experiences
A Soul Full of BBQ
I met up with a friend for lunch on St Simons Island over the holidays. Having spent some years in South Carolina and in close proximity to the home of the best BBQ hash, I’m rather a BBQ snob. In my opinion, I’m lucky to get mediocre BBQ in DC.
My friend had a similar upbringing so when she told me this place served the best BBQ she ever had, I was ready to try it. It was only as we were pulling up to the crowded parking lot that she also mentioned that Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives had filmed a segment there. Sounded promising!
Ordering was a little overwhelming. So many tasty options!
She favored the pulled pork so I struggled to pick between the pulled pork plate ($9) and the Soul Salad De-luxe ($10.50) that came with my choice of meat. I wasn’t super hungry, but the salad didn’t come with sides, and there were so many tasty options like Brunswick Stew, Mac & Cheese, Hushpuppies, and Fried Green Beans.
The BBQ Beans were declared the best ever, even for a non-beans fan. The Mac & Cheese was good but not as amazing as other choices.
So provided I could sample her beans, I decided to get the salad, which came topped with hand cut fries, fried green beans, and fried okra (3 of the sides).
My salad was amazing because of the pulled pork and the sides – particularly those fried green beans which were crispy and still juicy!
That said, I rather envied my friend’s plate of just meat and BBQ beans (which were the best I’d ever had).
I normally prefer good BBQ without sauce so I can fully taste the meat, but again I faced a hard choice. The pork didn’t need sauce in the slightest. But all the sauces were so good! They had the mustard-based (Low Country Soul), the vinegar-based (Red Swine Wine), the sweet (Sweet Georgia Soul) and the spicy (Hot Georgia Soul).
I had a grand time trying to divide my pork into 5 portions. 🙂
Apparently the original building the Food Network filmed burned down, and the place is now housed in an old gas station. Great atmosphere, but best in good weather since the majority of the seats are outside.
It truly was some of the best BBQ I’ve had (I haven’t made it to Austin yet), and I’m tempted to fly into Jacksonville on every trip to Florida so I can make an hour detour for a good meal.
And as if that wasn’t enough, after a walk on the shore we went to Moo Cow Ice Cream, a local shop that apparently boasts flavors like Avocado, Sweet Potato, and chocolate covered potato chip. When we were there they were closing for the season, so the craziest it got was caramel bacon. That was good, but I opted for the yellow cake batter.
Mmmmm.
Who knew St Simons was such a destination for dining?
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Daniel
January 2, 2014 at 12:03 am
How funny! My employer is based in nearby Brunswick, and when I’m visiting Corporate, we make sure that we get a little “Soul” every time we are in town. In fact, I got to eat there twice in December! Lots of great choices, and the staff is super friendly!
Keri Anderson
January 2, 2014 at 12:05 am
I’m taking notes for next time — what are your favorites?
Bobby
January 2, 2014 at 12:59 am
Great post!
I’m from St. Simons and now love in Atlanta. I go home for the holidays. Here are my must go to places:
Southern Soul–of course!
Barbara Jeans
Sal’s Pizza
Brunswick: Willies Wee Nee Wagon — a MUST
At Barbara Jeans get the crab cakes.
At Sals I like the pizzas and pastas. All very good. Sal is a former boxer from New Jersey. Great guy, awesome food, cheap.
At Willies the must have is their famous pork chop sandwich. Everything there is great though!
Marie
January 6, 2014 at 1:56 am
YES! One of my all time favorite places ever. Willie’s WeeNee Wagon is good too! I miss coastal Georgia.