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“World's best cornbread ”
Review of Ike's Rack Shack

Ike's Rack Shack
Ranked #982 of 4,810 Restaurants in Melbourne
Cuisines: South American
More restaurant details
Restaurant details
Dining options: Reservations
Neighbourhood: Lygon Street
Reviewed 14 February 2015 via mobile

Once again we travel on our hunt around the area for Melbourne's best American BBQ. The last time we did this was to the Melbourne BBQ Festival at the Victoria Markets where we were immensely disappointed. We were determined on this Valentines Day evening for a Melbourne BBQ redemption, and Ike's did not let us down.

We were seated straight away, and our waitress (I think her name was Katie) was an absolute hoot. She had my wife in stitches with laughter. The jokes were just bouncing back and forth until we eventually ordered.

I ordered a half pound of pork ribs, whereas the other half went the lamb ribs. Between us, we shared home made cornbread & a salsa dish.

I honestly did not have enough time to grab my phone to check in on social media sites, and BANG!!! The food was served. There is no way to describe what sort of party my taste buds were having in my mouth, however this party could have made some serious money on cover charges to this party. The cornbread was nothing like I have tasted before, and after visiting diners in 34 American States which I have visited, this cornbread leaves the rest for dead. The salsa with its secret little ingredients was hard to put down, and then the meat. It just melted in your mouth. When we initially started talking to the waitress she asked if we had been to Le Bon Ton in Richmond as a comparison, where she explained that Ike's is better. Big shoes to fill but they did not disappoint.

1  Thank Michael W
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviews (40)
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32 - 36 of 40 reviews

Reviewed 26 January 2015

We had been recommended the place by our son, but he was nervous about us going as it was not our normal sort of place. We loved it.

The wait staff were helpful, ribs were great as you would except, but also ensure you try the side, wings, corn bread, tomato salad etc all were great.

Highly recommend it, if you are into spirits then they have a great select, we stuck to the beer and cider and all were great.

Date of visit: January 2015
Thank Eileen B
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 22 January 2015

My expectations of Ike's Rack Shack were very high on the taxi ride there. The restaurant was very busy for a Thursday dinner but we couldn't breathe. Mid twenty day with high humidity and we were all dripping with sweat and struggling with the lack of fresh air. Twice during my meal I had to go outside to recover. The Lamb ribs were more fat than meat. Corn bread was refreshing and the service was fantastic. I even stopped drinking my beer and ordered a coke on ice (never happened before). Will only go back in Winter or when AC is installed.

Date of visit: January 2015
    • Value
    • Atmosphere
    • Service
    • Food
Thank 738darrenp
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 21 January 2015

its a bit dark, but it actually goes with the theme, service is excellent. we had the beef ribs ( a bit salty, but the salt was added later by the kitchen), pork ribs where the best, tender and succulent. interesting fried pickles which go well with the pork, corn salsa was yum, i am not into marrow but everyone on my table loved it,they have a good range of alcohol also, expensive when u think about it, but worth a visit

Date of visit: January 2015
    • Value
    • Atmosphere
    • Service
    • Food
Thank romepere
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 12 January 2015

I'm not a vegetarian, I love meat as much as the next person. But I had to try the vegetarian 'ribs' as I can't say I've seen them anywhere else! It's a mix of polenta with vegies and topped with seeds served with a delicious relish. Would definitely have again! The pork ribs were also very moreish, and the drinks generous and tasty.

Date of visit: December 2014
Thank Carz84
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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