Que in Palm Beach County

[Alfred G]

Not having much success with good BBQ in PBC I have finally narrowed it down to Troy's in Boynton and McCray's in WPB. Any opinions out there?

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Troy's Bar-Be-Que
1017 N Federal Hwy, Boynton Beach, FL 33435

Mccray's II Backyard Bar BQ
1521 45th St West, Palm Beach, FL

[OysterHo]

I just tried Porky & Beth's bbq truck at Bedner's Farmer's market today. I think they are awesome.

Disclaimer, I am not a bbq expert, but I've learned a lot from all the people here.

I got the 3 meat sampler with two sides. I got the brisket, ribs, and pulled pork and two macs n cheese. I didn't try a different side because I LOVE mac n cheese and if I'm going to eat carbs, it's going to be what I love. :)

I took pictures of it. Under the two ribs on the right is more pulled pork. For $14, this platter could feed me 3 times, it's a bargain!

The brisket is the best I've ever had. It had a delicious bark, although I didn't see glaringly obvious rings, it is there. I don't know, but I've tried brisket at other beloved bbq places and was not pleased - usually too dry. This was juicy and delicious. WILL GO BACK for future brisket cravings!!

The pulled pork was very tender and moist. The ribs were good, not fall off the bone, but great flavor. The two bbq sauces, one sweet, one spicy were both good. I mixed them together.

The mac n cheese was creamy and not overly cheesy. I like mac n cheese to be very cheesy usually, but if it's creamy and done right, it's fine with me. Loved it!

I highly recommend giving them a try while they are still at Bedner's for the season. Going there on the weekend with the country band, pony rides, goats, bbq and homemade ice cream makes you feel like you've left the trendy madness of Boca/Delray and taken a step back in time.

[OysterHo]

ok for some reason it wouldn't let me post more than one photo, so I will post the other 3 here.

[freakerdude]

P&B's is very good and consistently so. I just need to make it back down there again one weekend. P&B and the defunct Smokehouse have been my favorites and you've had them both.

[surgeon]

try abbey road in P B Gdns tasty meaty, falling off the bone nice sauce worth the try the only ribs with flavor!!!!!

[HotMelly]

seminole phil............It's a shame these things happen.The " mighty dollar " takes over and the restaurant (or any business goes to crap)... The same thing happened to my favorite pizza joint, Corelino's in Lantana......New management that was more concerned with the buck....

[Alfred G]

I've been told that the cooks at Esposito's (formerly Corelino's) are the same as Corelino's. The only difference might be the pizza and I liked Esposito's better.

[SaminSFL]

BBQ truck on Lakeworth sighting, stopped and tried the brisket, nice and juicy, not too much smoke, wasnt a big fan of their sauce, but would go back to try the pulled pork.

West of Jog Rd on North Side in a Strip mall parking lot

[Alfred G]

I never hear any mention of Tom's BBQ truck on east Boynton Beach Blvd. Has anyone tried them?

[HotMelly]

I drove by Sheila's just a few hours ago... There is a big "AVAILABLE" sign on the fence. Looks like it has closed... Just my opinion...The food was great but lacked in management skills ,which is a common occurence. Many times they were open when they wanted to be.

[seminole phil]

the last 2 times i went to sheilas i always get a dozen conch fritters and several had no conch in them, i saw this coming

[GatorFL]

Too bad about Sheilas. I think the outdoor/no AC had more to do than the quality of the food which was always good when I ate there.

[LiveRock]

Melly, A friend in the know has informed me that Sheila is reopening at 406 Southern Blvd. (Southern at Dixie).

[HotMelly]

freaker....... In your opinion is this the best Palm Beach county has to offer? Haven't been to Mrs Smokeys yet... I have always been dissapointed in the BBQ in south Florida. You would think someone from the Carolinas would move here to show us how it is meant to be.

[freakerdude]

Smokehouse in Boca or Porky & Beth's at Bedners Farmers Market are your best bets.

[Mat Josher]

Smokehouse closed earlier this month. Porky & Beth's is one of my favorites, I wish they had a full time location.

[CFByrne]

The West Boca Smokehouse closed?

Ayyy yi yi - major bummer!

I did think the building seemed way too big. But I also had thought one reason they left East Boca was to escape high rent.

But who knows, there could be a dozen reasons...

[freakerdude]

Wow! The best q joint in Boca has closed! Website is down and no answer on the phone. I had to check. This is sad sad news......

The competition wasn't even close in quality comparison but only in sheer numbers. When places like Park Avenue, Lucille's, and Miss. Sweets stay in biz, this is a sign of what most people want. The defunct Rib Biz under-cooked their ribs and Red's Backwood's was the only decent local competitor to Smokehouse.

[LargeLife]

Just means I'll be firing up my Big Green Egg smoker and thinking of all y'all today while I'm watching The 500.....I've got some shoulders off a small hog that my friend shot on Friday.....Should be pretty good.....Will use the Blue Hog sauce after I pull the shoulders.....

EMac
Ft. Pierce, FL

[CFByrne]

I forgot your address, can you post that again please?

[coffeyucf]

That sucks. Happy I got to check it out before it went under. Though I'm not that shocked. That location in west boca was terrible. Not much traffic. Plus the clientele that shopping center attracts never seemed to be a match. Probably would have been better off a litte further south on 441. I know the smokey bones does well in that area.

[SaminSFL]

Only the West Boca location...East Boca Still Open

[CFByrne]

>Only the West Boca location...East Boca Still Open

Huh? East Boca closed a year ago.It's now a Greek Restaurant.

Are we talking about the same place? Smokehouse BBQ?

[freakerdude]

Mrs Smokeys is now open in Lake Park on the west side of A1A Alt. just south of Northlake Blvd. BBQ ribs are good but they have no dry rub or bark on them. Pulled pork sandwich is good but no bark on the pork either. 3 sauces are offered and the mild is really medium heat, the medium is very spicy hot, and the hot will set you on fire.

Sides of mac n cheese are good and baked beans are better than most. On the menu are fried pickles, loaded tater tots, chili, chicken noodle soup, succotash, salads, brisket, chicken, and more. They have a fried biscuit that I didn't much care for. They have an open kitchen and the place is clean and new inside.

http://mrssmokeys.com/

[freakerdude]

Here is a PB Post review for anyone interested. I just wished there was more smoke flavor.

http://tinyurl.com/8x9zbtn

[freakerdude]

I just saw this today. Big Mommas Smokehouse BBQ in West Palm Beach is now open. It is a franchise with planned openings in Royal Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Delray, Sunrise, and Coconut Creek. After some investigating, TSC restaurant group is behind this franchise along with 4 other concepts on the way from burgers to hot dogs to wings to salad.

Okay, who wants to take one for the team and try this place out?

http://www.bigmommassmokehousebbq.com/

[CFByrne]

I hope their pit boss is better than their webmaster!

http://www.tscrestaurantgroup.com/

Looking fwd to seeing where they are coming in Delray.

Also want to know how they are going to make it when Red Hot and Blue could not, and Smokey Bones I believe is being scaled back or eliminated by the franchise masters at Darden.

I'll certainly give em a shot though!

[GatorFL]

I live nearby and will give it a shot.

The best BBQ in PB I've found is at Porky and Beth's at Bednar's on 441.

http://www.porkyandbethsbbq.com/

[freakerdude]

P&B @ Bednar's is one of the best but give Smokehouse in Boca a try if in the area. Their website is no where in site if you Google it, which is very odd. Big Mommas does come up for 'Smokehouse bbq Boca' search though.

http://www.smokehouseboca.com/

2257 North Federal Highway
Boca Raton, FL 33431
[phone]

[SaminSFL]

What about Sheila's? I enjoy their BBQ as well,,,

[GatorFL]

I'll try it.

I ate ate Sheila's a couple times. Conch was average but good for PBC. I'll make a que run.

[GatorFL]

Tried it. Big Mommas was nicely decorated and the service was great but the food was average chain BBQ.

[freakerdude]

Nobody has mastered chain BBQ, even the big names. I've been to Dreamland's chain from Alabama and Corky's chain from Memphis, both in Atlanta. None of these compare to the originals. A real pit master's methods can't be farmed out, as the process is always lost in the expansion.

[stuartlafonda]

DeeDee's Ribs and Conch in Delray Beach

[freakerdude]

I had the best BBQ pork I've ever sampled in PB county on Sunday. Unfortunately, it was at the S. Fla. Fair that ended on Sunday. It's a place called Porky's BBQ and they only do fairs and festivals. I believe they got a PB Post write up last year when they were at the same fair. Pork was lightly smoked and had the perfect pink smoke ring, but sadly it was served with store bought Cattleman's BBQ sauce.

[LargeLife]

Hey, FD!.....Always enjoy reading your reviews....as your purse great BBQ......here in South Florida....Would still recommend that you go on line...google 'Blues Hog BBQ Sauce' and buy a gallon...carry it with you.....It's dark n sweet....but it changes character depending on the temperature of the sauce.....and it has underlying heat......Top Q Masters use this stuff right out of the bottle and win titles.....I've cooked on winning teams that use this stuff.....Try it out....Blue Hog BBQ sauce....NOT the dipping sauce......I think it's $24 per gallon.....And sooner or later you might even get your own Big Green Egg.....Happy New Year to you and yours!! EMac

[freakerdude]

Porky's BBQ at the SoFla Fair was only 'fair' this year.

[freakerdude]

I tried out Red's Backwoods BBQ today in WPB on Northlake Blvd. west of Bee Line Expwy in Shoppes at Ibis. This place is almost in the middle of nowhere. They have their original location in Boca near Palmetto.

They have a pretty large menu with different kindfs of bbq styles, mainly N. Carolina pork, Southern style BBQ chicken, and Texas beef. Lots of other options including a bbq sandwich sampler of all three and even a pulled rib meat sandwich.

Brunswick stew, which is almost non-existant in Fla., was pretty good but needed some salt and hot sauce to kick it up. .BBQ pork is ok and it is the shredded down variety, almost mushy in texture. There is no burnt bark here. Why nobody uses bigger "pulled" pieces is beyond me. Austin's was the only place to use big, pulled, barked pieces and they did everything right. Pork Q is very lightly smoked and mixed with just a bit of N. Carolina sauce I believe. BBQ beans were just OK and they use granny smith apples in them.

BBQ sauces are what sets this place apart. Although they don't have any that rocked my boat, they do have six options. Carolina is vinegary, Southern is tomato/mustard, Texas is dark and spicy, Memphis is dark and sweet, Hot was average heat, and the Betcha Can't Eat This Sauce was nice and spicy just as I like it with chipotle, jalapeno, and habanero.

I always go for pulled pork to try a new place out and then hit their ribs. This place ranks better than most out there, but that's not saying too much. Overall, this place is on par with Mississippi Sweets but tRed's sauces give them the edge.

Check em out if in the area.

[freakerdude]

I always forget to use the CH links.

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Red's Backwoods BBQ
10130 Northlake Blvd # 216, West Palm Beach, FL

Red's Backwoods BBQ
1345 W Palmetto Park Rd, Boca Raton, FL 33486

[freakerdude]

Pit stop #2 this weekend was McCray's. As with my visit to Flaming Pit, there was no pulled pork available so I got a weekend special of 1lb of ribs for $10 (normally $12). Ribs are chopped into smaller pieces and had a slight smokey flavor and served with toasted white bread. These ribs were a bit drier but that's how it goes when you serve food not made to order. They had a nice crusty type exterior and I planned on eating half of them and saving the rest. None of them made it past the parking lot.

I'd say these are on par with Troy's and Flaming Pit, with the edge going to McCray's. Their sauce is your typical Florida style orange colored mixture of tomato sauce and mustard with a bit of twang from vinegar. I ordered the hot sauce and it had the right amount off heat and I was sopping up all that was left. They were also out of mac-n-chesse. The stacks of wood out front are a testament to what they serve. Next time I will try the pulled pork and brisket.

McCray's, Troy's, and Flaming Pit are all takeout only.

None of these places serve the heavily smoked and dry rubbed BBQ that I prefer, but all three out-smoke the local chains like Park Ave. and Shorty's.

[freakerdude]

McCray's pork q last week was a'ight and nothing fascinating but nice and pink with a hint of smoke. A bit dry even with sauce on it and too bland. I'd stick with the ribs at this takeout only joint. BBQ beans were average and doctored up to be a bit sweet.

[gan911]

for the love of god, don't get the pulled pork...its like steamed, not bbqed

[freakerdude]

If you didn't like McCray's pulled pork, do not try the 'crock pot simmered' BBQ pork at Lucille's Bad To The Bone BBQ. You've been warned!

[Alfred G]

There is nothing I want to try at Lucille's. The food is terrible.

[CFByrne]

it sounds like McCray's might be closing due to town permit legal issues... or moving... it's not clear, but here's the News report

http://www.cbs12.com/news/features/pa...

McCray's Backyard BarBQ beefy sendoff

MANGONIA PARK, Fla. -- He's known in Magonia Park for his sauce and meat falling from the bone. But now, the legendary local hot spot McCray's barbeque is being forced to pack up and leave. CBS 12's Josh Repp shows us the owner's final flame cooking sendoff to his patrons.

Tuesday, April 24 2012, 06:46 PM EDT

[freakerdude]

McCray's is about the only one I have not made it to in PBC. Please give me the low-down on smoke flavor, sauce, pulled pork report, ribs, sides, etc.

[Alfred G]

See http://www.mccrays2bbq.com/

[ash0529]

Alfred - I'm with you...haven't had much luck here either. I spent the last six years living in the Carolinas and it's been hard to get my BBQ fix down here. I haven't heard of McCray's, but I'm always up to try. I'll try and stop by this week and report back. Do you have a preferred style of BBQ?