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Can anyone tell me what happened to Ribs-n-Bibs, the takeout rib joint at 53rd and Dorchester in Hyde Park? Are there plans to reopen?

Rick

I drove by there a couple of days ago and there was a sign on the door which I couldn't read from the car. I think it's the same one, saying (if I remember right) that the place was being remodeled and would open soon; it's been there for quite some time. There were lights on inside and I got the impression that work was being done. Over the years the place has had several closings and remodelings due to small fires.

That would be a relief.

Although I haven't had one in years, I couldn't imagine life without the possibility--at least--of another Gunslinger Sausage Sandwich.

Back in college, the Ribs-n-Bibs Fish Filet Sandwich was my alcohol sponge of choice. Alongside a big bag of BBQ sauced fries.

E.M.

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"Don't even touch my gold, I'm good."

I, too, haven't had RnB since the college days. That was good, good eats back then. I'd like the chance to go back & sample the goods again. I'm curious to see how it'll hold up today. Probably not as well as in my memory.

A couple of years ago I was in Hyde Park to see a play at Court Theater & had dinner at Thai 55. That was my first Thai experience & it was revelatory! But it didn't hold up after all these years. But, it still has it's place, for sure!

Today, Nov. 30, a sign in Ribs & Bibs' window said:

STILL WORKING ON REPAIRS
WILL BE BACK SOON
MISS YOU TOO!!!
RIBS & BIBS CREW.

People were working inside and, from what I could see through the window, looks like they might be back in business soon.

Bronco burgers for a buck each. Not stellar by any means (industrial grade meat), but good ballast for a budget binge, as has been noted above. Follow that up with a case of Black Label and Conan O'Brien, and you have yerself an evening planned!

what was the special they had - the smorgasbord? i think? it had rib tips, links, fried chicken, & fries. All slathered in sauce. mmmm

Ribs and Bibs is closed? The things you miss in college...

Believe it or not, Ribs-n-Bibs is mentioned in an essay titled, "Late Night Chitlins with Momma," in the most recent edition of Saveur Magazine.*

E.M.

* Number 89, December 2005, pp. 39-41.

_________________
"Don't even touch my gold, I'm good."

Here's a bit of Ribs 'N Bibs trivia:

Ribs 'N Bibs was once owned by Lyn Burton (for certain) your TV Ford Man (who, even before appearing for Burt Weinman, was the spokesman for Polk Brothers).

For those old enough to know who he was (is?). He also had a piece of Medici and could often be seen hanging out there.

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Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

Actually, it wasn't that many years ago (under 10 I think) that he was doing radio spots for some pet store, shortly before he died-- I had no idea who he was except that his "Scott Burton For Certain" shtick was obviously expecting me to recognize him. Around the same time I was writing spots for Larry Lujack, having no idea who HE was either, so I was enjoying the full panoply of aging Chicago radio personalities I hadn't actually grown up with...

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"Did Ribs 'n Bibs burn down AGAIN?"

--one of my friends, upon waiting for his favorite late-night rib joint to reopen

I walked past Ribs N Bibs on my way to Hyde Park Records today. Open for business with a posted inspection dated 11/30. Plenty of meat smoking, but the line combined with having just eaten and the fact that I have not really heard good things kept me from odering.

I was late to a party in Hyde Park yesterday but managed to snag the last few tips in the bucket. They tasted the same as before the fire: okay, but not as good as Barbara Ann's. I don't mind the sauce, but it's not outstanding in any way. At least the meat in this particular bucket wasn't swimming in the stuff. The hot sauce was long gone. The tips themselves seemed pretty gristly with tough, dry crusty parts, but the more meaty pieces probably disappeared right away.

Whew. I am relieved to hear that things have not changed.

E.M.

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"Don't even touch my gold, I'm good."

Yeah, they weren't the greatest party food, what with having to fight each tip for the meat. The last time I was there myself--three years ago?--I got the pork sandwich which was pretty good.

After what was likely a two-year absence (brought upon by being repeatedly offended by their pitiful, dried-out offerings), I sauntered back into Ribs 'N Bibs today and plonked down $12.95 for a tip & link combo, which is one of the worst pricepoints for this combination in the city.

However, while the links were inedible (tasted like burned hot dogs-in-chili sauce from a can), the tips were the best batch I've had from this location, and one of the best from anyplace in recent memory. There was plenty of glistening bark and healthy, porky, chewy meat, and the smoke balance was dead on. Ribs and Bibs at its best tastes more like backyard smoker barbecue than most other aquaria. The fries were also perfectly crisp and fresh, a far cry from their usual insipidly damp brown-bagged affair.

I note in addition to pork links and pork tips, they are now offering beef links and beef tips for the same price, which may be worth a try. Even for the poor price, I was refreshed and impressed. They've always had the right setup with a woodpile and a pristine aquarium smoker, but when they don't seem to be paying attention (which happens for months at a time, usually bookended by the place burning down again), it can really suck. It didn't today.

Linky to another R&B discussion from last summer:

viewtopic.php?p=211283#p211283

When I lived in HP, I had a very limited but very successful ordering rotation at Ribs -n- Bibs.

1. Their small cheeseburger with the cowboy nickname, charred well and slathered with their bbq sauce, was crispy and tangy and unique in town IMO.
2. Their small bbq beef on a bun just hit the spot for a light bbq craving.
3. Once in a great while, their fried chicken with their bbq sauce was a more desirable choice than Harold's---mainly because I liked Ribs -n- Bibs' sauce better.

For those items I found Ribs -n- Bibs very cheap, $1-2 with the fries and cole slaw tossed in I think. In grad school I was looking for cheap and thought of Ribs -n- Bibs as cheaper than Harolds or certainly Mcdonalds. Are you telling me that has changed, or it is just on these combo items?

Ribs -n- Bibs was also my first exposure to the southside custom of ordering a brown paper bag of fries, double-bagged actually so that you could pour on the bbq sauce, and then walking around and eating the fries out of the bag with a fork.

Gentle Bear Photography, ©2008

Marco, I used to love the Bronco Burgers as well. They were $1.10 in my day, .20 extra for dunking in sauce. They were pre-frozen, but they let them sit on the grill for a long time and they acquired a funky, smoky char. They're about double that now, and at least when last tested a few summers ago were much worse than I remember.

The beef and pork sandwiches were very inconsistent in my experience, and three strikes in a row with no bark and nasty unrendered fat put me off them for good. The ribs, tips, and links have always run higher than surrounding places, but $12.95 for a standard combo was an outrage, even if the tips were exceptional.

That funky smoky char---that's what I'm talking about when I say the Bronco Burger was unique. If you got that burger well-done, it developed something of a crispy crust. It was thin enough that it absorbed all kinds of mojo off the grill. The bbq sauce just amplified that. Remember, this was 20-25 years ago before the hegemony of high-end burgers. Nobody had anything as compellingly weird as a Bronco Burger; not at that price point, not then---and not now, really. It was essentially a slow-smoked bbq beef sausage.

Those few blocks east of lake park on 53rd street has some unique eating. Breakfast at Valois, lunch at Ribs-n-Bibs, half-white swimming in mild sauce for dinner from Harold's.

I have such fond memories of that place...my mom use to pick up food from there and we would head to the beach for BBQ picnics

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"There comes a time in every woman's life when the only thing that helps is a glass of champagne."
Bette Davis in Old Acquaintance

I've been a customer of Ribs-n-Bibs since 1971. I've always thought their ribs were the best I've ever had, and every trip to Hyde Park had to include getting a slab with sauce on the fries.

On a Sunday a few weeks ago they were closed (just for a couple of days), so I went a little further south and had Lem's ribs for the first time. Now, I know what you're thinkin, did he fire six shots or only five. Whoops. Try again. Now I know what you're thinkin, he had Lem's and he will never go back to Ribs-n-Bibs. Well, you're not only wrong, you're wrong at the top of your voice. Sorry I can't help myself, I have this thing with movie quotes.

No, Ribs-n-Bibs were better! Lem's was very good, though. Just to make sure, I tried Lem's again a couple of weeks later. Same conclusion. My wife says she likes Lem's better, but what does she know?

Then I thought I'd push my luck and I tried I57 Rib House (115th near I57) because it had gotten some good reviews and was not too far from my favorite pool room. Man, those ribs were just terrible. Fatty and no smoke flavor at all. What wasn't fat was stringy. Just like the rancher in Shane, that pig had lived too long. Long wait too. The horror, the horror!

So I have returned to Ribs-n-Bibs and will never stray again, at least not for another 38 years.

Well, it had to happen at some point: I had a slab yesterday from RnB that was the equal of anything at Honey 1, if not quite at Uncle John's level. Don't know if it was the weather, the wood, the pig, the hour, or the hand at the tiller, but this was the best offering from them in my long acquaintance, and for whatever reason, the fries were also hot and crisp for once. Staff was offloading a flatbed of hardwood in the cold while I waited. On my last visit the links and fries were terribad, but the tips were perfectly fine; I will still no doubt head to Mack's 3:1 in 2011, but on another frigid Sunday, just may be back, and want to give some credit where it's due.

Sounding good on this snowy morning! Will add this joint to my growing list of BBQ joints to try soon. How long has this place been around?

Ribs N' Bibs
5300 South Dorchester Avenue
Chicago, IL 60615
(773) 493-0400 ‎

Monday - Friday 11:00 AM – 11:45 PM
Saturday 11:00–1:00 AM
Sunday 11:00–1:00 AM

My parents used to go here in the 70's. I dunno for sure, but I'd guess at least 35 years. Ask them when you go.

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I think even longer than that. At one time, it was owned by Linn Burton (your TV Ford man), who also owned Medici (or at least was a partner). I can remember being seated by Linn at the Surf Street outpost of Medici when that was open in Lincoln Park back in the mid-60's.

_________________
Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

Here's the direct link to the other (relatively) recent RnB discussion with some great G Wiv pics, thanks to Cbot for the find when I couldn't come up with it the other day:

viewtopic.php?p=211283#p211283

It may not be the creme de la creme of barbecue but I miss living two doors down from Ribs 'n Bibs ... it was a real treat on a cold night after too much work. (and the rather awful but wonderful cake pieces went down well too ... so sweet I'd split them for 3 night ss but the chocolate with vanilla frosting just won me over)

In comparison, my nearest spot now is Twin Anchors and I will never order ribs from there (or anything else)

This BBQ joints has been open since 1966 dang....anyone hit it recently? Like to see some fresh post and pic!
Question time, whats the oldest BBQ joint, still open....around the city or subs?

Definition of BBQ aside, Twin Anchors dates from '32 and Russell's from '30. I will be excited to learn of older ones.