After taking a week off due to the Miami trip, the restaurant review is back! Today I met up with a friend to try Hickory Road BBQ off of 48th St. in Lincoln.
I really liked the atmosphere. It's just part of a strip mall, but the inside of the restaurant is pretty cool. The decor is almost entirely wood, and there is a nice bar area as well. The service was fast and friendly, as I had my meal about 15 minutes after ordering.
Unfortunately, the food didn't hold up quite as well. I order a half rack of ribs, which came with two sides and a breadstick. The ribs were good-sized and had a nice, sweet glaze on top. But they weren't the most tender - the meat had to be pulled off the bone. While they had good flavor, I ended up adding sauce to almost all of them. I like barbecue sauce, but I'm a believer that good ribs stand up without it. The rub and/or the flavor of the meat should hold up for itself, and it didn't in this case.
I enjoyed the side of beans. They weren't sweet like most baked bean offerings, but instead had a nice spicy flavor. That's likely due to the jalapeños in them, and I believe there was some pork inside as well. The side of corn on the cob was poor.
And what's up with including a breadstick with barbecue? I've never seen/heard of such a thing before, and it doesn't work. The breadstick was fine (basically something you'd find in the frozen isle of the grocery store), but breadsticks belong with Italian food, not barbecue. It didn't work at all. Why am I getting a breadstick with my meal instead of cornbread?!?
My friend ordered brisket, which he let me try. It was dry and didn't stand out in any way.
The meal cost $16, which isn't necessarily unreasonable, but it was overpriced considering the quality. Don't get me wrong - Hickory Road is fine. It's not a bad meal by any means. But I was expecting more and came away slightly disappointed. I'll give Hickory Road a 5.8 out of 10. It's decent, but with better offerings in Lincoln (Lippy's, Mitchell's, Southwest Pit and of course, the GOAT Phat Jacks), it just doesn't quite stack up.
I really liked the atmosphere. It's just part of a strip mall, but the inside of the restaurant is pretty cool. The decor is almost entirely wood, and there is a nice bar area as well. The service was fast and friendly, as I had my meal about 15 minutes after ordering.
Unfortunately, the food didn't hold up quite as well. I order a half rack of ribs, which came with two sides and a breadstick. The ribs were good-sized and had a nice, sweet glaze on top. But they weren't the most tender - the meat had to be pulled off the bone. While they had good flavor, I ended up adding sauce to almost all of them. I like barbecue sauce, but I'm a believer that good ribs stand up without it. The rub and/or the flavor of the meat should hold up for itself, and it didn't in this case.
I enjoyed the side of beans. They weren't sweet like most baked bean offerings, but instead had a nice spicy flavor. That's likely due to the jalapeños in them, and I believe there was some pork inside as well. The side of corn on the cob was poor.
And what's up with including a breadstick with barbecue? I've never seen/heard of such a thing before, and it doesn't work. The breadstick was fine (basically something you'd find in the frozen isle of the grocery store), but breadsticks belong with Italian food, not barbecue. It didn't work at all. Why am I getting a breadstick with my meal instead of cornbread?!?
My friend ordered brisket, which he let me try. It was dry and didn't stand out in any way.
The meal cost $16, which isn't necessarily unreasonable, but it was overpriced considering the quality. Don't get me wrong - Hickory Road is fine. It's not a bad meal by any means. But I was expecting more and came away slightly disappointed. I'll give Hickory Road a 5.8 out of 10. It's decent, but with better offerings in Lincoln (Lippy's, Mitchell's, Southwest Pit and of course, the GOAT Phat Jacks), it just doesn't quite stack up.
