Why is nobody talking about The Pit? This isn’t “The Pits,” or the pit in your stomach, or even the Pit of Despair. I’m talking The Pit BBQ on the north side of downtown Birmingham. From the backed-up line in the drive-thru to the constant flow of foot traffic, I felt I was the only one that didn’t know about them.

The Pit is a little building on the side of the road in an industrial section of town. It’s not much bigger than the brick pit and kitchen occupied by the staff, with room in the front of house for about five guys to stand shoulder to shoulder, if they block the front door. The whole place looks the part, smells the part, and, most importantly, tastes the part. In the four minutes I spent waiting on my order, I bagged three stories that are all the convincing you’ll need to make a pit stop…hah!

After placing my order, I stood by a delivery driver, who I struck up a conversation with. He said it was his first time and that he smelled the food from around the corner and knew that’s where he was eating lunch. The same young lady that took my order, who called everyone “Baby,” overheard our conversation and said, “This is y’alls first time? We’ll see you tomorrow!” Her comment came across as a bit of fun, but there was a noted confidence behind it. Maybe I would be back tomorrow.

While talking to her, a man walked in who she welcomed by name. She announced to him that we were two newbies, there for the first time. He grabbed his lunch sack and as he exited, took my arm and said, “We come here for breakfast and dinner.” Indeed. I was now in high anticipation for my food.

As soon as I opened my mouth for that first bite of pork sandwich, the smokiness hit my palette. The taste was intense! The pork was perfectly smoky, moist and tender with massive flavor that only comes from a brick pit and expert pitmaster. The meat had a thin bark that added great texture and a deep smoke ring that enhanced the look. It was served with a couple dill pickles and a dark brown sauce that delivered good spice and was mild in heat. Its thick consistency helped hold the sandwich together, making it neater to eat and adding acidity to help balance out all the flavors. Consider the generous portion and this baby was the model barbecue sandwich. The balance of flavors, textures, size, and smell makes this one of the best pork sandwiches we’ve ever had!

The side of baked beans was the perfect compliment. They were rich and tomatoey sauce that and ate like a stew. I got the brown sugar and the bell pepper, and just the right amount of seasoning. They were warm, sweet, and comforting. Each bite kept delivering and the more I ate, the more I wanted. To me, this is what Alabama barbecue is about, getting massive flavor out of few ingredients. If I can help it, this place will be talked about a lot more.