Red's True Barbecue

Red's True BBQ already exists in Leeds, and is well loved. But now it has landed right in the centre of Manchester, just off Albert Square, and is immediately identifiable by its big red neon sign, a style of which you will find continued inside.

I'm a sucker for a good theme in a restaurant, and Red's has a theme I've never seen before... religion! Or rather, it's own religion, where the subject of worship is meat, and instead of God, the creator is "Red" (you can guess!), and the exclamation "let there be meat!". Frankly this is a vegetarian's nightmare, and a meat lover's wet dream.

The venue itself is interestingly decoratred. It's very industrial, like being in some sort of inner-city meat packing district, complete with corrugated iron cladding and chain-link fencing, occasionally splashed with colour from some very vibrant neon signs. The nice part is that the theming is consistent, but as a restaurant it still feels very clean and functional.

We had no wait when we arrived on a late weekday afternoon, and were promptly seated, and given a copy of 'the good book', which as well as the menu, also explains Red's 'ten commandments', mantra, and general information on the cooking techniques, meat, and food welfare. It's a pretty tongue-in-cheek affair, and reminds me of The Bird in Berlin, both in terms of menu style, and décor. On your table, there is a caddy containing four of Red's home-made sauces, three of which are barbecue variants, one is a ketchup variant, and one is a hotsauce, as well as salt, pepper, and toothpicks. All of the sauces were good, but for me it was the North Carolina BBQ Sauce which came out as the winner.

For appetisers we ordered the rib sampler and some cracklings. Until this point, I always thought that I dislike crackling, but it just seems I hadn't had it done properly, as Red's cracklings were great, and came in a paper bag, like a sweetshop. The rib sampler was good too, all the ribs covered in 'unholy BBQ sauce', and stacked up in a tin pie dish. The first rib we tried was excellent, full of flavour, and so tender that we were able to leave shiny bones. The other ribs were good too, but with some chewy parts leaving us uncertain at times if we were eating some chewy meat, or bits of bone. This dish was served alongside some napkins and large wet-wipes, and god knows we would need them by the end of that starter! Before long, you realise that this is a 'cutlery optional' place, and nobody has any qualms if you just pick up your food and gnaw at it, getting delicious sauce all over your face, like a toddler with an ice cream! One nice 'American' style touch is that a great quality root beer is available on the soft drinks menu, and was a delicious frosty accompaniment for that authentic taste of American barbecue, although at £3.50 for a bottle, it was one of the pricier drinks on the soft drinks menu.

For our mains, my dining partner ordered the pulled meat nachos, (pulled pork, chicken, and brisket) which he said were delicious, whilst I chose to go for the half-chicken, and when given the choice of two "humble sides" or one "divine side", chose to go for a divine side of sweet potato fries, but the options for humble sides were very tempting too! My half-chicken was seasoned and sauced deliciously, but it was so well cooked that the chicken pretty much slid straight out of the skin when I attempted to eat it, giving you the choice of either eating the skin separately, or smothering the fresh chicken with various sauces and devouring it that way. I did both. SHUT UP, DON'T JUDGE ME!! ... and very tasty it was too! Although the half-chicken was monumentally filling, and so I'd probably go for something else next time (I have my eye on the burgers!), the sweet potato fries were perfectly done, and it was great fun to try all the different sauces with them!

The service itself was friendly and casual, We were never given anyone's name when we sat down, but we ended up having at least four different servers throughout our meal, which was good and attentive, but a little less personal as we didn't feel like we were being taken of by someone in particular, even though the rest of the staff were superb. That said, there were a lot of staff, who when not attending tables, seemed quite often to be stood around without very much to do, even occasionally getting in the way of customers trying to get past, or find the toilets etc. The kitchen is made to look quite rough-and-ready, and although the kitchen staff are in baseball caps and the such, when I walked past, I heard a clear, "yes, chef!" showing that it is still very much a quality kitchen, no matter the décor or stylings.

Speaking of which, I was pleasantly surprised that the religious theme even carried on into the toilets! The hallway to them kept the Crystal Maze "Industrial Zone" style, but the toilets were a cross between industrial and religious, even using mock 'confessional booths' as the cubicals, which made me smile as soon as I went in. And don't worry, the slidy-panels work, but the grating is panelled up!

Back at the table, I was FAR too stuffed for dessert, as delicious as they sounded, but my partner had his eye on Red's Banana Pudding, so while I was pondering which emergency service could roll me out of the restaurant, he was devouring a dish which at first sight looked a bit mediocre, but which upon tasting, he declared the best dessert he's ever had! Go Red's!

I'm pleased to say that for two starters, two mains, a dessert, and three drinks, the bill came to just over £45.00, which I consider good value, especially given the quality of the food, and that you would spend about that if you chose to go to somewhere like TGI Fridays, but which I guarantee would leave you feeling less satisfied! I will be back here again make no mistake!

Praise Be!

Oh one last thing! Be sure to ask your server (after your meal...) what these interesting lampshades actually are.

Red's True Barbecue
22 Lloyd Street
Albert Square
Manchester City Centre
M2 5WA
(0161) 820 9140
http://www.truebarbecue.com