Restaurant Quality

[Matt H]

Hi Dave!

I loved watching you cook alongside Brad Orrison on Best in Smoke. I think you guys should've won.

Anyway, my question is, do you think mass producing barbecue, like in a restaurant setting, negatively affects the quality as opposed to cooking small batches? And how do you combat this issue in your restaurants?

P.S. Thanks for stopping by and answering our questions!

 

["Famous Dave" Anderson]

First... yes Brad a great BBQ Cooker and we got beat by TOFU... could never imagine we would have to smoke TOFU!!! Now... I don't at all think competition bbq is always real barbecue especially if it is wrapped in foil and basically braised in a sweet sugary goop. Real bbq to me is slow smoked directly over smoldering coals... made from fired up hardwoods...you've got to get the real smoldering coals to give the meat that smokey char and you really can't achieve this with off set smokers. The old pitmaster pits in the south will smoke directly over smoldering coals. At Famous Dave's we use a Southern Pride which I like the rotisserie because the juice baste the ribs as they rotate... however we do char our ribs over grill to caramelize the sauce. I grew up where the only seasoning on ribs were brown sugar rubbed and then just salt and pepper. Yes you can do a lot of ribs over a large pit and really the more ribs the better so that the meat juices fall right on top of the smoldering coals and this explodes sending little tasty particulates into the smokey air that falls back down on the ribs and this bathes the ribs in smokey goodness. You really can't achieve the same taste when you are only doing small batches. The more ribs in a pit the better tasting they will turn out! Look at the end of the day... I am believing that a mom who boils their ribs and then cooks them in a oven smothered in a store bought sauce is feeding her family "barbecue" and I am not about to tell her she isn't. Barbecue is not right or wrong. Barbecue is really have fun and enjoying tasty smokey meats however they were done... and if some likes it... like the kids whose mom is feeding them the baked ribs...then so be it... it is barbecue to these kids! If this mom thinks she is making good tasty barbecue for her family... I say, God Bless Her! I am not about to tell her my barbecue is real and hers isn't...it's ALL good in my book and I love eating it!!! I hope this helps... "Famous Dave"

 

[Brian Johnson]

Barbecue is really have fun and enjoying tasty smokey meats however they were done... and if some likes it... like the kids whose mom is feeding them the baked ribs...then so be it... it is barbecue to these kids! If this mom thinks she is making good tasty barbecue for her family... I say, God Bless Her! I am not about to tell her my barbecue is real and hers isn't...it's ALL good in my book and I love eating it!!! I hope this helps... "Famous Dave"

Well Said! I admit that I have turned my nose up once or twice at the thought of "oven or crock-pot barbecue" (something I am trying not to do--at least not visibly), but I think you're absolutely correct that it's all about having fun and enjoying the end product. As with many things in life, as one matures their tastes, skills, and knowledge mature with them. Before I started using smoke wood I thought ribs cooked over charcoal in a kettle were the best, then I matured in my skill and added the smoke wood. Now I won't do ribs w/out it.

Anyway, great reminder of what bbq is all about, and thanks for spending some time with us this week!