Kevin's BBQ Joints

OK. So there’s a fair amount of hype behind Pork Barrel BBQ. I first saw them on the ABC’s show Shark Tank. Here’s their audition tape and here’s their appearance. I casually followed their journey as they launched their sauces and rubs and started to get more and more traction in the BBQ world. Being curious minded, I decided to order their Pork Barrel BBQ Original Sauce and a jars of their All American Spice Rub.

I was planning on testing out their product over the weekend, when I happened to hear Heath (he and Brett make up the team behind Pork Barrel BBQ) on Greg Rempe’s BBQ Central Radio Show. It was nice because it gave me the opportunity to learn more about where they came from and their future plans (which include opening a restaurant in Washington, DC). More about that later.

I decided to go with baby back ribs. As instructed on their rub label, I brushed these with olive oil and rubbed in the spice rub (which is described as garlic, onion, smoked paprika, ancho chile, and chipotle chile).

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When you think of Solvang, you think of a little, albeit touristy, Danish village with motels that have windmills, statues of Hans Christian Andersen and the Little Mermaid, and some really great breakfast spots (seriously) . So you wouldn’t expect to find a BBQ Joint crop up here. The Santa Barbara Independent is reporting that Cowboy Way BBQ just opened it’s doors in this city a stones throw from the Santa Ynez wine country. Here’s the story.

From the article, “Although he grew up grilling Santa Maria style, owner Daniel Placencia traveled to Kansas City, “Missouruh,” as he puts it, to perfect his southern BBQ skills before opening the first—wildly successful—The Cowboy Way BBQ restaurant in Palm Springs.”

If you’re interested in stopping by, here’s a map:

I’m about an hour south of here so I’ll stop by some time to give a full report. Until then, here’s a link to reviews of their Palm Springs joint:
yelp

I’ve mentioned that I have to travel to North Carolina twice a year for business and because of this, I’ve grown to appreciate more and more North Carolina BBQ. On my last visit I came across Carter Brothers Bar-B-Que in High Point, North Carolina (they have two High Point locations, but I’ve only been to the Main Street one).

Photo courtesy of Kat Kinsman from Slashfood

On the two times I visited during my four days in North Carolina, I had the large chopped BBQ Pork Plate with hush puppies and cole slaw. You can tell the pork was cooked low and slow and when you added their vinegar based BBQ sauce you pretty much had a North Carolina match made in heaven. The hush puppies on both occasions were cooked just right (not overly fried or mushy in the middle) and the slaw was crunchy and had the vinegar base that I prefer (not a huge fan of mayonnaise based cole slaws). I also washed it down with really good iced tea (not sweet tea, but I do love getting asked if I want sweet tea for some reason).

Here’s link to their menu. I’ve heard almost everything they serve is good, especially their breakfast.

Their North Main Location:

Phone: 336-869-9948

Their Wendover Landing Location

Phone: 336-841-2241

I would recommend them to anyone wanting to try out some real North Carolina style BBQ (there are other really great, even better, joints, but Carter Brothers does it right). Here are some additional reviews:

yelp
Urbanspoon
Tripadvisor

Interesting article at the Kansas City Star about the power of Guy Fieri’s show on the Food Network, Diner’s Drive In’s and Dives. I’ve always wondered the impact that this show had on the joints and restaurants they featured.

Guy with the team at Johnny’s BBQ.

They started with the Mission location of Johnny’s Hickory House BBQ which was featured on the July 25th episode entitled ‘Kansas City Barbecue Tour‘. Per the article “the owner of Johnny’s, which also has a location in Olathe, says business is booming after getting a few minutes in the national spotlight.” A few minutes. That’s crazy. Guess good news travels fast, especially when it deals with BBQ.

A plate of Johnny’s BBQ

“It’s like winning the lottery here,” said Bob Palmgren, owner of RJ’s Bob-Be-Que, another BBQ Joint featured on the same episode. “Who wouldn’t want their business to double or triple? That’s what we’re doing here.”
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