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It has been two weeks since our trip, and I just remembered I forgot to blog about a restaurant that will definitely not be on my Top 6 New Restaurants of 2008, even if I only go to 5 new restaurants.
As we were driving in our crammed car near Paducah, ready for a break - Mom and Dad realized that there is a BBQ place in Paducah that my sister Mary always stops by on the way to visit in-laws in Alabama. So we call Mary on her cell phone, but she can't remember the name of the place or what street it is on. And then she can't remember if it was actually in Paducah. And Mom kept wishing that she hadn't left her AAA Book in the trunk. Then she finds it in the inside of the car door. And it vaguely says something about a BBQ somewhere.
But we pull out on the last exit of Paducah, and I suggest that Taco Bell would be a good option. But Dad asks the guy at the gas station if there is BBQ nearby. And he actually does get directions. We drive a few miles through the small town of Paducah. This is already surprising, since my parents usually obsess about the distance of the restaurant from the highway. ("I can't see it, let's go to the next exit") And then we come up to Starnes BBQ.
And it's basically a counter top that goes in a U-shape with stools around it. There is a thing in the middle that displays chips and candy bars. Dad said loudly to our embarrassment, "It's fun to hang out with the locals. This is where the locals eat!" We all ordered a pork sandwich. We had the option of cole slaw or potatoes, which were served in fun-sized styrofoam containers with plastic forks. I didn't have the courage to ask the server to hold off the bread for my allergy, fearing some kind of dumbfounded reaction. But I have to note that the bread is sliced, and not a bun. The BBQ sauce had heavy vinegar influence. The serving was small, but the price matched it. The taste honestly was not good. So it was kind of interesting to get into town and everything, but if we were locals, you wouldn't see me sitting on a stool at Starnes.
if only I had my triple A book when you guys called!
ReplyDelete1. We stopped at whatever the BBQ place was once.
ReplyDelete2. I don't know what most of the place looked like, since the non-smoking section was a small, remote annex to the rest of the area. I remember that there was some framed print of a montage of KY basketball moments, with Adolph Rupp's profile as the sun around which these glories orbited, of course.
I HAVE BEEN PURCHASING BB-Q FROM YOUR BUSINESS FOR MANY YEARS AND HAVE ALWAYS FOUND THE BB-Q TO BE OUTSTANDING…HOWEVER THE 13 POUNDS I PURCHASED YESTERDAY {04-08-2009} WAS LESS THAN DESIRED.
ReplyDeleteI AM FROM WICKLIFFE, KY…BUT MOVED TO FLORIDA 30 YEARS AGO. I VISIT THE PADUCAH AREA SEVERAL TIMES A YEAR. I ALWAYS BUY THE LOCAL BBQ…IN YEARS PAST IT WAS ALWAYS AT LEIGHS BBQ ON US 60…BUT APPROX 10 YEARS AGO I SAMPLED YOUR BBQ AND FOUND IT WAS EXCELLENT AND OF GREAT QUALITY.
ON EVERY TRIP, I ALWAYS STOP BY SEVERAL TIMES AND HAVE THE FANTASTIC PULLED PORK SANDWICHES…THEN, WHEN I PREPARE TO RETURN TO FLORIDA, I ALWAYS STOP BY AND PURCHASE ANYWHERE FROM 10-15 POUNDS OF YOUR BBQ AND TRANSPORT TO FLORIDA.
ON 03-28-2009, I ARRIVED TO VISIT RELATIVES IN THE WICKLIFFE & BARLOW AREA.
WHEN I INQUIRED ABOUT DRIVING TO PADUCAH TO GET SOME OF YOUR BBQ, MY SISTER SAID…”YOU MAY WANT TO THINK AGAIN ABOUT THAT”…SHE SAID SHE RECENTLY PURCHASED 2 POUNDS AND WHEN OPENED AT HER HOME…SHE FOUND IT WAS VERY CHUNKY…A LARGE AMOUNT OF FAT AND GRISEL IN IT…AS WELL AS MANY BURNT CHUNKS INSIDE THAT COULD NOT BE EATEN.
I TOLD HER THAT IT MUST HAVE BEEN A BAD BATCH OR MAYBE A NEW EMPLOYEE DID NOT DO IT CORRECTLY, BUT THAT “STARNES” WOULD QUICKLY CORRECT SUCH A PROBLEM.
ON 04-08-2009, I DEPARTED FOR FLORIDA…BUT AS ALWAYS…I STOPPED AT YOUR RESTAURANT…AND ORDERED A BBQ SANDWICH…JUST TO MAKE SURE…AND IT WAS AS FANTASTIC AS ALWAYS.
THEN THE PROBLEM…I ORDERED 13 ONE POUND PACKAGES OF THE BBQ, TO TAKE WITH ME TO FLORIDA…ALL WENT WELL…UNTIL I GOT TO FLORIDA.
THIS MORNING I OPENED THE PACKAGES…DISCOVERING THE BBQ WAS EXACTLY AS MY SISTER HAD DESCRIBED…IT WAS VERY CHUNKY…A LARGE AMOUNT OF FAT AND GRISEL IN IT…MANY BURNT CHUNKS INSIDE THAT CAN NOT BE EATEN.
I WOULD ASK YOU TO ADDRESS THIS, AS THE QUALITY AND MANNER OF PREPARING LARGE PACKAGES, WELL, DEFINITELY THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG. I PAID $ 112.00 FOR BBQ THAT WAS, WELL TO SAY THE LEAST, EXTREMELY BAD, IT REMINDED ME OF MAC’S BBQ IN CAIRO…CHUNKY, FAT & GRISEL.
As for the original "blog", you obviously travel with your parents so you are not that "worldly" to know what is good or what is bad. Starne's has been in business FAR longer than you have been around. If it didn't work they would not be in business still. Grow up dude. Maybe even try to take a vacation without mom and dad driving you around.
ReplyDeleteAs for the somewhat incoherent ramblings of the last poster:
I just got two pounds of the pork last weekend.
If you got a liot of fat and gristle then you got a bad batch.
I am from Michigan and my father was born and raised in Paducah. Starne's has been a family tradition every summer for us since before I was born in 1966.
I just ate some for my lunch and there was not fat, gristle or burnt product.
My blog is for the entertainment of myself and my few readers, and the fact that my puny blog shows up near the top of a Google search for Starnes BBQ proves that Starnes is quite insignificant in this world. If I hadn't traveled with my parents on the way back from my long East Coast trip, I wouldn't have the pleasure of reading all of these entertaining comments.
ReplyDeleteI was born and raised 2 blocks from Starnes. I live 4 hours away now, and I bring some of their BBQ back with me every time I visit. It's always fantastic. I've had about a million 1 lb packages of it in my 49 years, and they were ALL fantastic. I'm sure the ones in my freezer right now will be good too.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog comments! If you just want the Starnes Sauce you can get it at www.JPSauceHouse.com. If you want a recipe for pulled pork, just e-mail them and ask.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I have always had great bbq at Starnes.
John
My family has been in the Paducah area for many generations. I now live in a place with poor selection of food and no bbq. It's hard to explain to folks around here how nice it is to have so many choices in dining and some great bbq within minutes of wherever you are. There are very few simple family spots like Starnes. Life just doesn't feel as rich without them!
ReplyDeleteStarnes is the Best, I lived in Memphis for 10 years and tried every BBQ Restaurant around. Starnes has real pulled pork, not chopped and drenched in sauce. You can see the meat.I live in central KY now. When anyone finds out that I am from Paducah they want sauce from Starnes!
ReplyDeleteStarnes BBQ sandwiches are truly unique, and I understand why LostLifeFound was not impressed: it took me nearly 30 years to appreciate Starnes.
ReplyDeleteMy parents grew up on it, and they forced me to eat it hundreds of times. A few years ago, I finally "got it." The meat-quality is unusual: not sweet at all, very smoky, and dry. The sauce is bitter and watery. What's to like? Everything. When the meat is finely chopped and piled indiscriminately between two slices of white bread (with a little sauce) and dry-grilled, you get a steamy, smoky, one-of-a-kind flavor (wrapped in wax paper). It's my favorite BBQ, my favorite sandwich, and my favorite place to eat (that counter--talk about time travel!); no contest. And while the meat SEEMS bone-dry, it isn't: all the water is gone, but the the oils and fats are intact. FYI: the sandwiches (get two) MUST be accompanied by an RC and a bag of plain chips.
I noticed that LostLife ate the sandwich without bread. This is a problem. I like the meat by itself, but that has taken me ANOTHER ten years!
Lostlife had an attitude as soon as he traveled into Paducah. He must be from a big city. Dives like Starns have been around longer than you been alive. Starns has been the talk of governors and Presidents. Tim Starns has carried on what his father and grandfather put together for many years and will be around for many years to come. You have no clue what good BBQ is, just by the way you even talk about the bread vs. the bun.
ReplyDelete