Tom E.
Yelp
I remember when my good buddy had ranted and raved about the DAS BBQ over on Collier Rd, but I had never made it there (I won't lie, that is a part of town I try not to frequent, thanks to traffic, so you will love my logic in a moment). This morning, my mom shows me an article in the AJC about a second location that just opened up in Grant Park (literally right in front of the main entrance to Oakland Cemetery), housed in the former Harp (never been) restaurant.
I told her I was hungry and asked if she wanted to go- it was later in the afternoon, but decided why not, let's go see the area. Knowing two factors- that it was in between lunch and dinner, and the place had been only open for a week, I decided to be a little more lenient than usual. The spot itself looks great, with plenty of space outside (it almost seems there is more space outside than inside), complete with cornhole, and firepits as well. Inside, there is a full bar, and some tables for larger parties. The parking out front is literally nonexistent, but there is plenty of street parking around, which I assume can share with Oakland Cemetery? I parked on the street, I was fine.
This is a counter service a la carte restaurant (they have a Coke fountain machine as well, with the basic offerings)- so I just want to forewarn, like most newer bbq places, it can get pricey quick. I got a brisket sandwich (with chips, 11), a spicy link (5), an order of stew (4), and an order of creamed corn. Mom got a chicken sandwich (8) , coleslaw (3), an order of corn (5), and a brownie (3). We got 2 waters to drink. With 20% tip, it totaled to $60.77.
It looked like all of the food were in heat boxes behind the counter, so that made me uneasy in one sense (I did not smell any wood burning when I entered either)- how long had it been sitting. With my food, I was able to try 2 different sauces- the high octane red (a tomato espresso base with a smoky flavor), and a peach mustard, which you could actually taste the peaches.
The brisket sandwich, I had first. The bread, I enjoyed, and I used the red sauce. Unfortunately, my brisket was dry as sand, and I needed the packet to hydrate it. It was an interesting sauce profile, one I was not used to, but I know if the brisket wasn't dry, it would have been as fantastic as I heard about in the past. The link I had, although not spicy (to me), I covered in the peach sauce, and with the cheese oozing out, I enjoyed that. I put the remainder of the peach sauce on the corn and stew, and those were pretty tasty as well. Large kudos for serving Zapp's Voodoo chips with the sandwiches, my fav type of chips, ever, period.
For mom, she was not a fan of the coleslaw (had a vinegar base to it, I should have tried it), she loved the creamed corn (even though it had jalapenos, I am personally shocked she ate it all! She's a very mild eater), and loved her chicken sandwich as well- she said it didn't even need sauce (relief). She enjoyed the large brownie as well, and said it had choco chips in it too.
When she got up to use the restroom, the bartender asked mom how the food was, and she said great. She said she wished the guy who looked like the manager would come over to check on us, because she wanted to tell him how we found out about the place thanks to the local paper, that left a semi sour taste in her mouth (its not like the place was busy by any means).
All in all, for a brand new place, it wasn't bad. If it wasn't new, and wasn't covid times, I would probably give this place a 3. However, I like that they made adjustments (like the portioned sauce packets, that is cool, and also use no touch utensil dispensers, along with a large handwash station outside the restrooms) for covid times. Keep in mind though when you come- if they make the stuff early in the day, idk how long that brisket will hold. But at the end of the day, we were glad we made the trip!