48 Hours at Michelin’s #1 BBQ in California 

Monk: The Ant’s BBQ Cookout YouTube channel has been doing some Bon Appétit-style 24/28 hours at a restaurant a la Andrew Knowlton spending 24 hours at Franklin BBQ circa 2016. In this video, he spends 2 full days at Daniel Castillo’s Heritage Barbecue in San Juan Capistrano, CA, who just received a Bib Gourmand from Michelin, which recognizes friendly establishments that serve good food at moderate prices.

Description: I spent 2 days at Heritage BBQ, the top BBQ Restaurant on Michelin’s “Best BBQ in California” List.

Friday Find: “How Pitmaster Daniel Castillo Brought Central Texas-Style Barbecue to LA”

Monk: Towards the end of this video, Daniel Castillo talks about how barbecue has given him a purpose in life and kept him out of trouble. And now, he has the first offset smoker that has been NSF certified in the state of California at Anaheim’s Heritage Barbecue. Check out he has fed the community and brought his spin on Texas barbecue classics to Orange County.

Description:
When the pandemic hit, Heritage Barbecue pitmaster Daniel Castillo opened the “O.C. Smoke Kitchen”—a part of his restaurant dedicated to hosting events to serve hospitality workers who lost their jobs due to COVID-19. At this one specific event, he’ll make 800 smoked pulled pork tortas, and we’ll also see how he brought classic Central Texas barbecue dishes like brisket roulade, Texas bourbon smoked ham, red and green chorizo sausages to California.