FOOD FIGHT: BEST BBQ RIBS
Mr. K's draws raves
By Gerald M. Gay
ggay@azstarnet.com
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 07.02.2009
Fans slathered layers of lip-smacking praise on Mr. K's BBQ in our latest Food Fight, which asked where to find the best ribs in town.
Charles Kendrick opened the low-profile restaurant on South Park Avenue in 1999 as a way to supplement funds for his Afro-American Heritage Museum next door.
Today, his son Ray and Ray's business partner, Dennis Levi, manage the spot.
Mr. K's was featured in the 2006 book "Killer Ribs: Mouthwatering Recipes From North America's Best Rib Joints" and is a haven for barbecue buffs looking for some down-home cooking in Tucson.
Jim Redding, a 59-year-old telecom tech for Union Pacific railroad, drove by Mr. K's for years without thinking twice about it.
But once he tasted the food, "I was drawn to know more about how it was created," he said. "The barbecue sauce is a closely guarded family secret, handed down through generations.
"You shouldn't vote until you've eaten at Mr. K's," Redding said.
Wayne Brent, an academic-technologies consultant with the University of Arizona, has eaten at Mr. K's for nearly a decade.
"I have tried most of the other rib places in Tucson and keep coming back to Mr K's," the 53-year-old Brent said. "All of their food, including the ribs, brisket, sliced pork and chicken, are fully smoked. They have an excellent homemade rub and special sauce."
Brent usually orders his ribs with sauce on the side.
"This way I can taste the smoky meat and add the sauce on my own for that extra zest."
Retiree Barbara Abrahams said the ribs at Mr. K's are the way they should be: "tender, tangy and totally messy."
She added: "You sop up the savory drippings with their homemade corn muffins. And if you haven't tried their homemade sausage, oh my God! Your taste buds will break into song when you eat one."
And Charlie Tapper wrote all the way from London to show his support for Mr. K's.
"The first thing I do when I come to Tucson is go to Mr. K's," said Tapper, 36, an art director who grew up in Tucson. "The care those guys put into them is second to none. The meat melts in your mouth, and the hot links are so good. I have to fight my family to get to them."
Fans of other rib joints spread their choices throughout the city.
Substation-control designer Roy Dennie, 61, started going to Famous Dave's, a national barbecue chain, when he lived in Minnesota years ago. He's a frequent visitor to the Famous Dave's on North Oracle Road near the Tucson Mall.
"I'm glad there is one in Tucson," he said. "I usually have (the ribs) with the 'rich and sassy' (sauce), but sometimes I just eat them they way they come out, without adding any sauce. With the cornbread muffin, corn on the cob and fries, it makes a great meal."
Third-grade teacher Kimberly R. Smith, 36, heads to Kingfisher for her favorite, prickly-pear baby-back pork ribs.
"They come with the best shoestring fries and crisp coleslaw," she said. "Finger-licking good."
Ron Bridgemon, 32, a museum educator, is devoted to the ribs at Lil' Abner's Steak House, on North Silverbell Road in Marana.
"They are the best I've had," he said. "They are exceedingly tender, well-seasoned with sauce on the side so I can add to the taste. I've tried ribs all over the country and even abroad, and Abner's still tops it for me."
And David J. Dial remembers going to Jack's Original Bar-B-Q with his dad as a child for its "no-frills" ribs.
"It was usually summertime, which meant getting into a car with white-hot metal seat-belt buckles," he recalled, "But good barbecue is worth a little pain."
Rebecca Cook couldn't decide between Jack's and Mr. K's.
She enjoyed the "wake-up wallop of heat and flavor" of Mr. K's ribs, but also the "vinegar zing" found in Jack's racks.
"Both rib offerings are smoky and sublime," she said. "My stomach is growling as I write this!"
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