BBQ Joint Disappointments

[Bkhuna]

You want to compare BBQ deserts? Try Orlando, FL. Might as well live in Artic Bay, Canada.

The problem is that everyone has access to Youtube, social media, and Chefutainment channels on TV. So many people who have never actually learned to make BBQ or have never eaten good BBQ have become overnight "experts". 99.999% of the stuff you see on these shows is garbage. But people who don't go out and open BBQ restaurants.

I can sum up a place by looking at a few selected items. I know what I like and can compare it to places I've been to in my travels. I'm not afraid to walk in, look around, and flee if something isn't right.

[Starsky]

It's not just you. Any BBQ joint I try, I measure by their brisket. Haven't found one yet that can surpass mine. No brag, just fact . Here in the midwest it's more about pork in my opinion

[RustyHaines]

Agreed. IMO beef BBQ in the upper Midwest is substandard. I steer clear of pork ribs as the popular doneness is "falling off the bone" as in over done. Again in IMO.

There used to be a place here that served fresh pulled pork smoked the night before with sauce on the side. It was as good but sadly the place lasted less than a year.

[Jfrosty27]

I also agree. The brisket up here (WI) is just OK at best from what I have experienced. Lots of pork, ribs and pulled, along with a lot of chicken and sausage. Hit and miss on those items but some very good examples are out there.

[LA Pork Butt]

I’ve been to some real disappointments visiting BBQ places written up in national magazines, but while the list has been a lot smaller I have been to some really great ones. There is some truth to the sayings: "If you can’t smell smoke, don’t stop," and "The best BBQ is in someone’s back yard." That backyard thing is how many of the great ones started out.

[Max Good]

The hazards of Pitmaster Membership.

[klflowers]

I think you are right

[Porkies]

There is something inherently enjoyable about cooking one's own food, as well as for physical and mental health, in my opinion.

I am a complete noob compared to folks on these forums, but when I finally smoked that first pork butt on my wsm and shredded it..the first bite told me I would not need to buy bbq from a business unless it was a special occasion.

[RickyBobby]

Amen, brother! As you can see you are not alone! That’s what I miss most about Texas. That said though, I found plenty of places that were placed in the skip column, too. Lol.

[grantgallagher]

Living in NJ, its not exactly renowned for bbq. Ive been to place in brooklyn that i cant remember the name of that was pretty legit at the time. Only real bbq place i can say ive visited was lewis bbq in charleston, sc. that was something on a whole nother level. I havent come close to brisket like that at home and im not ashamed to admit it, lol

[USMCCrashCrew89]

You’re not alone. First for me is seeing some of the outrageous prices that get charged. Charging Franklins’ prices for brisket is a gamble I’m not willing to take at very many places when I know I can buy an entire brisket for what they are charging for a few pounds.

Steakhouses is another place that I have justifying the prices in my head.

On the other side of that token, delis are my soft spot. I am a sucker for a good club sandwich, which I can certainly make at home but without those frilly toothpicks, it’s just not the same.

[Oak Smoke]

Honestly I don't go into a BBQ place expecting it to compare to what I can do at home. I'm pleasantly surprised once in a while, but don't expect it.The thing I have discovered that's so great is incredible ideas on side dishes. There's a BBQ place on the south west corner of Pampa Tx that makes the very best onion rings I've ever eaten. It's like they were fried in a tempura batter. My wife always wanted an order of them to take with us. Not all bean recipes are created equal or all potato salads either. I've never been turned down when I ask "how do you make those".

[willxfmr]

Definitely not just you. A new place just opened up here in town, and several of my FB friends have been raving about the brisket. Best of all, it's a block and a half from my house! (The old 11:11/ Taco Johns on S. Main for the locals) I got the brisket, my GF got the catfish, and the kid got the pulled pork. The pulled pork was ok. Not as good as what's in my freezer in my opinion, but still not bad eating. The catfish was the star of the show. Very moist with a great breading. The brisket that people have been raving about? Well, the last time I did a brisket like that, I was on here the next day crying the blues about how I had lost my brisket mojo. To be fair, I'll have to go a few more times and give the rest of the menu a try and see if maybe I just happened to get a serving from a tough old cow. But seriously, with all I have learned hanging out here, my expectations have gone up. What used to be good is now ehhh. And the old acceptable, is simply not anymore. It doesn't help that the middle of Wisconsin is pretty much a BBQ wasteland with places like Dickeys get great reviews for their awesome 'Q.

[klflowers]

What brought this on was some brisket I had a couple nights ago in a place that was written up in the local paper for their brisket. It was terrible. Even accounting for the fact that I went late in the afternoon and it may have been holding for awhile.

[Andrrr]

BBQ wasteland is spot on.