Randy's Rib Shack ~ Waldo FL

  I have never done this before, but I think it is necessary that I post a consumer advisory before I write this blog post. Yes, the type that one would find at the bottom of a menu warning diners about undercooked beef and shellfish. This is similar.

CONSUMER ADVISORY: This restaurant may not serve the type of food you were looking to consume. The name of the restaurant does not match its cuisine.

 If you take the time to drive on a highway other than a Interstate Highway you will find barbecue huts. Well, one would at least hope to find a barbecue hut. Especially if it is lunch time. Highway 301 is a normal, old, four-lane highway that evidently used to be "the road". It is an odd road accompanied by railroad tracts and abandoned motels.  Plenty of farms, fruit stands, old souvenir shacks, mobile homes, and businesses can be seen while driving this American thoroughfare. I must also add that a high percentage of the businesses along this route are using a building that was originally designed for some other purpose. It is an odd collection of re-purposed buildings. Go ahead and think of any type of business; there is a good chance of that type of business occupying an old gas station on route 301.

  Driving through Waldo Florida (no, not that Waldo... Well, it possibly could be, but I could not find him) I spotted what I thought was a barbecue hut. Little did I know how wrong I was. As I pulled in, I gazed in awe at an enormous trailer with a clever mural on the side. Two giant home-made smokers that were inside said trailer were gently wisping out white smoke. I was encouraged. Upon seeing the commercial portable smoker at the back of the shack I was even more encouraged. I should have savored that moment longer.

 After waiting at the counter, clearing my throat, calling out "hello", and watching two employees walk in and out from the back, I was finally greeted. During this wait I was able to watch a Golden Corral advertisement about a chocolate fountain, which made my mind go to another place... maybe we can visit that place together at another time... When the normal programming came back on, the show was about forensics. There was a "dead body farm" that the investigators were being walked through. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Click here to check that out. I got to view several bodies in different phases of decomposition. That was very interesting right before lunch.

 Besides watching TV while waiting, I had enough time to review the menu. I did so in amazement. Randy's Rib Shack has ribs on this colossal menu twice. They have a rib dinner and a rib dinner for two. That is it. [insert a significant pause for full effect] However, for a rib shack they have a titanic amount of seafood on the menu. They have Shrimp; Tilapia; Salmon; Oysters; Snow Crab Legs; Grouper; Frog Legs; New Zealand Green Lip Mussles; Scallops; Catfish; Pollock; Mahi Mahi; Clam Strips; Jumbo Shrimp; Crawfish; and Gator Tail. The Swordfish decorative tin above the door should have tipped me off. But wait, they did not have Swordfish.

  Randy's menu is a train wreck. On top of this Mount Pisgah of seafood there is 15 appetizers,18 sandwiches, and 20 dinners. Also, smack-dab in the middle of this menu is the statement "WINGS, OUR BEST SELLER". My head is still swimming.

  I was lucky to have so much time to peruse the menu. Maybe this is why they did not bother to greet me immediately.   I ordered a chopped barbecue  sandwich with Cole slaw and potato salad. The order-taker asked me which of four sauces I wanted to go with my meal. I picked the spicy mustard. They had spicy mustard, regular mustard, spicy tomato and regular tomato sauces. The sauce tasting ended up being the highlight of my meal.

  I had a choice of Texas Toast or a bun for the sandwich. I asked the attendant which one she recommended. Her suggestion of the bun sounded genuine so I went with it. The bun looked great but it was just too much for the sandwich. The bun overtook the unimpressive five ounces of meagerly-smoked chopped pork.

  The Cole slaw was straight off the truck. It was more like a Cole slaw soup. The potato salad was edible, but I suspect it too came pre-made and was delivered on the same truck. I was disappointed.

  So let me sort this rib shack out. It is not a rib shack. It is not a barbecue joint. It looks like one, but it is not. A rib shack would have rib baskets, half slabs of ribs, full slabs of ribs, rib tips, pork ribs, beef ribs, rib salad, rib stew, rib sandwiches, rib wraps, rib beans, steak and ribs, chicken and ribs, and maybe even a rib Quesadilla. A barbecue joint does not need twenty types of frozen fish. It does not need to have 15 appetizers nor 18 random sandwiches. It just requires great barbecue. What I truly do not comprehend is why a quaint shack would  not make their own sides. Randy's has an opportunity to be unique, but instead they choose to be the same. Trying to please everyone out of a shack is... well...  idiotic. Oh, and rib shacks do not have Pastrami sandwiches according to gf.

  The attendant mentioned that they had been there for five months. She also offered up that they were slow because they were in a bad location. She could not have been any farther from the truth about why they were slow. This is a perfect place for a barbecue shack. It was by the railroad tracks and almost under an overpass. What more could one ask for? More signs, that is what one could ask for. I recommend posting little signs along the road every so often upon approaching the shack... just like the old Burma Shave signs...that would do the trick. Click here if you do not know what Burma Shave is. 

Slow Down

Not So Fast

Barbecue is Here

Lunch At last!!!

Randy's Rib Shack

One could also ask for an attentive staff. If an attentive staff is too much to ask for then maybe a bell at the counter like at Empty Arms Hotel. I always got a chuckle when Roy Clark would jump up from behind the Empty Arms Hotel counter. If you were born after 1990 go buy the box set of Hee Haw. The show was fashioned after Rowen and Martin's Laugh-In. ...Nothing? Right.

 It was a slap-stick comedy show during the 60's and 70's. Google it when you run out of other things to Google.

  On a positive note the murals on the walls in the "dining area" were pretty cool

as were the Cypress counter tops.

  Randy's Rib Shack needs to figure out what they are going to be. What they are is very curious, very bland, and very slow.

  86 the TV.

Thanks for reading,

gf

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Paul Gant's Barbeque ~ Port Saint Joe, Florida

  There is exceptional  barbecue to be discovered everywhere it seems, that is, if one is paying attention.

  Now, is it called barbecue or barbeque? Mr. Gant would seem to prefer the 'que instead of the 'cue. But I could care less, because his 'que is pretty much on cue. (Rim shot please)

  I have this thing for BBQ huts. When I see one I just want to check it out. It is not just the food you see, it is the whole deal. It is patriotic Americana at its best. No corporations, very few rules - save those of common sense and cookery, which is what determines these hut's fates. They are all in. All or nothing. You like it or you don't. Usually, if you don't like them they don't worry about it so much. Opinions are like butt-holes to these folks - everyone has one.

  Wax paper rules the BBQ underworld. Without it, there would be no true Deep South BBQ. 

"Imposters do not use wax paper." gf

  This is the "Hungry Man" Plate. There must be some big-ass men in Gulf County Florida. 

  If this family plays their cards right they could be the "Pineapple Willies" of Port Saint Joe.

   They will have to work on their people skills though. They were a bit non-chatty. How can caterers be non-chatty? I am not sure about that.

  Let's run through this food real quick.

   Potato salad ~ Skip it. I call this "mashed potato salad" and I am no fan of it. It is a typical mayo/mustard/pickle relish fare.

  Baked Beans ~ Delish! Smokey, with brown sugar and infused with pork bits.

  Ribs (spare ribs) ~ These were "fall of the bone" with a slight tug. Served dry, dipping these into the home-made BBQ sauce made them near perfect.

  Pulled Pork ~ Oversmoked. They were using Oak, and lots of it. Nothing is worse than burping up Oak for the rest of the day after eating a plate of food.

  Smoked Chicken ~ Over cooked and dry. It did have a good crust and good flavor though.

  Conclusion? Pull in and order. Do not be skeered. Hey, that is how you say it in Port St. Joe Florida.

Thanks for reading,

gf

  

Jot Em Down ~ Athens, GA

  The reviews on Jot Em Down that I read were mixed. Diners either love this place or they hate it. Without much of a "middle ground" of opinions,  I knew that this was going to be fun. I also knew that I had to consume the ever popular Cabbage Casserole.

  This looks like a BBQ joint. After all, there is a pig on the roof. Stocked with artifacts and "old junk" the place looks like an old grocery store inside and out. The old posters and signs taped to the front doors adds to the charm, as well.  I am not sure about the bamboo wall paper hung throughout the interior though; that felt a little "tiki bar" to me. Antiques and doodads abound at Jot Em Down. However, my thinking has always been "People go out to eat to eat." I suggest that they invest in new booth seats as the current ones are quite worn. Maybe they can sell some antiques to cover those costs.

The plates come out to the table covered in wax paper. This practice is confusing to me. Do they have a fly problem? Is it a game of hide-and-seek or peek-a-boo? Are we supposed to flip the paper over and use it for a plate? Is it for your left overs? I just do not know about the wax paper.

Before

After

Before

Watching my daughter opening her food was painful. Not only was her plate covered in wax paper, but the sandwich was wrapped up as well. This wax paper deal just kills me.

  The cafeteria-sectional-style plates did not impress her either. Matter of fact, she said that it creeped her out. She stated that the plates made her feel as though she was in a middle-school lunch room. Maybe she had issues in middle school that I am not aware of... not sure about that. The baked beans tasted as though they were straight out of a can, and the Brunswick Stew proved to be a mixture of an unfortunate nature. Fail.

After

  Not letting personal demons get the best of me, I press onward. The pulled pork meat was smoked and very tender. Delivered without sauce is not a problem as there is a plethora of sauces on the table. Eight or so choices with slight differences in each are an issue in my book. Three sauces max is the gf standard. The staff instructed us shake the vinegar sauces, but we found it hard to comply. Shaking without placing ones finger on the top produces an unwanted acid-rain of sauce on the table. Also, placing ones finger on the spout is a violation. I am sure of it.

  The pulled pork (chopped finer than I like) had a decent smoke flavor to it. However, the ribs disappointed me as they did not sport any seasoning on them at all (insert a significant pause).

The bar with no beer.

  I gobbled up the Cabbage Casserole with gusto. The hype about this side dish is not unfounded. It is impressive. Matter of fact,  I am letting the world know right know that I am stealing this recipe. This is a dish that does not win any awards in the looks department. However, one may turn into a Cabbage Casserole fanatic after tasting this vegetable treat.

 As we wrapped up the visit, I poked around and snapped a few pictures. I discovered an awesome bar in a back right corner of the building in a separate room. I discovered that there are no drink specials as they do not sell any libations. "We served more BBQ then beer" was the given reason. Whatever. Is this is Athens Georgia or is it not? There is not a shortage of beer drinkers in Athens. I think that there may have been too much beer drinking in the past at Jot Em Down. Maybe Jot Em Down used to be called "chug em down". There is a story about the Jot Em Down name posted in the lobby. It said something to the effect of "Jot 'em down so you don't forget 'em." Sorry, but I did not read any more than that as it hurt my head.

  The issues that reviewers have had about the service are not the fault of the servers according to gf. Either the owners need to rethink the ordering process, or hire more servers. That is all I have to say about that.

  There were concerns about a University of Alabama logo hung above the table, but they were unfounded. Upon detailed review, there were significant differences between the Alabama design and the logo that was hanging above the table. The University of Alabama has a fondness for elephants. The sign above the table had a big red "A" and a Spartan poking out through the middle of it. My bad.

plannedob.blogspot.com

  I concluded my visit by ordering some Cabbage Casserole to go. Leaving dazed and confused I reasoned that it was from soaking myself with sauce, the mental exercise of trying to understand why a bar had no cold beer, and trying to remember what the hell was in the middle of the Alabama "A".

  Overall, Jot Em Down is a place to grab a barbecue sandwich on the run. Avoid the ribs, baked beans, and the stew. Do not order a beer at the bar, and watch out for excessive wax paper. Choose the Cherokee barbecue sauce for a condiment.

sportslogos.net

 "Let The Big Dog Eat" ...barbecue!

bleacherreport.com

Thank you for reading, and GO COCKS!!

gf



                  

Heirloom Market BBQ ~ Atlanta, GA

  "Never judge a book by its cover." This is a true statement for most influential barbecue joints. Multiply that thought by approximately 7.5 when thinking of Heirloom Market BBQ.

  I wore my newly acquired Bass Pro Shop T-Shirt for the dining experience as a hint for my wife. Unable to decode the signals, she got all gussied up for dinner.

If one does not look to the left, this is a quaint restaurant.

  Pulling into the smallish parking lot, not only did I get "the look", I also received  a "what the hell" softly spoken under her breath. Reassuring my spouse, I explained that there was absolutely nothing to worry about except that she was slightly over dressed. This is a small joint. The smallness of the place is part of what I enjoyed about it.  There is only one table. I know! That is awesome, right? We landed at the"Rails" (long boards attached to the perimeter walls) after ordering at the register/display filled with sausages and jars of kimchi.

  We both chose the "Chattahoochee Punch" for a beverage. Tap water served in large, clear bottles (with those crafty springy tops with corks) made the tap water feel expensive. I love the beverage choices. Heirloom BBQ does not have the free-flowing free-refilling coke dispensing machine. Rather they have several unique choices of soda with real ingredients in bottles. Coke made with sugar, (and not High Fructose Corn Syrup) Homemade lemonade, sweet tea, and Jasmine green tea also made me smile.

  Looking into the kitchen, I watched smoke wafting out of smokers, and chefs bustling about preparing orders. As we waited for dinner, the stream of customers getting to-go orders became steady. At three (O'clock) in the afternoon, Heirloom BBQ was hopping. I knew it was not the fancy dining room bringing in the flow of guests, but rather the quality of food. The food arrived on metal platters lined with paper. Grabbing a fork off of the wall, I dug in to find out what all the fuss is about.

   The Smoked Wings (the chalk board special) arrived with a small side of Korean Sweet Potatoes. In the back of my brain, I heard a famous chef say BAM! The baked and sauteed sweet potatoes (delicate and delicious) added to the plate perfectly. A subtle smokiness and a semi-sweet sauce enveloped the wings. Sesame seeds topped the mound of goodness to make this an above average dish for a barbecue joint next to a convenience store. (I am not sure if that is a barbecue category or not.) Maybe it should be. Well then, Heirloom BBQ wins the category if there is one.

The Georgia Sampler came to the rail on two trays, and all of a sudden I felt awful greedy. After some needed adjusting, we started to dissect this monstrosity of a "platter". I dove straight into the chopped barbecue. Grabbing up half of an egg bun (my favorite) and jamming it with some Q and some slaw took me to the seventh level of barbecue happiness. Heirloom BBQ does not over sauce their barbecue. However, they may have over smoked some of the brisket (as well as over cooked it). One has the opportunity to taste the flavors of the meats that they cook without the sauce taking all of the credit. There were several sauces on the table:  Settler Sauce - (North)Carolina(ish) vinegary with peppers, Table Sauce - Sweet and smokey (a thin Tennessee Style), Kitchen Sauce - Peppery tomato Texas blend, and KB Sauce - Korean sweet and spicy.

  Excessive tasting and dunking of barbecue into sauces did little to solve the puzzle in my head as to which one I enjoyed the best. I did conclude that I may have to come back to solve this mystery. Therein lies the Heirloom BBQ marketing plan.

The macaroni and cheese proved to be creamy and slightly spicy. Specs of pepper appeared on occasion throughout the dish as it disappeared from the platter. The chefs prepared the baked beans with hints of barbecue sauce and chunks of meat. Bean eaters (who do not like chunks of meat in baked beans other than hot dog slices) do not fear the Heirloom BBQ baked beans. They are excellent.

Is Heirloom BBQ #1 in Atlanta? I am not sure about that. They are in the game; no doubt.  It may prove to be a long summer at the rate I am going.

Thanks for reading,
gf