LaClair: Does Wib’s hold up under a critical modern eye? Absolutely

I believe that time has long since passed to turn fresh eyes upon an old restaurant. Founded in 1947, Wib’s Drive In has staying power. A restaurant simply cannot sustain itself for that amount of time without having something special, and I visited inside for the first time recently, intent on finding out what that something special was.

Normally, my husband will treat me to Wib’s for lunch, bringing it to me after visiting the drive thru window. He always gets me the same thing, because it’s what we both like. It is always the combination sandwich, which contains Wib’s delightfully thin sliced smoked pork shoulder, home-made pimento cheese and two thin slices of toasted white bread. That’s it. This sandwich isn’t thick and towering, chunks of meat gushing out everywhere. No, this sandwich is concise, almost neat for barbecue. Wib’s barbecue sauce is thin and a little spicy, not thick and sweet as I usually prefer. But yet, it works. For the record, my normal order also consists of an order of fries, which I love. Thin, like McDonald’s, but not as salty and fried crisper. Perfect.

That is my order, recommended by my husband and stuck to like glue for every order since. I’ve never set foot inside. I think maybe it’s because I didn’t move here until I was a teen, so perhaps I missed that lifelong calling of a true Jacksonian that pulls them all to Wib’s like moths to a flame. Maybe it’s the unassuming building, or the fact that I drive by it every time I go to Jackson. Maybe familiarity really does breed contempt, but not this time. This time, I had my eyes open, my detail-noticing brain turned up to high, and I walked into Wib’s like I’d never had their combination before.

The menu is simple and concise, but Wib’s certainly offers more than a combination sandwich. Like any other restaurant, I honed in on what was different or unique, and decided to order that. I started with an outside combination sandwich, because I’m not so crazy as to give up that pimento cheese, some of the best in the area. The outside sandwich was just like the regular sandwich, but instead of slices of pork shoulder, just the outside of the shoulder is pulled off in chunks, not slices. If you want a more “modern” looking barbecue from Wib’s, this is it. But, I know when talking about barbecue from other restaurants, I often espouse the glory of the meat’s smokiness. Well, a new standard has been set. This is the smokiest barbecue I have ever eaten, bar none. If you love the intense flavor of barbecue rub and smoke, you will get it in every single bite of this sandwich, and I will admit, it was on my threshold for almost being too smoky. I was kind of impressed that Wib’s had pushed me that far. I guess I do have my limits. Also, I decided that I preferred the traditional combination over the outside because, though the flavor was almost painfully intense in the outside, the thin sliced pork shoulder of the combination was so much more tender than the bigger chunks pulled from the outside. It was a texture preference for me.

I also ordered a mince sandwich. Seth said his mom always ordered one of these when their family visited, and I thought it sounded kind of weird. Here was the menu description: “Ground shoulder with sweet pickle relish and salad dressing.” Color me intrigued. What arrived looked much like a tunafish sandwich on toasted white bread, the color kind of gray and unassuming. I was still game so I took a crunchy bite. Served warm, the smoked pork shoulder had been ground into nearly a paste and mixed with sweet pickles and salad dressing. It didn’t look appetizing, and it didn’t sound appetizing, but I beg you to give it a try. If you like ham salad, if you like barbecue, this is the best of both worlds. Smoky, very porky, with that bite of sweet pickle, this may become my new go-to at Wib’s.

I also enjoyed the chili, home made, beefy, with just a little spice, not too much.

If you’ve been to Wib’s, try something new. If you’ve never been, what are you waiting for? Step back into the 80s in this little diner frozen in time, and enjoy a sandwich.