So we thought we’d take a little Jeep Ride to HammerDown Barbeque in Aldie, VA. No problem, check the map, check the route, and check the estimated travel time. Well, 3 1/2 hours probably isn’t a little ride but we’ve gone further so I’m in. Checking their website I read that they sell out early a lot of the time. We’re still good. Tammy gets me to get up and moving so we can be there for lunch. Problem one. We have to go up I-95. Problem two. Well we never figured out what problem two was but we lost over an hour on 95. Now we’re just hoping that today isn’t one of their sell out days. We did finally make it to Aldie in about 5 hours. But that’s part of the fun doing this. You just never know what you’ll run in to along the way. And just in case you are wondering, Aldie is a little north of Manassas and just south of Leesburg, VA. And by the way, 95 South looked just as bad so needless to say, I mapped out a different route home. And here’s what we found at the top of this ride.

The Restaurant and Staff:

Sauce and Drink Counter.
HammerDown Barbeque.

HammerDown Barbeque has a very nice restaurant. They renovated an old building and opened up about 2 years ago. They really did a great job inside and out. Inside is very rustic and homey. We met Bob, one of the owners, inside. He was working the register and cleaning tables. Quite impressive. We talked to him a little and then let him get back to work. He was very nice as were the other young people working there.

Ken is the owner that I had read about prior to us deciding to make this ride. I did get to meet him just before leaving. He was pulling into the parking lot as we were getting ready to leave. Ken is a Marine Vet. I hadn’t noticed but Tammy informed me when I returned to the Jeep that the sign was in Marine colors. He was awesome. I loved talking to him. He thought we were a little crazy to come that far but was glad we did. I told him we were looking at a couple different places to try out but when we saw he was a veteran plus he drives a Jeep there was no more discussion about where we were going. HammerDown Barbeque was the one. And here’s what we discovered.

Tammy’s Choices at HammerDown Barbeque:

Sliced Brisket and Pulled Pork with Collards and Mac & Cheese.

Tammy ordered a Two Meat BBQ Platter with Pulled Pork and Sliced Brisket. Her sides were Collards and Mac & Cheese. The young man behind the counter said that mac & cheese is mac & cheese to him. He recommended the collards and the baked beans. Tammy went with the mac & cheese despite his recommendation. And much to her delight the mac & cheese was much more than that. It was fantastic. Nice and cheesy and creamy. Did I mention it is homemade? Yes indeed. The collards were exceptional. The seasoning was great and they weren’t over or under cooked. He was right about the collards. Especially considering they are out of season right now. The only way these collards could see a frost would be to spend the night in a freezer.

What about the pulled pork and the sliced brisket? The pork was outstanding. It had a great smoke flavor but not overpowering. The smoke, the meat and the rub came together wonderfully plus the fact that it was moist and tender. And the brisket, well it was just as impressive. I don’t say this lightly because we have been to some great restaurants serving great brisket but this was some of the best you can find. They cook it Texas Style. One of the things that Bob said was that you can’t just cook Texas Style, you have to be from Texas to do it. All I know about that is the brisket at HammerDown Barbeque rates up there with some of my favorite restaurants. Both the pork and the brisket were outstanding. Both had great smoke rings and they both were moist and tender. Just Awesome.

And My Choices:

Smoked Sausage and Ribs with Collards and Baked Beans.

I also chose a Two Meat BBQ Platter. I went for the Ribs and Smoked Sausage. And I took the young man behind the counter’s advice, I had the Collards and the Baked Beans for sides. Not to slight the mac & cheese but I’ll give credit where credit is due. This was a killer combination. So in addition to the collards that I already described, there was the baked beans. The beans were the bomb! I loved them. They had a mix of 3 – 4 types of beans with a thick bbq sauce. The beans are a must when you visit here.

The ribs were great. They had a wonderful smoky flavor along with some great seasoning. And along with the great taste they were tender and just delicious. The smoked sausage was sensational as well. This is a sausage anyone in the family can eat. It’s not hot. It just has a wonderful smoky flavor. Now I do like a mustard sauce with sausage but HammerDown Barbeque does not have one. So I opted for their Spicy Squirrel Sauce. Let me just say that when they tell you spicy, believe them. I loved it with my sausage. And that’s how you get hot smoked sausage.

In addition to this Bob gave Tammy a Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookie for it being our first visit. I think he intended for us to share. Well Tammy finished before me so needless to say when I did finish I had to go buy one of these cookies. That thing was soft and chocolate overload. It was such a great topper to our meals.

Final Thoughts:

HammerDown Barbeque.

So can you tell what I think? HammerDown Barbeque has been in the restaurant that they are in for about 2 years now. Ken ran the business from a food truck before that. The food was just awesome. We even bought another pound of pulled pork to take home. I really enjoyed talking to Ken in the parking lot. Like I said earlier, he’s a Marine Veteran and drives a Jeep. He loves bbq. We talked about some of the places that I’ve been. And yes I recommended a few of my favorites to him so he could try them out when he travels. My only drawback is the distance from my home. I will go back up there. Just like I told Ken, I’m coming back I just don’t know when. So my recommendation is if you are anywhere near Manassas or Leesburg you need to plan your route to go through Aldie, VA. I do believe you’ll be glad you did.

Now For Your Thoughts:

How do the rest of you feel? Have you been to HammerDown Barbeque? Tell us about your visit.

Any regulars want to join in? Tell us more about this place. What are some of your favorites? Help us get to know the staff better. Here’s your chance to add to my story and tell us about your favorite local bbq joint. Just scroll down and leave some comments in the box so I can get them posted with this article.

I look forward to hearing from you.

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You can check out their website at: http://hammerdownbbq.com/

You can also find them on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/HammerDownBbq/

Enjoy the ride, good eating and thanks for stopping by.