Ozark Mountain Smokehouse (Food Review)

Ozark Mountain Smokehouse

215 West Dickson Street

Fayetteville

479-267-3567

4 forks

Cuisine: Deli

Noise level: Johnny Cash

Overall ambience: Down home

Price range: $5-$8

Time: 45 minutes

Open since: 1956

A gang of our reviewers made their way to Dickson Street on a beautiful afternoon to check out the lunch offerings at Ozark Mountain Smokehouse, a downtown fixture for more than 50 years.

We entered serenaded by the sounds of “My Name is Sue,” the Johnny Cash classic, and ordered four sandwiches before taking a seat on the patio to watch the world go by (and one person try poorly to parallel park).

It took about 15 minutes to get our grub, but we barely noticed the time while poring over a recipe for a “kitty litter cake” in a local grocer’s flier that sounded perfect for Jay Leno or David Letterman (green food coloring and Tootsie rolls were ingredients).

Now, back to something more appetizing.

One reviewer had the veggie muffuletta ($6), a toasted ciabatta sandwich featuring, yep, veggies, and some melted cheese. Our reviewer found it had “excellent flavor, a lot of cheese and the perfect temperature.”

Another had the barbecue plate ($7), choosing the pulled pork sandwich over the four ribs. The BBQ was a little dry, according to our reviewer, but with a healthy helping and enjoyable sides of pasta salad and a fruit bowl.

The Smokehouse club ($8) was piled four inches high on ciabatta bread with juicy turkey and ham and crispy bacon. In a tribute to the sandwich’s tastiness, our reviewer had his basket emptied before his daintier colleagues were halfway through. Thank goodness for the chips included with each sandwich.

Finally, our fourth chose the Trough ($7), calling it “an awesome combo of avocado and cream cheese” for a sweetness that was not “too sweet.”

We topped off the meal with a splurge on one each of Ozark Mountain’s homemade oatmeal, chocolate chip and sugar cookies.

Each was delicious in its own way, but the sugar cookies stood out to the point one reviewer had to see what was in them.

Secret ingredient? Sour cream.

“The cookies were better than my mom’s, and she’s a home-ec teacher,” our reviewer said.

So if you like Johnny Cash, homemade bread, choice cuts of meat and have a bit of a sweet tooth, Ozark Mountain Smokehouse should be right up your alley.