Is it just me or do all barbecue joints basically taste the same?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Literal peasant food marked up 1000%.

I have no issues with eating this "peasant" food. Our HHI is $300k.

And actually, a lot of different peasant foods from different cultures is really good. I am a foodie, and love food diversity.

[Anonymous]

A lot of bad bbq tastes the same.But your comment makes no sense as bbq has extremely different ingredients depending on the type.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can not comprehend how people wait in line for "amazing" bbq when it tastes no different than any other bbq place.

At GMU's Globe they had a different theme each summer Wednesday from Carolina Brisket, Tandoori Chicken, Farmer's Market, Korean Bulgogi, South African, culminating in a Hawaiian pig roast. These taste nothing alike.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Literal peasant food marked up 1000%.

I don’t even know what that means.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Literal peasant food marked up 1000%.

I don’t even know what that means.

Running a (good) barbecue place is a low-margin business. For starters, meat is expensive. Plus, you have to smoke enough meat in advance to last for the day’s service, without smoking too much—which would be wasteful. Don’t smoke enough and you turn customers away. Smoke too much and you throw it away.

Barbecue is a uniquely American delicacy. Lots of cultures grill and roast, but few combine the low roasting of meat with delicate wood smoke. None do it as well as we do. Embrace it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's the Liquid Smoke. This product, this flavoring is used instead of properly smoking the meat. They way it shoul be for bbq. In many areas restaurants can not smoke the meat. Laws don't allow the operation, don't allow the install of the equipment. Some places, some businesses may be "grandfathered" in. Same with a proper Pizza Oven.. You'll find those, more that have been grandfathered in other more northern states.

What are some grandfathered places, or others that actually smoke the meat? Esp in NoVA

I don't know where the ^PP is, but in MD it's allowed. 2fifty BBQ. Their bbq is soooo goooood.

Came to reco 2Fifty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's the Liquid Smoke. This product, this flavoring is used instead of properly smoking the meat. They way it shoul be for bbq. In many areas restaurants can not smoke the meat. Laws don't allow the operation, don't allow the install of the equipment. Some places, some businesses may be "grandfathered" in. Same with a proper Pizza Oven.. You'll find those, more that have been grandfathered in other more northern states.

What are some grandfathered places, or others that actually smoke the meat? Esp in NoVA

I don't know where the ^PP is, but in MD it's allowed. 2fifty BBQ. Their bbq is soooo goooood.

Came to reco 2Fifty.

Any meats or sides in particular?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Literal peasant food marked up 1000%.

I don’t even know what that means.

Cheap throwaway cuts of meat + "smoke" & sauce = charge filet mignon prices

I'd rather just have a good petite filet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s just you. They are definitely not the same.

+1

Take a drive to BBQ exchange in Gordonsville and you’ll taste a difference!

Yep, that's some good BBQ! Also, Monk's in Purcellville.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Um, no. You are not going to good places if that's the case. Where are you eating this BBQ? I'm from Texas and that's the only place where I'll stand in line for any BBQ. ATX is good but not the best (though Frankilin's is worth it). DFW, HOU, Luling have great BBQ.

I'm not a fan of the saucy NC style BBQ so I would not bother with that. Salt, pepper, meat, fire is all you need.

There is no good BBQ in DC metro or VA.

Ugh Texans.

That said, OP maybe you’re just going to places that aren’t actually making BBQ. As the PP who mentioned liquid smoke mentioned, if they’re not actually smoking meats, yeah, they kind of blend together flavor wise (just. too. much. everything.) But that’s not BBQ, that’s a BBQ themed restaurant.

Get rural or at least exurban if you want good BBQ.

To quote a famous old time barbecue joint owner "Anybody with a lick of sense knows that you can't make good barbecue and comply with the health code."

It takes a long time and lots of hands on attention to make good barbecue. Agree that most places outside of small towns (and a few select big cities in the South) cover up the lack of time and attention with chemicals and sauce. A good rule of thumb is that any place that doesn't run out of barbecue before the end of the day is faking it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Literal peasant food marked up 1000%.

I don’t even know what that means.

Running a (good) barbecue place is a low-margin business. For starters, meat is expensive. Plus, you have to smoke enough meat in advance to last for the day’s service, without smoking too much—which would be wasteful. Don’t smoke enough and you turn customers away. Smoke too much and you throw it away.

Barbecue is a uniquely American delicacy. Lots of cultures grill and roast, but few combine the low roasting of meat with delicate wood smoke. None do it as well as we do. Embrace it.

This exactly. I just trimmed a brisket yesterday, it cost $4.50 a pound, so my 15 pound full packer cost me about $68. After trimming the fat I was left with 10.5 pounds. After moisture loss in smoking, the final product will likely weigh around 7 pounds. So already, just to avoid losing money on the meat alone, I'd need to charge nearly $10 a pound if I were to sell it.

But wait, there's more! You need to buy fuel to smoke the meat. As a home chef I go through about a bag of charcoal per cook which adds about $10 to the cost, bringing the cost per pound to $11.15. Commercial outfits usually use long-cured post oak, which is an expensive import in DC.

Now add in paying staff, paying commercial rent, paying utilities, advertising, and it becomes very clear that the markup is minimal.

[Anonymous]

This is kind of like saying all pizza places or all donut shops are the same. Kind of… most of them are middling, overly sweet. But when you find a good place it definitely tastes different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Literal peasant food marked up 1000%.

I don’t even know what that means.

Running a (good) barbecue place is a low-margin business. For starters, meat is expensive. Plus, you have to smoke enough meat in advance to last for the day’s service, without smoking too much—which would be wasteful. Don’t smoke enough and you turn customers away. Smoke too much and you throw it away.

Barbecue is a uniquely American delicacy. Lots of cultures grill and roast, but few combine the low roasting of meat with delicate wood smoke. None do it as well as we do. Embrace it.

This exactly. I just trimmed a brisket yesterday, it cost $4.50 a pound, so my 15 pound full packer cost me about $68. After trimming the fat I was left with 10.5 pounds. After moisture loss in smoking, the final product will likely weigh around 7 pounds. So already, just to avoid losing money on the meat alone, I'd need to charge nearly $10 a pound if I were to sell it.

But wait, there's more! You need to buy fuel to smoke the meat. As a home chef I go through about a bag of charcoal per cook which adds about $10 to the cost, bringing the cost per pound to $11.15. Commercial outfits usually use long-cured post oak, which is an expensive import in DC.

Now add in paying staff, paying commercial rent, paying utilities, advertising, and it becomes very clear that the markup is minimal.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Literal peasant food marked up 1000%.

I don’t even know what that means.

Cheap throwaway cuts of meat + "smoke" & sauce = charge filet mignon prices

I'd rather just have a good petite filet.

A petite filet is a pretty basic steak. Very lean, no marbling, not a ton of flavor, unless you do a sauce. Don’t eat a ton of steak, but when I do, much prefer a NY strip.

For OP, not all bbq tastes the same. Best I’ve had is in Memphis, but there is good ‘cue around here too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Literal peasant food marked up 1000%.

I don’t even know what that means.

Cheap throwaway cuts of meat + "smoke" & sauce = charge filet mignon prices

I'd rather just have a good petite filet.

Not even a rib eye? I prefer flavor.