Chicago’s South Side has its own unique barbecue culture, rooted in the 1940s.
But our Food Guy says if you go further south – to Beverly – you’ll find some of the best barbecue in the area. Most of it is inspired by Texas and other Midwestern barbecue meccas.
Rib tips and hot links aren’t going anywhere, but when you add Texas-style brisket, links and beef ribs, plus Carolina’s greatest hits, you’ve got a bonafide, instant classic on your hands.
Trays full of soft, supple meat, ringed with black pepper. Rib bones, their borders tinged pink from hours of smoke exposure. Sticky, fatty carmelized rib tips, quickly hacked into bite-sized morsels.
These are the building blocks of a meal at Sanders Barbecue Supply, a new temple of slow smoking, just across the street from the 99th Street Metra train station in Beverly. It’s been a project several years in the making from a seasoned cook.
“I definitely wanted to do something different. I traveled to Texas and for probably the last three or four years, trying different barbecue, and I just wanted to do a craft barbecue and bring it to the South Side of Chicago,” said James Sanders, owner of Sanders BBQ Supply.
Sanders has assembled an all-star team of like-minded pitmasters. They acknowledge their location, and realize tips and links are always going to be in demand. But that doesn’t mean they have to limit themselves.
“It’s a totally different experience. Because we have the beef ribs, also the brisket – you don’t really see that on the South Side of Chicago,” he said.
And you definitely don’t see briskets getting sliced like butter beneath serrated knives. Nor will you see pork ribs like this. Best in the city? Yeah, probably. Just the right amount of tug, reminding you why you’ve chosen something that comes on a bone, and is only improved by dry rub and long, slow sessions in a rotating smoker that relys on wood for its gorgeous transformation.
“What I’ve learned by doing barbecue, you have to have patience,” said Sanders.
Sides are standard but notable. Tangy, vinegary collard greens; smoky bourbon baked beans and a white cheddar mac and cheese – all competing for tray space against street corn, buried beneath chipotle mayo, ancho powder and cotija cheese, as well as a decadent cornbread.
“It’s a sweet potato cornbread with caramel glaze on it. We probably sell like 20 pans a day,” he said.
Sanders says so far, at just two months in, the neighborhood seems to be more than accepting of his South Side-meets-Texas approach to barbecue.
“It’s been great,” said Sanders.
Here’s where you can go:
1742 W. 99th St.
773-366-3241
https://www.sandersbbqsupply.com