Smokehouse at Steve's: Revisitation

It was a bit of kismet that I got a text from my oldest son while I was writing my recent review of Southern Style Barbecue & Fried Chicken. He was heading to Graham with his girlfriend to visit her folks this weekend and he wanted to know if I'd ever eaten at Smokehouse at Steve's.

Oh, boy! Have I!

I sent him the link to my review from a few years back and his response was, and I quote: "Damn! In your top 10?!" He knows that for me to have any BBQ place butt its way into my Top 25 is uber tough and for some new joint's sandwich to leap hog over a ton of mighty righteous BBQ restaurants means it MUST be some kind of awesome.

Smokehouse at Steve's is my #7. And it is, indeed, awesome.

Ridge's inquiry got me thinking about the differences between my sandwich experiences at Smokehouse at Steve's and Southern Style Barbecue & Fried Chicken. There are many, but here are the highlights on my thoughts after my most recent lunch stop in Graham back in June and what makes Smokehouse at Steve's stand out from so many other places.

Portions: Southern Style's portion was anemic in comparison to Smokehouse at Steve's (see the photo at top of Steve's portion). Steve's pit folks pile their 'cue high. Like, really, really high. Hyper extend the jaw kinda high. You almost need to pull a little bit of the 'cue out from betwixt the buns to save your mandible, but hey, what's a little temporomandibular joint disorder trauma between friends? It's well worth the chew popping for a sandwich chock full of delicious and substantial mound of meat.

Smoke: There's nothing quite like it. Cooking over real wood (or wood charcoal briquettes like B's in Greenville) makes or breaks many barbecued meats. While there are some really good non-wood burners out there, they at least "add" smoke during the cook whether it's over gas or it's electric. Smoke makes a huge difference. Smokehouse at Steve's has the dad-gum logs stacked at the counter for emphasis. This place is the real deal. Southern Style had no smoke, so no bueno. I mean, come on, Smokehouse at Steve's has the most important dang BBQ word right there in its name: smokehouse.

Moisture: I don't care how flavorful or smokey a barbecue sandwich is if it lacks moisture. Dry 'cue is bad 'cue. Properly curated barbecue should not need a sauce. Period. During the cook, the mop sauce should keep the meat damp enough that once chopped it should only need some salty red pepper vinegar to perk things up a bit. It doesn't have to be overly saturated, just moist enough to hold it all together, add some extra zip, and keep the meat as tender as it was coming off the pit. Smokehouse at Steve's needs no sauce. They offer a nice variety of tasty sauces that can add a little extra flavor, but there's no need. Steve's 'cue stands on its own.

Slaw: Slaw is the yin to barbecue's yang. Sure you can enjoy a sandwich without slaw, but that's like popcorn without butter or going to the beach without ever stepping on the sand. Slaw needs to be the slightly sweet and tart to the meat's spicy and vinegary. The cabbage needs to be roughly chopped and a few carrot bits can be a good thing. There's already vinegar in the BBQ, so why would you want an overly vinegar-based slaw? Mayo is a must. Smokehouse at Steve's slaw could be chopped a tad finer to my liking and that's what's holding it back from being higher than #7 on my list. But they put the slaw on top of the barbecue and the portion is perfect for the massive amount of meat they serve.

All in all, there's no real comparison between the sandwiches at Smokehouse at Steve's and Southern Style. The latter will suffice in a pinch if desperate for 'cue, of course. But if my doctor ever tells me (God forbid) I had to stop eating barbecue on the regular and could only have it on super rare instances, I would gladly give up the smokeless, dry, mediocre BBQ as long as I could savor an occasional sandwich from stellar spots like the superb Smokehouse at Steve's - TMJ be damned.

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Smokehouse at Steve's

331 W Harden Street

Graham, NC 27253