The Shoals Barbecue Trail

Updated:  August 7, 2013
Florence, AL -  Borrowing from an idea of a fellow roadfood foodie, We've put together "The Shoals Barbecue Trail" and beginning this week we will begin paying a visit to each of them and write a review of their merits and/or demerits.  Even though we've eaten at a majority of the Q-joints we are determined to go back and do an objective review based on the food presented that day and score them accordingly.

Our plans call for there being two Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS) certified Judges doing the reviews and independently scoring the establishment.  These two scores will then be combined and a total average score will be used in the review.

The BBQ (pork, chicken, ribs or brisket) will be judged using the KCBS scoring rules, with a 9 being Excellent down to a 1 (Disqualification).

9 - Excellent
8 - Very Good
7 - Above Average
6 - Average
5 - Below Average
4 - Poor
3 - Bad
2 - Inedible
1 - Disqualified

A Disqualification (1) will be given if it is discovered that any of the following occur;

• It came out of can
• It was cooked elsewhere and delivered in a boil bag
• Cooked BBQ was purchased from a wholesale dealer
• It was cooked in a Crock Pot
• The meat was par-boiled (think ribs) prior to smoking
• Taste like charcoal lighter fluid

The criteria that will be used to judge will not only include the food, even though that will be first and foremost, we'll also be taking into consideration sides, sauces, desserts and hushpuppies or the lack thereof.  In addition, we'll be scoring on style, cooking method, atmosphere, and friendliness of the staff. The staff of any restaurant can make or break a customer's expectations quickly but we will try to be objective and take into consideration the time of day and how busy the place is.  However, there is never an excuse for impoliteness to the customer.

The below list of fine BBQ establishments are what we could find listed on the internet.  If you know of one we've missed, just post a comment and we'll get it added in.  If any of you at home wants to play along, just print out the list, go eat and report back here.  You can send your comments to us at The Brown Bag Review at yahoo(dot)com and we'll include them in a new post.

And please remember, the opinions expressed are our own and are not influenced by any third party.  If you visit any of these fine BBQ Joints your experience may be completely and totally different than what we report.  And as always, YMMV

The Shoals Barbecue Trail

SBT #1         Brooks Barbecue, 203 Union Ave, Muscle Shoals, AL Reviewed 07-26-2013

SBT #2         Bunyan’s Bar-B-Que, 901 W. College St., Florence, AL

SBT #3         Daily Bread Barbecue, 305 Jackson Ave S., Russellville, AL Reviewed 8/2/13

SBT #4         Dick Howell Barbecue Pit, 1350 N. Pine St., Florence, AL

SBT #5         Henley’s Bar-B-Que, 15908 Main St., Town Creek, AL Reviewed 8/16/13

SBT #6         Mullins Barbecue, 2800 S. Wilson Dam Rd., Muscle Shoals, AL

SBT #7         OK Corral Barbecue, 3106 Woodward Ave, Muscle Shoals

SBT #8         Pilgrim’s Place, 1314 N Jackson Ave, Russellville

SBT #9         Pop’s Barbeque, 3477 County Road 61, Florence, AL

SBT #10       Rick’s Barbecue, 212 Cox Creek Parkway, Florence, AL

SBT #11       Rick’s Barbecue, 2405 Woodward Ave, Muscle Shoals

SBT #12       Right Side BBQ, 3111 Huntsville Rd, Florence, AL

SBT #13       Singleton’s Bar-B-Q, 4220 Huntsville Rd., Florence, AL

SBT #14       Southern BBQ, 1510 N. Pine St., Florence, AL

SBT #15       Southern BBQ, 1686 S. Wilson Dam Rd, Muscle Shoals, AL

SBT #16       Southern BBQ, 425 W. Avalon Ave., Sheffield, AL

SBT #17       Speedy Pig BBQ & Restaurant, 13670 Hwy 43, Russellville, AL

SBT #18       Wright’s Pit Barbecue, 4503 Alabama 157, Florence, AL  Reviewed 08-09-2013
SBT #19       Hickory Barn BBQ, 10047 US 72, Athens, AL  35611
SBT #20       FloBama, 311 N. Court St., Florence, AL
SBT #21       Ole Smokey Boys BBQ, 10109 Lexington, AL
SBT #22       Whitt's Barbecue, 16146 Hwy 72, Rogersville, AL