Question about Dickey's BBQ for Twinwillow

or another in Big D.  I've addressed this to Twinwillow because of previous posts about Dickey's BBQ, but there are surely many in Dallas who can answer the question I will ask.
 
Let me start by saying that I grew up in Dallas not far from the original Dickey's location and ate their from time to time although my favorite BBQ was Salih's, or Solly's, located in Preston Center when I was young and finally in Addison before closing.  I moved from Dallas long ago but when I visited I'd take a meal at Solly's, time permitting, or buy a package of BBQ here just before heading for DFW.  After Solly's closed I'd sometimes eat at the Dickey's in the Delta terminal at DFW just before departing.  Eventually I started eating at Dickey's locations in Dallas.  I did (do) think that Dickey's is reasonably good Texas style BBQ.
 
Now we have Dickey's BBQ in Georgia, franchise operations.  One of them is close enough and they have had enough specials  because of their recent opening that my wife and I have eaten there several times.  Altogether we have been disappointed.  The specials are typically pulled pork, almost unknown in Dallas when I was a kid, but of course more a favorite  the further you get from Texas.  I have to say up front that the other meats may be different and better, but to me the pork is more like a Cuban style roast pork than BBQ of any stripe including typical southeatern product.  Smoke flavor, if there at all in the meat, is a little like the burned flavor that comes from a overheated cooker that has had grease burned onto the inner surfaces.  And the truest smoke flavor comes from the sauce which includes a liberal dose of liquid smoke.
 
With that long winded preface, my question is, "Does Dickey's sauce in Dallas have liquid smoke as part of the recipe?"  I don't recall that at DFW but it has been a while.
 
 
 

Can't help you with your question, but I too was very disappointed when I discovered a Dickey's here in Maryland.  The brisket tasted like it came off a steam table rather than from a smoker.

Ah, Solly's.....greatly missed.  Loved their whipped potato salad.

OKC, I used to eat at the original location also. It was OK back then. Not the best but OK. That was then and this is now. They do still have some good side dishes.
Joe

Oh, not sure about tha liquid smoke deal???
Joe

signman


Ah, Solly's.....greatly missed.  Loved their whipped potato salad.

 
I agree completely about the potato salad and also liked the peperoncini like peppers they used to serve instead of a more American  style of pepper.   I liked their sausage, their ribs, their sauce, their beef.  It was a disappointment when they changed the name from Salih's in what I suppose was a gesture of attempted political correctness. 
Even worse when they closed.
 
Still hoping PapaJoe or another  will report back about whether Dickey's uses that abomination of a sauce with liguid smoke in Dallas.
 
At present the main BBQ places close to me are a branch of Dreamland, the Alabama operation, one of the two Atlanta area locations of One Star, another place with Texas style cue, and then the Dickey's place.  I have my problems with Dreamalnd and One Star but rank both of them ahead of Dickey's at present.
 
I had such hopes for the Dickey's!

OKC, next time I am near the original Central Expressway location I will stop in and talk to the manager on duty and tell him/her about this thread. Then I will ask the question and... sample it for myself.

It might be awhile... as it's had going back to BigD when I live out here in paradise. :~)
Joe

There is one in San Antonio, across from the ALofts Hotel on blanco and loop410 where my sister and her fiance are staying.
They were going to try it one evening, but it was closing. Jessica's friend David  said he tried it once and didn't think it was that great. I might try it some time, but having been to both Black's and Smitty's in Lockhart, i doubt it could compare to them.
Want to try the Cooper's in New Braufels.The original one is in Llano, north of me, but i never really get to go to many places
unless out of town relatives come to visit.So no trip to Llano, though I have heard good things about their place in New Braunfels.

PapaJoe8 -
 
Man, if you live in the "DFW area" that is a lot of territory, huh?  But as you probably know there is a Dickey's in addison on Belt Line and perhaps others closer still.  I don't know that an excursion to that original location on Central is necessary.  It is a long way from South Lake or Grapevile or any point in Irving around the airport.  If any location you visit is using liquid smoke in the sauce nowadays that says something.  Looks to me like they would have the same sauce everywhere.
 
Holly Dolly -
 
Much the same comment  for any location you or your sister might visit.  With reference to New Braunfels, how I would like to visit there again.  Did you ever go to - I think I have the name right, Schwartz's there?  Good BBQ, good Tex Mex, good sausage, just plain good food. 
 
 

Dickey's here in Albuquerque just shut down. I've been in many times but never did I see very many people dining. It had a pretty good lunch crowd, but dinner was always bleak.  Management never came to the table and it seemed the staff was constantly changing. Maybe with better management things would have been better. RIP

Hello! I'm from the DFW sprawl, and I used to eat at Dickey's several times a month with coworkers. As to the OP's question: I don't think they use liquid smoke in the sauce. It's just really tangy red sauce - a little spicy, a little sweet if you try the sweet variety. I've always liked it. The food can vary a bit by location, but I;ve never had bad food or service at a Dickey's. For the price and the speed, it's pretty awesome. I'm going tomorrow to get one of their $1 pork sandwiches, so I'll give you a definitive answer about the sauce.

Cheers!

PapaJoe8 said:
 
OKC, next time I am near the original Central Expressway location I will stop in and talk to the manager on duty and tell him/her about this thread. Then I will ask the question and... sample it for myself.

It might be awhile... as it's had going back to BigD when I live out here in paradise. :~) 
 
Shawster said: 

Hello! I'm from the DFW sprawl, and I used to eat at Dickey's several times a month with coworkers. As to the OP's question: I don't think they use liquid smoke in the sauce. It's just really tangy red sauce - a little spicy, a little sweet if you try the sweet variety. I've always liked it. The food can vary a bit by location, but I;ve never had bad food or service at a Dickey's. For the price and the speed, it's pretty awesome. I'm going tomorrow to get one of their $1 pork sandwiches, so I'll give you a definitive answer about the sauce.

Cheers! 
 
Hey guys,
 
Just a quick note to say I'm still interested in your report on the sauce used in Dallas area Dickey's.  If it does not have liquid smoke, then they are using different sauces around Dallas as opposed to my locale.  Or maybe different sauces are used around Dallas also at other than the original location.
 
As I said I don't recall liquid smoke  at DFW but I'll sure check next time I come in or go out on Delta. I supppose there is still a Dickey's location near Gate 14.

Not to be a bother but want to express my continued interest in an answer to the sauce question!  Thanks!

OKC, I have been to Dallas but it was a medical emergency for a family member and I didn't get to stop at Dicky's. Thanks for the reminder.

A bit off topic but are there any good uses for liquid smoke? I have a bottle in my spice cabinet that never gets used.
Joe

PapaJoe8-
 
I believe you have posed an excellent question.  You might start a thread asking for GOOD,
 
I mean G O O D recipes using liquid smoke and see what the result might be.  IMO it would be pretty tedious to test them though.

"Nothin' To Do With BBQ" (But, then, the BEST BBQ places in DullAss aren't actually IN DullAss...)
Liquid Smoke:
Iffn' ya don't have actual SMOKED ham on hand & yer seriously jonesin' for Smoked Ham N Egg salad, a touch of Liquid Smoke will see you through...
Well, it DOES happen every once in awile...
CiaoMeOwww ~~

OKC, I am afraid the response here would be that there are no GOOD recipes for liquid smoke. It could be fun though?*^% Hey, they make it so some folks must use it. Only... maybe few will admit to it?

SBQ, a use for LS works, thanks! BBQ in or maybe around Dallas... Texas monthly, CORRECTION D Mag... did a bit on that, Feb 2010 issue.
Joe

Well, first of all, SHE,BlackQueen has named a dish I had not heard of before, ham and egg salad.  I have had my share of egg salad and sometimes ham salad.  Second, she has pointed out that if you want a smoked flavor and lack the proper ham you can use the LS.   With no disrespect I would say that I would likely use the ham on hand and not doctor the flavor, but admit it may be a while before we hear another LS application that sounds at all usuable.  Like PapaJoe8 we have LS in the pantry and it is seldom used. 

Hi AllYall~~
The smoked ham & egg salad may be an invention of my Mother's. She had a Kamado smoker (well, she had 2 or 3 that she wore out in her lifetime) & used it all the time. The Kamado (or "Big Green Egg" as it's sometimes called) is an Asian clay ceramic smoker. Salmon, turkeys, chickens, rib-eyes, tenderloins, briskets, HAMS & no doubt other delectables were smoked in it & everything she cooked in it was superb. Somewhere along the line, she took some left-over smoked ham & chopped it up, added chopped hard-boiled eggs & a touch of mayo (Hellman's, of course, she was a faithful Hellman's gal for 70+ years) I think the ratio for the ham/egg was about 50/50. As she got older & spent less time cooking on the Kamado (or maybe it was when the lid cracked on one & before she got the next one), she subbed the LS to approximate the flavor. I keep LS in the pantry, but only for this particular indulgence. 
Ciao! Carol 

Whoops! I got side-tracked by the LS HamNEgg salad thought. Yes, I read that article in D, PJ8. I've commented about it in the BBQ thread or post about Sonny Bryan's branching out to other states. *cringe* Because I know SB's is a Dallas mainstay, but I've never thought it was so superior it should be presented to other states with their own spectacular regional BBQ as an example of the BEST Texas BBQ. Oooh, then they'll never give us our just accolades! It's sad but true that my favorite BBQ IN Dallas is... Red, Hot & Blue! I fear that SB's will meet with the same stumbling blocks that Dickey's has (based on what I've read here.) I DO go to Dickey's AND SB's every once in awhile, & while they're both OK, they are not legendary. But, after reading that D article, I am going to give Meshack's in Garland a try. It's the closest one on the list to where I live & sounds fab.
CiaoMeOwwwmmmm

Oh, I got mixed up. That's nothing new. It was D Mag that had tha BBQ article. I think I will edit my above post.

SBQ, Dickey's has spread out to lotsa places. The original location was once pretty good. Now, Sonny's... hmmm. I would like to try Meshack's also.

But oh, OKC's question still is... does Dicky's use Liquid Smoke in their sauce?
Joe

Born in OKC
  "Does Dickey's sauce in Dallas have liquid smoke as part of the recipe?"  I don't recall that at DFW but it has been a while.
 

I can't answer  your question directly as I've never eaten at Dickey's (and don't plan to) but I understand the Dickey's franchise locations use Southern Pride gas ovens instead of real pits to 'barbecue.'  To get any smokiness they'd have to add liquid smoke to the sauce.  The original (1941?) undoubtedly didn't use a Southern Pride since they weren't even invented yet.  Did the Dallas locations you ate at have real pits?

As an aside, this week's review in the Houston Press of an 'Ohio' style barbecue place in Houston (microwaved ribs) with Robb Walsh's musings on liquid smoke, chain barbecue (including Dickey's) and the decline of real barbecue traditions in favor of a generic definition of 'barbecue.'

Sorry, just couldn't resist throwing in a dig at chain barbecue.

Good question about the original Dickey's! I am not sure... anyone???

Dex, I couldn't agree more! No smoke = no real Q.

Neat bit by Robb Walsh!
Joe

dexmat -
 
I agree with  PapaJoe8 that the Walsh article sums up a lot of BBQ today.  I'll give Dickey's original the benefit of the doubt until  I've sampled in Dallas someday.  So far as the DFW location in the Delta terminal was (is) concerned I had the idea they brought in smoked meat from another place, but I could have that wrong.

Sorry to be so late to my own party. I've only now just noticed this topic.
To answer your question, I'm not sure If Dickey's uses liquid BBQ smoke in their sauce. However, I would imagine they would only because they seem to take the "short route" approach to all their BBQ now.
I never eat at (any) Dickey's locations anymore. The only BBQ I enjoy in Dallas is Baker's Ribs.
Although, I have been known to succumb to a chopped beef sandwich at (the original, only!) Sonny Bryan's.
And, brisket sometimes at the new location of Big Al's when the brisket looks nice and (fatty) moist. 
(Sigh), I really try to save my BBQ cravings for my trips to Austin to enjoy Central Texas BBQ at Louie Mueller and Smitty's.