D Starnes Barbecue

Stopped in with our little family of four. I asked if the burgers were hand pattied and the waitress said «yes, but they aren’t put on a grill, they’re put through a machine and then they put the bun on and smash it in another machine. You either like them or you don’t.» I dont. There is not one stitch of seasoning, the meat has a weird texture. Gross. Gross. Gross.

I’m a local and this has become a Saturday tradition. Potato soup and a piece of warm coconut pie with high topped meringue that you would slather your soul in! If you are from out of town, check it out!!!

Go for the Chili or soup. The BBQ is average at best. Good slaw, above average beans, service better than most.

No frills Bbq served plain, freshly smoked and slightly steamy. The sandwiches are served on plain white bread, toasted on one side.
Baked beans were typical with a sweet creaminess. Loved the tangy flavor and freshness of the vinegar coleslaw.
We split a piece of pecan pie, thank
Located in the «downtown» area of Paducah — we were driving down I-​24 looking for BBQ and decided to veer a few miles off highway to try this place.
We also passed 2 other local BBQ joints on the way here that weren’t listed on Unilocal but we decided to stick with d Starnes.

I need to learn to order better
Thinking this was a barbecue restaurant I ordered the smoked pork plate with beans and slaw. Hubby ordered the smoked turkey sandwich. My pork looked and tasted like turkey off the leg. I personally disliked the slaw and beans. Slaw had a bitter sharp taste and beans tasted like canned beans. I did not eat my lunch
As for husbands sandwich. I have seen better school lunch sandwiches. His sandwich consisted two pieces of packaged chopped and pressed «turkey» on dry toast. No condiments.
No barbecue sauce anywhere just a very strong basting type sauce in a bottle like most restaurants use for oil and vinegar.
As we left a gentleman complimented the waitress on the food. Obliviously I need to order better.

This is in a great location in Paducah when you are walking around the historic downtown area. We were only looking for something light and this seemed to be a good choice. I would say it was okay but nothing great. I just did a basic hamburger and potato salad. I would come here again but it might not be my first choice.

Love the pulled pork sandwich. Comes on toasted bread with choice of mild, medium or hot sauce. Medium was really mild, but still good.
I had pecan pie, good not great. Pineapple upside down cake was excellent.
Restaurant is very clean!

I am the first to admit that everyone has their own taste in bbq, but if you are a fan of moist smoky pork, then you may be disappointed here. I just had lunch here and the pork was dry and flavorless. There was no sign of char or smoking in the meat at all. The pork was a pristine white/​tan and I would have assumed it was baked in an oven if I didn’t know better. A thorough soaking in the vinegar was required before my palette could detect anything resembling bbq. If you are a fan of Texas bbq you will probably not like D. Starnes. The prices are great and the pies looked wonderful, but I think I will try another bbq joint next time I’m in town.

LOVE this restaurant, just love it. BBQ and homemade pie, what more could you want?
However, the pulled pork comes cooked and you add the sauce which was perfect for me. My husband would have liked to have it cooked in the sauce. I also adored the cole slaw and the pie, coconut meringue to die for and I don’t even know I liked coconut meringue pie.
Give it a try but remember, you are adding your own sauce. It’s easy, just turn the container upside down and squeeze. Delish!

This is related to the other Starnes barbecue joint in town, as the «d» stands for the first initial of the daughter’s name.
The sauce: the signature is a vinegary spicy sauce. I loved this, but you need to be a fan of the style that’s halfway between a straight vinegar sauce and the sweet molasses/​catsup style sauce. They also have a perfectly respectable molasses/​catsup style sauce. The signature moved me, but the rest of the family didn’t care for it.
The meat: nicely smoked pulled pork and smoked turkey breast were what we ordered. Good stuff, but they don’t have quite enough smoky goodness to stand up without sauce.
The sides: I totally forgot I was on the tamale trail. The hot tamales they serve here are simmered in liquid in a corn husk. I loved them but they have some slow burn fire to them. The baked beans, creamy potato salad, and vinegar cole slaw were solid representatives of their ilk; not worth a trip on their own but perfectly complementary side dishes.
The pie: Just look at the photo. The coconut meringue pie had a wonderfully executed custard and stiff meringue that was just lightly toasted on the outside. I can only imagine how the other pies compare.