Speedy

Real Q (formerly Little Richard’s BBQ) – Winston-Salem, NC

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Name: Little Richard’s BBQ
Date: 9/24/13
Address: 4885 Country Club Rd, Winston-Salem, NC 27104
Order: Chopped barbecue plate with slaw, fries, and hush puppies (link to menu)
Bill: $7.29

A mid-week work trip from Raleigh, NC to Bristol, VA had me driving through my old stomping grounds in Winston-Salem, which seemed like a perfect time to stop by Little Richard’s BBQ – Winston-Salem’s most famous barbecue restaurant and a stop on the NC Historic BBQ trail. I hadn’t eaten at Little Richard’s all that often – it’s not terribly convenient to Wake Forest’s campus – and honestly, growing up so close to Lexington, I spent many years of my life taking great barbecue for granted. However, I was excited to go because, if memory served me well, I was in for a treat.

Little Richard’s is your classic old-school Lexington style barbecue joint. You walk in, seat yourself, and a waitress comes to see you immediately. There are menus on the table, but if you’re like me, you don’t need one. The order is easy – chopped barbecue plate with slaw, fries, and hush puppies.

The food is brought out nearly immediately, and it’s time to dig in. The pork is good, but I do think it could use a bit more smoke on it. It’s perfectly tender with the right amount of dip applied, but the flavor doesn’t quite stack up to some of the top joints. It’s still quite good and I certainly wasn’t disappointed, but it simply does not compare favorably to most of the places in Lexington.

The sides, however, are a different story. For my money, the slaw and hush puppies were perfect. The slaw had the perfect amount of tang and was served at the right temperate – refrigerator cold to contrast the hot chopped pork. The hush puppies are shaped as small round balls and have just the right amount of sweetness. The crinkle fries are pretty standard and are a bit of an afterthought of the meal.

One thing I must mention is that Little Richard’s is cash only, which can be slightly inconvenient. However, this shouldn’t stop people from going. If you’re in Winston-Salem and looking for barbecue, Little Richard’s is the place to go.

-Speedy

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 4 hogs
Pork – 4 hogs
Sides – 5 hogs
Overall – 4 hogs

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Boney’s Smokehouse – Denver, CO

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Name: Boney’s Smokehouse
Date: 8/9/13
Address: 1543 Champa St., Denver, CO 80202
Order: Monk: 2 Meat Platter (pulled pork, brisket) with collards and hush puppies; Speedy: 3 Meat Platter (pulled pork, hot links, brisket) with fried okra and hush puppies, 2 rib bones, 10 smoked wings (link to menu)
Price: $44 (yea, it was a lot of food)

Monk: Once in Denver on our aforementioned annual guys trip (Rudy, you were missed), Speedy and I insisted that the group try one barbecue restaurant despite Denver’s reputation for not having good barbecue.(*) After a quick Yelp search, we decided on Boney’s Smokehouse in the Central Business District in downtown Denver.

(*) Quick side story: the night before we ate at Billy’s Gourmet Hot Dogs – which was awesome – and asked a manager there where to find good barbecue and he noted with a straight face “Go to Texas.” That recommendation doesn’t necessarily apply to us, but point taken.

Speedy: Boney’s is located in a basement of a larger building smack in the middle of downtown Denver. However, it’s a big space, so it didn’t feel too claustrophobic, save for the low ceilings. It was a little dark, but all in all, a pleasant atmosphere. We waited in a short line to order at a cashier (where one can preview other plates being prepared) and placed our orders. We had to go to the bar separately to order beers, but there was a decent selection of local beers on draft, so this was no problem. We were given a number and picked our table where we waited for the food.

Monk: Having the small stomach that I do and knowing that we would be drinking beer the rest of the day, I went with the 2 meat platter. Curiously, both mine and Speedy’s platters came pre-sauced where everyone else’s in our party did not. The pork was moist and smoky and tender and was surprisingly good. Unfortunately, the brisket was quite dry and really just not good, more resembling roast beef.

Speedy: The ribs were served with a dry rub and no sauce. While I often like this style, I thought they really lacked flavor and needed to be sauced. And while I don’t like my ribs to literally fall off the bone, these could have been a little more tender. I wasn’t upset I got them at $2.50 a bone (and with Monk paying!), but I’m glad I didn’t get a whole order. The wings were sub-par and were the worst part of the meal (along with the brisket). They were definitely smoked, but the skin outside was too crispy – to the point that it was tough. My guess is that it was smoked at a higher heat than I’d like. Not really worth ordering. I did, however, really enjoy the sausage. While everyone who tried it in our group also enjoyed, some were saying, “well it’s tough to mess up sausage.” I couldn’t disagree more. To me, sausage can be made in so many different ways that it can be very good or very bad. This sausage had a good flavor and was smoked well, though it didn’t have the trademark juiciness that I look for in a great sausage – possibly due to being pre-cut. It probably was my favorite part of the meal.

Monk: The hush puppies and cornbread, presumably of the same cornmeal mixture, were both surprisingly good, as were the collards which did not taste as if they were taken out of a can.

Speedy: When I ordered the fried okra, the cashier told me I made a “great choice.” My guess is that people around those parts don’t eat a lot of fried okra. However, I am a seasoned expert in all things okra. As such, while I definitely enjoyed it, the okra didn’t stand out from any I’d had before. It was good, and I’d recommend that others order it, it did not exceed expectations.

Monk: After finishing our meal and talking through our thoughts on the barbecue with our buddies, we took an informal poll and none of us were that upset that we went to this barbecue establishment. The food was fine and not particularly offensive, but it just wasn’t great – not that our expectations were too high to begin with. As it turns out, Boney’s Smokehouse exactly lived up to the reputation of Denver barbecue.

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 3.5 Hogs
Pork – 3.5 Hogs
Brisket – 2 hogs
Ribs – 2.5 hogs
Sausage – 3.5 hogs
Wings – 2 hogs
Sides – 2.5 Hogs
Overall – 3 Hogs

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The Barbecue Center – Lexington, NC

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Name: The Barbecue Center
Date: 8/8/13
Address: 900 N Main St., Lexington, NC 27292
Order: Chopped pork plate with fries, slaw, hush puppies and a Cheerwine (link to menu)
Price: $10.14

Monk: On our way to fly out of Greensboro for our annual guys trip, Speedy and I took the opportunity to check out a joint in Lexington that is on the NC Historic Barbecue Trail but which neither of us had been to – The Barbecue Center. I personally must have passed within a half mile of it literally hundreds of times heading to and from Charlotte without knowing it was there. Nevertheless, I was excited.

Speedy: Like Monk, I had never been though I’d heard tale of some locals claiming it as their favorite joint in town, which in Lexington is a big deal. (I later found out the reason I never went growing up: when telling Mama Speedy about my lunch locale, she replied with a scoff, “why’d you go there? Monk’s is right around the corner.”)

Pulling in, things looked really good, as there’s a large smokehouse outside and piles of hickory wood. The large smokehouse was not active upon our noon arrival. Additionally, there was hickory wood outside of the kitchen in the main building, which was going, as there was a strong, glorious smoke smell present as we entered the building.

Monk: In addition to the smell, you could see thin veil of smoke wafting in the dining room, so I was definitely encouraged. We grabbed a small two-person booth as the lunch rush started to come in and before too long the waitress had taken our order. As is standard, we each ordered a chopped pork plate (with extra outside brown) that came with fries, slaw, and hush puppies and of course, a Cheerwine to top it all off.

Speedy: The meal looked fantastic – exactly as a barbecue meal should. I bit into the pork and noticed a definite smoke flavor. It was also perfectly tender. I think my biggest problem was with the dip, which seemed a little heavy on the ketchup, making it sweeter than I like.

Monk: The outside brown was very present in the pork, which I agree was very good. The oblong hush puppies were really good and almost as sweet as I like them to be, though not quite. The red slaw wasn’t quite as tangy as I normally like, and I know Speedy had some issues.

Speedy: My love of red slaw is well documented around these parts, but again, the dip really held it back for me. The cabbage was chopped perfectly, but I was just overwhelmed by the sweetness of the dip. Was it better than mayo based cole slaw? Of course. But it just wasn’t up to what I expected in the town of Lexington.

Monk: All in all, I was glad we were able to finally check out The Barbecue Center. It’s former owner Sonny Conrad (who recently passed away in June) was a barbecue icon and was one of six restaurant owners who started The Barbecue Festival in Lexington, the largest one-day festival in the state of NC. Conrad was so iconic, in fact, that he always presented the first barbecue sandwich of the festival to the mayor of Lexington. As for the food itself…

Speedy: It was very good. In fact, if The Barbecue Center were in Charlotte, I’d probably go eat there all the time. But it’s not in Charlotte, and there’s a higher standard in Lexington. At the end of the day, Mama Speedy was right – why waste your time when Monk’s place is just around the corner?

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 4 Hogs
Pork – 4 Hogs
Sides – 3.5 Hogs
Overall – 4 Hogs

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Barbecue Center on Urbanspoon

The Q Shack – Raleigh, NC

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Name: The Q Shack
Date: 7/8/13
Location: 4120 Main at North Hills St, Raleigh, NC
Order: Three meat combo plate with pulled pork, beef brisket, smoked sausage, collards, fried okra, and hush puppies (link to menu)
Bill: $16

After Rudy’s history making first 0 hog review, I felt like I needed to share a barbecue experience I had lately that was (spoiler alert) equally terrible.

I arrived after work this particular Monday at the North Hills Raleigh Renaissance – a hotel I had never stayed at before. As I had a fair amount of stuff I needed to get done before some meetings the next day, I decided to just get some takeout and eat in my room. I was pleased to find a barbecue joint just around the corner from the hotel, so clearly, that was my choice for dinner.

Walking in, I started to get a little skittish, as there was a large placard advertising wine (WTF?). I should’ve known then and there to turn around. But the restaurant was spacious and comfortable looking, putting me a bit at ease. The cafeteria line made me a little nervous, but I ignored it because I’ve had great meals in similarly set up restaurants.

As I like to do when trying new restaurants, I opted for a combo plate in order to try several different types of meat. At The Q Shack, you order cafeteria-line style and your meat/sides are spooned onto your plate (or my to go box) from the line, so it’s hard to know how long it’s been sitting out. However, I was excited when my cut of brisket was carved in front of me from the full brisket that was kept warm in a warmer oven. All went well with my order, as everything looked great.

When I got to my room, I eagerly took out my to go box and silverware and forked a nice portion of pork. This is where the problems started. The pork was terrible. It literally tasted like it had been sitting under a heat lamp for days. It was dry, and instead of a lack of flavor that I usually associate with bad barbecue, there was a bad flavor. Honestly, I once tried a McRib and I think it tasted better. I applied some of the sauce that was given to me on the side, and while that helped, it only moved the pork from awful to almost tolerable. Honestly, I should have stopped the meal then and there, but I thought to myself, “surely the brisket can’t be worse.” Well, turns out it can be just as bad. Had I not seen it sliced before my eyes, I would’ve thought I was eating Oscar Meyer lunch meat. The brisket was rubbery and tasted like a bad pot roast. Somehow I stomached a second bite, but it was just as bad as the first. Being a glutton for punishment, I moved on to the sausage. The sausage, fortunately, was far and away the best meat in that it was edible. Don’t get me wrong – it was still bad – but at least there was some flavor there. It was rubbery and over-cooked, but I feel like it would have been OK had it been cooked properly.

The sides were average, which means they were the best part of the meal. The fried okra was fine, though nothing special, and the collards were decent. The hushpuppies were actually pretty good. Basically, the sides are what prevented me from having to go out and get a second meal after the catastrophe that was the meat.

I didn’t take any photos of my meal, but no one would want to see it anyway. Honestly, I’m just glad I survived.

-Speedy

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 1 hog
Pork – 0 hogs
Brisket – 0 hogs
Sausage – 0.5 hogs
Sides – 1.5 hogs
Overall – 0 hogs