Black Hog Website
2009 February 1
Thanks to Aynex for alerting us to the new website for Black Hog Barbecue. I’ve got a hankering for barbecue after looking at the pictures on the website!
30 Responses
leave one →
A guide to living, working, and playing in Frederick, Maryland
Follow
Get the latest and the greatest Frederick news delivered to your reader or your inbox. You can also follow along via Twitter or Facebook.
RSS Feed Email UpdatesPartners
----------
Airport Xpress has proudly been serving Frederick and it's surrounding communities since 2000. Locally owned and operated, Airport Xpress serves BWI, Dulles, and Reagan National Airport, area train stations and the Port of Baltimore for cruises.----------
Did you know that 52% of customers research online before buying anything? Is your business online? At Aynex Designs, we let you worry about your business, we worry about making your business look good.
----------
The Frederick County Chamber of Commerce connects business and community through leadership, advocacy, and education. Visit frederickchamber.org to view upcoming events, search for local businesses, and learn more about the benefits of membership.----------
The Kitchen Studio Cooking School is the place to Come Play with Your Food! You'll find hands-on and demonstration cooking classes for all ages. There are even awesome cooking birthday parties for kids and adults! Check out the class calendar for the full schedule.----------
----------
This place looks really good!!
Got the Monday night deal last night. Two sandwiches and two sides for $10. My wife and I had one Carolina style and one “regular” BBQ. The mac and cheese was outstanding and the BBQ beans were great too.
Folks, I have to tell you that this is a gem in Frederick. The BBQ was great, and the portions were a real value for the Monday night price. I think it is a regular stop for me on Mondays on the way home from the MARC station. Although, it looks like a Friday night at the bar might be in order on occasion too.
BILL U: What made the mac and cheese so “outstanding”? What cheeses does Tauraso use?
Also, how long does he smoke his meats, and what woods does he use?
Matthew,
The mac and cheese had it all covered, from the right “al dente” texture of the mac, to the blend of cheeses (just a little crunchy on the top part -yum). As for what cheeses he uses, I don’t know. But it wasn’t too salty, and had an excellent, rustic flavor.
I have no idea about the smoking wood and time. These are better questions for the cook himself. I will say that the meat was moist, tender, seasoned perfectly, and stood up to the sauce. The meat and the sauce complemented each other, rather than one being overwhelmed by the other.
Its a BBQ joint, yet I didn’t see one string of smoke anywhere to be found in the entire place, inside or outside.
The bbq I had tasted exactly how I expected it to once I discovered that there was no smoke in this “BBQ Joint.”
This is an embarrassment to all the real BBQ joints out there who rightfully call themselves BBQ joints.
Oh, and the food took 30 minutes to be served!
For a city in Maryland, there are some strong feeling about BBQ…
I’m just saying…
Based on what I’m reading, sounds like it’s best to view Black Hog as a restaurant that serves BBQ rather than as a true BBQ joint.
People view BBQ with almost a religious fervor. It is a debate you do not want to start unless you are prepared to defend your views.
My final words on the subject:
The Black Hog exceeded my expectations.
Take that for whatever it is worth. I was not expecting a BBQ joint. I was expecting a tasty sandwich and value for the money. That’s what I got, and then some.
Bill U,
In all honesty, no disrespect here; but how were you NOT expecting a bbq joint when the very name of the restaurant is “Black Hog BBQ?”
I would have no problem with the place if they didn’t purport themselves to be a BBQ restaurant. If they called themselves “The Black Hog Grille” for example, I would have no issues with the final product.
I liken it to those Marylanders who have regrettably eaten at a Joe’s Crab Shack and immediately realized that it wasn’t even close to being a real crab shack.
Overlooked,
I appreciate your point. What I expect of a “BBQ joint” is what I learned when living in several cities, some of which had a reputation for BBQ, some which didn’t. In any case, the best BBQ is found in tiny, back-alley, hole-in-the -wall locations. They have one or two (maybe three, but that’s pushing it) items on the menu: ribs, pulled pork, brisket. The oven is in the front of the shop. There are a few chairs and maybe a table. Sides are served in a styrofoam cup, and there are no logos on the sauce bottles.
I kne that Black Hog was a “restaurant” and not a “joint” when I saw that they had a website. Do any of your most favorite “joints” have a website???
Let me ask this. Is there a real BBQ “joint” in Maryland?
Enjoy!
PS: I TOTALLY agree on Joe’s Crab Shack. On the very few times I have deigned to step foot in one of those places, all I can think of is the wait staff singing a catchy freecreditreport.com tune.
LOL at the free credit report.
I can’t argue with a fervor about BBQ, but I can about crabs. Louisiana crabs all the way baby!
Ok, now you guys have made me hungry!
Ate there the other night and mentioned to the waiter that the brisket had no smoke flavor. Next thing I know I am given some to take home with the explanation that depending on where in the pit it comes from effects how much smoke flavor it has. The take home portion had a lot more smoke flavor.
Bill U,
good point about the website, LOL. I agree with your points about what constitutes a real bbq joint, and no, I have yet to find one in Maryland. There’s one in Virginia near Manassas off Old Centreville Road which comes pretty close.
Ever been at a Johnny Rockets when they do their little dance to “Night Fever?” Classic.
Re BBQ places in Maryland: Two years ago a client took me to a place on the main highway that goes through Lexington Park. It was in an old garage, the menu had just a few items, and one of the BBQ pits (a split oil drum) was out in front. Paper plates and napkins, plastic utensils, indifferent bread (that I didn’t bother eating)…but OH!!!!! what GREAT meat!!! Smoky, tender, flavorful, and AUTHENTIC. YUM. I don’t remember the name…but locals know it…and the aroma is unmistakable when you are in the area. (South of California, Maryland…north of Lexington Park). If you are ever in that area….plan on going there for lunch!
Thanks for the info! I love that part of the state.
Is the Lexington Park BBQ joint either Smokey Joe’s Pit BBQ or Johnny D’s BBQ?
WE VISITED THE BLACK HOG for lunch today. Our first visit. Barbecue is one of my passions, and I’ve sampled in all over the country, from Texas and Arkansas to Memphis and the Carolinas, so I had high standards.
Mike Tauraso maintains that his crew smokes the brisket twice, once with a blend of hardwood pellets, a second time with hardwood chunks in the kitchen itself.
We thought the beef brisket was delicious. Very smoky flavor, very generous serving, lean yet moist beef. Well done! Alas, the pork was a bit dry, and needed extra sauce to make it more appealing–provided you don’t mind extra sauce. The buns were white bread.
The potato salad was bland, generic, strictly institutional. Not at all memorable or exceptional in any way.
Ditto for the Mac & Cheese. Institutional. Bland. Boring. Resembled a boxed Kraft product in taste–and rather dry. Tauraso prepares his M&C with cheddar cheese, but it is nothing compared to the 3- and 4-cheese M&C dishes available at some restaurants, among them Brewer’s Alley.
The collard greens were nicely done, if a bit peppery. Expect a fair amount of heat. Thumbs up. Diners next to us enjoyed their brisket sandwiches and French fries.
Admittedly, we sampled from the tiniest portion of the menu, but we would return for the brisket and try other sides. Portion sizes of the sides were satisfactory. I’ve heard other FMO posters complain about “super small” servings, but I can’t imagine wanting much more potato salad or mac and cheese–especially since they aren’t that great to start with.
Prices are reasonable. The atmosphere is quite nice. Two or three steps above a roadside shack, but plain enough that you’ll feel comfortable eating there with your beat-up Arctic parka and snow pants.
Parking is very good. All in all, a nice addition to downtown Frederick.
“Nice addition” meaning very good barbecue, but the sides need work.
I love Black Hog. No it’s not Mountaindale, which was and always will be the best ‘cue in Frederick, it’s just too bad Doug left, but Black Hog does a very good job. The menu covers the bbq spectrum, and while I haven’t had everything I can report that the sandwiches are very good and the ribs are great. Pay particular attention to the Memphis style ribs- they’re out of this world. As for the controversy of whether this is real ‘cue or not- I have seen a wood shed behind the restaurant, smelled smoke a couple times in the back parking lot, and even seen somebody throw a piece of wood into the smoker in the kitchen. That’s enough evidence for me that they are serious about the ‘cue here.
Anonymous, with due respect–and I really mean that–if I ran your last two sentences by the barbecue grandmasters gathered at any national contest, they’d laugh me off the parking lot. Barbecue is an art form. Maybe Mike Tauraso does his cue justice, but what you describe doesn’t prove much at all that he sticks with time-tested tradition.
Mike, your BBQ is very nice. You are great chef and whatever you do, you always do it right. How lucky Frederick is to have you. I personally have lived in the Deep South and know BBQ. Your’s is A-OK and keep up the great work!
All this chatter about the hog is making me hungry. I’m going there for dinner tonight. Mmmmmm …. BBQ.
BBQBurt,
Part of your last sentence “…Mike Tauraso does his ‘cue justice…” is exactly the point I was trying to make. No, I don’t think he’s ready to conquer Memphis in May or any other big competitions, but I was just trying to convey that he does a pretty good job…in fact I think his ribs are fantastic. There’s been a lot of discussion here about Black Hog, and some of it has made the restaurant sound akin to Famous Dave’s. I think it’s a good addition, and with Mountaindale changing hands I think it’s the best bbq restaurant in Frederick- above Carter ‘Cue in Mt. Airy, Chubby’s in Emmitsburg, and way above Famous Dave’s. In fact the only competition might be that out of my own smoker which is fueled with 100% hardwood charcoal and chunks of hickory and oak.
Ya know, I love food. I love to cook and I’m darn good. I truly appreciate the finer points of dining from VOLT to the best brisket ever in Lockhart, TX to chicken fingers and onion rings at Johnny Rockets (at 1 a.m. it’s good & amusing!). I understand that people have differing opinions. It’s all good. I just don’t get why people feel the need to insult what others like. Present differing opinions and let it go at that! For cryin’ outloud, I love my midwestern mom’s chili, but I guarantee that “true chili” aficianados would declare it’s kidney beans, cloves, cinnamon, and lack of heat an abomination. Doesn’t matter to me. I like it, not forcing anyone else to, ’nuff said.
Really, Ann, who is insulting anybody?
But I agree with Ann: There is no one right answer when it comes to food. Opinions differ. My “great” may be your mediocre. And vice versa.
Folks,
It may be up the road a bit, but I highly recommend Chubby’s BBQ in Emmittsburg for your fix of legitimately smoked and authentic BBQ. The portions are huge, the sides are terrific, and it’s your typical BBQ “JOINT” through and through.
Tom Sietsema wasn’t real thrilled with The Black Hog, although his “review” seems kind of generic to me, not a lot of details. What do you think?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/05/AR2010010500884.html
It did seem a bit generic liz. I’ve recently tried their wings and didn’t taste sugar, nor felt like my wings were dessert? In fact, their wings were really good and the prices are some of the best I’ve found downtown.
I agree with Tom though, the Carolina pork is definitely a high point!
(although I have found this to be inconsistent).