grown here. And when Sandi passed
away in August of 2016, they most
certainly grieved here. “She was the most
enthusiastic of all of us when we started
this journey,” Cheri says of her mother-
in-law. “And we’ll always miss her—but
we’ll never lose the gift she gave us with
her beautiful spirit.” Getting down to the
heart—or the meat—of the matter, Hot
Spot is the culmination of a process, the
answer to a prayer. And for the Hlubeks,
that’s the most powerful flame keeping their
smokers going.
March 2017 | 21
in on the family affair, Jim’s sister Paula
joined the team not long after they fired up
the pits, making their foursome an even
more fantastic five.
Their time and their patience, along
with their love for what they do and their
unashamed and outspoken willingness to
credit their success to God have been their
secret sauce—and that’s a difference you
can taste. “We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t
in God’s plan, and sometimes, that’s really
all we have to go on,” Cheri says. “But
that’s been enough.” More than enough,
perhaps, as they’ve been winning awards
almost since day one, and their booming
business is far from being a flash in the pan.
As one can plainly see—and smell—
they’ve mastered the pit, and their big black
smokers are hard at work earning their
keep. Hour after hour they toil, turning
raw cuts of pork and beef into heaven on
a plate—meats that are fork-tender, juicy,
and infused with the smoky notes of hickory
and oak. At Hot Spot, they let the meat
shine, using only a dry rub rather than
mopping it with sauce during their time-
intensive process. Saucing comes after the
meats are pulled or cut, an optional add-on
to meat that could stand well enough on
its own—not that their house made sauce
could be considered an afterthought. Quite
the contrary, in fact, as bottles of both
their black pepper laced tomato-based
concoction and their dry rub spice blend are
in high enough demand that the restaurant
actually sells them. Perfect, perhaps, for
enjoying with whatever leftovers you
might have to take home—if there are any
leftovers, that is.
Serving piles of tender hand-pulled pork,
beef brisket, full cut pork spareribs, juicy
sliced chicken breast, and a mild pork and
beef sausage, Hot Spot is a carnivore’s
dream come true, every morsel of meat
cooked to perfection with just the right
amount of smokiness. And whether you
pick a plate or decide to double-fist a
sandwich, each bite is full of the full-bodied
flavor that comes through patience.
As any Southerner would know, no
barbecue is complete without a side—or
four—and Hot Spot has a menu full of side
dishes so tasty it might be impossible to
decide on a favorite. If cheese makes you
melt, you’ll love their Smoked Ham Mac &
Cheese, an ooey gooey mixture of creamy
cheese, noodles, and chunks of smoked
ham that’s worthy of licking the plate clean.
Packed with pieces of brisket and pork their
sweetly sauced brown sugar baked beans
put plain ole’ pork and beans to shame,
while the balanced fusion of mustard and
mayo coating each forkful of their potato
salad really creams the competition. For
stew lovers, Hot Spot is an answer to
prayer, full of sausage, brisket, and pork
stewed together with veggies and spices in a
tomato-based broth. And while meat holds
their hearts, they also make a mean salad,
perfect for pairing up with their smoky
proteins or well-dressed enough to stand on
its own two stems.
All that smokiness just might be begging
for some sweetness to balance it out, and
the dessert menu certainly has some sugar
to share. Easily topping the charts is their
Lemon Cream Pie, a light and creamy
lemon confection in a graham cracker
crumb crust topped with fresh whipped
cream. Much like everything else they
serve, no attention to detail is spared here,
no corners cut in the interest of expediency.
Each pie on their menu is a homemade slice
of bliss, lovingly made by 84-year-old Paul,
Hot Spot’s resident pie man and baker of
all things in decadent. And if you want a
cookie for cleaning your plate (or even just
because), one of their fresh baked cookies
will really make you crumble, each made
with lots of love, lots of care…and lots of
butter.
It has been a feast of faith, though they
have certainly met their challenges and
faced loss. They have laughed here and
Smoked Ham Mac & Cheese
INGREDIENTS:
1 lbs. elbow macaroni
1 1/4 cup mild shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/3 cup canned cheddar cheese sauce
1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup whole milk
1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
1/3 lbs. smoked ham, diced
1 tbsp. salt
1 tbsp. black pepper
*1 cup mild shredded cheddar cheese (for topping)
DIRECTIONS:
In a large pot on high heat, bring water to a boil
and add macaroni, cooking according to package
directions until al dente. Drain water from pot
and add remaining ingredients, stirring together
until fully mixed. Pour noodle mixture into a large
casserole dish and bake for 20 minutes at 250-275
degrees. Remove from oven, stir, and top with an
additional 1/2- 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
before returning dish to the oven for an additional
5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted well.
Hot Spot Barbecue is located at 901 East La Rua
Street, Pensacola, Florida 32501. Open Monday-
Thursday 11:00 a.m.- 8:00 p.m., Friday-Saturdays
10:30 a.m.- 9:00 p.m. For more information,
call (850) 497-6060 or Follow them on Facebook
at www.facebook.com/HotSpotPensacola/. For
information on events or catering, call Cheri at
(850) 712-7752.
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