Les Viandes: Pioneer Pit Beef

Pioneer Pit Beef
Johnnycake Rd & N Rolling Rd
Windsor Mill, MD 21244
The first thing you notice when you arrive at Pioneer Pit Beef is the smell. That small is the harsh tang of a dumpster at the tail end of a heatwave in Baltimore in July. Once you pass this gauntlet and the stack of firewood, you are enveloped in a cloud of fragrant pit smoke. The smell intensifies as you step into the small shack to place your order.

The guy cutting the beef will give you a slice to see if it's rare enough. It is. This pit beef is excellent. Bloody, juicy and still smoking. Pioneer is only open from 11-5, and there was a steady stream of customers. Perhaps this is how they maintain such hot and fresh beef. Small bits of wood ash are stuck to the outside of the meat. The beef is so juicy that the bun begins to deteriorate. The experience is really comparable to eating a nice steak. This time I had it with mayo, which I regret. Next time I will try a little bit of horseradish and the au jus sauce. The pickles are a nice side and the fries are very serviceable. Thanks to Tony Venne for taking me out here.