I love local flavor when dining out of town, so when I saw a local BBQ joint just up the street from my hotel, the decision was made. I would try it at least once early in the trip so that I could return one or two more times if warranted. I was expecting this local joint to be a Famous Dave's wanna-be since this is the area of the country that Famous Dave's BBQ started.
The atmosphere is what you would expect in a local BBQ joint - tables, chairs and a hole in the wall back to the kitchen that your food comes out of - definitely nothing fancy. The first thing that caught my eye was on the menu. It said "The Home of Real Southern BBQ". Okay that takes some stones since last time I checked, I'm in Minnesota. The claim set the bar high and in itself deserves some credit. The menu also points you to their shredded (not pulled) pork as a speciality.
I had the shredded pork plate that comes with 2 sides items from a large range of choices that include fried okra. I selected Cole slaw and french fries. The pork plate came out as a mound of fries with shredded pork piled on top. It was different, but not bad. I started with the medium sauce from a selection of 6 ranging from mild to fire. The medium was good, with just enough kick to get your attention but not enough to overwhelm the meat.
The meat was different. I tasted a hint of North Carolina vinegar-based flavor, but it was quickly (and thankfully) masked when I added sauce. Hardy's smokes their meat over apple or cherry wood which creates a distinctive and pleasurable smoke flavor. The pork was very tender and juicy and reminded me of BBQ I had while in the south.
The Cole slaw was the way I like it - a creamy mayonnaise-based creation. The meal also came with garlic bread (not toast). It was a little soggy and looked like it should have been toasted. Overall, John Handy's BBQ was a pleasurable surprise in an otherwise sad town. If you find yourself hungry in Rochester Minnesota, John Hardy can satisfy a BBQ craving.
Emmy's First Birthday!
9 years ago
So on your BBQ scale, where would you put this? I'm a little disappointed you didn't take a picture. Come on captain technology...use that phone!
ReplyDelete6 out of 10. They lost points for the vinegar seasoning. I paint mental pictures so don't need the technology. Think of a pile of French fries 3" tall. Then think of 1" of pork piled on top, and you got the pix.
ReplyDeleteWe were curious about trying John Hardy's too, but with Grandpa having a bout of stomach challenges, didn't think it would have been a wise choice for the group. So, more soup and salad that week. :-) We definitely thought of you when we saw the BBQ restaurant and are glad to hear you got to give it a try.
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