The BBQ Joint opening at Union Market this Thursday

1309 5th Street, NE

From a press release:

“Great news for BBQ fans, on Thursday, December 11, Chef Andrew Evans will bring The BBQ Joint to Union Market – the vibrant district in Northeast DC. The ‘cue master will serve his signature brand of low and slow barbecue that has already earned a devoted following at his two BBQ Joint restaurants in Easton and Pasadena, Maryland.

“Bringing the BBQ Joint to the District was a natural,” says Evans. “This is a town that really cares about handcrafted, flavorful food and celebrates the effort that goes into creating it.”

Photo courtesy BBQ Joint

The menu will feature ribs, pork butt and brisket, along with mouth-watering sides like collard greens, baked beans and cornbread. Evans will also treat Washingtonians to smoked Sriracha and beer sausage, which will be sold exclusively at Union Market. Other special offerings will showcase Chef Evans’ passion for rubbing down meats and dialing them in with smokers, to get just the right bark, juiciness and smoke flavor to pluck anyone’s primal caveman chord.

Photo courtesy BBQ Joint

Evans trained at the Culinary Institute of America and has been recognized as one of the country’ s leading fine dining chefs for his previous work at The Inn at Easton. He has graced the cover of The Washingtonian, been featured in The New York Times’ food section, earned three-stars from The Washington Post and has recently appeared on The Food Network going head-to-head with Bobby Flay on new, hit television show, “Beat Bobby Flay.”

Evans pivoted from fine dining to BBQ after being asked to judge the Jack Daniels BBQ competition a decade ago. “I was blown away by intricacies that went into competition-level BBQ,” Evans says. “I became obsessed.” Since then, he has devoted himself to mastering the art of the ‘cue, by fine tuning his own rubs and sauces, experimenting endlessly with the variables of smoke and temperature and sourcing the highest quality meats.

Photo courtesy BBQ Joint

The result is competition-worthy barbecue that borrows the best traditions from Texas to Kansas City, while revealing layers of flavor that honor Evans’ culinary training.

“Great BBQ is all about the subtle details,” explains Evans. He likens the BBQ process to the creation of wine stating, “BBQ is like a great wine; it’s so simple but complex and difficult to master.” Therein lies the challenge – balancing the endless changing variables to ultimately create something that is both magical and ethereal.

“It’s rare for people who don’t follow the competition circuit to have access to this level of barbecue,” he says. “I wanted to make it available to everyone because I want to share my passion with people—it’s the chef in me, I guess.”

Starting December 11, the BBQ Joint at Union Market will be open Tuesday through Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. The BBQ Joint will offer take-out, as well as catering for larger events in and around the DC area.”