Between this Tennessee boosterism and this Texas rejoinder, I really have no stake. (Though I emphatically agree that what you do on a Weber is "grilling" and not necessarily "barbecuing.")
On trips related to quiz-bowl I found both Texas BBQ and Tennessee BBQ disappointing. The pulled pork in Myrtle Beach was pretty good though not spectacular.
I suspect that the best BBQ of all comes from Koreans and that the best BBQ of U.S. origin comes from Kansas City, though your mileage may vary on either of those opinions.
Posted by Matt Bruce at October 21, 2005 04:46 PM1 man's rankings
Best BBQ: Hawaiian (though Korean is good, the mixture of BBQ and Teriyaki is inspired)
Best Beef Ribs: TX
Best Sauce: KC
Best Pork: StL
List subject to change when I visit the actual places rather than relying on CA transplants.
Posted by: Miguel at October 21, 2005 04:56 PMWell, offhand, Myrtle Beach isn't known for any particular style of 'Cue. In general, South Carolina's version involves a weird mustard-based sauce that in pretty much everyone else's opinion immediately eliminates it from consideration.
However, I'm definitely a North Carolina vinegar-based sauce pulled pork man, despite growing up in the Western part of the state; the vinegar-based sauce is from the Eastern part. Yes, NC actually has its own intramural significant BBQ scrimmages.
This did remind me of a bit from Harvard; I was invited to a graduation party for a Memphis native (while probably not cool to give the name, you might be able to figure it out based on their being a Crimson President). Their parents brought up a mess of Memphis BBQ. So, of course, I had to uphold Carolina's honor by pointing out how inferior it was to NC BBQ.
My argument was somewhat weakened when it was noticed I'd gone back for thirds, but I maintained that while it was perfectly good meat and worthy of such attention by me, that didn't mean it was better than true NC 'Cue and that I wouldn't've been on fourths or better if that had been available. : -)