Wellston ain't that far a drive when ya gets right down to it. :)

Well if you go by Urbanspoon it's considered part of Greater Oklahoma City. :wink:

Wellston ain't that far a drive when ya gets right down to it. :)

No, it's not, especially from Edmond, This place on 66? Easy to find? Officially open?

I just figure it would be wrong not to support folks going out to try them. You even gave the brisket a nod.
Having read a lot from you, I consider that some dang high praise indeed.

No, it's not, especially from Edmond, This place on 66? Easy to find? Officially open?

Officially opens Saturday May 16th... Very easy to find. Located in the lot right east of the old Pioneer BBQ building.

Perfect excuse for a motorcycle ride...

Perfect excuse for a motorcycle ride...

Yep.... It is very motorcycle friendly.... Coming from OKC you could cut through Jones and ride Hogback road to Route 66.

If you say the Brisket is good then count me in!.. as that is what I like and is what I can't find worth crap around OKC.

If you say the Brisket is good then count me in!.. as that is what I like and is what I can't find worth crap around OKC.

It's not the brisket that I've fallen in love with from Central Texas but it was moist, not overcooked, and still had just a little bit of fat left on it and had some flavor. So it's better in those aspects.

I like the central Texas brisket myself.. but moist and not overcooked already has my attention. not sure why people cant get it right!. Dry slices of brisket are just horrible in my opinion and if it is moist around here it because it is almost ALL FAT.. that doesn't work either.

I went to sooner station on 50th recently.. its been a very long time since I had.. I don't see me ever going back.

Yep.... It is very motorcycle friendly.... Coming from OKC you could cut through Jones and ride Hogback road to Route 66.
Yeah, I do solo weekend rides out 66 pretty often, but usually ride up to Edmond to catch it.

OKC lands 6th on this list....nice!

America?s Best Cities for Barbecue | Travel + Leisure (http://www.travelandleisure.com/slideshows/americas-best-barbecue)

OKC lands 6th on this list....nice!

America?s Best Cities for Barbecue | Travel + Leisure (http://www.travelandleisure.com/slideshows/americas-best-barbecue)

Can't say I agree much with the list but good exposure for OKC..... I can think of at least 3 Dallas (Ranked 7th) Q-raunts I would drive to before I would drive across town to eat at the ones mentioned here.

I'm surprised NYC didn't make the list. They have some of the best BBQ restaurants in the world.

I'm surprised NYC didn't make the list. They have some of the best BBQ restaurants in the world.

I go there often and haven't found good ones. Please share the name of ones you like and think are great. I will look forward to trying them.

I agree. great exposure for OKC but we have a BBQ identity crisis in my opinion. I would love to see some great BBQ places open up!
Headed to KC this weekend though!

I go there often and haven't found good ones. Please share the name of ones you like and think are great. I will look forward to trying them.The 8 Best Barbecue Spots In NYC: Gothamist (http://gothamist.com/2015/05/28/best_bbq_nyc.php)

the photos have made me hungry

I agree. Like Hard Eight in Coppell. If youve never been, it's good stuff!

The 8 Best Barbecue Spots In NYC: Gothamist (http://gothamist.com/2015/05/28/best_bbq_nyc.php)

the photos have made me hungry


That link has got my meat tooth aching. That third restaurant pic of the brisket looks great with it's bark and smoke ring.

That link has got my meat tooth aching. That third restaurant pic of the brisket looks great with it's bark and smoke ring.

Pure BBQ porn

Pictures like this do not help me lose weight or get my cholesterol down. I had to stop watching the Food (porn) Channel to help me lose weight. Guy Fieri is hard to watch or listen too but he does visit some killer food joints. The BBQ joints he has visited! Oh my heart.

The 8 Best Barbecue Spots In NYC: Gothamist (http://gothamist.com/2015/05/28/best_bbq_nyc.php)

the photos have made me hungry

Looks like these are all in Brooklyn. It's the new trendy area, but I am mostly always in Manhattan. I will have to try to make it over and try one or two.

That link has got my meat tooth aching. That third restaurant pic of the brisket looks great with it's bark and smoke ring.

That's awesome that NYC has stepped up its BBQ game. When I lived there in the early 90s, BBQ and Mexican were a joke. They now have some of the best Mexican restaurants anywhere and I'm not surprised they also have great BBQ. It's truly the best food city in the world.

Pictures like this do not help me lose weight or get my cholesterol down. I had to stop watching the Food (porn) Channel to help me lose weight. Guy Fieri is hard to watch or listen too but he does visit some killer food joints. The BBQ joints he has visited! Oh my heart.

The worst think for weight loss it to click on the Food Channel late at night.

Yes it is. Everything looks better and tastes better the later it gets. Being an insomniac does not help one bit.

Does anyone have an opinion on Ray's Smokehouse in Norman? My brother is visiting from out of state next month and we will be in Norman for a reunion. He wants to have BBQ and suggested Ray's after doing some on line research. I'm not familiar with it at all.

Does anyone have an opinion on Ray's Smokehouse in Norman? My brother is visiting from out of state next month and we will be in Norman for a reunion. He wants to have BBQ and suggested Ray's after doing some on line research. I'm not familiar with it at all.

Been there several times and each time it was very good and well worth the drive.

Does anyone have an opinion on Ray's Smokehouse in Norman? My brother is visiting from out of state next month and we will be in Norman for a reunion. He wants to have BBQ and suggested Ray's after doing some on line research. I'm not familiar with it at all.

Yeah, I'll vouch for it. It is our office choice when eating "Q". Check out the picture of Billy Sims eating some Q at Ray's that is on the wall by the drinks.

Ray's is tied as my second favorite Q in Norman. I've gotten where I really don't have a specific preference between Ray's and Vans. I am happy when I leave either. I still prefer the Q at Sooner Legends at SW24th and Lindsey to either of the others. My lovely, who cares for Q less than I, speaks well of Sooner Legends tex-mex food in case your group needs an option for some folk. I've had a bite and it was good, but if I am in there, my order will be Q based.

It's been quite a while since I have other Q in Norman, as any one of these three definitely makes me happy and there is (my opinion) a huge gap between these three and the rest of the Norman Places. In fact, my #4 these days in Big Daddy's Smokehouse in Noble and not one of the other Norman stops.

In fact, my #4 these days in Big Daddy's Smokehouse in Noble and not one of the other Norman stops.

Kevin,
Good choice, Big Daddy's is pretty good. Tough to choose between the CFS down the street and Q at Big Daddy's though.
C. T.

Yes sir, a difficult choice indeed. If only all tough choices could be so win-win. :)

Yes sir, a difficult choice indeed. If only all tough choices could be so win-win. :)

Kevin,
Actually, I don't make a choice, I rotate when I am in the neighborhood (not often enough I'm afraid), but my preference is Q, so that's what makes it difficult.
C. T.

Does anyone have an opinion on Ray's Smokehouse in Norman? My brother is visiting from out of state next month and we will be in Norman for a reunion. He wants to have BBQ and suggested Ray's after doing some on line research. I'm not familiar with it at all.

Ray's is a fairly solid option for Q in my opinion.

Oklahoma BBQ Eaters Anonymous: IT WAS A SATURDAY NIGHT SLOBBERKNOCKER AT RAY'S SMOKEHOUSE BBQ (http://okbbqea.blogspot.com/2011/08/it-was-saturday-night-slobberknocker-at.html)

Ray's is a fairly solid option for Q in my opinion.

Oklahoma BBQ Eaters Anonymous: IT WAS A SATURDAY NIGHT SLOBBERKNOCKER AT RAY'S SMOKEHOUSE BBQ (http://okbbqea.blogspot.com/2011/08/it-was-saturday-night-slobberknocker-at.html)

OKBBQEA,
I just went to your link and learned that Ray's is Darrol Ray. I ate several times at his place on Sooner and I-40, where the Waffle House is now. I think it was a Kettle restaurant before it was taken over by Darrol Ray and I believe his brother. It was really good Q and was always fairly crowded so I wondered why they closed down. Now I know and I'm looking forward to a trip to Norman to give it a try.
C. T.

I just went to your link and learned that Ray's is Darrol Ray. I ate several times at his place on Sooner and I-40,

I don't remember there being a Q-raunt there but back when the Kettle was there I ate a few drunken breakfasts there... So that could be why I don't remember it ever being a Q-raunt. ;+)

Darrol makes pretty good Q. I have had some there that was better than other times but I would put his place in my Top 5 favorites in Central Oklahoma.

I know this has probably been asked a million times, but why don't you open your own restaurant BBQ eater Anonymous?

I know this has probably been asked a million times, but why don't you open your own restaurant BBQ eater Anonymous?

While I have kicked around the idea of doing a weekend pop-up type small batch, artisan style, BBQ stand. I just have too much invested in my current career to walk away from it. I also won't take on partners, or loans, to fund it either and I just don't want to put that kind of money into such a risky venture.

I've eaten a lot of what I think is really great Q and I've been able to duplicate most of it in my backyard. But what I think is great and what others think is great might be two different things and I say this because Oklahoma Q-raunts are able to stay in business serving, what I derogatorily refer to as, Okie Brisket..... If that's what Oklahoma diners want then what I think is great might not fly around here... Then again it might be hugely popular... But I can't justify that risk.

I would love to experiment with it by doing the pop-up, which would be less risky, but time constraints make it almost impossible for me to do the leg work to find out what hoops the city and health department would want me to jump through to do that because I won't use the set it and forget it commercial type smokers, that so many Oklahoma Q-raunts use, to make my Q.

I don't remember there being a Q-raunt there but back when the Kettle was there I ate a few drunken breakfasts there... So that could be why I don't remember it ever being a Q-raunt. ;+)

Darrol makes pretty good Q. I have had some there that was better than other times but I would put his place in my Top 5 favorites in Central Oklahoma.

OKBBQEA,
I did a little searching and found some information on his place on Sooner Road. I had forgotten that the name was "T.D. Ray's". I do remember breakfast because my late wife and I would stop there for breakfast on the way to an OU football game. Here's a copy/paste plus the link to the source if you are interested in the rest of it. It never mentioned the location, but trust me on this one, when he left is when they tore down the old Kettle's building and built the Waffle House.
C. T.

Ray was inspired by his former teammate, Phil Tabor, who had turned down a contract with the New York Giants a year before to open a restaurant in Ardmore to open his own restaurant in 1987.

#“But when our lease was up, we decided we’d try something different,” Ray said.

#So Ray opened T.D. Rays, though he admits it may not have been a good business plan. Ray said the restaurant was too ambitious and grandiose.

#“We had breakfast, lunch and dinner. We also had pizza. We did a little barbecue on the side. We opened at 6 and closed at 10.”

#Ray said within a few years, the operation was streamlined to focus more on barbecue and efficient service. Ray said the business improved, but he still wanted to open a different place.

Sooner goes from pro ball to pro brisket | Ellington (http://sandbox.ou.www.clients.ellingtoncms.com/news/2009/feb/18/sooner-goes-pro-ball-pro-brisket/)

OKBBQEA,
I did a little searching and found some information on his place on Sooner Road. I had forgotten that the name was "T.D. Ray's".

DING! DING! DING! ...... Ahhh yeah.... I do remember it being T.D. Ray's for awhile... That was before my BBQ addiction began and I never tried it.

Ray was inspired by his former teammate, Phil Tabor, who had turned down a contract with the New York Giants a year before to open a restaurant in Ardmore to open his own restaurant in 1987.


Do you know if Tabor was the one who opened Prarie Kitchen in Ardmore?

While I have kicked around the idea of doing a weekend pop-up type small batch, artisan style, BBQ stand. I just have too much invested in my current career to walk away from it. I also won't take on partners, or loans, to fund it either and I just don't want to put that kind of money into such a risky venture.

I've eaten a lot of what I think is really great Q and I've been able to duplicate most of it in my backyard. But what I think is great and what others think is great might be two different things and I say this because Oklahoma Q-raunts are able to stay in business serving, what I derogatorily refer to as, Okie Brisket..... If that's what Oklahoma diners want then what I think is great might not fly around here... Then again it might be hugely popular... But I can't justify that risk.

I would love to experiment with it by doing the pop-up, which would be less risky, but time constraints make it almost impossible for me to do the leg work to find out what hoops the city and health department would want me to jump through to do that because I won't use the set it and forget it commercial type smokers, that so many Oklahoma Q-raunts use, to make my Q.

I understand, all business ventures are risky especially if you'd be targeting a market you aren't sure exists. I think you'd have nothing to worry about though, you are a BBQ expert and if your food is good than people will come. You can always hire people that specialize in marketing or other parts of a business you don't feel as comfortable been.

Selfishly I wish you'd take the chance, and I think OKC & Oklahoma would be extremely appreciative of your risk.

Selfishly I wish you'd take the chance, and I think OKC & Oklahoma would be extremely appreciative of your risk.

I do have one poker in the fire at the moment. There is a pitmaster out in the panhandle that wants to open up a place here in OKC and we have talked several times about it. He originally asked me if I was interested in managing it but I'm really not the managerial type..... We have more recently discussed the weekend thing so while it's still very much in the early discussion phase. It could happen.

Not that it would help your BBQ cravings any but I also have a lead on a place on Hwy 70 in Lone Grove. The owner of the property is considering putting in a concession trailer and I may go down there and cook BBQ on Saturdays.... I like this plan because I don't have to do the legwork for licenses and dealing with the local government..... I just have to show up early in the morning to start cooking.

Do you know if Tabor was the one who opened Prarie Kitchen in Ardmore?

OKBBQEA,
I don't know, but both of the Tabor boys had Kettle's franchises (I think their family started the company) for a while and when they went under, I wouldn't be surprised. I will do some searching and see what I can find. By the way, several former OU players started Kettle's around the state, and we had one in my neighborhood, 122nd and I-35. Barry Switzer stopped to eat there occasionally.
C. T.

Do you know if Tabor was the one who opened Prarie Kitchen in Ardmore?

OKBBQEA,
That was quick, looks like it was Phil Tabor that owned the Prairie Kitchen. Prairie Kitchen - ionOKLAHOMA Online MagazineionOKLAHOMA Online Magazine (http://www.ionok.com/bon-appetit/prairie-kitchen/)
C. T.

You should try. Wouldn't be hard to beat our current selection.

You should try. Wouldn't be hard to beat our current selection.

If you can catch them. Try The Flying Pig BBQ trailer. I have been really enjoying the Q they are making.

They park at Bleu Garten quite a bit and are going to be a regular at The Patriarch.... Today they will be at Dunlop-Codding from 11:30 to 1:00.

I saw in the Oklahoman today that Smokin' Okies food truck was named in the 100 best BBQ restaurants in America for its Burrito and its Port and Pinapple Stew!. Gonna have to try those out! Congrats to them.:)

Best BBQ in OKC is drive up to Kansas City, go to Q39 or Joe's, then drive back.

Best BBQ in OKC is drive up to Kansas City, go to Q39 or Joe's, then drive back.

There's a Joes in OK. It's Tulsa, but the drive is shorter than KC

I recommend The Boundary on 66 between Arcadia and Luther. I know it's technically not inside the metro, but it is really awesome. It's a mom and pop place with pops homemade sauce and succulent meats. The menu isn't enormous which allows him to specialize in a few things. It gets mixed reviews, mostly because of a mistaken attitude given off from the owner. He's just rather a matter-of-fact person, but very friendly. He does a fantastic job here. And really, I think he does some of the best coleslaw I've ever tasted. If you're up for a Saturday gander into the not-so-far-distant country, this is really a destination joint.

I've ridden out there before and enjoyed the location quite a bit. I found the BBQ to be sort of middle-of-the-road. Def not bad, just not worth making a special trip, though I won't hesitate to stop on another Route 66 ride. That said, my next ride out there will be structured around trying Butcher BBQ in Wellston.

I know the owners of the Boundary personally. They are very good people. And yes, they are matter-of-fact, and they don't take crap off anyone. I've watched them show more than one belligerent customer the door.

Donnie does all the cooking and Buffy does all the serving. Occasionally they have a third person helping out, but for the most part, they do it all. And it is very good.

I know the owners of the Boundary personally. They are very good people. And yes, they are matter-of-fact, and they don't take crap off anyone. I've watched them show more than one belligerent customer the door.

Donnie does all the cooking and Buffy does all the serving. Occasionally they have a third person helping out, but for the most part, they do it all. And it is very good.

Why would anyone...let alone more than one person have to get belligerent at a bbq restaurant ?

Why would anyone...let alone more than one person have to get belligerent at a bbq restaurant ?


Because some folk just shouldn't ever reach higher in life, and should instead remain content to dip their nuggets in mcd's version of bbq sauce?

I, unfortunately, have encountered the "matter of factness" at The Boundary.... Whatever their reason for it. It is off putting and while I thought the Q was good it was enough to not make me want to go back.

I had already ordered a large amount of food, and was considering ordering more to go, and asked if I could just have a small sample of their pulled pork before I made the purchase... You would have thought I had asked for a free meal the way I was responded to.

I could understand the reaction I got if I had just walked in to use their restroom and had stopped and asked for free food. But I had just made a substantial dine-in order. I fail to see how a small bite of pulled pork was going to throw off their meal plans for the entire day.

I, unfortunately, have encountered the "matter of factness" at The Boundary.... Whatever their reason for it. It is off putting and while I thought the Q was good it was enough to not make me want to go back.

I had already ordered a large amount of food, and was considering ordering more to go, and asked if I could just have a small sample of their pulled pork before I made the purchase... You would have thought I had asked for a free meal the way I was responded to.

I could understand the reaction I got if I had just walked in to use their restroom and had stopped and asked for free food. But I had just made a substantial dine-in order. I fail to see how a small bite of pulled pork was going to throw off their meal plans for the entire day.

I was wondering. Generally, imho, I find that if a particular place has a problem with numerous belligerent patrons, there generally is a resident catalyst.

For the record, the woman who waited on me was very pleasant. That said, if "belligerent customers" and the owners "not taking crap off of anybody" are regular enough occurrences to be mentioned in casual discussions about a place, the problem probably AIN'T the customers...

Well, it certainly isn't the "resident catalyst". And who said it was a regular occurrence?

By the way, I've seen boorish behavior by customers at many businesses, not just restaurants. ... People who walk in like they own the place, who are loud or mouthy and disrespectful, don't control their kids, make a mess and and leave it for others to clean up. I once saw a clerk brought to tears by a "belligerent customer" who showed no manners or respect.

My wife and I also owned our own business, and along with the good, which were the majority, we also delt with a few customers who talked to my wife in a way that was inexcusable.

I have no problem with the owner of a business sending a customer home kicking rocks if they choose to act like that.

it just seems odd that as stated before in casual conversation about a place of business it was mentioned by everyone about the "matter of fact " attitude. doesn't sound pleasant or inviting at all. and odd to think that this establishment could have so many bad customers that everyone would experience this behavior. hmm.

I've watched them show more than one belligerent customer the door.



More than once makes for regular occurrence. People react to people. It generally takes two to tangle and there is generally a moment where a business owner can diffuse a situation or escalate a situation. It is part of being in a business that deals with the public. I was in the restaurant management business several years. I would much rather diffuse a situation if only for the sake of my other guests.

They just don't put up with it. ... and they don't have to. That's all.

Mean while, back to the BBQ,

Has anyone been to Val's in Altus. It's been a long time since I visited there , but I remember it being very good.