I went to bed after the debacle that was day one with the ridiculous idea that I was going to wake up, have a fruit salad and all would be right with the world. The hotel’s continental breakfast was a well stocked example of what not to eat to start your day…greasy sausages, lumpy grits, sugared cereals and oatmeals and syrupy canned fruit. It was an abomination. I stomped over to the coffee pot, grabbed a cup and noticed they had some small containers of lousy yogurt shoved over to side as a capitulation to the poor fools who don’t begin their day with a 5,000 calorie breakfast. I grabbed two and bedrugingly ate.
About an hour before lunch I had a revelation…there may not be healthy food in my future but as we all know…naughty food can be really, really good food. So I crossed back over to the dark side… but with a caveat…If I’m going to give up on eating lighter…then dammit I’m gonna eat well. Enter Dreamland BBQ.
Dreamland was started by John “Big Daddy” Bishop in 1958, the same year Alabama coaching legend Paul “Bear” Bryant took the healm for the Crimson Tide. If you love ‘Bama football… you worship the Bear, think Joe Namath is is a god and make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem Heights, just south of Tuscaloosa at least once in your life to eat ribs at Dreamland.
Some think Dreamland serves the “Best ribs in America” which is kind of like saying you have the best pizza in NY…completely subjective…but the full slab, baked beans, slaw and potato salad we ordered were absoluetly amazing. The ribs were soft and tangy with a peppery punch but still chewy enough to have a really satisfying texture. The extra BBQ sauce for dipping was so good I took two bottles to go.
My mission was blown, I was in the deep south and up to my neck in pork ribs… but man, I did it in style.
Next stop….New Orleans!
