DC Area's Best BBQ

[TXkylenDC (Kyle Mandeville)]

I’d like to add a little input. I’m a big fan of good BBQ! I’m from Texas originally and lived in NC for a couple years before I moved to the DC area (Fairfax) in 2000. I’ve grown up around bbq. However, when I moved here, there was really no good BBQ in the area but its exciting where we are now!

My current list requires travel and I’m hoping to update and find something better closer to DC.

1. ZZQ in Richmond and it isn’t even close.
2. Monks in Purcellville
3. 2Fifty Texas in Riverdale, MD

I enjoyed Smoking Kow burnt ends in Alexandria. I found Sloppy Mama’s to be decent.

Doesn’t live up to hype: Texas Jacks, Federalist Pig (but maybe I’ll give them another try. As others have mentioned, BBQ isn’t always consistent and those that are grade highest!)

It’s been a while since I’ve had Hill Country, so I can’t really say but I’m headed there Saturday for a refresher and warm up to the Capitals game.

Excited to see all the people here who are passionate about BBQ!

[johntannerbbq (john tanner)]

Skip Hill Country.

I’ve a list of my Best Barbecue Places as of last year on my eponymous blog — to be updated in a month or so. I have to recheck some places and add a couple

[FlemSnopes (Doug Herbert)]

Depending on where you are in Fairfax, Odd Barbecue in Chantilly could be somewhat close. Their barbecue is very solid (based on 3 trips there). Some of the dishes have a touch of Korean fusion.

A more controversial recommendation is Rocklands in Arlington (I don’t think the Alexandria branch is as good). My favorites there are the thin-sliced brisket sandwich, the baby back ribs — and even though it’s not exactly barbecue, their grilled lamb and pit beef sandwiches. Others here really dislike Rocklands, however.

[johntannerbbq (john tanner)]

Ah, back to my laptop. Welcome to the DC area, Kyle. What part of Texas, and what part of NC?

You want to try Ruthie’s All Day for brisket and pork, but make sure you tell them you want vinegar sauce on the pork, stressing “vinegar” – or ask for some vinegar and Texas Pete and mix your own.
For brisket it’s 2fifty around here, and I agree that Monk’s was quite good when I went recently. (and ZZQ is great) I’ve also been very impressed by HammerDown in Aldie and by Old Blue in Alexandria and Union Market in town. Very impressed by HammerDown.

The best places for pork in the metro area are the Pit Stop in Sterling, Allman’s in Fredericksburg, which is kinda in the area, Barbecue Exchange in Gordonsville, Bean’s in Edinburg in the Valley, Two Drummers in Tonal near Williamsburg,and, best of all, Redemption BBQ in Short Pump outside Richmond. Odd BBQ is very good, too, a their ginger sesame slaw is terrific. there seems to be an inverse relationship between quality and proximity to DC for pork.
The best ribs are in Southern Maryland (Also the best seafood by far.) The Pit Stop’s are pretty good, too, as are Original Ronnie’s outside Richmond.

By the way, I’m trying to track down all of the places in the MD, DC, and VA that cook exclusively with wood – that’s on behalf of the Campaign for Real Barbecue, http://www.truecue.org, The current list is at http://www.truecue.org/true-cue-va-dc-metro. I appreciate word of additional places – and if anyone goes over to the dark side.

Barbecue places also hot smoke the best pastrami in the area, although they tend to mess it up with things beyond mustard and rye. 2fifty, ZZQ, Silver and Sons in Bethesda (brick and mortar coming soon), HammerDown, Redemption, and Buckets in Lusby, MD.

[FlemSnopes (Doug Herbert)]

Your breadth of knowledge and good taste are impressive (though I harbor some doubts about Ruthie’s All Day, based on my own experiences).

But there is one major omission from your invaluable sortie through the local barbecue joints that cook only with wood: Bark Barbecue in Stephensville (just on the other side of the Bay Bridge from Annapolis).

I know it’s on your to-do list, but I encourage you to move it up to the top of your places to visit.
I’ve only eaten there once, so I guess it’s (barely) possible that they got lucky. But from that one meal, I tend to think Bark is in the same realm as ZZQ in Richmond and 2Fifty Texas in Riverdale Park.

They’ve got plenty of wood and some really impressive smokers.

They’re attentive and generous. When the father (of the father-and-son owners) noticed that I was taking photos of the food, he made a beeline to talk with us and gifted us with this brisket sandwich to make sure we had a full appreciation of their offerings.

The pork sandwich is more Texas than North Carolina, but it was unquestionably good.

Bark Barbecue has gotten a lot of attention for its side of “laser potatoes,” a layered potato dish from the owners’ roots in the Caucasus.

The other sides are more standard, but still top notch.

Chicken is rarely if ever my favorite at a barbecue place, and the same was true here. That said, Bark’s chicken is delicious.

The brisket is Texas all the way. As I think you know, Daniel Vaughan of Texas Monthly just ranked Bark Barbecue among the top 50 Texas-style barbecue places in the country (outside of Texas).

[johntannerbbq (john tanner)]

Doug, I do need to get to it. And some other places in the far reaches of Northern Virginia. I trust your judgment – almost always – but Tim Carman, who ranked DCity #2, also praised it, so I’ll wait. https://johntannersbbqblog.wordpress.com/2022/01/20/dcity-smokehouse-washington-dc/

[FlemSnopes (Doug Herbert)]

Of course, if Carman says a place is good, that does not mean it’s good , as his inclusion of the truly awful Texas Jack’s on his 2022 best-of list shows

(2022 was Carman’s last best-of list, as he’s now retired from being a food critic.)

On the other hand, if Carman said a place was good, that didn’t mean it was bad. In his final ranking of DC’s barbecue places, he put 2Fifty Texas Barbecue as #1, a judgment I completely agree with.

If you were going to ignore Bark because Tim Carman liked it, you would have to ignore 2Fifty Texas too.

The fact is that Tim Carman’s reviews were almost random, with no correlation to the actual qualify of food.

[johntannerbbq (john tanner)]

Of course. I never suggested it did. I just don’t rely on him in recommending barbecue places to others. I eat at them first.

And I discovered 2fifty well before Carman. I think that’s true of all the places I mentioned except Lipot Mama’s, to which I need to return. I still have a $25 credit there from 2020

Another good one is Big Bad BBQ in Stafford.

[FlemSnopes (Doug Herbert)]

And I don’t blame Carman for his non-discerning palate. I do, however, blame the Post for thinking he would make a good restaurant critic. To be a good restaurant critic you have to be (a) a good writer and (b) a good judge of food. One of two won’t cut it.

[BobfromRIinVA]

Yes to Odd. We had a really good group lunch there. Need to get back!

[FlemSnopes (Doug Herbert)]

Sadly, based on multiple visits (probably more than 5), I have to report that Sloppy Mama’s has steeply declined since 2020.

[johntannerbbq (john tanner)]

Sad indeed. I do have that $25. Maybe a burger and the rest in their pimiento cheese.

I haven’t been in over a year. I think much of it has been that other places have moved ahead of them. There’s still a whole lot of improvement in the pork quality in the DC area. Someone needs to build a pit.

[FlemSnopes (Doug Herbert)]

I haven’t seen the owners onsite in quite a while. They’ve expanded to other restaurants, including the solid Tex-Mex Republic Cantina and the excellent Hill East Burger, both in DC. It seems like the current onsite manager has not maintained the prior quality.

I actually did spend the rest of my gift certificate on their burger at Sloppy Mama’s. It gets good reviews., but I was unimpressed, as was Toni.

I would LOVE for you to go and tell me that my perception that Sloppy Mama’s has declined is wrong. The owners are really nice people and have done a lot to support local Arlington schools and other civic causes. I am definitely pulling for them.

[johntannerbbq (john tanner)]

I’ll try to get by there in any event.

[TXkylenDC (Kyle Mandeville)]

Have you seen this new spot opening this week? Silver and sons in Bethesda

Looks appetizing. Thank you for the suggestions, I’ve see Odd BBQ pop up lately, I’m going to check it out. Bark looks great Doug… just not the most convenient.

I am from Humble, TX near Houston and I lived in Greensboro, NC. The best bbq I had in TX was on the side of a road on my way to a hunting trip and NC I found a lot of good pulled pork all over the place. I’ve actually been here a while, but I think it took until about 2017/18 for solid BBQ to start showing up.

[FlemSnopes (Doug Herbert)]

This is great news. I’ve only eaten at Silver & Sons once, but it was excellent, especially the lamb ribs. It’s been a truck, moving around to different locations. I talked to the owner quite a while and he’s really knowledgeable about barbecue and dedicated to doing it right.

Glad to see them put down roots. Too bad it’s not closer than Bethesda, but I’ll take it.

There is a whole lot of barbecue in Houston, of course, and I haven’t even scratched the surface there. My favorite of the places I’ve been to was Tejas Chocolate & Barbecue in Tomball. Other really good Houston places are Gatlin’s, Truth, and the Pit Room (the last time I ate barbecue with my father was there). Goode Co. was also good way back in 2002, when I last ate there.

I’m not familiar with the barbecue places around Greensboro. I’ve always wanted to try Stamey’s, but that’s never worked out.

I’ve had some really good by the side of the road barbecue, for sure. For Jamaican jerk chicken too, the places with a hand-lettered sign seem to be better than the fixed restaurants.

[johntannerbbq (john tanner)]

Silver and Sons has excellent short rib pastrami and very good lamb. I’ve reviewed it a couple of times. I think the lamb is shoulder these days. The new spot, which opens Friday, will have an expanded menu.
I suppose I might go Friday --it’s close – although I really prefer to let things settle before going to a new restaurant.

[BobfromRIinVA]

Anyone looking for good cue in Houston should check out CorkScrew BBQ in Spring, near The Woodlands. I was there for a wedding in 2023 so we checked it out. Delicious brisket. On my recommendation other guests tried it as well and were quite impressed. I’m sure I’m not the only person on here who serves as a trusted advisor for friends and relatives when it comes to food.

[FlemSnopes (Doug Herbert)]

I would have gone to Corkscrew the last time I was in Houston, but I was going to meet a high school friend and long time Houston resident, but he was unexpectedly out of time. He is adamant that Corkscrew is the best barbecue in the world.

And in the new Michelin Guide for Texas, Corkscrew was awarded a Michelin star.

[BobfromRIinVA]

Glad my instincts were so good. They usually are, though.