Taste of Lincoln

Rather than rip on a local restaurant that was obviously having a bad day, I wanted to throw something out there to the community. 

The other day I went to lunch with a group of people.  Our server was horrible, they were out of several key items and I had to send mine back to be corrected.  In this instance, the owner/manager came out from the back and seemed sincere in his apology.  Myself and another person were actually given a card to come back and get a free meal.

My question is, how bad of an experience do you have to have before even a FREE meal isn’t worth the risk of having the same experience?  In this instance I can say with a good deal of confidence that the next time I go in, the owner may be there, but this server will not be.  So who’s fault is it?  Is it a training issue?  Do people just not care?

I’m not afraid to call out a national chain, but we once had a terrible experience at Chili’s.  You would think with the corporate backing that the service we had should NEVER happen.  It was a table of four of us and I hardly EVER cause a scene at the restaurant.  My two biggest weapons I feel is never going back, and hopefully this blog.  But in this case, it was so bad I had to say something.  The manager returned with a $5 gift certificate for me.  I was so pissed I just left it on the table.  That didn’t even cover a kids meal with tax.

So my question still is, do I give this local estabilishment another try dispite my belief that I will have a repeat experience?

I’ve been to Paul’s at events like July Jamm and things in the Haymarket, but this was my first visit to his actual restaurant (4724 Pioneers Blvd).  I hate to give it away in the headline, but needless to say, I have a new favorite BBQ joint in Lincoln.  I have fun going to BBQ competitions, and I hope I’ve shared some good insight into the world of competitive BBQ.  In order to qualify for Grand Champion, the contestants must cook all of the following: Ribs, Chicken, Pork and Brisket.  I didn’t make it to the Brisket on this visit, but I will give my opinion on the other three.

Ribs: Despite my love of BBQ, ribs are not my favorite.  Not only am I personally terrible at cooking them, but I don’t think most people do it right.  Paul hits it perfectly.  I added on two ribs for $2.99 and made the mistake of eating them first.  Just as the regulations state, the meat pulled away from the bone right where my teeth where.  The smoke flavor was perfect and there was not an ounce of fat on the bone.

Pulled Pork: This is my favorite category and I am extremely critical of mushy overcooked pork.  This was not overcooked at all.  Each strand held up on its own and it wasn’t tough to pull it away from the rest of the meat on my plate.  I did sample some of Paul’s “hot” sauce and it wasn’t overpowering at first, but it sure stuck around awhile.

Pulled Chicken: My kids (5 and 2) split the pulled chicken dinner and fries.  Of course daddy had to sample some of theirs to see how it was.  From the bite that I had, it would definitely be something I would try on my own.  The chicken was definitely high quality and like the pork it was not overcooked.  Different than pork, overcooked chicken usually dries out and just sits there lifeless on your plate.  This was not lifeless chicken.

Please give Paul’s a try the next time you are in the mood for BBQ.  The place was busy and it looks like they do a good takeout business.  With all the chain choices that we have, instead of going with one that has colorful menus, peanuts that your kids throw at each other or servers that wouldn’t know a brisket from a biscuit, check out Paul’s.

My only suggestion?  Paul for whatever reason my kids hate BBQ.  Can you throw a hot dog or a PB&J on the kids menu to help me make it there more often?