It was my pick for lunch so I had to pick some place new, and opted for the Honey Pit Smokehouse in Kirkwood. I had heard some good reviews on them so I had to try them out. It is located on the corner of Kirkwood and Big Bend replacing the old Steak and Rice Chinese restaurant that had been there for years. We arrived before noon and it was a little rainy, but luckily the lot was still pretty empty. I had never visited it as the Chinese restaurant (despite driving by it many times) but they have opened up the interior with vaulted ceilings and lots of wood so it definitely feels like a barbeque place now, and a roomy one at that.
You order at the counter and they have quite a few different menu options. I decided to order the two meat platter with two sides, so I ordered the pulled pork and brisket with fries and their creamy cole slaw (they had three different slaw options.) My wife selected the pulled pork sandwich with cornbread, my child selected the brisket sandwich with fries, and my mother-in-law just ordered a side of macaroni and cheese. They had a variety of typical soft drinks where you could serve yourself, but my wife gives them a demerit for only having pink sweetener available for the tea.
The food service was cafeteria style so we were ready to dig in once we picked up our drinks and selected one of the many open tables. The first thing I tried was the pork and brisket and they were definitely the highlight of the meal. The meats were well smoked and tender and also had a nice sweetness to the flavor. Both the pulled pork and brisket were very good. They had three sauces available and I tried all three of them. The vinegar one was a bit strong for me (and that is unusual!), the sweet one was a bit sweeter and runnier than I would have preferred, and the spicy one was a little hot but also runny. Overall, I was not impressed with the sauce selection, or perhaps I am just used to the very consistent selection of thicker sauces at Bandana's.
The fries were not bad for battered fries, but I also would have preferred the generously portioned meaty steak fries you receive at Bandana's. The cole slaw was okay, but it was not as good as other slaws I have had, which was disappointing for a place with three different slaws. My wife liked her sandwich, agreeing the meat was very flavorful, but thought the bun was not so exciting and she also thought the sauce was too sweet and runny. My child thought their brisket was really good and liked the fries quite a bit too. My mother-in-law ate all her macaroni and cheese so she must have enjoyed it. The corn bread was sweet and flavorful but did not hold together well and was impossible to butter. It was more like corncake than cornbread but it was pretty tasty.
Overall I would say the meats there are very good and flavorful and I heartily recommend it. They have a large variety of meats and sides which provides a lot of options, and all are quite passable but none are that exceptional. All of us agreed that even though their meat was exceptional and had a very unique flavor, we all preferred the more standard fare at Bandana's despite their perception now as a more "corporate, cookie cutter" barbecue place. (Yes, like an Applebee's for barbecue.) So I would probably go back to Honey Pit if it were an option or if we were in the area (i.e. over the nearby O'Charlie's or Texas Roadhouse), but if I wanted to enjoy some barbecue with a variety of tasty sauces I would probably pick Bandana's.
Meats, Variety of Choices
Sauces, Sides & Everything else
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