WTF do people consider GOOD Barbecue?

When backyard cooking it is much different than competition cooking. Friends that don't get Q are excited to get it from friends. And more times than not (unless you hockey puck meat or serve raw meat) your friends will enjoy it, while you see the things you could of done better.

In the Hampton Roads Area, there are only a couple of BBQ Joints that I would even consider eating at. On the Southside of Hampton Roads I would go to Smoke from Above. The pulled pork is a little bit wetter than I like, but the ribs and sausage are good. Whitners is also a place where I would go, the burnt ends, smoked turkey, and ribs are good as well. I have tried WoodChicks (LeAnn Whippins restaurant) and was very unimpressed. The BBQ there was pretty much bland and seemed over cooked the 4 times I have tried it.

In Newport News/Yorktown area of Hampton Roads I have heard good things about Smoke and County Grill & Smokehouse.

This area is lacking in superb bbq joints, which is the reason why I got into Qing last year. My first few tries I would have the same friends come over and ask their honest opinions on the pulled pork and ribs, and which ones they thought came out the best. There were times when I thought I overcooked the meat and times I thought I undercooked it, but no matter what my friends enjoyed the homemade bbq and got rave reviews each time.

On Saturday, I did my first full packer. I thought the flat had probed like butter when I finally pulled it. After letting rest for an hour, i came back to slice it, and the flavors were good for the brisket. The point was awesome, but the flat was a little bit tougher than I wanted (probably could of used another 30mins to an hour on the cooker) My friends loved it and demolished it. I know I could improve my brisket, but the friends that don't get to brisket very often were very pleased with the outcome. None used sauce on the meat even though I had some on the side.

Ya gotta remember when ya q a brisket ya at the pit for hours with smoke in your face. Ya just can't appreciate the Smokey flavor unless ya shower and change ya clothes- and that only helps a little.

stl-rich said:

Ya gotta remember when ya q a brisket ya at the pit for hours with smoke in your face. Ya just can't appreciate the Smokey flavor unless ya shower and change ya clothes- and that only helps a little.

Click to expand...

As I wrote above, using a neti pot (with distilled water -- don't want any brain-eating amoebae) and brushing your teeth & tongue helps quite a bit too (in addition to showering, paying special attention to washing your hair and changing clothes).

I agree with CD. If my family and freinds like it, and I enjoyed cooking it, it's good.

Sent from my Android phone.

Maybe your friends just didn't want to hurt your feelings.

kds9547 said:

Maybe your friends just didn't want to hurt your feelings.

Click to expand...

While I don't doubt that his friends wouldn't want to hurt his feelings, I doubt that is why he enjoyed the BBQ a lot less than they did. My best friend does a lot of BBQ too and whenever he cooks, I seem to enjoy whatever he cooks more than he does, just like whenever I cook, he enjoys it more than me. And we aren't just being nice to one another.

I think that a combination of being a perfectionist about one's own cooking as well as being surrounded by smoke during the cook is what makes us enjoy our own BBQ less than others do, even among people who know good BBQ. Another factor, depending on how long the cook was and how sleep deprived you may be, is that you might just be too tired to fully enjoy what you've cooked. One of the things I have noticed is that I tend to like my own BBQ more the day after it is cooked, even though I know it isn't as good. By then, I am fully rested, have gotten more of the smell of smoke out of myself and my clothes, and haven't been obsessed with tending to a large hunk of meat for many hours (and I've probably had fewer beers in my system too).

I think that unless you cook 'que regularly, BBQ is a destination food for a majority of non-BBQ cooks. They don't eat it that often, and as said above, unless you serve hockey pucks or raw meat, most people will think it is terrific.

We are our own worst critics, especially when our cooks aren't perfect every time. Perfection is very subjective, and I believe that if people scarf down my 'que like it's their last meal on earth, I try to take satisfaction in their enjoyment of what I have cooked. Dwelling on the details only serves as a learning experience to be applied in future cooks.

aawa said:

When backyard cooking it is much different than competition cooking. Friends that don't get Q are excited to get it from friends. And more times than not (unless you hockey puck meat or serve raw meat) your friends will enjoy it, while you see the things you could of done better.

In the Hampton Roads Area, there are only a couple of BBQ Joints that I would even consider eating at. On the Southside of Hampton Roads I would go to Smoke from Above. The pulled pork is a little bit wetter than I like, but the ribs and sausage are good. Whitners is also a place where I would go, the burnt ends, smoked turkey, and ribs are good as well. I have tried WoodChicks (LeAnn Whippins restaurant) and was very unimpressed. The BBQ there was pretty much bland and seemed over cooked the 4 times I have tried it.

In Newport News/Yorktown area of Hampton Roads I have heard good things about Smoke and County Grill & Smokehouse.

This area is lacking in superb bbq joints, which is the reason why I got into Qing last year. My first few tries I would have the same friends come over and ask their honest opinions on the pulled pork and ribs, and which ones they thought came out the best. There were times when I thought I overcooked the meat and times I thought I undercooked it, but no matter what my friends enjoyed the homemade bbq and got rave reviews each time.

On Saturday, I did my first full packer. I thought the flat had probed like butter when I finally pulled it. After letting rest for an hour, i came back to slice it, and the flavors were good for the brisket. The point was awesome, but the flat was a little bit tougher than I wanted (probably could of used another 30mins to an hour on the cooker) My friends loved it and demolished it. I know I could improve my brisket, but the friends that don't get to brisket very often were very pleased with the outcome. None used sauce on the meat even though I had some on the side.

Click to expand...

All these years and nothing has changed:tsk:

I find that after an all night'r or other long cook I really enjoy more if my family and guests like the cook. After cooking that long I find myself not very hungry and when I'm not hungry nothing tastes so good.

To me it is like Hotdogs at a ballgame, they always taste better when someone else cooks them.

I know my neighbor likes to ask what I am cooking every time I fire up any of my cookers. He openly admitted that he has a propane grill because he is impatient and would not be able to wait. He always sneaks over for a taste of whatever and swoons over it. Now that being said, most BBQ joints are crap. It is a lot easier to cook up 1 meal versus several over the entire day for a boatload of people that all like to complain that it is too smokey, not smokey enough, too spicy, not spicy enough and blah blah blah.

I always enjoy my own cooks, not just for the food, but for the time I got to spend with my smoker. I'm going through withdrawals right now. Stupid winter.

Enkidu said:

As I wrote above, using a neti pot (with distilled water -- don't want any brain-eating amoebae) and brushing your teeth & tongue helps quite a bit too (in addition to showering, paying special attention to washing your hair and changing clothes).

Click to expand...

As long as the Brain Eating Amoebae think it tastes good then it is OK.

Most people don't know crap about a lot of things.

And they don't care to learn.

The problem is people will follow and go to a lesser quality bbq place... because they don't know a few things. Such as where and who will provide a better product. Many don't know what better bbq taste like. Better bbq doesn't get buried in sauce.

I was one of those ignorant people, too... willing to try a place which lists bbq on their menu.


I just did not know any better... or how to do it better. This forum showed me a better way... a return to old school BBQ with countless modern tricks, techniques, and tips. Found an online fellowship to boot, too.

I share BBQ Bandits appreciation of the Brethren, that is for sure.

I do fall afoul of what most folks here believe however. I am willing to allow that good BBQ is what the person doing the eating enjoys. Plain and simple, if they enjoy eating cooked meat and loads of sauce, then more power to them, they will likely not love my BBQ, but, they love someone's BBQ and that is all that matters. I love the act of cooking, in some ways, more than the act of eating it. Most of all, I love feeding people, which rewards me a great deal. I still cook the best I can based upon my taste, but, I enjoy most when my friends and loved ones enjoy my food.

That being said, there are a couple of places out here, that serve awful meat, or mediocre meat, but, folks love the sauce. For them, that is BBQ, so be it. When one of these folks tells me they loved my ribs, but, I should go to XXX place and try their ribs, the sauce is sooo good, that is their opinion, and just as valid as my own. Who am I to tell the world what is, or is not, real BBQ?

I'm with Lanarc here, we all know of at least a few BBQ joints that serve up bad or below average BBQ but yet people show up in droves to eat it and love it. I think it's because that's what people are used to eating and don't know any better. This even applies to BBQ that people's friends and family cookup.

Hampton Roads area does suck for BBQ. When I started to BBQ I would hit the local joints to find a comparative baseline and discovered either I don't know Q, or I make the best bbq in the area (at least to my taste). I always found the best pulled pork in the area to be from a dive bar called Footer's sports pub. very basic East Carolina traditional style.

In regards the OP's story, I remember totally screwing up a shoulder for a poker game trying a new cooker in the middle of winter and apologizing to my guests before serving (I had to rip meat off the bone, instead the usual twist and slide) and they commented on how great it was.

So I know the feeling, but hey, next time you cook a brisket and it comes out to your standards and the same guests attend, imagine how impressed they'll be.

I just know what I like