C&G Smoking BBQ – Minneapolis, MN (Bar-B-Quest 2012)

HotGirlsBrother and I have both been to this BBQ place before, and both of us were considerate enough to NOT get ribs while we were here. We save those things for group outings, of course. I did a quick and dirty review of it when I went there with my dad, but I was realllly looking forward to trying the ribs here. In fact, Minneapolis Magazine ranked them one of the top 10 BBQ places in the state. That’s quite an honor.

HotGirlsBrother picked up a couple of slabs for us on his way home from work and Low-Vee was able to meet us at the house for dinner. I’m glad she’s back in action! HotGirlsBrother also got some fries, baked beans, and coleslaw for all of us. C&G also has what’s called hot water bread. You don’t ask how it’s made, you just eat it.

We all arrived at the house and started divvy-ing things up. It’s difficult to split three things four ways, but we made due with it all. HotGirlsBrother was also awesome enough to score some Dew for him and I, so it made the experience even better.


I’ll start with the sides. The baked beans are the best I think I’ve ever had anywhere. There are crazy pieces of meat in the sauce they’re in and they just taste amazing. I really love the beans they have here and I will put them up against anyone you suggest. I think they’ll win every time. The coleslaw is pretty good. It’s got some tang to it – not necessarily bite from vinegar, just tang. Hard to explain, but it is kind of good. The fries were really soggy, but still managed to taste delicious. I wonder if they’d be crispier if you ate inside the restaurant (there are a handful of tables inside C&G’s). If they were crispy, they’d be exponentially better, but they’re pretty good the way they are. And I mentioned the hot water bread. Just eat it – it tastes fried. I don’t mean it has a flavor – it just tastes fried. It looks a little like a corn meal fritter or corn bread, but it doesn’t taste like those things. Just fried. You’ll know what I mean when you have your first bite – I think you’ll agree with the “fried” part.


The ribs were good. Really good. I don’t think they’re the best I’ve had, since the meat took a little work to get it off the bone, but the flavor was there, even without the sauce. They were pretty meaty ad not over done, but still, just not falling off the bone like a lot of places. As I said, the flavor was quite good in them, so I won’t knock the place. I think I had them already put on a pedestal from reading about them in the magazine. The ribs are good, but they’re not game-changing.

I think C&G Smoking BBQ is good. In fact, I’m looking forward to going back. The folks working there, I remember being really nice and they have a couple of other things there Id’ like to try. They’re going up against Scott Ja Mamma’s BBQ, so I’ll be curious to see how they fare. The winner of that heat goes on to battle Baldy’s. I’m not going to make any predictions here, but I think based on my ranting and ravings, we all know what the outcome is likely to be…

Here is the Bar-B-Quest bracket, so you can see what’s coming up:


Top 5 things about C&G Smoking BBQ
1. Baked Beans, without question
2. The flavor of the fries
3. The coleslaw
4. There is a lot of meat on the ribs
5. I really want to give a second honorable mention to the baked beans

Bottom 5 things
1. The sogginess of the fries
2. Hot water bread – I really do want to like it, it just isn’t my favorite
3. The ribs, I expected to be better
4. I have heard people say they have been known to run out of ribs before the dinner hour. Call ahead, maybe?
5. I had to watch American Idol while eating ribs. THAT will leave a bad taste in anyone’s mouth


C&G Smoking BBQ
4743 Nicollet Ave. S.
Minneapolis, MN 55419
(612) 825-3400