Editor’s note: Ground Zero traditionally visits restaurants in nearby towns and cities during July.
ELKHORN -- Perry Viers admits he didn’t know much about barbecue when he started Boyd and Charlie’s.
“I had an interest in it, but I didn’t do a lot of it at home,†he said.
So he turned to a friend who ran a barbecue restaurant in Alabama. The plan, he said, was for the friend to come up and help Viers get his restaurant started, but the friend bailed at the last minute.
“Our first few months were pretty eye-opening,†Viers said. “It was a learning process, but we figured it out.â€
Indeed, they did. The Elkhorn restaurant, which sits at 2706 N. Main St. in a revitalized part of the small town west of Omaha, will celebrate 13 years in business on July 25.
People are also reading…
Viers also owns and operates Bella Vita, the nearly 10-year-old Italian restaurant across the street. Both restaurants are housed in old, brick buildings, which give them some character and charm.
Viers said his Alabama friend offered him one piece of advice -- which, Viers, thankfully, ignored.
“He told me to stick to pork,†Viers said. “I told him we live in cattle country. We have to have some beef.â€
Boyd and Charlie’s menu is diverse. The restaurant, named for Viers’ sons, features smoked pork, beef, chicken, sausage and turkey, plus comfort food options including homemade macaroni and cheese, chicken-fried steak, fish and chips and hamburgers.
But barbecue is the draw, Viers said, with beef brisket ($14.99) and pulled pork ($11.99) as big sellers. Also popular are the pork burnt ends ($11.99), which I enjoyed during my Sunday afternoon visit with one of my buddies who filled up on a three-meat combo plate ($17.29) of chicken, ribs and brisket. Prices for barbecue fare range from $11.99 to $22.49 (full rack of ribs), with two or three sides and toast served with each entree.
Sides include baked beans, fries, creamy scalloped corn casserole, coleslaw, potato salad, macaroni salad and side salad. For $1.50 more, you can get onion petals, BBQ potato chips, sweet potato coins or corn fritters.
We enjoyed an appetizer ($8.39) of corn fritters, which were served with honey before our entrees arrived.
Sauces are homemade. They include regular, spicy, whiskey and honey mustard. The regular had a strong worcestershire taste to it, while the spicy had a vinegar emphasis to it. The whiskey was my favorite -- a combination of sweet and savory.
The restaurant reminded me of Ole’s Big Game Steakhouse in Paxton, with assorted trophies mounted on the walls, some of which Viers said he bagged himself. It’s a big room with a bar along one wall and table and booth seating around it. It has a rustic feel, perfect for dining on some great barbecue.