Williamson Bros. Bar-B-Q - Marietta, Georgia

Location: 1425 Roswell Rd, Marietta, GA‎ - (770) 971-3201‎

One of the first things I noticed about this place is the extensive menu. The menu is three fold out pages! That's a lot for a BBQ restaurant. Most have a one-sided sheet to hand you.

I also enjoyed the decor, particularly the stuffed rooster with a bandanna near the door. Unfortunately my photo of it came out poorly. The place has that country feel you seek in a BBQ joint. The deer heads and carved wooden chairs create the perfect atmosphere for eating some 'Q.

We ordered the Combo Platter for a nice sampling of chopped beef, chopped pork, pork ribs, and baked chicken. Sides included green beans, mac n cheese, and stew of course.

It was an adventure veering away from pork, which is what I usually strictly stick with. I've actually never tried chopped beef and I'd have to say it was quite delicious. The flavor is much stronger than the pork. The beef really picks up the smokey flavor, and it comes on strong. The beef also surprisingly had a nicer, softer texture. Not as many rough parts, which were a plenty in the pork. This is probably due to the way each was prepared but I would say the beef was executed better, which was disappointing. The ribs were good, not quite fall off the bone savory, but worth ordering. The chicken looked amazing, but I was disappointed to find that it was extremely dry and even when covered in sauce could not be rescued. Sadly most of it went uneaten.

Lets side step: Mac n cheese: Stouffers could easily top this recipe. Green beans: heavy on the garlic, mmmm. Stew: very sweet and soupy, tasted kind of like a BBQ sauce soup with some okra and tomatoes thrown in, not my favorite.

The strong point of this restaurant is the sauce. The Original Sauce, as they call it, is a great mix of sweet and spice. I'm typically not a fan of sweet sauces, but this had the perfect taste of sweetness. With peppercorn and red pepper mixed in, the sauce created an enjoyable kick in random bites. I'd completely recommend taking home a bottle (pre-packed and sold in restaurant) and putting it on your favorite BBQ dish.

We also journeyed into the land of desserts here. How could we not with this tempting dessert display? We tried the banana pie and it was great. The base is made of your typical banana pudding with a thick layer of homemade whipped cream on top. The pair was great with the crust beneath. Highly recommended.

Don't Miss: Sauce, try on your own cooking for best results.
Skip: Stew, sides, tea.
Highlights: Beer selection, decor including bandanna chicken

Rundown: Grab some dessert and a bottle of the sauce to take home and top on your best BBQ recipe.