jhl276

Ahh, a fellow College Gardens resident. I lived on College Parkway for about 10 years. I agree with you completely on the pork at O'briens. Every time I've had it, it's been dry beyond being saved by sauce. FWIW, knowing your bbq preference, I also understand your distaste for their sauce. I very much prefer a vinegar or mustard-based sauce on pork. Their brisket though...mmm mmm mmm. And you're right, the owners of O'briens are great people.

Heather, Sorry for the long post, but perhaps you are thinking of either Red, Hot, and Blue, or the former BBQ man. O'briens is on Gude, but is a ways from Crabbs Branch. Did you mean Gude and Calhoun? Also, the restaurant only has one sauce. The recipe was purchased by Ken Sr. from Sonny Bryans in Texas when he opened the restaurant. IMHO, they do have, by far, the best brisket in the area (by that I mean MoCo). This includes what I've had at UBQ, Rocklands, Bare Bones, Famous Daves (I know, not real bbq), and the restaurants above. I even found it to be better than the brisket I had at the original Sonny Bryans in Dallas. The meat always has a beautiful, rosy, smoke ring, a wonderful bark, and that delicious hickory taste. However, some of the other meats are hit-or-miss. I wouldn't go there for the pork, for example. I am not affiliated with the restaurant, although I have been a fan for 26 of my 31 years. I would go anytime for either their brisket or sausage, among other items. I am open to suggestions as to the best bbq in the area, so please feel free to open my eyes to places I may have missed.

From my first and only experience, the burgers and fries were underwhelming. I find the burgers at Chee Burger comparable if not better. As far as the fries, they were "dead." The seasoning was nice although the fries themselves were limp and soggy. I went with my SO and neither of us finished either the burgers or fries. I should also note that the place was very empty at the time so maybe both had been sitting for a while. I would love to try the place again and hope to have a better experience next time. Hate to be so critical on my first post but...