Cockey's Pit Beef in the Garden

       

                                          
         Right across the street from Hollins Market, Cockey's is a small bar/take out. They had a framed reproduction of Gauguin's Cruel Tales (Exotic Sayings) from 1902 on the wall. Make of it what you will.

         The grill is going in the side yard next door, which on our visit was sun-splashed and verdant. Cockey's serves beer, and it is possible to imagine spending a pleasant summer evening there. I ordered a rare Pit Beef sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and horseradish. The meat is smoky, totally black on the outside. Not quite as rare as I could wish, but certainly nice and soft. Thick sliced with an ashy layer of crisp mixed with hearty globs of fat. There were one or two dry well-done slices in there, but they actually seemed to add structure and balance. Any other quibbles I possibly could have had were overcome by pleasant service and the peaceful dining environs.

Kommie Pig

Kommie Pig
kommiepig.com
@kommiepigbbq
Pulled Pork Sandwich Platter with Collards and Potato Salad, $10
         
      Another food truck. I usually associate pigs with free-market principles, but Orwell did use pigs as allegories for Bolsheviks, so who knows? The guy that took my order and served my food said he was from Russia, so I guess he would know. I'm not sure how or when this guy learned about Carolina 'que, but he was a very good student. He urged me to try it without sauce, the correct way. The 'que was indeed legit.
    Very moist, but not soaking through the bun. Soft, but with some nice al dente bits from caramelized and charred outside pieces and the natural muscle fibers. The meat was redder than I expect Carolina barbecue to be, perhaps due to paprika or cayenne. A mellower, rounder flavor than the clear, sharp tang I've experienced from this style, but quite complex and pleasing.
     The tater salad was where the real Russian flair for mayo-based vegetable salads came out. Cool and refreshing dill flavor, avoids the squeeze-bottle gloppy heaviness of some tater salads. The dressing was nice and lumpy and looked homemade. Nice bits of cucumber and maybe celery gave a great crunch.
     The collards were nice and soft with the proper seasoning meats mixed in. A soft, smoky bitterness underneath the rounder vinegar and pork that was a great complement to both the tater salad and the bbq. Sorry about the blurry pic, BUT I ATE IT ALL ALREADY.

The Smoking Swine

The Smoking Swine Food Truck
Papa Pump's Pulled Pork
$7, Slaw $4
         I'm kind of ambivalent about food trucks. There is no place to sit, and I feel like I'm in an episode of Portlandia. Also, what about places like Big Bad Wolf and Andy Nelson's that have to pay rent? However, I am congentially curious about any BBQ place that uses some derivation of the words "hog" or "swine" in its title.
         I went for the Papa Pump's Pulled Pork because it seemed to be the raison d'etre of the menu that day, which had just been written in dry-erase by one of the guys working the truck. There was also a Carolina BBQ sandwich with a vinegar based sauce and some pickles, but I went with the Papa Pump's because I knew that if these guys were really legit that was where it would show without a doubt. Organic pork shoulder, peachwood smoked with the house rub. There were some very interesting house-made sauces available in ketchup bottles, including one marked "Root Beer", but I eschewed these. Why? Because I care about journalistic integrity, dear reader.
         I didn't want any sauces to get in the way of the swine. I have to say, it was great. Soft, buttery almost. Just the right mix of muscle, fat globs, and crispy skin. A delicious smokiness. Not sopping wet, and missing the vinegar tang I expect from pulled pork; but I am sure that this is calculated in anticipation of the available sauces. The cole slaw also was legit. The hog-shaped sugar cookie was a nice touch and delicious. I am now their Facebook friend.

Charcoal Grill

Pit Beef
Charcoal Grill
8535 Old Harford Road (At Putty Hill Ave) Baltimore, MD 21234

A small shack in the vast asphalt sea that is the parking of the Liquor Pump, Charcoal Grill has no seating. They ask you not to eat in the parking lot, but a some people do. I advise you not to check out the people chowing down in their cars, it's like a Parkville version of the Ghost of Christmas Future. Charcoal Grill smells great, and you can look through the dim windows and see the meat cooking over the open pit. Orange flames lick up and around, charring the outside of the beef. You can go regular or colossal. Regular is pretty fucking big. I had mine with horseradish, lettuce and tomato. I know lettuce and tomato is unorthodox, but I appreciate that they have it. I found my beef a bit over done, no pink or red to be seen. A bit dry. Perhaps if I specifically asked for rare, it would be a different story. The sear and char on the edge of the beef is great. The fries are good, greasy enough to show through the paper sack, but not dripping. They have self-serve vinegar and Old Bay if you are really hardcore. Service is super fast and friendly.
B

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.