Ms. Piggies (Again)

What could be better than BBQ on a Friday afternoon?

BBQ & a live sax player tooting in the corner.

Steve & I tooled down Page for lunch so he could check out the new digs. Just when I thought they'd pulled out all the stops, here was Fred Walker & his Saxy Jazz Music Show in the corner with everything from 'As Time Goes By' to 'Mas Que Nada'.

That made it hard to talk but the food was great. I had the ribs this time (wet). They were meaty & 'fall off the bone'. Steve opted for brisket & pulled pork. I still think these guys may have the best fries in town.

We may have to give them a rest as they're getting heavy rotation, but judging from the traffic in the place, they'll still have plenty of business.

A Biggie Piggie

If Ms. Piggie's had one drawback, it was the seating. A dozen, tops, could cram into the place and a one lucky table was on the way to the bathroom.

No more.

About a month ago, they knocked out the wall to the west, added seating for about 40, moved the bathroom, and added a pair of flat-screen TVs.

Still the same great food and terrific service (I had the rib tips - mmmmmm), the improvements are wonderful addition to a great BBQ joint.

Smokin Al's vs Ms Piggies

We took a small horde to Ms Piggies today, including some newbies - no small feat considering the place only holds twelve. We had a good variety, two rib tip and one each pulled pork, pulled beef, turkey & chicken. A good variety of sides too - Paul crowned them "Best Sweet Potatoes".

After the feast, the three who had been to both Smokin' Al's & Ms. Piggies caucused. Steve M. went with Ms. Piggies and Carey with Smokin' Al's. Having the tie breaker and having had rib tips at both joints, I had to consider the following:

Meat - Big edge to Ms. Piggies. Tender and well smoked. Al's was well smoked, but you had to work that meat off the bone.

Sauce - Smokin' Al's - especially the Wolf Sauce. Ms. Piggies is more subtle and grows on you.

The winner is:


Ms. Piggies


She'll be up against Richard's Ribs in their bracket next week.

BBQ in Winter

By all accounts, most of us think of BBQ as a summer treat so staying on The Quest has been a little tricky.

For the first round, we are down to about nine joints, four of them a fairly good drive for lunch (and one of those known to be closed for winter). Four others are clustered around N. Jefferson and calling ahead left me with one wrong number, one disconnected message, one fax machine, and one no answer. Whether closed for good, for winter, or for the day it's hard to tell.

Not to say I didn't get any Que. I managed a meeting at Ms. Piggie's on Tuesday, lunch with one of the regulars on Wednesday at Smokin' Al's when we couldn't find the other joints open (not a bad plan B), and treated consultants visiting St. Louis to El Scorcho on Thursday. All in all a good week's work for BBQ in December.

I tried the pulled chicken at Ms. Piggie's. Tasty but a little too fine in texture for my taste - I'll be going back to tips. The burnt ends at Smokin' Al's were spot on, not too dry but no fat at all. El Scorcho proved the brisket is not a fluke, everyone I've met who's had it raves about it.

The other place on the list is one of the newest, Call Box Inn. I drove by for lunch last week and they are closed until Jan. 2 so it's 2008 for that one.

Happy Que Year!!!

Ms. Piggie's

Oh my. It's in a strip mall - not a good sign.

Well, don't let looks fool you. The BBQ here is excellent. Only Steve, Megan & I made it, but everyone was glad they did.

Located just west of the Federal Records Center (10612 Page). The place is short on seating (maybe a dozen) but long on taste and hospitality. I had some seriously tangy rib tips and the best fries served up so far. The whole shebang was moderately priced ($10 with a soda) as well.

Before you go be sure to check out their website and print off a 10% off coupon.

They do take credit cards but be warned they are closed on Mondays.

This place will be moving on to the next round.