Vince Staten's BBQ.....open?

Does anyone know if Vince Staten's BBQ in Prospect is open? We've tried to stop by on several different nights over the past few weeks and it has been dark. Phone just rings with no answering machine.

Put me down for Shack in the Back ! Great BBQ, Good prices, Nice people !

hi ed, i came across this post that they have moved. the source: prospect city search. according to this poster they moved down the street.
"All,

It's not on 9219 US Hwy 42 anymore, although the plaza still has the sign up. It's now at 13306 West Highway 42, Prospect, KY, which is down the street I'd say about a mile in a small plaza on the right.

Visiting here on business and ate there tonight. The BBQ is pretty good. I had the Staten's Sampler which is a mountain of pulled pork, chicken, and beef. I'd say the pork and chicken was top notch, and I'd pass on the beef. I recommend their Texas Sweet Sauce or Jack Sauce. Also, the Chocolate Oreo pudding was great.

I'd say the 9.2 rating is a bit high for this restaurant, but like a previous reviewer said, the BBQ is on par with other BBQ restaurants here in KY. Also try Famous Daves, and Smokey Bones. I actually like Smokey Bones the most. It's a chain but it is very tasty."

Thanks for looking, Annemarie. They moved over 5 years ago. Desserts by Helen is in their old space along with a tutoring company. I'm not a fan of their BBQ but my wife and son are. I do like their potato salad but their BBQ slid way downhill when Vince Staten sold it and it moved.

[Robin Garr]

... their BBQ slid way downhill when Vince Staten sold it and it moved.

Gotta agree, Ed, although that being said, I don't have the impression that Vince - a barbecue expert by any standard - ever really spent time in the kitchen, although I'm sure he consulted on technique and sauces. Do you happen to know if I'm recalling correctly that his son was the hands-on guy before the sale?

I think you're right, Robin.

... their BBQ slid way downhill when Vince Staten sold it and it moved.

Gotta agree, Ed, although that being said, I don't have the impression that Vince - a barbecue expert by any standard - ever really spent time in the kitchen, although I'm sure he consulted on technique and sauces. Do you happen to know if I'm recalling correctly that his son was the hands-on guy before the sale?

From it's opening until Vince moved he was at the store alot, behind the counter but rarely in the kitchen. Being on site sure made a difference in the BBQ, whomever was smoking it.

[Robin Garr]

From it's opening until Vince moved he was at the store alot, behind the counter but rarely in the kitchen. Being on site sure made a difference in the BBQ, whomever was smoking it.

It used to be a favorite, but for some reason, Vince and I were never in there at the same time.

I used to buy their sauces, which I thought were especially good. They made (make?) one that is hot as any BBQ sauce I have ever tasted. About two drops per sandwich would do it for most folks.

I used to buy their sauces, which I thought were especially good. They made (make?) one that is hot as any BBQ sauce I have ever tasted. About two drops per sandwich would do it for most folks.

That would of been "The Legal Limit" hot sauce. The shtick was that you were supposed to sign a waiver before they would let you eat it. I found it way to overpowering, couldn't taste a thing after burning my tongue off.

I saw this name and went, "Huh?" Vince Staten writes (or wrote...not sure if he still is) a column for the newspaper in my hometown, which it turns out is his hometown as well. I had no idea he had a restaurant in Louisville.

I used to buy their sauces, which I thought were especially good. They made (make?) one that is hot as any BBQ sauce I have ever tasted. About two drops per sandwich would do it for most folks.

That would of been "The Legal Limit" hot sauce. The shtick was that you were supposed to sign a waiver before they would let you eat it. I found it way to overpowering, couldn't taste a thing after burning my tongue off.

That's it! I still have some. It's really hard to use up an entire bottle.

I was in Tennessee and some silly restaurant made me sign a waiver to order some wings (I never eat wings, but challenge me with heat ...). They were embarrassed that I wolfed them down with barely a swig of beer. Pedestrian heat. "Legal Limit" is not!

[Robin Garr]

I saw this name and went, "Huh?" Vince Staten writes (or wrote...not sure if he still is) a column for the newspaper in my hometown, which it turns out is his hometown as well. I had no idea he had a restaurant in Louisville.

Kari, Vince worked at The Louisville Times (later merged into The Courier-Journal) for many years. He was TV writer and also did lots of columns, has written many humorous books, and - to the point - he and Times (later CJ) Features Editor Greg Johnson wrote an outstanding book, "Real Barbecue," back in the '80s, based on their travels around the US tasting and rating barbecue.

Vince stayed on as a free-lancer for a while after Gannett bought the Louisville papers, but eventually moved to Knoxville, and I believe he works for the newspaper there now. When he left town, the BBQ restaurant changed hands and moved, and regretfully, it hasn't been as good since then.

He's still the Metro columnist for the Kingsport Times-News in Kingsport, TN...and he has a blog too. http://vincestaten.blogspot.com He's a native of Kingsport...and now I'm curious about what brought him to Louisville (big newspapers I suppose), and I'm getting really far off topic...

Anyway, I'll have to try the restaurant sometime, even though it's not as good as it once was.

I'm partial to the Jack Daniels Old Time Barbecue Cookbook. We use it all the time for sauces, sides, desserts. For those of us at Brown-Forman, lots of familiar pictures of Lynchburg area and some of its citizens from a few years ago. (One of my co-worker's grandfather was master distiller several decades ago.)

A rib issue. We have been 'burned' on tough, not smoked enough (?) ribs. A platter of ribs can be pricey, so we quit ordering.

I would like to try again somewhere. Is it acceptable to have a taste, then return the rest as not up to our - fall off the bone standard?

We 'settle' for pulled pork.