Ask George: Is restaurant BBQ always better earlier in the day, or is that a fallacy?

Is restaurant BBQ always better earlier in the day or is that a fallacy? —Martha S., University City

The short answer is that it depends on the restaurant in question…which means there’s a longer answer. 

I contend that for restaurants that cook their ‘cue once a day (to sell throughout the day), the answer is yes, it’s better earlier in the day. For those that cook product throughout the day (as most BBQ joints do), the answer is no. For those that attempt to reuse product the next day, the answer is moot. (Day-old ‘cue is as sad as cryin’ in the rain.)

Several of the area’s BBQ titans weighed in as well:

Skip Steele, owner of Bogart’s and Dalie’s Smokehouse, generally agreed: “True statement if everything is cooked fresh daily; false, if they reheat product from the night before.”

Mike Emerson, owner of Pappy’s Smokehouse, gave a straight answer (possibly the first ever for the wise-cracking restaurateur): “If you have been to Pappy’s, you will see our BBQ coming off the grill all day long. The pit bosses actually carry our BBQ through the dining room, right past our customers in line, which serves two purposes. 1. It shows how beautiful and fresh our BBQ is, and 2. It works like chumming the water when fishing—sending our customers into a BBQ feeding frenzy. The last of our BBQ usually comes off the grill around 6 to 6:30 p.m., and then we sell out over the next hour or so.”

Phil Czarnec, owner/pitmaster at The BBQ Saloon, feels similarly: “It is not a fallacy that BBQ in certain places is best during lunch. Places that cook their proteins all at once and end their work day by 4 or 5 p.m. get away with that technique without heavy criticism because they almost always sell out, so the product is going to be pretty damn good. BBQ joints that stay open beyond that have to cook with staggered times so there’s no old product. At The BBQ Saloon, we have dramatically different temperatures and cook times for our different proteins, and we have to cook all day because of it.”

Tom Schmidt, owner of Salt + Smoke, said “Our method is a two pronged attack. We certainly rotate and smoke fresh all day every day. New rounds are coming out all the time. Almost as important is where we take the BBQ when we pull it out of the smoker. We use CVap ovens, which are like special voodoo/black magic warming boxes that produce several kinds of dry and wet heat. They can keep product moist and at ideal holding temperatures for hours on end.”

Mike Johnson, co-owner Sugarfire Smoke House, remembers the days before Sugarfire caught fire: “Honestly, it used to be better at 11 a.m., but now we time it so we have stuff coming off the smoker at 11 a.m., noon, 3 p.m., and 5 p.m.

Matt Stiffelman, owner/pitmaster of Vernon’s BBQ & Catering, had a thoughtful, lengthier answer: “Pulled pork, beef brisket, and corned beef are cooked once daily at Vernon’s, but not every roast is cooked in the same exact time, so ones that are fully cooked are served first and ones that are almost cooked will sit in a holding cabinet and get used later. By the time they are used, they are finished in the warmer and have the identical smoke but now are just as juicy and tender as the ones fully cooked earlier. There is a chance that the food at 11 a.m. has a little more crunch to the bark, but the rest is planned to be served throughout the day, knowing everyone deserves tasty BBQ. Ribs are cooked twice daily, one batch at 10:45 a.m., the other at 4:45 p.m., so both lunch and dinner customers get great, fresh ribs. Same as the larger cuts, the fully cooked ribs go first, and ones that require a few minutes more rest in a holding cabinet until they are needed. Turkey and wings are cooked three to five times daily, as poultry can get mealy and also develop an off-flavor if resting too long. Thankfully ,our business is good enough that we can keep the bird train running all day. We will run a 15- to 30-minute wait on wings at times, but we would rather do that than serve a five-hour old wing that tastes and smells like a wet dog. We do not fry the wings as many places do, so we need to cook them often. So to answer the question, our day BBQ and night BBQ should be awfully close to the same product. We planned on being open until 9 p.m. when we conceived Vernon’s, so we planned on cooking multiple batches all day. We do not reheat anything. Some places reheat leftover food to extend their business hours if the allotted Q for the day sells too fast. This helps add to the belief the Q is better early.”

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