I have eaten more barbecue in the last three years than the rest of my life combined. Partly this is due to growing up in a vegetarian household. I started eating meat in 2010 because my love and interest in food outweighed my previous convictions. That year that I started eating meat coincided with a burgeoning love and appreciation of the fantastic food scene in Portland, OR. Pre-2015, BBQ wasn’t much of a thing in Portland. Sure, there was Podnah’s which opened up in 2006. In 2015 however, Matt’s BBQ opened up an in an unassuming little cart in a random parking lot on MLK. From the moment I had his BBQ I became hooked. Though I have been to Texas a number of times in the past, I had never experienced the BBQ culture there. Here it was brought very near my doorstop. Since then, any number of excellent BBQ restaurants, food carts, and pop-ups have proliferated in the city. Bark City, Botto’s, HarBq, Lawless, Briel’s, Wonderboy’s, Lil’ Barbecue, and, probably most importantly, Grasslands Barbecue. I am including Grasslands in this roundup though they are located in Hood River. If you know the area though, you know how close Hood River is. They also make the most incredible BBQ I’ve ever eaten in my life and have been awarded many accolades from the Texas BBQ community. This post is a bit longer than usual posts btw.

Starting with the featured image, I wanted to make sure to put Matt’s BBQ at the top because in my eyes they were the first and I’m sure inspired a lot of the others to follow suit. They are open every day of the week and continue to make excellent BBQ, even though the hype, buzz, and long lines are a thing of the past. From a visit earlier this year, I got Brisket Burnt Ends, a jalapeño cheddar sausage, potato salad, queso mac and cheese, and pickled smoked jalapeños. This plate is incredible! Their consistency over the years in unmatched. Delicious food. Although I don’t go quite as often as I used to, I’m always glad when I do.

Grasslands Barbecue. The first visit in Hood River from years ago. I had not had my mind blown this much by bbq since my initial visit to Matt’s. Brisket, pork belly burnt ends, chile and cheddar sausage, beans, mac and cheese. Every single thing was on point. The bark on the brisket perfect, the pork belly burnt ends and the glaze they were in was phenomenal. The mac with a bit of crunch on top. The beans were perfect. After being obsessed with bbq for a while now, I really look to the small things. The sides, the seasonings, your sauces, your pickles. Of course the quality and cut of the meats as well. But the true stars really shine through on the sides and accoutrement. Grasslands has the best sides, seasoning, attention to detail, and just flat out delicious flavor. Not one thing I’ve ever eaten there has been less than stellar. I don’t want any old mac, beans, or sausage. I want the best. And Grasslands has it. Hopefully you take many things away from this post, but the most important point is how incredible Grasslands is and how lucky the people of Hood River (and Portland) are to get to experience it. Pull up a chair and wait in line.

Plate from Bark City. Bark City was a long time favorite from back when they were on Killingsworth. Then they left the state for a while and now they are back! They opened up at the Heist two years ago and are slinging incredible bbq, sandwiches and specials. This is from my first visit after they reopened. Baby back ribs, brisket, potato salad, jalapeño mac. Killer spread. Delicious food. Everything on point. Those ribs were so incredible. Their sides are great across the board. The area where they have really impressed me in the last few years is their Wednesday Pit Crew sandwich specials, and that incredible Caesar wrap they make. Plus they are always making unique specials on any given day.

Plate from Botto’s from one of my first visits years ago. I somehow missed the boat on the Botto’s food cart that was located in NW, but I made sure to not miss the boat on their brick and mortar space in the former Pok Pok wing spot across from Aladdin Theater. For a while, they were still building buzz and the place was still fairly chill and you could go in and grab some food fairly quick. Those days are behind us. Expect a line when you go, though once you finally get to the counter and order your food comes out fairly quick. The real smart play is to order online the second you show up to the line. On this visit I got the pork belly burnt ends (a fave of mine as you can tell), a rosemary sausage, potato salad and spicy mac. Incredible! I have learned that chefs take their sausage very serious! These meats were perfect, the sides were standouts on their own. The spicy mac is my fave regular side in town. I order it every time I eat there. Honestly you can get just the mac and a sausage or cheap smash burger (one of the best) and have yourself a delicious cheap lunch, which is rare.

One more plate and shout out to Grasslands. This is from two years ago when they came to Ruse Brewing for a multi-day pop up. They make the trip yearly and now it is a tradition. This is the one and only time I went only due to the mind boggling line. As a rule, I generally don’t wait in lines, but with bbq this good, sometimes that is the cost of business. I knew to bring a book. I got sides too btw, but for this photo I only put the meat on the plate. This is one of my best of favorite food photos, mostly due to how incredibly sexy the meat looks. But also the light was warm (autumn) and the focus crisp. Cajun Volcano Pork Shank, Tri-Tip with chimichurri, black pepper chicken. Not pictured is the Tex-Mex slaw and picnic potatoes. This is the single best plate/meal/bbq experience I’ve ever had. I still think of it two years later. Phenomenal! Look at the bark on that pork shank! That tri-tip! And don’t sleep on the chicken because it will really blow your socks off and remind you why you love chicken in the first place. This is a top five meal experience up there with Kann.

Plate from HarBq. I’ve been a fan of HarBq since their wandering truck pop-up days. In early 2025 they posted up permanently at Von Ebert Brewing in North Portland just up the street from me. This was excellent news for any bbq lover that they could find HarBq for 3-4 days each week, and drink delicious beer while doing it. Extra bonus for me since they are so close. They have definitely turned into a favorite over the last few years and the one thing I appreciate about them is that Harlan keeps elevating his game and his craft and has certainly earned his spot at the top of a crowded bbq list. Especially elevated as of late has been his sandwiches, sides, seasonal ingredients (those summer salads!) and being creative with recipes. I love when you can just taste how a chef gets better month by month, year by year. This plate was from last year after they opened up at Von Ebert. Chimichurri pork shoulder, sambal chicken, jalapeño cheddar sausage, and 3-cheese mac. The mac was so luscious! Also pretty happy with this photo (hire me for food photography and you can pay me in food!). The meats were smoked and seasoned to perfection. The flavor was fantastic and very balanced. HarBq does the balance thing better than almost anyone else. And not that money is everything, but I found this to be a most reasonably priced feast at $27.

Also from HarBq from about a month after the previous visit. I’m pretty sure I showed up for something else and then saw that the special was this 1/2 chicken and I pivoted to make one of the best decisions of my life. 1/2 Chicken covered in a nutty romesco, jalapeno cheddar sausage, mac salad. Wow, just wow. How many bbq trucks do you know that are slinging up 1/2 smoked chickens covered in a nutty romesco? Zero unless you are going to HarBq. This was fantastic and tasted even better than it looked. I can only imagine it takes some finesse to smoke a 1/2 chicken this perfectly. Also happy with this photo.

BBQ plate from Wonderboy’s Smokestack, a food cart located at the Alberta Carts on NE Alberta & 12. I really love Wonderboy’s approach, quality, quantity, and price. He is serving up tons of delicious food at very reasonable prices and just killing it! Most of the time I’m grabbing a sandwich and a side, which is still one of the best deals in town, but last year in February I was hankering for some bbq while there was some silly football game on and I love that he was open during the superbowl doing his thing. Brisket burnt ends, pulled pork, mac and cheese, potato salad. I love that he includes a cornbread muffin instead of boring white bread. This whole spread slapped! Everything was on point, and again for me, it’s the little details. That cornbread. His own custom pickled pepper blend. Really delicious bbq sauce. Highly recommend Wonderboy’s, whether you want to get the full spread, a huge sandwich piled high with delicious meats, or snag one of his specials that he does for wing week, burger week, etc. Every time he throws his hat in the ring for those themed weeks, he slays the competition. That should tell you something.

Plate from Briel’s BBQ. Briel’s is a pop-up only bbq joint but he stays busy. I had heard good things and finally checked him out at Ruse Brewing in early 2025 for the first time. Sorry for the substandard pic. From left to right: Holy Hash, Jerk Pork Belly Burnt Ends, Barbacoa Street Corn. Woah! From the first bite you can tell Briel is onto something different. That holy hash is one of the most unique things I’ve ever had. The jerk on the pork belly was a nice touch. The barbacoa street corn was delicious. This food was heavy. Tasty though. Now that I’ve eaten at his pop ups a half dozen times in the last two years, I can tell that he is getting steadily better as well. Recipes being streamlined, focusing on the things he does well and honing his vision.

Briel’s from this summer, when he had a regular residency on the weekends at this one parking lot in SE. Fire roasted tomatillo chopped beef sandwich, watermelon salad and cheesy sausage. This was really delicious. I love the watermelon salad with goat cheese and mint, that was a great touch. The sandwich was absolutely incredible and the sausage impressed me as well.

One final post from Botto’s. Pork Belly Burnt Ends, Spicy Mac & Coleslaw. Like most BBQ places, pork belly burnt ends are specials, or like at Matt’s and Botto’s they occur weekly on Saturdays. Botto’s makes some of the most incredible pork belly burnt ends. I love brisket burnt ends too, but if I had to choose between the two I would go with pork belly. These are pure meat candy. The thing I like most about having an incredible and thriving BBQ scene here in Portland is that I don’t feel I have to get everything on the menu every time. Like this was a perfect lunch. 1/2 pound meat special and two sides. Congratulations if you made it to the end of this post, it was a long one, but I felt it important because there is so much incredible bbq in town to cover and this was my big round up. Thanks for reading, and you’ve probably earned yourself some bbq…