Good BBQ house in Memphis?

Suprapowaz!(2)

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I'm going on vacation next week and will be traveling through Memphis, Tn. I'm looking for some suggestions on where to eat some good Q. I want real good food. I'm not going to eat the building so please don't send me to some fancy shmancy place, unless they have damn good food. Thanks for any advice.
BBQ capitol of the Nation... Hmmph. We'll see.
 

Joe__G

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Coming from Texas it's not going to be anything like what you consider good BBQ. I'm pretty close to Memphis but lived in TX until my early 20's. Memphis-style BBQ is going to be all (or mostly) pork. Don't even consider getting brisket, it will probably be terrible. With that said, there are some really good BBQ places, you just have to know what to expect.

I don't know what area you're traveling through but there's a place in Horn Lake, a few miles south of Memphis called Memphis BBQ Company, it's really good. If you're inside Memphis there's Corky's, Rendezvous and Central BBQ just to name a few...

I had the dry rubbed ribs and chicken at Corky's when I was in Memphis last week. I'm no connoisseur but they were some of the best ribs I've ever had.

Wherever you end up, just stick with ribs, sausage or pulled pork and you'll have some great food, just not the same as Texas.
 

Joe__G

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FYI- If you order a BBQ (pulled pork) sandwich, it will most likely come with cole slaw on it (yes, on it!) unless you request otherwise.
 

Suprapowaz!(2)

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Cool. Yeah, I heard it's mainly pork which is fine with me. I actually prefer pork ribs over brisket. My wife was looking at Drive in diner and dives show and they featured Leonard's BBQ. I saw how they put the slaw on it, and it looked good. It was weird that they didn't used any kind of rub or spices when they cooked their pork though. Just slow hickory smoked, then crusted over in a charcoal pit afterward. It looked like they relied on the bbq sauce, and slaw to give it flavor. I bet it was still good though.
 

Suprapowaz!(2)

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I just saw some vids on youtube about Corky's & others and I think that's where we're going to go. It looks damn good. That's the first time I've seen ribs done up that way. They put the dry rub on right before they serve them. I'm down.
 

Joe__G

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Suprapowaz!(2);2017169 said:
Cool. Yeah, I heard it's mainly pork which is fine with me. I actually prefer pork ribs over brisket. My wife was looking at Drive in diner and dives show and they featured Leonard's BBQ. I saw how they put the slaw on it, and it looked good. It was weird that they didn't used any kind of rub or spices when they cooked their pork though. Just slow hickory smoked, then crusted over in a charcoal pit afterward. It looked like they relied on the bbq sauce, and slaw to give it flavor. I bet it was still good though.

Yeah I forgot about Leonard's. I've never been but I remember seeing it on tv. The Memphis BBQ Co was also on diners, drives ins and dives.
 

Suprapowaz!(2)

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Ok, went to Leonards today. It was ok. When I saw the video about it they don't season the pork at all before they smoke, or sear it. And you can tell... the pork in the pulled pork sandwich was bland. It got its flavor from the sauce... which was a little too sweet. The slaw was on the sweet side too. They really talked that sandwich up on the TV show. I was a little disappointed.
The ribs were ok. They were slow hickory smoked and had that good flavor. I went dry rub with mine. They actually kinda remind me of pork roast where most of the flavor is on the outside. Not bad, just not as good as mine.
You gotta remember, I'm from Texas. I've been Q'ing since about 10 years old. Yeah, I started a little late. My Dad would teach me a thing or two while Q'ing when I was a kid but would never let me take control. Not kidding.
I'm in Nashville right now, and heading to Washington D.C. tomorrow. Then Niagara Falls. On the way back home we're going to stop through Memphis again and give another restaurant a try. I want to eat at Corky's, and stop by Interstate and get a full rack of ribs for the road. I'll make sure to eat some while they're good and hot though. I was considering Rendezvous but went to Yelp.com to get reviews. People had mixed feelings about that place, but those who gave it low ratings were from Texas, Kansas City, Mississippi, and other Southern states. Those who can throw down at home were disappointed with Rendezvous. I've met people from Memphis that live down here now and they have nothing good to say about Texas Q. They miss their home style BBQ. They feelings are mutual. I'll give them another try though. I can't judge the entire City based on one place.