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The A & M Grill in Mebane, NC is located right in 'downtown Mebane' - i.e. on Highway 70 East just one block on the Hillsborough side of the old White Furniture Manufacturing building. The A & M Grill has been barbequing - with wood - shoulders for 60 years the same way - with the same wood pit. This barbeque is certainly worth leaving I - 40/85 and making the approximately 2 mile detour over to downtown Mebane. In North Carolina a lot of folks interested in barbeque will ask, "Is it 'eastern' or 'western' NC barbeque?" I suppose to some of those folks that is a question with meaning but I mostly doubt that anyone who asks such a question can adequately describe either of these types of barbeque. Usually the short answer is that 'eastern' barbeque is 'vinegar based' and 'western barbeque has some tomato of some type in the sauce. Such simplified distinctions are not adequate for anyone who loves good North Carolina barbeque - there are huge variations within each of those categories. In my estimation it is much better to simply examine how the barbeque is prepared for each 'joint'. In my categories of NC barbeque such places as Short Sugar's in Reidsville and the A & M Grill in Mebane deserve their own special distinctive classification. Both are worth traveling to eat there. The A & M Grill cooks with wood (my no. 1 criterion for 'good barbeque'). The A & M cooks only pork shoulders - thus the barbeque is not at all greasy, no fat or skin, and perhaps low cholesterol (I don't really know as I don't measure that food content). I think the texture of the A & M barbeque is just about perfect. The chopped barbeque is served with the 'special A & M barbeque sauce' that is not exactly like any of the other sauces across the state - like 'Short Sugar's the sauce is unique). The wood fired grill at the A & M is located right adjacent to one of the dinning rooms and right in the kitchen. If you ask politely they will permit you to view the pit and the shoulder thereon. I experienced a short wait for my barbeque as the chef removed the shoulder and chopped my lunch serving. The slaw at the A & M Grill is also unique to me. It is not 'red slaw' and it is not 'white slaw' nor is it 'vinegar slaw' - it is 'pink slaw'. The slaw is not 'hot' - as the red barbeque slaw in Lexington is supposed to be. The slaw has a really nice flavor - mostly like the white slaw but with a slight difference. The hush puppies at the A & M are good - but not the best and the sweet tea is good. Leon Neal Please send all comments to my private email address at: leon@hkentcraig.com |
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