Perth Voice Interactive

A NEW player in town has gone all in and is reaping the rewards.

Situated on Beaufort Street in the heart of Mt Lawley, Ribs Lane is open seven days a week (11am to 10pm Sunday-Wednesday and to 4am on Thursday-Saturday).

It’s quite big as well – a 60-seater venue – so the owners haven’t skimped on utility costs, rates or the fit-out.

Their level of commitment was apparent as I drove my jalopy up Beaufort Street on Monday lunchtime – literally every other restaurant nearby was closed.

Ribs is an American-style diner that specialises in slow-cooked ribs, burgers, wings and thick shakes, as well as a range of crepes, waffles and loukoumades (Greek version of donuts) to push your cholesterol into orbit.

The menu had a nice variety of ribs (beef, lamb and pork), wings (honey sriracha, buffalo, parmesan truffle, lemon pepper) burgers (Aussie, chilli cheeseburger, schnitzel and peri peri) and sides (thick cut chips, sweet potato chips, corn ribs and onion rings).

Including burgers in the menu is a clever move as the smallest portion of ribs would probably be too much for lunch.

I got an assortment of dishes for the family to share and we kicked off with the half rack of pork ribs ($25.90).

The portions are humongous and great value for money – the half rack on its own could easily feed three people. There was plenty of tender juicy meat, which fell off the bone, and it was a sticky joy to eat.

You could get it with BBQ or chilli sauce; I went for the tamer BBQ to appease my kids.

The sauce wasn’t too sweet and had a nice balance of flavours with a very subtle heat.

I would have liked a bit more depth of flavour, but overall the ribs were amazing value and a tactile treat.

Things heated up with the honey sriracha wings (five for $9.90). These had a seriously fiery kick, but also a mellow tang from the honey glaze. A bit like pleasure and pain in one mouthful.

I loved them and the chook was tender and good quality.

The Mac and Cheese ($6.90) was another triumph – a glorious mound of creamy cheese, macaroni tubes, bacon and herbs.

Wow, this was one of the best mac and cheeses I’ve had in ages and brilliant value for money.

Rich comfort food that whisked you back to the family dinner table as a kid.

We rounded things off with a portion of thick cut chips ($5.90). Super crunchy and nicely seasoned, they added a bit of texture to the tender meat and mac and cheese.

The serves were absolutely huge and my wife, two kids and I struggled to finish it all. With a bottle of sparkling water it all came to $54 which is great value for a family meal.

The service was friendly and helpful with lots of smiles and the staff made you feel really welcome.

The decor was okay – sort of half-American diner, half-Aussie cafe with red walls, a large counter and comfortable tables and chairs.

There was a half-baked automotive theme with one wall covered in wheel rims and another decorated with old car parts, like some Jeremy Clarkson wet dream.

I’m no petrol-head, so it didn’t float my boat, but hats off for originality and not going down the boring route.

Ribs Lane is fantastic value for money and does superior comfort food (it was queued out the door when I drove by on Saturday night).

I’ll definitely be back to try their burgers and the beef and lamb ribs.

Ribs Lane
644 Beaufort Street, Mount Lawley
ribslane.com.au

by STEPHEN POLLOCK