Fox Brothers- The Kings of Atlanta Brisket

St. Patrick's Day was a long, but fun afternoon. The day started with a brisket face-off between Fox Brothers and Rolling Bones, transitioned into drinking several (maybe more) pints at Limerick Junction, and ended with my left knee the size of a grapefruit. Maybe I am getting too old for days of excitement like this? More on that later.

The day started at Rolling Bones, an old gas station that appears a little too sterile. In all honesty, there aren't a ton of places to sit inside, so it may be more condusive to takeout. RB covers their brisket with a tangy barbecue sauce, but I found the meat itself to be somewhat dry and chewy. Good, but I found their pork shoulder to be the better of the two main courses we had. The sides were completely uninspiring (and that may be generous as it applies to the pinto beans).

Next, we headed east to Fox Brothers, a new fave of mine since they opened last year. This place has considerable more seating than Rolling Bones, and the atmosphere and smells scream BBQ joint. The brisket here may be served dry (without sauce), but the meat is moist and tender. The flavor is much smokier than RB. Nick, my partner in crime for this all day fiesta, raves about the sides at Fox Brothers, and he is right. The baked beans here put to shame the pintos offered at RB. Fox Brothers also offers a bigger selection, including Brunswick Stew. So, in the end, it really wasn't that close. Fox Brothers won on all three areas I was judging- brisket, sides, atmosphere.

Then it was on to Limerick Junction. We met this 87 year-old guy who apparently served in an Irish brigade in WWII and later became president of Guinesss US. Needless to say, we liked him immediately! While I didn't understand most things he said, he seemed to be telling us to go f- ourselves every 5 minutes. Funny stuff.

So after a couple of hours (maybe more) of this revelry, when trying to find Nick to give him back his credit card, I wound up tripping over a wheel stop in the parking lot and severely bruising my knee. Of course, I'm claiming that the fact it was St. Patrick's Day is complete happenstance. I am uncoordinated enough naturally. But that still hasn't stopped the jokes. But its a good story (well, its a story, maybe not so good) and a day that I won't forget anytime soon.

BBQ Challenge & Green Beer

In the South, I have learned that one must tread lightly when discussing barbecue joints. Expressing partiallity to one place over the other can be equated to one wearing Gator colors to a Georgia fan, or donning a #24 hat to an Earnhardt fan. Looks like my review of the brisket at Fox Brothers has garnered some attention. I have been asked by Cliff Bostock to do a comparison between Fox Brothers and Rolling Bones and it is a request that I will happily undertake. And why not make it an event? This St. Patrick's Day, to celebrate my Welsh/German heritage, a Jewish friend and I will be hitting Rolling Bones and Fox Brothers for a lunchtime tour de force of brisket sampling, then making our way to Limerick Junction for a few libations. If anyone is interested in joining, please email me at steakhead@earthlink.net.