Firstly, we enjoyed it.
Secondly, for information, we had a rack of baby backs and 2 ribs of beef, splitting both.
The baby backs were delicious. A little smoke, not overpowering, a sauce which was a bit sweet and not all that hot (spice-wise), but that's a matter of taste, of course. They were lovely and juicy, and had a very nice bite to them.
The beef was a little drier but far more tender, quite literally falling off the bone. In texture/firmness, it was very much like eating a piece of beef from a beef casserole, only a tad drier.
The sweet potato chips were nice...but not as nice as mine. They were fried, and subsequently quite dry on the outside (this is what happens if you deep fry sweet potatoes). They're far better oven roasted with a little olive oil. Still very nice, though.
The slaw - I want to be clear here, I think coleslaw is the food of the devil. It really is one of the foods I could quite happily never eat again. But you know what? This was actually quite good!
The restaurant itself was very pleasant, good atmosphere, maybe just a tiny bit crowded. Our waitress was new - at least I hope she was new; she clearly didn't have a clue! Having said that, she was polite enough, and didn't make any huge cock ups. She was clearly trying, I just think a little more training would have helped.
Look, the serving trays. I have to say this, I don't care how bloody 'authentic' it is, this is not a 'mom & pop', down-home, sh*t-kicking shack in the back of nowhere, populated by the casts of
Deliverance and
The Dukes of Hazzard. It's a restaurant in a large metropolitan city, charging an understandably healthy amount for diners wanting to try a range of cuisines. Next week it'll be Thai, last week it was Mexican, etc. The school dinner trays covered in grease paper simply don't cut it. How about serving on a big block of wood?
All in all, a really good time. I'd definitely go back, and it's a place I'd like to take the kids (maybe at a quieter time), or anyone else.
I cannot claim to be massively knowledgeable as to its authenticity - I've never to the States - but I liked the food.
If the aim is to serve juicy, tender, tasty, smoky ribs, then they've hit the target.
On the downside? Being picky, the sauce was a little sweet for me. I’ve said before, I’ve eaten a fair bit of American food, and their tastes do appear to be a bit louder, brasher, a bit more in-your-face than I would like myself. Nothing wrong with that, and this is American food. It certainly wouldn’t put me going off going again. Incidentally, I went for the ‘Unholy Sauce’, which is apparently a bit sweeter than the normal, so that’s my own lookout.
Okay, these are the Baby Backs:
Fries & Slaw:
Beef ribs:
Picked up the beef rib and it was so tender it just slid off:
Hope that helps, and no one minds my opinions.
One more thing, I’ve read others’ comments, and you know what, maybe I just got lucky. To state the obvious, you can’t cook 8 hour ribs to order. Subsequently, it’d be impossible for a place of this size not to have ribs lying around for a while. It’s just inevitable. I think the Baby Backs were great, maybe could have rested a little longer, whilst the beef ribs were possibly just too long out of the oven, but both were very tasty.
Any questions?
Steve W