|
Too Much Pork for Just One Fork
On the Hunt for Georgia’s Best Barbecue
By James Buice
Drive down a Southern highway or backcountry road for more than 50 miles in one direction and you’d be hard pressed not to see some type of pork propaganda. It’s like some politicking pig went around hanging campaign posters on every corner, claiming to be the unbeatable decision on your edible electoral ballot. Brightly lit neon pigs adorning roadside shacks, painted signs featuring dancing swine in top hats and tuxedos — they have become so much a part of an engrained ideal that the moniker is synonymous with all things barbecue. I’ve always found this discriminating to the other fine recipients of smoky flavor and burgundy sauce that lace the menu alongside Mr. Curleytail. True, it is the South, and pork is the incumbent when it comes to ’que, but what about the chicken, the beef brisket? Foreign, yes, but oh so good. Ah well, in the grand world of smoking, mopping, and charring, there is equality in the form of yummy goodness for all.
Across Georgia, there are too many ’que joints to count on all of your fingers and toes, but remember, not all barbecue is created equal. In fact, at a few places that claim to have true Southern barbecue, the closest thing to smoked meat happens when there is a kitchen fire, so keep an eye out for a few things. The bottom line is you don’t go to Brooks Brothers looking for a pair of overalls. If the place has silk napkins, the cook is wearing a clean uniform, or the waitress looks at you funny when you order a sweet tea, do yourself a favor and order the cheeseburger.
I will refrain from dissecting the origins of barbecue as far too many suppositions stream from the wood smoke and coals for any one idea to be entirely correct. Those delectable smoky chunks of meat have bore more conjecture than the laid-back culinary staple of the South would surely like. However, a brief description should be given, so as to dispel any notions that true barbecue is synonymous with backyard grills and pool parties. The term refers to the slow cooking of meat via an indirect heat source, preferably using a flavor-enhancing wood to create palatable ecstasy. Contrary to grilling, which refers to quickly cooking a piece of meat (or vegetable) over direct heat, barbecue is a time-consuming process requiring hours of time smoking and cooking the meat as well as creating the sauce — an art all unto itself and just as important to the end result as the actual cooking of the meat.
While the term barbecue blankets many forms of cookery, it’s fair to say that Asian barbecue ribs are far different from those found in Lukenbach, Texas, and barbecue pork in New Guinea would be foreign (no pun intended) in Peach State smokers. Even barbecue from South Carolina differs slightly from Georgia. Vinegar sauces, mustard sauces, tomato sauces … so many choices, so many regions. Sauces can have honey. Sauces can be spicy. Sauces can be sweet. Sauces can be made with everything from Tabasco to Coca-Cola. Fact is, some of the finer ’que recipes are secrets guarded closer than alien bodies in Area 51.
Now, it would be a lie to say I’ve not engaged in gastronomic debauchery where some fine ’que is involved. I find it tasty, sure, but there is so much more embedded in the tender rendering of meat. Barbecue has proven to be a culinary ambassador, transcending socioeconomic rifts, political party lines and continental divides, bringing all types of folks together under one saucy roof. That said, let’s take a look at a few of my favorite haunts when the hankering for some fine Southern ’que strikes.
If the place has silk napkins, the cook is wearing a clean uniform, or the waitress looks at you funny when you order a sweet tea, do yourself a favor and order the cheeseburger.
The Swallow at the Hollow
Nested in Historic Roswell, there is as much pickin’ guitars as pork at this little barbecue joint that sports a first-rate music stage alongside tables of hungry patrons. While the diminutive Swallow at the Hollow could be 10 times the size it is and still manage a packed house, the restaurant never seems overly crowded with customers coming back for solid, Old South eats and live entertainment.
The Swallow features singer/songwriter entertainers who perform weekly, always drawing a crowd where everybody has a front-row seat with hot ’que and libation in hand. On weekend nights, the Swallow is packed with patrons enjoying a big plate
of barbecue pork, half-chicken or ribs while listening to storytellers belting out lyrics and strumming guitars, mandolins and fiddles (in the country, we don’t call ’em violins).
If you’re looking to go to the Swallow, you’d better call for directions, as the building lacks the ubiquitous neon pig sign or any sign for that matter. If you feel like Rand-McNally has a direct link with your cerebral cortex, drive out Maple Street in Old Roswell off Alpharetta Highway with your windows down. The smell will bring you in like a character from an old Saturday morning cartoon trailing a lineament of wafting gray smoke.
The barbecue ribs and chopped pork are high on the “not-to-be-missed” list. An oddity among ’quers, the Swallow offers a pit-cooked portabella sandwich with Gouda and fried green tomatoes catering to the vegetarian or semi-health-conscious customer. If you order biscuits here, get enough to take home, as you’ll develop a craving later in the evening, trust me.
1072 Green St.
Roswell, Georgia 30075
678-352-1975
www.theswallowatthehollow.com
One Star Ranch
Drawing its sauces and décor from Texas swing, either of the One Star Ranch locations will give you a good idea of what Texas barbecue should taste like. With two locations, one in Buckhead off Irby and the other just north of Alpharetta off Main Street, One Star has given Texas a strong foothold in the Georgia ’que game. It looks like a Texas roadhouse nestled among the jungles of Urbania with tributes to bankable patrons of both film and radio hanging from the walls.
Being from the South, it was difficult for me to bring myself to sample some of the Texas-style barbecue served up at One Star. I fought the urge for at least 15 minutes while I drove around Buckhead looking for a place to park on a Friday night, overcoming my initial objection to this Western invasion. I was pleased to see a sign that said “Rodeo: Bull Riding Championships” greeting me at the door, and upon entering the establishment, I realized immediately that it’s good to broaden your horizons, especially when barbecue is involved.
Straying from the Southern norm of pork, I ordered the beef brisket, as Texas ’que is known more for its moo than oink. I now eat there on a regular basis and have sampled a bit of everything on the menu. Literally, EVERYTHING. While a firm believer that sausage should not be mixed with barbecue, especially after a few beers, I can say that One Star is on the money when it comes to fine barbecue.
25 Irby Ave.
Atlanta, GA 30305
404-233-7644
732 North Main St.
Alpharetta, GA 30004
770-475-6695
www.onestarranch.com
The first time I walked into Fat Matt’s, the sound of a blues guitar mixed with wood smoke hit me like a screen door somebody forgot to hold open.
Fat Matt’s Rib Shack
For one reason or another, blues and barbecue tend to go hand in hand and you’d be hard pressed to find a better place to catch stellar examples of both than Fat Matt’s. The first time I walked into the place, the sound of a blues guitar mixed with wood smoke hit me like a screen door somebody forgot to hold open. The place was small, almost too small for the electric guitar held by an obvious master of the blues chord. Luckily, the
mastery of the house was shared both onstage and in the kitchen.
Fat Matt’s is a true purveyor of pork, with the establishment’s namesake being the main draw. Served like it should be with two slices of white bread alongside a falling-apart slab of pork ribs, the only thing to worry about is walking out with a barbecue mustache. The sides could be made into a main course, especially the rum-baked beans, which complement either the ribs or pork sandwiches with placatory zeal.
Again, make sure and get there early, as the line to the counter can get pretty long after 6 in the evening. No worries, though, they’ll quickly shuffle you along until it’s your turn at the counter. The limbo between ordering and eating is usually short, with lemonade being the drink of choice, if a cold beer is not in the cards to pass the time.
If quiet is what you want, sit outside in the brightly colored wooden booths. If a cool blues jam session is what you’re after, then sit inside with the band and share in the venue with fellow aficionados. Either way, you’re leaving with a full belly and a tapping foot.
1811 Piedmont Ave.
Atlanta, GA 30324
404-607-1622
www.fatmattsribshack.com
Two Brother’s
This out-of-the-way eatery (unless you live in Downtown Ball Ground) is based out of what would appear to be a retirement home for all things Americana. Old farm plows, iron bridles, mule harnesses and other implements of country life litter the walls, making for an interesting game of “What the heck is that?” for city folk. A sawdust-covered floor and eclectic décor aside, Two Brothers gives you a healthy portion of Deep South barbecue and knows what sweet tea is supposed to taste like.
Pulled pork is the name of the game here, but don’t forget the ribs either. A staple after-Sunday-church meal at Two Brothers would be a pork sandwich, Brunswick stew, and a side of slaw. If you don’t believe me, show up anytime after noon on any given Sunday and see if you can find a table.
A standard side item with any good ’que joint is Brunswick stew, a combination of barbecue meat, corn and various magical ingredients that combine to form a culinary alchemy capable of rendering the partaker speechless. Patrons of Two Brother’s are not long in the tooth when it’s dinnertime.
Keep in mind when visiting this restaurant that it is first come, first served. If you want quick seating, get there early, as the dining room can fill up quickly, and the smells emanating from the kitchen will knot your stomach, making the second hand on your watch seemingly draw to a halt.
1695 Old Canton Road
Ball Ground, GA 30107
770-735-2900
Poole’s
Seemingly the illegitimate love child of an eccentric millionaire and a tonic salesman from the late 1800s, Col. Poole is actually neither by right. What he is can best be described as one of the biggest showmen in the world of barbecue. His restaurant remained hidden to all but locals and a few lucky passersby in the small mountain town of Ellijay until failed presidential candidate Pat Buchanan decided to rely on the age-old political strategy of barbecue, bringing with him reporters, camera crews, and scores of hungry mouths to feed. While the idea didn’t work out too well for Buchanan, Colonel Poole won by a landslide, his barbecue joint being thrust into the national spotlight literally overnight.
If you’re driving up Highway 515 through the mountain city of Ellijay, the first thing that grabs your eye are dozens of pigs grazing along a hillside behind a small building of questionable purpose. The building in question can only be described as housing for an institution in the world of barbecue. Colonel Poole’s is known throughout the land for having some of the finest fixin’s anywhere around.
At Poole’s, politics can run as thick as the barbecue sauce they serve with notable senators, governors and congressmen being in regular attendance to sample some of the Colonel’s ’que. This is not so much an oddity when you consider the early petitioners for public office oftentimes held rallies centered around barbecues so as to draw in constituents from both sides of the track.
You really can’t go wrong with whatever you order at Poole’s, and if you’d like to try and work magic like the Colonel, he even offers a selection of sauces to help you give it a go. I bought a jar of the sauce and, being too lazy to smoke up my own ribs in a timely manner, ended up using it as a dip for pizza, which actually turned out to be quite tasty. I told you I was a junkie for barbecue.
164 Craig St.
East Ellijay, GA 30539
706-635-4100
www.poolesbarbq.com
|
