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Boots and Bones opened last month in Jersey City at 116 Newark Ave. and has been winning over patrons with its take on popular BBQ fare like brisket and smoked ribs, cooked on the restaurant's two smokers.
The executive chef and pitmaster is Kenny Callaghan, who helped start Manhattan's Blue Smoke and founded the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party.
Kenneth Caufield, one of the partners in the restaurant, said Jersey City needed a bbq restaurant like this.
"Downtown Jersey City is where everything is going on at the moment," Caufield said.
Caufield said Callaghan is putting his own spin on the bbq, calling it "Jersey City BBQ," taking inspiration from the bbq served in the Carolinas and Texas.
"It's an American restaurant with a Southern soul," Caufield said.
Since it opened, Caufield said patrons have been raving about the mac-n-cheese and the boots-n-bones banger, which is brisket topped with crispy onion rings served with smoked provolone, bbq sauce, coleslaw and dill pickles.
"The one thing I keep hearing from everyone is how you have to try the mac-n-cheese," Caufield said.
Before opening Boots and Bones, Caufield went to Texas, spending four days in Austin. He visited famous bbq joints like The Salt Lick Bar-B-Cue and Black's Barbecue Austin. Caufield also bought much of the restaurant's décor in Austin.
"Kenny definitely wanted to bring that wow factor up there," Caufield said.
Caufield, who is originally from Dublin, also visited Nashville, which inspired the country music that plays in the background at the restaurant. He said so far the Jersey City community has enjoyed getting its taste of the south.
"We've gotten great feedback," Caufield said. "People have loved it."
The restaurant is also opening a speakeasy called Under the Boot next month. In true speakeasy fashion, Under the Boot is found at the foot of a secret stairway lit by a neon logo.
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