Gator’s BBQ

Gator’s BBQ is located due west of downtown Jacksonville . Primarily take-out, it is housed in a small stand-alone brick building. Venture behind  the restaurant and you’ll find a generously sized wood pile — a promising sign of  tasty BBQ to come.

Entering the restaurant,  you are greeted by a cozy room with a few tables offering chair or bench seating for hungry customers who opt to eat in. Keep in mind it does get busy, especially on weekends.

Our meals consisted of crispy fried squash which was just begging to be dipped in house made swamp sauce. This is a creamy horseradish concoction. Although Gator’s offers brisket, cajun sausage, smoked chicken and pork chops, we naturally went with the smoked pork and ribs. The smoked pork was luxuriously smoky with a nice amount of bark. The ribs are tender with just enough chaw to let us know that they are smoked low and slow over oak.

Typical of most North Florida BBQ joints,  squirt bottles of golden mustard BBQ sauce reminiscent of the South Carolina midlands are readily available.  This is  available along with  several other sauces to add to your BBQ at will.

If you try Smoky Brunswick stew and fried corn on the cob, you will not be disappointed in the sides.  Our meal concluded with a small sampling of Gators’ homemade banana pudding.

John and Sandy Shepherd, husband and wife owners of Gators BBQ, are  gracious hosts and we are glad of the opportunity to visit one of Jacksonville’s finest BBQ Meccas. *Original Post by Dale Fine*