NEWS

Below are some reviews by TripAdvisor members:

Traveler rating:

Savannah: Angel's BBQ: "Great BBQ, Nice Owners!"
Jul 5, 2006: A TripAdvisor Member, Merritt Island, FL

After years of searching in and around Savannah's Historic District, I had all but given up finding good barbeque. However, from the moment I walked into Angel's, I knew I was in for something different. When you step into this kitchen-sized eatery, you come face to face with Eileen and Andy, two of the nicest folks you'll meet in the restaurant game. The menu is very small, but what they choose to do, they do quite well.

My wife ordered the Memphis special, a large pulled pork sandwich topped with slaw, and what a great sandwich it was. The pork was juicy, flavorful, and abundant; topped with a slaw containing mustard, something I've never seen in a restaurant. As for the pulled pork, Andy nailed it perfectly. It makes you wonder why most of the big places have such a hard time with this, the prince of smoked meat.

One item on the menu that caught my attention was the barbecued bologna sandwich with slaw. I've seen barbecued bologna on the Food Network, and Andy explained that it was very common in Tennessee. What a wonderful treat it turned out to be. The seasoning and smoked turned this common meat into something magic. My wife, not a bologna fan at all, tried it and was an instant convert. I'm going to try to replicate it at home; how much more of a compliment can I give.

I hadn't ordered any sides because I really wanted to load up on meat. The sandwich I had (along what was left of my wife’s) was more than enough to fill me up and I don't think I could have eaten any more. However, Aileen gave me a bowl of Mac & Cheese and convinced me to try it with their house special Serrano Chili and Dill Pickle Brine hot sauce. OK, I know it sounds weird, but I gave it a go and guess what, it will be on my list of things to eat whenever I'm in town.

Great food served by nice people who care about what they do. It’s a recipe for success and I hope to see them for many years to come.

Traveler rating: Savannah: Angel's BBQ: "great southern BBQ in the historic district" Feb 23, 2006: A TripAdvisor Member, neptune beach
this place is great. try the angel's special .. bbq pork and slaw on a bun!! you will come back for more.

Traveler rating:

Savannah: Angel's BBQ: "Memphis Style BBQ Fans Rejoice!"

Oct 21, 2005

If you like in-your-mouth, tantalizing, moist, tangy, tender Memphis-Style BBQ, THIS is the place to go! Angel's BBQ in Savannah is a real treat for any BBQ lover.

It is a very small place (Mom & Pop type) located on Oglethorpe way directly behind the Independent Presbyterian Church between Bull and Whitaker. You will probably smell the sweet hickory smoke from several blocks away! Step inside this intimate place and seek your reward!

Pulled pork and chicken sandwiches, BBQ plates, several choices of sides (macaroni & cheese, BBQ beans, slaw, french fries, etc.) and sweet tea or soda to drink. One of the sides that I really loved was the peanuts and greens! I understand this is a really old southern dish.

Go there! You'll be glad you did!!

User rating:

Savannah: Angel's BBQ: "New Place excellent BBQ"
Aug 9, 2005: A TripAdvisor Member, Savannah, GA

Recently opened on West Oglethorpe Lane (in the lane on the south side of the church between Bull and Whitaker) an outstanding new BBQ place, Angel's BBQ is run by a husband and wife team and man can they cook!

Slightly smokey, tasty but not too much fire, very good.

BBQ plate- meat and two sides and the obligatory slice of white bread was $7 or just get a sandwhich, pulled chicken or pork on a very good roll for $5

If you go try the greens and peanuts, a strange combination but excellent.

User rating:

Savannah: Angel's BBQ: "Fantastic Memphis-Style BBQ"
Aug 23, 2005: A TripAdvisor Member, Savannah, GA

There is a great barbecue place I stumbled across-- which is odd because I usually know about restaurants in Savannah. This is Memphis-Style BBQ, which if you're not familiar is not mustardy or sweet like so many Southern BBQ styles. This is tangy and with the right amount of spice.

I recommend the chicken plate, although I had to go back the next day and have the pork, which was good, too. I'm a little leery of the BBQ baloney, but Andrew the chef swears it was Elvis' favorite type of food. I may have to try it next time, if it was good enough for the King.

The collard greens are a strange peanut concoction, and although I generally don't like greens I found these to be very good.

I definitely recommend this place.

User rating:

Savannah: Angel's BBQ: "Heaven on Earth"
Oct 18, 2005: A TripAdvisor Member, Savannah, GA

My fiance and I recently moved to Savannah and live downtown. We go for walks around the area to get more familiar with the area and on a couple of occasions we got a whiff of this great smelling BBQ, but could never really tell where it was coming from. Finally last week a co-worker told my fiance about this place and we came to the conclustion based on it's location it had to be the place we kept smelling. So, this past Saturday we walked down there and the closer we got the better it smelled.

I was a little worried when we saw that they had a very limited menu (Chicken, Pork, and Baloney), but after eating there, I came to the conclusion that it didn't matter because their pork sandwhich with coleslaw on topt was probably one of the best thing I have ever tasted and I would never have ordered anything else if they did offer more. The combination of the BBQ pork and coleslaw was amazing. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

I got that and a side of fries (perfectly salted and hot) and mac and cheese (it made a Southern girl proud). Plus, they had a gumbo that day that they gave me a small side of to try on the house. That's how wonderful they are there. The gumbo was great. Hot and spicey, just the way I like it.

Here's the kicker....all the locals love it and in Savannah, that's how you know it's good food. If the locals love it, you can rest assure that it's going to be some of the best food you ever ate. ;)

This article appeared in "Connect Savannah.com" August 17, 2005

Angel's in America
Out-of-the-way downtown spot specializes in Memphis BBQ

By Traci Dasher-Sullivan
August 17, 2005
Robert Frost once wrote of choosing to take the road less traveled and how that made “all the difference.” That idea also applies in the world of restaurants.

Oglethorpe Lane, between Oglethorpe Avenue and Hull Street, is definitely a “road less traveled”, but owners Andrew and Aileen Trice plan to change that with the hickory-smoked Memphis-style meats of Angel’s BBQ.

Angel’s has a limited amount of seating, so they do most of their business in take-out. Due to their side-street location, most of that business thus far has been by word-of-mouth.

So what exactly is “Memphis-style”?

“In South Carolina, people tend to use a mustard-based sauce,” says Trice. “Georgia’s sauces are more ketchup-based and sweeter. Memphis-style barbecue is generally tangier and more vinegar based than tomato based.”

Memphis-style barbecue also relies on spice rubs as opposed to a heavy sauce to deliver flavor, and Angel’s has their own unique blend: Angel Dust.

Relax, there’s nothing hallucinogenic about it… just a special blend of herbs and spices developed after five years of loving labor.

He created the sauce used at Angel’s as well, having established a forte as saucier during his studies at the California Culinary Academy. After 12 years of fine dining experience in both Europe and the U.S., he decided to go with his heart – and go with barbecue.

Andrew’s love was out of place in California. “Nobody in California knows barbecue,” he says. “In California, if you’re invited to a ‘barbecue’, you’re likely to get anything from fish to hamburgers… but not actual barbecue.”

Andrew’s influences actually come from his roots -- his mother hails from Memphis, his father from Georgia.

So what’s smokin’ at Angel’s? According to the menu, pulled pork, chicken and… bologna?

“Barbecued bologna is a Memphis favorite, and it was actually one of Elvis’s favorites as well,” says Trice “You take the whole bologna and slit all over, then smoke it. It’s served thick-sliced as a sandwich with barbecue sauce and coleslaw on top.” Angel’s also has a pork sandwich on the menu.

And what would barbecue be without the appropriate side dishes? How about some mac n’ cheese, BBQ baked beans, greens and coleslaw (they have fries too). But before you order up, know this: Aside from the mac and the beans, these are not your grandma’s go-alongs.

The exterior

While at the Academy, Trice met a gentleman from our own barrier islands who showed him an old West African way of cooking greens. You will find no fatback or ham hocks in this recipe; what you will find is peanuts.

The greens are cooked in a tangy, mild peanut sauce, and while they may not be what you’re used to, they are definitely worth giving a try. The coleslaw is another Memphis method of preparation using a vinegar and mustard base rather than the either sweet or spicy mayonnaise based coleslaws of our area.

Although the previous items are the only ones on the core menu, other dishes, such as Hop N’ John, Andouille Sausage and Chicken Gumbo and Tasso (spicy pork pieces) and Corn Stew have been offered as Soups of the Day, with dishes such as Brunswick Stew to be added in the future.

Before I left, a final question occurred to me: Where did the name Angel’s BBQ come from? Aileen laughed and let me in on the secret..

“Andrew wanted to be a writer before he went into cooking,” she explains “When we were first dating, he wrote a children’s book called Birds and the Bees, and he illustrated me in it as an angel. I’ve been his angel ever since.”

Angel’s BBQ is at 21 West Oglethorpe Lane, near Whitaker Street. Hours are Wednesday thru Saturday, 11:30 till 6:00 p.m. and Sunday 11:30 till 3:00 p.m. For take out orders, call 912-495-0902.