Last week I had the privilege of visiting a staple in the Austin food community - Stubb's Bar-B-Q.
My first impression was the people. The host stood out on the sidewalk and just talked to people walking by. I told him I was looking for a good place to eat, just to watch his face light up and warmly welcome me in. Since I was sitting in the bar area, the bartender promptly came over and asked if had ever tried any of their house brews. I said I had not, so he returned with generous samples of three of them. I selected the Austin Amber, which would complement my meal nicely.
My meal consisted of a smoked boneless pork shoulder, mashed pecan sweet potato, and serrano cheese spinach. I always thought the meat portion of any meal at a bbq joint should be the main attraction. Not the case here, especially considering the pork shoulder is not the highest quality cut anywhere you go. It really needed a liberal application of their delicious barbeque sauce.
Although the pork was slightly disappointing, the sides almost made up for it. I questioned the appearance of the serrano cheese spinach and anticipated a strange texture. Who knew a little kick could make spinach fun? It was love at first bite.
The mashed sweet potato can easily be overdone in terms of unnecessary flavor additions. I've had cinnamon, nutmeg, Heath bar, caramel, pecan, walnut, marshmallow. It's just too much, but it's tough to complain about a marvelous transformation from vegetable to dessert. The pecan added to the sweet potato dish was all it required, and it was prepared and presented well.
To summarize my overall assessment of Stubb's, I would say that they are trying to sell the experience rather than cuisine. It is a lot of fun and the food is not bad, but I don't think it measured up to the hype. Try it if you have the time, but for better food quality, get another restaurant recommendation.
