Friday, February 22, 2013

GUY'S AWARD-WINNING BBQ


Updated 12/21/13: Just got word from Art Byrd that this place has closed. Too bad - best sauce I've had in a long time!

When someone offers a tip on a great place to eat, I pay attention. When it comes from Art Byrd - producer of the Byrd's Eye View entertainment enewsletter who named Guy's Award-Winning BBQ as his favorite place for barbecue - I get there as fast as I can. So in short order after learning that, that my husband Jack and I, accompanied by a couple of hungry friends, got in the car and headed to the place.


At the outset, I'll point out that Guy's primarily is a take-out place. There are a couple of tables - it's located in a shopping plaza - but hardly anyone actually eats there. We didn't, either; like most folks, we placed our orders and hung around one of the tables while we waited (which wasn't for very long). Then, armed with boxes, we hurried back to our house to chow down. Luckily, we don't live very far away - the wonderful smells emanating from those boxes were extremely difficult to resist.

Even though we'd checked out the menu online, it took us a while to decide on what we wanted - mostly because we wanted to try everything. Having four of us made that a bit easier, since we could get different things and share. The ribs and chicken meals are done in the sweet BBQ sauce, and wings can be purchased (12 for $7.80) in any of the sauce flavors, like Hot BBQ and sugarless Smokey Garlic - the two we picked.

Although the emphasis here is on ribs, chicken dinners are available as well (and fish dinners like catfish and talapia are sold on Fridays). We thought about chicken dinners, but only for a second; we were here for those ribs (and anyway, we'd decided to try the chicken in the form of appendages).

Three of us ordered the five-rib dinners ($12.99 each), which come with two sides and Texas toast, while Jack opted for a boneless rib sandwich with one side ($6.99). Since our ribs are all alike (ribs and chicken meals are done in a very tasty sweet BBQ sauce), we made sure to try various sides: Mac and cheese (Jack), greens and potato salad (our friends Jerry and Barb) and potato salad and baked beans (me). Everything is neatly packaged in take-out containers with lids, so there's no fuss, no muss.

That is, until you start to eat. I dare anyone, in fact, to dig into either ribs or wings here without ending up with reddish spots all over your face and fingers. Somehow, to everyone else's delight, I even managed to get one on the end of my nose (and a couple on my sweatshirt - a word to the wise to use plenty of napkins).

Once we'd spread out all our goodies on the table, rounded up those requisite napkins and poured the equally requisite beers, we took a deep breath and got started. After a single bite, all three of us ribsters said - almost in unison - that these are the best we've ever had, bar none. They're not only among the biggest and most tender (the meat almost falls off the bones), but the thick, sweet sauce is absolutely delectable. We groaned - in a good way - and licked our fingers all the way to done.

Jack, meanwhile, loved the sauce, but his sandwich bun was so overflowing with meat that it was impossible to pick up. As for the sides, the mac and cheese was singularly unimpressive, but we all liked the potato salad and baked beans. Barb really liked the greens - Southern-style turnip greens, the cook back at the restaurant told us - with a touch of sauce that added a bit of a zing. The Texas toast made a perfect accompaniment.

We had so much else to eat that we couldn't come close to finishing the wings, but they, too, are large and meaty. The Hot BBQ sauce isn't - not a single complaint from any of the other three folks who don't like it hot. I expected (and would have preferred) something with more of a kick, but I agree this is delicious. So, too, is the sugarless smokey garlic; the smokey flavor comes through loud and clear, and you'd never, ever suspect it's sugarless.

If You Go:

Guy's Award-Winning BBQ
2545 Belmont Ave.
Youngstown, Ohio 44505
(330) 743-4897

http://www.guysbbq.com

Open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday; noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

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