Monday, April 22, 2013

Hammerheads


KENTUCKY: Hammerheads
921 Swan St.
Louisville, KY 40204
502-365-1112
Open M-Sat 5pm - 10pm

www.louisvillehammerheads.com

Driving down a residential street in Louisville I thought I may be in the wrong part of town, but soon I noticed the glow coming out of the windows at Hammerheads along with a very large shark tacked up to the wall above the door. You'll need to duck shortly after walking through the door because Hammerheads is located in the basement of a house and has some low ceilings. A long bar is at the right and what remains is a small dining room. It gets packed and it gets loud, but before long we each had a beer and a table.


The menu is wide and includes more than just barbecue. It is expectedly meat-heavy, but there is a salad, a veggie burger and veggie tacos. We didn't order any of them. First on the table were an array of sliders. The only bite of brisket I had was a thin slice on one of the sliders. It and the pulled pork were fine if unremarkable, but it's hard to shine next to the ridiculously good duck sliders. Next up was a fried smoked cheddar grit cake which was crisp on the outside and smoky and creamy on the inside.


Giant mac & cheese balls were more fried cheesy goodness, but the grit cake just seems less gimmicky, more well conceived, and far less rich.


As the meats came out they were all served on wooden cutting boards. A rack of baby back ribs was very tender, almost too much so. The smokiness went deep into the rosy meat which was a nice counterpoint to the sweet rub and finishing glaze. There was no need for barbecue sauce.


I've seen few smoked meat items so rich on a menu as the PBLT. Four thick slices of pork belly (the PB in the equation) were beautifully smoked. The fat was silky and the ribbons of meat in between were yielding but tender. The black crust was stout and the sweetness from the rub was pleasantly restrained. I must admit that I don't know how it all tasted as a sandwich because we ate the slices of belly too quickly.


Our table was getting crowded with food, but we managed to find some real estate for the three kinds of fries. We got the original, the sweet potato and a version dusted with the famous Grippo's BBQ spice from the Cincinnati chip company. For just $3 extra, you are provided the option to get any or all of the varieties fried in duck fat. Of course we did, and they were stunning. The Grippo's version is mandatory if you're eating here.



I saved the best for last. Lamb ribs are a house specialty, and they are incredible. Lamb, especially the ribs, can be very gamey and full of unrendered fat. These ribs suffered from neither of those issues. The dark crust provided a smoky kick along with a pleasant chew to contrast with the tender meat beneath. These ribs should serve as an example to anyone serving this cut.


Hammerheads is a great restaurant with plenty of imagination and mostly spot-on execution. The items I normally judge a joint on are the brisket and pork ribs. Here the brisket was average and the ribs were a bit overcooked. In the end these were the only items on the menu I had any qualms with, and I can't wait to get back to Louisville for another visit to Hammerheads.

Rating ****

7 comments:

  1. also try its sister restaurant, game.

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  2. We were in Louisville last week and so my brother-in-law and I decided to check out Hammerheads. It is everything BBQ Snob said it would be. We got their on a Friday night about 7:00 pm and there was a 45 minute wait for a table. The place has about 8-10 tables and including the bar stools seats about 40. However, within 10 minutes, we were shown two seats at the bar with Nick the bartender as our server. They have about 46 different kinds of beer and they scored big time with me because they even had Bard's, a gluten-free beer! Since I have to watch my gluten we ordered the duck sliders without the bread and they were delicious and I don't even like duck. It just didn't taste like any duck I had ever had. Next, we had the brisket tacos which were also wonderful tasting. I tasted the brisket without the other ingredients and it was moist and tender. The pork belly sandwiches came after that but without the bread and the meat just disappeared. We finished our meal by sharing the lamb and baby back ribs. The lamb ribs were a little greasy and the pork did fall off the bone but we didn't care because the flavors made us moan. Our side dishes were the pork 'n beans and the truffle fries. I couldn't eat the fries but my buddy said they were good but not spectacular. The beans were great! Smoky with lots of bbq meat and onions. We didn't want to leave because the beer was cold and the music great but there were hungry people waiting. We will definitely go back!

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  3. The PBLT looks rich! I recently went Louie Muellers in Taylor Tx and had a phenomenal 5 lb beef short rib (not plural-1 rib) that was very good-looking at the pic of the PBLT reminds me of it. Great blog...and congrats on the job change!

    Kevin N.

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  4. I wish I had restaurants like this in mu area. Of course, that's the perk of traveling I suppose! mmmm

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  5. ...another louisville area bbq place to try is feast. fabulous ribs. all sides made there. innovative. it already has gotten a lot of national and international press: http://www.feastbbq.com/wp/?page_id=463

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  6. Those giant mac'n'cheese balls look so yummy!!!

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