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    Craft Q Barbeque

    4.3 (13 reviews)
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    Rok J.

    Bottom Line: Very tasty BBQ fare. Plenty friendly staff. Somewhat higher priced than the competition. Top Line: I hit up the Craft Q gang for lunch on a tip from a drive-by friend who notified me of their Sunday location at the corner of Paseo del Norte & Unser on the west mesa. The posted menu indicated I could save a couple bucks with their brisket sandwich combo plate, as opposed to getting the three items I wanted (1/4 lb of brisket sammie, BBQ beans, cole slaw) ala carte. Total was $18 for the three items. That's a few bucks more than I've usually found similar BBQ around town, so the value ratio runs a bit thin. However, the quality of the food from Craft Q is pretty high. The brisket was very beautifully smoked, with a pronounced smoke ring and a lot of smoky punch on the flavor front. Brisket texture was middle of the road, which ain't a bad place to be. It was certainly tender enough, though not literally fall apart tender as brisket can get when the connective tissue is completely gelatinized. To me its moistness was also in the middle range of the pack, neither too much nor too little. It was not one of those sandwiches that drool down to your elbow. Nor was it a dried out leathery hunk o' cow you could chew into next week. The meat interior had sufficient juiciness, but the outer bark tended to the crunchy side, stopping just short of being over done. The pile of chopped white onion & pickle slices on the sandwich were generous in portion and punchy on flavor. They did not however overwhelm the taste of the scrumptious meat, but filled their supplementary role with competent flair. BBQ sauce was to my tongue just a hint sweet and leaning decidedly in the direction of delightfully spicy heat. Smoke note rang in with moderation, but you definitely know it's there in the mix. I found the beans to be well up to standing beside the flavorful meat. Rather pronounced meaty taste in the sauce, as well as scraps of BBQ'ed & ground meat. A noticable layer of oil or melted meat fat floated on top of the sauce. Some folks might object to the texture of it, but I do not since meat fat is where the flavor lives. The sauce taste was rich & packed with umami notes dancing around on the tongue. A fair bit of complexity to it. The beans themselves were cooked just right in terms of texture, plumpness, & toothiness. The beans had a nice spicy hit of heat on them to warm you up. Cole slaw was definitely the bench sitter on this team compared to the forcefulness of the sandwich and bean flavors that were swingin' for the fences. Taste was pretty neutral even as cole slaw goes. A shade of sweetness was about the only taste that came through. Texture was crunchy, but not the crispy snap that is sometimes found in cole slaw. I intend to continue to visit the Craft Q folks on the weekends when they are in close proximity to my winter quarters so I can try out more of their menu items. I think their quality easily justifies it. But I will do so with the realization that their very tasty fare flies toward the top of the price window.

    Combo plater. We brought it home and enjoyed every bite
    Salohcin C.

    This place is phenomenal. We eat here as often as possible. Their BBQ sauce is wonderful, sweet then some spice. Pork belly is great, brisket we love, ribs that you won't forget. The food here is worth the money and tracking down where they're at. Do yourself a favor and try this BBQ food truck. It's sure to become your favorite. They're even doing wings now. Don't miss out on this food.

    Pulled pork sandwich

    I had the best pulled pork sandwich at Heights Summerfest! It was so tender and moist and they most definitely did not skip on the meat. 10/10 Will be on the lookout when they come to Unser and Paseo this summer.

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    4 years ago

    Best Barbecue in town is Nexus smokehouse on Broadway, also you must try there Chocolate Porter, nice people

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    4 years ago

    They have an excellent brisket. Great flavor, tender chew, good smoke. Definitely recommend the brisket sandwich.

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    Rudy's "Country Store" and Bar-B-Q - Moist Brisket ($28/lb)

    Rudy's "Country Store" and Bar-B-Q

    (669 reviews)

    $$

    Midtown/University

    We were looking for a place to eat after the Pow Wow and came across Rudy's.. wait.. is this the…read moresame chain as the one from TEXAS?!?!?! OMG YES!!! We had to bring our friends visiting from Canada here so they could experience some good ol' Texas BBQ. Decor and inside similar to the ones in Texas, complete with the hand washing station, wax paper placemats and yer loaf o' white bread. What we swallowed: *MOIST BRISKET: We get this every time we order from Rudy's and this was just as good. Moist, tender, smokey. It's great this location was consistent with Rudy's flavor. *JALAPENO SAUSAGE: Your jalapeno sausage sliced up goodness. Hot and tasty. *POTATO SALAD and COLE SLAW: Done right. Potato creaminess and coleslaw not to vinegary. We were happy to end the day here, this location was consistent with the Rudy's flavor we know and love and had all the fixins (hot chili's and carrots, onions at the condiment bar) to make it your way.

    Everything they sell comes out of a premade bucket or other container. Worse pulled pork I've ever…read morehad! It's was mushy & had fillers including flour, mustard, and something that tasted like Mayo. We ordered baked beans..horrible, potato salad from Costco, and corn on the cob that was fresh tasting, but hard as a rock. I ordered it with butter, but it didn't have any, and it wasn't salted. As we entered the restaurant a security guard held the door for us. My husband asked him if the food was good. He just shrugged his shoulders and had a smile on his face. My husband then asked if the area was safe & he stumbled for words. He then told us it was a pretty "busy area" with gangs & the homeless. Rudy's was a waste of our time & money, and worst of all we were sick through the night.

    Albuquerque Slow Smoked BBQ - Smoked BBQ beef brisket sandwich close up.

    Albuquerque Slow Smoked BBQ

    (8 reviews)

    Business Parkway/Academy Acres

    Well smoked, dang flavorful BBQ from da ABQ Slow Smoked BBQ truckie dude!!…read more Brisket Sammie came loaded to toppling high with carne rich in smokiness & melt on your tongue tender texture. Hugeness of portion!!!! BBQ sauce brought a nice punchy kick to the tower o' meat sammie. Only demerit was lack of much bark on the meat in my sandwich. Buddy's sliced brisket sandwich, which was equally massive, showed *lots* of bark. So if you're a Barky BBQ Boi, sliced brisket will be your jam from ABQ Slow Smoked BBQ as opposed to the chopped brisket that seems to be the default brisket sandwich filling. BBQ beans were on par with the sandwich. Multiple varieties of beans swimming in a semi-sweet & tangy sauce. Shreds of smoked meat added their pungence to the mix. A dish that makes eating your veggies mighty tasty!! Pickled veggies, particularly the carrots, offered bright clean taste to counterbalance the pungence of the meat & beans. Hit up this mobile emporium of tastiness at Marble Heights Brewpub or anywhere else around town they might be spotted. Well worth the price of admission!

    How has this food truck not been reviewed yet??…read more I'll be honest, I have been burned by bbq food trucks before. But there's just something about them that every time I see them, I have to try it. We were heading to Costco, ready to lunch on a hotdog when we saw the food truck in the parking lot (closer to the sports store). The smoker attached to truck, the charming way the menu was laid out and with two people already in line, it was calling to me. The two people in line were munching on a beef rib that I'm sure he gave to them to try during the wait. The guy closest to me...the meat looked so juicy. So I said to him "man that looks so good" and all he could muster was a shake of his head, like "you have no idea". The first guy ordered and really was insistent on paying more money...(he wanted drinks but they were included in the sandwich price so he was like, well fine then, let me buy two more waters). The guy who I talked to about the rib? When he gets to the window, he said he wanted one of everything! Yeeeees. I have a hard time not ordering nachos anytime I come across them, so I got the nachos with brisket and the picky eater got the brisket sandwich with coleslaw for the side. When he took a bite, he said it was "damn good." Pretty good review from the picky eater. The sandwich also came with pickles, and pickled onions, carrots and a jalapeño, all of which were amazing. Perfectly crunchy and sour. The nachos were great, made even better by the pickled veggies (cause I stole those from him). And the bbq sauce with the brisket was just perfect. We stood in the line under the hot sun and it was tooooootally worth it. I overheard him tell one of the customers that he tries to get out to that spot at least twice a week.

    J's Var-B-Q - Ribs

    J's Var-B-Q

    (81 reviews)

    Business Parkway/Academy Acres

    I love supporting local and this is a great hidden gem. I…read morewas in the area, and was hungry and this place caught my eye. First thing I noticed was a lovely perfume of smoker. The service was quick and friendly and we sat down in the family style table and dug in. I had the pulled pork with coleslaw and Mac and cheese. Hubby had the same, except he had the brisket. The pulled pork got the at the table sauce treatment and the potato roll is a good foil for lightly smoked pork. The brisket was wonderful and full of flavor. The coleslaw was tangy and fresh, the Mac and cheese creamy and flavorful. This is not one of the big chains, it's a small local operation, so let's keep them going and keep a good bbq smoking!

    Staff was friendly and inside there was plenty of seating and was clean. We opted for to go order…read moresince it was late and prefer to enjoy it at home. We wanted to sample some items since it was our first visit. We got 4 meats all about 1/4 lb and three sides to share for dinner. Ratings for food items below: Ribs 5/5 cooked perfectly it was juicy and tender. Turkey 4.5/5 juicy tender not dry the sauce make it great. Hot links 4/5 tasty would be better if they had Jalepeno cheddar it would be over the top. Chopped brisket 3.5/5 a bit dry not our favorite. Coleslaw 2/5 not sweet enough no flavor. Beans 4.5/5 almost perfect could have bigger chunks of meat and spices. Green chile mac 4/5 could have more flavor the green chile made it tolerable but a bit expensive. A cup was $4.25 vs $2.99 for other sides not sure it is worth it at a premium price. Overall we enjoyed our experience and plan to go back to try other items from the menu.

    Nomad's BBQ - Smoked shredded beef brisket (with bun to make a sandwich) + 1/2 lb extra. Strongly smoked & tasty!

    Nomad's BBQ

    (63 reviews)

    $

    Business Parkway/Academy Acres

    Yummy and tasty food from a small family business worthy of ABQ's local support. Theo the owner…read moredoes the bbq/smoking of the meat himself. You can tell he is passionate and love sharing his bbq with his customer. His signature meat? He mentioned the pulled pork meat and the brisket! The side worthy of trying (although Theo himself doesn't like coleslaw himself? The pineapple coleslaw...based on my brief discussion with another local customer I met onsite! I personally found that the price/value for the amount and quality of food Nomad's bbq provides is well worth it. I had a pulled pork sandwich (plus a bit of brisket and the 2 sides that I couldn't resist trying to save for my next meal) and thought the meat was smokey, jiving and so scrumptious...and this is coming from someone who normally doesn't eat so much meat like myself! Overall, I really like that Theo seems passionate about making the food that he serves. Plus, it doesn't hurt that this bbq type of food tastes so good..and is so rare to find ABQ, too.

    Note: Nomad BBQ is no longer at the Rio Grande Blvd sticks 'n bricks location if you, like me…read morebefore an extended road trip, last dealt with him there. Theo's operating in food truck mode only now. He mentioned being at the yellow & blue HappyDaze Cannabis building across from the Maverik gas station on Jefferson St NE at junction of I-25 and Jefferson. I'm unsure of what days & hours. Give him a call to get the "who, what, when, where, why, & how" for his location on any given day. However, I must say that Nomad BBQ is still providing *excellent* Texas style BBQ of exceptional tastiness at very economical prices, given the high quality of the food. If you see their truck anywhere around town, stop in, chow down, and smile ... smile ... smile ... at all the wondrous gustatorial nirvana you've just indulged in. Hands down, killer good BBQ! Everything I said in my previous review still stands. Of special note, besides the extremely good food, is the gregarious, outgoing, and hyper friendly personality that positively shines out of Mr Theo. One of the most convivial food vendors in town. Period!

    Craft Q Barbeque - bbq - Updated May 2026

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