McKoy’s Smokehouse and Saloon – Charlotte, NC

August 5, 2013July 6, 2022 / Barbecue Bros / 1 Comment

Name: McKoy’s Smokehouse and Saloon
Date: 8/2/13
Location: 4630 Old Pineville Road, Charlotte, NC 28217
Order: BBQ pork platter with slaw and fries (link to menu)
Bill: $10.99

Still in search of the best barbecue in Charlotte, McKoy’s Smokehouse had actually come up in conversation with a friend a few weeks back whose co-worker recommended it to him as one of the better places in Charlotte. Not the strongest of reasons for going – “um, a coworker of a friend sorta recommended it” – but whatever we’ll go with it.

Stepping out of the car, I did get a nice whiff of smoke which is always nice to see/smell as you are walking up to a joint. Once seated inside, I noted that there are a handful of barbecue options under the “Vittles” section of the menu – pulled pork, “award-winning” St. Louis ribs, half bbq chicken, and pit-smoked pot roast – but naturally we judge NC joints on pulled pork so that’s what I went with. Interestingly, according to the menu the pulled pork is “smoked for 14 hours over pecan wood” which is a bit odd for NC where most places use hickory, oak, or a mix of both.

The pulled pork came out moist and with nice pieces of bark but really lacked any flavor or smoke. The table sauces were a vinegar-based sauce and a thicker Kansas City-style sauce, and really the vinegar sauce worked best but still the pork just ultimately lacked flavor.

The sides – mayo-based slaw and fries – were average and I really don’t need to waste too much space talking about them.

So yea, McKoy’s Smokehouse and Saloon is definitely not in the conversation of the best barbecue in the Charlotte – it’s really middle of the road at best. The decor is very much southern/biker/sports bar and grill and I could see it being a decent place to watch sports if you happen to be nearby, but for barbecue purposes feel free to head elsewhere.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 2.5 Hogs
Pork – 2.5 Hogs
Sides – 2.5 Hogs
Overall – 2.5 Hogs

Big Bob Gibson’s Bar-B-Q – Monroe, NC (CLOSED)

July 3, 2013July 7, 2015 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Big Bob Gibson’s Bar-B-Q
Date: 6/28/13
Location: 1507 W. Roosevelt Road, Monroe, NC 28110
Order: Pulled Pork and brisket combo plate with vinegar slaw and fries, sweet tea (link to menu, although this isn’t the menu at the NC location)
Price: $15.48

From what I can tell, Big Bob Gibson’s is a pretty well-respected Alabama barbecue restaurant that has been operating in Decatur, Alabama since 1925. For the past few years, they have gained exposure through their current pitmaster Chris Lilly, who has appeared on “BBQ Pitmasters” numberous times and has also written a book. In addition to their two restaurants in Decatur, naturally they chose the site for their third restaurant to be in Monroe, North Carolina…wait, what?

That’s right, for reasons unknown their third and currently only other location is in a small town outside Charlotte some 465 miles away. I haven’t had good luck with Alabama barbecue lately, but I figured I’d give it a try anyways.

This Big Bob Gibson’s is in a standalone building off Highway 74 in Monroe, and really reads more “upscale southern grill” than “barbecue joint.” The interior is actually quite nice, with a bar off to the left as you walk in and the main dining area to the right. I was definitely surprised by how nice it was.

I got there before any lunch rush so after I was promptly seated and after a minute to review the menu I decided on the combo plate of both pulled pork and brisket. The choice of sides included both a mayo slaw and a vinegar slaw, so naturally I ordered vinegar as well as fries to round out the order. Thankfully, a couple of hush puppies are also included with each platter.

After only about 5 minutes I received a large plate of food. The pulled pork was not very smoky and also quite dry, so I needed the “Championship Red Sauce” that comes on the table but was also served in a warmed ramekin with the meal. It is a thicker, tangy/sweet sauce that is closer to Kraft BBQ Sauce than dip – not for me. As for the brisket, I was expecting slices but it came chopped; I do not believe this was not stated on the menu. And it more or less tasted like chopped beef roast, which is fine unless of course you want brisket. The two hush puppies came out still hot and were large spheres of cornmeal that were ok but didn’t have the sweetness I like to taste in my hush puppies. The vinegar slaw was interesting in that it wasn’t the barbecue slaw that we are used to in the piedmont. It did have the tang expected of a vinegar-based slaw but was also sweet, likely to do the addition of quite a bit of sugar. It was different but gave a nice cold crunch to the meal.

So dawg, for me for you, Big Bob Gibson’s was a little bit of a bust. They also serve barbecue chicken (with that curious white sauce) and turkey, but despite the warm and friendly service I received I probably won’t be making it back to try those out. Sorry Alabama, I’m just still not impressed with your barbecue.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/ambiance – 3.5 hogs
Pork – 2 hogs
Brisket – 2 hogs
Sides – 2.5 hogs
Overall – 2.5 hogs

Moe’s Original Bar-B-Que – Matthews, NC

June 22, 2013August 1, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / 1 Comment

Name: Moe’s Original Bar-B-Que
Date: 6/19/13
Location: 111 Matthews Station St., Matthews, NC 28105
Order: Pulled pork platter with a drink, cornbread, collard greens, and mac and cheese (link to menu)
Bill: $10.25 (beer not included)

In a sense, it was to be expected. Moe’s Original Bar-B-Que is an Alabama-style barbecue chain restaurant based out of Colorado (not exactly a barbecue capital), and the Barbecue Bros don’t usually have high hopes for chains for a reason. Still, I was going to give it a shot since it had just opened last week and my current client is down the street. So this past week a few folks from my company decided to have a small work happy hour there.

Moe’s moved into a building vacated by Pure Taqueria earlier this year and took a few months to fit it to their needs (more taps, smoker, etc). The building is modeled after an historic Matthews gas station and has garage doors that can be opened to give it an open air feel – oddly they weren’t open on this warm late spring night. As you walk in, you order your food and drink at the bar and take a number before they eventually bring it out to you which I have to say is kind of a weird set up, especially if you plan on having a couple of beers and have to keep going back to the bar to order. Speaking of beers, Moe’s does do a great job of keeping local beers on draft (I had a Olde Hickory Jade IPA and a Birdsong Red House Wheat and I believe NoDa Brewing, Triple C, and Old Meck were all represented) but charges $5 a beer with no beer specials anywhere to be found.

At the bar (again, still weird to me), I ordered the pulled pork platter which came with a drink (non-alcoholic), cornbread, and two sides (collard greens and mac and cheese for me). The price for the platter was $10.25, which strikes me as a little on the pricey side. The food came out shortly after ordering and I quickly noted the relatively small portion sizes for the price and compared with other barbecue restaurants. However, none of that other stuff really matters if the barbecue is of high quality.

Which is to say, sadly it was not. The consistency of the pork was fine, but overall it was dry and lacked smoke. There was a tangy reddish-brown sauce on the pork which somewhat helped with the dryness of the coarsely pulled chunks (another knock), but it wasn’t my jam. Since Moe’s is an Alabama barbecue restaurant there is the option to get an Alabama white sauce with your pork. Needless to say, I stayed far away from that mess.

All of the sides were fine – the collards came with bits of sausage and bacon, the mac and cheese was baked, and the cornbread had some nice sweetness (but it really just ended up making me wish hush puppies were on the menu).

So yea, Moe’s Original Bar-B-Que ended up being more or less as I expected. I won’t pitch a fit if folks want to go there in the future, but it just likely won’t be my idea.

-Monk

Ratings
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 3 hogs
Pulled pork – 2.5 hogs
Sides – 2.5 hogs
Overall – 2.5 hogs

Rock Store Bar-B-Q – Mint Hill, NC

August 19, 2012August 1, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Rock Store Bar-B-Q
Date: 8/10/12
Location: 7032 Brighton Park, Mint Hill, NC 28227
Order: BBQ Pork and Brisket combo plate, hush puppies, beans, sweet tea (link to menu)
Bill: $9.75

Trying to take feedback from Speedy to heart, on this visit to the Mint Hill location of Rock Store Bar-B-Q (click here for the review of the original Stallings location) I ordered a combo platter of both BBQ pork and brisket. I still haven’t had the ribs at either place, so while I made some effort, I fear that it will all be in vain in the eyes of both Speedy and Rudy.

As opposed to the original location, a stand-alone historic gas station structure, the Mint Hill restaurant is located at the end of a strip mall in what looks to have been a former Jersey Mike’s (I tend to have a keen eye for Jersey Mike’s since Speedy and I worked at one in high school for several years).

As you walk up to the front door to this location, you are greeted by a decal that states “Wood Smoked Daily” before you actually do get a whiff of smoke when you enter the door. I still wasn’t able to determine if this is due to the use of a stick burning smoker or an electric or gas burner with wood chips. However, I remain skeptical of there being a stick burner in a strip mall, so I am still working off the gas or electric smoker theory.

Nevertheless, I walked up and ordered a BBQ pork combo plate, adding brisket with my two sides being hush puppies and beans. Unfortunately, the pork was as dry as the sandwich at the original location so again, sauce was a must. A healthy dose of their tangy Stallings Secret sauce worked best with the pork, but I did notice a pool of grease collecting at the bottom of the styrofoam plate. Not the most appetizing visual for lunch.

As I suspected from my visit to the other location, the brisket here is actually coarsely chopped in the same manner as the pork. And it is just as dry. To my surprise, I found that the Carolina Gold mustard-based sauce actually worked best with the brisket but overall it was pretty unremarkable. However, thankfully there was no pool of grease here.

The hush puppies were a nice surprise, as they weren’t available at the original location. They were big and fluffy and the best part of the meal. The BBQ beans were passable but I didn’t eat too much of them, focusing on the meat and hush puppies.

So while this time around I did get more than my usual portions in the interests of the Barbecue Bros and left with a full belly. Unfortunately it was a belly full of average-at-best barbecue.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 2.5 hogs
Brisket – 2 hogs
Pork – 2.5 hogs
Sides – 3 hogs
Overall – 2.5 hogs