Bobby Q's Barbeque & Grill
From Connecticut Magazine
Westport
It was 7 degrees outside and 650 degrees inside the wood-burning pit-oven smoker at Bobby Q's when it made its debut in Westport. After that it snowed and the streets got icy. Is this any time to open a restaurant? Talk about odds against.
But Bobby Q's Barbeque & Grill has a lot going for it, starting with the enthusiasm of its owners Robert and Kelly LeRose, whose passion for barbecue raises slow smoking to the realm of fine art. No Tex-Mex scraps here. No mediocre meat drowned in commercially made sauce. This is the real deal: spice-rubbed, Kansas City cuts of prime pork ribs sizzling their way to succulence.
Forget the Weber in your neighbor's back yard — even if your neighbor came from New Orleans or Memphis. Bobby Q's kitchen is state-of-the-art and chef Dana Smith's credentials range from Alice Waters' Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., to Connecticut's four-star West Street Grill in Litchfield.
Bobby Q's Main Street location is no slouch, either, judging by the longevity of Onion Alley, a popular neighborhood hangout that hung out there long after its prime. Bob and Kelly have spruced the place up and positive energy crackles in the air. Somehow, without jettisoning the wood-beamed, brick-walled New Orleans warehouse look or the elbows-on-the-table ambience, the LeRoses have recharged the space and given it back its youth. There's live entertainment every week. When we were there, upcoming attractions included The Hoodoo Band, Petey Hop, Nikki Armstrong and Bennett Harris. Between gigs, Bob gives his favorite CDs a spin. A colorful cement floor makes foot stomping a possibility and comfortable booths corral kids and encourage pigging out.
But the big draw is the food, particularly the barbecue which comes close to living up to LeRose's stated intention: "To serve not only the best barbecue in Connecticut but barbecue on a level with Kansas City, Texas, Memphis and the Carolinas." I speak with some authority because I went to school in the South where barbecue styles were as hotly debated as the Civil War. As a Northerner, I was continually being introduced to "the only true Southern barbecue" — which I quickly learned was the one my host grew up with. By graduation, I was a good judge of them all.
While chef Smith has cooked in some fancy restaurants, he seems to enjoy presiding over the hickory-woodfired smoker and adding to the barbecue menu a passel of good ole Southern cooking — grits, fried shrimp po'boy, beer-can chicken and the like.
We began with a sampler of house-made sausages — three varieties, each spiced differently. Tip: Start with the veal and the chicken-and-turkey and work up to the Texas-style pork with pickled jalapeños.
A wedge of iceberg lettuce topped with smoked applewood bacon and crumbled Maytag bleu cheese made us glad this passé player is back in the game. Another classic, Caesar salad, got our attention. The dressing was as hot as a smoked jalapeño. Consulting the menu, we saw that Bobby Q's Caesar salad came with a choice of dressings. Without requesting it, we got chipotle. Some like it hot, but what if you don't?
Less equivocal is Texas toast: One gooey, garlicky bite of these golden-brown, melted-cheese morsels and the dietary resolutions of the most iron-willed munchers have been known to fly out the window.
St. Louis pork ribs were worth holding back for. Amazingly free of fat and gristle, moist and tender as a bayou night, they were served without sauce, their rich, smoky flavor for me negating the need. But handy on the table were four barbecue sauces: Honey Molasses, Chipotle Hot, Sweet and Saucy and House Original, LeRose's pride and joy. Ketchup was also on the table. We let it be but it's nice to know that do-as-you-please is a house philosophy. Far from being dogmatic, Bobby Q's menu indulges the most quixotic regional tastes: Ribs slathered with sauce before grilling, pulled pork, fire-blackened chunks of beef brisket colloquially called "burnt ends."
On one occasion, grilled wild Alaska salmon was wonderful. Another time it was overcooked. A bone-in ribeye suffered a similar fate, arriving well-done instead of medium-rare as ordered. In this instance, Bob LeRose offered to send out another steak. We waved away the offer. Stuff happens. Later, the check revealed we weren't charged for dessert. Nobody's perfect, but caring counts.
Unfortunately, on another visit Creole-style grouper was overcooked and mushy. Timing is something the kitchen needs to work on. But when they get it right, the result can be delectable. Grilled marinated jumbo shrimp, for example, were perfectly cooked and brilliantly paired with a crisp-crusted cake of grits and fresh greens.
Sides included the usual suspects and some interesting alternatives. Jicama slaw, for example, turned out to be pretty tasty, but good old cole-slaw was available, too. The french fries were good but there was also roasted sweet potato salad, not to mention smoked-corn-and black-bean salad.
Desserts were kid stuff, really, but the kid in us refused to be denied. Brownie tart with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce and whipped cream? Yum. Coffee toffee ice cream pie? Yum-yum. Deep-dish peach cobbler? Lordy, lordy. Fried Twinkie? Who could say no? And there it was, the one and only original Twinkie, battered, deep-fried, drizzled with raspberry sauce. Outrageous. Over the top. Hey, where'd it go? Don't ask.
As we were saying, Bobby Q's has a lot going for it, and whether the weather's cold or hot, the place is is always smokin'.
Bobby Q's Barbeque & Grill
42 Main St.
Westport (203/454-7800)
Open Monday through Saturday 11:30 to 9:30, Friday and Saturday till 10:30, Sunday till 8. Wheelchair access. Major credit cards. Price range: appetizers $3.95 to $11.50, entrées $13.95 to $26.95, desserts $6 to $8. |
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