The Takeout: BBQ!
Bone Lick Park
75 Greenwich Avenue
212-647-9600, free delivery
Rating: Three L's
Since the first annual Big Apple BBQ in Madison Square Park last year, barbeque joints have been springing up all over the city. All of a sudden we’re hearing about the merits of Texas versus Carolina versus Kansas City. What can a barbecue novice do, except try them all? In the quest for my barbecue style of choice, I’ve encountered the sublime (Daisy May’s) and the mediocre (RUB). Bone Lick Park, with a Kansas City-influenced menu full of pink-tinged, hickory-smoked meats, lies somewhere in between.
Barbeque Baby Back Ribs ($14 for a half rack) were a messy joy to eat, as evidenced by my barbeque-stained fingers and the pile of bones and crumpled napkins. Carolina Pork ($12), chopped not pulled, had more fire than the ribs and is probably best consumed in sandwich form to cut the intensity of the sauce. Entrees come with cornbread (forgettable) and a side. Macaroni and cheddar was gluey, but stewed okra hit the cooked vegetable sweet spot — tender, but still a little crunchy. I’d be shocked if you have room for dessert at the end of a Bone Lick Park meal, but if you do, I’d suggest passing on the Key Lime Pie ($6). Go back and order more ribs.
Texas Rotisserie & Grill
276 Third Ave
228-8484, minimum order for delivery: $10
Rating: Three L's
Actually going to the location and ordering is not for the faint of heart (no former or on-the-fence vegetarians need apply). Stepping up to the food counter, one is faced with a kaleidoscopic array of chickens spinning up, down and around on a ferris wheel of spits and skewers. And although the people are generally nice, I always feel a little sheepish in the face of all that twirling poultry. So to satisfy your intermittent need for 15 lbs. of barbeque, it’s probably better to just call for delivery. What’s more, you can avoid human contact altogether by just ordering it online.
However you manage to acquire the food, the sauces are tangy and thick, and the Rack of Ribs ($20) is justifiably their most widely appreciated dish (feeds two very hungry people). Perhaps the best thing about ordering from Texas Rotisserie is that it does actually taste like home cooking. If you’re too lazy to make dinner happen (or a little on the agoraphobic side), but you absolutely have to have one of those old Sunday night post-hangover fat-ass style meals involving an entire chicken and creamy potatoes, just go for it. They may not always bring you exactly what you ordered but who cares? Maybe they’ll accidentally include extra corn bread, which is among the best in town, and is a perfect complement to the sweet, moist meat.
