Michon's BBQ Bistro

A new barbecue spot called Michon’s opened up downtown close to work.  Having some Q within reasonable walking distance would be a great addition.  The trek to and from the Sweet Auburn Curb Market for Sweet Auburn BBQ takes most of a lunch hour; that’s without the whole ordering and eating part of the experience.  I checked this spot out at lunch today.

The name sounded familiar but I couldn’t initially place it.  As I walked into the place I recalled where I had heard it before: Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares.  For those not familiar with the show the premise is that the celebrity chef comes into a failing restaurant, changes their menu and processes, and hopefully leaves them on solid footing so they can succeed in the future.  In this particular episode (S05E08 for those who want to see it) the white guy from the United Kingdom comes to this College Park, GA eatery and tells an African-American family from Georgia how to make barbecue and collard greens.  This should already set off the warning alarms.

The restaurant is located in a spot that formerly housed a Quizno’s.  Very little has changed from the Quizno’s set up.  They are using the same counter set up, the same conveyer belt sandwich toaster, and have kept the pepper bar as a sauce bar.  I can only assume by the location and set up that the meats are smoked off premises.  Since their College Park location closed last August, I have no idea where that would be.

I wanted to order the smoked wings, which was something that Chef Ramsay actually liked of theirs once they stopped serving day-old meats, but they did not have the wings today.  I settled for the sliced beef.  The brisket was pulled from what looked like a food service holding cabinet, sliced, then put through the old Quizno’s sandwich toaster to heat.  The experience left the meat lukewarm and dry.  I was certainly glad they had sauces available so that the meat would be moist enough to swallow, but it didn’t give me much of an opportunity to taste how well (or not) the meat was smoked.  The sides I ordered, baked beans and mac and cheese, were decent.

Really, what this place has going for it is convenience of location and a very large portion size for the price charged.  Food quality is secondary.  If I do make it back, I hope to try their smoked wings to see if they are as good as Chef Ramsay claimed.  Atlanta certainly has no shortage of good smoked wings, so these would need to be out of sight.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9OMt-FPvds