Old Hickory Bar-B-Que

I was told randomly from my girlfriend and coworkers that Owensboro is known for it's fantastic BBQ. So my girlfriend recommended I try this place out. The atmosphere gives me old cottage vibes with a ton of local flare. There are awards and accolades from various magazines and Food network plastered all over the place so I was excited to try this place out. A lovely touch that I truly respected was the way they support the other local businesses in the area. Their tables are basically a "yellow pages" for various businesses in Owensboro and it really added to the home town feel of the place. I went with the combination plate so I could try various types of meat from their BBQ. I went with their Brisket, Baby back ribs, and their 1/4 white meat BBQ chicken. For sides, I opted for baked beans and mashed potatoes and gravy. The combo platter came out faster than expected and HOLY MOLEY is that a lot of food! Everything was amazing! The brisket was so tender and was fortunate to have pieces of that oh so yummy bark too! The baby back ribs did not disappoint as the meat had a great bite and feel of the bone without being overly tender. The chicken was juicy and cooked just right, although a few bites near the edge of the breast were a tad dry but overall amazing. The mashed potatoes were really really good and the baked beans were a little too vinagery for my own taste, but I finished them all regardless so they were still pretty good. There was a table next to me complimenting to each other how exquisite the Mac'n'cheese was. I felt left out as I didn't get to try any. The old lady, probably in her 80s, and I quote, "this Mac'n'cheese kicks ass!". I chuckled to myself and even thought about ordering some for myself but I was already stuffed. The only thing I felt weird about was the plain slices of your ordinary classic white bread and wheat bread that came with the platter. I asked the waitress and she said that it's common for people to make sandwiches out of their BBQ entrees. I would love to have had some corn bread instead. The sauce I had was their original vinegar based sauce which was tangy and delicious, though I do wish they had their other sauces to try. I could be nit-picky and comment on the lack of napkins at a BBQ place, but let's be real, I licked my fingers clean because everything was absolutely amazing.

Brisket and mash potatoes for whole table was cold, some were lukewarm. Server was amazing but didn’t bring anymore soda after the 2nd one but she was amazing, if you put barbecue sauce on brisket you should put that on the menu so someone who’s never been will know. I didn’t know and the sauce wasn’t great unfortunately. I’ve heard good things about this place, but it did not meet my expectations! $5 for half filled cup of sides is a rip off, normally the bbq would make up for it, not this time sadly.

This place is famous for their barbecue... Which is pretty decent. The service was rough because the place was crowded... The workers were very nice, and that seemed like they tried hard to keep up... but the wait was really long, and some of the food actually seemed dry. The flavor was great. I see why some people think this is the greatest barbecue joint in the world, but I don't know if I would go that far myself. It's quaint, and if you want to try some old school kentucky mutton, this is your place.