Tuesday, November 12, 2024

Deets BBQ: Local Rib-Off champs know the secret to BBQ

It’s that time of year again as the 31st annual Northwest Ohio Rib-Off will take place August 7-10 at the Lucas County Fairgrounds. Last year, the People’s Choice Award went to Maumee’s Deet’s BBQ, while the Hollywood Casino was crowned the overall champion. We decided to give the winners a taste test of our own.

To prepare a BBQ dish, the meat is cooked over indirect heat for many hours in a smoke-filled oven. Low and slow is the name of the game. Both Deet’s and the Hollywood Casino dry rub and smoke their ribs for around four to five hours, cutting them into individual bones for service, accompanied by a light drizzle of signature sauces. The rub ingredients and the sauces are closely held secrets.

Deet’s has the usual offerings expected from a true BBQ joint, including smoked pulled pork, brisket and chicken, and sides of coleslaw, baked beans and potato salad. In addition, they offer premium sides such as Curly Mac & Cheese and Gourmet Cinnamon Applesauce.

The St. Louis-style ribs, sauced and grilled instead of cooked indirectly, are smoked till tender, then quickly finished on the grill. They are cooked “competition style,” which means the meat comes off the bone cleanly and easily when you bite into it, unlike some ribs that are cooked so much they fall off the bone.

Two sauces are offered, one sweet but not too sweet, the other hot, but not too hot. Both are of the typical Midwest tomato-based variety. Prices range from $6.50 for the sandwiches of pulled pork, brisket, grilled chicken breast, or smoked chicken salad to $25 for the full slab rib platter with two sides and a corn muffin.

Other menu items include pulled pork or brisket nachos, smokehouse tacos, Toledo dogs, and smokehouse chicken chunks. Deet’s signature sandwich is the Big Pete with brisket pulled pork and coleslaw at $8.75.  deetsbbq.com

Hollywood Casino may seem to be far from a typical barbecue joint, but it actually has a full-sized smoker out back that does ribs, brisket and pulled pork for dishes at their four restaurants.

At the casino’s Scene restaurant, where the service was fast, friendly, and efficient, the St. Louis cut spare ribs are cooked competition style. Dry smoked and lightly drizzled with sauce, they are priced at $19. You can get a sampler with four ribs for $11.

But there are more BBQ offerings than just the ribs, including a sliced brisket sandwich and two burgers that feature their in-house smoked meats and seasoned fries on the side.

Scene also offers a number of sides from slaw and macaroni salad to sweet potato fries to skillet beans, all priced at $3. For those over 55 and on a budget, Hollywood Casino offers a discount on the Epic2buffet— $8.99 on Tuesday and Wednesday for members of their Marquee Rewards Club.

So what’s the verdict? Both the local 2013 Rib-Off winners definitely earned their crowns. The advantage Hollywood Casino holds is its wide range of menu selections, giving a group of diners  a choice of BBQ or something completely different. https://hollywoodcasinotoledo.com/Dining/Scene

It’s that time of year again as the 31st annual Northwest Ohio Rib-Off will take place August 7-10 at the Lucas County Fairgrounds. Last year, the People’s Choice Award went to Maumee’s Deet’s BBQ, while the Hollywood Casino was crowned the overall champion. We decided to give the winners a taste test of our own.

To prepare a BBQ dish, the meat is cooked over indirect heat for many hours in a smoke-filled oven. Low and slow is the name of the game. Both Deet’s and the Hollywood Casino dry rub and smoke their ribs for around four to five hours, cutting them into individual bones for service, accompanied by a light drizzle of signature sauces. The rub ingredients and the sauces are closely held secrets.

Deet’s has the usual offerings expected from a true BBQ joint, including smoked pulled pork, brisket and chicken, and sides of coleslaw, baked beans and potato salad. In addition, they offer premium sides such as Curly Mac & Cheese and Gourmet Cinnamon Applesauce.

The St. Louis-style ribs, sauced and grilled instead of cooked indirectly, are smoked till tender, then quickly finished on the grill. They are cooked “competition style,” which means the meat comes off the bone cleanly and easily when you bite into it, unlike some ribs that are cooked so much they fall off the bone.

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Two sauces are offered, one sweet but not too sweet, the other hot, but not too hot. Both are of the typical Midwest tomato-based variety. Prices range from $6.50 for the sandwiches of pulled pork, brisket, grilled chicken breast, or smoked chicken salad to $25 for the full slab rib platter with two sides and a corn muffin.

Other menu items include pulled pork or brisket nachos, smokehouse tacos, Toledo dogs, and smokehouse chicken chunks. Deet’s signature sandwich is the Big Pete with brisket pulled pork and coleslaw at $8.75.  deetsbbq.com

Hollywood Casino may seem to be far from a typical barbecue joint, but it actually has a full-sized smoker out back that does ribs, brisket and pulled pork for dishes at their four restaurants.

At the casino’s Scene restaurant, where the service was fast, friendly, and efficient, the St. Louis cut spare ribs are cooked competition style. Dry smoked and lightly drizzled with sauce, they are priced at $19. You can get a sampler with four ribs for $11.

But there are more BBQ offerings than just the ribs, including a sliced brisket sandwich and two burgers that feature their in-house smoked meats and seasoned fries on the side.

Scene also offers a number of sides from slaw and macaroni salad to sweet potato fries to skillet beans, all priced at $3. For those over 55 and on a budget, Hollywood Casino offers a discount on the Epic2buffet— $8.99 on Tuesday and Wednesday for members of their Marquee Rewards Club.

So what’s the verdict? Both the local 2013 Rib-Off winners definitely earned their crowns. The advantage Hollywood Casino holds is its wide range of menu selections, giving a group of diners  a choice of BBQ or something completely different. https://hollywoodcasinotoledo.com/Dining/Scene

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