Jewell's Open Pit Bar-B-Q

1240 US Highway 62 West, Princeton, KY - (270) 365-5415

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Posted By Michael Stern on November 26, 2006 3:57 AM

The barbecue of Western Kentucky is as complex as that of North Carolina. County to county, town to town, local preferences vary in large ways and small, from the meat of choice – mutton around Henderson, pork in Crittenden County – to what the wet stuff is called – dip to the north, sauce to the south. Up north, if you don't want any dip at all, you ask for your meat off the pit, meaning sauceless.

Down around Princeton in Caldwell County, the barbecue has a flavor all its own. At Lowell Jewell's place, the meat to eat is pork shoulder torn into variegated strips and nuggets, some variations soft as velvet, others threaded with crusty shreds of skin. In this area, you make an important decision that is seldom an issue up in mutton country: hot or mild sauce. Unlike the meats of Henderson, pork here is never pre-sauced. It is bunned or plated, then topped with hot or mild. Sauce in Princeton is unique – rich and red with a compelling citrus zest. A pile of Jewell's unbelievably juicy pulled pork gilded with vibrant hot sauce and sided by a circle of earthy griddle-cooked cornbread is a taste-buds joy ride.

Jewell's is a comfy wood-paneled dining room across the road from a huge factory and just down from a Wal-Mart. It has a casual rustic air, its walls decorated with antique farm implements, its tables occupied by regulars who come to chat and chew.

Overall Rating

Pork Plate

Cornbread

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Posted By L. Darryl Armstrong on August 10, 2011 2:10 PM

Being born and raised in western Kentucky I am very particular about my BBQ. This is some of the best. The hoe cakes (cornbread, Johnny cakes; call them whatever you wish) are excellent. The BBQ is just the way I like it, with a nice smokey flavor, and the sauce glazes the top.

I highly recommend Jewell's. They have good friendly service too.

Overall Rating

Pork Plate

Cornbread

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