No other food is as quintessentially American as barbecue. But as with the USA itself, regional diversity – and deep-seated local pride – is what reigns supreme. Different parts of the country have their own distinct styles and flavors, and debating the nuances and superiority of each – sauce or no sauce, the ingredients of said sauce, which animal, which part of the animal – really gets people, ahem, fired up.
Which state is number one for BBQs? Picking a single spot might be enough to start another civil war, but the United States has four main regional barbecue styles, centered on Kansas City, Texas, Memphis and the Carolinas. While you can find barbecue restaurants in all 50 states, the closer you get to these places of origin, the better it’s likely to be.
Ready to dig into a heaping plate of smoky-flavored meat with a side of history? Here’s where to find the best barbecues in the USA.
1. Kansas City
OK, I’m a little biased – I grew up in Kansas and now live in Kansas City, Missouri, so the local BBQ style – heavy on the sauce, big on the burnt ends – is forever at the top of my list. Eating barbecue is one of the top things to do when visiting KC, and BBQ joints on both sides of the state line rank among the best restaurants in Kansas City.
In fact, you don’t even need to leave the airport. When the new Kansas City airport terminal opened in 2023, it included a dedicated space for a barbecue smoker. But KC couldn’t pick just one out of its hundreds of BBQ restaurants for the showcase spot in this traveler gateway. Instead, an annual competition selects one eatery to be featured, and the resident BBQ house is rotated every year.
Burnt ends are a Kansas City invention and a must-order. They come from the fatty “point” end of a beef brisket, a cut from the lower torso, and were originally discarded when the brisket was cut. But customers loved these smoky, crunchy, caramelized end pieces, so instead of throwing them out, some restaurants started giving them away for free or putting them on the menu.
Where to try Kansas City barbecue: How do you choose your favorite child? KC owes much of its legendary barbecue status to Henry Perry, a Black pitmaster who opened a restaurant here in the early 1900s. Although Perry’s restaurant no longer exists, he trained apprentice pitmasters who carried on his craft at Arthur Bryant’s – considered the first place to serve burnt ends – and Gates Bar-B-Q.
Next-generation pitmasters are firing up the smokers and producing their own takes on this traditional staple. Created by Joe’s Kansas City Bar-B-Que, the Z-Man sandwich (sliced brisket, smoked provolone cheese and onion rings on a Kaiser roll) holds legendary status, best devoured at the original Joe’s location in a gas station on the Kansas side of the state line.
2. Austin, Texas
Travel south to Texas, and brisket is still the name of the barbecue game, though the Lone Star State adds sausage links and pork ribs to its holy trinity of smoked meats. Even within Texas, different parts of the state have style variations, but the state capital is the perfect place to start a barbecue odyssey.
Many Austin BBQ joints serve up the state’s standard offering: Brisket, links and ribs dry rubbed with simple spice and with little to no sauce, slowly smoked atop oak or hickory wood. Texas Monthly magazine has published a list of the best BBQ restaurants in the state every four years since 1997, and Austin is well represented, particularly in the top 10.
Be prepared for long waits and short opening hours at many top BBQ spots – some restaurants open only for lunch (around 11am) and close when they sell out of the good stuff (usually by 2pm).
Where to try barbecue in Austin: You’ll have plenty of time – a couple of hours at least – to plan your time in the city as you wait in line at Franklin Barbecue, one of the best BBQ restaurants in Texas. The fatty brisket, seasoned only with salt and pepper, is smoked to perfection and dished out to hungry hordes that descend hours before the joint even opens.
Female-owned La Barbecue is chasing down Austin’s “best barbecue” crown, and making big gains with its central Texas favorites, and equally delicious and inventive alternative dishes, such as chipotle sausage.
3. Lockhart, Texas
About 35 miles from Austin, Lockhart is the BBQ capital of Texas, and that’s not just an empty tourism boast. The state House of Representatives passed a proclamation to anoint the central Texas town as such in 1999. Lockhart’s barbecue history stretches back generations, and some of its BBQ institutions have been open for more than a century. This long-standing legacy means that tradition is important, but the newcomers arriving to shake up the scene are also putting down roots and making a name for themselves.
Where to try Lockhart’s best barbecue: Opened in 1900, Kreuz Market is a stalwart of the scene. Brisket and ribs are priced by the pound, though you can order however much you want. Don’t bother asking for barbecue sauce because there isn’t any.
Black’s Barbecue opened a few decades later in 1932, and it’s the oldest barbecue restaurant in Texas that’s still owned and run by the same family, now four generations in. Don’t miss the smoked beef ribs, and the sausage, which former president and Texas native Lyndon B Johnson had brought in for parties in Washington, DC.
Women-run, weekends-only Barbs B Q opened in 2023, and it already has long lines of customers licking their chops. The founders hail from South Texas, and the menu has hints of the borderlands, with orders such as fajita sausages and pork ribs sprinkled with lime zest and glazed with serrano pepper syrup.
4. Memphis, Tennessee
Pork ribs are popular in Texas, but they’re really given their due in Memphis, where you can order a slab either “dry” (rubbed with spices) or “wet” (coated with sauce). Memphis-style barbecue sauces balance tangy, smoky and sweet notes – similar to the flavors of Kansas City – with the addition of vinegar, mustard and sometimes a kick of heat.
The consistency of Memphis sauce is thinner than that found in Kansas City, making it excellent for marinating the cuts of pork that are sizzled low and slow over a hickory or pecan wood fire. Memphis’ BBQ restaurants also have you-won’t-find-this-anywhere-else menu items such as barbecue spaghetti (pasta topped with smoked or pulled pork and red sauce) and BBQ bologna sandwiches.
Where to try Memphis barbecue: Central BBQ dishes up some of the city’s best pulled pork in a handful of locations across Memphis, while Charlie Vergos’ Rendezvous has been serving dry rub ribs from a basement restaurant down a side alley since the 1940s. The building‘s old coal chute was rejigged to create the firepit.
Cozy Corner sells the Memphis standards, as well as barbecued Cornish game hen, the house specialty. In 2020, Desiree Robinson, the restaurant’s co-founder, was the first Black woman to be inducted into the Barbecue Hall of Fame.
5. North Carolina
The Carolinas go the whole hog for barbecues – and that should perhaps be no surprise as North Carolina is one of the country’s biggest pork-producing states. Carolina BBQ flavors are split between east and west. The eastern style, found near the coast, relies on barbecuing an entire pig for up to 24 hours, then mixing the shredded meat and crispy skin with a thin vinegar and pepper sauce. The western version cooks just the pork shoulders and uses a sweeter sauce often made with ketchup.
Where to try North Carolina BBQ: The North Carolina Barbecue Society created the helpful North Carolina Historic Barbecue Trail, which links up some of the state’s best spots for a ‘cue. In the town of Ayden, Skylight Inn – also known as Pete Jones’ BBQ after its founder – makes an excellent stop. Founded in 1947, Skylight still does it old school, barbecuing whole hogs over a wood-fire pit and serving the meat with sides of coleslaw and cornbread.
For a hot take on western-style Carolina BBQ, roll into Lexington, where the pork is usually sold sliced or chopped, not pulled. Barbecue Center is a solid choice – it originally opened as an ice cream shop in the 1950s, and you can still enjoy its popular sundaes and banana splits alongside barbecue chicken and chopped pork. The “red slaw” – coleslaw made with vinegar and tomato BBQ sauce instead of mayonnaise – is a signature side dish.
This article was first published Jul 28, 2020 and updated Aug 12, 2024.
