Dinosaur Bar-B-Que – Brooklyn, NY

November 2, 2015November 12, 2015 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Dinosaur BBQ
Date: 10/9/15
Address: 604 Union St, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Order: Pork and brisket combo platter, Ribs and sausage combo platter (link to menu)
Price: ~$40 for Boomsauce, Free for the Barbecue Bros!

Speedy: When you have two Barbecue Bros in your wedding party, it’s required that the dinner the night before the wedding is at a barbecue joint. Seriously – it’s in the contract.

Dinosaur BBQ is a joint that I’ve heard about for several years now. Basically when anyone I meet who has lived in New York City at any point in their life hears that I enjoy barbecue, they say “dude – you’ve got to check out Dinosaur BBQ.” The fact that this was my first trip shows how seriously I took that advice, but now, here I am.

Monk: On a Friday night in Brooklyn, Dinosaur was packed. And you could tell they were interested in keeping folks moving in and out. As soon as our table finished up and checks were paid for, we started to get stares from the wait staff and bus boys as a means to get us to leave. Not the friendliest thing in the world but whatever, on to the barbecue.

Speedy: The first thing I dug into, as usual, was the pork. And it was actually pretty good! It was tender, pulled well, and had just a bit of smoke flavor. In Lexington, this pork would be average, but average Lexington pork is very good. So for New York, this was quite good.

Monk: The brisket was thinly sliced, pre-sauced, and generally was not up to snuff.

Speedy: Monk is being kind. The brisket was terrible. I should note that it’s very clear that we got the flat side of the brisket and it was super dry. Meat from the point may have been better, but I’ll never know, as I’d never order it again.

Monk: Speedy and I did later find out that the folks at the other table of our party who ordered family style got the point and it was apparently much better than we got. Lame. Would have been nice to be asked if we wanted fatty or moist, but as such we weren’t given the option.

Speedy: The ribs were my favorite part of the meal. They were St. Louis cut and lightly glazed. They were cooked well, allowing for a nice, clean bite. There was good flavor, with a nice rub, and the meat was the star, as it should be. I have no complaints about the ribs.

Monk: I don’t recall much about the sausage other than enjoying it, but my memory could be foggy from spending 9 days in New York eating and drinking my way through the city. As for the sides, as with many dishes I had that week, it was very heavy handed with the salt. Other than the salt, not much stood out.

Speedy: Overall, this meal was better than I expected. I think as long as you stay away from the brisket, you’ll be getting a solid, if not spectacular meal from Dinosaur BBQ.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 1 hog
Pork – 3.5 hogs
Brisket – 1.5 hogs
Ribs – 4 hogs
Sausage – 3 hogs
Sides – 2.5 hog
Overall – 3.5 hogs

Arrogant Swine – Brooklyn, NY

October 26, 2015March 6, 2018 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Arrogant Swine
Date: 10/6/15
Address: 173 Morgan Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11237
Order: 1 lb East Carolina whole hog, 1 lb Western NC outside brown shoulder, 1 lb spare ribs, Tikka Masala Sausage, Greensboro Pitmaster Chicken Wings, red vinegar slaw, collards, mac and cheese (link)
Price: ~$120

Monk: Having followed for the past year Tyson Ho’s excellent blog series on Serious Eats on the opening of his barbecue restaurant in Brooklyn, Arrogant Swine was my number one priority while we were in New York for 9 days in early October. That plus the fact that he was doing eastern NC whole hog in the middle of Brooklyn and that his joint was also advertised as a beer hall made it an easy choice.

Speedy: And what a fantastic atmosphere it had! Contrary to every other place in NY, the restaurant was spacious and comfortable, and had a large outdoor seating area. We started our meal at the bar (Monk and crew had some beers and smoked wings while I dealt with a closed subway line) before ordering. A great beer (and whiskey) selection was a big help in allowing the group to wait for me. Anyhow, once I arrived, we put in our order.

Monk: As a nod to cracklins, or crispy hog skin chopped into whole hog, Arrogant Swine serves their chopped pork with a layer of pork rinds. Which is a little bit of a curious choice if you ask me and it took me a minute to realize the pork was underneath it. Once I waded through the pork rinds, I found the vinegary chopped pork to be a decent version of NC whole hog but not quite as good as I had hoped or expected.

Speedy: The western style outside brown was also a little different than you’d find in NC. It came chopped, though I’d consider it more cubed. The pork almost looked more like burnt ends. The flavor was pretty OK, but the cubes made it seem a bit less tender than typical. Overall, I think this really missed the mark. Sorry, Tyson.

Monk: The tikka misala sausage was made in house and was definitely one of the favorites of our group, though there isn’t much of a link to NC either in the sausage or the fact that its Indian spiced.

Speedy: The spare rib was big, meaty, and smoked well. They weren’t over cooked, so you could get a good bit, and the seasoning and sauce was a good compliment to, but did not overpower, the meat. Overall, I think this was better than the pork, which is odd for an NC ‘cue joint. If I were to return, I’d focus on the sausage and the ribs.

Monk: The Greensboro Pit Master wings are a nod to the Vietnamese pitmasters who do much of the smoking in the Piedmont joints that still smoke over wood – notably Stamey’s in Greensboro. While a nice tip of the hat, the sticky and sweet sauce on the wings isn’t really reminiscent of anything related to NC barbecue traditions. In any case, a nice idea and decently executed wing.

Speedy: I thought they were well smoked, but I didn’t love the sauce – a little sweet on my end. In terms of sides, I think I only had the slaw, which I enjoyed, even though there were raisins in there for some reason, which I can’t figure out.

Monk: Oh yeah! Even after we got an explanation from Tyson that just chopped cabbage and carrots in vinegar wouldn’t cut it in NYC, raisins still didn’t make sense to me. Another curious choice. Shout out to the waffle mac and cheese served with a side of queso, though.

Speedy: While eating, we did chat with Tyson a good bit and he was very cool. We talked about some of the differences between his joint and what we typically see in NC, and he was very aware of that. As he put it, he wanted to take the unique pieces on NC ‘cue and amplify them, which I think he did. While doing that, I think it lost some of the things I love about NC ‘cue, but it’s still better than most of the “barbecue” I’ve eaten in the city.

Monk: As an experience, Arrogant Swine was definitely worth trekking it out to Bushwick and I only wish we had been able to go a little earlier to hang on the outdoor patio and drink more of their great selection of beers. As a barbecue restaurant, Arrogant Swine was a little more of a mixed bag with some items more successful than others. In any case, I would definitely go back to Arrogant Swine again and will continue to follow its development, since a joint that cooks whole hog over wood (particularly in NYC) is a rarity these days.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 4 hogs
Pork (eastern) – 3 hogs
Pork (western) – 2 hogs
RIbs – 3.5 hogs
Sausage – 3.5 hogs
Wings – 2.5 hogs
Sides – 2.5 hogs
Overall – 3 hogs

Bitterroot BBQ – Seattle, WA

September 14, 2015November 10, 2015 / Barbecue Bros / 1 Comment

Name: Bitterroot BBQ
Date: 8/21/15
Address: 5239 Ballard Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107
Order: The Cowboy Killer platter with pork, brisket, chicken, baby back ribs, 2 links of sausage, couple of beers, flight of whiskey (link to menu)
Price: $125

Monk: So for the first time in over a year, all three bros were reunited. Last July, we gathered at Lexington Barbecue (our collective favorite joint) and gave it a 5 hog review. This time around we were all in Seattle for our high school friend Boomsauce’s bachelor party, dubbed the #legionofboomsauce. And, spoiler alert, the barbecue was not anywhere near as good. Not even close.

Speedy: Yeah – I guess I wasn’t expecting much from ‘cue in Seattle, but with all three bros together, we had to at least give it a shot.

Rudy: I was a bit apprehensive, however it seems as though there has been a big migration of good barbecue places across the country recently. Good barbecue is not just reserved for the traditional locations, which gave me some hope.

Speedy: Walking in, I was a bit encouraged. The smoker was a big gasser inside the restaurant, but there was a fair amount of wood lying around (and one guy working stated they went through quite a bit of wood daily) so I was hoping for some nice smoky flavor. I also was glad to see a large combo meal on the menu, especially one with a name like the “Cowboy Killer.” And we ended up spending a little more because we were not allowed to sub out the chicken for sausage, so our solution was to add on two links.

Monk: The other great thing about the “Cowboy Killer” platter was that it got the song “Psycho Killer” stuck in Speedy’s head for the rest of the afternoon. On to the meat…the pork was unanimously decided to be the worst of the meats we tried at Bitterroot. Zero smoke and no flavor. I’m wasting no more words on it.

Rudy: I agree about the pork. I was really craving some good pulled pork, so to say I was let down is an understatement. I’ve had crockpot-cooked pulled pork that was 10 times better and more flavorful than what they served.

Upon first sight I had reservations about the brisket. The biggest red flag for me was that there was NO smoke ring. If they have a smoker and go through all that wood each day, as they stated, they would at least stumble onto a smoke ring. The pieces that I had were slightly dry, however they did have a decent bark and most importantly it was really well seasoned, giving the meat a good flavor. It may not have looked the part, but it tasted close to the part. It was the best of the meats, but it also wasn’t having to clear a high hurdle with that.

Speedy: The ribs were better than the pork, but a step down from the brisket. They were cooked decently, but I couldn’t taste a rub at all, so I was left wanting more flavor. I understand the idea of letting the meat do the talking, but sometimes you need some salt and pepper to give the meat a bigger voice. Overall the ribs are a pass.

Rudy: We ordered the sausage separately because there were no substitutions. It was basically alright. I thought it was a bit dry and crumbly. I prefer sausage where the casing has a snap to it, which this one didn’t have. It was also a little bit spicy for my taste. I like spice, but I thought it the sausage was too overpowering and distracted from any flavor that it might have had otherwise. They could have taken some of the seasoning from the sausage and added it to other meats and improved them all. Speaking of which…

Monk: I’m not the biggest fan of chicken at a barbecue joint, but I think I tolerate it more than these other guys. Also, there were no substitutions for the cowboy killer. I found the chicken to be tender and juicy but – stop me if we’re starting to sound like a broken record – there just was no seasoning and I found the meat to be bland.

Rudy: Bitterroot offered several traditional and nontraditional sides. We tried the greens, cauliflower, cornbread, and hushpuppies. The greens and hushpuppies were pretty good and the cornbread wasn’t bad. The cauliflower wasn’t anything to write home about. I liked the selection but everything was just ok to a little above average.

Speedy: By far the best thing about Bitterroot was the Whiskey menu. They had an EXCELLENT selection, including some very hard to find stuff, at very reasonable prices. We took part in a flight from High West (one of my favs), but I would’ve liked to have gone back to sample some more. And the beer list was not shabby either. It was also nice that they were able to seat our group of ten easily.

Monk: Beyond the whiskey and beer selection, that huge farmhouse table that sat our party of 10 was another highlight of the meal. Notice what we are highlighting here…nothing about any of the meats or actual food.

Rudy: I think the biggest indictment of the barbecue at Bitterroot BBQ was that we had plans of trying another Seattle barbecue place the next day, and based on what was claimed to be good Seattle barbecue, we changed our plans and ate at a French restaurant instead. That’s when you know the terrorists have won.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 3.5 hogs
Pork – 0 hogs
Brisket – 2.5 hogs
Ribs – 2 hogs
Sausage – 2 hogs
Chicken – 1.5 hogs
Sides – 2 hogs
Overall – 2 hogs

Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew – Austin, TX (RE-REVIEW)

August 17, 2015August 31, 2015 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew
Date: 8/5/15
Address: 6610 N. Lamar, Austin, TX 78757 (Link to menu)
Order: ½ pound of smoked prime rib, 1 jalapeno cheddar sausage, side of potato salad and creamy cole slaw.
Price: $17.00

Rudy: Speedy and I had previously visited Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew but they were advertising their smoked prime rib, which they only offer on Wednesdays, and the idea of barbecue smoked and flavored prime rib drew me in. I won’t go into a full review, since Speedy and I already covered most of it, which hasn’t changed.

I opted for the meat and two sides combo, plus added a jalapeno cheddar sausage. I had big expectations for the prime rib, and was pretty much let down. Maybe the piece I had was overcooked for my liking, but I expected so much more. The outside had a little bit of flavor, but the smoke and seasonings never made it inside the meat, leaving the bulk of the meat pretty flavorless. The outside bites were fine, but did not make up for the lack of taste on the inside.

The sausage, same as last time, was grea Juicy and plenty of flavor, and sure made me glad that I added it to my order. The potato salad was really good and worth getting in the future. However, I was not a big fan of the creamy cole slaw. That is not that big of a problem, because Stiles, unlike many Texas barbecue restaurants, offers multiple side order options other than just beans. So there are plenty of other options to choose from in the future.

Stiles Switch is still a very good and above average barbecue place (as noted by their top 50 ranking by Texas Monthly) but in the future I will stick to their brisket, sausage, and their beef ribs.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 4.5 hogs (half hog bump for the free beer)
Prime Rib – 2.5 hogs
Sausage – 4 hogs
Sides – 3 hogs
Overall – 3.5 hogs

Barbecue Bros

Barbecue Travels in NC & Beyond

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Dinosaur Bar-B-Que – Brooklyn, NY

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Arrogant Swine – Brooklyn, NY

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Bitterroot BBQ – Seattle, WA

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Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew – Austin, TX (RE-REVIEW)

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