How many marks of excellence does a BBQ house needs to become a return destination? Not many; but each one is critical if you want that repeat business to be assured. Your product can’t be dry, bland or skimpy. Good BBQ is meaty, succulent, flavorful and, if the Q gods are in the house, bountiful for the price. That’s why there’s usually a large and unexpected mix of humanity clustered in the front of Slab BBQ on 71st St. during the lunch and dinner hours.
One Saturday a young guy from Skokie said he made the pilgrimage to Slab because a buddy of his raved about the barbeque. After doing a little voice tally with everybody else waiting for their orders, it turned out every one of us was a brand-new customer. All had high expectations to match the high spirits in the air. One woman shared what she didn’t like about another (highly regarded) BBQ establishment on the south side. And she was anything but charitable.
A worker going about his chores in the front of the house and wearing a slightly risqué T shirt alluding to his manliness kept announcing, “Once you eat these ribs you will definitely be back for more! And you should try the greens! They’re good!”
Friendly and sincere, his banter added to the lighthearted air of anticipation. Our order, simple and direct, would put the restaurant to the test: a full slab of St. Louis ribs and a large order of rib tips. Rather than go for the greens as a side, something said give the baked beans a go. Shouldn’t have listened. Thin and sweet, they didn’t have either the hoped-for heft or zing. But once teeth sank into the ribs and tips, the mediocrity of the beans was immediately pardoned.
Unless you’re a purist, you too probably don’t understand the tradition of putting a couple of pieces of white bread and fries on top of a BBQ order. It’s so pervasive you might as well regard it as sacrosanct. They seem to do it everywhere and Slab’s no exception. Both the bread and the fries end up as soggy and unappetizing roadblocks to the main event.
During the first Slab experience, both the rib slab and the rib tips were incredibly perfect. Each was so moist they were almost juicy. The slightest pull brought the meat from the bone and initiated a wonderful chew. Meat and sauce blended in heavenly harmony. They were the kind of ribs that make you want to be greedy.
Several weeks later, fulfilling the worker’s prophesy, a return visit saw the order vary only slightly. This time though all sauce was on the side. One mild and one hot. Behind the glass wall was a beehive of hyperactivity as orders flew, meat met flame, and meals got packaged. The young cashier remained peach cobbler sweet as she tweaked orders to customer specifications and rang up transactions. “No bread and fries. No worries.” 
Even though both ribs and tips retained that wonderful tenderness and natural sweetness, we’ll go back to having the sauce lightly lacquered onto the meat by fire. Penetrating the flesh just enough to bond the two complimentary flavors, and brought together by some excellent queing techniques, the ribs at this latest entry into the BBQ wars can contend with the best. If this keeps up, Slab BBQ will be staying on the destination list for some time to come.
Slab Bar-B-Que
1918 E. 71st
Chicago, IL 60649
773-966-5018
slabbq.com
