Bites Nearby: Kopin's Original Firehouse

They say that if your butcher doesn't know what St. Louis cut means, get a new butcher.

But we're kinder here at Mentor Patch. The St. Louis rib cut— one of the four most popular cuts — is a slab of spare ribs with the gristly rib tips lopped off. Sometimes called barbecue cut, the key is in those tips being removed.

I tell you this because the owner of , 7722 Lake Shore Blvd., is not interested in giving out information.

“Don't write anything about me, because then I'll have more customers. And I have as many customers as I need,” said the owner, who wouldn't give his name.

A forward response from the guy who has been cooking his ribs for the past 41 years at Kopin's.

“The big thing is people either like me or they don't. I treat people the way they treat me. It's all about the way people treat one another.”

Kopin's does not have a working website, so its menu is hard to pin down. But through Delivermefood.com we glean it sells its St. Louis-style ribs a la carte — half a slab ($11.99), a full ($17.99) or one and a half ($26.99) — as well as “pig wings,” which are crispy ribs, in half slabs for $7.95, eight pieces for $12.95 or full slabs for $14.95.

Crispy chicken wings sell in 10, 20 or 30 pieces; there are eight different kinds of gyros; rib dinners and family dinners with 10 predictable sides (also bought separately). And there are party packs. (Just don't invite too many potential customers.)

Hours range from noon to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday. And Saturdays are optional, but he tends to be open 1 to 7 p.m.

There are negative reviews of the owner online, but clearly Kopin's is doing something right.

“I appreciate what you're trying to do, but I'm just not into that sort of thing. I have something cooking right now, so I have to go.”