RUB (Righteous Urban Barbecue)

[Burt1961]

Walked by RUB this morning and was told they will be open for business April 1st.  I know where I'm going for lunch.  They had one of the smokers fired-up, and did it smell good.

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Any idea what the hours are? I'm just down the street where I work, and I'd definitely like to be one of the first in there to beat the crowd. :)

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I was told they are opening for lunch. I'm going to get there around 11:00.

[Luckylies]

ooh are they open yet? anybody have news?

[brooklyncook]

ooh are they open yet? anybody have news?

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My game plan is to check it out after work tomorrow, given that I'm right down the street at the culinary school.

[Todd36]

Their windows were still covered in paper yesterday.

[brooklyncook]

Their windows were still covered in paper yesterday.

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Well, that kills that idea. ;)

[Luckylies]

awwwwww but today is perfecttttttttttt. waaaaaaaaaaa...now what am I supposed to eat? waaaaaaaaaa....

[titicaca]

They opened for dinner last night! The food I had was really good! I ate some pastrami that was killer- very different from Katz'!! They are definitely open this weekend, I believe dinner only, then lunch on Monday.

[brooklyncook]

They opened for dinner last night!  The food I had was really good!  I ate some pastrami that was killer-  very different from Katz'!!  They are definitely open this weekend, I believe dinner only, then lunch on Monday.

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Well, then it's going to have to be next week.

We did the same thing at the Dino -- opened for dinners only, and then opened on a broader scale. It's probably one of the best way to acclimate new employees.

[wannabechef]

So where's all the reports?? I thought there'd be a ton by now. Guess everyone's waiting for them to settle in a bit?

[Dryden]

I went by yesterday to pick up a menu... one important point to note.

THEY ARE CASH ONLY AT THIS POINT IN TIME.

Reservations not currently accepted. Be forewarned.

The place smelled amazing, though. I plan on being back to eat sometime this week.

[banquo]

We went last Saturday around 9pm or so. From the outside you can glimpse into the kitchen and watch the guys slicing brisket. That got us very excited. The crowd had thinned out a bit and it was only half full, if that. I didn't pay much attention at all to the decor, but it did feel a little cold and minimalist.

The menu is divided in typical mannner: sides, sandwiches, combo platters, and meat by the pound (16.95/lb). They have a specialty in Sechuan duck, half and whole. That looked quite intriguing but they were out of it by the time we arrived.

The food arrived very quickly, which can be either a good or a bad sign (given they claim to slice your meats to order). We ordered a half pound each of the brisket, the pastrami and the sausage, and sides of coleslaw and baked beans. The sides were incredible. I mean it, really incredible. I love coleslaw and what we got that night was quite possibly the best I've ever had. There's about a million coleslaw recipes roaming around and, at least for me, they've hit on the perfect one. The beans were almost as good, just the right balance of meat to bean and smoke to sweet.

Now on to the bad news. It's early to render any judgment but the brisket was wildly disappointing. I was lucky enough to have gotten a taste of their brisket last summer at the Apple City BBQ, but reading all the eGullet praises had sent my expectations to the stratosphere. I was looking for a taste of Lockhart but, alas, it was not meant to be. Firstly, the brisket was sliced too thinly and next time we will be sure to ask for it differently. But, to be honest, the meat was so dry that if it were sliced as it should be, it might have been inedible. One could see a slight smoke ring, and could definitely smell the smoke, but the taste itself was very bland. The pastrami suffered from the same dryness and thin slicing, but it was mitigated by the fact that it tasted very good. Once that defect is rectified, if it ever is, I suspect the pastrami will rank in the same league as Katz's. We got to our sausage last and in fact ordered it as a salve for our wounded expectations. That turned out to be a good decision. The sausages were amazing. Perhaps there is some wishful thinking and self-deception but while we were eating them, we couldn't help but think back to the outstanding sausages we enjoyed at Black's and Smitty's in Lockhart last summer. They were very spicy and smoky and the texture we enjoyed very much. A slight dryness was the only defect. We concluded that any place that could make such a fine sausage could make a fine brisket, so we will definitely be back.

We spoke to one of the owners for a bit (they were making their rounds). She was very hospitable, as were the rest of the staff. We offered our assessment of the food and she apologized for the brisket. Best of all, she offered a viable solution: the brisket smokes for 12 hours, and so the ideal time to order it is when they come out, which happens to be, and she was notably precise about this, 6:45pm. So, if you want the best brisket they offer, I suggest being in ordering position by 7pm. When they open for lunch in the future, she told us the pitmaster will have to wake up even earlier to fire up the rig.

It should be noted as well that they are currently BYO.

Edited April 5, 2005 by banquo (log)

[jparrott]

I wonder if they're having the same problem that Blue Smoke had when it began--the chimney was sucking smoke out so fast that the meat was getting blow-dried, not smoked.

[Jammin]

on banquo's suggestion, i went yesterday at 7. service was quite slow - foh and boh still have some work to do, but that's not unexpected. after all, it shouldn't take 20 minutes to serve food that isn't being cooked to order. still, when a place opens up 3 blocks away from your home, well... anyway, the food...

the brisket was quite flavorful and smoky. the issue i had with it was that is was also EXTREMELY fatty. as in layers and hunks of fat i had to carve off. this really changed the texture toward the chewy. additionally, (hey maybe they read egullet) the brisket was cut way too thick for my taste - probably about 3/8" - 1/2" slices.

the pulled pork was mushy and had a hint of balsamic vinegar (?) flavoring it which i didn't appreciate. i probably won't order this particular item again, but i was very intrigued by the "whole butt" offering on the menu, though, where you basically get a hunk of pork butt and pull it yourself. hmm...

the roast chicken we had was a bit flavorless. the bbq sauce helped, and i'll admit the sauce was pretty decent. our sides - potato salad and baked beans - were both excellent. toss some egg in the potato salad and it would have been even better. the baked beans were surprisingly good - smoky and offering huge chunks of meat to accompany the beans.

overall, i think this place has promise and i'll try to head back in a month or two to re-evaluate. i'd recommend the rest of y'all hold off for a bit.

Edited April 7, 2005 by Jammin (log)

[Todd36]

Had dinner there a few nights ago.

1. The ribs are quite good, very meaty, not salty, good flavor, much better than what I had at Dino.

2. Sasuage was excellent, might have been the best dish.

3. Don't understand the pastrami. Salty, cut two different ways, some dry (which was better), some was not. This wasn't bad, just didn't set my heart on fire. I think I'd rather go to Katz's.

4. Brisket. 90% of what they gave me was tasteless and dry. Two pieces were fantastic, with a great smoky flavor.

5. Sides were OK. Green were OK, beans looked like canned with very good meat thrown in, cole slaw vinger style was good.

Overall, I think its the best BBQ I've had in NYC. And re my Dino comments, sauce comes in a generic squeeze bottle at the table........

In general, they don't season things that much and its not salty. I think there are consistency issues.

[brooklyncook]

Overall, I think its the best BBQ I've had in NYC.  And re my Dino comments, sauce comes in a generic squeeze bottle at the table........

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I thought your issue with Dinosaur's BBQ sauce was that it wasn't fresh, not that it did (or didn't) come in a squeeze bottle. RUB's is fresh, then?

[Daniel]

Todd which bbq places have you gone to in Manhattan?

[Todd36]

Overall, I think its the best BBQ I've had in NYC.  And re my Dino comments, sauce comes in a generic squeeze bottle at the table........

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I thought your issue with Dinosaur's BBQ sauce was that it wasn't fresh, not that it did (or didn't) come in a squeeze bottle. RUB's is fresh, then?

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Dino's came in a factory pre-pack glass bottle and it clearly wasn't freshmade. RUB's is in a plastic filled bottle that would seem was filled in the restaurant. First point is that when I said real BBQ places don't serve pre-pack sauce, people disputed that and claimed they hadn't seen squeeze bottle sauce ever in a aBBQ place (shades of the Per Se thread), well, RUB"s a real BBQ place and the sauce is in a squeeze bottle. Based on flavor and texture (doesn't seem to contain gums), I think RUB's squeeze bottle sauce is made fresh.

[Todd36]

Todd which bbq places have you gone to in Manhattan?

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Dino, Virgil's, whatever the Pearson's place on the Upper East Side is called. Not Blue Smoke. I would say the ribs and sausage at RUB are good by any standard. The brisket need to be more consistant, most of my order tasted like dried out brisket from a bad diner, whith a couple of pieces that were very different and very good. The pastrami tasted fine, but it was like, ok, so what's different about this from the standard stuff. The waiter said not to order the pork BBQ, which made me wonder.

There are some good things about their menu. The combo plates are a good value and the ability to add extra meats for I think around $4 is nice, although I wish they served less than half a duck (couldn't eat the whole world). They don't serve any apps, which I found unusual.

[phaelon56]

I lack the experience to say whether most "authentic" BBQ places use sauce that's fresh made in-house or whether they use bottled stuff (their own or someone else's). But I've seen squeeze bottles in all kinds of 'cue joints - I don't think that alone is an indicator.

Dino's standard sauce has the following ingredients listed if you buy it in the one gallon jug:

Tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, brown sugar, cayenne, vinegar, garlic and other spices.

But if you buy the small prepacked bottle that's sold in supermarkets there is also Xanthan Gum listed in the ingredients. There's also a noticeable difference to me in viscosity between the small bottle and the large jug. I don't happen to know whether they are using the large jugs to fill the small bottles on the table but I'd have to assume that they are using the large jugs in the kitchen.

But I am curious - should there be a quantifiable or discernable taste difference between sauce prepared in large quanitities elsewhere and brought on site or "home-made" sauce produced on the spot in smaller batches?

More to the point for me simply based on personal preference is how the meat stands on its own with no sauce at all. As for the experiences people are reporting at R.U.B. it would appear that brisket is one of the most challenging cuts to cook and get consistent results from.

Speaking of consistency... that's an issue that pops up both here and on the Dino thread. It would seem that getting good consistent BBQ results in NYC might take some time after first opening. Does anyone here know how long it took Blue Smoke to finally nail it with their ribs?

[lia]

Went today, a little after six, at first I didn't think the place was very busy, then I noticed the fully packed back room. Don't they open at six? People must've been waiting on line.

First off the service was smiling and friendly, from the guy who interrupted his chat with someone outside to welcome us and guide us in the front door, to the waiter who while he didn't seem to know the (xeroxed) menu by heart, again had a smile throughout, checked back frequently and was all around a pleasure.

We were seated right behind the bar against the left wall looking in. Great vantage point for me to check out the line. Seemed to be two expediters working, we got our food in about 15 minutes after ordering.

He warned us ahead of time that everything was available except for the option to order any sandwich "as a salad" because they didn't have any greens. I found that a little humorous, especially when I noticed the huge sign on the door to the kitchen reading "Out of Salad" No petty cash for the grocery store?

The male manager who greeted us outside seemed calm, cool and collected, the female manager looked like she wanted to tear her hair out. As everything seemed to be going well, I don't know why. I overheard a waitress telling her a table wanted to move elsewhere and she still looked panicked, so maybe that's just her style.

The place was busy, no doubt more than they expected to be able to handle so soon after opening, but like I said, all was well. I also overheard one table complain about the sausage, but I couldn't hear details.

the food was delicious. my husband ordered a full rack of the St. Louis style ribs....he wanted to get the 7 rib option but I convinced him to go whole hog, ar ar. Like we weren't gonna finish it?

I got the two meat platter: sausage (due to the recs on this board) and brisket just because I was in the mood. sides were "Super" fries and the greens of the day.

The ribs were perfect. Not falling off the bone, as is common with baby backs, but tender and meaty and very very smoky. the brisket came in slices, and also chunks of fattier meat. the chunks won out, the slices were a bit dry, but i loved the stripes of fat on the end. The sausage was AWESOME. Not something I otherwise would have ordered, so thanks to those who recommended it here. I want more right now. Fries were good, seasoned, which i ordinarily don't like, but not TOO seasoned. there were a couple of 'onion strings' in my basket and I'll definitely be ordering those next time. I finished the cup of greens and I would've drunk the likker if it wouldn't have mortified my husband. He finished his whole rack, less the two I ate, but was concerned a bit about the pinkness and I don't think he believed my explanation.

the chicken looked good, the duck looked gorgeous. saw lots of potato salad and slaw on passing platters...can't wait to go back.

I stopped the female manager on the way out, I told her the food was great as was the service, and they were doing a good job. Poor sweetie looked like she was gonna cry. I've been in restaurant management for half my life now, but I've never opened one. I can't imagine the stress....

[Todd36]

Dino's standard sauce has the following ingredients listed if you buy it in the one gallon jug:

Tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, brown sugar, cayenne, vinegar, garlic and other spices.

But if you buy the small prepacked bottle that's sold in supermarkets there is also Xanthan Gum listed in the ingredients. There's also a noticeable difference to me in viscosity between the small bottle and the large jug.  I don't happen to know whether they are using the large jugs to fill the small bottles on the table but I'd have to assume that they are using the large jugs in the kitchen.

But I am curious - should there be a quantifiable or discernable taste difference between sauce prepared in large quanitities elsewhere and brought on site or "home-made" sauce produced on the spot in smaller batches?

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Not sure (don't have a bottle handy) but I think the small bottle stuff has something like sodium benzonate in it. In any case, bottled stuff from a factory is likely to taste different than fresh. For example, fresh sauce may be made with fresh garlic and may be consumed shortly after production, while factory sauce might be six months old and might have been made with pre-peeled garlic. Process is also very important. Does an expresso taste the same at every place that uses Lilly's? Pre-made bottled stuff can be good. But if I'm walking into a BBQ place that is famous and prides itself on its food, I expect them to be using a made from scratch sauce, it is a critical part of what they are serving and its not time consuming, difficult or expensive to make. It looks like RUB is using a made from scratch sauce, but don't know for sure. I see 5 gallon pails of Kraft's Open Pit BBQ sauce outside of BBQ chicken places in Manhattan, and Kraft's own website notes it can be straight as is or as a base for your own sauce.....

[phaelon56]

...  I think the small bottle stuff has something like sodium benzonate in it.  In any case, bottled stuff from a factory is likely to taste different than fresh.  For example, fresh sauce may be made with fresh garlic and may be consumed shortly after production, while factory sauce might be six months old and might have been made with pre-peeled garlic.  Process is also very important.

Interesting about the sodium benzoate - there's definitely none in big jugs that are sold here in Syracuse. I buy the gallon jug and refrigerate it - keep it on hand for those occasions when I smoke a pork butt and serve a sizable group as many around here like plenty of sauce (I am not among them). I use no sauce on my ribs and little on my pulled pork but I'm in a minority.

Does an expresso taste the same at every place that uses Illy's?  Pre-made bottled stuff can be good. 

The freshness and quality of the beans are crucial in good espresso and Illy's is never fresh enough if you get it here in the US (it's doubtful that most people even get it within two weeks of roast date in Italy where it's packaged). But your poitn is well taken - there are places that can make a passable espresso using Illy's and others that turn out crap.

I agree that bottled sauce can be good.

Can you comment on the taste characteristics of the sauce at RUB? Is it sweet, spicy, savory?

It looks like RUB is using a made from scratch sauce, but don't know for sure.  I see 5 gallon pails of Kraft's Open Pit BBQ sauce outside of BBQ chicken places in Manhattan, and Kraft's own website notes it can be straight as is or as a base for your own sauce.....

I know a mobile BBQ purveyor here in the Syracuse area who specializes mostly in BBQ chopped beef. People around here just love his "special sauce".... which, unbeknownst to them, is a 50/50 mix of KC Masterpiece and Bullseye!

[Jason Perlow]

The RUB sauce that I tried at the Big Apple BBQ Block Party which was "formulated especially for New York" I felt was way, way too sweet. I hope that the one they have finally decided to use at their restaurant isn't.

[Todd36]

Can you comment on the taste characteristics of the sauce at RUB? Is it sweet, spicy, savory?

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Thin body, probably doesn't have any gums in it, not sweet, a little tangy, not spicy. Struck me as mild. Probably not being used for cooking, at least on the ribs, brisket, pastrami or sausage.

[titicaca]

I was told by Paul Kirk that the RUB sauce at the bbq block party was definitely not "formulated for New York". It is the same sauce that he has used in competition. Also I know for a fact that the RUB sauce is homemade. The best places in TX and KC (that actually have sauce- some don't have any at all, like Kreuz') serve it in a squeeze bottle on the table...