Independence Day is coming up, and that creates moral imperative to fire up the grill. There are many things you can do, but none is better than pork barbecue  For your convenience, I’ve gathered together a series of posts describing the five — well, six — steps involved in making perfect barbecue.  They give you a detailed guide, and now you have them all in … Continue reading How to Make Perfect Barbecue: An Illustrated Step by Step Guide

I just had some great lamb barbecue. It had an excellent crust and a moist, tender interior with a solid smoky flavor. I haven’t had a lot of lamb barbecue, but this was the best. The lamb came from Silver and Sons, a food truck that covers much of inner Montgomery County on Wednesday through Saturday. I saw an article about a place with Jewish … Continue reading Silver and Sons Barbecue, Montgomery County, Maryland

My visit to Coffee Nature was prompted by a report that there had been break-in at three businesses on Fessenden Street, Coffee Nature, Sol, and DeLouise Custom Tailors. You can see that the door, now covered with cardboard, had been smashed. Usually I go to Starbucks to chat with a group of friends or, more recently, the Italian Bar. I figured that they could use … Continue reading Coffee Nature, Tenleytown, Washington, DC

I waddled out of Bean’s, fully sated by my huge pork sandwich and chips. I was headed to Chantilly to check out another place, and decided that it would be wise to take back roads so that I’d have time to build up an appetite before my next meal. So I drove slowly up Route 11 toward Woodstock, and after seven miles, before I was … Continue reading Smokin’ Jarhead “”, Woodstock, Virginia

Why doesn’t anyone tell me about these things? I’ve been searching high and low for Virginia places that cook exclusively with wood. I hear about Bean’s BBQ, hurry there, and find out that it’s been around for 13 years. Thirteen lost years!  Edinburg is an upper Shenandoah Valley town incorporated in 1852. It’s home to a little more than 1,000 souls, a number of historic … Continue reading Bean’s BBQ, Edinburg, Virginia

I left Winston-Salem after a couple of cups of coffee, headed north on US 220, when my body was sending a couple of signals to stop. Ever obedient, I pulled off onto the exit for Rangeley, Virginia. You may not have heard of Rangeley. I hadn’t, and the Bureau of the Census seems blithely unaware of its existence. It’s in Henry County, and seems to … Continue reading Rangeley 102 Mini-Market and Deli, Rangeley, Virginia

We speak of Stamey’s in hushed whispers. Warner Stamey was present at the creation of the Lexington or Piedmont style of barbecue. He spent his high school years learning barbecue from legends Jess Swicegood and Sid Weaver, who sold it from tents outside the courthouse in Lexington, North Carolina. After graduation, Stamey opened a place in Cleveland, North Carolina, in 1930, and eventually wound up … Continue reading Stamey’s, Greensboro, North Carolina

I had a negative comment on my magnum opus, my regularly updated blog post about Best Places to Eat Near I-95 between Washington, DC and Miami, and on to Key West. It’s been my most enduring and popular blog post, with well over 10,000 views. The negative comment was that I didn’t list any vegan or vegetarian restaurants. I responded that on that I-95 runs … Continue reading Vegan and Vegetarian Recipes

After my two early lunches at the Southport Smokehouse and the Leland Smokehouse down in Brunswick County, I waddled up north to the Stephenson’s in Willow Springs. I’d been there once before during the height or depths of the pandemic, and had to settle for a carry-out plate with some pork, slaw, green beans, and hushpuppies, which I ate on the front seat of our … Continue reading Stephenson’s Bar-B-Q, Willow Springs, North Carolina

I was going to type in the title, “Southport and Leland, Respectively,” but my Recovering Lawyer Coach put a veto on it. Southport is a nice beach town south of Wilmington, North Carolina, which is a great place in its own right. I drove down to Wilmington after my visit to Grady’s. I arose the next day, toured Wilmington a bit, and then headed to … Continue reading Southport Smokehouse and Leland Smokehouse, Southport and Leland, North Carolina