Urban Stomach

A 23 year old Stomach (on the right) at Charlie Vergo's Rendezvous in Memphis

My friend loved Rendezvous BBQ so much, he never ate meat again

Last night, I licked my television. Why you ask? I was watching Tony Bourdain’s “No Reservations” and he was doing a food porn piece on barbecue. A beautifully crusted, slow-smoked brisket was shown being carved, juices dripping with each cut. I wanted to hop on a plane and fly to this barbecue pit, in New York of all places, and dive naked into an orgy of smoked meats. Mmmmmmm! Ooooooh!

I love barbecue. Barbecue makes me emotional. Barbecue makes me lick televisions. We don’t have much barbecue around these parts. The best barbecue that I ever ate, in 1994 at The Rendezvous in Memphis, brought me to to a food orgasm that I wasn’t sure I could ever achieve, and have rarely achieved since. Don’t even mention “dry rubbed ribs” to me or my knees will go weak and my eyes will roll back. The worst barbecue that I ever ate, in 1980 at The Great American Beef Rib Company in L.A., was an insult to the genre. Dry, tasteless ribs made even a ten year-old Urban Stomach angry. It’s been thirty plus years since that debacle and I’m still pissed.

A pile of meat: The 3 Meat Combo of Ribs, Chicken and Pulled Pork

Housed in an orange train car in Pacifica, Gorilla Barbeque is serving my favorite barbecue in the Bay Area. If you’re a first timer, I suggest that you bring a friend, your family, or both and order a 3 Meat Combo. On a recent sunny Sunday afternoon, the Stomachs started with a pile of pulled pork, chicken and pork ribs (beef ribs are nothing but pretenders). The ribs are large, meaty, and have a great bark on them. I’m not sure what’s so satisfying about eating big hunks of meat off of a bone but if I could eat pasta off of a bone, I would. The chicken is nice and juicy and the skin gets a little crispy but not burnt. I found myself using my index finger to scrape bits of skin off of the bottom of the styrofoam container. When I’m eating barbecue, I’m not a sauce guy. I’m a firm believer that the meat should be able to stand up flavor- wise on its own. However, I was happy to drench my pulled pork, a little blander than the other meats, with Gorilla’s vinegary sauce that provides a nice kick of spice about three seconds after every bite.

Beef Brisket and Mac & Cheese at Gorilla Barbeque

What you see above is a kid’s portion of brisket. My kids couldn’t finish it between the two of them! Gorilla’s brisket is dry-rubbed and then spends fifteen hours in the smoker, resulting in smoky, tender slices of pure joy. I was picking this stuff up with my hands, dangling it in my mouth, and taking bite after pleasurable bite. Of all of the Gorilla meats that I’ve tried, the brisket tastes the most of smoke which is a big plus in my book. You can see the red smoke rings around the edges of the meat. The macaroni & cheese is one of the cheesiest versions I’ve ever encountered as Gorilla uses four kinds of cheese and then bakes the noodles under a crust of ground cheddar goldfish crackers. Let me repeat, they put cheddar goldfish crackers in a grinder and then use the finely ground bits to bake a crust on top of the macaroni and cheese. Who thinks of this stuff? Brilliant. And very, very rich. Cole slaw is on the traditional side with plenty of mayonaise to cool down the smoke from the meats and the heat from the sauce.

Smoked Brisket Cheesesteak deserves its own visit

I can’t conclude without mention of Gorilla’s cheesesteak. It’s completely untraditional both as barbecue and as a cheesesteak but it completely works. They combine a hefty portion of chopped smoked beef brisket with white american cheese, onions and peppers and sandwich it in a well griddled soft roll. I’m generally not one for food trickery but this sandwich is worth the drive to Pacifica alone. I’d suggest eating it on a separate visit as it’s a little much when combined with all of the other smoked meats and the mac & cheese. Well, maybe a lot much.

This was my fifth visit to Gorilla over the past year or so and I’m really impressed with their consistency. On weekends, there’s almost always a line but it moves fairly well. You should know that Gorilla is take-out only and they don’t take phone orders. There are a few picnic tables up on a small hill and you’ll want to dress warmly if you plan to use them. It’s Pacifica. However, cold weather aside, Gorilla Barbeque is a godsend for Bay Area barbecue lovers like me.

Gorilla Barbeque
2145 Coast Highway
Pacifica, CA 94044
650-359-RIBS (7427)
www.gorillabbq.com
Wednesday-Monday: Noon-8PM (if visiting after 5PM, call to see what they have left)
3 Meat Combo with choice of 2 sides, cornbread and beans and rice:$19.50
Kid’s Combo with choice of 1 side and cornbread: $6.25
Philly Cheesesteak Combo with choice of 1 side: $8.25