Dickey's Barbecue Pit (Kennesaw, GA)

1610 Ridenour Blvd.
Kennesaw, GA 30144
770-427-7655
http://www.dickeys.com/

I'll be honest, I didn't have huge expectations for Dickey's Barbecue Pit. I always hope for the best whenever I walk into a new BBQ destination, but I didn't set the bar too high for this one. I've never heard great things about Dickey's, but we still wanted to see if this Texas-based BBQ stop would hold its own here in Georgia. Dickey's got its start over seventy years ago in the Dallas area and has since spread to over 170 locations in the United States. They've had a lot of success nationwide so maybe they were doing something right. There are multiple locations in Georgia, but we decided to visit the newly opened Kennesaw location for this Georgia Barbecue Hunt stop.

I was a little turned off by the faux Texas decor when we walked in. On the other hand, I immediately noticed the pile of hickory wood and Ole Hickory smokers proudly displayed behind the counter. In my opinion, this automatically puts them ahead of such chains as Sonny's or Shane's Rib Shack. Jamie and I ordered two of the two meat combos. The first order had St. Louis style ribs (that boasted "fall of the bone!") and brisket with baked beans and coleslaw. The second order consisted of pulled pork, spicy cheddar sausage, mac 'n cheese, and green beans.

All of the meats are wrapped in plastic wrap to retain moisture waiting to be carved when you order. The food actually looked decent. The first thing we tried were the ribs which were surprisingly pretty good. They were well cooked, smoky, and moist. Thankfully they weren't "fall off the bone" as the sign suggested. This would just be evidence of overcooked meat. The only thing they really lacked was a nice crust or more texture on the outside of the ribs. The brisket also had a good smoky flavor, but that was about it. It was tough and chewy (from not being cooked long enough) and also lacked that nice outer bark. It was very beef jerky-esque. The pulled pork was forgetful...no flavor at all. It might have made a decent sandwich if it was lathered with some of their sauce. The last meat we tried was some of their spicy cheddar sausage. The sign should've read "Spicy Sausage Cheddar" instead because this stuff is packed with cheese...too much cheese. I love jalapeno-cheese sausage, but this was just too much cheese for me to make it enjoyable.

None of the sides really stood out here. The mac 'n cheese had high school cafeteria qualities while the beans and coleslaw were just OK. I'd recommend the green beans the most out of all the sides we tried. A decent meal here would consist of some of the ribs with a side of green beans if you're in a hurry and out of other options.

Not all BBQ in and from Texas is automatically great as evidence with Dickey's. On to the next stop...

Big Shanty Smokehouse (Kennesaw, GA)

3393 Cherokee St NW
Kennesaw, GA 30144

770-499-7444

www.bigshantybbq.com

Big Shanty Smokehouse is a little place that's actually right down the street from where I live. I've been a couple times so I decided it was about time to make an official Georgia Barbecue Hunt visit. First off, I love their location. It's in an old, converted small house off the side of the road with limited seating but great personality. They've recently added outdoor air conditioned seating as well which was nice. Big Shanty Smokehouse is a business that's family owned and operated. There hasn't been a time that I've been there that I haven't seen the whole family working behind the counter. That's something I have great respect for and love seeing. The Dillards (originally from Virginia) take their BBQ seriously. I was assured that all of their meat spends time in the hickory fed smokers out back. More often than not brisket and sausage is something that's not on most Georgia BBQ restaurants. Big Shanty features both. Their menu is fairly simple so I decided to go with "Steve's Sampler" for $15.95. This included pork spare ribs, homemade sausage, pulled pork, brisket, and two sides. I elected for the usual baked beans and coleslaw to accompany my meat feast.