Dining critic candidate No. 22
Barbeque Capitals of the USA: Kansas City, Memphis...Las Vegas!?..
As I have already mentioned, I was staying with my buddy Andy and his wife Andrea while I was recently in Sin City...Certainly, one of the benefits of staying with friends and/or family, as opposed to in a hotel, is said friend's (or family member's) ability to try out and then recommend "stuff" that you can, in turn, enjoy while you are under the influence of that host's hospitality...Obviously, we had already experienced favorable results regarding such a scenario with the Peruvian restaurant from the night before and on this day (Tuesday, as it's commonly called), we were set to try another "recommended" establishment in Famous Dave's Barbeque...Granted, Andy had yet to try it, but it WAS recommended to him by a "co-worker." As such, if the place ended up being "no good," we knew that there would be a ready scapegoat...Regardless, I'm always up for a little barbeque action, as are most human beings that I've come in contact with. With that thought in mind, we called up Big Al, told him where the place was so that he could meet us and then hit the road, heading toward what we all hoped would be lunch chock full of smokey, ribby, meaty meat bliss...
Jeez, That's a Lot of Food...
When we arrived at Famous Dave's, we were greeted by that familiar smell which screams "smokey, meaty goodness," so that, right off the bat, was a good sign...The interior of the restaurant was what you might expect from a barbeque restaurant...Large booths, lots of wood accents to the walls, etc. and, of course, blues playing on the P.A. Our server on this particular day seemed to me to be trying a little too hard to be our "buddy," but he was (at least) significantly more capable and friendly than the lummox who served had served us at Rum Jungle only a day or so prior...Once Big Al arrived, we all settled down to the business of choosing what hickory smoked hunks of meat would adorn our individual lunch platters...I can't quite remember who, but one of us (maybe it was all of us simultaneously) suggested that we try an appetizer...As a group, we chose the "sampler," which turned out to be a large platter filled with a few of pretty much every appetizer which the restaurant had to offer...Not necessarily "thinking," we all enjoyed the appetizer fare which, in hindsight, would've probably been enough for lunch on it's own, not giving much thought to the heaping bounty that may have been following it to our table...
And "heaping," it surely was...
I had ordered a rib and chicken platter, Big Al had ordered a similar platter, with the addition of a "hot link" so he could have lunch for the next day as well...Andrea and Andy, on the other hand, had ordered the "extra large full rack of ribs." Mind you, while some of the popular chain BBQ places such as Tony Roma's specialize in "baby back" ribs, Famous Dave's offers spareribs, which are significantly larger than their aforementioned diminutive cousins...As such, when this utter monstrosity was delivered to the table, abject shock set in and was humorously evident on Andrea's face...Suddenly, as we all stared at the expansive spread of meaty meat goodness laid out before us, there were none among the group who didn't regret that appetizer decision...Soldiering on, however, we all dug in and did our best to eat what we could. In the end, boxes were required and enough food to feed a small Ethiopian village for a week was carted out of Famous Dave's...As Barbeque goes, I'd have to give Famous Dave's high marks, possibly even an "A." I'll surely look to eat there when I return to Las Vegas, but I will do so a wiser man: No appetizer unless we skip dinner the evening before...Them's the rules...
As I have already mentioned, I was staying with my buddy Andy and his wife Andrea while I was recently in Sin City...Certainly, one of the benefits of staying with friends and/or family, as opposed to in a hotel, is said friend's (or family member's) ability to try out and then recommend "stuff" that you can, in turn, enjoy while you are under the influence of that host's hospitality...Obviously, we had already experienced favorable results regarding such a scenario with the Peruvian restaurant from the night before and on this day (Tuesday, as it's commonly called), we were set to try another "recommended" establishment in Famous Dave's Barbeque...Granted, Andy had yet to try it, but it WAS recommended to him by a "co-worker." As such, if the place ended up being "no good," we knew that there would be a ready scapegoat...Regardless, I'm always up for a little barbeque action, as are most human beings that I've come in contact with. With that thought in mind, we called up Big Al, told him where the place was so that he could meet us and then hit the road, heading toward what we all hoped would be lunch chock full of smokey, ribby, meaty meat bliss...
Jeez, That's a Lot of Food...
When we arrived at Famous Dave's, we were greeted by that familiar smell which screams "smokey, meaty goodness," so that, right off the bat, was a good sign...The interior of the restaurant was what you might expect from a barbeque restaurant...Large booths, lots of wood accents to the walls, etc. and, of course, blues playing on the P.A. Our server on this particular day seemed to me to be trying a little too hard to be our "buddy," but he was (at least) significantly more capable and friendly than the lummox who served had served us at Rum Jungle only a day or so prior...Once Big Al arrived, we all settled down to the business of choosing what hickory smoked hunks of meat would adorn our individual lunch platters...I can't quite remember who, but one of us (maybe it was all of us simultaneously) suggested that we try an appetizer...As a group, we chose the "sampler," which turned out to be a large platter filled with a few of pretty much every appetizer which the restaurant had to offer...Not necessarily "thinking," we all enjoyed the appetizer fare which, in hindsight, would've probably been enough for lunch on it's own, not giving much thought to the heaping bounty that may have been following it to our table...
And "heaping," it surely was...
I had ordered a rib and chicken platter, Big Al had ordered a similar platter, with the addition of a "hot link" so he could have lunch for the next day as well...Andrea and Andy, on the other hand, had ordered the "extra large full rack of ribs." Mind you, while some of the popular chain BBQ places such as Tony Roma's specialize in "baby back" ribs, Famous Dave's offers spareribs, which are significantly larger than their aforementioned diminutive cousins...As such, when this utter monstrosity was delivered to the table, abject shock set in and was humorously evident on Andrea's face...Suddenly, as we all stared at the expansive spread of meaty meat goodness laid out before us, there were none among the group who didn't regret that appetizer decision...Soldiering on, however, we all dug in and did our best to eat what we could. In the end, boxes were required and enough food to feed a small Ethiopian village for a week was carted out of Famous Dave's...As Barbeque goes, I'd have to give Famous Dave's high marks, possibly even an "A." I'll surely look to eat there when I return to Las Vegas, but I will do so a wiser man: No appetizer unless we skip dinner the evening before...Them's the rules...
posted by Warren Epstein at 12:53 PM
7 Comments:
You have me craving meat!
It was a fun read, but I could have used a little more about what things tasted like. Wet or Dry bbq? Spicy or Sweet? I got that it was plentiful and what they ordered, but what was on the sampler??
And now there is one in the springs, next to Cracker Barrel.
What's with the "..." everywhere? Barf.
Below adequate food and atmosphere notes, but no location information, hours or pricing. The review of a place that almost no one reading it will get to go is pointless, and the writing was Junior High at best.
Side Note: When in Las Vegas, Memphis Championship BBQ is far superior, but Mizunos at the Trop is second to none.
All I can say is...that beginning...wtf are you talking about?
FYI. "submission reviewer" is not associated with the Gazette.
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