Iron Starr Urban Bar-B-Q

OKLAHOMA: Iron Starr Urban Bar-B-Q
3700 N. Shartel
Oklahoma City, OK 73118
405-524-5925
Open M 11-9, Tues-Thur 11-9:30, F-Sat 11-10:30
www.ironstarrbbq.com

Iron Starr is an unapologetically fancy barbeque joint in a historic building in the Crown Heights neighborhood of OKC. In addition to BBQ, the menu includes a salmon salad, beef tenderloin and prime rib. My brothers-in-law and I opted for a couple of plates. One with sliced brisket and pulled pork, and another plate with St. Louis style pork ribs.



The brisket was overcooked and overtrimmed. There was no fat on or in these dry slices which barely tasted like roast beef. The pulled pork saved the plate. Moist and tender meat had good smokiness and great overall flavor. Fancy mac & cheese was closer to penne alfredo, and the greens had too much bitterness remaining, but plenty of heat.



I had high hopes for the ribs based on my memory of a previous visit. My father-in-law took me here for lunch just after granting my request for his daughter's hand in marriage. Maybe my memory was tainted by the occasion, because the ribs I remember being so tasty were fatty and overcooked. The bone slipped away from the meat as I lifted it from my plate, but a layer of fat had to be scraped away before the meat could be sampled. The black pepper rub added some good flavor, but the smokiness was barely there. Corn pudding on the side was great, as were the whole pods of fried okra.

Urban Bar-B-Q this may be, but they could use some pointers from out in the country about smoking meat. Stick with a plate of pulled pork, fried okra and corn pudding if you plan to make a trip.

Rating **