
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, June 26, 1994                    TAG: 9406280515 
SECTION: FLAVOR                     PAGE: F2    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: BY DONNA REISS, RESTAURANT CRITIC 
DATELINE: 940626                                 LENGTH: Medium

FRANKIE'S: RIBS WITH NO NONSENSE

{LEAD} SOMETIMES, EVEN seafood lovers long for meat. And for people who don't mind dipping their fingers in smoky red sauce, ribs are the meat of choice.

Since Frank Baumann, Eddie Garcia and Mike Gelardi opened Frankie's Place for Ribs in 1982, the restaurant has been serving tiny baby back ribs - the pork ribs with the lean, concentrated flavor - and hefty beef ribs, trimmed of excess fat.

{REST} First on the menu, however, is ``Frankie's Famous Onion Loaf.'' Superbly sweet onions are sliced thinly, lightly battered, and shaped in a loaf ($2.45 to $3.45). They're crunchy and soft, savory and sweet, greasy, yes, but that's the nature of onion rings, after all. And they encourage camaraderie as the whole table picks apart the block.

Frankie's is a no-nonsense rib place. The main item is pork ribs in three sizes ($7.95 to $12.95). The king version had two racks, enough that our big eater was willing to let each of us have one. For $9.95, we got five big beef ribs, tender and brushed lightly with sauce. A plastic squeeze bottle has extra sauce, a pourable red blend with a generous flavor of red hot pepper sauce.

Half a chicken glazed with red barbecue sauce is $7.95. Steaks are $8.95 and $14.95. The chicken and steak were well prepared, reminiscent of back-yard cookouts. For out-of-towners who think they have to eat fish in a beach town, there's fried flounder and grilled fish of the day. A couple of steaks, pulled barbecue and a burger are available as well.

Dinner prices include cornbread with butter and two side dishes. Lackluster offerings are commercial fries, foil-wrapped baked potatoes, smoky baked beans (actually, our baked-bean expert pronounced these just fine), slaw with lots of mayonnaise, and packaged green beans. But let's face it, onion rings, cornbread and meat are what we've come for; we'll eat good vegetables tomorrow.

On a hot night, the chilled cakes - all so-so commercial styles - served their purpose of ending on a sweet note. Banana chocolate chip cake was the favorite of our party. Others were cheesecake with a lemon meringue layer, and chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting and a layer of peanuts pressed around the edges.

For dessert with a kick, ice cream-based cocktails were refreshing. The frozen Moon Beam blended amaretto, creme de cacao and ice cream. It was as pleasant as the toasted almond, which substituted Kahlua for the creme de cacao ($3.50 each).

Polo-shirted servers brought extra napkins, extra cornbread and drink refills as we needed them. Their casual attire and the wood-and-brick setting were just right for a rib restaurant, a little fancier than a rib joint but not pretentious.

Now that the road has been widened, Frankie's corner location is more visible. Around the back is plenty of parking. Don't be discouraged by the informality of the back entry, where staff hangs out to catch the evening air (although it would help if the path were kept clear of bicycles). Wend your way through the large back bar to the large dining rooms, and feast on some fine ribs.

If you can't make it to the Oceanfront, try Frankie's at Fairfield Shopping Center, owned and operated by Frank Baumann's brother, Jay. Open for lunch, dinner and Sunday breakfast, this suburban neighborhood place offers an expanded menu and home delivery service. by CNB