Saturday at Rib America: Stalking Bret Michaels
I hadn’t been to Rib America for several years, so when my daughter decided she wanted to hear the Bret Michaels Band after watching “Rock of Love Bus” on VH-1, I figured it could be a special daddy-daughter moment. (Yes, I saw some of the show. Yes, I know who Bret Michaels is. No, I’m not an old Poison fan. I’m about 10-15 years too old.)
In any event, we went out to dinner on the way downtown, got there about 7:15 and parked up near Washington. Walking in via Tucker, we walked past two tour buses, one of which had an ad for Bret’s upcoming autobiography. Figuring Bret himself was probably hanging out on one of the two buses before the show, we bought our tickets to Rib America then took a walk down to the Arch and back to kill a little time. (Passing observation: The Hooters and Caleco’s range of restaurants were doing fair business on Saturday night; several of the higher-end places looked a little slow.)
Back on Tucker at about 8:15, my daughter immediately spotted “Big John,” Bret’s security guard and a fixture on “Rock of Love Bus.” Fearlessly, she asked if she could have a picture taken with him, and he turned out to be quite a charming guy, standing for several photos with her and then patiently accommodating 4-5 other fans. He thanked everyone for coming to the show.
A small crowd gathered around the unmarked of the two buses starting about 8:40 when it became apparent that security would lead Michaels to the stage from that bus. Aside from one relative hard-ass, security also couldn’t have been nicer, and Michaels paused for 10-15 seconds to acknowledge the fans and let them take his picture.
All in all, it was a bargain $5 concert. Michaels played some Poison stuff, some new stuff and both “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Your Mama Don’t Dance (and Your Daddy Don’t Rock ‘n’ Roll),” neither of which I would have put in the heavy metal category in my younger days. I guess we all mellow eventually.
(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
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Joe Bonwich has been the restaurant critic for the Post-Dispatch since 2002 and has covered the local food scene for various publications for more than 25 years. He does his best to maintain his anonymity so that he isn't recognized in restaurants (which is why his picture looks like it does). 
Joe, could’nt you have atleast tried the food? Come on. Rib America and you can try the food. Your the food critic. Shame on you.
I agree. I was waiting to hear what your opinion of the whole set up was like. From the purchase of script, the sampling of Bar-b-que and the entertainment. How was the parking? Were they crowded?
We’re talking about ribs. Ipso facto, they are delicious.
By the way, if you’re going to criticize someone’s writing, you should probably try to keep your own typos and/or grammatical errors to less than four per post.
Thanks Dad, way to make me look like a stalker!
I love him
if i saw bret michaels anywhere around food, i would lose my appetite…nothing says “sexy” like a wrinkled middle-aged rocker with a pooch belly and guyliner….ya…SEXY indeed.
“How was the parking?” Hahaha, a true suburbanite.
And really? All ribs are delicious? I beg to differ. There are good and bad, and it would help to know which are which…especially from a food critic!
As noted in the blog, I’d already had dinner — at a local restaurant you’ll be able to read about next week. This week, you’ll be able to read about the ribs at another local restaurant, Smoking Joe’s.
On the other hand, had I written about the ones at Rib America, you wouldn’t have been able to try them for 12 months — if, in fact, the same group of barbecuers comes back next year.
i will type bret about this.star
You did yourself a favor by eating before attending Rib America. Servings small, food overpriced and ribs had a slight taste of lighter fluid. Good Call
Joe, any idea what it costs to grill in said event? The Grillin Fools might want to put our stuff up against theirs next year!?!?