Ike & BG’s Rib House by Mike Niman and Laura McClusky East Buffalo Gazette Culinary Critics

Everything is slammin.’ You’ll smell their succulent bar-b-que before you even see Ike and BG’s sign. That’s because year round, the outdoor cooker is smokin.’ and the ribs are cookin.’

Welcome to Ike and BG’s Rib House, now just over a year old and quickly becoming a neighborhood fixture at 1743 Genesee Street right here on the East Side (Editor's Note: This Review Was Written in 1998 -- Ike and BG's is now located at 1646 Genesee Street and is better than ever!).

Perhaps you’ve eaten the ribs elsewhere on the East Side. That’s OK, according to Ike, cause if you know ribs you’ll appreciate theirs, and according to BG, theirs are the best on the East Side — which is a tall statement as we all know the East Side has the best bar-b-que- between Toronto and Cleveland. So, to keep Ike and BG honest, we ordered up a rib dinner and a few chicken dinners also.

The ribs (rib dinner $10.00) are good. Damn good! He serves them up fresh from the outdoor cooker with a sweet and tangy bar-b-que sauce — Ike’s own recipe. The portion is generous and the meat is lean and tender, falling off the bone, with a great wood smoked taste. We’re still licking our fingers. Someone call the world famous Dinosaur Bar-B-Que in Syracuse and tell them Buffalo’s got a contender - move on over!

The fried chicken dinner ($6.50) is a half chicken cooked to perfection, tender, juicy and spiced just right. It puts fast food chain chicken to shame. If half a chicken is too much, the chicken sandwich ($3.25) is the same good quality in a smaller package, minus the sides.

But the sides are not to be missed. We recommend the macaroni and cheese and only wish the portions were bigger. It’s made with a rich and tasty blend of cheeses, again spiced to perfection. The potato salad, which comes as a generous portion, is creamy with a slight mustardy flavor — delicious! The collard greens are served on a bed of bacon, giving them a good down home flavor but putting this side off limits to vegetarians. The cole slaw is crisp and creamy and served in a nice generous portion.

Though we didn’t get a chance to try the fish yet, Ike proudly pulled one out of the freezer to show it off. It’s African Whitefish fillet, sort of like haddock but with a more delicate taste. We’ll be back for some.

Other menu items include steak hoagies ($4.25), burgers ($1.35) and various beef sausage combo sandwiches ($1.75-$7.00). Deserts are all fresh baked in house by Ike himself, and were all sold out by dinner time on the night we stopped by, so hope for the best or stop by early. They include 7-Up pound cake, sour cream cake, sock-it-to-me cake, banana pudding and everyone’s favorite, sweet potato pie.

All desserts are sold whole or by the slice ($1.25-$2). Ribs. For that matter, are also sold by the serving or by the slab ($16.00). All food is cooked up fresh so telephone your order in (892-4301) or spend ten with the "old man" and the family — Ike assures us the gospel music is always playing and the place is always warm and welcoming.