Johndhi's BBQ

On the southwest corner of Griegos and Rio Grande there is a tan stucco with blue painted wooden panels that is home to one of my favorite BBQ establishments, Johndhi's BBQ. The atmosphere here has a lot of charm. The restaurant seems that it used to be an old home converted into a restaurant. When you walk in there is a wooden walk way that seems like it comes from the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. The wood is warped and very weathered. When you first arrive, the center of waiting area/hostess area has a wine cork covered pillar which occupies quite a bit of space in the small area. Along the walls are two well stocked beverage display refrigerators filled with a vast array of excellent beer. A few examples of what they normally carry are Duchy Original Organic Ale, a few of the St. Pete's selections, and Boddingtons. The patio is my favorite place to sit when weather permits. On certain days they have live music outside. The patio is very plain, but very charming. On the north side of the patio area is the smoker. It's roughly the size of a full size refrigerator that is made of black steel.

The owner of the establishment is part of the family that owns and operates the Quarters BBQ in Albuquerque. I like this restaurant more than the Quarters, but the Quarters multiple locations is more convenient for me. The BBQ at Johndhi's is better, but the sauce is not as spicy as the sauce at the Quarters.

The menu selection here is very eclectic: hamburgers, green chile stew, and some Greek food. The Greek salad here is excellent; they use fresh, crisp romaine lettuce, flavorful red onion slices, tangy fetta cheese, and the Greek dressing is amazing. The Green Chile stew is great, but comes out cold on occasion. The baked potatoes tend to be on the overcooked side, resulting in a tough shell. The baked potato toppings here are fairly limited; for example, they do not carry chives. I normally get the BBQ combo dinner. The links and ribs on this platter are excellent; however, the briskets is inconsistent. Sometimes the brisket is tough and dry. The rustic bread served with the meals is killer: the bread is thin sliced and then grilled. I would like to pretend that it is not covered in butter, but I know better.

Despite my complaints about the food of Johndi's, the good far outweighs the bad, the total package is excellent. I would give Johndi's a score of four out of five stars.