This post has been updated as of 8/12/12. After our second visit we found a lot of the opening kinks were worked out and the food was even tastier. Giving credit where credits due, we upped Bar Qs score to 3.5 noms!
When we broke the news about Bar Q B.B.Q. back in February, people couldn’t stop talking about what Bob LeRose had in store for Stamford. What could be better? Snack and tapas sized portions of BBQ mixed in with drinks that you wouldn’t be able to get enough of. Well, we thought not much could be better, so we decided it would be a great way to kick off our Memorial Day weekend. And, we knew it was such a great concept, we had to go back went back during the summer to update our review.
Starting off, we love the menu. It’s pretty simple: one side has food, broken down into snacks, BBQ, and fixins. The other side has beer, cocktails, bourbon, and wine. Let’s give you a taste of what we got a taste of…
Drinks
An impressive 26 brews on tap, with a good bunch of those being local. Drafts are divided up into 5 categories, too: Pilsner, Imperial Pint, Weizen, Beer Shifter, and Seasonal.
Dan decided to go with a super refreshing Huckleberry Lemonade. It was made with Huckleberry 44 North Vodka and fresh lemonade. They served it with a sugared rim and fresh blueberries inside. From the second you drink, you get a nice berry taste, then the lemonade. The liquor wasn’t overwhelming at all, so this is a nice choice if you want an alcoholic beverage that is still a nice cool glass ‘o summer. Kristien went with the Allagash White Weizen.
Sauces (ranked mild to spicy)
Bourbon X: good, you get the bourbon and some mesquite.
Vinegar XX: tart at first, but then finishes with a very subtle heat.
Bold XXX: just a bit spicy, smoky.
Snacks
Spicy honey chicken and waffles: this was our favorite of the night. A thickly breaded bit of fried chicken sits atop a tiny waffle. Add a spicy honey drizzle all over the fried chicken and you’ve got a bite of deliciousness you could just keep poppin’! The kick from the honey actually does hit you a bit…it’s a nice touch.
Baked jalapeño brush poppers: just like at Bobby Q’s, these are pretty tasty with creamy cheese and bitsof sweet corn stuffed inside. Definitely on the spicy side, so be prepared.
Southern Egg Rolls: Sound bizarre? Oh, they are. Pulled pork, pulled chicken, collard greens fried up egg-roll style topped with a mustard BBQ sauce. Yeah, totally bizarre, but totally awesome. Our waitress said these are customers #1 favorite and we can see why. Very unique, very flavorful.
BBQ
Sausage: there was a nice crisp to the skin and it was flavorful as one would expect of sausage. But, the meat, itself didn’t have that snap you come to expect from bbq.
Brisket: this was nice and tender and full of flavor. Cooked very nicely. We liked the BBQ jus that it was on top too. That brought an added flavor and warmth to the dish.
Candied pork belly: there was a nice smokiness and a mesquite taste. The flavors jived well with the fattiness of the pork belly.
St. Louis Cut Sticky Ribs: Our favorite of the meats. A nice, slightly sweet BBQ sauce glazed these soft, tender, flavorful ribs. Quite tasty!
Fixins
Fried green tomatoes: thick breading coated the tomatoes. We felt this dish was a little bland on our first visit, however Bobby informed us that they improved the recipe and has been getting some excellent feedback. We’ll have to try them next time.
Mac & cheese: ahhh a nice crispy cheesy layer atop a warm, creamy bowl of cheesey macaroni yumminess. The new and improved mac & cheese is DELISH! We couldn’t get enough.
Fiesta Cornbread: some cheese, corn, and jalapeno all mixed up into thick cornbreadyness. We would have loved more kick from the peppers, but all in all it had a lot of flavor and was just the right amount of moisture for cornbread.
Hush puppies: yummy bites with bits of corn inside. The hush inside was just right…not dry, not soggy. It had a nice give and take and was moistilicious. Delish!
Sweet Potato Crumble: We were very excited for this dish on our first visit, because who doesn’t love mashed sweet potatoes with a nice buttery crumble on top? Unfortunately, the spices were too overwhelming, namely the nutmeg. However, this, too Bobby says has been addressed. We wanted to order this again on our second trip but had no room. Next time for sure!
Overall thoughts
After being open for a couple of months now, Bar Q has made a good amount of improvements in the food and the service. Although the service was friendly on our first visit, it was quite slow. On our second visit the service was the way it should be–both friendly and attentive. And, as you can see, the food was quite good to match.
We’re thrilled to see this improvement because the concept of taking all that we love about BBQ and serving it up in small plates is absolutely brilliant. We definitely recommend Bar Q as a nice place to meet up with friends, graze on some tasty BBQ and small plates, chill at the bar, or just hang out.
Bar Q
Noms: 3.5
Cost: $$$
Address: 15 Clark Street
Stamford, CT 06901
Phone: (203) 316-0278
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Tags: BarQ, BarQ Stamford, bbq tapas, Bob LeRose, Bobby Q's, Connecticut reviews, new restaurants, small plates, Stamford, Stamford Food Blog, Stamford restaurants, tapas
Dan and Kristien Del Ferraro
OmNomCT 
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