top of page
Sun

Ya Betta Eat

Stop for

Bar-b-que

Ahead

Clanton

THE DOWN LOW

Fusion! In the culinary world, it’s taking cuisine from two different cultures and combining them to make something new. But it can be argued that there are no new ideas, that attempts at food fusion end up with clumsy dishes that aren’t harmonious and also aren’t recognizable as the dishes they came from. Perhaps the worst fusion ever is the “suicide” we used to make at elementary school class parties.  It involved pouring every flavor of soda into a single cup, creating a potion that certainly stunted our pre-pubescent development.


More successful fusion trends are sushi burritos and Korean tacos, both of which feel like a stretch. TexMex is perhaps the most popular and successful fusion of flavors, with the most widely enjoyed yet unrecognized fusion being that of Italian spaghetti, given China is credited with inventing noodles. My new favorite is Cajun barbecue, and it’s being done at Ya Betta Eat Cajun Smokehouse in Clanton.


Cajun food can be intimidating because it’s stereotyped as being spicy. In actuality, it’s just really well seasoned. So much of our food is bland or features one dominant flavor. Cajun food features a blend of spices that activate your senses and get your taste buds dancing. Sure it may set your nose running a little bit, but it should never burn you down just for the sake of being hot.


At Ya Betta Eat, meats are rubbed in a blend of familiar Cajun spices then slow smoked to tender perfection. I specifically went on a Thursday to have the ribs, which come out beautifully sliced and pull cleanly off the bone with each bite. The flavors are big, the meat is tender, and no sauce is needed. But if you go for the sauce, there’s another surprise coming your way.


The sauce is sticky and sweet, but not garishly so like many that are blended with added sugar. It was far more complex than most, with the sweet component at the forefront of its flavor profile. I knew it was natural but couldn’t quite decipher what it was. Peaches! Chef Chris Courville uses peaches from his yard to make a bourbon peach barbecue sauce. It’s a creative bit of culinary voodoo that I can’t compare to anything else. It’s fruity, earthy and rugged, a product of the bourbon, I’m sure. To all sauce lovers, this is one you have to try!


Smoked brisket is served every day and ours came on a HUGE baked potato with cheddar cheese and the house sauce. Our pulled pork came in a bowl, resting on a mound of mac n cheese. Both were delicious and the potato was so big that I spread it out over three meals. There’s no excuse for leaving hungry as they follow the Cajun tradition of big portions.


The Cajun influence doesn’t stop there. Along with traditional sides like baked beans and slaw, you can get jambalaya on select days. The other days it’s pastalaya, which is jambalaya with pasta instead of rice.  Chicken and Sausage Gumbo, Seafood Gumbo, and Boudin Balls are also menu staples. Then there’s the Hot Bar, where you can walk in and get a hot, fresh meal even with a 30-minute lunch break. Red Beans and Rice, Cajun Chicken Alfredo, Dirty Rice, and Crawfish Etouffee are all regulars and bring the flavors of the gulf coast right to central Alabama. It’s the Southern version of surf and turf.


Fusion is a big flirt and barbecue has given in to its charms before. I’ve seen barbecue nachos, smoked chicken ravioli, and eggs rolls stuffed with mac n cheese, chopped brisket, and collard greens. Cajun and barbecue make an attractive couple. They deserve each other and now, are no longer strangers. This joint is a destination and the expectation when you show up is that Ya Betta Eat!

bottom of page