Where to Eat Barbecue Like an Iron Chef

To visit Franklin Barbecue, you have to really want barbecue. Like, really want it. Because as Chef Leeann Wong notes, it's not uncommon to wait in a four-hour line at this uber-popular Austin restaurant. She says simply, "Franklin Barbecue is king." When she visits, she opts for the PLATTER, which offers heaps of 14-hour-smoked brisket, ribs, juicy pulled pork, sliced turkey and sausages. But she adds that for something a bit less over-the-top, there's the Tipsy Texan, a sandwich piled high with brisket, sausage and slaw.

"That smoky goodness just permeates the room," Chef Madison Cowan explains of the scene at Bludso's Barbecue in Los Angeles. He notes that he's especially keen on the pork ribs, rubbed with a mix of bold spices, but for a taste of nearly everything, he also likes The Lunch Tray, featuring brisket, pulled pork, sausages and no shortage of sides — think mac and cheese, cornbread, baked beans and greens. "Just make sure you don't plan to do anything for the rest of the day," Chef Madison jokes. 

"A mound of perfectly smoked pork." That's how Iron Chef Michael Symon describes the Whole Hog Platter from this meat lover's paradise in Nashville. It is, after all, just that: A pile of juicy, succulent pig that's been slow-smoked with hickory wood for no less than a day. And if that's not enough, Michael also likes to dig into the Redneck Taco, featuring a heap of pulled smoked chicken and colorful slaw, all piled atop a savory corncake.

Think you can't get quality 'cue in the Big Apple? Thing again. Chef Jonathan Sawyer heads to Brooklyn for what he calls "barbecue, New York style." And that means an internationally inspired menu, including these Korean Sticky Ribs (pictured above). They're smoked and fried, then lacquered with a gochujang-based glaze, sweetened with brown sugar. "They can't be compared to anything else," Chef Jonathan says. Also unique is the restaurant's take on lamb; they smoke lamb belly until it's fall-apart tender and serve it with vibrant pickled onions.

Find out where Iron Chefs go to indulge in super-juicy burgers across the country.