Favorite barbecue joint?

[abefroman329]

Regional Chain - Sonny's (southeast, mostly GA and FL)

I used to love Sonny's, but I haven't been there in 20 years. I hope it's still good.

[roadman65]

http://www.bigmikesbbqsh.com/
A great place in Houma, LA.

[US71]

What are your favorite BBQ restaurants? I like quite a few. Here are some of my favorite 'cue joints by state:

Missouri: Gates, LC's and many others in Kansas City.

Arkansas: Smitty's in Conway, Jo Jo's in Sherwood, McClard's in Hot Springs.

Oklahoma: Elmer's in Tulsa.

Not Wild Horse Mountain?

[webny99]

Dinosaur BBQ
<end thread>

[paulthemapguy]

Black Dog in Urbana, IL.  Lines would trail out the door and down the block at their flagship location--they opened up a second spot in Champaign and I've been itching to see it.  One of the top rated in the nation, I've heard!

Breckenridge Brewing in Denver has excellent BBQ too (it qualifies as a BBQ joint).  And I will say that Mission BBQ earns its hype.

[Rothman]

Dinosaur BBQ
<end thread>

Overrated.

[abefroman329]

Virgil's, especially considering it's a BBQ joint in Times Square. The chicken wings and the biscuits and gravy were my Friday night dinner for many years.

[inkyatari]

The absolute BEST BBQ I've ever had was at a diner in the town of Pig, KY, just a mile or two south of Mammoth Cave National Park, and that is the Porky Pig Diner.  Typical small town diner feel, no menus, but everything is listed on a Pepsi letter board over the counter.  We were turned on to this place by one of the park rangers.  Several of them will buy whole smoked pork butts from them.

We went there in 2010, and we had already eaten at Moonlite BBQ in Owensboro, KY on the trip and I was reluctant to eat more BBQ for some reason (don't ask me why,) and one of the owners talked me into it, and I'm glad he did.

The owner was telling me about how they get visitors from all over the world, and that how the international visitors, especially those from France, were shocked at the concept of a dry county.  Really great people, and great small town food to boot.

[wriddle082]

Dinosaur BBQ
<end thread>

Overrated.

"Greatest"  BBQ does not come from the Northeast.  Ever.  Period.

Only areas from Missouri and Kansas south, Texas east, and Georgia west, can claim to have "greatest"  level BBQ.  (Notice how I left out the Carolinas?)

Anyway, I've always been partial to dry rub ribs, and the only time I ever ate a full rack in one sitting was at The Rendezvous in Downtown Memphis about 20 years ago, and I desperately need to go back.  I am also partial to pulled pork sandwiches from many places throughout Nashville, and have really started to like brisket more and more and therefore need to get back to Texas and try more places out.

[webny99]

Dinosaur BBQ
<end thread>

Overrated.

Maybe on some stuff, but they have great sides. And a great cookbook for those who agree.
It is iconic, and it is necessary to take first time visitors there, even if I personally am not totally blown away any more.

"Greatest"  BBQ does not come from the Northeast East Coast.  Ever.  Period.

FTFY. There's a big difference, as you would know if you'd ever been to Upstate NY.

[hbelkins]

We went there in 2010, and we had already eaten at Moonlite BBQ in Owensboro, KY on the trip and I was reluctant to eat more BBQ for some reason (don't ask me why,) and one of the owners talked me into it, and I'm glad he did.

Someone has posted about this place before. (Maybe you?)

I was wondering if anyone would mention Moonlite. It gets all the publicity, but I'm told that Old Hickory in Owensboro is much better.

Someone mentioned Sonny's. They're in Kentucky, and the one in Richmond has a fanbase. I've never eaten there, but I hear it's good.

There's a local chain in the Knoxville area called Buddy's. My brother and I ate at the Kingston location the evening of the eclipse last year, and it was pretty good.

[MikeTheActuary]

"Greatest"  BBQ does not come from the Northeast.  Ever.  Period.

Actually, I recently learned of HooDoo's near Danbury, CT, which places very high in some national rankings.  I haven't been myself, but the reviews are such that I suspect it's actually some kind of dimensional warp that has caused a piece of Texas to appear alongside Route 7, because it couldn't actually be in CT.  My wife and I WILL be making a pilgrimage at some point soon.

HooDoo's reputation is such that I've gone from describing Bears as "best BBQ in CT (but that doesn't say much)" to "it's just down the street and the sauces are decent, but...".

In terms of absolute favorite 'que... I grew up and regularly visit Memphis, so how do I choose just one? 

In KC, my favorite would be the Corky's I had FedExxed in from Memphis, just to tweak the locals who always had Jack's catered in for quarterly meetings.  (Corky's is overrated in Memphis -- although not as overrated as Rendezvous -- but it's still pretty good.)  When visiting the area, I preferred Arthur Bryant's to Jack's and Gates', but I'm aware there are other places I should have tried.  However standard KC sauce is sweeter than I like my vitamin Q to be.  (I prefer dry rub, but if I'm going wet I want my sauce to be tangy with a little bit of bite.)

In San Antonio, my favorite would be the ambrosia prepared by a coworker who spends his weekends in season competing and frequently winning area contests.  His sauces are a little smokier than I prefer, and he specializes in beef which every Memphian knows isn't real BBQ, but that aside his meats are incredible, and he has the best baked beans I've ever had.

Damn.  Now I want some BBQ.  Guess I'm going to have to go make do with Bears', when they open in a few minutes.

[qguy]

"Greatest"  BBQ does not come from the Northeast.  Ever.  Period.

OK, so I won't call it "greatest." That would just be dumb. How would someone defend that anyway? I'll put it this way though: I love barbecue and I look for it everywhere I travel. One of my favorites is where you'd least expect it. Sweet Lucy's Smokehouse in northeast Philadelphia. The ribs are fall-off-the-bone tender. They start with a dry rub and sauce the ribs at the end, if you want, or you can sauce the ribs yourself. The sides are great (except the cole slaw, which in my opinion is just so-so), the corn bread is moist and flavorful, and the sweet tea is sweetened with simple syrup (the secret to great sweet tea).

The owners started out years ago operating out of a truck at lunchtime in a light industrial area and became so popular they moved into the corner of a nearby industrial building (on State Rd, a few blocks above Cottman Ave., if anyone wants to know).

[Rothman]

Dinosaur BBQ
<end thread>

Overrated.

Maybe on some stuff, but they have great sides. And a great cookbook for those who agree.
It is iconic, and it is necessary to take first time visitors there, even if I personally am not totally blown away any more.

"Greatest"  BBQ does not come from the Northeast East Coast.  Ever.  Period.

FTFY. There's a big difference, as you would know if you'd ever been to Upstate NY.

Dinosaur hasn't been around long enough to be iconic.  It is average at best.

[ilpt4u]

Black Dog in Urbana, IL.  Lines would trail out the door and down the block at their flagship location--they opened up a second spot in Champaign and I've been itching to see it.  One of the top rated in the nation, I've heard

Can't say I've had that one. I've had Lil Porgy's up that way, and its very good (I think)

[ftballfan]

The best I've had in Michigan has to be Smokehouse 52 in Chelsea, MI. Almost always lines on weekend nights! I usually have a pulled pork sandwich that comes with bacon and Mac and cheese (with a side of Mac and cheese) and it's always really good (and usually comes out relatively quickly).

[csw]

Some great ones off the top of my head...

Ray's in Norman, OK, had pulled pork to die for.
Serious Texas in Durango, CO, was heavenly after getting out of the San Juan NF backcountry (they have locations all over CO and NM)
Sonny's is a regional chain that I also love. We'd always stop at the one in Corbin, KY, on our way to the Smokies.

[ce929wax]

I've eaten at Buddy's in Knoxville once.  It was OK, but not the best I have ever had.  I prefer Texas BBQ to North Carolina though, so that could have something to do with it.