Give any of us a grill during the summer, and we’ll do the standard Canadian thing: slop some sugary bottled sauce on top and wonder why we end up with burned meat. That’s not barbecue, I’m here to tell you. But, all praise to Bob the Barbecue God, we do have chefs in town who know their way around a grill and smoker. None of the places below is a stunning example of restaurant design. But that’s not the point; the money has been put into the food, not the trappings. If you want decor, choose an uptown food parlour or a chain emporium full of fusion dishes. However, I can guarantee that you won’t find barbecue there that tastes as good as the meats in this quartet.
Pork Ribs, Pulled Chicken Sandwich
GRANDMA D’S BBQ COOKHOUSE
If Edmonton could ever be considered to have a homegrown barbecue style, you’re likely to find it at Grandma D’s. This is a family-run restaurant with a bit of history, as those who frequent the Old Strathcona Farmers’ Market already know. The late Eva Dallin — the one and only Grandma D — sold her homemade barbecue sauce there for a decade. Crafted in 1967, it remains a family secret.
Over the past two years, her son and grandson have operated the restaurant that takes her name — as well as her sauce — to the betterment of humanity at large, or at least those who appreciate good barbecue.
Two great choices are the pulled chicken sandwich, in which the chicken is literally pulled from the bone and fork-shredded, and the pork ribs, which are first steamed before the sauce-anointing and then slow-grilled. The result is fall-off-the-bone tender. As for the sauce, you can buy it on the premises.
(16336 111 Ave., 780-443-1074)
Beef Brisket and Ribs, Smoked Turkey
SMOKY JOE’S HICKORY SMOKEHOUSE
Joe Goldfeder, the original Smokey Joe, might not be involved in Edmonton’s best example of true barbecue art anymore, but his acolytes have more than carried on his Oklahoma style of smoking. Meats here spend 15 hours in the smoker, and another two days of steamtable curing to develop a tender texture and an understated sweet flavour with just enough edge and bite.
However, though “hickory” is in the name, it is not in the smoke. The current owners use applewood, presumably because some barbecue lovers in these parts find hickory a bit sharp on the palate; it’s also an expensive wood to stock. Applewood, indeed, does provide a softer marinating smoke.
My favourite cut has always been the beef rib, and not because it’s a gargantuan piece of meat. This has always represented the epitome of good ’cue, because it takes and holds the smoke while amplifying the beef flavour. To my mind, it’s also the tenderest piece of meat the smokehouse turns out. If you’re looking for something leaner, look to the chicken or the turkey. And if you want to try the whole range of meats, order up a sampler that includes beef brisket, pork ribs, ham, turkey, and chicken.
For side orders, the two things you should not miss are the baked beans — the best in the city — and the cornbread. While you’re at it, pick up a bottle of Joe’s barbecue sauce.
(15135 Stony Plain Road, 780-413-3379)
BBQ Duck and Pork, BBQ Pork Buns
CHINA BBQ SPECIALTY
John Ng has wielded his cleaver at his small take-out shop a few steps from the China Gate since 1985. Ng’s claim to fame is in the preparation of char siu, the traditional Cantonese barbecue in which meats are marinated in a combination of hoisin, five-spice powder, soy sauce, fermented tofu and rice wine before fire roasting. You simply tell him your choices — limited here to chicken, duck and pork — and answer the only question of the day: “Do you want it cut up?” Then, with a cleaver’s whack-whack-whack on the wooden chopping block — thousands of repetitions have worn a valley in the centre of the block — your meat is rendered into bite-sized pieces, placed into Styrofoam containers along with a hand-tied plastic bag of duck or pork sauce — the rendered juices of barbecue.
Of the meats, the duck takes the flavour of the marinade the best, and the skin is given a mahogany shine. However, it is the pork that aficionados appreciate most, the outer edge of the meat bearing the slightly red “smoke ring,” and the crunchy skin, or crackling. Also try the barbecue pork buns, which have a slight glaze on top and a rich sweet flavour that complements the meat filling.
Pork is priced by the pound ($5.99), with chicken and duck offered in whole, half and quarter quantities.
(9655 102 Ave., 780-420-0745)
Bul Gal Bi (Beef Short Ribs)
BUL GO GI HOUSE
Shirl, the quintessential tart-mouthed waitress with a heart of gold, no longer holds court at the Bul Go Gi House, but nothing lasts forever. This restaurant, after all, has been in business since 1973, around the time I started going there.
As with the decor, the flavours come pretty basic and unfussy here — an amalgam of soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil and ginger — but their effect on a piece of meat — particularly the Bul Gal Bi or beef short ribs — proves magical. You get just enough char on the meat, and that heat-teased glaze carries enough smoke to be palatable without overstaying its welcome.
(8813 92 St., 780-466-2330)
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