FOOD WITH SOUL: Allston gets good barbecue. |
“Serving all souls,” it says. This wouldn’t be one of those faith-based enterprises, would it? Actually, some very religious people have made some devilishly fine barbecue, so why not? But in fact, the soul references apparently identify an enterprise as deeply committed to ’60s and ’70s soul music as to the food that ought to accompany it. You walk in and confront the sound of horns, the good, smoky smell of real barbecue, and a lot of red-and-black wall space (original idea: decorate with soul-album covers; current idea: big photos of musicians recording; actually on the wall: nothing). The food theme is plain, dry-rubbed smoked meat. This surmounts many of the regional variations, which are about sauces. You order at one counter, and pick up at another that is equipped with various barbecue sauces to sample: a North Carolina sauce (vinegar-based with red pepper, typical for pulled pork), a South Carolina sauce (mustard-based, intriguing), and little jars of stuff like “devil relish” (habanero salsa, but not outlandishly so). Among the appetizers, the Southern-fried mac-and-cheese bites ($5) should grab the after-school crowd, being croquettes of teen comfort. The SoulFire beef chili ($5.50) is a big bowl of Boston-style (mild spice, tomato sauce) chili with some meat and more cheese, as well as cornbread croutons that are too sweet for this purpose. They are also too sweet for the “iceberg wedges” salad ($4.50), but the house salad ($4) is a fine garden salad.
The best of the ’cue, in my humble opinion, is the hickory roast chicken ($8/half platter; $11/whole chicken). Chicken is usually a challenge for a barbecue pit that also does briskets and ribs at the same time. But the chicken here is juicy and smoky in just the right ratio, fine on its own and a great foil for the sauces. Entrées put the meat on a thick slice of white bread (soppin’ bread in some parts of the South), with sweet yellow cornbread on the side, bread-and-butter pickles, and your choice of two sides ($1.95/à la carte): cole slaw with a little caraway, excellent collard greens with a touch of sausage, “Boston baked beans” (not as sweet as some), macaroni and cheese, or potato salad.
The SoulFire platter comes with a choice of two meats, of which we took brisket ($6/sandwich; $10/platter) and spare ribs ($11/quarter rack; $12/half rack; $20/full rack). The former was nice and juicy but could have been a little smokier; still, I’d give it a seven. The ribs had probably been poached (of which I usually do not approve), as they were falling-off-the-bone tender while being just-the-right-amount smoked. The dry rub added a hit of salt and sugar to the surfaces; in summary, these are very good ribs. Pulled pork ($6/sandwich; $9.50/platter) is a fine job, juicy without the usual vinegar sauce, and with just a hint of smoke. The platter portion is outrageous, and you can use some of the North Carolina sauce to get the familiar product, or do something innovative. The fried-catfish platter ($12.50) is two pieces of fine fried fillet, for when all that meat just gets to be too much.
