Every so often, you will walk into a place of business not knowing what to expect, stay awhile, soak in all that is right about it and leave feeling so much better than when you arrived.

How can you put a price tag on that?

It's that way at the modest, working-class, family-oriented, unpretentious, affordable, super-friendly House of Chicken and Ribs, and it's worth the trip even if Antelope is not nearby.

This is not what we would define as high-end dining with tablecloths and table service and, too often, a tad of stuffiness.

This is good eating with great vibes overseen by a husband-and-wife superstar team and a friendly young woman taking your order who just might call you "Sweetie" as you mull over the choices.

Yes, they have the chicken and ribs and fried okra absolutely nailed. The ribs are done the right way – in a smoker over low heat, for six hours until the meat is dense and tender and infused with the kind of flavor that comes only with time and patience, with the introduction of the requisite culinary secrets when the time is right.

But there's something special about this spacious storefront eatery in Antelope that transcends good food. I have eaten good ribs in the Deep South in Atlanta, and in Birmingham and Opelika, Ala. I have driven into the Georgia countryside to a private club of old geezers and had pulled pork that they started cooking at 4 a.m. in a rickety smokehouse. I've even managed to make great, fall-off-the-bone ribs thanks to a timeless recipe in "Joy of Cooking."

But I've never experienced the personal touch quite the way I did at this out-of-the-way eatery on Elverta Road.

In my world, owners Dwight and Kim Barnett are heroes, not because they pulled someone from a burning building or a raging river, but because they just might be the nicest, most personable and genuine people you are ever going to find at a place with a counter and cash register.

They run a business the way it's supposed to be run, employing old-fashioned fundamentals toward both the cooking and the customer service. They sold the business a few years ago but returned in 2007, bought it back and brought back their special way with people.

When I told Dwight I had spotted him giving a big guy a big hug at the table next to mine, he laughed and said, "That's how I am. Where can you go to get that, other than a mom-and-pop restaurant? I'm so grateful that customers come through the door we'd better be kicking up our heels."

The Barnetts serve delicious, affordable, high-quality food they believe in. They appreciate your business and let you know it. On the first visit, they treat you as if you are guests in their home. By the second visit, you're family.

It's called House of Chicken and Ribs for a reason. It's like finding your way to your favorite aunt and uncle, if you were lucky enough to have an aunt and uncle brimming with charisma – and if they rose early to light the smoker, cook the chicken and tri-tip just right, and watch over those wonderful ribs for all those hours.

"We want it to feel like you're coming home to the comfort of your house," said Dwight Barnett.

Don't know about you, but my house doesn't have tender smoked pork ribs, chicken, hot links, yams, okra, baked beans, hot sauce and corn bread with actual kernels of corn.

By the second visit, Kim Barnett remembers people's names. She said it comes naturally. So when I said jokingly that I would be even more impressed if she remembered the names of my three dogs and two cats, too, she said, "Let's hear 'em."

The first time we were there, Dwight Barnett came over, shook my hand and asked how everything tasted. He was proceeded by his son Dominick five minutes earlier, and by his wife 10 minutes prior, not with handshakes but to make sure everything was OK. And 10 minutes before that, Janisha Alexander called me "Sweetie" not once but twice as I ordered the mini-sampler – three choices of meat with three side dishes for $16.99.

That's the best thing to order to determine whether House of Chicken and Ribs just may be your new second home. There's nothing mini about it. I'd suggest the pork ribs, the chicken and the nicely seasoned all-beef hot links.

For the sides, Dwight tells me the okra is a must. I'd also get the mac 'n' cheese and either the yams, collard greens or baked beans, depending on who raised you and where.

If you're an aficionado of ribs, skip the combos and the compromises. Get the pork ribs (or beef, if you have a religious aversion to eating pork). The half-order with two sides for $12.99 is plenty of good eating.

If you go by "Fridge" or "Tank" and your grandmother forbids you to sit on her rattan furniture, go for the full order with four sides for $22.99. I would also recommend a designated driver, lest you slip into a food coma on the way home.

I'm also fond of fried fish in moderation, and enjoyed the red snapper with two sides for $9.99. With fish, hush puppies are a must. I was pleasantly surprised by the hot links, which had excellent flavor and a moderate kick of heat.

My sampling of the menu was not without a few missteps. My corn on the cob was cooked too long, the kernels too plump and mushy. The baked beans were excellent one time, so-so another.

Food cooked slowly on a barbecue or in a smoker has a loyal, sometimes fanatical following. I remember reading a story a year ago in the New Yorker, of all magazines, about the best barbecue spot in Texas – how customers wake up early and drive far to a dive that's open only on weekends and that often sells out before noon.

It's too soon to declare House of Chicken and Ribs the best in our neck of the woods, but I can safely say I have not had better food in this category, and I have definitely not encountered better people.

As we were heading out the door, Dwight Barnett shook my hand and Kim Barnett, true to her word, began reciting the names of my three dogs and two cats. I found myself kicking up my heels as I walked away.

Call The Bee's Blair Anthony Robertson, (916) 321-1099.