Greenbrier Barbeque, Decatur, AL

Greenbrier Barbeque

Decatur, Alabama

June 16, 2005

We were in town visiting an old college friend, Jim “Dandy” Newman and his lovely wife, Beth.  Since we’d already visited Big Bob Gibson’s, Jim Dandy suggested Greenbrier Barbeque.

The interior of the building was large and roomy.  It was clean and tasteful, though a little bland as far as decoration.

Greenbrier Barbeque was more than just a barbeque joint.  They, without a doubt, had the most varied menu of any of the places we went.  In fact, Dawn had catfish and Beth had popcorn shrimp.  Jim had the pork plate and I had a combo plate with pork and, because I can’t resist them, if available, fried oysters.  Ribs were not on the menu, though barbequed chicken was.

Jim told me that when you order barbequed pork, you should ask for some “outside”.  This way, you’ll receive some of the crusty outer shell which contains much of the flavor and smoky taste of the pork.

The pork was very good.  It was tender with as heavy of a smoky taste as I’d experienced on this trip, which I like.  It also had a generous portion of “outside”.  The pork was good in its own right, but it was well complimented by the sauce.

The sauce was thick and sweet, but not overly sweet.  It had a very good flavor, with a nice blend of spices.

The baked beans were also thick and sweet and were a nice change after some of the disappointing beans we’d had in Memphis.

For completeness sake, let me just say that my oysters were good, though scanty.

Greenbrier barbeque was the first place that served hush puppies to accompany the meal.  These had good flavor and texture, though they were a touch greasy.

Jim Dandy told us that the way you could judge a barbeque restaurant was by the quality of their chocolate or coconut pie.  In that case, we figured that we had no choice but to order the pie.  The Greenbrier does not serve coconut pie, so we ordered the chocolate.  Dandy was disappointed to learn that the Greenbrier does not make its own pie.  Still, I thought it was quite good.  The pie was served warm with whipped cream on top.

Overall, when in Decatur, I would go to Big Bob Gibson’s, but if you are eating more than one meal, the Greenbrier is a good choice.  Jim Dandy informed us that Whit’s Barbeque is actually the best barbeque in Decatur, but it is take-out only.

Pros:  Good smoky taste; wide variety on menu, if your dining partner doesn’t like barbeque; good pie, even if not made in-house.

Cons:  No ribs; not strictly a barbeque joint.

BBQ:  ««««                                              Service:  «««

Sauce:  ««« ½                                             Sides:  ««« ½

Ambience:  «««                                          Overall:  ««« ½