A cute little city like Louisville features a lot of prominent staples besides the Kentucky Derby. One mustn’t glaze over the city’s barbecue and at Feast in NuLu (New Louisville), the meaty delicacies are sure to win over dieters and part-time carnivores. This busy  venue brings a pop of noise and action to the otherwise quiet neighborhood. There’s never a night that you don’t see a snake of customers lining up to order their meat candy them elbowing each other to nab a seat. Though the atmosphere is ultra no-frills, there’s plenty of style to the place with both vintage and vintage inspired signs hanging throughout the eatery. Even the thoughtful menu resembles those old-fashioned boards you see at coffee and sandwich shops, where block letters get moved around to spell out the specials of the day.

It’s easy to get suckered into ordering an excess of food. Everything just sounds so scrumptious! You have the options of ordering your coveted meat as a sandwich or 1/2 pound sans bread with two sides. We dare you, meat aficionado, to affix an extra portion of meat to your spread or to beef up your 1/2 pounder to a whole pound for an additional fee. Mix and match, baby! Here at Feast, I reckon you’d be publicly shamed if all you ordered was a salad.

The portions are mammoth sized. The “snacks” must have been designed to accommodate a dinosaur’s appetite. Thank goodness our friends Leslie and Wayne joined us for dinner as we could not have hacked away on these massive snacks on our own. Perfectly round pickles showcased a crispy, deceptively buttery batter and arrived topped with crowns of salty cotija cheese. The home spun ranch dressing was just as hypnotizing as the pickles with its tangy and savory flavors. Loaded tater tots satisfied our pangs of nostalgia for this childhood specialty. Crunchy spuds softened a bit with the supplements of creamy coleslaw and smoky barbecue sauce. Even shared among the four of us, we could not finish these hearty appetizers.

I rubbed my hands together with glee before tackling my meat, as if I was about to sculpt a fine piece of art. I opted for the 1/2 pound sliced brisket with sides of thick coleslaw and vinegar-based collard greens (goody two shoes veggies to balance out the naughty meat!). This feast was served on a kitschy galvanized metal tray, cafeteria style, complete with a golden roll and fixings of red onions and pickles. Portions were as generous as the snacks. Pull-apart dry brisket meat dissipated in my mouth in an instant with its marshmallow soft texture; even the bits of fat felt tender and tasted so hedonistic. This is exactly how I like my barbecue meat – dry rubbed with smokiness so I can actually savor the authentic meat taste. Sometimes the sauce masks that original meaty flavor, in my opinion, so I just dab a little bit of it. For folks like me, Feast supplies an array of barbecue sauces at the table, so you can douse your meat with the condiment to your level of liking. I ended my meal with a boisterous slurp of a mighty bourbon slushie, the adult beverage of one’s wildest fantasies. When in Louisville, right, y’all?