Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint – Nolensville, TN

6 10 2009
  • 7215 Nolensville Road
  • Nolensville, TN 37135
  • (615) 776-1856
  • Website
  • Menu
Martins Bar-B-Que in Nolensville, TN

Martin's Bar-B-Que in Nolensville, TN

One more chance for BBQ before leaving Tennessee.  J and I got up just before lunch time in Nashville.  Our next stop was four hours away in Indianapolis where we were going to spend the night before going apartment hunting in Kalamazoo.  It seemed like a good stopping point. 

One of my “must see” stops was a BBQ joint in Nolensville, TN.  I thought it was north of Nashville but it actually ended up being a half hour south.  I was ready to just skip it, but J talked me into it.  We were in no hurry to get to Indy, so why not get one more good meal before heading home.

Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint is one of Nashville’s best.  It’s on Nolensville Road just outside of Nolensville, TN.  I actually heard about this place from the same Bon Apetit article that raved about Slow’s and Zingerman’s Roadhouse. 

I’m not sure what I was expecting, but what I found was not it.  For some odd reason, I was under the impression this was going to be more of a sit down restaurant.  What we found was a small, neighborhood BBQ joint. Read the rest of this entry »

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BBQ Shack

15 08 2008
  • 3491 Page Ave.
  • Jackson, MI 49203
  • (517) 764-5648
  • Website
  • Menu
The BBQ Shack in Jackson just off of US 127

The BBQ Shack in Jackson just off of US 127

FYI, the BBQ Shack has moved since this review.  Click on the website link to get the new location.

What a find!  I actually read a review from another blogger about a week ago.  I’m doing some freelance work again this weekend at Michigan International Speedway and figured one of the days, I should have some time to stop on the way home and check it out.  J and I headed down to the Irish Hills for media availabilities on Friday morning.  We sat in on Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Burton’s press conferences and the Stewart-Haas Racing announcement of Ryan Newman joining the team next year.  After that, we did a quick lap through the pits as guys were getting ready to practice.  All that worked up an appetite so we decided today was the day for BBQ.

The BBQ Shack is located right off of US 127 right across the street from McDonald’s. I felt sorry for all those poor saps that were getting Big Mac’s instead of BBQ.  Amy warned me that if we weren’t looking, we might miss the place, so I had my eyes open.  She was right.  There’s not sign out front that really identifies the place.  The building is, well, a little shack.  There’s a patio in front and off to the side that make up the only dining room the BBQ Shack has.  When you walk inside, you come right to the counter.  There were three people inside working and all three greeted us as we looked over the menu.  Read the rest of this entry »





Election Day BBQ – Final Update

5 08 2008

I hope everyone did their civic duty today and voted in all the non-races in the Lansing area.  I haven’t yet, but I do plan on it before the polls close.  It’s a little wierd.  I haven’t voted on Election Day in a few years.  Illinois has early voting or what the Reform Michigan Government Now (which I strongly oppose) calls No Excuse Absentee Voting.  Our polls were also automated, so I figured I’ll use today as a practice vote for November since I hear Michigan still use paper ballets or optical scan maybe?

Anyway, since it is Election Day, it’s a good day for a BBQ, huh?  I know that’s bad logic, but everyday is a good day for a BBQ.  My girlfriend actually isn’t going to be able to leave work for dinner, so we’re being nice and smoking some pork butts for the whole office.  I’ve never blogged about my cooking, but I thought I’d share the journey since I know some people at her office read this, it’ll just get them hungrier and then, as a negative side effect, hype up my pulled pork and give me expecatations I can’t possibly achieve.

Anyway, we got two Levandowski pork butts from L & L last night.  We went with two smaller ones instead of one big one hoping to cut the cooking time down some.  I put my rub on last night and threw them in the fridge.  I used a Bobby Flay rub and this is one of the few I don’t stray from.  It is so freakin good.  I used to use my own brown sugar based rub, but this one is so much better.  Just a little bit of heat.  I cut down the measurements so I only make what I was going to use today.

4 teaspoons Ancho Chile Powder
2 teaspoons Spanish Paprika
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons dry mustard
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground corriander
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon Chile de Arbol powder

45

This is what my two pork butts looked like when I threw them on the grill at about 1:45

I used this on a pork tenderloin one time and thought I had died and gone to heaven.  I pulled the meat out of the fridge and fired the grill up about 1:30.  I use natural hardwood lump charcoal instead of briquettes so the fire got going pretty quickly.  I added some hickory chunks and chips to the coals and threw the butts on the grill.  I’m trying to keep the temperature down around 250, but it’s not always easy with a Weber Kettle grill. 

Keep checking back between now and 6:00 or so.  I’ll update with pictures as we go along.  It’s so sad that Lansing doesn’t have a real BBQ joint.  This stuff is so easy to do with a little patience and the result is incredible!

Make sure to click on the READ MORE link every hour or so for updates Read the rest of this entry »





Curtis Famous Barbecue

28 06 2008
  • Corner of Saginaw & CawoodCurtis Famous BBQ
  • Lansing, MI
  • (517) 333-9287
  • No Known Website
  • Menu

“You had the rest, now taste the best” and “taste tells the story” are two phrases you see a lot around the van that doubles as a BBQ shop that sits in the parking lot of American Print and Copy on Saginaw Highway.  Curtis is proud of his barbecue and with good reason.  I had seen a couple reviews for Curtis Famous Barbecue on the web, but I really wasn’t sure where it was.  I was driving on Saginaw Highway one day last week and started smelling it long before I saw it.

My girlfriend and I were being lazy and laying around watching TV one Saturday afternoon.  About one o’clock, she said something about being hungry and after seeing Curtis out cooking one day, I really wanted to try it.  I was able to find the intersection he usually sits at and put that in the GPS.  The thing about Curtis Famous Barbecue is it’s not a restaurant.  It’s an old delivery van that Curtis drives there each day and because it’s mobile, he can bring his smoker to fairs and festivals in the area.  Read the rest of this entry »