Drive near the intersection of Holcomb Bridge Road and Highway 9 and the sweet smell of hickory is sure to be in the air from the nearby Dreamland Barbecue. What an attraction. My mouth waters just from the smell anytime I'm in the area.

But wait. Dreamland has a history, and its impressive, so before we sit down and eat some ribs let's take a journey a few years ago, a few miles away. Northern Alabama is home to Tuscaloosa, an old Indian village that may have greeted Hernando deSoto during his hasty retreat across what today is the Southeastern United States. Today the town is best noted as home to Alabama's Crimson Tide and one of the truly great football coaches, Bear Bryant. "Bear" loved Dreamland and so did his players. Remarkable because when "Big Daddy" opened the place in 1958 the University of Alabama was a segregated school (Big Daddy was African-American). Big Daddy died a few years back, and Dreamland has been in and out of financial difficulty, but it lives on. In January, 2000, north Georgia got a sampling of the food that's been driving Alabama crazy for almost 50 years.

Don't go in expecting an extensive menu. By printing it in big letters Dreamland has succeeded in making a page and a half out of the modest selection. Essentially the choice is whether you want a slab or half-slab of ribs, or one of their sandwiches. Both selections are excellent and they come in Flintstone sizes (extra large and larger). The ribs are moist and juicy, parboiled, then braised on the outside. A major pile of napkins is distributed with every plate and you will need them. By the time our feeding frenzy was over the pile of napkins was covered in rib drippings and barbecue sauce.

White bread is included with the meal to sop up any drippings that don't make to the mouth. Side dishes are pretty much the standard fare of cole slaw and bbq beans. The slaw has a vinegar-based dressing instead of the creamy dressing that seems to be the favorite in Georgia.

Entertainment is strictly boob-tube variety, but the choice on channels was pretty good, ranging from an old Jack Nicholson movie to a fishing show.



Location: 10730 Alpharetta Hwy., Roswell, GA
Directions: Take Georgia 400 to Mansell Road. Go 1 mile west to Highway 9 and turn left. Dreamland is on the right.
Additional information:

Date added: November 16, 2003
Last update: January 23, 2004