Off the Eaten Path: R & L BBQ in Seattle's Central District

In Off the Eaten Path, Seattlest visits some of the overlooked and under-rated restaurants in the Seattle area. Whether they are found in strip malls on the Eastside, next to a casino on Aurora or hidden away in South Park these are the places that don't get the exposure they deserve--until now. Today, Off the Eaten Path looks at R&L BBQ in Seattle's Central District.

Walking through the door, we are transported to a different time and place. Perhaps circa-1960's, with a hot, humid climate somewhere like the Carolina's. We walk up to the counter and are greeted by Barbara, the most friendly, outgoing counter person we have seen in a long time. She points out the menu to us, an old Pepsi menu board with the white block lettering like you'd find at a drive-in diner or bowling alley. She informs us that they only take cash, luckily we came prepared. We placed our order, a Chopped Beef sandwich for my wife and a plate of Baby Back Ribs for myself, with a Peach Cobbler dessert to share.

We headed to our table to wait for our food in the drab dining room with vinyl wood flooring and walls, diner style booths, 80's logo Pepsi can vending machine and a beat-up (and likely non-functional) old jukebox in the corner behind the door. Everything was relatively clean, but had the appearance as if it had been around for awhile. about 50 years would be our guess. Barbara called up our order and we proceeded to pay and pick up a tray full of food.

My rib plate was pretty good; nicely cooked, tender meat that gave just a little bit of resistance before coming off the bone. The sauce was like none I had seen before, a cross between a traditional Carolina-style barbecue sauce and a roux based gravy. A little bit sour from the vinegar, but not a whole lot of other flavor going on. The accompanying potato salad was very good with its pickle slice and baby corn garnish. It had a nice yellow color and bright paprika flavor.

Unfortunately, my wife's meal and the cobbler did not continue on this upward trend. My wife's sandwich was not like the succulent brisket of her Texas childhood, but instead was an overcooked mess of beef smothered in the same awkward sauce. Perhaps taking a cue from the Seattle hippie, health food movement the sandwich was served on slices of soggy, whole wheat bread instead of the soft, white bread that we were expecting. Bypassing the soggy wheat bread, she proceeded to spoon the meat onto the white bread that was served in a basket alongside our meal until she was stopped dead in her tracks by a thick, coarse piece of hair. If the BBQ was good enough, she may have pushed it aside and carried on, but this was just not the case today. As for the cobbler, we were very disappointed to find overcooked, Del Monte-ish canned peaches with a soggy piece of bread on top and a scant topping of brown sugar.

Upon further review and research, we have found that some people have had similar experiences to ours while others left R&L feeling like they had the best BBQ in Seattle. The service and ambiance were a wonderful change of pace, different from anything we have experienced elsewhere in this city but the verdict is still out on their food and cleanliness. To take a trip outside of the city, while actually still staying in the city, R&L BBQ might just be worth checking out.

1816 E Yesler Way
Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 322-0271