Bomba’s BBQ
The last couple of weekends have been weird. I haven’t traveled for any skating competitions.
Knowing that I’m not going to eat several meals out on the weekend opens up a little bit of cash for me to grab a meal or two during the week.
I didn’t have a lot going on at work last Tuesday. I had to run some errands and tie up some loose ends but other than that, it was a pretty relaxed day.
I was sitting at my desk thinking about what I could grab for lunch that day. Not sure why but I remember a BBQ place that I really liked in Milwood moved out to Kalamazoo Township a few months ago. It has been a while since I’ve had BBQ so I headed east from downtown.
Bomba’s BBQ is a familiar name in Kalamazoo. It started as a food truck, then a brick and mortar store on Portage Street which has now moved out to Kalamazoo Township.
The restaurant is on Nazareth Road just south of Gull Road. The small building has been many, many things over the last several years. Panderia y Antojitos Guatemaltecos was the most recent business in there but it has also been Taste of Soul by Dips and before that, it was a Chicken Coop for a long time. Now, it’s a BBQ joint. It looks about the same but there’s a new coat of paint on the outside and it looks like they’re still waiting for a sign for the exterior.
The layout of the restaurant hasn’t really change over it’s many iterations of the past few years. There is still an order counter that takes up a large spot on the north side of the building. This is where the kitchen is and when it was a Chicken Coop, this is where all the deep fryers were. Now, it’s a mixture of fries and cook tops. The meat is actually smoked in a trailer out back so most of what’s done inside is just the finishing work and sides. The counter has been dressed up with some faux brick to give it a more BBQ feel.
There are two seating areas but it’s really just one big dining room. The upper level is where you walk in to the building. It’s a series of booths that are way too small for big guys like me.
The other area is a solarium that was super popular in 80’s fast food restaurants. There a couple of other Chicken Coops that have this design in the area but I think this is the only one left in Kalamazoo that has that design feature. Not sure if that is a Chicken Coop design or if there was something here before that. When I was growing up, Wendy’s, Burger King, and Rax had this kind of design but this place feels too small to be one of those. This seating area is all two tops but it’s two top tables so it’s much more comfortable.
I put in an order for the Burnt End Fries. I figured I could get both fries and some tasty BBQ on the same plate. The cost was a little under $15 and it took about ten minutes for the fries to cook and everything to be assembled in a to-go box for me.
When I got back to the office, I popped that box open to find a large order of skin on fries topped with chunks of burnt ends, a home made cheese sauce, home made BBQ sauce, and pico de gallo with a chipotle ranch served on the side. This dish won me over at cheese sauce and BBQ sauce. I love this combination. It’s one of my absolute favorites. I used to order the cheese fries from Slow’s BBQ in Grand Rapids and dump BBQ sauce in to the cheese before dipping the fries in. This tastes exactly like that. It’s so dang tasty. The burnt ends brought that smokiness to the party and the meat was so tender I almost didn’t even realize I was biting it through it to get to the fries. The fries are my favorite kind of fast food fry. The skin-on fries are just better.
I was hesitant to forgo my usual Brisket Sandwich but this was the right choice. That combination of cheese sauce and BBQ sauce….man, there’s nothing better. This was a much bigger portion of food than I was expecting and have no qualms about paying $15 for this.
Bomba’s has always been a favorite of mine. They moved because they couldn’t come to an agreement on a lease. While it’s sad they left Milwood, Bomba’s is a great addition to the East side of town.
SW Michigan Dining 
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