There’s a lot of really good stuff going on at The BarBQ Factory.  This Texas-style BBQ joint is hidden away in a strip mall in the Bermondsy/Topham Park neighbourhood of East York.  These guys are smoking-up some absolute classics, without the downtown price-tag.   Brought to you by the same folks as Barsa Taberna by the St. Lawrence Market, this is the bricks and mortar location for their portable smoker & BBQ biz.  Slow & steady w/ cherry and maple, my clothes smell like the real deal in no time.

Sandwiches are my favourite thing on the menu.  They travel the best if ordering takeout.  Piled high with meat and accouterments, they’re a steal at around $10.  Get into a pulled pork with coleslaw, chimmichuri chicken, lamb piri piri, smoked fennel sausage, or beef brisket with extra pickles.  These two-handers have proven to be more than enough food without breaking the bank.

If you’re not feeling a hand-held, try a combination platter of the sandwich meats listed above (by weight) with an assortment of sides.  They also have ribs and half chickens if you’re interested in your BBQ falling off the bone.  Sides are about what you’d expect: baked beans, mac & cheese, coleslaw, potato salad and cheddar biscuits.  Wash everything down with complimentary kombucha (flavours change daily) and you’ve got yourself one heck of a meal.

My daughter has become a big fan of ribs thanks, in large part, to what these guys are doing on O’Connor Drive.  This was one of our takeaway Go-Tos during lockdown this summer.  Now that everything is opening back up as part of phase 3, my daughter is itching to head out to a restaurant and get involved with a rack of ribs.  As am I;)