Madison’s east side continues to be a depository of chain restaurants. Will it ever be like its crosstown rival and have a Delaney’s? an Otto’s? an Eno Vino?

Joining the fray recently was Dickey’s Barbecue Pit. Since the Madison area hasn’t seen its likes, I thought I’d write a short review.

I’m a meat lover, and I appreciate being able to combine different types of meats, and that’s something you can do here. On one plate, I tried the brisket and polish sausage. I prefer brisket in slices, but this chopped version was good, albeit a little weak in flavor. It’s really dependent on the sauces, which I’ll get to in a bit. The sausage was actually my favorite item of the day–it was not at all bland like so many poorly constructed links.

On the other plate, I had the Fall-Off-The-Bone Pork Ribs and the southern pulled pork. The ribs were too smoky (re: dry) for my liking, and the pulled pork seemed to be missing the requisite fat. Just like in the case of the brisket, using either the regular, sweet or spicy BBQ sauces really helped the meats. I guess that’s okay when the sauces are good, and they were in this case.

You get two sides and a roll with every plate. I wouldn’t get the jalapeno beans again, as they weren’t at all sweet or spicy. Both the creamy coleslaw and the mac & cheese were fairly standard. The winner was the onion tanglers, which were deep-friend onion pieces (not in a ring) that reminded me of the parts of an onion blossom served at other restaurants.

A pleasant surprise was the free ice cream and pickles (pregnancy craving, anyone?). I added the soft serve vanilla (the only flavor) to my root beer to make a float.

Dickey’s Barbecue Pit is open every day for lunch, dinner and carryout. Catering is available, too.