Bar-Be -Que Restaurants.

For Dinner.
1) Smoque. Been there. Like it. ++ BYOB

2) Real Urban BBQ, Vernon Hills. Same as Highland Park??. In Vernon Hills, BYOB. NO BYOB in Highland Park.

3) TK's Smoke Pit? Saw Steve Delinsky last night on TV. Called there. Not to impressed with attitude. + Wine by glass ONLY.

I'm partial to Smoque, BUT open to your thoughts.

Thanks,

Wally Wade

At Real Urban you will barely be able to detect any smoke in the meat.

TK's can be pretty good but is less consistent than Smoque and their sauces aren't very good.

Rub's Backcountry Smokehouse at Western and Lunt is BYOB and worth considering. The brisket sandwich is absolutely top notch, the ribs are up there with Smoque, but very different and St. Louis only. But, no fries and no whole chicken, just pulled meat. They have the same sausage as Smoque but in the past(this may have changed) they just heated it up and did not put it in their smoker. Rub's, unlike the other places, uses only wood for both heat and smoke, no gas, no electricity.

While we have a general BBQ thread started, I want to ask if anyone has tried two places I have some interest in, but haven't tried yet.

One is Hickory River Smokehouse in Glendale Heights. http://www.hickoryriver.com/glendale-heights-il/

The other is Smokin' Will's in Roselle. http://www.smokinwillsbbq.com/

Any opinions on either would be greatly appreciated.

And for me, my professed love of Honey1 is no secret here. I could eat the tip/link combo every day of the week.

They have the same sausage as Smoque but in the past(this may have changed) they just heated it up and did not put it in their smoker.

We have a wood-fired grill now, with a hinged lid - so when I close the lid, the food captures all the smoke flavor. We finish the sausages on the wood-fired grill now, indirect heat for about 10 minutes, then moved over the hot coals to finish. Mikeska already smokes the sausage, but it's nice to have that little extra bit o' smoke on it.

walter wade wrote:For Dinner.
1) Smoque. Been there. Like it. ++ BYOB

2) Real Urban BBQ, Vernon Hills. Same as Highland Park??. In Vernon Hills, BYOB. NO BYOB in Highland Park.

3) TK's Smoke Pit? Saw Steve Delinsky last night on TV. Called there. Not to impressed with attitude. + Wine by glass ONLY.

I'm partial to Smoque, BUT open to your thoughts.

Thanks,

Wally Wade

I finally made it to Smoque recently and it was great. Out of the three you posted, Real Urban is a waste is you are looking for meat that is smoked with real wood. Real Urban looks right, but relies completely on their sauces to hide the fact that there is basically no smoke flavor thanks to their pellet smoker. Smoque had the best brisket I ever had (so far). However I love TK's pulled pork over Smoque, but maybe Smoque was off on the pork that night. Tk's sauces are weak, but I don't miss them if the BBQ is great on it's own. TK himself is a nice guy. He has a not so bright, humorless young guy working there that you might deal with. I suppose he's ok too, but doesn't seem to be into what he does. There will be no seating problems, TK's is decent sized and does mostly carryout.

Probably Smoque, in a week or so.

Will advise.

Thanks,

Wally Wade

Have you hit up any of the southside meccas for BBQ? If you are a northsider (I'm just guessing from the other BBQ joints you've mentioned) they are far, but they are certainly worth it.

My personal favorite is Lem's, everything there is pretty godlike but I am mostly a huge fan of the ribs.
http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f= ... it=Lem%27s

Lem's BBQ House
311 E 75th St
Chicago, IL 60619
773-994-2428

Also worth mentioning is Uncle John's BBQ, where I think they make a mean tips & links combo
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=8434

Uncle John's BBQ
337 E 69th Street
Chicago, IL 60619
773-892-1233

This is the point where I would be pointing you to Barbara Ann's as well, but it's closed which makes me a sad panda.

EDIT:
Looks like Barbara Ann's is now re-opened (again). Go there, eat delicious BBQ

Barbara Ann's Bar-B-Que
7617 S Cottage Grove Av
Chicago
773-651-5300
noon-midnight Tue-Sat

Lems sounds good, BUT almost a 90 mile round trip. I'll try when I'm occasionally in the area.

Will keep in mind.

Any "good" siggestions for Waukegan area? Tried Big John's. OK!!

Any others??????

Thanks,
Wally

Wally had indicated to me that he is looking for baby back ribs and does not like spares, so the South Side joints and Honey 1, as great as they are, will not hit the spot. I also suspect that he his looking for a place with seating.

I have picked up a smoker and change the way we have been doing BBQ. The ribs still don't fall off the bone and I don't have alot of smoke on the BBQ. The sauce has been totally changed, I make it from base ingredients in house. Most people have been very receptive to the change in flavors,some still want the old style. Brisket, Pulled Pork and Beef Ribs round out the BBQ. We make smokey chili, sweet with a kick on the end. I would like to here from the BBQ aficionados. I appreciate the LTH followers, going back to being a GNR. When you do come in please intoduce your self to me, I would like to be on a first name basis.

Mark Freedman
c/o Myron and Phil

Unless Big John's was a typo you can try BIG ED'S Bar and Grill in Waukegan. He is using a southern pride smoker and has baby back ribs and tips on Friday and Saturday.

Big Ed Nero used to have a BBQ place in North Chicagpo where he used an aquarium smoker and made some mighty fine BBQ.

I have been to his bar and grill once and liked his North Chicago place much better. However, I need to return to check it out again since BBQ can vary from day to day and I prefer spares.

Big Ed's Bar & Grill
30 N. Genesee St
Waukegan, IL 60085
PHONE: (847) 782-8772

mark44 wrote:Beef Ribs

::PERK::
Myron and Phil's, here I come!

Big Ed's in Correct. MY ERROR.

Wally Wade

My experience with Big Ed's at Waukegan was disappointing. My take out order of a full slab ($21 + tax) was meaty and tender, nice chew but had a distinct lighter fluid or some other petroleum product taste. Probably a product used to start the wood or coal fire. I would not go back. I wonder if anyone else had that experience. For a dollar less, I preferred Main Street Smokehouse in Libertyville where I have also enjoyed the pulled pork sandwich. There is ample parking behind the restaurants on Milwaukee Avenue in Libertyville.

My favorite take out ribs used to be from Sam's Club in Gurnee, very meatry and tender with a sauce I liked. They were sold next to the rotisserie chicken. However, they stopped carrying them last year. One of the counter men advised me to try the cold ribs in the cooler. They're called Big Shoulders Barbeque, Extra Meaty, Pork Baby Back Ribs. A full slab (2.25 lbs.) vacuum packed was $13.98. At home, after 25 minutes in a 375 degree oven, these ribs were excellent. They're worth a try.

Main Street Smokehouse
536 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Libertyville IL 60048
http://www.mainstreetsmokehouse.com/
847-247-4330

EddieK

Another selection.
All Sunset Foods smoke their baby backs. They rotate on the weekends, so call for the location.
If you know a butcher at Sunset, he'll put yellow mustard on first, then their rub, and smoke them.
Take home & sauce.
Pretty good

W#ally Wade

I know that there will be snark, but in Kenosha across from Woodman's a chain opened up six months ago. Dickies. Not bad. (Not to say great......), but if in the area. If I have the time I run to Captain Porky's for the rib tips, but if time/mileage does not allow Dickies is "acceptable" according to the teenager.

I posted this in the worst things you ever ate thread, but the Boston Market ribs were what you would expect. Salt, salt, salt.

I saw Dickey's when I was up there too. Didn't go in, but I might someday. They are all over the country.

Dickey's Barbeque Pit
11880 74th Place (at WI-50 and I-94)
Kenosha WI
262-287-9889
http://www.dickeys.com/

They have one in Wheaton, and a few in NW Indiana.

I hit that Dickie's in Kenosha a few weeks ago. Decent. Could have been waaaay worse. It was all smoked, for real, bbq. Of the stuff I had that day, the spares and the jalapeno cheddar sausage were the standouts. The sides we tried were fries and mac & cheese - standard fast food quality slop. I have to drive up to the U.P. several times a year. Dickie's is currently my new "go to spot" for road trip food. The fact that Woodman's is right there for a case of Spotted Cow, and a few random sours, really helps Dickie's case for being a great stop for me.

eat at a dickeys 1 time ,& will not eat it again.
spend your money at non chain .
there are bunch of places out there such as rub,uj,barn,chicago q,

ilbbqa will be annoucning chicago area bbq tour on mon.
but here is the list

smoque
rub
real urban barbecue
uncle johns
honky tonk
may 11, more info will on ilbbqa.org web site mon night

midas wrote:While we have a general BBQ thread started, I want to ask if anyone has tried two places I have some interest in, but haven't tried yet.

One is Hickory River Smokehouse in Glendale Heights. http://www.hickoryriver.com/glendale-heights-il/

The other is Smokin' Will's in Roselle. http://www.smokinwillsbbq.com/

Any opinions on either would be greatly appreciated.

And for me, my professed love of Honey1 is no secret here. I could eat the tip/link combo every day of the week.

smokin wills`- been few times.
small place,sauces are vrey good. only had brisket there .its above avg.
if in area , would stop again

scottsol wrote:At Real Urban you will barely be able to detect any smoke in the meat.

TK's can be pretty good but is less consistent than Smoque and their sauces aren't very good.

Rub's Backcountry Smokehouse at Western and Lunt is BYOB and worth considering. The brisket sandwich is absolutely top notch, the ribs are up there with Smoque, but very different and St. Louis only. But, no fries and no whole chicken, just pulled meat. They have the same sausage as Smoque but in the past(this may have changed) they just heated it up and did not put it in their smoker. Rub's, unlike the other places, uses only wood for both heat and smoke, no gas, no electricity.

all wood places are great& i love them all.
but would say its a volume thing.

philw wrote:smokin wills`- been few times.
small place,sauces are vrey good. only had brisket there .its above avg.
if in area , would stop again

Based on this, I gave it a try and chose the brisket. Yea, it wasn't bad. A little on the dry side, but a good smoke flavor. I got it to go, so I only got to try 2 of the sauces. They both were a little too sweet for my taste, but overall not bad. Considering the location, I expected much worse. I'll definitely be back.

midas wrote:

philw wrote:smokin wills`- been few times.
small place,sauces are vrey good. only had brisket there .its above avg.
if in area , would stop again

Based on this, I gave it a try and chose the brisket. Yea, it wasn't bad. A little on the dry side, but a good smoke flavor. I got it to go, so I only got to try 2 of the sauces. They both were a little too sweet for my taste, but overall not bad. Considering the location, I expected much worse. I'll definitely be back.

yes ,i have had worse.
only wish he seasoned the brisket before cooked/smoked.last i asked they where not?
but if in area i do go back

I've been to the Vernon Hills location of Real Urban Barbecue a couple of times now and have rather flabbergasted that patrons are packing in there for what I think is really mediocre barbecue with minimal smoke flavor, and lackluster side dishes. I have these other problems with it as well:

By the time you pay for your meal and carry your tray back to your table (assuming you can find a place to sit down) and get your own place settings, your food is invariably cold. They need a system like Smoque's where you get your food after you've paid and been assigned a table. That way you get to eat while your food is hot.

The cutlery is all flimsy plastic that can't cut through their ribs. Not saying that the ribs should be much softer, but you gotta calibrate your cutlery to the food.

Smoque is my place of choice these days.

Anyone know if Larry Tucker has a joint now? I still crave the ribs from his old place on Irving Park (N. N. Smokehouse).

Larry Tucker was "THE BEST".
Don't know what happened to him.
Time for an A.P.B.
It has been a while since the Irving Park store. He got married?? or ?? to a Thai girl & changed the menu & his mother came in to get the restaurant back on track and I don't know what he did. But like Paul Simon said " 50 Ways".
The restaurant is still Thai. If you go in & ask for Larry, all of a sudden they can't understand you.
Or maybe we need Sgt. Preston & Youkon King of the Northwest Mounted Police.

BUT WE NEED TO GET LARRY BACK !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wally Wade

Larry Tucker moved down the street about 2001 to be the executive chef at Biasetti's. After a short stay there, he moved down to Grand Ave. and opened a cafe just west of Ashland. After that, I have no idea where he is. He sure was good.

I seem to remember the Grand & Ashland cafe.
Then POOF!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wally Wade

I don't much care, because I think NN Smokehouse/Smoke Country House is much better in memory than it was in reality, but Larry's wife was Filipina and the pancit was the best thing on the menu. The storefront is not "still" Thai. But it has housed a number of marginal (economics and food) Thai restaurants over the years since Larry's and the SCH's departure. You can recognize the place by the rustic, log cabin looking exterior. The BBQ was fine, and probably as good as you could get on the North Side back in the day. His time at Biasetti's was especially sweet for me. I loved that place and when the jello ribs became jello ribs with some time on the smoker, courtesy of Larry, the kitchen was at its best. RIP both places, even if neither was great food. For a few years after Larry left NN (which changed names to SCH), the place remained, run by people who knew nothing about either BBQ or cooking in general. It was terrible. I know this level of mundane detail only because I lived about 2 blocks away for 10 years.

EliasS wrote:I've been to the Vernon Hills location of Real Urban Barbecue a couple of times now and have rather flabbergasted that patrons are packing in there for what I think is really mediocre barbecue with minimal smoke flavor, and lackluster side dishes. I have these other problems with it as well:

As a patron of this place when I work in Bannockburn a few days per week -
I wholeheartedly concur that it is mediocre bbq with minimal smoke flavor. BUT, the options in the area are so sparse, that I actually go to this place and can enjoy it for it being something different than everything else. I only do the burnt ends now, which I would describe as weak bbq flavor, but if you think of it as overpriced mildly smokey brisket with pretty good texture, then you know what you are in for. I know that sounds like a totally ridiculous premise, but for lunch options, in this area, it seems that everything is 10 bucks to START, so it's not like a turkey sandwich and a bag of chips next door at Halsted Street Deli is any BETTER for the price. The relative price of this mediocre bbq is sadly, in line with the prices of the other lunch options in the area (that are not mcd, or taco bell type of places.) I went to that Halsted St Deli a month ago, got a ruben, chips, and a fountain drink for 13.00. The rueben was ice cold in the middle. Go to Roti right next door, and order the exact same stuff that will come in a 3.95 lunch special from Pita Inn - it will be 12.00. Isn't there a Tom & Eddie's* next door as well? Burger, Fries, and Drink - how much will that run? I'm not saying that this bbq place is great at ALL. I completely agree that it is mediocre, and the sides are pretty blah. But, in my case, for THE AREA, it's a decent option, and the burnt ends are something that, once in a while, seems like a good idea (in the area) instead of paying 10 bucks for a cold rueben.


* I've never been to TOm & Eddie's, but their quality might be better than the quality of Real Urban. I've heard good things about T&E from ppl I trust to know decent eats.

I really like the Tom & Eddie's next to Real Urban in Vernon Hills. They have very good burgers made up in creative concoctions with a variety of toppings. The service is extremely friendly and prompt. Their milkshakes are great. They have one of those magical, endless-choice, computerized pop dispensers that my kids absolutely love.

You asked about price: Burger, fries (or pile of fried onions - yum!) and pop run about $10-$11.

Tom & Eddie's
1260 S. Milwaukee Ave., Vernon Hills
(847) 478-1019
http://www.tomandeddies.com