Pop’s is Tops

St. Florian, AL –  After reading a recent article about this local barbecue eatery, my friend Jim and I decided to give them a try on our way up to the state line for lottery ticket. The Friday that we visited was a bright sunny day and when we pulled into the parking lot we took the last parking slot in front of the building. Being a pretty Friday, all of the tradesman working in the area decided Pop’s was where they needed to eat. Especially, those that knew the catfish plate was the lunch special. We observed several of the plates being delivered to the tables and they looked great.

We contemplated the catfish plate but we were on a quest to sample the BBQ. I ordered the BBQ with fries, hot-slaw & roll. The BBQ plates were another of their daily specials that included a drink. We got our drink from the self service dispenser and checked out all of the decorations on the walls.

On one wall is several old photographs of St. Florian in the past when it was more than just a bedroom community for Florence. On another wall was the pig collection along with a sign proudly proclaiming “Bring A Pig, Get a Sandwich Free”, from the looks of it they’ve gave away a whole lot of sandwiches.

It didn’t take long for the BBQ plates to be delivered to the table by the friendly staff. The plates looked very appealing and both the BBQ and fries were freshly prepared. The slaw had some mustard undertones but also include ketchup for coloring. Overall, the slaw had just the right amount of bite to it.

I reckon I need to explain something before I ramble on, both Jim and I are Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS) certified BBQ judges and we don’t take lightly our KCBS oath to uphold the time honored traditions and rules a BBQ judge has to swear too. I know what your thinking at this point, but heck, it’s a tough job but somebody’s got to do it. So, having explained that, let me just say, that if I was judging the barbecue in a contest, it would have rated very highly. We both scored it a 9 out of a possible ten. I think our only knock down was that both of us like a bit more smoke in the meat, but then that’s just us. However, as they say in the car TV commercials, YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary).

Now I’m not making this up, the barbecue was good enough that I took my wife on the next trip to Pop’s BBQ a few days later, (she’s also a certified KCBS Judge), and I ordered the Jumbo BBQ sandwich and she ordered the pulled chicken sandwich. Again, we put the officially taste test to it and again the BBQ rated highly. Debra rated the chicken highly also and gave it her best rating of “I’ll come back and eat it again”!

So here’s the scoop, grab a pig shaped item that you’ll part with and go get a free sandwich or you can just trade them some money for BBQ. Owner’s Tim & Beverly Dixon would love to have your business.

Pop’s BBQ is located at 3477 Co Rd 61 in St. Florian, it’s the first left past the St. Florian City Hall, before you get to the Big Star. You can’t miss it, there is a huge Pig and Chicken out near the road. They are open 10 am – 7 pm, Monday – Saturday and they accept all major credit cards.