Best I had today: Tie between Off the Bone and Bad Azz BBQ. Love that you don't even need to sauce Off the Bone's ribs, they are perfectly seasoned and tender, and basted just enough during cooking. Bad Azz is actually a local Pgh company that I first tried last year. Got some more today and they are excellent.
Worst I had today: Cowboys from Ft. Worth Texas. They left a blemish on the Texas BBQ reputation today. Ribs were a little underdone and chewy. And they pour BBQ sauce on them before they give them to you. The sauce was just OK, but they put way too much on, just ladel it over them like gravy. All the other vendors serves them dry except for the saucing they do during cooking, and then let you add a sauce if you like. This was a dud.
Random notes:
-I did not try Pigfoot today, but they are there every year and usually pretty solid. However, I noticed today they had the shortest line by far. I thought they were fairly popular, not sure what was up, but seemed odd and I just stayed away too.
-There was a new local BBQ vendor this year, Crews BBQ. I did not try them because they were at the far end from where I started and I had already been to 6 places. However, I heard they are in some way connected to the Steel Plate restaurant in Monessen. If you've never been, the Steel Plate is awesome. So, I am definitely going to look for Crews next year if they are back.
-This isn't a new thing, but it continues to amaze&disappoint me that you can't get a soda or bottled water at Ribfest. For years, the Lemonade Stand had an exclusive contract to sell beverages there and all they have are over-sugared $10 lemonades. There a few more drink vendors now, a homemade soda stand, frozen drinks, etc. But you can't just get like a Coke or Diet Coke. DUMB. I don't even care if it's overpriced stadium-priced soda, I'm already in for $300 in Ribs and Cornbread, I'll drop another $20 for a couple Cokes.
Worst I had today: Cowboys from Ft. Worth Texas. They left a blemish on the Texas BBQ reputation today. Ribs were a little underdone and chewy. And they pour BBQ sauce on them before they give them to you. The sauce was just OK, but they put way too much on, just ladel it over them like gravy. All the other vendors serves them dry except for the saucing they do during cooking, and then let you add a sauce if you like. This was a dud.
Random notes:
-I did not try Pigfoot today, but they are there every year and usually pretty solid. However, I noticed today they had the shortest line by far. I thought they were fairly popular, not sure what was up, but seemed odd and I just stayed away too.
-There was a new local BBQ vendor this year, Crews BBQ. I did not try them because they were at the far end from where I started and I had already been to 6 places. However, I heard they are in some way connected to the Steel Plate restaurant in Monessen. If you've never been, the Steel Plate is awesome. So, I am definitely going to look for Crews next year if they are back.
-This isn't a new thing, but it continues to amaze&disappoint me that you can't get a soda or bottled water at Ribfest. For years, the Lemonade Stand had an exclusive contract to sell beverages there and all they have are over-sugared $10 lemonades. There a few more drink vendors now, a homemade soda stand, frozen drinks, etc. But you can't just get like a Coke or Diet Coke. DUMB. I don't even care if it's overpriced stadium-priced soda, I'm already in for $300 in Ribs and Cornbread, I'll drop another $20 for a couple Cokes.
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