Big Bob Gibson's Barbecue

I was skeptical at first. What kind of a barbecue restaurant has its own mini-documentary on its website? But my skepticism was misplaced. Big Bob's is no pretender; it is genuinely good barbecue. The restaurant even has the Memphis in May trophies to prove it, having won for barbecue and sauces several times.

Even without any sauce, the barbecue is good. It has a complex taste with a delicate smokiness, and is very tender, although a touch dry. As soon as you touch the meat with your fork you can tell that it was carefully slow-cooked for hours.

Their barbecued chicken converted a non-believer. I am usually not a fan of barbecued chicken, and would much prefer barbecue (i.e., pork barbecue). Big Bob's barbecued chicken is an exception to my rule. The meat is juicy, tender, and flavorful. It is the farthest thing from the dry, tasteless result that is typical of chicken. While the meat is tender, the skin is crispy and perfectly spiced.

Two sauces are provided for the meats: a red and a white sauce. The red sauce is tomato based and is sweet, but not overly sweet, with rich tomato and caramelized sugar flavors. It is excellent over the barbecue. The white sauce is best described as a mayonnaise-vinegar barbecue sauce. It has a mayonnaise base with a strong vinegar component, a strong black pepper taste, and a dash of spices. It is runny like a regular barbecue sauce rather than being thick like other mayonnaise based sauces (i.e., remoulade, etc.). While decent on the barbecue, the white sauce shines on the barbecued chicken. The crispy skin, the tender, juicy meat, and the creaminess and vinegar pop from the white sauce all sing in harmony to your tastebuds.

The meat at Big Bob's is hard to beat, however, I am a firm believer in the importance of sides to a barbecue establishment. For me, the sides are almost as important as the meat. Apparently Big Bob's does not share this philosophy, and the variety and quality of the sides leave much to be desired. Over the history of the establishment, sides have been overlooked. Until the 1950s, the only sides were coleslaw and potato chips. In the 1950s potato salad was added as an option. After several more decades, baked beans were added.

Perhaps North Alabama coleslaw is something you are raised to like. I am not a fan. It is devoid of mayonnaise, and consists solely of minced cabbage and vinegar. The potato salad is creamy, thick, and highly recommended. The baked beans are decent, but they have a slightly odd aftertaste of perhaps bellpeppers.

Finally, don't forget about dessert at Big Bob's. Among their choices of homemade pies, they serve an amazing lemon meringue pie. All of the pies are made early each morning by a team of pie-making ladies. I'm not sure what they put in their pies to make them so good, but they rank right up there with the best.

I recommend a trip to Big Bob Gibson's. It was not the best barbecue I have ever had, but it was quite good. Operating since 1925, they have to be doing something right to be cooking the same food for satisfied customers for nearly 100 years. The place serves delicious food, oozes barbecue history, and the staff is friendly and attentive. However, be aware that the restaurant receives mixed reviews. While I was quite pleased with my visit, some were sorely disappointed (see http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/168/968121/restaurant/Huntsville/Big-Bob-Gibson-Bar-B-Q-Decatur and http://3rddegreebbq.blogspot.com/2009/09/big-bob-gibson-bar-b-q-310-1715-6th-ave.html) and others left elated (see http://restaurantblog.spoonsaga.com/2010/04/08/bib-bob-gibsons-bbq--decatur-al.aspx?ref=rss).

For more information on the history of the restaurant, including the aforementioned video, check out the restaurant's website at www.bigbobgibson.com.

Big Bob Gibson's
2520 Danville Road SW OR 1715 6th Avenue SE
Decatur, AL
256-350-6969
www.bigbobgibson.com

Mud Creek Fish Camp

Cruising up Highway 72 and then down county roads lined with mobile homes, overgrown yards, and a one-room church, I finally found Mud Creek Fish Camp. Based on the name (although judging by the waitresses' shirts, it also goes by Mud Creek Barbecue), I expected a shack with a screen door needing oil in the hinges, warped floorboards worn from use, exposed lightbulbs, and a delicious smell emanating from the premises. Sadly, while quaint and inviting, what I found had no such character.

I wanted to like Mud Creek. I like the name, the restaurant was comfortable, it was unique in its off-the-beaten-path location, and it offered the promise of barbecue and perfectly fried catfish. But restaurants are places to eat food, and overall the food wasn't good.  The barbecue was fairly good with a strong smoky flavor and tender, although a little dry. The barbecue was served with spicy, sweet baked beans and yellow coleslaw. Yellow cole slaw is made with mustard and a little Tabasco mixed in with the very finely chopped coleslaw common in North Alabama. The yellow coleslaw was new to me, and while I enjoyed trying something new and it tasted fine, I didn't leave wondering about when I will next have some yellow coleslaw.

barbecue plate

catfish plate

Aside from the barbecue, baked beans, and fries, everything else we ordered was uninspired. The fried catfish, which the menu billed as their specialty, was bland and not crispy. The catfish needed some spice in the batter and a sauce on the side. Both the barbecue and the catfish came with a potato side and we chose fries. The fries were not homemade, were droopy rather than crispy, and were mushy on the inside. The apple pie we ordered for dessert was not homemade and wasn't properly baked because the crust was mushy.

The prices are too high for the quality of food served. A large barbecue plate runs $7.50 and a  large catfish plate with five pieces of catfish runs $10.

The service was mediocre. Our waitress mostly ignored us, but other waitresses appeared to be very busy taking care of their customers.

Mud Creek Fish Camp has potential, but doesn't live up to it. I went looking for quality country flavors, and I didn't find them.

Mud Creek Fish Camp
804 County Road 213
Hollywood, AL 35752
256-259-2493

Carver's Country Kitchen

Good food and a unique atmosphere. Carver's Country Kitchen is a unique place that serves up some tasty Southern cooking.

The atmosphere is unique because it is like eating lunch at a convenience store. You walk in, walk back to a small area open to the kitchen. They take your order and make your plate. You then carry your plate and drink to one of the tables in the middle of the room. It is very similar to a barbecue buffet but rather than being a buffet you choose a meat, two vegetables, and your choice of bread. The clientele ranges from college students, to construction workers, to well-dressed office workers. Don't be scared by the clientele or the odd location. It is all part of the experience.

The food is not the best example of Southern cooking I have ever had, but it is good. I ordered the fried chicken with collard greens, macaroni and cheese, and jalapeno cornbread.

The chicken was moist and flavorful on the interior with a crunch, greasy fried exterior. The chicken was a little greasier and heavier than the perfect fried chicken that I remember my granny making when I visited my grandparents as a child. But I can't really fault them for failing to meet the standard of my granny. The fried chicken is good and worth ordering. The macaroni and cheese was creamy and tasty. The collards were fairly good but lacking a little bit of flavor. The jalapeno cornbread was excellent, but by the time I got around to it I could barely do more than take a tiny nibble.

My friend ordered the same plate except he had the hashbrown casserole instead of the macaroni and cheese.

The jalapenos on top of his chicken are from the free offering of pickled peppers.

The plate of food is enormous. The amount of food you get for your money, plus the quality of the food, makes this a real value. I recommend going to Carver's for the experience alone, the fact that the food is rather good is a nice bonus. Be sure to bring a big appetite.

Carver's is only open for lunch from 11 to 3 on weekdays.

Carver's Country Kitchen
1118 W. Marietta Street NW
Atlanta, GA 30318
404-794-4410

Little Paul Gibson's BBQ

Good, but not amazing. (For amazing, see my post on Po' Pigs Bo-b-q on Edisto Island, South Carolina.) The restaurant is no frills, almost like eating in some one's living room.

The barbecue is cooked well, is moist, and falls apart easily.

It had a lightly smoked taste. It is pulled and then chopped lightly. It is not the super-fine chop you see at some places but more of a medium chop. The barbecue came with a small thing of vinegar sauce which was a little spicy, but over top of the barbecue it was nice.

The tomato based sauce available at the table was very sweet with a little kick. It was too sweet for my taste and was not my favorite.

The baked beans are a little spicy with pork, peppers, and onions in them. They have a taste that I can still not figure out and which I also am still not sure if I like or not. I think it must be some spice that makes them taste a little odd. The cornbread was hard as a brick and dry to the center. It was what my father-in-law calls a "window breaker." I tried it anyways and the taste was decent, but there was no way I was going to take more than a nibble of something that hard and dry. In Little Paul's defense, we did come in after the peak lunch hours (around 2:30) and the cornbread could have dried by then. But if the bread has dried you shouldn't serve it to your customers. The creamy coleslaw was good but not really distinguishable from the creamy coleslaw you find anywhere else. The sweet tea was decent, although a little on the sweet side.

The only other problem was that the small "slow roasted Southern style pulled pork plate" I ordered came with a rather small portion of the barbecue and two sides for the $6.45 price. I'm sure the restaurant can charge almost anything it wants due to its prime real estate across from the hospital, but I expect a little more for the money.

Finally, I am told that the lemon meringue pie was excellent.

However, I did not get a chance to sample it as my father-in-law finished it off in record time.

Little Paul Gibson's Barbecue
815 Madison St. SE
Huntsville, AL 35801
256-536-7227

Po' Pigs Bo-b-q

This is the real deal! A South Carolina barbecue buffet where the barbecue is delicious but the multitude of sides may be even better. Where to start?

Everything was excellent so I guess the best way to start is to just go around my first plate. Yes, my first plate. This place is so good I of course went back for seconds. But, on second thought, let's start at the bottom of the Po' Pig food pyramid and work our way up.

The barbecue is tender, moist, and tasty. So good that it doesn't really need sauce.

The only problem is that with all of the delicious sides the barbecue gets a little lost. Maybe that is a good thing. The tables have an array of four different types of barbecue sauce: Carolina red, Orangeburg sweet, Pee Dee vinegar, and Midland mustard.

The Midland mustard is good. It is not too sweet with a slight vinegar kick. Of course, I am partial to mustard sauces. The Orangeburg sweet isn't too sweet and appears to have a mayonnaise base. The Pee Dee vinegar makes your mouth pucker up. It is nearly solid vinegar with a little spice, but not hot. The Carolina red had a lot of flavor. It was like a spicy, watery version of a ketchup sauce.

Plate #1

Plate #2

The field peas were meaty and rich with stringy bits of pork throughout. The beans, with the meat cooked down in them, make a delicious sauce covering them. The lima beans are almost a creamy soup. The coleslaw was excellent: crunchy and creamy. The greens n' roots consist of turnip greens with diced turnips. I love greens with a generous dose of pepper vinegar and was not disappointed by this specimen.

If you have never tried pepper vinegar you should give it a try. It turns greens, which could otherwise be a bland dish, into a go-to dish in the barbecue buffet line. You can also see the okra and tomatoes on my plate. I didn't take any notes on the okra, but okra and tomatoes is an excellent dish and, if my memory serves me correctly, it was good. Last, because it doesn't really fit into either the vegetable or hash and rice part of the food pyramid, but not least, are the cracklins. Cracklins are fried pig skins, also known as pork rinds. In one way they are sort of like eating spicy, crunchy, Styrofoam. But they are actually quite good despite the odd description. They have a nice crunchiness and the Po' Pig spice mix was tasty.

The hash was fantastic. Po' Pigs offers two versions. As mentioned in previous blogs, my family has a history of South Carolina barbecue. But I have only ever had one version of hash. Po' Pigs offers the standard version I know, an orange hash, as well as a dark brown hash.

The standard orange hash had the right consistency, like a meat puree, and over white rice was quite tasty. The dark brown hash is made of pork liver. It has a complex, deeper, richer taste than the standard hash. I wish this recipe was more common. While I don't necessarily prefer the brown hash to the orange, I like it at least equally as much and I love the variety.

Finally, Po' Pigs had good sweet tea. The tea was sweet but not necessarily sickeningly sweet like some barbecue places. For dessert, there was banana pudding.

While I am guessing that the pudding was topped with canned whipped cream and that detracts from the dish, I am also fairly certain that the banana pudding itself was homemade.

Overall, I highly recommend Po' Pigs. This is real, South Carolina barbecue and sides. It is even better than most small town South Carolina barbecue buffets both in terms of taste and in the variety of sides. Don't be scared by the fact that Po' Pigs shares a wall with a gas station. The parking lot full of pickup trucks should reassure you.  If you find yourself on Edisto, definitely drop in. If you are in Charleston, consider taking a day trip down to Edisto and having lunch or dinner at Po' Pigs. You could spend the rest of the day on the beach, put your boat in at Steamboat Landing right up the road, or do some hiking at Botany Bay WMA or Edisto Beach State Park. Don't miss your chance to taste South Carolina's traditional cuisine.

Po' Pigs Bo-b-q

2410 Highway 174

Edisto Island, SC 29438

843-869-9003

FIG

On the same day we visited the Glass Onion for lunch, we headed to FIG for dinner. I didn't know it before, but the chefs at Glass Onion worked at FIG before setting out on their own.

FIG ("Food is Good") lives up to its name in terms of food. The chef, Mike Lata, stresses local, sustainable food generally prepared in a modern Southern fashion. Lata knows what he is doing. The food is good. My only problem, see below, was the service.

I ordered the chicken liver pate as an appetizer.

This stuff is amazing! Flat out delicious. It is so rich and creamy, almost like meaty air. I know it sounds like an oxymoron. It seems like such a deep, rich, meaty taste could not come from something so light and airy. It leaves your tastebuds in a perplexed, happy stupor. Salty, rich, and smooth. While it would probably result in a rapid heart attack, I could eat this morning, noon, and night. It is that good.

The beef tartare appetizer was also excellent.

The tartare had smooth, tender bits of raw beef with a little spice and a little sour and a little sweet from the meat. Beef tartare is both such a sophisticated dish and such a primal dish. The raw beef recalls our hunter-gatherer days. But it also has a delicate taste. There is nothing like tender, raw beef. It is so good that one of my friends ordered a double beef tartare appetizer as his entree. It was a little over-the-top but that is how he does things.

Others ordered a stone crab claw appetizer. Local stone crab claws served with a sriracha mayo dipping sauce.

The crab was sweet and delicious. The sriracha mayo was delicious on the bread we were served but on the crab it almost overpowered the crab taste. Too little on the crab and you didn't taste the mayo, too much and it overpowered the crab.

Several people ordered the Wagyu steak as an entree.

The steak was super tender and flavorful, literally melt in your mouth tender. The jus/sauce served over top was the perfect accompaniment to the steak. Served with the steak were sweet potatoes and mushrooms. Both the sweetness of the potatoes and the meatiness and umami of the mushrooms went well with the steak.

I ordered the sweetbread entree.

The sweetbreads were excellent. I have never had such a large portion of sweetbreads in one large piece before. Sweetbreads are the thymus or pancreas of a cow. While the part of the cow may be unusual, the taste is, in my opinion, a rare treat. They were pan fried with a nice crusty exterior. The interior was smooth and creamy with a milky, meaty taste. They were served over cauliflower and, I believe, an herb sauce and spinach. The sauce and spinach had a sourness that nicely complimented the creaminess of the sweetbreads.

We ordered two side dishes for the table: roasted artichokes and brussel sprouts, and mashed potatoes.

Both were good but unnecessary due to the portion size of our entrees. The potatoes were probably about one part potato to one part cream and butter. They were super creamy and rich.

Our waitress started out friendly and helpful. As the night wore on the service declined. By the end of the night we were irritated. To top it all off there were six of us so we were slapped with an automatic 18% gratuity. She started out giving us advice about the menu and our wine choices. Our appetizers came out without delay and our wine was only a little slow. But then the appetizer plates sat finished on the table for more than ten minutes before she came to clean them off. Our entree came out and the cycle of empty plates repeated with a longer interim. We refilled our own wine glasses. She rarely came by to see how we were doing or to refill our water. She cleared our entree plates away and neglected to ask about dessert. At least ten minutes went by before she came back to ask about dessert. Then ten minutes more went by before we ordered dessert. We told her we would like to order dessert to go and the check because our dogs had been locked inside at home for quite a while and we had a long drive to get back. She brought us dessert and not the check. By the time she brought the check we had eaten all of the dessert and were bored waiting. I know we are young and young people may be light on tipping. But I enjoy fine food and a fine dining experience and I am willing to pay for it. I am more than happy to reward good service. Don't let your server coast on her guaranteed 18% tip and ignore her customers. When we pay FIG prices for dinner and spend well over two hours at the table we deserve more.

FIG serves delicious food. FIG pushes Southern cooking to new boundaries and admirably emphasizes the use of local, sustainable ingredients. FIG is a great place to stop in for a meal in Charleston. Just hope you get good service.

FIG
232 Meeting Street
Charleston, SC 29401
843-805-5900
http://www.eatatfig.com/

Glass Onion

While in Charleston with friends from Atlanta we visited Glass Onion for lunch. Glass Onion has received great reviews as a hip spot for fresh, local, innovative cuisine. It deserves this reputation, but it seems to always miss that final touch that would leave me enamored with the place. That said, the food is good. As I conclude below, I love what they are trying to do, but they just don't totally pull it off.
The menu changes daily based on what is available locally and what the chef decides to whip up. I ordered the blood pudding plate. It came with blood pudding of course. The blood pudding was topped with a fried egg and on the side were pickled cucumber and greenbeans.

The blood pudding consisted of blood, various pork bits, onion, and spices. It was a lot like a moist, fluffy sausage. It worked well with the egg, especially once I broke the yolk over top. The pickles were great.

A friend ordered a salad and the mussel soup. The mussel soup was excellent.

The waitress informed us that the base of the soup was broccoli which I never would have guessed. It had an onion and garlic note to it. Once I learned of the broccoli, I tasted it as well. Super creamy with tasty mussels and the complexity of the brocolli, onions, and garlic.

Another friend had the striped bass special. It was also very good. The fish was cooked perfectly with moist flesh and a charred skin.



Another friend ordered a chicken salad po' boy. The proprietors of the Glass Onion all met in New Orleans and the New Orleans influence is visible on the menu, especially in the plethora of po' boys.

I did not get a chance to try the chicken salad, but it looked good.

Another friend ordered the jambalaya, which I also did not get to try and also looked good.

The jambalaya, like my blood pudding, was topped with an egg. Apparently they have a thing for topping food with an egg. I'm not necessarily complaining because eggs make a nice addition to many Southern dishes. But you can't just throw an egg on top of everything. It went well with the blood pudding and it would work well with jambalaya, but they may be pushing the line of overdoing it.

My wife ordered the pimento cheese sandwich. The pimento cheese was fantastic. It was creamy, spicy and the perfect balance between liquid and solid.

Last, but not least, we had an order of french fries which came with bearnaise.

The bearnaise was a little over-the-top. Trust me, your doctor will never recommend that you dip deep-fried potatoes covered in salt in a sauce consisting mostly of butter. Despite being over-the-top, it was rather tasty.

Overall, the food was good to great. The prices are a little high for a regular work day lunch. Of course, the food is local, innovative, and tasty. My one complaint might be that the portions should be a little larger for the prices. I am more than happy to pay for quality food prepared with love. But, as I have said before (see my Antico Napoletana post: http://hominyhomily.blogspot.com/2010/12/antico-pizza-napoletana.html), the dining experience is a total experience consisting of the food, the prices, and the service.

The restaurant itself is pretty simple. You walk up to the counter, read the blackboard and place your order. The staff brings your food out to you. You eat and then walk to the second counter to pay.

As I said before, I want to love the Glass Onion. I love what they are trying to do. Their emphasis on innovative, fresh, local food should be emulated by restaurants everywhere. Their love for traditional Southern food and their desire to honor the tradition, reinvigorate it, and bring it into the twenty-first century is awesome. Perhaps the small portions and high prices leave me wanting a little more when I leave. I'm not exactly sure what it is that leaves me feeling like the last element is missing. Go try the Glass Onion for yourself. At the least it is worth supporting what they are trying to do. I just don't think the Glass Onion will fall into my regular rotation and I suspect it may be the same way for you.

Below is the menu on the day we visited.

Glass Onion

1219 Savannah Highway

Charleston, SC 29407

843-225-1717

http://www.ilovetheglassonion.com/