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| - When you're eating at a place, and a man outside stops by the window and does a sort of pantomime of licking sauce off of his fingers, with a giant smile on his face, you know you've found the neighborhood treasure. The Secret Spot. The place you might not tell people about because then it will get too crowded.
Tucked away on Braddock Avenue, just off of Penn into Homewood, you might live here your whole life and never find it. Sadly, often there is a Black Pittsburgh, and a White Pittsburgh, and never the twain shall meet. Mayoral candidate Bill Peduto recently pointed out that as a city, we're united at 1PM on Sunday's when the Steeler's play, and split immediately after.
Lots of you won't want to go. Lots of you might even be afraid to drive by. Lots of you would get in and take one look at the slightly shabby decor, and turn tail and leave. Might as well stop reading if this sounds like you.
The rest of us are going to get one look at the series of 55 gallon oil drum barbecue rigs set up outside, and curse ourselves for wearing white. Wishing that we'd brought some Handi-wipes as we do a U-turn. More for us, right?
There's a lot of room for improvement here, don't get me wrong. For one, they assume you want take out. You can stay and eat if you want, but it will be out of styrofoam boxes, with plastic forks. There could be better lighting. Lots of things could be better. The food is not on that list.
What impressed me were the sides. Lots of barbecue places are so dialed in on the meat that they miss out on the accents that round things out. The Mac and cheese is made with real cheese, not a mix, and is wisely limited to a very mild, creamy cheddar. There's enough of a brown atop to add some nice caramelization of flavor and a bit of crunch. It's a perfect, soothing companion to the not-even-kidding-one-tiny-bit hot sauce.
The baked beans suggest to me that the owner, or one of the cooks has a little Carribean ancestry, as I believe I tasted some allspice and a dash of cinnamon in the spicy mix. These small accents are what make a place unique, and give it the character that bring customers back again and again. That's the soul in soul food. The Verve. The Kick. Art without something to say is merely just decoration. Food made with no love is not sustenance. Don't get me wrong, The Dream isn't serving health food. Not even close. But they are most definitely serving mental health food. It'll put a smile on your face on the rainiest of days.
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