spicy Korean pork

Name: Heirloom Market BBQ
Date: 6/14/17
Address: 2243 Akers Mill Rd., Atlanta, GA 30339
Order: Spicy Korean pork, brisket, collards, fries (link to menu)
Price: $16

Speedy: I sent Monk a simple text on Friday evening. It just said, “Wow wow wow. Heirloom market.”

Monk: It’s true; I can confirm this happened. I wondered why it took so long but was glad Speedy finally made it out there before moving.

Speedy: I have lived in Atlanta for almost a year before checking out Heirloom Market. In my defense, I have to get on 285 (aka the busiest road in America) to get there, but shame on me. This place is incredible.

Heirloom Market doesn’t look like much from the outside. It’s connected to a convenience store, is tiny inside, and just has an outside patio with a half dozen tall tables (and no chairs) if you want to dine-in. However, it has a great reputation, which is well deserved.

Monk: Indeed. A few years back when I was coming into Atlanta, Grant from Marie, Let’s Eat! urged me to go here instead of, say, Fox Bros if I was only picking one joint in Atlanta that weekend. And I was so glad I did, especially years later when I finally tried Fox Bros (which was fine). But Heirloom Market is special.

Speedy: I ordered the combo plate, eschewing the traditional pulled pork for the spicy Korean pork, along with the brisket. The pork is served chunked with a spicy sauce and some kimchi (I think) mixed in. Let me tell you, dear reader, it’s absolutely incredible. The pork is smoked perfectly and the sauce adds just the right amount of spice, along with incredible flavor. In addition to my love of barbecue, I’m a huge fan of all Asian food, so this meat was right up my alley. I wouldn’t change a thing.

Monk: My first taste of that spicy, Korean-influenced pork was one of the best bites of barbecue I’ve ever had – definitely top 5.

Speedy: The brisket is also fantastic. It was the right combination of lean and fatty, had lots of bark, and was not dried out at all. The bark was nice and peppery, and no sauce was needed. This was in the upper echelon of briskets that I’ve enjoyed.

Monk: While not Korean-influenced, I agree that Heirloom Market’s is just a damn good brisket.

Speedy: The collards were great – definitely cooked in some sort of meat stock (I’d guess chicken, but not positive) – giving a nice flavor. And the seasoned fries were also excellent.

My meal was too big for one person – I got a second full meal the next day. All this stuff even tasted great re-heated.

Overall, this meal at Heirloom Market Bar-B-Que was perfect. I wouldn’t change a thing. The only thing I regret is not getting there sooner.

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 4 hogs
Spicy Korean Pork – 5 hogs
Brisket – 4.5 hogs
Sides – 4.5 hogs
Overall – 5 hogs

Name: Heirloom Market BBQ
Date: 6/27/14
Address: 2243 Akers Mill Rd., Atlanta, GA 30339
Order: Spicy korean pork with kimchi slaw, and brunswick stew (link to menu)
Price: $12

In advance of a recent long weekend to visit friends in Atlanta, our original plan was to go to Fox Brothers but after I consulted with Grant of Marie, Let’s Eat! on Twitter (who then wrote a funny letter to Mrs. Monk) we decided that Heirloom Market BBQ would be a better way to go. Not that Fox Brothers wouldn’t have been good (especially since Mrs. Monk and I could have used a beer or three after a 4 hour drive with a sometimes fussy 15 month old), but it probably wouldn’t have been as representative of Atlanta as Heirloom Market seeing as how Fox Brothers is a Texas-style joint.

Heirloom Market is located at the opposite end of a convenience store and doesn’t offer much in the way of seating other than an outdoor deck that is standing only. Diners can also take respite in the tent over a long rectangular table or in the shade next to their mobile smoker, as some did on this slightly steamy late-June afternoon. Also out back is the smokehouse, into which I periodically saw a worker carting pallets of split logs for smoking.

The spicy Korean pork comes in chunks as opposed to pulled or chopped. The platters come with a substantial bun so folks can make a sandwich with a portion of the meat and then finish the rest with a fork. I piled on the kimchi slaw and a little spicy korean sauce called “KB” and the resulting sandwich was a revelation. I hadn’t tasted any barbecue like this before, with the smokiness of the pork from the wood smoke mixing with the spicy korean sauce and the crunchy kimchi slaw. There are no words to express just how fantastic it was.

I was also able to taste both the regular pork and the brisket from Mrs. Monk and my buddy Jimbo. Mrs. Monk didn’t come close to finishing her pork platter, so naturally I obliged in helping her do so. I found it to have nice smokiness, good bark, moist texture. The brisket had a Texas-style black bark, but was a tad on the dry side that day. Still, both were fantastic albeit maybe a level below the spicy pork.

I already mentioned the kimchi slaw I had with the bread, and my second side was Brunswick stew; I’m not a huge Brunswick stew fan but “when in Georgia,” I figured. Though honestly, hot stew didn’t make a lot of sense on an hot day in June when I was already sweating due to the spicy pork, even if the stew did have chunks of smoky pork and obviously not frozen veggies. Worth getting, but preferably during the cooler months or if you take it back to home or work in AC. I also tried some of the collards, which were also quite good.

Even though I left a little bit sweaty due in equal parts to the spicy sauce as well as the fact that we found a spot on the deck where there wasn’t much shade, I left very satisfied. Maybe during our next trip down to Atlanta we will make it to Fox Brothers, but it was clear to me that we made the right choice in choosing Heirloom Market BBQ this time instead.

–Monk

(For another review of Heirloom Market BBQ, check out Marie, Let’s Eat!)

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 4 hogs
Spicy Korean Pork – 4.5 hogs
Pork – 4 hogs
Brisket – 4 hogs
Sides – 4 hogs
Overall – 4.5 hogs