Island Bar-B-Q, Fernandina Beach, FL

 

In my initial attempt to find some decent 'que on the island, I actually pulled into the parking lot here. It looked like a run-of-the-mill buffet restaurant that also served barbecue, but in a strip mall, and I just wasn't feeling it that day. Several weeks later, and with a couple of the other local options under my belt, I finally decided to give it a try. 

It's a small space, but big on local flavor- not exactly what you would expect to find next door to a PC repair shop. Or maybe it is. There was a small buffet, which was what most of the clientele who all seemed to be regulars were eating. They did have a menu, and it included several barbecue options, so I went for the pork sandwich and slaw.

In the short time I waited for my food, I heard a lot of small talk    about who was renting what apartment and whose kids were trying out for the baseball team- the kind of stuff average people talk about over a decent lunch on a Friday afternoon. Most patrons were not masked, but I got the feeling no one would be looked down on for wearing one either.

My sandwich arrived piled high with mostly chopped pork, but there were some bigger pieces along with a good amount of seasoned edges included on a fresh roll. The one drawback was that it also included several pieces of cartilage that I had to spit out. The mustard sauce added some interest. The cole slaw was respectable.

After my last experience, I was pleased to have found a good sandwich that seemed to be freshly prepared, even if the cleanliness of the place and preparation of the food weren't exactly professional grade. While it might not be worth a return visit, I found the unpretentious atmosphere to be just what I was looking for. If you're looking for laid-back, this is your spot.

FOOD RATING: 2.5 OF 5

AUTHENTICITY: 3 OF 5

OVERALL: 3 OF 5

PRICE: $ 

 

 

State Line Barbecue Company- Fernandina Beach, FL

 

 

Of the several barbecue options I researched when I knew I was going to be spending some time on Amelia Island, State Line looked the most intriguing and potentially promising. It had a good percentage of great reviews online, but also a higher than normal amount of 1 and 2 star ratings. I knew I needed to try it for myself to see what could cause such a variation. 

They were closed on my first attempt, or so I thought. Later I found out that they don't open until noon, and I may have been a bit early. In any case, I returned on another occasion to the gas station parking lot that they share and walked toward the OPEN sign, masked up. They are big on masks, at least at the time of my visit. The first line on their website is "WEAR YOUR MASK and STAY BACK!" For whatever reason, they are taking things extra seriously- which is fine with me. Maybe the owner or an employee is high risk. I don't know and I won't judge. But this is definitely not typical for the area, as you will see in my next story.

I was the only customer a little after noon on a weekday. The gentleman behind the counter, who I took to be the owner, greeted me and put on his own mask before approaching. I asked for a pulled pork sandwich and added a side of potato salad (sides do not come with a sandwich) and a bottled drink which is the only kind they serve.

After I paid, he proceeded to assemble my sandwich from the foil-wrapped meat in a ...crock-pot? Looking further, I saw another slow cooker on the table to the right. With barbecue, low and slow is the way to go- but you can't make barbecue in a slow cooker. It might be good, but it wouldn't be barbecue. What I eventually surmised is that the slow cookers were being used to keep the meat warm. This, however, led to the question of what he did cook with, and how long ago it had been cooked. For now, I watched as he doused the meat in a vinegar sauce, wrapped the sandwich and scooped my potato salad from a gigantic plastic bin that came out of a refrigerator.

I grabbed a bottle of sweet tea from the cooler, thanked the proprietor and returned to my truck, as they are take out only. From my seat in the shade, I prepared to find out once and for all what they were selling here.

At first glance, it looked exceptional. The pork was in tender, big chunks which had been pulled apart, meaning that it was cooked to the right temperature to not have to be chopped. Currently though, it barely qualified as warm. I had seen a couple reviews from guests who said they were served a cold sandwich- and responses from the owner saying they had never served a cold sandwich. To be fair, it wasn't cold, but it would only be a minor exaggeration to make that claim. It definitely wasn't hot, for just being made.

To make matters worse, it had a distinct reheated taste to it. It was not like the meat was bad, but if you have ever reheated pork you know that it's never quite the same as when it's first cooked. Some reviewers had also commented that theirs was "sour" which could have been referring to what I noticed, or to the vinegar sauce which was sprinkled on the meat. I have no complaints about the sauce. In fact, I have to give this credit as being one of the best vinegar sauces I've had. I was happy that another cup of it was included, because

unfortunately that was the only way I could get the meat down.

Similarly, the potato salad was a great recipe. Sadly, it seemed like it had been in the refrigerator for quite a while, and possibly had been frozen at some point. This didn't detract from it quite as much as the meat, but it just wasn't quite what it could have been.

I am sad to report that this is one of the few times I can remember that I have not been able to finish a sandwich. It was large, as I would expect for the price, but eventually I just reached the point where the taste I was getting was not a fair trade for the calories I was consuming.

So here's my conclusion. The owner is someone who without a doubt knows how to make good barbecue. I would suspect that if I had visited on a day when the food was fresh I would have rated it much higher- hence all the good reviews. It seems though that due to a lack of business, or for whatever reason, they are cooking ahead of time in large quantities and serving that food for at least a couple days. So anyone who visits on an "off day" would be likely to rate it much lower. I hate to see this happen to anyone, especially to someone obviously talented in the barbecue realm. Hopefully business will return, or they can make some other adjustments to improve the consistency of their food.

FOOD RATING: 1.5 OF 5            State Line BBQ website (online ordering)

AUTHENTICITY: 2.5 OF 5                                  State Line BBQ on Facebook

OVERALL: 2 OF 5

PRICE:$$

Barefoot BBQ- Seaside,FL

The photo above was originally posted on this forum. It has more pictures and comments if you are interested.

 Operating out of 2 Airstream trailers beside Hwy. 30A in the town center of Seaside, FL, (near Destin) Barefoot BBQ is just steps off the beach. But the chilly December day that I stopped here wasn't a beach day-it was the kind of gray,cloudy day when some good barbecue really hits the spot. Looking over the menu, the first thing I noticed (after the prices) was the pecan smoked pork sandwich. I am a big fan of smoking pork with pecan wood in the little bit that I have done, so that was the obvious choice for me. The prices were comparatively high-$15 for a sandwich, two sides and drink! but the smell of the meat on the smoker, wafting on the cold wind, convinced me to give it a try.

I took my sandwich, potato salad and soup to the truck to eat on the ride home. That was a mistake. I drove the next 15 miles paying more attention to making sure I didn't lose one bite of that sandwich, rather than making sure I stayed in my own lane on the road. It was that good. Just the right amount of smoke, combined with perfectly seasoned meat piled high on garlic toast made this the best pork sandwich I've ever tasted-even without any sauce. They have four flavors of sauce and I tried one, but I don't remember much about it. Compared to the wonderful sandwich, sauce was an insignificant afterthought. The potato salad and barley soup were excellent as well. The only complaint I have is that the tea seemed to be canned Lipton.

The following was posted by the owner at http://www.sowal.com/bb/dining-food/34358-barefoot-barbecue-seaside.html:

For those who may not know about Barefoot BBQ, we are a little BBQ joint operated out of 2 Airstream trailers in Seaside. We serve only hormone-free, antibiotic-free, steroid-free meat and organic produce. Even our desserts are organic. We don't serve drinks in plastic containers (including our water, which is an amazingly delicious canned water called "Source"). All of our to go products are made from renewable and biodegradable resources such as rice, corn and sugar. Some of our retail shirts (which are super cool and I believe represent the vibe of 30A) are made from organic cotton and recycled materials. All of this to say, we are not perfect in our carbon footprints upon this beautiful planet, but we're trying to do our part. It is our intention to serve whole food that feeds that body and the planet. Oh, and did I mention, the BBQ and the sauces rock! Can't wait to see y'all out at the Airstreams. We're cooking 24/7 so there's plenty to go around. Thank you again for your amazing support!!!

Guess that explains the price-though I should point out this is a vacation/resort area and you could do much worse for the same amount of money. It might seem a little oxymoronic for a barbecue place to be worried about their "carbon footprint", but even though opinions on that may differ, you can't argue with barbecue perfection.

FOOD RATING: 5 OF 5

OVERALL RATING: 4 OF 5

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