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First Impressions

Rock 'N' Roll Ribs Debuts in Coral Springs

By John Linn, Wed., Dec. 16 2009 @ 9:29AM

Comments (28)

Categories: Clean Plate Charlie Eats South Florida, First Impressions

John Linn

The hand-painted "open" sign is suitably rock and roll.

Coral Springs' newest Rib joint, Rock 'N' Roll Ribs, finally debuted last Thursday night, and boy, was it ever rockin'. The place was packed on Friday night -- the sizable party I was with had to wait for a table for nearly 45 minutes for the restaurant to clear out. Not that we minded: the staff was friendly despite being weeded and consistently came out front to check on us. And once we were seated, they took care of us in epic fashion while co-owners Nicko McBrain of Iron Maiden and local guitarist Rick "Moby" Baum walked the room to shake hands and shoot the shit. (Read our exclusive, full interview with McBrain and Baum here.)

John Linn

RnR's onion rings are huge and flavorful. Click for a larger picture.

Though the tiny rib joint was slammed, the staff made sure to set us up with frosty buckets of beer and (for the wait) complimentary orders of RnR's crispy onion rings. The huge rings were semi-spicy and flecked with seasoning, and the sauce they came with was full of chili and garlic. A bucket of import beers, in our case Blue Moon, cost only $13. As we washed down the rings with beer we watched videos of McBrain performing with Maiden in front of tens of thousands. At one point McBrain came around and turned the volume down slightly on the sound system next to our table. "Don't want it to get too loud," he said. We assured him loud was good.

For our table, we ordered a wide swath of the menu: Full racks of baby back ribs and spare ribs ($15.95 and $18.95); a foot-long hot dog stuffed with pepper jack cheese, wrapped in bacon, and served with sides of caramelized onions and meaty chili ($8.95); and two orders of "drummer's dozen" (that's 10) wings served with a side of "Run to the Hills" hot sauce ($6.95 per order). Everything is served on wide metal discs covered in wax paper, and portions are generous.

John Linn

Ribs are smoked then coated with sweet barbecue sauce and finished on the grill.

Let's start with the 'cue. Even outside of RnR, you can smell the smoke wafting from the grill in the open kitchen. Baum and company finish their ribs on the grill, caramelizing the sauce to the surface in the process. Because of this, the overwhelming flavor of the ribs is from the grill, not from wood smoke like in purely traditionalist barbecue. You taste that char when biting down into either the baby backs or the spares. Both are of the extraordinarily tender variety, in as much as they fall from the bone with ease. I actually preferred the texture of the spare ribs, however, since the meat had a slightly firmer texture. And if I had any complaint about the grilling method, it would be that the grill was probably running a little hot due to the kitchen rushing to accommodate the full house. That in turn caused the sweet sauce RnR coats their ribs with to become nicely charred in spots but too runny and thick in others. A lighter coating and a slower turn on the grill would fix that, which I'm sure will come in time for RnR.

John Linn

The "Moby Death Dog" wrapped in bacon, stuffed with pepperjack cheese, and served with chili and onions.

The "Moby Death Dog" (that's the bacon-wrapped foot-long) was stellar. The dog itself was flavorful and completely covered in crisp bacon. I scooped a bit of chili and onions onto my half of the unit and the sweet flavors cut the salty bacon nicely. Although the kitchen really stuffed the inside of that dog with pepper jack cheese, I thought more cheese on top couldn't hurt too. Hey, why not go for broke. The wings were essentially average buffalo-style arms and flats, though they were large and meaty.

Most dishes come with sides at RnR, and I sampled some nicely fried, house-cut french fries, fresh Cole slaw, and sweet baked beans. The Texas toast accompanying each plate was great, and I find myself making impromptu sandwiches out of rib meat, slaw, and fries.

John Linn

Two big fans take on the Appetite of the Beast.

The restaurant itself is small, but well-decorated, with black walls covered with Iron Maiden memorabilia, guitars, drumsticks, and awards. The open kitchen is the focal point, which is attractive and decked in stainless steel. And there's a good mix of booths, high-tops, smaller tables, and a central wooden table that's split into four with a thatched divider. At one section of that table, two hungry rock fans attempted to take down "the Appetite of the Beast," a $50 smorgasbord of one-and-a-half racks of ribs, a pound of pulled pork and beef, half a chicken, and a heaping of fries, beans, Cole slaw, corn on the cob, and Texas toast. These two big dudes pounded it down -- practice, no doubt, for their next visit, when they hope to do it solo (if you eat it all by yourself, it's free).

All told, Rock 'N' Roll Ribs has enormous potential. It's a fun spot with a great vibe and unapologeticly robust food, and looks like it might be a busy destination for quite some time.

Rock 'N' Roll Ribs
4651 State Rd. 7, ste. 1, Coral Springs 33076
561-909-8334
rocknrollribs.com

Tags:

barbecue, First Impressions, Nicko McBrain, Rock 'N' Roll Ribs

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Comments (28)

Jennie Craig says:

These dudes look Huuuuungry!

Posted On: Wednesday, Dec. 16 2009 @ 11:48AM

lulu1013 says:

WOW...if anyone can put away "The appetite of the Beast"...these two characters can. My oh my

Posted On: Wednesday, Dec. 16 2009 @ 12:10PM

Linda says:

It all sounds and looks marvelous. I'll be in Miami next month, but I won't have a way to your restaurant. Is this location near the airport? If so, do you deliver?

Posted On: Wednesday, Dec. 16 2009 @ 3:46PM

Linda says:

It all sounds and looks marvelous. I'll be in Miami next month, but I won't have a way to your restaurant. Is this location near the airport? If so, do you deliver?

Posted On: Wednesday, Dec. 16 2009 @ 3:47PM

John L says:

Sorry, Linda. Rock 'N' Roll Ribs is a ways away from the Miami Airport (or Fort Lauderdale for that matter). If you'd like a map just click on the name at the bottom of the article and look at the top right corner of the page. Thanks for reading.

Posted On: Thursday, Dec. 17 2009 @ 9:38AM

666SUCKS says:

Maybe the reason the Blue Moon Bucket only cost you 13 bucks because BLUE MOON IS NOT AN IMPORT!

Blue Moon originated in Denver, Colorado in 1995 and last I checked isn't Denver, CO located in the USA??????

And lastly grilling is NOT BBQ, and rib meat is not supposed to fall off the bone!

BBQ is all about low, slow and that beautiful smoke ring that method creates!!!

Please don't even tell me that Iron Maiden can cook good BBQ, and hopefully those 2 tattoed schleps were sterilized before ther were allowed into that establishment!

If that is the type of people eating at this place then i think I would rather rub one out with a cheesegrater then eat next to those folks!

Posted On: Friday, Dec. 25 2009 @ 11:22PM

freakerdude says:

666Sucks, your Christmas must have sucked big time to have written all of these negative comments. Hopefully your New Years will be better?

I plan on checking this place out, even if Blue Moon IS from Colorado.

Posted On: Saturday, Dec. 26 2009 @ 2:01PM

John L says:

Absolutely right, I should have mentioned all the "import" beers are $13, not just the Blue Moon (which is not an import, as we know). And you're correct that this is not traditionalist barbecue, as was noted in the article. If you can get past that, this is a very fun place.

Posted On: Sunday, Dec. 27 2009 @ 4:06PM

"Moby" Rick says:

Hey John, thanks for the great write up!! Glad you had a cool time.

Thanks to everyone else who has come out and made our first few weeks an absolute blast..it's been pretty wild out here.

A note on "real BBQ"... every single meat is slow smoke with hickory in the back kitchen, including both ribs, this is real BBQ, maybe not old school traditional, but real BBQ and they way we like it. Only the Baby Backs are finished off on the grill to get them nice and hot and carmilize our sauce. Every other item is made fresh in-house everyday..no frozen bagged items, all sauces, dressings etc are made from scratch.

Oh yeah...666sucks....F-OFF!!!!!

Thanks again John..come back anytime and the beer's on me

Posted On: Monday, Dec. 28 2009 @ 10:02AM

Logan Miller (Melbourne, FL) says:

I went there last week and it was an outstanding place! The food was extraordinary and the price was hard to beat. Of course I came all the way down from Melbourne because I am an avid Iron Maiden, but I am now a fan of the food itself. I'm not that big a fan of Ribs or BBQ, but I tried them for the 1st time here, and now I'm hooked!

I'll be back on New Years for sure, oh and Nicko and Rick were class acts! Proves you can still be down to earth and successful at the same time!

Posted On: Monday, Dec. 28 2009 @ 3:12PM

Don of the Black Farts says:

Went there last Saturday. I hate to say it, but the food didn't exactly blow me away. The onion rings were strange, the consistency was as if they'd been sitting around a while, and lacking flavor. The ribs were decent, but not Flannigan's good. If I lived closer, I'd go there and try it again, maybe they were having an off night. However the vibe was really good, and it was awesome seeing Nicko hanging out and socializing with the patrons.

Posted On: Monday, Dec. 28 2009 @ 4:34PM

Sauer says:

I guess if you want to listen to some pansy shit like Miley Cyrus while you eat your microwaved ribs then you should go to Flannigan's. If you want to listen to some real fucking music, drink some tasty beers, and eat some REAL mother fall of the fuckin bone ribs then Rock N Roll should be the place.

Posted On: Monday, Dec. 28 2009 @ 6:20PM

Shaun photography says:

Just wanted to give you a shout from the valley of the sun, great information. Much appreciated.

Posted On: Tuesday, Dec. 29 2009 @ 9:33AM

Jon K says:

Rock and Roll Ribs is the real deal! Ate there last night and the food was awesome! I ordered a half rack of ribs and the cook sent out a full rack at no extra charge! The staff was friendly and did a great job. The music and videos were great and better then lame ass muzik or something. This place is way better then Flanigans or Smokey Bones. Best of luck to Rock and Roll Ribs!

P.S.- Don and 666 are nut sacks!

Posted On: Tuesday, Dec. 29 2009 @ 10:44AM

ironeddiefan says:

My wife and I went to Rock N Roll Ribs the weekend before Christmas. It was a pleasure to meet both Nicko and Rick! I had the full rack of ribs while the Mrs. ordered the grilled cheese sandwich. The food was great while the environment charged as well! We were so impressed with everything that RNRR has become a weekly dinner stop. Although I'm an author I even went back to my roots of writing and penned a review for my blog! Hats off Nicko and Rick! Up the Irons!!!

Posted On: Thursday, Jan. 7 2010 @ 12:16AM

Steven Brown says:

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Posted On: Sunday, Jan. 10 2010 @ 10:19PM

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Posted On: Tuesday, Jan. 12 2010 @ 2:05AM

Michael Powell says:

haha, Miley is so funny! I love her.

Posted On: Saturday, Jan. 16 2010 @ 7:16AM

Taffie says:

I went to RNRR last Friday nite and I must say the ribs were GOOD!!! I was disappointed that I had to wait 40 mins. for take-out and sad to say, my fries were cold and I didn't get my coleslaw. But I will give it another try!

Posted On: Friday, Jan. 29 2010 @ 1:47PM

Chris says:

The ribs were excellent. Fries were way overcooked and extremely soggy. The toast is insanely saturated in butter. The decor is not nice, it's looks like a high school student just taped black contruction paper everywhere.

Posted On: Wednesday, Feb. 3 2010 @ 2:17PM

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Posted On: Sunday, Mar. 14 2010 @ 4:35PM

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Posted On: Tuesday, Mar. 16 2010 @ 10:30PM

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Posted On: Thursday, Mar. 18 2010 @ 9:00PM

how to get pregnant fast says:

LOL, nice shorts…just crazy stuff here.

Posted On: Saturday, Mar. 27 2010 @ 6:27AM

Scarlet Underground Photography says:

Check out photos of Rock N Roll Ribs grand opening, with Nicko McBrain, McBrain Damage, War Pigs, and RiFF RaFF:

http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=112476456&albumId=2677859

The food is GREAT!

Posted On: Wednesday, Apr. 7 2010 @ 1:47PM

Dolfan Pug says:

This place is awesome!!!!I've tried a bunch of stuff on the menu...our company usually gets a large take out order on Fridays. Nicko and Rick do a GREAT job.....and if you DON'T like metal and tats WE don't want ya THERE anyway!!!!

Posted On: Friday, Apr. 16 2010 @ 3:12PM