Dinosaur Bar-B-Que: An American Roadhouse [Hardcover]

John Stage (Author), Nancy Radke (Author), James Scherzi (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 16, 2001

Where can you show up for world-class barbecue, stick around for the blues, and shut the place down philosophizing with some truly gritty characters? At Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, of course—the renowned Syracuse-based honky-tonk rib joint just hankering to share its BBQ excellence with folks outside the state. In DINOSAUR BAR-B-QUE: AN AMERICAN ROADHOUSE you'll find the secrets to their succulent pit-smoked specialties in recipes you can fire up in your own backyard. Join Spiceman John Stage on a journey into the world of low and slow barbecue and fast and furious grillin'. Along the way, you'll soak up the Dino vibe as John shows you how to rev up traditional barbecue sauce to create such dishes as World Famous Dinosaur Ribs, Black & Blue Pan-Seared Beef Tenderloins, or Drunken Spicy Shameless Shrimp with Brazen Cocktail Sauce.• Full-color photography struts the eclectic decor of this honky-tonk rib joint (world's best bathroom graffiti and tattoo art included), and brings you up close and personal with some of its most colorful denizens.Awards2002 National Barbecue Association Award WinnerReviews“There's good eatin' here. . .we're making the Sweet Potato-Crusted Mahi-Mahi tonight.” —Tulsa World“Top 25 Editor's Choice Picks for 2001” —Amazon.com“One last look at summer grilling cookbooks . . . John Stage's DINOSAUR BAR-B-QUE: AN AMERICAN ROADHOUSE captures the slow-cooked-barbecue smell that hits you two blocks away from his 'genuine honky–tonk rib joint' in Syracuse, New York. . . . No matter the season, this cookbook (with more than 100 recipes) will quickly become a dog-eared, sauce-stained favorite.” —Amazon.com“I come from a place where barbecue is not food; it is a way of life. It is a philosophy of human nature. I have rarely had any as good as this.” —President Clinton on Dinosaur Bar-B-Que (September 1, 2000)“Though I learned to cook under the watchful eyes of several grandmothers in the apartment building where I lived in Rome, Italy, I now can smoke a mean pork butt thanks to John Stage.” —Nancy Radke“Without a doubt, DINOSAUR BAR-B-QUE will quickly become a dog-eared favorite on your kitchen bookshelf.” —Amazon.com“So, what made this book take off faster than a Hog flying down Interstate 5? Get your copy and find out why everyone is snapping up this unique instruction manual.” —Santa Cruz Sentinel“Real barbecue recipes for serious eaters.” —Food Network“Handsome yet funky . . . it's also a fun read.” —Buffalo News“Awesome!”—Arlington Advocate“It looks like some folks are having a darn good time there.” —Charleston Post & Courier“[A] kicky book with attitude . . . the jived up flavors and combinations in this book are barbecue heaven!” —Scott Fine's Great Grilling Recipes (formerly On The Grill)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que kicked into gear in 1983 when John Stage, a Harley-loving biker with a taste for barbecue, took to the road cooking sandwiches on a sawed-in-half 55-gallon drum at "biker gigs" up and down the East Coast. Stage sampled world-class barbecue in Virginia, Texas, North Carolina, and Memphis, soaking up "the Southern barbecue vibe" (and picking up Creole, Asian, and Cuban influences along the way) before setting up shop in Syracuse, New York, in 1988. Dinosaur Bar-B-Que: An American Roadhouse captures the reach-out-and-taste-it smell of slow-cooked barbecue that hits you two blocks away from the "genuine honky-tonk rib joint," where outfront a row of gleaming Harleys stand at attention and inside a sassy, ready-to-bust-your-chops wait staff cuts through the eclectic crowd of bikers, students, suits, and blues lovers (there's live music almost nightly), serving up half-racks of Dinosaur-Style Ribs, Texas Beef Brisket, and Honey Hush Corn Bread.

Between recipes for Drunken Spicy Shameless Shrimp with Brazen Cocktail Sauce and Not Your Mama's Meatloaf are samples of the restaurant's infamous restroom graffiti ("When life gives you lemons... add vodka") and photos of staff tattoos. Stage and coauthor Nancy Radke realize that not all backyard grill masters own smokers, let alone the kind of hickory-log-fueled industrial pits at the Dinosaur (nicknamed "The Coffin" and "The Doghouse"), so they present home cooks with a helpful Techniques of Outdoor Cookin' section that offers advice on how to grill and smoke with wood chips.

And no matter the season, this cookbook will quickly become a dog-eared favorite, as many of the more than 100 recipes are perfect for indoor cooking anytime of the year. Whip up a batch of the all-purpose Mutha Sauce (a versatile starting off point for many of the dishes) and you'll have enough ammunition for a weekend's worth of recipes. If you want to come any closer to living the complete Dinosaur experience at home, you'll need a Harley out front, a cold beer in hand, and Roosevelt Dean and the Spellbinders jammin' in the living room. --Brad Thomas Parsons

From the Publisher

* Features more than 100 flavor-packed recipes from Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, the perennially popular, Syracuse-based, honky-tonk rib joint.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Ten Speed Press (May 16, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580082653
• ISBN-13: 978-1580082655
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 0.8 x 10.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #322,493 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A SURPRISE FAVORITE!!, January 3, 2006

By 

Renee Gleason (New York) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Dinosaur Bar-B-Que: An American Roadhouse (Hardcover)

I am a foodie with a slant toward the gourmet, while my husband is a "stick to the ribs" kind of guy. When his sister bought me this cookbook for Christmas a couple years ago, I wasn't particularly overjoyed. A cookbook from a local rib joint was the last thing I thought I wanted. It was with great reluctance (and an effort to please my husband!) that I made my first dish out of it, but that's all it took to make me a believer! I have since tried 12 recipes from this book and they have all been very good to excellent. Not only does it contain the traditional barbecue fare that you would expect from it, but there are many inventive tantalizing ones as well (like Sweet Potato-Crusted Mahi-Mahi with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce or Seared Tuna with Wasabi Green Onion BBQ Sauce). And the everyday barbecue recipes? Well, even I can't get enough of them, and that's saying a lot for someone whose dream dinner consists of crab towers and creme brulee. And as if that's not enough, the cookbook is just a really good read. The author's biker, blues-loving wit keeps you entertained as you cook. And even I can appreciate that. :-)

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the real deal!, June 19, 2001

By 

Matthew Hanley (Marietta, New York USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Dinosaur Bar-B-Que: An American Roadhouse (Hardcover)

I was a little worried at first that this would be a book from the Dinosaur, but not necessarily containing the actual recipes you eat in the restaurant. Fear not, this book is the real deal.

It has most of the dishes they serve at the Dino' - from the cornbread, pulled pork, ribs and peanut butter pie to mojito chicken and steak with chimchurri sauce. Throw in the rubs, sauces, and marinades and you've got everything to make some outstanding food.

To top it off it has some great tips for cooking. You can tell that John Stage is a stickler for getting things done right. And then the writing and photography really take you there.

Yeah, I'm from Syracuse, but the book still stands out from my 80+ cookbooks.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars American cuisine with a barbeque twist.....YUMMM!, August 2, 2001

By 

Daniel F. Moore (Yarmouth, Maine USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Dinosaur Bar-B-Que: An American Roadhouse (Hardcover)

I must admit that I avoided purchasing this book as I have been disappointed in the past with cookbooks that are written for a particular restaurant. Too often, the recipes in such books are only close approximations of the real items. Alas, this book forgoes that tendency and gives the actual menu directions. Dinosaur Bar-B-Que cooks traditional 'American cuisine'. The recipes for 'Not Your Mama's Meatloaf' and 'Macaroni and Cheese Shepherd's Pie' were big hits. Each section (Beef, Poultry, Seafood, Pork etc.) contains some suggestions for the barbeque novice. But what separates the 'Dinosaur' from other cookbooks are the recipes for sauces, rubs and marinades. I have grown habanero chiles in my garden this summer and used them to make the hot version of the Mutha Sauce. Problem is, I can't get enough of this stuff. The combination of tastes will just dance on your tongue and you too will use it in more and more recipes. The Creole Rub is also an easy to create but versatile spice combination. On a lighter note, the compilation of the best of Dinosaur graffiti is hilarious. It is obvious that this establishment takes its food seriously without taking itself all that seriously. Buy the book....make the sauces....assemble the rubs and try the recipes. As the authors suggest, this will be only a guidebook for you. Feel free to experiment with your own spices and flavors. If it isn't already, barbeque will become an indispensable part of your culinary experience!