If you crave real Southern-style soul food and mouth-wateringly good Texas-style barbeque, then look no further! What you need is right here in bucolic Oxnard (actually Port Hueneme), California. This "best kept secret" (though not for long – the Friday night lines are an indication of that) has been quietly producing some of the best barbecue you will ever taste. In your lifetime. Period. It's a little hole in the wall restaurant called Bob's & Boys Bar-B-Q. Unremarkable in appearance, this place lets its superb food and old-fashioned Southern hospitality do the impressing.
Whether you live in the area, are visiting friends, or just passing through, you 'cue and soul food lovers need to make a beeline for the the intersection of Victoria Ave. and Hemlock St. in Oxnard and let your noses lead you to 3753 A Hemlock St., about a mile from the SeaBee Base and Channel Islands Harbor. It's in the old Albertson's complex, these days called the Channel Islands Shopping Center.
The mouthwatering smells only foreshadow the delightful sights that greet your eyes. The basic menu includes all your favorites – generous portions of bbq ribs, succulent chicken, delectable tri-tip and their deliciously spicy hot links. Is your mouth watering yet? On Fridays the family pulls out all the stops, buttressing the already formidable menu with red snapper, catfish and their famous seafood gumbo (complete with homemade cornbread).
The lovingly made food is a splendid blend of the time-honored old (family recipes for mixed greens, candied yams and cakes tracing back to the Civil War) and younger son Calvin's secret seasoning blend and barbecue sauce. No, he won't give you the recipes!
Click the link to visit the Bob's & Boys Bar-B-Q website.
Each meal comes with your choice of two homemade side dishes, served in generous portions: potato, macaroni and garden salads, coleslaw, mixed greens, candied yams, black eye peas, chili or baked beans, cornbread. There's usually a selection of delicious desserts to chose from as well: homemade peach and/or strawberry cobbler, sweet potato pie, banana and vanilla wafer pudding, one of several types of cakes.
Some of the recipes used by the family – for instance, the candied yams, cake and mixed greens--have been handed down for generations, and trace their origins back to the deep south of the Antebellum era. These long-standing family traditions have been supplemented by the innovations of younger son and master barbecuer Calvin, whose secret mix of spices, sauce and techniques result in barbecue to die for!
If you've cried fat tears because you can't find real file gumbo, then weep no more. Bob will attend to it personally, for it is he who makes the real deal, so complete all it needs is cornbread. Rich, dark, spicy but not too, it's full of shrimp, crab, oysters, chicken, okra and rice. Fridays only and not always! By advance request (order Saturday for Sunday pickup) Bob will make his famous/notorious chicken 'n' dumplin's. You'll love 'em, but don't tell your cardiologist! He also does killer mac 'n' cheese Sundays only. If you're there when he is, ask him nicely to whip you up some of his special pan-fried garlic bread.
There's a big mobile unit Bob brings in on Saturday, presided over by younger son Calvin, who is the master seasoner and 'cue sauce maker, his own secret recipes, and grill meister when his dad's not there. A real sight to behold is the mobile rig fully loaded with Ribs, Tri-tip, Hot Links and Chicken! Get there early enough Saturday, and you can take the advanced course on 'cue.
Daughter Linda is the utility player, working just about every job and servicing customers with a smile that just might be the equal of her mom's. She specializes in the cold dishes and is known in these parts as the Mistress of the Fish. And in case you're concerned about the time-honored traditions and delicious secret recipes of this dedicated and talented family being lost in time, not to worry. The next generation is learning the ropes too! Calvin's enterprising young sons Calvin Jr. and Isaiah are eagerly taking it all in, and are frequently seen running errands, taking orders and helping Dad out on the grill.
How you find the room is your problem, but the homemade desserts are a must try: homemade peach and/or strawberry cobbler, sweet potato pie, banana and 'nilla wafer pudding, usually a cake, too, be it pineapple, chocolate or something more exotic. Never know quite what to expect!
The food's so good as to be obscene and though it may sound trite, you really can taste the love. Order a complete dinner and plan on having a meal as a leftover! Bring the big appetite, but rest assured that you can leave your bankroll at home. Unlike many "home-style" eateries these days, prices at Bob's & Boys Bar-B-Q are extremely reasonable. In fact, for about what you'd pay for a burger meal elsewhere, you can have some real, quality, down-home food here! Yummy! With huge portions, reasonable prices and terrific service, how can you go wrong?
We hate waiting in lines just like you, but we're faced with a dilemma. If we keep Bob's & Boys Bar-B-Q (805)750-1820, our favorite little "hole in the wall" eatery, to ourselves, we may lose it, for times are tough and some high powered chains are moving in. While we love 'cue and soul food, there's only so much we can eat! That's why we're letting you in on our little secret.
We hope in this way you'll you'll become addicts, er, great customers, too, so Bob's can thrive and expand right where it is. That way, everybody in Oxnard and the greater Ventura County area gets to enjoy not just the food, but the delightful Pleasants, who make it for you and serve you just as if you were kin! Come, share our secret!
Ready for the best barbecue you've ever tasted? Then visit the Bob's & Boys Bar-B-Q website now!