BY JAY BODAS
Staff Writer
JAY BODAS Metuchen resident and Saucy’s pit-master Dave Buckley applies a sauce mop to a side of beef; he prepares the restaurant’s sauces almost daily from scratch. METUCHEN — There’s a new restaurant in town, and its name, Saucy’s, says it all.
“All of our sauces are made from scratch, and there is very little that is kept frozen, besides the french fries,” owner Michael Stern said. “Sauces don’t last too long, and they take the whole day to prepare. Only Dave Buckley, our pit master, knows the recipe for any of them.”
The restaurant, located at 15 New St., one block from the train station, opened two months ago. Stern has had a steady stream of customers ever since.
“I eat here once a day, every day,” said Ben Varnik, 20, a college student from Florida, who is interning at a company headquartered above the restaurant. “The BBQ Po’ Boy is one of my favorites.”
Stern is a former Navy pilot and Metuchen resident who opened his first restaurant in 1995.
“I originally grew up in Metuchen, and then when I was in the Navy I spent a lot of time down in Texas, where there is a lot of good barbecue, and I moved back to Metuchen again some years ago,” he said. “I have owned restaurants in the past, and I got the idea for Saucy’s while watching a TV show that surveyed the nation’s greatest barbecue joints.”
His first venture was an Italian restaurant he opened with a friend in New York City.
“Back in 1995, when I got out of the Navy, I had a college friend who asked me if I wanted to own a restaurant,” Stern said. “We formed Due Amici, which immediately got a three-star rating from The New York Times. I have been in and out of the business since.”
Barbecue is serious business at Saucy’s.
“We have two smokers in the back where we smoke our meat low and slow, meaning low heat and slow cooking, and we pay close attention to temperature,” Stern said.
“Depending on the meat that is being smoked, we will use different types of wood, ranging from oak to fruitwood,” he said. “For example, apple wood is great for smoking pork ribs since different types of wood will impart a different flavor to the meat. I will drive 20 miles out of my way to get the right piece of wood.”
Saucy’s is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and on Sundays from 4-9 p.m., and often later. Office catering and free delivery for orders of at least $10 is available. For more information, call (732) 205-8226 go to www.saucysbbq.com.