by Ron H » Mon Nov 14, 2016 11:30 am
Well, yesterday was the friends-and-family preview of Martin's Bar-B-Que, and I have to report back that it's a winner.
Sitting right off of Westport Road near the Gene Snyder/71 interchange, it's back a bit from the street, but easily seen just the same. The building is large, open, and airy, with a ridiculous assortment of kitsch on the walls (I ate under the watchful eye of infamous NFL marketing machine Brian Bozworth, who once sold 'Boz sucks' tees to opposition fans). There's a beautiful open patio area behind the main dining room, and a visible smoking area so that when the food is prepared, the smell will be out and about for the world to smell. On good days, you should be able to smell it from Westport.
But this isn't a CJ review, and most people don't eat decorations.
So, let's start with the first thing I ate: sides. Sweet vinegar coleslaw was crisp and bright, though it might be too sweet for some. Barbecue beans were top notch, smoky and molasses-sweet with big chunks of meat inside. Top notch beans, some of my favorite in town already. Potato salad was pleasantly chunky and potato-y, not overpowered by the standard potato salad dressing. Solid.
Next, one of the things my late father always judged a barbecue place by: ribs. You've got options. Spare ribs or baby back, wet or dry. I had dry spare ribs first. There's a great rubbed crust, and the meat texture is smoky and firm, without being chewy. Moist on the inside and wonderfully spicy on the outside, they're probably my favorite thing that I got to try. The wet ribs are sweet and spicy, and you can taste the rub under the sauce, rather than just getting smacked in the face with sauce. The brisket was phenomenal, nice and charred on the outside, beautiful smoke ring, nice fat cap, and tender without being mushy. (I've been told by Nashville friends that the Brisket Burger is a must-eat when they open up officially)
The sauce: You've got multiple options, as you ought. The standard table sauce is Jack's Creek, a peppery vinegar sauce that's used on the pig parts on the smoker. It's a thin, traditional sauce. Sweet Dixie is more traditional "barbecue" sauce, sweet with a nice heat component. Alabama White is the mayo-based white sauce, but unlike most white sauces, it's not just mayo with some seasoning, it's the rare white sauce with actual heat to it, which was a pleasant surprise. Palmetto Gold is Carolina mustard sauce. Devil's Nectar is a honey hot sauce that's nicely balanced.
I tried the sauces on a selection of wings, which were solid wings. Not greasy, very meaty. The server-recommended combination of the day was the dry-rubbed wing with Alabama White sauce on the side for dipping. It also worked well as a sauce on the wing, but I think my go-to will be dry rub with sauces plural on the side for dunking and experimentation.
Last but not least, Martin's has the largest bologna sandwich I've ever seen. Inch-thick bologna smoked to a pleasant char on the outside, hot and juicy on the inside; I was able to take a small bite before I had to tap out, so consider that one not reviewed. However, the one bite I was able to eat was delicious if you're a cooked bologna fan (which I am, and which will probably be part of my lunch today).
Long story short, I don't see how this place can go wrong at this location. Lots of area traffic without any difficult access issues, quality menu, lots of options without being overwhelming, and food prepared fresh daily (when they're out, they're out, no microwaves or freezer trays). Thumbs up.
"I like rice. Rice is great if you're hungry and want 2000 of something." - Mitch Hedberg
