#5: Burnt Ends Sandwich — Joe's Kansas City Bar-B-Que
If Joe’s Kansas City Bar-B-Que, nestled inside a gas station, has a cooking mantra, you can bet it is “low and slow.” Diners line up for the burnt ends sandwich as if it’s their fuel for the week. It takes 15 hours to smoke the brisket — slow enough to ensure crispy, caramelized perfection but long enough that the restaurant serves this sandwich only three days a week.
#4: BBQ Chicken with White Sauce — Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Que
Finger-lickin’ good is the only way to describe the BBQ Chicken with White Sauce at Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Que in Decatur, Ala. Key is the tangy, mayonnaise-based white sauce that dates back to the 1920s when Big Bob made it for the first time. The chicken is served once it's fall-off-the-bone ready and after it takes a dunk in chicken fat and smokes in a hickory-stocked barbecue pit.
Walk into the kitchen at Skylight Inn BBQ in Ayden, N.C., and you’ll find no other than Mike “Chopper” Parrott. Catch him double fisting two meat cleavers as he preps The Pork Plate with fierce precision. Parrott combines the whole hog meat — succulent from a smokehouse loaded with fresh-cut white oak logs — with crispy, chiplike pork skin. This tasty dish is served simple with coleslaw and cornbread.
Diners will wake up early to claim a spot in the three-hour line that starts at Killen's Barbecue in Pearland, Texas. When the clock strikes 11 a.m., they're diving into the smoked brisket: a hunk of meat with a perfectly crisp, black "bark" exterior and succulent interior. For the ultimate dry rub, owner Ronny Killen imports Tellicherry black pepper from India and grinds it to three sizes before mixing it with other bold spices.
Though Daddy Frank’s dry-rub technique has perfected The Bar-B-Q Shop’s tender pork ribs, the real secret is in the sauce. This Memphis barbecue joint shuts the kitchen door to blend the vinegar-based Dancing Pigs Sauce that's served either mild or hot. Be forewarned, heat seekers: You might break a sweat if you order it hot.
