barbecue

Edley’s Bar-B-Que – Nashville, TN

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Name: Edley’s Bar-B-Que
Address: 908 Main Street, Nashville, TN
Order: Half rack of ribs, green beans, corn bread (link to menu)
Pricing: $$

Speedy: Recently, I got a surprise call from John Tanner of John Tanner’s Barbecue Blog letting me know that he and wife Nancy were coming to Nashville for a weekend and wondered if I wanted to join him for a meal. We initially decided to go to Shotgun Willie’s – a joint I’ve been meaning to get back to, with Edley’s as a backup plan if there was rain (as Shotgun Willie’s did not have indoor tables last time I was there). Well, sure enough, it was a pretty nasty Saturday, so we moved our lunch to the backup spot. 

Monk: John and I grabbed lunch last October at Midwood Smokehouse while he was in Charlotte visiting relatives so I was happy it worked out for Speedy to meet up with him. John’s a smart, cultured guy who knows his barbecue but also a heck of a lot more. I was certain he and Speedy would get along famously. 

Speedy: I don’t go by Edley’s often, as it’s not among my favorites in Nashville, but the last time I had gone, the brisket sandwich was above average, so it was time to go for a proper review. The restaurant now has four locations (three in Nashville, one in Chattanooga), and this visit was to the East Nashville location, which is a decent sized restaurant with a nice patio and good craft beer bar. 

Even arriving by 11:30, the restaurant was starting to get a little crowded. John and I went up to order while Nancy secured a table.

John and Nancy both opted for the pork plate, but I chose the half rack of ribs, as I’ve never ordered that from Edley’s before. The food came out quickly and it was time to dig in.

Unfortunately, this meal didn’t do anything to change my opinion of Edley’s. The ribs came well seasoned and drizzled with sauce, but were a bit overdone. The flavor was fine, but didn’t stand out as anything special. I did have a bit of pork as well, which came sauced with a brown sugar-y sauce that sweetened the pork a bit too much. Another average offering. The green beans were good, and included chopped bacon, and the cornbread was very good (and a little spicy!).

The highlight of the meal was definitely the company; I enjoyed hearing about John and Nancy’s travels, and particularly their visit the previous day to Ramey’s – a whole hog joint between Nashville and Memphis that I haven’t had time to visit yet (but definitely will). John, I hope we can have another ‘cue meal soon.

For more on Edley’s Bar-B-Que, check out:
Marie, Let’s Eat!
John Tanner’s Barbecue Blog

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 3 hogs
Pork – 2.5 hogs
Ribs – 2.5 hogs
Sides – 3.5 hogs
Overall – 2.5 hogs

Friday Find: “Burnt Legend: The Story of Burnt Ends” from Flatland

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Monk: Back in 2016, I posted the first of what turned out to be a four part web series from Flatland, the digital arm of Kansas City’s PBS station. This well produced documentary explores the history of the dish, from waste to freebie afterthought to a dish that is now found in most parts of the country and is incorporated into other dishes. The full video is available above.

Description: Burnt Legend, a joint project from KCPT, Flatland and Recommended Daily, peers inside the smoky, rich world of Kansas City barbecue and shines a light on one of the city’s defining foods. Host Jonathan Bender talks to pitmasters, barbecue fans and historians to look into how brisket is smoked, chopped and transformed into a saucy, crispy pile of heaven.

Checking In: Noble Smoke

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Monk: It’s been over a year since I last got takeout from Noble Smoke and much longer since I had last dined in. Recently, I found myself in the neighborhood just down the street getting my second COVID vaccine shot, so beforehand I decided to treat myself to lunch on their patio on a nice Spring day.

As everything is a la carte at Noble Smoke, I ordered a Lexington-style chopped pork sandwich ($8), a 1/4 lb of smoked turkey ($5), and a side of Anson Mills hush puppies ($4).

Speedy is on record as proclaiming Noble Smoke’s sandwich the best pork sandwich outside of Lexington. And he’s not wrong. As has been well documented, the pork shoulders are smoked in a brick pit that was fabricated to mimic the pits of Lexington Barbecue (owner Jim Noble got permission from his friends the Monk family). Topped with a red slaw on a fresh baked bun, it’s quite a satisfying sandwich. I’d be tempted to go with getting just two of those next time instead.

Speedy and I have both been into trying smoked turkey at more places so I went with that as a side. Noble Smoked has a very good version of smoked turkey, smokey and not overly dry. The sandwich might be a good switch up order sometime in the future.

Noble Smoke’s hush puppies are made with cornmeal from Anson Mills in Columbia, South Carolina. I find them to be the best hush puppies in Charlotte, no doubt.

Noble Smoke has a daily rotation of fruit hand pies ($4), and on this day they had blueberry, which was fantastic.

Noble Smoke continues to knock it out of the park. On a nice day, their patio is a great setting, with their pallets of wood from Carolina Cookwood providing some separation to the parking lot in addition to setting some nice ambiance and the recent introduction of a beer shack for outdoor drink service. I hope to spend more Spring and Summer afternoons on that patio.

Friday Find: How Pitmaster Pliny Reynolds Brought Texas Barbecue to Portland, Maine

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Monk: If there was ever a case to be made for “Maine-style barbecue,” Terlingua are making it. Taking Maine ingredients and fusing the with Central Texas barbecue methods (owner and chef Pliny Reynolds spent some time in Austin) creates what looks to be a truly unique barbecue experience.

Description: At Terlingua in Portland, Maine, chefs Pliny Reynolds and Wilson Rothschild bring together the area’s bountiful fresh lobster, mussels, and mackerel, with Texas barbecue-style brisket, quail, chorizo, and more.