Best St. Louis BBQ Restaurants

There are few places in the United States with barbeque as delicious as St. Louis, Missouri. When you don’t feel like firing up the grill yourself, you can still enjoy a variety of great barbecue places. Here are some of the best barbecue restaurants in the St. Louis area.

Ethyl’s Smokehouse and Saloon

Ribs by stu_spivack is licensed with CC BY-SA 2.0 

At Ethyl’s Smokehouse and Saloon, you can enjoy an authentic St. Louis barbecue experience in a comfortable, rustic atmosphere. Located about 40 minutes from St. Louis in O’Fallon, Ethyl’s first opened in 1926 and had several other names and owners before ultimately becoming Ethyl’s. Their massive on-site smoker is used to prepare all their delicious meats. You can order a smoked pulled pork platter, a smoked brisket platter, a smoked center-cut barbecue pork steak, a catfish filet smoked with pecan wood, or smoked ribs with half a chicken.

Other options include a half rack or a full rack of barbecue ribs, chicken tenders, grilled chicken breast with cheese and mushrooms, and fried catfish. Steak lovers can’t get enough of Ethyl’s 12-ounce prime rib, 10-ounce ribeye, and 5-ounce saloon steak, which is a bacon-wrapped sirloin seared over a wood fire. You can also try their Carolina-style smoked pork, smoked brisket, smoked chicken, smoked barbecue chicken, buffalo tenders, chicken tenders, Philly cheese steak, or smoked rib sandwiches.

Location: 8505 Veteran’s Memorial Parkway, O’Fallon, Missouri, 63366.

Hours: Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to midnight.

Bogart’s Smokehouse

Bogart’s Smokehouse has impressive portions and a variety of delicious options. You can choose ribs, pulled pork, beef brisket, turkey, and more; each barbecue platter comes with two side items. If you want more variety, you can pick two types of meat. Their Bulk & EZ Family Combos can feed up to eight people, making Bogart’s a great place to bring your family. And if you really love their unique taste, Bogart’s also sells sauces and dry rubs that you can use in your own barbecue.

Location: 1627 S. 19th St., St. Louis, Missouri, 63104.

Hours: Tuesday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

J. Smugs Gastro Pit

J. Smugs Gastro Pit is in Ballwin, about half an hour from St. Louis, and this casual place is inside a former gas station. They offer a wide selection of barbecue meats and vegetarian and vegan alternatives. You can start with their smoked, cheese-stuffed meatballs with red pepper aioli or barbecue mushrooms with parmesan cheese.

For your main course, try a full or half rack of ribs, brisket with burnt ends, turkey breast, or pulled pork. Or, if you’re feeling a little adventurous, try their brisket bacon jam burger with homemade bacon jam, cheddar cheese, lettuce, and tomato on a brioche bun. There’s also a plant-based burger and a smoked Portobello sandwich with mozzarella cheese, onion, tomato, spinach, and herb mayonnaise for vegetarian patrons.

Location: 15622 Manchester Rd, Ballwin, MO 63011.

Hours: Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Pappy’s Smokehouse

The Food Network named Pappy’s Smokehouse the best ribs in America. Pappy’s has house-special dry rubs that are the talk of the town, and their platter and sandwich menus include pulled pork, turkey breast, beef hot links, and beef brisket. You can also try a barbecue salad, a barbecue stuffed spud, or Frito pie. Carry-out combos that feed four to eight people are available.

Location: 3106 Olive St., St. Louis, Missouri, 63103.

Hours: Sunday and Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

BEAST Butcher & Block

For great barbecue made by skilled chefs, check out BEAST Butcher & Block. BEAST offers a variety of smoked meats, including beer and hickory kielbasa, pulled pork, brisket, jerk sausage, smoked cauliflower, and turkey breast. Half and full racks of ribs are also available, or you can get a basket of rib tips. Or, for a real treat, try their pork steak grilled with cherry wood and basted with a delicious sauce.

Location: 4156 Manchester Ave, St. Louis, Missouri, 63110.

Hours: Sunday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Wednesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Smoking Barrels BBQ

Smoking Barrels BBQ offers actual barrels of smoked barbecue, each containing a pound of meat. Options include a rack of ribs, barbecue chicken, barbecue beef, barbecue pork, ribs and chicken, and ribs and pulled pork. You can also get sandwiches made with any of the previously listed meats or try one made with turkey breast, pulled chicken, beef brisket, spicy chicken and brisket, or tender pork steak. But save room for dessert and finish your meal with a delicate, rustic apple tart.

Location: 5641 S. Kingshighway St. Louis, Missouri, 63109.

Hours: Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

The Shaved Duck

For live folk and soul music with your barbecue plate, visit The Shaved Duck. Their signature duck confit appetizer is a savory, slow-roasted pair of duck legs poached in duck fat and orange glaze. Their smokehouse specialties offer baby back ribs, a turkey sandwich, a pulled pork sandwich, a burnt ends sandwich, shrimp and grits, or a brisket burger. And if that isn’t enough for you, you can add two baby back ribs to any order.

Location: 2900 Virginia Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri, 63118 and 10233 Manchester Road., St. Louis, Missouri, 63122.

Hours: The Virginia Avenue location is open from Tuesday through Thursday from 4 to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from noon to 10 p.m. You can visit the place on Manchester Road every day from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The St. Louis area is home to many other excellent barbecue places. In addition to the outstanding places mentioned above, you can try Salt + Smoke, Roper’s Ribs, Hogtown Smokehouse, and more. Contact us at AutoCenters Herculaneum and let us know which barbecue restaurants and dishes in the St. Louis area are your favorites.