Park n Pork BBQ

Barbecue lends itself to being served from a food truck: the meat and sides were prepared long ago, so your food can be ready in the time it takes you to pay Even if the order in question is the Oink, Cluck, and Moo (no relation to a similar dish at Red Rock Canyon), a three meat sampler of pork, brisket, and chicken with two sides.
Upon first glance, it’s difficult to tell which is the brisket and which is the pork, because both are pulled. There’s a reason you don’t see many restaurants serving pulled brisket — even at its best, there’s no way there’s enough fat or connective tissue to make four-​inch strands of beef tender. You serve it sliced against the grain so the fibrous tissues are small and easier to chew. Or if it’s not good enough to slice, you chop it. As a result, the brisket I ate was a little dry and chewy, but still pretty good slathered with the honey notes in the barbecue sauce. It would probably be better served in the sandwiches and wraps that serve as the bulk of PnP’s menu.
The pulled pork was better in texture thanks to a better amount of fat to serve as lubrication. Among the better pork I’ve had in the city, the only complaints I could find were that the smoke and seasoning didn’t penetrate into the meat as much as I would have preferred, but since this often dries the meat out and serves as the downfall of many pitmasters, I’ll opt for the juicy pork, thank you.
The full chicken leg and thigh was also well executed — a good bit of smoke and plenty of moistness to the chicken. Seasoning was plentiful, but only on the exterior, so it never made it past the not-​very-​crispy skin.
Mac and cheese was average, which is to say, mushy and not that cheesy. The spicy garlic green beans were an interesting mixture of beans, a little tomato, and an overwhelming amount of minced garlic. I am a big garlic fan, and I’m glad they are trying to mix it up, but by all prudent judgment, there is way too much garlic in those beans.
Barbecue has long languished in this city, with one mediocre attempt after another questioning what special something doesn’t make the trip from Kansas City. There’s been more attempts to break through that molasses and tomato-​based ceiling within the past year, many of which are to be found in the parking lots and public parks near you. Park n Pork is one that isn’t entirely successful, but certainly warrants a point for the good guys.