Randy’s Ribs, Hughesville, Charles County, Maryland

Doesn’t this look like a great place?

Doesn’t it look even better now?

And how about this?

That’s Randy’s Ribs, a carry-out place on Rt. 5. It’s right next to the rotary’s bingo parlor and the Solid Rock Baptist Church, so there’s plenty of parking, even on Sunday morning. I confirmed that all of the meat is cooked exclusively with wood and wood coals with no gas or electric assistance, and certified on behalf of the Campaign for Real Barbecue that Randy’s Ribs cooks True ‘Cue.

This was all early in the morning. I had dropped Nancy and Ella off at Union Station at 8:00 am, and dawdled my way over to Randy’s Ribs, and arrived a bit after their 9:00 am opening. I looked around to examine the cooking operation and talked to Rainer Hersh, who was in charge in the absence of owner Randy Keaton. The team was feverishly preparing not only for the normal daily traffic, but also for three large catering jobs plus a police retirement (I think). The ribs would be ready to go at 10:30. I could wait for the fresh barbecue, but I also could get some barbecue now. I took that to mean some of yesterday’s barbecue.

Randy’s also sells some alluring breakfast sandwiches, which is what everyone else was getting at that hour, but what the heck. I was hell-bent on barbecue, and so ponied up for a pork sandwich with some of their North Carolina sauce. Randy’s other sauces are sweet and spicy sweet and, as regular readers know, I dislike the sweet sauces that most people prefer. See here for the science. Here’s the sandwich:

It’s a hefty sandwich, and I thought the pork had real potential when fresh, and unsauced. (As is almost always the case outside the Tarheel State, Randy’s North Carolina sauce has ingredients other than vinegar and pepper, or so it tasted.)

The next morning I puttered around and arrived back at Randy’s at 11:00, and ordered a rib sandwich with no sauce. I couldn’t wait, so I took it over to the car, put it on the hood, and opened it.

Underneath the bread were the ribs.

There actually are four big, meaty ribs there — one is tucked underneath — and there also was a short-lived rib tip that I just couldn’t resist. Friends, these are some excellent ribs, some of the best ribs in the … mid-Atlantic. Meaty, smoky, and with a lovely bark, they are memorable. This is pork cooked over wood without interference. You could make money selling these ribs in Alabama, which is saying a lot. I’ll be going back for more, and for more of the pork, again with no sauce.

I’m a bit of a crank about sauces for barbecue, so I always have bottles of the best barbecue sauce in the pantry. Sauces, of course, are a matter of personal taste. Many of you will love Randy’s sauces, but if you’re as vinegar/pepper-centric as I, you can always order sauces, or follow my emergency sauce system. Whatever your personal preference, you want to go to Randy’s and get some of those ribs and those other wood-cooked meats. They are the real deal, True ‘Cue. And if you go early in the morning, get a breakfast sandwich. Randy makes his own sausage.

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