"On an earlier visit, I ate my ribs on a bench at an empty basketball court at the nearby McKinley housing projects. The ribs had a crisp bark, were chewy in spots, tender in others, but not falling off the bone. Johnson had spooned a ladle of red sauce over them, then the tangy mustard sauce - "Carolina Gold" as it's called in South Carolina - but not in Morrisania. Delicious."
"After I ordered mac and cheese and fried chicken, I told him I'd been reading about interesting Morrisanians. He quietly walked to the back kitchen without commenting. Laminated family pictures covered the kitchen door. In one, James, in a white T-shirt, long sideburns, and a short afro, looks forward, smirking, while Pauline stands behind him. She's pretty, smiling widely, seemingly at something he said."
Johnson's Bar-B-Q sits on East 163rd Street in Morrisania, the Bronx, with an awning proclaiming 'Open Since 1954.' Dwayne Johnson, son of founders James and Pauline, runs the takeout restaurant and maintains family photographs and recipes. The small lobby contains a TV and two chairs, with no customer seating. The food includes ribs with crisp bark, mac and cheese, fried chicken, and distinct sauces, including a tangy mustard 'Carolina Gold.' The restaurant serves as a neighborhood anchor, evoking local memories and reflecting community history through generations of ownership and daily interactions.
Read at Eater NY
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