In an unassuming strip mall with train track views, hunker down on epic beef and pork ribs ($22-24), or pulled pork and beef brisket ($15), slow-smoked and lashed with a robust house barbecue sauce. There's also gumbo ($9), and cornmeal-crusted oysters ($10) and chicken wings ($10). Sides include buttermilk ranch coleslaw, barbecue beans, and butter fried cabbage, all complemented by Smoken... more

This boxlike restaurant, located in a small roadside strip mall belies all expectations. The food here is plentiful, tasty, and prepared with a superlative southern flair, in large part because of the in-house natural wood-smoking techniques that see pork ribs spending hours in the smoker. Southerners themselves have high praise for the Cookshack's spicy Gumbo, fresh-baked cornbread, braised... more