pork

Jack Cobb & Son – Farmville, NC

/ Barbecue Bros / 1 Comment

image

Name: Jack Cobb & Son Barbecue Place
Date: 6/23/13
Location: 3883 South Main Street, Farmville, NC
Order: Combo plate with chopped barbecue, chicken leg, slaw, collards, and hush puppies
Bill: $10.75

Speedy: So the whole extended Speedy clan decided to go out to the Outer Banks for a week of vacation, giving me a great excuse to visit the eastern part of NC and check out some eastern NC barbecue. I used the NC Barbecue Trail as my guide to help me pick where to eat.

Monk: Good call…we have to get to our goal of reviewing every stop on the trail before the end of 2013 somehow.

Speedy: First off, let me say this – Farmville is in the middle of nowhere.

Monk: Wait, you’re telling me a town called “Farmville” isn’t in the middle of a bustling urban metropolis? Shocking.

Speedy: And Jack Cobb and Son fits the bill of a place you’d expect to see in the middle of nowhere. The building is on a large plot of land and appears a bit run down. You can see the smokehouse in the back, which didn’t appear to be running when I arrived (around 1 pm). Walking in to the building, I got sort of a school cafeteria feel. You place your order at the counter and your meal is spooned from large vats of pork/slaw/etc. I imagine the food was prepared early that morning, but I don’t have anything to base that off of. As I said, the smokehouse was not going when I was there.

Monk: Based on the speed with how most barbecue joints serve up their food, I imagine this happens behind the scenes in the kitchen but its a little odd for it to be right in front of you.

Speedy: The first thing I noticed when driving up and walking in is that there’s nowhere to eat. Despite being on a decent size plot of land and in a big building, Jack Cobb is strictly take out. As I was a few hours from my destination – this posed a problem. I initially tried to eat on a tree stump in front of the building, but when it started raining, I ended up eating in my car. I don’t understand why a few tables couldn’t be set up inside or some picnic tables set up outside. This bothered me greatly – probably more than it should have.

Monk: I can understand why you were annoyed since the situations combined to kind of put you out, but are you seriously going to ding a take-out only place for being what it probably always has been? Wait, I know the answer to this…

Speedy: Monk, it’s my review and I’ll rate how I want to. Anyhow, I decided to get a combo plate so I could sample both the pork and the chicken. It came with hushpuppies and two sides, which I chose slaw and collards. Normally, I wouldn’t bother with ordering chicken as well, but the combo plate gives you a choice of breast or leg (I chose leg), so I was more intrigued than if it were just pulled or chopped chicken.

Monk: Bold strategy, Speedy. I think this is the first time I can remember either of us ordering chicken from a barbecue joint in North Carolina that wasn’t chicken wings. Let’s see if it pays off…

Speedy: The food was served quickly, in large portions, and very reasonably priced (note: the barbecue sandwich is only $3). I first dug into the pork, which was very good. It was eastern style, chopped well, was tender, moist, and with good flavor. Definitely the highlight of the meal. The plate came with a small side of extra vinegar based sauce, but I didn’t really need it.

Monk: So far, so good…

Speedy: The chicken was incredibly tender – maybe even too much so. When I picked up the chicken leg, all of the meat literally came off the bone. I was a little disappointed in the flavor. The chicken didn’t seem flavored at all and was just OK. Definitely could’ve used some seasoning or rub. The slaw was vinegary, but lacked the tang that I like and the collards were somewhat flavorless.

Monk: And there it is…this kind of reinforces my thought to just plainly avoid ordering barbecue chicken whatsoever.

Speedy: All in all, I enjoyed the pork, but not really the rest of the food or the experience. And while the pork was very good, it still lacked behind Lexington #1 or Allen & Son. Based on the location, I don’t think I’ll ever go back to Jack Cobb.

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 0 hogs (yes – 0 hogs!)
Pork – 4 hogs
Chicken – 2 hogs
Sides – 2 hogs
Overall – 3 hogs (all because of the pork)

image

image

image

image

image

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

/ Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

image

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

image

image

image

image

image

Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q on Urbanspoon

Country Barbeque – High Point, NC

/ Barbecue Bros / 2 Comments

image

Name: Country Barbeque
Date: 5/10/13
Location: 3921 Sedgebrook St., High Point, NC
Order: Chopped barbecue plate (with red slaw, hush puppies, fries) (link to menu)
Bill: ~$7

Speedy: Recently, I’ve been doing a fair amount of work in Greensboro, NC. As this is “home turf” for the Barbecue Bros, I look forward to eating ‘cue in the area because the places in the area are where I learned the way and the truth of barbecue. So imagine my surprise when I see Country Barbeque nestled on Highway 68 (note: there’s also one on Wendover) just a couple of miles from my client site. Of course I had to give it a try.

Monk: I believe that I’ve been to the Wendover location, and remember being pleasantly surprised considering I believe that it was a gas/electric joint.

Speedy: When you walk into Country Barbeque, it looks the part of a true ‘cue joint. You sit where you like, and a waitress comes up to take your order. Of course I went with the chopped barbecue plate – a standard for any Lexington style barbecue restaurant. Service was super quick, which I’ve come to expect at places such as this, and the volume of food brought was more than I could eat for a very reasonable price.

The pork itself was good, but not great. It wasn’t dry, but I did find myself adding more dip, which was provided on the table. I also couldn’t really taste the smoke, and I generally like a little hint of it on my ‘cue. However, it was tender, chopped fine, and more than passable. I would’ve liked a little more outside brown mixed in (though I didn’t ask for it), but overall, I was pleased. The slaw was very good, and tasted like a typical red slaw should. There wasn’t really any spice, so I added some Texas Pete (also provided on the table) to cure that. The hush puppies were good, though they could have been a little sweeter, and the fried were your standard crinkle fries.

Overall, I enjoyed my meal, though there wasn’t anything to distinguish Country Barbecue from some of the other restaurants around. I definitely prefer Stamey’s and probably Carter’s in the area, and it doesn’t compare favorably to most places in Lexington (and doesn’t hold a candle to #1).

Monk: So the real question is, should I think about heading there next time I am back in town visiting my folks?

Speedy: I would say it’s worth checking out, though I wouldn’t go out of my way to eat there. It’s convenient location (close to the 68/I-40 intersection) is a big draw that means it will probably serve as a quick, convenient meal for me sometime in the future.

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 3.5 hogs
Pork – 3.5 hogs
Sides – 3.5 hogs
Overall – 3.5 hogs

image

image

image

 

City Smoke – Charlotte, NC

/ Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

image

Name: City Smoke
Date: 12/7/12
Location: 100 N. Tryon St., Charlotte, NC, 28202
Order: ‘Cue Combo (brisket, pulled pork, Memphis, Kansas City, and Texas dry rubbed ribs
Bill: $26

Speedy: Well Monk, I hate to say I told you so, but I definitely told you so.

Monk: Speedy – you LOVE saying I told you so. This is the one time it happens to be true.

Speedy: So this past Friday night, Monk and I decided it was time to try a new barbecue restaurant, as it had been a while. Monk had never been to City Smoke, the latest of several modern, trendy barbecue restaurants to open in Charlotte. As the restaurant is in the bottom of the building I work in, I actually did check it out for lunch one day the first week it was open, which was about six months ago. My experience wasn’t good then, but I thought six months probation was enough.

Monk: Well Speedy – apparently you thought wrong. Before we even ordered any barbecue, I was at least struck by the impressive whiskey list (well over 50) which included bourbon, Tennessee, craft rye, Irish, and Scotch. And for the beer lovers, there was a good sized craft beer list on tap.

Speedy: Now all of our readers may be thinking,“Hey, that all sounds pretty good. Why are you guys dumping on this place so much?” Well, I’ll tell you. It’s because of the food.

Monk: Which we always say is a pretty crucial element when judging a restaurant. As is our M.O., we ordered the sampler which had pulled pork, brisket, and three types of ribs as well as your choice of two sides. We’ll start with the pork. You may be wondering how they got a smoker at the bottom of the tallest building between Atlanta and Philadelphia. Well wonder no more, because based on the lack of smokiness in the meat they definitely didn’t. The pork lacked any discernible smoke or flavor. We tried each of the three sauces on the table (one of which basically tasted like A1 steak sauce), but ultimately we didn’t even bother finishing our portion.

Speedy: And the brisket was even worse than the pork! It was rubbery and tasted like it had been reheated. Honestly, it reminded me of grocery store pre-packaged roast beef.

Monk: The ribs were at least better than either the pork or brisket. We got three types of ribs as part of the sampler – Memphis, Kansas City, and Texas Dry. They were tender enough and the saucing and flavor was actually pretty decent. However, once again there was no smoke. Also, we did get shafted by only getting one bone of the Texas dry flavor as opposed to two.

Speedy: I will say this. The sides we had were pretty good. I thought the slaw was great. It was legitimate Lexington-style red slaw. Probably the best I’ve had outside of the great city of Lexington. The collards were good as well. They had bacon bits in them, but the bacon flavor (unfortunately) wasn’t noticeable. City Smoke does have a bin of free peanuts that you can get while you order – probably the only thing in the restaurant worth what you spend on it.

Monk: As you can gather, we were not fans of City Smoke whatsoever (and apparently not a lot of other people are either since it was more or less empty on a Friday night). When the best things about the meal were the sides and the free peanuts, that is never a good thing.

Actually, since we were still hungry we decided to finish our beer and walk a few blocks for some actual good smoked meat in the form of the chipotle apricot wings from Queen City Q. And that’s all you really need to know about our City Smoke experience – we finished our meal at another barbecue restaurant. In fact, City Smoke was so bad that I feel confident in saying that the only reason I can see myself ever returning to City Smoke will not be because of the barbecue but instead to drink some bourbon at the bar.

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance: 3 hogs
Pork – 1.5 hogs
Brisket – 1 hog
Ribs – 2 hogs
Sides – 3 hogs
Overall – 1.5 hogs

image

image

image

image

City Smoke on Urbanspoon