Westport Restaurant Week 11—Bobby Q’s Barbeque & Grill

My eleventh Westport Restaurant Week visit brought my wife, my daughter and me to lunch at Bobby Q’s Barbeque & Grill,

which is accessed via a Main Street alley next to Banana Republic.

The approach only increases the feeling that one has found a hidden, down-home gem of a barbecue and blues joint.

The authentic smells we inhaled as we approached told us that the wood stacked outside the entrance was more than decorative,

the dangling pig more than just symbolic.

Inside the entry were award-winning housemade BBQ sauces for sale,

celebrity testimonials,

and a treasure chest

that actually lets some kids win.

Curious about the upstairs,

my daughter and I

explored these spaces available for private functions,

noted the joint’s good taste in music (in my book, Muddy Waters is God),

and spied on Ann.

Bobby Q’s was clearly a family-friendly establishment,

with plenty to keep the children occupied.

Although child-free, the bar area was as busy as the dining room.

All of those great smells and contented customers were making us really hungry. Our waiter, Marcos,

brought us glasses of Blue Moon

and Brooklyn Ale.

Our daughter dug right into a kid’s meal of pulled pork, housemade applesauce and French fries.

Ann and I decided to try all four of Bobby Q’s Restaurant Week lunch menus (a mere $15!), deals that could only be surpassed by its dinner menus (one of which was just $25 for all you can eat ribs with two sides!). The first lunch menu featured a soft drink, house salad

and bowl of delicious smokehouse chili loaded with beef brisket.

The second lunch deal included a soft drink, half-rack of ribs, sweet and smoky pit beans and coleslaw.

The third lunch option turned out to be a soft drink, cup of beef and vegetable soup,

pork burnt ends and choice of side.

Here’s a close-up of those lip-smackin’ burnt ends (remember, you can click on the photos to enlarge them),

and of our choice of side, a bowl of macaroni and cheese.

This little fellow at a neighboring table clearly approved of the macaroni and cheese, both as food and fashion accessory.

The fourth, and final, lunch option was a soft drink, BBQ sandwich (we chose Bobby’s beef brisket) with choice of side, a smoked corn and black bean salad,

and a slice of butterscotch pecan pie.

At the end of this overwhelmingly generous lunch, I went upstairs to see the smoker in action

and befriend the hospitable manager and enthusiastic chef.

Bobby Q’s Barbeque & Grill, 42 Main Street, Westport, 203-454-7800