Where There's Smoke... (The Barbeque Pit)

...there's delicious barbeque, lucky for us!

We've been meaning to try this place for a while and last night we finally got our chance. It's an unassuming little joint, in a strip mall on Fletcher Parkway just East of the 125 (sandwiched between Baskin Robbins and Flour Power and across from the Beef n Bun.) We've tried Huffman's and Phil's, and while I like Phil's (I'm not in the camp that simply can't abide by their bbq like some local chowhounders) it is on the other side of town, is expensive, and often has a long wait. I'm also not that fond of Huffman's - it's inconvenient and the meat has a strong acrid smoke flavor. The BBQ Pit is a little slice of retro heaven, with paneled walls, wagon wheel light fixtures, formica tables, and one of those little serve yourself water fountains that you put your glass on - like they used to have at cafeterias. Even more important, the food is just as authentic and delicious.

You can order a plate, or order meat by the pound and ribs by the rack. Sides come in pints or quarts - or side orders come with plates. They have slices of pie in a case for $.99 and several daily specials. When we walked in at about 7 PM they were out of white meat chicken on the bone and pork ribs. They said they'd had a big run, with a line out the door earlier in the evening. At first, I wanted to leave - what good is bbq without pork ribs?? But James wanted to try their hot links and beef ribs - and besides - where else would we go? We had the dogs in the car and we weren't exactly dressed for dining out.

Wanting to sample the gamut, we ordered a half pound of sliced beef, two hot links, four beef ribs, a boneless breast and dark meat quarter chicken - with sides of beans and cole slaw. I didn't photograph the sides, but they were really very good. The slaw had lots of oniony horseradish flavor, and a tangy sour cream flavor. I think it's made there. The beans were also good - sweet and tangy, with a little firmness to the bite.

The beef ribs were good and sticky with crispy edges and a hint of smoky flavor. The sauce was tomatoey and sweet but not cloying. It had been added toward the end of the cooking, so it was cooked on like a glaze, rather than slopped on as an after thought. They were meaty and the dogs enjoyed what was left on the bones - at least until they started to crack them open to get at the marrow and we had to take them away.

The bbq chicken was especially good - tender moist and smoky, and the beef was also far better than it looks. That slow cooking really makes the difference.

I took a bite of one of the hot links, and they were also pretty good. (In case you are wondering, we didn't finish all of this in one sitting - the dogs got some and we had some leftovers!)

The only problem was the actual bbq sauce that they gave us on the side. Unlike what was on the food, it had waaay too much clove in it - it tasted like someone had made a mistake. We'll see if it's like that again on a return visit. Other than that though - everything was completely enjoyable.

There are three other locations in San Diego (I believe there used to be even more) one on University, one in National City, and one in San Marcos.

The Barbeque Pit
2388 Fletcher Parkway
(619) 462-5434
Closed Sundays

Recommended dishes: Everything we had! Especially the coleslaw, beans and chicken.