5 hogs

Name: Lexington #1 Barbecue
Date: 7/23/14
Address: 100 Smokehouse Lane, Lexington NC 27295 (link to menu)
Order: 2 large chop trays, 1 chopped plate, 1 chopped sandwich, side of hushpuppies, 4 Cheerwines
Price: $50 (for 4)

Rudy: Ahhh, reunited and it feels so good. The whole Rudy clan made a summer pilgrimage to North Carolina and got to enjoy some barbecue with Speedy and Monk. Seeing y’all was fine and everything, but being reunited with great Lexington Barbecue was really the best part.

I feel like there was a bit of ‘out of sight, out of mind’ aspect to NC style barbecue. I’d been eating brisket, sausage, and ribs for so long, that I had forgotten about how great a plate of chopped pork can be.

Speedy: And what better place to reunite than consensus Barbecue Bros favorite, Lexington Barbecue aka Lexington #1 aka Monk’s Place aka Honeymonk’s aka heaven. Some of you may be thinking, “Speedy – how can this be the Bros’ favorite when you haven’t been there in the two plus years you’ve had the blog?” Well, loyal readers, the reality of it is that rarely does a month pass by when I don’t figure out a way to get my hands on some of this delicious chopped pork, but we had to have all the Bros reunited for this review.

Monk: That’s true – I can attest that Speedy brings home a pint of chopped pork from Lexington Barbecue regularly (I am usually a beneficiary of such a trip). Even though Speedy and I live but an hour away from Lexington we knew that for the official review we needed to wait until Rudy was back in North Carolina. And yes, it somehow took over two years for us to arrange to all be in Lexington at the same time. When it comes to a plate of chopped pork, Lexington Barbecue is our gold standard.

Rudy: Absolutely it is. There is so much flavor to the pork. It is tender and moist. The thing I liked most about it was that it already came sauced, so it had plenty of flavor and didn’t force you to try and figure out how much you needed to put on it. It is obvious from the flavor (and from the smell outside) that they are using real wood pits as opposed to gas or electric smokers to cook. This makes a tremendous amount of difference in the flavor. I was all ready to put Texas brisket above North Carolina Pork, but Lexington #1 is giving me lots to think about.

Speedy: I couldn’t agree more, Rudy. The pork is absolutely perfect. It’s not smoked by man – it’s smoked by God through man. There’s no other way to put it. It has the perfect amount of bark mixed in with the smoky, savory pork. It’s all shoulder, so there is consistency from bite to bite (which you don’t always get with whole hog), and it’s just damn good. Lexington does keep a spicy dip and Texas Pete on the table, which can be added for a little heat, but it’s certainly not necessary. The tang, the hint of sweetness, the tenderness – it could not be any better. And probably my favorite thing about Lexington barbecue is the consistency. These guys have been doing their thing for 50+ years, and it shows. I’ve never had a single bite of chopped pork there that wasn’t absolutely divine, and this trip was no different.

Monk: The barbecue slaw at Lexington is what Speedy and I always compare slaw to when we go to a NC joint. It is a perfect mix of tangy and crunchy. The hush puppies are darn near perfect, and to top it off, we each ordered a Cheerwine with our meal. Rudy, how good was it to have a Cheerwine with barbecue once again?

Rudy: Don’t even get me started on how great it was. Texas has a red soda too, called Big Red, and it is terrible. People say it tastes like a red creme soda or even bubble gum, but either way I say it is not good. When you have Cheerwine and sweet tea (also rarely served in Texas) on the menu, I’m going to give you a big bump in rating. That and being able to walk around back and see the wood burning into the smokers were the coolest parts of Lexington #1’s atmosphere. Other than that it seems like a basic barbecue joint. So if there is going to be any knock on Lexington #1, it would be the atmosphere. That’s not really the most important part of a restaurant, the food is, and they nailed the food.

Speedy: We went in expecting this to be a slam dunk 5 hog experience, but we’ve been disappointed before. Not this time. The meal at Lexington #1 was absolutely perfect. We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again – if you want barbecue, be it eastern, western, Lexington, Memphis or Texas, this is the gold standard, top of the mart meal. Everything else is just trying to play catch-up.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 4 hogs
Pork – 5 hogs
Sides – 5 hogs
Overall – 5 hogs

Name: Stamey’s Barbecue
Date: 7/12/13
Address: 2206 High Point Road, Greensboro, NC 27403
Order: Chopped pork plate with red slaw, hush puppies, and Cheerwine (link to menu)
Bill: $6.84

Monk: Guys, I think I am in love. Despite growing up in High Point not 20 minutes from Stamey’s, I’m a little ashamed to admit that this past Friday was my first visit to the joint. I mean, Carter Brother’s was fine at the time but why didn’t someone drag me by the ear to Stamey’s?

Rudy: It’s funny that you had never been there, because I practically grew up on Stamey’s. It is located about 2 blocks from my Dad’s business, so I ate there all the time. It is pretty much the barometer for how I view all barbecue. It is also directly across the street from the Greensboro Coliseum, so during the ACC Basketball Tournament, it is packed all day long.

Monk: There really is no good explanation as to why it took so long but in any case, after finishing my latest reading material and getting a better understanding of Warner Stamey’s legacy and influence on Lexington style barbecue in NC, I knew I had to get here asap. And visiting my parents for the weekend while my wife went out of town presented the perfect opportunity.

My dad and I were already going to be in Greensboro so we planned to stop in at Stamey’s that day. We walked into the large wooden building, sat ourselves in a booth and did the usual barbecue joint drill – order a drink, order food when the waitress returns with our drink 2 minutes later, and then receive the food another 2-3 minutes after that (if not sooner).

Soon a perfect plate was presented before me with chopped pork barbecue, red slaw, and oblong hush puppies. After snapping a few photos, I took my first bite and wow. Just wow. Immediately I knew an overall 5 whole hog ratings was in play. Nice chop, perfect smokiness that can’t be faked with gas, and the right ratio of sweetness to tang in the sauce. I ordered the regular plate but immediately wished I had ordered the large.

Rudy: With so many places moving towards gas, it is refreshing to see a big stack of wood piled in the corner of the parking lot; a clear sign that they are sticking with the traditional smoking, which makes the whole difference.

Monk: In case you weren’t aware (I wasn’t until recently), Warner Stamey is actually credited with introducing hush puppies into barbecue meals in the 50’s (it had previously only been a seafood side). As stated in this space numerous times, I like a sweeter hush puppy and while these weren’t quite as sweet as I’d have liked they were pretty good. The red slaw was above average and a Cheerwine rounded out the meal nicely. My Dad and I also split a blueberry cobbler bro-style (separate plates, thank you very much) for dessert, which was quite good. I’m usually too full to order dessert at a barbecue restaurant, but I’m glad I did on this day.

Rudy: One of my biggest complaints about barbecue in Texas is the lack of effort with sides. Most of the time it is just some beans as an option. Stamey’s has brunswick stew as a side option…and it is amazing. Next time anyone goes there, it is an absolute must.

Monk: I wish I had seen your tweet and had ordered the brunswick stew, but next time. When the bill came out I did a double take since the entire meal was under $14. Total. I have come to expect to pay that much for just myself. So you’re telling me not only is this probably at least as good as the best barbecue I’ve ever had (Lexington #1), but the prices are ridiculously reasonable too (a sandwich is $2.99 and a regular plate is $5.29)?

I can’t say enough good things about Stamey’s and I hope to make it back very soon. It is the definition of a 5 whole hog plate of chopped pork barbecue and to me, also the definition of a 5 whole hog joint.

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 4.5 hogs
Pork – 5 hogs
Sides/Dessert – 4.5 hogs
Overall – 5 hogs