8 ms·

That's because lobster roll customers are rich yuppies. BBQ is for poor people who cannot afford good cuts of meat so they resort to pulverizing bad cuts of mea

by pie420 5y ago

That's because lobster roll customers are rich yuppies. BBQ is for poor people who cannot afford good cuts of meat so they resort to pulverizing bad cuts of meat with smoke heat and sauce.

agogdog 5y ago
You seem to be getting downvoted, but you're not wrong. They're entirely different ends of the market.
jt2190 5y ago
> BBQ is for poor people... This is really not true anymore. BBQ has become a high-ticket item thanks to “Craft BBQ” and growing demand https://www.khou.com/mobile/article/news/brisket-prices-are-rising-experts-explain-why/285-9c9bf906-57dc-4e32-ac71-0f7211bab0ed https://www.khou.com/mobile/article/news/brisket-prices-are-...
- throwaway0a5e 5y ago
  You're exactly right that BBQ is popular and that's why BBQ is getting worse. I know I sound like a salty hipster but bear with me for a moment. There's some "show me the incentives I'll show you the outcome" reasoning behind my opinion. When a thing becomes trendy among moneyed demographics there is now stupid money to be made selling a caricature of that thing to people with too much money. BBQ is one of those thigns becoming just another experience for yuppies to talk about in the break room on Mondays. When you're running a BBQ joint you're not selling meat cooked in a particular style, you're selling an experience. People don't care about whether your BBQ is a career long refinement of what grandma made. They care about whether it's something they can brag about. They're looking for an experience and if you want to stay in business you're gonna sell it to them. It's not about doing your thing well, it's about presentation and show. Many of the people running these restaurants hate bastardizing their craft and leaning into an image/stereotype like this but it's what pays the bills. Maybe I'm just jaded from growing up in a tourism economy but money uncritically thrown at something tends to ruin it. When I go looking for a restaurant I go for <censored>, <censored> and <censored>, because those three genres aren't trendy right now and any business specializing in them has to succeed on its own merits, it can't just print money by looking the part.
  - yourapostasy 5y ago
    Fortunately, BBQ in particular is one of those cuisines that with close attention to detail and some hours spent researching on the Net, you as an individual can turn out a brisket that, if not as good as say Snow's or Franklin, is more than Good Enough for an extremely satisfying experience when done with some friends and family as a group effort. One of the glories of our current age is this outcome can be reproduced with many if not all other cuisines and dishes.
    - tonyb 5y ago
      This is very true - I think that is one of the reasons BBQ is so popular across so many demographics - it is relatable and achievable.
      - yourapostasy 5y ago
        No less a pit master than Aaron Franklin will tell anyone who cares to listen that they individually can absolutely turn out a brisket that is equal to or better than what he serves up at his eponymous restaurant. He takes pains to point out it only takes caring attention to detail to that single brisket, which is why I think I run into a greater proportion of BBQ enthusiasts in hacker circles compared to my other communities when categorized by interests. He freely admits his and other pit masters' "secret sauce" lays in how they scale it up and keeps it close to what they produce when they are making only one brisket at home for family and friends. I generally consider BBQ competitions overblown affairs that are arguing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. To me, after a certain point it is quite good enough, and any further optimization for "better" doesn't pass my personal cost-benefit filter, and I'd rather spend the cognitive effort on my dining companions. It is either that, or I possess a philistine palate. The latter is quite possible because I hold a similar opinion of many of the fine dining establishments I've eaten at, from quite fine kaiseki, omakase, Chinese, Michelin-starred French, various fusions, steak, and other restaurants, some with pretty eye-popping per-diner prices. That's mostly because I believe that we're at the nascent, fragile stages of achieving post-scarcity (by no means assured, and still many generations away), and part of that journey involves the elevation of increasingly finer experiences (perhaps some requiring ever-greater cognitive effort to appreciate that I'm not aware of) to a mass market.
- rsj_hn 5y ago
  Yup, there is craft everything now. For example, macaroni and cheese. To me, that will always be the poor folk food of my youth, even though my friends rave about eating it at fine dining establishments. I'm sure soon we'll have artisinal sloppy joes as well -- why not, with high quality ingredients and a creative chef, you can make any dish interesting.
rootusrootus 5y ago
> pulverizing bad cuts of meat Huh? The cuts are tough, yes, but they're also the most flavorful. There's nothing bad about them. Go try and use a ribeye to make a cheeseburger sometime. It's incredibly bland compared to the flavor you're used to getting from chuck.
wyager 5y ago
Modern high-end brisket prep is hardly "pulverizing". If anything, good BBQ is closer to sous vide prep (long-duration low-temperature cooking).

by pie420 5y ago

That's because lobster roll customers are rich yuppies. BBQ is for poor people who cannot afford good cuts of meat so they resort to pulverizing bad cuts of meat with smoke heat and sauce.

agogdog 5y ago

You seem to be getting downvoted, but you're not wrong. They're entirely different ends of the market.

jt2190 5y ago

> BBQ is for poor people... This is really not true anymore. BBQ has become a high-ticket item thanks to “Craft BBQ” and growing demand https://www.khou.com/mobile/article/news/brisket-prices-are-rising-experts-explain-why/285-9c9bf906-57dc-4e32-ac71-0f7211bab0ed https://www.khou.com/mobile/article/news/brisket-prices-are-...

throwaway0a5e 5y ago
You're exactly right that BBQ is popular and that's why BBQ is getting worse. I know I sound like a salty hipster but bear with me for a moment. There's some "show me the incentives I'll show you the outcome" reasoning behind my opinion. When a thing becomes trendy among moneyed demographics there is now stupid money to be made selling a caricature of that thing to people with too much money. BBQ is one of those thigns becoming just another experience for yuppies to talk about in the break room on Mondays. When you're running a BBQ joint you're not selling meat cooked in a particular style, you're selling an experience. People don't care about whether your BBQ is a career long refinement of what grandma made. They care about whether it's something they can brag about. They're looking for an experience and if you want to stay in business you're gonna sell it to them. It's not about doing your thing well, it's about presentation and show. Many of the people running these restaurants hate bastardizing their craft and leaning into an image/stereotype like this but it's what pays the bills. Maybe I'm just jaded from growing up in a tourism economy but money uncritically thrown at something tends to ruin it. When I go looking for a restaurant I go for <censored>, <censored> and <censored>, because those three genres aren't trendy right now and any business specializing in them has to succeed on its own merits, it can't just print money by looking the part.
- yourapostasy 5y ago
  Fortunately, BBQ in particular is one of those cuisines that with close attention to detail and some hours spent researching on the Net, you as an individual can turn out a brisket that, if not as good as say Snow's or Franklin, is more than Good Enough for an extremely satisfying experience when done with some friends and family as a group effort. One of the glories of our current age is this outcome can be reproduced with many if not all other cuisines and dishes.
  - tonyb 5y ago
    This is very true - I think that is one of the reasons BBQ is so popular across so many demographics - it is relatable and achievable.
    - yourapostasy 5y ago
      No less a pit master than Aaron Franklin will tell anyone who cares to listen that they individually can absolutely turn out a brisket that is equal to or better than what he serves up at his eponymous restaurant. He takes pains to point out it only takes caring attention to detail to that single brisket, which is why I think I run into a greater proportion of BBQ enthusiasts in hacker circles compared to my other communities when categorized by interests. He freely admits his and other pit masters' "secret sauce" lays in how they scale it up and keeps it close to what they produce when they are making only one brisket at home for family and friends. I generally consider BBQ competitions overblown affairs that are arguing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. To me, after a certain point it is quite good enough, and any further optimization for "better" doesn't pass my personal cost-benefit filter, and I'd rather spend the cognitive effort on my dining companions. It is either that, or I possess a philistine palate. The latter is quite possible because I hold a similar opinion of many of the fine dining establishments I've eaten at, from quite fine kaiseki, omakase, Chinese, Michelin-starred French, various fusions, steak, and other restaurants, some with pretty eye-popping per-diner prices. That's mostly because I believe that we're at the nascent, fragile stages of achieving post-scarcity (by no means assured, and still many generations away), and part of that journey involves the elevation of increasingly finer experiences (perhaps some requiring ever-greater cognitive effort to appreciate that I'm not aware of) to a mass market.
rsj_hn 5y ago
Yup, there is craft everything now. For example, macaroni and cheese. To me, that will always be the poor folk food of my youth, even though my friends rave about eating it at fine dining establishments. I'm sure soon we'll have artisinal sloppy joes as well -- why not, with high quality ingredients and a creative chef, you can make any dish interesting.

rootusrootus 5y ago

> pulverizing bad cuts of meat Huh? The cuts are tough, yes, but they're also the most flavorful. There's nothing bad about them. Go try and use a ribeye to make a cheeseburger sometime. It's incredibly bland compared to the flavor you're used to getting from chuck.

wyager 5y ago

Modern high-end brisket prep is hardly "pulverizing". If anything, good BBQ is closer to sous vide prep (long-duration low-temperature cooking).