DINING REVIEW: Ephraim's BBQ is quirky; food is seriously good

The squat, shabby buildings that surround Ephraim's BBQ on Platte Place at first glance seem like an unlikely spot to find some of the most authentic Texas barbecue in town.

The light industrial backwater is full of small warehouses and crime statistics that spill over from nearby Platte Avenue.

But since the crime rate is high, the rents are low, and so the neighborhood is full of quirky small businesses that are there because they can afford to pursue passions that don't necessarily produce a ton of profit.

William Ephraim's passion is brisket.

The 73-year-old Colorado Springs reverend with a thick frizz of white hair and an easy smile has been barbecuing over mesquite since he was a kid in Pecos, Texas.

"I don't claim really to know how to barbecue at all; I just do what my uncles did," he told me recently with a wry chuckle. "But it turns out pretty good."

Ephraim has honed his craft at countless church cookouts.

He marinates his brisket for two days in a secret mix he said "I learned up from a woman in Amarillo who gave me her recipe since she saw I was a preacher."

Then he slow smokes it for eight hours until a deep red smoke ring penetrates an inch into the juicy, tender meat.

The result ($8.50) is divine: rich and biting with mesquite, and not the slightest bit dry.
"I don't believe anybody in town got brisket like me," he said.

After sitting down at one of his booths, I'm inclined to agree.

Ephraim's is as quirky as the surrounding neighborhood. The service is slow. The dining room, in the old El Nopal Mexican restaurant, is a little down at the heel. The windows could use washing.

But the food is first-rate.

Aside from the brisket, which should go on every local foodie's checklist, the wonderful ribs ($8.50) are tender inside with a crackly veneer of smoke and spices on the outside.

The hotlinks and more mild Texas sausage ($6.75) are bursting with the same smoky flavor.

When I asked Ephraim what being a preacher and a barbecue master have in common, he laughed and said, "Well, you have to be consistent ... and patient."

The chicken, ($7.50) when I tried it, was a bit dry, but slow smoking and chicken breast seem to rarely go well together.

The classic soul food sides are a delight. The collard greens are fresh, tender and not over salted. The mac and cheese has the stringy strands of cheese trailing from the fork that guarantee it is from scratch.

The red beans and rice are swimming with hearty rounds of smoked sausage.

The peach cobbler arrives as a messy, delicious pile of goop lurking with chewy chunks of homemade crust.

For a recent lunch, I invited my friend Mr. Barbecue, who grew up smoking hogs at big family pig pickin's in South Carolina. He was disappointed that there was no pulled pork on the menu but was quickly won over.

"With my barbecue provenance, I'd expect some pulled pork. But, oh man, this guy's brisket is something," he said.

Everything is cooked dry but served wet in homemade, sticky red Texas sauce. Diners who prefer their meat naked can ask for sauce on the side.

Do not, I repeat, do not leave without having a piece of the sweet potato pie.

Mr. Barbecue started to say something about how it wasn't quite as good as the pie from his aunt's sweet potato farm, but I couldn't quite make out what he was saying. His mouth was too full.

Ephraim's BBQ
**** (Praise the brisket)
Address: 2600 Platte Place
Phone: 448-5054
Hours: 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesdays - Saturdays
Entrees: $6.75 - $12.50
Vegetarian: Don't press your luck
Alcohol: No
Credit Cards: Yes