribs, saying that Four Rivers had nothing on them. Smiling faces were all around when I scanned the tables, which considering these people had been waiting as long as I had speaks volumes. I will surely be back and hope for shorter ticket times. If you are going to eat meat, this is certainly the place to do it.

Pig Floyd's Nom side of the Moon