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| Today at Honey Bear's... |
My first review of Honey Bear’s found some “deficiencies;” later visits proved that the original criticism I wrote was misleading – which was further corroborated by my lunch today. Honey Bear’s is legendary around here. There was a time when they were hands-down the best to be found anywhere in Arizona. They are still good – but they have more and more competition all the time!
The not so good... Since I wrote my original article, A & J Barbecue on north 16th Street has closed. My friend Abraham sold the place and retired, and a younger couple took over. I continued to eat there occasionally, but discovered over time that the food quality had diminished slightly – I suspect but am not certain that attempts to cut costs were responsible for the changes. Eventually I passed by and noticed the place was empty and gutted. That makes me sad -- they were nice people and that place in its prime was always a top favorite.
For the better... A new place has opened and become one of my favorites – a long-time Phoenix family opened a place called Town Talk II on 19th Avenue north of Osborn. Chris Rideaux’s Grandfather had the first Town Talk here in the 50s. Chris and his family opened the second edition a couple years back to honor that first restaurant and his Grandfather. I think with Chris the operation is a labor of love and it shows. I always find the foods there delectable and the staff is friendly. These are good people and while I don’t get down to that neighborhood as much as I used to, I still think of them often. The food has a Louisiana-Creole flair to it – with great sides like dirty rice, gumbo and jambalaya. One of my favorites is the fried cabbage with bacon, and I love the hot links at Town Talk II!
In addition, as I blogged earlier, I have a newer barbecue joint here in the neighborhood (The Hammered Hog). I’ve reviewed that elsewhere so I won’t repeat anything here -- but I no longer have to leave my neighborhood to find great 'cue.
Roger Wagner’s “Thee Pitts Again” out on west Bell Road is still roaring along strong – the food is consistently excellent and everything I said in my first review is still true. When I am in that end of town, I go out of my way to eat there. Thee Pitts Again rocks! I've noticed that they seem to have expanded and opened a place up in Silverton, Colorado. Road trip!
I had some GREAT St Louis-style pork ribs a few days ago at a new incarnation of an old-tyme 1960s Phoenix institution – The Satisfied Frog up on Bell Road. A pork rib has a joint and a flap of extra meat that is normally trimmed off – for the Saint Louie rib you smoke it with the flap still on it so it is a bit meatier than a normal spare or baby back. At the Frog, I had a half-rack of these, with their lightly-glazed-on sauce and a serving of their great home-style fries, and while I couldn’t eat the whole thing, the leftovers didn’t last too long in the fridge. The rest were gone in a few short hours – it seemed like every time I passed by I could hear dem bones beggin’ to be eaten. So I did.
I've learned that Phoenix isn’t the desolate place it used to be when it comes to great barbecue. We’ve moved into the big leagues, my opinion. I can get as good smoked meat here as can be found anywhere in this barbecue nation, no matter on what side of town I want to look! The only problem is deciding which one.
More better... Oh… today at Honey Bears’…
I had a pork sandwich, “Cowbro” beans and slaw. The sandwich was meaty (see the photo!), lean and the sauce was excellent -- spicy! The meat was piled up on there like the proprietor was related to Miss Piggy or somebody! It was, like, half a hog. The coleslaw was coarse-chopped and subtly cool! It has a flavor a bit different than most slaws – I can’t quite put my finger on it. The flavor, whatever it is, isn’t strong. Today, the cabbage head they used was a bit woody and old – but it is really hard to tell an old cabbage by looking at it, so I suspect they didn't have a clue and I cannot fault them for that. The taste though gets a bit… woody… and even slightly bitter. I ate it anyway, and it was still good.
The beans though…. Yee Haw! I love Honey Bear’s beans. They are spicy, they have MEAT in them (chopped up links I think) and they are chock full of peppers. These beans ain’t wimpy. They've got a strong, snazzy flavor! The prices on the side dishes have gone up a bit – but the portions are large. The sandwich was still about the same price I remember (less than $6) – and the value is excellent given the size of the thing. Two people could share a sandwich and a couple of sides and not be hungry afterwards – maybe even have room for dessert! Share THAT too, without any guilt whatsoever! Dessert at Honey Bear's is cobbler, sweet potato pie, or an made-in-store gelato. I had no room left to try them... today. Take your honey to Honey Bear’s! Did I tell you I love those beans...
Today's visit reaffirmed my earlier belief that Honey Bear's Barbecue (several locations) deserves its reputation as some of the best barbecue anywhere. Of all these places, I can never name a favorite -- I can't name JUST one. It's really great to be in that predicament, ain't it? So many great choices, so little time... Life is good.
My first review… (2003)
Many of us think the crux of good barbecue is in the sauce. Not true! Barbecue is the method of cooking. The sauce is just an auxiliary delight, although very important, as we shall see. True barbecue is prepared by smoking meat over relatively long periods, at low temperatures, typically 200-250 degrees. Barbecue as a method of cooking has its roots in the most primitive methods of preserving meat, thousands of years old, both as meat was dried on racks in the air above a fire, and also in the pit-cooking common to Polynesia. As for the most popular styles of barbecue, I've heard of these most often: North Carolina, Tennessee (or Memphis), Chicago, Kansas City, Texan, and Polynesian. There are many others, probably almost as many as there are barbecue masters.
In North Carolina, the sauce is usually vinegar-based, and the meat is typically smoked over hickory or pecan wood, perhaps with a dry rub applied. The sauce is usually served on the side. South Carolina-style is similar but has a mustard-based sauce. [Bob's 2011 note... Carolina-style is my least favorite sauce. It's tart and sour. I like mine a little sticky and sweet.]
A vinegar-based sauce is popular in Tennessee, although my experience is that the Tennessee sauce is usually quite a bit sweeter than the Carolinian style, and it seems usually to have tomato in it also. Carolina barbecue sauce is not sweet, not at all. Both are typically thin sauces. In the mid-west, you can find thicker tomato-based sauces, often with smoky flavors added. These include the "Kansas City" varieties, which often include cinnamon or cloves in their ingredients.
In Texas, you'll find coffee is a common ingredient in the sauce, and hot spices are the norm—whether Tabasco, red pepper, chilies, or whatever else is handy that has heat in it. Traditionally, Texan barbecue uses mesquite wood, the meat is smoked with a dry-spice rub and the sauce is almost an afterthought. Farther west, Polynesian sauces have tropical flavors such as orange and pineapple—very different and exotic.
In the south, particularly in the Carolinas, you say "barbecue" and people think "pork." In Texas, barbecue is beef, often brisket. As a general rule, pork is preferred east of the Mississippi, beef to the west of it.
For this field report, I have undertaken a quest to discover the best barbecue to be found in Phoenix, Arizona. My first stop was A&J Chicago-Style Barbecue, owned and operated by Abe and Jean Hawthorne. My first question to Abe was "what exactly is 'Chicago-style' barbecue?" Abe explained that he distinguishes his cooking method from those that roast their meats in an oven, add sauce, and call it 'cue. He slow-roasts his pork spare ribs, chickens, hot links and other meats in a glass-enclosed smoker, over a mesquite fire. It is closely akin to the traditional, slow cooking process, although his wood fires are hotter than you might find in other establishments. For this reason, Abe uses thicker cuts of meat, and pork spare ribs instead of the baby back ribs that are popular in other establishments. They are thicker and hold up better in the slightly hotter temperatures without drying out. They are also meatier than the baby ribs.
Abe serves his victuals lunch-counter style (no linen table cloths here), smothered in sauce—which is vinegar and tomato based and is about a 7 on the Schaller "heat scale" of 1 to 10. The sauce is very southwestern in terms of heat; you can definitely break a sweat while enjoying A&J's foods. Meals come with the choice of several great side dishes, such as pintos, coleslaw (fine-cut & very mild), fries cut on premises with skins on (excellent), green salad and potato salad, etc.
[Note: As noted above, A&J is no longer in business.]
Next stop was Honey Bear's Barbecue. Honey Bear's offerings are renowned far and wide, and are touted as "Memphis-style." According to the counter staff, this means simply that the "sauce is thinner." The sauce is somewhat sweet, but as served was not spicy. The sides include slaw among others, and it is very good, a sweet and creamy version. Another highlight is the "Cowbro' Beans." They are not your typical bowl of plain-Jane pintos, but have generous amounts of peppers and hot links all residing in a thin tomato sauce. They are excellent. Honey Bear's says, "put a little south in your mouth," and "you don't need no teeth to eat our meat." Amen. Choices include pulled pork, beef brisket, hot links, ribs and chicken. You cannot go wrong with a pork sandwich, and sides of slaw and "Cowbro' Beans."
Out on Phoenix's northwest side, you'll find Thee Pits Again ensconced in a stainless-steel diner-styled building on the north side of the road.. Of the three businesses I visited, Thee Pits Again had the best facility by a nose over Honey Bear's [at the time], and the most varied offerings on the menu—including that old Arizona stand-by, fried rattlesnake. I say "stand-by," because if that's all there is to eat, I'll "stand by" until something else comes along. I hear it tastes just like chicken. That's your first clue, folks. Run away! Run away!
Roger Wagner, owner of Thee Pits Again, takes his show on the road frequently to national competitions. His place is full of plaques and trophies attesting to the excellence of his work. For pork and ham, the meat is marinated in beer before smoking over mesquite in the time-honored, traditional way. His meats are as excellent as they sound—I tried beef ribs, pork ribs, pulled pork, beef brisket, ham, and a chopped mixture of beef and pork. The ribs (both varieties) are tender and succulent. The smoke flavor comes through most in the sliced beef and pork. The sauce, according to Roger, is Memphis-inspired, but it is different in texture and taste from the others I tasted. It is sweet, tangy, and thick. A highlight at Thee Pits Again is the corn bread; not too crumbly, slightly sweet and served with honey butter. It is definitely a cut-above the other two places, as they serve only sliced bread or institutional-style white rolls.
All three establishments prepare their meat in the traditional barbecue style, and all are excellent. I suspect all three use mesquite. Of the three, Honey Bear's sauce was not as tasty in my opinion, but the other two are great, with the edge, I think, going to Thee Pits Again. But A&J's is close and also excellent with the added heat. I suspect first place would go to whatever I was in the mood for on that particular day, sweet and tangy or hot and spicy. All have some great sides, but overall, Thee Pits' sides were a shade better -- their potato salad is the best I've ever had, anywhere. Thee Pits Again shines on dessert offerings, and if you don't try the Caramel Apple Granny, you aren't living right, and your intelligence may be suspect!
My final suggestion to you is that if you love barbecue, and you can get to Phoenix, look me up and we'll make the rounds so you can decide these important questions for yourself. Let me be your guide! Meanwhile, I will continue my quest, as I'm certain there must be at least one great place I've missed on my pilgrimage! I'll keep you posted.
UPDATE: September 2004
My review for the original article rated Honey Bear's sauce as less tasty than the other two establishments on the day of my visit. This was a surprise to me at the time, as Honey Bear's always seemed very good on earlier visits. Since I wrote the article, I have been back to all three establishments repeatedly -- as a fledgling food critic, I believe it is important to keep up with all the latest "developments" in the field!
I have discovered that the less than perfect sauce I encountered that day at Honey Bear's was an aberration -- each time I have revisited, I've found their sauce to once again be as delicious as I remembered from visits prior to the review! Of course, this makes it even more difficult to choose a "favorite." So, I will keep bearing this heavy burden, checking and rechecking, and searching for the Holy Grail of Barbecue, sampling and tasting until there is no further doubt. This may take a good long time, so please "bear" with me!
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