"We just catered a 1939 high school reunion the other day, and you should have heard the stories," Norma Sanchez, Shorty's catering manager, told the Miami New Times in 2013. "These old-timers were talking about how they used to skip school to go eat at Shorty's." And today, patrons can eat food much like what those teens of yesteryear ate. That's because Shorty's recipes, from its spice rubs to its sauces, haven't really changed from when E.L. "Shorty" Allen opened his first location: a log cabin with screen windows, picnic tables, and cement floors. What started as a humble eatery has overcome fires and hurricanes to grow into five locations spread throughout South Florida. At each, groups still gather around picnic tables to dig into baby-back ribs, barbecue chicken, and the ever-popular coleslaw while washing bites down down with draft beers, wine, or glasses of melted ice if they're patient.