CULINARY
DETECTIVE
DINING OFF THE BEATEN PATH
Harry’s barbecue smokes competition
BY CHRIS
COGNAC
SPECIAL TO RAVE!
Daily Breeze, Los Angeles, CA
Harry’s Barbecue
Smokes Competition
I love barbecue. It’s
sweet, delicious and sure hits the spot on a nice afternoon. There
is not really any “bad” barbecue, but there are places that make
barbecue a whole lot better than others — and let me tell you, I
have found one of them.
Having spent four years
in Tennessee while in the Army, I’m pretty picky when it comes to
barbecue. On the weekend I would load the car up with hungry GIs,
and we would take the back roads searching for those small barbecue
shacks that dotted the countryside. The smell and taste of that
good barbecue is something I won’t forget.
There are very few
places around here where you can find good Southern-style, smoked
barbecue. But folks, Harry’s Smokehouse in Lomita is one of
them.
I went to Harry’s after
seeing a coupon for a BBQ Tri-Tip sandwich that really sounded
good. I walked into Harry’s Smoke-house and the sweet smell of
meats smoking in the back immediately brought me back to my Army
days:
I looked at the menu
and knew I was in for a treat. The problem was, I was by myself and
one man can only eat so many different items. So I ordered my
Tri-Tip Sandwich ($6.99), which came with baked beans, which I
love.
Then, sacrificing
myself for RAVE! readers — knowing you’d want to know more — I
ordered a Pork Rib and a Smoked Link ($2) and got both kinds of
barbecue sauce (spicy and mild).
Oh my God! It was
amazing. The Tri-Tip Sandwich was much better than I had expected,
with the bun holding in the sweet sauce and the tri-tip tender and
full of flavor. I was approaching barbecue heaven, so I dug into
the Hot Link and it was awesome. I dipped the meat into the most
sweet and succulent barbecue sauce I have had in years and entered
into barbecue nirvana. The sauce was so good, I actually considered
picking up the container and drinking it. I slathered some on the
Pork Rib and tore it up, literally.
I was addicted and had
to go back again very soon, so a few days later I convinced my
wife, Martha, that she wanted barbecue for dinner and! made a
return trip to Harry’s Smokehouse.
I was in the mood for
some serious barbecue eating so I ordered the No. 1 ($39.99), which
consists of one full rack of St. Louis pork ribs, 1 pound of smoked
tri-tip, 4½ pounds of chicken breasts, 1 quart of molasses baked
beans, 1 quart of coleslaw and rolls. We also got some of the tasty
Peach Cobbler. Why did I get so much food? So I could have
leftovers, of course.
The chicken breasts
were juicy and plump, with a wonderful flavor to the meat — just
delicious. The tri-tip was great, sliced like brisket, but much
leaner. Owner Jon Harry Bayouth, a native of Tulsa, OkIa., tells me
that’s his “California” twist on barbecue.
Harry’s Smokehouse is
one of the best barbecue places I have found in Southern
California. The sweet sauce is wonderful and enhances the flavor of
the meats without being overpowering.
• Chris
Cognac, a detective for a South Bay police department, specializes
in reviewing hole-in-the-wall restaurants. If you’d like him to
conduct a culinary investigation at a restaurant you’ve been
hesitant to try, write to him at the Daily Breeze, 5215 Torrance
Blvd., Torrance, CA, 90503-4077 or e-mail him at chris@culinarydetectivecom.
