I have known about Woods Pit BBQ in Bantam, CT., since the early 90s. The owner “Woodie” opened the first Mexican restaurant in the town of Litchfield. Woodie had ventured out west to a town called Apache Junction in Arizona. During his time out west he learned the skills to make authentic Mexican food at a small cantina. Years later, back in Connecticut, he put his cooking talents to work. In 1991, Woodie decided to add “pitmaster” to his resume, and Woods Pit BBQ and Mexican Café was born. Twenty plus years and the Woods tradition continues under new owner Liz and her pitmaster son Andrew.
First, even though it is only 10 minutes away from my summer vacation spot, I had not been to Woods in many, many years. I was eager to see if it was as good as I remembered.
No Worries Needed
My crew of eaters included myself, son Zvck. Joe Bags and my youngest son James. No salad eaters here. These are prime examples of carnivorous maximus. We entered, ready to eat.
Woods is not a huge place but rather a comfortable dining room with a separate bar area that looks made for happy hour and beyond. The dining room has about 15 tables. We arrived around 430, and there was plenty of room. An hour later and, the place was jumping. Liz warmly greeted us and gave me a great interview on the spot, even though I hadn’t called ahead. TY Liz!
A quick tour of the cooking area followed, and I was introduced to son Andrew and the 25-year-old Southern Pride K-Series smoker he uses to make the low and slow magic. The fuel is strictly hickory sticks, no pellets here, and the rub is basic salt and pepper. Cooking is done the night before the serving day. The smell was intoxicating even though the smoking was long over.
Alright, Lets Get to the Business at Hand: The Grub.
Owners are usually right about their product, and when asked about recommendations, the owners were quick to point out their burnt ends and smoked wings as favorites. Liz said they often sell out. Check. We started with the Burnt Ends appetizer and an order of wings. The ends had a nice bark and were juicy inside. Woods homemade BBQ sauce was delicious on the meat. The wings were smoked to a wonderful crispness and tender inside. We had some medium hot BBQ sauce on the side. So far, Woods is crushing it.
Now, we were there to sample as many examples of Woods cooking as was reasonable, and that’s what we did. Our table was awash in brisket, smoked chicken, pulled pork, and St Louis ribs. I also spotted something I haven’t heard of: The Texas Hotdog! Yeah, we need one of those. The Texas dog is a thick slice of smoked bologna served hamburger style on a bulky roll with pickles, onion, melted cheese, and chili. Wow. I wouldn’t make a habit of it but damn. Well worth the experience,
The brisket was very good, with a nice bark, and what I liked best was that there was still enough fat on it for great flavor and tenderness. The ribs were on point, beautiful looking, and just a drizzle of sauce snaked over the rack. They tasted even better than the presentation. No sauce needed, really.
Let me say a quick word about the sauces at Woods. Number 1? Homemade. Number 2? In addition to a traditional style BBQ sauce, which, frankly, Zvck said he would drink, Woods makes a genuine Carolina pepper sauce based on vinegar and no tomato base. It’s a honey-ish looking amber liquid and goes great on the pulled pork. The sauce holds up compared to many I’ve tried in Carolina.
For the sides, the coleslaw and collard greens stood out.
Final Thoughts
Overall, Woods is right up my alley and, in my opinion, produces top-notch BBQ. We never got to the Mexican menu, but the table next to us did. The food looked amazing. Next time Liz.
LOCATION
123 Bantam Lake Rd.
Bantam CT. 06750
(860) 567-9869
HOURS
MON-Weds – Closed
Thurs – Sat – 11:30 AM till 9 PM
Sun – 11:30 AM till 8 PM
