I am a Cincinnati Resident as such I have heard a lot about the Montgomery Inn but only rarely visited any of their locations. Since I was a little boy I have learned the ins and outs of barbeque and as an adult I can put together a pretty decent barbeque meal when I need too. Over the years I have listened to my fellow Cincinnatians rave over Montgomery Inn Ribs and the quality of food serve at the Montgomery Inn Restaurants. Recently at the insistence of my family we took a trip down to the Montgomery in Boathouse. The atmosphere and the service were spectacular however the food was mediocre at best. I did not get the ribs I got the pork chops they were cooked well enough however they were bland. The only real flavor came from the barbeque sauce they served it with and that was overly sweet. My sister in law did order the ribs and she made a similar observation about the sauce. In fact it was so sweet and there was so much of it on her order of ribs that she was scraping it off. Once she was able to taste the rib she noted that it was cooked well and was tender however it lacked the rich smoky flavor normally associated with barbeque ribs. These ribs had to have been baked. For all the hype I have heard over the years I was expecting something extraordinary from the Montgomery Inn. What I got was great service, a fantastic atmosphere but the quality of food was far below what I was expecting and frankly I was disappointed. I am even more disappointed that the Montgomery Inn is recognized as Cincinnati style barbeque simply because it is not very good. I realize I am going to take a lot of heat from my fellow Cincinnatians for say this but I do not understand why the Montgomery Inn so popular. They don’t have good food.
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