I heard about this festival back in January when the initial announcement was made and I knew I had to attend. We have lots of terrific food in Montreal, but I feel we lack a strong legacy in BBQ. Ribfest was taking place from June 27 to July 1 at the Old Port along Jacques Cartier Quay, which made access fairly straightforward. It wasn’t a very large site, but it had about 6 food vendors serving up freshly prepared ribs.
I definitely liked the fact that most of the meals were price-matched, meaning 1/2 rack of ribs was 15$ no matter which vendor you picked. I also thought it was great that you could sample the signature BBQ sauces at each location to pick the one that was aligned with your personal preferences (I am sweet BBQ with a spicy kick – kinda girl). Ideally, you want to attend with a group so that you can have fun tasting all the different ribs and determine which one comes out on top.
I had a full rack of ribs with beans and coleslaw from Champ 31 and was super impressed. The ribs were meaty and the sauce perfectly balanced. The baked beans on the side added a nice accompaniment and the coleslaw was refreshing. Aside from tasting the food, it was pretty neat to check out all the hardware that was on display for each vendor. If I had to judge any competition in my future, sign me up for a BBQ one! I have to say, I liked this inaugural festival however I would love to see it evolve a little more than just food vendors. Perhaps some live demonstrations could add some more dimension and draw more crowds.
Did you attend RibFest? What ribs were your favorite?
