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Craving funnel cakes in November? Cotton candy in January? With a year-round menu that sports summery festival fare from Fritos chili pie to shaved ice, Mr. Harry’s Carnival Foods—which aptly bills itself as the place “Where summer never ends”—has you covered.
But these days, the family-friendly restaurant, located at 15581 Manchester Road, is also a destination for barbecue-lovers, offering a full range of smoked classics: brisket, pulled pork and chicken, turkey legs and ribs (see below). Traditional sides—coleslaw, potato salad, baked beans, mac and cheese—round out the selection, with burnt ends (slow-smoked, cubed beef brisket) making an appearance on the specials board about twice a month.
The barbecue is the work of Jim and Mary Randall, who joined owner Harry Freund as partners in the Ballwin restaurant last fall. “We’d had barbecue on the menu, but we were buying it,” Freund said. “They said they could do it better and at half the price.” Since then, the barbecue has proved popular with customers as well as local ’cue experts, racking up a host of prizes on the local barbecue competition circuit (the accolades are noted on their Facebook page).
“We’re the best-kept secret in West County,” laughed Freund. Well, not completely, given that the award-winning barbecue now makes up 80 percent of the restaurant’s sales, according to the budding pitmaster. “We’re getting great response from customers, a lot of compliments.”
Mr. Harry's Carnival Foods
15581 Manchester
Ballwin
636-256-1908
Lunch and dinner, Tue-Sun