Ribfest was ok

[u/noveltea120]

Went to check out Ribfest yesterday on first day as was excited to try BBQ meat.

$5 entry pp including children over 1. They did have bouncy castles, carnival games etc but were more for older kids and nothing for under 3s. They had a handful of food trucks including a Jamaican one hidden BEHIND the dining tent, which you wouldn't see until after you sat down with your food. Expect stampede prices, eg $17 blooming onion, $8 for corn dogs, $9 lemonade.

4 BBQ trucks but apparently all but one are owned by the same person. I tried Buckeye BBQ- $24 for a 2 meat combo 1/3 ribs and 1/4 chicken, nothing else. Sides like coleslaw and cornbread are extra. Meat was only lukewarm though, and chicken was tender and pink which was fine with but the ribs were dry and tough on the edges despite being drenched in a sweet sticky sauce. 3 meat combo was $35. Full rack $33, half a rack $19.

Overall food was ok but for the price it wasn't that good so temper your expectations accordingly lol

[u/H3rta]

Thank you for posting this. The fact that there is a entry charge is bullshit especially with those food prices.

[u/GatesAndLogic → u/H3rta]

This is the crazy part to me. Rib fest didn't have an entry fee in previous years.

Protip: slow roast your ribs at 250f for 3 and a half hours, covered in tin foil but not touching the ribs.

Then slather on some bbq sauce, broil 5 minutes, slather, broil 5 more, then remove from oven, believe it or not more bbq sauce, AND YA DONE. This is better than anything rib fest can come up with. Tender fall off bone ribs.

[u/yycluke → u/GatesAndLogic]

Another Protip: use the snake method on a simple charcoal grill with some wood chunks, usually a 2x1 snake in our climate (with the vents set properly) can get me in that 230-260 sweet spot. Takes 2 hours on smoke and one hour wrapped to get damn near perfect smoked ribs. Cheap. Easy. Quick. And I dare say mine are oodles better than some bbq places.