Brookwood Farms - NC

I stopped for dinner at Brookwood Farms located in the Atrium of the Charlotte Douglas Airport while waiting for my flight.

I had the pulled pork sandwich with one side (mac n cheese) for $8.95. The sauce had too much vinegar and the mac n cheese was mushy. It was a shame because NC is known for its barbecue.

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que

...is located in NYC's Harlem at 700 W. 127th Street. All demographics dine here from Hell's Angels motorcyclists to "suits" direct from the office.

"C" and I shared the BBQ Salmon Fritters served with creole mustard sauce(3 for $5.95) for an appetizer. There were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside.

"C" had the Churrasco Chicken Steak - 10 oz Mojito marinated, boneless, skinless breast topped with smoked onions & chimichurri sauce ($15.95) and her two sides were simmered greens (collard greens) and

I had the Tres Hombres - bar-b-cue pork, sliced Texas beef brisket and 1/4 rack of ribs ($18.95) and my two sides were mac & cheese and roasted whipped sweet potatoes with spicy nut topping. The brisket was a little dry, the pork was good and ribs were okay.

And we shared a slice of sweet potato pecan pie for dessert ($7) - that was delicious.

Hill Country

is a texas style bbq restuarant located at 30 West 26th Street near NYC's Chelsea.

It's a quasi-cafeteria style set up. Upon entering you are handed a "meal ticket". You go up to one of the counters and order your "meat" (by the weight or by the number of ribs), your "sides" and your "dessert". Every time you order the counterperson marks your meal ticket. Then you seat yourself and a server takes your beverage order.

After you eat you exit by the cashier. The cashier takes your meal ticket and totals everything you ordered. It's a little tedious when the restaurant is busy.

I ran in for a quick bite and had two beef ribs (Fred Flinstone size for $13.00) that were served with two slices of thick white bread and bundled in brown butcher paper. I washed it all down with a Boylan's cream soda.

From past experience Hill Country's sides are okay, but not great. I do like their peanut butter and jelly cupcakes, but I think $4.50 is steep for the small size of the cupcake.

Fette Sau

...is located in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn at 354 Metropolitan Avenue and is revered for their bbq. It's a good thing there was a pink "Fette Sau" neon sign above the industrial metal gate opening or else it would be very difficult to find this restaurant. Walk through the gates, past the weathered picnic tables and into the industrial looking (was this once a car mechanic's garage??) space.

Walk up to the glass case and select your meat and sides (some meats are not offered on a regular basis so you may want to call ahead to check). Then move down to the counter to order your beverage and dessert. You have to go to the bar to order beer.

Your food is served on a full size cake sheet covered with white butcher paper. It's up to you to decide if you want to use a paper plate and utensils.

Communal picnic tables and a handful of bar seats are prime real estate once this place becomes crowded which it did quickly the weeknight of our visit.

Four sauces in squeeze bottles and rolls of paper towels grace each table.

"M" and I shared the following:

- Berkshire Pork Belly ($4-1/4 lb)

- Berkshire Pork Ribs ($4 - 1/4 lb)

- Beef Brisket ($4 - 1/4 lb)

- Boneless Beef Ribs ($4 - 1/4lb)

- Dante's German potato salad ($3 - small)

- Cora's Broccoli salad ($3.50 - small)

- Bacon Brownie ($5)

Everything was good, but the standouts were the pork belly (charred fat!) and brisket both melt in your mouth and flavorful. The potato salad was very good, but we were disappoinited with the bacon brownie. It was a good regular brownie, but we really couldn't taste the bacon (besides the whole piece that decorated the top).

Blues BBQ

Today we attended the 10th Blues BBQ on Manhattan's Pier 54 in the West Village. There were 4 bbq restaurants serving up their best bbq dishes: Mara's Homemade, Dallas Jones BBQ, Brother Jimmy's BBQ and Dinosaur Bar-B-Que.

The crowd favorite with the longest line was Dinosaur. Originally from Syracuse, NY they opened a restaurant in Harlem a few years ago. I tried the pulled pork sandwich for $7 - it was very tender. They were also offering racks of pork ribs ($12 for 1/2 rack, $22 for a full rack).

The event was sponsored by Guinness and there was a huge truck with several beers on tap for $6/cup.

There was also live music. The first artist was a singer named Eden Brent from Mississippi. Her 3rd song was fun and upbeat - all about fried chicken. Too bad none of the vendors were offering fried chicken.

Wildwood BBQ

Although it has been around for over one year I recently paid my first visit to Wildwood BBQ located at 225 Park Ave. South near NYC's Union Square. The decor is very rustic for that homey country look. This is another "theme" restaurant from B.R. Guest Restaurant Group.

Our waitress was very friendly and perky. When CW and I both ordered individual 1/2 racks of ribs ($15.50/each) and a side of mac n cheese ($5.95/each) each she voluntarily suggested we split the Rib Sampler for $28.95 because it contained the two types of ribs we wanted (spare ribs and baby back ribs) and included 2 sides (which would cover both our side orders of mac n cheese). It would save us almost $14. I found it very refreshing for a restaurant employee to downsell a check. We also ordered the nachos $8.75 to start which were yummy and loaded with bbq brisket, cheese and peppers.

Our ribs were very juicy and tender. They were flavorful enough that I didn't try any of the 6 sauces offered at each table. The mac and cheese was good with crunchy bread crumbs baked on top. The chef sent out 3 additional sides on the house: creamed spinach, coleslaw and baked beans - all very good.

For dessert we ordered the peanut butter and Fluff S'mores. And the manager sent out a complimentary strawberry shortcake.

Overall the food and service was very good and I shall return!