Reviews

The Pik-N-Pig (NC State Fair Stall) – Raleigh, NC

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Name: The Pik-N-Pig (NC State Fair stall)
Date: 10/16/16
Address: NC State Fair, 1025 Blue Ridge Rd, Raleigh, NC 27607
Order: Pork plate with slaw and beans (link to menu)
Price: $12

Monk: The State Fair is usually home to various deep-fried “delights”, but on a Sunday morning on an unusually warm October day I wasn’t feeling anything of the sort – not even the “deep fried bbq” I spotted at another stall.

On my way into the fair, I saw a truck for Big Al’s BBQ and was planning to find that location but once it came time to actually eat, I spotted a stall for the Pik-n-Pig first. The original location of The Pik-n-Pig is at a small airport in Carthage, NC and coincidentally a good friend had posted some Instagram photos earlier that week from flying in from High Point.

Several bags of wood lump charcoal lined the outside of the stall, which resembled a log cabin. And I could taste the smokiness from it in the pork with large pieces of bark mixed in. Though the coarsely pulled strands were a little bigger than I prefer, the eastern sauce helped with some of the dryness in the larger pieces.

The vinegary white slaw was good and had a distinct flavor that I couldn’t quite place my finger on – and neither could Mrs. Monk. Despite the inability to place the secret ingredient, I liked the slaw quite a bit. The baked beans were pretty standard.

We passed the location for Big Al’s on the way out, which was heavily shaded and had tons of picnic tables. It might have been a better setting but I’m thinking I probably came out ahead in the barbecue department at The Pik-n-Pig. Though I hope to make it to the original location someday – preferably by air, of course.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 2.5 hogs
Pork – 3.5 hogs
Sides – 3.5 hogs
Overall – 3.5 hogs

Midwood Smokeshack – Matthews, NC

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img_6574Name: Midwood Smokeshack
Date: 9/30/16
Address: 3335 Siskey Pkwy #400, Charlotte, NC 28105
Order: Well-Fed combo platter with pulled pork (x2), brisket, and sausage with creamed corn, collards, and cornbread  (link to menu)
Price: $24

Monk: Readers may recall that I had previously checked out Midwood Smokeshack in early September on the invitation of FS Food Group owner Frank Scibelli for the primary purpose of meeting the new pitmaster, Michael Wagner. I didn’t want do an official review of that visit but this time around I took the family there on a Friday night to check it out on my own dime.

During our couple of minutes wait in a short line, I was able to convince Mrs. Monk to go in on the “Well-Fed” platter containing 4 meats and two sides with the stipulation that two of the meats be pork since she she wasn’t interested in eating any brisket (we also got sausage as our fourth meat).

Midwood Smokeshack is utilizing the same rotisserie-style, stick burning smoker used at the full-sized Midwood Smokehouse locations and while there may some slight variations, all in all I found the meats to be pretty consistent in quality and flavors. The chopped pork had flavorful chunks of bark throughout and I really enjoyed mixing some of the eastern NC sauce in. I requested a mix of fatty and lean brisket and it had the peppery bark you would expect from Midwood Smokehouse. And the sausage with the South Carolina mustard sauce was a hit with both myself and the missus.

I’m usually pretty consistent when it comes to sides at Midwood Smokehouse: slaw and hush puppies. But with Mrs. Monk picking out sides (another stipulation of getting the Well-Fed platter), we were a bit more adventurous. I hadn’t tried the creamed corn before and after tasting it, I’m not sure why I hadn’t – I loved it and will definitely order it again. The collards with chunks of brisket mixed in were just ok and I’ve tasted better.

The other difference between Smokeshack and Smokehouse is they have opted for cornbread over hush puppies. Partially for logistical reasons – a deep fryer in a crowded serving area would be dangerous – but I also got the sense from speaking with Frank last time that they also wanted to try something different. Their version of cornbread was little bite-sized muffins and was delicious.

I love the original Midwood Smokehouse and will continue to frequent that establishment when the occasion calls for it. But fast casual is increasingly the way people want to eat these days (families, in particular) so its really smart for FS Food Group to build out the Midwood Smokeshack concept (along with their Mediterranean concept Yafo). The fact that they execute a slimmed-down version of the same menu with no drop off in quality is impressive, and I predict that I will find myself frequenting this establishment pretty darn often.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 3 hogs
Pork – 4 hogs
Brisket – 4 hogs
Sausage – 4 hogs
Sides – 3.5 hogs
Overall – 4 hogs

Well-Fed platter with double pork, brisket, and sausage
Another shot of tray
Brisket
Midwood Smokeshack exteroir

Old Etowah Smokehouse – Etowah, NC

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Name: Old Etowah Smokehouse
Date: 9/17/16
Address: 6577 Brevard Rd, Etowah, NC 28729
Order: Three meat plate with pulled pork, brisket, and sausage with slaw, collards, and barbecue hash; hush puppy basket,  (link to menu)
Price: $21.50

Monk: When I met Elliot Moss of Asheville’s Buxton Hall Barbecue back in June, he recommended I check out Old Etowah Smokehouse started by a buddy of his Mike Moore, co-founder of Blind Pig Supper Club and former owner of Seven Sows. Etowah is a small mountain community about 15 minutes west of Hendersonville, which is itself about 30 minutes from Asheville. On a recent apple picking day trip in the mountains (#dadlife), this allowed me a good opportunity to continue my mini quest to try all of the new wave whole hog joints in NC. This makes 3 of 4 including aforementioned Buxton Hall and Picnic.

As I understand it, Old Etowah Smokehouse took over a location that used to house another barbecue spot called The Barbecue Shack. They’ve since added a patio around the side that overlooks a golf course. And on a mid-September Saturday, the shaded patio provided a nice spot to eat. One quirk is that if you are eating on the patio, you actually order at the hostess station and it is brought out to the patio – as opposed to ordering via a waitress at the table if you sit inside the main dining area. There’s also a buffet, which makes a third way of ordering.

I ordered a 3 meat platter with pork, brisket, and sausage (didn’t plan to, but accidentally ordered “the Texas trinity”) because Mrs. Monk wasn’t going for the deluxe combo that would have added chicken and ribs. The pulled pork was very well smoked and moist. I tried the Eastern sauce and it definitely enhanced the meat like a good sauce should.

The brisket was a mix of fatty and lean (no choice given when ordering) and had a good peppery bark. It was a very good approximation of central Texas style and I’d say above average for a brisket in NC. I’m unsure of the origins of the sausage and whether it’s imported from Texas or made in house, but it was fine but maybe slightly dry.

As a starter, we ordered a hush puppy basket and lo and behold, it actually comes with a side of melted pimento cheese. I had never seen this before and I gotta tell you, I didn’t mind it. Though I still probably prefer honey butter or served just plain, I’m glad I tried it. The collards were Mrs. Monk approved and the only miss of the meal for me was the barbecue hash. The flavor of the gravy had a slightly burnt taste that was a bit off-putting. Perhaps it was an off day for the hash.

While overall I enjoyed the meal at Old Etowah Smokehouse and the direction they’re going in since opening in just June, of the new wave of whole hog joints I’d rank it behind Buxton Hall but ahead of Picnic. Sam Jones BBQ, you’re up next hopefully soon.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 3.5 hogs
Pork – 4 hogs
Brisket – 4 hogs
Sausage – 3 hogs
Sides – 3 hogs
Overall – 4 hogs

3 meat platter
Another view of tray
Hush puppy basket with pimento cheese
Hush puppy + pimento cheese
Menu board
This way to patio bar
Patio
Old Etowah Smokehouse

Picnic – Durham, NC

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Name: Picnic
Date: 9/5/16
Address: 1647 Cole Mill Rd, Durham, NC 27705
Order: Pulled pork plate with pimento mac & cheese, bacon braised collards (link to menu)
Price: $13.95

Monk: In the recent (and very welcome) trend of new whole hog barbecue joints opening in North Carolina in the past year, Picnic is one of the newest alongside Old Etowah Smokehouse (opened June 2016), Sam Jones BBQ (November 2015), and Buxton Hall Barbecue (August 2015), having opened earlier this year in February. Despite being at the end of a long weekend, I convinced the Mrs. Monk to stop at Picnic in Durham for lunch on our way back from Atlantic Beach over Labor Day weekend.

Picnic is located in a fairly picturesque setting amongst tall pine trees in a Durham neighborhood not far off of I-85. The building itself has an average sized dining room with a bar as well as 5-6 outdoor tables. An open kitchen overlooks the new south decor dining area, and the rattle of food preparation is audible but not distracting.

My pulled pork was overall moist and smokey and served unsauced, choosing to let the smoke shine in each silky pork strand. Each table does have a very tasty mixed eastern and western-style Pig Whistle sauce (named for barbecue man Wyatt Dickson’s original pig catering outfit) on the table. I’ve read that the whole hog pork at Picnic can sometimes be on the dry side but that was not my experience. In any case, I alternated between using sauce and not. While I didn’t buy sauce this time, I would consider it next time around .

I generally liked the sides less than the pork. We were fairly hungry from the 3+ hour drive, so we ordered fried green tomatoes as a starter that were more breading than tomato. Each plate comes with hush puppies and slaw in addition to 2 sides. The house-made hush puppies were a little disappointing and not as sweet as I prefer though clearly not frozen as they were of various sizes and shapes. The slaw was not too noteworthy. Of my other two sides, the pimento mac and cheese had good flavor but was very rich (to the point where I decided not to finish it) and the collards were a little bland and needed salt or ideally more vinegar.

Overall, the whole hog pork at Picnic was great but I found the sides to be more of a mixed bag. I also thought it was a bit pricey for what it was – a common complaint from other friends who had previously eaten there. For lunch with Mrs Monk and the Monkette, our tab ran $50 before tip with two plates, a kid’s meal, an appetizer, and a beer. If I do make it back (and I would definitely go again), next time I’ll probably go for their version of a tray with just pork, slaw, and hush puppies.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 3.5 hogs
Pork – 4 hogs
Sides – 3 hogs
Overall – 3.5 hogs
Picnic Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Pulled pork plate
Closeup of pulled pork
Pig Whistle table sauce
Dining room
Exterior of restaurant
Another shot of Picnic sign