Pork chops have come a long way, especially for those of us who used to gather at the dinner table to eat the skimpy bone-in ones that might have offered three or four bites and went down easier when slathered in mushroom gravy. A lot of gnawing went on. The chops had to be cooked through for fear of Trichinellosis, an infection caused by a parasitic roundworm.

Which was a real thing. I’ll spare you the whys and wherefores because it’s not terribly appetizing. But it wasn’t until 2011 that the USDA lowered its recommended temperature for cooking pork from 160 to 145 degrees. That made it safe for restaurants to serve them medium or medium-rare (but not rare).

Very occasionally, I sit down to a big, thick, juicy pork chop at a nice restaurant — which I did recently, 10 days apart: first at Oak & Ola in Tampa and Tuesday at The Crane in St. Pete. I ordered them medium at both places.

OAK & OLA

We crawled through traffic into the Armature Works parking lot for our 7 p.m. reservation, wondering if the Tampa Heights gathering spot was always that mobbed on a Saturday night. As it happened, a free car show was going on.

We arrived about 20 minutes late, and the front-of-house people could not have been more accommodating. It was the beginning of the best service experience I’ve had in a very long time.

Oak & Ola’s interior was classy and capacious (it seats 150, photo at bottom).

We went big (for us) with the O&O Salad ($11), the Pork Chop ($36) and Truffle Frites ($12), plus a Green Bench Postcard Pilsner draft ($8) for me and a glass of pinot noir for Bonnie.

Appearance

The robust chop (photo at top), served over potato puree, looked the part. I was pleased to see a pool of brown sauce on the plate. The salad, heavy on the greens, was covered with feta cheese. The serving of fries — excuse me, frites — looked rather small, but that’s no different from other upscale restaurants. (I’m refraining from my usual habit of showing bites. They just seemed like something you wouldn’t need to see.)

Taste and Texture

The bone-in chop was what I’d hoped for — big, thick, juicy, and Applewood-smokey too. No gnawing required. (It still takes me a minute to get used to eating pork with a pink middle.) The medium-thick red-wine sauce was excellent, close enough to gravy for this ham ‘n’ egger to enjoy with his mashed (excuse me, pureed) potatoes.

The salad had roasted pears and pepitas, and was dressed in a delicate balsamic vinaigrette, sans the sharp bite I taste too often. I’m not much for feta, so Bonnie covered that.

I prefer my fries without truffle oil, but these were sleek and potato-forward, with some brown skin on the edges.

We plundered our meal, no need for a go-box.

THE CRANE

We made a reservation for a party of five for 5:30, welcoming the snowbird Selskys back into town (and Vicki joining). Bonnie and I were concerned about parking because it was Game 4 of the World Series. We needn’t have been. Central Avenue had a bounty of open spots.

The Crane occupies the space of the former Wig Villa, which admirably hung on way past its sell-by date. The restaurant makes a first-rate first impression — its host stand just past the door, the space filled with natural light and outfitted in modern decor. We were seated at a large booth next to the front window, but not before taking advantage of happy hour at the bar.

Our server, whose name I think was Cassandra, was polite, efficient and had the good sense to not intrude on our party’s bonhomie. Bonnie and I ordered the Grilled Pork Chop ($39) with a side of Truffle Fries ($8) and the Crane House Salad ($15). Bonnie got the Wagyu Dumplings ($17) for the table.

Appearance

This chop looked more steakhouse-style, with a prominent bone protruding and a healthy char. A small portion of vegetables and a little cup of curry sauce filled out the plate. The salad had a lot of color.

Taste and Texture

This chop did not need a sauce or gravy. It had an expertly grilled flavor that stood all on its own. It was, as hoped: big, thick and juicy.

The salad’s color came courtesy of strawberries, grapes and chunks of mango. Sliced almonds were a welcome touch. The mango ginger vinaigrette provided plenty of zest.

I don’t recall much about the fries. The portion was bigger than the competition’s, but I don’t think I ate many. By the time dinner was served, the yappin’ at the table had gone full tilt.

And the Winner of the Pugnacious Pork Chop Challenge Is …

This is the hard part.

While we did a good job of matching the meals, these restaurant visits were such different experiences. Even though Oak & Ola was crowded, everyone treated us with such good cheer — our server (Alton?), the host, the GM, even the chef, who made a visit. At The Crane, our mini-reunion didn’t call for that kind of attention. The place was pretty quiet — except for us.

So I’m going with a split decision, which I will not call a tie.

Chop — The Crane (ever so slightly).

Overall Meal — Oak & Ola (kudos to the pomme puree and red-wine jus, an elevated simulacrum of mashed potatoes and gravy).

Fries — Oak & Ola

Salad — The Crane

Service — Oak & Ola (although The Crane’s fit the occasion).

Vibe — The Crane (kind of hard to beat a mini college reunion).

In the end, we had two terrific restaurant experiences in 10 days time. I’m glad we spaced them out that way. A couple of big, thick, juicy pork chops within two or three days might’ve been too much.

As promised, here’s a pic of Oak & Ola’s interior.