Over a manly discussion about ribs (coincidentally at Porky's in Camden), my mate told me about some kind of bbq meat contest he went to in London earlier that year. Apparently for a small fee, ribs and alcohol were served at 10 different competitors, of which you were entitled to try all 10. Sounds like a great idea - I'm disappointed I missed it. His favourite was from Blue Boar, a smokehouse in a rather fancy Westminster hotel the InterContinental. It definitely wasn't the expected setting for some grimy ribs, but a birthday occasion and upmarket cocktails brought us there.
After a couple of hours sitting at the bar with a variety of £12 cocktails, we were ushered into the main dining room and their big cushy booths.
- The Blue Boar Ribs - served lovingly in a cup, they were crispy, meaty and finger-loving. More BBQ flavour than Pitt Cue Co. Not necessarily better, but different;
- Pulled Lamb Shoulder - lovely and soft although the flavour wasn't very strong. I probably liked the pickle the most on the tray.
It is a far way to go for ribs as the other dishes had trouble keeping up with them in terms of quality. Given the location (not the most convenient for a lot of people), the higher prices and such, you'd probably be better off going for ribs at Pitt (if they ever bring them back) or somewhere else. But if nicer mood and dirty food is on the cards, this place is probably the only one.
Afterwards you can wander through the hotel and see the absolutely incredible display of (what looks like) silvered toys, from X-men, Masters of the Universe, Transformers to Pixar.
Next time I would order ribs, ribs and more ribs. The main dishes were good, but everyone agreed they didn't compare to the ribs (including pulled pork, pulled lamb and the tiny serve of chicken main).
