Goochland Gazette Article
Grandpa Eddie's passion for pork...and beef
By Wesley Hester
In October 2005, Carey Friedman was a practicing attorney, a former staff attorney for the General Assembly and policy director for the Commonwealth's new leader, former Lt. Gov. Tim Kaine. In November he took the next logical step. He opened a barbecue joint.
Grandpa Eddie's Alabama Ribs & BBQ is the result of Friedman's ongoing love affair with barbecue and the restaurant business in general. Since its opening, the small Centerville operation, formerly home to Bungalow Grill and Diner 250, has gained much attention, earning rave reviews and positive mention in several Richmond area publications.
Friedman has lived in Goochland for about 12 years, but he grew up all over the south North Carolina , Alabama , Texas all the barbecue states. He said he took a little of each region's barbecue secrets, which is how he created the menu for Grandpa Eddie's. Well that, and of course his grandpa Eddie.
Yes, Grandpa Eddie Schanzer is the real secret. Born in Kansas City , Eddie was a barbecue fanatic. When he moved to Mobile , Ala. his love for the meat only grew and he began to teach his family the methods he'd learned over the years using a homemade pit in his back yard.
Friedman and his sister, Lindy Grossman, were two of the children lucky enough to learn from Eddie. And so it made sense that after years of expanding upon the recipes in their home kitchens, the two decided to share it with Goochland. Grossman and family live in Chicago where she and her husband are financial partners with Friedman.
They own two restaurants there and were looking for a new venture I was looking for something to do outside of law, explained Friedman who said this is his first foray into restaurant ownership, but certainly not the business.
I've been working in and out of restaurants since I was 15, he said. I've always wanted to stay involved in the business.
He's also familiar with the location, having worked eight years in the building for both Bungalow Grill and Diner 250. But in preparation for the transition, Friedman trained under Chef Robert Ramsey of the Fox Head Inn. I wanted the ability to have some classical training even though we're making barbecue, he said.
It seems to have paid off and Friedman has made Grandpa Eddies very much his own. He rarely leaves the place and is personally involved in each dish that he serves. That's important to him.
We're trying to do one thing and do it well, he said. We're trying to keep it simple.
The menu is a testament to this, with everything you'd expect from a barbecue restaurant and more, but without the overwhelming array of options one might expect form a barbecue expert. And while the pork and beef take center stage, Friedman was careful to consider others with burgers, made-from-scratch soups, the already legendary peanut butter pie, and even vegetarian options.
We do everything from scratch, he said. And we cook everything to order when you order it. You can't hurry this kind of food there are no shortcuts.
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| Photos by Wesley Hester
Carey Friedman serves up an eye-of-round roast beef Miss Mare. |
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| Carey Friedman and daughter Sophie tend to the smoker. |
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