MilitantSquatter
Moderator
Took my wife and daughter out for dinner tonight at the new home of our own Big Barry - pitmaster of Ruby's Famous BBQ joint in East Meadow.. It was a surprise visit.. Arrived about 7PM.. This was my fourth trip to Ruby's but first since Big Barry's arrival..
First - I will discuss the food.. then conversation with Big Barry.. then pics..
We started with the BBQ Nacho Platter (lots of tasty pulled pork)
For the main meal ordered the Pig Out Platter - which was spareribs, babyback ribs, pulled pork, chicken breast, brisket.. Sides were cornbread, beans, mac & cheese and cajun rice.
I was really pleasantly surprised by what a change in quality from my previous dissappointing visits. Some were avg/good, some very good and some excellent.
This meal came right off the line and was not handpicked for us in any way to get the best of the best.
Excellent
Spare ribs - nice size, extremely moist, perfectly cooked and flavorful.. needs more smoke flavor but overall this was definitely a tasty sparerib by all measure. Was it as good as the spares at RUB ? No.. but it was a really good start to something that has lots of potential and by far my favorite of the night.. Bark reminded me of the type served at Virgil's in midtown NY.. This rib surpassed the more recent ribs I've had at Swingbelly's in Long Beach who uses a broiler/salamander to re-heat and all to often chars the outside to blackened ash.. This had no signs of grill or broiler.. I hope that stays... Just more smoke !!!
Brisket (Cubed Points) - moist, good bark, chunky, flavorful... not burnt ends .. just point meat.
Very Good
Pulled pork - nice portion.. good flavor, nice mix of bark and meat.. cooked to right tenderness...sweet, fruity sauce complemented it well. Only thing I would have perferred was a lot more more chunkiness to improve texture and appearance.. a bit too much pulling.
Good
Baby back ribs - good flavor, properly cooked.. a bit thin on meat even for babybacks.. more smoke flavor would compliment it even better
Brisket (sliced flat) - much improved from previous.. cooked to proper doneness. Definitely resembled brisket but needs more flavor and smoke to wow you.. definite potential for further improvement..
Average
Chicken - needs more internal flavor, moisture, tastier rub and smoke.
Sides - all were adequate.
I had a chance to talk to Big Barry who was shocked to see me.. He filled me in on the game plan and gave me a brief tour of the kitchen after my meal was over.. I shared my thoughts on the meal.. both good and not so good. At a high level, I'd like to see him work on increasing the smoke by adding more chunks to the Southern Pride and possibly using a different mix of wood for the beef.. Then focus on working in more salt and pepper to the beef etc. to really make the flavor pop on the palate... Present rub and sauces are serviceable, but some can use some more tweaking and if he gets to add some specialty sauces like a peppery/vinegar tomato blend would be a nice addition.
As Pigtrip and Motoeric noted.. there has really been some positive changes in the quality.. Big Barry seems to be on top of the task at hand and his gameplan for futher enhancements all seem good. Seems the management has realized that they need to change and is allowing Big Barry to focus on the meats and the rest of the management staff is taking additional actions to build the clientele and spread the word.
Barry looks really happy doing what he loves and his physical size definitely gives him presence in the restaurant and he works the crowd in a positive manner.. He was even sporting a well worn Brethren hat with his pitmaster attire.
I really wish Big Barry continued success and I would not hesitate to go back.. I would certainly look forward to an upcoming Brethren outing hanging out at the really nice sized bar..
Here's the pics from my "crappy" :biggrin: cell phone camera...My apologies for the poor quality if it makes the product not look so good.
First - I will discuss the food.. then conversation with Big Barry.. then pics..
We started with the BBQ Nacho Platter (lots of tasty pulled pork)
For the main meal ordered the Pig Out Platter - which was spareribs, babyback ribs, pulled pork, chicken breast, brisket.. Sides were cornbread, beans, mac & cheese and cajun rice.
I was really pleasantly surprised by what a change in quality from my previous dissappointing visits. Some were avg/good, some very good and some excellent.
This meal came right off the line and was not handpicked for us in any way to get the best of the best.
Excellent
Spare ribs - nice size, extremely moist, perfectly cooked and flavorful.. needs more smoke flavor but overall this was definitely a tasty sparerib by all measure. Was it as good as the spares at RUB ? No.. but it was a really good start to something that has lots of potential and by far my favorite of the night.. Bark reminded me of the type served at Virgil's in midtown NY.. This rib surpassed the more recent ribs I've had at Swingbelly's in Long Beach who uses a broiler/salamander to re-heat and all to often chars the outside to blackened ash.. This had no signs of grill or broiler.. I hope that stays... Just more smoke !!!
Brisket (Cubed Points) - moist, good bark, chunky, flavorful... not burnt ends .. just point meat.
Very Good
Pulled pork - nice portion.. good flavor, nice mix of bark and meat.. cooked to right tenderness...sweet, fruity sauce complemented it well. Only thing I would have perferred was a lot more more chunkiness to improve texture and appearance.. a bit too much pulling.
Good
Baby back ribs - good flavor, properly cooked.. a bit thin on meat even for babybacks.. more smoke flavor would compliment it even better
Brisket (sliced flat) - much improved from previous.. cooked to proper doneness. Definitely resembled brisket but needs more flavor and smoke to wow you.. definite potential for further improvement..
Average
Chicken - needs more internal flavor, moisture, tastier rub and smoke.
Sides - all were adequate.
I had a chance to talk to Big Barry who was shocked to see me.. He filled me in on the game plan and gave me a brief tour of the kitchen after my meal was over.. I shared my thoughts on the meal.. both good and not so good. At a high level, I'd like to see him work on increasing the smoke by adding more chunks to the Southern Pride and possibly using a different mix of wood for the beef.. Then focus on working in more salt and pepper to the beef etc. to really make the flavor pop on the palate... Present rub and sauces are serviceable, but some can use some more tweaking and if he gets to add some specialty sauces like a peppery/vinegar tomato blend would be a nice addition.
As Pigtrip and Motoeric noted.. there has really been some positive changes in the quality.. Big Barry seems to be on top of the task at hand and his gameplan for futher enhancements all seem good. Seems the management has realized that they need to change and is allowing Big Barry to focus on the meats and the rest of the management staff is taking additional actions to build the clientele and spread the word.
Barry looks really happy doing what he loves and his physical size definitely gives him presence in the restaurant and he works the crowd in a positive manner.. He was even sporting a well worn Brethren hat with his pitmaster attire.
I really wish Big Barry continued success and I would not hesitate to go back.. I would certainly look forward to an upcoming Brethren outing hanging out at the really nice sized bar..
Here's the pics from my "crappy" :biggrin: cell phone camera...My apologies for the poor quality if it makes the product not look so good.
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