The Memphis pulled pork sandwich is hickory-smoked pork shoulder pulled, piled on a soft white bun, topped with mustard slaw and a splash of BBQ sauce.
Where to eat it: 4 restaurants across 1 city.
Pulled pork shoulder is the heart of Memphis BBQ alongside ribs. Pitmasters smoke whole shoulders 14 to 18 hours over hickory and pull the meat by hand. The mustard-slaw topping is a Memphis-specific signature, distinguishing it from the vinegar slaw of the Carolinas. Payne's on Lamar Avenue, opened in 1972, codified the cheap-pulled-pork-sandwich form.
Common allergens: Pork, Wheat, Mustard
Tip from the editors. Use a probe thermometer. The probe slide test matters more than the temperature. Slaw on top, not on the side.
Payne's chopped pork sandwich with mustard slaw on Lamar Avenue in South Memphis stays under $10, the Memphis cheap-BBQ defining order since the family.
Try: Chopped pork sandwich
Order: Chopped pork sandwich, mustard slaw, fizzy red drink.
Tip: Open Tuesday to Saturday lunch only, 11:00-17:30. Cash preferred. The line moves fast.
Central BBQ Downtown in Memphis runs the city's most reliable dry-rub ribs and pulled pork from a casual counter across from the National Civil Rights Museum.
Signature: Dry-rub pork ribs, Pulled pork sandwich
Order: Half slab of dry ribs with a smoked turkey sandwich on the side.
Tip: Lines from noon to 14:00; order online and pick up at the express counter to skip the queue.
A&R Bar-B-Que on Elvis Presley Boulevard in South Memphis has run Black-owned hickory-smoke BBQ from a converted gas station since 1983, quiet on tourist.
Why locals love it: Tourists on the Elvis Presley Boulevard stretch head straight to Graceland gift shops; A&R is the BBQ counter that Memphis locals quietly defer to for ribs.
Tip: The smoked bologna sandwich is the under-radar order; pair it with mustard slaw on the side.
Frank and Hazel Vernon's Madison Avenue Memphis BBQ room invented BBQ spaghetti and has run dry-rub and wet ribs from a wood-pit smoker since 1987.
Signature: BBQ spaghetti, Dancing Pigs ribs
Order: Half slab of dry ribs with a side of BBQ spaghetti.
Tip: Closed Sundays and Mondays. The Dancing Pigs sauce ships nationally if you want to keep the meal going.
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