A wise person once said that assumption is the lowest form of knowledge, and I for one believe there is no truer statement. I always attempt to use this bit a truth as a rule of thumb in life, but somehow I let all my sensibilities fail me when I entered in Dallas, Texas. Somehow the state slogan "everything is bigger in Texas" & all the food networks that highlight bbq in Texas, bamboozled me.

There a few staples you look for when getting great bbq, usually it is a relatively hole in the wall, they tend to serve you food in styrofoam, and there are rarely any substitutions for platters, and the Baby Back Shak covered all of those basis, but clearly these parameters are no indication of great bbq.

When I think of great bbq I think of smoky, a grill like taste, with an amazing dry rub that is not only crispy on the outside, but somehow infused on the inside, and of course tender.

The Baby Back Shak had a fair dry rub, and the meat was absolutely tender, but not grill tender, it was the kind of tender that comes from boiling the ribs first, then grilling them, which somehow in my world is cheating. I mean real authentic bbq should have have a pit like taste through and through, so in my book this Texas bbq left me feeling hoodwinked. Now granted I dont know for sure that they boiled the ribs, because there are no menus, except for the meat choices written on the wall, but I have eaten enough of my mothers boiled first ribs to know the taste when I taste it.

Sometime the sides with bbq can help you overlook some errors, kinda makes you wanna forgive the cook for not being true to the bbq game, but the potato salad had way to much mustard and not enough of anything else that I could not give out any redemption of sin in this area. Usually platters come with two sides, so I also had the baked beans with bits of ribs, which is kinda like chili, and this was spicy and quite appetizing, but unfortunately not enough to make a recommendation of Baby Back Shak, because after all its a rib joint, not a chili joint.

Well as a Oprah would say use every opportunity as a teachable moment, so the lesson learned is that just because you are in Texas doesn’t mean the great bbq is a guarantee.