BBQ / What’s another summer tradition just as American as Memorial Day itself? BBQ, of course! Most Americans salute the red, white and blue with a spatula and charcoal grill, but the art of BBQ is more than throwing a salt and pepper steak on the grill. Take a ’cue from these smokin’ experts and learn how tastiness is really served up.

Go hog wild

Last June, owner Wayne Kauppi was glued to “BBQ Month” on the Food Network and decided to add some smoked meat to the snack shop in the small nine hole par three golf course he managed in Golden Gate Park. He saw the W’ham smoker on the Food Network and had to have it. After convincing John Willingham, the creator of the W’ham smoker and owner of the most major BBQ championship titles, to sell it to him he went to work perfecting his brisket and pork.

Kauppi opened Hog Island in mid-December and has since been gaining a regular clientele. Located in the parking lot behind Big City Diner on Waialae in Kaimuki, Kauppi’s store lacks a store sign but the smoky waft of BBQ helps customers trail in. Sandwiches stuffed with brisket, pulled pork or chicken range from $6.45 to $7.45 and plate meals range from $7.45 for chicken to $24.75 for a full rack of ribs.

Plates include choice of meat (beef brisket, pulled pork, chicken or ribs) and two sides. For a dollar more customers can choose two meats with two sides. Some noteworthy dishes are Kauppi’s scalloped potatoes, done in a French style, thinly sliced and slow cooked with a cream sauce and his classic coleslaw with dried cranberries. The cabbage is fresh and crisp and the cranberries add a surprising but faint sweetness to the dish. All of the meats are dry rubbed with a blend of 29 spices and then smoked with oak wood pellets at 210 to 225 degrees. After 12 to 14 hours the beef brisket just about melts in your mouth and after three to four hours the meat is ready to fall off the baby back ribs.

Hog Island BBQ. 1137 11th Avenue. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11am–7:30 pm, Major credit cards and cash accepted. Limited seating upstairs and take out, [www.hogislandbbq.com], 388-7784

‘Nalo kine grindz

It’s about time Waimanalo opened up a BBQ joint. Still in its baby stage, Sweet Home Waimanalo was opened by partners David and Michelle Campbell and Pat and Megan Shea who decided to open a BBQ eatery “after talking about it one night.” If that determination doesn’t show you they’re serious about BBQ then their menu definitely will. Created with the help of seasoned restaurant chef Steve Brown, it offers everything from BBQ plate lunches to salads and wraps. Their BBQ meats include tri-tip steak, smoked pork, ribs, chicken and kalua pork. Plates are served with rice or cornbread, two sides and a your choice of BBQ sauce. Prices run from $8.25 to $10.25 for a plate. Other tasty alternatives are the paniolo chili ($3.50 for a cup) and smoked chicken curry ($3.75 for a cup), both of which incorporate the smoked meat the restaurant specializes in.

The side dishes are equally as exceptional as the meats. The Okinawan sweet potato is peeled and sliced and dressed with a homemade mango chutney dressing. The bland sweetness of the potato is nicely offset by the sweet tang of the mango dressing. The Campbells also mentioned that they make it a point to buy all their produce from local producers first, especially from the farms in Waimanalo. All their sauces (guava chipotle, honey mustard and beer BQ) and dressings are homemade and nothing comes from a can. The food definitely reflects the freshness and down home goodness this little eatery is all about. It’s traditional BBQ with a creative local twist that makes use of ‘Nalo’s winning produce and Hawaii’s mixing pot of flavors.

Sweet Home Waimanalo. 41-1025 Kalanianaole Hwy. Daily 10:30am–7:30pm. Major credit cards and cash accepted. Outdoor seating only and take-out. [www.sweethomewaimanalo.com], 259-5737

Setting the Barr

Well, if my name was Bob Barr I would have included it in the title as well. Bob Barr’s Smokin’ Bob Barr-B-Q, though a mouthful, just has a very appropriate ring to it, doesn’t it? In operation in the late 1990s, it closed down and only recently re-opened seven months ago. The restaurant boasts a chuck wagon on top of the roof, huge fake cacti and old wagon wheels strewn all over the place. Shamelessly cheesy, the décor is perfect because, if you didn’t realize it from the exterior, then one glance at the menu you’ll know that here at Bob Barr’s they serve nothing but Texas-style smoked BBQ and Tex Mex cuisine. Guests can eat while they watch pitmasters load and unload the ginormous racks or ribs and slabs of meat in the equally gigantic smoker. The most popular item right now is the Bob-A-Saurus–a one foot long and approximately one pound all beef rib. For $19.95 it can be served with three sides or by itself for $14.95. Like all the other meats, it is slathered in Bob’s special more tangy than sweet BBQ sauce. Get the cornbread. A bit pricey at $2 per piece but it’s a pretty big slice and the homemade honey butter just tops it off right. Bob’s rice is his version of Spanish rice and pairs nicely with his selection of meats. I ordered the brisket which was sliced very thinly, but was soft, flavorful and smoky–just how brisket should be. A small plate ($9.99) is more than enough food for one person but the taco plates are just as popular and just as filling.

Bob Barr’s Smokin’ Bob Barr-B-Q. 46-132 Kahuhipa St. Kaneohe. Open Tue–Sun 11am–8pm. Cash Only. Indoor seating and take-out, 235-4004

Smoked out

It kind of looks like a dark cavern from the outside and some would say calling it a dive bar is an overstatement but Da Smoke House has been serving happy customers since 1978 and it’s still smoking strong. It has become a neighborhood bar for many residents that live within walking distance of Eaton Square. For many customers that don’t want much more than some good BBQ and beer, Da Smoke House is a perfect stop. By day it looks a bit lonesome with only a couple of customers nursing beers while glued to the HD TV but at night the place is bustling. Many come for the burgers and fries as well as their BBQ. What Da Smoke House lacks in décor and furnishings they make up for in their price points. Sandwiches range from $7.80-$10 and their BBQ selection of meats–chicken, pork ribs, ham, steak and briskets, start at $7.89 while burgers and fries will run you $8.25. Generous servings for prices like that are impossible to find in the Waikiki tourist trap maze where the McDonald’s lacks a value menu and the Quizno’s is strangely a couple of bucks above average price. On the weekdays the kitchen closes at 10pm and midnight on the weekends. When the jukebox isn’t spitting out music, Da Smoke House features live bands and sometimes karaoke nights. Even though it gets pretty rowdy at night (as any bar should), the crowd rarely gets out of hand and the servers and bartenders are the friendliest you’ll ever meet.

Da Smoke House. 444 Hobron Lane, Waikiki. Open daily from 10:30am–midnight. Major credit cards and cash accepted. Indoor seating and take-out.