On Thursdays, We Eat Prime Rib: Hoodoo Brown BBQ in Ridgefield

Up until recently, prime rib had all but vanished from restaurants. It remained on menus at less-than-trendy eateries or it was offered at others as a one-day-per-week special, but it never quite reached levels of steak extinction. If you’ve glanced at dinner menus lately—yes, even at hotspot restaurants—there’s a chance you’ve noticed that this beefy blue-plate special has reemerged! 

If you’re a prime rib superfan, or if you salivate at the thought of a hearty slice of standing rib roast, Hoodoo Brown BBQ should be on your “Thursday Night Plans” list. Being a BBQ joint, they’re doing what you might imagine they’re doing with prime rib…they’re smoking whole 14 lb. roasts and serving them up until it’s all gone. 

Every Thursday, the Hoodoo Crew prepares 6-8 hunks of beef by rubbing them up with a spice blend comprised of salt, coarse pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder, the same rub they use for their famed brisket. The result of 4-5 hours in Hoodoo’s Lang smoker, are several slices of juicy prime rib that are medium rare to medium in the middle of the roast, and medium well at each end, with that BBQ bark effect on the outside. 

Portions for “Prime Rib Thursdays” are a one-pound single cut ($25) and a two-pound pitmaster cut ($38). Both come out in non-traditional Hoodoo platter style, instead it’s presented on a plain white plate to pay tribute to a classic. The thick, tender beef comes with two sauces—natural au jus and creamy horseradish—for your dipping pleasure. Sides are a handful of Hoodoo’s underrated hand-cut fries and a small mixed greens salad that’s lightly dressed with lemon vinaigrette. 

If by chance you can’t make it on Thursday and there’s still leftover beef, Hoodoo lets it cool down and deli slices it thin for French dip sandwiches with melted Swiss cheese during lunch on Fridays. 

This needs no further convincing, but I will offer you a tip. Get there before or right at the dinner rush to avoid what is a usual sell-out. Either way, you’ll make it to the Brown Residence one of these Thursdays, and prime rib will be there for you. 

Hoodoo Brown BBQ

967 Ethan Allen Hwy; Ridgefield

(203) 438-6033; www.hoodoobrownbbq.com/