Chain City - a trip to BBQ Hell

I like to cook, I like the process and I respect those who do it every day as their trade. My late-blooming interest in cooking has also led me to have a love/hate relationship with the chain restaurants that overpopulate the Indianapolis dining landscape. I remember a recent Indianapolis Monthly (a great supporter of local kitchens) article on the issue. While at the same time reporting on the ridiculous ratio of chains to persons, they actually seemed to be promoting the array of chains that can be found in our city.

Some days I can't imagine a better treat than a JBC, fries and a fountain Coke from Wendy's. I think we all have a early learned, deeply ingrained connection to some type of fast food. The places I cant stand though are the O'Charley's, Friday's and Applebee's of the world. Just the fact that I just had to type that many apostrophes and esses has me pissed of right now. Then on the other hand are the "luxury chains". Ruth's Chris, Oceannaire and McCormick and Schmick's that do a wonderful job (most of the time) of carefully crafting their signature dishes for the masses.

Whenever my parents call and ask if I have plans for dinner I can almost bet on hitting a friendly neighborhood chain. Well, Mom called the other night...

This brings me to a recent trip to a new player in the Indianapolis market, Famous Dave's. There is one just around the corner from me. I have had the food before, a few times, but only in carry-out format that family had ordered. I had a decent impression of their food from these early experiences. Average, bland sauce for taste buds of any age and the meat (pork) was tender but slightly dry. I guess that's what all the sauce was for...


Having already sampled their average BBQ. I decided to order the Shrimp Po' Boy from the Shrimp Extravaganza! special menu. I actually enjoyed the Po' Boy, the shrimp was crispy and not overdone and their remoulade sauce was pretty good if a little too sweet. I did remove the mountain of fried onion strips that were also on this massive sandwich. I didnt need that much more breading considering it was served atop a ciabatta bun that would have been 4 inches thick without the shrimp and other fillings!!

Honestly, I think everyone enjoyed their meals for the most part. My girlfriend ordered the half BBQ chicken and the bit I had of it was very tasty and moist. My parents enjoyed their assorted pulled meats as well. On a slightly ironic note, my absolute favorite part of the meal was the cornbread that comes with every dish, awesome!

The worst part was the atmosphere. I was not prepared for the circus inside. Ridiculous cartoon paintings of pigs and fire adorned nearly every open space that wasn't already covered by some trite "vintage" metal sign or random photo of a fat guy standing next to a smoker in his backyard. I wish that fat guy was the one who was supplying the food!
And the dining room was packed with loud kids and a 30 foot-long table that had a group celebrating a birthday, it was 7pm on a Sunday night though, so what should I have expected? I must add that our server Hung was awesome!

Lesson learned: Not all chain food is awful, but Famous Dave's idea of a fun, family place is way off the mark and slightly insulting. I could have gotten a better meal from a local joint without the circus and for a better price.

Local place I would have gone instead: Hoghead's BBQ in Broad Ripple http://www.hogheadsbbq.com/

sorry for the long read, Im new at this blog thing...