After a few years of successful BBQ and music festivals in Bristol, the opening of a permanent home for Bristol brand Grillstock in the city centre’s St Nicholas Market was long overdue. It’s only recently that I’ve made it over there for the first time (my lunch breaks are normally manic!) as a fuelling point before heading down to Exeter for the Food Magazine Readers Awards ceremony.
The menu may be fairly limited (it changes regularly, though, so you have an excuse to keep heading back…) – but you’ll be enjoying authentic BBQ from the pit smoker that takes up a vast amount of space in the former Trethowan’s Dairy premises. On the day of our visit, the only option was the pulled pork roll: £4.50 for a Hobbs House bap stuffed with house slaw and locally-reared, free range pork shoulder which is seasoned and smoked over hickory for 18 hours. I had mine smothered with Grillstock’s legendary BBQ sauce, whereas the other half went for the fiery version – we could have added BBQ beans for a further £1.50, but decided that the roll was enough to satisfy our appetites!
You’ll need plenty of napkins…BBQ is tricky to eat in a dignified way! We both loved the pork – tender and smokey, and nice and juicy too. The slaw was miles better than the bog standard stuff, wonderfully crunchy and with a nice kick from the raw onions. The bun did get a bit soggy, though, and neither of us was completely convinced by the texture.
You can get your BBQ to either take away or eat there, but be warned: with only two small tables next to the stall, space is at a premium. Don’t let this put you off, though – Grillstock is well worth a visit.
Find Grillstock on the Bristol Bites Directory…
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