‘Cue in the ‘Lou
RESTAURANT: Pappy’s Smokehouse (St. Louis, MO)
Featured on Food Network’s “Food Feuds” and Travel Channel’s “Man vs. Food” & “BBQ Crawl.” Pappy’s Smokehouse is known for their delicious and juicy ‘Memphis Style’ BBQ…and the twisting and turning line out the door and tends to support that this place is a barbecue Mecca in ‘The Lou.’ But when it comes to ‘Cue, PCC is especially critical…so let’s see if this place qualifies for ‘Best Cue in the Lou.’
SIGNATURE DISH: Although they serve all the standard smoked meats, their barbecue pork ribs are the feature, and are so renowned that they boast selling one per minute of every day. They are so popular, it’s the main reason they’ve been featured for on The Food Network and The Travel Channel.
TASTE: We have featured a lot of BBQ on Pop Culture Cuisine and have eaten a heck of a lot more, so we’re fairly confident in our ‘Cue pallet.’ Unfortunately, Pappy’s just didn’t rise to the occasion and match the hype. True…, Memphis Style is not PCC’s favorite, but the ribs were a bit tough and really not all that distinct with flavor. I was pretty let down because I was pretty hyped to try this place and I really wanted it to be good…it just wasn’t. In fact, I didn’t even finish half of my slab. On a side note, the green beans and smoked sausage were extremely tasty and I might take a trip back to Pappy’s just for those.
AMBIANCE: Located in downtown St. Louis neat St. Louis University, Pappy’s is in a great location with a lot of up and coming/trendy joints. The restaurant is not very big and can get a little crammed with patrons, but I guess that just goes to show how popular this place is. As far as the look…it’s pretty cool inside with a lot of pictures and fun signs on the walls. It’s sort of a version of ‘junked up’ sheik :-D. Overall, it’s a fun atmosphere and because the smoker is right on the street next to the building, you get do see the process first hand.
SERVICE: Like many legit BBQ places, you place your order at the counter and then they bring you your order; and although they cook low and slow, the service was amazingly fast, which was a bonus for this hungry visitor.
PRICE: It’s BBG…so it’s expensive, and I just expect that going in. A full slab is $23.00 but that includes 2 sides and is more than enough food. So as far as barbecue joints go, I wasn’t outraged by the prices but would have liked to see a little better bargain.
Overall, Pappy’s kick started a weekend of baseball and beer in St. Louis so it was a nice experience. But, I don’t know if it would be my first choice to visit next time I’m in town. The taste just wasn’t memorable enough and didn’t leave a great impression. For that reason, PCC gives Pappy’s Smokehouse 2 ½ ‘Little Piggies.’
bummer that it fell short for you guys!! Everyone prefers diff styles though! Most recently I tried their brisket and was really impressed!