Another find! It’s Sid’s BBQ and Jerky, set at the northern tip of Delaware, just about a block from the Pennsylvania line, and it’s a surprisingly good place. I can vouch for the brisket, pork, ribs, and fatty burnt ends, and Sid’s can boast the very first thick barbecue sauce that ever impressed me.
What, you might ask, was I doing in the northern tip of Delaware rather than scouring Maryland and Virginia for the best pastrami or Italian subs, or sneaking off to one or both of the Carolinas or, it being in the bleak midwinter, Florida? Well, I’ll tell you. I learned from a former high level Justice Department boss, Rena Comisac, that she had a cousin, John Sidoriak, who had opened a barbecue place in northern Delaware. Now, over the course of 30-some years I had a lot of high level bosses at Justice with whom I met directly often. I respect all of them and really admire a good half dozen, but there are only two that I loved: Janet Reno for her kindness and her work ethic despite serious health problems, and Rena Comisac who, in addition to being a wonderful person, left the Washington fast track to help out family. You’ve met her here (best neon sign ever!) and here (fried macaroni and cheese!).
So I went to Sid’s. I say up front I dearly hoped I would be able to give a good review, but what if it was really bad? I needed a neutral arbiter, so I called Barry Zuckerman of BZ Maestro Eats. Barry, the maven of Philadelphia specialties and Central European composers, is famed far and wide for his assiduous field work studying the Philly cheesesteak. Barry graciously agreed to meet me at Sid’s, and was in place when I arrived. You can and definitely should read his report on Sid’s here.
I’d driven for two-plus hours on I-95 in the rain, and was not in the best of moods. My spirits soared, however, as I drove into the warehouse area in which Sid’s is situated.
You may well wonder at my joy at such a setting, but I’ve had great luck recently with similar areas near Washington, notably Corned Beef King and Old Blue BBQ, and beauty is in the anticipation of the beholder. These places are a step up from food trucks and Farmers’ Markets for a lot of promising chefs. Unlike many such operations, Sid’s has managed to eke out a smidgen of dine-in space, three stools at a wall side counter. The interior is tiny but pleasant, and Sid’s is a very welcoming place.
Getting down to business right away, we perused the menu.
As we were making up our minds, John brought out some “fatty burnt ends.”
Don’t those look delicious? That’s some beautiful bark. The burnt ends were indeed fatty, with a couple that were all fat and bark. The all-fat burnt ends may have been a bit much for Barry, but he thoroughly enjoyed the ones with meat. I loved them all.
Barry ordered ribs, a Wednesday/Friday special, and some macaroni and cheese (not photographed)
As you can see, each of the three pieces held two or three ribs. I took an individual rib and agreed with Barry that they were good ribs. They were very tender, but not fall-off-the-bone mushy, just a great texture. They also boasted a nice touch of oak smoke and the flavor was spot on. I ate it plain, while Barry added some Kansas City style sauce.
I also ordered pork with some vinegar sauce on the side,
brisket,
and a pepper slaw with a little sweetness, a little pepper, and a lot of fresh crispness. I devoured it.
Are these mustard seeds in there? I shared some of both meats, and Barry volunteered that the pork was tender and moist. I know that the brisket looks dry, which happens often in photos that aren’t staged, if only by flipping a dry-looking piece over to expose a moist side, but the proof is in the eating. It was not dry, not at all. Like the pork it was succulent and had a good beefy flavor with a lovely garland of smoke. Again, I ate the brisket without any sauce. The pork was equally tender and positively juicy. I added some of Sid’s North Carolina sauce, a good sauce graced with the right touch of vinegar and free of sugar (but a low-ish level of red pepper) and it enhanced the meat by balancing the pork’s richness and bringing out the subtle oak smoke.
Before we finished, John brought out a sample of ginger-based sauce that he’d just worked up. I was skeptical of a thick sauce, as they usually overwhelm and smother the flavor of the meat. This one worked! The ginger complemented rather than put a pillow over the flavor of the pork. Hats off to John!
I also ordered a pickled egg. I’d never had a pickled egg before. During my salad days I sometimes found myself in bars that featured huge jars of pickled eggs. I never ordered one. I did order a lot of Penrose pickled sausages. But when I became a man I put away childish things. Now that my three score years and ten are in the rear view mirror, my “don’t” function is vestigial, so why not try one?
It was okay. It had a good vinegar bite, but not much else. I thought about trying a cookie, but I’m on a very strict diet.
Here I am with John.
He does the cooking at his home, just a few minutes away, using a wood-fired smoker with a gas assist, and he does it very well. He’s been in business four years, and it’s a family operation. John does the cooking and cutting, assisted by his son. I don’t hesitate to recommend Sid’s. It’s just off I-95 right by the 95-495 split, the first exit southbound in Delaware. If you live in the Philadelphia-Wilmington area, or if you’re just passing through, stop at Sid’s. Make a point of it. You owe it to yourself.
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