Introduction
Ah, BBQ...short for barbecue, barbeque, barb-a-que, bar-B-Q, or if you're in Australia, the barbie. The variations in spelling don't really denote differences in the way BBQ is done. However, there are probably as many regional and national variations of barbecue as there are regions and nationalities. The term BBQ can mean just about anything including grilling, slow cooking, smoking, flame-broiling, pit cooking, or simply the addition of a barbecue sauce, among others The difference between just grilling and barbecuing is that grilling can achieve heat with little or almost no smoke. To truly barbecue, you need smoke...lots of smoke. So to be clear, the barbecue cooking method requires two key things: heat and smoke. The heat cooks and the smoke imparts flavor. Grilling cooks but does not necessarily infuse and concentrate those amazing smoke flavors into the protein.
Look over enough menus, and you'll discover restaurants will literally "barbeque" just about anything. Sure, you have the standard beef brisket, pork, chicken, burgers, and ribs you'll find at most BBQ joints. Others may do turkey, shrimp or fish, vegetables including kabobs, fruit and one of my favorites, pizza. And still there are literally hundreds of subcategories under these various proteins and starches we could call BBQ. Here are a few you may or may not have seen: brownies, mango, banana, burnt ends, beer can chicken, grilled steak tacos, corn on the cob, seafood skewers, pulled pork, zucchini, pineapple, char sui, barbacoa (the actual Caribbean term from which the word barbecue was derived), strawberries, whole fish or just the fish head, clams, lamb meatballs, avocado, oysters on the half shell, tofu, quesadilla, head of romaine, mutton, pork belly, sweet potatoes, French toast, chicken wings and watermelon.
This is a short list of the myriad possibilities. With such a long list of BBQ items, I felt the only way to come up with a consistent way to evaluate the various Louisville establishments was to pick a protein representing a challenging, yet relatively standard offering across most BBQ joints. To that end, I chose beef brisket.
Why Brisket?
Just about everyone knows how to grill or barbecue meat to some degree. Some folks take the craft to incredible heights and some think just throwing a piece of meat on a hot grill and cooking it into oblivion is the way to do it. If you get into the restaurant business known for BBQ, you better have a particular specialty or value proposition as a basis for competition. That said, every BBQ restaurant I have ever visited had something they did particularly well. I have been trying to perfect grilling and barbecuing since I was in my twenties and doing it right is no small thing. Do it enough, and anyone can make a pretty good burger or chicken breast. Where BBQ becomes more difficult is doing a pork butt or slab of brisket. A complicating factor is the size, weight and thickness of the meat. The trick is cooking the meat all the way through to a proper temperature, maintaining moisture and tenderness and infusing a smoky flavor into the meat (discussed in more detail below). It sounds simple enough, but it is not. The folks who do it well have a well-honed and clear process they follow that does not lend itself to deviation.
Over the years, I have grilled or "barbecued" a majority of the items on the list above. In my opinion, the most difficult protein to get right is beef brisket. It takes skill, patience, the right equipment and a little special something. To me, the hallmark of a great BBQ joint is that they produce a terrific beef brisket. If they can do that well, there is a really good chance their pork, chicken and other meats will be terrific as well. Therefore, I deem beef brisket to be the litmus test for a good BBQ joint.
I also came up with a list of criteria for a great brisket. They are: Meat quality (tenderness, moisture, fat content), smoke flavor (a clear smoke ring and smokiness to the meat), cost, seasoning and of course, sauce.
What is Beef Brisket?
Plain and simply, the brisket is cut from the breast or lower chest area of a four-legged animal. If you search the internet for a definition of brisket, there are numerous definitions, especially when you consider international variations. I won't go into all of that here, but if you want to learn more, here is a pretty good link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brisket Brisket is a great cut of meat that contains a ton of flavor because of the fat cap and connective tissue throughout the cut. The connective tissue in the meat can make it very tough if not cooked properly. This is why you will hear the phrase "low and slow" frequently used when people describe how to cook it correctly. Every good brisket recipe I have read indicates the perfect temperature to cook brisket is between 195 and 203 degrees Fahrenheit. From my own experience, I would concur. This is a relatively low temperature for cooking which explains why it takes a long time to cook thoroughly.
Naturally, the cook time will vary due to the size and thickness of the meat, but most experts seem to agree that to do it properly, you're looking at 8-12 hours in a smoker, grill or oven. The general guideline is about 1 hour of cook time for every pound of meat. Of course, this guideline is fine until the internal temperature of the meat "stalls" before reaching the prime temperature. When you slow cook meat, the internal temperature will rise over time and then often plateaus below the desired temperature. When this happens, you can either wait it out and hope the temperature slowly gets where you need it to be or you can raise the temperature. To impart a great smoke flavor and smoke ring, the meat should be cooked uncovered. When the temperature stalls and you add more fire, this is a good time to cover the meat with paper or foil. This will help the meat retain moisture and tenderness, but will lessen the smoke flavor. These are all things experienced grill masters know well.
The key is to cook the meat long enough to melt away the sinewy connective tissue and fat so you don't end up with a tough piece of meat with big chunks of fat that have to be trimmed away (unless you just like to eat fat, which I do not). If you cook your brisket too quickly and at high heat, you'll end up with a tough, fatty, unappetizing piece of meat and you'll wish you had just grilled some hamburgers.
To generate that lovely smoke ring and flavor, you need to use charcoal or wood. Some places use liquid smoke or some manner of artificial smoker to add the desired smoked meat qualities. This does not make them bad. In fact, some are quite tasty. However, I much prefer beef brisket that has been slow cooked on wood or charcoal at a low temperature to the point that the meat literally falls apart when you cut into it.
Beef brisket can be expensive, especially these days. For my "Mike Puts His Money Where His Mouth Is" post, I bought a lovely 7 lb. USDA Prime boneless cut of brisket at my local grocery store that was a whopping $83.21 before using my discount card which brought the price down to $55.45. That's $11.99 per pound before the discount, $7.99 per pound after the discount. At an average of a half pound per serving, that chunk of USDA Prime will yield approximately 7-8 servings. Trimming that fat and cooking will cause the meat to lose 40%-50% of its weight by the time it is ready to serve. This means you're really looking at around $8.00 for a half pound serving. Restaurants that buy in bulk can achieve a much lower food cost per serving. Nevertheless, beef brisket will generally be the most expensive meat on a restaurant's menu. Some restaurants in my survey were charging north of $20.00 per pound and despite the high price tag, some of the much lower priced brisket joints were in fact better that their higher-priced competitors. I would attribute the price differentials to variances in overhead costs and volume.
As you will see in the individual restaurant evaluations, some achieve flavor and texture through various means including mixing BBQ sauce with the meat before serving or even cooking the meat with the sauce right on the meat. These places achieve a fine and flavorful meat or sandwich but to me, it's all about the meat. Just like when I talk about pizza, I want to strip away all of the toppings and get down to the basic elements that make the pizza truly great - crust, cheese and sauce. If the fundamental ingredients are done right, you have a foundation for an amazing pizza. If you have to cover it up with a bunch of topping that completely mask the underlying elements, then there is no hope for it. The same principles apply to beef brisket. The quality and flavor of the meat carries the most weight in my evaluation.
Side Dishes
Great side dishes are an important element in any BBQ joint. Look across the menus of the dozens of Louisville BBQ restaurants alone and you could probably compile a list of 30 to 40 different sides. My personal favorite: collard greens. Unfortunately, most BBQ joints around Louisville don't offer them. The two side dishes offered by every restaurant evaluated here: Slaw and potato salad. Therefore, at every restaurant I visited, I ordered beef brisket, slaw and potato salad.
I will say that the ways of doing slaw and potato salad are about as varied as the methods of doing brisket. We'll discuss those details as we go through each BBQ joint evaluated.
Local Joints vs Regional or National Chains
Consistent with my approach on most of my other posts, I like to focus on locally-owned and operated establishments. This is not to say that chains are not capable of producing excellent barbecue because many do. However, I find the local joints have a uniqueness or funky quality that is all part of the experience. Plus, having been an independent restaurant owner myself, I know how difficult it is to make it in this business and want to give them all the help I can. Generally, if a restaurant is successful enough to franchise or expand to dozens or hundreds of locations, they don't need my help. Further, by "corporatizing" their concept, they have already begun the long slog to the middle.
There are a few exceptions, but business usually follows a simple rule that applies to their value proposition: Good, Fast, Cheap - There are three, but you can only have two. If the food is good and fast, it won't be cheap. If it is fast and cheap, it's not going to be good. If it's good and cheap, it won't be fast. Businesses will do other things to confuse the public about their true value proposition but it almost always boils down to these three. Chains generally become chains because they have mastered the fast and cheap value props enabling them to achieve profitability for their shareholders. As I have said before, they have their place and when I need something fast, I'll stop in.
All of this said, all of the restaurants included in my evaluation are locally-owned and operated with two exceptions, City Barbecue and another that shall remain nameless. With respect to City BBQ, I was out picking up beef brisket from two other local joints when my wife called and asked if I could get her turkey barbecue. The places I was visiting did not offer turkey and when I did a Google search, City popped up as the closest option. When I was ordering, I figured, what the hell, I will order their brisket and compare them as well. My experience with the other chain was poor across the board - they messed up my order, the order was not ready when they said it would be, the food was cold and the food quality was unusually poor, even for them. The problem is that I have had good service and food from this chain multiple times before. So, we'll just refer to them as the chain that shall remain nameless.
I must also remark however, that local BBQ joints are not immune to service and quality issues. During my evaluation, there were a couple of local joints where my experience was not worthy of mentioning here. Therefore, sticking to my philosophy of not bashing a restaurant for a devastatingly poor experience (that may or may not have been indicative of the every day experience), I just plead the Fifth.
Great BBQ is Like Religion or College Basketball Teams
Everyone has their favorite BBQ. Many folks are absolutely convinced that their favorite spot is the best and only BBQ they will ever eat. Some people are fanatical about it like religion or college basketball. Passion for your favorite food is a good thing, but it can be limiting. I recommend against maintaining too narrow a focus. I encourage everyone to experiment and expand their horizons. Your new favorite might just be lurking around the corner. But if you don't try anything new, you will never know. This does a couple of things. First, if you try other things and keep coming back to the old standard, this just confirms and reaffirms how good that old standby really is. Second, you avoid FOMO...fear of missing out. You went out, tried something new or different, and found there really is life outside that corner BBQ joint. Familiarity and sameness is fine, but life can be really boring if you don't change it up once in a while. So, get out there and let's eat some brisket!
The List
I started compiling my review list with a Google search which yielded over 30 restaurants. I narrowed the list by tossing out big chains or places that were questionable in terms of online reviews and with which I had no previous experience. I tried to go to as many BBQ joints as possible but I wasted a lot of time trying to get to places that appeared to be open, but were closed or had sporadic hours of operation. I went to one place three times when their web site said they were open only to find they were closed without explanation. In fact, there were easily a half dozen restaurants I tried to visit only to find a closed sign when they should have otherwise been open. Blame Covid 19 and the ensuing carnage wrought on the restaurant labor pool.
Lastly, there were a handful of BBQ joints that either do not do beef brisket or that every time I called, they were out of brisket. Again, this was a result of either beef supply and demand problems or labor issues. Either way, they were omitted from this post. As referenced above, one of the largest BBQ chains was omitted because although I ate their brisket and sides, the experience was so poor that I decided to just exclude them - everyone has a bad day.
Here are the 16 BBQ joints that made the list (in alphabetical order): Against the Grain Smokehouse (at Louisville Slugger Field), Back Deck BBQ, Bootleg BBQ, Checks BBQ & Blues, City BBQ, FABD Smokehouse, FDKY, Feast, Holy Smokes, Jucy's, Louie's Hot Chicken & BBQ, Mark's Feed Store, Momma's Mustard, Pickles & BBQ, River Road BBQ, Shack in the Back, South End BBQ.
How Do You Like Your Brisket?
Brisket is generally offered three ways: Sliced, chopped or shredded and slab cut "against the grain." In my survey, I also found most apply a dry rub or seasoning during the smoking and cooking process and offer sauce on the side. Two places in the survey gave no choice and either baked the sauce on the brisket (City BBQ) or mixed their sauce in with the brisket (Bootleg). Frankly, I found it more difficult to evaluate the quality of these meats when prepared this way - there was no chance to assess the quality of the meat apart from the sauce. That said, I have organized the individual BBQ joints by "Sliced," "Shredded" and "Slab Cut Against the Grain."
When I discuss each place, the price given is for either a BBQ beef brisket sandwich and two sides, usually coleslaw and potato salad or their standard individual helping of brisket with two sides, all including sales tax. I also provide the price of BBQ beef brisket per pound where offered.
Superlatives
Before we go to the individual BBQ joint ratings, I wish to offer a few superlatives:
1. Best Overall Experience: Against the Grain Brewery & Smokehouse at Slugger Field
2. Highest Quality Meat: (3 way tie) Against the Grain Brewery & Smokehouse, Shack in the Back and
Back Deck BBQ
3. Cheapest Brisket Sandwich: Shack in the Back ($6.49) followed by Bootleg ($7.00)
4. Best Sauce: FABD Smokehouse
5. Best Brisket at the Lowest-Price Brisket Per Pound: Shack in the Back ($14.59)
6. Best Service & Atmosphere: Against the Grain Brewery & Smokehouse
7. Best Side Dishes: (3 way tie) Feast BBQ, Against the Grain Brewery & Smokehouse, Holy Smokes Bar-B-Que
8. Worth the Drive: (3 way tie) Shack in the Back, South End BBQ, Back Deck BBQ
9. Best Chain: Mark's Feed Store
10. Best Smells from the Parking Lot: Check's Blues & BBQ
Sliced Style
1. Momma's Mustard, Pickles & BBQ, 119 S Hurstbourne Pkwy, Louisville, KY 40222.
(502) 290-7998, https://mommasbbq.com/menu/
Momma's BBQ brisket was cut into thin slices using a meat slicer. Each slice contained a nice bark on the ends and almost all of the fat had been trimmed off. I was given two sauces including a hot sauce and a sweet sauce. Both were very flavorful, both appearing to be tomato-based with brown sugar. The meat was of great quality with a nice smoked flavor. The potato salad consisted of generous chunks of potato with the skin on, mayo and mustard. The slaw appeared to have paprika or other spice that gave the mayo-based sauce a slightly orange tinge. Both sides were very flavorful and went went very well with the brisket. The side portions were pretty large, about 1 cup each. Most of the food was served in biodegradable and compostable containers, which was a cool touch. They maintain a good selection of Kentucky-based craft beers on draft.
Price per person with tax, before tip $15.37. Brisket price per pound $19.50, without tax.
2. Back Deck BBQ, 801 W Kenwood Dr, Louisville, KY 40214.
(502) 705-7662, https://www.backdeckbbqllc.com/
Back Deck's smoker trailer was outside near the picnic tables and it smelled absolutely amazing. I thought this was a fantastic way to attract customers from Colonial Gardens across the street and the nearby Iroquois Amphitheater. The brisket came in five strips that were about 8 or 10 inches long covered with a sweet and savory tomato-based sauce. The brisket had a great smoke ring and bark on the edges. Fat was not trimmed off. The sides contained very generous portions. The potato salad was mustard-based and contained small bits of onions, chives and black pepper. The coleslaw was creamy and traditional with diced chives, purple cabbage, green cabbage, carrots, green onions and lots of pepper. Customer service was very good as the staff were very attentive, brought our food out to us with dispatch and came back out to retrieve the trays when we were finished. They also offered us a to-go box and moist towelettes. The only real downside involved drinks. Back deck had only bottled water and Dr. Pepper.
Price per person with tax, before tip $21.20. Brisket price per pound $20.00, without tax
3. Holy Smokes BBQ & Catering, 7508 Preston Hwy, Louisville, KY 40219, (502) 968-5657, https://www.holysmokesbbq.us/menus/
Holy Smokes' online ordering process was seamless. I arrived about 30 minutes after placing order and they had my order ready when I walked in. My order was assembled correctly and I was in-and-out in no time. The brisket had a nice smoke aroma and a noticeable smoke ring at the edges. The meat was sliced and had most of the fat trimmed off. The sauce was tomato-based barbeque sauce that I found to be very tangy and flavorful, perfectly complimenting the brisket. Potato salad consisted of small cubed potatoes and was very flavorful. Frankly, this might be the best potato salad in town. The coleslaw was a coarsely chopped traditional slaw made from green cabbage, green onions, chopped carrots, light mayo and black pepper, slightly sweet. I was also impressed with the green beans and collard greens. The side portions were fairly generous. No pickles or onions were provided.
Price per person with tax, before tip $18.29. Brisket price per pound $19.50, without tax
Slab Cut Against the Grain Style
1. Against the Grain Brewery and Smokehouse, 401 E Main St, Louisville, KY 40202, (502) 515-0174, https://atgbrewery.com/location/smokehouse/
My wife and I went to the ATG Smokehouse at Louisville Slugger Field and after settling in with a lovely dark schwartz bier titled "Who Schwarted?" I ordered the half-pound brisket and coleslaw and potato salad. Our food came out surprisingly quick for 5:30pm on a Friday afternoon. My brisket was extremely tender and literally disintegrated as I cut into it. It was definitely cut against the grain, as the brewery and smokehouse's name would imply. The meat had a nice bark with just the right amount of fat left on for a delicious flavor. The platter came with pickled red onions, dill pickles and a side of sauce. The sauce had a slight amount of heat and was very flavorful. The German-style dry black beer made an excellent compliment to the brisket.
We also tried the Brussel sprouts, which were some of the best in town. Balsamic vinegar and cheese made the Brussel sprouts. The potato salad was made of redskin potato chunks with a traditional yellow mustard and mayo sauce topped with chopped chives and a slight hint of vinegar. The slaw had red onions, carrots, green cabbage and some red cabbage featuring a creamy and slightly sweet sauce and containing plenty of contrasting black pepper. The sweetness in the slaw was a terrific compliment to the spicy BBQ sauce accompanying the brisket. The brisket itself required no sauce thanks to the resident spice flavors, tenderness, thick bark and abundant smoke flavor. I also believe pickled red onions and sliced dill pickles with a great BBQ sauce ties the entire meal together. These touches put ATG's food over the top.
I must confess that I am a sucker for a place that has great food and a fabulous beer list. They have a nice bourbon and cocktail selection as well, but that will need to wait until another visit. ATG takes the prize for overall best experience based on meat quality, service, atmosphere, sauce and sides.
Price per person with tax, before tip $19.08 (excluding the extra side of Brussel sprouts and ATG's fabulous Schwartz bier). Brisket price per pound $23.00, without tax
2. FDKY BBQ, 9606 Taylorsville Rd, Louisville, KY 40299, (502) 785-4273, https://www.fdkybbq.com/
At the time I visited, FDKY had limited or no dine-in available. So, I pulled up to their drive-thru window. There were two cars in line in front of me and it took eight minutes for me to get up to the window to order. I ordered two of the beef brisket dinners with two sides each. Season fries and green beans with one of them and potato salad and sweet slaw with the other. They offered three variations on their BBQ sauce including a traditional sweet sauce, a "distillers blend" made with Woodford Reserve bourbon and a "please pass the fire extinguisher" hot sauce version. In addition to which sauces I preferred (sweet and bourbon), I was asked if I wanted pickles, jalapenos or onions. Naturally, I ordered pickles and onions. Once my order was placed, it was assembled and handed out the window within a couple minutes. The brisket slabs were sliced and placed on a bun. The meat was moist but lacked a lot of smoke flavor. The slaw was creamy and the potato salad used yellow mustard and mayo like most traditional versions.
Price per person with tax, before tip $14.84. Brisket price per pound $20.00, without tax
3. Check's BBQ & Blues, 14049 Shelbyville Rd, Louisville, KY 40245, (502) 244-6868, https://www.checksbbqandblueslouisville.com/
I called the restaurant at 12:20 p.m. on a Wednesday and ordered a brisket sandwich, sides of coleslaw and potato salad. They said it would be ready in 15 minutes. I went to pick it up in less than 15 minutes, my order was ready. They asked which sauce I wanted - they had four different sauces available, a hot, a spicy, and original and sweet. They were marked o, s, h, r. The brisket came with a toasted bun, three red onion slices and three dill pickle slices - yeah baby!. The brisket was thickly cut and had a beautiful smoke ring and burnt ends. The smoke flavor was very present and the meat itself was moist and smoky tasting. The potato salad had nice chunks of potato with the brown skin on while the overall color of the potato salad was more brown than yellow. and contained what appeared to be bits of chopped chives and red onion. The potato salad was good and creamy but otherwise could have used a little bit of salt. The slaw looked like your typical coleslaw made from green cabbage and shredded carrot, creamy, not vinegar-based. The original barbecue sauce was tomato-based and very sweet with salt, pepper and vinegar. The sauce marked "S" was very sweet and did not appear to have vinegar but lots of brown sugar and sweetness. The sauce marked with a "R" tasted like it had bourbon in it, a very interesting flavor. It was also sweet with tomato but with a hint of bourbon - a nice touch. The sauce marked "H" was also tomato-based and had a good amount of spice, but not an overwhelming amount.
I opted to make my sandwich with the bourbon barbecue sauce, coleslaw, brisket, bun, red onions and pickles. That combination of flavors was fantastic. It checked all of the boxes. Another great touch was that Check's smoker is positioned beside the restaurant near the parking lot. There is a lot of firewood beside the building obviously used in generating the smoke. The smoke from the barbecue permeates the parking lot and adds an awesome dimension to the experience when you pull up and get out of your car.
Price per person with tax, before tip $17.34. Check's menu does not offer a price for brisket by the pound but a half-pound brisket dinner with two sides is $22.99. So, doubling this amount to arrive at a full pound of brisket and adjusting out 4 sides at $2.75 each yields an estimated price per pound of $34.98.
4. Frankfort Avenue Beer Depot (FABD Smokehouse), 3204 Frankfort Ave, Louisville, KY 40206, (502) 895-3223, http://fabdsmokehouse.com/
I went to the FABD Smokehouse on a Saturday afternoon and ordered a pound of beef brisket and a pound of shredded chicken with no sides this visit. The brisket was cut across the grain and has a nice bark and smoke flavor. They provided a very generous a pint of sauce with the order. The meats were tasty, although a little dry. The sauce made up for that because it was sweet and with a slight spicy flavor (but not overbearing) and had a vinegar tang to it. Of the 16 BBQ joints I visited, FABD's BBQ was the best in town.
The brisket sandwich is $9.50 and the sides are $2.25 for a 4 Oz portion. Price per person with tax, $14.84. Brisket price per pound $19.00, without tax.
5. Feast BBQ, 10318 Taylorsville Rd, Jeffersontown, KY 40299, (502) 749-6534, https://www.toasttab.com/feastjtown/v3/?mode=fulfillment
I recently ordered a beef brisket sandwich with collard greens and slaw from Feast's Jeffersontown location. The sandwich came with two slices of white bread, pickles and red onions - a great start! The order included two containers of their original sauce. The sauce was very thick and sweet with a nice amount of smokiness. Unfortunately, I found the brisket to have a disproportionate amount of fat under the peppery bark. The excess fat was such a turn-off because every other aspect of the meal was top notch. The brisket meat was very flavorful but dry after removing big globs of fat with my knife. The brisket had obviously been slow-cooked for hours because it practically fell apart when you put a fork to it. The coleslaw was fairly plain, slightly creamy, with no carrots. The collard greens were chopped and nicely cooked with a great vinegary tang and surprising amount of sweetness. The collard greens were the best part of the meal.
Price per person with tax, before tip $15.45. Brisket price per pound $21.29, without tax.
6. River Road BBQ, 3017 River Rd, Louisville, KY 40207, (502) 592-7065, https://riverroadbbq.com/
I visited River Road BBQ on a Saturday afternoon and ordered a large brisket sandwich with a side of coleslaw and a 16 Oz. Brown Note beer from Against the Grain. The brisket was cut in big chunks and had good smoke flavor. The sandwich was served with ramekin of sauce that was sweet and vinegary, more like a Carolina sweet sauce. The brisket had just the right amount of fat trimmed off and was very moist. The slaw was coarsely cut green cabbage with what appeared to be sesame or chia seeds and little slices of red onion. The slaw appeared to have a nice light vinegar base and is definitely more healthful than the traditional creamy slaw. River Road's coleslaw might be my favorite in town. Naturally, I also favor a joint with good meats and the right local beer selection with which to wash it down.
Price per person with tax, before tip $17.23 (excluding the excellent beer). Brisket price per pound $22.00, without tax.
7. City Barbeque and Catering, 9429 Viking Center Dr, Louisville, KY 40222, (502) 996-8003, https://www.citybbq.com/location/hurstbourne/menu
City BBQ's online ordering platform is very easy to use and provides an estimate of when your food will be ready for pick up. I placed an online order at approximately 5:30 p.m. on a Friday afternoon and the ordering site indicated my order would be ready by 6:00 p.m. Subsequently, I received an order confirmation text message indicating it would be ready at 5:50 p.m. Great! I figured since I was close by, I would go inside, order a beer and watch the kitchen while I waited what should be about 10 minutes be the time I arrived. I ordered bought a beer and explained to the cashier that I was there to pick up I carry out order. She said I was fourth in line. At 5:53 p.m. still waiting and no one yelling out orders.
I counted eight people behind the counter including someone who looked to be a manager but who was doing nothing in particular. It wasn't even peak dinner rush and there were only a handful of customers in the dining room or at the counter. Everyone behind the counter looked like they were in slow motion. Having been a restaurant owner-operator, nothing gets me more fired up than to see people standing around while failing to acknowledge or make eye contact with customers who just want to know when their damn food will be ready. Finally, well after 6pm, someone started calling out names and handed me my bag that had clearly been sitting on the counter for God knows how long because the meats were already cold.
Just to be clear, I don't care how cool the vibe or good the food is - if the service sucks or the place employs apathetic people, it ruins the whole thing for me - this is the reason City appears low in my rating. I wasn't even going to include them because they are a national chain. However, my wife wanted something I would not get at other nearby BBQ joints, I decided to get her what she wanted and try their brisket at the same time. This was not the worst service experience I had during by brisket tour. And their brisket was just interesting enough to make the cut which is why I decided to include City. This also explains why I omitted another national chain because both the food and service were horrible. On the bright side, I have some good things to say about City's brisket.
The brisket had a heavy char and smoke taste. I noticed a nice amount of seasoning and salt flavor and the ends had a lot of thick bark, likely from a heavy coating of sauce being applied before smoking/cooking the meat. I ordered green beans and collard greens as well. The green beans had bacon with them making them very flavorful. The collard greens had a slight vinegar flavor to them with just the right amount of salt. These sides went well with the brisket. Frankly, this brisket was the most unique in town and definitely had the best overall flavor. The problem is that baking the sauce on the meat makes it impossible to truly assess the quality of the brisket. The meal did not come with any pickles or red onions...bummer.
Price per person with tax, before tip $16.29. According to the menu, you can buy an entire 6 lb brisket for $119.00, before tax. Purchased this way, City's brisket is $19.83 per pound, before tax.
8. Louie's Hot Chicken and BBQ, 4222 Poplar Level Rd, Louisville, KY 40213, (502) 709-4274, https://louieshotchickenandbbq.com/
Two Fridays in a row, I called this place and was told they had run out of brisket and had only hot chicken. On a subsequent Friday, I thought "third time's a charm" and spoke to the same guy. No dice. He again said they were out. Instead, I ordered pulled chicken sandwich with sides of coleslaw and potato salad for my wife. I arrived about 30 minutes after I placed the order and my order was ready when I arrived. The shredded chicken was on a bun with barbecue sauce added. Frankly, the chicken was a little dry. The potato salad had red skins, was creamy and very tasty. The slaw had a very slight amount of creaminess to it and was made from red and green cabbage and diced green onions but lacked much flavor - it was neither sweet nor salty. I tasted pulled chicken sandwich noting the sauce was tomato based, was sweet and have a slight amount of heat. And then there was a separate ramekin of what appeared to be a chipotle aioli (of which I am generally a very big fan). It had a good flavor when added to the chicken. The sandwich did not come with pickles or onions. I decided to list them here because the chicken and sauces were respectable. Although I tried and failed to try their brisket three times, the meat on their web site looks as good as any in town. I will try again another time.
Per the menu, the brisket sandwich with two sides with tax, $12.72. Brisket price per pound $24.00, without tax.
Shredded Style
1. Shack in the Back BBQ - 10706 W Manslick Rd, Fairdale, KY 40118,
(502) 363-3227, shackinthebackbbq.com
Shack in the Back fires on all cylinders. Good, Fast, Cheap. Excelling across all three of these value disciplines is rare. I ordered three beef brisket dinners at the counter after the attendant handled a drive through order. I waited about five minutes. The brisket was shredded and came with a side of sauce and a standard hamburger bun. I ordered two sides which included coleslaw and potato salad. The brisket itself was very flavorful with a nice smoke flavor. The accompanying sauce was fantastic - a contender for best of show. The sauce had a little bit of spice complimented by sweetness. The combination of spice, sweet and smokiness in the sauce and the brisket together was fabulous. It's clear most of the fat had been trimmed off the brisket which I feel is important. The brisket has a slight amount of bark from the burnt ends. The sandwich itself could have used some red onion and pickle, but I did not ask for it. Overall the brisket is deserving of Shack in the Back's excellent online and community reputation. The slaw had a scant amount of mayo and creaminess. It was good but not spicy. The potato salad was simple and at the same time, awesome with celery bits, pepper and other spices including red pepper bits. The very mild flavors were another perfect compliment to the brisket.
The brisket dinner including two sides with tax, $10.59. Brisket price per pound $14.59, without tax.
You may have heard rumors that Shack in the Back is closing permanently. This is not true. The owners put out a statement recently that their landlord sold the property to Circle K and that they are relocating. Apparently, they are working on reopening at the former Forcht Bank location at 10706 W. Manslick Rd. Until the new location opens, they indicate they will operate out of their mobile Shack on Wheels - call 363-3227 Ext 1.
2. Mark's Feed Store, 11422 Shelbyville Rd, Louisville, KY 40243,
(502) 244-0140, marksfeedstore.com (several other area locations).
Mark's Feed Store began as a single location in Louisville. The restaurant has been providing good BBQ for over 30 years and has added multiple locations in the area. While checking out at a nearby home improvement store, I decided to log on to Mark's website and found the user interface to be pretty very user friendly. I am a big fan of technology like this when it reduces friction in the end-to-end process. I was quickly able to find the lunch brisket sandwich and selected my two sides, red potato salad and coleslaw. The total was $13.59 including tax and tip. I promptly received a text message which read the following:
"Thanks for your order from Mark's Feed Store. Your order # is "XXXXXXX." Your total is $13.59. Your order is expected to be ready at Sep 21, 2021 12:49 PM."
I was a little surprised it was going to take so long since the order went in at about 12:20 p.m. I figured it would take less than 10 minutes to get there but I went over anyway to see if the time estimate was conservative. The time estimate WAS conservative because I arrived at 12:37 p.m., walked in the restaurant and up to the bar counter. I told a cashier that was there to pick up a carryout order and gave her my name. She handed me my receipt and then handed me the bag a minute later, 11 minutes ahead of the promised time. The sides came in generous one cup portions. There were two small ramekins of sauce, a couple of sliced dill pickles and red onions. The brisket was chopped with burnt ends. The brisket had a nice smoky aroma as did the restaurant when I walked in to pick up my order. I was given a small plastic bag with plastic utensils and a napkin. I decided to eat in the parking lot while it was still warm.
The brisket had cooled but had a good flavor. However, I was missing the smoke that I had been smelling. I opened the two sauces. One was a lighter color that was sweet with vinegar and pepper. The other one appeared to be a more traditional tomato-based barbecue sauce with a slight amount of some heat. Both sauces were quite flavorful. I think the lighter colored sauce with vinegar was intended to be more of a Carolina vinegar-based sauce. The Carolina sauce added a really nice flavor to the brisket. Unfortunately the bun seemed more stale than toasted.
The slaw was pretty traditional. It was made up of coarsely cut green cabbage, carrots, bits of red cabbage, pepper and a slightly creamy sauce with a hint of sweetness. The skin-on red potato salad appeared to use mayo and mustard with some sort of seeds, chopped chives or green onions. The potato salad was very creamy and had a good flavor. Overall when you add the sauces, Mark's brisket lunch sandwich was surprisingly good.
The $13.59 tab was an excellent value even with a 15% tip. Brisket price per pound $19.99, without tax.
3. South End BBQ, 8610 Dixie Hwy, Louisville, KY 40258,
I called South end BBQ in Nov 2021 to place a carryout order at approximately 4:15 p.m. I ordered 2 lb of brisket, four sides which included Mac and cheese, red potato salad, coleslaw and green beans. I was offered four sauces sweet, spicy sweet, spicy mustard and a fourth option that I do not recall (lots of sauce, as long as they are good is the right answer!). I asked for the sweet, spicy sweet and spicy mustard and received ample quantities provided in ramekins on the side.
The brisket itself was packaged in 1 lb containers. The brisket was shredded, well-seasoned and very flavorful with a nice smoke quality. The meat was slightly dry but was very good without any sauce. I could see small amounts of burnt ends and a smoke ring among the shredded bits. I detected almost no fat in the brisket suggesting it had all been trimmed off prior to shredding.
The spicy mustard sauce had a slight sweetness to it and had a very peppery quality. The sweet sauce is clearly tomato or ketchup-based and had a nice sweet quality likely from the generous use of brown sugar. The spicy sweet tasted slightly peppery and with hints of cayenne pepper or other red pepper - this sauce was also very flavorful. Of the three, I favored the sweet sauce. The redskin potato salad was fairly generic in terms of flavor. It had a little creaminess, appeared to contain chopped celery, red onions and radishes. The coleslaw was slightly creamy with a hint of sweetness and a nice mix of cabbage and carrots. The sides were a good compliment to the excellent quality brisket.
South End BBQ's brisket sandwich with two sides: $14.91, with tax. Brisket price per pound $14.99, without tax.
4. Jucy's Smokehouse Bar-B-Q, 7626 La Grange Rd, Pewee Valley, KY 40056, (502) 241-5829,
I called Jucy's to place a carryout order on a Thursday in September 2021 at around 5:00 p.m. I ordered three large brisket sandwiches and requested onions and pickles. I was offered the option of sliced or chopped (shredded) brisket and ordered the chopped version. I also ordered a quart of coleslaw and a quart of red skin potato salad. I asked if they had a choice of sauces and was told they offered a sweet mild sauce that would be provided.
The order came with everything I ordered except the sauce. The barbecue had a good smoke flavor and I could visibly see the smoke ring and burnt ends in the chopped meat. Since they failed to include the sauce with my order, I added my own. The potato salad had little bits of red and black pepper and was prepared with a traditional mayo and mustard base. The coleslaw was a mix of chopped green cabbage, carrots, black pepper and spices. The slaw was light on sauce that was slightly sweet. The order came with sliced dill pickles and white onions which is unusual - most places provide red onions. The brisket was tender with a hint of smoke but could have used a little more spice rub or salt to enhance the flavor.
Jucy's brisket sandwich with two sides was $12.48, with tax. Brisket price per pound $21.99, without tax.
5. Bootleg Bar-B-Q, 9704 Old Bardstown Rd, Louisville, KY 40291, (502) 239-2722, bootlegbbq.com
On a Wednesday in October 2021 at approximately 5:00 p.m. I used the online ordering function from bootleg's website and ordered for dinners, pulled pork, pulled chicken, beef brisket and mutton with a variety of sides. The menu prices look very reasonable. I received a confirmation message saying my order will be ready in 30 minutes and paid online with a credit card. The ordering process was easy. I pulled into carryout parking spot no. 8 approximately 45 minutes after I placed the order. As per the signs out front, I texted my name and spot number to 502-531-3486 and waited for somebody to bring my food out. At that time, they had no in-store dining FYI, you can also call 502-239-4500 for service.
My food was brought out to my car about a minute after I sent the text message. The brisket was moist and had sauce mixed in with it. The meat appeared to be cut against the grain but more closely resembled chopped or shredded BBQ than other slab brisket I have seen. The meat had good flavor and smoke. The potato salad was very flavorful with small chunks of potatoes with mustard and mayonnaise to create a very creamy side item. Bootleg did not have a traditional coleslaw. Rather, the menu offered a "cactus salad" that was similar to coleslaw with onions, carrots and barbecue sauce mixed in. The barbecue sauce was a mix of sweet and spicy flavors with a tomato base.
Unfortunately, when the brisket was pre-coated in sauce, it was difficult to truly assess the quality of the meat. The overall flavor was good but it was impossible to judge how much of the flavor and moisture was coming from the meat versus originating from the sauce.
The menu price of a brisket sandwich with two sides was $14.31, including tax. Brisket price per pound $15.00, without tax.
In Closing
This was a tough assignment but someone had to do it. I tend not to eat a lot of red meat so eating beef brisket from 16 of the Louisville area's best BBQ joints was outside the norm for me. That said, I discovered several places I had never tried before and I hope the information presented here offers you a few ideas of places you will visit soon.
The next task comes in the form of smoking and cooking my own version of beef brisket in my "Mike Puts His Money Where His Mouth Is" post. The good news is the work is already done, the photos have been taken and the writing has begun. I am happy to report that my brisket, sauce and side dish recipes for slaw, potato salad and collard greens featured in that post will offer readers an excellent step-by-step process for creating some more amazing flavors at home.
Whether you visit one of these establishments or attempt to tackle brisket at home based on my recipe, you're going to experience some simply amazing flavors. Until we see each other again, I wish you only the best in eating!
MJS
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