Tobago Ribs Catering Since 1994
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Articles
Catering in Lexington KY
A Reprint of Our Article From the Lexington Herald Leader
by Sharon Thompson
In The Kitchen With
Rory and Sharadon Snowden
An article from the Food Section of the Lexington Herald Leader
The secret' s in the sauce and the smoking at the Tobago Ribs
Profession: Owners of Tobago Ribs, 895 North Broadway
Family: Children -- Kershawn 5, Kairon 10, Keyla 16, and Jarell 19.
Background: The Snowdens opened Tobago Ribs a year ago. Their barbecued ribs tied for first place at the recent Blaze BBQ cookoff at the Northside YMCA. Sharadon is a native of Trinidad and met Rory while they were serving in the U. S. Army. After their tour of duty they settled in Rory's hometown, Paris.
The Ribs: The secret is in the sauce. It was created by Sheraton by adding "a little bit of this in a little bit of that. You can take any base recipe and add the right spices and combinations and you get a good sauce," she said.
Rory gives his wife all of the credit for the sauce. "I'm just the man who spread it on," he said. Until recently, that is. Sharaton just started allowing Rory to make all of the sauce. She has a full-time job and is taking care of the family and is sometimes too tired to make it, she said. The meat is delivered from F. B. Pernell Sausage Co. in Simpsonville, and rib processor, Chilie Watkins, hand cuts about 1000 lbs. of ribs a week, Watkins said. The long -- boned Ribs are sold by the slab, but at some barbecue restaurants they are sold for a dollar a bone.
The Smokin': Rory designed one large and one small smoker and have someone make them out of large metal pipes. The heat is important, Rory said, and he doesn't add the meat until the grill or smoker reaches the proper temperature. "It's all about using the right heat, he said. "The best tip I can give anybody is to make sure you only put just enough coals in there to do what you have to do. Some people put too much coals in there and then you're cooking with nothing but flames. You're fighting that fire. Put just enough in there to create the heat to cook the food," he said.
The Menu: "we're keeping it simple, there's not too much room in there to do more," Sheridan said. The Ribs, pulled pork and barbecued chicken are served with homemade coleslaw, baked beans and potato salad. The pies are made by "an elderly lady he knows. They're probably the best in Lexington. They melt in your mouth," she said.
Cooking at Home: Sheridan cooks. "Believe it or not we do a lot of grilling, not Ribs, but would put a lot of steaks on the grill. At my mom's house we eat a lot of local dishes. When she cooks she tends to cook more island. There's a dish called roti . Everybody in Trinidad knows roti. It's one of the favorite dishes, but still too technical to make and only a few people make it, and my mother is good at making it. Everybody gathers at her house for roti."
Goal: To have a processing center. "We don't need another location. We need a processing center where we'd sell directly to you, and we could put Tobago Ribs anywhere." They're hoping to attract some investors.
Seal of Approval: A parent recently picked up an order of ribs and called back to tell Rory about his eight-year olds sons first experience eating the ribs. The boy said: "
Only God could do a better job."
Expect a Wait: The carryout store is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday. "No matter how many people are here, we don't rush," Rory said. Sometimes they're ready; sometimes he puts the ribs on the grill after the order is placed.
Article by Sharon Thompson for the Lexington Herald Leader
Tobago Ribs Catering in Lexington KY is located at : 891 Georgetown St. in Lexington, KY 40511
Our Hours of Operation: 11:30 AM until 7:30 PM
Owners: Rory "Mutt" & Sharadon Snowden
(859) 435 - 0168
Tobago Ribs - Catering in Lexington KY