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Come For The Brisket
W
Slow’s
Bar BQ in
Pontiac.
Mary Meldrum
Slow’s Bar BQ Pontiac
8 N. Saginaw St., Pontiac
hile the M-1 Concourse is
probably the best known
new resident of Pontiac,
another new neighbor has moved in,
adding to the ranks of the city, which
is experiencing a quiet renaissance —
Slow’s Bar BQ of Corktown fame.
I sat down with General Manager Rob
Stone and Head Chef Ryan Esker to dis-
cuss the newest Slow’s Bar BQ location
in Pontiac. Both Rob and Ryan have a
culinary background and support each
other in collaborating on the menu
creations. Notably, Chef Ryan’s resume
includes cooking for the Townsend
Hotel in Birmingham.
Rob grew up in West Bloomfield and
attended Michigan State University,
graduating with a degree in hospital-
ity business. He moved to Miami to go
to culinary school and then to Denver.
While home for Passover one year, he
linked up with Slow’s Bar BQ owners
and secured the job in Pontiac.
The aroma as I walk in the front door
is intoxicating and very familiar. “We
are using all the same recipes, rubs,
sauces and smokers that you find in
Detroit,” Rob says. “Ryan creates a lot of
specials, which makes us unique, differ-
ent from the Slow’s in Detroit.”
Nestled in next to the newly reno-
vated Flagstar Strand Theatre for the
Performing Arts on Saginaw Street in
the very heart of downtown Pontiac,
Slow’s Bar BQ has been enjoying a
steady increase in hungry guests since
opening in April. Indeed, at 1 p.m.,
many of the tables were filled with
lunch guests and the bar was loaded
with patrons, too.
The venue is a mash-up of repur-
posed historical items from among
other places, the old Sears and Roebuck
and Pontiac Central High School. Lab
tables, bleacher seats and other arti-
facts have been integrated into the fab-
ric of Slow’s. In fact, the Pontiac Central
High School score board is a center-
piece at the bar.
I asked what makes Slow’s Bar BQ
different or better than other barbecue
places. “I have eaten at many barbecue
restaurants, and one of the biggest dif-
ferences I notice is the quality of the
meat,” Ryan says. “All of our meat is hor-
mone- and antibiotic-free and grass-fed.
I can tell right away from the taste that
it is different.”
“Grass-fed meat tastes better; the
consistency of the meat is better,” Rob
adds. “Happy animals make happy
food.”
continued on page 46
jn
August 10 • 2017
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