Barbecue Pr0n!

[fancycwabs]

Last Saturday, acting on an anonymous tip, I investigated the whereabouts of one Morris Grocery, which is out in the middle of nowhere (although it probably won't be for long), to sample their barbecue sandwich. Morris Grocery is a gray cinder block building that was formerly a country gas station, and is pretty bare except for a counter, a deli cooler, a rack of potato chips, and two drink coolers full of 40s. Which is a really good start.

This is the sandwich I received for four dollars:


You'll observe the charred bit of pork shoulder sticking out of the sandwich at 8 o'clock. That's a good sign.

Today being pi day, I thought I'd stop by my favorite place for fried pie, A&R Barbecue, and pick one up. When I got there, I wasn't really in the mood for one of their sandwiches (which are fine, but I just wasn't feelin' it), so I picked up a pie and drove "around the corner" to Payne's which is known (among those for whom this is important) for having the best barbecue sandwich in Memphis.

Paynes isn't in a former gas station, it's in a former garage, with the service bays cinder-blocked in. Unlike Morris Grocery, it does not serve 40s, but you can't have everything.

This is the sandwich you receive for three-fifty:


You'll observe unnatural green nasty-looking goop oozing out the sides of the sandwich. That's the slaw (a staple on Memphis barbecue sandwiches) and it is great. The sandwich itself is a thing of great complexity: smoky, sweet, sour, hot, salty, umami, with crunchy bits of slaw and charred pork, toasted bun, and a satisfying heft in the ol' stomach. Is it the best in Memphis? I have a lot more sandwiches to eat before I can tell you that (it's not the best that Memphis formerly had--that honor belonged to the late J.C. Hardaway, who could make a damn sandwich at the Big S Grill. AND you could drink 40s.), but it's pretty close if it's not the pinnacle of Barbecue Sandwichcraft.

Comments

[rabswom.livejournal.com]

This makes me miss Texas. I love the food blogging.

[grendelyn.livejournal.com]

Me too. :(

You're making me miss America. (Meaning, I am nostalgic for the country, not some really hot, stupid chick.)

[piemancer]

Tell me more about the food, Cwabs. Please, tell me more about the food.

[skatiemom.livejournal.com]

Is Memphis barbecue tomato based? One of my more hated things in the world is barbecue sauce. Smoked meats are okay, but the sauces available in the wilds of the Midwest are usually along the lines of K.C. Masterpiece.

Since I also dislike ketchup, I'm assuming it's a general anti-tomato-based sauces thing.

[fancycwabs.livejournal.com]

Mostly. Different places use more or less sauce, depending on how proud they are of their cooking process, and honestly I think most folks start with Kraft barbecue sauce and then doctor it up.

That said, if barbecue sauce isn't your thing, Memphis barbecue probably isn't going to work for you anyway.

[skatiemom.livejournal.com]

I was afraid of that. If/when we make it to Memphis, I'll have let Mr. Skatie have my share. Well, after I tried some to see if the problem still exists.

[fancycwabs.livejournal.com]

I should note that with a couple of exceptions, the barbecue here isn't exactly doused in sauce. Ribs, especially, are often served "dry," which is a nice way to serve them if you love paprika more than you love your mother. Interstate Barbecue (and I presume its cousin, Neely's (http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/show_ny/0,3190,FOOD_30858,00.html)) douses its barbecue in a tomato-based sauce, so that might be one to avoid if/when you come visit.

A couple of places in town (notably Cozy Corner (http://www.cozycornerbbq.com/), where the sandwich kinda sucks but the ribs have been described as "the perfect pigsicle" and the hot sauce has been described as "hallucinogenic.") have a slightly thinner, more vinegar-based sauce as a standard, and a few others have four or five different sauces from which to choose, so you can go any direction you'd like.

Edit: Cozy Corner apparently has a website now.

[magicninja.livejournal.com]

Your post intrigues me, and I would like to subscribe to your newslett-...Oh wait, I already HAVE. Winrar!

Searching for information about the Big S Grill

[(Anonymous)]

Hi,

I'm a food writer doing some barbecue research and I'm trying to find someone who has been to the Big S. Grill recently.... or did it close down after Hardaway passed on?

If you can help me out, please shoot an email over to james@theeatenpath.com.

By the way, Payne's just might make my favorite barbecue sandwich in the country. Great to see it done some due justice here.