You can find BBQ sandwiches all over the midway at the State Fair. They tend to be flat and tasteless, because the pork has been cooked elsewhere and has sat around for a while. There is one place, though, that regularly has good pork and sides. It is the tent run by the NC Pork Producers. The tent is on the path from the west end of the Commercial buildings, where the Cheerwine stand is, to the southeast corner of Dorton. The BBQ is not bad and the pork loin and sides are very good.
At this year's fair, the tent in front of the Kerr Scott building, which has had exhibits from county fairs in the past few years, was of booths by NC food producers. One of the booths was giving out samples of what looked and tasted like good smoked pork. It was run by the NC Goat farmers. A goat "pullin" could be good eating.
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Saturday, October 16, 2004
Recommended - Danny's, RTP, Morrisville and Cary
311 Ashville Street, Cary NC Map2945 S. Miami Blvd., Durham NC Map
9561 Chapel Hill Rd Morrisville, NC Map
The Danny's I have visited could not be more different. The restaurant in RTP is built for the RTP lunch crowd. It is counter service and police your own. The one in Cary is waiter service, very much what you expect of a typical BBQ place. The food in both is very good. The one in Morrisville is table service, but has more of a strip mall feeling about it than a bbq restaurant.
The sliced beef and pork is excellent. The chopped pork and sliced pork tenderloin is not as good.
There is a note on the menu about a pinkish ring in the meat, apparently an artifact of the smoking process. I have seen it, but it is not very noticeable.
Thursday, July 08, 2004
Acceptable - Smithfield's BBQ and Chicken, Garner
I'd seen these pop up along the freeway to the beach over the years and have wondered if it was a place to take the family. The restaurant turns out to be very informal, even for a barbecue place.
You order from a counter from menu boards on the back wall. Not all of the offerings are on the menu boards. The names aren't always self-descriptive. I ordered a barbecue sandwich, hush puppies and tea, which were all listed as ala carte. I was billed for a combination, which saved me a few bucks, but was not obvious from the board. You pay, get your drinks and go to a table, where somebody brings your order, fairly quickly.
The barbecue was decently flavored. It had enough sauce to not need more and a little pepper kick. The slaw on the sandwich was nondescript, but not bad. The hushpuppies and tea were as expected.
The chicken side of the menu was fried pieces in the usual combinations and buckets. I will try the chicken the next time.
You order from a counter from menu boards on the back wall. Not all of the offerings are on the menu boards. The names aren't always self-descriptive. I ordered a barbecue sandwich, hush puppies and tea, which were all listed as ala carte. I was billed for a combination, which saved me a few bucks, but was not obvious from the board. You pay, get your drinks and go to a table, where somebody brings your order, fairly quickly.
The barbecue was decently flavored. It had enough sauce to not need more and a little pepper kick. The slaw on the sandwich was nondescript, but not bad. The hushpuppies and tea were as expected.
The chicken side of the menu was fried pieces in the usual combinations and buckets. I will try the chicken the next time.
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
Recommended - A Taste of Country - Wilmington NC
Address: 226 S Front St Wilmington, NC
Restaurant: Buffet
Every summer, we rent a cottage on Oak Island. One day during the week, we take the Southport/Fort Fisher ferry to Fort Fisher. After visiting the aquarium and Fort Fisher, we stop for lunch at A Taste of Country on Front Street in Wilmington. They serve a smoked pig which you can pull the meat from. It is usually pretty good, even though it is a buffet.
On the table, next to the house barbecue sauce, is a bottle of Texas Pete. Many years ago, this was the first place I actually looked at the bottle and noticed that it was bottled at TW Garner in Winston/Salem NC. At the time, I thought that it was like Coca Cola, with regional bottlers, but I was wrong. Texas Pete is made in North Carolina by Thad Garner. I guess that "Texas Pete" sounds better than "North Carolina Thad". For the whole story see Texas Pete homepage.
Restaurant: Buffet
Every summer, we rent a cottage on Oak Island. One day during the week, we take the Southport/Fort Fisher ferry to Fort Fisher. After visiting the aquarium and Fort Fisher, we stop for lunch at A Taste of Country on Front Street in Wilmington. They serve a smoked pig which you can pull the meat from. It is usually pretty good, even though it is a buffet.
On the table, next to the house barbecue sauce, is a bottle of Texas Pete. Many years ago, this was the first place I actually looked at the bottle and noticed that it was bottled at TW Garner in Winston/Salem NC. At the time, I thought that it was like Coca Cola, with regional bottlers, but I was wrong. Texas Pete is made in North Carolina by Thad Garner. I guess that "Texas Pete" sounds better than "North Carolina Thad". For the whole story see Texas Pete homepage.
Monday, March 15, 2004
Barely Acceptable - Tony's BBQ, Hillsborough
This is a little hole-in-the-wall at the corner of NC-86 and US-70 Bypass. It is not a hundred feet from the location of Hobgood's, a famous BBQ place of history. Hobgood's decided to close the restaurant and go to all catering some years ago. I never got to the restaurant, but did have the catered BBQ, which was pretty good.
The only BBQ that Tony's has is a BBQ sandwich. They ask if you want slaw. It's really cheap, $1.69, I think. Otherwise, it is typical greasy spoon. I had too greasy french fries and standard sweet tea.
This makes me long for Hobgood's.
The only BBQ that Tony's has is a BBQ sandwich. They ask if you want slaw. It's really cheap, $1.69, I think. Otherwise, it is typical greasy spoon. I had too greasy french fries and standard sweet tea.
This makes me long for Hobgood's.
Tuesday, February 24, 2004
Acceptable - Smoky Joe's, Lexington NC
There are a lot of barbecue restaurants in Lexington. I picked one out just from how it looked from the outside. Smoky Joe's has smokers out back and a large parking lot for the size of the building. Much of the parking lot is taken up by a drive-thru lane. The restaurant is much smaller inside than I expected.
This is my first try at Western NC barbecue. Western sauce has tomato in it, so the red tinge on the meat is from tomato, not from red spices. The cole slaw was red, too. It made an different looking plate.
There was no description of the various orders or sides on the menu. I ordered the sliced plate, not really knowing what I would get. The waitress asked if I wanted hush puppies or dinner rolls. This may be a western thing, but in the east, hush puppies are required. The plate comes with the aforementioned red cole slaw, which wasn't bad, and french fries, which were obviously previously frozen. I overheard people asking about substitution on the menu. The next time, I will substitute something local for the french fries.
The meat tasted good. The slices needed cutting and that required cutting with a knife. If the meat was a little bit more tender, this place would get a top rating.
At the check-out, they had a tray of commercial pre-wrapped fried pies. Maybe, they are trying to compete with Hursey, but Hursey's are fresh, not wrapped in paper.
This is my first try at Western NC barbecue. Western sauce has tomato in it, so the red tinge on the meat is from tomato, not from red spices. The cole slaw was red, too. It made an different looking plate.
There was no description of the various orders or sides on the menu. I ordered the sliced plate, not really knowing what I would get. The waitress asked if I wanted hush puppies or dinner rolls. This may be a western thing, but in the east, hush puppies are required. The plate comes with the aforementioned red cole slaw, which wasn't bad, and french fries, which were obviously previously frozen. I overheard people asking about substitution on the menu. The next time, I will substitute something local for the french fries.
The meat tasted good. The slices needed cutting and that required cutting with a knife. If the meat was a little bit more tender, this place would get a top rating.
At the check-out, they had a tray of commercial pre-wrapped fried pies. Maybe, they are trying to compete with Hursey, but Hursey's are fresh, not wrapped in paper.
Wednesday, January 07, 2004
Making barbecue for 500 - My first adventure with a smoker
The mission is to make barbecue for 500 attendees at a Scout event at a Scout camp. My buddy Jim does this as a regular thing, so I helped him out, to find out how it was done.
Jim started up the smokers at 5 am. He had brought his own smoker and the camp had one. We smoked a dozen pork shoulders in each smoker for a pre-cooking weight of 500 pounds of shoulder. You lose about half in grease, bone and skin, giving one half pound per person.
Of course, Jim had problems all morning with the camp's smoker. It flared up, giving some of the shoulders a nice charred look. Controlling the heat was a pain, so the shoulders cooked slower. But this worked well when we started chopping the pork. We started with the ones that were done first and let the others smoke ( in Jim's smoker ) while we chopped.
All morning, we tended the smokers, sitting out in the shade of the camp dining hall and shooting the bull. We all joked that we were missing the vital ingredient for smoking, the beer can sitting next to the smoker, but it was a Boy Scout camp.
At about noon, Jim pulled the bone out of the first shoulder to be done and passed around chunks of the pork. Now, that was ambrosia. No sauce, just fresh smoked pork. Heavenly. It made the hamburgers at lunch seem tasteless.
For two hours we chopped pork. Jim had a old chopping box and stainless steel chopper that did the job nicely. We had a couple of guys skinning and slicing the meat off the bones and one guy chopping. Once we had about a leg chopped, we'd mix a couple of cups of Jim's barbecue sauce ( I did not get the recipe ) and filled a large stainless steel pan, covered it with foil and put it back on the smoker, turned down low.
I was late for dinner, so I ended up with a plate of barbecue, but no extra sauce. It was good cue, but the sauce would have made it better. It was not as good as the samples at noon.
It turned out that the turnout was not as high as expected for the dinner, so we sold the remaining barbecue as a fund raiser.
Jim started up the smokers at 5 am. He had brought his own smoker and the camp had one. We smoked a dozen pork shoulders in each smoker for a pre-cooking weight of 500 pounds of shoulder. You lose about half in grease, bone and skin, giving one half pound per person.
Of course, Jim had problems all morning with the camp's smoker. It flared up, giving some of the shoulders a nice charred look. Controlling the heat was a pain, so the shoulders cooked slower. But this worked well when we started chopping the pork. We started with the ones that were done first and let the others smoke ( in Jim's smoker ) while we chopped.
All morning, we tended the smokers, sitting out in the shade of the camp dining hall and shooting the bull. We all joked that we were missing the vital ingredient for smoking, the beer can sitting next to the smoker, but it was a Boy Scout camp.
At about noon, Jim pulled the bone out of the first shoulder to be done and passed around chunks of the pork. Now, that was ambrosia. No sauce, just fresh smoked pork. Heavenly. It made the hamburgers at lunch seem tasteless.
For two hours we chopped pork. Jim had a old chopping box and stainless steel chopper that did the job nicely. We had a couple of guys skinning and slicing the meat off the bones and one guy chopping. Once we had about a leg chopped, we'd mix a couple of cups of Jim's barbecue sauce ( I did not get the recipe ) and filled a large stainless steel pan, covered it with foil and put it back on the smoker, turned down low.
I was late for dinner, so I ended up with a plate of barbecue, but no extra sauce. It was good cue, but the sauce would have made it better. It was not as good as the samples at noon.
It turned out that the turnout was not as high as expected for the dinner, so we sold the remaining barbecue as a fund raiser.
Monday, January 05, 2004
On the list to try
Don Murray's - Raleigh
Stopped in once for lunch, but it was a buffet. The only buffet on this list is A Taste of Country, which is a special case. I cannot judge a BBQ place by its buffet. It looks like it is not going to make my list.
Allen and Son's North - Chapel Hill
Stopped in once for lunch, but it was a buffet. The only buffet on this list is A Taste of Country, which is a special case. I cannot judge a BBQ place by its buffet. It looks like it is not going to make my list.
Allen and Son's North - Chapel Hill
Good Barbecue from Non-barbecue Restaurants and Others
Cook-Out - Durham
Known for its hamburgers. They make a decent BBQ sandwich.
Refreshment Stands at the Smith Center - Chapel Hill
When I worked at the refreshment stands, supper would be a paper cup of barbecue and slaw. It was amazing.
Known for its hamburgers. They make a decent BBQ sandwich.
Refreshment Stands at the Smith Center - Chapel Hill
When I worked at the refreshment stands, supper would be a paper cup of barbecue and slaw. It was amazing.
Acceptable BBQ Restaurants
Hog Heaven - Durham
Just a step above mediocre, but uniformly so.
Barbecue Lodge - Raleigh
Decent fried chicken. Adequate barbecue. Good sides.
Short Sugar's - Reidsville
I know there are people who rave about this place, but I am not one of them. Good, not great.
Just a step above mediocre, but uniformly so.
Barbecue Lodge - Raleigh
Decent fried chicken. Adequate barbecue. Good sides.
Short Sugar's - Reidsville
I know there are people who rave about this place, but I am not one of them. Good, not great.
Introduction to BBQ in the Triangle
These are my own personal opinions of different barbecue places in the triangle and elsewhere in NC.
When I was new to North Carolina, my company had a picnic catered by a down East pig picking' place. I have forgotten which one. It was the best pig I have ever eaten. I have been trying different barbecue and pig picking' restaurants over the years to try to repeat that experience. A Taste of Country has good pulled pork, but not spiced quite right. Hursey's has the right spices, but the pork itself isn't as good.
When I was new to North Carolina, my company had a picnic catered by a down East pig picking' place. I have forgotten which one. It was the best pig I have ever eaten. I have been trying different barbecue and pig picking' restaurants over the years to try to repeat that experience. A Taste of Country has good pulled pork, but not spiced quite right. Hursey's has the right spices, but the pork itself isn't as good.
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