The Rib Crib - Mason City, IA

My right hand man, and drummer, Tim Schroeder took a trip up to Mason City to work an afternoon show at Fat Hill Brewing. I had really been looking forward to this show and getting into this new venue. The show went well, despite being subjected to being background for some newlyweds wedding pictures. The joke is on them, though. They’re going to have my mug peeking up behind them in their wedding pictures for the rest of their lives. I must say, "Sweat Equity" ended up being a pretty decent first dance song. On top of that excitement, J.D. Scholten happened to stop into the tap room towards the end of our set. I did have a chance to talk to him, and he’s a fine man. I’m really disappointed his senate run didn’t turn out differently. Tim and I ate at The Rib Crib after the show. Then, like real “rock stars”, we grabbed several specialty bottles of beer and drank them in the hotel room. It had a pool, and we used it.

But, back to that dinner

At The Rib Crib, the baked beans are served up in the customary small black side dish. This batch was a single bean variety. The beans were over cooked and slightly mushy, unfortunately. However, there were large chunks of bacon and diced green peppers in the mix to help improve the dish’s consistency. The sauce on these beans was straight sweetness and there was no heat or smoke flavor present in this traditional BBQ side. My offering had a very high "sauce-to-bean" ratio, bordering on soup.

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 3
Flavor: 3
Mouthfeel: 2

Total score: 8

For what it’s worth,
​Fat Hill Brewing’s Brut IPA: 5