Honey1 BBQ on Western

Ate there last Friday, after rearding some pretty good reviews and seeing a spot on the Channel 7 news.
Easily the worst bbq I've ever had!!!!! The meat was chewy, tough and tasteless. There were 3 of us and we all agreed that the ribs were leftover from the day before and and re-heated. I don't know how a place that only does 1 style of food could serve something so disagreeable.
Then again, there were only 2 other tables of people and not a lot of take out going on.
Fat Willy's has always been consistent and will remain my choice.

Three facts that tend to discount your post a bit:

1) As a first post, it's unusually venemous right out of the gate. Did you join the board with the express purpose of slamming the place or was it to shill for Fat Willys?

2) http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.ph ... ight=honey

3) I had takeout from Honey 1 the same friday night you state you did and was blown away by the quality. It was fantastic and they were firing on all cylinders.

not a fan of first time posters as well. A lot of Internet Newbies never heard of Shill and they take everything they read on forums as truth. When money is involved there is always shills or trolls on internet forums that try to stear opinion one way or another. This is regardless of the subject matter.

Now now, we shouldn't assume shills just because someone disagrees with us.

It's quite possible the OP doesn't like smoked ribs, and only likes the meat jello fat willys et al serve. Clearly anything with the toothsomeness(?) of properly smoked meat may have a disagreeable texture to some.

People who like the fireside etc will not like Honey 1. That's basically how it is. It's a shame, and I wish I could show people how wonderful the smokey slightly chewy spare ribs and tips from honey 1 are, but you can't convert everyone.

It disturbs me how frequently I see first time posters on these boards attacked and accused as shills. Everyone here has had a "first post" at some point.

Did you join the board with the express purpose of slamming the place or was it to shill for Fat Willys?

I would guess that the event that turns lurkers into posters is likely to be either a very positive or a very negative experience - there's nothing wrong with that.

Just think we all need to cut first timers some slack, not chase them off.

Yes, this is my first post, but did I somehow miss the instructions that state all first posts have to be favorable? Was I supposed to say something nice first? Ok, the volume on the plasma plasma tv was set at a comfortable level. Happy now?
The fact that my experience at Honey1 was so bad led me to post my opinion. I've rada number of unfavorable reviews.
Am I not entitled to my opinion? Or, do I have to have a set number of posts before I can say whats on my mind?

I guess part of the reason for the hostility is that there are already threads begun on Honey 1. A quick search of the board would have brought up a number of referneces. When someone joins the board and instantly makes a new topic slamming a place it strongly points towards a pan or shill.

Or just that they are not so familiar with doing searches... I just think people should be given the benefit of the doubt.

I will say there's a reason fat willy's is consistent, and it's not a good reason.

The fact is, real barbecue is inconsistent. They can't have a slab coming off the smoker every time someone orders one, they have to predict it and try to time everything for the expected rushes.

What time were you there? Evening? Afternoon?

jcampagna42 wrote:Ate there last Friday, after rearding some pretty good reviews and seeing a spot on the Channel 7 news.
Easily the worst bbq I've ever had!!!!! The meat was chewy, tough and tasteless. There were 3 of us and we all agreed that the ribs were leftover from the day before and and re-heated. I don't know how a place that only does 1 style of food could serve something so disagreeable.
Then again, there were only 2 other tables of people and not a lot of take out going on.
Fat Willy's has always been consistent and will remain my choice.

Criticism is fair, so long as it's honest. I'll take you at your word that maybe the ribs were not as fresh as could be. I could see how that might happen anywhere.

Chewy? Possible. Tough? Possible. Tasteless? Impossible -- we're talking pork spare ribs that have been smoked for hours over oak and hickory. Unless your taste buds abandoned you, the ribs were not tasteless.

As for Fat Willy's, I don't think that their bbq is bad at all . . . personally, I believe bbq is better with more smoke and slower cooking, which I believe you get at Honey 1. But overall, I think FW's pulled pork and ribs are pretty good. But there's no way I'd choose Fat Willy's over Honey 1, even when Honey 1 has a slightly off day.

Tasteless? Impossible -- we're talking pork spare ribs that have been smoked for hours over oak and hickory. Unless your taste buds abandoned you, the ribs were not tasteless.

excuse me, but this kind of remark really is uncalled for. it's inappropriate to tell someone that their opinion is flat out wrong-which is basically what you did in the quote above. i suspect lurkers who never post (nothing wrong with that) often are afraid they'll be the victim of someone else's overenthusiasm and told, oh no, you can't possibly believe THAT. don't forget food is a very subjective topic, much as some of us wish it wasn't. justjoan

This is an interesting situation.

We all believe (or say we believe) that sacred cows can and should be slaughtered now and again.

Honey 1 is certainly a sacred cow, and if the OP had a bad experience, he should talk about it.

On the other hand, there is a community here that holds the place in high regard, and Honey 1 has served us hundreds of good meals.

I must say, any person (newbie or no) who describes Honey 1 as the “worst” (in boldface, no less) is going to get a fight – even if the contention is true, which it may very well be, there is no doubt a fight will ensue. It’d be like walking into the cast party for Apokalypto and saying “Nice movie…for a Nazi!” You might be speaking the truth, but you will get a fight.

There is also the very interesting fact that Ralph Wiggum, a guy who has been posting for about two years and has some cred, says he was there the same night and had pretty good ribs.

It’s all a matter of taste, I guess, but I believe the insensitivity to new posters is matched by the insensitivity of this new poster…so a fight is no surprise. A fight is, however, not productive, so maybe instead of beating up on the new kid, we should instead channel that bad energy toward discussing how good Honey 1 has been recently. Me, I haven't been there for a few months. You?

Hammond

jcampagna42 wrote:Yes, this is my first post, but did I somehow miss the instructions that state all first posts have to be favorable?

David Hammond wrote:On the other hand, there is a community here that holds the place in high regard, and Honey 1 has served us hundreds of good meals.

I must say, any person (newbie or no) who describes Honey 1 as the “worst” (in boldface, no less) is going to get a fight – even if the contention is true, which it may very well be, there is no doubt a fight will ensue. It’d be like walking into the cast party for Apokalypto and saying “Nice movie…for a Nazi!” You might be speaking the truth, but you will get a fight.

jcampagna42,
Honey 1 has a very long history here, serving hundreds and hundreds of plates of real BBQ to LTHers with great (and I would say increasing) success. Of course there is no rule regarding first posts being favorable, but as Mr. Hammond states, slaughtering a sacred cow so vehemently is going to elicit some negative reactions, first post or hundredth posts.

And as gleam says, real BBQ, slow smoked over real wood is inconsistent. Fat Willy's is consistent because it isn't real BBQ.

I was at Honey 1 not too long ago. My wife wasn't in the mood for BBQ, but after one taste of the rib tips, sauce on the side, her mood changed quickly. Check Please happened to be filming the night we were there, and the cameraman couldn't concentrate. He was more focused on putting the food in his mouth than on TV.

Finally, to the rest of LTH, the continuing practice of public shill accusations is distasteful, unwelcoming, and unnecessary. Can we please cut this out? If you feel strongly that someone may be a shill, email or PM a moderator. Thank you.

Best,
Michael

All of this said, don't forget that Lem's was once the sacred cow until some upstart named Honey1 began to challenge it.

Fat Willie's, to the best of my knowldge does use smoke in its process. it is certainly evident in its smoked half chicken. The ribs have never bowled me over there.

YourPalWill wrote:Fat Willie's, to the best of my knowldge does use smoke in its process. it is certainly evident in its smoked half chicken.

To the best of my knowlege, smoke is part of the process at Fat Willy's, as in a smoke-infused kinda' way.

Sorry about coming on strong with the shill thing.

I blame the sauce. It casts a spell on me and there's still an odd, smoky afterglow from Friday's dinner.

As it happen about a dozen LTH'ers descended on Honey 1 on Saturday afternoon after our Logan Square Belgian tour. The others can speak for themselves.

This was the first time I've been to Honey 1 since the move "uptown," and I found it a spiffy place (very orange), and I wish Robert the success that he deserves. I ordered a rib tip combo with hot links. I found both delicious with the hot links particularly good, and some lovely sauce. The tips were moist and juicy. Were they as good as the old West Side location: I'd say yes for the links, maybe for the ribs. I find Honey 1 second best in Chicago, sometimes, to Barbara Ann's, and better than any competition in Chicago, although certainly not in contention for a national title - although that is stiff competition.

It must be confessed that Honey 1 did not serve impressive fries.

To suggest that Honey 1 is the worst, well, De gustibus non disputandum, said the man as he kissed his pig.

As it happens, my first-ever visit to Honey 1 came Saturday after the Belgian history session, and my rib tips were dry, tough, chewy, even rubbery at times. (I believe I can tell the difference between that, done right, and "meat jello" at the other end.)

I don't judge by one visit, but note that it took five years to consider Manny's worth a second try, which finally came only the day before.

And frankly, I found the effort to pack Honey 1 with lip-smacking LTHers the night of the Check Please taping no less dishonest than shills posting on forums, as have many others here when the practice was discussed relating to some of the other restaurants the show has featured.

And frankly, I found the effort to pack Honey 1 with lip-smacking LTHers the night of the Check Please taping no less dishonest than shills posting on forums, as have many others here when the practice was discussed relating to some of the other restaurants the show has featured.

Really, now. Every episode of Check, Please has lipsmacking ecstatic plastic people in the background. That's like berating somebody for getting a facelift in Southern California, why should they be the one to unilaterally disarm?

Well, I certainly don't even know about (and was careful not to suggest) any overlap between the onetime dissenters in past CP threads and those who were there for the taping. Beyond that, I'm content to let your less-than-flattering metaphor stand...

YourPalWill wrote:All of this said, don't forget that Lem's was once the sacred cow until some upstart named Honey1 began to challenge it.

Fat Willie's, to the best of my knowldge does use smoke in its process. it is certainly evident in its smoked half chicken. The ribs have never bowled me over there.

Will,

Lem's, Honey One, Barbara Ann's, Uncle John's, all good, very good in fact. Fat Willie's, ~shrug~. Sure Fat Willie's is, as jcampagna42 said, consistent, but the trade off for consistency is mediocre BBQ.

Will one occasionally get a hunk of BBQ at Honey One, Lem's, Barbara Ann's or Uncle John's that is less than stellar, absolutely, but the majority of the time it's going to beat Willie's pants off, at least in my opinion.

I'm not saying Fat W's is bad, fact of the matter in the overview of Chicago BBQ it's pretty darn good, just that, in my opinion, it's not up to the real BBQ standards of the aforementioned field of 4 true BBQ joints.

Enjoy,
Gary

justjoan wrote:

Tasteless? Impossible -- we're talking pork spare ribs that have been smoked for hours over oak and hickory. Unless your taste buds abandoned you, the ribs were not tasteless.

excuse me, but this kind of remark really is uncalled for. it's inappropriate to tell someone that their opinion is flat out wrong-which is basically what you did in the quote above. i suspect lurkers who never post (nothing wrong with that) often are afraid they'll be the victim of someone else's overenthusiasm and told, oh no, you can't possibly believe THAT. don't forget food is a very subjective topic, much as some of us wish it wasn't. justjoan

Well, I certainly don't mean to be offensive nor do I intend to tell anyone that his/her opinion is not worthy of consideration. And I was not challenging the poster's contention that the ribs he received might not have been Honey 1's best effort, but I guess that part is obvious from my post. I don't believe that any restaurant is immune from criticism.

I was, however, challenging the poster's bald contention that the ribs were "tasteless." To the extent he was simply saying that he did not like the flavor of the ribs, I agree that's a personal opinion that the poster is entitled to maintain, although I believe we all get more benefit from statements with more detail than "I thought the food was tasteless." I would like to know in some fashion why the poster did not like the taste of the food -- another reason I avoid reading most Metromix reviews.

But I understood the poster to be saying more that the ribs had absolutely no discernible flavor/taste whatsoever, which I would say is more of a factual statement that is simply not true with respect to Honey 1. Regardless, I certainly do not mean to be offensive to anyone or discourage anyone from posting and my comment with respect to the poster's taste buds was intended tongue-in-cheek.

Ralph Wiggum wrote:Three facts that tend to discount your post a bit:

1) As a first post, it's unusually venemous right out of the gate. Did you join the board with the express purpose of slamming the place or was it to shill for Fat Willys?

2) http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.ph ... ight=honey

3) I had takeout from Honey 1 the same friday night you state you did and was blown away by the quality. It was fantastic and they were firing on all cylinders.

what difference does it make how many posts a person makes before he posts his opinion on here?

what difference does it make how many posts a person makes before he posts his opinion on here?

While every first-time poster is not, of course, a shill or a troll, nearly every shill or troll is a first-time poster. And it's common enough on the internets for someone to register on a site, post once to slam whatever's popular there, and watch the sparks fly.

So the suspicion is not without precedent, even if we seek to discourage this kind of attack on new posters and encourage people to give them reasonable benefit of the doubt (without rising to obvious bait).

I encourage JCampagna to post about other things he or she likes and doesn't like, and start to build a track record, which is, in the end, all any of us know any of us by.

gleam wrote:Now now, we shouldn't assume shills just because someone disagrees with us.

It's quite possible the OP doesn't like smoked ribs, and only likes the meat jello fat willys et al serve. Clearly anything with the toothsomeness(?) of properly smoked meat may have a disagreeable texture to some.

Fat Willy's, "meat jello?" Say what you want about the place, but they don't serve Twin Anchor-style ribs there.

I can totally understand somebody preferring Fat Willy's over the occassional bad rack at Honey 1. It happens. If it weren't for Fat Willy's, I'd never have moved on to places like Honey 1, Barbara Ann's, Uncle John's, I-57 Rib Shack, etc... I would firmly put Fat Willy's in the second tier of Chicago BBQ (which may seem like damning with faint praise, but I think second tier is acceptable food, and perhaps a better choice for people not finely acquainted with true BBQ.)

It seems that a significant number of those replying have lost sight of the fact that I stated MY opinion. I find it curious that if I had a track record of prior posts or cred (as some have suggested), I would be given some sort of dispensation, that would would allow me to state my thoughts without the mean-spirited and rude reply posts.
I can state (as can the others with me on our visit to Honey1) that our meal was pretty bad. We are all experienced restaurant goers, so we have a pretty good sense of whats good and bad. Recognizing that all places have off nights, the issue for us was that it was so bad. I used the word "tasteless" in my original post and 1 reply said that food smoked over hickory could not be tasteless. I see the point, but when something is overcooked to the consistency of shoe leather, the amount of seasoning or style of cooking can only do so much.
I've found the replies (most of them) to be well-thought out. Putting a period on this issue may be an exercise in futility, but here goes.
Attacking someone because they express an opinion will do nothing but drive away potential contributors. The only reason for the post was because I found reviews on the site and it seemed appropriate to post my thoughts. Disagree? Fine. Simply attempt to disagree in a rational manner.

jcampagna42 wrote:The only reason for the post was because I found reviews on the site and it seemed appropriate to post my thoughts. Disagree? Fine. Simply attempt to disagree in a rational manner.

Please believe that there are a number of us here who are very sorry about the way in which you have been received.

I hope that you will stick around.

E.M.

I second Erik M. I've never figured out why people are so suspicious of first time posters, particularly on this message board where these seems to be a 'clique' amongst a number of posters and a lot of unwritten 'etiquette'.

I've expressed similar disappointment with Honey 1, though have never labeled it bad. It's one of the best of a what is really a sub-par breed of BBQ joints here in Chicago. Having been there a few times now, my issue with Honey 1 is that it's basically a one-trick pony, in that they are great at tips & links and that's it. Pulled pork sandwich is nothing to write home about (and is expensive) and the sides really need some work. Where's the baked beans?! But yes, I love the tips & links and the sauce is nice and creative, so I do visit semi-regularly.

Anyway, welcome aboard.

If this thread proves nothing else, it's that good places can have bad days. That's a good thing to keep in mind whenever one goes to a restaurant that's received a lot of praise -- you're not guaranteed a good meal, however high the likelihood might be.

Hammond

rdstoll wrote:I second Erik M. I've never figured out why people are so suspicious of first time posters, particularly on this message board where these seems to be a 'clique' amongst a number of posters and a lot of unwritten 'etiquette'.

I agree that this thread got a little hot a little quickly, but I don't think that this is an issue of unwritten 'etiquette'. There is a sticky thread on Posting Guidelines at the top of Announcements and a sticky cross-reference to it in "Site Chat". There's also years of communally developed norms about how to comport oneself in internet discussion forums, mostly to the tune of "get to know the community before you dive in." If someone spends a little time reading before posting, they are more likely to join in the discussion in a way that engages people rather than inflaming them.

I don't have any taste for "superiorism" (as decried by JeffB in the Fat Willy's thread) but that doesn't mean that an established community can't expect a little respect for its ways. Think of the way we approach visiting a new restaurant, particularly one that is small and has a close-knit existing community of regulars. Why shouldn't a newcomer to this board come in with some respect as well?

(I peeked at the page people see when they register -- boy, looks like a lot of dense legalese that most people skip past. Would it be worth trying to redraft that to something pithier that people might read a bit more before they bust through and post something inflammatory?)