This is the other barbecue joint near Red River Gorge. The one not in all the tourist literature…read more The one not on the main road but crazy out of the way, up a long very steep gravel road, marked only by a small leaning wood sign at the last junction where the road got even worse. It was worth the effort!
I finally found the place and parked in the almost full gravel lot. I was surprised by how busy it was given the location. The barn-like building was on the top of a hill overlooking grassy fields. Inside it was freezing cold from the AC, noisy from conversation and classic rock on the sound system echoing off the concrete floor. I found a table as advised and my waitress soon appeared.
The bbq choices, all wood-smoked in house of course, were brisket, pulled pork, and pork ribs. Some of the non-bbq mains were fried chicken, blackened catfish, grilled portabello, and shrimp&grits. So a wide selection. The mains included choice of 2 sides. The only flaw in the menu was the ribs. It's only sold as a full rack a la carte. Not a single-serving portion with sides.
I got the brisket with baked beans and cornbread. The brisket was excellent, lots of smoky flavor, good color, and exceptionally tender. So good it didn't really need anything else but the sauce, intensely spicy, tangy, and not too sweet, made it even better. Only one flavor of sauce was provided. The baked beans, a mix of red and white, were tangy and sweet with lots of bacon bits that somehow stayed crispy in the sauce. The cornbread was as it should be: dense yet it also felt light and airy, some texture from the grits, pronounced corn flavor, and hardly any sweetness. There was also a small garnish of pickles and pickled onions.
Also on the menu: Pork Belly Kabobs in the appetizer section. Served with blackened bell pepper and drizzled in apricot glaze. I was intrigued so I got an order for the next day. I was pretty impressed, though I'm sure they would have been even better fresh rather than reheated over my improvised camping cookstove setup. Very unusual and surprisingly sophisticated for what I expected of a bbq joint in the middle of nowhere.
Speaking of sophisticated, the drinks menu was also more eclectic than I expected. A large number of specialty cocktails, most with top-shelf liquor brands, most priced around $9 (cheap). Many bourbon brands. A large selection of beers including many local craft brands. All served in real glass glasses. Sadly I wasn't drinking and only had a Coke that evening.
And my waitress, dressed "urban chic" in a short ruffled black skirt and stylish boots, also seemed out of place for what I was expecting. I couldn't wish for a better waitress. She was cordial, got everything right, checked with me occasionally, and paced things correctly, for example waiting for me to finish dessert before bringing the kabobs which I had requested earlier as to-go.
For dessert I had a Bourbon Peach Cobbler with vanilla ice cream. The cobbler was great, the peaches obviously fresh not canned, the cake part airy and the very slight trace of sweetness a nice balance from the sugary bourbon syrup and sweet ice cream. The cake part was actually quite large and I ended up eating half, all the ice cream, and took 1/2 the cake home.
A really outstanding barbecue, for the food quality, the variety, service, and ambience. Just two small flaws: the ice cream in the cobbler was a bit grainy, and one piece of the brisket was all fat. Brisket can be a fatty meat but this one piece was excessive and shouldn't have been served. Nevertheless I had enough to eat and didn't say anything. I'll give them the benefit of doubt on both of these trivial flaws. Thinking back I mostly remember a great meal, not these minor, probably just honest mistakes, seldom to be repeated.
