Whip your taste buds into shape at Best Damn Smoked Meats | Local Flavor on Wheels

Local Flavor on Wheels: This summer, we’re trying area food trucks for our Local Flavor series instead of sit-down establishments. We hope you’ll come along for the ride!

I feel like a filthy cheater.

Before settling down with my one and only, it only seemed right that I explore all my options.

That’s what I tell myself to feel better, but if I’m honest, I just needed to spice things up, you know?

It’s these inner thoughts that plagued me, and almost caused me to lose my nerve as I walked up to the repurposed retirement home bus that was the cause of my undoing.

“One brisket sandwich with noodles and coleslaw please,” I said to employee Mack Gable, the guy with broad sunglasses taking orders out of the vehicle’s side window.

I can only hope you will find it in your well-marbled, smoky heart to forgive me Joe’s Barbecue — but I had to get my hands on Best Damn Smoked Meats.

Up for grabs at Best Damn Smoked Meats

There is no waiting until returning home to devour this meal, so my car was temporarily transformed into the finest of dining establishments — complete with the perfect hump on the dashboard for holding food.

The star of my order was clearly the brisket, which truly melts in your mouth with every bite.

So, how is it made? A generous portion of slow-smoked brisket, white onions, Mr. Crisp Pickle Co. pickles and home-made bourdon barbecue sauce is stacked on a buttered, toasted bun. I recommend saucy people, such as myself, ask for extra sauce on the side — it’s that good.

“If you can do a good brisket, it’s like the ‘Field of Dreams,’ if you cook it, they will come,” said co-owner Mike Johnson.

Those looking for a milder version of the puckering vinegar coleslaw at most Barberton chicken joints, pick up a side from Best Damn Smoked Meats. I found it very refreshing, but not too pungent.

The noods (German-style cabbage and noodles) were comprised of bacon, pan-softened cabbage, and a special blend of seasonings that turned these otherwise simple egg noodles into a delicious side dish that’s far from boring.

Also on the menu are the food truck’s version of a pulled pork sandwich, dubbed The O.G. Pork, street tacos, and a pulled pork melt titled The Mongo Melt. On occasion, they will offer specials, like ribs or porchetta, (imagine a Swiss roll, but made of pork, herbs and butter).

The two other options for sides are damn good potato salad and collard greens.

The conception of Best Damn Smoked Meats

It was a balmy 92 degrees the evening I visited, but Johnson and another co-owner, Ryan Konn, were willing to take a break from slinging meat to speak to me.

Like many businesses since the pandemic, it was the shut down that spurred the creation of Best Damned Smoked Meats.

North Hill neighbors Johnson. Konn, Sean McDermott and Drew Wheeler found themselves transforming a vacant lot on Sawyer Avenue into a community garden. The garden gave them a place to set up potluck-style dinners on an almost weekly basis. The food was so good, they eventually decided it was worth selling and decided to make it a mobile operation.

Its spicy name came from a Fourth of July Facebook event in the community garden named “Buds, Drinks, & Smoked Meats for the Fourth,” which also happens to form the acronym B.D.S.M. They kept the double entendre and played into it further by dubbing a jubilant whip-wielding piggy with an apple ball-gag as the restaurant’s mascot.

The group began serving the best damn smoked meats in Akron in May of 2022 on E. Cuyahoga Falls Avenue. Johnson hopes to continue providing sinfully good food and chuckles at their truck's somewhat-hidden sexual innuendos.

“We’re just trying to keep good, honest barbecue traditions alive,” said Johnson. “I try to do that South Carolina-style, keep it like it is. I don’t want to mess around with it.”

Got a restaurant or food truck recommendation? Contact Beacon Journal reporter Tawney Beans at tbeans@gannett.com and on Twitter @TawneyBeans. And follow her adventures on TikTok @akronbeaconjournal.

Details

Place: Best Damn Smoked Meats

Where to find them: facebook.com/bdsmbbq

Phone: 330-696-4367

Website: bestdamnsmokedmeats.com/home

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Whip your taste buds into shape at Best Damn Smoked Meats | Local Flavor on Wheels