Brad Olson
TVWBB Diamond Member
Back in April my wife and I were in Iowa, and while tooling around on a damp, dreary Friday we made a lunch stop at B Fabulous BBQ in the small town of Slater, north of Des Moines. Interestingly, while the vastly overwhelming majority of Midwest barbecue joints that feature animal mascots choose the pig, B Fab opts for a rather lean-looking chicken. Perhaps it's because there's fried chicken on the menu (a fact I'll remember for next year).
Kathy opted for and liked the BBQ Chicken Salad, which isn't chicken salad in the traditional sense but rather a salad made with smoked chicken. Makes sense to me.
None of that nonsense for me - I'll take multiple meats and some beans any day. The brisket and pulled pork were both excellent, but what really impressed me was the flavor and moistness of the turkey breast. I'm guessing it was brined in some way or another, and the end result was outstanding. The beans were also quite tasty and contained plenty of meat, but I'll be darned if I can remember the corn muffin. I really need to post reviews in a more timely manner. Or take notes.
Anyone for a little bit of flash reflection? I wish more places had Sauce Stations for customers to mix, match, and choose how much or how little they want. While not all of the choices were available it was still fun to sample the ones that were.
I've had some fairly disappointing barbecue in small-town restaurants (captive audience, anyone?), but B Fabulous was anything but. I think they could hold their own in Des Moines but I hope they don't try, and keep Slater a destination location instead.
Kathy opted for and liked the BBQ Chicken Salad, which isn't chicken salad in the traditional sense but rather a salad made with smoked chicken. Makes sense to me.
None of that nonsense for me - I'll take multiple meats and some beans any day. The brisket and pulled pork were both excellent, but what really impressed me was the flavor and moistness of the turkey breast. I'm guessing it was brined in some way or another, and the end result was outstanding. The beans were also quite tasty and contained plenty of meat, but I'll be darned if I can remember the corn muffin. I really need to post reviews in a more timely manner. Or take notes.
Anyone for a little bit of flash reflection? I wish more places had Sauce Stations for customers to mix, match, and choose how much or how little they want. While not all of the choices were available it was still fun to sample the ones that were.
I've had some fairly disappointing barbecue in small-town restaurants (captive audience, anyone?), but B Fabulous was anything but. I think they could hold their own in Des Moines but I hope they don't try, and keep Slater a destination location instead.
