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Grillin’ and Chillin’

By Jeffrey Markowitz / Detroit


Mike Bengals, Bernie Kaftan, David Ekelman, Harold Oleinick, Jeffrey Markowitz, Mark Silverman, Bobby Graff, Larry Oleinick, Barry Lefkowitz, and Bowie Jacobson
The Oak Park Crew (L to R): Mike Bengals, Bernie Kaftan, David Ekelman, Harold Oleinick, Jeffrey Markowitz (the author), Mark Silverman, Bobby Graff, Larry Oleinick, Barry Lefkowitz, and Bowie Jacobson

The city of Berkley, Mich. held its first (and probably last) Rib Off Contest on June 27th. It was a Tuesday evening, and the contestants were two Jewish guys (go figure!) who hailed from Oak Park — me and my childhood friend Barry Lefkowitz. The judges were mostly oldies but goodies.

It was a gathering of former graduates of Oak Park High School from the late 1960s, with a few young bloods joining in as well. We have all been friends since elementary school and have shared many good times together — especially when eating. We are chazers (Yiddish for pigs, as in pigging out).

A few months ago, my friend Harold Oleinick suggested that a rib contest between me and Barry would be a great way for all the friends to get together. Barry was still in Florida at the time, and when he heard about the rib contest, he was all in. We set a date and the anticipation and excitement began — and so did the talk. From that point, until the Rib Off, all conversations with friends were basically about the rules of competition.

The first and most important rule was that each contestant would grill his ribs at home, on his own grill. He would then bring his favorite recipe to the Rib Off and be ready for a taste test. The next rule was that the contestants had to provide each judge with three ribs. As it turned out, everyone wanted to be a judge — there were about 20 who voted. The gathering was to be held at Harold and Shirley Oleinick’s house.

The author's ribs: a work in progress. As his son Eli would say, “they/re fire!.”

More than 50 years had gone into training our taste buds. Most of my friends had their first crack of tasting ribs at Checker BBQ in Detroit in 1967. It was located on Livernois, known locally as The Avenue of Fashion. It was well-known for its unique clothing stores, restaurants, and bars. Next door to Checker Barbeque was Baker’s Keyboard Lounge, known as the top jazz nightclub in Detroit.

After an evening at the racetrack, my friends and I would head over to Checker for a late-night meal. We were interested in harness racing and went to three different tracks — Hazel Park Raceway, Detroit Race Course,, and Northville Downs. Each track was allotted a certain number of racing dates during the year, and we attended all of them.


In the wintertime, my friends and I had ice time reserved at the Oak Park Skating Rink every Saturday at the ungodly hours from 2:00 am to 4:00 am. to play hockey. Checker BBQ was our place for a pre-game meal. Typically, if someone had a good night at the track, they might cover the bill. Imagine paying $25 for four rib dinners, including a tip.

Barry and Jeffrey holding the trophy
The champs: Barry and the author claiming their awards

Our favorite server was Shirley (not related to Shirley Oleinick) and she always greeted us with a smile and the same question, “Do you want short ends or long ends?” The difference in price was nominal — short ends were fifty cents more than long ends. Short ends were the most popular at $2.75 for a meal. They came with potatoes and coleslaw. But the highlight of the meal was when Shirley brought out hot towels to clean up our messy barbeque sauce fingers — oh man, it was the bomb.

My interest in cooking started to develop after I made repeated trips to Checker BBQ. I tried to imitate their dishes and then expanded my horizons. When watching the various cooking programs, my imagination peaked and I developed my own style. I even perfected an original barbeque sauce used on many dishes. My family were Guinea pigs and they enjoyed all of it.

After I retired from construction management in 2002, I began a small catering business. At the beginning, most of my dishes were sold to friends and family. The word spread and I soon had people interested in my cooking. The number one requested order was a combo meal of barbecue chicken and ribs.

My friend Barry began his barbecue journey when he had a part-time job working at a popular rib and pizza take-out place in Oak Park— Adam’s Rib. In time, Barry became the manager and learned their secret rib recipe. He went on to college and became a C.P.A. To this day he still enjoys cooking for his family and the secrets of Adam’s Rib live on.

The championship day arrived, and the two heavyweights were ready to have at it. The buzz could be heard about who would win the Rib Off and get the prize trophy that was handmade by Shirley Oleinick.


Jeffrey and Barry

When the crowd gathered, Harold handed out losing tote tickets from Hazel Park Racetrack that had the numbers one and two written on them. He did not cash these tickets — they were losers. The judges had the option of voting for number one or two, or both. At the end of the evening, the vote was counted. Unbelievably, it turned out to be a dead heat. Since it was a friendly competition, this was the best possible finish to a great evening.

Everyone had volunteered to bring side dishes, which were not part of the competition, but added to the meal. There were shrimp cocktails, coleslaw, potato salad, chicken, and for dessert, Shirley made chocolate truffles and brownies. It was an incredible spread, and the group stuffed their faces.

The Rib Off was not only about whose bones were the best, it was an opportunity for the oldies from Oak Park High to get together for another round of reliving the past. We talked about the crazy times from our youth that we have told repeatedly. It was a night to laugh, share memories, and to celebrate where we are in the present. We didn’t know how good we had it in our youth —and we’re still trying to grow up.

Harold and David recovering after the BBQ festivities
Harold and David recovering after the BBQ festivities

 

After a 30-year career in construction management, building commercial and residential jobs, Jeffrey has turned to his passion–cooking. He is the master of the grill and has been nicknamed Chef Jeff by his family. Jeffrey also started a small catering business. Nothing makes him happier than satisfying his customers.

Jeffrey enjoys sports and has spent 60+ years playing golf. Competing with friends, playing the course and, most of all, keeping his head in the game for all 18 holes has been gratifying — even if he’s far away from par. He is also the husband of Judi Markowitz, who writes the Dateline Detroit column for The Insider. They have four adult children and seven grandchildren who keep them on their toes. Oh yeah, let’s not forget George, their Bernese Mountain granddog. Jeffrey’s life is full, and he is happy.

21 comments

21 Comments


makahan11
Aug 15

OMG-I just saw this. I was researching Bobby Graff's funeral and all other links from OP. Bobby and I spoke a few months ago and I am devastated by his passing. Adam's Rib, Scholar, Stuart, Mouse, Judy, Harold, Bernie, etc races, Checker bbq all the best of times and the best people to grow up with!!

My contact, if interested, 818-519-1410, makahan11@yahoo.com.

Marty Kahan

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Guest
Jul 22, 2023

Scholar here. I must let all my former delivery bots know, now all men, that to a person you collectively made the work a joy. Not once did a driver come up short on cash at checkout. All responsible and over achievers. I still run into old customers who long for our ribs and chicken. On Sundays during the summer we made many deliveries to the now defunct Edgewood Swim Club In Southfield. My own kids regard my occasional old menu item cooking as a real treat.

Larry Krohn

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Guest
Jul 24, 2023
Replying to

Hi Scholar,

It was a nice time getting together with the old gang. I learned a lot from you in playing the horses and enjoyed the run for quite a few years. Thank you for the nice commentary.

The Mouse

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Guest
Jul 21, 2023

Loved the story and am impressed by Jeff's writing skills as much as his culinary chops. My only complaint is that I was not invited to the event. They are a great bunch of guys and I am proud to have been part of the same OPHS class of '68. To add a note about Checker BarBQ: A number of us from that class worked at Adam's Rib as delivery boys in addition to Barry. There was Larry Baron, Marty Kahn, Harry Pollack and myself. At that time my brother, Larry Krohn (AKA Scholar), was the manager/part owner. The interesting thing was that after a long shift of delivering ribs, chicken and pizza at Adam's we would regularly head out…

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Guest
Jul 24, 2023
Replying to

Hey Stuart,

Nice to hear from you. Who would have thought you'd be interested in going to a barbeque all the way from Belize. We had a great time and are talking about having another one next year. I would love to have a rib aficionado sample my ribs! Thanks for the commentary. Hope to see you in the near future. All the best,

The Mouse

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Guest
Jul 19, 2023

Love the article & photos❣️Such a great reflection of the OPHS bond that lives within so many of us!!! Would love the name & # for the catering business 🩵

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Guest
Jul 19, 2023
Replying to

Hi,

Thanks for the compliment. I’m glad you liked the article. You can reach me at (248) 763-5884.

Jeffrey

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Guest
Jul 18, 2023

Love your article! It truly reflects your inner most chef talents. You certainly are the grill master in our family and we are very lucky…..it’s difficult to let anyone else do the cooking. You go boy just keep on cooking!!! Gayle

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Guest
Jul 18, 2023
Replying to

Hi Gayle,

I’m glad you liked the article. I have enjoyed cooking for the family and look forward to more get togethers.


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