Blog

Nestled between an aerial arts studio (think trapeze and acrobats) and a music studio (think Pitbull and “The Voice”) is Spare No Rib, an American, Mexican, and Barbeque restaurant. In the Benton Park neighborhood known for Hodak’s and Blues City Deli, Spare No Rib shares the same parking lot as Hodak’s and isn’t what you’d expect from a neighborhood south city restaurant.

It was a long day of driving for me. I was invited to the Card’s day game and took a coworker with me. I drove downtown from Hazelwood and then had to drive her back to our offices in Hazelwood after the game only to turn back around to go to dinner with the Dining Divas at Spare No Rib. Regardless of how the restaurant turned out, it would still be worth it for me to see the ladies. Plus, the Cards won that day so it was all good.

This day was a first for me. It was the first day of wearing a baseball cap out in public since having lost my hair from chemo last year. Not being sure if the hair they were seeing was one of my wigs, the Divas were surprised to finally see some growth. Finally!

The Back-to-School Diva returned as the classes she had been taking were finally over, and she could join us again for dinner. Her motivation is infectious!

We were happy to have the Hippy Diva return to our outings after having heeled from her hip replacement surgery, and this time she brought along a guest. The Visiting Diva cracked us up as she told us that the entire drive to the restaurant she listened as the Hippy Diva complained about work. We thanked her for that as now we didn’t have to listen to it.

The Hippy Diva did entertain us as a young man just plopped himself down at our table next to her. She assumed he was just a friendly customer or even worked at the restaurant. She quickly learned from the smell of his breath that he was there to beg us for money, more likely for alcohol. She politely tolerated him and eventually he left. We were disappointed that the restaurant staff did not step in and ask him to leave immediately.

The menu at Spare No Rib isn’t extensive. And most of us got the same thing. The SNR Plate is good if you can’t make up your mind as it has “the best of both worlds”, two ribs and two tacos, plus one side. Rib fans enjoyed them. Even the fattier ribs.   The Italian Diva didn’t think they even needed sauce. Those Divas that aren’t big fans of the ribs thought they were just okay and wished they were dripping in barbeque sauce. As for the tacos, the chorizo tacos were just okay, but the fish tacos were amazing. Battered with Cerveza and fried, these tacos were not greasy at all.   I’m reminded of the street tacos you’d get on Cherokee street.

Mac-N-Cheese is always a Diva favorite. Spare No Rib’s unique crunchy topping of graham crackers was interesting but not as enjoyable as we’d hoped. We’d prefer Ritz crackers over the sweetness of graham crackers. One unexpected sweet treat was the cornbread.   Several Divas enjoyed it so much that they ordered it for dessert. As one Diva said, it didn’t even need butter.

Spare No Rib hasn’t been open for a year yet, and they are still making adjustments. It was good to see a crowd show up a little later in the evening. If you are lucky enough to get to the area often, check out Spare No Rib. If you’re not in the neighborhood often, it would be hard to try Spare No Rib over Hodak’s. As for barbeque, the Divas prefer Salt and Smoke. But the concept of Mexican and Barbeque is intriguing. You should try it at Spare No Rib

.

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Follow us