Jack’s BBQ
Combo Plate – Brisket, Shoulder, St. Louis Style Ribs, Creamed Corn, Mac n’ Cheese
Cornbread
Chocolate Chess Pie
Chess Pie
Exceedingly unimpressed with Barista Parlor, but with more than an hour to kill before the conference resumed, it was to Broadway that I turned and with reviews of Jack’s BBQ ranging from ‘tourist trap’ to ‘Best BBQ in Nashville” I decided to take a chance, the answer found somewhere in between as not only the cuisine but the experience was worthwhile, if not particularly worth writing home about.
A staple of Nashville’s entertainment alley long before the city’s recent wave of growth, and since spawning additional locations where waiting is rarely an issue, it was to a short line that I entered the three-story property and quickly entering the queue it was with only a few seconds to decide that I approached the wordless server, a combo plate quickly slapped together and handed to me on a tray with cornbread – two pieces of pie added en route to the cashiers who did little more than collect $20 before sending me off to find a table.
Opting to eschew upstairs seating and instead occupying a teensy two-top near the front door it was amidst a décor of sports, pork, and country regalia that I partook in my ‘cue and immediately finding the wet “St. Louis Style” ribs meager in meat and overly sugared a transition to the brisket and shoulder proved far more competent, both versions juicy and moist with a good bit of smoke complimented by light sauce, while both creamed corn and macaroni n’ cheese were on par with the environs, the former none too sweet and far more creamy than that from a can.
Moving to desserts, but remiss to not mention slabs of toothsome cornbread that reminded me of the savory stuff down in North Carolina, it was admittedly a bit of a surprise when I popped open clamshells to realize I’d selected two versions of Chess rather than what looked to be Pecan, but never one to quibble a good piece of pie one would be hard pressed to name a better slice of either in the city of Nashville, the vinegar notes peaking through the sugar at all the right times in the traditional version while the chocolate was far more rich despite a mouthfeel closer to that of pudding.
http://jacksbarbque.com/
