Over the past dozen or so years that I've been traveling to Omaha for my present job, I've known about a barbecue place that I've really wanted to try called Boyd and Charlie's. The problem was that it was located out in the far northwest Omaha suburb of Elkhorn. It was always going to be kind of a haul for me to get out to Elkhorn to try their barbecue, so I usually just ate at any number of fine restaurants in the greater Omaha area. However, earlier this year, I found out that Boyd and Charlie's had opened a second location last fall - this time it was IN Omaha along S. 60th Street. (see map) I decided to seek out the Omaha location of Boyd and Charlie's to give their barbecue a try.
Whereas most barbecue places pop up because of the demand created by someone who has made the rounds in the competitive barbecue cook-off challenges, it was quite the opposite for Boyd and Charlie's founder Perry Viers. Viers really didn't do much barbecuing at home, but he did have an interest in the cuisine. He found a corner place in downtown Elkhorn that had been basically a social club or a bar over the 100 years the building had been in that spot. He was going to turn that location into a barbecue joint.
Viers had a friend down in Alabama who he turned to for advice on how to start a barbecue restaurant. He helped Viers track down smokers, kitchen equipment and told him what to concentrate on as far as smoking meats. (The one bit of advice that Viers didn't take from his friend - smoke only pork. But Omaha is in the middle of beef country in the Midwest and Viers knew he couldn't get by without beef ribs and brisket.) When it was close to the time he was going to open, his friend was planning on coming up from Alabama to help him get started. However, at the last moment, Viers' friend said he couldn't make it and Perry Viers found himself in a literal barbecue ocean without a paddle. However, jumping in with both feet, he opened Boyd and Charlie's - named after his two sons - in late July of 2003.
The first few months were a learning experience for Viers, but he was able to make a go of things and Boyd and Charlie's started to get a following. Three years into the existence of Boyd and Charlie's, Viers partnered with Kevin Stork to open Bella Vita, an Italian restaurant just across the street from Boyd and Charlie's in Elkhorn. (Bella Vita is "The Good Life" in Italian, and "The Good Life" has been sort of a tourism tag that Nebraska has used for years.)
Viers had been looking to put a second Boyd and Charlie's in Omaha and he found a building along S. 60th St. that used to house a golf shop that specialized in antique hickory golf clubs. After some renovations to the building, he was able to open the second Boyd and Charlie's in the fall of last year.
There's ample parking in front of Boyd and Charlie's Omaha location and the parking lot was about half full when I pulled in around 7 p.m. on an unseasonably warm early Spring evening. Inside Boyd and Charlie's I found a space with rustic decor, mounted wild game heads and fish on the barn board walls (I was told Perry Viers is an avid outdoorsman), and a nice bar area.
It's counter service at Boyd and Charlie's and the menu is located on the wall above the window that looks into the kitchen area. The lady who was taking orders seemed confused as she waited on a couple ahead of me, then when it was my turn to order she was still sort of out of sorts. I'm guessing she hadn't worked there all that long. I asked if she had a beer list and she looked around and then sort of shrugged her shoulders. "We have most of the regular beers, I guess," she said. She started to recite some big brewery domestic beers and after about four beers her voice sort of trailed off.
I saw a sign for Deschutes beer and asked if they had the Mirror Pond pale ale. She said they did and she rang me up for two of them along with my food. I took my number and went out to find a table in the dining area. As I said, it was a rustic feel to the place and the dining area featured a wooden wagon that had sauces, condiments, napkins and utensils. There was some eclectic background music on the sound system featuring some good and diverse tunes by artists such as Two Gallants, Rocky Votolato, Miranda Lee Richards, and Jamtown which features Garrett Dutton - better known as G. Love from G. Love and Special Sauce.
After I settled in for a moment, I went up to the wagon to grab some sauces and a young guy came out from behind the bar and asked if I was the one that ordered the Deschutes beer. He said, "I think she was a little confused. We don't have the Deschutes Mirror Pond." I winced when he said that, but he then said, "We have another pale ale from the Pint Nine Brewing Company down in Papillion (a suburb of Omaha)," he told me. He had brought out a sample for me to try and I thought it was good enough to go with instead of the Deschutes.
The menu at Boyd and Charlie's is very extensive with a number of smoked meats - including chopped pork, sliced brisket (with burnt ends, when available), mesquite-smoked ribs, smoked turkey breast, and sausage. They have a number of sandwiches, burgers, and entrees such as fish and chips, and chicken fried steak. They also feature a number of appetizers, soups and salads on the menu.
I went with the three-meat combo - ribs, brisket and chopped pork. For my sides, I got the fries and some baked beans. For sauces, I tried Boyd and Charlie's regular sauce - a sweet and smoky molasses sauce; their spicy sauce - which I didn't feel was all that spicy; and their whiskey sauce that was basically their regular sauce with a whiskey base to it. It was actually pretty good.
The ribs were meaty, lean and had good bark on the outside. The meat pulled away nicely from the bone and it was tender to the bite. The ribs were very good.
The brisket was cut thick and also had a nice bark to the rim of the meat. It, too, was tender enough and very flavorful. The chopped pork bought up the rear as it was a little dry, but dipping it in the sauces helped out tremendously.
The sides were sort of "meh!" The fries had a coating on the outer shell that made them extra crunchy, but they were just all right. The beans were Alabama-style with beans, large chunks of pork, all mixed in Boyd and Charlie's house barbecue sauce. I added some of the spicy sauce to try to zip up the taste, but it really didn't add much. The beans were better than the fries, but not by much.
I'm glad that I finally was able to try Boyd and Charlie's - without having to drive all the way out of Elkhorn to do so. I was happy with the meats I tried - the ribs were lean, meaty and flavorful, the brisket was thick cut and had some good bark on the outer edges, and even though the chopped pork was a little dry, the sauces helped out very well. The sides I had - the fries and baked beans - were average, at best. The lady working the front register where you order your food wasn't too with it that evening, seemingly lost and somewhat scattered when taking people's orders. But still, it was a nice experience at Boyd and Charlie's - a welcome addition to the barbecue scene in the heart of Omaha.
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