North Alabama Barbecue Trail
Barbecue is something of a religion down in these parts. Twenty purveyors have banded together to produce the North Alabama Barbecue Trail, connecting Dollie’s Country Kitchen (all the way west in Hamilton) to Lanny’s (all the way east in Centre) and 18 more in between.
Now, that number is somewhat misleading, because six of the 20 carry the LawLers name — each is a separate location in the state, but all boast BBQ that’s “cooked slow, served fast”. (There’s also an outlet across the border in Lewisburg, Tennessee — but that doesn’t count for this trail, centered on the Yellowhammer State.) Your choices are pork, beef, ham or turkey, either as a sandwich or a plate.
Perhaps the best known single-outlet is Big Bob Gibson’s Barbecue in Decatur. It’s been serving up BBQ hot off the grill since 1925. When your Road Trips Foodie stopped by for lunch last summer, the place was packed. (The photo is pork BBQ on a baked potato.) Most added the championship red BBQ sauce to their sandwiches, but (since I had chicken) I tried the white BBQ sauce (darn tasty). The real fire eaters reached for the habanero red sauce.
Here’s the complete list:
Big Bob Gibson’s Barbecue, Decatur
Brooks Barbeque, Muscle Shoals
Bunyan’s BBQ, Florence
Dollie’s Country Kitchen, Hamilton
Eric’s Hickory Pit BBQ, Trinity
Full House Restaurant & BBQ, Falkville
Greenbrier Restaurant, Madison
Hickory Barn BBQ, Athens
Johnny’s Barbecue, Cullman
Lanny’s, Centre
LawLers Barbecue Express #1, Huntsville
LawLers Barbecue Express #2, Huntsville
LawLers Barbecue Express #3, Athens
LawLers Barbecue Express #4, Madison
LawLers Barbecue Express #5, Huntsville
LawLers Catfish & Barbecue, Athens
Old Smokey Boys BBQ, Lexington
Singleton’s Bar-B-Que, Florence
Somerville’s Jailhouse BBQ, Somerville
Southern Barbeque, Sheffield
For more on wandering Northern Alabama, check out the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association.
(Photo by Susan McKee)
