In this new quarterly Foodie Awards format, we’ve eliminated runners-up on the Critic’s Choice side. Why? To give equally award-worthy venues and their dishes — in a town with near-innumerable excellent options — a lot more space to shine. Look for these follow-ups throughout the quarter.
There are many, many contenders for the Q category in this town and increasingly, pit masters are scratching all kind of regional itches. Look for a roundup of up-and-comers in the coming weeks (along with news of another lauded local going brick-and-mortar before long!) but for now, bone up on this short list where the bones pull out smooth and the brisket’s on point.
Smokemade Meats + Eats
True story: the Central Texas-style goodness that Tyler Brunache and his crew slings is so good, it won the 2022 Orlando Sentinel Foodie Awards Critic’s Pick for Best Barbecue when it was still serving it from beneath a soccer mom’s pop-up tent.
It deserved the accolades then and has only upped its game since. So much so that when Brunache’s brick-and-mortar finally opened its doors in Orlando’s Curry Ford West neighborhood, folks lined up for hours to get a taste.
Not surprisingly, Brunache says all the love feels great.
“We weren’t expecting to be this busy,” says the pit master, whose honing of the craft began with YouTube tutorials while a student in Tallahassee. Keen interest led to a master class with Austin, Texas, barbecue phenom Dylan Taylor and eventually, to a couple weeks’ back, when the Smokemade team went through 100 pounds of potato salad and 72 briskets in three days.
“People are down to wait in line, drink a beer, make at least part of a day of it.”
This, because of classics like the house-made sausage, mac and cheese that’s now a regular fixture rather than a “sometimes” side, along with revamped versions of their coleslaw and fan-favorite bread pudding.
There’s also new stuff: collard greens, lighter vegetarian sides like the tomato-zucchini salad and direct-fire chicken.
“It’s not cooked on the offset like the briskets are,” Brunache explains. “We’re using a whole-hog smoker over coals so you get a different flavor profile.”
Pretty much all of it flies out the door. To stay open three days (Friday-Sunday), the team puts in six, including an overnight crew to make sure those 18-hour briskets are smoked to ringed perfection when it’s time to slice.
Though there are a few Central Texas-style up-and-comers in the Orlando metro, few are doing the ‘cue he says is the most popular style in the nation right now.
“It’s one of the reasons we jumped into the space,” he says.
The throngs are appreciative, as they are of the free water bottles while they wait — and the ability to order local beer while in line. Look for wine to come soon, and expanded hours, once they get their groove going.
Meantime, the team will be happy to keep you informed of what’s still available while you wait, says Brunache, who’s on the hunt for additional staffers and possibly even another smoker. They’re just waiting to see if things die down a little bit.
“We do expect some slowdown after we’re not so new anymore,” he says. “Curious to see what our ‘normal’ will be.”
Whatever the queue, the ‘cue’s award-worthy. Get some.
Smokemade Meats + Eats: 1400 S Crystal Lake Drive in Orlando, 407-270-9199; smokemade.com
Brock’s Florida BBQ
If barbecue is “the national dish of America,” as aerospace engineer and barbecue pro Howard Conyers, Ph.D. once told me, then Oviedo is fast becoming a Central Florida hotbed thereof.
Not only is this East Orlando bedroom community the home of this year’s Critics Pick, Briskets BBQ Shack & Grill, it’s also where Jason Brock has set up his truck’s new permanent parking spot.
Back in January, this popular mobile operation made its home at The Food Factory, and if the area’s barbecue-inclined are savvy, they’ll head right over to enjoy the fruits of Brock’s smoker whilst enjoying the atypical perks of this truck’s unique location — not the least of which include chairs, tables, restrooms, shade and a full bar. Sometimes there’s live music. Heck, you can even bring your dog.
All of which can contribute to a tastier experience, but Brock’s unique dishes — items like the stellar mojo pork steak, smoked brisket cheeseburger and brisket cheesesteak (this one’s a special) — alongside more traditional offerings like loaded meat ‘n’ side trays and meat-smothered mac bowls are done up right. Bright vinegary house pickles and crisp, fresh slaw do a good job of offsetting that carnivore’s coma, but it’s one you may welcome, much as Seminole County has the new barbecue overlord it has in Brock.
Go.
Brock’s Florida BBQ: located at The Food Factory (bar), 888 City Walk Lane in Oviedo; instagram.com/brocksfloridabarbecue ; facebook.com/brocksfloridabarbecue
Maya Rosa Latin BBQ
To further an earlier point, if barbecue is the national dish of America, I’m not sure what could be more American than a version that brings the nation’s “melting pot” status, arguably one of its greatest attributes, into the mix.
Founder Miguel Martinez’s current operation went through several iterations before his Cuban roots began to smolder its way into the art of barbecue. But at this point, they’re years into a combination business where catering gigs, loads of orders from their Longwood take-out spot and a truck that parks at fun events and locations all over the metro keeps the crew plenty busy, slinging everything from slow-smoked pork ribs with guava-serrano BBQ sauce to BBQ smoked chicken empanadas to chimichurri-glazed brisket.
Sides like carmelicious maduros and jalapeño corn bread mac and cheese (not to mention baked beans with a Latin flair) hit all the ‘cue notes but never let you forget the family-borne foundation of Martinez’s formidable skills.
Fun collaborations, too, show up all the time. A recent one with Longwood’s Orinocos Cafe & Bakery saw Maya Rosa meats baked into flaky pastry for a perfect pastelito treat. On other occasions they do barbecue-inspired pizza. Follow ’em and find ’em for something a little different than what you might be used to.
Maya Rosa Latin BBQ: 1644 N. Ronald Reagan Blvd. in Longwood, 407-949-2151; mayarosabbq.com
