There are things I don’t love about The Original Ronnie’s. Right now, they just have curbside service, so you can’t go inside and sit and eat and talk with the other customers. And, well, that’s about the only thing I don’t love about Ronnie’s. The rest of Ronnie’s is great. You drive up and see a low white building — there are some big cookers … Continue reading The Original Ronnie’s, Henrico County, Virginia
I finished the second day of my Eastern Virginia Campaign for Real Barbecue trip (checking and certifying places that cooked exclusively with wood) at Bar-Q on East Ocean View Avenue in Norfolk. Bar-Q is even easier to miss than Dave’s. There is no Bar-Q sign. The only external hint that there’s a barbecue place is a couple of big smokers that you can’t see from … Continue reading Bar-Q, Norfolk, Virginia
I toured around Norfolk a bit after a big lunch at Redwood Smoke Shack before wandering over to Dave’s BBQ in Virginia Beach. You have to pay close attention to find Dave’s. Ignore traffic and focus on the roadside. Ah, there it is! That’s all the warning you get, and even after you turn in, you have to keep looking. Dave’s is in the back … Continue reading Dave’s BBQ, Virginia Beach, Virginia
After a day of meals at the excellent Northern Neck BBQ, Rudy’s Pizza and Barbecue, and the very good Old City Barbecue, I started Day 2 of my Eastern Virginia Campaign for Real Barbecue trip with an early lunch at the Redwood Smoke Shack in Norfolk. I’d seen it featured in Southern Grit Magazine as a top new place that cooked exclusively with wood, something … Continue reading Redwood Smoke Shack, Norfolk, Virginia
After a truly great lunch at Northern Neck BBQ and a weird experience at Rudy’s, my Eastern Virginia Barbecue Tour on behalf of the Campaign for Real Barbecue took me to Williamsburg to check the all-wood cooking status of another place: Old City Barbecue. Old City is in the former location of the Yorkshire Steakhouse, the sort of upscale setting that can have a plonking … Continue reading Old City Barbecue, Williamsburg, Virginia
I left Montross and the excellent Northern Neck BBQ, and continued to my next meal on my Campaign for Real Barbecue trip to check and verify that barbecue places cook the meat as they should — exclusively with wood. I’d had a tip about Rudy’s Pizza and BBQ, just across the Norris Bridge over the Rappahannock in Topping, a moderately wide place in the road … Continue reading Rudy’s Pizza and BBQ, Topping, Virginia
What a good place! And you definitely should visit Westmoreland County, Virginia. We did years ago when Patrick and Liza were youngsters. We toured George Washington’s Birthplace National Monument and Stratford Hall, where the docents seemed ashamed of one of the three Lee brothers who wasn’t present to sign the Declaration of Independence. Both places are well worth a tour. There’s also James Monroe’s birthplace … Continue reading Northern Neck BBQ at the Barn in Montross, Virginia
I’ve mentioned Robert Moss and his weekly barbecue newsletter, The ‘Cue Sheet, many times. I especially enjoyed the current issue (June 14). It features a lovely profile of Little Bridges Cabannis, the woman behind Red Bridges Barbecue Lodge, one of the great barbecue places. She married “Red” Bridges and they started the first Bridges barbecue in 1946, and she was the driving force behind the … Continue reading The ‘Cue Sheet, Red Bridges Barbecue Lodge, and John Shelton Reed
I saw this on The Smoke Sheet and The ‘Cue Sheet, two invaluable barbecue resources. A whole lot of barbecue places in Texas — and in other states — are closed on Monday. That’s a big problem because most Texans eat on Monday as well as other days of the week. Indeed, I have yet to meet one who doesn’t. And on Mondays people tend … Continue reading Barbecue in Texas on a Monday
My son-in-law, Michael Boyd, alerted me to this one. Michael travels a lot at odd times between Washington and Calvert County, and often stops to grab a quick bite to eat. He recently stopped for a sandwich at Calvert Crab and Seafood in Prince Frederick, where we’d bought steamed crabs on Father’s Day last year. Michael’s not one to forget a promising place. He returned … Continue reading Calvert Crabs and Seafood, Prince Frederick, Calvert County, Maryland
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