Seems like only yesterday that Mike Emerson introduced himself to me by asking, "so...what'd ya think?" moments after I inhaled the juiciest piece of pulled pork since that Busch-beer-fueled blow-out of a pig roast I helped host in Columbia, MO many years ago. Back then, the venerable pig roast was invoked only to celebrate the major occasions. Mike Emerson, owner of Pappy's Smokehouse, feels the same way.
Pappy's third anniversary is tomorrow and Emerson and crew will commemorate the day by cooking up not one, but two whole hogs. No matter what the occasion, though, the man spews one-liners like Dangerfield. "If that groundhog can announce an early spring, you know, we might as well, too."
Pappy's Friday hours remain as vague (and honorable) as they always were: 11 am till 7-ish, or until the day's cue runs out. When people ask me the best time to go there I tell them all the same thing: the lunch hour is the worst, and that there really is no good time--or bad time--to go. Sure, there's usually a line, but the vibe and the interaction in that line is so positive you won't even care about the wait. You will no doubt make make a friend or two--Emerson will be one of them. And, knowing him, tomorrow he may even have a little gift for you.
