BIG LUVS BBQ & CATERING
Of all the food groups, I’d argue barbecue is the most time sensitive. It simply cannot be rushed. Barbecue requires care and an extended stay on the grill/smoker.
This is why I don’t trust fast food restaurants such as Hog Wild or Dickey’s, nor do I believe Arby’s claim that the high schooler running the front counter is using a smoker to cook brisket for 13 hours in the back (not hating on Arby’s. I actually love Arby’s. I just don’t buy that promise).
That’s why I was skeptical that barbecue could be done correctly in a food truck. Sure, there are plenty of great food trucks that have found the right balance to make some killer meat. But they are few and far between, and finding that perfect edge is VERY difficult.
Big Luvs BBQ & Catering isn’t a perfect representation of this, but the truck does pretty darn well. It doesn’t have a permanent location, but they update their Facebook and Twitter feeds often, so the truck isn’t hard to find.
The smell coming off the truck as you approach is phenomenal, and the owner is very friendly. Big Luvs menu features five items: ribs, pulled pork sandwich, brisket sandwich, pulled pork nachos, and pulled pork lavosh. I hate to personalize a menu, but I wanted a little bit of everything, so I asked if I could just get some pulled pork and brisket, sans sandwich.
The response? “No problem.”
My kinda guy, right there.
The Brisket is the highlight, and it’s pretty shocking. It’s perfectly firm and has a brilliant smoky taste to it. The texture was spot on and the bark; I mean, just look at the above photo. If anything, it may have been just a tad over-cooked, but that’s picking nits. I’m kind of blown away by how much I enjoy this.
While the Pulled Pork isn’t quite on that level, it’s nothing to sneeze at. It’s quite tender, and the flavor is legit.
The unsung hero of the dish is the sauce, which is created with Zipline’s Oatmeal Porter beer. To steal a line from Guy Fieri, I would literally eat that on a flip flop… or just have it pumped into my body with an IV. Either way. Bottom line is, the tang and underlying sweetness of the sauce tied it all together.
If there’s a problem with the sauce, it’s that it’s already slathered over the meats. I prefer when restaurants serve meat naked and allow the diner to choose whether they want sauce and how much rather than make the decision for them.
That being said, Big Luvs Ribs need some of that sauce. These spare portions are large and meaty, but they just lack the flavor punch the brisket and pork provide. Maybe that’s because I sampled the other meats with sauce; I’m not entirely sure.
And where the brisket is just a touch dry, the ribs need some more moisture. They’re still good, but this feels like an unfinished masterpiece.
I’ll stick to my mantra; it’s tough to expect great barbecue from a food truck, simply based on the limited space and time given to crank out great ‘que. But Big Luvs has me softening on that stance. It absolutely can be done, and Big Luvs proves that.
I encourage you to hop on your social media site of choice and find these guys. You won’t regret it.