We drove 14 hours yesterday and are now in a hotel in Texas. We have a class tonight, so we can rest today. Or more correctly Gene drove and I embroidered, listen to books on tape or read.
Our highlight of the day is our usual lunch stop when driving, the ORIGINAL DreamLand Barbecue in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Those who know us know us know we sample barbecue in all our travels. Our favorite by far is this particular restaur
ant. It is worth the drive from anywhere. I took photos to capture the ambiance because it is an experience.
ant. It is worth the drive from anywhere. I took photos to capture the ambiance because it is an experience.To get to this restaurant you drive through a very low income residential neighborhood. There are small homes with torn porch screens across the street and a camper that appears to be someone's home. The restaurant only has 9 tables. We arrived just before 11AM and when we left at 11:30 there were people at 7 of the 9 tables. This is a black owned, black run restaurant and all the clientele were white. You could tell from the cars in the parking lot, many were travelers like us.
The ribs are perfection. In the past the only items on the menu was ribs and assorted potato chips, sweet tea and soda. They had just added coleslaw and potato salad but it had not ye
t made it to the menu on the wall. There are no table menus. Everyone orders ribs. And what ribs they are! A crisp outer surface with juicy but not fatty meat that does not fall off the bone like babybacks, but requires a little chew without a hint of toughness. These are large ribs. Flintstones size ribs. Real ribs. And the sauce. Well it's so good they they serve Sunbeam bread slices with a bowl of their sauce for dipping as an appetizer at all the tables.
t made it to the menu on the wall. There are no table menus. Everyone orders ribs. And what ribs they are! A crisp outer surface with juicy but not fatty meat that does not fall off the bone like babybacks, but requires a little chew without a hint of toughness. These are large ribs. Flintstones size ribs. Real ribs. And the sauce. Well it's so good they they serve Sunbeam bread slices with a bowl of their sauce for dipping as an appetizer at all the tables.How do they make such wonderful ribs? I asked our waiter. Only 3 employees were in the restaurant. "I am the newest cook here and I've been cooking ribs since I was 12. That's 20 years. The man over there has been cooking these ribs for 30 years. All we cook is ribs. No other barbecue. No chicken or roasts or anything like that. When you make nothin but ribs for that long, you get good at it."
All I can say, they were perfection.
