This Phenix City restaurant has served BBQ for nearly 100 years — but it was my first time
Barbecue has a long history in the South, with almost every Southerner probably having at least a dozen happy memories involving the cuisine at a family event.
A large part of that history in the Chattahoochee Valley has involved this Phenix City restaurant:
Chicken Comers Bar-B-Que was started in 1929 in the midst of the Great Depression out of the house of Anderson “Uncle Chicken” Comer. After a hiatus of over 17 years, when Phenix City went without this restaurant, the current Phenix City location opened in August 2017.
My father told me that his father used to talk about eating at a place called Chicken Comers. So, it was nice to know I might be eating the same style of BBQ my paternal grandfather ate all those years ago when he was stationed at Fort Benning in the 1960s.
Ledger-Enquirer visual journalist Mike Hakey and I hopped in my truck and headed over to the Chicken Comers at 1027 14th Street in Phenix City to try their BBQ.
As soon as I walked in, I knew the barbecue would be good. The aroma of smoking meat filled the restaurant, almost driving me to salivate like a rabid dog wanting something to bite. I decided to bite into some BBQ.
I ordered the BBQ plate with two sides. I chose the potato salad and the Brunswick stew. Mike ordered the rib plate, which comes with four ribs and two sides.
Caution: This BBQ comes with the sauce already on it, but I think I preferred it this way. The mustard-based sauce had time to seep into the meat, bringing out a juicy, vinegary and mustard taste that didn’t overpower the natural flavor.
It was some of the most tender barbecue I’ve had, with a pink tint, not from undercooking but from smoky flavor buried into the meat.
The potato salad was a great mix of sweet and tangy, leaning more toward the tangy side — which I prefer.
The Brunswick Stew was sweeter than the stews I’ve grown accustomed to, but it was very fresh in flavor and still very good. The stew was very meaty, and the corn held its form very well, adding a nice consistency to the stew.
The plate also came with what is probably my favorite side: three slices of soft white bread. It’s always nice to have in case you want to make sandwiches with the BBQ. However, I prefer using the bread to sop up the sauce after my main dish, like a dessert.
As someone who went to the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa-based Dreamland Bar-B-Que is famous for the soft white bread it serves with sauce before you get your order. So, I’m a big fan of the bread that was served with my meal at Chicken Comers.
Mike was very nice and gave me one of his ribs to try. The meat was incredibly tender, almost falling off the bone. The meat was soft enough to probably use your gums to eat it.
It was salty and peppery, with a very subtle flavor of the sauce on it. I’ll definitely order them the next time I go to the restaurant.
So, if you want to taste a piece of barbecue history in the Columbus area, I recommend Chicken Comers Bar-B-Que in Phenix City.
